Avernum Hints

Avernum

Avernum1

Avernum2

Avernum3

Avernum4

I have been playing Spiderweb games for years. I started with Exile and went on to Avernum which I really enjoy. I have also played Nethergate which (except for the ending) I liked. I tried Geneforge but never really got on with it. Pehaps I am just to old fashioned – I like the old Dungeons and Dragons type of Games.

Once when my grandson was visiting me he found the adult conversation rather boring. So I showed him Avernum 3. He liked it so much that I bought the whole trilogy for him for Christmas. I wanted to tell him where I had found lots of hints about the games on the Web but I discovered that the wonderful Avernum Annotated Maps had disappeared. So I decided to try and produce a few hints and tips myself for people who still play these fabulous games.

After three months work I had nearly finished the hints for Avernum 1, only to find that the "Annotated Maps" had been resurrected. I have nevertheless decided to make these tips available to the Avernum Fan Community.

Many of the Hints come from what I remember of the Annotated Maps. Naturally many are straight out of the Hints Books. I have also used other sites in the link list as a source of information.

Navigation: the games, general hints, further links

The Games

Avernum 1

This game is a remake of Exile and as such is well thought out. There are three Great Quests and four Major Quests as well as many minor missions. You find many puzzles, some of which are difficult to solve without help, and lots of jokes. All Spiderweb games have been devoloped on Macintosh and the transfer of Avernum 1 to Windows resulted in an annoying bug. Navigating with the left mouse button results in moving two spaces. It is possible to navigate with the number pad, but this is not exactly easy. There is however a work around: the right mouse button does nothing other than work as the left one should – it moves you exactly one space and not as you would expect give further options or information.

I have finished these notes. Please email me about any mistakes or omissions.

Avernum 2

The exploits of Adventures have resulted in severe repression by the Empire which has decided to eradicate Avernum. This game starts out where Avernum 1 finished but has some interesting new twists. The tranfer from Mac to Win has worked much better this time.

I have started collecting information for this game. Chapter one (The Barriers) is more or less complete but the remainder will probably take some time.

Avernum 3

With this immense game which continues the saga of the Avernites, a people condemned to a life underground, Spiderweb reached a zenith in the production of RPGs. The transfer from Mac to Win has been mastered brilliantly. Most of the action takes place on the surface but for the final showdown you have to descend into hostile caverns and fight many dark creatures.

Since Rache has produced a detailed description of all towns and quests in this game, I do not intend to duplicate his fabulous work. If I ever get around to it, I will however make a few notes on points where I do not agree with him.

Avernum 4

This is the newest game from Spiderweb. It has a completely new look and the blurb says that "all the stuff that caused busywork and confusion has been ruthlessly pared away". Be that as it may, I have had some difficulty getting into the game. I will however hold back judgment at least until I have had time try it properly.

Perhaps I will one day write some notes about this game, but not just yet.

General Hints

In all of the Avernum games there are a few guidelines that always work.

The first thing is to create a good party. It is always better to use custom characters rather than the predefined ones. I tend to use the standard setup of two frontline warriors (one mêlée and one pole weapons), a mage and a priest. Tool use is necessary fairly early on and I usually give it to one of my warriors. I give my mage a few priest points and vice versa. It is also very useful if the second warrior can cast Haste or Healing. I find the third magic caster a boon, particularly in Avernum 2 and 3, where you can pick up a Slith priest who has good pole weapon skill and can be used as a second warrior. This is especially noticable when you encounter undead and have three people who can cast Repel Spirit. This is also useful when you meet Gazers, who suck up spell points. If you have a spell caster up front who can also fight they will (particularly in A3) concentrate on him leaving your priest and mage with the ability to heal. This does not work so well in A1, but there are not so many of these nasty monsters in this game.

In all three games there are Non Playing Characters (NPCs) who will join your party. It is usually worth picking these characters up as they generally have better statistics than your normal party members.

Stucture of the Hints Pages

There is an introductory page which contains notes about building a party, the major quests, and the stratagies I have used to get through the game. I have divided Avernum into areas (Valorim is in A3 already divided into provinces). There is a list of towns, dungeons and important outside encounters odered by area or province with short descriptions of the place. For reference there is an index of the same places odered alphabetically and also by the numbers or letters in the hints book. I have also made lists of the important shops and people offering services like training, identification, teaching etc. needed to get through the game.

For each town there is a description with map. I have listed all people you need to talk to (and also most others, who only contribute colour to an otherwise dull background). All important or useful items and encounters are mentioned in these town descriptions.

Although almost everything is described here somewhere, I have deliberately refrained from writing a blow by blow walkthrough, firstly because that spoils the fun of doing it yourself and secondly because my walkthrough is certainly not the only or the best way of getting through. I have written these pages with two goals in mind:

to serve as a quick reference when you get stuck; (e.g. I cannot get out of the Ancient Crypt.)
to make sure you have found everything that is hidden in a particular town (have you for instance found the secret room in Cotra).

Further Links

This link list is not exhaustive. It just contains sites I have used to get tips about the games.

The Avernum Annotated Maps are back again. They contain a full description of A1.
Avernum 1 Walkthrough by AverMan
Avernum Gazetteer by Anthony Goreham: some useful notes on all 3 games. The text versions for Avernum 1, Avernum 2 and Avernum 3 are quite good. The HTML-version is rather curious.
Avernum 2 guide by Zevis
Rache's Original A3 Walkthroughs and Maps
and naturally Spiderweb and Spiderweb's Forums



Last update: 12. Mär. 07, Mike Middleton		TOP

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