Separate question: I've been playing on hardcore mode, and I've noticed that a lot of mages didn't have stoneskin active (Rayic Gethras, Mekrath, Gaius, Tarnor's mage) which has earned them a staff of striking to the back. In earlier versions, I thought that every mage walked around stoneskinned permanently. The documentation says that in improved mode that they should be stoneskinned, so is there something wrong with my install?
Addendum: I just started a new game on Windows, C:MoveToArea('ar0701'), there Gaius walks around without stoneskin, though he gets it later through prebuffs. I was under the impression that most mages walked around with stoneskin even outside of prebuffs. I guess I can just refrain from backstabbing?