AGDInteractive - Sierra Adventure Game Remakes Forum

I'm getting very bored with spell grinding (not to mention luck and stealth, the two stats that just refuse to raise) in QFG4; anybody got an editor or a list of hex locations (and it's not as simple as searching for 400 dec / 190 hex)?

Personally I'd just get your char good enough to complete 4 (maybe max out Frostbite) and then go into 5. 5 is much faster at stat grinds and spell grinds -- it's not too hard to get most of your spells up to 500 (with the exception of a few certain new spells, which can only be used in certain conditions).

Goilveig wrote:Personally I'd just get your char good enough to complete 4 (maybe max out Frostbite) and then go into 5.

Well, any spell that can be cast repeatedly by holding down enter will be maxed, that's for sure.

Anyhow in 5 if you have a multi-hybrid you should be easily able to get all your stats to 500 or 550 quickly, the only difficult parts of stat grinds come when you don't have particular skills (I think it's Acrobatics and Stealth you need to do the hold-down-g-and-k trick which makes your stamina plummet and your stats skyrocket).

My pure thief maxed out everything except swimming within 4 days, even the new pickpocket skill. I don't recommend building swimming period, but if you're a stickler for a maxed char, do it after you can breathe underwater.

My mage maxed out on all spells except a few that can't be easily grinded (or some that can't be grinded at all). I think I was 500 in all but five spells, Calm, Summon Staff, + three new spells.

Actually, Swimming can be maxed much faster if you can't breathe water, as then it goes up just by being in the water. Just remember to pack some Stamina Pills, hang out by the ladder off the docks, and come up for air when you turn blue (you can safely read or something and just glance at the screen every couple minutes).

ulmont wrote:I'm getting very bored with spell grinding (not to mention luck and stealth, the two stats that just refuse to raise) in QFG4; anybody got an editor or a list of hex locations (and it's not as simple as searching for 400 dec / 190 hex)?

QfG4 is among the hardest to hack. The most I've ever done is a few spells for my Paladin of Irony.

Your best bet would probably be downloading something like GameWiz32 and searching for stat values as they change. It'll take a while though.

If I personally don't have the patience to grind a stat up to its max in a certain game, I just leave it that way. I prefer an imperfect stat sheet that's really mine over a perfect stat sheet that was illegally modified.

Erpy wrote:If I personally don't have the patience to grind a stat up to its max in a certain game, I just leave it that way. I prefer an imperfect stat sheet that's really mine over a perfect stat sheet that was illegally modified.

This.

Some things just aren't worth maxing, since it just takes so ridiculously long to do so. However, there's often also little to no benefit from maxing them. For example, even if you completely max communication in QfG4, the skill no longer exists in QfG5. And while every spell has a skill level, I'm sure that some of them completely ignore that value or only check if it's past some really low threshold.

So for purposes of playing the game, there's really no functional difference between having an absolutely perfectly maxed character and having one that's only just mostly maxed. The perfect character would be something you could have a sense of accomplishment about or could brag to other people about, but that benefit completely disappears if you cheated to get it.

Erpy wrote:I prefer an imperfect stat sheet that's really mine over a perfect stat sheet that was illegally modified.

Eh. I've ground everything to 400 in QFG4 before, but years ago and the exports have been lost.

I must say, though, QFG5 really does raise both luck and stealth incredibly fast; middle of the night on day 2 and both are at 500.

ulmont wrote: I must say, though, QFG5 really does raise both luck and stealth incredibly fast; middle of the night on day 2 and both are at 500.

QFG5 is fast in pretty much everything, albeit some classes have tougher points (like Vitality for a mage, or Int for a fighter).

Never had a problem with raising Vitality... just run everywhere and do stuff until it hurts. Don't rest or restore your Stamina unless you really need to.

Yeah, it's just slower for the mage than for the others, and since overall, you'll probably end up grinding 350 points of vitality over the course of the game, it's a bit slow.

The treadmill at the adventurer's guild helps, but it's still slower than the thief (who can hold the stealth and attack buttons and get some very, very rapid stat building) or the fighter/paladin (climbing is faster than the treadmill IMO, though the treadmill requires less user interaction).

Goilveig wrote:Yeah, it's just slower for the mage than for the others, and since overall, you'll probably end up grinding 350 points of vitality over the course of the game, it's a bit slow.

A slow 350 for a Wizard, yes. In a sense though, a Paladin may take the longest to max out Vitality since it's 425 points to grind rather than 350.

Brainiac wrote:

Goilveig wrote:Yeah, it's just slower for the mage than for the others, and since overall, you'll probably end up grinding 350 points of vitality over the course of the game, it's a bit slow.

A slow 350 for a Wizard, yes. In a sense though, a Paladin may take the longest to max out Vitality since it's 425 points to grind rather than 350.

Good point. And of course, if you're following the "optimal" pairing of classes and women, wizards and paladins are the only ones who really have to grind more than 100 points, the other two classes can just pass on the opportunity for the women.

Goilveig wrote:And of course, if you're following the "optimal" pairing of classes and women, wizards and paladins are the only ones who really have to grind more than 100 points, the other two classes can just pass on the opportunity for the women.

True, and for a "look out for number one" Thief, I'd even say it's completely in character. However, if you don't want the final battle to be challenging, it's certainly recommended to bring back the more offensive of the two.

Brainiac wrote: True, and for a "look out for number one" Thief, I'd even say it's completely in character. However, if you don't want the final battle to be challenging, it's certainly recommended to bring back the more offensive of the two.

No argument there, it does make the last fight SO much easier, which is pretty much the only reason my thief made the sacrifice -- he expected to gain more than he gave.