Does a Lifecrafter need offensive magic? How many canisters is too many?[G5]

[madrigan]

Question 1: I am attempting G5 again after two prior attempts which produced terrible characters who got beat up in any of the tougher battles towards the end of the game. This time I am a Lifecrafter, and I am trying to approach skill point distribution based on the character class description, that is, I am letting my creations do almost all of the fighting while I stay back and use buffs and healing spells.

 

So far I have been putting most of my points into Intelligence, Battle and Magic Shaping, Healing Craft, and Blessing Magic. Is it possible to succeed this way? Do I need to find or train in the higher level Battle and Mental Magic spells, or can I reserve those points to make more and better creations? Am I going to need, at some point, to blow away enemies on my own?

 

Question 2: In the past I have avoided using any canisters at all. Now I am using some of them, maybe 2/3 of them. Is this going to impede me in a significant way? Will it keep me from completing any important quests?

 

Thanks all.

[Randomizer]

Answer 1: Mental magic is very useful for daze and charm. You can skip the battle magic.

 

Answer 2: In Geneforge 5 it doesn't matter how many canister you use. In earlier games it would limit your actions by forcing fights.

[Alorael at Large]

Geneforge 5 still gives you different endings depending on your canister use. I'll just say that you really want to use almost none or all as far as endings are concerned.

 

—Alorael, who likes having some battle magic just to give his shaper something to do in fights. It's not at all necessary, though. Optimal? Well, it gives you one more character with a turn per round who can do damage, but you're probably going to need that turn for buffing and healing anyway. Ignore away.

[Ceiling Durkheim]

That build sounds pretty viable. It's pretty much the standard shaper/lifecrafter build, and is such because it works and plays to the class's skills. It's worth it to put some points into leadership and mechanics (which may be where the points that aren't those "most" go), but aside from that your character sounds good.

 

It's possible to ignore battle magic through most of the game, then take it up later on when you get high-level items. Some will give you really strong bonuses to magic, especially various of the artifact gauntlets. Mental magic is a much better investment than battle for shaping-focused characters: you have creations that can do nearly everything that battle magic can, if not quite as well, but many mental magic effects are only available through magic and items.

 

Also keep in mind that Quothe in Haria-Kel sells training in magic and spellcraft. The magic skills are a bit pricey for most classes (~2000 with the quest discount = 2000/1000/500 per skill point), but spellcraft is a pretty good deal (~2500 with discount = 833/625/416 per skill point).

[madrigan]

Thanks all.

 

I actually have been putting points into Leadership and Mechanics, but I forgot to say so. I am thinking I will get both of them to about 10 and leave them there.

 

My first attempt at this build was cut short when I got to the Stoneworks with only 6 points in Leadership and didn't want to use 10 living tools to open that one door. With no good way to level up at that point, I started over and overloaded those two skills at the beginning.

[Tracer Bullet]

10 each is hopelessly insufficient for G5. Either you should perform an honest overhaul (12 leadership, 15 mechanics) or ignore them.

[Ceiling Durkheim]

As long as you get the tinker's/infiltrator's items 10 of each should be fine. There's one area that is utterly horrendous if you don't have 12 leadership, but there are 3 pieces of "Infiltrator's" equipment, each of which gives +1. I can't recall if there's anything in the game that requires more than 12 leadership.

[Tracer Bullet]

I have never been partial to the infiltrator's items myself, except the charm. Otherwise, it takes up a slot in which you could have put something more useful.

[Lilith]

Originally Posted By: Sage of Numenor

I have never been partial to the infiltrator's items myself, except the charm. Otherwise, it takes up a slot in which you could have put something more useful.

The idea is you just keep them in your pack most of the time, and put them on when you need to use leadership or mechanics.

[Ceiling Durkheim]

What Lilith said. Also, good luck getting the Infiltrator's Charm in G5.

[Tracer Bullet]

Speaking of--can you get the emerald chestguard in later games?

[Dikiyoba]

Nope, it only exists in G2 and G3.

 

Dikiyoba.

[Tracer Bullet]

Where in G3?

[Mod.]

It can be crafted from a perfected plate, a demon claw?, and a deep crystal. It must be created on an enchanted anvil. If I remember right, it can be created during the third island. Is demon claw the third ingredient?

 

The crystalline shroud is similar, but it has less armor rating, but it weights less. It can be crafted on an enchanted anvil using a perfected plate, crystalline fibers, and purified essence?

 

 

[Tracer Bullet]

I need to know where to find those. The crystalline fibers are in Kyra's Refuge, right?

[Mod.]

http://www.spiderwebforums.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=63222#Post63222

 

Also, sorry for my misleading information. The crystalline shroud requires a deep focus orb, not purified essence.