Sorcerer defensive spell choices

OrlonKronsteen

Hi all, I'm trying to up my game and add a defensive wrinkle to my sorcerer builds, and I'm wondering if there's any point in taking both the spell turning series and the globe of invulnerability series. I'm guessing it's better to wait for spell turning?

Context: I want to create a sorcerer who can do it all. He can dish out some punishment but also play a bit of mage chess. I've always been a little weak on the defensive side of things when it comes to arcane casters. Thanks in advance for any advice, and feel free to expound on your defensive tactics or other aspects of the spell slinging trade.

semiticgoddess

I usually just rely on Spell Immunity for my sorcerers, with a Spell Shield or Spell Turning scroll for major fights. Spell Immunity can be cast even when your aura is clouded, and a mage with the Robe of Vecna and Amulet of Power can cast it instantly.

Neverused

From what I remember from other posters (I'm not good at Mage chess myself!)
The crucial things to keep up are 1) Improved Invisibility, to avoid being targeted, and therefore 2) Spell Immunity: Divination, and 3) Spell Immunity: Abjuration to block Dispel attempts. However, if you're playing with SCS (I'm pretty sure this isn't Vanilla behavior,) mages can target anti-magic attacks (Pierce Magic, Spell Thrust, so on, so forth) THROUGH Improved Invisibility. That's where the other stuff comes in handy: Spell Shield, Spell Turning, Spell Deflections, both regular and minor: they'll eat the anti-magic attacks, keeping your precious SI's safe.

So in Vanilla: Improved Invisibility, SI: Div, SI: Abj, and maybe SI: Necromancy or SI: Enchantment if ADHW or Chaos are worries, respectively. In SCS, toss in Spell Shield, and probably any 1 or 2 of (Minor) Spell Turning or Spell Deflection. This gives you 3 guaranteed rounds of safety from a solo mage's attack before you're in danger of a Dispel, unless Kheldorn's Warding Whip is in play and then that combo only protects you for 2 rounds.

semiticgoddess

Bear in mind that Minor Spell Deflection only blocks up to level 7 spells and Minor Spell Turning only reflects up to level 4 spells, despite MST being a higher-level spell.

lunar

I don't find globe of invulnerability spells useful on a sorcerer, unless your whole strategy in bg1 revolves around casting webs/fireballs near yourself. Come bg2, globes are even less useful, the spells they block are not top tier threats, anyway.

Spell immunity, and spell turning are must-haves in the spell-defense category, though. They are always useful all the way up to end game.

Pokota

(Wait, isn't it Khelben's Warding Whip? as in Khelben Blackstaff whose cloak Gorion's Ward stole as a child?)

Neverused

Err. Yeah. Whoops.
About globes: 4th level slots are cramped as they are, as are 6th level slots, though a little less so. There is the benefit of the 6th level spell blocking Greater Malison, so it's not completely useless.

A spell selection of pfmw/death spell or fog/contingency/true seeing allows for one more pick, so a GoI isn't impossible to fit in with all the others.