Don't immediately forgo "negative" bonus classes. I've a party which has a Faerie LORD that, at times, is DUAL WIELDING two FEARIE wands. Yeah, not a lot of damage, but that Samuri can really make sushi out of those sleeping foes.

Moving characters in combat is a life saver. Get flanked? No need to move/re-orient your party via the movement icon, thus moving at your slowest person's initiave turn.

Have the vulnerable character switch places with a heavier-duty character.

I usually flank with rouge classes and keep a tank with polearm skill and heavy armor in the middle/center group. If we get flanked, I'll pull in the (switch) the characters. That way only TWO of the party lose a combat turn and my Priest/Bishop can heal the weakened character.

Tip for people just starting:

When you get to Arnika, the groups of savants and rogues can be tough for a young party.

Find the partrolling guards and follow them around...they will kill the baddies for you and you get the EXP anyway.

j

Saw one post about merging potions/powders but it didn't mention all the money to be made!! There are two things that I know of which can make you a LOT of money very easily. You need someone with a moderate alchemy skill. Item 1: mix "sneeze powder" and "flash powder"; this makes pandemonium powder which sells for about 2900, for a profit of of something over 2500 for each potion. Even better, mix "Light Heal" and "Moderate Heal" to make "Heavy Heal", then mix "Heavy Heal" with "Cure Light Condition" to make "Cure Disease". Finally, mix the "Cure Disease" with "Heavy Heal" to make "Renewal". He'li is buying my "Renewal" potions for 4840, which gives me a profit of about 3600 each. My cost for ingredients varies depending on who I buy them from. The light and moderate heals and the cure light condition seem to be readily available from the temple in Arnika, and sometimes He'li has some of them even cheaper. I made over 500,000 in just a few minutes real time (maybe 1/2 hour). My alchemist turned priest has a decent alchemy skill, but by no means maxed out. This may be an overlooked method to make money, especially early in the game. You just need a moderate alchemy skill and a little starting capital - ( or none, if you've saved some of those potions and powders)...Of course I'm one of those packrat types who saves EVERYTHING - I HATE to use my potions and such... not sure exactly what I'm saving them for, but I found out last night when I got around to trying to mix potions and sell them!!! Instant Riches!!! ( Very different from what my Broker promises and fails to deliver .

Quick update: Looks like the Alchemy skill must be 50 or more to mix the Sneeze + Flash powder and the Heavy Heal + Cure Disease. Also, AND THIS IS IMPORTANT - You can't mix unidentified items - ( you could sell them, but you won't get anywhere near their actual value. Therefore, you will need either someone with the Identify spell and reasonable skill/spell points or you can buy ID scrolls and just make a little less money on each potion - ID scrolls cost about 280-290 at the temple or Anna's - Fuzzfas also has them as well as some of the other ingredients. Even buying the scrolls, you should still make a sizeable profit on the renewal potions and over 2000 on the sneeze + flash powders... This sure adds up in a hurry [img]smile.gif[/img] !!!
[ 01-17-2002: Message edited by: SpinyNorman ]

[ 01-17-2002: Message edited by: SpinyNorman ]</p>

Not all is lost if a merchant catches you pickpocketing.
Often, you can return to his/her good graces with a small gift.

I have found so many more items by keeping the Search option on.

Be careful, though-- monsters are more likely to surprise your party (especially when entering a new room).

You can use the renaissance lute (restoration) instead of potions for your stamina hungry bard.

An easy way to raise up your magic and combat skills is to go into continuous combat mode, then summon a low level elemental and target it before the round is over. If you have multiple people that can summon elementals, you can continuously go through many elementals [img]smile.gif[/img]
This is also a good way, if you have the Might to Magic spell, of regaining mana (the elementals have low divine resistance).

BTW, earth elementals sometimes leave stones behind [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 01-19-2002: Message edited by: yoodaa ]</p>

If you have a Psionic or Priest and Alchemist in your party, get Soul Shield and Element Shield as soon as possible. These two spells are among the most important defensive spells of the game, and having them on can mean the difference between a very easy battle and an entire party death.

--Adam

I put this up in another topic, and someone suggested I post it here, too.

When shopping, often the store lists become disordered. You can fix that by simply selling a single item. The list is back in proper shape after the sale.

This trick is especially useful when you're doing multiple purchases, sacking out 24 hours to refresh the list.

I caught on to this several (or more than several) games back, and these days, I never sell all my trash items right away.

<center>Nightowl2</center>

If you have an Alchemist or Ranger you can make money by purchasing cheap potions/powders/bombs, mixing them and selling them again.

eg.
Purchase the following items:
Sneeze Powder (5) @ 5gp
Flash Powder (5) @ 79gp
Get your Alchemist to merge the two...
Sell the following item:
Pandemonium Powder @ 2300gp