I'm not sure I need further restrictions as I've just lost Mkungu on the way to Baldur's Gate from the Cloakwood Mines, due to a Chromatic Orb from Halacan. For my next run I'll probably go with a lighter challenge, adopting perhaps a couple of the curses but not all. I've never even made it to BG2 in the solo LoB challenge, so I think it wouldn't hurt to try to get a bit better at this game first.
What about making the weapon reduction a bit more flexible @histamiini - for instance every 10 levels Charname may use an additional weapon of his/her choice. More opinions on that one?
The permanency of the weapon choices is meant to reflect the fact that sorcerers and shamans do not get to change their chosen spells when they go up levels. However, they do gain more spells when they go up levels, whereas the number of quick weapon slots remains fixed throughout. Personally, I think every 10 levels is too easy - maybe every 20 - since the whole point is not to allow you to whip out a mace of disruption every time you face undead and so on. This would give single classes who can get to level 40 an extra weapon choice, which might be a nice bonus. For multiclasses, only the highest level would count (otherwise we might end up with multiclasses getting more permissible weapons than single classes, which isn't fair).
Incidentally, I'd conceived this as a standalone challenge in its own right, so the difficulty was adjusted to reflect that (i.e. put it on par with the the Wizard Slayer/Adventurer). If it's being used as a curse alongside other challenges, I'd definitely soften the requirements. Perhaps that would be a suitable compromise, @histamiini ?
I'm not sure I need further restrictions as I've just lost Mkungu on the way to Baldur's Gate from the Cloakwood Mines, due to a Chromatic Orb from Halacan. For my next run I'll probably go with a lighter challenge, adopting perhaps a couple of the curses but not all. I've never even made it to BG2 in the solo LoB challenge, so I think it wouldn't hurt to try to get a bit better at this game first.
From my limited experience, I think this is a good idea. LoB mode is dark and full of terrors... and I'd rather read a completed run than one that starts promisingly and then peters out due to an unlucky dice roll.
Anastasia had a go at Irenicus's dungeon too, and stealth is MVP - although there are a group of Duergar who block the exit from the gross beast thing to Irenicus's bedroom, the rest can be done full stealth. Nice. It's made me re-roll and restart her from Candlekeep, this time, this time she will make it, to become the Goddess of Murder she was born to be. I'm doing this no-restrictions because I want my OP LoB-SCS monk.
On a side note I ran through the dungeon with her on SCS without LoB and it feels weird killing things in 3 hits. Wrong somehow.
@AvidGamerFan Yeah I think the weapon reduction would be much bigger game changer, than the spell reduction part which could be integrated as is I think. Or maybe make those apply only on multi-/dual classes...
Woke up in hell world again. Impossible to kill anything. Everything kills you. No safety anywhere. progression almost impossible. I've been here before. I've died so many times, but not this time.
Bolts, Sword, Antidote, Book, Scroll. Same as it always has been. Gorion: dead, again.
Walked a twisting path to the FAI, but made sure not to go in. That would be fatal. Snaked back to Beregost, then Brage, then Nashkel, then Beregost again, then the Basilisks. Back to Nashkel, killed Mulahey, stealthed the bandit camp, killed the red wizards, stealthed the cloakwood mine. A charmed guard, 20 fireballs, a scroll of protection from magic and 12 blasts from the victor. Then to Baldur's Gate. This time. This time I won't die.
There is a third green protection from petrification scroll in a chest on the top floor of candlekeep library, if you evade the arresting gatekeeper. Wow, how did I not know this - it changes loads - extra 14,000XP from those candlekeep tunnels basilisks I've been skipping for my non-spellcasters.Getting to 161,000 in BG1 with Anastasia just got a little bit easier.
Playing around with the Duchal Palace ambush with my WS archer has led to another discovery, albeit an inferior variation on the Web strategy to delay the doppleganger transformation. There's a short period of time between the end of the long dialogue and the part where they all transform... and if you can hit a noble with a dart of stunning during this period, this will stop them from transforming for the duration of the stun. In their nobleman form, their AC and saves are terrible, so your chances are high providing you get your timing right.
For example, here I hit the green nobleman with a dart...
...and while the other dopplegangers have transformed, the green nobleman remains stunned!
If you attack the nobles before initiating the long dialogue, their variables will override afterwards and they'll change regardless; once their transformation has begun (after the dialogue), then stunning them mid-transition will not halt it and the doppleganger will appear a second later un-stunned. You'll probably only have time to hit one nobleman this way - the blue one is the mage, the green one is the shaman and the red one is the assassin. The shaman almost instantly casts Greater Command and if Belt succumbs, the fight's basically over, so I've chosen to disable the shaman first. Now all I have to do is nail down the rest of the fight!
There is a third green protection from petrification scroll in a chest on the top floor of candlekeep library, if you evade the arresting gatekeeper. Wow, how did I not know this - it changes loads - extra 14,000XP from those candlekeep tunnels basilisks I've been skipping for my non-spellcasters.Getting to 161,000 in BG1 with Anastasia just got a little bit easier.
The easy way to reach the top floor: don't speak to Koveras on the way up. Just head straight up the stairs on the second level before he can do anything. Easier with invisibility, of course. Then don't interact with the Iron Throne leaders either, and the guards won't have any reason to arrest you yet.
The PfP scroll is actually on a bookshelf - no lock, no need to worry that the guards are out of sight. There are a few more items in locked chests on that level as well.
Beast Master has been advancing slowly, but surely. Used PfM for Krystin and Slythe and started running around soaking up Slythes backstabs. After his Invisibilities and Poison weapon were out I started tanking, and it still took 14 Goblets to survive with just Oil of Speed. Krystin didn't want to reveal herself so I left her be, although I would've liked hide behind Quenash against her.
Palace Ambush, PfM, 2x Mind Focus, Defense, Storm and Speed after the fight started. With about 30 Dispel Arrows we dispelled all but the mage who conjured impossible amount of summons. Started smacking the Dobbelgangers. All but Liia were killed pretty quickly, but luckily all the Dobbelgangers were concentrating on me. Lasty we hunted down the mage, and he almost killed Liia, who survived with just 32 hp left. Ganja also had to refresh herself from the Goblet 15 times. Should've probably used Ring of Energy against the mage, or Shaman for slightly better results.
Werewolf Island still between Ganja and Sarevok, and it's going to be interesting because I'm doing it almost blindly as I've pretty much forgotten it.
Parked Anastasia V4 in Baldur's Gate and brought up Anastasia v5 to practice some of the hard fights with - I was messing around with Drasus, getting a strategy that involved blind Drasus, lure others, stealth, return, charm drasus and feed to the bandits to the north. Works 60% of the time, with a backup of lure Drasus, stealth, buff, then kite and spam nymph cloak then feed to bandits. Because of the monk's inability to use speed pots this is going up there as third most dangerous required fight - need those boots of speed.
Also got the Golem fight down to a T using the fireball trap.
Drasus, Golems, the baldurs gate quests and Candlekeep are down. Still no reload. This time, this is the time I achieve my holy grail of BG:EE LoB SCS Solo Monk nR. I've recorded the whole thing but a full BG run is taking about 5-6 hours so its been in 2 sittings.
Anastasia v5 is currently playing with the Dukes Ambush. Unlike Anastasia v4 she has died... a lot.
The Duchal Palace fight in the Archer WS run has been won... barely! Everything was hard fought and it seems inherently dicey, but there were certain things that tipped the scales in my favour. I'm still trying to find a more reliable way of doing it, but it is possible with neither charms nor summons and without losing a ton of reputation.
Initially, I used a Protection from Magic, 2 Protection from Fires and Draw Upon Holy Might. As soon as the Draw Upon Holy Might's done, I ran into the noblemen, triggered the dialogue and stunned the shaman for a bit. I didn't find the stunning tactic to be as helpful as it might have first appeared. This is because if any of the noblemen die before transforming, then Sarevok isn't activated afterwards. The stunned nobleman will stay put in the centre, preventing you from going crazy with arrows of detonation. It's helpful to delay for a bit, but you can't rely on it.
Immediately retreating and entering Stealth will stop the assassin from targeting you. I then tried to hit the remaining dopplegangers with arrows of dispelling to remove their Haste (and blurred appearance), concentrating on those attacking Belt. The LoB dopplegangers have -11 AC (except the mage, who has -13 AC against missiles), but an 8th level archer with Eagle Bow, 19 Dex, Helm of Balduran and 3 stars in Shortbow has ThAC0 1 and so hits 40% (or 30%) of the time. Hitting Belt and Flaming Fists will dispel Chaos, Slow and/or Greater Command while not turning them hostile, and this is highly recommended.
By my reckoning, there are 8 Protection from Fire green scrolls in the game:
Carnival Merchant x 1
High Hedge x 1
Sorcerous Sundries x 1
Elfsong (c.f. upstairs merchant) x 2
Carsa (c.f. Kahrk) x 1
Helshara (c.f. Oberon's Estate) x 1
Low Lantern (locked chest behind Lobar) x 1
Unfortunately, the last one is off limits for a WS archer since the chest requires >22 (i.e. fire giant) Strength to bash, so that's 7. These can be activated from a distance, so Belt can be protected without entering the room. Still, they're not as useful as might be expected since the Flaming Fist soliders will die from dopplegangers quickly enough anyway. By holding fire when the Flaming Fist are nearly dead, the dopplegangers will reliably kill them for you, so you will avoid the reputation hit. This is essential - going in with 20 reputation, an archer can kill 1 Flaming Fist safely, but any more will cause them to fall, which is fatal.
After the ranks had been thinned a bit, I began blasting any dopplegangers positioned around or behind where the back row of noblemen (in the blue and green) initially stood. Even though Sarevok is immune to fire, he will go hostile if he's caught in the radius... and the game will end a second later. Aiming at targets in the upper half of the carpet will keep Sarevok just out of range. Everyone in the AoE will take missile damage as well as fire damage, so I kept topping up with Durlag's Goblet and Kiel's Helm. Liia's magical protections keep her safe from the blasts, so don't be surprised if she's the MVP here.
When no suitable targets presented themselves for detonating, I kept hurling darts of stunning at the dopplegangers with Called Shot activated to debuff thier saving throws. Belt was getting low on health, so I fired both of my Horror special abilities. Doppleganger saves in LoB are excellent (save vs spells of 3), so it'll probably not work... but every little helps. If the mage has conjured a myconid lesser air elemental, it'll probably be panicked (and stunned) much more easily.
So far, I've had to alter my plans for the WS archer in each choke point encounter, but she has managed to stumble through. Let's see whether I can survive the Temple of Bhaal unscathed!
Ganja stocked up, and left to Isles of Balduran after fetching the charts from the captain. We sneaked to Dradeel's hut with Sandthief Ring, agreed his guest and then looted the Staff Mace +2 from the chest. Karoug was straightforward tanking. Prebuffing with PfM, 2x Mind Focus, Storm, Defense, then Speed and Power, and finally after smacking Wolfwere's, Duhm for Karoug. In the end it took eight refreshes from the Goblet hitting at -4 Thac0. Then we easily blasted the mage twice. We ran to Loup Garou who apprently is even tougher enemy than Karoug with more health. Mercifully we beat him with 7 Goblets, and then escaped the place. That wasn't too bad, although you need to have top form and about average luck to beat both of them with the same Goblet I think.
Some small things. Used another PfM for Sunin's ring, but the bastard got Invisible, so I used the buffs to smack Delorna for her OGL. And then plowed my way to Underworld killing Tamoko. Back at Sunin and he was still invisible, so I bought Potion of Magic Shielding and waited my PfM out. After it was out he revealed himself, and I downed Magic Shielding. Then the bastard dispelled me, so I left, again, and bought another Magic Shielding. Back yet again, and finally I ended his miserable life. Got highly valuable ring to smuggle in SoD. This was our inventory for our final confrontation. Quickly after starting the battle I rememebered I forgot the Violet potion in Carvinal. Ilmater flexes yet again with his curse, it's very easy to forget stuff when they're dispersed all around.
It took 47 hits from OGL's to waste Sarevok's minions. I then hit Sarevok with the rest leaving one charge in two necklaces. PfU for Skellingtons. At this point Sarevok had 520 hp left. Oil of Speed and started kiting around with Ring of Energy. It took 38 hits and Sarevok was down. Ganja didn't suffer any damage in the fight. Using the OGL's I was think about Arvoreen, what defines a combat for switching items, as combat sound was going on endlessly. And reasoned combat to be where opponents actively search and attack you. There's no reason why combat music should prevent you from changing your pants. PfU and Sandthief then got us to Korlasz, waited 4 hours of her PfF out and then 6 Detonators made her surrender in less than two rounds. Sold our smuggle and loot in Sourcerous Sundries and had money left over buying all the interesting things.
Nice progress here @histamiini! The Dart Stunning trick looks interesting @AvidGamerFan, can this be combined with pre-Webbing the Nobles first?
I had started with an Avenger and already reached Level 9 without too much trouble having some fun using the spider form. Oh, i also added a hardcore version of Cataclysm to the OP that i am trying to use in the future. Maybe @histamiini should pick this to have at least a tiny bit of a challenge! *G*
Arvoreen: The inventory cannot be accessed during combat
Chauntea: No XP farming
Cyric: No potion- and spellbuffing before combat
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar cannot upgrade any item
Ilmater: No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Lolth: No antidots or elixirs of health
Malar: Only one summon spell can be active in combat
Mystra: Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Selune: Resting is only allowed at inns or cleared dungeon floors
Sune: Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated
Tempus: Retreats from combat are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname kills one enemy
Tymora: Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Tyr: No attacking or killing of innocents
Waukeen: Items cannot be recharged in shops
Leira: Unique magical items cannot be sold
Myrkul: Charname cannot use Protection from Undead Scrolls
Damn, I took Teleria fight too loosly now that she has to be agroed first, and I wanted Stone Ally for battles ahead. Used Absorption for the Golem, and tried disrupting Teleria with Ring of Energy. But I was slowed immediatelly and almost killed by the Golem, I had to drink Oil of Speed and escape, but Teleria got something on the air.
Not knowing what it was, I couldn't get away being slowed and tried using Greenstone amulet. Ganja was stoned trying to get the Stone Ally.
Here's some quick thoughts. Also playing the char through BG1 I think the Amnesia challenge could be included as is, even weapon wise. Maybe as character becomes more experienced, it would allow some extra weapons in SoA where there's a lot of situational weapons? Like one in SoA and two in ToB?
Arvoreen: The inventory may be accessed during combat to use consumables but not to switch items
Fine, small impact. Char relying Durlag's Goblet mostly can't use Helm of Balduran.
Chauntea: No XP farming unless Charname has gained 3.000.000 XP´s
Fine, small impact as there's enough xp to go around.
Cyric: Potion- and spellbuffs with a duration of less than 2 hours may only be applied during combat
Fine, 2h is good cutoff as it removes some prebuffs and makes planning more interesting, but not impossible.
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar can each upgrade just one item
Probably fine, would've only improved Dragonscale Shield with Jegg.
Ilmater: No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Big one, absolute murder all the time. Would like it to be less of a burden, but don't know how.
Lolth: No antidots or elixirs of health
Fine.
Malar: Except for Beast Masters only one summon spell can be active in combat
Probably makes Beast Master/Cleric the best class in the challenge with free multisummons. Optimal solution would be some boons for every class.
Mystra: Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Fine, I've always had that so my tactics are around that already.
Selune: Resting is only allowed in inns and cleared dungeon floors. In the wilderness it only works near houses
Fine and immersive.
Sune: Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated with items
Takes a lot of cheese out of BG1 which is good.
Tempus: Except for Wizard Slayers retreats from ambushes are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname has to kill one enemy
Another high impact, but in a good way as it makes use of the variation that is included in the waylays.
Tymora: Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Fine.
Tyr: No attacking or killing of innocents unless they have been provoked through dialogue
Fine.
Waukeen: Items can be recharged only once in shops
Big one, and as things stand I'll probably always go for this
Thanks for your insight @histamiini. I think putting a slightly reworked idea of @AvidGamerFan could well be added to our list of curses and as it effects all classes it might relate to Ao the one who rules over all other deities.
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Waukeen: Items can be recharged only once in shops
Big one, and as things stand I'll probably always go for this[/spoiler]
Maybe this needs fine-tuning? I agree with @histamiini that this one and Ilmater seem to have the biggest impact. What if this curse could somehow be split in two?
- Waukeen: Offensive items can only be recharged once in shops.
- Helm (the guardian): Defensive items can only be recharged once in shops.
That way you can't have it all. You either get to recharge Durlag's Goblet, Shield Amulet, Sandthief's Ring. Or you can recharge (offensive) wands, OGL, Ring of Energy.
Thanks for your insight @histamiini. I think putting a slightly reworked idea of @AvidGamerFan could well be added to our list of curses and as it effects all classes it might relate to Ao the one who rules over all other deities.
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Sounds good?
I like this, especially the weapon restriction, feels more realistic and heroic.
I haven't had much time to play these days, but I have my mind set on Berserker -> Thief, and I hope to start tonight.
@Harpagornis Yes that sounds fair, at least until someone comes to situation that it would not work for.
@Blackraven No pun intended. But now that you mentioned it, that's one funny death. Ganja was almost stoned earlier with the Basilisk waylay, so maybe that was in the cards all the time. I will probably just roll another Beast Master, I usually bang my head on the char until it goes through. I still think it's the best bet in this challenge.
Is the restriction on spell use by casters a bit harsh? If you can only scribe as many spells as shaman/sorcerer, but can memorize fewer, then there seems no incentive to play, e.g. a single class mage. That may be deliberate as part of @Harpagornis' war on mages , but it would seem to me that it would be better for balance for the casting restrictions to only apply to multi/dual class characters - there's even some logic to support that as it always seemed a bit odd to me that single classes ultimately get so little benefit for the extra time they're able to devote to their profession.
Damn it... lost another Berserker... after counting down Drizzt´s numbers... then charging in again... landing the deadly crit on the second throw... escaping to the south... trying to reach Nahskel but then... six Skeleton Archers... Lilli already struck by fatigue... got hit... and hit... while failing to land any blow... 36... 24.... 16... 9... GG.
Hhhmmm... maybe its a good idea to spilt Waukeen @Blackraven... more options but you cannot have it all.
Yeah, @Grond0 is right... my war on Mages will never end but i got your point. On the other hand: Who the hell would play a single class Mage in the challenge... well... except for you! *G*
Yes restricting Amnesia to multi/dual makes more sense, we are playing mostly multi/duals anyway. And the reasoning would work too, as you split your personality, you need to condense yourself otherwise, with weapons and spells. Could even make somebody to try single classed mage.
Yes restricting Amnesia to multi/dual makes more sense, we are playing mostly multi/duals anyway. And the reasoning would work too, as you split your personality, you need to condense yourself otherwise, with weapons and spells. Could even make somebody to try single classed mage.
Agreed re: multi-classes. Should it apply to all duals though? Maybe only to duals over a certain level or amount of XP?
If you dual to Cleric, Druid or Mage in BG1 or maybe early SoD, the character will basically be a caster with some perks from the original class. For higher level duals in SoA, yes, you end up with a split personality as you put it.
Agreed re: multi-classes. Should it apply to all duals though? Maybe only to duals over a certain level or amount of XP?
If you dual to Cleric, Druid or Mage in BG1 or maybe early SoD, the character will basically be a caster with some perks from the original class. For higher level duals in SoA, yes, you end up with a split personality as you put it.
You're right my brain seems to work inadvertently for my playstyles, as I mostly play high level duals. And high level duals benefits from it the most, if Amnesia only starts after dual is completed. But it still is the most immersive solution, you dual because you get the boons from that?
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane multi- and dualclass casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine multi- and dual class casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Okay... thats a compromise... and for the rest of the casters.. SUFFER!
Nah, i think weapons are fine for the moment... with all changes added the Cataclysm now looks like that:
The Cataclysm
Charname is afflicted with Bhaal´s curse, meaning they have to defeat the following enemies. In each part one enemy can be skipped while one more can be skipped freely among the rest.
In addition Charname is afflicted with 15 divine curses out of the following 16. After each part he or she can change the curse once:
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane multi- and dualclass casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine multi- and dual class casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Arvoreen:
The inventory may be accessed during combat to use consumables but not to switch items
Chauntea:
No XP farming unless Charname has gained 3.000.000 XP´s
Cyric:
Potion- and spellbuffs with a duration of less than 2 hours may only be applied during combat
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar can each upgrade just one item
Helm: Defensive items can only be recharged once in shops
Ilmater:
No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Lolth:
No antidots or elixirs of health
Malar:
Except for Beast Masters only one summon spell can be active in combat
Mystra:
Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Selune:
Resting is only allowed in inns and cleared dungeon floors. In the wilderness it only works near houses
Sune:
Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated with items
Tempus:
Except for Wizard Slayers retreats from ambushes are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname has to kill one enemy
Tymora:
Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Tyr:
No attacking or killing of innocents unless they have been provoked through dialogue
Waukeen:
Offensive items can only be recharged once in shops
Rolled (auto) another Lord Vanderley, Cataclysm with boon of Waukeen. Bottlenecks for Cavalier are Palace Ambush and Crusader Attacks, and inconvinience is recharging the Sandthief ring. Other than that Lord's are golden.
250xp Candlekeep
900xp Marl
Invisibility potion Beregost Manor
-2 rep stealing
-1 rep Tamah
Ankheg Plate armor from Nashkel (armor of choice until Korlasz)
400xp Noober
Invisibility potion #2 Nashkel Manor
LMD ability
Drizzt Scimitars (weapons of choice until SoA)
35xp Sonner
2500xp Tenya's Bowl lv2 27hp
OGL from Carnival
Warg waylay (LMD)
900xp Hentold's Dagger, Invisibility potion #3, lv3 38hp
13 rep (1800 gold)
14 rep Oublek
Hobgoblin waylay (LMD)
500xp + 15 rep Samuel, 110 FR with Cavalier bonus, Icingdeath and Ballista's Passport
400xp + 16 rep Joias ring (Guards took forever)
200xp + 17 rep Drienne's Cat
Wolf waylay (LMD)
1000xp + 18 rep Brage
Invisibility potion #4 from Carnival tent with Stone Giant, and using Fire Giant from the chest
300xp + 19 rep Firebead
3500gold for recharging OGL
2400xp Denak's party, got Ring of Energy (out of sight OGL, they will stay at stairs), lv4 52hp
Wild dog waylay (LMD)
Ghast waylay right after (OGL + Potion of Freeaction)
Basics done, attack on Durlag's Tower next I think
Comments
I'm not sure I need further restrictions as I've just lost Mkungu on the way to Baldur's Gate from the Cloakwood Mines, due to a Chromatic Orb from Halacan. For my next run I'll probably go with a lighter challenge, adopting perhaps a couple of the curses but not all. I've never even made it to BG2 in the solo LoB challenge, so I think it wouldn't hurt to try to get a bit better at this game first.
The permanency of the weapon choices is meant to reflect the fact that sorcerers and shamans do not get to change their chosen spells when they go up levels. However, they do gain more spells when they go up levels, whereas the number of quick weapon slots remains fixed throughout. Personally, I think every 10 levels is too easy - maybe every 20 - since the whole point is not to allow you to whip out a mace of disruption every time you face undead and so on. This would give single classes who can get to level 40 an extra weapon choice, which might be a nice bonus. For multiclasses, only the highest level would count (otherwise we might end up with multiclasses getting more permissible weapons than single classes, which isn't fair).
Incidentally, I'd conceived this as a standalone challenge in its own right, so the difficulty was adjusted to reflect that (i.e. put it on par with the the Wizard Slayer/Adventurer). If it's being used as a curse alongside other challenges, I'd definitely soften the requirements. Perhaps that would be a suitable compromise, @histamiini ?
From my limited experience, I think this is a good idea. LoB mode is dark and full of terrors... and I'd rather read a completed run than one that starts promisingly and then peters out due to an unlucky dice roll.
On a side note I ran through the dungeon with her on SCS without LoB and it feels weird killing things in 3 hits. Wrong somehow.
I am open for any changes... only spell- or only weapon restriction as a curse? Or no changes at all as Cataclysm is already challenging enough?
BtW: I will add the Amnesia-Challenge to our list for anyone who might be interested! ;o)
Woke up in hell world again. Impossible to kill anything. Everything kills you. No safety anywhere. progression almost impossible. I've been here before. I've died so many times, but not this time.
Bolts, Sword, Antidote, Book, Scroll. Same as it always has been. Gorion: dead, again.
Walked a twisting path to the FAI, but made sure not to go in. That would be fatal. Snaked back to Beregost, then Brage, then Nashkel, then Beregost again, then the Basilisks. Back to Nashkel, killed Mulahey, stealthed the bandit camp, killed the red wizards, stealthed the cloakwood mine. A charmed guard, 20 fireballs, a scroll of protection from magic and 12 blasts from the victor. Then to Baldur's Gate. This time. This time I won't die.
For example, here I hit the green nobleman with a dart...
If you attack the nobles before initiating the long dialogue, their variables will override afterwards and they'll change regardless; once their transformation has begun (after the dialogue), then stunning them mid-transition will not halt it and the doppleganger will appear a second later un-stunned. You'll probably only have time to hit one nobleman this way - the blue one is the mage, the green one is the shaman and the red one is the assassin. The shaman almost instantly casts Greater Command and if Belt succumbs, the fight's basically over, so I've chosen to disable the shaman first. Now all I have to do is nail down the rest of the fight!
The easy way to reach the top floor: don't speak to Koveras on the way up. Just head straight up the stairs on the second level before he can do anything. Easier with invisibility, of course. Then don't interact with the Iron Throne leaders either, and the guards won't have any reason to arrest you yet.
The PfP scroll is actually on a bookshelf - no lock, no need to worry that the guards are out of sight. There are a few more items in locked chests on that level as well.
Palace Ambush, PfM, 2x Mind Focus, Defense, Storm and Speed after the fight started. With about 30 Dispel Arrows we dispelled all but the mage who conjured impossible amount of summons. Started smacking the Dobbelgangers. All but Liia were killed pretty quickly, but luckily all the Dobbelgangers were concentrating on me. Lasty we hunted down the mage, and he almost killed Liia, who survived with just 32 hp left. Ganja also had to refresh herself from the Goblet 15 times. Should've probably used Ring of Energy against the mage, or Shaman for slightly better results.
Werewolf Island still between Ganja and Sarevok, and it's going to be interesting because I'm doing it almost blindly as I've pretty much forgotten it.
Also got the Golem fight down to a T using the fireball trap.
Lots of practice really pays off in hell world.
Drasus, Golems, the baldurs gate quests and Candlekeep are down. Still no reload. This time, this is the time I achieve my holy grail of BG:EE LoB SCS Solo Monk nR. I've recorded the whole thing but a full BG run is taking about 5-6 hours so its been in 2 sittings.
Anastasia v5 is currently playing with the Dukes Ambush. Unlike Anastasia v4 she has died... a lot.
Initially, I used a Protection from Magic, 2 Protection from Fires and Draw Upon Holy Might. As soon as the Draw Upon Holy Might's done, I ran into the noblemen, triggered the dialogue and stunned the shaman for a bit. I didn't find the stunning tactic to be as helpful as it might have first appeared. This is because if any of the noblemen die before transforming, then Sarevok isn't activated afterwards. The stunned nobleman will stay put in the centre, preventing you from going crazy with arrows of detonation. It's helpful to delay for a bit, but you can't rely on it.
Immediately retreating and entering Stealth will stop the assassin from targeting you. I then tried to hit the remaining dopplegangers with arrows of dispelling to remove their Haste (and blurred appearance), concentrating on those attacking Belt. The LoB dopplegangers have -11 AC (except the mage, who has -13 AC against missiles), but an 8th level archer with Eagle Bow, 19 Dex, Helm of Balduran and 3 stars in Shortbow has ThAC0 1 and so hits 40% (or 30%) of the time. Hitting Belt and Flaming Fists will dispel Chaos, Slow and/or Greater Command while not turning them hostile, and this is highly recommended.
By my reckoning, there are 8 Protection from Fire green scrolls in the game:
After the ranks had been thinned a bit, I began blasting any dopplegangers positioned around or behind where the back row of noblemen (in the blue and green) initially stood. Even though Sarevok is immune to fire, he will go hostile if he's caught in the radius... and the game will end a second later. Aiming at targets in the upper half of the carpet will keep Sarevok just out of range. Everyone in the AoE will take missile damage as well as fire damage, so I kept topping up with Durlag's Goblet and Kiel's Helm. Liia's magical protections keep her safe from the blasts, so don't be surprised if she's the MVP here.
When no suitable targets presented themselves for detonating, I kept hurling darts of stunning at the dopplegangers with Called Shot activated to debuff thier saving throws. Belt was getting low on health, so I fired both of my Horror special abilities. Doppleganger saves in LoB are excellent (save vs spells of 3), so it'll probably not work... but every little helps. If the mage has conjured a myconid lesser air elemental, it'll probably be panicked (and stunned) much more easily.
So far, I've had to alter my plans for the WS archer in each choke point encounter, but she has managed to stumble through. Let's see whether I can survive the Temple of Bhaal unscathed!
Some small things. Used another PfM for Sunin's ring, but the bastard got Invisible, so I used the buffs to smack Delorna for her OGL. And then plowed my way to Underworld killing Tamoko. Back at Sunin and he was still invisible, so I bought Potion of Magic Shielding and waited my PfM out. After it was out he revealed himself, and I downed Magic Shielding. Then the bastard dispelled me, so I left, again, and bought another Magic Shielding. Back yet again, and finally I ended his miserable life. Got highly valuable ring to smuggle in SoD. This was our inventory for our final confrontation. Quickly after starting the battle I rememebered I forgot the Violet potion in Carvinal. Ilmater flexes yet again with his curse, it's very easy to forget stuff when they're dispersed all around.
It took 47 hits from OGL's to waste Sarevok's minions. I then hit Sarevok with the rest leaving one charge in two necklaces. PfU for Skellingtons. At this point Sarevok had 520 hp left. Oil of Speed and started kiting around with Ring of Energy. It took 38 hits and Sarevok was down. Ganja didn't suffer any damage in the fight. Using the OGL's I was think about Arvoreen, what defines a combat for switching items, as combat sound was going on endlessly. And reasoned combat to be where opponents actively search and attack you. There's no reason why combat music should prevent you from changing your pants.
I had started with an Avenger and already reached Level 9 without too much trouble having some fun using the spider form. Oh, i also added a hardcore version of Cataclysm to the OP that i am trying to use in the future. Maybe @histamiini should pick this to have at least a tiny bit of a challenge! *G*
Chauntea: No XP farming
Cyric: No potion- and spellbuffing before combat
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar cannot upgrade any item
Ilmater: No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Lolth: No antidots or elixirs of health
Malar: Only one summon spell can be active in combat
Mystra: Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Selune: Resting is only allowed at inns or cleared dungeon floors
Sune: Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated
Tempus: Retreats from combat are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname kills one enemy
Tymora: Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Tyr: No attacking or killing of innocents
Waukeen: Items cannot be recharged in shops
Leira: Unique magical items cannot be sold
Myrkul: Charname cannot use Protection from Undead Scrolls
Not knowing what it was, I couldn't get away being slowed and tried using Greenstone amulet. Ganja was stoned trying to get the Stone Ally.
Maybe you can give some feedback on the curses... which ones are good... which ones could be finetuned from the perspective of a fighter class? ;o)
I have been struck by restartitis again... maybe this time my Berserker has more luck...
Fine, small impact. Char relying Durlag's Goblet mostly can't use Helm of Balduran.
Chauntea: No XP farming unless Charname has gained 3.000.000 XP´s
Fine, small impact as there's enough xp to go around.
Cyric: Potion- and spellbuffs with a duration of less than 2 hours may only be applied during combat
Fine, 2h is good cutoff as it removes some prebuffs and makes planning more interesting, but not impossible.
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar can each upgrade just one item
Probably fine, would've only improved Dragonscale Shield with Jegg.
Ilmater: No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Big one, absolute murder all the time.
Lolth: No antidots or elixirs of health
Fine.
Malar: Except for Beast Masters only one summon spell can be active in combat
Probably makes Beast Master/Cleric the best class in the challenge with free multisummons. Optimal solution would be some boons for every class.
Mystra: Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Fine, I've always had that so my tactics are around that already.
Selune: Resting is only allowed in inns and cleared dungeon floors. In the wilderness it only works near houses
Fine and immersive.
Sune: Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated with items
Takes a lot of cheese out of BG1 which is good.
Tempus: Except for Wizard Slayers retreats from ambushes are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname has to kill one enemy
Another high impact, but in a good way as it makes use of the variation that is included in the waylays.
Tymora: Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Fine.
Tyr: No attacking or killing of innocents unless they have been provoked through dialogue
Fine.
Waukeen: Items can be recharged only once in shops
Big one, and as things stand I'll probably always go for this
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Sounds good?
Sorry about your loss, @histamiini, you'd done so great in BG1! What will you try next?
Maybe this needs fine-tuning? I agree with @histamiini that this one and Ilmater seem to have the biggest impact. What if this curse could somehow be split in two?
- Waukeen: Offensive items can only be recharged once in shops.
- Helm (the guardian): Defensive items can only be recharged once in shops.
That way you can't have it all. You either get to recharge Durlag's Goblet, Shield Amulet, Sandthief's Ring. Or you can recharge (offensive) wands, OGL, Ring of Energy.
I like this, especially the weapon restriction, feels more realistic and heroic.
I haven't had much time to play these days, but I have my mind set on Berserker -> Thief, and I hope to start tonight.
@Blackraven No pun intended. But now that you mentioned it, that's one funny death.
Hhhmmm... maybe its a good idea to spilt Waukeen @Blackraven... more options but you cannot have it all.
Yeah, @Grond0 is right... my war on Mages will never end but i got your point. On the other hand: Who the hell would play a single class Mage in the challenge... well... except for you! *G*
Agreed re: multi-classes. Should it apply to all duals though? Maybe only to duals over a certain level or amount of XP?
If you dual to Cleric, Druid or Mage in BG1 or maybe early SoD, the character will basically be a caster with some perks from the original class. For higher level duals in SoA, yes, you end up with a split personality as you put it.
Condolences @Harpagornis...
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane multi- and dualclass casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine multi- and dual class casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Okay... thats a compromise... and for the rest of the casters.. SUFFER!
Charname is afflicted with Bhaal´s curse, meaning they have to defeat the following enemies. In each part one enemy can be skipped while one more can be skipped freely among the rest.
- Kahrk (BGEE)
- Karoug (BGEE)
- Demon Knight (BGEE)
- Aec´Letec (BGEE)
- Coldhearth (SoD)
- Morentherene (SoD)
- Neothelid (SoD)
- Shadow Aspect (SoD)
- Firkraag (SoA)
- Planar Warden (SoA)
- Unseeing Eye (SoA)
- Kangaxx (SoA)
- Layene (SoA)
- Saladrex (ToB)
- Demogorgon (ToB)
In addition Charname is afflicted with 15 divine curses out of the following 16. After each part he or she can change the curse once:
Ao:
1. Charname can only carry as many weapons as fit into quickslots. After reaching 3 million XP´s he gets an additional weapon
2. Arcane multi- and dualclass casters can only have as many arcane spells scribed as a sorcerer of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
3. Divine multi- and dual class casters can only choose from as many divine spells as a shaman of equal level. Numbers of spells they can memorise remain unaffected
Arvoreen:
The inventory may be accessed during combat to use consumables but not to switch items
Chauntea:
No XP farming unless Charname has gained 3.000.000 XP´s
Cyric:
Potion- and spellbuffs with a duration of less than 2 hours may only be applied during combat
Gond: Jegg, Cromwell, and Cespenar can each upgrade just one item
Helm: Defensive items can only be recharged once in shops
Ilmater:
No containers of any kind. Items dropped on the ground are lost
Lolth:
No antidots or elixirs of health
Malar:
Except for Beast Masters only one summon spell can be active in combat
Mystra:
Each creature gains the saving throw fix
Selune:
Resting is only allowed in inns and cleared dungeon floors. In the wilderness it only works near houses
Sune:
Creatures cannot be charmed or dominated with items
Tempus:
Except for Wizard Slayers retreats from ambushes are only possible if
1. At least one enemy takes damage
2. Charname takes damage from a physical attack or gets hit by a spell/gaze
OR
3. Charname has to kill one enemy
Tymora:
Random number of Hit Points on level up and no INT-buffing for scroll scribing
Tyr:
No attacking or killing of innocents unless they have been provoked through dialogue
Waukeen:
Offensive items can only be recharged once in shops
Ideas and feedback is welcome!
250xp Candlekeep
900xp Marl
Invisibility potion Beregost Manor
-2 rep stealing
-1 rep Tamah
Ankheg Plate armor from Nashkel (armor of choice until Korlasz)
400xp Noober
Invisibility potion #2 Nashkel Manor
LMD ability
Drizzt Scimitars (weapons of choice until SoA)
35xp Sonner
2500xp Tenya's Bowl lv2 27hp
OGL from Carnival
Warg waylay (LMD)
900xp Hentold's Dagger, Invisibility potion #3, lv3 38hp
13 rep (1800 gold)
14 rep Oublek
Hobgoblin waylay (LMD)
500xp + 15 rep Samuel, 110 FR with Cavalier bonus, Icingdeath and Ballista's Passport
400xp + 16 rep Joias ring (Guards took forever)
200xp + 17 rep Drienne's Cat
Wolf waylay (LMD)
1000xp + 18 rep Brage
Invisibility potion #4 from Carnival tent with Stone Giant, and using Fire Giant from the chest
300xp + 19 rep Firebead
3500gold for recharging OGL
2400xp Denak's party, got Ring of Energy (out of sight OGL, they will stay at stairs), lv4 52hp
Ghast waylay right after (OGL + Potion of Freeaction)