Physical and spell save?

[Tom]

What exactly does physical and spell (and others) save mean?

Found a spider robe that gives +10 to both.

Tom

[Dervis]

Physical and Spell saves give you a chance of resisting the relevant status effects.
For example 'Stunned' is a status effect that checks for physical saves, so you have a chance to resist it even if you have 0% stun resistance.

If you want to know how high a reliable save needs to be, it's compared to the skill used so it's progresses with level. Probably 50+ mid-game and 100+ late game, not really feasible unless you're a dwarf or a paladin (or both ).

[Final Master]

Saves are actually very feasible. They do need to be about 40's before Dreadfell, 60's Post Dreadfell, 80's in the Prides, 100~ in returning West, and final dungeon about 120~. That's actually not that hard to achieve in a single save for about anyone [physical and spell that is, mental is hard to raise currently for just about anyone still]. Raising both to 'safe' levels though is a bit more challenging, but still easily doable.

An alternative to worrying about saves, to a very minor extent, is just raise con as high as you can, and value con over anything else. As con gives 1% resist all [that is, to damage, not to status effects] for every 7 points, and 4 hp per point of con, at even 70 con [which is easily achievable to anyone], you get 10% resist all and 280 hp for 'free'.

[tiger_eye]

Saves are always useful, even if they aren't 100+ by the end of the game. Also, 20 save is about twice as good as 10 save, so I wouldn't be defeatist and think, "oh well, my saves are so low anyway, I'm not going to bother increasing them".

btw, my rogue winner had 287 total of all three saves, so I do think increasing saves is a viable path for being safe throughout the game--but they will never be as good as 100% resist/immunity for a single specific effect.