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In Hordes of the Underdark, Chapter 2, the Beholder Caves have a hole that negates all magic, magical items, and potions. Playing as a cleric, I had to cheat to get through the hole. My Lore and Spellcraft were too low to access the door to the west, and I could not get through, or around, the spiders and the big spider (Bebilith ?). Now I'm just starting HOTU with a level 15 multiclass character, (fighter 8 / rogue 6 / shadowdancer 1) and I really do not want to cheat again. So I have some questions:

1) How high does my Lore, or Spellcraft, need to be to open the door?
2) Will I be able to get to the obelisk area without using the door? My character is pretty good with a bow; so I'm hoping I might be able to get through the spiders by using a bow and the special Shadowdancer skill, Hide in Plain Sight. Or will I have to cheat again?

Since you wrote that your character is pretty good with a bow, I'll assume they have a high dexterity score, but a rather low strength one, right? In my experience, such a "dex build" can sometimes be a bit trickier to play, since they can't fall back on pure bashing power, should more magical or elegant means not be available. But they are playable in any case!


1) Unfortunately, I don't remember the exact skill levels needed to succesfully open that door, but I think it was something in the ~20 area. Unless you plan on maxing one of those skills anyway, I don't think it's worth sinking all those skill points into it just for this door.

2) You should be able to retreat into the tunnel you came from once you triggered the bebilith's attack and be out of it's reach. Using your bow to wear it down will take a while, though.

Alternatively, you could try to run past it (using "hide in plain sight" if necessary) and get to the obelisk this way. Activate it and deal with the Bebilith afterwards. Should be way easier having once again access to some magical gear.

Another option would be to bring Valen along, if only for this area. He should be able to deal with those spiders and probably even the bebilith. You can support him from a distance using your bow and sneak attacks.

Endugu, thank you very much for the excellent reply.

I've barely gotten started, still nosing around the tavern after the drows attacked. I will try to remember your advice regarding Valen. There's no way I'm getting through that door, so I'm looking forward to trying stealth, attacking with Hide in Plain Sight, or using the latter with my henchman melee man.

You're welcome!
Enjoy your play-through.

I got through the hole in the Beholders Cave, and it was piece of cake. By the time I got to it, my character had advanced to Rogue 14 / Fighter 10 / Shadowdancer 1. At that point, her relevant skills were Hide 44, Move Silently 44, and Search 30. Her Lore and Spellcraft were zero or near zero, but she did not need those skills.

She got to the obelisk easily by sneaking past all the spiders, even the giant Bebilith. One or two dire spiders or sword spiders saw her when she left stealth mode to hack through a web, but she dispatched them easily with her bow and normal arrows. She could also have used the route with the magically locked door, but she did not need to use the door. Her high Search skill allowed her to spot a secret door that appeared right next to the magical door!

She solved the obelisk puzzle and restored magic to the hole. Then, after sneaking back upstairs to get her gear--she had to sneak past some beholders waiting to ambush her--the Ettercaps, spiders, and Bebilith down in the hole were no challenge whatsoever.