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So, how do you use contingencies and sequencers?

SweetMagooMagoodleSweetMagooMagoodle Member Posts: 40
in General Discussion (Spoiler Warning!)
Howdy. The title says it all.

I am a vet BG series player going back years and years and have enjoyed the EE editions as well.

I consider myself quite adept at all BG can offer, but one thing I felt I have never quite used to good effect are contingencies and sequencers.

For sequencers, I just never seem to use them, and then I forget I have them stored. Like potions – I only want to use them in emergencies – but then I never use them at all and feel bad when I do! I also tend to double rest which seems like an abuse of power – I cast the sequencer, then erase the spell and re-memorize the spells I put in the sequencer. Doesn’t seem like smart adventuring when (for instance) chasing after one’s soul.

I just completed a fighter/illusionist run and was so powerful (although SCS made me less so) that I almost never needed to resort to sequencers at all – but I feel like I am totally missing a key element of BG enjoyment.

So: how DO you use sequencers? And under what circumstances? Do you always have the sequencer in your spell book and load it up before an encounter or just habitually have one ready to fire up right after a day's rest?

For contingencies, I usually load up a stoneskin and/or improved invis to activate when at 25%, but I don’t put that much thought into it. I feel like I am missing a good / fun tool here.

Alright: have at it.

Comments

  • TressetTresset Member, Moderator Posts: 8,264
    Chain Contingency can be used offensively and there are almost no limits to what you can load it up with. I always have trouble deciding what to do with it.
  • SweetMagooMagoodleSweetMagooMagoodle Member Posts: 40
    All great ideas... keep 'em coming!
  • mumumomomumumomo Member Posts: 635


    minor spell sequencer : I almost never use it since i always take the spell quite late with my sorcerers (stoneskin, improved invisibility and spider spawn being much more important for me)
    The best pick is probably for defensive purpose (see gotural post)

    Spell sequencer : again something i don't use enough. I may useskull trap x3 (very nice with cloak of mirroring)
    The defensive options (stoneskin + improved invis) can also be very nice.

    Spell trigger : lower resist x3. i am actually using that one quite a lot, especially in TOB and against dragons. Improve Alacrity reduces it's usefulness however since casting it is instant with the robe of vecna.

    contigency : PFMW 50%hp. This one is actually quite useful and has saved me once or twice.

    chain contigency : very strong in theory. Practically i prefer using timestop + IA or timestop + shapechange. For the very few timestop immune ennemies, IA + skull trap (autopause on spell cast) will leave them no chance.
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    edited May 2014
    Didn't they get rid of the ability to have 4 Projected Images out at once by storing 3 in a Chain Contingency and casting it a fourth time, triggered on the "Helpless" condition? I swear that I've tried this before and the contingency fizzled.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    edited May 2014
    Flashburn said:

    Didn't they get rid of the ability to have 4 Projected Images out at once by storing 3 in a Chain Contingency and casting it a fourth time, triggered on the "Helpless" condition? I swear that I've tried this before and the contingency fizzled.

    It only works with two (by using this exploit) since (vanilla) ToB, I think that in SoA (IIRC) you could have 4.
  • luskanluskan Member Posts: 269
    I thought I read somewhere on here that spells cast from sequencers/contingencies doesn't trigger wild surges? If so that's wide open for abuse.
  • ZyzzogetonZyzzogeton Member Posts: 526
    MSS: Double Web
    SS: Greater Malison, Lower Resistance, Slow
    C: Mirror Image when Hit For Damage
    CC: Triple Horrid Wilting on Seeing Enemy
  • SCARY_WIZARDSCARY_WIZARD Member Posts: 1,438
    edited May 2014
    I like to fill sequencers with spells I want to use, but don't necessarily want to memorise (regularly) because of other spells I want to use!
    Area spells are fun with this.

    For example, mirror image and stoneskin. Cleric/Magic-Users tend to get bless and chant piled on top of one another, or silence and cloudkill. Silence and acid arrow -- it's especially fun using a single enemy as a "ground zero" of sorts. >:3 "One minute, you're firing arrows at some adventurers, and the next, your insides feel like there's acid in them and a cloud of magical farts knocks everybody unconscious!"
    Contingencies tend to be defensive in nature, with me. Pair up a healing spell and some defensive spells when you reach x% Hit Points...and so on.
  • ApocryphaApocrypha Member Posts: 105
    There are so many ways to utilize Chain Contingency I don't even know where to start.

    Sequencers are mostly offensive for me, especially since it lets me do some nasty combinations--Glitterdust and Horror, Greater Malison and Disintegrate, triple Skull Traps, etc. Contingencies are usually for the Stoneskin + Mirror Image combo, though I sometimes use them to stack Chaos Shields and eliminate all chances of a wild surge (because of a glitch where the effects stack) if I feel like being cheesy.
  • elminsterelminster Member, Developer Posts: 16,315
    I normally use continguencies and sequencers more often on characters who don't get access to time stop until much later (thus they really benefit from its quick casting). Aerie and Jan for instance (plus Aerie's cleric spells can also be used in them).
  • KaltzorKaltzor Member Posts: 1,050
    My sequencers usually end up being full of cheese in the form of 3 Chromatic Orbs... Most things fail rolling a save 3 times in a row and die instantly.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    CrevsDaak said:


    I'll post a few more later :/

    For M/T, Mislead, Tenser's Transformation and Improved Haste in a Chain Contingency at See Enemy, with a previous casting of Spell Immunity: Divination (if you have TobEx you can put the SI:D in the Chain Contingency and cast Improved Haste before the fight.

    For Bards, casting Tenser's Transformation after setting up a Stoneskin in a Contingency at Take Damage (or HP at 50% to acoid it triggering before the Stoneskin runs out).

    RR Bards, spending a Chain Contingency scroll to put Mislead, Haste (Improved if you don't care about your Mislead being hasted too) and Tenser's Transformation or PfMW.
    Another great combo with Chain Contingency for Mages (or Sorcerers) are Spell Immunity: Divination (if you don't have TobEx cast it before and add a Mislead to the CC instead) with Improved Inbisibility and Mirror Image (or Spell Trap if you have TobEx).
    For Minor Sequencer, Blur and Mirror Image to protect against melee enemies.
    Two Melf's Acid Arrows/two Rays of Enfeeblement in a Minor Sequencer for great damage/avoid enemy from saving.
    Spell Sequencer for both Fireshields (blue & red) for best protection from melee enemies and a Stoneskin.
    Another good Spell Sequencer combo is Greater Malisson x3 or Skull Trap x3, triple Ice Storm to kill Ascension Yaa-Shura is also nice.
    Spell Trigger with Improved Haste, Tenser's Transformation and PfMW is nice for RR Bards and Mages/Thieves (melee boost with short casting time).
    3x Shapeshift Other (or Otiluke's Resilient Sphere) in a Spell Trigger, it's useless but it's funny :D
    Remove Paralysis on a Contingency for Cleric/Mages wheb fighting Illithids (Mid Flayers).
    At low levels BG2/all of BG1, 2x Glitterdust is THE blinding spell (in a Minor Sequencer), like Web x2 in a MS, it's like a "all with ranged" order.
    3x Limited Wish in a Chain Contingency might sound useless, but it's really good because if you cast Otiluke's Resilient Sphere on yourself and put the trigger to Helpless, you'll have 3 Limited Wishes while being protected against everything (this only works in the EEs).
    Spell Immunity: Divination + Improved Invisibility + Sunfire in a Chain Contingency (Target: Self) at Helpless is THE life saver when you are fighting a SCS mage in BG2 and got held/stunned (some of the newest versions of SCS add TobEx to BG2).
  • SweetMagooMagoodleSweetMagooMagoodle Member Posts: 40
    Thanks for the great tips -- more tools at the ready.
  • simplessimples Member Posts: 540
    edited May 2014
    i like the idea of contingencies, but i found that in practice, they're not as convenient as they seem. say you put in an extra stoneskin/imr invisibility for when you're down to 50% of your HP. in tob especially, enemies tend to just keep whacking the living daylights out of you, so the contingency doesn't even get a chance to fire off.

    edit: can you imagine how annoying that is by the way? i just kept reloading and sort of mind-shouted WHY ARE YOU NOT TRIGGERING at my screen
  • ZyzzogetonZyzzogeton Member Posts: 526
    simples said:

    i like the idea of contingencies, but i found that in practice, they're not as convenient as they seem. say you put in an extra stoneskin/imr invisibility for when you're down to 50% of your HP. in tob especially, enemies tend to just keep whacking the living daylights out of you, so the contingency doesn't even get a chance to fire off.

    That's really just an issue for FMT's.

    Pure Mages, MT's, CM's, Sorc's (did I miss an Arcane class) aren't exactly being focused fired by enemies to begin with. Unless you're soloing that is, in which case use stuff like Planetars to draw fire. Or the dozens of other options Arcane casters have to reduce the enemies' combat ability before they start converging on you.
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