@Wise_Grimwald - I have been around for as long as the rivers flowed and the grasses grew - or at least since the Pre-BG days when my RPG of the day was RTK! ;-)
My pre-BG games were Ultima 4 and Golden Axe Warrior, played on a hand set. What is RTK? Should probably know, but those of us with grey hair are allowed to forget I believe.
Entered Level 2 of Dragons Eye - went after the beetle corridor first and grabbed the Defender Axe & Sword of Confusion then started working the other way to come to the back door of the temple area - first attempt at drawing a troll from the back of the temple to the choke point where we waited was a disaster - the troll went and grabbed most of his buddies and a handful of talonite priests to bring along and half the party was soon held and then decimated - I may have to reconsider my options for this battle - I'm not sure this group is ready to face that much power at once...
RTK=Return to Krondor (1998) a sequel to Betrayal at Krondor (which I did not play) - I consider RTK my first "real" RPG - prior to that I played numerous "text based" games like Zork, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, & Leather Goddess of Phobos. After RTK I became hooked on the IE games and have played them on & off ever since. (Along with Fallout 1 & 2, NWN 1 & 2, & Dragon Age 1 &2 and a few others )
When dealing with Bassilus, I love to charm him and set him on Zargal. Kills two birds with one stone. Bassilus usually wins but by the time he does he is easy meat.
Now that is hilarious!
Requires foreknowledge which I try not allow myself a shred of if I can help it at all but STILL, that is funny. CT
@Wise_Grimwald - I have been around for as long as the rivers flowed and the grasses grew - or at least since the Pre-BG days when my RPG of the day was RTK! ;-)
I've been around since people played D&D w/dice, 'paper' character record sheets., Dungeon Masters Guides, Players Handbook, Monster Manuals, Adventure Modules b/c there were no computers for plating any game but Pong. Stuff Gary Gygax wrote like the original D&D World 'Greyhawk' which preceeded Ed Greenwoods 'Forgotten Realms' which of course is the setting for BG. Darn I'm old
@Wise_Grimwald - I have been around for as long as the rivers flowed and the grasses grew - or at least since the Pre-BG days when my RPG of the day was RTK! ;-)
I've been around since people played D&D w/dice, 'paper' character record sheets., Dungeon Masters Guides, Players Handbook, Monster Manuals, Adventure Modules b/c there were no computers for plating any game but Pong. Stuff Gary Gygax wrote like the original D&D World 'Greyhawk' which preceeded Ed Greenwoods 'Forgotten Realms' which of course is the setting for BG. Darn I'm old
Being old is better than the alternative. I used to love the tunnels and trolls books, so that dates me too!
Sir Grimwald the paladin swept all before him in Cloakwood including two wyvern. On the way to get the reward he got two more also. He will now have to find some scalps before selling the remaining 3 tails in Beregost. He hopes that the ones that he left in FAI will still be there. Not necessarily there as they could have been cleared by the reset bug.
The two scalps were there, so with one of them in his possession, Sir Grimwald sold it and three wyvern tails to officer Vai before returning with Dynaheir and Imoen to the mines. All three of them are now level 8.
Oman and company made another run at finishing Dragons Eye level 2 with much better success this time - managed to trap the Trolls and Talonite priests between summoned skellies & beetles in the narrow gap leading out from the pyramid area.
The talonites once again managed to hold 4 out of 6 of our heroes to start things off leaving only Tukmal and Gilian free but then Gilian managed to hold the priests and they took them out from range while only one or two of the trolls were able to attack the skellies holding them in place - they held in place (with some additional skellies added) until the rest of the party came off the hold and the crew mopped them up.
This turned out to be the entire complement that were guarding Mother Egenia & a group of townspeople so after healing and resting we set off to clear the rest of the level. Oman fell in a tough battle with several spiders and beetles and we had Mother E raise him - the rest of the level was pretty smooth except I hated wasting so many of those nice flaming oils finishing off the near death trolls.
If the stars align properly and the situation works out just right the combination of the Sword of confusion connecting with the confusion effect followed by enough damage will finish them off also - sometimes with an explosion of body parts - I believe this is related to them not being able to save while confused but it has to occur BEFORE the almost dead state. If they get to that you can wait for them to "wake up" and try again but it doesn't work often enough to be reliable. It would be nice to have access to more flaming or acid arrows/bolts at this point in the game.
So on to level 3 next session which won't be until at least Sunday.
Current levels:
Oman Bael LG M Paladin 7 18-98/18/18/8/15/18 X-bow*, Mace**, Large Sword**, Great Sword*
Gilian Greywolf CG F Half-elf Ranger 6/cleric 6 18-61/18/18/10/18/8 Bow**, Large Sword**, Halberd** (IWD Tweaks)
Tunnelrat Tukmal Dwarf LN M Fighter 7 (pronounced Took em all) ;-) 18-96/17/19/9/10/9 Axe****, Hammers**
Willow F Half-elf LN Druid 9 (IWD Tweaks) 14/18/16/8/18/15 Missile weapons*, Spear*, Staff*, Large swords (scimitar only)*
Jezella Zapdoodle F NG Gnome Fighter 6/ Illusionist 6 (31 exp from 5) 18-20/18/18/19/9/8 X-bow***,Staff**, Dagger*
Palin Pebbletosser CG M Halfling Fighter 6/ Thief 7 17/19/18/10/10/10 Missile weapons*, Clubs*, Small swords*** , Mace*
Reloads 2 (Temple of Fogetaboutit God final battle & Talonite battle Dragons Eye level 2)
@Wanderon Have you thought of using other methods of finishing off trolls? Flaming sword of the druid, Burning hands, scorcher, melf's minute meteors etc. from the illusionist, arrows of fire from a bow user?
The three of us cleared the mines easily. Even the master of the mines was not a problem. Wand of fire was useful when hordes of enemies appeared. However we could not carry all the loot, so we proceeded to the FAI where Jet' Laya, a level 7 cleric joined us. We sold some equipment, jewels etc. and will return to pick up the rest. If we still have problems carrying the loot, we will get Yeslick to join us on a temporary basis.
Edit
I did indeed have to recruit Yeslick as a porter and even after doing that had to leave behind goods of value. However since we now have over 87000 gold pieces, that is no problem.
Now the game starts to get interesting as we have started the DSoSC mod. Without that, the game would be far too easy.
My illusionist is a multiclass and thus very short on spells (5/3/3 atm) so using up precious spell slots to finish off a troll doesn't seem like a useful option for me - we are facing casters so some MMs to disrupt them seem a better option than burning hands for near dead trolls -
Same thing with the druid - flaming sword even with 4 rounds + 1 per level is not likely to last longer than a single fight and I think healing and more aggressive combat spells like Alicorn lance serve us better - (not to mention that with her thaco of 16 for the flame blade it could wear off before she hits the first troll LOL) -
Arrows of fire would be perfect in enough numbers that's exactly what I'm whining for LOL-
My R/C is my dedicated archer (with some help from IWD tweaks) and at a Thaco of 11 it often takes several arrows to score a hit - which is a moot point at the moment since there don't seem to be any available anywhere at this stage of the game - he did have some acid arrows we found that he made use of and had a few fire arrows earlier also IIRC but not in enough numbers to last even when only used to kill trolls or targeting other pesky fire vulnerable undead enemies at critical times.
In a cave we found several shadows and wraiths which we killed. We used ranged weapons and summoned monsters as there is currently no method of regaining experience when drained.
We managed to find Jet' Laya's sister, but by the time we found her, she was a banshee and were forced to kill her. Fortunately none of the party members were near her, only summoned monsters as she cast a death spell that killed all of them. The spell also killed a spectre that was doing considerable damage to the summoned monsters. That was a relief as the party is not yet powerful enough for such beings. Dynaheir summoned some more monsters to replace those killed by the death spell. Jet cast a resist fear spell that stopped them fleeing when the banshee howled. It had already resisted a silence spell, so Jet didn't cast another. Eventually it died and we took the necklace to Jet's relative in Beregost.
We then discovered that there is a dragon loose near Nashkel and have joined up the the Dragon-Slayer Conchobhair and a thief called Bardo. Sadly I had to say goodbye to my good friend Imoen as he is a far better thief despite being two levels lower than her.
We will now return to Beregost as a powerful weapon is being forged for me there. Then we will see just how powerful the green dragon is.
(I must admit that the tactics used against the shadows, wraiths and banshee were learned from other games that did not have such a good outcome. The fact that experience cannot be restored is an omission that ought to be rectified in my opinion. Nevertheless, knowing the correct tactics is a boon. Another cleric other than Jet would probably have been able to cast "Death ward" which would have helped against the banshee.)
Does anyone know if "protection from undead protects from level drain?
Edit, Carried on to the Firewine Bridge whilst waiting for the new weapon. Jet saw some trolls from the bridge and killed them with her sling. Levelled up. NOW she's got "Death Ward!" A bit on the late side! Shr also has "summon skellies" and "Armour of darkness."
There were a number of trolls that could be taken out in safety from the bridge though a couple panicked and ran out of sight. At least when we get round there, they should be relatively weak. Unlike the Icewind Dale trolls, these did not need fire to kill them, but their constitution was huge. They took an age to kill.
Indeed the unrestorable level drain has always been a bone of contention with Dark Side right from the start - I'm a little surprised it still works this way - perhaps that was just the designers intention after all for whatever reason. It's certainly one of the reasons I gave up on it years ago.
Indeed the unrestorable level drain has always been a bone of contention with Dark Side right from the start - I'm a little surprised it still works this way - perhaps that was just the designers intention after all for whatever reason. It's certainly one of the reasons I gave up on it years ago.
It is possible however to avoid getting hit if you use summons, so it is not impossible. However it does discriminate against parties of fighters with no clerics or mages. Introducing a weapon that summons monsters would have been all that was needed.
Of course, if I had taken Jet through Candlekeep first, she would have been able to cast summons.
Back to the quest.
Diary of Sir Grimwald,
I killed Khaark just by being ready. I don't think that he was able to cast a single offensive spell. jet cast "silence" which may have been what did the trick, or it could have been Dynaheir's minute meteors.
Melium was next. I beat him single-handed.
Then it was time for the Forest Dragon which Conchobhair beat single handed after being protected from acid and fire and being hasted, blessed, etc. etc.
Bardo had previously located it and returned so that the spells were cast at the right time.
We have now been asked to find the Mayor of Nashkel's baby. We came across a cleric/ranger who wanted to help. He has been a great boon to the party, for whilst he doesn't gain experience, he doesn't lose it either when attacked by vampyres, wraiths and the like.
He led us to a castle which is identical to Durlag's Tower above ground. Presumably they either ue=sed the same architect, or were adept at copying. This has made trap location a lot easier. However there was an additional trap outside, so we are now wary.
We cleared the area above ground easily and to my delight found another tome of wisdom. I will soon be wiser than Elminster at this rate. We also found a vorpal blade+3 which I have put into Bardo's hands. It could be very useful if he needs to backstab.
We are now about to enter the depths of the tower. Dynaheir can now cast Cloudkill.
I have voluntarily decided not to level up after reaching what should have been the level cap, 160,000 I believe, so I now realise that she wasted scrolls which she memorised as she will never be a powerful enough mage to use them.
Lord Daerthmac had teleported away despite being dead and by some infernal means returned to life, or rather undeath. When we killed him again he left the baby behind so there is no need to go further other than for loot. We are not interested in goldand suchlike, but tomes and weapons are always welcome. We opted out of one level where there were Spectres galore, which fortunately Bardo, out thief saw before they found us. Spectres are very tough and are experience drainers to boot. We therefore opted out of that conflict since it was optional. We are now on our way to rescue a dwarf.
Mordred, a servant & Black Guard of Asmodeus. My service to Asmodeus continues. I followed his leading to a place called the Lonely Peaks. I am impatient w/this ‘squire’ activity on the Material Plane. I want to lead real armies of Lemure foot soldiers in the Blood War against the Tanar’ri alongside Bel, the Lord of Avernus, & the Dark Eight Pit Fiend Generals. Still, I must be patient. I know each battle here strengthens me for that day & so I wait on Asmodeus’ call to bigger & better things. In the Lonely Peaks, I killed Ogres/Ogre Berserkers, Ogrillons, Dire Wolves, Kobolds & Xvarts.
Key Event: In a pass between two rocky peaks I battled four Half-Ogres. This battle was a perfect example of how my subordinates & I use our combined powers to eliminate enemies quickly & systematically. I direct the use of a combinations of spells from various schools to soften my opponents & then my Berserker Sergeant & I cut them to pieces. The leader of the Half-Ogres threatened us first & was greeted w/ Larloch’s Minor Drain from my hand; Magic Missile from my Bard/Herald/Sage;Melf’s Acid Arrow from my Conjurer; Ray of Enfeeblement from my Enchanter & Blindness from my Illusionist. My Berserker Sergeant, Enraged, tore into him. His three underlings came to his aid from the west but he was quickly dispatched & I tore them up, one by one w/ease.
KILLING THE LEADER OF THE HALF-OGRE QUARTET!
After that, there was a fight against three heavily armored Bandits. That could’a been this my ‘’key event’ b/c I came a razors edge from having to drag myBard/Herald/Sage (& all his equipment) back to town. He was hit by an arrow & was seriously injured. I yelled @ him to retreat & he got out of range quickly enough to avoid being killed. Only two of the three Bandits had Longbows so I directed my subordinates to destroy them first. My Conjurer used Flame Arrow on one of them while my Illusionist used Blindness on the second. My Enchanter failed a Charm or Dire Charm but followed up w/Ray of Enfeeblement. As always, my Berserker Sergeant was Enraged & whoopin’ on any enemy w/i range of his Warhammer +1 & Battle Axe. The three Bandits were dead in short order.
Treasure of Note: Aquamarine Gym & a Studded necklace w/Zios Gems (sold for 75gp each).
Level Up: My Illusionist was promoted by his school to Visionist (Illusionist/6). He has yet to find a 3rd level Illusionist (or other) spell, so he has three empty spell slots. He added dagger as a melee weapon & has the Dagger +2 I got from the Revenant
Current Disposition: Letting my crew unwind w/spirits @ the Red Sheaf. The first one to get drunk has to pay. My Enchanter has paid the last three times giving myBard/Herald/Sage’ coin purse a break
Next Steps: My prayer of inquiry to Asmdeus leads me next to the Fire Leaf Forest south of Nashkel
Reloads: 0 LEGEND: Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print * Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font. ** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Mordred, Servant & Black Guard of Asmodeus. On the way to the Fire Leaf Forest (FLF), where I felt my lord Asmodeus directing me, I was finally able to return the Tome to the Ghost @ Ulcaster. To do so, I had to dispose of three Ghouls, a half-dozen Skeletons w/Mace’s/Darts & 12 or so Kobolds.
In the FLF, my group killed countless Xvarts, Kobolds & Skeleton’s (some w/Composite Long Bows), and six Cave Bears, until…
Key Event: I’d like to say I dominated a group of three Amnish mercenaries that challenged me in the FLF. When I first encountered the leader, a wench, my Mages had all failed to cast their protection spells beforehand so I had to pull back. When I did, I stumbled on a group of annoying Xvarts, which I killed w/help from my Berserker Sergeant & my Bard/Herald/Sage. I feared that the Amnish mercenaries would follow but they didn’t – to their disadvantage. Once I’d dealt w/the Xvarts & the Mages had protected themselves I rounded the rocky hill I’d ducked behind & attacked them. All in all it was a lucrative event but my Enchanter was too far forward early in the fight & took one, maybe two arrows & I almost lost him. I ordered him back & he evaded a battlefield death. I focused our attacks on the leader wench first. I cast Doom & then Poison Weapon before charging her. I had my Berserker Sergeant Enraged, attack her initially w/his Throwing Axes, then his Warhammer +2 & Battle Axe two-weapon style. My Conjurer cast Melf’s Acid Arrow, my Bard/Herald/Sage Magic Missile & my Illusionist Blindness. Simultaneously, my Enchanter had gone forward to cast Charm Person on one of her companions – that’s when the Enchanter took the arrow hits & had to back off. The leader of the Amnish mercenaries went down easily after that, as did her male companions.
KILLING THE BANDIT WENCH!
Following that, I had another encounter, this one w/a couple of Bandits, one of them ostensibly, the fastest Dart in Faerun. It was a confusing battle b/c once again this battle stumbled over into one w/a group of Kobolds. I decided to forget the Kobolds but to move my mages away from the arrows of the Kobolds & the darts of the Bandit, I think his partner called him Zal. I had the mages focus on the dude w/the darts. My Bard/Herald/Sage led off w/a Magic Missile & then followed w/a Poison Arrow from his Short Bow before switching to standard arrows once poison was in Zal’s blood stream. As usual, my Conjurer started w/Melf’s Acid Arrow & alternated w/Flame Arrow; my Illusionist Blinded the dart thrower & that was that. Not sure who killed him but somewhere in all of that my Berserker Sergeant & I took care of the mouthy one w/the Halberd. The Kobolds were an afterthought & I swatted them next.
BLINDING THE FASTEST DART IN FAERUN & CUTTING DOWN HIS PARTNER IN CRIME!
Earlier, some stupid little kid thought we were in the business of finding lost little doggies. We’d told him to bug off & then found the mutt, who attacked us & died for it. Later, as I was departing the FLF I saw the little kid again. He came up & accused me of killing his dog…& then transformed & stepped thru a dimension door…into Nine Hells of Baator. He clearly shape changed into a Horned Devil before he slipped away. I don’t know what to think of that. Was my lord Asmodeus testing me in some way or was one of the weaker Arch-Devils behind this incursion into the Material Plane? All I know is that I felt a surge of power when the Horned-Devil disappeared (i.e. 1200 exp. pts.). I shall pray on this.
THERE IS NO DOUBT I SAW A HORNED DEVIL STEP INTO THIS DIMENSION DOOR!
Treasure of Note: Monster Summoning II (Conjurer); Boots of Grounding (Bard/Herald/Sage);
Level Up: My Bard/Herald/Sage is talented enough to be called a Minstrel (Bard/7) now. Like my Illusionist, he had no scrolls containing a 3rd Level spell so I went to Thalantyr’s & I let him purchase Skull Trap. My Illusionist is holding out for Invisibility 10’ Radius.
Current Disposition: Watching my otherwise intelligent Enchanter pay for three rounds of ale & wine for the fourth time in a row. He is definitely a light weight. As a teetotaler, I am entertained watching my Bard/Herald/Sage & my Berserker Sergeant in an ale drinking contest while my mages all drink wine. Best part is, my Enchanter, who isn’t in the drinking contest between my Bard/Herald/Sage & Berserker Sergeant always ends up declaring himself the loser & paying their bill.
MY ENCHANTER'S DRUNK AGAIN & PAYING OFF ON A BET HE WASN'T IN TO BEGIN WITH...DOOFUS!
Next Steps: Asmodeus seems to be leading me back to the Coast Way, but I’ve cleared that area. I’ll have to see what he wants me to do there…or maybe I’m missing what he’s telling me to do.
Reloads: 0 LEGEND: Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print * Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font. ** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Brief Update on Oman & Crew - finished level 3 of Dragons eye with Palin scouting out traps and encounters - followed by summons, aoe effects, haste and going back to level 2 for resting between encounters to heal & regain spells - only one death in the final battle with Presario when Jezella fell. After Mother E. raised Jez we headed back to Kuldahar to restock and discovered Sheemish never made it home - have to check and see if he is still in the cave when we return - as I recall there were some possible bugs with him.
Only one level up on this level Gilian got her level 7 cleric - yay - more spells!! ;-)
Re: The trio from Amn - I like to get to the two archers asap both to stop their deadly bows and also to increase the number of +1 arrows we loot from their corpses - lots of ways to do this depending on party make-up: stealth/backstab on one is always good fun or a hold spell or stun from Chromatic orb that works or just getting someone into their face so they switch to melee - I think they start off with quivers of 20 or 25 + 1 arrows each - a nice bonus early in the game. Also never knew you got exp for not helping Albert - good to know.
Re: The trio from Amn - I like to get to the two archers asap both to stop their deadly bows and also to increase the number of +1 arrows we loot from their corpses - lots of ways to do this depending on party make-up: stealth/backstab on one is always good fun or a hold spell or stun from Chromatic orb that works or just getting someone into their face so they switch to melee - I think they start off with quivers of 20 or 25 + 1 arrows each - a nice bonus early in the game. Also never knew you got exp for not helping Albert - good to know.
Yup, I thought it was pretty cool to get 1200 exp for killing Rufie. It would be a surprise though if the kid turned into a Horned Devil & skipped the dimension door to kick our a--. That's a greater devil in AD&D & would be a serious challenge.
Unfortunately w/the archers using Hard Times, I can't remember but I think they only had about seven arrows between them. Hard Times is a real 'buzz killer' if you're used to playing the regular game. Plus, almost sounds like you'd almost have to have 'foreknowledge' to get 'em like that so quick but, then again, spellcasters first, archers a close second when choosing who to kill first., so maybe not.
Re: The trio from Amn - I like to get to the two archers asap both to stop their deadly bows and also to increase the number of +1 arrows we loot from their corpses - lots of ways to do this depending on party make-up: stealth/backstab on one is always good fun or a hold spell or stun from Chromatic orb that works or just getting someone into their face so they switch to melee - I think they start off with quivers of 20 or 25 + 1 arrows each - a nice bonus early in the game. Also never knew you got exp for not helping Albert - good to know.
Yup, I thought it was pretty cool to get 1200 exp for killing Rufie. It would be a surprise though if the kid turned into a Horned Devil & skipped the dimension door to kick our a--. That's a greater devil in AD&D & would be a serious challenge.
Unfortunately w/the archers using Hard Times, I can't remember but I think they only had about seven arrows between them. Hard Times is a real 'buzz killer' if you're used to playing the regular game. Plus, almost sounds like you'd almost have to have 'foreknowledge' to get 'em like that so quick but, then again, spellcasters first, archers a close second when choosing who to kill first., so maybe not.
CT
I've also taken them by approaching from the "South" going around and up after taking out the fastest dart - and found the battle plays out a bit differently than coming down from the North...
Well we didn't save the dwarf, but did return his hammer. We had to choose between our ranger/cleric and a dwarf fighter level 10. We chose the dwarf as we do not intend to meet any more experience drainers.
Due to that ranger/cleric the area was not too hard other than fighting skeleton lords. We discovered their strengths and weaknesses when there was only one. They fire lightning bolts, but are unwise in aiming them. If you are protected from lightning, they do themselves far more harm than the party.
Knowing this when we met a skeleton Lord and two skeleton knights, good positioning led to the death of the Lord and a knight which meant that the last knight was not a problem.
We can now revert to the main quests, i.e. dealing with the iron throne. We are now so powerful that it should be easy. Most of the party will not level up again as they have reached 160,000 experience, and we are insanely well equipped.
Mordred, Servant & Black Guard of Asmodeus. I couldn’t figure out why Asmodeus wanted me to return to Coast Way (CW). I’d wiped the place clean of everything but grass & trees last time I went through. But when I pray, I get pretty strong vibes on what he intends for me to do & CW was where I sensed him leading so I pulled my subordinates out of the Red Sheaf & we headed north.
Before I headed there though, I finally got sick of not be welcomed in Nashkel. I went to Thalantyr, purchased three scrolls of Invisibility & then headed to the Nashkel Carnival. There I had the party rest & my Illusionist memorized three Invisibility spells. With his innate Invisibility spell, I wanted to get our party into the Temple of Helm & buy Potions of Healing (PoH) & Elixirs of Health (EoH)(note: I’d not been able to get in there b/c, “You must gather your party before going forth.” ) The next morn, my Illusionist cast Invisibility on all of us ‘non-mages’ while the mages cast Invisibility from scrolls. I slipped in perfectly & bought four PoH & 10 EoH (all I could afford). Coming out I messed it up & had my Illusionist cast the last spell on me – thus forfeiting his own. Of all my party he is the most vulnerable & I, the least. He cast Reflected Image on himself & we all headed out. Sure enough, as we were slipping out, Berrun Ghastkill saw him & fired @ him…missing. My Illusionist cast Blindness @ him & that allowed all of us to escape cleanly behind the building & into the woods.
GOIN' 'DARK' TO SLIP INTO THE TEMPLE OF HELM!
Once we got to the CW, I was sure I must have gotten my signals mixed. Sure enough, I killed a half-dozen Kobolds, four Bandits, two wolves & 12-16 Xvarts, ho-hum... before it became clear Asmodeus’ intention for my being there.
Key Event: I’d been having my subordinates conduct a sweeping motion back & forth rather than staying to the roads. I’d taken them back and forth from the Beregost line to the FAI line & back & had just passed the same decimated caravan the bandits had attacked…the one under protection of my Berserker Sergeant…same place I found that Eddard Silvershield’s Fibula…
This time I walked into about six more Bandits who started firing @ me immediately & then, of course, a group of Xvarts attacked & confused things. I held my mages back & then w/my Berserker Sergeant I waded into the fight. W/my Boots of Avoidance I am much more confident when arrows are flying @ me. My Berserker Sergeant was tearing the bandits up so I cast, Aura of Despair & then start tearing them a new one myself. My Bard/Herald/Sage was firing arrows into the fray & I had the Bandit leader begging for mercy in no time. I told him the best he was gonna get was a broken leg, maybe a broken back & then suddenly Asmodeus took control of my tongue & I asked him to tell me where the Bandit Camp was located. He showed me on my map & then we killed him & mopped up the Xvarts. Now I know where the Bandits hide out so why, after all that, am I sensing that Asmodeus wants me to go to the Hobbit Village, Gullykin, next?
ASSASSINATING THE BANDIT WHO GAVE UP THE LOCATION OF THE BANDIT CAMP
Treasure of Note: After I returned from the battle w/the Bandits, I took the scalps to that stupid Flaming Fist Captain for $400gps worth of bounty. What a joke – I can’t believe the Flaming Fist has women in their ranks as soldiers. A woman as a soldier? The FF are soft & I hope Asmodeus has plans for me to crush them someday. I’d rather kill FFs than Bandits any day. Anyway, there’s been this Paladin, I could tell by his manner, hanging around the Jovial Juggler every time I’ve been in there. He’s injured, walking around with a crutch. I had my Bard/Herald/Sage check him out & he was whining about takin’ a whoopin’ by some Half-Ogres near Fisherman’s Lake...same one’s I killed a few days ago. The stupid Paladin was so grateful he gave me a Medium Shield +1. It just doesn’t get any better than that!
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Meeting w/my team around our table in the Red Sheaf.
Next Steps: My prayers tell me Asmodeus wants me to go to Gullykin, the Hobbit Village.
Current Party: (Reputation: 9* (+1)/Average) *The Paladin can’t shut his trap about my killing the Half-Ogres
Reloads: 0 LEGEND: Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print * Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font. ** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Mordred, Servant & Black Guard of Asmodeus. @ the bidding of my lord, I headed east to Gullykin, as always, not knowing his plan or purposes for my being there. My Bard/Herald/Sage rebuffed a Hobbit named Gandolar who inquired about my intentions in Gullykin & then my Berserker Sergeant blew off a female Hobbit that was also sticking her nose into my business. Once I got going reconnoitering Gullykin, I moved around the village & immediate area clockwise. My group stumbled onto three Ghasts. I directed my subordinates to use their ranged weapons but my Enchanter got a little too brave & was Held & subsequently killed. I finished killing off the Ghasts, three or four Kobolds & two Dire Wolves before retiring back to Beregost to raise my Enchanter (I needed to sell some things before I could do so & there is no market that I know of in Gullykin).
The trips back to Beregost continued twice more as I continually needed to unload loot. On return, it was Kobolds, Xvarts, three Ghouls, two Dire Wolves & two Wolves & maybe some other things I forgot now.
Key Event: I’ve come to realize, that as Asmodeus orders my footsteps, he brings me increasingly to challenging battles between hours & hours of tedium & ho-hum. I am learning never to let down my guard b/c every time I do, he takes shows me that I can be gone in the drop of a hat. I was leading my subordinates thru Gullykin killing the usual suspects & getting complacent when suddenly I was face to face w/four assassins, one calling himself Molkar. I gave the order to tear them down one @ a time, starting w/the leader. So I cast Doom; my Conjurer Melf’s Acid Arrow; my Enchanter, Hold Person; my Illusionist Blindness & my Bard/Herald/Sage, Magic Missile. Meanwhile, my Berserker Sergeant was ‘Enraged’ b/c someone ‘over there’ was casting spells our way. ‘Molkar’ was dead in no time & I turned our fury on the second member of the quartet, leaving the spellcaster to my Berserker Sergeant. The Hold Person spell had actually Held two of them so my Enchanter used Charm on one of those two & ‘BINGO’ he was charmed. My Berserker Sergeant had taken Melf’s Acid Arrow himself & was fading quickly. He quaffed a Potion of Healing before heading back to friendly lines where I handed him an Elixir of Health but he was out of the fight after that. By then all but the enemy spellcaster were dead so I focused all final attacks his direction &, soon, he fell too. Victory. Praise Asmodeus.
THREE DOWN, ONE TO GO!
Treasure of Note: None
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Resting in the basement temple of Hobbit deity, which doubles as the Gullykin Winery.
Next Steps: There’s a secret door I’ve discovered in the basement of the temple/winery. I’m going there next.
Reloads: 0 LEGEND: Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print * Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font. ** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Sir Grimwald and party raced through Candlekeep, the Flaming Fist Compound, The Blushing Mermaid and the Ducal Palace. As expected, due to completing the DSoSC quests, the rest of the game was easy even the Ducal Palace where summons plus web made the doppelgangers easy meat.
The battle against Sarevok wasn't so easy, but by the strategy of divide and conquer, we prevailed. Summons were used to lure Sarevok's cohorts to areas where they had no help and were dealt with one by one. Tazok did have the aid of a doom guard and after that battle a lot of healing potions were used. The summons also softened up the mages who used their spells to kill them rather than party members. They also caused them to use their mirror image spells apart from one. However Dynaheir effectively dealt with that by use of a magic missile. Before the last mage was dealt with, Dynaheir acquired a headpiece which increased her armour by 1 point and protected her from mind attacks. Sarevok was killed by Bardo the thief using a number of backstabs. Dynaheir and Jan had helped him with spells for that last battle increasing his armour, speed, and stats.
Sir Grimwald's final stats were phenominal: Str 19, Dex 20, Con 20, Int 19, Wis 21, Cha 19. To get stats like that, you usually need multiple mods, not just one.
Mordred, Servant & Black Guard of Asmodeus. “Theirs is not to reason why, but to do or die.” Still I wonder why Asmodeus has not granted me a Rogue when he asks me now to negotiate the Firewine Ruins. There will be traps & there will likely be death in my party. I descended knowing these facts well. I even led the way for the three steps I took before a lightning bolt, tripped by a trigger somewhere unseen, blasted into my armor & then shot off behind me injuring my Bard/Herald/Sage before dissipating. I am thankful to my lord that I didn’t lost half my party right there but he spared them.
From there it was steadily downhill. Fireballs, Magic Missile Traps & hordes of Kobolds w/Arrows of Fire. I lost my Conjurer, my Bard/Herald/Sage & my Enchanter. I continued to ‘bull my way through’ w/weakened party members until the final battle w/a mage, Ogrillons, Kobolds w/their Arrows of Fire & an Ogre Mage.
Key Event: I continued to ‘bull my way through’ w/weakened party members until the final battle w/a mage, Ogrillons, Kobolds w/their Arrows of Fire & an Ogre Mage. I continued to quaff Elixir’s of Health to keep myself strengthened for whatever lay ahead. And I found it. At first it was just another Kobold Commando. Get to him, kill him & be done w/it. Expect that chasing him will lead to other group of the Kobolds that will also need to be dealt w/but I didn’t expect a Mage…& an Ogrillon. I quaffed my Potion of Absorption fearing a Lightning Bolt in tight quarters & I was smart to do so b/c it came. Me, my Berserker Sergeant & my Illusionist were still standing but it wasn’t long it was just me & the Berserker Sergeant. Then a Ogre Berserker joined the fray. I felt I had only one choice @ the time but could I do it again, I’d back off & return after regrouping w/my Berserker Sergeant. Suddenly after a solid hit I find myself confused. My Berserker Sergeant abandoned his duties w/a couple of surviving Kobold Commando’s, braving the sure fire of the Arrows of Fire, to come to my aid. I was severely injured. He was able to land one blow & I thought I might escape this ridiculous predicament…but I did not.
LOOKING GOOD, A LITTLE BEATEN UP BUT CLOSE TO GETTIN' OUT OF HERE...
MORDRED DIES...
Treasure of Note: Had I survived, we’d have had gained a Fireball, a Lightning Bolt & a Cone of Gold as well as a Mage Robe of Electrical Resistance. There was a Tome/Manual but I could identify w/my Illusionist. I easily could have raised one of them, which would have been my Conjurer @ first. I’d have gone to Firewine Ruins next & likely been able to get to my Bard/Herald/Sage.
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Deceased
Next Steps: My Berserker Sergeant lived & decided to go back to his business in Beregost.
Current Party: (Reputation: 9 - average) Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Reloads: 0 LEGEND: Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print * Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font. ** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
You'd think in a Halfling village like Gullykin there would be a scout or two available for hire with at least little knowledge of the Firewine ruins wouldn't you? ;-)
SO is it back to an LG PC now or are you still contemplating raising Mordred?
As for me, I'm contemplating. I've kind of volunteered myself for something, so I don't know if I'll be playing around with Phoenix, or when I'll be able to play around with him.
I too am contemplating - (go figure) - contemplating setting my IWD run aside for bit to fool with an all "treehugger" run in BG2EE (+SCS).
I've been toying with this concept for a while.
I tried rolling up a Kensai->druid (TWF-scimitar*** + Club/dagger) but wasn't thrilled - just can't get into the whole Kensai thing (never played one)
I also have a Stick swinging (****) Berserker->Druid hanging out
but I think I'm going to roll with a Female Human Avenger and I added Arath (NPC druid mod) for a love interest.
The posse would be populated by Jahiera, Cernd, Arath, Jan/Imoen, & Minsc (maybe swap for Val at some point )
PC- Belladonna - Human F TN Avenger 16/18/14/7/18/15 Club*, Staff*, Dart*, THWS*
This is the first time I've fooled with an Avenger and I went to Spider form in Circus and she kicked butt - going to have to check out the other shapeshifts - not sure how keen I am with the new "token" method of shapeshifting yet tho and of course that means no spellcasting so there will be some micromanaging there -cast first then shift for the mop up perhaps.
Also scheduled to appear for jury duty tomorrow and don't know yet if I will be chosen to serve or not or how much playtime I'll get this week...
Comments
Entered Level 2 of Dragons Eye - went after the beetle corridor first and grabbed the Defender Axe & Sword of Confusion then started working the other way to come to the back door of the temple area - first attempt at drawing a troll from the back of the temple to the choke point where we waited was a disaster - the troll went and grabbed most of his buddies and a handful of talonite priests to bring along and half the party was soon held and then decimated - I may have to reconsider my options for this battle - I'm not sure this group is ready to face that much power at once...
@Wise_Grimwald
RTK=Return to Krondor (1998) a sequel to Betrayal at Krondor (which I did not play) - I consider RTK my first "real" RPG - prior to that I played numerous "text based" games like Zork, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, & Leather Goddess of Phobos. After RTK I became hooked on the IE games and have played them on & off ever since. (Along with Fallout 1 & 2, NWN 1 & 2, & Dragon Age 1 &2 and a few others )
Requires foreknowledge which I try not allow myself a shred of if I can help it at all but STILL, that is funny. CT
Sir Grimwald the paladin swept all before him in Cloakwood including two wyvern. On the way to get the reward he got two more also. He will now have to find some scalps before selling the remaining 3 tails in Beregost. He hopes that the ones that he left in FAI will still be there. Not necessarily there as they could have been cleared by the reset bug.
The two scalps were there, so with one of them in his possession, Sir Grimwald sold it and three wyvern tails to officer Vai before returning with Dynaheir and Imoen to the mines. All three of them are now level 8.
The talonites once again managed to hold 4 out of 6 of our heroes to start things off leaving only Tukmal and Gilian free but then Gilian managed to hold the priests and they took them out from range while only one or two of the trolls were able to attack the skellies holding them in place - they held in place (with some additional skellies added) until the rest of the party came off the hold and the crew mopped them up.
This turned out to be the entire complement that were guarding Mother Egenia & a group of townspeople so after healing and resting we set off to clear the rest of the level. Oman fell in a tough battle with several spiders and beetles and we had Mother E raise him - the rest of the level was pretty smooth except I hated wasting so many of those nice flaming oils finishing off the near death trolls.
If the stars align properly and the situation works out just right the combination of the Sword of confusion connecting with the confusion effect followed by enough damage will finish them off also - sometimes with an explosion of body parts - I believe this is related to them not being able to save while confused but it has to occur BEFORE the almost dead state. If they get to that you can wait for them to "wake up" and try again but it doesn't work often enough to be reliable. It would be nice to have access to more flaming or acid arrows/bolts at this point in the game.
So on to level 3 next session which won't be until at least Sunday.
Current levels:
Oman Bael LG M Paladin 7
18-98/18/18/8/15/18
X-bow*, Mace**, Large Sword**, Great Sword*
Gilian Greywolf CG F Half-elf Ranger 6/cleric 6
18-61/18/18/10/18/8
Bow**, Large Sword**, Halberd** (IWD Tweaks)
Tunnelrat Tukmal Dwarf LN M Fighter 7 (pronounced Took em all) ;-)
18-96/17/19/9/10/9
Axe****, Hammers**
Willow F Half-elf LN Druid 9 (IWD Tweaks)
14/18/16/8/18/15
Missile weapons*, Spear*, Staff*, Large swords (scimitar only)*
Jezella Zapdoodle F NG Gnome Fighter 6/ Illusionist 6 (31 exp from 5)
18-20/18/18/19/9/8
X-bow***,Staff**, Dagger*
Palin Pebbletosser CG M Halfling Fighter 6/ Thief 7
17/19/18/10/10/10
Missile weapons*, Clubs*, Small swords*** , Mace*
Reloads 2 (Temple of Fogetaboutit God final battle & Talonite battle Dragons Eye level 2)
Deaths- Oman & Tukmal - 4, Gilian - 1, everyone else 2 (15 total)
The three of us cleared the mines easily. Even the master of the mines was not a problem. Wand of fire was useful when hordes of enemies appeared. However we could not carry all the loot, so we proceeded to the FAI where Jet' Laya, a level 7 cleric joined us. We sold some equipment, jewels etc. and will return to pick up the rest. If we still have problems carrying the loot, we will get Yeslick to join us on a temporary basis.
Edit
I did indeed have to recruit Yeslick as a porter and even after doing that had to leave behind goods of value. However since we now have over 87000 gold pieces, that is no problem.
Now the game starts to get interesting as we have started the DSoSC mod. Without that, the game would be far too easy.
Same thing with the druid - flaming sword even with 4 rounds + 1 per level is not likely to last longer than a single fight and I think healing and more aggressive combat spells like Alicorn lance serve us better - (not to mention that with her thaco of 16 for the flame blade it could wear off before she hits the first troll LOL) -
Arrows of fire would be perfect in enough numbers that's exactly what I'm whining for LOL-
My R/C is my dedicated archer (with some help from IWD tweaks) and at a Thaco of 11 it often takes several arrows to score a hit - which is a moot point at the moment since there don't seem to be any available anywhere at this stage of the game - he did have some acid arrows we found that he made use of and had a few fire arrows earlier also IIRC but not in enough numbers to last even when only used to kill trolls or targeting other pesky fire vulnerable undead enemies at critical times.
We managed to find Jet' Laya's sister, but by the time we found her, she was a banshee and were forced to kill her. Fortunately none of the party members were near her, only summoned monsters as she cast a death spell that killed all of them. The spell also killed a spectre that was doing considerable damage to the summoned monsters. That was a relief as the party is not yet powerful enough for such beings. Dynaheir summoned some more monsters to replace those killed by the death spell. Jet cast a resist fear spell that stopped them fleeing when the banshee howled. It had already resisted a silence spell, so Jet didn't cast another. Eventually it died and we took the necklace to Jet's relative in Beregost.
We then discovered that there is a dragon loose near Nashkel and have joined up the the Dragon-Slayer Conchobhair and a thief called Bardo. Sadly I had to say goodbye to my good friend Imoen as he is a far better thief despite being two levels lower than her.
We will now return to Beregost as a powerful weapon is being forged for me there. Then we will see just how powerful the green dragon is.
(I must admit that the tactics used against the shadows, wraiths and banshee were learned from other games that did not have such a good outcome. The fact that experience cannot be restored is an omission that ought to be rectified in my opinion. Nevertheless, knowing the correct tactics is a boon. Another cleric other than Jet would probably have been able to cast "Death ward" which would have helped against the banshee.)
Does anyone know if "protection from undead protects from level drain?
Edit,
Carried on to the Firewine Bridge whilst waiting for the new weapon. Jet saw some trolls from the bridge and killed them with her sling. Levelled up. NOW she's got "Death Ward!" A bit on the late side! Shr also has "summon skellies" and "Armour of darkness."
There were a number of trolls that could be taken out in safety from the bridge though a couple panicked and ran out of sight. At least when we get round there, they should be relatively weak. Unlike the Icewind Dale trolls, these did not need fire to kill them, but their constitution was huge. They took an age to kill.
Of course, if I had taken Jet through Candlekeep first, she would have been able to cast summons.
Back to the quest.
Diary of Sir Grimwald,
I killed Khaark just by being ready. I don't think that he was able to cast a single offensive spell. jet cast "silence" which may have been what did the trick, or it could have been Dynaheir's minute meteors.
Melium was next. I beat him single-handed.
Then it was time for the Forest Dragon which Conchobhair beat single handed after being protected from acid and fire and being hasted, blessed, etc. etc.
Bardo had previously located it and returned so that the spells were cast at the right time.
http://i1108.photobucket.com/albums/h416/grimwaldthewise/Sir Grimwald/Baldr007.png[/IMG][/URL]
We have now been asked to find the Mayor of Nashkel's baby. We came across a cleric/ranger who wanted to help. He has been a great boon to the party, for whilst he doesn't gain experience, he doesn't lose it either when attacked by vampyres, wraiths and the like.
He led us to a castle which is identical to Durlag's Tower above ground. Presumably they either ue=sed the same architect, or were adept at copying. This has made trap location a lot easier. However there was an additional trap outside, so we are now wary.
We cleared the area above ground easily and to my delight found another tome of wisdom. I will soon be wiser than Elminster at this rate. We also found a vorpal blade+3 which I have put into Bardo's hands. It could be very useful if he needs to backstab.
We are now about to enter the depths of the tower. Dynaheir can now cast Cloudkill.
I have voluntarily decided not to level up after reaching what should have been the level cap, 160,000 I believe, so I now realise that she wasted scrolls which she memorised as she will never be a powerful enough mage to use them.
Key Event: In a pass between two rocky peaks I battled four Half-Ogres. This battle was a perfect example of how my subordinates & I use our combined powers to eliminate enemies quickly & systematically. I direct the use of a combinations of spells from various schools to soften my opponents & then my Berserker Sergeant & I cut them to pieces. The leader of the Half-Ogres threatened us first & was greeted w/ Larloch’s Minor Drain from my hand; Magic Missile from my Bard/Herald/Sage;Melf’s Acid Arrow from my Conjurer; Ray of Enfeeblement from my Enchanter & Blindness from my Illusionist. My Berserker Sergeant, Enraged, tore into him. His three underlings came to his aid from the west but he was quickly dispatched & I tore them up, one by one w/ease.
KILLING THE LEADER OF THE HALF-OGRE QUARTET!
After that, there was a fight against three heavily armored Bandits. That could’a been this my ‘’key event’ b/c I came a razors edge from having to drag myBard/Herald/Sage (& all his equipment) back to town. He was hit by an arrow & was seriously injured. I yelled @ him to retreat & he got out of range quickly enough to avoid being killed. Only two of the three Bandits had Longbows so I directed my subordinates to destroy them first. My Conjurer used Flame Arrow on one of them while my Illusionist used Blindness on the second. My Enchanter failed a Charm or Dire Charm but followed up w/Ray of Enfeeblement. As always, my Berserker Sergeant was Enraged & whoopin’ on any enemy w/i range of his Warhammer +1 & Battle Axe. The three Bandits were dead in short order.
Treasure of Note: Aquamarine Gym & a Studded necklace w/Zios Gems (sold for 75gp each).
Level Up: My Illusionist was promoted by his school to Visionist (Illusionist/6). He has yet to find a 3rd level Illusionist (or other) spell, so he has three empty spell slots. He added dagger as a melee weapon & has the Dagger +2 I got from the Revenant
Current Disposition: Letting my crew unwind w/spirits @ the Red Sheaf. The first one to get drunk has to pay. My Enchanter has paid the last three times giving myBard/Herald/Sage’ coin purse a break
Next Steps: My prayer of inquiry to Asmdeus leads me next to the Fire Leaf Forest south of Nashkel
Current Party: (Reputation: 8 – Disliked)
Black Guard of Asmodeus: Fighter (Blk Gd)/6; Plate Mail w/Lg Shld & RoP+2, +1 B/Swd** & +1 Flail*
(SSS**)
Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Eldoth: Bard/6; Chain Mail, Sh/Bow* & BoA, +1 S/Swd*, Dgr* (Arm,MM,ChOrb,Mir Img,Knock)
Edwin: Mage (Cjr/6); Mage Robe or ER & +1 Q/Staff* & Slg* (Arm,Grease x2, C/Per,LMD,B/Hands,MelfsAA x3,PWS,F/Arrow x4)
Quayle: Mage (Ill/6); Mage Robe of FR, Slg* & Dgr +2* (Ref Img, Blind x4,Blur,Inv,Mir Img)
Xan: Mage (Ech/6); Knave Robe w/Moonblade*, Dart*, Dgr* (Amr, C/Perx2, Slp, Frnds, RoEnfx2, Luck, D/Chrx2,H/Per))
Mods Used: HardTimes-v2; BG1UB_v12; bg1npc-v20; X0black101 (Blackguard); MegaModKits v1.01L; level1npcs-v1.9; bg2_tweaks-v14; Randomizer-v68; scs-v21 (- Tactical Challenges)
Reloads: 0
LEGEND:
Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined
PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print
* Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font.
** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
In the FLF, my group killed countless Xvarts, Kobolds & Skeleton’s (some w/Composite Long Bows), and six Cave Bears, until…
Key Event: I’d like to say I dominated a group of three Amnish mercenaries that challenged me in the FLF. When I first encountered the leader, a wench, my Mages had all failed to cast their protection spells beforehand so I had to pull back. When I did, I stumbled on a group of annoying Xvarts, which I killed w/help from my Berserker Sergeant & my Bard/Herald/Sage. I feared that the Amnish mercenaries would follow but they didn’t – to their disadvantage. Once I’d dealt w/the Xvarts & the Mages had protected themselves I rounded the rocky hill I’d ducked behind & attacked them. All in all it was a lucrative event but my Enchanter was too far forward early in the fight & took one, maybe two arrows & I almost lost him. I ordered him back & he evaded a battlefield death. I focused our attacks on the leader wench first. I cast Doom & then Poison Weapon before charging her. I had my Berserker Sergeant Enraged, attack her initially w/his Throwing Axes, then his Warhammer +2 & Battle Axe two-weapon style. My Conjurer cast Melf’s Acid Arrow, my Bard/Herald/Sage Magic Missile & my Illusionist Blindness. Simultaneously, my Enchanter had gone forward to cast Charm Person on one of her companions – that’s when the Enchanter took the arrow hits & had to back off. The leader of the Amnish mercenaries went down easily after that, as did her male companions.
KILLING THE BANDIT WENCH!
Following that, I had another encounter, this one w/a couple of Bandits, one of them ostensibly, the fastest Dart in Faerun. It was a confusing battle b/c once again this battle stumbled over into one w/a group of Kobolds. I decided to forget the Kobolds but to move my mages away from the arrows of the Kobolds & the darts of the Bandit, I think his partner called him Zal. I had the mages focus on the dude w/the darts. My Bard/Herald/Sage led off w/a Magic Missile & then followed w/a Poison Arrow from his Short Bow before switching to standard arrows once poison was in Zal’s blood stream. As usual, my Conjurer started w/Melf’s Acid Arrow & alternated w/Flame Arrow; my Illusionist Blinded the dart thrower & that was that. Not sure who killed him but somewhere in all of that my Berserker Sergeant & I took care of the mouthy one w/the Halberd. The Kobolds were an afterthought & I swatted them next.
BLINDING THE FASTEST DART IN FAERUN & CUTTING DOWN HIS PARTNER IN CRIME!
Earlier, some stupid little kid thought we were in the business of finding lost little doggies. We’d told him to bug off & then found the mutt, who attacked us & died for it. Later, as I was departing the FLF I saw the little kid again. He came up & accused me of killing his dog…& then transformed & stepped thru a dimension door…into Nine Hells of Baator. He clearly shape changed into a Horned Devil before he slipped away. I don’t know what to think of that. Was my lord Asmodeus testing me in some way or was one of the weaker Arch-Devils behind this incursion into the Material Plane? All I know is that I felt a surge of power when the Horned-Devil disappeared (i.e. 1200 exp. pts.). I shall pray on this.
THERE IS NO DOUBT I SAW A HORNED DEVIL STEP INTO THIS DIMENSION DOOR!
Treasure of Note: Monster Summoning II (Conjurer); Boots of Grounding (Bard/Herald/Sage);
Level Up: My Bard/Herald/Sage is talented enough to be called a Minstrel (Bard/7) now. Like my Illusionist, he had no scrolls containing a 3rd Level spell so I went to Thalantyr’s & I let him purchase Skull Trap. My Illusionist is holding out for Invisibility 10’ Radius.
Current Disposition: Watching my otherwise intelligent Enchanter pay for three rounds of ale & wine for the fourth time in a row. He is definitely a light weight. As a teetotaler, I am entertained watching my Bard/Herald/Sage & my Berserker Sergeant in an ale drinking contest while my mages all drink wine. Best part is, my Enchanter, who isn’t in the drinking contest between my Bard/Herald/Sage & Berserker Sergeant always ends up declaring himself the loser & paying their bill.
MY ENCHANTER'S DRUNK AGAIN & PAYING OFF ON A BET HE WASN'T IN TO BEGIN WITH...DOOFUS!
Next Steps: Asmodeus seems to be leading me back to the Coast Way, but I’ve cleared that area. I’ll have to see what he wants me to do there…or maybe I’m missing what he’s telling me to do.
Current Party: (Reputation: 8 – Disliked)
Black Guard of Asmodeus: Fighter (Blk Gd)/6; Plate Mail w/Lg Shld & RoP+2, +1 B/Swd** & +1 Flail*
(SSS**)
Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Eldoth: Bard/7; Chain Mail, Sh/Bow* & BoA, +1 S/Swd*, Dgr* (Arm,MM,ChOrb,Mir Img,Knock)
Edwin: Mage (Cjr/6); Mage Robe or ER & +1 Q/Staff* & Slg* (Arm,Grease x2, C/Per,LMD,B/Hands,MelfsAA x3,PWS,F/Arrow x4)
Quayle: Mage (Ill/6); Mage Robe of FR, Slg* & Dgr +2* (Ref Img, Blind x4,Blur,Inv,Mir Img)
Xan: Mage (Ech/6); Knave Robe w/Moonblade*, Dart*, Dgr* (Amr, C/Perx2, Slp, Frnds, RoEnfx2, Luck, D/Chrx2,H/Per))
Mods Used: HardTimes-v2; BG1UB_v12; bg1npc-v20; X0black101 (Blackguard); MegaModKits v1.01L; level1npcs-v1.9; bg2_tweaks-v14; Randomizer-v68; scs-v21 (- Tactical Challenges)
Reloads: 0
LEGEND:
Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined
PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print
* Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font.
** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Brief Update on Oman & Crew - finished level 3 of Dragons eye with Palin scouting out traps and encounters - followed by summons, aoe effects, haste and going back to level 2 for resting between encounters to heal & regain spells - only one death in the final battle with Presario when Jezella fell. After Mother E. raised Jez we headed back to Kuldahar to restock and discovered Sheemish never made it home - have to check and see if he is still in the cave when we return - as I recall there were some possible bugs with him.
Only one level up on this level Gilian got her level 7 cleric - yay - more spells!! ;-)
@CharlestonianTemplar
Re: The trio from Amn - I like to get to the two archers asap both to stop their deadly bows and also to increase the number of +1 arrows we loot from their corpses - lots of ways to do this depending on party make-up: stealth/backstab on one is always good fun or a hold spell or stun from Chromatic orb that works or just getting someone into their face so they switch to melee - I think they start off with quivers of 20 or 25 + 1 arrows each - a nice bonus early in the game. Also never knew you got exp for not helping Albert - good to know.
Unfortunately w/the archers using Hard Times, I can't remember but I think they only had about seven arrows between them. Hard Times is a real 'buzz killer' if you're used to playing the regular game. Plus, almost sounds like you'd almost have to have 'foreknowledge' to get 'em like that so quick but, then again, spellcasters first, archers a close second when choosing who to kill first., so maybe not.
CT
Due to that ranger/cleric the area was not too hard other than fighting skeleton lords. We discovered their strengths and weaknesses when there was only one. They fire lightning bolts, but are unwise in aiming them. If you are protected from lightning, they do themselves far more harm than the party.
Knowing this when we met a skeleton Lord and two skeleton knights, good positioning led to the death of the Lord and a knight which meant that the last knight was not a problem.
We can now revert to the main quests, i.e. dealing with the iron throne. We are now so powerful that it should be easy. Most of the party will not level up again as they have reached 160,000 experience, and we are insanely well equipped.
Before I headed there though, I finally got sick of not be welcomed in Nashkel. I went to Thalantyr, purchased three scrolls of Invisibility & then headed to the Nashkel Carnival. There I had the party rest & my Illusionist memorized three Invisibility spells. With his innate Invisibility spell, I wanted to get our party into the Temple of Helm & buy Potions of Healing (PoH) & Elixirs of Health (EoH)(note: I’d not been able to get in there b/c, “You must gather your party before going forth.” ) The next morn, my Illusionist cast Invisibility on all of us ‘non-mages’ while the mages cast Invisibility from scrolls. I slipped in perfectly & bought four PoH & 10 EoH (all I could afford). Coming out I messed it up & had my Illusionist cast the last spell on me – thus forfeiting his own. Of all my party he is the most vulnerable & I, the least. He cast Reflected Image on himself & we all headed out. Sure enough, as we were slipping out, Berrun Ghastkill saw him & fired @ him…missing. My Illusionist cast Blindness @ him & that allowed all of us to escape cleanly behind the building & into the woods.
GOIN' 'DARK' TO SLIP INTO THE TEMPLE OF HELM!
Once we got to the CW, I was sure I must have gotten my signals mixed. Sure enough, I killed a half-dozen Kobolds, four Bandits, two wolves & 12-16 Xvarts, ho-hum... before it became clear Asmodeus’ intention for my being there.
Key Event: I’d been having my subordinates conduct a sweeping motion back & forth rather than staying to the roads. I’d taken them back and forth from the Beregost line to the FAI line & back & had just passed the same decimated caravan the bandits had attacked…the one under protection of my Berserker Sergeant…same place I found that Eddard Silvershield’s Fibula…
This time I walked into about six more Bandits who started firing @ me immediately & then, of course, a group of Xvarts attacked & confused things. I held my mages back & then w/my Berserker Sergeant I waded into the fight. W/my Boots of Avoidance I am much more confident when arrows are flying @ me. My Berserker Sergeant was tearing the bandits up so I cast, Aura of Despair & then start tearing them a new one myself. My Bard/Herald/Sage was firing arrows into the fray & I had the Bandit leader begging for mercy in no time. I told him the best he was gonna get was a broken leg, maybe a broken back & then suddenly Asmodeus took control of my tongue & I asked him to tell me where the Bandit Camp was located. He showed me on my map & then we killed him & mopped up the Xvarts. Now I know where the Bandits hide out so why, after all that, am I sensing that Asmodeus wants me to go to the Hobbit Village, Gullykin, next?
ASSASSINATING THE BANDIT WHO GAVE UP THE LOCATION OF THE BANDIT CAMP
Treasure of Note: After I returned from the battle w/the Bandits, I took the scalps to that stupid Flaming Fist Captain for $400gps worth of bounty. What a joke – I can’t believe the Flaming Fist has women in their ranks as soldiers. A woman as a soldier? The FF are soft & I hope Asmodeus has plans for me to crush them someday. I’d rather kill FFs than Bandits any day. Anyway, there’s been this Paladin, I could tell by his manner, hanging around the Jovial Juggler every time I’ve been in there. He’s injured, walking around with a crutch. I had my Bard/Herald/Sage check him out & he was whining about takin’ a whoopin’ by some Half-Ogres near Fisherman’s Lake...same one’s I killed a few days ago. The stupid Paladin was so grateful he gave me a Medium Shield +1. It just doesn’t get any better than that!
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Meeting w/my team around our table in the Red Sheaf.
Next Steps: My prayers tell me Asmodeus wants me to go to Gullykin, the Hobbit Village.
Current Party: (Reputation: 9* (+1)/Average) *The Paladin can’t shut his trap about my killing the Half-Ogres
Black Guard of Asmodeus: Fighter (Blk Gd)/6; Plate Mail w/MShld +1 & RoP+2, +1 B/Swd** & +1 Flail*
(SSS**)
Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Eldoth: Bard/7; Chain Mail, Sh/Bow* & BoA, +1 S/Swd*, Dgr* (Arm,MM,ChOrb,Mir Img,Knock, Skl Trp)
Edwin: Mage (Cjr/6); Mage Robe or ER & +1 Q/Staff* & Slg* (Arm,Grease x2, C/Per,LMD,B/Hands,MelfsAA x3,PWS,F/Arrow x4)
Quayle: Mage (Ill/6); Mage Robe of FR, Slg* & Dgr +2* (Ref Img, Blind x4,Blur,Inv,Mir Img)
Xan: Mage (Ech/6); Knave Robe w/Moonblade*, Dart*, Dgr* (Amr, C/Perx2, Slp, Frnds, RoEnfx2, Luck, D/Chrx2,H/Per))
Mods Used: HardTimes-v2; BG1UB_v12; bg1npc-v20; X0black101 (Blackguard); MegaModKits v1.01L; level1npcs-v1.9; bg2_tweaks-v14; Randomizer-v68; scs-v21 (- Tactical Challenges)
Reloads: 0
LEGEND:
Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined
PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print
* Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font.
** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
The trips back to Beregost continued twice more as I continually needed to unload loot. On return, it was Kobolds, Xvarts, three Ghouls, two Dire Wolves & two Wolves & maybe some other things I forgot now.
Key Event: I’ve come to realize, that as Asmodeus orders my footsteps, he brings me increasingly to challenging battles between hours & hours of tedium & ho-hum. I am learning never to let down my guard b/c every time I do, he takes shows me that I can be gone in the drop of a hat. I was leading my subordinates thru Gullykin killing the usual suspects & getting complacent when suddenly I was face to face w/four assassins, one calling himself Molkar. I gave the order to tear them down one @ a time, starting w/the leader. So I cast Doom; my Conjurer Melf’s Acid Arrow; my Enchanter, Hold Person; my Illusionist Blindness & my Bard/Herald/Sage, Magic Missile. Meanwhile, my Berserker Sergeant was ‘Enraged’ b/c someone ‘over there’ was casting spells our way. ‘Molkar’ was dead in no time & I turned our fury on the second member of the quartet, leaving the spellcaster to my Berserker Sergeant. The Hold Person spell had actually Held two of them so my Enchanter used Charm on one of those two & ‘BINGO’ he was charmed. My Berserker Sergeant had taken Melf’s Acid Arrow himself & was fading quickly. He quaffed a Potion of Healing before heading back to friendly lines where I handed him an Elixir of Health but he was out of the fight after that. By then all but the enemy spellcaster were dead so I focused all final attacks his direction &, soon, he fell too. Victory. Praise Asmodeus.
THREE DOWN, ONE TO GO!
Treasure of Note: None
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Resting in the basement temple of Hobbit deity, which doubles as the Gullykin Winery.
Next Steps: There’s a secret door I’ve discovered in the basement of the temple/winery. I’m going there next.
Current Party: (Reputation: 9 - average)
Black Guard of Asmodeus: Fighter (Blk Gd)/6; Plate Mail w/MShld +1 & RoP+2, +1 B/Swd** & +1 Flail*
(SSS**)
Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Eldoth: Bard/7; Chain Mail, Sh/Bow* & BoA, +1 S/Swd*, Dgr* (Arm,MM,ChOrb,Mir Img,Knock, Skl Trp)
Edwin: Mage (Cjr/6); Mage Robe or ER & +1 Q/Staff* & Slg* (Arm,Grease x2, C/Per,LMD,B/Hands,MelfsAA x3,PWS,F/Arrow x4)
Quayle: Mage (Ill/6); Mage Robe of FR, Slg* & Dgr +2* (Ref Img, Blind x4,Blur,Inv,Mir Img)
Xan: Mage (Ech/6); Knave Robe w/Moonblade*, Dart*, Dgr* (Amr, C/Perx2, Slp, Frnds, RoEnfx2, Luck, D/Chrx2,H/Per))
Mods Used: HardTimes-v2; BG1UB_v12; bg1npc-v20; X0black101 (Blackguard); MegaModKits v1.01L; level1npcs-v1.9; bg2_tweaks-v14; Randomizer-v68; scs-v21 (- Tactical Challenges)
Reloads: 0
LEGEND:
Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined
PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print
* Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font.
** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Sir Grimwald's final stats were phenominal: Str 19, Dex 20, Con 20, Int 19, Wis 21, Cha 19. To get stats like that, you usually need multiple mods, not just one.
From there it was steadily downhill. Fireballs, Magic Missile Traps & hordes of Kobolds w/Arrows of Fire. I lost my Conjurer, my Bard/Herald/Sage & my Enchanter. I continued to ‘bull my way through’ w/weakened party members until the final battle w/a mage, Ogrillons, Kobolds w/their Arrows of Fire & an Ogre Mage.
Key Event: I continued to ‘bull my way through’ w/weakened party members until the final battle w/a mage, Ogrillons, Kobolds w/their Arrows of Fire & an Ogre Mage. I continued to quaff Elixir’s of Health to keep myself strengthened for whatever lay ahead. And I found it. At first it was just another Kobold Commando. Get to him, kill him & be done w/it. Expect that chasing him will lead to other group of the Kobolds that will also need to be dealt w/but I didn’t expect a Mage…& an Ogrillon. I quaffed my Potion of Absorption fearing a Lightning Bolt in tight quarters & I was smart to do so b/c it came. Me, my Berserker Sergeant & my Illusionist were still standing but it wasn’t long it was just me & the Berserker Sergeant. Then a Ogre Berserker joined the fray. I felt I had only one choice @ the time but could I do it again, I’d back off & return after regrouping w/my Berserker Sergeant. Suddenly after a solid hit I find myself confused. My Berserker Sergeant abandoned his duties w/a couple of surviving Kobold Commando’s, braving the sure fire of the Arrows of Fire, to come to my aid. I was severely injured. He was able to land one blow & I thought I might escape this ridiculous predicament…but I did not.
LOOKING GOOD, A LITTLE BEATEN UP BUT CLOSE TO GETTIN' OUT OF HERE...
MORDRED DIES...
Treasure of Note: Had I survived, we’d have had gained a Fireball, a Lightning Bolt & a Cone of Gold as well as a Mage Robe of Electrical Resistance. There was a Tome/Manual but I could identify w/my Illusionist. I easily could have raised one of them, which would have been my Conjurer @ first. I’d have gone to Firewine Ruins next & likely been able to get to my Bard/Herald/Sage.
Level Up: None
Current Disposition: Deceased
Next Steps: My Berserker Sergeant lived & decided to go back to his business in Beregost.
Current Party: (Reputation: 9 - average)
Kagain: Fighter (Bkr)/6; Splint Mail w/RoP+1; +2W/Hmr* & B/Axe*** (T/Axe***)
Mods Used: HardTimes-v2; BG1UB_v12; bg1npc-v20; X0black101 (Blackguard); MegaModKits v1.01L; level1npcs-v1.9; bg2_tweaks-v14; Randomizer-v68; scs-v21 (- Tactical Challenges)
Reloads: 0
LEGEND:
Names of cities/locations & spells Underlined
PC/NPCs & Enchanted Weapons Bold Print
* Changes in blue font; Enemies (first notice) in red font.
** Self-imposed restriction: I require my mages to always select spells from their school to learn & memorize. They can learn/memorize others from other schools, but after writing all the spells they can for their intelligence, if they find one from their own school, they have to remove a spell from another school in deference to the spell from their own. Same w/memorization, they must learn spells from their school first before others & I only allow them to learn one of. Any extra memorized spell slots have to go to spells from their school. Bards, Sorcerers & ‘vanilla’ Mages aren’t restricted in this way.
Nice run!
You'd think in a Halfling village like Gullykin there would be a scout or two available for hire with at least little knowledge of the Firewine ruins wouldn't you? ;-)
SO is it back to an LG PC now or are you still contemplating raising Mordred?
As for me, I'm contemplating. I've kind of volunteered myself for something, so I don't know if I'll be playing around with Phoenix, or when I'll be able to play around with him.
I've been toying with this concept for a while.
I tried rolling up a Kensai->druid (TWF-scimitar*** + Club/dagger) but wasn't thrilled - just can't get into the whole Kensai thing (never played one)
I also have a Stick swinging (****) Berserker->Druid hanging out
but I think I'm going to roll with a Female Human Avenger and I added Arath (NPC druid mod) for a love interest.
The posse would be populated by Jahiera, Cernd, Arath, Jan/Imoen, & Minsc (maybe swap for Val at some point )
PC- Belladonna - Human F TN Avenger
16/18/14/7/18/15
Club*, Staff*, Dart*, THWS*
This is the first time I've fooled with an Avenger and I went to Spider form in Circus and she kicked butt - going to have to check out the other shapeshifts - not sure how keen I am with the new "token" method of shapeshifting yet tho and of course that means no spellcasting so there will be some micromanaging there -cast first then shift for the mop up perhaps.
Also scheduled to appear for jury duty tomorrow and don't know yet if I will be chosen to serve or not or how much playtime I'll get this week...