Still alive. Barely. After seeing Edwin/Minsc rivalry to its conclusion, Cedvar decided neither was worth keeping around. Instead, he opted for VIconia and Kivan. Surely two elves will get along juuussttt fine.
Closest call so far was a surprise couple of Ankhegs, just targeting Cedvar. A potion of invisibility and a lot of running away later, we slew them without further conflict.
Nashkel was rather easy, but without the necklace of fireballs the kobolds would have been trouble.
Nimbul was avoided with fleeing into the Nashkel shop and inn.
Wasting no time, we went to the Bandit Camp. Stocked with potions of explosives, the fireball necklace, and a fireball scroll or two, we ripped into the Improved Hordes of bandits. I did a rough count of about 40 bandits. Kivan was pleased.
Cloakwood's next. Time to get some boots of speed.
Heyo, I'm going to pretend to do one of these again. This time: optimized(?) party of rogues. Basic premise is that all the party are thieves, bards, or multiclasses containing rogues.
Our members are
Jack Sparrah, dwarven swashbuckler
Jokulmorder, half-orc fighter/thief
Crusher, half-orc cleric/thief (also Bhaalspawn)
Darian, elf fighter/mage/thief
Redbeard, half-elf skald
And finally Daria, gnome illusionist/thief
I hope this time will go better than last; I think it will just due to the extra muscle that the non-rogue classes get us.
SOD is probably the most difficult game to play in Legacy of Bhaal mode, as it is the most linear and has the largest groups of enemies, where LOB bonuses make the largest impact. Each enemy gets separate bonuses, and kiting is much more difficult on a crowded battlefield.
I've considered taking a group of Cleric/Illusionists through SOD, using the spider gnome trick (the best means of dealing melee damage in SOD, actually), but the exploit might have gotten closed by now, as it was in BG2:EE.
I have no no-reload experience, but I would imagine a party of fighters, mages, and clerics (Multi, dual, or single) would have a better rate of success in SOD, based on what I've heard. More defensive classes would probably fare best in large battles. I mean, that tends to be accurate in IWD too, doesn't it? Obviously anything is possible, but more defense likely wins the day in terms of efficiency.
Cavan's progress will be slow and intermittent, but he's still going for it!
I have to say, I'm enjoying SoD very much so far. It's fun to be surprised!
Ambushed by assassins in the Ducal Palace, and then by Korlasz in the basement... discovering that the treasurer has used my gold for a shady investment and can't give it back, and that most of the companions I prefer have left the city...
I have no no-reload experience, but I would imagine a party of fighters, mages, and clerics (Multi, dual, or single) would have a better rate of success in SOD, based on what I've heard. More defensive classes would probably fare best in large battles. I mean, that tends to be accurate in IWD too, doesn't it? Obviously anything is possible, but more defense likely wins the day in terms of efficiency.
I have discovered that shields are so important. I have three fighters, one is a barbarian with a shield, one a dwarven defender with a shield and one is Minsc with two-handed sword.
Despite giving him good armour, the bracers of dexterity and other good defensive equipment, it is always him that is getting killed, even more so than my cleric, thief and mage. The last three mainly avoid front line duty though. In anther game I will have his proficiency points in sword and shield style and in flails and long swords. (This is my first Dragonspear campaign so I am making mistakes all the time)
Blind_Visionary said: I have to say, I'm enjoying SoD very much so far. It's fun to be surprised!
I'm enjoying it too, but am having difficulty knowing what to do next. I think that I might have missed some clues.
EDIT
I had. I should have released some prisoners earlier. I have found an item that Neera needs and I have released Dorn. Time will tell whether or not the game will now progress.
@ussnorway Yes, but enemies get round them. There are some pretty big hordes. Not complaining. I would be complaining if it wasn't a challenge. I am pleased to have got as far as I have in my first try.
Sarah purchased PfP then I sent my Imp against the roof guards and of course we had to support the arts ... Nice swords.
Between Korax and my Imp we managed to clear basilisks for another level... I picked the 'knock' spell, then I purchased a necklace of missiles but I'm not keen to start hunting ankheg yet as Shar-teel just died fighting a single one at the bridge.
Seluna and party had just about won the battle at Boaresky Bridge with only one enemy left and then the game crashed. I'll have to fight it again. Let's hope that it doesn't crash again.
EDIT
Second time around, Seluna took the Boaresky Bridge they had to use many potions of healing, but found yet more. Web, Cloudkill, Icestorm, and Silence were all of value, but so were the buffings that prevented too serious an injury.
Seluna was stunned and as a result got seriously injured. Minsc also got badly hurt, but he was able to run away and consume healing potions.
Slowly Seluna and friends regained strength before gaining the upper hand.
A mistake was made. Dispell magic should have been used to remove Seluna's stun.
The second time around the battle was much fiercer than the first which had been quite straightforward.
EDIT
I said: images tomorrow only to discover that in the heat of the battle I only took one screenshot.
Just after that, Minsc took even more injury and retreated to take several healing potions. Fortunately the enemy mages fell quickly as their tanks had already fallen.
@Wise_Grimwald: That's discipline! Last time I had a crash just before winning a fight, I told myself I'd just cheat my way through it to save time.
I ended up fighting it a second time anyway, for fun, but I was willing to just jump ahead, assuming victory was assured anyway.
Even though, on previous occasions, I have wished that the game would crash when I was losing badly just so I'd have an excuse to try it again. Never happened, though--no crash has saved me from my own incompetence.
This thread is so active right now, I just can't keep up with it - which makes me happy and sad at the same time.
Still, I'm finding some time to post here and then:
Goibniu, human paladin, update 23
After the rather difficult planar sphere adventure, the Windspear Hills went relatively well. Goibniu entered the Dungeon and defeated some minor enemy groups. A summon triggered the exploding kobolds, and the orc ambush was quickly dissolved. Another golem fight awaited, so Owain got to tank again.
The big group of undead had to deal with Anapa and his two friends: Daystar and a protection from undead scroll. I didn't bother with Samia's quest at this point, and the party moved on to the next golem group:
Fighting werewolves heavily wounded Anapa and Donar, and after using a haste spell, everyone was fatigued. Still, I had them destroy the adamatite golem before resting:
Tazok's allies were lured back towards the party and killed. Alone, the recurring foe stood no chance against the group and their summons:
I'm not interested in fighting Firkraag right now, so I had Donar set up some traps to kill Conster. The mage wasn't killed right away, but he couldn't survive the damage over time:
Now, the party returned to Samia. Aerial servants (protected from fire) dealt with the various guardians, and the party prepared for Samia with summons, traps, buffs and invisible thieves. An initial backstab crippled the hostile group:
The battle was quickly won, and Anapa is now the proud owner of a longsword to use against dragons.
Goibniu also completed all of the paladin stronghold quests, though there isn't much to say about them, since they're rather easy.
With pretty much everything (not involving liches, mind flayers or dragons) that can be done pre-Spellhold completed, it's time to prepare for Bodhi.
semiticgod said:@Wise_Grimwald: That's discipline! Last time I had a crash just before winning a fight, I told myself I'd just cheat my way through it to save time.
I ended up fighting it a second time anyway, for fun, but I was willing to just jump ahead, assuming victory was assured anyway.
Even though, on previous occasions, I have wished that the game would crash when I was losing badly just so I'd have an excuse to try it again. Never happened, though--no crash has saved me from my own incompetence.
A previous crash DID save me from incompetance.
I think that I would have survived it, but with more party members dead.
I have learned to take the rough with the smooth.
In this game an item for Neera disappeared from my directory. There have since been two GoG updates and it has reappeared, but now Neera isn't interested in it.
I will wait until I find the other two items before doing anything as I don't know just what if any changes were made to Neera.
If she accepts the last two items but still needs the one in my inventory, at least I know the command to correct things. There is a thread about disappearing items on this board.
If anyone needs it I will dig it up in my search history and post it. It looks as if GoG are on the ball and are sorting this bug at least so hopefully it won't happen to anyone else.
Cavan's run in SoD continues. He's teamed up with Safana, Corwin, Minsc (and Boo), Dynaheir, and Viconia.
He acquired a new potion case and has stocked it with liquors that may come in handy. Sorcerous Sundries sold him a new scroll case too, so the team is in business.
He's marched out of the gates and past some pretty impressive crowds, into the field.... unsure of what kinds of challenges might lie ahead.
instructed Safana to scout an underground library, invisible. That plan went south quickly, when one of the undead guardians saw through her invisibility and charged. Reinforcements came rushing after. Minsc and Cavan had to beat the skeletons down with blunt instruments. Dusty work, with scratches.
Then, Safana entered a room filled with fire mephits, elementals and salamanders that keep coming from another plane. Cavan had never seen anything like it.
Dynaheir experimented with a teleport field and inadvertently dropped two elementals into her lap on the other side of a wall she figured they couldn't cross. She learned a firey lesson not to try that again.
Cavan managed to knock back the fire creatures, but couldn't figure out how to stop more from coming. Worried he might end up like the dead giant upstairs, swarmed by undead, he slammed the door shut and ordered the crew to retreat back to the dwarven clerics for a rest...
The team curled up in their cloaks and tried to get some rest in the cold and dank cavern.
(This is nerve-wracking! I'm finding myself responding to threats with unnecessary and overwhelming force... or underestimating creatures that look like fodder, but turn out to have some scary tricks up their sleeves. ... I'm really trying hard to be careful though. I don't want to go back to Candlekeep just yet!)
@Blind_Visionary Like you it isn't the enemies that look worst that are worst. Who would expect boring beetles to be the most dangerous? They took Seluna down to 3 HP. Dynaheir was chunked in an magic-proof area. Just after she'd gone up a level too.
EDIT
At least I know what to do next time. The party will now have to find another magic-user, perhaps Neera.
Not sure how to explain it in English. I guess you would pronounce it along the lines of: "shteerbt", though the double-e is short.
Goibniu, human paladin, update 24
I almost forgot the guarded compound - and Donar can actually use katanas. I entered the building, Luna cast protection from evil 10' radius and we watched the summons fight each other while looting the place. For the actual enemy party, I prepared with traps, summons and buffs downstairs before successfully luring the foes to their death (the party only had to assist with ranged weapons):
Now, Goibniu travelled to the graveyard to confront Bodhi. Fighting vampires involves using my various helms of charm protection and chaotic command spells, while protecting a key party member from level drain with the amulet of power (usually Owain, who is my best tank anyway). I prepared various summoning spells to outsummon Tanova (which isn't easy, as she has tons of spells), and she eventually had only low level nukes left:
After hunting Lassal for a while, he met his end upstairs, after Owain lured him back to the party:
Bodhi herself was quickly defeated by summons and a heavily buffed party:
After selling and buying some final items, the party travelled to Brynnlaw, where a vampire ambush was averted by Luna's very own sunray spell:
I completed the minor quests around town, and Helios killed Perth with a quick backstab:
Seluna and party headed for the underground river and came across some tough opponents. Next time full buffing!! Both Starlight and Neera died. This means backtracking and getting Starlight resurrected. She can then resurrect Neera.
@Wise_Grimwald -- Full buffing for every fight with anything that looks new, right? ... And keep those auras clear... there is no next time!
Cavan is currently staring at
some undead beasts, "drowned in blood," backed by imbued wights.
He's trying to decide whether he wants to mess with them or leave them alone. He's wondering whether he has the proper buffs available to counter whatever abilities they might have... If he engages, it will be with a thicket of arrows launched from behind a wall of skelly summons... but maybe they have spells they can sling from a distance?! Perhaps we start with a malison + silence... perhaps we go somewhere else. Scary!
(Oh, and please don't tell me anything about these beasties. I'm having fun trying to figure out what to do.)
You can see why we're making such slow progress...
(Oh, and please don't tell me anything about these beasties. I'm having fun trying to figure out what to do.)
You can see why we're making such slow progress...
In my first no-reload run, I was facing SCS Irenicus in Spellhold without my equipment. I spent two days considering my options before I was ready to fight him. Very fun.
I am happy to report that I have gloriously died! (... and need advice)
The character: Cavalier, Khael Danwguard, 18.23/15/15/8/14/17
Breezed through BG1 and decided to finish up Sarevok instead of TOSC content, I was impatiently planning to move on to SoD.
Sarevok killed me (well, Diarmid did, I think) in the final fight.
*** How do people prepare for the SCS-enhanced Sarevok fight? ***
I realized that all my preparations of potions were annulled with a Remove Magic and I couldn't keep up with buffing while being beaten. I could kill only a single one of his followers (Minor Globes + lots of potions... wow!) and got the others to Injured/Near Death. Viconia and Neera bought it after some lucky spells and hits.
HOUSE RULE: I don't buy or "recharge" wands. That's just cheese and I could have swarmed the lot of them with summons otherwise. As things were I only had a handful of summons available (and 6 total wand charges for summoning).
It feels great to loose a game after almost 80 hours on it at the last battle. We must be masochists!
Cloakwood was difficult. A few close calls, and one near party wipe. We dropped Viconia for Coran, putting two sniper elves on our original team.
The spider map gave us an early challenge. Cedvar got entangled and chewed on before a fireball and some arrows put down their enemies. Imoen could only stand by sheepishly with a wand of fire, as Cedvar dusted the soot off his shadow armour.
Imoen's becoming a decent mage. Fire is her best friend, it seems.
Some bounty hunters nearly had us. Moving past that, we took out the shadow druids, saved Jahiera's friend, and moved onto the Mines proper.
This was the one I was nervous for. On previous runs this group was always trouble. Deciding on the nuclear option (as has become our staple) we used a fire wand, two potions, and the necklace to send -four- fireballs right to their center, before SCS mage protections kicked in. The mages fell quickly, and one backstab from Cedvar sealed the rest of the fight.
Within the mines, potions again became our friends, putting down the troublesome mages with ease. Untilll
That mage got a chromatic orb off as Cedvar fled away, and proceeded to annilaite the entire party sans Cedvar, coming back with only one missle spell and her dagger. She stabbed him -6- times, before the stun wore off, and gulping down healing potions, Cedvar dueled her solo. And won.
Storing everything in chests, Cedvar threw the bodies of his companions into a carriage, stole the horses outside the Mine, and rode off by the river straight to the Friendly Arm. Raised them all, bought basic supplies for the journey back, and finally, after a very close call, we made it to the big man's office.
The horrors were easy, but SCS had guards rolling in ever few turns. The fight got messy quick.
Victory wasn't easy, but by using every single potion we possibly could, we managed it without a single death. Onto the Gate.
Puks run has ended... I sent my Imp against the gnoll guards and he didn't survive it ... Branwen stopped one but the other 4 elites got two criticals which over powered his regeneration.
I will roll up another character tonight... Maybe dial the difficulty back to just insane?
@Blind_Visionary You may be making slow progress, but you will probably succeed where I will probably fail. I didn't realise that unlike Baldur's Gate you can't go back to do things later. The non-linearity of Baldur's gate is one of its great strengths. It made it more like life and less like a game.
Comments
Closest call so far was a surprise couple of Ankhegs, just targeting Cedvar. A potion of invisibility and a lot of running away later, we slew them without further conflict.
Nashkel was rather easy, but without the necklace of fireballs the kobolds would have been trouble.
Nimbul was avoided with fleeing into the Nashkel shop and inn.
Wasting no time, we went to the Bandit Camp. Stocked with potions of explosives, the fireball necklace, and a fireball scroll or two, we ripped into the Improved Hordes of bandits. I did a rough count of about 40 bandits. Kivan was pleased.
Cloakwood's next. Time to get some boots of speed.
Cedvar: Level 7 Thief
Imoen: Level 7 Thief/ Level 2 Mage
Khalid: Level 6 Fighter
Jahiera: Level 5 Fighter/Level 5 Druid
Kivan: Level 5 Ranger
Viconia: Level 6 Cleric
This time: optimized(?) party of rogues. Basic premise is that all the party are thieves, bards, or multiclasses containing rogues.
Our members are
Jack Sparrah, dwarven swashbuckler
Jokulmorder, half-orc fighter/thief
Crusher, half-orc cleric/thief (also Bhaalspawn)
Darian, elf fighter/mage/thief
Redbeard, half-elf skald
And finally Daria, gnome illusionist/thief
I hope this time will go better than last; I think it will just due to the extra muscle that the non-rogue classes get us.
I've considered taking a group of Cleric/Illusionists through SOD, using the spider gnome trick (the best means of dealing melee damage in SOD, actually), but the exploit might have gotten closed by now, as it was in BG2:EE.
I have to say, I'm enjoying SoD very much so far. It's fun to be surprised!
Ambushed by assassins in the Ducal Palace, and then by Korlasz in the basement... discovering that the treasurer has used my gold for a shady investment and can't give it back, and that most of the companions I prefer have left the city...
I'm in for a grand time back in Baldur's Gate!
Despite giving him good armour, the bracers of dexterity and other good defensive equipment, it is always him that is getting killed, even more so than my cleric, thief and mage. The last three mainly avoid front line duty though. In anther game I will have his proficiency points in sword and shield style and in flails and long swords. (This is my first Dragonspear campaign so I am making mistakes all the time)
I have to say, I'm enjoying SoD very much so far. It's fun to be surprised!
I'm enjoying it too, but am having difficulty knowing what to do next.
EDIT
I had. I should have released some prisoners earlier. I have found an item that Neera needs and I have released Dorn. Time will tell whether or not the game will now progress.@ussnorway Yes, but enemies get round them. There are some pretty big hordes. Not complaining. I would be complaining if it wasn't a challenge. I am pleased to have got as far as I have in my first try.
Gaze upon the loot,
Hear text as mp3,
Sarah purchased PfP then I sent my Imp against the roof guards and of course we had to support the arts ... Nice swords.
Between Korax and my Imp we managed to clear basilisks for another level... I picked the 'knock' spell, then I purchased a necklace of missiles but I'm not keen to start hunting ankheg yet as Shar-teel just died fighting a single one at the bridge.
EDIT
Second time around, Seluna took the Boaresky Bridge they had to use many potions of healing, but found yet more.Seluna was stunned and as a result got seriously injured. Minsc also got badly hurt, but he was able to run away and consume healing potions.
Slowly Seluna and friends regained strength before gaining the upper hand.
A mistake was made. Dispell magic should have been used to remove Seluna's stun.
The second time around the battle was much fiercer than the first which had been quite straightforward.
EDIT
I said: images tomorrow only to discover that in the heat of the battle I only took one screenshot.Just after that, Minsc took even more injury and retreated to take several healing potions.
Fortunately the enemy mages fell quickly as their tanks had already fallen.
I ended up fighting it a second time anyway, for fun, but I was willing to just jump ahead, assuming victory was assured anyway.
Even though, on previous occasions, I have wished that the game would crash when I was losing badly just so I'd have an excuse to try it again. Never happened, though--no crash has saved me from my own incompetence.
Still, I'm finding some time to post here and then:
Goibniu, human paladin, update 23
After the rather difficult planar sphere adventure, the Windspear Hills went relatively well. Goibniu entered the Dungeon and defeated some minor enemy groups. A summon triggered the exploding kobolds, and the orc ambush was quickly dissolved. Another golem fight awaited, so Owain got to tank again.
The big group of undead had to deal with Anapa and his two friends: Daystar and a protection from undead scroll. I didn't bother with Samia's quest at this point, and the party moved on to the next golem group:
Fighting werewolves heavily wounded Anapa and Donar, and after using a haste spell, everyone was fatigued. Still, I had them destroy the adamatite golem before resting:
Tazok's allies were lured back towards the party and killed. Alone, the recurring foe stood no chance against the group and their summons:
I'm not interested in fighting Firkraag right now, so I had Donar set up some traps to kill Conster. The mage wasn't killed right away, but he couldn't survive the damage over time:
Now, the party returned to Samia. Aerial servants (protected from fire) dealt with the various guardians, and the party prepared for Samia with summons, traps, buffs and invisible thieves. An initial backstab crippled the hostile group:
The battle was quickly won, and Anapa is now the proud owner of a longsword to use against dragons.
Goibniu also completed all of the paladin stronghold quests, though there isn't much to say about them, since they're rather easy.
With pretty much everything (not involving liches, mind flayers or dragons) that can be done pre-Spellhold completed, it's time to prepare for Bodhi.
Enuhal
I ended up fighting it a second time anyway, for fun, but I was willing to just jump ahead, assuming victory was assured anyway.
Even though, on previous occasions, I have wished that the game would crash when I was losing badly just so I'd have an excuse to try it again. Never happened, though--no crash has saved me from my own incompetence.
A previous crash DID save me from incompetance.
I think that I would have survived it, but with more party members dead.
I have learned to take the rough with the smooth.
In this game an item for Neera disappeared from my directory.
There have since been two GoG updates and it has reappeared, but now Neera isn't interested in it.
I will wait until I find the other two items before doing anything as I don't know just what if any changes were made to Neera.
If she accepts the last two items but still needs the one in my inventory, at least I know the command to correct things.
If anyone needs it I will dig it up in my search history and post it. It looks as if GoG are on the ball and are sorting this bug at least so hopefully it won't happen to anyone else.
He acquired a new potion case and has stocked it with liquors that may come in handy. Sorcerous Sundries sold him a new scroll case too, so the team is in business.
He's marched out of the gates and past some pretty impressive crowds, into the field.... unsure of what kinds of challenges might lie ahead.
instructed Safana to scout an underground library, invisible. That plan went south quickly, when one of the undead guardians saw through her invisibility and charged. Reinforcements came rushing after. Minsc and Cavan had to beat the skeletons down with blunt instruments. Dusty work, with scratches.
Then, Safana entered a room filled with fire mephits, elementals and salamanders that keep coming from another plane. Cavan had never seen anything like it.
Dynaheir experimented with a teleport field and inadvertently dropped two elementals into her lap on the other side of a wall she figured they couldn't cross. She learned a firey lesson not to try that again.
Cavan managed to knock back the fire creatures, but couldn't figure out how to stop more from coming. Worried he might end up like the dead giant upstairs, swarmed by undead, he slammed the door shut and ordered the crew to retreat back to the dwarven clerics for a rest...
The team curled up in their cloaks and tried to get some rest in the cold and dank cavern.
(This is nerve-wracking! I'm finding myself responding to threats with unnecessary and overwhelming force... or underestimating creatures that look like fodder, but turn out to have some scary tricks up their sleeves. ... I'm really trying hard to be careful though. I don't want to go back to Candlekeep just yet!)
EDIT
At least I know what to do next time.The party will now have to find another magic-user, perhaps Neera.
Goibniu, human paladin, update 24
I almost forgot the guarded compound - and Donar can actually use katanas. I entered the building, Luna cast protection from evil 10' radius and we watched the summons fight each other while looting the place. For the actual enemy party, I prepared with traps, summons and buffs downstairs before successfully luring the foes to their death (the party only had to assist with ranged weapons):
Now, Goibniu travelled to the graveyard to confront Bodhi. Fighting vampires involves using my various helms of charm protection and chaotic command spells, while protecting a key party member from level drain with the amulet of power (usually Owain, who is my best tank anyway). I prepared various summoning spells to outsummon Tanova (which isn't easy, as she has tons of spells), and she eventually had only low level nukes left:
After hunting Lassal for a while, he met his end upstairs, after Owain lured him back to the party:
Bodhi herself was quickly defeated by summons and a heavily buffed party:
After selling and buying some final items, the party travelled to Brynnlaw, where a vampire ambush was averted by Luna's very own sunray spell:
I completed the minor quests around town, and Helios killed Perth with a quick backstab:
Now, Spellhold awaits.
Enuhal
http://en.bab.la/dictionary/german-english/die-hoffnung-stirbt-zuletzt
Cavan is currently staring at
some undead beasts, "drowned in blood," backed by imbued wights.
He's trying to decide whether he wants to mess with them or leave them alone. He's wondering whether he has the proper buffs available to counter whatever abilities they might have... If he engages, it will be with a thicket of arrows launched from behind a wall of skelly summons... but maybe they have spells they can sling from a distance?! Perhaps we start with a malison + silence... perhaps we go somewhere else. Scary!
(Oh, and please don't tell me anything about these beasties. I'm having fun trying to figure out what to do.)
You can see why we're making such slow progress...
The character: Cavalier, Khael Danwguard, 18.23/15/15/8/14/17
Breezed through BG1 and decided to finish up Sarevok instead of TOSC content, I was impatiently planning to move on to SoD.
Sarevok killed me (well, Diarmid did, I think) in the final fight.
*** How do people prepare for the SCS-enhanced Sarevok fight? ***
I realized that all my preparations of potions were annulled with a Remove Magic and I couldn't keep up with buffing while being beaten. I could kill only a single one of his followers (Minor Globes + lots of potions... wow!) and got the others to Injured/Near Death. Viconia and Neera bought it after some lucky spells and hits.
HOUSE RULE: I don't buy or "recharge" wands. That's just cheese and I could have swarmed the lot of them with summons otherwise. As things were I only had a handful of summons available (and 6 total wand charges for summoning).
It feels great to loose a game after almost 80 hours on it at the last battle. We must be masochists!
The spider map gave us an early challenge. Cedvar got entangled and chewed on before a fireball and some arrows put down their enemies. Imoen could only stand by sheepishly with a wand of fire, as Cedvar dusted the soot off his shadow armour.
Imoen's becoming a decent mage. Fire is her best friend, it seems.
Some bounty hunters nearly had us. Moving past that, we took out the shadow druids, saved Jahiera's friend, and moved onto the Mines proper.
This was the one I was nervous for. On previous runs this group was always trouble. Deciding on the nuclear option (as has become our staple) we used a fire wand, two potions, and the necklace to send -four- fireballs right to their center, before SCS mage protections kicked in. The mages fell quickly, and one backstab from Cedvar sealed the rest of the fight.
Within the mines, potions again became our friends, putting down the troublesome mages with ease. Untilll
That mage got a chromatic orb off as Cedvar fled away, and proceeded to annilaite the entire party sans Cedvar, coming back with only one missle spell and her dagger. She stabbed him -6- times, before the stun wore off, and gulping down healing potions, Cedvar dueled her solo. And won.
Storing everything in chests, Cedvar threw the bodies of his companions into a carriage, stole the horses outside the Mine, and rode off by the river straight to the Friendly Arm. Raised them all, bought basic supplies for the journey back, and finally, after a very close call, we made it to the big man's office.
The horrors were easy, but SCS had guards rolling in ever few turns. The fight got messy quick.
Victory wasn't easy, but by using every single potion we possibly could, we managed it without a single death. Onto the Gate.
Cedvar: Level 8 Thief
Imoen: Level 7 Thief/ Level 5 Mage
Khalid: Level 6 Fighter
Jahiera: Level 5 Fighter/Level 6 Druid
Kivan: Level 6 Ranger
Coran: Level 5 Fighter/ Level 6 Thief
A familiar issue,
Hear text as mp3,
Puks run has ended... I sent my Imp against the gnoll guards and he didn't survive it ... Branwen stopped one but the other 4 elites got two criticals which over powered his regeneration.
I will roll up another character tonight... Maybe dial the difficulty back to just insane?