I have just recently started hunting OTF and keeping to the west ducts with gremlocks, taints and beings. I still struggle for mana if I don't sacrifice but have been having trouble getting one off in there. I have been picking on the gremlocks as they are the safest (ok not really with the garotte, but they are easiest to ward making them safe). The snippet at the end of this post is just one example, while you can't tell from the log I am keeping them stunned. After failing to sacrifice I finished it off with a 26 hp hit so I can't get them much lower. Having recently returned after a long break just checking I am not missing anything.

ps. as a bonus any general advice on starting out in OTF would not go amiss. When I am feeling brave and the place is empty an open 710 works quite well but mostly it has been taking one of two at a time with liberal use of 709 and open 703 (that is a new one since I was away and damn is it useful, no more working out which of the three mobs just preped when you can stop them all).

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R>sacrifice target
You focus your inner thoughts, channeling a part of your spirit as you initiate a link with the gremlock. You struggle to control the link, but it dissipates with no effect.
You feel drained!
Roundtime: 10 sec.
R>app grem
The gremlock is medium in size and about five feet high in her current state.
The gremlock would have a slight advantage over you.
>incant 702
You trace an intricate sign that contorts in the air while forcefully invoking Mana Disruption...
Your spell is ready.
You gesture at a gremlock.
CS: +420 - TD: +351 + CvA: +25 + d100: +39 == +133
Warding failed!
A painful blow for 24 points of damage!
A gremlock collapses and her eyes roll up as she dies.
Cast Roundtime 3 Seconds.

Storm, what level is your sorcerer?

Random general advice... the Woods can have all sorts of bigger creatures wander in but only naturally spawn gremlocks, constructs, and liches at night (oldest undead in EN, if you are Voln).

Construct barriers can be broken with mana, but it is generally not advisable to do so because it takes so much.

Impact/lightning resists can be huge when you get out of the ducts.

Symbol of courage helps against griffin screeches.

Double bag anything you dont want to lose to NPC theft, even if just walking through the bigger stuff to get to the ducts. Eventually you WILL die in the .1 second your running through a room with a griffin in it.

You cannot drag a dead body past a living construct.

Friends dont leave crystal weapons on the ground for other friends to get killed by. Even if they are not a threat to there own person.

And, I think that's enough randomness.

Tal.

Yeah I've noticed that whether it works or not definitely has a random element.

Also I believe the information on the wiki is in some ways inaccurate. With 24 ranks combined of EMC and SMC I'm definitely not seeing 20 mana + creature level.

From my observations it's more like 10+CL. Does that conform with others' observations?

Yeah I don't have enough SMC and EMC to rule out that part of the equation. Almost every other sell that uses both uses your higher one as primary and second MC at only half value. So if that's happening here, my numbers would be lower anyway.

If you happen to be sacrificing things later, maybe just see if the amount of mana is obvious. (I suspect there might be a small random element here as well, but that could just be from critter levels changing slightly).

I should add that bringing these up to 43 ranks each at Level 41 raises the rolton to +19 base and the titan/giants to +16 (it was +15 at 42 each).

- Xorus' player