At Cloakwood 3 I CLUA'd in Molkar and his buddies (who had never appeared). Coran with boots of speed and an oil of speed took them on by himself. He was untouchable due to his speed, and devastating with his Longbow of Marksmanship. He used arrows of biting against the spellcasters.
Gylliane and Coran skipped the Druid quests, killed the wyverns in the next area for Coran's quest, and in the Cloakwood Mines area they sneaked past the Arch Druid and confronted Drasus and company. They didn't prebuff. Gylliane caught Drasus, Rezdan and Genthore in her Web and together with Coran finished them off with little difficulty. Kysus on the other hand was either invisible or out of Gylliane's line of sight when the conversation with Drasus started. He came toward the party, Stoneskinned and surrounded by a globe of Invulnerability neither Coran (without arrows of dispelling) nor Gylliane (with no dispelling magic) could dispel, and he remained unaffected by the Web. Together they managed to fight through the mage's first Stoneskin, but he immediately cast a second one, followed by an Emotion: Hopelessness that affected both Coran and Gylliane (before she could activate her Greenstone Amulet). Together with two summoned Ogrillons he slew Gylliane.
***
Note: in my setup poison apparently doesn't penetrate stoneskin, but I did have arrows of fire that Coran should have switched to, to at least try to disrupt Kysus. A very disappointing run. The Swashmage or Fighter/Mage is supposed to be the class I know how to play "best", and I know I should be able to breeze through BG1 with one. Maybe I shouldn't have recruited Coran, and relied fully on charname. Anyway I'm going to be a bit busier as of now, but I'll keep on trying (and probably posting, however underwhelming my track record may be). I still have Aya the Avenger, but at this moment I feel more like beating mages into mushy pulp, so I might give Grynne the (rebalanced) Wizard Slayer another try.
Thanks. So am I, it's becoming frustrating... I'm going to think for a while on a next charname. I'm inclined to go Fighter/Thief in BG1 (solo) and gather a party in BG2.
Its difficult to travel invisible in a group as there just is not enough invisibility to go around, and I didn´t think for one minute that any random encounter, let alone 2 worgs, could end my run.
As to the bounty hunter, one in EE one cannot throw traps. I like the multi-class mage-thief better than the dual-class as well, because I really think continuing rogue progression is preferable to 1 more level as a mage at any given point, except when waiting that last level for 9th level spells. But bounty hunter is just a pretty cool concept and an evil character that I can really get into. I play him as lawful evil: basically he will take most any job that pays, and once he gives his word, he sees the job through no matter what he has to do to complete the task. He is kind of the evil twin of Aurorus.
Its difficult to travel invisible in a group as there just is not enough invisibility to go around, and I didn´t think for one minute that any random encounter, let alone 2 worgs, could end my run.
As to the bounty hunter, one in EE one cannot throw traps. I like the multi-class mage-thief better than the dual-class as well, because I really think continuing rogue progression is preferable to 1 more level as a mage at any given point, except when waiting that last level for 9th level spells. But bounty hunter is just a pretty cool concept and an evil character that I can really get into. I play him as lawful evil: basically he will take most any job that pays, and once he gives his word, he sees the job through no matter what he has to do to complete the task. He is kind of the evil twin of Aurorus.
Yes invisibility in larger groups is difficult. It's one of the reasons I tend to prefer smaller groups with characters who can sneak or cast invisibility or sanctuary.
The Bounty Hunter sounds like a fun character to roleplay: the unbending and scrupleless mercenary. I hope you'll journal his exploits
Sorry about the swash-mage, but my track record is about the same as yours. I actually completed the game about 10 days ago with Aurorus, but have lost 3 times since then: my druid (who has since been recreated), my bard, and a sorceror. That is why I finally turned to my bounty hunter the other day.
I just finished the basilisks with him so he is coming down to the point where it may be worthwhile to document his exploits.
@Aurorus, I'd like to read about the Bounty Hunter, not in the least because of the character concept you developed for him. I think I'm going use the dice to decide what I'll be playing next: http://www.wizards.com/dnd/dice/dice.htm (completely random character).
He also had this uncanny ability to be in the right place, when the goalkeeper or a defender deflected the ball, in order to get the ball and score :-)
Keep trying ! SCS no-reload is a really tough challenge and a really fun one. Maybe the fact that Cleric/Thief is considered an underdog made you more cautious with Teyl compared to your Swash/Mage
@Gotural, that's an interesting observation. You may be right about Teyl being more careful. I shall keep this in mind Atm I feel like running another character, but I might return to Teyl or a new Cleric/Thief.
On Saturdays I teach 5-hour English (marathon) classes to a group of teenagers. Usually I have my laptop with me, so I can work with sound/video clips. I also have my students do lots of exercises, allowing me to play A few weeks back I decided to give Gylliane a second chance. I must say it's been a breeze so far, but that's because I planned her quest order more carefully than I do in most playthroughs. As it's been going so swell, I thought it worthwhile to start posting about her. (I'm also still doing Ocker the Skald, but with a full party, that's just too much micro-managing while I'm at work.)
Charname's the same Gylliane as my previous character (same char file), but I changed her alignment to CG, which allowed me to get the Fairy Dragon and its Invisibility 15' Radius. Starting spells were Sleep and Spook.
A summary of her exploits:
She did most Candlekeep quests, and once outside the citadel had Imoen, Montaron and Xzar join her, only to rob them of their valuables before she would dismiss them. She then travelled to Beregost where picking locks and doing quests (Mirianne, Firebead, Spiders, Marl) helped her gain some XP and probably a thief level. I didnt really keep track of level progression, or take pics until later. At the High Hedge she saw Thalantyr fail in his attempt to restore Melicamp. Gylliane travelled to Nashkel to get her first Bhaal dream and subsequently the power to heal. She didn't stay but returned to the north, where she killed a hobgoblin for his Boots of Stealth, a rogue Ogre (for Landrin), a number of Tasloi for Gurke's Cloak of Non-Detection. 'Sleep' was her main weapon.
Sleep also enabled her to kill off Tarnesh at the FAI, together with her Fairy Dragon that had just joined her (after she had found a scroll of Find Familiar at the point where normally the Ring of Wizardry is located). The Fairy Dragon was helpful because Gylliane's lacking proficiency in bows made her a lacklustre archer at the beginning of the game in spite of her 19 DEX (I think one pip in scimitar and one pip in daggers and then using throwing daggers would have been a better proficiency distribution).
Her archery was so bad that the green scroll of Protection from Petrifcation expired before she could slay the last two Basilisks near Mutamin. Korax however did a great job for her, killing first the Lesser Basilisk, and then holding Mutamin and later the Greater Basilisk. With the Greater Basilisk held and eventually killed by Korax, Gylliane could blind Mutamin and pelt him with arrows. On Mutamin's body she found an Adventurer's Robe and a Charisma tome. It must have been around this time that Gylliane bought from Thalantyr the Deep Red Ioun stone that gives +1 DEX and protects against crits.
Next destinations were the Lighthouse Area, where Gylliane killed a few Worgs and snuck past Sirines and Golems to obtain a Ring of Fire Protection and the Manual of Bodily Health (I think the Item Randomiser doesn't touch the manual because it seems to regard it as part of Safana's quest), and later the South Coast to help Nib and Brage. She made her way back from Nashkel toward the Gnoll stronghold where she hoped to find Bracers of AC6 on one of the Half-Ogres on the bridge, but she had to make do with Bracers of AC8 and spells. Blur and Mirror Image helped her stand her ground in melee:
In the Cloudpeaks killing Sendai, something Gylliane had considered avoiding, proved to be a wise decision. Not only did she obtain two Scimitars +1, the best she might get in BG1 as Drizzt turned out to be unpickpocketable ('target has no items'), and Rashad's Talon can be hidden anywhere. Sendai also dropped the Boots of Speed.
At Thalantyr's she bought the Wand of Sleep, with which she would try and take on the Nashkel mines. She would have Thalantyr "merge" the Boots of Speed and those of Stealth, but she lacked the resources. At the Nashkel Mines Gylliane (level 5/6 Mage/Swashbuckler) did little to clear the area of its Kobold infestation. At the third level she used her Wand of Sleep to put a large group to rest, killed only those that barred her way, used one of her twice memorized Invisibility spells, and disarmed traps before she descended.
She was injured at this point as she had triggered a trap after having taken a wrong turn.]
Mulahey was blinded, out of sight of his minions, allowing her to hit him in melee against which he wold retalliate by beginning to cast spells until she retreated out his sight. He wasn't much of a threat and fell fast enough.
Mulahey conveniently dropped the Bracrs of Archery, allowing Gylliane to become a decent archer. The minions were put to Sleep and killed off so that Gylliane could make her way out after Xan was returned his Moonblade. Outside, Narcillius and the Undead were too much to handle, Gylliane feared, so she simply returned to Nashkel. InNashkel an interesting situation presented itself when she entered the inn, fleeing from a spellcasting Nimbul (whom she had stripped of his Stoneskins with the Amnish soldiers). The closed door should have been a warning, and yes: Neira was still waiting for her. Gylliane blinded the priestess and was ready to take her down with ranged attacks, when Nimbul decided to take a look inside as well. He horrored Gylliane, but not before she could drink a potion of invisibility.
When the Horror had worn off, the still invisible Gylliane moved to the door opening where Nimbul was waiting for her, she hit him with her scimitar, fled outside and hid again for another sneak attack, and acted thusly until he fell. After that, Neira, still blinded (Blindness lasts so long!), was taken down with ranged attacks. (She ran a lot, so Gylliane released her familiar, let him cast Invisibility 15' Radius, and blocked her path behind the bar, so that Gylliane could keep on firing her arrows.
At the Nashkel Carnival Gylliane slew Zordral in melee after she had him waste a few spells by getting in and out of his tent. Gylliane then decided to try and become more experienced before visiting the Bandit Camp. She had hoped to take on Shoal the Nereid on the North Coast, but got waylaid by Molkar and co on the same map. Gylliane, ever the thrill-seeker tried to test her foes's mettle but had a hard time thanks to the many monsters that would, without exception, side with Molkar and his gang.
Also, even when invisible/hidden, the bounty hunters would all follow her, making it impossible to divide and conquer. With difficulty she managed to slay Molkar (who dropped disappointingly mundane armor), but when she saw a Hold Person from Drakar coming her way, she fled.
She fared better against the Ankhegs north of the FAI and the Wolves east of the Temple of Lathander. Slaying plenty of those beasts helped her gain a level in both her classes. Blindness and Skull Trap worked pretty well here. Against the Ankhegs she also used the Wand of Sleep until it was consumed. For her last level ups (7 Mage / 8 Swashbuckler) she travelled to Durlag's Tower, where she looted the upper levels (using potions of perception to get her lockpicks and detect traps to >100). She found some potions and scrolls, nothing spectacular though, and the Mace +2 on the trapped altar that normally contains the Tome of Understanding. Outside she cast (blue) Protection from Petrification upon herself, three times at different moments, to kill three Basilisks. The lizards were taken care off with Skull Traps, Blindness and Magic Missiles.
In a chimney she found a second Tome of Charisma (I have Item Randomiser randomize not only the location of the Durlag's Tower tome, but also the content of the tome.) Gylliane has now 20 natural CHA. She left Durlag's Tower and returned to the Nashkel Mines exit area. There she slew Narcillius and (after having rested) the Revenant with Skull Traps. She killed the other undead as well and looted the tombs, which yielded her a Wand of Fire among other (less noteworthy) things.
Potions of Magic Blocking (bought at Thalantyr's) and her success with Skull Trap convinced Gylliane that she might actually stand a chance against the Sirines in the Lighthouse Area. She was not mistaken. She could cast three Skull Traps per day; their huge damage output allowed her to kill 2x3 Sirines (for 20k XP, 5x3k and 5k for Sil). The Golems inside the cave were slain with hit and fade tactics.
Gylliane is now a level 7/8 Mage/Swashbuckler (her maximum levels, as I'm going to respect the XP cap, even though it's removed).
I'm still hesitant about taking her into the Bandit Camp because I have no summons, no Stoneskin or any other level 4 spells, no Girdle of Piercing, no Robe of the Good Archmagi, mediocre AC. She does have good fire damage output though (potions, the wand), and the possibility of protecting her very well against fire damage. She's most likely going to hunt for spell scrolls. She's got most of Thalantyr's useful spells, but there are many more scrolls to be found. Also, Bassilus hasn't been taken care of yet.
Gylliane battled a number of tougher foes, hoping to find better gear/items, and survived the encounters. First she explored the Firewine Ruins while invisible. She had the most difficulty at a point where a group of Kobolds blocked the corridor she needed to pass to get to Lendarn and the Ogre Mage. She had to buff (Blur, Mirror Image) and become visible and fight her way past the Kobolds. When the Ogre Mage spotted her and turned invisible, Gylliane retreated, and was followed by the monster. SHe later returned (also invisible) but encountered only Lendarn, who was successfully taken down without him ever seeing his doom coming. Gylliana spotted hime, found a space where she could HiS and bombarded the wizard with three Skull Traps, which had him panick, and two times Magic Missile.
On Lendarn's body she found the Manual of Gainful Exercise, with which she raised her STR to 19. She left the Ruins without bothering with the Ogre Mage. She then returned to the North Coast to get a Potion of Magic Shielding from the Surgeon. She had to deal with Drakar first though. Blindness, Skull Traps, and Magic Missiles did the job.
In the eastern Cloudpeaks area Gylliane found a scroll of Monster Summoning II. In Ulgoth's Beard she bought scrolls of Improved Insibility, Emotion: Hopelessness, and Greater Malison. She used the Red Potion from a Nashkel Carnival merchant to succesfully scribe these four spells. Way down South in the Dragon's run area, she got a green scroll of Protection from Magic. She used it to fight the Red Wizards of Thay in melee (two pips in Scimitars and two in Two Weapon Fighting, combined with 19 STR is not bad). It worked against Denak and Lasala. The other two mages remained invisible, much to Gylliane's chagrin. She decided to rest for one day in a safe spot. When she returned Diana was easily vanquished, but Brendan remained invisible. Gylliane had to summon a Hobgoblin in order for him to appear. While he fought the Hobgoblin, Gylliane waited patiently for the wizard's protections to expire and Skull Trapped him to death.
Gylliane now owns Robes of Fire, Electricity and Cold Resistance, a Knave's Robe and an Adventurer's Robe. She only needs the Traveller's Robe so that Thalantyr can make the Mage Robe of Practical Protection for her. This will probably have to wait till Cloakwood Mines though. She rested at the FAI, bought Potions of Genius and Mind Focusing, and moved to Peldvale from where she infiltrated the Bandit Camp. Three Skull Traps, two Magic Missiles, two charges of her Wand of Fire, an Oil of Fiery Burning and about four hits with her Arrows +1 sufficed to bring down Tazok for the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise.
Gylliane searched the camp, which yielded her some gold as well as scrolls of Web and Ghost Armor and a number of useful potions. She quaffed a Potion of Genius and a Potion of Mind Focusing to succesfully copy a number of scrolls to her spellbook (especially Ghost Armor). She then memorized as many defensive spells as possible, and rested. When she woke, she entered Tazok's tent invisibly, and protected herself as best as she could against the horde of bandits that would soon turn against her. With Ghost Armor, Blur, Mirror Image, Boots of Avoidance, the still active Potion of Mind Focusing, a Potion of Magic Shielding and Improved Invisibility, she considered herself nigh untouchable. She opened with a Fireball and took down a few of the bandits (archers) in melee but as her protections started to wear off, she found herself getting hit at a dangerous pace. She drank a potion of inivisibility healed herself, drank two Potions of Fire Resistance (raising that resistance to 140) and then while surrounded by many remaining (but injured) bandits, she threw a Potion of Explosions in the crowd, killing all but three foes. They were at Near Death ststus however, so Gylliane had little difficulty killing them in melee and with Magic Missiles.
Before entering the Cloakwood, Gylliane will probably try to pickpocket Dushai for her Ring of Free Action (even though Invisibility will do fine to survive the Cloakwood 2 area), and take on Bassilus (one never knows if Item Randomisation has put any interesting loot in the evil priest's inventory.)
Thank you @Elrandir, yes she has fared well so far, and surpassed her previous self.
***
Gylliane travelled to Ulgoth's Beard with four potions of Master Thievery she had bought from the Rogue near Durlag's Tower. She had been to Ulgoth's Breard before, and met Dushai, a gnomish lass who had shown Gylliane her Ring of Free Action. Gylliane thought that she, as an adventurer, had more use for it than Dushai. After our heroine had quaffed three of the aforementioned potions, it turned out that Dushai was not to be pickpocketed (just as Drizzt: 'Target has no items'). Fairly annoying because Gylliane had spent quite a lot of gold on the potions. She got some satisfaction from pickpocketing Shandalar and Hurgan (the former for a number spells, the best of which she had already bought at the Ulgoth's Beard Inn, and the latter for a diamond). Gylliane's Chaotic Good alignment kept her from even considering to murder Dushai for the ring. Even without the Ring of Free Action, Gylliane was decided on ridding the realms of Bassilus. She decided that she would try to Blind the priest, and immediately drink a Potion of Invisibility if Bassilus was to save against her spell. Her plan worked: Bassilus got blinded, suffered injuries from Gylliane's Skull Traps but drank healing potions to restore his health. Gylliane was fearful to attack Bassilus in melee because he could still cast a Greater Command which is insta-cast, and that would prevent Gylliane from retreating in time. (I've had a no-reload run end this way once.) Instead she attacked with her bow and hit him a few times, but then decided to try the Darts of Wounding and of Stunning she had been carrying around for a long time. With them she poisoned and stunned Bassilus, after which she finished him off in melee.
Back in Beregost, without any good spells left, she was tracked down by Lamalha and her fellow amazons. She fled inside one of the homes and hid. However, Lamalha and Zeela followed her inside. And when she left Zeela followed her outside again. Gylliane rested in the Red Sheaf, after which she slew Zeela (also in the Red Sheaf) and Lamalha (still in the home that Gylliane had first entered). Both priestesses were successfully blinded. Gylliane would approach, let them start casting, retreat from their range of sight, and then attack with her scimitars. Blindness has been Gylliane's favourite spell, later rivalled by devastating Skull Trap (which is just great to use for a stealthy character).
Telka and Maneira (the rogues) are probably still waiting for Gylliane in Beregost, something she should remember in case she ever returns there, but she's more likely to forget... She also visited Ulcaster [an area I almost always skip]. Gylliane slew most wolves (though not the Wolf of Ulcaster), and the Greater Skeleton Mage that had first hurt itself with a clumsily cast Lightning Bolt and was subsequently nuked by Gylliane's Skull Traps and Fireballs (using the Wand). The skeletan wizard dropped Varscona. She trekked through the Cloakwood mostly invisibly, disinclined to deal with webbing Spiders or plotting Druids, until she reached the Cloakwood Mines. Drasus and co, were softened up with a Skull Trap and after that, dispersed as Drasus and Genthore followed toward the bridge between the two wooden stuctures on the island. It allowed Gylliane to deal with her foes in three steps. First, she was lucky to find Kysus alone, isolated from Rezdan. He was lured away fromthe island, over the bridge, until Gylliane (with a Potion of Magic Blocking to protect her from the wizard's spells) attacked. He still managed to hurt her with Melf's Minute Meteors but also suffered injuries thanks to a second Skull Trap and Magic Missiles. Once his spell protections had worn off (Minor Globe of Invulnerability, Mirror Image) / were stripped by Gylliane (Stoneskin), he fell to Gylliane's blades. On his body she found the Traveler's Robe, the missing piece in her collection of robes. With it she travelled back to the High Hedge (again mostly invisible), to have Thalantyr create the Mage Robe of Practical Protection for her:
(2) When she had returned to the Cloakwood Mines step 2 was to finish off Rezdan. He too, was easy to take on without interference by the others. (Drasus and Genthore were still on the bridge behind the wooden barracks.) Out of the wizard's sight she summoned a Gnoll and an Ogre (Monster Summoning II), and sent them in to attack, one after the other. It caused Rezdan to waste various spells that might have otherwise complicated things for Gylliane, such as Blindness, Melf's Minute Meteors, Chaos, Confusion, and Domincation. (The Ogre actually saved against most of the mind-affecting spells ). With most of his spells exahusted Rezdan wasn't much of a threat to Gylliane. She finished him off with her own magic (Skull Traps and Magic Missiles) and two Oils of Fiery Burning.
(3) Gylliane then buffed herself with Ghost Armor, Blur, and Mirror Image, and took on Genthore and Drasus plus a guard with little difficulty. The harvest was meager: an enchanted morningstar and a scroll of Firsehield (Red).
The buffs worked long enough to also engage the guards in the second building, but after that she retreated to find a place to rest and memorize spells. She entered the complex hidden in shadows, spoke with the miner who knew how to operate the plug, and moved, again hidden, to the level exit. Then she cast Invisibility on herself, descended, passed a group of bandits including Hareishan, reached Rill's and Yeslick's prison. The unlocking of the door betrayed her presence, so she briefly spoke with Rill, gave him 100 GP and immediately rushed to the third level. Again she decided not to risk anything against the hordes of guards (who were quite sturdy), and fled to the west wing where she hid in shadows. She didn't explore the level but moved straight to the exit that led to Davaeorn.
Gylliane, unbuffed, fought Davaeorn's guard and suffered several hits before she slew him. She healed and cast Invisibility on herself (from a scroll she had bought at Thalantyr's), allowing her to disarm Davaeorn's traps unmolested. He noticed her anyway and introduced himself. Gylliane had little time for conversation what with Davaeorn's Stinking Cloud - Web combo cast in her direction. She retreated toward the entrance out of the spell's reach. Davaeorn followed her, while his Doomguards (or Battle Horrors?) stayed behind, possibly trapped by Davaeorn's web. With only Davaeorn to take into account, she decided to cast Protection from Magic on herself (green scroll from Thalantyr). She had waited to see who she would have to deal with first. If she had faced the Doomguards, she would have buffed herself. Anyway, Davaeorn was soon joined by the Doomguards, so she had to deal with the three of them at the same time. She had the Bracers of AC8 on, which gave her an AC of 1, not very convenient to battle the Doomguards with. For that reason, Gylliane used hit and fade tactics, attacking from stealth and retreating once she was seen. This way she managed to break through Davaeorn's Stoneskin, and slay him in melee combat. She did suffer a number of hits from the Doomguards, but they were somehow connected to Davaeorn and fell when he did.
She found the Girdle of Piercing on Davaeorn's body, as well a number of very useful scrolls, most importantly Stoneskin. Gylliane looted the premises, spared Stephane's life and made her way to the first level, where she handed the key to the miner so that he could flood the mine. On her way out of the Cloakwood, forgetting to cast Invisibility on herself almost cost her her life. She got 'waylaid' by two Giant Spiders who immediately cast Webs her way. One of the monsters was standing practically next to her, so that te distance the web trap had to cover to get to her, was minimal. Gylliane woud have died there and then if she hadn't had a Potion of Invisibility at hand. [A 'no pause challenge' would have ended there anyway.]
Gylliane learnt from her mistake, and made sure to travel invisibly from the Cloakwood to the FAI, and from there to the city fo Baldur's Gate, where she just bought a large number of spell scrolls from Halbazzer Drin. She drank two Potions of Genius, and copied the scrolls, together with the scrolls she had acquired at the Cloakwood Mines, to her spellbook. Her next mission will be to explore the grand city, and see if there are people she can help or any proftitable business opportunities to be seized.
In the city of Baldur's Gate, Gylliane first resolved to enrich herself. With a few potions of Master Thievery she looted the Silvershield Estate, and pickpocketed the Cloak of Balduran from Quenash, a Tome of Understanding from Chanthalas Ulbright, some jewelry from Arkion and Nemphre, Halbazzer Drin's Nymph Cloak (which she would sell for 30,000 GP, making Gylliane feel truly rich for the first time in her life), and another Tome of Understanding from Ragefast whom she didn't kill after he rued his actions. She did kill his rival Ramazith, blinding him (before he would teleport upstairs), and finishing him off with ranged attacks.
Upstairs she found a few good scrolls, and the Robe of the Good Archmagi. For AC purposes she's using that robe now instead of the Mage Robe of Practical Protection that Thalantyr had made for her before. On Ramazith's body she found the Bracers of AC7. Gylliane travelled to the High Hedge where Thalantyr merged said bracers together with a pair of Gauntlets of Weapon Skill she had found in the Baldur's Gate docks and the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise she had found on Tazok, into the Gauntlets of Grandmastery. It cost her 5000 GP and a potion of Defense.
For Scar she cleared the Seven Suns of their Shapeshifter presence, and the sewers of an Ogre Mage (who was, again, blinded). She fought Battle Horrors, Helmed Horrors, and Invisible Stalkers, which cost her about ten healing potions, and proceeded to take on Degrodel in the hopes of finding another Tome (she still hasn't found the Tome of Clear Throught and the Manual of Quickness of Action). He didn't drop one though, as Gylliane discovered after she had waited for his spell protections to expire, successfully cast Blindness (in three instances), and slain him with Arrows of Biting and normal arrows.
Gylliane returned to Scar and agreed to "investigate" the Iron Throne. The battle nearly ended her life. She entered, spoke with Cloudwulfe, retreated and returned stealthed to cast a Stinking Cloud. However, before she could finish casting that spell, one of her foes Enfeebled her as soon as she became visible. (This seemed unfair to me because both Stinking Cloud and Ray of Enfeeblement have a casting time of 2.) She got severely injured within seconds (left with 14 hitpoints out of 65). Gylliane should have probably dropped everything except her Robe and her Familiar to flee downstairs, but instead she quaffed a Potion of Invibility. One of her foes, I think Aasim, had already cast Invisibility Purge the first time she arrived upstairs. So she hoped that no dispelling magic would follow this time. Her hopes were idle: Gylliane did have the time to fully heal herself, but before the Enfeeblement had worn off Naaman cast Detect Invisibility, to which Gylliane responded by quaffing a second Potion of Inivisbility right away.
The Enfeeblement wore off soon after, allowing Gylliane to flee downstairs where she buffed herself with Blur and Mirror Image, an Oil of Speed and a Potion of Clarity, and later Shield. She managed to disperse the group with hit and fade tactics, so she would only have to deal with one or two foes at a time. (She was reluctant to use AoE spells because of the merchants who were walking around in the middle of the ruckus.) She had no difficulty melee'ing her foes, although she escaped when Alai cast Emotion: Hopelessness against her. The spell stranded on Gylliane's 30 Magic Resistance (Cloak of Balduran plus Robe of the Good Archmagi), and that was a good thing because I think the Potion of Clarity doesn't protect against the spell's sleep effect. (I should have used a Potion of Magic Blocking, but I didn't want it to cancel her buffs.)
The main spoils are a Wand of Lightning, a Ring of Protection +2, a Ring of Free Action, a Cloak of Displacement and three scrolls she hadn't encountered yet (Polymorph Other, Minor Sequencer and Cone of Cold).
She'll try and take on the butler and the fighter in one of the houses (again, hoping to find Tomes or a Shield Amulet that Thalantyr can enchant so that it givs a permanent AC4 effect). After that, supposing she survives, she'll reurn to Candlekeep.
Final Update: Gylliane got killed in the final battle by what seemed to be an insta-kill effect, which is very remarkable because she had around 60 hitpoints and an ioun stone to protect her against critical hits. She had finished off Angelo and was in the process of taking down Tazok with hit and fade tactics. I saw her get hit once by Sarevok, paused, had her gulp a potion of extra healing, unpaused, saw her drink the potion and had her and run away (at double speed: boots + potion) to hide in shadows. And then all of a sudden it was game over. Maybe simultaneous hits by Sarevok, Diarmid and Semaj could have killed her?
A bit of sad and unsatisfying - clueless as to what hit me - end of an otherwise decent run for my standards.
Candlekeep, and return to Baldur's Gate had gone very well. I've got lots of pics, the battles with Cylandria and with Krystin were quite great, but now that my run has ended, I don't feel inclined to post about them.
Right, I hadn't considered that. I've never seen him use it in the final battle in any of my games (against charname or NPCs), but it would make a lot sense. The only other option I could think of would be some kind of insta-kill spell by Semaj (Flesh to Stone or something).
Aww that's sad. I wish there was a way to see the chat window when you die. I've had insta deaths as a Wild Mage and it's pretty annoying when you can't see exactly what killed you
I don't remember Sarevok having the Deathbringer assault in BG1, even with SCS. And I also don't think that Semaj can cast Flesh to Stone but I could be wrong. This is pretty weird, if you didn't see any "projectiles" coming your way (Flesh to Stone throws a little sphere at you for example) then there is a good chance that this was a bug.
@Gotural, well I didn't see anything coming my way, but on the Bioware forums I read that Semaj (depending on game setup) does sometimes cast Flesh to Stone, so I'm going to assume it was that. As @FinalFront said, it would have been nice to know what killed her.
Comments
At Cloakwood 3 I CLUA'd in Molkar and his buddies (who had never appeared). Coran with boots of speed and an oil of speed took them on by himself. He was untouchable due to his speed, and devastating with his Longbow of Marksmanship. He used arrows of biting against the spellcasters.
Gylliane and Coran skipped the Druid quests, killed the wyverns in the next area for Coran's quest, and in the Cloakwood Mines area they sneaked past the Arch Druid and confronted Drasus and company. They didn't prebuff. Gylliane caught Drasus, Rezdan and Genthore in her Web and together with Coran finished them off with little difficulty. Kysus on the other hand was either invisible or out of Gylliane's line of sight when the conversation with Drasus started. He came toward the party, Stoneskinned and surrounded by a globe of Invulnerability neither Coran (without arrows of dispelling) nor Gylliane (with no dispelling magic) could dispel, and he remained unaffected by the Web. Together they managed to fight through the mage's first Stoneskin, but he immediately cast a second one, followed by an Emotion: Hopelessness that affected both Coran and Gylliane (before she could activate her Greenstone Amulet). Together with two summoned Ogrillons he slew Gylliane.
***
Note: in my setup poison apparently doesn't penetrate stoneskin, but I did have arrows of fire that Coran should have switched to, to at least try to disrupt Kysus. A very disappointing run. The Swashmage or Fighter/Mage is supposed to be the class I know how to play "best", and I know I should be able to breeze through BG1 with one. Maybe I shouldn't have recruited Coran, and relied fully on charname.
Anyway I'm going to be a bit busier as of now, but I'll keep on trying (and probably posting, however underwhelming my track record may be). I still have Aya the Avenger, but at this moment I feel more like beating mages into mushy pulp, so I might give Grynne the (rebalanced) Wizard Slayer another try.
As to the bounty hunter, one in EE one cannot throw traps. I like the multi-class mage-thief better than the dual-class as well, because I really think continuing rogue progression is preferable to 1 more level as a mage at any given point, except when waiting that last level for 9th level spells. But bounty hunter is just a pretty cool concept and an evil character that I can really get into. I play him as lawful evil: basically he will take most any job that pays, and once he gives his word, he sees the job through no matter what he has to do to complete the task. He is kind of the evil twin of Aurorus.
Yes invisibility in larger groups is difficult. It's one of the reasons I tend to prefer smaller groups with characters who can sneak or cast invisibility or sanctuary.
The Bounty Hunter sounds like a fun character to roleplay: the unbending and scrupleless mercenary. I hope you'll journal his exploits
I just finished the basilisks with him so he is coming down to the point where it may be worthwhile to document his exploits.
Anyway, it was an easy goal for someone waiting in the right position and I have always been a fan of Raul
Raul was a great player and a gentleman on the pitch.
A few weeks back I decided to give Gylliane a second chance. I must say it's been a breeze so far, but that's because I planned her quest order more carefully than I do in most playthroughs. As it's been going so swell, I thought it worthwhile to start posting about her. (I'm also still doing Ocker the Skald, but with a full party, that's just too much micro-managing while I'm at work.)
Charname's the same Gylliane as my previous character (same char file), but I changed her alignment to CG, which allowed me to get the Fairy Dragon and its Invisibility 15' Radius. Starting spells were Sleep and Spook.
A summary of her exploits:
She did most Candlekeep quests, and once outside the citadel had Imoen, Montaron and Xzar join her, only to rob them of their valuables before she would dismiss them. She then travelled to Beregost where picking locks and doing quests (Mirianne, Firebead, Spiders, Marl) helped her gain some XP and probably a thief level. I didnt really keep track of level progression, or take pics until later. At the High Hedge she saw Thalantyr fail in his attempt to restore Melicamp. Gylliane travelled to Nashkel to get her first Bhaal dream and subsequently the power to heal. She didn't stay but returned to the north, where she killed a hobgoblin for his Boots of Stealth, a rogue Ogre (for Landrin), a number of Tasloi for Gurke's Cloak of Non-Detection. 'Sleep' was her main weapon.
Sleep also enabled her to kill off Tarnesh at the FAI, together with her Fairy Dragon that had just joined her (after she had found a scroll of Find Familiar at the point where normally the Ring of Wizardry is located). The Fairy Dragon was helpful because Gylliane's lacking proficiency in bows made her a lacklustre archer at the beginning of the game in spite of her 19 DEX (I think one pip in scimitar and one pip in daggers and then using throwing daggers would have been a better proficiency distribution).
Her archery was so bad that the green scroll of Protection from Petrifcation expired before she could slay the last two Basilisks near Mutamin. Korax however did a great job for her, killing first the Lesser Basilisk, and then holding Mutamin and later the Greater Basilisk. With the Greater Basilisk held and eventually killed by Korax, Gylliane could blind Mutamin and pelt him with arrows. On Mutamin's body she found an Adventurer's Robe and a Charisma tome. It must have been around this time that Gylliane bought from Thalantyr the Deep Red Ioun stone that gives +1 DEX and protects against crits.
Next destinations were the Lighthouse Area, where Gylliane killed a few Worgs and snuck past Sirines and Golems to obtain a Ring of Fire Protection and the Manual of Bodily Health (I think the Item Randomiser doesn't touch the manual because it seems to regard it as part of Safana's quest), and later the South Coast to help Nib and Brage. She made her way back from Nashkel toward the Gnoll stronghold where she hoped to find Bracers of AC6 on one of the Half-Ogres on the bridge, but she had to make do with Bracers of AC8 and spells. Blur and Mirror Image helped her stand her ground in melee:
In the Cloudpeaks killing Sendai, something Gylliane had considered avoiding, proved to be a wise decision. Not only did she obtain two Scimitars +1, the best she might get in BG1 as Drizzt turned out to be unpickpocketable ('target has no items'), and Rashad's Talon can be hidden anywhere. Sendai also dropped the Boots of Speed.
At Thalantyr's she bought the Wand of Sleep, with which she would try and take on the Nashkel mines. She would have Thalantyr "merge" the Boots of Speed and those of Stealth, but she lacked the resources. At the Nashkel Mines Gylliane (level 5/6 Mage/Swashbuckler) did little to clear the area of its Kobold infestation. At the third level she used her Wand of Sleep to put a large group to rest, killed only those that barred her way, used one of her twice memorized Invisibility spells, and disarmed traps before she descended.
She was injured at this point as she had triggered a trap after having taken a wrong turn.]
Mulahey was blinded, out of sight of his minions, allowing her to hit him in melee against which he wold retalliate by beginning to cast spells until she retreated out his sight. He wasn't much of a threat and fell fast enough.
Mulahey conveniently dropped the Bracrs of Archery, allowing Gylliane to become a decent archer. The minions were put to Sleep and killed off so that Gylliane could make her way out after Xan was returned his Moonblade.
Outside, Narcillius and the Undead were too much to handle, Gylliane feared, so she simply returned to Nashkel.
InNashkel an interesting situation presented itself when she entered the inn, fleeing from a spellcasting Nimbul (whom she had stripped of his Stoneskins with the Amnish soldiers). The closed door should have been a warning, and yes: Neira was still waiting for her. Gylliane blinded the priestess and was ready to take her down with ranged attacks, when Nimbul decided to take a look inside as well. He horrored Gylliane, but not before she could drink a potion of invisibility.
When the Horror had worn off, the still invisible Gylliane moved to the door opening where Nimbul was waiting for her, she hit him with her scimitar, fled outside and hid again for another sneak attack, and acted thusly until he fell. After that, Neira, still blinded (Blindness lasts so long!), was taken down with ranged attacks. (She ran a lot, so Gylliane released her familiar, let him cast Invisibility 15' Radius, and blocked her path behind the bar, so that Gylliane could keep on firing her arrows.
At the Nashkel Carnival Gylliane slew Zordral in melee after she had him waste a few spells by getting in and out of his tent. Gylliane then decided to try and become more experienced before visiting the Bandit Camp. She had hoped to take on Shoal the Nereid on the North Coast, but got waylaid by Molkar and co on the same map. Gylliane, ever the thrill-seeker tried to test her foes's mettle but had a hard time thanks to the many monsters that would, without exception, side with Molkar and his gang.
Also, even when invisible/hidden, the bounty hunters would all follow her, making it impossible to divide and conquer. With difficulty she managed to slay Molkar (who dropped disappointingly mundane armor), but when she saw a Hold Person from Drakar coming her way, she fled.
She fared better against the Ankhegs north of the FAI and the Wolves east of the Temple of Lathander. Slaying plenty of those beasts helped her gain a level in both her classes. Blindness and Skull Trap worked pretty well here. Against the Ankhegs she also used the Wand of Sleep until it was consumed. For her last level ups (7 Mage / 8 Swashbuckler) she travelled to Durlag's Tower, where she looted the upper levels (using potions of perception to get her lockpicks and detect traps to >100). She found some potions and scrolls, nothing spectacular though, and the Mace +2 on the trapped altar that normally contains the Tome of Understanding. Outside she cast (blue) Protection from Petrification upon herself, three times at different moments, to kill three Basilisks. The lizards were taken care off with Skull Traps, Blindness and Magic Missiles.
In a chimney she found a second Tome of Charisma (I have Item Randomiser randomize not only the location of the Durlag's Tower tome, but also the content of the tome.) Gylliane has now 20 natural CHA. She left Durlag's Tower and returned to the Nashkel Mines exit area. There she slew Narcillius and (after having rested) the Revenant with Skull Traps. She killed the other undead as well and looted the tombs, which yielded her a Wand of Fire among other (less noteworthy) things.
Potions of Magic Blocking (bought at Thalantyr's) and her success with Skull Trap convinced Gylliane that she might actually stand a chance against the Sirines in the Lighthouse Area. She was not mistaken. She could cast three Skull Traps per day; their huge damage output allowed her to kill 2x3 Sirines (for 20k XP, 5x3k and 5k for Sil). The Golems inside the cave were slain with hit and fade tactics.
Gylliane is now a level 7/8 Mage/Swashbuckler (her maximum levels, as I'm going to respect the XP cap, even though it's removed).
I'm still hesitant about taking her into the Bandit Camp because I have no summons, no Stoneskin or any other level 4 spells, no Girdle of Piercing, no Robe of the Good Archmagi, mediocre AC. She does have good fire damage output though (potions, the wand), and the possibility of protecting her very well against fire damage. She's most likely going to hunt for spell scrolls. She's got most of Thalantyr's useful spells, but there are many more scrolls to be found. Also, Bassilus hasn't been taken care of yet.
To be continued...
When the Ogre Mage spotted her and turned invisible, Gylliane retreated, and was followed by the monster. SHe later returned (also invisible) but encountered only Lendarn, who was successfully taken down without him ever seeing his doom coming. Gylliana spotted hime, found a space where she could HiS and bombarded the wizard with three Skull Traps, which had him panick, and two times Magic Missile.
On Lendarn's body she found the Manual of Gainful Exercise, with which she raised her STR to 19. She left the Ruins without bothering with the Ogre Mage. She then returned to the North Coast to get a Potion of Magic Shielding from the Surgeon. She had to deal with Drakar first though. Blindness, Skull Traps, and Magic Missiles did the job.
In the eastern Cloudpeaks area Gylliane found a scroll of Monster Summoning II. In Ulgoth's Beard she bought scrolls of Improved Insibility, Emotion: Hopelessness, and Greater Malison. She used the Red Potion from a Nashkel Carnival merchant to succesfully scribe these four spells.
Way down South in the Dragon's run area, she got a green scroll of Protection from Magic. She used it to fight the Red Wizards of Thay in melee (two pips in Scimitars and two in Two Weapon Fighting, combined with 19 STR is not bad). It worked against Denak and Lasala. The other two mages remained invisible, much to Gylliane's chagrin. She decided to rest for one day in a safe spot. When she returned Diana was easily vanquished, but Brendan remained invisible. Gylliane had to summon a Hobgoblin in order for him to appear. While he fought the Hobgoblin, Gylliane waited patiently for the wizard's protections to expire and Skull Trapped him to death.
Gylliane now owns Robes of Fire, Electricity and Cold Resistance, a Knave's Robe and an Adventurer's Robe. She only needs the Traveller's Robe so that Thalantyr can make the Mage Robe of Practical Protection for her. This will probably have to wait till Cloakwood Mines though.
She rested at the FAI, bought Potions of Genius and Mind Focusing, and moved to Peldvale from where she infiltrated the Bandit Camp. Three Skull Traps, two Magic Missiles, two charges of her Wand of Fire, an Oil of Fiery Burning and about four hits with her Arrows +1 sufficed to bring down Tazok for the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise.
Gylliane searched the camp, which yielded her some gold as well as scrolls of Web and Ghost Armor and a number of useful potions. She quaffed a Potion of Genius and a Potion of Mind Focusing to succesfully copy a number of scrolls to her spellbook (especially Ghost Armor). She then memorized as many defensive spells as possible, and rested. When she woke, she entered Tazok's tent invisibly, and protected herself as best as she could against the horde of bandits that would soon turn against her. With Ghost Armor, Blur, Mirror Image, Boots of Avoidance, the still active Potion of Mind Focusing, a Potion of Magic Shielding and Improved Invisibility, she considered herself nigh untouchable. She opened with a Fireball and took down a few of the bandits (archers) in melee but as her protections started to wear off, she found herself getting hit at a dangerous pace. She drank a potion of inivisibility healed herself, drank two Potions of Fire Resistance (raising that resistance to 140) and then while surrounded by many remaining (but injured) bandits, she threw a Potion of Explosions in the crowd, killing all but three foes. They were at Near Death ststus however, so Gylliane had little difficulty killing them in melee and with Magic Missiles.
Before entering the Cloakwood, Gylliane will probably try to pickpocket Dushai for her Ring of Free Action (even though Invisibility will do fine to survive the Cloakwood 2 area), and take on Bassilus (one never knows if Item Randomisation has put any interesting loot in the evil priest's inventory.)
***
Gylliane travelled to Ulgoth's Beard with four potions of Master Thievery she had bought from the Rogue near Durlag's Tower. She had been to Ulgoth's Breard before, and met Dushai, a gnomish lass who had shown Gylliane her Ring of Free Action. Gylliane thought that she, as an adventurer, had more use for it than Dushai. After our heroine had quaffed three of the aforementioned potions, it turned out that Dushai was not to be pickpocketed (just as Drizzt: 'Target has no items'). Fairly annoying because Gylliane had spent quite a lot of gold on the potions. She got some satisfaction from pickpocketing Shandalar and Hurgan (the former for a number spells, the best of which she had already bought at the Ulgoth's Beard Inn, and the latter for a diamond). Gylliane's Chaotic Good alignment kept her from even considering to murder Dushai for the ring.
Even without the Ring of Free Action, Gylliane was decided on ridding the realms of Bassilus. She decided that she would try to Blind the priest, and immediately drink a Potion of Invisibility if Bassilus was to save against her spell. Her plan worked: Bassilus got blinded, suffered injuries from Gylliane's Skull Traps but drank healing potions to restore his health. Gylliane was fearful to attack Bassilus in melee because he could still cast a Greater Command which is insta-cast, and that would prevent Gylliane from retreating in time. (I've had a no-reload run end this way once.) Instead she attacked with her bow and hit him a few times, but then decided to try the Darts of Wounding and of Stunning she had been carrying around for a long time. With them she poisoned and stunned Bassilus, after which she finished him off in melee.
Back in Beregost, without any good spells left, she was tracked down by Lamalha and her fellow amazons. She fled inside one of the homes and hid. However, Lamalha and Zeela followed her inside. And when she left Zeela followed her outside again. Gylliane rested in the Red Sheaf, after which she slew Zeela (also in the Red Sheaf) and Lamalha (still in the home that Gylliane had first entered). Both priestesses were successfully blinded. Gylliane would approach, let them start casting, retreat from their range of sight, and then attack with her scimitars. Blindness has been Gylliane's favourite spell, later rivalled by devastating Skull Trap (which is just great to use for a stealthy character).
Telka and Maneira (the rogues) are probably still waiting for Gylliane in Beregost, something she should remember in case she ever returns there, but she's more likely to forget...
She also visited Ulcaster [an area I almost always skip]. Gylliane slew most wolves (though not the Wolf of Ulcaster), and the Greater Skeleton Mage that had first hurt itself with a clumsily cast Lightning Bolt and was subsequently nuked by Gylliane's Skull Traps and Fireballs (using the Wand). The skeletan wizard dropped Varscona. She trekked through the Cloakwood mostly invisibly, disinclined to deal with webbing Spiders or plotting Druids, until she reached the Cloakwood Mines.
Drasus and co, were softened up with a Skull Trap and after that, dispersed as Drasus and Genthore followed toward the bridge between the two wooden stuctures on the island. It allowed Gylliane to deal with her foes in three steps.
First, she was lucky to find Kysus alone, isolated from Rezdan. He was lured away fromthe island, over the bridge, until Gylliane (with a Potion of Magic Blocking to protect her from the wizard's spells) attacked. He still managed to hurt her with Melf's Minute Meteors but also suffered injuries thanks to a second Skull Trap and Magic Missiles. Once his spell protections had worn off (Minor Globe of Invulnerability, Mirror Image) / were stripped by Gylliane (Stoneskin), he fell to Gylliane's blades. On his body she found the Traveler's Robe, the missing piece in her collection of robes. With it she travelled back to the High Hedge (again mostly invisible), to have Thalantyr create the Mage Robe of Practical Protection for her:
(2) When she had returned to the Cloakwood Mines step 2 was to finish off Rezdan. He too, was easy to take on without interference by the others. (Drasus and Genthore were still on the bridge behind the wooden barracks.) Out of the wizard's sight she summoned a Gnoll and an Ogre (Monster Summoning II), and sent them in to attack, one after the other. It caused Rezdan to waste various spells that might have otherwise complicated things for Gylliane, such as Blindness, Melf's Minute Meteors, Chaos, Confusion, and Domincation. (The Ogre actually saved against most of the mind-affecting spells
(3) Gylliane then buffed herself with Ghost Armor, Blur, and Mirror Image, and took on Genthore and Drasus plus a guard with little difficulty. The harvest was meager: an enchanted morningstar and a scroll of Firsehield (Red).
The buffs worked long enough to also engage the guards in the second building, but after that she retreated to find a place to rest and memorize spells. She entered the complex hidden in shadows, spoke with the miner who knew how to operate the plug, and moved, again hidden, to the level exit. Then she cast Invisibility on herself, descended, passed a group of bandits including Hareishan, reached Rill's and Yeslick's prison. The unlocking of the door betrayed her presence, so she briefly spoke with Rill, gave him 100 GP and immediately rushed to the third level. Again she decided not to risk anything against the hordes of guards (who were quite sturdy), and fled to the west wing where she hid in shadows. She didn't explore the level but moved straight to the exit that led to Davaeorn.
Gylliane, unbuffed, fought Davaeorn's guard and suffered several hits before she slew him. She healed and cast Invisibility on herself (from a scroll she had bought at Thalantyr's), allowing her to disarm Davaeorn's traps unmolested. He noticed her anyway and introduced himself. Gylliane had little time for conversation what with Davaeorn's Stinking Cloud - Web combo cast in her direction. She retreated toward the entrance out of the spell's reach. Davaeorn followed her, while his Doomguards (or Battle Horrors?) stayed behind, possibly trapped by Davaeorn's web. With only Davaeorn to take into account, she decided to cast Protection from Magic on herself (green scroll from Thalantyr). She had waited to see who she would have to deal with first. If she had faced the Doomguards, she would have buffed herself. Anyway, Davaeorn was soon joined by the Doomguards, so she had to deal with the three of them at the same time. She had the Bracers of AC8 on, which gave her an AC of 1, not very convenient to battle the Doomguards with. For that reason, Gylliane used hit and fade tactics, attacking from stealth and retreating once she was seen. This way she managed to break through Davaeorn's Stoneskin, and slay him in melee combat. She did suffer a number of hits from the Doomguards, but they were somehow connected to Davaeorn and fell when he did.
She found the Girdle of Piercing on Davaeorn's body, as well a number of very useful scrolls, most importantly Stoneskin. Gylliane looted the premises, spared Stephane's life and made her way to the first level, where she handed the key to the miner so that he could flood the mine. On her way out of the Cloakwood, forgetting to cast Invisibility on herself almost cost her her life. She got 'waylaid' by two Giant Spiders who immediately cast Webs her way. One of the monsters was standing practically next to her, so that te distance the web trap had to cover to get to her, was minimal. Gylliane woud have died there and then if she hadn't had a Potion of Invisibility at hand. [A 'no pause challenge' would have ended there anyway.]
Gylliane learnt from her mistake, and made sure to travel invisibly from the Cloakwood to the FAI, and from there to the city fo Baldur's Gate, where she just bought a large number of spell scrolls from Halbazzer Drin. She drank two Potions of Genius, and copied the scrolls, together with the scrolls she had acquired at the Cloakwood Mines, to her spellbook. Her next mission will be to explore the grand city, and see if there are people she can help or any proftitable business opportunities to be seized.
Upstairs she found a few good scrolls, and the Robe of the Good Archmagi. For AC purposes she's using that robe now instead of the Mage Robe of Practical Protection that Thalantyr had made for her before. On Ramazith's body she found the Bracers of AC7. Gylliane travelled to the High Hedge where Thalantyr merged said bracers together with a pair of Gauntlets of Weapon Skill she had found in the Baldur's Gate docks and the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise she had found on Tazok, into the Gauntlets of Grandmastery. It cost her 5000 GP and a potion of Defense.
For Scar she cleared the Seven Suns of their Shapeshifter presence, and the sewers of an Ogre Mage (who was, again, blinded). She fought Battle Horrors, Helmed Horrors, and Invisible Stalkers, which cost her about ten healing potions, and proceeded to take on Degrodel in the hopes of finding another Tome (she still hasn't found the Tome of Clear Throught and the Manual of Quickness of Action). He didn't drop one though, as Gylliane discovered after she had waited for his spell protections to expire, successfully cast Blindness (in three instances), and slain him with Arrows of Biting and normal arrows.
Gylliane returned to Scar and agreed to "investigate" the Iron Throne. The battle nearly ended her life.
She entered, spoke with Cloudwulfe, retreated and returned stealthed to cast a Stinking Cloud. However, before she could finish casting that spell, one of her foes Enfeebled her as soon as she became visible. (This seemed unfair to me because both Stinking Cloud and Ray of Enfeeblement have a casting time of 2.) She got severely injured within seconds (left with 14 hitpoints out of 65). Gylliane should have probably dropped everything except her Robe and her Familiar to flee downstairs, but instead she quaffed a Potion of Invibility. One of her foes, I think Aasim, had already cast Invisibility Purge the first time she arrived upstairs. So she hoped that no dispelling magic would follow this time. Her hopes were idle: Gylliane did have the time to fully heal herself, but before the Enfeeblement had worn off Naaman cast Detect Invisibility, to which Gylliane responded by quaffing a second Potion of Inivisbility right away.
The Enfeeblement wore off soon after, allowing Gylliane to flee downstairs where she buffed herself with Blur and Mirror Image, an Oil of Speed and a Potion of Clarity, and later Shield. She managed to disperse the group with hit and fade tactics, so she would only have to deal with one or two foes at a time. (She was reluctant to use AoE spells because of the merchants who were walking around in the middle of the ruckus.)
She had no difficulty melee'ing her foes, although she escaped when Alai cast Emotion: Hopelessness against her. The spell stranded on Gylliane's 30 Magic Resistance (Cloak of Balduran plus Robe of the Good Archmagi), and that was a good thing because I think the Potion of Clarity doesn't protect against the spell's sleep effect. (I should have used a Potion of Magic Blocking, but I didn't want it to cancel her buffs.)
The main spoils are a Wand of Lightning, a Ring of Protection +2, a Ring of Free Action, a Cloak of Displacement and three scrolls she hadn't encountered yet (Polymorph Other, Minor Sequencer and Cone of Cold).
She'll try and take on the butler and the fighter in one of the houses (again, hoping to find Tomes or a Shield Amulet that Thalantyr can enchant so that it givs a permanent AC4 effect). After that, supposing she survives, she'll reurn to Candlekeep.
Gylliane got killed in the final battle by what seemed to be an insta-kill effect, which is very remarkable because she had around 60 hitpoints and an ioun stone to protect her against critical hits. She had finished off Angelo and was in the process of taking down Tazok with hit and fade tactics. I saw her get hit once by Sarevok, paused, had her gulp a potion of extra healing, unpaused, saw her drink the potion and had her and run away (at double speed: boots + potion) to hide in shadows. And then all of a sudden it was game over. Maybe simultaneous hits by Sarevok, Diarmid and Semaj could have killed her?
A bit of sad and unsatisfying - clueless as to what hit me - end of an otherwise decent run for my standards.
Candlekeep, and return to Baldur's Gate had gone very well. I've got lots of pics, the battles with Cylandria and with Krystin were quite great, but now that my run has ended, I don't feel inclined to post about them.