The Legend of Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast: Early Adventurers, Part 2 (Or The History of the Fate Spirit)
Amara has taken to calling me her Fate Spirit. I guess it makes sense from her point of view. I do guide her, and I do know her destiny, in a way.
Credit to her, though: she isn’t intimidated. She stands by her beliefs, and she makes her opinions known. She’s a natural adventurer. Or is it all that reading?
Speaking of reading, funny thing: Amara asked me to share another “quote,” although this time I need to put quote in quotes. I’m pretty sure she made this up. I’ll share it nonetheless. The “quote” comes from a book called The History of the Fate Spirit, or so Amara claims. Here it is:
And so the Fate Spirit learned that she did not know all: no being can or could. The Realms are vast, the Planes vaster still- the possibilities that spiral from them are myriad beyond comprehension. Knowledge can guide, but it is small in the face of infinity.
Calling bs? Yeah. Me too. I’m pretty sure that’s Amara’s way of saying don’t get cocky. It’s good advice, though, so I have no complaints.
Anyways, let’s get back to the adventure.
Amara’s early successes snowballed- one leading to another, and yet another. As that happened, her physical limitations became painfully clear. Amara is a strong woman, but she’s not physically strong. With a strength of eleven, carrying her gear quickly became a challenge. Guided by her Fate Spirit, she sought a solution in the Black Alaric Cave.
The cave was defended by flesh golems. That wasn’t a concern: slow footed melee fighters never are- especially not where shadows are found. Amara was however troubled to learn that sirines lived near the cave. Now, I’ll admit that I’ve always just killed the sirines for experience, chugging the potion of clarity from Candlekeep and shooting them down. I haven’t always felt good about it, though, and Amara’s perspective made sense to me. Amara has read much about sirines. She knows they are neutral creatures, not evil. She knows too that they live in harmony with their environment, killing only enough to eat, never taking too much. Further, they are beautiful creatures, who find beauty in the world and create beauty from it, through art. Faerun could use more sirines. Maybe our world could too.
Alas, conflict proved unavoidable, as Amara struggled to find shadows. A potion of clarity and a Shield Amulet charge won the battle with ease, but there was a price to be paid. A world in need of harmony and beauty was made less harmonious and beautiful. Amara vowed to never make that mistake again: principles over prizes, from this day forth.
Amara was heavy hearted as she made her way through the cave, cutting down the flesh golems with her magical arrows.
Her Cloak of the Wolf will be worn in service of right and good, in the memory of those fallen sirines. Their sacrifice must be worth it, their memory held true.
I thank Amara for reminding me that not all red circles are foes. Some should be left to live. Others, though, must die, like the bullies, Vax and Zal.
Amara is by now a capable ranged fighter, and an expert trap maker. That’s a dangerous combo, to be sure. Wearing her Cloak of Displacement and Girdle of Piercing, with her Shield Amulet at the ready, Amara is a hard target for arrows to find. And what of the enemies who charge her with melee weapons? They meet the traps. It’s a deadly combination, as the Sword Coast is learning.
Amn is learning that lesson to. Here we see Sendai charging Amara, tripping the traps.
And her ranged fighters cut down by Amara’s arrows, as they launch their projectiles fruitlessly.
Amara now has a battle plan, and that’s what a great warrior needs. Not strength, not power, even: A plan. And what of a hero? What does a hero need? A hero needs a plan, but also a vision. It didn’t take Amara long to show me she has both.
South of Nashkel, she found an artist, Prism, at work on a masterpiece, hunted and hounded by a bully named Greywolf. This was not a time for restraint. This was a time to intervene. Amara set her traps, both of them. She then activated her Shield Amulet and awaited the bully’s arrival.
Arrive he did, all seven levels of him, equal in every way to Amara. Step aside, he commanded. It was music to Amara’s ears.
“Step aside? Step aside I shall not! For I have no fear of coming between a puppy and his bones. Run back to your den, little wolfing. Or I shall make you my lap dog."
Greywolf was enraged, turning his attention from Prism, he charged Amara, just as Amara had planned. Amara’s traps fired. Greywolf howled, lurching at Amara with his swords. Amara danced away, smiling, sheathing her dagger and reaching for her darts of stunning. Greywolf, for all his strength, was helpless. And once Amara’s dart landed, she showed him who the real wolf is. A fitting end for a would be thug, in memory of the sirines.
When the battle was over, I instinctively reached for the emeralds. Amara stayed my hand.”No. They stay right where they are,” she said, smiling, the golden light of sunset illuminating her hair. I think I’ve found my hero. And yes: This Fate Spirit still has much to learn.
So I've decided that poor Cedric the fool deserves a break for the time being though I'll certainly come back to him eventually. I guess this decision was at least partially influenced by the fact that a sturdy warrior type character who can actually hit things somewhat reliably might help to overcome some of the difficulties I experienced during my last session. I'm not sure about this character yet and I've tweaked his portrait and appearance several times, anyway...
Arawn the Stalker
Things went much smoother this time and I mostly cruised through the early areas without breaking a sweat. Stealth not only fits this character nicely but also adds a ceratin feeling of safety when you can pick your fights. I did some of the shorter quests in and around Bergost with the goal of crossing the 8K XP threshold before gathering the party as I'm not attempting a solo run. I guess I could have aimed for more considering that I later ended up clearing Mutamin's Garden all on my own (well, me and Korax of course) while everyone else stood aside because I lacked protection from petrification for an entire party of six anyway. I'll try to keep this in mind for future attempts.
While trying to save Neera she accidentaly ended up saving me instead. I kept missing due to bad rolls and opted for a tactical yet temporary retreat hiding in the shadows when I noticed that Neea just refused to die even after take a Melf's Acid Arrow to the face. I could swear I witnessed her death in her very first encounter more than once during earlier playthroughs years ago. Was it patched? I don't mind as I just waited for the wizard to use up all his spells on immortal Neera before rushing in for the kill. On a side note, I'm wearing a helmet of course, just made it invisible for aesthetical reasons.
I also went hunting with my charming (and charmed) bear companion. I think I never used this ability before and I guess it's not that bad early in BG where wilderness areas roamed by wild beasts are more common. He was packing quite a punch and probably outclassed Ajantis. Maybe I should try the Beastmaster someday? (Restartitis kicking in... )
Later I avenged both incarnations of Cedric...
... before enlisting the help of Jaheira (I have a tendeny to mod her into a single class druid and did so this time), Ajantis (ditching Khalid), Branwen and Alora who happens to be my favorite NPC in Baldur's Gate. Thankfully there is a Tweaks component that moves her to Gullykin. I find her voice acting quite cute and consider her Rabbit Foot the coolest NPC special item/power. Her HP suck, however.
The group then gathers in Beregost to free our sixth and final companion from Silke's grasp... spell whatever. I was slightly afraid of SCS Silke but Ajantis interrupting her first casting with his longbow put her on the wrong foot and she never managed to pull of anything and just walked around a bit.
East of Beregost the party or rather RNGesus dechickenizes Melicamp succesfully while Garrick fails his first attempt to scribe Protection from Petrification. I guess I'd have to combine the potion of genius and mind focus due to his low intelligence but thankfully he succeeds in his second attempt.
We're now off to Mutamin's Garden where everyone else just stands idle while Korax and me take revenge for my fallen DMM. Although I guess being petrified means she's technically still standing.
Mutamin goes down in a pillar of searing light form Jaheira's sunscorch that does no damage because he's already dead.
While Korax somehow manages to get killed by a stray bear after having defeated an entire basilisk conclave without taking a scratch.
With everyone now level four I consider doing the Nashkell mines next. I've noticed that both Ajantis and Alora have failed all of their HP rolls miserably untill now, sitting at 29 and 15 HP respecitvely. I fear this will hurt Ajantis tanking capabilites while making Alora likely to get chunked early on. We'll see.
@jmerry That's a remarkable insight into SCS AI! Thank you for sharing that with us.
@Enuhal: Attached is a .zip file with a fighter avatar for me, a gnomish fighter/illusionist. I don't normally do fighter/mages, but the only classic Chris-style fighter build is an Archer, which I'm not sure is what you need here.
I made her the way if I would have if I was starting an optimized solo run. She's at level 1 right now, so her proficiencies are not all chosen yet, but normally for a fighter/mage I go the dual-wielding route with Belm and the Flail of Ages long-term.
One note on that proposed character - 18/18/18/16/2/17 stats? The characters of the avatar run absolutely don't have that level of min-maxing. Here are the starting stats for them:
For my late-arriving halfling fighter/thief, I went with a 15/18/15/16/9/12 line. I took a stat total somewhere in the 80s and no stats either maxed or extremely low as a guideline. The only reason I even allowed that 18 Dex is that halflings get a +1 bonus. Your stat total of 89 isn't out of line, but dumping wisdom all the way to 2 to boost the other stats is.
Yes. The stats are suppose to be based on our real life selves, albeit with some embellishment.
My character's stats, for example, are within 4 or 5 points of what my real life self would be, I think. The dex is too high, and I should have been more modest about my wisdom, but that's semi-close to the real me.
(The con is debatable, since I surely can't take a punch, but I'm a long distance hiker and ultramarathoner in RL, so 16 sort of makes sense.)
For my substitute, I approached it more like building a recruitable NPC; keep the stats solidly playable without anything extreme, and completely ignore my real life stats. After all, I never play myself in these games. (And my real-life stats would inevitably point me toward a single-class mage, which I just have no interest in building.)
And that makes sense, under the circumstances.The concept of the Avatars is to base the characters on our RL selves. That said, Enuhal specifically requested a fighter type, and we do want to see his team made whole again heading into the ToB conclusion. Whoever replaces Grond0, and now you, should feel free to embellish, idealize and modify more than usual, in the interest of meeting Enuhal’s needs.
That's not a fighter (9 strength required to take the class at all). Or an illusionist (16 dexterity required). Or a gnome (8 constitution required). Too far in the other direction, especially as the request is still for a warrior.
That looks good to me, Semiticgoddess. And thanks for volunteering a character!
My only suggestion would be to bump the strength to 10 for Enuhal's convenience. A weight limit of 50 can get tight, especially for a warrior, albeit one in a robe.
The Legend of Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast: The Nashkel Mines (Or A Fool in a Hole)
Amara has a theory. A defeat of a foe is most artful when that foe is bested in the way they know best. And so a thug who fancied himself a wolf could only be felled by tooth and paw. As for a priest of Cyric, he must fall to trickery.
With a string of successes behind her, Amara was by now well known in the environs of Nashkel. Some called her a hero, a legend, even. And so when Berrun Ghastkill announced that Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast, would be investigating the mines, a note of optimism swept through the beleaguered and sleepy town. That optimism was not misplaced. Amara was up to the challenge.
In the Naskel Mines stealth was the order of the day. Amara is a hero, fighting kobolds is beneath her. She had but one target: the mind behind those kobolds, Mulahey. Hidden in shadows, wary of traps, Amara made her way through the mines.
At times the path before her was unclear.
But Amara understands that patience is a virtue. Kobolds are fidgety. They move. Needle thread.
And yet again, this time squeezing behind a shaman and his well laid traps. Hurdle cleared.
Passing through the shaman's archway, Amara met a lone kobold. It was time to attack. Cloak of the Wolf.
In her wolf form, Amara could smell yet more kobolds ahead. She approached in shadows and spied them. A commando wielding a bow led the pack. Amara pounced from the shadows, seeking advantage against her bow wielding opponent.
Soon Amara's growl was met by those of kobold guards, wielding their poisoned daggers. Amara, with the caution of a hunter, pulled back. It was time for the bow. And so Amara remained unscathed, with naught but Mulaney's cave ahead.
Amara approached the cave with caution, checking for traps. She then hit the shadows and slipped in, just for a look. The cave had three sections. The entrance opened north to one. To the east there was another, inhabited by kobolds, all at rest and unwary. Mulahey inhabited a nook to the south, surrounded by his accoutrements, but no allies. On his own, Mulahey could be taken- of that Amara was sure. As for reinforcements, they could only come from the northern and eastern cavities. A plan formed. Amara set one of her traps in the eastern section, another in the north.
Next, she found an isolated corner of the mine where she could rest and build more traps, something for the pocket in combat. Amara knew just how she'd use them. Eight hours passed. It was time. Amara approached the cave and made her final preparations: Shield Amulet, potion of strength, potion of regeneration, Greenstone Amulet. Let's begin. Amara left the shadows and approached. Mulahey, mistaking Amara for an envoy of a superior, launched into a preemptive verbal defense. Amara, sensing an advantage, played along.
Yes! Tazok is most displeased. And I can't say I blame him. Your minions are useless. I walked past each and every one of them. And as for you...Why, I've been in this cave for hours, watching. You haven't even noticed.
Amara could tell by the glint in Mulahey's eye that the insinuation of threat had registered. Mulahey now knew the game was afoot. He ventured a gambit, inviting Amara to view documents in a chest to the south. Amara knew it was a trap, but she also knew she could turn it to her advantage. She made her way to the chest, watching Mulahey's eyes along the way. Eventually Mulahey turned his attention to the north, to his allies, as she knew he would. This was the moment Amara had been waiting for. She hit the shadows. Mulahey cried for help. But alas, to no avail. Amara's traps fired, Mulahey's minions were slaughtered. And when Mulahey turned over his shoulder to look for Amara, he saw nothing. The priest of Cyric had been gamed. Mulahey was terrified. And rightly so. He was no match.
Amara, still in the shadows, slipped northward. Mulahey's remaining minions gathered around him. And when they were in a tight formation, Amara, who had been preparing a gambit of her own, revealed herself. Necklace of Missiles. Only Mulahey remained. Amara hit the shadows again, heightening Mulahey's panic. He knew by now that all was lost.
Allowing a moment for drama, Amara revealed herself one last time.
"I have no idea who Tazok is. But surely he is disappointed. How could he not be? Look at you. Mulahey! Priest of Cyric! Terror of the Naskel Mines! Should I tremble? I think not. For all I see is a fool in a hole. Prove me wrong," Amara said, smiling, pointing her dagger at Mulahey's heart.
With naught left to do, Mulahey charged, a fatal mistake. Amara had lain her remaining traps, the ones she had prepared in the night. A last trick for the priest of Cyric. Another fitting end for an unworthy foe.
Soon the bandits of Peldvale will have their turn.
@semiticgoddess Thank you for providing me with a new character - the show can go on! - don't worry about the strength score, I have strength-boosting items for everyone
@jmerry It does seem a bit counterintuitive that protecting your character will actually hurt your character in that case - good to know either way
A new recruit joins the Avatars: Mollyboo, representing @semiticgoddess !
Her low strength and constitution score can be remedied with a frost giant belt and a quick usage of the belt of fortitude after each rest. Until now, Enuhal, who also has a low constitution score, has used the belt, but he propably is in lesser need of it. While we don't have much of a need when it comes to aggressive arcane spellpower, Mollyboo's defensive spells will be very welcome, as she can protect her buffs - though to get her to that point, we first had to travel to Amkethran and go scroll shopping one more time. Not all scrolls are available at this point, for example, there's no more chain contingency scroll in the game, but we got most of the important defenses at least.
I imagine Grim Face might have been the one to recruit Mollyboo due to some kind of extensive gnomish familiy network, given their mutual illusionist background - potentially via sending and teleport, two spells that aren't in Baldur's Gate, but would certainly be available to characters of this level. He propably recruited her because he knew she'd be crazy enough to join, but most likely he avoided talking about the fate of the party's previous new recruit. Surely, exploring Watcher's Keep can't be that dangerous of a task, right?
Well, it wasn't - not anymore. For once in ToB, I didn't make any major mistakes or got too impatient with preparations for the remaining WK4 fights and for WK5. The demi-lich was our first target. While we quickly got rid of his spell protections with a chain contingency, this guy is immune to breach and starts with pre-buffs protecting him from every kind of damage, so we really can't do much until his timestop is over and his PFMW has run out. Well, everyone but Corey has protected buffs, but we still need to be very careful to make sure the lich isn't able to get through them. The demi-lich opens with a triple remove magic sequencer on Corey, who drinks a potion of magic shielding as a response, providing him with a 100% chance to make all saving throws in order to avoid Trap the Soul or Demilich Howl - and also providing him with protection from magic damage. This turns out to important when the lich follows up with timestop, dark planetar, IA, spell thrust on Mollyboo and multiple skull traps - thanks to magic shielding, the traps (scattered over the room, so they aren't all targeted at Corey anyway) deal barely any damage to our inquisitor, and Mollyboo is able to apply the FoA slow effect on the demi-lich:
The lich also cast PW:Silence on Enuhal, but he's unlikely to need any spells here. We first take down the dark planetar:
Mollyboo took the time to renew her spellshield, as she had lost it due to the spell thrust - meanwhile, we were finally starting to damage the demi-lich and even interrupted its next spell attempt:
After that, all we had to do was attack:
Saladrex was up next - I equipped some fire resistance items on Corey for safety in case of a dispel. The dragon had spell deflection + pfmw, we used one of our pierce magic spell triggers and breach:
We're starting to deal good damage:
The dragon throws up another sequencer, including spell deflection (which will protect his next PFMW) and remove magic - the target is himself, so we can actually run Corey away and save his buffs:
Alesia activates a secret word sequencer as the dragon casts PFMW again, Grim Face breaches, victory is ours:
Level 5: As we did with Jmerry, we let our new recruit, Mollyboo, have some fun to show off her powers - in that case, she took down the golems to the north-east, with a cold protection spell and PFMW active:
We dealt with the colored pillars, using two spike traps for the wizard:
The orcs actually turned out to be a bit dangerous, because they dispelled quite a few buffs and even managed to confuse Mollyboo (I had to dispel her with inquisitor powers) - however, they just lacked the punch to quickly take out a weakened character, so I was always able to drink potions, renew buffs or just quickly clean up a current wave of foes with dragon's breath, ADHW and the like:
After a quick rest, we activated green protection from poison scrolls on everyone for the green dragon battle, which turned out to be instantly useful when he opened with a breath weapon attack:
The dragon had a heal contingency, so I had to take him out twice, but critical strikes did the job while he pointlessy tried to hit Grim Face, who had divine protection going:
That seems to be a bit of a weakness in the current SCS AI.
I quickly completed the spirit warrior maze, taking zero risks:
After that, time to prepare traps. First, the aurumach rilmani - by now, I know that he's immune to magic damage, so we just used normal traps (which aren't enough to kill him, but deal some nice damage), made sure to position ourselves close to his spawn point and took him out before he'd be able to do anything dangerous, dispelling his illusion buffs with true sight:
We rest and prepare spike traps at Azamantes' spawn point, making sure to include fire resistance and PFME in our buffs (which we do for most battles anyway if they involve spellcasters):
For the final guardians, Nalmissra was our primary trap target - we intended 4 traps for her and 3 for the hive mother, but the 3 hive mother traps hit and killed Y'tossi instead:
The hive mother had buffed with improved mantle, but Grim Face has the Robe of Vecna now, so he was able to instantly breach (no spell protections, so no need to prepare the breach) - The hive mother used her anti-magic ray on Corey, but quickly died:
We also took down a fallen deva called in by the priestess before dispelling said priestess with inquisitor dispel. Sunnis and the planetar held the line:
The remaining fighters posed no threat - we read the scroll of helm and left the keep behind us:
Aside from the Throne, only Abazigal's Lair remains (if I play my cards with Balthazar right). Every major battle is potentially life-threatening at this point, and Abazigal's Lair is full of them with all the SCS improvements. We will have to procceed with great care and patience.
Here is a Cavalier that I have often used with minor variations. Even the portrait is similar to me. Somebody created it from a photo about 20 years ago, so I've aged more than a bit.
Tried to post a 7z file and it won't.
Is this sufficient?
It's the best roll that I have had in 30 years.
With the strength being 18/00 it is easy to create an identical character using Cntrl 8 and editing the values that are too high.
@Wise_Grimwald Thank you very much! Semiticgoddess was a bit faster than you, so I'm using her Avatar character for now - but in the event that I get another chunking (which hopefully won't happen again, but you never know), Grimwald the Wise will join the Avatars.
Here is a Cavalier that I have often used with minor variations. Even the portrait is similar to me. Somebody created it from a photo about 20 years ago, so I've aged more than a bit. It's the best roll that I have had in 30 years.
Thank you so much for offering a character, Wise- especially one that is so dear to you. It's generous of you to offer the best roll you've had in 30 years, and while that differs from the Avatar concept, I frankly don't care in this case.
You've been with us for years, Wise, and we appreciate you! You're a true friend!
The Legend of Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast: Bandit Camp (Or Not With a Dagger in My Hand)
Young warriors know their strengths; old warriors know their weaknesses. This is not a coincidence. For only those who know their limits make it to old age. Amara understands this.
Amara fancies herself a woman of the sword. Some day she will be. But here, now -at this stage of her development- Amara understands that bows, darts and daggers serve her best. With her dexterity of 19, Shield Amulet, Girdle of Piercing, Cloak of Displacement, Claw of the Kazgaroth, Boots of Avoidance and Bracers of Archery, Amara can build a strong comparative advantage at range against all but the most powerful foes. In melee she can have no such edge. Melee assaults should be rare. And if she is to strike in melee, if there is not other choice, she must strike quick- quicker than a desirable sword would allow, quick enough to avoid retaliation. Bows, darts and dagger it is.
And yet still: the sword retains its appeal. And yet still: the sword remains her destiny.
And so at night -at camp or in her room at the Feldepost- Amara trains with a scimitar, much as she did with her wooden sword, Rascal, in her youth. A woman of the sword Amara shall be: the time will come. And while that time is not yet here, Amara now carries a sword, mostly for show, but also as a reminder, a reminder of who she will be.
When Amara learned she would be raiding a camp full of bandits- the bulk of the force that has been plaguing the region- she didn't shirk. All she did was nod and speak a simple vow: "Not with a dagger in my hand."
There were, of course, small matters to attend to first: an assassin to best, a contact to interrogate. But they were in fact small matters, scarcely worthy of note. Our story is best served by moving forward to the bandits.
The camp raid would be Amara's greatest test yet, for only a hero true could take on an entire troop of bandits alone. The plan must be impeccable, no corners cut. And like all good plans, it must be tested first, starting with a smaller bunch.
In Peldvale Amara encountered a band, led by a magical hammer wielder, Raiken. He was supported by young bandits, all novices, but capable of fortunate hits. They must be separated. And the hammer wielder, Raiken, must be taken down quick, with blunt weapon defenses at the ready, just in case.
Amara equipped her Cloak of Displacement, Claw of the Kazgaroth and Boots of Avoidance- more than enough to thwart the bow wielders. For the hammer wielder, Raiken, she wore her Girdle of Bluntness, and kept a potion of absorption at the ready, along with darts of stunning. She also laid her two traps, just behind her, for insurance. Win first, then go to war: that is Amara's way.
It was time to begin. Wand of Sleep.
Amara's Wand of Sleep charge took out the bandits, separating Raiken from his support. Raiken charged with his hammer, only to be stunned by a dart. Amara switched to her wolf form, striking Raiken down first.
His helpless crew soon followed.
A success, and an effective test of key tactics. It was time to put away the dagger, time for the big dance.
Amara arrived at the camp at night and scouted from the shadows. To the east she set a stack of traps -as many as she could muster. She took a deep breath, grasped her scimitar, and began her preparations: protection from fire, potion of fire resistance, potion of regeneration, oil of speed and shield amulet. Amara then hit the shadows and passed through the camp, heading straight for the central structure where the leaders must be.
She then found an isolated corner to apply one last protection: a Greenstone Amulet charge. Time to begin.
There was no need for trickery. By simply being there -boldly in the open- Amara had the element of surprise.
This was not a time for words. It was time to explode.
Amara's opening potion of explosions stunned her foes, but they remained on their feet, and scrambled their defenses. This would be a battle true. Countless arrows flew. And while most missed, some hit. Amara launched a second potion of explosions, thinning the crowd.
But those arrows kept landing, against all odds. Amara sensing a need for a reset, activated her newest acquisition, Sandthief. Once invisible, Amara healed and collected herself. She then focused on the mage, Venkt, seeking her foe, amidst his illusions.
Soon there was but one mage before her. He would be her target: dart of stunning.
With the mage out of the picture, and the herd thinned, the scales now tipped in Amara's favor. Victory was inevitable.
And soon it came.
But this was just stage one of the assault, for outside, there were countless bandits, bandits who surely heard the commotion in their midst, bandits who were on their way. Amara slipped into the shadows to take them on.
Surveying her foes, Amara knew that the hammer wielder, Taurgosz must be the first to fall. She attracted his attention, and then headed east, straight to the traps, all set for him. There was nothing Taurgosz could do but fall.
The bandit leaders had been decimated, but the horde remained, and a horde it was.
Amara knew that to stand her ground would be to take an unnecessary risk. And so she struck and faded, struck and faded, again and again- leading the bandits all around the camp, carefully sniping the most powerful among them, the black talon elites.
It was a long and arduous process, but eventually the last of the black talons fell, leaving only the lesser bandits, the lesser bandits who, as Amara had by now learned, are vulnerable to her Wand of Sleep.
It took a few charges, but soon the last of the bandits were at rest. Cloak of the Wolf.
So ends the Black Talons, so ends the Chill, so ends the bandit threat to the Sword Coast. And so Amara's star rises: Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast, indeed.
And while Amara may not have swung that scimitar, she had it in her hand, just as she promised. So a legend grows.
The Legend of Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast: The Cloakwood Mines, Part 1 (Or Less Than Amends)
It's hard to be a fate spirit. It's like being a parent. You want to see your charge thrive, you want to gift them all you know. And yet you understand that there are somethings they must learn for themselves. There's a balance to be struck. No one knows where it rests.
And so as I watched Amara painstakingly research the history of the Sword Coast's magical scimitars, aided by her old friend, Firebead Elvenhair, at the Feldepost Inn, I wondered whether I should reveal what I knew. Something told me that I shouldn't. Something told me that the blade would mean more to Amara if she found it herself. I was not mistaken.
Amara's passage through the Cloakwood was silent, contemplative. She sought to observe, to learn- not to disrupt. Amara seeks to make her mark in the world, but not in places like this. The wilds of the Realms have suffered enough from the touch of the races, the so called good included. A hero knows pride; a legend knows humility. This was a place to be humble, a place to be reverent.
It was also a place for caution, for the Cloakwood is rife with danger. The wilds are not a place of peace, or good, or tranquility. They know nothing of the values -the fictions- that the races create. The wild are a place of being, of becoming, of unfolding- a grand equation of action, balanced by opposing forces. Chaos is part of the formula: life thrives on its edge, so too does death.
In the Cloakwood Amara kept two tools at the ready: her Sandthief ring and her potions of freedom. They and they alone were all she needed for safe passage.
Amara passed by the spiders under invisibility. She raced from the ettercaps and wyverns who accosted her at every clearing. She slipped through the rest of the forest in the shadows, observing what she could, absorbing what she could. She only stopped once.
Just a few hours from the mines, Amara encountered a hamadryad, a protector of the forest. Amara was struck by its beauty and dignity, but also its sadness. After hours of watching and pondering, Amara hesitantly chose to reveal herself. It was a risk in more ways than one. Conflict would be a tragedy almost as great as death.
"Begone, halfling: You are not welcome here," The hamadryad cried, burning with anger.
Amara expected this. "I should leave. And I will. But first I wish to speak. I've walked these woods with reverence, through day and night. I have seen much and learned much and I am better for it. What I've seen in you is pain, undeserved pain. Tell me what ails you most, and I will seek to remedy it. A service, offered with respect."
The hamadryad paused for a moment, puzzled. She reached out with her mind, touching Amara's. She probed the surface, then moved deeper. Suddenly the hamadryad understood. It was best to make the halfling say it. "Why do you make this offer, halfling? It is not like your kind. Speak plain and true and I will hear you."
For the first time in her adventure Amara was shaken. For the first time she didn't know what to say. For the first time she laid herself bare. "I...I have made mistakes. I seek amends." The words were brief, but they spoke much. It was all the hamadryad needed to hear.
"Yes. I see in your mind. My watery sisters, the sirines: killed by your hand, laying at your feet. There is a part of me that hates you for it. But just as I can see that you have failed, I see that you have learned. And I have long known that one can't expect right or justice from the races of the Realms. All you can ask is that they grow. Very well. I am most troubled by the mine to the east. It is a festering wound that withers all it touches. I would see it ended and I would see the men who made it punished. Will you do this?"
Amara couldn't have been more pleased. "I will. I planned to anyways, but now my purpose is-"
"Silence, halfling! I have more to say. I see something else in your mind. You seek a sword. A magical scimitar. I know of one, not far from here, along the path you traveled. I will reveal it to you, in exchange for your word that you will do what you claim."
"I thank you, most graciously. You have my word," Amara said, with a bow. The hamadryad nodded. Amara began to walk away, the location of scimitar shinning in her mind. Amara's pace quickened with excitement, but then a thunderous call halted her. The hamadryad had one last thing to say.
"Before you leave, halfling: understand this. What you seek to do is just, and I support you. But it is less than amends. Now find that sword and stick it in the hearts of the men who made that mine."
Amara understood that those should be the last words. She bowed once again and walked away, at a respectful pace. That is how Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast, found her sword. It is also how the legendary blade, Rashad's Talon, found a new name: hence forth known as The Dryad's Vengeance.
Days passed, days of walking and reflection. Just when it seemed the forest would go on forever, the trees gave way to a palisade. Amara had arrived at the mine, her new blade in hand.
The entrance to the mine was defended by a fearsome party. Two mages, two warriors, each more experienced than Amara. This would be yet another test, just as challenging as the bandit camp had been, albeit less grand in scope. Amara, guided by her fate spirit, knew just how to proceed.
Amara first task was to lure out the guards. That was done with ease.
Next, she would need to setup a batch of traps -and not just a days worth, as is her custom: a full stack. Amara proceeded carefully, resting to the west, returning, and laying her traps by the bridge, where the guards had been. This plan was not without dangers. Giant spiders inhabited the woods to the west, but Amara was prepared: potion of freedom.
With the last trap set, Amara's made her final preparations: potion of mind focusing, potion of regeneration, oil of speed, Shield Amulet, Greenstone Amulet- potion of absorption at the ready. It was time. The mage, Kysus, was Amara's first target. She approached hidden in shadows, quaffed her potion of firebreath, and let out a mighty roar. Kysus was killed instantly. His brethren, Rezdan, followed soon after.
Drasus, the party's melee warrior, charged Amara with his morningstar. Even with her oil of speed, Amara could barely keep ahead of him. Alas, she didn't have far to go. Her destination was the bridge, and her traps. Soon the unwary speedster, Drasus, was no more.
All that remained was the throwing axe wielder, Genthore. Amara was more than happy to settle into a ranged fight with him. A fighter of Genthore's skill couldn't possible best her bow. Amara prevailed, and with ease.
By now nothing stands between Amara and the mine. That is well. Amara has a promise to keep.
I thought that having improved the assassins in Candlekeep, I ought to test out my set-up with a more fragile character. They were beaten fairly easily with fighters and clerics, so I tried out a fairly powerful human swashbuckler. [The stats couldn't have been better] I had given one of them a decent staff and Mendas both plate armour and a +1 sword. Mendas beat my character fairly easily in toe to toe combat, my character having used two healing potions in the process. I therefore started using the grey cells and went to the training room first where I was blessed and protected from evil by the cleric and I also used Deder's oil of speed. That was enough. I still used two healing potions, but survived having 2 health points left.
That makes me think that I have the balance right. Even thieves can survive in a solo game.
He had a katana as one of his weapons paid for with the gem worth 1000gp.
Best of luck with your swashie, Wise! He and Amara should team up, lol.
Best, A.
I'm not actually playing him at the moment as Freda is still very much alive. He will probaably be my next run. That was purely a test to see if I had the balance right for my installation. I think that having a distinct risk of failure is balanced by getting plate armour and a +1 sword, items that are available in the early stages of the game anyway. I wanted Candlekeep to have a bit of a challenge without upsetting game balance. A mod supplied Mendas who is a bit stronger than the other assassins, but not quite strong enough IMO. Why they gave him the same name as another character I have no idea. That was a bad idea IMO.
Journal of Freda Quick Update
The bandit camp was exceptionally easy as was Valius and her friends at the FAI. Divide and conquer were the tacttics used in both areas.
We are now in Cloakwood having acquired a Cloak.
We needed to return to Beregost to deliver a wyvern's tail and whilst there Alora decided to pickpocket those whom we had delivered from Silke. Of course I would have stopped her if I had known about it!
Drasus et al have now been defeated. The extra enemies give more loot but nothing that is superior to the equipment that I already have. I will probably sell it at the Gate in order to recharge wands.
Davaeorn was defeated easily with the result that Alora and Dynaheir both levelled up. They were the ones that really needed it.
Now at the Friendly Arms Inn. We haven't flooded the mines yet as we may need a reputation boost in future. We won't need to buy any more wands of fire this side of Amn.
After a couple of weeks break we had the usual sort of discussion about what we were supposed to be doing. Although that seemed obvious, given the save was at the start of the SoD dungeon, we weren't sure whether we'd in fact already completed that last time. However, a review of the notes from that suggested not and we cracked on. A low-risk approach saw a PfU scroll used to ease progress through to Korlasz. A dispelling arrow followed up with a firebreath potion persuaded her to surrender, but the second lot of damage from that potion killed her before she could get away.
In Baldur's Gate we didn't do most of the minor quests, but just picked up the Spectacles and the tankard helmet.
Deciding to continue with a minimal risk approach, we didn't bother with most of the content at the Coastway Crossing, but just went straight to the bridge. Gulpo used an invisibility potion there, while Byrd successfully hid behind the tent so we could wait in peace for Caelar to arrive.
Rather than use another invisibility potion, Gulpo fought his way through some hobgoblins blocking the road through the Troll Claw Woods. Byrd was spotted running through there and held by the shaman, but he was already out of sight range and in the shadows by the time the spell hit (and in fact he successfully stayed in the shadows throughout the spell duration, despite it being daytime). Gulpo meanwhile racked up his kill count a bit by beating up the hobgoblin group on his own.
Moving on to the Forest of Wyrms, we fought through a few groups to get into the old temple. Byrd got out his stunning darts to make some combats a bit easier - for instance by stunning Snorgash.
Inside the temple, Ziatar got the same treatment.
The Neothelid is a dangerous opponent, so Byrd used potions to ensure he would make his saving throws. Gulpo relied on his rage initially, though in the knowledge that the Neothelid sometimes hides underground for quite a while to frustrate short buffs - this time though he was more cooperative and was soon bludgeoned to death.
In this run we're tending to be more generous to neutral opponents than I would typically be in single-player games, i.e. not simply killing them . In order to get the wardstone from Akanna peacefully that meant going to call on Darskhelin. His party is quite powerful, so Byrd got out some exploding arrows. A green scroll and a ring provided Gulpo with 90% fire resistance. He still took considerable missile damage from the arrows - but was better off than his opponents.
Of course, the concept of generosity to neutrals has its limits and we were not prepared to leave the area without taking some dragon scales with us - Gulpo tossed a couple of daggers towards Morentherene and the second struck home in a tender spot.
On the way to Boareskyr Bridge we came across another green dragon - to compensate for our earlier actions, this time we helped it against some hill giants before standing aside to let it flap away.
At Boareskyr we entered the fort and killed a wraith which appeared when the magical defenses were weakened. We got a scroll from Vichand to restore those, but left him untouched - though he was intimidated to ensure he wouldn't inform others of our presence.
The final action was surrendering the fort. That avoids the need to fight a major battle, but we will still have to be on our toes at the start of the next session to deal with the mage holding the bridge closed.
As you've probably noticed, I've adopted a different posting style with Amara's run, emphasizing the story elements more and the tactics less. Accordingly, I've decided to continue her run in a thread reserved for RPed no reloads, over at TavernRPG, The Candlekeep Annex.
I'll continue to be around here, to read and support active participants (especially the Avatars) but I'll be posting Amara's adventure over there. Best wishes, everyone!
Trio 51 Update - Umar Hills, graveyard, main quest, Planar prison
Corecleric XX - halfling priest of Lothander, protagonist (Corey_Russell)
Mirazi - human mage (Grond0)
Betson - human dark moon monk (Gate70)
We decided to work on the main quest. The idea being to get the improved mace of disruption for Corecleric - Grond0 could then use the AoP and also Corecleric could then use the Sensai amulet. Thus we headed to Mook's area. The vampire had no chance. We reported to Linvail, and then headed to the bridge district. We encountered a lot of slaver ambushes but they couldn't do much to us we have too many options.
We then deal with some shadow thief traitors in the Bridge district. We reported our success to Linvail and then cleared out the undead in the Graveyard. This went smoothly with a cleric turning undead. We cleared out the spiders including Senai the drow cleric. We then ventured a bit into Bodhi's lair. We tried to deal with the mage but Grond0 couldn't help but get himself charmed. Luckily he is no threat with his ranged weapons to his party members. Corecleric dispelled him to get him in control of his senses and the party duly recovered the mace of disruption. We then forged the improved mace of disruption.
We did some more killing of undead as Betson killed the Crooked Crane lich with protection from undead scroll. The Daystar will be a welcome tool.
We finally arrived in Umar Hills to do the quests here. The quests at the village were straightforward except the mephit in the chest - it held Corecleric because he had the wrong shield equipped! (he was supposed to do use Shield of Harmony). Mirazi was also held! Things looked dicey but Betson ran all across the map and managed to arrive and save his friends in the nick of time! Close one!
Clearing out the undead in the abandoned Amaunator temple was very hard, partly because of the Greater mummies and also all the bone golems we had to deal with. We somehow managed to win without dying, though there was a lot of running and potion gulping going on. Time for Thaxxy! Some buffs, lots of summons, but MIrazi managed to feeblemind Thaxxy so that made it simple. Corecleric got the kill shot.
With everyone protected with death ward, the Shade Lord was simply enough to deal with. Poor Valygar was killed for his body, then his buddies were taken out as well. We reported to the Mayor of Immesvale our success, he was pleased.
We unlocked the planar sphere, then headed to the Bridge District playhouse to get to the Planar Prison. We protected with death ward, however Betson got lucky with a quivering palm. We saved our session here.
Comments
Amara has taken to calling me her Fate Spirit. I guess it makes sense from her point of view. I do guide her, and I do know her destiny, in a way.
Credit to her, though: she isn’t intimidated. She stands by her beliefs, and she makes her opinions known. She’s a natural adventurer. Or is it all that reading?
Speaking of reading, funny thing: Amara asked me to share another “quote,” although this time I need to put quote in quotes. I’m pretty sure she made this up. I’ll share it nonetheless. The “quote” comes from a book called The History of the Fate Spirit, or so Amara claims. Here it is:
And so the Fate Spirit learned that she did not know all: no being can or could. The Realms are vast, the Planes vaster still- the possibilities that spiral from them are myriad beyond comprehension. Knowledge can guide, but it is small in the face of infinity.
Calling bs? Yeah. Me too. I’m pretty sure that’s Amara’s way of saying don’t get cocky. It’s good advice, though, so I have no complaints.
Anyways, let’s get back to the adventure.
Amara’s early successes snowballed- one leading to another, and yet another. As that happened, her physical limitations became painfully clear. Amara is a strong woman, but she’s not physically strong. With a strength of eleven, carrying her gear quickly became a challenge. Guided by her Fate Spirit, she sought a solution in the Black Alaric Cave.
The cave was defended by flesh golems. That wasn’t a concern: slow footed melee fighters never are- especially not where shadows are found. Amara was however troubled to learn that sirines lived near the cave. Now, I’ll admit that I’ve always just killed the sirines for experience, chugging the potion of clarity from Candlekeep and shooting them down. I haven’t always felt good about it, though, and Amara’s perspective made sense to me. Amara has read much about sirines. She knows they are neutral creatures, not evil. She knows too that they live in harmony with their environment, killing only enough to eat, never taking too much. Further, they are beautiful creatures, who find beauty in the world and create beauty from it, through art. Faerun could use more sirines. Maybe our world could too.
Alas, conflict proved unavoidable, as Amara struggled to find shadows. A potion of clarity and a Shield Amulet charge won the battle with ease, but there was a price to be paid. A world in need of harmony and beauty was made less harmonious and beautiful. Amara vowed to never make that mistake again: principles over prizes, from this day forth.
Amara was heavy hearted as she made her way through the cave, cutting down the flesh golems with her magical arrows.
Her Cloak of the Wolf will be worn in service of right and good, in the memory of those fallen sirines. Their sacrifice must be worth it, their memory held true.
I thank Amara for reminding me that not all red circles are foes. Some should be left to live. Others, though, must die, like the bullies, Vax and Zal.
Amara is by now a capable ranged fighter, and an expert trap maker. That’s a dangerous combo, to be sure. Wearing her Cloak of Displacement and Girdle of Piercing, with her Shield Amulet at the ready, Amara is a hard target for arrows to find. And what of the enemies who charge her with melee weapons? They meet the traps. It’s a deadly combination, as the Sword Coast is learning.
Amn is learning that lesson to. Here we see Sendai charging Amara, tripping the traps.
And her ranged fighters cut down by Amara’s arrows, as they launch their projectiles fruitlessly.
Amara now has a battle plan, and that’s what a great warrior needs. Not strength, not power, even: A plan. And what of a hero? What does a hero need? A hero needs a plan, but also a vision. It didn’t take Amara long to show me she has both.
South of Nashkel, she found an artist, Prism, at work on a masterpiece, hunted and hounded by a bully named Greywolf. This was not a time for restraint. This was a time to intervene. Amara set her traps, both of them. She then activated her Shield Amulet and awaited the bully’s arrival.
Arrive he did, all seven levels of him, equal in every way to Amara. Step aside, he commanded. It was music to Amara’s ears.
“Step aside? Step aside I shall not! For I have no fear of coming between a puppy and his bones. Run back to your den, little wolfing. Or I shall make you my lap dog."
Greywolf was enraged, turning his attention from Prism, he charged Amara, just as Amara had planned. Amara’s traps fired. Greywolf howled, lurching at Amara with his swords. Amara danced away, smiling, sheathing her dagger and reaching for her darts of stunning. Greywolf, for all his strength, was helpless. And once Amara’s dart landed, she showed him who the real wolf is. A fitting end for a would be thug, in memory of the sirines.
When the battle was over, I instinctively reached for the emeralds. Amara stayed my hand.”No. They stay right where they are,” she said, smiling, the golden light of sunset illuminating her hair. I think I’ve found my hero. And yes: This Fate Spirit still has much to learn.
Best,
A.
Arawn the Stalker
Things went much smoother this time and I mostly cruised through the early areas without breaking a sweat. Stealth not only fits this character nicely but also adds a ceratin feeling of safety when you can pick your fights. I did some of the shorter quests in and around Bergost with the goal of crossing the 8K XP threshold before gathering the party as I'm not attempting a solo run. I guess I could have aimed for more considering that I later ended up clearing Mutamin's Garden all on my own (well, me and Korax of course) while everyone else stood aside because I lacked protection from petrification for an entire party of six anyway. I'll try to keep this in mind for future attempts.
While trying to save Neera she accidentaly ended up saving me instead. I kept missing due to bad rolls and opted for a tactical yet temporary retreat hiding in the shadows when I noticed that Neea just refused to die even after take a Melf's Acid Arrow to the face. I could swear I witnessed her death in her very first encounter more than once during earlier playthroughs years ago. Was it patched? I don't mind as I just waited for the wizard to use up all his spells on immortal Neera before rushing in for the kill. On a side note, I'm wearing a helmet of course, just made it invisible for aesthetical reasons.
The group then gathers in Beregost to free our sixth and final companion from Silke's grasp... spell whatever. I was slightly afraid of SCS Silke but Ajantis interrupting her first casting with his longbow put her on the wrong foot and she never managed to pull of anything and just walked around a bit.
With everyone now level four I consider doing the Nashkell mines next. I've noticed that both Ajantis and Alora have failed all of their HP rolls miserably untill now, sitting at 29 and 15 HP respecitvely. I fear this will hurt Ajantis tanking capabilites while making Alora likely to get chunked early on. We'll see.
@Enuhal: Attached is a .zip file with a fighter avatar for me, a gnomish fighter/illusionist. I don't normally do fighter/mages, but the only classic Chris-style fighter build is an Archer, which I'm not sure is what you need here.
I made her the way if I would have if I was starting an optimized solo run.
Alesia (half-elf mage/thief): 9/15/16/14/17/15 (total 86)
Corey (human inquisitor): 15/16/16/15/13/17 (total 92)
Enuhal (human totemic druid): 10/15/13/17/16/15 (total 86)
GrimFace (gnome cleric/illusionist): 13/17/16/15/13/15 (total 89)
Grond0 (dwarf barbarian): 16/15/17/12/11/9 (total 80)
For my late-arriving halfling fighter/thief, I went with a 15/18/15/16/9/12 line. I took a stat total somewhere in the 80s and no stats either maxed or extremely low as a guideline. The only reason I even allowed that 18 Dex is that halflings get a +1 bonus. Your stat total of 89 isn't out of line, but dumping wisdom all the way to 2 to boost the other stats is.
My character's stats, for example, are within 4 or 5 points of what my real life self would be, I think. The dex is too high, and I should have been more modest about my wisdom, but that's semi-close to the real me.
(The con is debatable, since I surely can't take a punch, but I'm a long distance hiker and ultramarathoner in RL, so 16 sort of makes sense.)
Best,
A.
And that makes sense, under the circumstances.The concept of the Avatars is to base the characters on our RL selves. That said, Enuhal specifically requested a fighter type, and we do want to see his team made whole again heading into the ToB conclusion. Whoever replaces Grond0, and now you, should feel free to embellish, idealize and modify more than usual, in the interest of meeting Enuhal’s needs.
Best,
A.
8 Strength
12 Dexterity
7 Constitution
17 Intelligence
15 Wisdom
16 Charisma
My only suggestion would be to bump the strength to 10 for Enuhal's convenience. A weight limit of 50 can get tight, especially for a warrior, albeit one in a robe.
Best,
A.
Amara has a theory. A defeat of a foe is most artful when that foe is bested in the way they know best. And so a thug who fancied himself a wolf could only be felled by tooth and paw. As for a priest of Cyric, he must fall to trickery.
With a string of successes behind her, Amara was by now well known in the environs of Nashkel. Some called her a hero, a legend, even. And so when Berrun Ghastkill announced that Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast, would be investigating the mines, a note of optimism swept through the beleaguered and sleepy town. That optimism was not misplaced. Amara was up to the challenge.
In the Naskel Mines stealth was the order of the day. Amara is a hero, fighting kobolds is beneath her. She had but one target: the mind behind those kobolds, Mulahey. Hidden in shadows, wary of traps, Amara made her way through the mines.
Yes! Tazok is most displeased. And I can't say I blame him. Your minions are useless. I walked past each and every one of them. And as for you...Why, I've been in this cave for hours, watching. You haven't even noticed.
Amara could tell by the glint in Mulahey's eye that the insinuation of threat had registered. Mulahey now knew the game was afoot. He ventured a gambit, inviting Amara to view documents in a chest to the south. Amara knew it was a trap, but she also knew she could turn it to her advantage. She made her way to the chest, watching Mulahey's eyes along the way. Eventually Mulahey turned his attention to the north, to his allies, as she knew he would. This was the moment Amara had been waiting for. She hit the shadows. Mulahey cried for help. But alas, to no avail. Amara's traps fired, Mulahey's minions were slaughtered. And when Mulahey turned over his shoulder to look for Amara, he saw nothing. The priest of Cyric had been gamed. Mulahey was terrified. And rightly so. He was no match.
"I have no idea who Tazok is. But surely he is disappointed. How could he not be? Look at you. Mulahey! Priest of Cyric! Terror of the Naskel Mines! Should I tremble? I think not. For all I see is a fool in a hole. Prove me wrong," Amara said, smiling, pointing her dagger at Mulahey's heart.
With naught left to do, Mulahey charged, a fatal mistake. Amara had lain her remaining traps, the ones she had prepared in the night. A last trick for the priest of Cyric. Another fitting end for an unworthy foe.
Soon the bandits of Peldvale will have their turn.
Best,
A.
@jmerry It does seem a bit counterintuitive that protecting your character will actually hurt your character in that case - good to know either way
A new recruit joins the Avatars: Mollyboo, representing @semiticgoddess !
I imagine Grim Face might have been the one to recruit Mollyboo due to some kind of extensive gnomish familiy network, given their mutual illusionist background - potentially via sending and teleport, two spells that aren't in Baldur's Gate, but would certainly be available to characters of this level. He propably recruited her because he knew she'd be crazy enough to join, but most likely he avoided talking about the fate of the party's previous new recruit. Surely, exploring Watcher's Keep can't be that dangerous of a task, right?
Well, it wasn't - not anymore. For once in ToB, I didn't make any major mistakes or got too impatient with preparations for the remaining WK4 fights and for WK5. The demi-lich was our first target. While we quickly got rid of his spell protections with a chain contingency, this guy is immune to breach and starts with pre-buffs protecting him from every kind of damage, so we really can't do much until his timestop is over and his PFMW has run out. Well, everyone but Corey has protected buffs, but we still need to be very careful to make sure the lich isn't able to get through them. The demi-lich opens with a triple remove magic sequencer on Corey, who drinks a potion of magic shielding as a response, providing him with a 100% chance to make all saving throws in order to avoid Trap the Soul or Demilich Howl - and also providing him with protection from magic damage. This turns out to important when the lich follows up with timestop, dark planetar, IA, spell thrust on Mollyboo and multiple skull traps - thanks to magic shielding, the traps (scattered over the room, so they aren't all targeted at Corey anyway) deal barely any damage to our inquisitor, and Mollyboo is able to apply the FoA slow effect on the demi-lich:
Level 5: As we did with Jmerry, we let our new recruit, Mollyboo, have some fun to show off her powers - in that case, she took down the golems to the north-east, with a cold protection spell and PFMW active:
I quickly completed the spirit warrior maze, taking zero risks:
Aside from the Throne, only Abazigal's Lair remains (if I play my cards with Balthazar right). Every major battle is potentially life-threatening at this point, and Abazigal's Lair is full of them with all the SCS improvements. We will have to procceed with great care and patience.
Thank you so much for offering a character, Wise- especially one that is so dear to you. It's generous of you to offer the best roll you've had in 30 years, and while that differs from the Avatar concept, I frankly don't care in this case.
You've been with us for years, Wise, and we appreciate you! You're a true friend!
Best,
A,
Amara fancies herself a woman of the sword. Some day she will be. But here, now -at this stage of her development- Amara understands that bows, darts and daggers serve her best. With her dexterity of 19, Shield Amulet, Girdle of Piercing, Cloak of Displacement, Claw of the Kazgaroth, Boots of Avoidance and Bracers of Archery, Amara can build a strong comparative advantage at range against all but the most powerful foes. In melee she can have no such edge. Melee assaults should be rare. And if she is to strike in melee, if there is not other choice, she must strike quick- quicker than a desirable sword would allow, quick enough to avoid retaliation. Bows, darts and dagger it is.
And yet still: the sword retains its appeal. And yet still: the sword remains her destiny.
And so at night -at camp or in her room at the Feldepost- Amara trains with a scimitar, much as she did with her wooden sword, Rascal, in her youth. A woman of the sword Amara shall be: the time will come. And while that time is not yet here, Amara now carries a sword, mostly for show, but also as a reminder, a reminder of who she will be.
When Amara learned she would be raiding a camp full of bandits- the bulk of the force that has been plaguing the region- she didn't shirk. All she did was nod and speak a simple vow: "Not with a dagger in my hand."
There were, of course, small matters to attend to first: an assassin to best, a contact to interrogate. But they were in fact small matters, scarcely worthy of note. Our story is best served by moving forward to the bandits.
In Peldvale Amara encountered a band, led by a magical hammer wielder, Raiken. He was supported by young bandits, all novices, but capable of fortunate hits. They must be separated. And the hammer wielder, Raiken, must be taken down quick, with blunt weapon defenses at the ready, just in case.
Amara equipped her Cloak of Displacement, Claw of the Kazgaroth and Boots of Avoidance- more than enough to thwart the bow wielders. For the hammer wielder, Raiken, she wore her Girdle of Bluntness, and kept a potion of absorption at the ready, along with darts of stunning. She also laid her two traps, just behind her, for insurance. Win first, then go to war: that is Amara's way.
It was time to begin. Wand of Sleep.
Amara arrived at the camp at night and scouted from the shadows. To the east she set a stack of traps -as many as she could muster. She took a deep breath, grasped her scimitar, and began her preparations: protection from fire, potion of fire resistance, potion of regeneration, oil of speed and shield amulet. Amara then hit the shadows and passed through the camp, heading straight for the central structure where the leaders must be.
Best,
A.
I did not feel that it was in the spirit of the game to continue, so I returned to a previous save.
Something similar had happened to the entire party.
If I had continued, I think that I just MIGHT have won the game.
I didn't notice her experience at first, just that she had ELEVEN proficiency slots that needed to be filled.
So glad that there was an autosave there! Her experience is back to 83000.
If the boost had not been so big, I might not have noticed.
It's hard to be a fate spirit. It's like being a parent. You want to see your charge thrive, you want to gift them all you know. And yet you understand that there are somethings they must learn for themselves. There's a balance to be struck. No one knows where it rests.
And so as I watched Amara painstakingly research the history of the Sword Coast's magical scimitars, aided by her old friend, Firebead Elvenhair, at the Feldepost Inn, I wondered whether I should reveal what I knew. Something told me that I shouldn't. Something told me that the blade would mean more to Amara if she found it herself. I was not mistaken.
Amara's passage through the Cloakwood was silent, contemplative. She sought to observe, to learn- not to disrupt. Amara seeks to make her mark in the world, but not in places like this. The wilds of the Realms have suffered enough from the touch of the races, the so called good included. A hero knows pride; a legend knows humility. This was a place to be humble, a place to be reverent.
It was also a place for caution, for the Cloakwood is rife with danger. The wilds are not a place of peace, or good, or tranquility. They know nothing of the values -the fictions- that the races create. The wild are a place of being, of becoming, of unfolding- a grand equation of action, balanced by opposing forces. Chaos is part of the formula: life thrives on its edge, so too does death.
In the Cloakwood Amara kept two tools at the ready: her Sandthief ring and her potions of freedom. They and they alone were all she needed for safe passage.
Amara passed by the spiders under invisibility. She raced from the ettercaps and wyverns who accosted her at every clearing. She slipped through the rest of the forest in the shadows, observing what she could, absorbing what she could. She only stopped once.
Just a few hours from the mines, Amara encountered a hamadryad, a protector of the forest. Amara was struck by its beauty and dignity, but also its sadness. After hours of watching and pondering, Amara hesitantly chose to reveal herself. It was a risk in more ways than one. Conflict would be a tragedy almost as great as death.
"Begone, halfling: You are not welcome here," The hamadryad cried, burning with anger.
Amara expected this. "I should leave. And I will. But first I wish to speak. I've walked these woods with reverence, through day and night. I have seen much and learned much and I am better for it. What I've seen in you is pain, undeserved pain. Tell me what ails you most, and I will seek to remedy it. A service, offered with respect."
The hamadryad paused for a moment, puzzled. She reached out with her mind, touching Amara's. She probed the surface, then moved deeper. Suddenly the hamadryad understood. It was best to make the halfling say it. "Why do you make this offer, halfling? It is not like your kind. Speak plain and true and I will hear you."
For the first time in her adventure Amara was shaken. For the first time she didn't know what to say. For the first time she laid herself bare. "I...I have made mistakes. I seek amends." The words were brief, but they spoke much. It was all the hamadryad needed to hear.
"Yes. I see in your mind. My watery sisters, the sirines: killed by your hand, laying at your feet. There is a part of me that hates you for it. But just as I can see that you have failed, I see that you have learned. And I have long known that one can't expect right or justice from the races of the Realms. All you can ask is that they grow. Very well. I am most troubled by the mine to the east. It is a festering wound that withers all it touches. I would see it ended and I would see the men who made it punished. Will you do this?"
Amara couldn't have been more pleased. "I will. I planned to anyways, but now my purpose is-"
"Silence, halfling! I have more to say. I see something else in your mind. You seek a sword. A magical scimitar. I know of one, not far from here, along the path you traveled. I will reveal it to you, in exchange for your word that you will do what you claim."
"I thank you, most graciously. You have my word," Amara said, with a bow. The hamadryad nodded. Amara began to walk away, the location of scimitar shinning in her mind. Amara's pace quickened with excitement, but then a thunderous call halted her. The hamadryad had one last thing to say.
"Before you leave, halfling: understand this. What you seek to do is just, and I support you. But it is less than amends. Now find that sword and stick it in the hearts of the men who made that mine."
Amara understood that those should be the last words. She bowed once again and walked away, at a respectful pace. That is how Amara, Swashbuckler of the Sword Coast, found her sword. It is also how the legendary blade, Rashad's Talon, found a new name: hence forth known as The Dryad's Vengeance.
Days passed, days of walking and reflection. Just when it seemed the forest would go on forever, the trees gave way to a palisade. Amara had arrived at the mine, her new blade in hand.
The entrance to the mine was defended by a fearsome party. Two mages, two warriors, each more experienced than Amara. This would be yet another test, just as challenging as the bandit camp had been, albeit less grand in scope. Amara, guided by her fate spirit, knew just how to proceed.
Amara first task was to lure out the guards. That was done with ease.
By now nothing stands between Amara and the mine. That is well. Amara has a promise to keep.
Best,
A.
That makes me think that I have the balance right. Even thieves can survive in a solo game.
He had a katana as one of his weapons paid for with the gem worth 1000gp.
Of course Mendas could have been avoided.
Best,
A.
I'm not actually playing him at the moment as Freda is still very much alive. He will probaably be my next run. That was purely a test to see if I had the balance right for my installation. I think that having a distinct risk of failure is balanced by getting plate armour and a +1 sword, items that are available in the early stages of the game anyway. I wanted Candlekeep to have a bit of a challenge without upsetting game balance. A mod supplied Mendas who is a bit stronger than the other assassins, but not quite strong enough IMO. Why they gave him the same name as another character I have no idea. That was a bad idea IMO.
Journal of Freda Quick Update
The bandit camp was exceptionally easy as was Valius and her friends at the FAI. Divide and conquer were the tacttics used in both areas.
We are now in Cloakwood having acquired a Cloak.
We needed to return to Beregost to deliver a wyvern's tail and whilst there Alora decided to pickpocket those whom we had delivered from Silke.
Drasus et al have now been defeated. The extra enemies give more loot but nothing that is superior to the equipment that I already have. I will probably sell it at the Gate in order to recharge wands.
Davaeorn was defeated easily with the result that Alora and Dynaheir both levelled up. They were the ones that really needed it.
Now at the Friendly Arms Inn. We haven't flooded the mines yet as we may need a reputation boost in future. We won't need to buy any more wands of fire this side of Amn.
Byrd (male half-elf beast master, Grond0); Gulpo (male dwarf berserker, Gate70)
Previous updates
https://forums.beamdog.com/discussion/comment/1195376/#Comment_1195376
https://forums.beamdog.com/discussion/comment/1195837/#Comment_1195837
In Baldur's Gate we didn't do most of the minor quests, but just picked up the Spectacles and the tankard helmet.
Deciding to continue with a minimal risk approach, we didn't bother with most of the content at the Coastway Crossing, but just went straight to the bridge. Gulpo used an invisibility potion there, while Byrd successfully hid behind the tent so we could wait in peace for Caelar to arrive.
Rather than use another invisibility potion, Gulpo fought his way through some hobgoblins blocking the road through the Troll Claw Woods. Byrd was spotted running through there and held by the shaman, but he was already out of sight range and in the shadows by the time the spell hit (and in fact he successfully stayed in the shadows throughout the spell duration, despite it being daytime). Gulpo meanwhile racked up his kill count a bit by beating up the hobgoblin group on his own.
Moving on to the Forest of Wyrms, we fought through a few groups to get into the old temple. Byrd got out his stunning darts to make some combats a bit easier - for instance by stunning Snorgash.
Beast master 9, 100 HPs (incl. 6 from familiar), 311 kills
Berserker 9, 121 HPs (incl. 5 from helm), 282 kills, 2 deaths
Got it! Tbh, I didn't read the post. I just glanced at the character record and got excited, lol.
My apologies, and best wishes to Freda!
TBH I liked the taster so much that I almost dropped Freda. I loved the battles which could have beeen won by either party.
As you've probably noticed, I've adopted a different posting style with Amara's run, emphasizing the story elements more and the tactics less. Accordingly, I've decided to continue her run in a thread reserved for RPed no reloads, over at TavernRPG, The Candlekeep Annex.
I'll continue to be around here, to read and support active participants (especially the Avatars) but I'll be posting Amara's adventure over there. Best wishes, everyone!
Cheers,
A.
Corecleric XX - halfling priest of Lothander, protagonist (Corey_Russell)
Mirazi - human mage (Grond0)
Betson - human dark moon monk (Gate70)
We decided to work on the main quest. The idea being to get the improved mace of disruption for Corecleric - Grond0 could then use the AoP and also Corecleric could then use the Sensai amulet. Thus we headed to Mook's area. The vampire had no chance. We reported to Linvail, and then headed to the bridge district. We encountered a lot of slaver ambushes but they couldn't do much to us we have too many options.
We then deal with some shadow thief traitors in the Bridge district. We reported our success to Linvail and then cleared out the undead in the Graveyard. This went smoothly with a cleric turning undead. We cleared out the spiders including Senai the drow cleric. We then ventured a bit into Bodhi's lair. We tried to deal with the mage but Grond0 couldn't help but get himself charmed. Luckily he is no threat with his ranged weapons to his party members. Corecleric dispelled him to get him in control of his senses and the party duly recovered the mace of disruption. We then forged the improved mace of disruption.
We did some more killing of undead as Betson killed the Crooked Crane lich with protection from undead scroll. The Daystar will be a welcome tool.
We finally arrived in Umar Hills to do the quests here. The quests at the village were straightforward except the mephit in the chest - it held Corecleric because he had the wrong shield equipped! (he was supposed to do use Shield of Harmony). Mirazi was also held! Things looked dicey but Betson ran all across the map and managed to arrive and save his friends in the nick of time! Close one!
Clearing out the undead in the abandoned Amaunator temple was very hard, partly because of the Greater mummies and also all the bone golems we had to deal with. We somehow managed to win without dying, though there was a lot of running and potion gulping going on. Time for Thaxxy! Some buffs, lots of summons, but MIrazi managed to feeblemind Thaxxy so that made it simple. Corecleric got the kill shot.
With everyone protected with death ward, the Shade Lord was simply enough to deal with. Poor Valygar was killed for his body, then his buddies were taken out as well. We reported to the Mayor of Immesvale our success, he was pleased.
We unlocked the planar sphere, then headed to the Bridge District playhouse to get to the Planar Prison. We protected with death ward, however Betson got lucky with a quivering palm. We saved our session here.