Are there any mods out there which does not reduce XP gains for killing lower level enemies? I'm hating the grind and spending too much time killing without any rewards. I know it's fair and balanced but I'm not a fan of shared XP and reduced / no XP when fighting weaker foes. I also understand you can gain exp through the console but would rather gain xp going through the game.
If your party level is too many levels higher than the Challenge Rating of the enemies you are fighting, you don't gain XP because it wasn't a challenge. This is as per the rules for 3.5 ed D&D.
The original TOEE game was intended for characters up to level 10 only. Gaining more XP than usual means levelling faster and so reaching the final level of your characters earlier which means less to gain in the later game. You would gain XP from enemies that no longer provide any challenge to your party which means that you might as well cheat yourself those XP. If you don’t like not gaining XP from lowly enemies you have the alternative to simply not fight and run away to spare yourself the boredom. The modding subforum is there: http://www.co8.org/community/index.php#modding.18
I'm curious: at what point in the game are you noticing this as an issue? With a few exceptions (lizardmen and merrow in the water node come to mind), I can't say I've noticed much in the way of foes that don't give XP in the original game, and they tend to be so easy that they are dealt with in a round or two with minimal or no expenditure of resources, or can simply be ignored (various world map random encounters).
If the entire ruleset was ported over to Pathfinder rules, you would gain XP from every encounter regardless of differences in CR, that mod is only likely to be accomplished with Temple plus, and would be a long while away I'd wager. We can't maķe that kind of mod without Temple plus because we don't have the source code to alter what would need to be altered to make it work. On the upside, Pathfinder: Kingmaker is being written now, and I'm looking forward to it's release.
I was at the fire node at lvl 8 and was destroyed by fire spells by noble saloman(?) went back to try level up and was getting very little do from trolls and lizard men. Been a gripe of mine in all RPGs when xp is shared or you get reduced XP based on the enemy level. It's a good balance but something I don't prefer.
I think it's one of the hardest battles in the game. Especially if you don't have a rogue in your party. Rogue normally attracts fireballs and hardly ever gets hit or takes damage if hit. I think you can also do a lot with protection from elements.
I agree with Oleg- those fireballs hurt, and the salamanders and flamebrothers do reliable melee damage too. Spoilers below... Spoiler One good option if you find this fight too hard is to skip it for now- leave at least until you have finished the rest of level 2, and possibly some of level 3, which is pretty easy by comparison. If you have access to the spell Minor Globe of Invisibility, you can shelter some party members from the fireballs. Protection from elements is also useful. A rogue buffed with Cat's Grace (to help evasion) and Improved Invisibility (sneak attack damage) is a good way of damaging the salamanders from a distance at that level
That's the only way I got through it, I think there were 6 of them, used ice storm while they targeted the rogue. But didn't like that my fighters who didn't have a bow or crossbow were useless. I don't remember coming across that spell, who learns it and can it be cast on multiple enemies? Also because they're all bunched together getting a melee attack incurs a lot of damage from stack of opportunity.
Clerics get silence (lvl2 or 3 spell I think), sound burst(lvl 2 cleric spell) can stun multiple targets, be spread out and just target the nearest noble and draw it to you. in any grouping of opponents, use Ranger or rogue to stealth spot then summon monster centered on them. remember,a sling ADDS strength bonus to damage and so a magic sling is good for a high-strength warrior.
