Just started getting into the game, I enjoy it so far...

What class/race combination would you recommend for inexperienced players?

Any helpful tips on how to survive for longer?

Thanks in advance! :)

In my opinion all classes are equally good for a beginner, but if I have to pick one to recommend I'd go with either a Barbarian (high STR/VIT, lots of raw damage, high affinity with polearms and axes) or an Assassin (low STR, but very high DEX, which means you'll have a high chance of dodging attacks, and that is further improved by class/race perks; always prefer ranged weapons because their damage output is based on DEX).
I don't remember their bonuses, so I can't help you with the races... sorry :)

You'll find lots of valuable information in the in-game manual and help pages - you can even invoke a help page during battles! You will take damage because it counts as a move :D If you don't know what something is or does, read the manual. When in doubt, read the manual!

Here's a battle tip. If you tend not to use it during battles, force yourself to use the "Reposition" command more. It can do a lot of good things, like recharging your mana, breaking the enemy's guard, letting you dodge charges and pummels, removing one level of the EXPOSE status, getting some distance between you and the enemy (which helps in not getting EXPOSEd in the first place).
The downside? Using it twice in a row resets your combo counter, which powers up your Ultimate skill. Ultimates are powerful enough without a damage boost, though, so it isn't that big of a deal.

Remember to heal up - I even recommend to abuse the "Heal" command against weak enemies (pick fights with them in the earliest area available to you). Since you won't always get fully healed between battles, this trick will let you save up on "Rest" charges and keep the EXP bonus multiplier running (yes, there is one for consecutive battles!). You should still rest in emergency situations - e.g. if you're down to 1 HP after a battle or an unfortunate series of Events :D

At the start of the game, don't rush. The first mistake you can make is going against the Terminal with a very low level and a terrible weapon. Pick more fights in the Grassy Fields (sorry, I can't remember the name of that first area :D) and get a couple more level ups, go pester Blacksmith, go mining or get more drops until you get some nice equips, then go and destroy it! I can kill the Terminal comfortably without ideal equipment on character level 3, but for now you're better off going up to at least level 5.

When you feel comfortable enough with the game, go for the Adventuring Portals in the Colosseum. The enemies scale with your level, but some are even easier than whatever you find in the normal paths, and they always give a significant amount of EXP.
The bosses also scale with your level, but they have massive HP pools and fights get a lot longer, more tense... and more fun! Don't try your luck with them if you don't feel confident enough.

Hope this incoherent string of tips helps :)

Thank you! I made a barbarian and am starting to level him up.

All of this information has been very helpful, I hope others reading this will find it as useful as I have. Getting in the EXPOSED status was really killing me before.

A big +1 to marukyuu. I wish that I had seen that post before I started playing. :)

This is my first time through the game, and I started as a Paladin because they're good at healing. I went to Southern Sirea and played a Huskian. A Huskian stands "at over eight feet tall, these giants are unshakable." Later on in the game, you get to pick a discipline or something, and I picked Templar (100% Chance to BLOCK attacks when casting Heal). That saved my bacon on numerous occasions. :)

I never crafted anything and I never used "R" for Healing, and I'm currently at level 90. I sure hope that crafting is not required in the endgame.:)

For most of the game I was using a maul, but now I'm currently using a sword. You get weapons as random drops or from the Blacksmith. I choose the weapon based not only on the damage that it does, but on the effects on Vitality, Strength, etc. There's a lot of strategy involved there. The weapon that causes the most damage might not be the best one. The same sort of reasoning applies to armor, shield, and charms.

As you play, you'll discover that there are ways to gain experience other than combat. I'm pretty sure the bulk of my experience was not from combat. :)

I found it handy to print out the "List of Affixes" and the "List of Potential Boss METERS." Go to the manual, get what you want on the screen, press F12, look in the Screenshots folder, and print it.

For those that are new to the game, go to Settings and make sure that Tutorial is ON and Detailed Character Stats is ON. I like to make it full screen by toggling the "F" key to get more immersive gameplay.

I really like this game, but I suspect that when I finish, that will be the end of it. The effects on the attributes (Vitality, Strength, etc.) of various weapons, armor, etc. pales in comparison to the character. At level 90, my character has a dexterity of 121, but the sword, shield, and charm adds another 473. For that reason, I don't think it matters much which type of character you play. I could be wrong but that's the way I see it right now.

Have fun, I know I am. :)

Thanks! This is exactly what I meant in my previous post: even as a beginner you can be successful with every class.
Make sure you read your class' detailed perks list before starting the game proper! It is by no means required, but since you're rewarded with EXP for every item you handcraft it helps quite a bit. It's also another cheap and efficient way to heal up when things go sour but you're close to a level up :D
Big kudos if you aren't playing on Softcore mode! My best Classic mode game ended with YASD at level 50 :D
Remember, kids: don't get too cocky in ranked matchmaking! I agree. The game outright tells you which stat is the one you want to focus on when you choose your class, and picking the right equipment means getting the right balance between the base ATK/DEF and the bonus stats.
When it comes to weapons, there's also the matter of damage multipliers. Each category has its own set of damage bonuses - e.g. staves and wands add 30% of the wielder's INT. And then there are the masteries, which grant more damage to a weapon category the more points you spend on it. Hope you're good at maths :D Detailed Character Stats lets you know how much your equipment contributes to your stats. It's an awesome feature, and I recommend keeping it on, too. Yes, equipment bonuses get ridiculously high from Act 2 onward. My last character was an assassin with around 120 INT, of which 1 was his base stat, and the rest was a bonus from a single piece of equipment :D


Great tips, have a +1!

Busted! I tried playing Softcore initially, because Classic mode with its perma-death was a real turnoff for me. For this type of game, I like to go through it once and only once. I have lots of other games to play. :) To get close to the end and then die, ugh. In Softcore mode, my character got to level 5 or so and died. When my character returned, all the gold was gone. Just gone. All gone. Well that wouldn't do. So I decided to play the game my way. :)

I'm playing Classic mode but with a twist. Each time my character gained a level, I Alt-Tab out of the game, and copy the two files in the DATA folder to my desktop. If the character dies, I get out of the game entirely. I then delete the two files that are in the DATA folder and replace it with the two on the desktop. I figure that's punishment enough if I have to repeat a level. My level 90 Paladin died twice, once at level 16 and once at level 78. I had to repeat those two levels, but if I had to start over from the beginning when I got to level 78, I'd be playing a different game. :) LOL

This approach works for me and I'm really enjoying it. Games are for having fun, not beating your head against the wall when you have to start all over again from the beginning. Thank you. :)

I'm totally unfamiliar with this mark-up language so I hope I'm doing this right. It took a while but I think I got it right.

The "twist" you're talking about is called "savescumming" in roguelike lingo, and it's frowned upon by roguelike purists.
I know losing a high-level character is frustrating, and I won't blame you for savescumming, but in my opinion the penalty you're imposing on yourself for death is not steep enough. Here's my suggestion:
* Keep all your DATA folder backups. Don't write over the last one - put each backup in its own folder.
* Every time your character dies, delete the last five backups, then restore the game. No exception.
Guess what happens if your character dies twice in a row :D

I like playing the game the way I'm doing it. I don't subscribe to the idea of perma-death in an RPG. Sanctuary RPG, so far, is a very linear game with a story. When I'm finished with the story, I don't want to play it again; I already know the story. I want to move on to other games. I've never read the same book twice. I don't want to do it with a game.

I've been playing computer games for 25 years, and it's only in the last several years that I even knew about rogue-like games. I remember in "Computer Gaming World" that if a game didn't allow you to save anywhere, it was frowned upon, and sometimes down-rated because of that.

I play games to have fun, not as punishment. I guess I am the anti-rogue. :)

I guess we're going to have to agree to disagree. :)

P.S. I was curious as to how long I had been playing, so I dug up the receipt for my IBM PS/2 Model 65 SX and it was dated 1990. BTW, I still have it. :)

No problem. You're having fun, and it's all that matters.
Sorry if I sounded like an ass :)

OT: Nice to know you're a fellow "old" gamer! I had an Olivetti Prodest PC1. It was a piece of junk back when it was launched in 1987 (my family bought it in 1990), but I had lots of fun with it. Too bad I don't have it anymore... I might still have my floppy disk collection, though.
All this reminiscing is making me want to play Alley Cat again :D

Holy crap! Alley Cat! Haha, it's been ages since I played that.

Sometimes it's easy to lose sight of that. :)

If I were to worry about perma-death, I'd be playing it very safe. Playing it my way, I sometimes go into areas that are beyond my level and get some nail-biting, scary moments. I have to play my A-game a lot. That to me is exciting, and that is why I like this game.

That said, once I reach the end, I'll be going to a different game. I've played dozens and dozens of computer games, but I have hundreds of boxed games and hundreds of games in my GOG library. There's no way I can finish them all in my lifetime. :)

I don't recognize Alley Cat, but it tickled the funny-bone of tjbaxter though. I started playing computer games in 1990 and Alley Cat is copyrighted 1984. I did buy my kids an Atari when it first came out in the 70's. I'm an old "old gamer." :)

I equipped a shield on my Ranger before realizing that it reduces damage of my range attacks. Now I don't know how to remove it or salvage it.

Guess on this one, since it is near the start, I will just start over, but curious if it happens again how to remove items.