Spellmaking

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 9:12 pm

I couldn't find an answer to this, so I'll start a thread

I've noticed my beginning game spells are starting to become weak, in gameplay terms.

In the past re-do's(... I messed up several characters - see other threads), I would keep creating new spells, but my spell list was getting quite long

So my questions are these:
1) Do you wait till your skill level and/or governing attribute reach a certain level before making a new spell

2) Do you prefer:
* setting min/max to one number
* setting min/max moderately far apart
* setting min/max very far apart

I always choose 100% success rate ... I hope that's ok ... I hate "failed casting" and then dying

I also choose a radius of about 3-5ft ... seems close enough for my aim + it's seems to be the cutoff on decreasing % success/cost per cast ... at least that has been my observation

I'm talking about my "Destruction" spells ... and Absorb Health

I like to create a "Ranged" and "Touch" spell for each spell: Shock, Fire, Frost, Health, Absorb Health ... hope that's ok too

Thanks !

fable · Post by **fable** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 9:17 pm

joe05 wrote:So my questions are these:
1) Do you wait till your skill level and/or governing attribute reach a certain level before making a new spell

Not usually. I enjoy watching my chance of casting success rise as I practice that school.

2) Do you prefer:
* setting min/max to one number
* setting min/max moderately far apart
* setting min/max very far apart[/qoute]

One number wherever possible. Where not, as close together as possible. I don't like being caught in situations where my character's strategy of the moment has been completely destroyed because of a spell that wimped out.

I also choose a radius of about 3-5ft ... seems close enough for my aim + it's seems to be the cutoff on decreasing % success/cost per cast ... at least that has been my observation

My own strategy, for what it's worth, is to use destuctive magic to kill foes at a distance. So I use destructive and absorption spells with a reach of up to 30 feet. When they get close, I want to have my weapon ready--an enchanted one, of course.

galraen · Post by **galraen** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 9:30 pm

joe05 wrote:I couldn't find an answer to this, so I'll start a thread

I've noticed my beginning game spells are starting to become weak, in gameplay terms.

In the past re-do's(... I messed up several characters - see other threads), I would keep creating new spells, but my spell list was getting quite long

So my questions are these:
1) Do you wait till your skill level and/or governing attribute reach a certain level before making a new spell

2) Do you prefer:
* setting min/max to one number
* setting min/max moderately far apart
* setting min/max very far apart

I always choose 100% success rate ... I hope that's ok ... I hate "failed casting" and then dying
I also choose a radius of about 3-5ft ... seems close enough for my aim + it's seems to be the cutoff on decreasing % success/cost per cast ... at least that has been my observation

I'm talking about my "Destruction" spells ... and Absorb Health

I like to create a "Ranged" and "Touch" spell for each spell: Shock, Fire, Frost, Health, Absorb Health ... hope that's ok too

Thanks !

Personally I hate a range of damage, I always have min/max the same. Morrowind is terrible at handling pseudo-random numbers, you never get max, and usually end up below average.

I've found that when creating a spell if the success rate on the spell creation page says 81%, that equates to 100% in reality. Why there is a discrepency I don't know, but it's consistent.

For target spells I usually go for 5', 1' for touch spells unless I'm going for max area of effect, i.e. x damage, for y duration with 50' area of effect.

Spoiler (highlight to read):

Spoiler

You can cast touch spells on doors. So you can cast a lock spell on a door, then cast a touch spells with a 50' radius on the door until the monsters within the area are dead. This is a bit cheesy to say the least, and beware of doing that in caves that might contain slaves. Unless your pc is an evil git who doesn't care about 'colateral damage' of course.PS touch spells also work on corpses or items, in fact anything which generates a tool tip message.

AmpaSand · Post by **AmpaSand** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 12:41 am

Area spells are really good for that but i prefer thing like paralyse as if a super spell refects ... OUCH!

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 2:17 am

... ok; THANKS !
That answers my questions

The 81% = 100% ... glad I waited, as I'm sure I'll be able to really add some punch saving 19%pts or so

Maybe I'll create an area spell too ... I don't like collateral damage though

Not using a weapon; sorry Fable(... of course if I get my butt whopped, we will start using one + I stole some soul gems - see later on in this post) ... my shortblade rating is still 15

Just stole all those Soul gems in "plant the fake soul gem" quest.
Hope I didn't mess up ?
I couldn't pass up that one for $60,000.
I saved before I did the quest (... something so good must have a catch), so if I should not have done it, tell me now

I probably should stay clear of her if I keep them and get any enchanting done in Sadith Mora ... I have high rep there from doing the Ghost quest
Plus, I joined the House of Telvanni ... I'll be there often

AmpaSand - I working on that

When I can get my Illusion up, I'll be ready for Paralyze/Medusa's Touch/Chameleon !
I'm currently working on my Destruction + Mysticism.

As soon as my Endurance nears 100, I'll be buying Illusion.
Think I'm up to about $30,000.
Not sure if that's alot of $ ... is for me

Appreciate the tips.

AmpaSand · Post by **AmpaSand** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 2:29 am

Well that's good but Chameleon at higher levels really sucks magica. Really.

Spoiler...

Spoiler

Have you gotten the amulet of shadows and or the ring of surroundings.... Ring of surroundsings is the reward for "work" at moonmoth, while the amulet is on a mostly invisible dude outside ald velothi. Ps they have a bow...

And i would go for a ranged paralyze... I did and it really helped but it gave me time for it to wear off if it refected and they ran at me..

galraen · Post by **galraen** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 7:03 am

AmpaSand wrote:Well that's good but Chameleon at higher levels really sucks magica. Really.

Spoiler...
Spoiler
Have you gotten the amulet of shadows and or the ring of surroundings.... Ring of surroundsings is the reward for "work" at moonmoth, while the amulet is on a mostly invisible dude outside ald velothi. Ps they have a bow...
And i would go for a ranged paralyze... I did and it really helped but it gave me time for it to wear off if it refected and they ran at me..

Resist paralysis potions are your friends, mix any two of Horn Lily Bulb, Timsa-Come-By flowers or Sweetpulp. Of course you have to have Tribunal to get those.

My problem with Paralysis is that most monsters I try it on resist it, the only critters that seemed consistently vulnerable are Racers, and I have their fight turned off, except for diseased and blighted ones.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 8:48 pm

Thanks Guys !
AmpaSand - found the amulet ... will get the other item when I do the quest ... yes, I was thinking ranged Paralyze as well

Galraen - yep, noted that Paralyze was resisted twice on higher level creatures = wondering what good it is

... when I need it, it is resisted
Going to try spellmaking. See if those 81% spells act like 100%.
Shoot about 20 at a rock and see if any fail.
With my luck, the PC version of GOTY took all the "good gameplay glitches" out

... have all 3 games loaded ... have some cure Paralysis potions

Then I'm going to store the soul gems I stole from the yellow robed mage.
Visit her and see if she attacks.

Maybe we redo some stuff ... should have named my character ReDo or DoOver

I've noticed, at about level 10, many more creatures are blighted.
I've contacted enough diseases to star on a season of "House" :-(
Why I need to up my spells = they are getting to me, even after 5+ hits ... not good

When I feel confident or stupid, I'm going to try and hit the Daedric Ruins.
See if I can beat that Lord.
Have my "Mark" next to Creeper = he's my banker
Luckily the house occupants don't mind me storing stuff in the crates ... they say thief, but nobody attacks and all persuasion levels are the same

Appreciate the tips.

BlueSky · Post by **BlueSky** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 9:24 pm

... should have named my character ReDo or DoOver

LOL......:laugh:
Think that's what my little thief should be called.

Keep it up Joe...nothing your experiencing is anything to be worried about.
That's why this game is so addicting.

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 10:37 pm

I've contacted enough diseases to star on a season of "House" :-(

A bit of a tip here if you feel so inclined. This is something I have only just started doing myself.

Train your character up reasonably well in Restoration so you can cast "Cure Disease" and "Cure Blight" on yourself.
Another thing I did was create a nifty little spell that restores all of my attributes simultaneously. This is really handy after battles with certain enemies... and it means you don't have to worry about finding a temple or buying potions to regain your attributes.

mr_sir · Post by **mr_sir** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 12:36 am

dragon wench wrote:Another thing I did was create a nifty little spell that restores all of my attributes simultaneously. This is really handy after battles with certain enemies... and it means you don't have to worry about finding a temple or buying potions to regain your attributes.

I usually create an item that restores about 8 to 10 points to every attribute at once. Its relatively cheap to make, you don't need a powerful soul to create it as you won't need to use it more than one or two times before it has chance to recharge itself, and you can fit it on good quality amulets, rings or clothing. I usually put it on a pair of trousers to wear under my mage's robes

As for spellmaking, I like to make unique spells that do a mix of different damage types, although not too many. For instance, one of my favourites is the Spell of the Elements which does all 4 types of elemental damage. I also like to combine poison with fireballs

There is no reason for this really, as you could probably make more powerful spells by sticking to one type of damage, but I just like to be creative.

Another favourite is a spell that both paralyses for 10 secs and does an elemental type of damage over 10 secs or poison for 10 secs at the same time as the paralysis, then just stand back and watch

If it takes more than that to kill them, then I recast it, or if low on magicka then you have time for a potion of restore magicka to refill your magicka bar while they are paralysed.

Edit: I don't recommend that last spell on enemies that can reflect magic though or you end up just being a punch bag for them:laugh:

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:47 pm

Dragon_Wench: sounds like a great idea !
I will have to hit all the guilds and find those restore spells.
Reason will be explained later = hit another snag ... what else is new

Mr_Sir: another good idea.
Go buy undergarments.
Time for a trip to clothiers.

Seems I can't buy anymore Spear/Med or Heavy Armor ... guess 40pts per skill is the max ?
Tried buying some Spear and was refused.
I thought, "if you have the cash, you can buy till you reach 100".
I'm guessing they don't want a Breton/Mage with 100END ... so, It looks like I have to go buy a Spear and up END that way
Now I should catch even more diseases

Luckily your posts will help offset me being a disease magnet.

My WILL is already 100.
So, I'm forced to level up without questing ... since Desteruction/Mysticism are my only attacks
Been upping my Alchemy + INTL.
Trying to find the right math-mix as to not waste leveling up points.

I have another newbie question............>
* hit the Daedric Ruins by Caldera ... furst run was easy(3-Scamps + a Guar)
Second time I faced a Frost Antronach, Hunger and the Delmora Lord .... all they dropped was an $80 axe ... not worth the anxiety

* I went into the shrine(... first time I found the door in 4 replays) and got totally whooped. Killed the first attacker; was then skaughtered(... ran out of Magicka)
But, this leads me to believe their armor/weapons are "very good".
Do the enemies inside the shrine regenerate ???? ... if they do, it would be worth it to try and fight it out ... plus I could really use a bow + weapon with punch(... looks like I might need them after all = I see Fable grinning)

Have some numbering crunching to do tonight = hate wasting level points
Also will look into those spells + buying some clothes.

Yes BlueSky, this game is not for us anal/controlling type people (LOL)
I'm already thinking of character builds and I'm only on my 3rd quest with this character in Morrowind(...I'll bet Tribunal and Bloodmoon will be even tougher = why I'm concentrating on getting this build so perfect)

Thanks for the help !

mr_sir · Post by **mr_sir** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:56 pm

joe05 wrote: Seems I can't buy anymore Spear/Med or Heavy Armor ... guess 40pts per skill is the max ?
Tried buying some Spear and was refused.
I thought, "if you have the cash, you can buy till you reach 100".
I'm guessing they don't want a Breton/Mage with 100END ... so, It looks like I have to go buy a Spear and up END that way
Now I should catch even more diseases
Luckily your posts will help offset me being a disease magnet.

Different trainers have different limits on the max level of a skill they can train you to, but there will be other trainers that can train above 40pts

I think the main GameBanshee Morrowind site has a list of the trainers in Morrowind, if not then I'm sure there must be a list somewhere on this forum.

AmpaSand · Post by **AmpaSand** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 10:51 pm

Dremoras have leveled weapons so the more powerful you are they better stuff they have.....

PS DADRIC SHRINES are to avoided til Lv 15-20.... to be safe......

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 2:11 am

AmpaSand: point noted !

Dragon_Wench: how do I create that "nifty spell".

Mr_Sir: to be safe, I stole an exquiste robe. Bought exquiste ring and amulet.
Also bought the best trousers, belt and gloves from the "fine clothier" in Balmora.
How does your restore work ... how do I put all the restorations on one pair of trousers

I have all those soul gems I stole = which one will do the trick
What level enchant is acceptable.

I did go and buy all the Restoration spells that fortify the attributes.

As for Paralyze, many creatures are resistant.
I made a weakness to magicka spell, but it really chews up the magicka points.

I also see, using a Spear(...a MISC skill) does not level me up ?
I went from 45-47 and my character level never budged.

I'm guessing I just better stay with Destruction/Mysticism and use my shortsword.

fable · Post by **fable** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 6:01 am

As for Paralyze, many creatures are resistant.

There's also the kickback factor to consider. Some creatures, like the hunger, repel magical damage. While getting hit by fire you intended for something else is bad enough, getting frozen in place by a paralyze spell you cast is even more dangerous--and pretty damned embarassing, too.

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 10:54 am

Re: Paralyse:
I really like this spell, especially as a ranged attack before drawing close for the kill, it has saved my skin on a number of occasions. However, as has been stated, you do need to be careful. I only use it on humanoids, and most of the time they do not have a reflect spell active.

To make what I call "Renewal" (restore attributes)

You'll have the most luck checking out the spell merchants in shrines and temples. I'm not 100% sure, but I think that you only need one varient of the spell (for example, "restore strength") in order to have the "restore attribute" option come up when you visit a spellmaker.
Once at the spellmaker have him/her create a spell (select "restore attribute" on each occasion) that restores 5 points over 5 seconds for each attribute (At least, that is the number I used).
In other words, each attribute is restored a total of 25 points. You may need to recast on some occasions, but a single casting usually covers your needs.
The other nice thing is that the spell only uses 12 points of magicka.

I hope all of that makes sense...

AmpaSand · Post by **AmpaSand** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 5:48 pm

If you are annoyed about the cost or plain annoyance of finding master trainers you could (not really spoiler but loophole.)

Spoiler

Go to the theives guild in sadith mora and buy the spell that gives drain skill. make spell drain skill on self 100pts for 1sec. stand infront of trainer cast and quickly go to convosation and train. cost 1gp per level basicly no limit.

joe05 · Post by **joe05** » Tue Apr 24, 2007 11:40 pm

...thanks for the help
Made the spells ... I'm assuming you mean the Fortify Attribute spells that are under the Restoration category
I'll have to watch what I Paralyze.

Oh, there are Master Trainers !
I'll have to find one.

I'm in no hurry.
I'm kind of chessy-cheating by buying kevel-ups.
I found, by creating a one dimensional character, all my points were going into a select few categories. So, they zoomed up way faster than others.
If I needed END, I had to buy it. If I wanted INTL, I'd either have to buy it or conjure something = I chose to buy Alchemy
So, I decided to buy whatever I need in END + INTL now.
I'm leveling up fast, but at least now I can explore at will and whatever points I get will basicsally go into what I consider categories of lesser importance.
I know it's cheesy, but I didn't want to squander attribute points.

Going to start questing at will now + look for Azura.
Time to start "filling in the map"

galraen · Post by **galraen** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 9:09 am

No, DW meant RESTORE attributes, there's a guy upstairs in the Balmora Temple called Telis Salvani, who sells them.

There are two Master trainers that are missing, one is the trainer for Medium Armour, I can't remember what the other missing one is. The master trainer for Enchant is in the game, but in a terrible location, and to make matters worse he's always hostile.