[color:"orange"]uuhmm... cheats?[/color]
Actually, that depends on how you define cheating; I didn't do anything not allowed within the game. Before the using the wishing well to boost my level, using the jug in the bee/wasp garden and leaving for the wastelands I used Resurrect repeatedly to top off my experience points and get to the next level (or just get close in the case of the imp council member quest). This resulted in more dropped loot than I would have gotten otherwise. I also sometimes used Resurrect on the lizards in the Dark Forest, looking for dropped charms. That got boring fast, so I would just resurrect groups and leave, then kill them again if I happened by that way later.
Many of the silver charms I bought from Kistandalius in Ars Magicana and Corinna in Verdistis. The only red / blue charms I bought were from the blind seer, in the one encounter you have with her.
Gems are only useful as a lightweight item for trade (gold is weightless, though) or as lighting at night (to decorate your home base).
