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Has anyone ever been killed by Shank?

the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
in General Discussion (Spoiler Warning!)
So, restarting AGAIN. I roll up a character and kit him out. As I make my way around Candlekeep when I go into a building and get accosted by a man named Shank. I must have either been rolling really poor, or I made the most useless character in the game because I keep on swinging and missing. He hits me for 1 point. And I keep swinging. He hits me for a second hit point and I start wondering, what if I died? I haven't saved the game yet. Was there an autosave somewhere? Does it really matter this early in the game?

But then it dawns on me. Shank is part of the tutorial. He is supposed to be REALLY Weak, but show you how combat works. So I ask again, does any player have the dubious honor of being killed by Shank in any of their play throughs? Fess up and win an award. WE all want to know about this monumental achievement and how you accomplished it. Please list (if you can remember) your Character class.

For me, Human Assassin. Couldn't apparently hit the broad side of a barn with a tree stump.
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Comments

  • BlucherBlucher Member Posts: 110
    Never been killed, and I can't remember is it was Carbos or Shank, but I've had to run away before when playing a mage once.
  • SCARY_WIZARDSCARY_WIZARD Member Posts: 1,438
    edited March 2014
    Yep. :/ Several times when I was a pre-teen and had no idea how to make a character properly. Even into my twenties, I'll still get unlucky against those two.
  • GKL206GKL206 Member Posts: 75
    I have, once or twice, to my huge embarrassment, fallen victim to one or other of them.
  • lunarlunar Member Posts: 3,460
    With scs they can hide in shadows and backstab. Also if you are new player and have no weapon equipped, Shank will get +4 to hit and damage bonus and thus can easily kill a lvl 1 mageling with poor stats.
  • JuliusBorisovJuliusBorisov Member, Administrator, Moderator, Developer Posts: 22,760
    @‌the_spyder

    There's an autosave right at the start of the game (as soon as the narrator ends his speech and you appear next to the elven **se inn). So you won't lose any of your characters attributes or so much dedicated stats if you die in the Candlekeep).

    I've got to admit several my SCS runs were very short because of Shank and Carbos. With SCS these guys use the Poison weapon ability so a single hit means 100% death to any charname, and if you happen to break the line of sight with them they will instantly hide in shadows and then it's over. Shank happens to have a bookshelf in the room and when my character runs around the corner to get some distance for the missile weapon, he can find that NOONE follows him. In a matter of seconds Shank shall appear with an insane backstabbing damage to throw the poor Bhaalspawn into pieces and to poison the remaining parts of the former Gorian's ward.
  • scriverscriver Member Posts: 2,072
    Yeah, it has happened a few times. In all DnD the first one of two levels basically comes down to luck and nothing else. A lucky hit or two can even take out (eventually) tanky warrior classes at that stage.
  • ajwzajwz Member Posts: 4,122
    In bg2 I once remeber reloading my game because the fight between carbos and shank had lasted like 5 minutes, and was still showing no signs of a winner, and was interfereing with my ability to save the game before going into neb's house.
    So technically I suppose my party died of boredom
  • EffinyEffiny Member Posts: 378
    edited March 2014
    Ehm...mmm..it actually happened to me in EE. :-D I'm expert on BG2, but I still have to learn a lot in BG1.
    Post edited by Effiny on
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    Actually I got Shanked very few times, when I played the original (aged 7) I got killed by Carbos because I didn't knew that Shank was there :P
  • reedmilfamreedmilfam Member Posts: 2,808
    I've died against them as a mage once.
  • SylphSylph Member Posts: 210
    I died to him the one time I tried playing a wild mage >.> I was getting bad rolls and couldn't hit him. Took 1 damage, cast magic missile, which he somehow resisted. took another hit, (keep in mind this was a 4hp mage) and tried nahal's reckless dweomer, which fizzled. Then he got a crit on me for 2hp and dead :(

    And that's why I'm biased against wild mages :P
  • Awong124Awong124 Member Posts: 2,642
    I'm pretty sure I have, but that was before I understood how the game really worked.
  • HeindrichHeindrich Member, Moderator Posts: 2,959
    Lilly Black almost died due to Shank, and only survived by kiting. If you roll a mage with mediocre stats, it's totally possible.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    Heindrich said:

    If you roll a mage with mediocre stats, it's totally possible.

    It dosn't matter the stats if you are a Mage, you only need Sleep, two hits with your staff (which you don't even need to be proficient with to kill Shank/Carbos with Sleep nor to kill the rats, this is good since you can't break the staff like iron weapons break).
    All the warrior classes simply will hit him in one moment, and they have good HP (10 base, which is good for level one).
    Rogues don't have much hope here, you have to hit Shank/Carbos before they hit you, if you use the weapon you are proficient with it isn't much difficult.
    Clerics can cast command and kill him easily, Druids can use Shiellagh (yes, it helps a little in this moment) and they also have access to Healing.
    Mages can cast Blindness/Sleep/Spook/Chromatic Orb to kill/disable and kill him.
  • the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
    LOL. Thanks everyone for sharing. Kudos to each and every one for holding this distinction. I salute you. And it should absolutely become a badge ala "I got Shanked". I feel in the best of company now. :)
  • EnterHaerDalisEnterHaerDalis Member Posts: 813
    Heindrich said:

    Lilly Black almost died due to Shank, and only survived by kiting. If you roll a mage with mediocre stats, it's totally possible.

    are you the guy with the silky smooth voice who did the Let's Play of BG with Lilly Black?

    that's some good shit right there
  • HeindrichHeindrich Member, Moderator Posts: 2,959
    @EnterHaerDalis
    No no! Mynameisnotlilly is done by Tord. I am his fanboy and (unofficial) disciple.
  • the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
    Surprisingly, as I almost always play mages, I've never had as much trouble with him with any of my casters. But then I always start out with a Familiar which gives me a leg up right there (more hit points and two attackers). Although, now that I think about it, that makes a good deal more sense that they would have a harder time sans spell casting, and given they only have one spell???

    My Assassin on the other hand kept on swinging and swinging. it became quite funny to watch. I guess not untypical for a 1st leveler who just barely knows which end of the sword is the pointy end.
  • HeindrichHeindrich Member, Moderator Posts: 2,959
    @the_spyder
    Tord was playing BG 1 Vanilla, so no familiars, and his first spell was Larloch's Drain, if I remember correctly. :D
  • elminsterelminster Member, Developer Posts: 16,317
    Probably as a bard or mage a long time ago.
  • elementelement Member Posts: 833
    carbos has been killed by shank
  • the_spyderthe_spyder Member Posts: 5,018
    You can kill carbs with a shank? And here i've been dieting and exercising all this time. Silly me. I shoulda used a shank. Shanks for the mamories.
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    elminster said:

    Probably as a bard or mage a long time ago.

    This.

  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    Big like!
    Makes it worth it to flee toward the Library and see this for myself :)
  • Demonoid_LimewireDemonoid_Limewire Member Posts: 424
    Shank or Carbos, once took down a mage pc i had created sometime in the distant past. But then, i did not know the game's mechanics well enough, and my stats were nowhere close where they should as numbers. 6 or less hitpoints are easily depleted, even in prologue.
  • simplessimples Member Posts: 540
    this happened to me recently tbh, i was not proud of myself
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