Solo No-Reload SCS run with Vallon the Undead Hunter
Blackraven
Member Posts: 3,486
Hi folks! The following is a description of a solo no-reload attempt with an Undead Hunter. I felt like playing a badass warrior, and went for something new - had never played a Paladin before. There's not much to tell about him personalitywise, other than that I view him as less self-righteous than the average Paladin. Less Keldorn/Anomen and more Valygar. I'd even considered rolling a Justifier or Stalker Ranger.
Btw I’m not abandoning Serene. I will continue her run through BG2, but I first want a true no-reload character to make it there as well so that he/she can follow Serene’s footsteps.
So here’s Vallon:
This thread is strictly about strategic challenges Vallon faces in this (SCS) game. I do roleplay his alignment (Lawful Good), so no stealing evil actions for better rewards. However, Imoen has been recruited and will be recruited again for larcenous purposes
Yesterday was a national holiday here, so I made quite a lot of progress. In Candlekeep, Vallon bought a 2h sword and a helmet and went straight for Obe and the potion of Speed he could get from Deder. If you quaff the potion and tell Obe immediately afterward that you’ve seen enough fighting, you don’t even have to fight his Gibberlings. Hasted, all quests but Reevor’s rats were done.
***
Imoen gave Vallon her potions and her Wand of Magic Missiles, from Monty he got a suit of studded leather and two potions, and from Xzar he received two spells he would later sell. Vallon then continued alone, south to the High Hedge area where he dispatched a few Skeletons with little difficulty. He kept one skull. Further south he finished off a wolf, saving Melicamp the chicken. Thalantyr was able to restore Melicamp to his human form, which earned Vallon his first level up. He sold Imoen’s wand plus some other loot, and visited Beregost. There, the Marl, Firebead, and Ogrillons/Mirianne quests had Vallon reach level 3. Further south three Flaming Fist Officers who accused Vallon of banditry found their untimely deaths at his hands. Vallon donned the plate mail armor of one of them and kept two more suits he would later sell. After that, Karlat was downed as well, but not after various healing potions were consumed. That Dwarf is a sturdy little bugger.
He then traveled west to deal with Bjornin’s Half-Ogres. It was nice to see that Vallon was already able to hold his ground against those monsters, although he had to finish off the last two with his crossbow after suffering a few hits.
On the South Coast Vallon found Brage and traveled with him to Nalin in Nashkel. Vallon got to keep Brage’s Cursed Berserking sword, which would be enchanted for controlled use by Thalantyr. But first Neira was dealt with at the Nashkel Inn. Vallon knew that she wouldn’t be able to Hold him, so he was quite confident. She did cast Unholy Blight twice, but Vallon would simply step outside to prevent himself from harm.
At the Nashkel Carnival Vallon bought a green scroll of Protection from Petrification, and at Thalantyr’s he had got the “upgrade” to the Cursed Berserking sword. The new ‘Sword of Rage’ is a 2H sword +3 with a daily enrage ability. Vallon’s next destination was Mutamin’s garden, where he slew the Basilisks in melee, and protected himself against Mutamin’s spells by activating his sword’s enrage ability. Mutamin was hasted and therefore difficult to hit, but a critical did him in.
When he was done, Vallon was close to level 6. Kirian & co, were left alone for the time being. Instead Vallon traveled to the Temple of Lathander area, where he slew a number of different types of Wolves, including Vampiric Wolves, to reach level 6. After it, Vallon considered the time ripe to go Ankheg hunting. He cleared the cave without difficulty, found a Heavy Crossbow of Accuracy in it, brought Brun his son’s body, and gave the farmer 100 GP. Outside, Vallon’s run almost ended when he was up against two Ankhegs. He had just quaffed a healing potion when both Ankhegs started hitting himwith their acid spit. Having just drank the healing potion, he had to wait before he could drink his next potion, one of invisibility. He barely made it in time, at 4 HP. He rested elsewhere, found the two Ankhegs again, and slew them.
Vallon kept one of the Ankheg shells and got a suit of Ankheg scale armor produced by Taerom Fuiruim. In the tenday he had to wait for it, Vallon slew Greywolf in the Nashkel Mines area, and did the quests in the two Cloudpeaks areas, including taking on Vax and Zal, Sendai & co (one of them dropped the Boots of Grounding), and Caldo and Krumm. He also returned to the South Coast, where he helped Nib and faced the Doomsayer. The latter was a formidable foe who had Vallon quaff all his healing potions, circa 10, before he would fall.
When he got his Ankheg Armor Vallon decided to test Bassilus’ mettle. With his sword’s enrage ability activated, which protected him from a Mental Domination, Vallon had no difficulty with the the priest. (I overwrote the screenshot.) Vallon also took care of Zargal and his two buddies. Funnily Zardal’s sword shattered, but that wouldn’t keep the brave Hobgoblin from attacking:
On the North Coast both Droth and Shoal were felled. Droth is a dangerous foe who can cast Chaos among other spells, but with Vallon’s sword’s rage, Droth became much more manageable. The North Coast’s many Ogres and their ilk, weren’t a real threat anymore at this stage of Vallon’s growth as warrior.
He had a much harder time in the Light House area though, where the six “enhanced” Sirines (inclusing Sil), and two Hamadryads and their Water Weirds were difficult for him to overcome, even with a green scroll of Protection from Magic to protect himself against Blindness and Charms and against the random traps in the treasure cave. Without the scroll he probably would have had to flee the scene. The Improved Invisible Sirines would walk away all the time, in order to attack with their arrows of biting. Perseverance, healing potions and antidotes, and spreading his foes by entering the cave, helped Vallon through the ordeal. Inside, one of the Flesh Golems brought Vallon’s health to dangerously low levels, but an invisibility potion and subsequent healing helped him restore his health.
Vallon traveled to Beregost where he finished off Silke in close combat, again relying on Rage.
I must say that the Sword makes life for Vallon quite a bit easier. Vallon buys or otherwise acquires all anti-magic potions (Shielding, Blocking, Protection) and scrolls he can get his hands on (only two so far: one at Thalantyr’s and one from Hafiz the Gnome). The sword’s enrage ability has allowed Vallon to take on a few optional foes, such as Droth for his Helmet of Defense and Silke, and to save some of his anti-magic consumables for later. Other players could use the Greenstone Amulet for this purpose; I usually can’t find it due to Item Randomization..
After he was done with Silke, he decided to further train himself as an Undead Hunter (for max XP, and level 8) before tackling the plot quests. Vallon traveled to the Valley of the Tombs (i.e. Nashkel Mines exit), where a potion of heroism and his replenished stock of healing potions helped him best the Revenant. Narcillicus and his Mustard Jellies caused Vallon quite some trouble. A potion of magic blocking helped gave him three round of protection the wizard’s spells, but his Jellies slowed Vallon, causing him to retreat. Only Narcillicus followed, and was dealt with in melee. He rested and slew the Jellies the next day in melee (so that their spit wouldn’t hit him).
The other undead in the area caused Vallon no trouble, and it was after slaying a Ghast that Vallon reached level 8 (his highest level for BG1, as I will respect the XP cap, even though it’s removed).
Vallon’s last mission before tackling the Nashkel Mines was Gullykin and the dungeon beneath it. His only potion of magic shielding was used against the dungeon’s wizards. Between Lendarn and the Ogre Mage, the latter was the first to fall. He was stuck between his Ogrillon minions, a wall and Vallon, so there was no escaping for the mage who, conveniently, dropped a suit of full plate mail. Lendarn did hurt Vallon with a few of his spells, (Cones of Cold and Melf’s Minute Meteors) but he would fall to Vallon’s blade just the same. Gandolar Luckyfoot was thankful and gave his ‘lucky ring0 (+1 Luck) to Vallon.
Vallon traveled to the High Hedge where he bought ten bolts of biting. Unfortunately there weren’t any more of the bolts for sale. He also acquired the Claw of Kazgaroth in case the Kobolds’ arrows would hurt him. (Vallon didn’t use a shield, and he hadn’t found the Elves’ Bane girdle or the Boots of Avoidance yet.)
The Nashkel Mines have three difficult parts: the bridge on the third level (where a character can get stuck, surrounded by a horde of the somewhat tough SCS Kobolds), the exit from the third to the fourth/final level, and Mulahey’s lair. On the bridge Vallon lured a few of the Kobolds his way, to see how their arrows did against him without the Claw of Kazgaroth. It turned out that he didn’t need the Claw, so he proceeded to slay all the Kobolds that crossed his path.
Near the level 3 exit more Kobolds fell to Vallon’s blade, until he faced the Kobold Chieftain and a Kobold Shaman. The Chieftain attakcs with extremely poisonous arrows, so Vallon decided to administer his foe a dose of its own medicine, with a bolt of biting. The Kobold Shaman injured Vallon with his spells (Chromatic Orbs, Magic Missiles), albeit slightly. He too got served a bolt of biting. The remainder of the battle consisted in Vallon slaying the Kobold without meeting much resistance.
Mulahey received two of the same bolts, and was annihilated in melee. He wouldn’t cast a single spell (other than his SCS-provided insta-cast spells). Mulhey’s Kobolds and Skeletons presented no real challenge. In terms of useful gear the loot was meagre this time: except for the decent Barcers of Archery that Vallon kept, only two enchanted short swords and a few spells he would sell.
In Nashkel, enraged Vallon slew Nimbul, and took his Boots of Avoidance. The Item Randomizer hasn’t been overly generous with Vallon, which caused him to seek out the likes of Borda near the Xvart village (someone I always skip), to see if he would drop something special. First however, Vallon had to fight Molkar & co in a very cramped area. Enraged, he withstood any mind-affecting magic, though Drakar’s Unholy Blights did do some damage. After a long fight, especially with Drakar and Morvin (who seemed to be the toughest meleers), Vallon was the only one standing.
The Xvarts and Borda were dealt with after that, but they didn’t drop any interesting loot. So Vallon returned to Beregost, where he took care of Tranzig. Enraged Vallon was very content to see the mage drop the Golden Girdle.
He proceeded to the Larswood where Lamalha and her girls ambushed him. They were less difficult to deal with than Molkar & co. Vallon first focused his efforts on the casters. The rogues had darts of stunning, but those wouldn’t affect Vallon since he’s immune to Hold (and in my setup that includes Stun but not Web).
He cleared the Larswood of its bandits but noticed that they were better archers than the kobolds, so he equipped the Claw of Kazgaroth for its bonus to AC against missiles. In Peldvale he slew a few more bandits until he was approached by Raiken, through whom he infiltrated the Bandit Camp.
Tazok wasn’t fought his time, since Vallon still hadn’t acquired the Boots of Speed. (I only attack him with Boots of Speed and an oil of speed.) It cost him the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise. Vallon didn’t bother with the many chests; he went straight for Tazok’s tent. Before entering he quaffed potions of invisibility, cloud giant strength, speed, and power (in that order), and he cast Protection from Evil on himself. Inside he moved to the west side of the tent, just within visual range of Venkt the wizard. He then activated his sword’s rage ability, and attacked Venkt with a bolt of biting, that poisoned the wizard. One or two more regular bolts finished him off. The others were fought with relative ease, until Vallon was the last one standing, with only moderate injuries. He healed himself, spoke with Ender Sai, drank a potion of absorption and opened the chest, which contained little more than a couple of spells. Again, not the richest possible harvest, although one of the bandit’s Long Bow of Marksmanship is a nice weapon.
Outside, still well-buffed, Vallon slew Taugosz for his full plate and for an enchanted large shield, took down many bandits for their scalps and Ardenor who had appeared out of nowhere and who would drop a Tome of what turned out to be Charisma, much to Vallon’s surprise. He left when the resistance was becoming too strong.
Vallon went to the Friendly Arm Inn to get some loot identified, and to sell it, and then he invited Imoen for a visit to the Nashkel Carnival, she would greatly enjoy. There she looted two chests from the merchant who sells the red and the violet potion. Potions of fire giant strength, invisibility and speed, amongst others, would greatly help in later battles. Imoen barely escaped being caught by the guards.
The pair also made a trip to Durlag’s Tower (upper floors). The Battle Horrors failed to hit Vallon, which gives hope for the Davaeorn fight, although Vallon also had difficulty hitting them. Inside Durlag’s Tower Ghouls fell to Vallon’s blade, and Kirinhale was pursued in vain (she kept going ethereal every time Vallon would close in on her). The trip provedvery worthwhile though, as it yielded Vallon a Greenstone Amulet, and a (randomized) Manual of Bodily Health, with which he raised his CON to 20. Not as good as a Manual of Gainful Exercise, but still pretty neat.
I’m now inclined to keep the Claw of Kazgaroth equipped on Vallon: I think relinquishing 8 HP and accepting the Save vs Paralyze/Death/Poison penalty is worth it for the AC and saves bonuses. Is there a specific threat other than Spiders and their Poisons that I should be wary of?
In the Cloakwood Vallon sided with Seniyad, and with a potion of free action he retrieved Spiders’ Bane for himself and Chelak’s body for Tiber. The druids were left in peace. Wyverns were luredout a cave and pelted with bolts for their skulls. Outside the Cloakwood Mines, Vallon quaffed two potions of Magic Protection, which granted him 100% Magic Resistance. He also used a scroll of Champion’s Strength he had bought at one of the Temples. The warriors were no match for Vallon, but as usual, the Mages were more difficult to deal with. When Vallon pierced their protections (Stoneskins, Mirror Images), they would go invisible and reluctant to show themselves. Both Vallon and Rezdan were struck by lightning. The latter even died due to it. Kysus became visible once, noticed how Vallon’s bolts were stripping him of his protections and went invisible again. He would only reveal himself after Vallon’s first potion of magic protection expired, very clever enemy AI. Kysus immediately cast a Chaos in Vallon’s direction, but timely acitivation of his sword’s rage ability, prevented the spell from affecting him. Vallon slew his foe with a nice critical.
Vallon is now preparing to enter the Cloakwood Mines.
Btw I’m not abandoning Serene. I will continue her run through BG2, but I first want a true no-reload character to make it there as well so that he/she can follow Serene’s footsteps.
So here’s Vallon:
This thread is strictly about strategic challenges Vallon faces in this (SCS) game. I do roleplay his alignment (Lawful Good), so no stealing evil actions for better rewards. However, Imoen has been recruited and will be recruited again for larcenous purposes
Yesterday was a national holiday here, so I made quite a lot of progress. In Candlekeep, Vallon bought a 2h sword and a helmet and went straight for Obe and the potion of Speed he could get from Deder. If you quaff the potion and tell Obe immediately afterward that you’ve seen enough fighting, you don’t even have to fight his Gibberlings. Hasted, all quests but Reevor’s rats were done.
***
Imoen gave Vallon her potions and her Wand of Magic Missiles, from Monty he got a suit of studded leather and two potions, and from Xzar he received two spells he would later sell. Vallon then continued alone, south to the High Hedge area where he dispatched a few Skeletons with little difficulty. He kept one skull. Further south he finished off a wolf, saving Melicamp the chicken. Thalantyr was able to restore Melicamp to his human form, which earned Vallon his first level up. He sold Imoen’s wand plus some other loot, and visited Beregost. There, the Marl, Firebead, and Ogrillons/Mirianne quests had Vallon reach level 3. Further south three Flaming Fist Officers who accused Vallon of banditry found their untimely deaths at his hands. Vallon donned the plate mail armor of one of them and kept two more suits he would later sell. After that, Karlat was downed as well, but not after various healing potions were consumed. That Dwarf is a sturdy little bugger.
He then traveled west to deal with Bjornin’s Half-Ogres. It was nice to see that Vallon was already able to hold his ground against those monsters, although he had to finish off the last two with his crossbow after suffering a few hits.
On the South Coast Vallon found Brage and traveled with him to Nalin in Nashkel. Vallon got to keep Brage’s Cursed Berserking sword, which would be enchanted for controlled use by Thalantyr. But first Neira was dealt with at the Nashkel Inn. Vallon knew that she wouldn’t be able to Hold him, so he was quite confident. She did cast Unholy Blight twice, but Vallon would simply step outside to prevent himself from harm.
At the Nashkel Carnival Vallon bought a green scroll of Protection from Petrification, and at Thalantyr’s he had got the “upgrade” to the Cursed Berserking sword. The new ‘Sword of Rage’ is a 2H sword +3 with a daily enrage ability. Vallon’s next destination was Mutamin’s garden, where he slew the Basilisks in melee, and protected himself against Mutamin’s spells by activating his sword’s enrage ability. Mutamin was hasted and therefore difficult to hit, but a critical did him in.
When he was done, Vallon was close to level 6. Kirian & co, were left alone for the time being. Instead Vallon traveled to the Temple of Lathander area, where he slew a number of different types of Wolves, including Vampiric Wolves, to reach level 6. After it, Vallon considered the time ripe to go Ankheg hunting. He cleared the cave without difficulty, found a Heavy Crossbow of Accuracy in it, brought Brun his son’s body, and gave the farmer 100 GP. Outside, Vallon’s run almost ended when he was up against two Ankhegs. He had just quaffed a healing potion when both Ankhegs started hitting himwith their acid spit. Having just drank the healing potion, he had to wait before he could drink his next potion, one of invisibility. He barely made it in time, at 4 HP. He rested elsewhere, found the two Ankhegs again, and slew them.
Vallon kept one of the Ankheg shells and got a suit of Ankheg scale armor produced by Taerom Fuiruim. In the tenday he had to wait for it, Vallon slew Greywolf in the Nashkel Mines area, and did the quests in the two Cloudpeaks areas, including taking on Vax and Zal, Sendai & co (one of them dropped the Boots of Grounding), and Caldo and Krumm. He also returned to the South Coast, where he helped Nib and faced the Doomsayer. The latter was a formidable foe who had Vallon quaff all his healing potions, circa 10, before he would fall.
When he got his Ankheg Armor Vallon decided to test Bassilus’ mettle. With his sword’s enrage ability activated, which protected him from a Mental Domination, Vallon had no difficulty with the the priest. (I overwrote the screenshot.) Vallon also took care of Zargal and his two buddies. Funnily Zardal’s sword shattered, but that wouldn’t keep the brave Hobgoblin from attacking:
On the North Coast both Droth and Shoal were felled. Droth is a dangerous foe who can cast Chaos among other spells, but with Vallon’s sword’s rage, Droth became much more manageable. The North Coast’s many Ogres and their ilk, weren’t a real threat anymore at this stage of Vallon’s growth as warrior.
He had a much harder time in the Light House area though, where the six “enhanced” Sirines (inclusing Sil), and two Hamadryads and their Water Weirds were difficult for him to overcome, even with a green scroll of Protection from Magic to protect himself against Blindness and Charms and against the random traps in the treasure cave. Without the scroll he probably would have had to flee the scene. The Improved Invisible Sirines would walk away all the time, in order to attack with their arrows of biting. Perseverance, healing potions and antidotes, and spreading his foes by entering the cave, helped Vallon through the ordeal. Inside, one of the Flesh Golems brought Vallon’s health to dangerously low levels, but an invisibility potion and subsequent healing helped him restore his health.
Vallon traveled to Beregost where he finished off Silke in close combat, again relying on Rage.
I must say that the Sword makes life for Vallon quite a bit easier. Vallon buys or otherwise acquires all anti-magic potions (Shielding, Blocking, Protection) and scrolls he can get his hands on (only two so far: one at Thalantyr’s and one from Hafiz the Gnome). The sword’s enrage ability has allowed Vallon to take on a few optional foes, such as Droth for his Helmet of Defense and Silke, and to save some of his anti-magic consumables for later. Other players could use the Greenstone Amulet for this purpose; I usually can’t find it due to Item Randomization..
After he was done with Silke, he decided to further train himself as an Undead Hunter (for max XP, and level 8) before tackling the plot quests. Vallon traveled to the Valley of the Tombs (i.e. Nashkel Mines exit), where a potion of heroism and his replenished stock of healing potions helped him best the Revenant. Narcillicus and his Mustard Jellies caused Vallon quite some trouble. A potion of magic blocking helped gave him three round of protection the wizard’s spells, but his Jellies slowed Vallon, causing him to retreat. Only Narcillicus followed, and was dealt with in melee. He rested and slew the Jellies the next day in melee (so that their spit wouldn’t hit him).
The other undead in the area caused Vallon no trouble, and it was after slaying a Ghast that Vallon reached level 8 (his highest level for BG1, as I will respect the XP cap, even though it’s removed).
Vallon’s last mission before tackling the Nashkel Mines was Gullykin and the dungeon beneath it. His only potion of magic shielding was used against the dungeon’s wizards. Between Lendarn and the Ogre Mage, the latter was the first to fall. He was stuck between his Ogrillon minions, a wall and Vallon, so there was no escaping for the mage who, conveniently, dropped a suit of full plate mail. Lendarn did hurt Vallon with a few of his spells, (Cones of Cold and Melf’s Minute Meteors) but he would fall to Vallon’s blade just the same. Gandolar Luckyfoot was thankful and gave his ‘lucky ring0 (+1 Luck) to Vallon.
Vallon traveled to the High Hedge where he bought ten bolts of biting. Unfortunately there weren’t any more of the bolts for sale. He also acquired the Claw of Kazgaroth in case the Kobolds’ arrows would hurt him. (Vallon didn’t use a shield, and he hadn’t found the Elves’ Bane girdle or the Boots of Avoidance yet.)
The Nashkel Mines have three difficult parts: the bridge on the third level (where a character can get stuck, surrounded by a horde of the somewhat tough SCS Kobolds), the exit from the third to the fourth/final level, and Mulahey’s lair. On the bridge Vallon lured a few of the Kobolds his way, to see how their arrows did against him without the Claw of Kazgaroth. It turned out that he didn’t need the Claw, so he proceeded to slay all the Kobolds that crossed his path.
Near the level 3 exit more Kobolds fell to Vallon’s blade, until he faced the Kobold Chieftain and a Kobold Shaman. The Chieftain attakcs with extremely poisonous arrows, so Vallon decided to administer his foe a dose of its own medicine, with a bolt of biting. The Kobold Shaman injured Vallon with his spells (Chromatic Orbs, Magic Missiles), albeit slightly. He too got served a bolt of biting. The remainder of the battle consisted in Vallon slaying the Kobold without meeting much resistance.
Mulahey received two of the same bolts, and was annihilated in melee. He wouldn’t cast a single spell (other than his SCS-provided insta-cast spells). Mulhey’s Kobolds and Skeletons presented no real challenge. In terms of useful gear the loot was meagre this time: except for the decent Barcers of Archery that Vallon kept, only two enchanted short swords and a few spells he would sell.
In Nashkel, enraged Vallon slew Nimbul, and took his Boots of Avoidance. The Item Randomizer hasn’t been overly generous with Vallon, which caused him to seek out the likes of Borda near the Xvart village (someone I always skip), to see if he would drop something special. First however, Vallon had to fight Molkar & co in a very cramped area. Enraged, he withstood any mind-affecting magic, though Drakar’s Unholy Blights did do some damage. After a long fight, especially with Drakar and Morvin (who seemed to be the toughest meleers), Vallon was the only one standing.
The Xvarts and Borda were dealt with after that, but they didn’t drop any interesting loot. So Vallon returned to Beregost, where he took care of Tranzig. Enraged Vallon was very content to see the mage drop the Golden Girdle.
He proceeded to the Larswood where Lamalha and her girls ambushed him. They were less difficult to deal with than Molkar & co. Vallon first focused his efforts on the casters. The rogues had darts of stunning, but those wouldn’t affect Vallon since he’s immune to Hold (and in my setup that includes Stun but not Web).
He cleared the Larswood of its bandits but noticed that they were better archers than the kobolds, so he equipped the Claw of Kazgaroth for its bonus to AC against missiles. In Peldvale he slew a few more bandits until he was approached by Raiken, through whom he infiltrated the Bandit Camp.
Tazok wasn’t fought his time, since Vallon still hadn’t acquired the Boots of Speed. (I only attack him with Boots of Speed and an oil of speed.) It cost him the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise. Vallon didn’t bother with the many chests; he went straight for Tazok’s tent. Before entering he quaffed potions of invisibility, cloud giant strength, speed, and power (in that order), and he cast Protection from Evil on himself. Inside he moved to the west side of the tent, just within visual range of Venkt the wizard. He then activated his sword’s rage ability, and attacked Venkt with a bolt of biting, that poisoned the wizard. One or two more regular bolts finished him off. The others were fought with relative ease, until Vallon was the last one standing, with only moderate injuries. He healed himself, spoke with Ender Sai, drank a potion of absorption and opened the chest, which contained little more than a couple of spells. Again, not the richest possible harvest, although one of the bandit’s Long Bow of Marksmanship is a nice weapon.
Outside, still well-buffed, Vallon slew Taugosz for his full plate and for an enchanted large shield, took down many bandits for their scalps and Ardenor who had appeared out of nowhere and who would drop a Tome of what turned out to be Charisma, much to Vallon’s surprise. He left when the resistance was becoming too strong.
Vallon went to the Friendly Arm Inn to get some loot identified, and to sell it, and then he invited Imoen for a visit to the Nashkel Carnival, she would greatly enjoy. There she looted two chests from the merchant who sells the red and the violet potion. Potions of fire giant strength, invisibility and speed, amongst others, would greatly help in later battles. Imoen barely escaped being caught by the guards.
The pair also made a trip to Durlag’s Tower (upper floors). The Battle Horrors failed to hit Vallon, which gives hope for the Davaeorn fight, although Vallon also had difficulty hitting them. Inside Durlag’s Tower Ghouls fell to Vallon’s blade, and Kirinhale was pursued in vain (she kept going ethereal every time Vallon would close in on her). The trip provedvery worthwhile though, as it yielded Vallon a Greenstone Amulet, and a (randomized) Manual of Bodily Health, with which he raised his CON to 20. Not as good as a Manual of Gainful Exercise, but still pretty neat.
I’m now inclined to keep the Claw of Kazgaroth equipped on Vallon: I think relinquishing 8 HP and accepting the Save vs Paralyze/Death/Poison penalty is worth it for the AC and saves bonuses. Is there a specific threat other than Spiders and their Poisons that I should be wary of?
In the Cloakwood Vallon sided with Seniyad, and with a potion of free action he retrieved Spiders’ Bane for himself and Chelak’s body for Tiber. The druids were left in peace. Wyverns were luredout a cave and pelted with bolts for their skulls. Outside the Cloakwood Mines, Vallon quaffed two potions of Magic Protection, which granted him 100% Magic Resistance. He also used a scroll of Champion’s Strength he had bought at one of the Temples. The warriors were no match for Vallon, but as usual, the Mages were more difficult to deal with. When Vallon pierced their protections (Stoneskins, Mirror Images), they would go invisible and reluctant to show themselves. Both Vallon and Rezdan were struck by lightning. The latter even died due to it. Kysus became visible once, noticed how Vallon’s bolts were stripping him of his protections and went invisible again. He would only reveal himself after Vallon’s first potion of magic protection expired, very clever enemy AI. Kysus immediately cast a Chaos in Vallon’s direction, but timely acitivation of his sword’s rage ability, prevented the spell from affecting him. Vallon slew his foe with a nice critical.
Vallon is now preparing to enter the Cloakwood Mines.
Post edited by Blackraven on
15
Comments
I wish you luck, may Davaeorn fall at your feet !
I wish you not only luck but to have a feeling you've done everything right. It seems the most important now.
You know, if you were a blogger, I would subscribe to your site immediately - your posts are ambrosia
How do you handle traps then?
I just can't justify my characters (save for the rare ranger) just wandering off the beaten path to areas I know are good XP but little threat (sirines, bassaliks). So they go to Candlekeep, get turned back, head to the Friendly Arm Inn, look dubiously at Khalid and Jaheira, then storm the mine and get killed by SCS kobolds solo at level 1/2.
It's not pretty.
But cheers for you, however you do it. Good luck with the SCS chapter battles!
@bengoshi, thank your for you compliment.
@Ygramul: I wouldn't consider myself a completionist per se, especially not in a no-reload run because imo it's best to pick your fights (and avoid others). But... Item Randomization means that alomost all useful items are in different places than they would normally be. I like that and I can resist the urge to go look for the Boots of Speed or the Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise, but I'm a sucker for the stat-increasing tomes, so I do end up doing more sidequests than necessary.
Traps (one of the reasons I've mostly played Thieves, apart from the fact that I love the class RP-wise) are dealt with either by taking the hits, or by picking up Imoen. Vallon already took her on a trip to Durlag's Tower and he will invite to join him to Candlekeep if he survives long enough to get sent that way. I think I'll also recruit a few NPC for the Duchal Palace fight, as I don't think one warrior with no spells/summons cannot be relied upon to finish off all the Greater Doppelgangers in time.
@Twani, I hear you. Serene's wandering made sense to me. She was much more comfortable in the wilderness (still is, never died lol!) than in urban settings, and very reticent toward other people. But this run is more technical and less roleplayed. Roleplaying and SCS No-Reload is a problematic combination in my experience. I hope I'm learning to separate these thing, with characters like Serene satisfying my need for immersion and drama, and a butcher like Vallon the no-reloader in me.
BTW I do think that not following the main plot can be justified not only by Rangers, but also by Druids and generally by neutral/evil or simply very free-spirited charnames that don't have a sense of duty regarding Khalid and Jaheira and investigating the Nashkel Mines.
Speaking of the RP-aspects, I think I couldn't have come up with a proper backstory for an Undead Hunter anyway. "Paladinhood" isn't a profession one has by simply exercising it, is it? One needs to be admitted into an Order I think? Difficult for 20-year-old Vallon who's lived his whole life in Candlekeep.
... and it is the ONLY way I play these days (which probably explains why I have yet to finish BGEE, let alone BG2EE...) *sigh*
BG1 can be done though, just look at Serene the Beast Mistress: adventuring has cost her a broken heart, a Fallen Ranger status and in early BG2 the loss of her entire party plus their expensive equipment, but she's still alive
Indeed: I did finish BG (original) twice as no-reload -- I am confident that I can again.
Problem is when you try to act heroic on the front lines...
(The Fallen Ranger story was an interesting one... what a bummer.)
***
Inside the Cloakwood Mines Vallon cast Protection from Magic from a green scroll on himself. He took the time to finish off Hareishan, but after that he rushed straight to Davaeorn in order not to have the protection from magic expire. The Davaeorn fight was uneventful. The wizard didn’t hurt Vallon in any way. His Battle Horrors did, but Vallon would simply quaff healing potions while keeping his focus on Davaeorn until the wizard fell, which caused the undead to fall as well. Since his Protection from Magic was still in effect, Blackraven Vallon, who takes great pleasure in killing evil wizards, returned upstairs to deal with Natasha. At one point his protection wore off, allowing the pyromaniac to injure him, but not enough to prevail. Vallon returned to Davaeorn’s lair where he looted the Mage’s body and, with a Fire Giant STR potion, most of his chests. The Boots of Speed were his (principal) reward.
At the FAI Imoen rejoined with Vallon. Together the two traveled to BG City, where she fetched him the Helm and Cloak of Balduran, a Tome of Understanding from the Lady’s House, a Tome of Clear Thought from Ragefast (whose life was spared), and a Manual of Quickness of Action from a drawer in the Seven Suns after Vallon had taken care of the local Doppelgangers. Ramazith was slain as well mainly thanks to a Bolt of Biting that would interrupt his spellcasting. Imoen subsequently looted the chest and book case on the top floor, but there wasn’t much of interest for Vallon there (Bracers AC7, Ring of Protection +1, couple of spells).
Imoen was then thanked for her help and told to wait for Vallon at the Elfsong Tavern. Meanwhile Vallon took care of Desreta and Vay-Ya at the Low Lantern and of Jenkal and an Ogre Mage in the sewers (hoping in vain for good randomized loot). More importantly, Vallon took on the Iron Throne. The latter fight was relatively easy. His first victim had been Diyab, whom he fought with a potion of magic shielding at the ready without having to use it though. After that, Alai and Naaman (the most dangerous spellcasters) followed him downstairs at the same time, so that it only cost him two potions of magic blocking (and to be safe the daily Enrage ability of his Sword of Rage) to have them waste their spells on him while he took them on. The others, inferior fighters and a vulnerable priest (Aasim), were never a threat.
Vallon reported to Belt and traveled with Imoen to Candlekeep. Ogre Mages near the entrance took too long in dying for Vallon, who didn’t want to spend more than one potion of magic shielding on them, so he just went inside with (invisble) Imoen.
With Imoen waiting downstairs, Vallon proceeded to dispatch the Iron Throne Leaders in the Candlekeep Library. This was a piece of cake after two of his last Bolts of Biting neutralized Rieltar, allowing Vallon to take on first Rieltar and later the others with just his trusty two-handed greatsword and without having to worry over any magic tricks. Vallon was rewarded generously for his actions: he found the Manual of Gainful Exercise and a pair of Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise on his fallen foes’ corpses. (This fight went so fast I didn’t think of screenshots.)
Below Candlekeep Imoen helped Vallon unlock the vaults. They held little of notice for Vallon though (a Wand of Fire, Ring of Fire Protection, Ring of Holiness, gems, potions, green Scroll of Protection from Magic). The fight with Prat and co soon turned into a fight with only Prat and Sakul, as the latter grilled his companions with his multiple Sunfires, Fireballs, Lightning Bolts and what not. Vallon too, suffered from Sakul’s destructive magic, but he survived thanks to four potions of extra healing. With a Potion of Clarity and later his Sword’s Enrage ability he slew both spellcasters.
A green scroll of Protection from Petrification he had found in the Iron Throne building back in Baldur’s Gate allowed Vallon to slay two Greater Basilisks and leave the catacombs safely with Imoen, who was promptly instructed to wait for him at the FAI while Vallon himself traveled to the High Hedge to get loot identified (STR Tome among other things) and to have the Gauntlets of Grandmastery produced by Thalantyr (Thac0 +2, Dmg +2, AC +1). On his way to Baldur’s Gate, Vallon recruited Kivan the Stalker and north of the FAI Ajantis the young Inquisitor, who were both mor than willing to help Vallon expose Sarevok and thwart the latter’s evil plans. In the city both warriors would wait for him while Vallon rescued Eltan, took on Cythandria and her Golems (that were first lured downstairs) and slew Slythe and Krystin at minimal risk with one of his three remaining green scrolls of Protection from Magic.
With some healing done, and his anti-magic globe still in effect, Vallon re-recruited Ajantis and Kivan. The three of them went straight to the Ducal Palace where his companions protected themselves against Horror (a spell that Greater Doppelgangers like to cast, Vallon had learnt from Rashad, Eltan’s pseudo-healer). The three annihilated the Greater Doppelgangers, saving both Liia and Belt.
Vallon thanked his warrior friends and told them he looked forward to working with them again. He then followed Sarevok through a heavily trapped maze inhabited by oozes and undead. He protected himself against the traps using another green scroll of Protection from Magic. The scroll’s protection also helped him against the iron Throne hirelings that were looking for Sarevok. There was one exception though: Shaldrissa. The Mage, very intelligently, went invisible and waited for Vallon’s protection to expire. At that point Vallon wished he had been an Inquisitor with True Sight, but then he remembered he wouldn’t be as badass as he was now, so he accepted his situation and simply waited. He had to quaff a Potion of Magic Blocking right after he became susceptible to magic again and his foe began casting. Her visibility also meant her end.
The final fight was quite entertaining. Vallon, once again protected from Magic as per the green scroll, polymorphed Diarmid into a Squirrel with a single Bolt of Polymorphing and slew the archer and his animated skeleton. The same trick didn’t work against Tazok, who consistently saved against the effect. However, Vallon was pleased to see that the warrior he had shunned in the Bandit Camp, was no longer a match for his prowess. Invisible Semaj and Angelo’s presence was detected by multiple castings of Vallon’s innate Detect Evil ability (which shows a white shimmer around even invisible characters when cast). The wizards were softened up and provoked to waste their healing potions with about 10-12 Potions of Explosions / Oils of Fiery Burning, though they wouldn’t fall or even show themselves. It meant that Vallon had to wait again for his protective sphere to dissipate. When it did, Vallon drank a potion of Invisibility and while invisible two potions of Magic Protection that gave him more magic resistance than he would ever need against his two foes (2x50 from the potions + 25 from the cloak = 125%,). An oil of speed for the extra APR allowed him to take down the two mages in close combat with little difficulty.
This left only Sarevok, who had been carefully avoided in the fight until then (Vallon had provoked his nemesis to pursue him toward the northwest corner of the area, and then quaffed a potion of invisibility and left, leaving Sarevok behind.)
For the confrontation with Sarevok, Vallon first healed and then buffed heavily, with potions of Mind Focusing (for improved AC), Speed, Heroism, Storm Giant Strength and Power, after which he engaged in his brother in melee combat. The two formidable warriors dealt each other severe damage until both reached near death status. Vallon was better prepared than Sarevok though. Vallon quaffed another potion of invisibility, healed himself with potions, and then finished Sarevok off.
Before reporting back to Belt, Vallon slew Lasala and Denak (Red Wizards of Thay) after having quaffed a spare potion of Magic Shielding. Denak dropped the Elves’ Bane Girdle which Vallon presented to Thalantyr, together with the Golden Girdle and the Girdle of Bluntness, to have it made into the Girdle of Bravery (+1 STR, +3 AC, Regeneration 1HP per 6 seconds). I might add that item and the Gauntlets of Grandmastery to BG2. Vallon is going to get captured by Mae’Var on his way to Amn. It makes sense that Mae’Var strips him of those items, before handing him over to Irenicus.
All in all a pretty smooth run. The mod added Sword of Rage’s daily ability to enrage has been very helpful, although by the end of the game I still had plenty of protective potions and more green scrolls of Protection from Magic than I needed, so I should have been able to make it through the game (including a number of optional spellcaster fights) without the Sword. Something I’ll surely test in a future attempt.
It's been a real flawless run, congratulations!
This run was pretty metagamed and as such less exciting for me to play than other, more roleplayed playthroughs, but either way a nice no-reload exercise.
You now have 2 characters in Amn, good luck !
@Gotural, thank you. I haven't been playing much, but here's an update...
****
Vallon is no longer a solo character now that he's reached Amn. He had Imoen, Minsc, Jaheira and Yoshimo join him in Irecnicus' dungeon. There weren't many interesting fights, although the hardy Duergar and the nasty Mephits were very difficult to deal with for the almost gearless party. (This is usually the case for me, until Charname finds a couple of useful pieces of imported BG1 gear in the room past the library. This time Gauntlets of DEX, Gauntlets of Ogre Giant STR, Full Plate +1, Cloak of Balduran, Ring of Free Action, Cloak of Non-Detection, Greenstone Amulet, and Boots of Stealth With made the dungeon more bearable.)
An example is the fight with the Mephits in the extraplanar area with the Mephits that can hurt, stun, blind etc...
In Athkatla I usually have my Charname do the Circus quest and the Slavers first. This playthrough is no exception. Vallon dismissed Minsc, Jaheira and Yoshimo, and had his old friend Kivan, who had helped him save Duke Belt and Duchess Liia in Baldur's Gate, join him. The Circus Quest presented no risk, although the illusory Werewolves did deal damage (in spite of their reputation of being harmless as long as they aren't attacked). It yielded Vallon and Kivan the Elves' Bane Girdle, some welcome XP, and a new party member: Aerie the Chorister Bard (and a possible love interest for Vallon). The three of them spoke with Gaelan and after that, they visited the Copper Coronet, where Anomen joined the party, and Yoshimo rejoined. The five rescued Hendak and other slave fighters with little effort, and proceeded to clear the Slaver Compound for Hendak. Normally I have my party enter via the Copper Coronet, but this time I chose to have them enter from the Slums. This might be the safer way, because enemies can be lured outside where the narrow staircase allows for good melee combat against the mages. Unfortunately, Aerie ended up in the frontline, so I had her immediately cast Stoneskin, which earned the party a first warning from the Corrupt Cowled Wizards. Still the party had little difficulty with the two wizards, hacking and slashing through their foes' Stoneskins in no time. Inside, Yoshimo's backstabs helped soften up the Yuan-Ti. The slaver guards, while sturdy, were too few in numbers to stand any chance against Vallon and company. Yoshimo also backstabbed the slaver priest of Cyric, after that one had held Kivan and Anomen. Aerie and Yoshimo attacked the Trolls with their bows, and Aerie finished them off with scrolls of Melf's Acid Arrow and Flame Arrow, since the party didn't have any arrows of fire yet.
In the sewer area that leads to the Copper Coronet Yoshimo got petrified afer I had been distracted for a moment (I scrolled upward and saw that Yoshi had detected a trap, but that had been another one apparently...) Anyhow, a brief visit was made to the Temple of Ilmater where Vallon bought a green scroll of Stone to Flesh, which he would cast on Yoshimo. The party cleared the area, got Lilarcor for Vallon, and then paid a visit to the Adventurer's Mart where they purchased two enchanted maces for Aerie and Anomen, and a very cheap Belt that gives a permanent Bless effect for Vallon. In the Bridge District they solved the Skinner murders. This went reasonably well, although Yoshimo fell (without being chunked) to two Rune Assassin backstabs.
The remaining companions then proceeded to the Temple District, where they accpted the proposal by High Priest Oisig of the Temple of Helm to investigate the Cult of the Eyeless. In reality I only wanted to rceruit Keldorn, and save the quest for later. I hope there isn't a timer on this quest for Keldon. Before Vallon would meet Keldorn in the sewers, the party ran into Tarnor the Hatchetman and his five companions.
Hostilities ensued and the party fled outside. The only one to follow them was Gaius the Mage, but he gated in a Cornugon that was difficult to hit and very dangeroys. Together with the Mage, they had all kinds of nasty tricks to debilitate the party, such as Demon Fear, Stun, and Chaos. The Cornugon also had poisonous physical attacks. Anomen was the first to fall, followed soon after by Kivan who was stunned and thus defenseless. Aerie cast a Dispel Magic but was too late to save Kivan. Aerie's spellcasting prompted one or two Cowled Wizards to teleport in, this time with hostile intent (because it had been the party's second infraction). Aerie was fried by two of Gaius' Lightning Bolts, and stunned and subsequently finished off by the Cornugon.
So at that point it was Vallon against Gaius, a Cornugon, hostile Cowled Wizards, and five enemies in the sewers. He opted for the sewers, where Tarnor, Draug Fea and Gallchobhair were waiting for him. Down there, In spite of having fairly good AC, Vallon suffered too many blows for him to expect to stand against the three, so he went upstairs again. This time Gallchobhair and Zorl followed Vallon to the surface where Vallon, aided by an oil of speed and DUHM, slew both of his attackers. Fortunately the Cornugon had returned to whatever lower plane it had been called from so that Vallon had only Gaius the Wizard to deal with. (The Cowled Wizards were not in sight.) Gaius wasted a number of mind affecting spells on Vallon (2-3x Chaos, 1x Emotion: Hopelessness) as well as a number of damage dealing spells (many Chromatic Orbs) while Vallon kept on striking until the wizard ran out of magical protections (he used at least 3 Stoneskins). Two criticals finished him off. Down in the sewers again, Draug Fea and after that Tarnor the Hatchetman fell to Vallon's blade. Vallon was still hasted during that fight, had cast PfE and a seond DUHM, and honestly he had to quaff many healing potions while fighting the Dwarves. A bit farther away was Rengaard, a Priest, the last of his foes. Rengaard's attempt to cast spells on Vallon were futile, as the Undead Hunter kept interrupting the priest's casting until he was down.
Vallon recruited Keldorn, went with him to the Government District where the two spoke with Delon about problems in the Umar Hills, and inquired into the costs of a spellcasting license but refused to pay 15,000 GP for one. They ran into Hareishan who was fighting three Shadow Thieves. Picking the lesser of two evils, the Paladins sided with the Thieves and slew the vampire.
Keldorn wanted to see his family and left the party to bring an adultery case against his wife before the court. Vallon found this not the most elegant solution to Keldorn's marital issues, but decided not to meddle. Instead he went to Waukeen's Promenade to get some rest, after the tiring battle against Tarnor & Co. On his way, he got waylaid by bandits. He took on a Fighter, Cleric and Thief first, making sure to be able to escape easily in case any nasty spells would come his way from the Mage, but Lilarcor's protection against Charm and Confusion is pretty good. (I never liked that sword's babbling, but it's very nice to have to worry only about Sleep and Fear effects.) Vallon bested the bandits and was rewarded with Arbane's Sword and a number of scrolls.
At Waukeen's Promenade Vallon brought his fallen companions (except Yoshi) back to life with three scrolls of Raise Dead he had bought before at the Temple of Ilmater. They then rested and memorized their spells. Anomen upgraded from simple plate mail to Tarrnor the Hatchetman's Full Plate +1. With the Gauntlets of DEX equipped as well he's now a pretty good tank. They picked up Keldorn at the Order of the Radiant Heart. Fortunately, the Cowled Wizards weren't around anymore.
Their next destination was Imnesvale, in the Umar Hills. However, the party was waylaid again. This time by thugs who had poisoned Renfeld. The companions took on the mage first, after Keldorn had cast Dispel Magic on her. The other thugs were warriors of inferior prowess and fell soon after. Renfeld was returned to his Harper friends, after which the party fnally set out to Imnesvale. They solved the family affair / enraged golem quest, recruited Valygar (Wizard Slayer 9 -> Thief), and investigated the Temple Ruins. The Ruins themselves weren't too difficult to handle with my party still being relatively low level, so no Lich, Greater Mummies etc. Thaxxy the dragon was left for another occasion, but the Shade Lord was taken care off.
The party came well-buffed (with Anomen's Remove Fear, PfE 15' Radius, Chant, and Negative Plane Protections on three companions, and with Aerie's Haste), but either the Shade Lord or Keldorn (who cast Dispel Magic on the Shade Lord) dispelled most of those buffs. It didn't stop the party from assaulting the Shade Lord in melee combat. The exception was Aerie who cast Mordenkainen's Sword from a scroll. Aerie fell to Shadow Patrick as lacklustre pathfinding had her walk straight into his arms, but the others cleansed the place with little difficulty after they had downed the Shade Lord.
***
Party:
Vallon, lvl 9 Undead Hunter
Anomen, lvl 7 Fighter -> 11 Priest of Helm
Aerie, lvl 12 Chorister bard
Kivan, lvl 9 Stalker
Valygar, lvl 9 Wizard Slayer -> 11 Thief
Keldorn, lvl 9 Inquisitor
I'd like to have Mazzy along as well. She fits the holy warrior party, but I'm not sure in whose place. Valygar and Anomen are staying because they're my Cleric and Thief respectively. Keldorn seems indispensable in a party with almost no arcane magic. This leaves only Aerie and Kivan. As a Bard Aerie is obviously the dissonant character (no pun intended), but I like the romance idea and her limited magic is probably going to be very useful. So I suppose Kivan is the least useful party member, but his badass attitude fits the party. Oh well. I'll go and take a walk and ponder this question. Any views of you readers, are most welcome, as always.
After having resolved the troubles in the Umar Hillsa, the party went straight to the d'Arnise Keep, which according to a young woman they had met in the Copper Coronet was under assault. They pretty much breezed through the Keep although they did rest a few times. I didn't remember the number of Trolls being as high as it was, and the Iron Golem with its highly poisonous vapors was a bit of a pain to kill as well. The Yuan-Ti Mage, in spite of casting a Stinking Cloud that affected a number of party members, was much easier than I'm used to, thanks to Keldorn's Inquisitor abilities.
Glaicus was succesfully charmed, and the Umber Hulks were bottlenecked and dealt with by Vallon, whose Lilarcor protected him against Confusion.
Disaster struck when the party confronted TorGal. The Troll's AoE Horror/Panic ability was something the party wasn't prepared for. (It had been a while since I last completed most Chapter 2 quests in SoA, and I don't search for information on the different SCS quests before doing them, I generally like to have to improvise.) Anyway, one by one the companions fell. Keldorn tried what he could with his Dispel Magics until he too died. Vallon should have survived the onslaught, but was unlucky when he equipped Anomen's mace (a mod-added mace that does fire damage to kill off Trolls). I left the inventory screen with the mace equipped instead of Lilarcor. TorGal immediately horrored Vallon, after which the latter cornered himself, making it incredibly easy for TorGal to finish him off.
Pity, thus far he'd been pretty invincible...
I tend to abuse of all the Potions of Invisibility you can get in Chapter 2 and 3 for this fight, and backstab/attack those that are immune to death. With my Mage solo run, I used several Lower Resistance on Tor'Gal and then Skull Trap'd him to death. My Fighter/Thief solo tanked the whole fight dual-wielding DoE and FoA, and gulp'd around 10 Potions for pre-buffing.
@CrevsDaak, yes I really missed invisibility here.. lol sometimes I think traps and backstabbing is all I'm good at in this game
Nau! Oloth plynn jal (No! Darkness take all!)
RIP Vallon.
When a character dies it always reminds me the ending cinematic of BG1 showing a Bhaalspawn dissolving and his divine essence coalescing into the statue along with all the other Bhaalspawn.
Thalantyr Item Upgrade, it's an interesting mod but available only for BGT/Tutu so far.