I've never played this game before and I'm surprised I missed such a well thought of game ten years ago. No matter, I'm discovering this game now for the first time and love it already even though I've just started. Its very unique. I've never seen anything like it.

A question though, what would the community suggest as to the type of character to play on the first playthrough?
Melee or ranged magic?
Good or evil? Law or chaos?
Smart & wise or stupid?

What do you all think a newbie should do to maximize the experience?
Thanks!

I'm new to the game myself but I'm some way into it. I picked mage because that reflects how I like RPGs and I think the same goes for alignment, it makes for a better experience (the game, not in-game experience).

As for in-game I would have to say neutral or good with smart & wise before stupid and evil because those usually gets you into annoying consquences but then again, this game seems to have been made so that it can work it's just a matter of choice and of course different outcomes, it will not break the game.

A tips though if you haven't checked the mod thread, do it. It's great, some unofficial bug and tweaks and makes the game run in widescreen. :)

well, with low intelligence and / or wisdom, you'll miss a great deal of content. but playing as a mage could be though for the first time.

also, high wisdom means high experience.

another note, check the mods thread. install the fixpack, tweak pack etc.

I played as a mage the first (and so far only) time, and that worked well enough. It's not harder to survive as a mage than warrior, asa you get 10 hitpoint per level up anyway (at least with the mods I used, per the mods thread in here).

Just focus on wisdom and/or intelligence and you'll get the most out of the game in terms of dialogue and options. I'd actually like to try the game as a brute dumbass just to see how much of a difference it makes, but haven't had the time yet. But I trust it when everybody say the difference is big ;)

Mage only, raise Wis, Int and Cha.

Wis 24 is necessary to get the awesomest ending. Cha can be buffed with the Friends spell (+2d4 Cha - you can install a tweak that maximizes it).

However, don't just raise Wis with points all the way to 25 - you'll get quite a few stat bonuses throughout the game.

Strength +4
Dexterity +1
Constitution +3
Intelligence +2
Wisdom +7
Charisma +3
AC +1
MaxHP +7
(source: Dan Simpson)

And +3 Int, +1 Wis on top of that for reaching level 12 as a mage.
And another +2 to any stat (maybe).
And tattoos that give stat bonuses.

Bottom line: when starting out, you can put some points here and there. But be a mage.

Melee or ranged magic?

You have no choice but start as melee character so don't bother. You'll have to wait if opportunities arise to switch class and decide if you want to switch later. Just play the game, planning your exact advancement beforehand will require heavy spoilers.



Good or evil? Law or chaos?

You're supposed to play as you want your character to be and alignment is changed during the game according to your actions, not the other way around. If you're powergaming with lawful good as goal nevertheless be earnest, don't crack jokes or play around, always make vows and never break them, don't bluff or lie or try crazy things.
If you want to be good don't threaten anyone.


Smart & wise or stupid?

You can't play stupid since you can't get stats below which is the average. Having high wisdom is very beneficial. Be aware that you can't raise all attributes at level up, you have to decide how wimpy you'll want to be.


I recommend starting with 18 wis (dialogues, memories, luck bonus and XP bonus) and at least 14 con (10 bonus hitpoints and faster HP regeneration, if you still feel weak during the game raising it will immediately increase HP and regeneration).
If you want to be a wimp hiding behind party members and like harder combat you can keep con at 9, but don't complain afterwards.
The rest is optional.

Strength will let you do more damage, I started with 16 and raised it 18 at the next two level ups, +1 str bonus from another source let it jump directly from 18 to 19. 9-10 work too since there isn't anything heavy to carry around, with a little luck you can get it raised to 18 with a strength spell (won't work everywhere however) and jump to 19 with +1 str equipment.

Dex is quite unimportant, even for thieves who get more than enough thieving skill points as they level up anyway. With 11+ dex you can snap necks in the beginning, there are also a few checks for 13+ dex which aren't really beneficial. The little AC bonus for higher dex totally fades in comparison to the bonuses high con grants. I usually leave it at 9.

Con is the combat stat in the game, raise it very high and you'll feel invincible.

Int lets mages scribe more spells per level and offers a few extra dialogue options (but there'll almost always be a wis based one which is at least as beneficial), can be raised temporarily or with equipment, don't raise it too high, 18 including equipment is perfect.
Wis is the most important stat in the game, it covers almost all dialogue checks and even helps in combat.

Cha affects shop prices and grants a few dialogue options. With 12+ cha or 11+ dex you can leave the mortuary without battle.