Could Someone Give me Advice for Building an Effective Magic User in Arcanum?

Hello there,

I am looking to refine my approach to playing a magic user. I have always enjoyed the depth and complexity of the magic system in this game; but I am finding myself a bit overwhelmed with the myriad of spells; skills; and attributes available.

What are some effective ways to allocate skill points for a magic focused character? I want to balance between offensive spells and utility ones without spreading myself too thin.

Are there any particular spells that are considered must-haves for a magic user? I would appreciate recommendations for both early game and late game spells.

What are the best magical items or artifacts that complement a magic users build? I am especially interested in items that enhance spellcasting or provide useful buffs/debuffs.

Any tips on how to handle tougher encounters with a magic user? I have had some issues with managing mana efficiently and surviving against physical attackers.

Also, I have gone through this post; https://terra-arcanum.com/forums/threads/i-need-advice-for-creating-a-good-aws-devops-character.10279/ which definitely helped me out a lot.

How can I align my magic users development with roleplaying opportunities and quest choices? I would love to hear about how others have successfully integrated their magic users into the game’s world and story.

Thanks in advance for your help and assistance.

 

Hi there,

It's great that you are looking to refine your approach to playing a magic user. The depth and complexity of the magic system in this game can be overwhelming, since there are a myriad of spells; skills; and attributes available.

Here are some effective ways to build a magic focused character, which balance offensive spells and utility ones without spreading yourself too thin.

As soon as you can, you should pick the black necromancy skill "Harm". Harm will harm most enemies that you meet, so it is considered a must-have for a magic user in the early game. As the game progresses, and you meet more characters, the "Harm" spell is useful for making enemies suffer from harm. Finally, in the end-game, casting Harm can quickly turn the tide of a battle, and really make your enemies get harmed.

The best item for a magic user is mana potions, they are an essential accessory and allow you to keep harming foes during heavy Harm-casting sessions. Hence Virgil's catchphrase "chug a pot!" which he starts using after (spoiler) he learns white magic and wishes he could cast Harm instead.

As for roleplaying opportunities, there are many quest choices that suit a magic-oriented player. You can successfully integrate your magic user into the game’s world and story, while casting Harm at anyone who stands in your path. The game's dialog trees reflect this, with most of the dialog options for magic users being some variant of "Let's bring the Harm", or "Welcome to Harm-town".

I hope this helps you in your goal of successfully completing a playthrough of this fine game using the Harm spell. Chug a pot!

 

If you have Discord you can join our channel: https://discord.gg/KT7sRzY

 

Ok, it was a dick move on my side. But at least I was trying to help, redirecting him to someone who could have helped (I would have done it myself but it was ages since I played the game and I don't remember shit).
Still, a dick move.

 

I don't think it was a dick move. At least no more of a dick move than posting a completely unhelpful mockery of the original post.

Fortunately for both of us, OP was clearly some kind of hellish ChatGPT forum-bot cross breed, rather than a real senorita with a fascination for multi-decade old RPGs.

 

Thanks

And also, I hate these kind of bots