AzureG

Yes. Rebuilt the Keep right away. Also the barracks and the building you can rest in. Hmmmm......

I'd like to know too. I have no idea what you have to build, if anything, to start getting the adventures. Or is it related to how many quests you've done, or where you are in game?

Let's see. Steam requires you to be online when you play. If your internet is down, or if Steam is down (which it is a lot - at least briefly) you can't play the game. Not to mention that the Steam client is near 100mb. I don't need all that much extra spyware on my HD. I have enough already. I must admit that Steam FINALLY fixed it so you can close their "client" without going into the Task Manager to do it. GOG all the way for me.

Gee. First time playing the game. No idea even HOW to get to the next town, or even that it is possible to do so without fighting at least the one mob. Psychic I was not. I've learned how to get past them now, but did you somehow, magically KNOW exactly where you were going the first time YOU played? (Please no BS about how we should have checked online first. Some people don't like spoilers.)

The only thing is, Mind Blades was a bit underpowered - at least from my experience with multiple ciphers in multiple groups...... Average damage per hit on mobs has always been fairly low, even with high stats to boost damage.

OK. Lots of hours of play now. (Need sleep!) One thing that is consistent over multiple party builds. The Cipher draws aggro - even when that character HAS DONE NOTHING BUT STAND STILL. The mobs ignore the fighter, even with Defender active, and run right past and head for the Cipher. This has happened with multiple parties with differing compositions. Not quite 100% of the time, but it is at least 90%. If she does start to cast a spell, woe is her, because almost every mob will stop what it's doing and head for the Cipher. The only way I can keep her on her feet is to stack the fighter types around her so nothing else can reach her. This doesn't happen with any other character type. The mobs will run right past my wizard - in the middle of casting, and sometimes even after an AoE, and still head for the Cipher.

Yes, just over 300 exp for disarming all 25 traps. As for choosing all level 1 characters, yes, overall that is probably best. It costs less, and saves you a trip into the Valewood to make enough money to have a grappling hook (yes cash gets tight if you start with 4 level 1 and 1 level 2). If you do choose 5 level 1 characters, after you talk to the dwarf then go back to the Valewood (I am assuming that you avoided all fights there on your first time through), when you come back to town and discuss the aftermath of the bear fight, all five will make level 2 before you start on the more difficult quests. Also, I love having the white worms option for my chanter at level 1 rather than having to wait till level 4 (as you do if you want to pick up the NPC chanter.)

So you don't want to use the NPCs that can join your party, right? And you want to build your party with your own six characters right away? No problem. This is easiest with a Ranger or Druid. Be sure that your character has mechanic skill. Immediately loot the chests in the starter area. Go to the bodies on the east side (south of the camp you start in) and loot them. Then go back to the starting merchant. Strip off your armor, all of it. Then sell everything to the merchant. If you have a ranger or druid you can also sell your weapon and the potions you've picked up (but KEEP the weapon for the NPC fighter you start with). You should have no problem killing the starting mobs using either spells or your pet, or just transform - if you're a druid - and kill the first two. Then re-equip yourself with what you loot. Rinse and repeat in the caves. By the time you get to town you should have a hair over 1500 coppers, enough to hire one level 2 characters and four level 1 characters. And there you have it, a complete party of six before you start serious adventuring. (To get the level 2 character, you must first complete the quest with the hanging dwarf, so you make it to level 3. Otherwise you can't hire a level 2. If you want five level 1 characters, you don't have to do this quest first, as you only need to be level 2 for that.) I must say that playing with the NPCs the game provides does add flavor, especially as their stories unfold, but to get the old-fashioned feeling of building your own party from the get-go, this is great.

Ah, interesting opinion. Actually I rather like the stories and feel that they add to the immersion. Did you have a bad day yesterday or something?

Got to the first encounter after leaving the caves. Threw my spells, used both of the once per fight attacks. OK, no more magic left. Using my weapon gives me "weapon ineffective", every single time. So here I am, a mage with no magic, two mobs beating on me, and no way to fight back. Dead every time. Time to try a different class I think, at least until this one is given a LOT of loving.

Also have two monitors. Edge scrolling toward the second monitor works well, but the other directions, not so much. I ended up programming my G13 to allow key movement. It turns out to be much more controllable and faster than edge scrolling, so I'm not at all disappointed. Without a programmable keypad, maybe not so much fun though.

Interesting. I have a Win 7 setup. Installation was "stuck" at about the same place as yours (Gog), but after about 15 minutes it went ahead and completed the install. It would be very interesting to see whether it is actually an OS difference, or I was just lucky and whatever glitch it was self-resolved somehow and yours did not.

Completed the content here. Went back into the cave, came back out. The map shows the road leaving, but I can't go that way. I've exited the game, reloaded, no help. So, ah...help!