Thanks to Licurg and Rawmilk, I was gifted the Wizardry games from the past sale. So I'm trying to make a run at Wizardry 8, figuring that starting with the easiest to learn (in theory) and then working backwards should help with any shocks. I love the idea of First Person Turn Based RPG's but I've never really played one without bouncing off the difficulty wall.

I might as well journal what I'm going through to help me keep going forward despite the difficulty. I did this with Temple of Elemental Evil and I nearly beat that until I lost the save.

Right now I'm in Anthi...ca? The first town of the game. I managed to do a relatively full clear of the Monastery; as far as I know I killed every monster in the place (aside from the Apparition cause screw that thing). Wasn't easy, as Gregor in particular killed me several times before I finally grinded a level or two out of random monsters roaming about. Haven't gotten stuck since, making stable if slow progress since a lot of the game so far has just been a grind through monster mobs.

I'm using a one middle, one on each flank, and three in the back formation I read about online to prevent enemies being able to get at my team's weak points.

My team so I can get thoughts on where I might have messed up:

Dragon(...ite?) Lord
Human Samurai
Dwarf Fighter
Sprite Mage
Gnome Gadgetter
Elf Priest

I'm not a nub to RPG's, so I went with a pretty balanced overall team with versatility. I didn't really think about where I'd ultimately go level wise in terms of classes, so a few of them don't have the stats to transfer anywhere. The Dwarf in particular is locked at Fighter. He's really exceptional at smashing things and living (90 friggin health), but can't do much of anything else.

One thing I don't know, is how linear the game is. Right now it's on rails, but does it eventually open up? I picked up Myles & Vi Domina, but I assume those are mandatory. Will they eventually leave me? Can I swap them with others or will it be automagically?

Another question I have, is about single/dual wielding. My Dwarf uses an Axe and a Shield. He also has the highest accuracy rate and the highest damage. That's with my Samurai & Lord having two weapons and points in the two weapon style. Is there a natural accuracy/damage loss to two weapons? Would I be better off just having my Lord use his Enchanted Longsword single without his dagger extra, or does it not matter?

1. You will struggle with this group because they are very melee heavy… I'd have the elf go bishop because you are wasting his intel with priest and the mind spells will really help out or…
Can the dwarf go bard?... even if it takes a while that will give you some magic or swap the mage over to a psionic as that at least gives you some crowd control.

2. The game is not that linear once you move into your teens… Myles & Vi are ok for your level but he won't stay long and imo she is more trouble than she is worth.

3. Dual wielding = ace of Melee damage but you need the mana to keep swinging (dragon has this in spades) and the intel to learn the skills.
Dragon = I strongly recommend sticking with the same weapon type for low intel characters (like dragons) or they will end the game unable to fight their way out of a wet bag. So sword/ dagger is fine but don’t swap to axe/ staff half way through the game.
Dwarf = Imo Axe and mace would be better than axe/ shield for the dwarf fighter (unless you go bard) in which case axe/ staff would be a little better… putting a shield on a fighter is just a tosh.
Samurai = two swords or staff but two swords is the better dps if he has low strength and he would (should) go with a doubleshot crossbow in that case.
Priest = mace and shield… as does bishop because they need the extra armour.

It's your game m8… good luck!

Morning Hawk.

I think your party is fine - you are able to complete the came with a large variety of different parties. However, as you will have realised, in battles your party uses a combination of range and close attacks so I'd suggest equipping your fighters with bows, crossbows or slings. Equipping one with a sling will also increase their throwing ability, so they can then make good use of various powders and bombs. Also, as pointed out, you can develop any magical abilities your Lord possesses. There are plenty of level increases to come and you should find either/both approaches useful.

Dual wielding is a proficiency that takes a long time to come to fruition. Your characters need to have skill points in both weapon types e.g. sword/dagger and also into the dual wielding option. From my admittedly limited experience of this I found my fighter progressed more efficiently with a sword and shield, but others may know more about dual wielding than me and have more to say. I find having a first and secondary weapon works better. If you equip your Dwarf with a Axe and Shield in the primary weapon slots and then a Crossbow and Bolts in the secondary weapon slots, he will switch between the two depending on how close the enemy are. The primary weapon slots are those closest to the body on the inventory page.

Your party's formation will become a problem if you become surrounded, so I'd suggest surrounding your spellcasters so they are buffered from all directions.

Once you leave Arnika and begin to explore the world of Dominus you will find the game opens out. You can explore the areas in just about any order, but the central quest will keep you on the rails to a greater extent. However there are choice to make that change certain aspects of the game and these are one reason why the game has such good replay value.

I hope this helps, enjoy your game :)

Thanks for the comments guys, It actually helps me enjoy games like this more to have a give and take in questions & opinions.

Before I play more today I have a quick question: Regarding the NPC's I picked up; Myles & Vi Domina. If I give them gear to make them suck less, when/if they leave, will they take that gear with them? In particular I'm worried about the game randomly yanking NPC's from me for story purposes and taking all the stuff with them.

No, they'll always drop all their gear into your team's inventory. And you can hire them again and again and again. I truly recommend Vi Domina cause she's "native" person to this world and has a lot of interactions/comments on areas/npcs. Se also can contribute well in your party as flanker/support healer (after lvl 5) with extended range spears. She's also able to visit most locations in this game (even the last one). Miles is... meh. Just do his mission in Arnika and leave him in town, he can't go almost everywhere except two early "cities" in unmodded game.

As for your team, I'd suggest dropping priest (or changing his class into bishop specialized in psionics/divinity/alchemy). Gadgeteer is cool in late game, but early on he's always underperforming. Samurai is great (but make sure he's not encumbered). You should be able to complete game with team like your's but I'm sure you'll ecounter a lot of problems with enemy magic users (lot of late game ecounters). So reclass your priest into bishop and later you'll find amazing bard NPC (so usefull with his support instrument spells).

As for positions of your characters... you don't have anyone in front row? It should look like this:
- front row (upper row): lord - fighter - samurai (if using swords)
- middle row: mage, priest, gadgie (protected)
- flanks: valkyrie (Vi), maybe samurai (if using staffs)
Leave back row empty and make sure you pick fights in places which can cover your rear (i.e. some sort of rock, wall etc.).

Always use your berserker's attack at your warrior (not the default "sword" icon).
Lord almost always should use dual weapons as he has bonuses to this particular skill. Sword/mace or later mace/mace combo.
Warrior is pretty good with x/shield as he can soak up a lot of incoming damage at the front row and give something back ;) If you want pure offensive take two-handed swords or axes (swords are better) and go swinging.
Keep in mind that you'll find a lot of great swords (one or two handed) but muuuuuuch less axes (my guess is that developers hated axes :P ).
Samurai is best with swords (his special ability works only with them), doesn't matter if he's using two of them or only one. It's your call just make sure you lvl up his dual wielding ability every level should you choose dual weapons (same with lord).

Good luck with your first playtrough! It's an amazing game so enjoy it :)

The NPCs you release from party will drop all their gear into party inventory,
except those items which are flagged as their preferred items.

btw this will raise the encumbrance of the remaining party members,
with negative impact on attack/defense modifiers if the encrumbrance level rises a step,
the impact is visible on character sheet if you click the "sword+shield" symbol and the arrow below,
also helpful to decide which weapon is bettter,
the encumbrance levels are expressed as blue/green/yellow/red numbers for encumbrance weight,
i recommmend to keep it at minimum, i.e. white numbers,
this will keep combat performance at max and stamina loss low.

I've used the formation I have due to how hard it makes enemies to target my guys. Or so I read. I always try to back myself into a wall/corner to keep enemies from flanking me.

If I change the Priest into a Bishop, will that hurt his ability to heal? Because that's pretty much all I've got him for; dedicated healing.

No as long as you remember to keep dumping 3 points per lvl into divinity school and casting spells every battle (training). Also save your spell pick points for later, cause early on (arnika) you can buy or find every low lvl spellbook. Pure healing in unmodded game isn't best option as you'll find/make gadgets or instruments that, for example, can "heal all" at use. Healer is just a wasted potential :) You've already got two wizards (mage + samurai after lvl 5) and semi-wizard (gadgie), you might have semi-healer (valkyrie), so you seriously should consider reclassing to alchemy/psionics/divinity bish (btw Elf is perfect for that class). Dump 3 point per lvl into these 3 schools and keep casting. Soon you'll be able to see his potential.

Again, thanks for the help.

Another question. Is Spell Power per discipline based off the number of spells you know in that discipline, or your skill, or a combination of the two?

Edit: Loaded the game up...Both my Priest & Fighter are far, far away from changing classes. I'll have to grind their stats for awhile.

Further, I have zero idea where I'm supposed to go now. I'm just kind of walking around the city mindlessly. Am I supposed to go to the Dark Savant's tower now? Nothing in my journal gives me a hint on where I'm to go story wise...

Hints;
1. Talk to Myles again… perhaps he has heard of a new job?
2. Did you pick up a certain letter about the special weapons vault… perhaps you should show that to the head of the religious order in town.
3. Did you look in all the chests around town… what are all these key cards good for?
4. When you have looked around and spent all your money it's time to move on down the road. (pick towards the trinnies or rhinos?)

p.s. Just for shits and giggles, tell Vi to "fuck off"

Pps. Its so sad that your Mage had to go home and care for her sick mum (being the eldest and all) but she did introduce you to her little brother Darrel… magic runs strong in their family and Darrel is an Alchemist. He can wear his sisters old equipment and will make you free potions but secretly dreams of one day becoming a Ninja.

Do it understand this correct that you really really suggest to step on the path of illegality? :D that generates an appropriate reply from nearly every wiz8 NPC,
a Vi specific keyword is "Are those real?"
.

Re. Spell Power per discipline....

The more they learn from spellbooks and the more they cast in a particular discipline, the stronger it becomes. Also, max out your spellcaster's intelligence as soon as you can and this will enable them to cast more powerfully. Piety is also a pretty important stat to increase.


Re. Where to go, what to do.....

Wizardry 8 makes the player work at finding these things out for themselves. The best advice I can give you is to search every building, every nook and cranny, every chest you find and to speak to every npc you can. If you rescue Vi, she'll give you some pointers, also speak with He'li and ask her about rumours. With respect to illegality - you can look every chest and locker without repercussions. Also, the lock picking and trap skill increases with use.

Are you having fun with the game?

I am, but I admit to becoming frustrated with not having any clue, whatsoever, on what to do. None of the NPC's give me any ideas. And it's not like I'm staying in the same two blocks. I broke into the space port and cleared that out, but couldn't get anything going there. I just used Marten's badge to break into the HLL, thinking there'd be information on what to do next but all I got was some backstory. I'm not saying I want the game to hold my hand with big pointy quest markers; but like...journal updates with some actual information on story progress would be nice.

What makes it worse is I have a improperly healed shoulder. Which means playing FPS's can hurt, so it adds to my frustration of feeling like I'm spinning my wheels when I'm in pain.

I should just read a guide, but I'm resistant to doing that for some reason.

Edit: Oh, and alt-tabbing causes the keyboard controls to not work. That is surprisingly very annoying.

Once you've pretty much cleared out Arnika, you can follow Marten's trail to Trynton (I think that's the name of the town). Make sure you explore the entire Arnika-Trynton Road, as the Graveyard there has some nice items (including a great horn for a Bard) and decent fights against various spirits. Also, if you found the wheel-shaped key, go back to the Lower Monastery and open the door that's near the raised metal bridge. There's a few nice items there as well.

As for the shoulder I know how you feel. I have carpel-tunnel in both arms, so keyboard+mouse games can be excruciating at times. Aleve is sometimes a very good friend of mine. *sigh*

Flynn

Sorry to hear you're in pain with your shoulder Hawk. Flynn has given you some pretty good direction but I thought I'd give you the order I begin the game in as I think that should help resolve some of your frustration.

I was hoping to spoiler this, but no joy. Someone will have to tell me how to do it.....

[url=][/url]I do everything possible in the Monastery including breaking the glass shields and the glass window. You can gain some really useful items from doing this including a decent cloak, armour and the Fellowship Pass which is given to Braffit in Arnika. He will then tell you where to find the Wheel Key.

I then travel to Arnika, get Myles and Vi, talk to everyone including Anton about his custom pieces, get the 3 keycards and rob the chests stored in the bank. There is also a secret passage into the bank from the jail which is worth exploring. On leaving Arnika, I return to the Monastery, use the Wheel Key and get some useful gear. I then return to Arnika, sell/re-stock, leave and go straight to the cemetery near Trynton. After exploring this, I go to Trynton and start the search for Marten.

There is a lot to do in Trynton and a fair amount of things to work out. Start by talking to Chief Geri who stands in the doorway that leads into the tree. Some of the battles here can be tough. If you get stuck in Trynton, post again and I (plus others) will help.[url=][/url]

have fun :)