Improved Spellhold... well, almost

[serjeLeBlade]

I'm in that Asylum again...

I was planning to try to do it without equipment, this time, for a change.
(The logic behind it being that we are prisoners there, so we *souldn't* be allowed to keep any equipment, like in chapter one).

What do you think of the idea?
Will be easy anyway?
Worth a try?
Pointless?
Too hard? (I'm a little worried about the lich...)

I already started (and managed to get killed once... guess by who... Bhaal himself!)
Never thought it was possible? Well, me second!

[UserUnfriendly]

you stayed slayer too long?????

[bullions27]

Trying to go through Spellhold without equipment is doable IF you have several mages along (whom do not rely on equipment to keeeel things). Your fighters are better off as cannon fodder or bait for the mages and clerics to target. Example, turn off AI and have a ranger/thief/monk Hide in Shadows and stand at a door while you throw in AE spells. It's a modification of the cheesy invis trick.

[UserUnfriendly]

"turn off AI and have a ranger/thief/monk Hide in Shadows and stand at a door while you throw in AE spells. It's a modification of the cheesy invis trick"

try this on a smarter lich and they will hand you your tush....

if their script detects a misled, inv or sanctuaried npc near them, they will d gate to your party, and telly field them all to their spawn area, where the skeleton warriors will slice and dice while you are still telly fielded, and they start chaining multiple abu dahzims at you, and chain lightning...and if you installed spell 50...good bye....that trick is ok without tactics mod, but once you install tactics mod, it goes out the door...sigh...

smarter liches can still be taken down tho...load up a high level cleric with protection from magic energy and protection from elements and protection from energy, use sanctuary to get them close enough for turn undead to blast the lich...the new smarter liches avoid casting inc cloud on themselves now, just a lot of abu and chain lightning...sigh...

[serjeLeBlade]

Originally posted by UserUnfriendly
you stayed slayer too long?????

No... The dream-Bhaal handed me my ass while I was (rather dumbly) trying to kill him with my fists.

(I was thinking that it would die "automatically" if hit in Imoen's presence... heh, should have known better. He has about 100 hp!)

2nd try, summoned some critters and things worked better.

Fighting without equipment really changes things... and forces you to think more. (Just like in improved Illych, you know? I was planning to get exactly that kind of effect... and looks like it's working so far). I'm having fun. We just put our hands on our first magic weapon. Spear +3. Not so bad. Thank the gods, Haer'Dalis is proficient with spears. Now things are starting to seriously die before us

(I guess that spear won't do the trick with the lich, anyway...)

The party is around 750000 xp average (Imoen just 400000, heh), and luckily, we're all spellcasters of sort (ranger/cleric, HD, Imoen, Aerie, Viccy, Kelsey)

(AND I'm romancing Imoen... and I got the dialogue about the dreams Immediately after the Bhaal dream... just after she commented about how bruised I was)

It's looking ike the funniest go through the game in years!

[bullions27]

try this on a smarter lich and they will hand you your tush....

That tactic will get you through about 75% of the dungeon. There's only one Lich in Spellhold and it's not even tough at all.

[Littiz]

Serje, I "heard" you speak about it somewhere, do you think that Improved Ilych is possible without rests in the dungeon?
Or at most, with just one rest (the one which triggers Imoen dialog)?

[serjeLeBlade]

Improved Illych changed *a lot* since the last time I played it. Now it's in the tactics mod and the thieves that ambush you when you (try to) sleep have changed a lot... they have been toned down if compared to the 2 damn powerful (and cheating)Rune Assassins that used to spawn in v2...

So I can't say how things would be going now, I'm still playing that game and I'm not going back to Irenicus dungeon any soon!
(I haven't a lot of free time at present... heh)

Talking about me, I would not be able to do it (in v2 I mean)without resting a lot.
Maybe it is possible with a poweful pc that doesn't rely on spells, say a Kensai or Halforc Barbarian...

(About Spellhold otoh, the lich wasn't even there. So we actually didn't rest once so far! Imoen still has her funny initial selection of spells... we fired that very useful lighting bolt at a beholder. It even connected! ...so we're pretty done by now... but I guess we'll choose to take a nap after the Slayer's appareance will make our "hunters" run away in fear)

[Littiz]

Oh, me second @Serje!
I started my current game in June, methinks!
So I carefully plan the next, while waiting for RtW!!

Thanx for the infos, I think I'll try then... maybe accepting everyone in the party
immediately, Yoshimo included...

[serjeLeBlade]

Hooooray!!! (well, almost)

Job done, Johnny got it again!
(for the umph-zillionth time, right... but this time was way, way more satisfying)

It's official: Spellhold can be done starting naked (and resting only 1 time) by a 350000 average xp party.

Interested in my new Improved Spellhold Mod?
Enjoy... It's for free
(You can get it here)

[Baldursgate Fan]

There is no link in "here"

[serjeLeBlade]

Originally posted by Baldursgate Fan
There is no link in "here"

Because that here means "here"...
It's a joke, there's nothing about that Improved Spellhold Mod other than my personal work of fiction exposed in this thread.

I asked Weimer to make a real Improved Spellhold component, but he's uninterested