General Q from newbie- esp Alignment/Characters Reactions

My GF just got this & isn't on the Net so she has these Q's- sorry if this isn't formatted correctly or answered elsewhere-

My GF has been playing this game, and has some question I have not been able to find answers for on the Net, so if you're familiar with it- please help. She asks-

How do you change the reactions of other characters to you aside from wearing clothes or articles? I'm traveling with Sogg Mead Mug and Angus. I did not have them wait while I was going to pick pockets and think this has negatively impacted how they feel towards me. I've been killing a whole horde of zombies is Ashbury and for some reason, this has made Sogg want to kill me. Why did this happen & how can I correct it? It seems like my relationship with all of my followers is steadily declining even though I am very careful to act positively in front of them. How do you improve relations with your followers?

Of what use is prowling? I don't get it.

Is there a way to pick pockets more than 100 pieces of gold at a time?

What do I need to do to unlock the barrels or the chests that won't come open with the unlocking cantrip or the basic lockpicking skill?

Does anyone have any suggestion for the best placement of character points or is it pretty much open for anything?

Btw, isn't this one of the bad-assest games you've ever played. I love it!

 

Re: General Q from newbie- esp Alignment/Characters Reaction

Use magick, or pump character points into Beauty.

For how much time have you been away ?

What weapon are you using ? Perhaps you've hit Sogg accidentally.

Install the patch.

Same as stealth in fallout.

Nope.

Improve your skills in lockpicking, or increase your magick affinity.

 

Re: General Q from newbie- esp Alignment/Characters Reaction

Don't do this with a melee weapon! Melee weapons get damaged if you swing them at hard things, like chests, barrels, doors, golems...

This is what having an elephant gun is good for, BUT...

It sounds like your girlfriend is trying to walk a middle-patch between magic and tech. Don't do that! Both sides' best devices get their full bonuses against you, and you won't be able to bring the full power of either to bear on your foes. Pick one or the other and stay with it.

Anyway, don't forget to patch. If you accidently shoot an ally while shooting at enemies, that ally will try to kill you.

 

Re: General Q from newbie- esp Alignment/Characters Reaction

Some characters like certain items, like most Dwarven followers like Dwarven Snuff, and most Elven followers like... Elven Spring Water I believe it's called...

I dunno 'bout Sogg, I'd say give the ol' chap a few bottles o' booze and he should be fine.

 

Re: General Q from newbie- esp Alignment/Characters Reaction

You can too walk the middle road, but some spells won't do much good without a lot of magickal aptitude to back them up. Using the skill to pick locks is better than the spell, since the spell alerts nearby NPCs. And it's real easy to get the dexterity for the skill by using Agility of Fire, which is one of those spells that work without magickal aptitude. Good spells for non-mages are the first level elemental spells and the temporal college. Bad spells seem to be any spell which have an effect measured in points, such as damage or healing, and also Succour Beast, which is only worth the effort if you have magickal aptitude 100. And Unlocking Cantrip also seems to need a very high aptitude, because most locks seem to be quite difficult to open. And Shield of Protection gives damage resistance based on magickal aptitude, which means that without magickal aptitude, all that remains is +20 AC.

Oh, and to successfully use technological weapons against magickal creatures you need high technological aptitude, but there aren't that many magickal creatures around. And most followers are skilled with melee weapons, and regular or magick melee weapons are common enough that a middle-roader need not worry too much about guns failing against ore golems or such.