First time playing Gothic

Originally Posted by Pladio
Those are wargs, angry cousins of wolves….

They're called Orc Dogs in Gothic 1. They changed them to Wargs in G2.

Originally Posted by Fluent
OH! Very funny thing. I actually just went to the Old Camp at the start of chapter 2 to sell some swampweed to Gomez, and that scene happened there. Very cool to see!

There used to be a patch that added that scene to the English version of the game. I'm guessing it's probably included in the system pack now.

Man o Man, Fluent. I too am so envious of you.

Whenever I want to play an RPG game my first thoughts always go to the Gothic experience. I think Skyrim came closest to matching it but that's a lot of games that have come out since and Skyrim has 12 years worth of gaming evolution under its belt.

IMO, it's going to take an Oculous Rift type virtual reality device to make a game that substantially ups the immersion factor that Gothic has laid down.

Originally Posted by Dajjer
Man o Man, Fluent. I too am so envious of you.

Whenever I want to play an RPG game my first thoughts always go to the Gothic experience. I think Skyrim came closest to matching it but that's a lot of games that have come out since and Skyrim has 12 years worth of gaming evolution under its belt.

IMO, it's going to take an Oculous Rift type virtual reality device to make a game that substantially ups the immersion factor that Gothic has laid down.

Skyrim is great, but I'm thoroughly enjoying this more "hardcore" approach with Gothic. Apples and oranges, really.

This game is heavy on the atmosphere. I'm in the Old Mine looking for a crawler's nest and it's getting extremely creepy. Loving every minute of it. The progression and pacing has been perfect thus far. I really feel like I'm growing stronger, yet things are still challenging. You have to pick your battles carefully because taking on something too strong means death. I love this type of approach. I wish more RPG developers used some of these ideas and systems.

The armor progression has been great as well. I can't wait to become a Templar. Or even get a nice set of heavy Novice armor.

Back to the mine I go!

Here's something maybe one of you can clear up for me.

Sometimes, against agile creatures, I will swing at them, and the sound is made that I connected, but the attack does zero damage. I just faced a Shadowbeast and I must have hit him 5 times before he ultimately killed me, but it did no damage. It's also happened against Lizards, Lurkers, Biters, etc.

I tested it. I faced a Lizard (who, at the time, I could kill in 4 or 5 swings). I hit him once, it did damage. Hit him again, damage. Hit him a third time, no damage. Etc.

Again, it makes the sound like I made contact, and I'm pretty sure blood flies (although I don't remember seeing this specifically) but it does no damage. It also usually happens when the monster is jumping backwards out of harm's way. Sometimes it happens when I'm right on top of them and they are moving backwards.

So, is this a bug? Or is it supposed to be like this?

@Fluent
Wether you can do any damage to a Shadow Beast deprends much on your char level, sword skill and your current weapon.
Gothic doesn't scale to your level and a Shadow Beast is one of the biggest threats in the game.

Originally Posted by HiddenX
@Fluent
Wether you can do any damage to a Shadow Beast deprends much on your char level, sword skill and your current weapon.
Gothic doesn't scale to your level and a Shadow Beast is one of the biggest threats in the game.

I understand that, but that doesn't explain by the same thing happens when I fight a lizard or a ripper. Some attacks do damage, others do not. That's what I'm concerned about.

Is there some sort of "glancing blows" detection going on? Maybe it's some game mechanic?

In general, attack causing "no" damage is usually an attack that causes very little damage, and it suggests that you are attacking something that is too strong for you. The one hit every now and then that actually hurts is a critical attack (the chance of this attack is shown in character tab next to the corresponding weapon skills).

There are two things that can cause what you're experiencing: The first is that you're just not dealing enough damage to overcome the enemy's armor; in this case you just need to get a bit more powerful before taking on whatever enemy you're facing.
The second thing that can cause problems is range. Enemies that dodge backwards seem to be able to avoid damage from an attack if they're at the very edge of your range when you hit them. You just have to get at close range before landing a blow and you'll be able to do maximum damage to them.

That used to happen to me a lot against skeletons, but I don't recall if it happened against other monsters. It's possible I just never noticed though.

Usually the only time you can hit something and not do damage is if the target is a much higher level than you.

Originally Posted by HiddenX
Enemies that dodge backwards seem to be able to avoid damage from an attack if they're at the very edge of your range when you hit them. You just have to get at close range before landing a blow and you'll be able to do maximum damage to them.

Yep, this is exactly what's happening. Glad to know it's not a bug, I guess. It was weird, though, because my attacks were making sound but no health was being lost by the creature. Yet up close attacks were doing damage. Something I'll have to keep in mind.

Thanks!

I wonder if certain weapons have a longer range. Hmm. I also wondered that about Risen's weapon system (swords vs. staves).

Yes, the enemies have damage reduction If you don't do enough damage (because of a weak attack attribute or weapon), you can hit them without damaging them.

Weapons also do have different ranges.
Two handed swords have the longest range if I recall correctly.

Originally Posted by Thrasher
Yes, the enemies have damage reduction If you don't do enough damage (because of a weak attack attribute or weapon), you can hit them without damaging them.

I know this, but that's not what I'm saying.

The problem here is that when enemies are at range, your attacks do no damage. This is especially frustrating when fighting Bloodhounds, because the only way to do any damage to them is to let them come into super close range, in which they get a free attack in on you. If I keep them at a distance with a long sword, and time them when they come running in, my attacks do no damage. I'm not sure why they programmed it that way, but it is what it is, I guess. Just a little frustrating when you're trying to keep from taking damage but your attacks are doing zero damage because the enemy is at range.

You can back them into a corner. They'll still do the "backward dodge" thing where they take no damage, but occasionally they'll slip up, allowing you to damage them.

Also, you can do a backward dodge yourself after forcing them to go backwards a bit, and when they come at you again you can hit them mid-air.

At any rate, Bloodhounds and Shadowbeasts are among the most difficult to beat without losing any health. Lizards and Orc Dogs also have an annoying habit of doing a lot of backwards dodging, but they don't hurt as much as Bloodhounds/Shadowbeasts.

Oh yeah, and weapons do have range. There's actually quite a big difference, and it plays a massive role in keeping enemies at bay. Hammers, for example, have very short range and should only be used against Stone Golems. Swords typically have the best range, and the better the sword, the longer the reach (usually).

Originally Posted by Maylander
You can back them into a corner. They'll still do the "backward dodge" thing where they take no damage, but occasionally they'll slip up, allowing you to damage them.

Also, you can do a backward dodge yourself after forcing them to go backwards a bit, and when they come at you again you can hit them mid-air.

At any rate, Bloodhounds and Shadowbeasts are among the most difficult to beat without losing any health. Lizards and Orc Dogs also have an annoying habit of doing a lot of backwards dodging, but they don't hurt as much as Bloodhounds/Shadowbeasts.

Oh yeah, and weapons do have range. There's actually quite a big difference, and it plays a massive role in keeping enemies at bay. Hammers, for example, have very short range and should only be used against Stone Golems. Swords typically have the best range, and the better the sword, the longer the reach (usually).

Thanks for the tips, I'll keep them in mind.

That can also be handled by timing your attacks.

Originally Posted by Thrasher
That can also be handled by timing your attacks.

I take it the timing then has to be perfect? I will experiment and see. I have been timing my attacks but apparently I'm doing it wrong because they still do no damage until the enemy is right on top of me.

Yes, it's particularly tricky. If you can walk backwards while doing so it's much safer. Also, use the environment to your advantage. They can't see to dodge if up against a wall or below the rock or ledge you're standing on.

Originally Posted by Thrasher
Yes, it's particularly tricky. If you can walk backwards while doing so it's much safer. Also, use the environment to your advantage. They can't see to dodge if up against a wall or below the rock or ledge you're standing on.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

I think I hit a particularly nasty bug that is going to screw some things up. Here's the info:



I really hope someone has an answer for this because I'm a bit stuck now it seems.

Edit - Nevermind. I loaded a save about 20 minutes back and replayed it and everything happened as it should. Got a little nervous there. Good thing I keep multiple saves!

I've only played G1 once.

But this may relate. in G2 it was possible to get into the monastery before you were gained admittance. Since the game was open world it was possible to get inside by hiking through the mountains and then jumping onto a roof from a cliff overhang. And then just drop down to the courtyard. The problem was that since you did not gain official entrance a lot of the dialogue options were messed up. Thus the only way for the game to make sense was to reload prior to getting into the monastery prematurely. . . . Sorry . . . .

Regarding the bug at the monastery