Improved Fire Giants

This forum is to be used for all discussions pertaining to BioWare's Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn.
Post Reply
User avatar
Kaitsuburi
Posts: 440
Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2002 6:03 pm
Location: Hard-Boiled Wonderland
Contact:

Improved Fire Giants

Post by Kaitsuburi »

Has anyone had a chance to encounter the newly improved fire giants from the Tactics mod? Holy smokes :eek:

You get two in Watcher's Keep and I thought oh well, pushover (I've got 2 fighters with ac around -10 and dual-wielding thacos around -6 or below). Nasty surprise! I was dead in exactly 5 seconds. Tried again, with potions/scrolls of fire resistance, moving around and everything ~~ dead in 10 seconds this time!

I am guessing one needs to start off with 100+ fire resistance, fight only 1 giant at a time, keep disrupting them so they can't cast lower fire resistance 10 times per round and hit them quick enough so they don't drink health potions and get back to "uninjured"... Maybe Greater Malison -> Slow would work. The old tactic of "just smack them hard until they fall" simply doesn't work anymore...

What experiences have you had facing these nasty-nasties?

-kaitsuburi
~~ aim low, deliver.
User avatar
Sytze
Posts: 2659
Joined: Wed Jun 25, 2003 5:11 am
Location: Location:
Contact:

Post by Sytze »

Buffed up fighter-mages (protection weapons/elements, stoneskin, mirror image,etc) + archers vs the fire giants seems to do the trick for me every time ;)

Keep your pure fighters out of harms way though, cause they are easy targets...
And let your mages cast cold-spells. Fire-giants are vulnerable to that.
"Sometimes Dreams are wiser than waking"
User avatar
Kaitsuburi
Posts: 440
Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2002 6:03 pm
Location: Hard-Boiled Wonderland
Contact:

Post by Kaitsuburi »

Thanks for the advice, @Sytze, it seems that fighter-mages are the key here as in other seemingly impossible mod situations :D

Only 2 fire giants in WK, that's nice, and a properly buffed kensai-mage with Tashia and Mazzy as support did the trick :D I am definitely not looking forward to Marching Mountains in ToB!! It promises to be sheer madness! With this kind of cheese used against me, there are no qualms about using suber-uber-+5 weapons! Or resorting to cheese myself ~ I have to if I want to survive LOL

-kaitsuburi
~~ aim low, deliver.
User avatar
kopywrite
Posts: 945
Joined: Mon Mar 12, 2001 11:00 pm
Location: West London, UK
Contact:

Post by kopywrite »

Just downloaded V19 now and if Faldorn and the improved pit fiends are anything to go by, this should be interesting.
User avatar
Kaitsuburi
Posts: 440
Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2002 6:03 pm
Location: Hard-Boiled Wonderland
Contact:

Post by Kaitsuburi »

I got it! If you are improved invisible, the fire giants have no way to dispel that (it seems) so they can't target you with their nasty lower fire resistance spell! Just send in 3-4 hard-hitting fighters with high fire resistance (a fast low-thaco archer is super-nice too!) and you've got them! Their fireballs don't do any damage! Insect plague works too, disrupting their casting.

I just did fought them again and yes, this works! Figher-mage with stoneskin/mirror image is nice but not required (just make sure you have some fighters who hit hard and that you have nice fat healing potions).

They are a real pain though!

-kaitsuburi
~~ aim low, deliver.
User avatar
kopywrite
Posts: 945
Joined: Mon Mar 12, 2001 11:00 pm
Location: West London, UK
Contact:

Post by kopywrite »

Improved Invisibility (and its big brother Mislead) is such a fantastic spell. Just a shame it has to share slots with stoneskin...

Thankfully Wes hasn't given them scrolls of Oracle or somesuch like he he did with those damned Sahuagin...GRRR. :D
User avatar
nephtu
Posts: 989
Joined: Wed Mar 06, 2002 10:38 am
Location: Bellevue, WA
Contact:

Post by nephtu »

Eek!

I can see I need to get the new tactics mod, I have an older version installed, and it sounds like it's been significantly enhanced.

Oh well, it's time for a clean install anyway ;)
I have given up all lesser evils as inadequate to my purpose.
User avatar
UserUnfriendly
Posts: 4109
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2001 10:00 pm
Location: Sluggy Zone
Contact:

Post by UserUnfriendly »

Originally posted by kopywrite
Improved Invisibility (and its big brother Mislead) is such a fantastic spell. Just a shame it has to share slots with stoneskin...

Thankfully Wes hasn't given them scrolls of Oracle or somesuch like he he did with those damned Sahuagin...GRRR. :D


attention all sorcerors...

you should never pick improved invisibility...always pick mislead and mass invisibility, since mass invisibility at higher levels lasts longer, as well as the obvious benefits of area effect...

i wonder if the old trick of using kua toan bolts of paralysis still work...

and this ought to make the infinite spawning firegiants at saradush walls xp pump interesting... :p :p :p
They call me Darth...

Darth Gizka!

Muwahahahahhahahha!!!
User avatar
kopywrite
Posts: 945
Joined: Mon Mar 12, 2001 11:00 pm
Location: West London, UK
Contact:

Post by kopywrite »

Re: Eek!

Originally posted by nephtu
I can see I need to get the new tactics mod, I have an older version installed, and it sounds like it's been significantly enhanced

There's a typo on the main page which says Tactics hasn't been updated since last October...obviously it has, twice in in last two weeks or so. Improved pit fiends (nasty), Faldorn (nastier) and now improved fire giants.
User avatar
kopywrite
Posts: 945
Joined: Mon Mar 12, 2001 11:00 pm
Location: West London, UK
Contact:

Post by kopywrite »

Originally posted by UserUnfriendly
attention all sorcerors...

you should never pick improved invisibility...always pick mislead and mass invisibility, since mass invisibility at higher levels lasts longer, as well as the obvious benefits of area effect...

Yup, mislead is one of my favourite spells...used correctly its like timestop (do what you like without being bothered by almost anybody) and mass invisibility is also a great spell. But as a sorc. pick? Hmm, its level 7 which means you have to wait quite a while or picking it early means sacrificing (for the time being) project image, limited wish or mord's sword. Tricky :D
User avatar
Somthing
Posts: 16
Joined: Wed Apr 28, 2004 10:17 am
Contact:

Post by Somthing »

I dont know about the rest of you but I find casting chain contingency, 3 abids works great.

I have yet to have chain con interrupted and 3 abids always seems to kill most of them.. if not just cast it again.


Lower resist Finger of death also works. However running my f/t/m up there just sucks.

Traps work great but it takes like 3-4 spikes
User avatar
fable
Posts: 30676
Joined: Wed Mar 14, 2001 12:00 pm
Location: The sun, the moon, and the stars.
Contact:

Post by fable »

Originally posted by kopywrite
Yup, mislead is one of my favourite spells...used correctly its like timestop (do what you like without being bothered by almost anybody) and mass invisibility is also a great spell. But as a sorc. pick? Hmm, its level 7 which means you have to wait quite a while or picking it early means sacrificing (for the time being) project image, limited wish or mord's sword. Tricky :D


I would never, ever suggest sacrificing, even for a short while, Project Image. You can wreck merry havoc with that spell. :)
To the Righteous belong the fruits of violent victory. The rest of us will have to settle for warm friends, warm lovers, and a wink from a quietly supportive universe.
Post Reply