Build me an Arcanum character because I'm a filthy casual and too stupid to do it myself.

[youhomofo]

The combat in this game is so bad. And there's so much of it. It's shit real-time and shit turn-based. I did not think it would be this bad. I just assumed a bunch of casuals were wining because it didn't hold their hand and guide them delicately along.

I don't know how anyone can play a game with shitty gameplay for the dozens of hours this RPG would take to beat.

 

[jackofshadows]

a bunch of casuals were wining because it didn't hold their hand and guide them delicately along.

Seem accurate to me.

 

[marek]

The combat in this game is so bad. And there's so much of it. It's shit real-time and shit turn-based. I did not think it would be this bad. I just assumed a bunch of casuals were wining because it didn't hold their hand and guide them delicately along.

Simple: many - including myself - just don't care that much about combat mechanics. Planescape:Torment had bad combat mechanics, Disco Elysium had (basically) no combat mechanics, both games are considered great despite this.

 

[Serious_Business]

The combat in this game is so bad. And there's so much of it. It's shit real-time and shit turn-based. I did not think it would be this bad. I just assumed a bunch of casuals were wining because it didn't hold their hand and guide them delicately along.

Simple: many - including myself - just don't care that much about combat mechanics. Planescape:Torment had bad combat mechanics, Disco Elysium had (basically) no combat mechanics, both games are considered great despite this.

Bunch of 'tards tho

As you will soon learn, combat is inevitable in life. It is even the essence of it

 

[Sweeper]

Simple: many - including myself - just don't care that much about combat mechanics. Planescape:Torment had bad combat mechanics, Disco Elysium had (basically) no combat mechanics, both games are considered great despite this.

True.
Very true.
And only one of those games is an RPG.
An RPG can be good despite shit combat, but it does have to have combat.
Daily Reminder: Disco Elysium is not an RPG, regardless of how it's marketed or how much you like it.

 

[marek]

True.
An RPG can be good despite shit combat, but it does have to have combat.

Why exactly? Disco Elysium is not a text adventure: your actions, options and outcomes are derived from your skills and rolls. More of an RPG than many modern aRPGs - and non-combat P&P RPGs focusing on e.g. theft and intrigue also exist. Sadly not so much as crpgs & quite niche. But several good RPGs at least offer no combat as an option (e.g. AoD as Commercium).

 

[Sweeper]

Why exactly? Disco Elysium is not a text adventure

 

[marek]

"Disco elysium is not a text adventure" - Marek the Wise, ca. 2020 a.D.

 

[Lilura]

Simple: many - including myself - just don't care that much about combat mechanics. Planescape:Torment had bad combat mechanics, Disco Elysium had (basically) no combat mechanics, both games are considered great despite this.

Only by storyfags. Weekly reminder:

The combat in this game is so bad. And there's so much of it. It's shit real-time and shit turn-based. I did not think it would be this bad. I just assumed a bunch of casuals were wining because it didn't hold their hand and guide them delicately along.

I don't know how anyone can play a game with shitty gameplay for the dozens of hours this RPG would take to beat.

The other problem is the amount of towns, the town-spam. After Tarant, it's one boring-ass town after another.

 

[Latro]

isco Elysium had (basically) no combat mechanics

and so is not an RPG, screw off

 

[Russia is over. The end.]

Just started an Arcanum replay. Got scarred by the wolves. Thankfully I noticed the floating message, otherwise I wouldn't know why my Beauty is lower than usual. Is there no interface for afflictions like that?

 

[Russia is over. The end.]

Why doesn't Virgil want to wear wool armor? I don't see what it has to do with magic/technology. It doesn't, does it?

 

[Eastwood]

Why doesn't Virgil want to wear wool armor? I don't see what it has to do with magic/technology. It doesn't, does it?

Followers are kind of stupid in deciding what to wear. I think they prioritize the items with the highest sale value, which obviously leads to a lot of suboptimal choices. Try to remove all other armor from him, if you want him to wear the wool armor.
Another possibility could be that the armor is not the right size category. Humans can only wear medium sized armors, while ogres wear large and the little races small sizes.

 

[Chaotic_Heretic]

Why doesn't Virgil want to wear wool armor? I don't see what it has to do with magic/technology. It doesn't, does it?

The wool armor is probably Large-sized for half-ogres and the like; Virgil requires medium sized stuff.
halfings, dwarfs and the small dipshits also known as gnomes wear small sized armor.
All others wear medium sized armor
This applies only to torso armor.

 

[Zerth]

As a halfling, getting a critical failure with a backstab is the funniest shit. Since their CON is so low, they ended up disemboweling themselves with a failure backstab hit that doubles their HP.

I don't know how anyone can play a game with shitty gameplay for the dozens of hours this RPG would take to beat.

It's a good thing you can skip combat gameplay by safely navigate dungeons spamming Invincibility and charisma checks are plentiful.

IMO gameplay is shitty mostly due to execution. Regardless of TB or Real-Time mode, most enemies are just dumb ai with the behavior of either a freight train or a Gatling gun.

 

[Volourn]

"For a game that's supposed to offer a high variety of builds, it's a disappointment that everyone goes with the same necromancy blast spell build."

Weird. I have never used necromancy in Arcanum.

 

[razvedchiki]

does magnus learn schematics higher than the fourth lvl?

 

[Brancaleone]

Regardless of TB or Real-Time mode, most enemies are just dumb ai with the behavior of either a freight train or a Gatling gun.

AI has always been by far my biggest gripe about the game. It is basically non existent, and whatever little there is of it is just random actions within certain parameters. The entire game's AI fits little more than one page:

Spoiler

// The numbers on each line have the following meaning:
// Given a line N with data D1 D2 D3 D4 D5...
// The values stand for:

// ---- the first five are fleeing params
// D1: percentage of NPC hit points below which NPC will flee
// D2: number of people besides PC beyond which NPC will flee
// D3: number of levels above NPC beyond which NPC will flee
// D4: percentage of PC hit points below which NPC will never flee
// D5: how far to flee, in tiles
// ---- the next five are follow params
// D6: the reaction level at which the NPC will not follow the PC
// D7: how far PC align is above NPC align before NPC wont follow
// D8: how far PC align is below NPC align before NPC wont follow
// D9: how many levels the NPC can be above the PC and still join
// D10: how much a non-accidental hit will lower a follower's reaction
// ---- the next two are kill-on-sight (KOS) params
// D11: NPC will attack if his reaction is below this
// D12: how different alignments can be before non-follower NPC attacks
// D13: alignment of target at (or above) which the good-aligned follower NPC will not attack
// ---- the next params control spell use
// D14: chance of throwing defensive spell (as opposed to offensive)
// D15: chance of throwing a healing spell in combat
// ---- the next params control combat
// D16: minimum distance in combat
// ---- the next params control door and window usage
// D17: the NPC can open portals if this is nonzero and cannot if it is zero

// The default AI packet is zero.
{0}{0 1000 1000 20 6 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 20 1 1} // generic AI
{1}{100 0 0 0 10 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 75 100 0 1} // flees immediately
{2}{0 1000 1000 101 1 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1} // never flees
{3}{10 10 10 20 5 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1} // original generic AI (sometimes flees)
{4}{50 20 3 20 20 20 20 20 2 0 0 2001 100 15 100 0 1} // flees at 50
{5}{0 1000 1000 101 1 -1000 2001 2001 30 0 -1000 2001 2001 50 20 0 1} // Virgil AI
{6}{20 5 5 20 5 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1} // Hervor AI (flees at 20)
{7}{0 1000 1000 101 1 20 1001 1000 8 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1} // Chukka AI
{8}{0 1000 1000 101 1 -1001 1001 1001 20 0 0 2001 2001 0 0 5 1}// Arronax AI
{9}{0 1000 1000 101 1 20 1001 1000 2 0 -1000 2001 100 50 100 0 1}// Kerghan
{10}{0 16 1000 20 7 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 20 0 4 1} // bowman no flee
{11}{10 100 100 20 7 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 20 0 5 1} // ranged magic monster flee 10%
{12}{10 7 100 15 6 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 30 0 1 1} // close combat monster flee 10%
{13}{10 7 100 15 6 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 40 0 1 1} // close combat defense monster flee 10%
{14}{0 10 100 15 6 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 20 0 1 1} // close combat
{15}{0 100 100 20 7 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 20 0 5 1} // ranged magic monster no flee
{16}{0 10 100 15 6 1000 1000 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 30 0 5 1} // close combat invis will move back 5 tiles
{17}{0 1000 1000 20 6 20 1001 1000 25 0 0 2001 350 50 100 1 1} // Cynthia Boggs AI
{18}{30 20 100 20 5 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1} // Borag
{19}{0 1000 1000 101 1 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 0}//General Monster
{20}{100 0 0 0 10 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 75 2001 0 0}// clockwork decoy AI
{21}{0 1000 1000 20 6 20 1001 1000 7 0 0 2001 2001 50 20 1 1}// Priscilla Penn
{22}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 355 2 0 0 2001 100 0 20 1 1}//Magnus
{23}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 400 2001 2 0 0 2001 2001 0 20 1 1}//Torian
{24}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 510 2 0 0 2001 100 40 20 5 1}//Raven
{25}{0 1000 1000 101 1 -1000 2001 2001 5 0 -1000 2001 350 0 20 5 1}//Frank
{26}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 400 2001 2 0 0 2001 2001 30 20 5 1}//Zan
{27}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 355 2 0 0 2001 100 0 20 1 1}//Gar
{28}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 355 2 0 0 2001 100 0 20 1 1}//Loghaire
{29}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 250 2001 2 0 0 2001 2001 30 20 5 1}//Geoffrey
{30}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 200 2 0 0 2001 100 40 20 5 1}//Perriman
{31}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 2001 2 0 0 2001 2001 0 20 1 1}//Sogg
{32}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 2001 2 0 0 2001 2001 0 20 5 1}//Vollinger
{33}{0 1000 1000 20 6 25 150 2001 5 10 0 2001 2001 0 10 1 1}//Tollo
{34}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 355 2 0 0 2001 300 0 20 5 1}//Waromon
{35}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 410 2 0 0 2001 100 40 20 1 1}//Dante
{36}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 2001 2 5 0 2001 500 0 20 1 1}//Sebastian
{37}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 410 2 0 0 2001 100 0 50 1 1}//Jayna
{38}{0 1000 1000 20 6 15 2001 400 2 0 0 2001 100 25 25 5 1}//Joachim
{39}{5 10 0 20 20 20 1001 1000 2 0 0 2001 100 20 35 4 1} // Generic Bowman
{40}{0 1000 1000 101 1 20 1001 1000 100 0 0 2001 100 50 100 0 1}// Murgo

So that's it, AI for a single enemy/NPC/companion is exactly one line of random actions within some very rudimentary parameters.

Even a rudimentary AI would go a very long way in making combat better. Modders have spent quite some time rebalancing spells and items, but that in the end affects meaningfully only the player, and it means nothing if everyone else (enemies and companions) cannot make any good use of those rebalanced spells and items.

 

[axedice]

The most fun I had with Arcanum was when I played a pure Tech character with Drog's mod. Finding and crafting new schematics, early game dumpster diving etc. all felt good. You don't steamroll the entire game like the magic / summoning or 20 str melee paths, but it definitely doesn't suck early game (unlike the release version).

My second advice would be a full cha / beauty persuasion character with minimal investment in blacksmithing. Recruit every companion, convince every npc and steamroll the obligatory dungeons with 6 characters swinging featherweight dwarven axes.

 

[502]

does magnus learn schematics higher than the fourth lvl?

Everyone is stuck at rank 4 of their respective disciplines in vanilla, but UAP 2.01 lets you swap follower leveling schemes to "no scheme" and allocate their points yourself.

 

[the mole]

build really doesn't matter in arcanum

you'll figure out why maybe 10 minutes in depending on your stats

could be a few hours otherwise

 

[Zerth]

Even a rudimentary AI would go a very long way in making combat better. Modders have spent quite some time rebalancing spells and items, but that in the end affects meaningfully only the player, and it means nothing if everyone else (enemies and companions) cannot make any good use of those rebalanced spells and items.

Those AI routines aren't even bare bones, just a random fest, wtf. Geoffrey's behavior practically is a showcase of the glaring issues of AI design, He goes melee most times. The same happens to Joachim when you face him during a true evil play through.

 

[Rafidur]

My second advice would be a full cha / beauty persuasion character with minimal investment in blacksmithing

Consider electronics to make them some DEX rings too.

 

[Wulfric Pinewood]

Go play Baldur's Gate 3 , rpgs without exploding barrels are shit. What is better than exploding fuckin barrel anyway?

 

[Spukrian]

There is a good argument for playing thief in Arcanum, but maybe not on your first playthrough though...

*Joining the Thieves Guild gives you a lot of special quests in all the major towns of the game that aren't available otherwise. Granted, 95% of them are "Go to place X and steal item Y without getting caught", but it's a good source of extra XP. And if you like the item you stole, you could just steal it back after giving it to the fence.
*If you have thieving skills high enough, you could just break into stores at night time and steal the items and money that you need.