Gothic II character details

JoWood Productions has today released the first official details on the three different character classes that will appear in Gothic II when it's released next month. According to today's press release, the class chosen by the player will not only affect characters' appearance and arsenal, but also the way non-player characters in the game treat them.

The three character classes in Gothic II are mercenary, mage, and paladin, all of which have their own friends and enemies in the land of Myrtana before the game even begins. Mercenaries, for example, have a long-running feud with paladins, while mages are feared by just about anyone who doesn't understand their awesome magical powers.

When playing as a mercenary, players won't have access to any magic but will be able to achieve a complete mastery of all 150 of the weapons that are available in the game. Every time a player uses a melee or range weapon, their character will become a little more skilled with it. Mages, on the other hand, are completely dependant on their ability to use magic. In addition to standard projectile attacks, mage characters will be able summon demons, resurrect armies of undead, and shape-shift into a number of different animal forms so that they might pass through dangerous locales unnoticed.

The paladin character is essentially a hybrid of the mercenary and the mage, able to wield all but the most powerful of weapons and boasting a reasonably good understanding of magic. This means that paladins can never be as skilled in any discipline as a character who specializes in it, but they are able to walk freely among the people of Khorinis city and have a great number of friends there who can prove useful.

Gothic II is currently scheduled for release in North America on March 14 and in Europe before the end of March. For more information, check out our previous coverage of the game.