Wizardry The Wizardry Series Thread

[Darth Canoli]

Somewhat ashamed to ask, but is there an alternate character creator for Wiz6? Not trying to cheat and make a maxed party at the start; I just want a faster reroll than the glacial process in the actual game.

I'm quite sure i used a character editor for 7 or 6 once for the same reasons but mostly to edit the swimming skills to avoid drowning in a fountain at pure loss, even with 50 in swimming, you'll drown as soon as you touch any body of water, be it a fountain, a river or a puddle.

It's probably the cosmic forge, i can't find any other editor in my wizardry directory.

 

[Matador]

Somewhat ashamed to ask, but is there an alternate character creator for Wiz6? Not trying to cheat and make a maxed party at the start; I just want a faster reroll than the glacial process in the actual game.

What Darth Canoli said. The cosmic forge editor.

https://mad-god.webs.com/cosmicforge.htm

It includes an option for more frequent good rolls without feeling cheat.

 

[Butter]

I've started a new playthrough of Crusaders, and I have to say I love the way it opens. It's the most storyfag game of the series up to this point, and they hit you with so many new terms: Cosmic Circle, Astral Dominae, Dark Savant. Then you're whisked away on a spaceship to an alien planet and you meet a woman on a jetbike. The whole thing is disorienting, but it makes clear that this is going to be a vast departure from previous Wizardry games, and the accompanying flavor text creates the sense that this is going to be the adventure of a lifetime. Would that I could go back to 1992 and play it without foreknowledge and without the Internet. It's not hard to understand why this game inspired Cleve to spend 20+ years on a spiritual successor.

 

[Dorateen]

I've started a new playthrough of Crusaders, and I have to say I love the way it opens.

I love the absolute lack of hand-holding, especially for a new starting party not imported from Bane. You are just dropped in the middle of the road with no direction, not even an automap until you find the kit off in the woods.

 

[grimer]

bros im about to play wizardry 1 and i have a couple of questions

1. if my thief changes class would he retain his ability to identify/disarm traps? if so would his effectiveness be determined by his previous level as a thief or his current level in his new class?

2. are there any weapons with extended range in this game like spears? id like to have some melee characters in the back row

3. do bishops learn mage and priest spells simultaneously per level (after level 4) or do they alternate between the two spellbooks like in wizardry 6?

 

[Fluent]

I've started a new playthrough of Crusaders, and I have to say I love the way it opens. It's the most storyfag game of the series up to this point, and they hit you with so many new terms: Cosmic Circle, Astral Dominae, Dark Savant. Then you're whisked away on a spaceship to an alien planet and you meet a woman on a jetbike. The whole thing is disorienting, but it makes clear that this is going to be a vast departure from previous Wizardry games, and the accompanying flavor text creates the sense that this is going to be the adventure of a lifetime. Would that I could go back to 1992 and play it without foreknowledge and without the Internet. It's not hard to understand why this game inspired Cleve to spend 20+ years on a spiritual successor.

I love the absolute lack of hand-holding, especially for a new starting party not imported from Bane. You are just dropped in the middle of the road with no direction, not even an automap until you find the kit off in the woods.

great posts, thanks for sharing! Makes me want to play the game.

 

[Old Hans]

I just want a faster reroll than the glacial process in the actual game

that's how it always starts.

Next thing you know it's "maybe ill just give everyone 10,000 hit points"

 

[gman42]

bros im about to play wizardry 1 and i have a couple of questions

1. if my thief changes class would he retain his ability to identify/disarm traps? if so would his effectiveness be determined by his previous level as a thief or his current level in his new class?

2. are there any weapons with extended range in this game like spears? id like to have some melee characters in the back row

3. do bishops learn mage and priest spells simultaneously per level (after level 4) or do they alternate between the two spellbooks like in wizardry 6?

1. Unfortunately there aren't really any sophisticated "skill" mechanics like that. The ninja is the only other character that has any kind of bonus beyond the default to disable traps, I think it's (AGIx4)% vs (AGI*6)% or something...so that would be the ideal class to shoot for. If there's a level aspect of the disarm % (don't really recall), it would be based on current level.

2. No luck, they didn't introduce that until Wiz5. It's really limiting and basically forces you to have 3 spellcasters if you want to get the most out of a party, but then that often leaves you with a shitty thief on the front line doing like 5 damage every round (see answer #1 for the solution to this of course).

3. Going by memory here, I'm pretty sure they can learn both in a level. Odds of learning from each book would be independent and based on IQ/Piety tho.

 

[octavius]

You'll need 17 in all stats for a Ninja, which is virtually impossible in most versions of the game.
You can also get an instant Ninja if you find a certain weapon. IIRC it's a Dagger of Evil and you mist be Evil to activate it. Never saw one when I played so the chance of it dropping is slim.

 

[gman42]

You'll need 17 in all stats for a Ninja, which is virtually impossible in most versions of the game.

I still wonder whether the shitty stat increases are a function of the game version, or the RNG being messed up depending on the platform you're playing on (like DOSBOX on a modern PC), or both.

I first played the game back when it actually originally came out for the PC, and it was the early version that still had basically the Apple II interface (with the tiny view window and the stats always on the screen, surprise attacks still allowed spells, etc.). Stat decreases on level up were definitely rare, I had no problem working my way up to making a lord and ninja on my couple of playthroughs. No doubt if I had wanted to keep grinding I could have gotten everyone to all 18s.

 

[Grauken]

You'll need 17 in all stats for a Ninja, which is virtually impossible in most versions of the game.

I still wonder whether the shitty stat increases are a function of the game version, or the RNG being messed up depending on the platform you're playing on (like DOSBOX on a modern PC), or both.

I first played the game back when it actually originally came out for the PC, and it was the early version that still had basically the Apple II interface (with the tiny view window and the stats always on the screen, surprise attacks still allowed spells, etc.). Stat decreases on level up were definitely rare, I had no problem working my way up to making a lord and ninja on my couple of playthroughs. No doubt if I had wanted to keep grinding I could have gotten everyone to all 18s.

As far as I know there are only the original booter versions of Wizardry 1-5 for Dos, even the Ultimate Wizardry Archive version are basically just wrappers with the original booter versions inside

 

[gman42]

You'll need 17 in all stats for a Ninja, which is virtually impossible in most versions of the game.

I still wonder whether the shitty stat increases are a function of the game version, or the RNG being messed up depending on the platform you're playing on (like DOSBOX on a modern PC), or both.

I first played the game back when it actually originally came out for the PC, and it was the early version that still had basically the Apple II interface (with the tiny view window and the stats always on the screen, surprise attacks still allowed spells, etc.). Stat decreases on level up were definitely rare, I had no problem working my way up to making a lord and ninja on my couple of playthroughs. No doubt if I had wanted to keep grinding I could have gotten everyone to all 18s.

As far as I know there are only the original booter versions of Wizardry 1-5 for Dos, even the Ultimate Wizardry Archive version are basically just wrappers with the original booter versions inside

Yeah this was of course the same bootable floppy version, I have no idea if there's anything different about the code internally but it definitely had the old interface, this style:

 

[Grauken]

No, the original Apple versions look different than the DOS version, I've played through both, I should now. The Apple monster graphics for example are completely different and far more basic

As for the Interface, that's pretty much the same, even across the ports, with a slightly improved interface in some of them, but overall not many changes

 

[gman42]

I mean I think we're just mincing words at this point. I'm just saying the DOS version with the full screen view of the maze, the S key to toggle status off/on, etc. was definitely a slightly later version, there was an early one that had the above interface (the screenshot itself that I pasted is definitely an Apple ][ one, I was just posting it as an example). AFAIK Wiz II and later were all released with the "good" interface.

I remember that original version even had a hotkey to toggle between the two different hideous CGA palettes (I slightly preferred the red/green/yellow over white/cyan/magenta).

 

[grimer]

You'll need 17 in all stats for a Ninja, which is virtually impossible in most versions of the game.
You can also get an instant Ninja if you find a certain weapon. IIRC it's a Dagger of Evil and you mist be Evil to activate it. Never saw one when I played so the chance of it dropping is slim.

yea i rolled a hobbit thief with like 26 bonus points and i still need around 30 additional points to be eligible for a ninja.

btw does resting in the stables take a week like other options? i use it sometimes to check if a character is eligible for a level up.

 

[gman42]

btw does resting in the stables take a week like other options? i use it sometimes to check if a character is eligible for a level up.

Supposedly there's a 1 in 8 chance to age by a week, otherwise nothing.

 

[grimer]

nvm i managed to get a ninja through stat increases anyway. i rolled 2 gnome fighters with 29 bonus points so they started the game with 13 in every stat. it took one of them until char lv 10 to be eligible for a ninja while the other one just needs 1 more point in agility to change classes. im playing the ps1 version though which i feel has a higher probability of increasing stats as opposed to decreasing them.

ninja

btw can i add good char to an evil party if theyre dead and im rescuing them? my good party got tpk at maze lv 4 (vs that encounter with archmages, high priests, ninjas and swordsmen) and i rolled an evil party to rescue them. i chose an evil party because ive read that wizardry 3 has alignment restrictions on certain floors and i didnt want to roll a 3rd party for that.

sry for the wall of text

 

[gman42]

btw can i add good char to an evil party if theyre dead and im rescuing them? my good party got tpk at maze lv 4 (vs that encounter with archmages, high priests, ninjas and swordsmen) and i rolled an evil party to rescue them. i chose an evil party because ive read that wizardry 3 has alignment restrictions on certain floors and i didnt want to roll a 3rd party for that.

sry for the wall of text

You should have no problem picking up the good chars, in fact that's one easy way to always have a mixed party, just send a few chars down the stairs and disband right away, then send in the others to grab em. A little extra time at the start of every expedition, but way simpler than waiting for just the right encounter that turns your lord evil or whatever.

BTW I think an unarmed ninja only does something like 1d4+1d4 damage, so you should just arm him like you would a fighter, assuming you have access to something decent.

 

[Grauken]

Wizardry the Five Ordeals is supposed to come out this year and they note on the Steam page that they work on translating the yet untranslated stuff

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1308700/Wizardry/?l=japanese

Here's is a Japanese interview with some of the guys behind Jap Wizardries and who worked on this, https://www.4gamer.net/games/570/G057016/20210513135/

you can push it through google translate to get the gist of it

interesting infos
- the monster sprites have been redrawn for this release (original were only 640x480) by the guy who did the original art
- this port is based on the iOS version, but since the UI for mobile isn't good for PCs they have again redone the UI for the steam release (a new HD layout and a classic layout for those who played the original black and white wizardries, but also the mobile port UI is sill present, so overall 4 layouts ??? (not too sure about that part))
- supports resolution to 4k, also 3d graphics
- scenario editor recreated from scratch as Wiz Tools 2.0
- they want to build a new server for posting scenarios that allows also to import old scenarios

 

[lycanwarrior]

I've only played Wizardry 8, but it is easily one of my most favorite RPGs and games of all time.

Only other recent games similar to this is the Legend of Grimrock series.

 

[grimer]

i think ive had enough of wizardry 1. my party just got teleported to this area on maze level 4 and there doesnt seem to be a way out except with a malor spell which my mages havent learned yet. i searched every room for a secret door with the lomilwa spell and found nothing. i also checked several maps online and they confirmed my suspicion. i think my only hope is to find another teleporter trapped chest from a random encounter but my party just came back from maze level 6 and my resources are dwindling.

my map of lv 4

 

[Contagium]

I'm seeing very little anime type art in this, which is good, and surprising. Small victories.

Wizardry the Five Ordeals is supposed to come out this year and they note on the Steam page that they work on translating the yet untranslated stuff

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1308700/Wizardry/?l=japanese

Here's is a Japanese interview with some of the guys behind Jap Wizardries and who worked on this, https://www.4gamer.net/games/570/G057016/20210513135/

you can push it through google translate to get the gist of it

interesting infos
- the monster sprites have been redrawn for this release (original were only 640x480) by the guy who did the original art
- this port is based on the iOS version, but since the UI for mobile isn't good for PCs they have again redone the UI for the steam release (a new HD layout and a classic layout for those who played the original black and white wizardries, but also the mobile port UI is sill present, so overall 4 layouts ??? (not too sure about that part))
- supports resolution to 4k, also 3d graphics
- scenario editor recreated from scratch as Wiz Tools 2.0
- they want to build a new server for posting scenarios that allows also to import old scenarios

 

[gman42]

i think ive had enough of wizardry 1. my party just got teleported to this area on maze level 4 and there doesnt seem to be a way out except with a malor spell which my mages havent learned yet. i searched every room for a secret door with the lomilwa spell and found nothing. i also checked several maps online and they confirmed my suspicion. i think my only hope is to find another teleporter trapped chest from a random encounter but my party just came back from maze level 6 and my resources are dwindling.

my map of lv 4

According to the maps online, the center square of that southern wall should have a secret door that gets you out. IIRC some of those secret doors don't even show up with lomilwa and you just have to kick through the wall.

From what I'm seeing, none of those isolated areas in the game are inescapable, maps are here if you're stuck: https://www.tk421.net/wizardry/wiz1maps.shtml

 

[grimer]

According to the maps online, the center square of that southern wall should have a secret door that gets you out.

is this what youre talking about?

map of lv 4

thats a one way door from inside the square leading to a series of rooms along the perimeter from which there doesnt seem to be a way out. thats where my party was teleported to.

 

[gman42]

Damn. Yeah my bad, I thought you were stuck inside the square and I didn't even notice that there's no exit from the outside perimeter of it. Almost looks like a bug or an oversight, since they went out of their way to make sure there's an exit from all the other oddball places that aren't really part of the maze proper.