[ratchild]

as for party creation, go with what you like, and what works for you. myself, my latest party is definitely an advanced one, with no pure magic users. Hobbit samurai, dwarf lord, human monk, human ranger, hobbit gadgeteer/thief (explanation in a sec) and mook bard. hobbit samurai is good all around, no area is seriously lacking. dwarf lord gets dmg resistance, and lotsa HP and str. human monk and ranger, again no deficiencies. my hobbit theif/gadgeteer, while his omnigun will advance slower, his first 2 levels and 1 every 10 after that will be thief, for the benefit of stealth... an extra 3 ac out of nowhere makes a nice difference. the mook bard, because they get lots of Sta and carry capacity with high vit and str. my bard has 5 HP less than my lord in my party right now. he also helps alot with his sword. I have enough instruments/gadgets to cover about half the usefull spells in the game, with the frontline fighters contributing as well, although their spell levels are a little behind what a normal party would be at this point. I just got the heal all instrument for my bard, and i'm doing great!