Ras, The (Not So) Useful Summon
thar_thaazdhen
Member Posts: 16
Hi,
I only recently found out that the summon form of "Ras, The Dancing Blade +2" (SW1H33.ITM) has some great stats (SWORD02.CRE).
Spells like Death Fog and Death Spell will kill it though (not Finger of Death because that gets blocked by the sword's magic resistance; the resistance is apparently bypassed by the former summon killing spells). Most importantly, the summon form only lasts for 4 rounds.
The benefits over Mordenkainen's Sword are that it doesn't waste a 7th level spell slot and magic damage will not harm it (Magic Missle, Abi Dalzim's Horrid Wilting). On the other hand, it's THAC0 is 5, it does only poor damage (6 - 13), the enchantent is +2 and it attacks once per round.
My question is - is it at all useful?
I try to gather items like the Iron Horn of Valhalla and the Kitthix Black Spider Figurine because they can make fights easier by absorbing enemy spells.
The other option could be using Ras to absorb floor traps if you don't have a thief in your party. However, I checked and no summons (e.g., not even those from Monster Summoning I) seem to trigger floor traps. I'm not sure if this is specific to my install (BG2EE 2.3.67.3, BG2 Tweak Pack, Rogue Rebalancing, Sword Coast Stratagems and aTweaks) or if it has always been this way.
Share your thoughts..
I only recently found out that the summon form of "Ras, The Dancing Blade +2" (SW1H33.ITM) has some great stats (SWORD02.CRE).
- 100% resistance to elements (Fire, Magic Fire, Cold, Magic Cold, Electricity, Acid)
- 100% magic resistance
- -20 AC
- 100% physical resistance (Slashing, Crushing, Piercing, Missile)
Spells like Death Fog and Death Spell will kill it though (not Finger of Death because that gets blocked by the sword's magic resistance; the resistance is apparently bypassed by the former summon killing spells). Most importantly, the summon form only lasts for 4 rounds.
The benefits over Mordenkainen's Sword are that it doesn't waste a 7th level spell slot and magic damage will not harm it (Magic Missle, Abi Dalzim's Horrid Wilting). On the other hand, it's THAC0 is 5, it does only poor damage (6 - 13), the enchantent is +2 and it attacks once per round.
My question is - is it at all useful?
I try to gather items like the Iron Horn of Valhalla and the Kitthix Black Spider Figurine because they can make fights easier by absorbing enemy spells.
The other option could be using Ras to absorb floor traps if you don't have a thief in your party. However, I checked and no summons (e.g., not even those from Monster Summoning I) seem to trigger floor traps. I'm not sure if this is specific to my install (BG2EE 2.3.67.3, BG2 Tweak Pack, Rogue Rebalancing, Sword Coast Stratagems and aTweaks) or if it has always been this way.
Share your thoughts..
1
Comments
In a party Ras is unlikely to be that useful to you due to the short duration and availability of lots of alternative summons. However, it can be very useful for those playing solo. For instance it's potentially a way for a fighter to pin a dragon in place for several rounds - the dragon failing to do any damage to Ras, while you pummel it with GWWs.