This Is Your Life!
 
 
    The first part of any CRPG is making your character(s).  This is an important step often overlooked by new players as they rush to get into the action.  Later, these players feel the heat as their carelessly created charaters can't stand up to the test of combat.
    Luckily for the uninitiated, the designer (Tom Proudfoot) created a few pregenerated parties of well balanced characters that can endure the test of time.  Most of us, however, will want to make our own party at some point.  To that end, I will impart some of the wisdom (Sa-Ya-Em?  : )  ) that I have gained over the course of play in regards to character creation and party composition.  Your mileage may vary, and I'm sure there are other ways to put together a good party, but here I'm going to show you what I have learned.
 
    The Races
 
        Orks (sometimes spelled "O-R-C", but I prefer "O-R-K", so there ya' go  : )  ):  Orks are the basic race in Natuk, and have no racial modifiers.  They can be of any class, and have no penalties to atributes or quirky behavior (other than hiting each other now and then).  An Ork can fill any role in the party and fill it well.  In fact, a party composed entirely of Orks is perfectly capable of surviving - and thriving - in Natuk.
        Orks are the only folks who can be Witchdoctors, Scouts, and Assassins, so you are bound to have some Orks in the group, as having Witchdoctors and Shamen is pretty much a necessity (although I'd like to hear any tales from people who've powered through without magickal aid).
 
        Ogres: Ogres are a bit tougher and stronger than Orks, but are a bit less intelligent as well.  They can only become Warriors and Shamen, but they have a particular racial quirk that makes them unsuitable as the latter.  You see, Ogres have the nasty habit of going berzerk in combat.  This makes them completely innefective as a spell-casting character (they cannot cast spells while berzerk).  The higher strength of Ogres might seem appealing for a Shaman character, but the Ogre's bloodlust will surface at the most inopportune times to really mess with your plans.  Couple this with the fact that your Shamen will often have crappy weapons or none at all (most often you will end up equipping them with staves that add to their Prayer skill), and the berzerker becomes more of a liability than an asset.
        As Warriors, on the other hand, Ogres are pretty darn good.  Their berzerking nature surfaces more often when in the thick of things, it seems, and so it's not really that much of a pain.  It can still be bothersome not being able to control your warrior (while berzerk, the Ogre will go for the nearest opponent), but he usually occupies enough of the enemy that he makes up for his erratic nature.
 
        Half-Trolls: Now these bad boys are all warrior - big, tough, regenerating idiots!  Half-Trolls are a nasty lot, and can only be warriors, being far too stupid to comprehend anything else.  Equip these fellas with polearms or two handed weapons and watch them kick an unholy ammount of arse!  Their regeneration is especially spiffy, sometimes saving their lives, but most often saving you time and spells as they regenerate while your Witchdoctors and Shamen are recovering strength (resting).
        There are a few drawbacks to Half-Trolls, though.  First, they are often unneffected by potions.  The digestive systems of a Half-Troll will cancel out about half of the potions before they take effect, thereby rendering them useless.  Second, the low starting intelligence of Half-Trolls means that they will not earn as many experience points as the other party members.  To cancel this out, simply put all of their points into one skill (a combat skill, of course), and let them kick ass with that skill and that skill only.  Don't bother wasting points to get them as smart as the others, or having them specialize in other skills - Half-Trolls aren't up to the task.  Just give them a two handed axe and let 'em rip.
 
    The Classes
 
        Warrior: The basic unit of your party, the warrior should take up at least three of your character slots.  The sheer number of enemies will overwhelm a lesser number of warriors, so stay safe and have at least three.  Warriors have a good set of skills, specializing, of course, in combat.  Invest heavily in one combat skill, and leave the others alone, unless you want to take a shield (a darn good idea).  You will be able to find good copies of any weapon in the game, and there are ways to improve the weapons you have, so don't go wasting points making your character a jack-of-all-trades type in regards to weapons - pick one or two and stick with them.
        Warriors also have a few good non-combat skills like Repair.  Repair is a nice skill that at least one of your Warriors should have at the 100+ skill level after a short while.  Items break, and you must have a way to repair them.
 
        Scout: Scouts are nice, but I prefer Assassins.  Scouts are great for stealing things, and are also good at Tracking, Haggling, and other skills that most of the other classes must pay at least double the Scouts cost to advance.  Although I prefer the Assassin because I gravitate more towards combat readiness, the Scout can be made combat "passable" and preform some other useful tasks for the party.

        Assassin: Assassins are my character class of choice for that fourth slot.  I usually choose the axe as the Assassins weapon of choice and use stealth to get him into the rear ranks of any enemy.  Then I go for spellcasters and enemies with missile weapons.  It's amazing the amount of damage your little Assassin can do with an axe when he backstabs (backhacks?) someone.  Backstabbing also means your skill needn't be as high - you can rely on the +20% modifier for a while until your Stealing skill is where you want it to be, then pump experience points into a weapon skill.  Don't neglect Steal, though, because you'll need it.  Get Hide to a 100+ skill level, then switch points to Steal.  You'll usually find a few items that help with stealth or stealing along the way.  Give these items to the Assassin.
        A great tactic for the Assassin is to move him out a number of squares equal to one less than his total movement, and then make him Hide.  Next turn, make him Guard, and watch as he backstabs every passing opponent  : ).  Watch how you place him, though, because if someone tries to go through him, his position will be revealed and many irate opponents will start hacking at him.  I usually opt to run him along the side rather than the middle when I employ this tactic, as it allows me to carry forward into the previously mentioned tactic of taking out the enemy spellcasters and missile users.

        Witchdoctor: A valuable asset to any party, make sure your Witchdoctor has a nice high Strength score so he can cast lots of spells.  Intelligence is also a prime requisite here, as you want a high starting skill in Magick.  Put almost all of your points into Magick until you can cast Rahk-El-Xa 50% of the time, then put some points into Alchemy, or Scribing and Literacy.
        Protect your Witchdoctor at all times.  They are useless in normal combat, and can't cast spells too well when there are enemies adjacent to them.  Keep enemies at bay with your fighters, and use some spells like weapon enchantments and Haste to pump up your fighter's abilities.  After a round or two of casting enchantments, then go for the more offensive spells.  In the early game when these spells aren't available, just go for Rahk-Im-Xa as the enemies aren't tough enough to warrant any meaner spells.
        I prefer to have two Witchdoctors in my group.

        Shaman: Like the Witchdoctor, the Shaman has a very specific role.  The Shaman is the healer and protector of the group.  I usually have two Shamen in my group.  This allows my fighters to take an increadible ammount of punishment.  Armor spells and Protection spells can make any warrior into a killing machine.  Combined with the aid of two Witchdoctors, your warriors can take down nearly anything in their path.
        Shamen usually have a half-decent warrior skill, but I'd rather have my Shamen casting spells than engaging the enemy in hand-to-hand combat.  Protect them with the warriors the way you would your Witchdoctors - allowing your Shamen to cast spells is important.
    Don't neglect the Chant skill, either.  A good solid Chanting skill can increase your parties rolls by +20 on average, with the possibility of pumping them all up +49!  Not bad for a basic skill.