Using magic in Gothic 1 and making a Mage build
Playing as a mage is fun, but in Gothic 1 you will need to know some things before going that way.
Table of contents
Mana
First of all, to use magic you need mana. Mana is like the power to use spells and runes. You can see your mana in your stats and in the blue bar at the bottom of the game.
You start the game with 5 mana points and you can increase it by spending skill points.
When you kill enemies you gain experience points, when you have enough experience you will reach a new level, and every new level gives you 10 skill points. Each skill point can be spent into an ability like strength, dexterity or mana, or to learn how to use weapons and runes.
To increase mana points, when you have the skill points to spend, you need to talk to a teacher. You can also increase mana by wearing some rings that will grant you a bonus.
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Mana teachers
- Old camp:
- Torrez, a fire mage inside the castle
- New camp:
- Cronos, in the middle of the camp, he walks around the ore mound
- Swamp camp:
- Baal Cadar, after using a sleep spell on one of his students
- Gor Na Toth, if you become a Templar
Recovering mana
Mana can be recovered by sleeping or by drinking blue potions and eating some kinds of food.
Spell scrolls
The easiest way to use magic is to use scrolls. Every scroll can be used only one time, after that it will disappear. So, if you have 5 fire bolts scrolls, you will be able to use only 5 fire bolts, no more.
You will need to buy new scrolls to keep using the same spell.
Spell scrolls usually require a small amount of mana, and of course they have a price. If you use a lot of scrolls, it might be better to use a rune instead.
Runes
Runes can be used infinite times, so you only need one rune per kind of spell. In general, runes are better in terms of value if you really use a lot of magic.
On the other hand, runes require you to learn a magic circle. Every magic circle has a cost in skill points.
The only runes that don't require a magic circle are teleport runes.
Magic circles
In Gothic 1, to learn all 6 magic circles you will need 140 skill points, which means 14 levels.
- 1st circle: 10 skill points
- 2nd circle: 15 skill points
- 3rd circle: 20 skill points
- 4th circle: 25 skill points
- 5th circle: 30 skill points
- 6th circle: 40 skill points
The 6th circle can be taught only by Xardas, and if you learn it you will become a Necromancer.
Please note that to unlock the 6th circle you will need to learn all the previous five circles.
Teachers for the magic circles
You can learn magic circles from the following teachers:
- Corristo, when you become a Fire Mage
- Saturas, if you join the Water Mages
- Baal Cadar, if you join the Swamp Camp
- Xardas, he will teach you only the 6th circle if you reached the 5th one
If you choose to become a Fire Mage, when you get kicked out from the Old Camp in Chapter 4, you will be able to join the Water Mages.
Saturas will teach you up to the 5th circle. This is important, because when you get kicked out the New Camp you won't have another way to learn the 5th circle, so the last circle will not be available to you.
Is a mage build viable on Gothic 1?
To learn all the 6 magic circles you will need 140 skill points to spend, which means 14 levels. In addition to that, you need to increase your mana points.
If you decide to play as a mage, you will really need to focus a lot on this.
You can go for a kind of hybrid build, learning how to use at least one normal weapon, like one-handed swords, in order to advance more easily in the game. In this case, you will need to invest some points in strength, or dexterity, and in other skills.
Otherwise, you can also go on a mana-only run, without increasing your other skills at all, but it will be a bit difficult at the beginning.
In my opinion, you will have enough skill points to go for a hybrid build without any problems, and it will make your game easier. Only go for a full mage build if you play to get the personal achievement of completing the game by using only magic.
In any case, you will need to get all the spell scrolls you can find in the beginning.
One useful hint I can give you, is to learn lockpicking and steal scrolls from chests. Moreover, you can get some raw steel in the chests at the blacksmiths, then you will create as many swords as possible and you can sell them in order to buy more spell scrolls (read: How to trade items in Gothic 1)
In general, a mage build is possible. I would advise you to reach at least 100 mana before learning circles. If you want, you can also skip the sixth circle if you don’t plan to use the rune from Uriziel.
Ring of Death, the rune from Uriziel
To be honest tho, this rune is really good. It’s called Ring of Death (or also Wave of Death) and it really is devastating as the name says.
When you use this spell, a red ring will come out of your body and will basically kill everything near you.
It will be very useful at the end of the game when you have to fight the mad novices and Cor Kalom.
If you remove the rune from Uriziel, you won't be able to use the full power of the sword. Of course, if you are playing as a full mage and have no two-handed swords skills, the best choice is to go for the rune.
But in case you don't want to spend the 40 points to learn the last circle, you will be able to complete the game anyway.
Conclusion
This was all for now. I hope you have learned how to use magic on Gothic 1. Let me know in the comments below and follow me on Facebook and Youtube!