Ironworks Gaming Forum - View Single Post - My first party

Grungepopp · 02-13-2002, 09:21 AM

This is exactly the party I play. You must be a genius! :> Don't worry about not having enough healing, just be sure to take heal wounds at the start with your bishop. As was stated earlier, your ranger will pick it up at 5th level. And then right around 11th level, you'll find an instrument for your bard that will make healing an afterthought...

To help you get there, you can pick up a Valkyrie NPC early in the game who also compliments this party extremely well, being a flank fighter with extended reach. Your second NPC is less important, since you have most facets of the game covered with your main team. A front row fighter (rogue, monk, etc) would probably be your next best bet.

With your bishop, concentrate on wizardry, psionics, and to a lesser degree divinity. I say to a lesser degree because you'll get plenty of skill ups through casting. You will with wizardry as well, but it's the most important realm because of its protective magics. Take psionics next, because you don't have that realm covered elsewhere (the monk NPC can't cast spells). I also bumped up alchemy to 15 so I could start mixing potions, but you can leave that to your ranger if you like. Concentrate on defensive buffs and offensive status ailments. Your bard and gadgeteer can handle the offensive magic in time.

As for the merits of the fighter, all I can say is that I personally like to have at least one character capable of big damage. The light-hitting crit guys like the samurai, monk, and ninja are great when the crits actually happen, but having a tank to soften the enemies is a huge benefit to this mainly ranged/instruments/gadgets party. (I would swap out the samurai for a 2nd fighter or better yet a valkyrie before giving up my fighter)

The last bit of advice I can give for this party from my experience, is to focus on your ranger. Give her (as has been said before, the women get the cool stamina items and you'll need plenty of stamina for your ranger later) a doubleshot crossbow, a large selection of quality ammunition, and a high dex/spd/sen and she'll be your MVP. My ranger leads my party in kills because of a combination of critical hits, high speed (finishes off weak monsters from the previous round), and multiple attacks. And to top it off you don't have to worry about searching!

You have made a solid choice of party members. I hope you enjoy playing them as much as I do!

02-13-2002, 09:21 AM	#9
Grungepopp Elite Waterdeep Guard Join Date: February 6, 2002 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 9	This is exactly the party I play. You must be a genius! :> Don't worry about not having enough healing, just be sure to take heal wounds at the start with your bishop. As was stated earlier, your ranger will pick it up at 5th level. And then right around 11th level, you'll find an instrument for your bard that will make healing an afterthought... To help you get there, you can pick up a Valkyrie NPC early in the game who also compliments this party extremely well, being a flank fighter with extended reach. Your second NPC is less important, since you have most facets of the game covered with your main team. A front row fighter (rogue, monk, etc) would probably be your next best bet. With your bishop, concentrate on wizardry, psionics, and to a lesser degree divinity. I say to a lesser degree because you'll get plenty of skill ups through casting. You will with wizardry as well, but it's the most important realm because of its protective magics. Take psionics next, because you don't have that realm covered elsewhere (the monk NPC can't cast spells). I also bumped up alchemy to 15 so I could start mixing potions, but you can leave that to your ranger if you like. Concentrate on defensive buffs and offensive status ailments. Your bard and gadgeteer can handle the offensive magic in time. As for the merits of the fighter, all I can say is that I personally like to have at least one character capable of big damage. The light-hitting crit guys like the samurai, monk, and ninja are great when the crits actually happen, but having a tank to soften the enemies is a huge benefit to this mainly ranged/instruments/gadgets party. (I would swap out the samurai for a 2nd fighter or better yet a valkyrie before giving up my fighter) The last bit of advice I can give for this party from my experience, is to focus on your ranger. Give her (as has been said before, the women get the cool stamina items and you'll need plenty of stamina for your ranger later) a doubleshot crossbow, a large selection of quality ammunition, and a high dex/spd/sen and she'll be your MVP. My ranger leads my party in kills because of a combination of critical hits, high speed (finishes off weak monsters from the previous round), and multiple attacks. And to top it off you don't have to worry about searching! You have made a solid choice of party members. I hope you enjoy playing them as much as I do!