Skillbook first, usually the Snipe and Stealth that becomes available at around level 3. The game becomes way easier when you can initiate every fight with a massive amount of damage, especially with early Houndmaster Crossbow. Stealth also allow me to steal without having to set-up and distract the NPCs first.
Battering Ram is also a must-get because of the early game double knock combo for bosses like Migo. It's far easier to get Physical CC than to get Magical one because you only 1 mage or 2 at the start and Lohse can't deal any damage yet since she's a Wind-Water, not a Fire-Earth.
With a few quest done and money-portrait method, this becomes available really fast. There's also the card table with the Speck card to get all the gold (and you can kill them afterward because they tried to cheat you anyway)
After that, I start to cycle gold with buy-and-steal to make sure Lohse start learning as many spells as possible so she can be useful after I teach Ifan, my char and Red Prince all the stuffs required. If I can get +3 Thievery from 2 Rings and 1 Glove after leaving the fort, there's no money issue even after buying all the powerful Gareth stuffs at the end.
Could you by chance explain the money-portrait method? I know you can sell them and steal them back I was just curious if it was as straight forward as I suspect it is.
And whats the speck card? I haven't actually approached the card guys more than once and that ended in a fight >.>
Portrait in the magister room sells for ton of money.
Do the Migo quest and kill or steal key from the Magister
Get the teleporter glove
Teleport yourself to the fort (near the tent with the necromancer npc) and go inside with the key. Use Lohse (Telekinesis 1) to pick up the portrait and put it in your inventory. The 150 weight stuffs sells for like, 80-90 gold. You can also pick up Lucian Portrait at the Shinre to the Seven and sell that as well for another 80-90 gold. You can make pretty much 500-600 gold to recycle around with pickpocket from this method.
THe one you want to sell it to first are the Griff NPCs because you can end up killing them and take them back again to sell once more.
The speck/sparkler card can be used at the card player table if you play along and just say "Blah blah this always win" and you will get another 100 gold. You get it from the dude that died at Doctor Leste.
