This is the forum for helping you out if you're stuck or if you want to discuss the nitty gritty details of the dungeons within Mount Grimrock. Warning: forum contains spoilers!
Hi all, need some hint regarding the magic skills.
In the long run is it better to have Ice 24 / Air 27 or one of them at 50 the other at 0 ? The higher bonuses don't seem to offset spell flexibility to me, but I might be wrong. And since I've completely messed up with a throwing weapon rogue, I would gladly listen to some advice before ruining the mage forever
Personally I would take one elemental skill up 32 (so you get circle of protection) and rest (18) to spellcraft for improved combat casting. No reason to choose more than one elemental skill. Ice bolt has a nice freezing effect and lightning bolt does more damage (plus nothing is immune to lightning).
Seconding Poomermon taking spellcraft to 18 for the faster casting.
However, adding more points into a magic will make it deal more damage, for fire and lightning this may be a good thing, but ice is generally lower damage - I don't know if it gets a greater chance to freeze enemys or not if you invest more points into it.
Regarding going for the circle of protection - this depends on what magic you have picked, there are not many enemy's that use air or ice magic - and any that do are quite easily avoided.
Maybe I should add a disclaimer to that line - it's not been confirmed by dev's etc, its a personal observation, that my mages damage kept going up as the game progressed, maybe its based on mages level, but since weapon skills get damage added, why not spells also?