Rating Dungeon Siege Characters

 I recently rated the Towns and Areas in Dungeon Siege, so I'll also rate the characters.  I'm going to rate them based on how effective they are and how much I feel they contribute once they become a part of my party.  I'll go in chronological order of when you meet the characters.  Of course, the starting character is customizable, so I'm not going to rate them.

Ulora - 7.5/10
Ulora isn't the best fighter in the game, but I keep her rating up due to her versatility.  When you first meet Ulora, you can basically turn her into anything you want, and she'll be at least fairly decent at it.  Consider Ulora the utility player of the game.  

Gyorn - 6.5/10
For melee fighters, Gyorn ends up being below average for me most of the time.  He's not awful, but could be better.  Fortunately, since you meet him so early, you could make him into something else if you really wanted to.  But if you take him and Rusk at the same time, he instantly starts behind Rusk on stats.  

Zed - 5.5/10
I don't know what it is, but Zed has never been that great for me.  Usually, I end up replacing him with Merik or Andiemus, so I can't ever recall reaching the end with him.  If you don't need a wizard and you're tight on gold, you might want to leave him behind.  It might be smarter to make your starting character or Ulora a wizard.

Rusk - 9/10
Rusk always ends up being super solid for me and one of my best fighters.  He costs a bit of gold for when you meet him, but he's worth it.  He's incredibly tough and will level up fast if you give him the right weapon and gear.  

Naidi - 8/10
Naidi is also super solid.  It's a shame you only meet two pure archers in the entire game.  She is worth picking up, but again, she is costly.  

Gloern - 6.5/10
I can never get Gloern to be one of my best melee fighters, so I can't recall ever reaching the end with him.  Melee fighters are a dime a dozen, and Gloern is certainly one of them.  He's also one of three dwarf melee fighters in the game, but at least he is free.

Kroduk - 8.5/10
Kroduk, like Rusk, is another great melee fighter.  However, I do find him slightly lagging behind Rusk more often than not.  You could get away with only Rusk and Kroduk as melee fighters if you want to.  

Lorun - 6.5/10
It's crazy how far you have to get into the game until you meet a wizard who specializes in combat magic.  And Lorun is decent.  But I find for his time in the game, you either deal with one of two faults, depending on the attack spell you use.  Either you use Soul Lance, which drains his Mana like crazy, or you use Flame, which puts Lorun in harm's way and gets him to pass out a lot and possibly die.  

Merik - 7.5/10
I bump Merik's rating up because of the great items he has.  He has a really good cloak and boots that add to health, mana, and add 1 to Intelligence.  He's also not bad of a fighter, either, and I would take him (slightly) over Zed.  And the best part is that he's free.  

Phaedriel - 8/10
I give Phaedriel the same rating as Naidi.  Both are good archers and worth their gold.  I'd rate them both higher if they were cheaper or free.  But Phaedriel, like Naidi, is worth picking up.  I'd recommend carrying both.  

Andiemus - 7/10
I've never been a huge fan of his, and it's really a judgment call if you want him or Merik.  I wouldn't recommend both, but you could if you want.  I don't like how he costs a bit of gold, but you can replenish your gold soon after by selling to the merchant near him.  

Boryev - 8/10
Boryev is the first character in the game that has multiple skills.  He's got some melee skill points as well as combat magic.  I'd go with just combat magic, but maybe occasionally switch to melee if his mana gets drained using a high-cost spell, such as Fire Wall.  But doing that requires giving him a lot of your attention.  Still, he's worth it.  You won't find a tougher wizard in the game (unless you make the starting character that).

Rhut - 5.5/10
I rarely add Rhut to my team.  Generally, my team's melee fighters are superior by the time I meet him.  Plus, it's just a waste of gold.  I'd only ever pick him up if I needed to add a melee fighter for some reason.

Sikra - 8.5/10
This is my favorite wizard in the game, and the only female one.  She has combat and nature magic skills, although combat is superior, so I'd recommend sticking with that.  She's fairly tough too, considering she's a wizard.  And best of all, she's free.

Ulfgrim - 5.5/10
Ulfgrim, like Rhut, costs a lot and generally isn't worth adding to your team.  Maybe if I'm doing an all-melee fighters team, I'll add him.  And like Ulfgrim, his skills tend to be a bit behind my team's.

Lord Bolingar - 8/10
Lord Bolingar typically has comparable skills, but he comes so late in the game.  Is it worth making a change so late?  Typically by the time you meet him, your team has started to gel well and doesn't need much improvement.  Maybe if somehow you still have a pack-mule and want to replace it?  

With that said, here is my ideal final team:
Created Character
Rusk
Kroduk
Naidi
Phaedriel
Merik/Andiemus/Zed
Boryev
Sikra

It's got a nice balance.  Typically, my created character is a melee fighter, so that would make 3 melee fighters, two archers, and three wizards.  

Rating Dungeon Siege Areas and Towns

 Dungeon Siege is one of my favorite video games of all time.  I've replayed it close to a dozen times over the years (probably more).  I love customizing my team.  I recently played through and beat the game with wizards only.  It was not easy.  I thought I'd go through and rank each area and town in the game out of 10.  

Points will be given for secret areas, things to do besides fighting, and cool bosses.  Points will be taken away for being too long and annoying enemies.  I'll also give or take away points based on the town's or area's overall aesthetic.  In chronological order...

Farmlands - 7/10
It's a solid start to the game.  The Krug are a good first enemy to fight.  There's a hidden area with a bear that I didn't see on my first couple of playthroughs.  I like the basement area where you have to beat a Krug "boss."  I have to take points away, however, because in this area, I have to leave items behind on the ground.  There are no merchants until Stonebridge, and you typically don't get the Transmute spell early enough.  And the inventory is only so much until you can get pack mules.

Crypt of the Sacred Blood - 6/10
Again, I hate having to leave items behind.  I'm not going to backtrack for all of them.  The skeleton enemies are easy enough if you have a ranged weapon/attack and just keep your distance.  I just think it's pretty boring.  As you'll see, I'm not the biggest fan of underground areas.  I like how you finally get your first companion in Ulora, but until then, this area is a bit of a drag.  And of course, the dungeon ends soon after meeting her.

Stonebridge - 8.5/10
I love Stonebridge.  There's so much to do.  In fact, if I had a critique, it's that there's too much to do.  It's the first town in the game, and for beginners, it's easy to miss things.  For example, the first few times I played, I missed the Ordus' Axe quest and even missed finding Rusk!  As for the aesthetic, it loses a 1/2 point or so with me because everyone in the town is so gloomy and upset about the recent Krug attack.  

Ruins of Wesrin Cross - 5.5/10
Another underground part and another part I don't particularly like.  My least favorite part of Wesrin Cross is the underground tunnel maze.  I hate thinking that there's an area I missed, and it's very difficult to know for sure.  Then, of course, there's the giant area with about a hundred enemies, resulting in a giant spider boss at the end.  Let's just say I'm always so glad to be done with this area.

Glitterdelve Mines - 6.5/10
I'm not a huge fan of the mines, either.  Sure, you get Gloern at the start, but he's okay at best (and typically falls behind guys like Rusk and Kroduk).  It's pretty repetitive, with little to no payoff.  I don't like the moving platforms and trying to fit my entire party, pack mule(s) and all, on them.  The rock beasts are always tough.  This rating would be higher if the previous area wasn't also underground.  Fortunately, there's a merchant right before this area.

Glacern - 9.5/10
I LOVE Glacern.  It's the best town in the game.  My favorite part of the game is when I first enter Glacern and hear that awesome music.  If you haven't listened, I recommend checking it out.  There's so much to do in Glacern: Adding Kroduk and Lorun, talking to the Overseer, talking to Ada.  There's even an underground basement area in one of the houses.  Also, there's a mini-quest involving finding the three volumes of Fedwyyr's Way.  I just love Glacern.  It's the perfect size, too.  I can't give it a perfect rating because I wish the merchants weren't separate (The spells and potion merchant and the armor and weapons merchant).  

Alpine Cavern Ice Caves - 7/10
It's an okay area.  The enemies aren't too annoying, although the sound they make sort of is.  There is a nice payoff in finding Merik near the end.  It can be challenging if you get too many ice beasts fighting you at once, so you must be careful.  I just don't like the feeling of being in a cave with no daylight coming through.

Caves - 5.5/10
It's just so dark.  The enemies, like lungers, suck.  The music and aesthetic is one of the worst in the game.  It's not terribly difficult, at least.  But there aren't any hidden areas or merchants (you have a rude merchant, Jeriah, beforehand and a merchant after, though).  I have never been fond of this area, but they somehow have to transition from snow to a forest.

Traveler Camp/Dark Forest - 8.5/10
I lumped these two together as no defined barriers (walls) separate the camp from the forest.  Anyway, I do really enjoy this part.  You get merchants at the start and get an archer you can add to your group in Phaedriel.  Then there is the forest, where you encounter your only human enemies in the game, the bandits.  They are tough but beatable, so long as you take on as few of them at once as possible.  And I count three secret areas, from the riverside camp to the secret bandit fortress to the Lost Witch.  And the bandit camp where the bandit boss is has a ton of great loot.  I only wish I didn't have to go back to the previous merchant as much.

Eastern Swamp - 8/10
I used to hate this area.  Now I like it.  It's a massive area, and the path becomes less defined.  The enemies are fairly annoying.  I like the crypt/graveyard area, and man, those corpses can swarm on you quickly.  You find a wizard in Andiemus you can add, and soon after, a merchant who is a sight for sore eyes (although she's a creepy old lady).  I also like how there's an area where a part of your party can fall through the ground to an area below.  It always catches me off guard.  

Underground Factory - 6.5/10
There's no official name for this area that I have seen, but it's after the swamp where you find Merik's staff.  Anyway, this factory area has a ton of tough enemies that can seem endless, hence the tough rating I gave it.  A boss is guarding Merik's staff, who is very tough.  But fortunately, he has a ton of good loot.  There is a secret area or two, which does help keep things interesting if you can find them.

Temple Ruins - 7.5/10
This includes the preceding forest, as I consider that sizable enough to be included.  I like this area.  The merchant, Thayne, is a funny dude ("I'm very sure I shall be SEEING you again...").  I'd bet a lot of money his voice actor also voiced Baron Dumas in No One Lives Forever.  Anyway, there's a quest where you have to go underground and fight a bunch of lungers and other enemies, which isn't particularly fun.  But I love being able to return to Thayne many times to sell the gear I've found.  

Fortress Kroth - 7/10
I'm fairly indifferent to this area.  It's all right.  You stumble across Boryev, who's an interesting solider/sorcerer hybrid you can add to your party.  The skeleton enemies are ok to fight as they're extremely slow.  I don't like fighting the boss, though.  He is tough.  But what must be included is the actual Fortress, where you meet two merchants and Rhut at the end.  Rhut isn't worth it unless you want a team of all-melee fighters.  I love the music at Fortress Kroth though, second best to Glacern.  But there's not as much to do.  

Cliffs of Fire - 7.5/10
First, you meet Ulfgrim, who is the third dwarf melee fighter (and he costs a lot of gold), so I hardly ever add him to my party.  What pushes this rating up for me are the breathtaking views you get as you rise in elevation.  I love how the paths intercross each other as you go higher; that was an interesting design concept.  The enemies are okay, but they can be tough.  I do like the payoff at the end with finding the good Droogs and their leader who you can trade with.  It didn't hit me until recently that she is the second-to-last merchant in the game.

Dragon's Rathe - 6.5/10
It's not a big area, but it has perhaps the most memorable boss in the game, the giant dragon.  I remember the dragon has over 30,000 hit points, so it always takes a long time to take the dragon down.  Fortunately, it's worth it, as the dragon is surrounded by a ton of loot.  The battle can be long and tedious as you just repeatedly attack it, so it loses points there.

Castle Ehb - 9/10
First off, you have the area before the castle, which includes a secret area with skeleton fighters and a maze.  There's some loot there, but not a ton.  You also get the last possible addition to your party in Lord Bolingar.  He's a good melee fighter if you need one.  Then you get to the castle, which I love exploring.  You go through its many rooms, including where the king slept and the throne room.  You go all around and above it to find an elevator that takes you below the Castle.  Of course, the Seck enemies are very tough and must be cautiously approached.

Underneath Castle Ehb - 8.5/10
Again, no official name, but there's a lot you go through.  You get to the King, who gives you a key.  You also meet your final merchant of the game, who you interestingly talk to through jail doors.  I can just picture each side sending armor and weapons through the bars.  After the merchant, there's more fighting, including some weird Cyclops-like prisoner named Swanny.  You can get his club if you defeat him.  Then you can get to the Chamber of Stars area, which unlocks the absolute best loot in the game if you use the key given to you by the king.  Next is the lava area, which leads to the final area and the game's final boss in Gom.  This is a very solid finish to the game.  The Chamber of Stars is certainly a highlight.