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Casting from wands in Athkatla?

Do the Cowled Wizards show up to arrest you if you haven't got a licence and you cast spells using a wand on the streets of Athkatla? The question arose in a discussion on the thread about @jastey's new Imoen 4 Ever mod. Essentially, if Imoen had used a wand of Magic Missiles to attack Irenicus instead of a spell would the Cowled Wizards still have arrested her?

https://forums.beamdog.com/discussion/76098/mod-imoen-4-ever-experience-the-bg-saga-with-imoen-and-the-beginning-of-soa-without-pressure/p1

Comments

  • Permidion_StarkPermidion_Stark Member Posts: 4,861
    DJKajuru wrote: »
    No, not even from scrolls .

    So the Cowled Wizards aren't really against casting spells, just memorising them before you cast them?

    I wonder how they tell the difference if they are not there at the time the spell is cast?
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    DJKajuru wrote: »
    No, not even from scrolls .

    So the Cowled Wizards aren't really against casting spells, just memorising them before you cast them?

    I wonder how they tell the difference if they are not there at the time the spell is cast?

    It's probably an oversight , I know that there is a mod that fixes it. To be honest I don't remember if the latest patch fixes it as well.
  • ElysianEchoesElysianEchoes Member Posts: 475
    The CWs don't care about priest spells either, right? They still draw from the weave, though.

    I remember reading a post somewhere about someone who kept casting and fighting CWs as an xp farm.

    The whole CW licence thing seems only to exist as a means to get I and I to SH.

  • sarevok57sarevok57 Member Posts: 6,002
    yup there is a limit for how many times you can "fight" *oops* the coweled wizards, and when you fight them enough, they finally get fed up with your shenanigans and they send out the highest members for the final fight

    after that battle, you will never be plagued by them again

    its actually ironic really, because they hold so many random treasure 5s you can get some sweet spell scrolls or even laerel's tear necklaces as loot from these guys, so it never hurts my feelings to procure their sweet items and XP :)
  • AndreaColomboAndreaColombo Member Posts: 5,529
    edited July 2019
    At about what level can you win all the fights against them? Also, doesn’t that turn everyone hostile and drop your reputation?
  • jsavingjsaving Member Posts: 1,083
    Not automatically, no, but it is easy to hit NPCs with collateral damage during those battles which will turn everyone hostile and drop your reputation.
  • ZaxaresZaxares Member Posts: 1,329
    sarevok57 wrote: »
    yup there is a limit for how many times you can "fight" *oops* the coweled wizards, and when you fight them enough, they finally get fed up with your shenanigans and they send out the highest members for the final fight

    after that battle, you will never be plagued by them again

    its actually ironic really, because they hold so many random treasure 5s you can get some sweet spell scrolls or even laerel's tear necklaces as loot from these guys, so it never hurts my feelings to procure their sweet items and XP :)

    ... You know, I kinda wish I'd known about this before I finished my SoA playthrough. XD Perhaps in future if I ever do another one, I'll try this path. And then, after I finish wiping the floor with Cowled Wizard robes, I'll go and purchase a license just to rub it in. :P
  • Permidion_StarkPermidion_Stark Member Posts: 4,861
    You guys are much braver than me. I always pay up like a good boy because I'm scared of spellcasters in BG2. I have no idea what is going on when the high-level magic starts flying around and my only tactic is to get Jaheira to launch Insect Plague and hope for the best.
  • gorgonzolagorgonzola Member Posts: 3,864
    Many ways to fight mages, with those is even easier as you can trigger their spawn point and time at will, so you can use traps and terrain features.
    The best way to learn the magic combact is to learn from the enemies, your own mages can become more invulnerable and effective then the strong enemy ones like tolgerias and lavook. Once you have mastered the arcane magic the game becomes much more fun. Also solo a mage is really useful as you have to rely almost only on magic to survive and win.

    On a side note the amn soldiers will help you, not the CW, if they witness a fight.
  • Permidion_StarkPermidion_Stark Member Posts: 4,861
    gorgonzola wrote: »
    Also solo a mage is really useful as you have to rely almost only on magic to survive and win.

    I think that is really good advice and I am going to give it a go. I might finally learn how to use a spell sequencer!

  • ZaxaresZaxares Member Posts: 1,329
    gorgonzola wrote: »
    Many ways to fight mages, with those is even easier as you can trigger their spawn point and time at will, so you can use traps and terrain features.
    The best way to learn the magic combact is to learn from the enemies, your own mages can become more invulnerable and effective then the strong enemy ones like tolgerias and lavook. Once you have mastered the arcane magic the game becomes much more fun. Also solo a mage is really useful as you have to rely almost only on magic to survive and win.

    On a side note the amn soldiers will help you, not the CW, if they witness a fight.

    Also, Insect Plague. So, SO much Insect Plague. If you cast it on a target that's NOT protected by spell defenses, it will STILL jump to the mages if they happen to be standing close by, making it easy to bypass defenses like Spell Turning. (The only thing that can potentially save the enemy Mage is Magic Resistance, but most mage enemies tend not to have it.)

    Throwing out a Power Word: Silence or Power Word: Stun (with the Robes of Vecna or Amulet of Power equipped) also results in an instantaneous casting shutdown spell. With proper pause timing, you can throw this on an enemy mage before they can act. Their Contingencies etc. will still fire off, but the mage will be mostly neutered while your fighters just tear down their Stoneskins and hack them to pieces.
  • jmerryjmerry Member Posts: 3,881
    On Insect Plague - it's a pretty slow cast, and when you're trying it as an opening move it has a good chance of being countered by an invisibility effect rendering your target invalid. I find that it's often best to target one of your own front-line warriors with the spell; the actual insect effect that blocks spellcasting and deals damage will still only hit enemies.

    Silence effects are nice, but don't expect them to take an enemy out of the fight completely. Enemy mages often have a Vocalize prepared, and that can be cast under the effects of Silence to bring them back in. You'll need to follow up that silence with attacks quickly.
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    My charames always get fed up with all the beaurocracy and starts casting spells to get the CW's attention. Too bad they never want to talk. Insect Plague makes it downright TRIVIAL to sweep every single fight with them. They tend to spawn in 3's with one higher level casting a bunch of buffs, and two lower level ones that always seem to try to debuff you first. I alawys aim Insect Plague at one of those two, and it always spreads to all of them. Then the fights over in a few seconds. This strategy has never failed me.
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    It's way easier to fight wizards in urban areas because you've got enough space to keep a distance from them while summoning creatures as cannon fodder. Traps and acid arrows are also very useful.
  • gorgonzolagorgonzola Member Posts: 3,864
    If you have a thief afrer he sets some traps it is good to have him hasted and invisible waiting near the one that trigger the spawn casting. If correctly placed he should be able to stab the most powerful enemy before he puts on his defenses.
    Many ways to deal with them, even with a low level party.
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