Upon my arrival with Baldur´s armee in the troll claw woods, I receive a gift from the vampire, a ioun stone with an amazing regeneration rate. Thanks to this I will become less dependant on priests for healing! (I almost never sleep in this game, to force me to choose good spells before, for now, my character didn´t sleep once, I will try to finish Dragonspear without sleeping. In my opinion it is actually easier in Dragonspear as each character receives an automatic sleep between each chapter).
I visit the zone, fighting mostly trolls but also some thugs and crusaders. I am given the opportunity to go first to the bridge or to the wyrm forest. I decide to go for the forest first. I meet a ranger from our armee, he advices me to care about spiders. I hate him, I really hate him, the first time I played Dragonspear I died against the green dragon because I expected not to face anything bigger than spiders...
I visit the map, kill wyverns on my way and find some caves. I enter the first cave and in 5 seconds, I am submerged by spiders. I expected an easy fight and was wrong. Charname is reversed by a gargantuan spider. As this moment I have a bad feeling. If the spiders focus her, she is dead. I need an idea.
First I put Viconia and Safana in front of Charname to attire enemies. For one second, I consider using Corwin to throw a dispelling arrow to Charname, however, I am not sure that ´reverse´ effect is considered as a spell, and I don´t want to damage Charname more. Baeloth uses an invisibility spell on Charname before she gets dead or poisonned. I feel safer, however there are still a lot of enemies.
Corwin uses some detonation arrows in the melee, doing some friendly fire but she manages to clear many spiders. Viconia and Safana fall but I finally win the fight. M´khiin (the goblin shaman) resurrect the team and I make use of my regeneration stone to slowly heal everyone. In the meantime, Safana visit all the other parts of the cave and bring spiders to my group while M´khiin summon spirits to tank them and Corwin shoot them from far. I complete the cave and get ready to enter the second one...
When entering the second cave, I feel something wrong. A drake is here and my team has not finished to recover. I can´t fight him. Happily he sleeps and I enter into a deeper cave. I fight hords of monsters, making principally use of M´khiin summons (tanky but not so much damages) and Corwin (great damages) to make my way through the multitude.
Arrived in a Cyric cultist temple, I change the strategy and send Safana scouting backed by Baeloth artillery (his inventory is almost full of wands, I just have to decided which one to use in which room). Arrived in front of a threateneous half dragon, I return to the M´khiin / Corwin strategy and kill him easily.
So far my opinion on M´khiin/Shaman is positive. Compared to other classes he is balance and this is a good thing, he is not overly powerful nor useless and fills in some new roles in the game. I think he brings a lot to your party if you already have a lot of damages, especially ranged and if you want to send AOE spells in the melee without wondering if your tank will survive. For example, i think that he works very well with Corwin.
His qualities are:
- Can be played like a druid when spells are needed. - Can use a bow and special arrows like detonation and dispelling, which increase the number of strategies available (his hits don´t do much damages with a bow, but he hits). - Can serve as tank, in a different way than a dwarven defender, or a blade, using summons to tank for him, so no risk of taking damages, furthermore you can use AOE spells while it is harder when one of your fighter is tanking. I was afraid that spirits couldnt tank bosses, but so far they have been doing their job, even agaisnt the half dragon.
Regarding its drawback, they are fair, the build is clearly balanced and this is a good thing, but I understand why people say that the character is very static and not the most enjoyable to play:
-His special ability, allowing him to summon up to 5 spirits at a time is fun, however, (i)we can´t control these summons, and (ii) they don´t necessarily outperform other summons, as the ones coming from spells or items, and as the limit is still 5 summons including the spirits, I wonder if in most difficult fights, using summons wouldn´t be more appropriate, but maybe at later level I will change my mind when spirits will improve.
-The special ability works like the bard song, except that the bard can at least move. Here you can´t do anything when you perform the shamanic dance, and if you are not well positioned at the beginning of the fight and have to move, you lose all your summons, and it is sometimes a little disapointing to play a character which has a lot of spells (like the sorcerer which is an artillery machine), and to feel like we can´t fully use them. I think one of the great ideas of the developpers ofDragonspear was to add an item which increase the duration of the bard song, authorising him to perform some actions during fights without losing the advantages of the song, a similar item for the Shaman would be great and would allow Shamans to play a more active role in the fights.
-Spirits have some difficulties to fight agaisnt ranged opponents: as they stay relatively close to the Shaman, they can´t really go and engage archers, and so it is sometimes easier to just move the chaman to make all the spirits disappear and use a wand of monster summoning on enemy archers.
I feel ready for a big fight in the next room... My instinct didn´t lie... Once the door opened, a big monster awaits for me in a large room, and he summons magic swords to help him. Before the fight, I prepared some spirits to help me, however, they all diseapeared due to the cinematic, as a consequence, I send Viconia to tank and Safana to kite the swords, however the swords follow Viconia and the monster attacks Safana and Corwin. I manage to focus him and kill him but my team is strongly damaged due to its poison:
In fact, Safana died right after the screen, thanks to a trap just in the next room. You can also see a recurrent pattern in my games: Charname has all the defensive equipment but almost never tanks. No risk no death!
After the room I use the troll stone to regen and visit the rest of the dungeon. Some challenges await me in each room however, none is difficult enough for my well trained team. I find a wonderful magic sword ´God´s Bane to enrich my collection and arrive in front of a strange room.
I know that the boss is here, I feel him and I am ready. The strat is simple: In the entrance room, all my characters will wait and prepare an AOE: Corwin and Safana will use two detonation arrow each. Baeloth a cloudkill, Viconia has summoned a skeleton to tank for me and Charname will focus on the survivor. Outside of the room, Mr goblin is summoning spirits in case the fight gone wrong to let my hero escape.
Once the door opened and the great discussion finished I send my attacks, and after one round, almost of them are agonising. I decide to skip B plan, and switch Corwin and Charname into assassin mode. We kill each of the enemies, however, before dying, the Illithid has time to throw me a psionic attack which paralyses Charname despite his Free action ring.
Interesting, I have to remember that free action protect from paralysis only if it is from a physical paralysis, not a mind effect.
After the fight I loot everything, and return to the entrance of the cave. Now my team is fully healed and I think I can face the drake.
I buff everyone (actually I even use a lot of strenghtening pots) and go for it. The strategy is as follow: The room is a ring and the drake can use AOE damages, I send M´Khiin to tank him from front and put the rest of my team far behind him. Only exception is Viconia who will stand on the other side of the ring (behind the drake). She has an heaven scepter and will use it to kill the drake.
Dragon should focus on MKhiin. When Wyverns come they will also attack the goblin and, Baeloth uses wand to summon allies, but if possible after the dragon´s breath. Viconia is the main damage dealer for this (being behind the drake, she can almost never been slowed in her damage dealing, if Mkhiin Dies, someone else will be sent to tank),she will be helped by others using arrows and spells Baeloth starts with spellthurst on the drake. I don´t remember exactly what is the first spell the drake uses, but it is a defensive one, so let´s cancel it.
After this success in the temple of Bhaal, I finally reach the city under siege, talk with attackers and deal with them to gain the right to pass through the river. They need my help to take the city, but I want to take their head. Cruel dilemna.
For once I decide to help them and enter into the city. I manage to do some minor quests for the citizens and gain their confidence and to make a wonderful new shield (I favor the dragon-scale shield because of its AC). It is enough to propose a truce.
I speak in the name of the city and propose to surrrender, but ask the citizens to destroy the food stocks (Ha-ha). The plan works as expected. Crusaders take the city and leave the place. When Baldur´s armee arrives, I can prepare to pass the bridge with them. However, our spies notice that crusaders are ready to destroy the bridge.
I arrive just on time and fight the saboteurs. I kill most of the guards, but one runs when their mage manages to summon a fire elemental. After his mental fight with the elemental, the mage also disappears (which is surprising as I didn´t see him using nor an invisible spell not a potion, but as I focus on the elemental I don´t really pay attention). I know I should care about this mage as he can make the bridge explode, however, I don´t see him and decide to report my attention on the Fire elemental. I give cold arrows to Corwyn but it still has no effect and I start to damage him mostly with Charname (protected against fire), and Baeloth spells... The fights turns was not overwelming... when suddenly... The elemental explodes once... Twice... Destroying the bridge with him, and bringing my whole team in the death with him... Would it be possible that the triggers of the explosion was not the mage but rather the fire elemental? Everything becomes confusing in Charname´s mind while her soul slightly leaves her body. Charname is dead and will never seat on the Throne of Bhaal.
All the stories have an end, and this one ends sooner than I hoped... Bards may one day narrate the narrate the fate of the Nameless one, the blackguard who faced her half brother, two demons for one city... This story will end when she was fighting her way through the armee of the the Shinning lady...
Comments
(I almost never sleep in this game, to force me to choose good spells before, for now, my character didn´t sleep once, I will try to finish Dragonspear without sleeping. In my opinion it is actually easier in Dragonspear as each character receives an automatic sleep between each chapter).
I visit the zone, fighting mostly trolls but also some thugs and crusaders.
I am given the opportunity to go first to the bridge or to the wyrm forest. I decide to go for the forest first. I meet a ranger from our armee, he advices me to care about spiders. I hate him, I really hate him, the first time I played Dragonspear I died against the green dragon because I expected not to face anything bigger than spiders...
I visit the map, kill wyverns on my way and find some caves. I enter the first cave and in 5 seconds, I am submerged by spiders. I expected an easy fight and was wrong. Charname is reversed by a gargantuan spider. As this moment I have a bad feeling. If the spiders focus her, she is dead. I need an idea.
First I put Viconia and Safana in front of Charname to attire enemies.
For one second, I consider using Corwin to throw a dispelling arrow to Charname, however, I am not sure that ´reverse´ effect is considered as a spell, and I don´t want to damage Charname more.
Baeloth uses an invisibility spell on Charname before she gets dead or poisonned. I feel safer, however there are still a lot of enemies.
Corwin uses some detonation arrows in the melee, doing some friendly fire but she manages to clear many spiders.
Viconia and Safana fall but I finally win the fight. M´khiin (the goblin shaman) resurrect the team and I make use of my regeneration stone to slowly heal everyone. In the meantime, Safana visit all the other parts of the cave and bring spiders to my group while M´khiin summon spirits to tank them and Corwin shoot them from far.
I complete the cave and get ready to enter the second one...
Happily he sleeps and I enter into a deeper cave. I fight hords of monsters, making principally use of M´khiin summons (tanky but not so much damages) and Corwin (great damages) to make my way through the multitude.
Arrived in a Cyric cultist temple, I change the strategy and send Safana scouting backed by Baeloth artillery (his inventory is almost full of wands, I just have to decided which one to use in which room). Arrived in front of a threateneous half dragon, I return to the M´khiin / Corwin strategy and kill him easily.
So far my opinion on M´khiin/Shaman is positive. Compared to other classes he is balance and this is a good thing, he is not overly powerful nor useless and fills in some new roles in the game. I think he brings a lot to your party if you already have a lot of damages, especially ranged and if you want to send AOE spells in the melee without wondering if your tank will survive. For example, i think that he works very well with Corwin.
His qualities are:
- Can be played like a druid when spells are needed.
- Can use a bow and special arrows like detonation and dispelling, which increase the number of strategies available (his hits don´t do much damages with a bow, but he hits).
- Can serve as tank, in a different way than a dwarven defender, or a blade, using summons to tank for him, so no risk of taking damages, furthermore you can use AOE spells while it is harder when one of your fighter is tanking. I was afraid that spirits couldnt tank bosses, but so far they have been doing their job, even agaisnt the half dragon.
Regarding its drawback, they are fair, the build is clearly balanced and this is a good thing, but I understand why people say that the character is very static and not the most enjoyable to play:
-His special ability, allowing him to summon up to 5 spirits at a time is fun, however, (i)we can´t control these summons, and (ii) they don´t necessarily outperform other summons, as the ones coming from spells or items, and as the limit is still 5 summons including the spirits, I wonder if in most difficult fights, using summons wouldn´t be more appropriate, but maybe at later level I will change my mind when spirits will improve.
-The special ability works like the bard song, except that the bard can at least move. Here you can´t do anything when you perform the shamanic dance, and if you are not well positioned at the beginning of the fight and have to move, you lose all your summons, and it is sometimes a little disapointing to play a character which has a lot of spells (like the sorcerer which is an artillery machine), and to feel like we can´t fully use them.
I think one of the great ideas of the developpers ofDragonspear was to add an item which increase the duration of the bard song, authorising him to perform some actions during fights without losing the advantages of the song, a similar item for the Shaman would be great and would allow Shamans to play a more active role in the fights.
-Spirits have some difficulties to fight agaisnt ranged opponents: as they stay relatively close to the Shaman, they can´t really go and engage archers, and so it is sometimes easier to just move the chaman to make all the spirits disappear and use a wand of monster summoning on enemy archers.
Next step, the rest of the Cyric temple...
I manage to focus him and kill him but my team is strongly damaged due to its poison:
In fact, Safana died right after the screen, thanks to a trap just in the next room. You can also see a recurrent pattern in my games: Charname has all the defensive equipment but almost never tanks. No risk no death!
After the room I use the troll stone to regen and visit the rest of the dungeon. Some challenges await me in each room however, none is difficult enough for my well trained team. I find a wonderful magic sword ´God´s Bane to enrich my collection and arrive in front of a strange room.
I know that the boss is here, I feel him and I am ready.
The strat is simple: In the entrance room, all my characters will wait and prepare an AOE: Corwin and Safana will use two detonation arrow each. Baeloth a cloudkill, Viconia has summoned a skeleton to tank for me and Charname will focus on the survivor.
Outside of the room, Mr goblin is summoning spirits in case the fight gone wrong to let my hero escape.
Once the door opened and the great discussion finished I send my attacks, and after one round, almost of them are agonising.
I decide to skip B plan, and switch Corwin and Charname into assassin mode. We kill each of the enemies, however, before dying, the Illithid has time to throw me a psionic attack which paralyses Charname despite his Free action ring.
Interesting, I have to remember that free action protect from paralysis only if it is from a physical paralysis,
not a mind effect.
After the fight I loot everything, and return to the entrance of the cave. Now my team is fully healed and I think I can face the drake.
I buff everyone (actually I even use a lot of strenghtening pots) and go for it. The strategy is as follow:
The room is a ring and the drake can use AOE damages, I send M´Khiin to tank him from front and put the rest of my team far behind him. Only exception is Viconia who will stand on the other side of the ring (behind the drake). She has an heaven scepter and will use it to kill the drake.
Dragon should focus on MKhiin.
When Wyverns come they will also attack the goblin and, Baeloth uses wand to summon allies, but if possible after the dragon´s breath.
Viconia is the main damage dealer for this (being behind the drake, she can almost never been slowed in her damage dealing, if Mkhiin Dies, someone else will be sent to tank),she will be helped by others using arrows and spells
Baeloth starts with spellthurst on the drake. I don´t remember exactly what is the first spell the drake uses, but it is a defensive one, so let´s cancel it.
5 rounds later the drake is dead.
Time for the crusader camp
They need my help to take the city, but I want to take their head. Cruel dilemna.
For once I decide to help them and enter into the city. I manage to do some minor quests for the citizens and gain their confidence and to make a wonderful new shield (I favor the dragon-scale shield because of its AC). It is enough to propose a truce.
I speak in the name of the city and propose to surrrender, but ask the citizens to destroy the food stocks (Ha-ha). The plan works as expected. Crusaders take the city and leave the place.
When Baldur´s armee arrives, I can prepare to pass the bridge with them. However, our spies notice that crusaders are ready to destroy the bridge.
I arrive just on time and fight the saboteurs. I kill most of the guards, but one runs when their mage manages to summon a fire elemental. After his mental fight with the elemental, the mage also disappears (which is surprising as I didn´t see him using nor an invisible spell not a potion, but as I focus on the elemental I don´t really pay attention). I know I should care about this mage as he can make the bridge explode, however, I don´t see him and decide to report my attention on the Fire elemental. I give cold arrows to Corwyn but it still has no effect and I start to damage him mostly with Charname (protected against fire), and Baeloth spells... The fights turns was not overwelming... when suddenly... The elemental explodes once... Twice... Destroying the bridge with him, and bringing my whole team in the death with him...
Would it be possible that the triggers of the explosion was not the mage but rather the fire elemental? Everything becomes confusing in Charname´s mind while her soul slightly leaves her body. Charname is dead and will never seat on the Throne of Bhaal.
All the stories have an end, and this one ends sooner than I hoped... Bards may one day narrate the narrate the fate of the Nameless one, the blackguard who faced her half brother, two demons for one city... This story will end when she was fighting her way through the armee of the the Shinning lady...