At last I have really finished the demo area (for the second time). And, despite playing it on "casual," my party actually has a little bit higher level than the first one did! They're all at level 10. I think it's because I was able to use boats this time, because I've got the full game, and that allowed me into a few areas I couldn't reach before, so I racked up just a bit more experience (or, my all-human party really does advance faster). I've also got all the lock pick skills and cave lore I need. So now I just need to beef up on arcane lore and after that I can concentrate on skills (with a bit of luck and first aid thrown in occasionally). Ergo, it isn't necessary to use the character editor.
I have reset the game to "normal." Already had one fight and it was indeed tougher than the same stuff on "casual." I have entered the Vahnatai lands and am about to row out into this strange new world.
I did run into one bit of difficulty, and went to the Spiderweb Forum to get an answer (somebody responded within minutes). I had cleaned out the Blasted Ruins, where some Nephilim were creating undead to harass Formello, and found a altar. There is a quest to perform a Ritual of Sanctification on it to cleanse it permanently. OK, I found the tome with the Ritual, and the game said I knew it. I even returned, clicked on it again, and the game said my knowledge had improved.
But when I went to the altar (and I'm sure it's the right one), I never got the option to do the Ritual.
But the forum is most helpful! Turns out my priest doesn't have a high enough level yet. Although you can't buy a spell unless you have the right level for it, apparently when you find one in a tome, you can learn it. You just can't use it until you hit the right level. I've got a ways to go on this one. Although I'm at character level 10, I'm only at priest level 6, because I've been spending my points on lock and cave and arcane skills. (More thoughtful game planning from Jeff: you can go back to a teacher to buy skills so it's OK to deny them if your level isn't high enough, but when you find a tome out there in the wild you'd have to backtrack to get it later, so this makes sense.)
That choice may bite me for awhile. But at least I've eliminated the backtracking I would have to do when I come across a lock I can't open or a cache I can't dig up. Having to backtrack like that is a good way to miss important stuff. I remember in the original, early versions of these games you almost never had to backtrack. Jeff had balanced the skill levels with the areas you could enter so well that by the time you got to a new area, you had the skills to conquer it.
So I'm entering the Vahnatai lands with lots of special skills, but limited fighting and magic. Because of this I choose to do every optional battle I find. Every point you get counts.
Tomorrow, I really get to enter the full game! I already have a pretty good idea of where I'll go, but in this new version, what will I find?
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