is there any other way to restore mana other than sleeping and potions?

[PyramidEddie]

i'm playing as a lvl 6 mage in the first infamously long dungeon, and my god is it tedious to climb back to the surface every damn time, especially with a build not focused on agility. I'm almost done but i hope this isn't a recurring trend, otherwise i'll never finish this game.

[spectralbuns]

I can't remember if you have the teleporter pyramids yet, but if you do you can drop one at the entrance of a dungeon, and then, when you want to go back, drop the other on the ground and interact with it. You can use them without holding them in your inventory.
A exploit around the mana problem, would be to just carry a bed with you and drop it on the ground when you need to sleep. Beds werent coded with any weight so won''t clutter your inventory.

[Raze_Larian]

You can get the second teleporter pyramid on level 1, though the opponents can be fairly tough if you aren't at least level 2 or 3. For the beginning of the game I left one teleporter downstairs in Joram's house, for easy access to a bed and various chests to stash stuff in.
If you click on the browse skills button, there is a drop and use function for the teleporter pyramids, as well as just use and just drop (far right column). When you return to exploring, make sure you pick up the pyramid again (drag and drop it into the inventory window or onto the UI at the bottom of the screen, rather than click).

There was just 1 bed in the game that wasn't given a weight. However, you can combine a bundle of straw with an un-bundled pile of straw to make a hay bed; if that is done on the ground you can not move the bed after, but you can combine them in a container in your inventory.
Beds can be used from within your inventory; you don't need to drop them.

In addition to potions and sleep, chicken also restores mana (like meat and bread restore health), but that is mainly useful for topping off after combat; potions should be used during combat.

Restoration potions[www.larian.com] eventually become much more effective than individual health or mana potions. For minor potions, as long as you have more than 80 vitality and magic, restoration potions give more bang for the buck. Even if you just need health (or just mana) after you have 160 in vitality (or magic), restoration potions become more effective.

[PyramidEddie]

Thanks guys, useful information. Now that i've done the first dungeon i've got to say the game is hooking me with ease.

[Siddha]

I think Fish and Honey also restore a little mana

[Cherish Eternity]

I just have a house (with a teleporter pyramid) that I just pause combat and select drop and teleport then sleep and tp right back into combat. Also works wonders on boss battles! Gl dude!

[Siddha]

Where is your house?

[Raze_Larian]

You can take over any empty house (or occupied, but you may not be able to use the bed, in that case). There is a house you can buy in Verdistis, but it is not particularly close to the teleporter there, or merchants, so I did so just for the quest and experience points.

[Siddha]

Thanks Raze
I have a question for you; I read on a forum that the warrior weapons algorithms are bugged due to a patch and thus putting skill points into them is not efficient - the damage increase is small, especially with higher level weapons.
Is that true?
Also someone said they believed that maces were not affected by the bug.
Is that true?

I am playing a warrior; still in Aleroth, the catecombs.
Been a while since I played DD a game I return to regularly since I first got it yonks ago.
Never finished it, but love playing it from time to time.

[Raze_Larian]

True Shot and the damage portion of Crossbow Expertise are broken.
Spear Expertise is also bugged; throwing is overpowered at low to mid character levels (rather than give 60-100% of the spear damage from skill level 1 to 5, in increments of 10%, a thrown spear gives 60-100 damage).

With level 1 in Sword Expertise or Augment Damage (the starting skills for the male warrior), if you save the game and reload you will have level 2. Any character can do this, but non male warriors need to put the first point in either skill themselves. I don't know if that is a bug or a feature; it has been known since the original disk release.

I had no problems using 1 and 2 handed swords, and the game is relatively biased towards swords in terms of unique weapons that are consistently in the game. There are also lots of axes in the Aleroth catacombs.
I did check some weapon damage at different skill levels, and found the skills worked properly, aside from those mentioned above. However I don't recall what version of the game I tested under (it would probably be faster to re-check something than try to find the original results I posted).

Warriors tend to have plenty of skill points, especially if they rely on purchased or found spell books for any mage spells they use.
Free skills, and spell books you can buy[www.larian.com]

[Siddha]

Can I use George's house and bed
after he is murdered?

[Raze_Larian]

Yes. I used Joram's house for the start of the game, so you'd at least be moving a little closer to the teleporter pad. Eventually I moved to the back of the council hall, after unlocking that region, to take advantage of the health and mana shrines there, but they eventually stop working, and I really didn't need to be stingy with the stockpile of restoration potions I was accumulating.

Ars Magicana may be a better base location, once you get that far, for the easy access to merchants. There isn't a lot of choice for housing there, though. For atmosphere and room to organize and/or decorate, some people like the cursed abbey.

Houses And their owners[www.larian.com]

home base[www.larian.com]

[Siddha]

Thanks Raze
George's house is very handy. I have the telly stone outside. There is a chest right inside the door and the bed. I can zip in and do a tour of the healers to buy & sell and then out again.

Last time I think I set-up a base at the Ars Magicana teleporter once I got there.
I'm playing on normal difficulty this time and the catecombs were much easier than last time on hard. I wasnt getting one-shoted. In fact I haven't died at all yet.
On the road to General Alix

[Siddha]

Raze, you say you found many swords in your game, but thus far in my game swords are remarkable by their absence. I have yet to find a decent one. I know it is early days yet. I have a pretty good bow and an axe with life drain that is very effective. But I have not put any points into bows or axes yet. I will hold off and see what I find; thus far I dont feel I need to boost my damage by skill points. Playing on normal is quite a bit easier than hard.

Your set-up in those pics of home is impressive :)

[Raze_Larian]

I upgraded swords a couple times while in Aleroth (found a random sabre in a chest at the bottom of the catacombs, for example), but the first really notable one was when I first crossed into the farmlands and headed north towards the cursed abbey, purchased from the travelling merchant, whom you only meet once. That (random) sword had Stun on it, which was nice, and an increase in damage that allowed me to go back to the area around Aleroth and kill a couple orc drummers I left before (they couldn't hurt me, but they healed themselves faster than I could do damage). When I later upgraded that sword, I invested in the passive Stun skill (which is useful; I didn't bother with any of the elemental damage passive skills).

There are a few potentially good swords that are always in the game. One of the first can be gotten from a knight you meet near Castle Stormfist. With the appropriate dialogue choices he will attack you, and drop a 2 handed baslard sword if/when defeated. After I did that (a tough fight for my level) I needed to go up a level, put all those stat points into strength and use a gold strength charm (very lucky drop from the dragon rider Zandalor kills south of Aleroth) in an amulet in order to meet the requirements.

[Siddha]

Is that travelling merchant only encountered near the cursed abbey?
Or randomly?
I havent been to the abbey yet; I headed for general Alix.

That was a lucky drop from the dragon rider.
I have only seen a few minor charms thus far.