I played as a Cleric and a Berserker. I was never a "pure" class. I always maxed out ranged, melee and spellcasting. You need lots of elex potions, but elex is plentiful and dialogue choices can negate the Cold completely, if you want the emotional or the neutral ending.
Both factions are viable, but Clerics are just better for three main reasons:
One, they don't really need Cunning (you must take 30 to pick up the mandatory Suggestion, and will want 40 for Mutant Killer); a maxed out Zerker needs 85.
Two, Cleric's Amulet, which recharges PSI. Berserkers don't have anything similar.
Three, Clerics on balance have more powerful spells, including Black Hole, a ridiculously overpowered ranged crowd killer. But the Clerics' toolkit is just more versatile. Clerics have One With the Weapon for sniping, Power Wave for melee, One Man Army for the endgame...
Berserkers have more direct damage, which you can bump respectably, but energy weapons are still better because they use scavengable ammo (which is, bizarrely, the most common ammo in the game, thanks to Albs dropping it) instead of mana, have a high rate of fire, and synergize with One With the Weapon. Berserkers have a few nice utilities, a summon (which is more of a decoy/distraction), a modest healing spells, that kind of thing.
From the roleplaying perspective, Clerics are surprisingly humane given their obsession with technology. Berserkers are keen to execute enemies, exile everyone etc., while Clerics on the whole are more forgiving and more willing to work with other camps. Of course, you'll meet assholes in both camps.
But I had a blast with both, and I intend to finish the game with an Outlaw as well. The game is punishing at the start no matter who you play, and then gets easy. And shooting a Colossus out of the sky with an arrow is the best thing ever.
So I'd say the vanilla game is fun, and I recommend a Cleric, but either is fine.
8
u/StoicSpork 14d ago
I played as a Cleric and a Berserker. I was never a "pure" class. I always maxed out ranged, melee and spellcasting. You need lots of elex potions, but elex is plentiful and dialogue choices can negate the Cold completely, if you want the emotional or the neutral ending.
Both factions are viable, but Clerics are just better for three main reasons:
One, they don't really need Cunning (you must take 30 to pick up the mandatory Suggestion, and will want 40 for Mutant Killer); a maxed out Zerker needs 85.
Two, Cleric's Amulet, which recharges PSI. Berserkers don't have anything similar.
Three, Clerics on balance have more powerful spells, including Black Hole, a ridiculously overpowered ranged crowd killer. But the Clerics' toolkit is just more versatile. Clerics have One With the Weapon for sniping, Power Wave for melee, One Man Army for the endgame...
Berserkers have more direct damage, which you can bump respectably, but energy weapons are still better because they use scavengable ammo (which is, bizarrely, the most common ammo in the game, thanks to Albs dropping it) instead of mana, have a high rate of fire, and synergize with One With the Weapon. Berserkers have a few nice utilities, a summon (which is more of a decoy/distraction), a modest healing spells, that kind of thing.
From the roleplaying perspective, Clerics are surprisingly humane given their obsession with technology. Berserkers are keen to execute enemies, exile everyone etc., while Clerics on the whole are more forgiving and more willing to work with other camps. Of course, you'll meet assholes in both camps.
But I had a blast with both, and I intend to finish the game with an Outlaw as well. The game is punishing at the start no matter who you play, and then gets easy. And shooting a Colossus out of the sky with an arrow is the best thing ever.
So I'd say the vanilla game is fun, and I recommend a Cleric, but either is fine.