The Economics of Healing

[Commiades]

I know it's possible to get through using health potions, but it's so much cheaper with Hirge, or as a Cleric. Deepfrost Cognac is 8 times cheaper than the most cost effective healing potions (assuming Heal Wounds III) and a Mana Potion is 6 times more efficient.

Rogues and Mages can avoid damage mostly, but a Warrior tanking is going to burn through potions (and money). I noticed how ridiculously wealthy my Cleric was, whereas a character using Grissenda or Adaon had to grind more to make big purchases (houses, force belts, etc.).

To add insult to injury, the immortal build Hirge is more resilient than Grissenda. I feel not using her is choosing some form of handicap.

 

[VDX_360]

You bring up a lot of good points that are known discussions. The game is fairly well balanced right now, and a lot of tweaking has occurred through development.

It's very easy to overly depend on health potions to make up for issues with a Warrior or Rogue. Two-handed Warriors with balanced mental points (INT, AWA, PER) really have this issue as they have less points in STR and END so don't get the full benefit of the Two-handed build. Sometimes minor adjustments in build, equipment or playing style can greatly reduce ones potion consumption.

Effective use of inns, the Restore skill, and use of equipment, and buff potions can really make a difference. Early game, trading flowers for health potions take a bit of the sting off the purchase price. Elemental damage is often overlooked by new players leading to situations where they take full damage of pure elemental attacks. That quickly eats up your HP.

A Warrior character beat the game without buying ANY potions, or equipment, just relaying on what was found, or given as a quest reward. That extreme isn't expected of general players, but it does show that frequent health potions might be more of a playing style choice than a true requirement of the game.

 

[Commiades]

True, having Hirge can make you lazy, However, there's another aspect to having a cleric -- each recovery use provides a number of potential Heal Wounds. It can make grinding in areas where damage is hard to avoid a lot more economic.

 

[VDX_360]

Cleric's, and players with Hirge, can get the highest XP / hour of game play because of that very point. When the Cleric class was first introduced it got a lot flack for being underpowered. As the game developed and adjustment were made (and players got better at using Clerics), the class as stood out as a very effective class for marathon dungeon runs. All the low-level and speed run records in the game seem to involve Clerics so the class has came into it's own. A far cry from it's poor reviews years ago....

Depending on your build, your Cleric might still struggle with bosses compared to a Warrior. That also applies to the Arena.

And while the Cleric can take a lot of damage, a 2-H combat beast that can do Charge and Whirlwind often never takes a hit. Just kills everything on first blow.

 

[Commiades]

I was thinking on this. A 2-H Warrior also benefits from not using Hirge and maximizing Fury. It's a lot of fun.

TBH, I've never finished with a Cleric. I get bored, although it does everything easily. Somehow it lacks finesse!

 

[VDX_360]

Of course a Cleric lacks finesse! When your weapon is a just a glorified club, you're options are rather blunt.

The most common Cleric build is a Cleric in the Warriors Guild. Duel and Heavy Hand pair well with a Cleric's healing ability. But, if you really want to try a different breed of Cleric, focus on Support Skills and join the Church of the Three. Every fight becomes a group effort.

 

[Commiades]

Well put! Finesse might not be the right word. I really enjoy using a 2-H Warrior and he's not subtle, but he has more options than a Cleric. I've got both Cleric builds to a high level (the current Warrior Guild one is level 20); I just don't enjoy how he gets the job done. By contrast, watching my 2-H Warrior literally mow down hordes of Beheaded Ones with Fury and Whirlwind is awesome. They are frequently the bane of other classes in that quest. I couldn't believe how easy he made it!

I was using an archer Adaon with this warrior, but have found that Grissenda is more resilient, and getting flanking bonuses with her is handy. It also saves on healing potions if she's targeted! I'm now thinking of reversing things -- taking a 1-H warrior and using Grissenda as a 2-H warrior (it's easier to get her STR and END to 4 when you can ignore Infantry Training and its PER prerequisite).

 

[Commiades]

I've just tried out two fury builds (2-H and Sword & Shield) that don't use Hirge. They become very economic at high level, and deadly. The maths suggest a bigger difference, but both had more money than they needed by mid-game.