I like s/s more and i also like ranged weapons just because i use them the most

don't know about anyone else - but I only use P/S - I have around S/S lvl 6 at lvl 30...
Is this a bad choice? Will I be disadvantaged later? If I level up at the fortress will it be as good as if I'd done it myself? :)

Trouble

not sure about bieng better or worse but its not a bad thing having one higher and one really low. that one skill will be quite a bit higher than your overall level i take it. mine are about 4 levels different i think but thats only because i used to alternate at certain levels, at one point there wasnt a decent enough s/p wep that was mag and vamp so i got a new s/s one. never looked back really. higher damage but greater scatter i thnk is worth the high hits

around 5-6 lvls higher at the moment - still staying around there (lvl 30 exp) :)

Trouble325

If you check the monsters on larkinorguide.com you will see that their weaknesses change from p/s to s/s and back from level to level.  Ultimately it would be best to have both available to you.  This requires you dex to be at level/1.2 so that you can buy the skill levels you need to use either s/s or p/s.

-RTD

but if you have both you can't have ranged at the same time?
And you don't have the time to go and change in your bag when a monster attacks you. Personally, there are alot of magician-type monsters then I wouldn't be able to do without a first hit :(.

Trouble325

oh you mistake me lol, i have ranged as well, im just wondering what fighters have in tehre other hands lol. absoloutley couldnt kill the majority of high level mage monsters withouit my silver stinkbow :) 

Unless you use magic for ranged  ;)

one of my characters does but i find he seems a lot weaker than my pure fighter,, he's turned to robbing for now as he was my first charac and his stats are fairly balanced

from mid-20's to mid-30's (i can't speak past that... highest lvl is 36) i'd say s/s has a slight (and on a few lvl's a large) advantage.  there may be one or two where p/s is better.  i keep both trained, so i can use the right one when in missions (and switch back and forth... i keep ranged in the other hand).  it's just a matter of preference.  some lvl's, the s/s is waaaay more expensive than the p/s.  a few, i've noticed, the s/s costs next to nothing.  i will continue to use both, even if it costs me more money, but you can choose whatever you want.
--jason

i like your idea for switching with missions, i personally just hack my way through with what i have, ( very annoyed just did ancient forges pub mis and two-dozen eyes at end killed me)it works the majority of the time, as long as they're both vamp an magic i dont have too much of a problem.

i guess it boils down to 2 choices....

Poke their eyes out wi a pointy stick, or bash their brains in wi a mallet :D:D

I run "semi's" for the most part.  But, even on the one pure character that I have, I have opted for a shield and a single weapon.  I use s/m exclusively, but the choice of s/m over p/s was coincidental.  When I realized that using a weapon type raised the weapon skill above the dex based fortress training max, I was using s/m and consequently quit buying or using p/s so that I could maximize the benefit.  Currently my s/m skill is 2 - 5 levels above my character level.   My is s/m skill is relatively minimal. I have never spent anytime at all on any ranged weapon.  

Also, I only use m/v weapons.  The vampiric function is added back in after damage is taken affectively reducing the damage inflicted.  The vampiric bonus is a function of strength; consequently, you can view a high strenght attribute combined with a vampiric weapon as a bonus to your protection.  Finally, carrying a m/v weapon insures that I always have a weapon to strike magic only monsters.  

Just my two cents.  Wiser more experienced players may disagree strongly.

well can def se the advantage of a high defence but you do lose the first hit at distance which could disadvantage you at stronger mage/range monsters. but whaterver works for you really. may give it a try see what i think.

Something that I forgot was that there is an 11 lvl gap between m/v weapons from lvl9 to lvl 20.  The need to have a magic weapon will probably lead a player following my strategy to use p/s over s/s to get the higher dmg of the stump dagger over the iron hammer.  Once you make the commitment, there is probably not a good reason to switch back to s/s weapons.  

There is a string of m or v weapons betweenlvl9 and lvl 20 when the m/v weapons are again available for virtually every level.  Obviously, with only one weapon, the player has to opt for the magic weapon.  This choice also encourages training in strength to obtain a dmg bonus.  So, the strategy creates its own set of necessities.

geoc, you just don't see the whole picture.  yes, there is a gap of m/v weapons in those early lvl's, and yes, a magic weapon is a better choice than a vamping weapon during them (so you can defeat magic monsters)... but for you to claim that one p/s weapon is better than another during that range will cause people to use p/s over s/s shows that you are not yet experienced enough to offer sound advice to newer players (yes, you can provide your opinion... but please state it as that, not as something that "should" be done).  even i do not claim to know what's "best"... i've got a lot of experience behind me, and have tested many things (with fighters... i haven't used mages)... but there are others more knowledgeable than i.

as i said earlier, i keep both p/s and s/s trained at least to my lvl, but if i were to pick one to train for a new char, it would be s/s.  from what i've seen up to lvl 36, s/s has more lvl's where it is the better choice than p/s does, especially in the late 20's to mid 30's.  and you've probably noticed that as you get to higher lvl's, it takes longer and longer to lvl.  so i'd gladly take the (relatively) small disadvantage around lvl 15 to 20 in order to get the advantage in the higher lvl's.  just my personal opinion though.  someone of higher lvl's may be able to say whether s/s or p/s seems to be slightly higher in late 30's, 40's or higher.

--jason

jason...grow up

I made a persistence fighter using s/s and one using p/s. Even though the s/s user is level 37 and p/s is 30 I'd say I like s/s a lot better. As for a mage, I had one at level 33 (I forgot password and email to the account :() and it's strong. Only thing is recovering manapoints. Wastes so many clicks. :p

thats teh problem with my mage atm. tegid is god his mag is 2 lvs higher thn his lvl but even with a manasatchel i find i run out of points too quick.

i prefer llancellyn for this reason, although ive just crashed in teh casino lol, (i got greedy and dumb, never a good mix when silvers at stake) i can prob make the cash up using moles digging, myridins robbing and lans general takings from battle., ill be on TA at lv 31-32 and im 29 an 1/2 now :)

My main character being a mage/fighter, I find an effective method of regenerating mana is miracle satchel and the manafountain spell.  Granted, my char is only lvl 16 at the moment, but a manafountain can nearly fill (300/360) my magic, and the hp can be recovered in 2 steps with the satchel.   This might be a bit too slow for a pure mage however, haven't tried one yet.

I like s/s but my mediocre fighter had to buy some p/s around level 30 because he/she/it kept getting smooshed on the missions.  I'd say train the one skill and spend the dex points more creatively until you need the other weapon, then fatten your dex and buy the other skill.

I haven't really followed my own advice though, because I wanted to try out the different weapons with my noob fighter.  So far the p/s ones suck, at least up to level twenty-whatever level my sandwich is.  But yeah if I were still building persistance or luck I'd keep putting potential dex points there.

Okay that bleeted out word was nowhere near a curse word.  It's what a vacuum does.

and what a vaccuum does is also not allowed to be said... there's too many ways it can be taken in different contexts.
--jason