Backbiter
JDow
Member Posts: 71
Does anyone have any first hand experience of trying to use the Backbiter as a viable weapon (the +3 spear that inflicts 3 points of damage to the weirder on each successful hit)?
Here's my thinking:
Start with a half-orc (?) barbarian with 2 pips in spear, and 2 pips in 2 handed weapons.
Go early for the Backbiter so you have a +3 weapon very early in the game (practically right at the start).
Positives: I'm thinking this spear would be a great early weapon because a spear hits quickly and being a piercing attack it specifically by-passes leather armour (and there's a lot of enemies with that early game) and bucklers. I can imagine running at early enemies and the Backbiter taking them down before they can hit you back. Would also be good to use with a character who can regenerate - half-orc or dwarf and getting the constitution tome.
Then, later in the game swap it out for the +2 spear.
Any thoughts?
My main concerns are:
(1) It seems a little bit cheesy
(2) I think I'm right in saying you can't unequip the spear very easily. So you can't switch to a ranged weapon.
(3) Eventually getting to the +2 spear, a +2 spear is okay - but it's not amazing.
(4) I'm concerned that if you face a pack of targets with next to no hitpoint (e.g. melee kobolds) that the Backbiter could be a bit overkill and overall you'd loose quite a bit of health.
Which brings me back to the beginning... Has anyone actually tried this?
Here's my thinking:
Start with a half-orc (?) barbarian with 2 pips in spear, and 2 pips in 2 handed weapons.
Go early for the Backbiter so you have a +3 weapon very early in the game (practically right at the start).
Positives: I'm thinking this spear would be a great early weapon because a spear hits quickly and being a piercing attack it specifically by-passes leather armour (and there's a lot of enemies with that early game) and bucklers. I can imagine running at early enemies and the Backbiter taking them down before they can hit you back. Would also be good to use with a character who can regenerate - half-orc or dwarf and getting the constitution tome.
Then, later in the game swap it out for the +2 spear.
Any thoughts?
My main concerns are:
(1) It seems a little bit cheesy
(2) I think I'm right in saying you can't unequip the spear very easily. So you can't switch to a ranged weapon.
(3) Eventually getting to the +2 spear, a +2 spear is okay - but it's not amazing.
(4) I'm concerned that if you face a pack of targets with next to no hitpoint (e.g. melee kobolds) that the Backbiter could be a bit overkill and overall you'd loose quite a bit of health.
Which brings me back to the beginning... Has anyone actually tried this?
2
Comments
A 19 con half orc barbarian would have 12 hp at level one right? Even after a few levels, every single hit you make you take damage, so it seems like a recipe for disaster. The advantage of the spear is its a +3 weapon but as a half orc high strength fighter thaco would be better than most characters already. So the advantage of the high enchantment would seem to be the biggest thing going for that route. Killing kobolds with the spear seems like overkill. Are there any low level magic item immune things with getting cursed over?
Also, I haven't verified this but, when you rage as a barbarian, with your constitution going up to 23 (19+4) I think you regenerate 1 hp over the rage. Just a small thing but worth considering.
Like I said, we'd have to see how it feels in-game, but potentially it could be quite a deadly character early on.
The +3 you gain in damage you take in damage. And you need to hit a lot of things during the game.
It's a suicidal plan.
They take 14.5 in damage (18.5 if raging)
Av. Spear damage = +3.5 (d.6)
Strength bonus = +7 (+11 if raging)
+3 spear = +3
2-handed weapon skill = +1 (plus greater chance of critical hit)
And, of course, you could go out of your way to buy a few more healing potions.
It also requires you to invest a lot of pips in a weapon that is clearly suboptimal. And if you're not careful, it's easy to actually remove the Spear +2 from the game (if you tak to Mendas at Ulgoth's Beard, Jacil will disappear, taking the Spear +2 with him.
If you wanna try it as a gimmick build, that could be fun, but I wouldn't recommend it as an efficient build.
@Thels, a sound post. I just did a quick run to see what would happen if you use the Back-biter in dwarven defender defensive stance. I know DD's go with war hammers and axes but I was just wondering if it would round the 1.5 self-harm damage up or down. Unfortunately, it rounds it up.
The Back-biter spear is on the Lars Wood screen. So, at the beginning of the game, rather than going north to the FAI, you can go off the screen to the right and it takes you straight to Lars Wood. The battle is a tough one for level 1 characters, but if you use missile weapons and skirmish IDK.
You can obtain a Two-Handed Sword +1 at the Lonely Peaks (northwest of Nashkel) from Arghain. You can obtain a Halberd +1 at the Dryad Falls, inside a cave. Neither of these areas are gated behind any chapters or other areas, making them available from the beginning of the game as well (after leaving Candlekeep, of course).