GeneForge 1 with Guardian and no shaping

[Rya.Reisender]

Hello everyone! I started with GeneForge recently and as I don't really like "summoning" gameplay I wanted to play it solo. I decided for Guardian (though I guess Agent would have been the better choice, but I don't want to start over). My Guardian fully focused on Strength, Endurance, fighting skills and healing. I want to try to finish the game without summoning monsters to aid me (normal difficulty). I've already pretty much cleared the south west section and managed to clear the northern bridge to the east. However, now the game is starting to get really hard.

 

Any recommendations on what I can do or what skills I should focus on if I want to play the game without shaping?

 

If I get surrounded by many weaker mobs, do Guardians have any way to kill multiple in one go (this is my main problem, I can easily kill single harder monsters)?

 

Anything else I should consider to not get stuck because of being too weak?

 

Also I got quite some gold already, where can I find trainers?

[Triumph]

The three trainers are in the zones Winding Road, Patrolled Bridge, and Drayk's Vale. It might take you a while to reach them. They only teach Leadership, Mechanics, and Luck.

 

Some zones are pretty much impassable without heavy combat. You may just not be strong enough yet and have to accept that fact. In others, though, you can use Leadership or Mechanics to get through, so consider raising those skills some in addition to your combat staples of Str, End, Melee, Anatomy and Quick Action. Since stats give diminishing returns after 10, you'd probably want to raise Str and your combat each to 10 before you raise any of them above 10.

 

Also consider your tactics. Advance slowly and carefully, retreat when necessary, and you can sometimes avoid drawing the attention of whole swarms of monsters, and instead take them out one at a time. As soon as one sees you, fall back to a quiet part of the zone where you can take out hte enemy without any patrolling friends coming for you. Or you can draw monsters toward friendly creatures in the zone who might help you kill them.

 

Geneforge has multiple routes to pretty much every goal, so if you find yourself stuck in one place, trying exploring somewhere else!

 

I hope this helps!

[Randomizer]

Also as a Guardian don't neglect crystals which use less AP as a means of softening up swarms before they can close with you. There are a limited number of crystals, but when terrain doesn't favor a melee Guardian, they can help. You can attack and still have AP to retreat.

[Rya.Reisender]

Also I have quick action at level 8 already and I read that quick action allows you to attack twice sometimes, but it never happened to me. Is it that rare?

 

Thanks for the hints. So I guess I'll need to use crystals? I'm not sure what to even take with me, the thorn staffs and javelins were too heavy so I just put them all at one place for now.

 

I also have fairly high mechanics (10) already, but some doors still need 4-14 living tools, is that normal?

 

I don't think there are many ways to go actually. To the north the monsters get really hard, to the east there are two bridges. The southern bridge has some really hard turrets I can't get past yet. The northern bridge is cleared and the map afterwards as well, but I can only advance east from there and there is a map where Vlish's control those smaller guys and there doesn't seem to be a way to just lure them one by one. But I guess I'll just need to sneak past them?

[Triumph]

When Quick Action triggers, it causes you to swing a second time when you attack something in melee. It does NOT give you an additional action; it just adds an additional attack to your regular melee attack.

 

A huge LT requirement on a door is often a clue that there is a switch / key / servant mind somewhere that can open it. Four LTs is probably fine, but 10 or more is almost definitely a sign that there is another way inside.

[Randomizer]

High LT doors are also quest rewards from someone nearby.

 

Turrets are usually done by range attacks since they are set up to have a few hit a melee attacker. That's an area where you might want to find another zone to bypass a fight you aren't designed to handle.

[Triumph]

Oh, I believe the turrets in Southbridge are actually arranged so that if you're careful, you can take them out one at a time, approaching each in a way that only one other can get a shot at you. IIRC.

 

And yes, sometimes you'll find it best to just run through a zone in combat mode, going from one zone exit to another, without dealing with the stuff in the zone. Exploration is a HUGE part of this game. Sometimes there are alternative paths within a single zone, sometimes an entire zone is an alternate path for another zone.

[Lauren CW]

G1 Guardian really operates on the concept of if you can get next to it, it will die. Make sure you can get next to things. High resistances and health help. If you don't want creations, use pods and sell spores, specifically the haste ones. I never really had trouble with the G1 Guardian, but I played on normal and it's been ages since I've played through the game.

 

Aside from Crystals, no Guardians do not have any way of killing multiple things at once. Use chokepoints so swarms can only come at you one at a time.

[Chessrook44]

Well Guardians DO have ONE way to damage multiple creatures at once.

 

Speed pod and not moving while you're surrounded. You might be able to hit or kill TWO creatures in one turn!

[Spukrian]

I played as a solo Guardian through most of Geneforge 1... except South Bridge. I was too weak at that time and was forced to make a few "disposable fyoras" to help me with the turrets.

[Rya.Reisender]

Thanks for all the hints, I got a bit further now. Sometimes you really just need to skip an area until later.

 

 

I have another question: I want to play all GeneForge games without shaping, which class do you recommend for each game when I set myself the limitation to never use shaping? Concerning both "being able to beat the game on normal" and "fun to play".

[Mosquito---Slayer]

In the earlier games an agent, In G4 and G5 an Agent/Infiltrator or a Servile. Guardians/Warriors can kinda do singleton too but it is rather tough and possibly annoying.

[Triumph]

As a general rule, just always pick a class that specializes in combat or magic instead of shaping and you'll be fine.

 

In G2, Parry is exceptionally powerful, making it in some ways the best game to run a solo Guardian (though an Agent works too). Solo Guardian or solo Agent are both quite viable in G3 (I know because I've done both). G4 has a new set of classes, and as M-Slayer said, you'll probably want either Infiltrator or Servile. If you check out the Strategy Central (or Strategy Peripheral )thread for each game of the series (all sticky-ed at the top of the forum) you'll find build discussions in each one that will hopefully give some ideas.

[Rya.Reisender]

So I guess I'll have to go Guardian again for G2, then switch to agent in G3 (for variety), then G4 Infiltrator or Servile and in G5 whatever I didn't take in G4.

[Lauren CW]

Basically, you want a Guardian in G2, an Agent in G3, a Servile in G4, and in G5 take an Agent again, not the infiltrator.

 

Reasoning being in G2 Parry is broken, in G3 spells start to get really nasty and the Guardian drops off in power significantly. In G4, the servile has fantastic stats whether you decide to go melee or mental magic. And in G5, the shaper classes retain the hidden resistances from G4, so you want probably the agent because magic is obscene.