Best PS:T henchmen?
I suppose we all have our own ideas as to who we consider both viable and valuable henchmen for dragging through the game in support of our own dear character.
Some are considered canon (Morte, Dak'kon, Annah) but the fleshing out of the party is purely subjective after that. I'd be interested to know who you felt was considered "must have" on your one or many runs.
I'll identify what I consider pros and cons to each, then give my final determination for heh, "best party".
note; I'm not considering here the fact that you benefit picking up each for at least an initial time frame, as they have benefits for doing so. I'm implying retention for remainder of the game.
I've already mentioned the three I consider must haves. I'll now list the remainder;
- Fall-from-Grace: Your medic. Little in the way of offense but her healing spells can prevent many a reload. Great story line to accompany her and she can assist in protective spells as well. Thing is, you can accumulate so many healing and protection items throughout the game (especially as a Thief) that her healing attributes are a bonus, not a necessity. She can also be a pain in the butt to look after in tight situations (e.g. Modron maze) as she is VERY squishy ( nice pillows though).
- Nordom: Only ranged henchman in the game and he has some incredible arrows to utilize. Tricky to get, also tricky to upgrade. Fact is, unlike the BG and IWD games, you can overcome most battles quite successfully without a ranged fighter on your team. No other attributes to offer, he's a machine after all ( though considered by many a sentient puppy). I really do like him but I need to be practical in this analysis.
- Ignus: Well, He's a Mage, has incredible spells only he knows and just happens to be bat-turd psychotic. Great for an evil leaning party but assuredly "does not play well with others" is noted on his report card. With a "good" aligned group, I'd stay clear but with a neutral or evil party I'd take him in a blink, possibly even dump Dak'kon (though neutral) just to make room for a FAR superior Mage and boost with better fighters (see below).
- Vhailor: Toss up, who is the less "human", Nordom or Vhailor? I'd suggest this walking tank. The definition of 'power' when it comes to axe-in-face, this guy can steam-roll grunts into the dead book faster than a meteor storm. Thing is, that's ALL he can do. But sometimes that's enough. For a party with mostly squishies (e.g. N.O. as a Mage, Annah, Grace and Ignus) he is assuredly the wall required. With Morte, plus Dak'kon and/or Nordom though, he may be too much of a one-trick-Clydesdale.
So, I've played this game about 25 times, tried a variety of party combos, who are my go-to guys/gals?
- Morte: I feel far too pessimistic throughout the gameplay without his banter and wit, awesome fighter.
- Annah: handles Thief duties, humorous and caustic wit, awesome hip swing.
- Dak'kon/Ignus: don't LIKE either of them, good back-up Mages though, Dak for good party, Iggy for evil.
- Grace: I'm a sucker for clerics, see one - get one.
- Nordom: I like puppies. Why do you hate puppies you uncaring Hitler clone!!!
Your thoughts?
Some are considered canon (Morte, Dak'kon, Annah) but the fleshing out of the party is purely subjective after that. I'd be interested to know who you felt was considered "must have" on your one or many runs.
I'll identify what I consider pros and cons to each, then give my final determination for heh, "best party".
note; I'm not considering here the fact that you benefit picking up each for at least an initial time frame, as they have benefits for doing so. I'm implying retention for remainder of the game.
I've already mentioned the three I consider must haves. I'll now list the remainder;
- Fall-from-Grace: Your medic. Little in the way of offense but her healing spells can prevent many a reload. Great story line to accompany her and she can assist in protective spells as well. Thing is, you can accumulate so many healing and protection items throughout the game (especially as a Thief) that her healing attributes are a bonus, not a necessity. She can also be a pain in the butt to look after in tight situations (e.g. Modron maze) as she is VERY squishy ( nice pillows though).
- Nordom: Only ranged henchman in the game and he has some incredible arrows to utilize. Tricky to get, also tricky to upgrade. Fact is, unlike the BG and IWD games, you can overcome most battles quite successfully without a ranged fighter on your team. No other attributes to offer, he's a machine after all ( though considered by many a sentient puppy). I really do like him but I need to be practical in this analysis.
- Ignus: Well, He's a Mage, has incredible spells only he knows and just happens to be bat-turd psychotic. Great for an evil leaning party but assuredly "does not play well with others" is noted on his report card. With a "good" aligned group, I'd stay clear but with a neutral or evil party I'd take him in a blink, possibly even dump Dak'kon (though neutral) just to make room for a FAR superior Mage and boost with better fighters (see below).
- Vhailor: Toss up, who is the less "human", Nordom or Vhailor? I'd suggest this walking tank. The definition of 'power' when it comes to axe-in-face, this guy can steam-roll grunts into the dead book faster than a meteor storm. Thing is, that's ALL he can do. But sometimes that's enough. For a party with mostly squishies (e.g. N.O. as a Mage, Annah, Grace and Ignus) he is assuredly the wall required. With Morte, plus Dak'kon and/or Nordom though, he may be too much of a one-trick-Clydesdale.
So, I've played this game about 25 times, tried a variety of party combos, who are my go-to guys/gals?
- Morte: I feel far too pessimistic throughout the gameplay without his banter and wit, awesome fighter.
- Annah: handles Thief duties, humorous and caustic wit, awesome hip swing.
- Dak'kon/Ignus: don't LIKE either of them, good back-up Mages though, Dak for good party, Iggy for evil.
- Grace: I'm a sucker for clerics, see one - get one.
- Nordom: I like puppies. Why do you hate puppies you uncaring Hitler clone!!!
Your thoughts?
4
Comments
- Fall-From-Grace: Her calmness and politeness makes it almost impossible for me to play without her. I really like clerics as well and she usually stays out of harm's way. Getting her to join the party takes a bit time, but the patience is worth it.
- Nordom: My last choice out of the available NPCs. He's really funny, especially together with Morte. He's not bad at all, it's just that I like the remaining characters a bit more. Though I always take him out of the maze to join the Modrons in the Brothel of Slating Intellectual Lusts.
- Ignus: Always reminded me a bit Xzar, but way more unstable. He's backstory is great, but since I usually tend to have a good alingment, this doesn't end too well for him. I had him in my party when I first played through the game.
- Vhailor: When I finally found him, he immediately became a must-have in my party. I simply love his story and the passion about justice, even though he can be really dangerous both for the enemies and the party itself. It's a real shame that he joins a bit late.
So, my usual party looks like:
The Nameless One - usually a fighter with high wisdom and intelligence.
Morte - can't imagine playing without him, both for his usefulness in combat and banter.
Annah - the only romance in any game that actually works, because it's subtle. Her interaction with Morte is priceless.
Dak'kon - I tend to look up to him as a mentor. He's like Obi-Wan of the party.
Fall-From-Grace and Vhailor
What I absolutely love about each character in PS:T is that each of them had a tough past. Their own personal torment that binds them together with The Nameless One.
Useless Trivia: The "Curse of Monkey Island" game came out about the same time as PS:T and they also had a floating skull side-kick in the game. It proved to be totally coincidental but there was strong talk of a law suit issued by each gaming corp over it!
Never did figure out how to free Ignus or get Vhailor on my side, so I only ever got to interact with them when they were trying to kill me.
Morte's schtick wore on me after awhile, but I'd still take him over Annah or Dak'kon.
Getting Vhailor was a trick, he was hiding "behind" the portal you used in a particular area. You had to walk behind it to discover he even existed! This upset a LOT of people.
Curious you didn't appreciate Annah, first I've heard. To each his/her own.
No character will suit all folk, assuredly.
I liked how strong she was yet, still vulnerable, much like all of us, day-to-day.
Plus a GREAT Thief!
(and it's Sheena Easton! who could probably play Annah in a movie)
MHO.
More trivia: In Magic: the Gathering, there is a card called Nameless One. There is also a card called Dakkon Blackblade.
Seriously talking, they're all too good and equal (?) in character/background sense, but Dak'kon is the strongest when it comes to fighting (after TNO).