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Useless skills?
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RPGDot Forums > Arx Fatalis

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SwitchBlade
Eager Tradesman
Eager Tradesman




Joined: 04 Oct 2002
Posts: 26
Useless skills?
   

Are there any skills that I can get away without increasing? I'm thinking technical skill & ethereal link. Any others you would recommend?
Post Mon Jan 06, 2003 7:40 pm
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txiabxyooj
Fox Spirit
Fox Spirit




Joined: 06 Dec 2001
Posts: 971
Location: here, there & everywhere
   

technical skill is a maybe, however it does have its uses. i found the ether link to be extremely valuable if you are going to play as a mage. i wouldn't dump too many skill points into it, but on the other hand i wouldn't totally ignore it either. i actually went without the ranged weapon skill. i didn't use bows & saw little other utility to dumping points into that skill.
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"The origin of things, if things have an origin, cannot be revealed to me, if revealed at all, until I have travelled very far from it, and many revolutions of the sun must precede my first dawn. The light as it appears hides the candle." --Santayana
=member of the worshippers of the written word=
=member of the Non-flamers' guild=
Post Mon Jan 06, 2003 7:45 pm
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corwin
On the Razorblade of Life
On the Razorblade of Life




Joined: 10 Jun 2002
Posts: 8376
Location: Australia
   

My biggest gripe with the entire game, is that there are too many skills and not enough points. As a mage, I obviously built up casting, but that left very few points for other skills. An example: I've built my object knowledge up to 70, but I still can't identify and therefore use or sell the giant sword I got from Inut. Pointless!! At the very least, there should be some other way of identifying items.The only skills I built up besides those 2, were tech and alittle on combat casting (50) so I could use some of the better weapons. I ignored all the rest and still wasn't able to identify everything, or open all the locks. I don't know how people got to level 10 unless they went on a killing spree, as I did all the quests I could, killed everything that needed killing including all the annoying goblins after I'd done all the quests involving them and I'm still over 50000 away from level 10 with nothing left to do but the final battle. These are relatively minor gripes, and I'm hopeful that Arkane will address them for their next game.
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Post Tue Jan 07, 2003 12:40 am
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Merz
Protector of the Realm
Protector of the Realm




Joined: 22 Oct 2002
Posts: 260
   

I agree with corwin, that there are too many skills for the amount of available XP in game. The possibilities that those skill open are intriuging, but requirements to those skills are high too. At the end, I was feeling I wish I knew in advance that I wouldn't be able to enjoy that skill in practice (because there is not enuf XPs) and invested into something more critical..

My advice: ranging Skill can be safely skipped. Do not invest in it, as you won't benefit from it unless you have the Inut's bow (at the end of game).
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Post Tue Jan 07, 2003 9:57 pm
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Heldwin
Village Dweller
Village Dweller




Joined: 04 Jan 2003
Posts: 22
Location: Switzerland
   

Actually, the Inut's Magic Sword and Bow are "Easter Egg" Items


You cannot Identifie them, but you can wear them anyway.

You need 18 Str to be able to wear the Inut's Magic Sword thought

But you only need 18Str when you try to wear it ... then you can bypass this.
If you wear a sword that has a Str Bonus and with it you have 18Str, then just permute the sword you have with the Inut's magic sword and you will be able to wear it ... because the game only checks if you have 18Str when you try to wear the Inut's Sword.

If you have 18Str with a +2Str sword and try to wear the Inut's sword, your Str will drop to 16, but you will wear it

You can use this trick with any other Items that has a Stat requirement thought
Post Wed Jan 08, 2003 1:38 pm
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Merz
Protector of the Realm
Protector of the Realm




Joined: 22 Oct 2002
Posts: 260
   

You may be right about the magical, sword that it is not identifiable, but the bow is identifiable. I was able to use it straight away, including it's nice fire damage
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Post Wed Jan 08, 2003 6:12 pm
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txiabxyooj
Fox Spirit
Fox Spirit




Joined: 06 Dec 2001
Posts: 971
Location: here, there & everywhere
   

the more i think about this question the more i am led to a single statment: all the skills in arx are useless. i tried to play a jack of all trades type or a character who wasn't specialized in any single skill but that had a good balance of many. the problem is that there aren't really enough skill points to play this type of character successfully. there is only really one solution. SPECIALIZE! if you are going to play a mage dump everything into magic. if you are going to be a warrior dump it into combat. don't make the same mistake i did, there is no such thing as a well rounded character in arx.
_________________
"The origin of things, if things have an origin, cannot be revealed to me, if revealed at all, until I have travelled very far from it, and many revolutions of the sun must precede my first dawn. The light as it appears hides the candle." --Santayana
=member of the worshippers of the written word=
=member of the Non-flamers' guild=
Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 12:04 am
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Red
Tempered Warlord
Tempered Warlord




Joined: 15 Dec 2002
Posts: 282
   

Yeah... what's annoying as that a lot of people want to be generic (since they don't even know what the game will bring you up aginst it's hard to invest everything on a single thing), but the game doesn't hint you that it'll get VERY hard if you don't specialize.

I'm doing reasonably well with my current chracter which still didn't specialize, but I've grown a bit tired and am waiting to try the game on the new system I'll be getting this weekend
Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 2:14 am
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Merz
Protector of the Realm
Protector of the Realm




Joined: 22 Oct 2002
Posts: 260
   

Txiabxyooj, Red, I have the same feeling towards the skill system in Arx: they are nice skills but useless for a generic or slightly specialised characters because there are not enuf XP points to become proficient in the chosen skills. The only way to enjoy a skill is to replay the game with specialization in that skill.

And based on my own experinece and what I read on this forums, it looks that the game is easy for a mage, and hard for a thief, with a warrior type in between.
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Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 9:54 am
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txiabxyooj
Fox Spirit
Fox Spirit




Joined: 06 Dec 2001
Posts: 971
Location: here, there & everywhere
   

@merz -- yeah, but after playing it once do you really want to play it again?
_________________
"The origin of things, if things have an origin, cannot be revealed to me, if revealed at all, until I have travelled very far from it, and many revolutions of the sun must precede my first dawn. The light as it appears hides the candle." --Santayana
=member of the worshippers of the written word=
=member of the Non-flamers' guild=
Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 5:12 pm
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Red
Tempered Warlord
Tempered Warlord




Joined: 15 Dec 2002
Posts: 282
   

Once, yeah. I wouldn't say playign 3 times is very enticing though.

The first time through you learn what you need.

Second time through you do it "perfectly". After that, it's more or less useleess.
Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 5:49 pm
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Merz
Protector of the Realm
Protector of the Realm




Joined: 22 Oct 2002
Posts: 260
   

I certainly have enuf interest to play it one more time as a mage (but right now I am replaying old good Thief TDP). Only then I will be able to deside wether to place Arx among my favourites or place it on EBay.
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Post Thu Jan 09, 2003 6:20 pm
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sunshine
Head Merchant
Head Merchant




Joined: 06 Jan 2003
Posts: 51
Location: Texas
   

The single most importaint skill in this game is STEALTH.

Sure you can be an alchemist or fighter or what not.,..

But with out being able to take from NPC's inventories there are tons of rooms you cannot goto.

Lunshine himself has like 6 keys, and then the head mage guy also has some..

Plus that stupid snake lady in the castle wouldn't give up the picture book (for grue's birthday).. and i couldn't do that quest..

(and you can't rob the bank either, which gives alot of the desperatly needed experiance points)

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Post Fri Jan 10, 2003 7:26 pm
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txiabxyooj
Fox Spirit
Fox Spirit




Joined: 06 Dec 2001
Posts: 971
Location: here, there & everywhere
   

@merz -- i vote ebay!!! i can't imagine playing through this game again. at first i really enjoyed it, but as time went on i found myself becoming more and more frustrated. i liked the puzzles, i liked the world, i even liked the NPC's...but i hated myself. my character just seemed flat. i didn't feel like arx provided me with the opportunity to play the character i wanted to play; if role-playing games aren't about character development then what are they about?
_________________
"The origin of things, if things have an origin, cannot be revealed to me, if revealed at all, until I have travelled very far from it, and many revolutions of the sun must precede my first dawn. The light as it appears hides the candle." --Santayana
=member of the worshippers of the written word=
=member of the Non-flamers' guild=
Post Fri Jan 10, 2003 8:22 pm
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Merz
Protector of the Realm
Protector of the Realm




Joined: 22 Oct 2002
Posts: 260
   

txiabxyooj, I can see what you mean. I was feeling frustrated too that I could not play the character I wanted. It's been a more then a month since I finished Arx, and my attitued slowly changes into more favourable. Arx does have good points, and now that I've learned how to play Arx, I feel my next replay with a different character will be a better one.
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Post Fri Jan 10, 2003 9:19 pm
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