What skill should I learn next?

[AlexH]

My current character is a no-magic fighter. Right now I'm level 4, specializing in swords and heavy armor, also with alchemy (found the book), cartography level 5 (trained), pick locks level 2 (with +3 bonus gloves). I was thinking about learning archery on my next level-up, which will help in the long run by allowing me to soften-up targets before moving in the for the kill. My last character was a ranger and I used this all the time. I just found a Yew Longbow (4 base damage), so I think this is a good idea.

What are you thoughts on this?

[Randomizer]

You should be powerful enough to make it to Bordertown and train for the levels in archery. That would save skill points and you can then add them on after training to bring yourself up to 8. You don't have to clear the zones before reaching an area.

I found dodge became surprising helpful once you have the points to get it to level 10, but you might want to wait. It was less for the missed attack, then the extra towards hitting a target.

I'm running a no spells fighter and have reached the halfway point without reloading even if that took 4 characters. Saving up to raise a level in combat is a nice trick to restore health.

[Evnissyen]

Archery's a nice skill to have, by the time your enemy reaches you half their health is gone . . . assuming your skill is high enough. I had it for my nefarious non-magic-fighter and it works well.

But now I've started over with a magic-only character, which already feels more interesting.

Only challenge is that he keeps running out of mana whenever he's surrounded by enemies and can't sleep & recharge . . . I expect that shouldn't change as the spell costs become higher later in the game. I've just boosted my Concentration some more, I hope that saves on spell failures.

But his mana recovers fast, especially when outdoors (this one is druidic).

...However, unlike Randomizer I concluded early on that Dodge just wasn't worth the cost. I mean, it increases your dodge capabilities by . . . what . . . 1% per level, or something? Don't remember. Spending the points to boost it to 10 doesn't seem worth it to me when there're other worthwhile skills to invest in. But I suppose Randomizer has a different experience. He's a trustworthy source, so I won't argue with him.

(Randomizer: Were you one of the beta-testers for Book I, by the way?)

While we're talking about skills, I'm not sure how well Survival works, as far as recovery rates. Tried it once . . . now I just get the cloak and never invest in the skill.

I wish there were more explanation as far as how effective a skill is, per point.

But Archery really is a must if you're not playing with restrictions, like myself. (No physical combat for this one. Only once in the beginning was I forced to punch a salamander because I was cornered and had no mana or potions. Well, it worked, anyhow.)

[AlexH]

What do you guys think about using shields? I've never used them before. I just cleared the crypt where you find your amulet, and found two bronze shields, armor rating 4.

[Randomizer]

I haven't beta tested, but I've read most of the topics on character creation. Dodge worked out well for my fighter that still has trouble hitting. Finally got a second brewmaster ring to upgrade my armor and weapons.

For magic casting characters a little hide in shadows, 5 to 8 levels, and waiting until dark really works wonders since spells always hit. It boring hitting the space bar to recharge mana during a fight, but it's way easier than a fighter.

I never used a shield because you can't use one with a torch. It's supposed to be better in Book 2 where you can at higher levels shield bash for damage.

[Unclever title]

Having read Arhu's post here concerning Mana regeneration and with moderate testing of my own due to my insane attempts to create characters that do not gain HP.

The stats that govern HP gain per level. Endurance and Strength

At character creation:
1 point of strenth = 1 HP
1 point of Endurance = 2 HP

Easy enough to figure out this one I've tested.

During level up:
- You will gain automatically 2 HP if your class is a Rogue or Fighter and I'm assuming 1 HP for a Ranger
- You get 1 HP for every 10 point of Strength you currently have (probably)
- You get 2 HP for every 10 points of Endurance you currently have (probably)

I haven't tested these specifically but it's probably a safe bet to assume that BW and Co have the same dynamic with Health as there is with Mana.

HP regeneration is governed by Endurance and the Survival skill (you probably already knew that) But now I get into the realm of extrapolation:

Mana Regeneration is governed by Meditation and Perception.

- For every point in Perception or Meditation, the number of rounds ("steps") needed to regenerate 1 point of mana is reduced by 1.
- Mana regeneration is capped at 38 Perception OR 38 Meditation (or when the sum of both = 38), which equals 3 rounds for normal mages and 1 round for druidic mages
- I didn't test regeneration in dungeons, but I think normal mages are capped at 3 rounds and druidic mages at 4 rounds

I would suspect something similar if not the same for HP. HP regeneration does seem to be slower than Mana so either the default number of turns until 1 HP is restored may be higher or something similar to that. Just my highly scientific predictions here. Granted this is drifting a little off topic.

Edit: I've personally found survival to be very useful for characters with a very low endurance, like 9.