The Push, Hide, and Loot Maneuver (And Miscellany)

[Old Scratch]

I'm sure I'm not the first Avernum player to discover this, but I take a certain manic glee in looting boxes or barrels which, in their original locations, are in plain view of the public. The solution, of course, is to push all of the containers filled with wonderful "NY" goodies into an abandoned house, shut the door, and loot the bejeezus out of them.

 

Does anyone else have any obscure tips or tricks that they have discovered? Oh, another thing: In Avernum 3, when you sneak into Blackcrag, you get ambushed by Empire Dervishes, archers, and wizards -- unless you walk past the scripted spot in combat mode, in which case they fail to appear. I suspect that other, similar scripts can be bypassed in this manner.

 

I also use combat mode to prevent all four characters from following the lead character into something dangerous/poisonous, which they will in normal mode. I'll go into combat mode and just send my fighter to take the brunt of mines in Blades of Avernum, too.

[Tyranicus]

The combat mode thing is well-known. I've used it for Nethergate, the trilogy, and BoA. I'm not sure if it works in the Exile or Geneforge engines or not. If you do it the right way, you can even get into the room in the back of Erika's tower. I've also been known to push barrels and crates around. It's a shame you can't do it with chests. Also, pushing crates around is hazardous if you're anywhere near water.

[Old Scratch]

Quote:

Originally written by Tyranicus:
The combat mode thing is well-known. I've used it for Nethergate, the trilogy, and BoA. I'm not sure if it works in the Exile or Geneforge engines or not. If you do it the right way, you can even get into the room in the back of Erika's tower.

The combat mode trick also works in Fallout and Fallout 2 (the best roleplaying games ever created), and I've known about that for years and years, but I discovered the same trick in Avernum entirely by accident. I got slaughtered in the first ambush, and so I had to load and carefully prepare myself with blessings . . . I distractedly entered combat mode, thinking my spells would last a bit longer if I cast them that way, and walked past the scripted area, which then vanished.

Quote:

Originally written by Tyranicus:
I've also been known to push barrels and crates around. It's a shame you can't do it with chests. Also, pushing crates around is hazardous if you're anywhere near water.

It is odd that Jeff added that touch, isn't it? Crates into water s a feature that almost never comes up, but it does add a nice touch to the game. I have done it a time or two by accident, though never with a valuable barrel or crate.

However, I'd be willing to bet that the container returns to its original position if you exit and re-enter the area.

[Dikiyoba]

You're ready for Avernum 2, Old Scratch.

 

Dikiyoba doesn't steal much in A2. Just everything from Harston and Rentar-Ihrno and quest items.

[Alorael at Large]

The fight-end-teleport glitch isn't the same as the scripts ignoring combat mode glitch. I try not to abuse either, but I'm a huge fan of the fight mode, buff, wait one round, and then step forward, trigger the horrible attack, and then use your free round to wreak havoc trick.

 

—Alorael, who has also been known to keep skipping turns until both his fighters are not just waiting but both are also waiting with 5 AP thanks to Fast on Feet.

[Old Scratch]

Quote:

Originally written by Clickxabbu:
The fight-end-teleport glitch isn't the same as the scripts ignoring combat mode glitch. I try not to abuse either, but I'm a huge fan of the fight mode, buff, wait one round, and then step forward, trigger the horrible attack, and then use your free round to wreak havoc trick.

—Alorael, who has also been known to keep skipping turns until both his fighters are not just waiting but both are also waiting with 5 AP thanks to Fast on Feet.

I won't utilize a glitch if it feels like cheating. While I am aware of the ability to sneak past scripts in combat mode, I would never use it unless there was no other option. When you've been gaming as long as I have, you begin to hate cheating . . . it ruins everything. Once I've beaten a game a few times, I might just cheat for the fun of it, but not until then.

Heavy manipulation of the odds using blessing spells and combat mode doesn't quite feel like cheating to me, but I usually don't do much of it until I stumble into a fight that kicks my ass and have to load a saved game. If I know a hard fight is coming after having to restore, I will use that foreknowledge to the best of my advantage!

I have to say, though, that things like waiting for 5 AP to appear or loading a saved game anytime a magic lockpick breaks are things I avoid as much as possible. In Skylark Vale in BoA, I came close to saving and restoring to see what was behind every barrier and high-skill locked door (lots of those and precious few materials to breach them), but I fought the urge.

I do save the game before attempting to steal anything, but at this point, I always know how not to get caught and only steal publicly if it's a great item and I have no other choice. (The Fine Waveblade near the three Vhanatai in Skylark Vale, for example).

[Air]

In the Geneforges, it kinda works. If you're in an hazardous area (drains your life) then you can enter combat mode to travel further for less damage. Also, in that ghost swamp (G2) after every battle I run back to town and refresh my essence ^^.

 

Edit: Typo

[Zephyr Tempest]

There is a MUCH easier way to steal...it involves bringing up the "get item" screen, stealing whatever you want, but...

 

slight spoiler

 

Last time I checked, that trick was pure GOLD! Both figuratively and literally!

 

Oh, and before you ran into quickfire, always enter combat mode, and if possible, cast haste on your entire party. Much easier to escape that way.

[Old Scratch]

Quote:

Originally written by Zephyr Tempest.:
There is a MUCH easier way to steal...it involves bringing up the "get item" screen, stealing whatever you want, but...

slight spoiler

Last time I checked, that trick was pure GOLD! Both figuratively and literally!

Alas, while that is a wonderfully devious trick, it would feel like cheating to me -- although technically, if you can do something in-game without a cheat menu simply by pressing a couple of buttons, it's not really cheating.

[Tyranicus]

Wow. I didn't know that one. How the heck did you figure that out, Zephyr? I'll be sure to check that out if I ever feel the urge to play A3 again.

[Zeviz]

One fun use of fight-end-teleport trick is exploring areas where you aren't supposed to be. For example, exploring Celt village as Romans in Nethergate. There is usually nothing interesting in those areas, but it's fun if you are bored.

[Micawber]

Pleased to see that end-combat-party-is-whizzed-to-location-of-lead-character has returned in A4. Very useful for sneaking past pylons, spraying shrubs, etc.

 

My favourite trick in the trilogy was using the infinite shop for useful potions (heroic brew, protection brew, knowledge brew). If you buy all of Silverlocke's potions she re-stocks, allowing you to buy infinite amounts of invulnerability! I don't see this as cheating - in Exile nearly all shops were infinite and rightly so IMHO.

[Fort]

It is interesting how everyone at one time or another through the course of playing these games tries out some of these considerably obsessive-compulsive behaviors. The atmosphere simply encourages constant and meticulous detail.

 

If you exploit something to do something that you should not be able to, then you are cheating. In this way using method Zephyr described above would only be justified if, for example, the barrel you searched could be easily pushed into the adjacent room for looting.

 

The practice of buff-one-round-then-wait has to be ubiquitous. It is almost impossible to resist if you really know that a fight is coming that you cannot readily beat. But winning fights without doing this is incredibly rewarding in comparison.

[Lurking Eyebeast]

It didn't work for me in Erika's tower. My party kept going in other directions.EDIT: SORRY FOR POSTING INAN OLD TOPIC