NQII Notes
This page is, by no means, a full-scale guide for Neoquest II, nor is it complete or 100% accurate.=) This is just some helpful stuff about the game that I use, and I thought some other people might want to know about it as well. A lot of the information I'm actually in the process of collecting.Okay, onto the notes!
Skills
Rohane
Alternate Damage and Critical to 13 each, then Stunning Strikes to 13, Innate Melee Haste to 11 and the rest on anything that might be useful or isn't maxed with bonuses.Mipsy
Max Group Damage, Innates to 11. 13 to Damage Shields or Group Haste, and the rest to the one not chosen, along with whatever isn't maxed with bonuses.Talinia
13 to Bow Damage, 11 to Multiple Targets, 11 to Innate Haste, 13 to Ranged Attack, and the rest for whatever isn't maxed with bonuses.Velm
Max Group Heal, 11 to Innate Defense, one Mesmerization, 11 Innate Haste, then 13 to Group Shielding. (Or GS before IH) Rest on anything that might be useful or isn't maxed with bonuses.Skill analysis at the bottom.
Towards the end you will be getting your last special weapons/armor from the numerous bosses of Chapter five. As you don't get every "uber" weapon/armor save your last few points carefully. With them you won't have to spend all your points to max skills normally, and then you can squeeze some extra skills in to help you fight Terask II. Like damage shields/group haste for Mipsy, some innate magic defense for Rohane and Talinia, and single healing for Velm, all of which can help you beat Terask II.
No doubt throughout the game you will find weapons with bonuses that will help you max out your skills for a time. Don't worry about selling them and buying unenchanted replacements, you will find more later. Most of the time you will not notice the difference between maxed skills and not. (But it's there, so they're still worth using :P) Occasionally you will get weapons that are not worth selling to buy barely better weapons. Especially when it comes to Mipsy's wand, since melee isn't her forte, or weapons for Rohane and Talinia, if it has damage increase.
Increments
Mipsy
Direct Damage starts at 10 points and goes up 7/8 points each skill point spent.
Group Direct Damage starts at 8 points and goes up 4 points each skill point spent.
Group Haste starts at 10% and goes up 2 each skill point spent.
Damage Shields starts at 2 damage and goes up 2 damage each skill point spent through level 7. Level 8 onward only increases by 1 damage.
Velm
Healing starts at 10 health points and goes up 10 health points each skill point spent.
Group Healing starts at 6 health points and goes up 6 health points each skill point spent.
Group Shielding starts at 3 MR and Def and goes up 2 MR and Def each skill point spent. Level 15 only increases by 1 MR and Def.
Final Weapon Bonuses
Rohane
Sword of ApocalypseCritical Attacks: 2
Damage Increase: 2
Combat Focus: 2
Stunning Strikes: 2
Battle Taunt: 2
Jeran's Battle Armor
Innate Melee Haste: 4
Innate Magic Resistance: 4
Mipsy
Wand of RealityGroup Haste: 4
Slowing: 3
Damage Shields: 2
Group Direct Damage: 1
Direct Damage: -1
Jahbal's Robe
Innate Casting Haste: 4
Innate Melee Defense: 4
Talinia
Bow of DestinyIncreased Bow Damage: 2
Multiple Targets: 2
Ranged Attacks: 2
Shockwave: 2
Slowing Strike: 2
Treeskin
Innate Melee Haste: 4
Innate Magic Resistance: 4
Velm
Staff of Righteous FuryHealing: 2
Group Healing: 2
Group Shielding: 2
Mesmerization: 2
Celestial Hammer: 2
Holy Chain of Spirits
Innate Casting Haste: 4
Innate Melee Defense: 4
Fighting Strategy
Generally I let Rohane and Talinia batter the bulk of opponents, so Mipsy can easily astral maelstrom them away. Velm either heals, protects, or attacks so some opponent can get in Mipsy's range (64 or less health, unless the opponents are resistant to her magic.) This only works in some cases. Sometimes you can't wait an extra turn to get rid of some other opponent, like an obliterater, so you'll have to let Rohane or Talinia "waste" a turn and kill an opponent hanging on for dear life. :PGenerally I don't bother with group haste, slowing, or any shielding unless it's a four monster fight that poses a threat. (Obliteraters and mesmerizers of any number recommend group shielding.) Boss fights I'd recommend all, if you can do it, and potions if you'd like. Especially for Terask II. e.e
Order of Operation
Obliteraters, Focusers, Healers, Group Damagers, Damage Shielders, Group Shielders, Mesmerizers, Slowers/stunners/criticalers, more than 64 HPers, soon-to-be-attackers.
While the above is not entirely complete, it is a pretty good guide as to what are the safest opponents to go after first. Some of it is based on faster fights, while others actually pose a threat to your characters. (Obliteraters are a good example for a threat, and focusers for speed) However, sometimes this list would not apply. The chias in Hubrid Nox's tower are a prime example. Let me explain.
At this point in the game you often run into four monsters at once, which gives you a variety of opponents. You have a Heart of Nox (Heart, focuser), Nox Guardian (Guardian, damage shielder), Hand of Nox (Hand, obliterater), and Eye of Nox (Eye, group shielder). Alone, as in the only type of opponent in the fight, Eyes are pretty harmless, though a little annoying to fight, since they will almost immediately shield themselves and block some of your damage. However, one of them in a group of Hearts can greatly decrease the damage to a Heart, so in this case you would very much want to get rid of an Eye first. Three Hands and a Heart would give you a chance to completely ignore a focuser, as they can easily knock out almost all of the characters if Velm doesn't get a chance to heal, and Hands do not hesitate very long to use Obliterate.
One Heart, one Guardian, one Hand, and one Eye is a nightmare to think of. But since there is only one obliterater, you are free to fight other opponents if you're careful. Watch your characters health if so. Anyway, I'd recommend going after the Eye or Guardian, whichever you have time to kill before it's their turn again (hope for some stunning.) Then the other shielder, the Hand, and then the Heart. Feel free to use group shielding or group haste before you start really fighting.
After an opponent focuses, pretend it's not there and fight other opponents until they are either all taken care of, or below Mipsy's range. Thankfully focusers are vulnerable to magical attacks, so unless they have shielding on them, or something else, Mipsy will usually be the best at taking care of them when it's time to fight them again.
When fighting a troublesome monster/boss that mesmerizes, be careful to keep your characters health imperfect, so Velm can have a chance at healing them and restoring their attention. (Especially with Terask II)
Skill Analysis
Underlined skills need to be cast or activated.Rohane
Critical Attacks
Increases the chance of doing extra damage.--- While it's not as necessary as damage increase, this is a fabulous skill that comes in very handy throughout the whole game. It's random, but it happens frequently enough that you can count on good damage against almost every opponent.
Damage Increase
Increases the amount of damage you do.--- Absolutely necessary if you want Rohane to fight.
Combat Focus
Decreases damage given and taken.--- A completely useless skill unless paired with battle taunt as a fighting strategy.
Stunning Strikes
Stuns monsters for several seconds.--- It's randomness is in the same range as critical attacks, and works against bosses. However, this is a strategy skill, and may be a waste to those who don't wish to prolong monsters' turns.
Battle Taunt
Taunts monsters into only attacking Rohane.--- Works very well in combination with combat focus. However, if you are stronger on offense then defense this is not your skill. Can still be useful in small dosages against menacing monsters.
Innate Magic Resistance
Decreases the chance Rohane will be magically affected.--- Not very useful until the end of the game, and even then you don't need to spend very much to have effective defense.
Innate Melee Haste
Increases Rohane's speed in battle.--- Mandatory to decrease damage intake and increase damage outtake.
Mipsy
Direct Damage
Magical damage on one opponent of up to 100 damage.--- A very nice skill, but is mostly useful in the early part of the game. First, Mipsy cannot do more magical damage than her current max health (meaning her skill is only optimized at level 23) at which point all monsters still have more health than she can do damage, and you run into multiple monster fights more and more frequently. It is a very dependable attack, though, until monsters become more resistant to magic in chapter three on.
Group Direct Damage
Magical damage on all opponents of up to 64 damage each.--- Counterpart to direct damage, and my preference. Unlike direct damage, it's effect is immediate and prolonged until the end of the game. Since it is aimed at multiple monsters, it is rarely completely resisted unless monsters are using group shielding. However, because of the increase of damage done Mipsy takes longer to take her next turn.
Group Haste
Increases the party's speed in a fight.--- Useful, but not a favorite of mine. It is, however, much more convenient than haste potions. I'd recommend spending your leftover points on this for bosses.
Slowing
Decreases the speed of a targeted opponent.--- While the slowing percentage is quite alluring, this skill is far from worth it. This would mean, in a four monster fight, it will take four turns to slow them all, and it's quite possible there will be some resistance, especially towards the end, and in the meantime Mipsy's not helping the battle offensively. Quite frequently for me Mipsy never gets the chance to attack four times except against bosses, who are far more resistant than your average monster.
Damage Shields
Casts a shield around the group that causes damage to melee monsters when they attack.--- Recommended if only to have the pleasure of defeating a boss on their turn. ... Okay, quite frankly, I'm not a big fan of this skill. The damage isn't high when maxed, but it is still irresistible to melee attackers, and can be nicely effective against bosses and tough monsters.
Innate Melee Defense
Decreases damage from melee attacks.--- Highly recommended for the weakest member of the party.
Innate Casting Haste
Increases Mipsy's speed in battle.--- Both direct damage and group direct damage take a long time to recharge, and this is mandatory to keep Mipsy from being slow as a slug.
Talinia
Increased Bow Damage
Increases the amount of damage you do.--- Like Rohane's damage increase, only a little less.
Multiple Targets
Attacks multiple enemies with an attack like Talinia's default.--- This is a fabulous combination with group direct damage. It takes a long time to recharge, but fortunately Talinia's turns continue while it does so. It's not as dependable as Mipsy's attacks, but she can almost do the same amount of damage as Rohane. This skill will not let Talinia attack four opponents until 11 skill points are spent.
Ranged Attacks
Stuns opponents that attack, whether or not they do damage.--- A powerful skill mainly because it works on all bosses. Opponents are stunned for up to several seconds after attacking Talinia with melee.
Shockwave
Randomly shocks all opponents when Talinia attacks anyone.--- A fun ability, but a little more random than others. Unfortunately it doesn't work on many bosses, but it can be very helpful in multiple monster fights.
Slowing Strike
Slows monsters by a certain percentage whenever Talinia attacks.--- One of the worst possible wastes of skill points. When maxed, she only slows them by 5% each hit. The slowing doesn't last long, so even if they live long enough to gather many hits, the first one will have worn off.
Innate Magic Resistance
Decreases the chance Talinia will be magically affected.--- Same as Rohane's.
Innate Melee Haste
Increases Talinia's speed in battle.--- Same as Rohane's.
Velm
Healing
Heals up to 150 health points at a targeted party member.--- While this sounds useful, it would take four turns to heal the party. It's similar to the direct damage and group direct damage debate. 150 health really isn't a lot.
Group Healing
Heals the whole party up to 90 health points each.--- My preference in the fight (Who'd have guessed?) perhaps because it caters to my perfectionist side. The only problem I have with it is that when fighting mesmerizers you might need to heal and make other party members vulnerable by making them unhealable - so they can't be unmesmerized.
Group Shielding
Increases the party's resistance to magic and melee.--- You notice the difference more for magical attacks, but this skill is still highly useful against bosses. There really is no reason not to get it, or use it in an average fight.
Mesmerization
Distracts monsters for a period of time.--- Mesmerization is broken whenever the monster is attacked or healed. It's most useful in combination with direct damage and multiple targetless-Talinia. But even if you don't use the combination, it's a nice sort of stun-on-demand, as long as your opponent isn't resistant. One or two points is all you'd ever need, the stun time gets pointlessly high otherwise. It is most favored in use against the Four Faeries.
Celestial Hammer
Magical attack of up to 45 damage and stunning of up to 3 seconds.--- A fun, but not always useful, ability. The stunning is the best part, but it doesn't work on many bosses and monsters towards the end. The magical attack is likewise resistable. As well, Velm is able to do more damage towards the end without spending any extra skill points. However, it gives him the extra advantage of being able to attack without being hurt by an opponent's damage shield.
Innate Melee Defense
Decreases damage from melee attacks.--- Like Mipsy, Velm isn't the toughest party member around.
Innate Casting Haste
Increases Velm's speed in battle.--- While you don't want your healer to be lagging behind, in one of my game's I mistakenly gave Velm many haste points when the rest of my characters had none. The resulting difference was relatively pointless as well as annoying for quite a while. Don't be afraid to give innate haste to Velm last of your party.
Seeya
This info belongs to Maivry. You can not say it is your own. However, feel free to use it and refer to it.
While most of this guide is based on fact, the skill guide, boss chart, and fighting strategy guide are based on my opinion, and you can play around with my advice all you like to find out what's best for you.
In particular, I tend to overlevel, so don't be too worried if you're apparently underleveled in normal according to my chart, or even evil. If you are comfortable fighting the monsters near the boss, then you are most likely ready. It also depends somewhat on your armor and potions.
Level experience from thefallingstar.com's level formula, painstakingly put into an easier format to use. :D Also, most skills have someone's credit for their tips when I was still a newbie NQIIer, but most insight comes from Aphromeda's NQII skill guide. Most of all, of course, is from my own experience. :)
Hope this helps, ciao!
