Exile 1 Questions

[Wulf_]

Can I ask if anyone here actually finds/found E1 at all difficult? People here seem to think that it is much harder than A1, which is ridculously easy, granted. But E1 seems to be pretty simple, with the right party.

 

There are no challenging outdoor encounters, and there do not seem to be any dangerous enemies/situations to deal with, save from being swamped by the endless hordes of respawns. Thoughts?

 

Also, I have seen that the general consensus is points spent in missile weapons are wasted ones. I always thought that they are useful in the form of a free attack, you can shoot and swing in the same turn with no penalty. Add a bless into the mix and it can work quite well. Not to mention picking of monsters over un-passable terrain. Thoughts?

[Randomizer]

Exile 1 as the oldest game has the most limited game engine and the fewest slots for inventory items. It does depend upon how you play the game.

 

I use spells instead of missle weapons since they do more damage. It's just the way I play. Whatever works best for you since there are very few things the players agree on in party formations and skills.

[Celtic Minstrel]

I found Exile I too hard when I played it, probably with the prefab party. Exile II and III, on the other hand, were easy enough for me to finish the demo portion. Not that they're actually easy – they're just not too hard.

 

I think I kept getting killed by Thugs or something in the original Exile...

[Callie]

I thought Exile was hard, but I was ten years old when I played it. I remember the main slith dungeon took me four hours.

[The Mystic]

I found E1 rather tough compared to the rest of the trilogy.

 

Originally Posted By: Randomizer

Exile 1 as the oldest game has the most limited game engine and the fewest slots for inventory items. It does depend upon how you play the game.

 

I use spells instead of missle weapons since they do more damage. It's just the way I play.

That's what I do too, and continued to do throughout all Spiderweb games.

[DesertPlah]

I've always found it a waste if I have so and so many skill points to spend. I try not to spend my points like hardcore statboys (most invested in luck), but I try not to waste them, too. What I mean is that I'd rather have a point of luck or alchemy then archery. Archery was never all that useful until Avernum, imho.

 

Exile was very tough if you use the prefab party . I found it decently challenging. Have you beat it yet?

[The Mystic]

Yes, I beat E1. Once. I actually found it fairly difficult compared to the rest of the trilogy.

[Ishad Nha]

I found it straightforward but then I didn't use the prefab party.

[The Mystic]

I tried the prefab party, but didn't like it. I find that in general, prefab parties usually suck.

[Ishad Nha]

Jack of all trades, master of none department, did Jeff actually use any of the prefab parties?

[Randomizer]

I don't know if Jeff used them, but in some beta testing for Avernum at least one tester mention using them. They aren't too bad, but they definitely could have been better. Now Jeff justs cuts and pastes them from game to game.

[Alorael at Large]

My first time through E1, or at least the demo, used the prefab party. It wasn't bad, but I definitely noticed that some skills were allocated in ridiculous ways.

 

—Alorael, who doesn't object. If the prefab party were exactingly min-maxed, what would the min-maxers have to do? Part of the fun of a wide open stat system is tinkering to improve.

[The Mystic]

I prefer custom parties to prefabs. Customs allow more flexibility, and prefabs usually have too much invested in skills that I either buy only one or two levels of or don't use at all.

[keira]

Custom parties are better because they are tailored to your personal wants/needs, not the programmer's. For example, I don't really see the point of giving a slith with 6 pole weapons a 3 in missiles as well. I never, ever use missiles when archery/mage/priest is better and cheaper.

 

This is just my opinion, even though it should be fact.

[The Mystic]

Originally Posted By: Fartin' Tuna

Custom parties are better because they are tailored to your personal wants/needs, not the programmer's.

My point exactly. Seriously, is there anyone out there who actually buys and uses the poison skill in any Exile game?

[Randomizer]

The poison skill keeps you from poisoning yourself. Killer poison is great for the endgame, but I usually use the skill points elsewhere.

[The Almighty Doer of Stuff]

There's a level 2 Mage spell called Envenom that poisons your weapons. Other spells do as well. Why would you actually need to risk poisoning yourself in the first place?

 

I'm still using my cheese party, which is custom.

[The Mystic]

Originally Posted By: The Almighty Doer of Stuff

There's a level 2 Mage spell called Envenom that poisons your weapons. Other spells do as well. Why would you actually need to risk poisoning yourself in the first place?

Exactly. My favorite weapon poisoning spell is the level 7 mage spell Major Blessing (why any mage spell would have the word "Blessing" in its name, I'll never know), which not only poisons your weapons, but also gives your entire party a bunch of buffs. I guess people who use weapon poisons enjoy the risk.

[DesertPlah]

Hmmm…I think we must remember the core of what an RP is, it's Role-Playing. We're taking control of people who have, in the course of their life, learned various arts for whatever reason, whether or not those arts are truely useful in the caves (like throwing things, for instance). So Multiple and far less useful skills are truer to the essence of RPing. That is my argument for the prefab party (which I never use).

[Alorael at Large]

In real life you're not strictly limited in your ability to learn things by skill points. Actually, you're limited in your ability to not learn the many things you will at some point do in life.

 

[Edit: Ick. Mis-edited, but then quoted for posterity. Oh well.]

 

—Alorael, who would consider that a perfectly reasonable way to implement skills in a game if not for the fact that games are for some reason considered more grind-worthy than life. What does that say about priorities?

[Men are from Slars]

Learning by practice is even more of a grind though, isn't it?

[Celtic Minstrel]

Originally Posted By: Alorael

Actually, you're limited in your ability to not learn the many things you will at some point do in life.

...What do you mean?

Originally Posted By: Alorael

who would consider that a perfectly reasonable way to implement skills in a game

What would be?

[keira]

Originally Posted By: Institution

In real life your not strictly limited in your ability to learn things by skill points.

http://xkcd.com/189/