How to prepare for Durlag's Tower?

okini55

I have a high level party but because I suck at this game I usually get destroyed by tougher enemies.
Having that said I did manage to make it to the very last boss battle (Sarevok) but have not finished it yet because I want to explore and prepare more for the final battle.

How should I prepare for Durlag's Tower. I read there are Battle Horrors and Doom Guards there and I dont have many wands of fire left to kill them with.

So my question is how should I prepare for this area?

atcDave

Getting more experience and more powerful magic items is always a good thing! The way the game is designed will reward a completionist play through style.

You don’t really say what your party is, so any answers will be generic in nature. But a few things, nothing is ever immune to all damage. Even if their armor class makes them hard to hit and they have annoying resistance. So do what you can to improve your ability to hit hard. For melee types that always means strength first, potions of giant strength are easily available and last a good long time. Followed by a weapon with a good plus on it. Some spells will help with melee too, like Bless adds a simple bonus. Draw Upon Holy Might for anyone with priest spells. Other similar spells at higher levels; some stack, some are one or the other, so sort through what you’ve got and decide accordingly.

Damaging spells can be a big help here. Magic Missile, Melf’s Acid Arrow, Flame Arrow will all have a chance of causing damage.

Honestly I mostly just pound them down. You may need to rest and heal up after facing these bad boys, but party of 6th - 7th level should be able to do it.

okini55

atcDave wrote: »

Getting more experience and more powerful magic items is always a good thing! The way the game is designed will reward a completionist play through style.

You don’t really say what your party is, so any answers will be generic in nature. But a few things, nothing is ever immune to all damage. Even if their armor class is makes them hard to hit and they have annoying resistance. So do what you can to improve your ability to hit hard. For melee types that always means strength first, potions of giant strength are easily available and last a good long time. Followed by a weapon with a good plus on it. Some spells will help with melee too, like Bless adds a simple bonus. Draw Upon Holy Might for anyone with priest spells. Other similar spells at higher levels; some stack, some are one or the other, so sort through what you’ve got and decide accordingly.

Damaging spells can be a big help here. Magic Missile, Melf’s Acid Arrow, Flame Arrow will all have a chance of causing damage.

Honestly I mostly just pound them down. You may need to rest and heal upper after facing these bad boys, but party of 6th - 7th level should be able to do it.

Thank you for your answer! My party consists of Khalid, Jaheira, Minsc, Dynaheir and Safana. My char is a warrior soon level 8 and rest of my party is 7-8 level. I use only ranged weapons with all characters. Bows with arrows+2, throwing daggers with my main char and slingshots. I will try to get some better spells and such.
Are there any arrows that can damage Doom guards and Battle horrors?

atcDave

I think they are highly resistant to missile weapons. Seriously, melee does more reliable damage to a range of opponents (many have missile/piercing resistance). Khalid should have long sword specialization of better, so he should be using Varscona (from Greywolf the bounty hunter). That's the best long sword in the game. If you have him drink a potion of giant strength (or equip the Guantlets of OgrePower) he will hit hard. Minsc should have Spider's Bane, along with 2-handed Sword specialization and at least one pip in 2-handed weapon fighting style; added to his strength he'll hit hard too. I don't know what melee your character is capable of, but Battle Horrors and Doomguards are highly resistant to missiles so you'll want to close in to fight. This will protect the less armored characters you have, they should either cast some spells or you know, play solitaire or mai jong.

I so often see the advise around here that BG1 is all about the missile weapons. Don't believe it. They always have their place, but a strong melee unit is much better for defining the battlefield and protecting your support characters. I usually run 2 - 3 wholly dedicated melee fighters in any party.

Yigor

okini55 wrote: »

Are there any arrows that can damage Doom guards and Battle horrors?

They have 100% resistance to missile damage, but acid/cold/fire missiles will create some elemental damage. Dynaheir could also hit them hard with her Invoker's attacking spells.

If U don't play at LoB difficulty, it shouldn't be a problem for a party of level 7-8. 😎

Yigor

Some hints from baldursgate.fandom:

Doom Guards: "Though immune to missile damage, the on-hit effect from magical arrows such as the Acid Arrow does affect them and can bring them down quickly."

Battle Horrors: "Having strong physical defense and status immunities but poor spell saving throw (13) makes them particularly susceptible to the Blindness spell. This level 1 spell renders them immobile, unresponsive to attacks range 2 or further, and penalized -4 to attack rolls and AC."

sarevok57

also with wands, you can "recharge" them buy selling them to vendors and buying them back, although this can be an expensive enterprise its well worth it ( just make sure the vendor didnt have a wand by default or else you will not get the 50 or 100 (!) wand charge when you buy back - bently at the friendly arm inn is a good choice for selling and buying wands back )

to also help reduce wand price, make sure whoever is buying has the best CHA score at the top of the team and get that Reputation as high as possible, this will make it much cheaper

also, necklace of missiles ( can be found in a tent vendor at nashkiel fair and a vendor upstairs in the elf song tavern in BG the city ) these act like fireballs that any character can equip in their neck slot and they can also be "recharged" coming in at 25 charges and not costing that much either to buy back ( maybe around 5000 gold on average? )

also for spells you could use;
level 1; magic missile, blindness
level 2; melfs acid arrow, glitterdust
level 3; slow, fireball, lightning bolt, haste
level 4; monster summon 4, improved invisibility, minor globe of invul
level 5; cloudkill, monster summon 5 or animate dead

also with jaheira, level 4 spell call woodland beings is a great spell, it will summon a druid who had mage/cleric spells that cast up to 5th level !

another great spell to have is the level 3 spell protection from fire, regardless what it says for resistance it makes you immune to fire damage, so this makes it that if you send in a couple goons to melee just cast this spell on them, and let your fireballs ( via spell or item ) have at 'er, good stuff

and another thing about this dungeon is the traps and locked goodies in it, you can get away with all the locks with a knock spell, but having a thief with 90 open locks is enough to open every single lock in the dungeon ( if you fail, just keep trying until it succeeds )

traps on the other hand will require a bit higher, you will need 95 to disarm every trap in the dungeon except for 2;

the trap that holds the level 2 key stone ( on the statue ) in basement 2, requires more than 95, ( 100 is enough to get it )
and the trap that holds the WIS tome +1 on level 3 is not disarmable and fires off a dire charm spell when you spring it...

if for some reason you are a little light on cash, perhaps one of the easiest ways is to go to the area directly north of friendly arm inn and grind ankhegs into dust and sell their shells to the black smith in beregost , he will give you 500 GP each ( although be careful, they also weigh 100 lbs each, and also dont tell him to double his offer or else he will "claim" they will rot soon, and once they do, you will never be able to sell ankheg shells again )

okini55

atcDave wrote: »

I think they are highly resistant to missile weapons. Seriously, melee does more reliable damage to a range of opponents (many have missile/piercing resistance). Khalid should have long sword specialization of better, so he should be using Varscona (from Greywolf the bounty hunter). That's the best long sword in the game. If you have him drink a potion of giant strength (or equip the Guantlets of OgrePower) he will hit hard. Minsc should have Spider's Bane, along with 2-handed Sword specialization and at least one pip in 2-handed weapon fighting style; added to his strength he'll hit hard too. I don't know what melee your character is capable of, but Battle Horrors and Doomguards are highly resistant to missiles so you'll want to close in to fight. This will protect the less armored characters you have, they should either cast some spells or you know, play solitaire or mai jong.

I so often see the advise around here that BG1 is all about the missile weapons. Don't believe it. They always have their place, but a strong melee unit is much better for defining the battlefield and protecting your support characters. I usually run 2 - 3 wholly dedicated melee fighters in any party.

Ok thank you I will keep that in mind. I will try attacking doom guards and battle horrors with melee weapons and see if I can damage them somehow.

okini55

Yigor wrote: »

okini55 wrote: »

Are there any arrows that can damage Doom guards and Battle horrors?

They have 100% resistance to missile damage, but acid/cold/fire missiles will create some elemental damage. Dynaheir could also hit them hard with her Invoker's attacking spells.

If U don't play at LoB difficulty, it shouldn't be a problem for a party of level 7-8. 😎

Ok cool! I will try Durlag's Tower soon and see how it goes. Thank you!

okini55

sarevok57 wrote: »

also with wands, you can "recharge" them buy selling them to vendors and buying them back, although this can be an expensive enterprise its well worth it ( just make sure the vendor didnt have a wand by default or else you will not get the 50 or 100 (!) wand charge when you buy back - bently at the friendly arm inn is a good choice for selling and buying wands back )

to also help reduce wand price, make sure whoever is buying has the best CHA score at the top of the team and get that Reputation as high as possible, this will make it much cheaper

also, necklace of missiles ( can be found in a tent vendor at nashkiel fair and a vendor upstairs in the elf song tavern in BG the city ) these act like fireballs that any character can equip in their neck slot and they can also be "recharged" coming in at 25 charges and not costing that much either to buy back ( maybe around 5000 gold on average? )

also for spells you could use;
level 1; magic missile, blindness
level 2; melfs acid arrow, glitterdust
level 3; slow, fireball, lightning bolt, haste
level 4; monster summon 4, improved invisibility, minor globe of invul
level 5; cloudkill, monster summon 5 or animate dead

also with jaheira, level 4 spell call woodland beings is a great spell, it will summon a druid who had mage/cleric spells that cast up to 5th level !

another great spell to have is the level 3 spell protection from fire, regardless what it says for resistance it makes you immune to fire damage, so this makes it that if you send in a couple goons to melee just cast this spell on them, and let your fireballs ( via spell or item ) have at 'er, good stuff

and another thing about this dungeon is the traps and locked goodies in it, you can get away with all the locks with a knock spell, but having a thief with 90 open locks is enough to open every single lock in the dungeon ( if you fail, just keep trying until it succeeds )

traps on the other hand will require a bit higher, you will need 95 to disarm every trap in the dungeon except for 2;

the trap that holds the level 2 key stone ( on the statue ) in basement 2, requires more than 95, ( 100 is enough to get it )
and the trap that holds the WIS tome +1 on level 3 is not disarmable and fires off a dire charm spell when you spring it...

if for some reason you are a little light on cash, perhaps one of the easiest ways is to go to the area directly north of friendly arm inn and grind ankhegs into dust and sell their shells to the black smith in beregost , he will give you 500 GP each ( although be careful, they also weigh 100 lbs each, and also dont tell him to double his offer or else he will "claim" they will rot soon, and once they do, you will never be able to sell ankheg shells again )

Thank you very much for all the tips!

okini55

sarevok57 wrote: »

also with wands, you can "recharge" them buy selling them to vendors and buying them back, although this can be an expensive enterprise its well worth it ( just make sure the vendor didnt have a wand by default or else you will not get the 50 or 100 (!) wand charge when you buy back - bently at the friendly arm inn is a good choice for selling and buying wands back )

to also help reduce wand price, make sure whoever is buying has the best CHA score at the top of the team and get that Reputation as high as possible, this will make it much cheaper

also, necklace of missiles ( can be found in a tent vendor at nashkiel fair and a vendor upstairs in the elf song tavern in BG the city ) these act like fireballs that any character can equip in their neck slot and they can also be "recharged" coming in at 25 charges and not costing that much either to buy back ( maybe around 5000 gold on average? )

also for spells you could use;
level 1; magic missile, blindness
level 2; melfs acid arrow, glitterdust
level 3; slow, fireball, lightning bolt, haste
level 4; monster summon 4, improved invisibility, minor globe of invul
level 5; cloudkill, monster summon 5 or animate dead

also with jaheira, level 4 spell call woodland beings is a great spell, it will summon a druid who had mage/cleric spells that cast up to 5th level !

another great spell to have is the level 3 spell protection from fire, regardless what it says for resistance it makes you immune to fire damage, so this makes it that if you send in a couple goons to melee just cast this spell on them, and let your fireballs ( via spell or item ) have at 'er, good stuff

and another thing about this dungeon is the traps and locked goodies in it, you can get away with all the locks with a knock spell, but having a thief with 90 open locks is enough to open every single lock in the dungeon ( if you fail, just keep trying until it succeeds )

traps on the other hand will require a bit higher, you will need 95 to disarm every trap in the dungeon except for 2;

the trap that holds the level 2 key stone ( on the statue ) in basement 2, requires more than 95, ( 100 is enough to get it )
and the trap that holds the WIS tome +1 on level 3 is not disarmable and fires off a dire charm spell when you spring it...

if for some reason you are a little light on cash, perhaps one of the easiest ways is to go to the area directly north of friendly arm inn and grind ankhegs into dust and sell their shells to the black smith in beregost , he will give you 500 GP each ( although be careful, they also weigh 100 lbs each, and also dont tell him to double his offer or else he will "claim" they will rot soon, and once they do, you will never be able to sell ankheg shells again )

I tried selling wands of fire to the guy in Friendly Arms Inn. I sold for 3000 something and he want's almost 25000 for buying them back! That's sick haha!

sarevok57

okini55 wrote: »

sarevok57 wrote: »

also with wands, you can "recharge" them buy selling them to vendors and buying them back, although this can be an expensive enterprise its well worth it ( just make sure the vendor didnt have a wand by default or else you will not get the 50 or 100 (!) wand charge when you buy back - bently at the friendly arm inn is a good choice for selling and buying wands back )

to also help reduce wand price, make sure whoever is buying has the best CHA score at the top of the team and get that Reputation as high as possible, this will make it much cheaper

also, necklace of missiles ( can be found in a tent vendor at nashkiel fair and a vendor upstairs in the elf song tavern in BG the city ) these act like fireballs that any character can equip in their neck slot and they can also be "recharged" coming in at 25 charges and not costing that much either to buy back ( maybe around 5000 gold on average? )

also for spells you could use;
level 1; magic missile, blindness
level 2; melfs acid arrow, glitterdust
level 3; slow, fireball, lightning bolt, haste
level 4; monster summon 4, improved invisibility, minor globe of invul
level 5; cloudkill, monster summon 5 or animate dead

also with jaheira, level 4 spell call woodland beings is a great spell, it will summon a druid who had mage/cleric spells that cast up to 5th level !

another great spell to have is the level 3 spell protection from fire, regardless what it says for resistance it makes you immune to fire damage, so this makes it that if you send in a couple goons to melee just cast this spell on them, and let your fireballs ( via spell or item ) have at 'er, good stuff

and another thing about this dungeon is the traps and locked goodies in it, you can get away with all the locks with a knock spell, but having a thief with 90 open locks is enough to open every single lock in the dungeon ( if you fail, just keep trying until it succeeds )

traps on the other hand will require a bit higher, you will need 95 to disarm every trap in the dungeon except for 2;

the trap that holds the level 2 key stone ( on the statue ) in basement 2, requires more than 95, ( 100 is enough to get it )
and the trap that holds the WIS tome +1 on level 3 is not disarmable and fires off a dire charm spell when you spring it...

if for some reason you are a little light on cash, perhaps one of the easiest ways is to go to the area directly north of friendly arm inn and grind ankhegs into dust and sell their shells to the black smith in beregost , he will give you 500 GP each ( although be careful, they also weigh 100 lbs each, and also dont tell him to double his offer or else he will "claim" they will rot soon, and once they do, you will never be able to sell ankheg shells again )

I tried selling wands of fire to the guy in Friendly Arms Inn. I sold for 3000 something and he want's almost 25000 for buying them back! That's sick haha!

yup, indeed quite expensive but you can buy them back and they will have a whooping 50 charges, so not too shabby

Yigor

okini55 wrote: »

I tried selling wands of fire to the guy in Friendly Arms Inn. I sold for 3000 something and he want's almost 25000 for buying them back! That's sick haha!

Sell wands only when there is 1 remaining charge. CHA and reputation are very important for shop's prizes. The reputation can be improved by making some quests and by giving appropriate donations in temples. 😉

okini55

atcDave wrote: »

I think they are highly resistant to missile weapons. Seriously, melee does more reliable damage to a range of opponents (many have missile/piercing resistance). Khalid should have long sword specialization of better, so he should be using Varscona (from Greywolf the bounty hunter). That's the best long sword in the game. If you have him drink a potion of giant strength (or equip the Guantlets of OgrePower) he will hit hard. Minsc should have Spider's Bane, along with 2-handed Sword specialization and at least one pip in 2-handed weapon fighting style; added to his strength he'll hit hard too. I don't know what melee your character is capable of, but Battle Horrors and Doomguards are highly resistant to missiles so you'll want to close in to fight. This will protect the less armored characters you have, they should either cast some spells or you know, play solitaire or mai jong.

I so often see the advise around here that BG1 is all about the missile weapons. Don't believe it. They always have their place, but a strong melee unit is much better for defining the battlefield and protecting your support characters. I usually run 2 - 3 wholly dedicated melee fighters in any party.

You are completely right btw when it comes to melee weapons. I used throwing daggers most part of the game with my warrior.
However I do have +3 or three dots or w/e on two weapon style fighting. And when I changed from throwing daggers to 2 swords with my warrior I can kill things so much quicker. That was the only way I could defeat Andris on this remote island. That and magic resistance potion!

atcDave

Awesome to hear that!

StummvonBordwehr

I always solo Durlags tower - as a figther or paladin.

The traps are nasty, but the green protection scrolls (fire, ice, electric and acid) last a long time, and can give you 100 % immunity to elemental damage.You can get poison resistance as well. At crucial times a potion can be of great importance.

So if you don’t have a good thief, then you will have to do with a good damage sponge. Either way Durlags tower is a great way to check out your preparation skill level….

okini55

Is it possible to leave Durlag's Tower before finishing it? I have not ventured too far into the Tower. Only the upper levels have I explored so far.
Also this Erdane guy who sells items disappeared!? How can I find him? Is he supposed to disappear?

okini55

StummvonBordwehr wrote: »

I always solo Durlags tower - as a figther or paladin.

The traps are nasty, but the green protection scrolls (fire, ice, electric and acid) last a long time, and can give you 100 % immunity to elemental damage.You can get poison resistance as well. At crucial times a potion can be of great importance.

So if you don’t have a good thief, then you will have to do with a good damage sponge. Either way Durlags tower is a great way to check out your preparation skill level….

My theif is very good thankfully so traps should not be a problem I think. And also I did find the exit now. But it's strange this Erdane guy just vanished. It happened when Gnolls attacked after I rested. Maybe a bug or something?

okini55

Nevermind I just loaded a previous save so now he should be back.

okini55

I can not find the mallet head It is not in the library... Any ideas?

Edit: I used console to create one. I just could not find it anywhere but it's solved now.

Lammas

It's right here

okini55

Lammas wrote: »

It's right here

I could not find it there. I must have picked it up and throw it away thinking it was trash. But I managed to create one using the console command