So, I played Redemption a lot back in the day but never really bothered fully understanding the mechanics, I just boosted the attributes by "real world" logic, boosted strength assuming that this would increase the damage output, dexterity assuming that this would make the attacks more precise etc.. These days I'm paying a lot of attention to the math in CRPGs, to the actual meaning of attributes etc.. So recently I installed Redemption again and promised myself that this time I'd figure out all the math and hopefully have a more enjoyable experience than before but frankly... I'm still unable to figure out anything. No matter how hard I look, I can't observe any particular effects of certain attributes unless they are required for using a certain item or discipline, also the manual seems to be perfectly useless. For example boosting stamina doesn't seem to increase the soaking, strength doesn't seem to increase the damage output and for the love of God, I have no idea whether dexterity does anything (it supposedly only boosts accuracy with ranged weapons and the critical hit chance for melee weapons - so I'm actually doomed to miss enemies nine times out of ten?).

So, does anybody here actually know in detail how everything works? The outcome of each encounter just seems so friggin' random, no matter what I do (well, unless I use Awe and suck everyone dry but that's hardly how this game should be played, is it).

Awesome! Thanks dude! This clears things up VERY much. Dang, it's incredible how important strength and dex are (making the weapons almost function more as buffs than as the actual factor determining the damage output and hit chance).

Dang, I think I may actually go back two or three quests. With different character builds with fewer points spent on disciplines and more on the physical attributes the game should actually become a piece of cake, particularly with higher dex as this way I will massively increase the chance to hit the enemy while also heavily reducing the amount of hits my characters are gonna take.

The thought that they could have easily conveyed at least some of this information through the interface and especially the manual (which doesn't even mention that dexterity has any relevance for melee attacks) just blows my mind.

I think I'm gonna take a closer look at this stuff myself. Again: thank you very much!

You might want to consider only buffing STR and DEX for one main character, that is also easier to outfit with the best armor. Different Players try different things, for me I prefer Wilhelm, since he starts with the most STR and DEX in the game, and he has Feral Claws with Celerity. Downside, no Fortitude, but he kills enemies quickly. With Christof on AI, he is able to defeat Maqqabah in North Quarter, and in Ardan's Chantry, he can single handedly defeat 1-2 (random) Golems summoned by the Circles without dropping his Potence and Celerity (well, subject to no lucky hits by enemies, etc etc).

Note that having your coterie around distracting bosses (like Maqqabah, Vaclav) seems to make a very significant difference in whether they hit you or not. Even if your coterie is not actually doing very significant (if any) damage.

Serena will get Lure of Flames after Ardan's Chantry, so not many questions for her, Lure of Flames is the way to go.

Why not Christof? IMHO, since he will be the only character brought over to modern times, and he will retain his Disciplines learnt (Wilhelm will lose them), Christof should (eventually) master Lure of Flames. Don't forget Blood Ritual for the precious Theft of Vitae. This makes buffing his STR and DEX relatively pointless, especially when Wilhelm is strong enough that his involvement is not critical in winning battles, and hopefully Serena can help burn through tough encounters until it is time for Christof to pick up his spellbook.

Another reason not to buff Christof's STR DEX is probably because his MAN (Manipulation) is by far the most precious of any of the Characters. This Stat determines how much you can sell your items for. If you get his Manipulation high enough in Dark Ages, by the time he reaches Modern Times you can break the "profit" barrier and get unlimited funds to purchase items after escaping from the Society of Leopold. That is precious, especially since Modern Times offers terrific Discipline Rings and Bracelets that reduce your Casting cost. This might not sound like much, but it is totally crazy especially with Firestorm and Theft of Vitae. Most fights will be cakewalk from then on.

As an aside, I can't remember if it is possible, but you may want to try saving the second Lure of Flames Tome for bringing over to Modern Times for Lily. Since you get it so late in Dark Ages anyway.