Clerics undead spell way too expensive.

[crpgnut]

The first cleric spell that damages undead is almost twice as expensive as equal damage spells from mages. A cleric should be devastating to undead; doing more damage than any other class. I'd also argue that heal spells need to be seriously buffed as even a level 5 light heal is almost useless after level 5 or so. Clerics need a little something to level the playing field in their favor. I'd also give them a destroy undead effect on a critical hit on all but boss undead, but maybe that's overkill. I'm not sure how much undead is in this awesome game.

[Anubis]

Hello, and thanks for the suggestions on game balance.

A Cleric in certain RPG settings tends to be a different 'flavor' of Mage, just with more utility spells and less offensive spells.

In Lords of Xulima, they are meant to be a purely supportive/defensive class, so any damaging spell the Cleric can cast has to be somewhat expensive so as to not detract from other spellcasting classes. We could have implemented a rule which says "Light Ray can only be cast on Undeads/Demons" and reduced the PP cost of the spell, but we like to do everything we can to give the player both a sense of purpose and a sense of freedom, inside and outside of combat. The choice is there, can you afford the consequences?

Worth noting is that for the longest time, we received a lot of feedback that Clerics were a must-have and too powerful. We continue to try to balance this out, and of course this means that certain 'cons' of the class must remain to achieve the goal of having 10 balanced, fun and enticing classes.

As for Light Heal capping out, we wish for players to experiment with their arsenal of spells/tactical decisions and go back and forth between them, as the situation dictates. The one thing Light Heal will not overcome are large stacks of Poison/Bleed, or a character with low Armor getting hit by an enemy melee fighter. This is why you can Move, Defend, Escape Battle, Use an Item, cast Cure Bleed or look for a cool new piece of plate armor with a '+Organic Resistance' enchant. Then eventually, spells like Regeneration and Greater Heal are learned

[crpgnut]

I have regeneration and it's okay. Good for longer battles. I haven't hit greater heal yet, but can't wait. My cleric has the least kills in my party at something like 3%. If another class had heal, I'd never take one but potions are expensive. Hmm...if you purposely killed off the cleric and didn't have to spend any money leveling her or equipping her, that might be a viable strategy. Use the saved money for potion acquisition. Might have to try that next game. As she stands, she isn't a warrior, she isn't useful against undead because her mana has to be saved for those tiny heals that she does provide. Do paladins get light heal eventually? Choices, choices.

[Phosphono]

crpgnut - I'm finding the Paladin plays true to the hybrid class. Yes, around mid-game (in this release) they unlock access to spells like Light Heal, Mend Bleeding, Ray of Light, etc. Investing in these skills cost more than it would for a Cleric, though. I've found the Paladin's 'Aura of Healing' to be pretty useful. It's an AoE style heal that is good against opponent AoE attacks, or just a good top-off when multiple party members are injured. The paladin also has access to battle skills like "Bloody Strike", which increases hit chance and applies considerable bleeding. Note: his AoE works best in a 3x3 formation with him in the middle-back slot (it reaches all members).

My Paladin sits in the back row, equipped with a polearm. His stats are a mix between Energy, Speed, and Strength. He has the advantage over a cleric in the sense that he can still contribute to the fight after his PP has run out, albeit less than the front-row characters.

The Cleric's 'Ray of Light' spell already has a 2x multiplier against undead. It is an expensive spell, but that is on purpose to maintain the support-role function of the cleric. By the time Light Heal really loses its luster, you'll gain access to Greater Heal. It's expensive, but if you've been pumping your Energy like you should, you'll have a good reserve of PP to last through battles. Also, be sure to pick up, and pump, Divine Prayer...LP and PP for the cost of a turn is never a bad thing. This skill is available to both the Cleric and Paladin.

In all, I use both classes to partially stack my healing abilities. It allows me to stay in the battle longer and give my meatshields a chance to do the dirty work. I run a Gaulen/Thief/Barbarian/Cleric/Paladin/Mage party. I'm around level 20 and can handle most status ailments (Mend Bleeding has saved my rump), and have great staying power for boss battles.

Give the Paladin/Cleric combo a shot. You'll have to manage the Paladin's PP (as its reserve will be smaller than the Cleric in my setup), but it's a great team.

[crpgnut]

I'm in love with winning battles fast, so I have two mages in every party. I could try Useless, Cleric, Paladin, Arcane Warrior, Mage, Mage and see how that works though. I'm not sure if I have enough HP with that party makeup though. Paladins can at least fight, so there is some value there. I wait wasting a spot with a cleric. I wonder if I could survive the early game with 2 Paladins.....

[Phosphono]

To use two Paladins in a party, I would think you'd have to turn them into primarily a magic class...heavy Energy, Speed, and a dash of Constitution. They would lack a solid, single-target heal until later in the game and you'd be relying on potions/scrolls for that purpose. It is interesting, though, to think what two of them could do with double Aura of Healing. They would need a good dose of speed to get combat actions often enough to be effective. It would be expensive to level their skills as primary healers. I think the Light Heal spell costs four Skill Points per level. It's possible, but I don't think it's optimal. But I have my own take on things and your experience my differ.

You seem to favor a party that relies on Power Points rather heavily. I have run across opponents who can AoE PP drain. It converts PP from three of your characters into LP for the opponent. They can QUICKLY drain your PP reserves. I went with a Barbarian to ensure I didn't have party that was dependant on strictly one thing. He's a bruiser with massive Strength/Speed. Equip a mace on him and he is stunning opponents way down the combat action chain. I use him exclusively for my Arena battles due to his large LP pool.

Just some perspective. You seem to have a play-style that you enjoy, as do I. I hope a bit of this is useful information.