Thief: Hide in Shadows

perfectblue

Hide in Shadows never seemed very intuitive to me. When I originally played the game I was much younger. I would raise it to a high proficiency and once activated, enemies still seemed to detect me, it didn't seem to improve saving rolls, and I was never able to deal bonus damage by attacking an enemy from behind. Other times it would simply fail casting.

How are you supposed to use Hide in Shadows correctly & what benefits does it bring to the table?

Gaara

well I never had any problems ( my bro soloed the game with a thief using just that ) ,when you use it you need to make sure no enemy sees you (you need to be far enough or behind an obstacle) .
-how high was your move silently?

bonuses : backstab ))

perfectblue

Do you actually have to locate yourself behind the enemy. Or will back stab activate regardless of your position when you attack out of stealth?

Mokona

You need to move the character behind the enemy then issue attack command. First attack will be a backstab. Hopefully it hits. If not, that's it, tough luck. You can then stand there and fight normally, or run around a corner or behind an object that obscures vision and attempt to hide in shadows again. The enemy AI will then run around the object or corner looking for you, but not see you, allowing you to attempt backstab again.

Gaara

@perfectblue
yes , you can be a bit to the side but you wont get any bonus if you re right in front of em X)

Mokona

Also, forgot to add, but you can do the same multiple backstab trick with invis potions (or other item/spell that grants invisibility). Handy for situations with powerful enemies out in the open with nowhere to hide.

Centopar

The game gives you a hide in shadows check *before* a move silently check. If your hide in shadow check fails, the move silently check affects how long it is before you're spotted, so you still can sneak off quickly or backstab.

Backstab should work wherever you are if you're invisible or stealthed. But some creatures (including all undead, iirc) have backstab immunity, and you can only backstab with thief weapons. (No stabbing with a quarterstaff, for example, because that would be *silly*.)

Chippy

Mokona said:

You need to move the character behind the enemy then issue attack command. First attack will be a backstab. Hopefully it hits. If not, that's it, tough luck. You can then stand there and fight normally, or run around a corner or behind an object that obscures vision and attempt to hide in shadows again. The enemy AI will then run around the object or corner looking for you, but not see you, allowing you to attempt backstab again.

I can't remember whether this was the vanilla version or modded, but using that tactic sometimes resulted in enemies following me after I had broke line of sight and remained hidden while moving around. This was in BG2 - it must have been reported if it was a bug...

Mokona

Centopar said:

and you can only backstab with thief weapons. (No stabbing with a quarterstaff, for example, because that would be *silly*.)

Actually I remember giving a thief all the different weapon types back in the day and testing backstab. These were the results:

Backstab Weapons
Dagger
Short Sword
Long Sword
Scimitar
Club
Quarterstaff

Non-Backstab Weapons
Morning Star
Hammer
Flail
Mace
2handed Sword
Bastard Sword
Axe
Spear
Halberd

Spjuv3rn

It basically boils down to any weapon a vanilla thief could use, meaning a Staff of Striking can back"stab" whereas a Staff of the Magi can not

e3r4t5yn

1. Activate it from inside shadow - standing near the tree or a building. That will rise a chance you will become hidden.

2. The higher ability points you have, the longer you'll stay hidden.

3. Ability is applicable for:
* Recon. Detect enemy range combat units before they detect you (black elite guards, bandits, kobolds);
* Targeting. Reveal target area for your casters to let them throw spells remotely and being undetected;
* Backstabbing;
* Avoiding undesirable conversations. For instance, hide when guards are approaching you after house looting.