Mage Tactics - General 5

Batman is a better super hero than Superman: Fact.

Superman survives because he's nigh-invulnerable, save for a very gimmicky weakness; completely boring.

Batman wins because he's a crafty dude who both adapts to situations and plans ahead.

"Where does he get those wonderful toys?"

I'll tell you Joker; he's rich and crafty.

Interestingly enough, so are we on Paradise. So there's really no reason we shouldn't have a few useful toys of our own.

Fire Horn: Okay, granted, these aren't the most impressive of tools. The damage is based on your four Bard skills, tops out at about 70~80 damage, has a "you must catch your breath" delay, has to be used within 3 panels, and consumes 4 ash each use. However, it's an area of effect attack, and often just enough to clear some of those weaker spawn from around you (If you've ever used the travel stone to get to Blood, you know what I'm talking about). You can create a macro for it that removes ash from your reagent crystal for you then uses the item. You could also set it to target a relative location right at your feet if you want, but I prefer to target it myself. It as a 95% chance of success, 4% chance to fail, and 1% chance to fail and break.

Bolas: Again, another item that has limited use on Paradise. There are only a few mounted enemies in the game and dismounting them has limited effect anyway. Really, the best use for these is if you're wanting to steal a Ridgeback from a savage. But honestly, you can find those elsewhere.

Shuriken: Now we have something. Something I just recently learned, you do *not* have to wear the leather ninja belt to use Shuriken. Each belt can hold a maximum of ten shuriken. At 120 Blacksmith skill, I make them exceptionally 100% of the time and get 2 per attempt. They can be deadly poisoned and thrown at any enemy within three tiles, just as with Firehorns. However, if you're willing to work a bit harder, they can also be Lethal Poisoned. There's a questgiver in Occlo that will give you a Lethal Poison potion for every 20 beetle venom (or whatever) you give her. This item can be looted from Rune Bettles. Lethal Poison shuriken are a great alternative for high karma players who want to skip using Evil Omen to get Lethal. Their chance to hit is based on Ninjitsu, last I heard.

Wands: My new favorite item. Unlike On Hit: Spell effects on weapons, Wands take into account your skills and item bonuses, i.e., a Lightning spell from a Wand will do exactly the same damage as a spell you cast. Wands do have a delay between uses, but they also use 0 mana. This means that even if you're stuck chain healing one of your pets, you can still use a wand to damage between heals without worrying out running yourself out of mana. Likewise, if you find yourself getting low on mana you can pull out a Greater Heal wand to pick up the slack while your mana catches up. Wands also work for defensive macing and benefit from Bushido Parry despite having 0 speed. Because of the 0 speed, wands will not swing. This makes Taming that much easier, as you don't have to worry about angering or accidentally killing what you're trying to tame.

Smokeballs: These are nifty little items to have on hand. I previously said that Wall of Stone and hiding was the quickest way to make a fast escape, but these have changed my mind. They're based off Ninjitsu firstly, to determine if they work. If they do, you make an immediate Hiding check as if nothing has line of sight to you. You still have to deal with skill delay, so you can't use a smokeball and follow it with an immediate Stealth check, but if you have the skills and want to get away, this is a good item to keep around.

Potions: These are great to keep around, and easier to keep in bulk if you have a Gardener's Bucket; it will hold Greater Cure, Heal, Agility, and Strength potions for you. All you need is a macro that will pop one out and use it when you need it. Ancient Alchemy on Paradise expands this a bit further. There are now Mana potions, Super Potions (+10 all stats), Invisibility and Stealth Potions, and Revitalize Potions (completely refill Health, Mana, and Stamina).

Pet Leash: You can also use Shrink Potions (from ancient alchemy) for the same effect. Either one lets you shrink your pets, putting them in your main backpack and freeing your control slots once again. These are good to keep on hand if you're training pets, only keeping a pet around for one big mob, or planning to run the Doom Gauntlet. Likewise, if you're a serious tamer or doing a quest, you may like to have the bigger use leashes around when you do heavy taming sprees.

Scrolls: These are another thing worth keeping around thanks to special holders on Paradise, in this case the Scribe's Tome. If you have less than 120 Magery or Necromancy, there are certain spells you can't cast at 100% chance. In this moments, have a scroll around is a great time saver. Rather than recast a couple times hoping to succeed, you could pop out a scroll; scrolls cast as if two circles lower than what you can cast. In the case of 7th, 8th, and high skill Necro, at GM skill you can use any spell from a scroll at 100% success.