Yeah, things are a lot different from W7. I remember when I thought the Alchemist stunk until I found out how a high level cloud spell could turn the tide of battle. I even remember reading somebody telling about how their whole party had been killed/incapacitated but the Alchemist's cloud spells killed the monsters, and the party lived. I have had an opposite experience from you, MasterPooBaa, in that I almost never relie on lingering spells.

That's easy. I knew I had to save the planet from the bomb in Arnika but this time around I didn't want to spend much time in Rapax Land.

I went to AP early, set a portal near the Life Temple and one near the Cosmic Circle Temple--actually near the Vipers. I hoped to skip the Rift, the Templar/Al-Sedexus stuff, and the final big fight with the Prince and his friends. Well, much to my chagrin, when I backtracked to the portal to the castle the doors were closed--you need to come from the castle first!!

You can skip some areas but there's no skipping all of the Rapax stuff. I will be able to portal around the Prince is all.

It's not really necessary to become a Templar if you go to the Peak early and set a portal past the landslide point. However, there is no getting around the need for going through the Rift and into the castle to reach the tower.

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