What should you know before you play Betrayal at Krondor?

BaK is an old and old-school game with a lot of unique and interesting mechanics. I think it still holds up years later, but there are quite a few things worth knowing if you plan to play it for the first time (or even replay it after many years) right now.

Part explanation of the many basic things you need to know as you start playing, part (general) walkthrough.

This guide owes a lot to the highly detailed:
http://mikesrpgcenter.com/krondor/index.html
https://vga256.com/krondor/krondor.html

General hints:

Read the manual. Old school game, semi-obtuse mechanics - there's a reason you get a "view manual" option when you launch the game.

Save early, save often, save in different slots. Use the "bookmark" option as a quicksave, but keep a manual save for when you move to a different area, near the start of a new chapter - in general, have a separate save for every few hours of gameplay. Never know when you run into a deadly inescapable situation, or manage to lose an important item.

Explore everywhere. The main road mostly holds enemy encounters, but there's likely to be a chest or a hole or a corpse holding goodies behind every hill or dirt path branching off from the road.

Alternate between the mini-map and first person view. First person view is great for spotting enemies and items, while the mini-map is great for navigating around and behind terrain (going around a hill rather than through one is far more frustrating than it needs to be in first person view)

Clicking on a particular skill in the character screen marks it with a red icon. This skill will now improve 50% or so faster than it would have otherwise. However, the more skills you mark this way, the less of an effect the emphasis has. Generally speaking, you should be running around with 2-3 skills selected (Defense and Accuracy: Melee, probably). When you're about to be trained by someone / read a book, make sure that only the skill being trained is selected.

Books still have a chance of slightly increasing your skill even AFTER you've first read them (10-15%), so it might be worth your time to spend a while reading (make sure you have enough rations though).

The cost of rations is utterly offset by the loot you'll get as you explore. Don't be afraid to backtrack as needed, shoving your nose into every nook and cranny. If you've spent a while travelling without finding any goodies, cast Eyes of Ishap (at full strength) over several stretches of road.

Resting out in the wilderness only heals you to a point. To get fully healed, sleep in an inn.

Try not to let your characters fall in battle. The healing takes forever and costs a lot.

Spellcasters can still cast spells when low on health, but fighters are basically worthless when heavily wounded. Gift of Sung is more useful than it seems at first.

Clicking the auto-combat button: Never do this.

Enemies don't respawn, and you don't get random encounters (though new enemies may appear when you start a new chapter). Once you cleared an area, you can confidently backtrack in mini-map mode.

The game doesn't have a journal or a quest marker. Feel free to make manual notes about what your party is supposed to be doing now, and what people or points of interest they should keep in mind, and any worthwhile stashes to return to.

Talk to everyone, everywhere, then talk to them again when a new chapter starts. If a name was emphasized (whether in terms of dialog importance, or an outright emphasis in the text), then it's probably worth keeping in mind. For instance, a person in the Krondor tavern has nothing to say during chapter 1, but will give you a major hint about a sidequest during chapter 2.

It's possible to explore most of the gameworld in chapters 1-3, even if your current quest directs you elsewhere. I have a suggested order of exploration below, but if you dare (and save consistently) feel free to ignore it and explore as you will.

As you start the game:

Head east towards Yabon. It has a shop where you should buy a Whetstone and Armorer's Hammer. This is also the only shop in the Lamut area that will buy looted Moredhel Lampreys. Those are worth quite a lot to a starting party, so keep this in mind.

To expand on the above, different shops buy different items, and offer different prices. You definitely want to loot everything that isn't nailed down, but (later on in the game) you'll want to wait so that you're selling to the right store.

If your inventory is too full, either backtrack to sell some stuff, or find the nearest Mordehel riddle chest, and store some items there. Make sure to note the chest's location.

As you spot enemies in first person view, always left click on them. The party will attempt to sneak up on the enemies, improving their Stealth skill and getting the first blow in combat, which is very important.

Crowd control is king. For the entirely negligible casting cost of 2 stamina, Owyn can use "Despair Thy Eyes" to keep 2-3 enemies locked down throughout the combat. Later on, keep a lookout for any spells that similarly paralyze enemies (Fetters of Rime <3) to find, purchase, use and abuse.

(Experiment with spells - quite a few are more useful than they seem, and can win battles on their own)

Remember that you can wait to regain a bit of health in combat. Useful near the end of the combat, when the remaining enemies are disabled or weak (the one use for the Assessment skill is making sure enemies are too weak to hurt your characters). You can also wait as much as you want when you encounter traps.

Just to clarify the above - just like your characters, heavily wounded enemies receive a major penalty to their combat skills. Once you've wounded a melee enemy to the point of near-death, you can concentrate on the other survivors. Mages can still cast a full strength spell even if that kills them, so make sure to take them out first.

When you start running into enemy spellcasters, remember that just standing next to them is enough to prevent them from casting. The humble Invitation spell, which Owyn starts with, can utterly neutralize an enemy mage.

Examine (right click) any Rations you pick up to make sure they are not poisoned or spoiled.

Loot everything your enemies have on them. When you have a bunch of armor and weapons, tag Armorcraft or Weaponcraft as appropriate (make sure to untag the other skills first), then sharpen all your looted swords with a Whetstone and bang away at the armor with a Hammer. Do this even if you don't intend to keep any of this stuff - higher quality items sell for more $$$ and the practice helps improve the character's skill.

Designate a specific character (Gorath) to be the party smith, and have him do all the repairs. If your inventory is packed too full of items to easily trade between party members, remember that you can "discard" some items into a bag to free up space, then pick them right back up when you're done.

You want designated experts for each utility skill because of the way skills work - the more often you use them, the higher they grow. So having a specific character in charge of repairing your stuff is far more effective than having each character mending their own.

The same is true for Barding and Haggling, for example (Owyn is the obvious contender). Locklear is the obvious Lockpicking pick (no pun intended) but Gorath will find lockpicking skills very useful after a few chapters.

We want to keep going north-east until we hit a bridge. By the time we see it, the party should have a blessed Moredhel Lamprey, the spell "Eyes of Ishap", and a contract to open a chest near Hawk's Hollow. If they don't, go back west, improving your loot-finding skills along the way.

More expensive armor / weapons are better than less expensive ones. "Racial mod" is just a minor bonus that barely matters. Like, maybe give Gorath the Mordehel Lamprey and Locklear the two-handed broadsword if you only have one of each, but just go with the more expensive weapons otherwise.

The Lamut area is basically a big circle that we're going to circumnavigate about twice in total, before leaving via the south-east exit (as the other travel directions are too dangerous for us right now).

So head back to Yabon, then southwards towards Lamut, and pick up the quest there. Interesting fact about "matte painting" screens like Lamut - you can explore it with the mouse, but you can also hit TAB to browse through every possible point of interest, including hidden caches.

Head south, then (just before you hit the south-east exit) west towards Hawk's Hollow, picking up the HH chest. Then north towards Tyr Sog, picking up the Ruby along the way. Take note of Michele the Healer in Loriel along the way - a good person to know if you happen to catch the plague.

Head back to Lamut, and return the Ruby. Tag Defense and Acc: Melee, and pay for the training from the tavern owner, and now we have the skills to tackle the dwarven caverns of Mac Mordain Cadal (directly south of Lamut) before heading south towards Krondor.

As you play (basic walkthrough):

The Sarth area leading up to Krondor is basically also a bit of a circle, with the north-western point being Questor's view (and with a bit of an outcropping due north).

Circumnavigate it by going east from Questor's view, heading to Eggley, and THEN exploring the outcropping to the north, including the temple of Silban, before you keep going south-east, into Tanneurs (rest at the Inn there), and south to Krondor. (You could also check back on Isaac, but it's just bit of lore + Mordehel chest passwords)

You can now go back to Questor's View (and possibly the temple of Silban again), or wait until the start of chapter 2, when you have more of a reason to go there.

Swing by Sarth for some spellcasting training and to explore the caverns.

You'll get two chances to get combat training in this area (Eggley tavern and Questor's View). I'd suggest skipping them for the moment - you'll get a new character when chapter 2 starts, and that character will benefit greatly from training. If you have any skill-raising books, keep or stash them, so that the new character can benefit.

You'll start getting weapon and armor enhancers around now. Armor enhancement only acts to counteract weapon enhnacement - since practically no enemies carry ehnanced weapons in chapters 1-3, at the moment these items are vendor trash.

On the other hand, weapon enhancements greatly improve your weapon damage, and are great for tough fights (such as a certain barn in this area). Weapon enhancements don't wear off over time (you can travel around the world with one active), but are used up in a single battle - provided you hit someone with your weapon during said battle.

Once chapter 2 starts, your party is down to two members. You may want to hurry to the sewer exit to acquire the third, and only then proceed to re-investigate the sewers.

(Check the entirety of the palace first. If you think some items have been lost, you'll be able to find them)

This would be a good time to re-investigate the area around Krondor (Sarth has some neat new stuff) and maybe get that combat training.

Your quest sends you towards Romney (due east from Krondor). If you want to figure out the various sidequests along the way, I can only repeat my suggestion of talking to EVERYONE and keeping note of what they say.

Buy a lecture ticket at the Chapel in Malac's Cross for an Assessment boost. Buy another one as you're headed back to Krondor in chapter 3, and that's all the boosts you'll ever need for that skill.

You could try to bring 6 suits of Kingdom Armor (looted from random enemies) to the house above Lyton for a sidequest, but it's a bit of bother for the reward you get.

I'd recommend you head straight east, passing through Lyton, then Silden. A chest near Silden will send you towards the Sethanon area and the sidequests there, so you won't have to spend too much time backtracking.

All the Rusalki in the area are directly on the road north from Silden, though some only come out at night. You'll know you got them all when the inn right next to the north-most Rusalki encounter (just before the road turns north-east) starts charging normal prices instead of like 65 per night.

You could investigate Dimwood (West along the road from Lyton) for some optional content, but don't go into Sethanon - your party very probably isn't ready to sneak or fight its way there at the moment.

Completing Craig's quest in Dimwood will open a general goods store in northern Dimwood later on. This is extremely convenient in later chapters.

Save any expensive items you may have to sell until the start of chapter 3. The shops in Romney will buy at inflated prices while the guild war lasts (until you talk to Arlie Steelsoul, either by sneaking behind his house or by leaving some poisoned rations in the chest).

You can actually earn money by selling stuff from other stores in Romney right now. Personally, I had money to spare just by looting every enemy I came across (and I stopped picking up the cheapest items by the end of Chapter 1) and exploring.

Investigate the clues in Silden, then talk to Abook. You now have reason to head to Prank's Stone (north from Romney) but I'd suggest heading to Krondor and taking a trip around the world first.

For the entirety of chapters 1-3, the world is wide open, and the party can head anywhere. The enemies might be a bit too tough for them and some of the sidequests might be unavailable during chapter 1, but chapter 3 is a good time to go exploring, since you're strong enough to handle most things and can use the Spyglass to constantly check for hidden goodies.

Check out Dimwood if you haven't already. Head to Lamut and into Mac Mordain Cadal (make sure to bring a suit of Grey Tower armor with you), since you can now explore it further. Head north-east from Lamut and explore the Northlands.

By the time you get to Lamut you should have picked up at least two free suits of Dragon Plate armor from enemies (great improvement over whatever armor you have).

Buy a Tuning Fork before you head north. It makes Trolls flee from combat - quite handy, as trolls are tough enemies that don't carry much loot.

Get the "bag of grain" quest from the temple of Dala. You only have to talk to everyone along the way east (well, east-ish, with some deviations) to finish this quest, and the reward is well worth it.

Check out "The Arms of Dala" in Wolfram. Best deals in the game.

A few tips for the mid/end game.

Now that you have fairly good armor and weapons, you may want to bless them. The game has 3 types of blessings, with +15% being the most powerful, and obviously the one you want. The chapel of Ishap at Malac's Cross or the Temple of Dala can set you up.

At some point before the end of chapter 3, you want to drop 2 sets of powerful blessed armor and 1 powerful blessed sword into a chest for safekeeping. I'd recommend the chests south of Northwarden. As you head southwards, you'll see a big hill to your right (west). Behind it are three Mordehel riddle chests with a LOT of rations in them. Drop the weapons, armor, 2 sets of Weedwalkers, and possibly skill boost books (Bird Migrations, Psalms of Dala) in there. If you found a batch of Coltari Poison, leave that there as well.

Stash some spell scrolls in the same place: Dragon's Breath, Flamecast, Grief of 1000 Nights, Skin of the Dragon, and Hocho's Heaven. If you've explored thoroughly, you should have some spare scrolls for most of these.

No stores in chapter 4 buy weapons, but almost all of them buy armor. Plenty of enemies in Dragon Scale armor, so earn a bit of coin.

Ogres and Trolls take extra damage from Evil Seek. Make sure to target them when casting.

When you exit the dungeons, explore Sar-Sargoth until you find mention of Nalar's Rib. Leave Sar-Sargoth, head west until you see some tree stumps. Search them, then head south until you run into the Rib.

At the start of chapter 5, your first action should be to retrieve all the items you've left in chests near the end of chapter 3.

A lot (if not most) enemies in chapter 5 have a weapon enhancement active. Use armor enhancements on everyone (or at least on poor scrappy Patrus).

Another cheesy tip for improving Patrus' (or anyone's, but he needs it the most) defense:
Tag his defense skill, head into a dungeon, kill every enemy but one, then weaken the remaining enemy until it's near dead. Now park Patrus next to it and spam "defend". Enemies can't flee in dungeons, so it will just attack the nearest party member. Takes about 10 minutes, but can be worthwhile in the long run.

From chapter 3 onwards, chapter transitions heal your party. So if you can drag your dying party members back to the castle at the end of chapter 5, you'll be fine.

When you exit Mac Mordain Cadal in chapter 6, you'll want to head east to meet the prince, go along the southern river bank until you meet a Rusalka, then explore the ruins to the west (where the prince directed you).

If there are some things you feel Jimmy and Locklear are missing, you should drop them in a Mordehel chest in northern Dimwood. The Mouser chest is particularly handy. Don't believe they're missing anything? Remember that ANY sword in the game can be sold, and multiple copies purchased.

As you enter Elvendar and bring chapter 6 to a close, bring along a spare pair of Weedwalkers, some skill books, and all the food + restoratives you can carry. Items you WON'T need - torches, shovels.

Start out chapter 8 by exploring a bit to the south-west, then (once you have two armor suits) turning north and going clockwise around the island.

You want to keep Strength Drain in mind when dealing with the final combat encounter of chapter 8.

Let me know if I missed anything important, upvote if you found this guide useful.

[ҥӵриӧѕ]

/dimwood.net/krondor.html/

[ҥӵриӧѕ]

vga256 is now 404. Its new home is {LINK REMOVED}https://dimwood.net/krondor.html

[Wardie]

My combat seems to be on "auto" for some reason? I just click attack once, and it fights the rest of the fight for me, quite fast. Am I doing something wrong?

[OldMemes.biz]

https://vga256.com/krondor/krondor.html

Notendur site is rehosted in its entirety.

[Jmf blw.tf]

shame the notendur site is only available in a incomplete wayback machine snapshot, i used to have them saved on my old win 98 pc,thanks for the tips planning on playing again

[m_brent]

Great guide with excellent tips for a game that can be quite challenging. I would add that doing Craig the logger's quest in the Dimwood in (I believe) chapters 2 or 3, will open up a store called the Fife and Laurel in the Dimwood (north). You can then sell rations, or other items that may be useful and buy infinite amount of them in later chapters.

[Marcinos1985]

This game was and always will be amazing. Thank you for the effort!

[Timo3681]

Which monster? Have Betrayal at Krondor a monster list with pictures?

[Xander77]

No. There are plenty of monsters.

[Timo3681]

Monster are missing in Betrayal at Krondor. Right? Only humanoid enemies.