Risen Helpful tips

There are some right ways and wrong ways to play. The wrong ways result in you dying a lot. Some skills are traps, and some paths are just destructive…
You probably want to side with the order on your first playthrough, why?
because magic is awesome, and if you want magic, that means being in the order.

Warning:
never train with any skill boosting / decreasing items equiped, decreasing items cause you to permanently lose the learning points. increasing items cause you to pay extra and be ineligable for higher level training… and get the wrong dialogue

There game is divided into combat, puzzles…
Puzzles:
there are lots of cool and not so cool puzzles. They absolutely require you to use rune magic (diverse utility magic)… the good news is, that you will find a ton of scrolls anyone can use, you can buy more scrolls… the craft scroll ability is 5 LP, and the 4 seals are 5LP each as well… I got all of those and it was a blast, learning magic was fun and involved unlike learning combat (go to any trainer, raise strength… maybe later raise skill).
However I somewhat regret wasting my points on magic. I almost never use any runes, i always seem to have plenty of scrolls which i found… selling scrolls is worthless (1/5th of their value), crafting scrolls not that much more expensive than consuming the mana potions to fuel the runes… oh, and runes take up more mana to cast… in short, it is a waste of your valueable time… yet fun.
Just make sure you have a good amount of:
1. telekinesis
2. Nautilus
3. Flight

With those you can solve all the puzzles in the game… you will need to use them often…
Keep in mind that many things, even things you do not expect to, will "activate" when hit with an arrow, instead of just telekinesis (don't ask me how an arrow can turn a winch, but i can - i expected only telekinesis to do that).

Combat:
At the end game you are often FORCED into melee (anti magic crystals?), in which case you want a decent str score (the ONLY thing determining damage - forget about weapon "skills").. The ultimate weapon is a one handed AXE, that gives +6 to axe fighting skill… so the max you want to have is 4 points in axe fighting…
Do not put any points into fighting skills before reaching 100 str (max trainers will give). Because it does not increase your damage (and thus combat effectiveness)… damage is Dependant first and foremost on strength, and secondly by your weapon. The "skill" with a weapon does not even factor into it.

Most of the time you can kill an enemy from a distance, that means either crystal magic (which is available to warriors of the order! not just mages) or archery. Archery is a trap since it depends on pumping points into bow skill AND more importantly dex…. remember you are already gonna be strapped for points, and you need to max out your STR… an str 50 and dex 50 means you are half as strong as someone with a str 100 and dex 0.

Lateryou will be swimming in mana potions, you will not find many arrows in the game… so you have "ammunition" problem with bows compared to blasting. My favorite is to blast things with lvl 10 fireball, if they reach me and i can't manuever, then i pull out a close combat weapon (and shield!)
All 3 crystals are valid in their own way.

So your options are:
1. Melee - you will have to do that on occasion - spend ALL your early points on STR until it is at 100… do not consume any + str things, do not waste points elsewhere.
2. Archery - more expensive and lower damage than crystal magic
3. Crystal magic - more damage, more ammo, and just all around better than archery… downside is that you have to get some +mana items to be effective… and you HAVE to get level 10 ASAP in crystal of choice.

Crafting:
Alchemy: take later on, don't bother with regular potions, you swim in those… you need it because it is the ONLY way to make permanent bonus potions… specifically +5 to str or dex or mana, +10 health or +100 XP…
The first 4 all require as an ingredient something called hero crown… so you will have to choose which to get… str is obvious choice.
Max out alchemy, but later on. Take alchemy ONLY after you:
1. have 100 str
2. have aquired permanent bonus formula

Sneaking: worthless, and a ring gives it to you for the rare time you need it… i stole a bunch of stuff without ever needing it

Acrobatics: awesome, it will be used often, a ring will give it to you, but the ring slot is better used for other things (EX: 20 lp to get +20 mana, or one ring. 5 lp to get acrobatics, or one ring).

Skinning: maybe, money is crap, it gives some items for crafting scrolls, so you MIGHT find it useful, I never did.

Prospecting: Some places you can only progress by breaking down walls, i don't know if you actually need prospecting to do that, but you need a pickaxe… prospecting is 5LP and lets you harvest gold, iron, and obsidian… those make the best weapons for most of the game. and gold is a must for crafting magic amulets and rings

Smithing: Important. Smithing allows you to craft magic amulets and rings, and for most of the games the best weapons. Although eventually you get ones better than you can craft, you will still use your own crafted rings and amulets.
Lockpicking: very useful… and for the vast majority or all of the game, you will NOT have access to magic unlocking rune… and when you do, it is ridiculously expensive… (although I use it anyways because i don't care much for the minigame)
Take smithing only when you need it!
1. Your str is already 100
2. You have ALL the items needed to forge something you really want... but not the smithing skill... take the min skill to forge that item.

there are 3 weapon styles:
1. large two handed weapon (where you hold a handle and swing), this does more damage and reach, but makes you easy to hit and can't block most things.
2. one handed weapon, allows shield in other hand, fast strikes… best
3. staff, hold with two hands in the middle, similar to 1.

The attack animation is largely determined by the swing type (1,2, or 3)... although special attacks could be unique to sword / axe (for example, the axe "charge attack")

Swords and axes are found of both type 1 and type 2… type 1 sucks..
the ultimate weapon is a hammer that is considered an AXE that gives +6 to axe (so don't get more than 4 axe) and is of type 2… aka, one handed and fast and allows a shield.

Do not waste a single point on weapon skills until you have gotten 100 str from training… only then can you put some points into it… but i wouldn't until the very end game… (aka, after you maxed out fireball)