Jonric: Regarding how combat actually works, can you estimate the difficulty level of a potential opponent? And when you to attack, what happens? How much player activity and decision-making is there?

Kevin Lambert: Difficulty of a potential enemy can be gauged in one of several ways, ranging from player memory to getting rollover information on an enemy to seeing an effect that signifies an enemy is a mini-boss and is generally much tougher than your average mob. Deciding to attack can be as simple as clicking on or near an enemy to attack it, or as complex as buffing up your party, moving them each into strategic positions, and preceding your attack with a combination of Powers that gives the party an advantage before advancing on the enemy.

Combat in Dungeon Siege II is non-deterministic. There's no right or wrong way to approach a battle; it's more a matter of player style and what tactic feels good to use at any given moment. And as with the first Dungeon Siege, players may pause the game at any time should they feel the need to give commands to party members in a no-pressure situation, swap inventory items, or take more time to assess a group of enemies.