Rathmaker

Back when I was playing vanilla sacred I voted the High Elf. Now, after purchasing Ice and Blood, the Dragon Mage is quickly overtaking her for the top spot. The variety of spells and very active gameplay, along with the nice looking armor IMO, is very appealing to me. Funny note: The Dragon Mage is the only character I cannot play on my laptop with maxed out graphics settings. All the explosions from Destroyer mixed with the wave of Energy Blaze and dome of Maelstrom just kills the frame rate (although it looks beautiful as hell! lol). Happy hunting to all of you ~Rathmaker~

My first character (after trying them all out a bit) was a foolish attempt at a 3 aspect High Elf. She looked like this (not in this order): 1. Arrant Pyromancer Lore 2. Arrant Pyromancer Focus 3. Mystic Stormrite Lore 4. Mystic Stormrite Focus 5. Delphic Arcania Lore 6. Delphic Arcania Focus 7. Concentration 8 Armor Lore 9 Ancient Magic 10 Bargaining Although she was a fun to play, it became evident after some time that trying to keep all three aspects plus Bargaining up to par was not the...easiest...task. Then, there was the fact that it was hard to keep her alive in Gold and above with no Defensive skills other than Armor Lore. I really enjoyed playing her, but I enventually gave up and went with an Arrant Pyromancer build something like what most use today. I love to play characters that are really active to play, and have alot of options in terms of attacks/play style. That is why, after getting Ice and Blood recently, the Dragon Mage has really caught my attention. In testing (and now on the first "real" build try) I have been able to successfully run a three aspect build with both Elemental and Mentalism Lores, as well as all three foci. The Elemental and Mentalism Aspects are doing great damage. And since the 2 Dragon forms are not affected by its Lore skill (it seems), the Focus allows for some melee fun from time to time for a change of pace. Good hunting to all of you! ~Rathmaker~

Ok, so after playing a number of different Dragon Mages to test out build thoughts and such there is one thing I do not like about the character: I cannot decide whether I like Elemental or Mentalism better! This character truely is a fun one to use as a "hybrid". Blow 'em up, Blast 'em with Energy, Rip their minds out....it all works! Destroyer and Energy Blaze make an awesome combo to rip anything apart! And, after over 20 test characters, and alot of thinking I believe I finally have the hybrid build I am going with....which, of course, is the first idea that popped into my head (go figure...see post one for the build...its working very well so far!). Good hunting to all of you! ~Rathmaker~

That is a good thought to go with Combat Discipline over Mentalism Lore. It will still boost the damage of Energy Blaze (for the non-physical damage attack), and at the same time increase the damage of all my Elemental spells. I was pondering that as well. The main uses I am seeing in Mentalism in my game play is to get a secondary damage type, and for Maelstrom and Runes of Protection. With 75 points in the Focus (Mastery) I will be able to modify those three skills. As for the 100% chance to halve regens, I have no really given any thought on what I am looking to do in the late late game. I was more interested in just getting a build together that is a blast to play yet still effective. After playing around with him some more, and doing some more thinking (Ow it hurts my head to think!) a build like this is coming to mind: (2) Bargaining (3) Concentration (5) Elemental Magic Lore (8) Armor Lore (12) Elemental Magic Focus (18) Mentalism Focus (25) Combat Discipline (35) Ancient Magic (50) Constitution (65) Dragon Magic Focus Also, I want to make sure I understand you correctly here as well: Are saying that Combos for the Dragon Mage cannot be changed out once you make the combo? EEK! I hate to say it, but that just may break the class for me. If that is the case I may just stick with Mentalism Lore, and keep things out of Combo's (and not take the expert touch option at creation). Thanks so much for the replies! ~Rathmaker~

For weapons, I was planning on pretty much just using whatever dropped that had the best stats/sockets since this guy will be almost exclusively a caster. I will more than likely end up using a one handed weapon and shield as it will give better protection than a 2 handed item. If I had a shopper character available I would switch out Bargaining for Combat Discipline/Shield Lore, but I want to get a shopper going again for the jewelry and armor hole filling. Will increasing Dexterity make that much of a difference in my defense to warrant putting my attribute points into it compared to the benefits from Stamina/Intelligence/Vitality?

Good day everyone. I downloaded Sacred Gold yesterday so I am getting my first taste of the Dragon Mage. So far he seems like a fun character (not sure if I am going to like him as much as my High Elf yet or not but I'll see). After playing around with him for a good part of the last 24 hours or so I think I have an idea on how I want to approach him. I would greatly appreciate any thoughts or advice on this build! I am playing this guy as a Single Player softcore character. The Skills: (2) Bargaining (3) Concentration (5) Elemental Magic Lore (8) Armor Lore (12) Elemental Magic Focus (18) Mentalism Focus (25) Mentalism Lore (35) Constitution (50) Dragon Magic Focus (65) Ancient Magic For attributes, I am looking to go with Stamina until level 50, and then split between stamina and Intelligence (or vitality?). As for the basic idea behind gameplay I plan to use the Elemental combat arts (Destroyer being the big one) for damage as well as Energy Blaze (for a Magic Damage option). The other Mentalism combat arts will be modified for protection, and debuffing the mobs. I have Dragon Magic Focus in to get modification points for my Familiar buff, and to have a little bit of fun with the dragon arts every once in awhile. I plan on using all three buffs when I get Concentration Mastery. The skill choices are pretty self explanatory. The Combat Art skills are all there since my Dragon mage is a caster. Constitution and Armor Lore will help keep me alive, and Bargaining is here since I do not have my old characters from when I played Sacred 2 before the expansion. I would love to get Combat Discipline in the skill set-up, but do not think there is anything I can take out to get it. Shield Lore would be nice as well, but I think I can live without having it. Here is my thoughts on Modifications to my combat arts: Destroyer B – Explosive S – Swarm G – Swarm Gust of Wind B – Poison Mist S – Squall G – Poison Mist Tornado B – Storm Zone S – Tempest G – Critical Magic Barrier B – Vengeance S – Solid G – Runes Protector B – Regeneration S – Protection G – Not sure on which one here Energy Blaze B – Confusion S – Impact G – Afterglow Runes of Protection B – Awe S – Stone Skin G – Runes Maelstrom B – Grind S – Extension G – Demoralize Mind Strike B – Sustainability S – Impact G – Drill Combat Trance B - Light Footed S – Hardened G – Hardened Familiar B – Insight S – Protection from fire G – Life Force If anyone has any thoughts or advice on what I am planning I would greatly appreciate it! Many of you probrably have much more experience with the Dragon Mage than I do so far. I am eager to hear some thoughts! Thanks! ~Rathmaker~

Thanks for the welcomes. I plan on playing some online, but with my travel schedule for work I find myself playing single player almost exclusively (one of the few things that sucks about my career is that I do not get to play online with people as much as I used to in the past). I was very pleased to see the purchase, download, and installation went flawless. The changes I have seen in the game with the expansion so far are excellent. The character customization options are cool, and the imp is so cool. I am able to run the game on Very High settings, and the game seems to look better than I remember from before the expansion. The graphics just look cleaner, and smoother than before. The Dragon Mage seems like a neat character, but I still think I am going to like my High Elf better. The Dragon Mage seems like is going to take quite a bit of work to completely figure out. Good drop wishes to all of you! ~Rathmaker~

Wow....just Wow!

I played Sacred 1 way after its release. I found Sacred plus sitting in a store for $10. It was money well spent as I played it for many hours. It was my replacement for Diablo 2 after I had played that game into the ground. Since I had enjoyed Sacred 1 so much I bought Sacred 2 almost immediately on release. The bugs in the original release almost ruined it for me in the beginning. It was not until alot of the bugs and such were fixed that I was able to get hooked into it. I thoroughly enjoyed the game, but the bugs almost killed it for me. With the experience I had with Sacred 2 in the beginning I will be sure to wait for some time to see how the game fairs bug-wise. I will be very leery. Also, in the guessed time frame in which Sacred 3 will possibly be released there is also Diablo 3, Dungeon Siege 3, and Grim Dawn (Titan Quest's "successor"). Diablo 3 will be a definate purchase for me (Diablo popped my gaming cherry years ago), and I really enjoyed the 2 Dungeon Siege games as well as Titan Quest. For me, Sacred 3 will have some serious competition when it is released...

Yup, I already started those downloads when I began to download Sacred Gold. 31% done.....gah I wanna try out the Dragon Mage! lol

Ok, so I purchased the game from DLgamer, and am in the middle of downloading the huge game (16% done!). The transaction process went real smooth. Now, as long as the installation process goes smooth

Good day to everyone! I used to play Sacred 2 single player quite alot when it first came out, but was never able to try out the expansion due to it not being released in the United States. Now, I am getting the bug to play it again, and I see that there seems to be a way for a US player like myself to buy it from a download (the UK version). I just have a few questions before I proceed further, and would appreciate any answers I can get! 1. I notice that link to Sacred 2 Gold on DLgamer here on the site that it is listed in pounds. If I were to charge this to my debit card does the transaction automatically convert the amount to dollars? I am sorry if this is a dumb question, but I have never bought anything in another currency like this....and such as it is I am ignorant in the matter. 2. Am I going to have any compatability issues from purchasing the game from the UK as a US player? From the looks of a few topics I have read here it seems no, but I just want to be on the positive side before spending the money. 3. Other than the changes in the expansion, are there any differences in the US and UK versions of the game that may disuade me? I am almost exclusively a single player person. Any answers I can get to enlighten me would be greatly appreciated. I do apologize if these seem like wierd questions, but I am completely ignorant when purchasing products from outside the United States. Thanks! ~Rathmaker~