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Original trinity or the ground up remake?
This question / problem has been solved by dtgreeneimage
Exile 1-3, the first iteration of the series, were never sold by GOG. You can download them for free from Spiderweb Software's site.

The Avernum series, the second iteration, is sold as Avernum: The Compete Saga.

The third iteration games are sold separately as Avernum: Escape From The Pit and Avernum: Crystal souls. (The third game, which will liikely be called Avernum: Ruined World, doesn't have a third version yet.)
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dtgreene: Exile 1-3, the first iteration of the series, were never sold by GOG. You can download them for free from Spiderweb Software's site.

The Avernum series, the second iteration, is sold as Avernum: The Compete Saga.

The third iteration games are sold separately as Avernum: Escape From The Pit and Avernum: Crystal souls. (The third game, which will likely be called Avernum: Ruined World, doesn't have a third version yet.)
Thanks. The package I got had six so I assume that's the "Complete Saga". Strange though, there's no manual with Avernum I just a broken help file which I thought was only true with the very original "I".
Let me try to explain again:

In its early years, Spiderweb Software made a series of games known as the Exile series. These were the first games in the series, and are 16-bit programs that will not run on 64-bit Windows. (You can load a 32-bit Linux installation in a virtual machine and run them in WINE in the VM, however, as a workaround.) These are the first versions of the games.

Later, Spiderweb Software remade the 3 Exile games under the title Avernum 1-3. (Note that the subtitles were dropped.) These versions are 32-bit and will therefore run on modern OS's. Of note, these versions switched from an overhead view to an isometric view, and there are other changes. It is these version that you most likely have. Note that Avernum 4-6 were entirely new games, not remakes, when released.

Even later, Spiderweb Software made *another* set of remakes of the first 2 Avernum games. These remakes are sold separately on this site, and are notable in that their titles include the subtitles that were missing from the previous remakes. One obvious gameplay difference is that the skill system is completely different; you now have a skill tree rather than a list of skills. They also added battle disciplines (which were first introduced in Avernum 5).

Does this help?
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lordhoff: Thanks. The package I got had six so I assume that's the "Complete Saga". Strange though, there's no manual with Avernum I just a broken help file which I thought was only true with the very original "I".
The help is all ingame. Typically there's a question mark next to the menu button.
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dtgreene: Let me try to explain again:

In its early years, Spiderweb Software made a series of games known as the Exile series. These were the first games in the series, and are 16-bit programs that will not run on 64-bit Windows. (You can load a 32-bit Linux installation in a virtual machine and run them in WINE in the VM, however, as a workaround.) These are the first versions of the games.

Later, Spiderweb Software remade the 3 Exile games under the title Avernum 1-3. (Note that the subtitles were dropped.) These versions are 32-bit and will therefore run on modern OS's. Of note, these versions switched from an overhead view to an isometric view, and there are other changes. It is these version that you most likely have. Note that Avernum 4-6 were entirely new games, not remakes, when released.

Even later, Spiderweb Software made *another* set of remakes of the first 2 Avernum games. These remakes are sold separately on this site, and are notable in that their titles include the subtitles that were missing from the previous remakes. One obvious gameplay difference is that the skill system is completely different; you now have a skill tree rather than a list of skills. They also added battle disciplines (which were first introduced in Avernum 5).

Does this help?
Yes; a rather strange history for a game series :)
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lordhoff: Thanks. The package I got had six so I assume that's the "Complete Saga". Strange though, there's no manual with Avernum I just a broken help file which I thought was only true with the very original "I".
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Darvond: The help is all ingame. Typically there's a question mark next to the menu button.
I had to download a Windows file to get the help function to work. "F1" in the game.
Post edited February 10, 2016 by lordhoff
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dtgreene: Let me try to explain again:

In its early years, Spiderweb Software made a series of games known as the Exile series. These were the first games in the series, and are 16-bit programs that will not run on 64-bit Windows. (You can load a 32-bit Linux installation in a virtual machine and run them in WINE in the VM, however, as a workaround.) These are the first versions of the games.

Later, Spiderweb Software remade the 3 Exile games under the title Avernum 1-3. (Note that the subtitles were dropped.) These versions are 32-bit and will therefore run on modern OS's. Of note, these versions switched from an overhead view to an isometric view, and there are other changes. It is these version that you most likely have. Note that Avernum 4-6 were entirely new games, not remakes, when released.

Even later, Spiderweb Software made *another* set of remakes of the first 2 Avernum games. These remakes are sold separately on this site, and are notable in that their titles include the subtitles that were missing from the previous remakes. One obvious gameplay difference is that the skill system is completely different; you now have a skill tree rather than a list of skills. They also added battle disciplines (which were first introduced in Avernum 5).

Does this help?
Thank you for you answer, @dtgreene. It helped me.
About the remakes: there are more pertinent differences regarding the game's mechanics and history? How different the game became with the changes to the skill system? Do you recomend to play them instead of the original versions, for a first playthrough?
Post edited December 13, 2017 by DeadFishEye
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DeadFishEye: About the remakes: there are more pertinent differences regarding the game's mechanics and history? How different the game became with the changes to the skill system? Do you recomend to play them instead of the original versions, for a first playthrough?
Yes, the changes to the skill system definitely change the game. For example, in Avernum 1-3, it is actually quite viable to make hybrid characters; for example, characters who can fight well *and* cast spells, or characters who can competently use both types of magic. In Avernum: Escape from the Pit (and I assume the Avernum 2 remake as well), however, you really need to specialize each character in one specific role.

I do not have any recommendation of which version to play, but I personally prefer Avernum 1-3 because they don't force you to overspecialize your characters. With that said, the later remakes do have some quality of life improvements (Avernum 1 didn't even have a quest log, despite having quests given in towns!).

(Also, Avernum: Escape from the Pit is unusual in that money ends up being rather scarce; the Avernum 2 remake apparently fixed that issue.)

In any case, Spiderweb Software is known for providing substantial demos of their games; why not go to avernum.com and try them out before you spend money on them?
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dtgreene: In any case, Spiderweb Software is known for providing substantial demos of their games; why not go to avernum.com and try them out before you spend money on them?
I'm certainly going to do that!