Twisted Runes, need a better strategy

dunk44 · Post by **dunk44** » Fri Jan 26, 2001 4:03 pm

The best I have done is 5 guys alive and one dead. But I want to have all my guys survive.

I have been casting haste and drinking strength potions. First I kill the beholder, then the vamp and the revnak. Then the time stops come
and things get tough. I usually try to work on the bigger mage then the chick. The wail of the banshee and finger of death kick my butt.

I am still in CH 2

And good ideas?

Eric

Genesis · Post by **Genesis** » Fri Jan 26, 2001 4:19 pm

sheesh only one dead is a victory by any BG2 standards for that fight...you must be a perfectionist.

Anyway...i've never done it without losing one or 2 but thats what ressurection is for...

Drakron Du´Dark · Post by **Drakron Du´Dark** » Fri Jan 26, 2001 4:27 pm

Well, Try this...
use ALL types of protection, especialy the "protection from evil. 10 .." after the lich protection run out.
send a summonded creature to in the room to trigger the Lich protection and wait until it runs out. go in and run back so you will only face him alone, use anti-undead spells on him. go after the beholder next, cloak of defection or baldurian shield on him.
Next come the Vap. make sure you are protected from drain to fight it. the mage will summun a pit pal, but if you are protected from evil he will turn on the mage, so make sure that you are. the fighter is not very dificult. Make sure that you are high level before going there.

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"He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not became a monster... when you gaze long into the abyss the abyss gazes into you..."
Friedrich Nietzsche

Doltan · Post by **Doltan** » Fri Jan 26, 2001 4:32 pm

Only one dead is pretty good, I agree. You know that you can just resurrect the person (bring a scroll if you can't cast it) with no noticeable effects? If you are worried about leaving someone behind, this is the best solution.

Gareth Stormfist · Post by **Gareth Stormfist** » Fri Jan 26, 2001 7:48 pm

Also use potions of invulnerability (for the saving throw boost)and cast area effect spells that don't hurt your party.
I did it without any losses by using 4 (yes 4) spellcasters saturating the area with summoned creatures. Aerial Servants and elementals are the best for this.
Other spells that can hurt this wonderful mix of creatures include prismatic spray, insect plague and bolt of glory(on the demon).
Finally, if you can hold off another chapter, the mace of disruption in the hands of an "improved hasted" fighter works well against the lich. You won't do any damage but with 2-4 attacks per round, he WILL eventually fail a save and be destroyed.

J

Quitch · Post by **Quitch** » Sat Jan 27, 2001 2:49 pm

Where is this fight exactly? I know who the Twisted Rune are in my game, but I have not found them.......

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Quitch
"Nature, take the life she gave!"

Pengman · Post by **Pengman** » Sat Jan 27, 2001 5:45 pm

Hmmm...
Traps in the first room to take a big chunk out off the first guy (The mage-demon-thing that teleports into the room after having told you to die).. then have fighters pound him after having breached him..
1 down
Shield og balduran can hurt the beholder from the starting room aswell - only the fighter will react and he is easy..
the next step is the wampire.. he is quite easy as well.. use summons if you are affraid of loosing too many levels (he drains 4 with each hit)..
finaly the mage (with the price that you most likely came for)... as other have stated just hang back at wait for the meteor storm to wear off and then charge her..

It's isn't really that bad... I also did it in act 2 - without loses..

just wondering.. is there a plot relating to this fight ??

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Behold The Power of Peng

zorac · Post by **zorac** » Sat Jan 27, 2001 5:57 pm

Well Pengman it was supposed to be a plot involving the guarded compound the guy in Umar Hill connected to the skinner case and so on. You get a reference to the rune from him actually. But I think Bioware simply ran out of time.

Quitch, you need one rouge stone in your backpack and then you just have to explore the bridge area....

TheHellion · Post by **TheHellion** » Sat Jan 27, 2001 9:17 pm

Shangalar, the lich, is what makes this fight tough. If you're not too much against being a little cheap, you can use lots of traps and glyphs of warding in that first room to take him down straight away. With him out of the way, this fight isn't all that hard. Negative plane protection or stoneskin work well to soak up hits from the vampire without worrying about energy drain. Cast aside any hopes you might have about dispelling the mage's protection from evil. I suffered through several failed attempts at making the pit fiend backfire on her.

The fight is well worth the spoils, in any case. The staff of the magi is awesome! Enjoy.

Th0masT33 · Post by **Th0masT33** » Sun Jan 28, 2001 3:50 am

my advice is to lvl a bit more before going at it..probably leave it towards the end of ch. 3 when you're party is lvl 10/11/12..makes it much easier..i didn't do any of that cheap crap and had no casualties and very little injuries as well

geh4th · Post by **geh4th** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 2:34 am

I suspect that the reason you cannot dispel the "Protection from Evil" on the mage is that it comes from the Staff of the Magi as a continuous power. Doesn't seem as if there is much point in even trying to dispel it.

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"If you prefer, you could say EXPERT treasure hunter!"
--Gandalf the Grey, the Hobbit

Rail · Post by **Rail** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 4:01 am

Back everyone up against the door and have one of your PCs enter the room with sanctuary on. The lich will start talking to you and then teleport to the front room. Take him out there with spells and distance weapons, Makes the rest of the fight more manageable.

Isolate the beholder and fighter next. Once they're gone, hit the vamp, then the sorceress. Careful with the vamp touch: -4 lvl per hit.

Radek · Post by **Radek** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 4:44 am

I have found that the following strategy works good (custom party of 5 members - ranger/cleric, kensai/mage, undead hunter, cavalier and fighter/thief, ch. 3, level 12-14 all):
1. After entering Twisted Rune plane, turn back and open the "door" behind you. There are "stairs" in the "alclove in alclove" there. Push your party on the stairs.
2. Send one with Boots of Speed into the room to trigger the events. Run back to the stairs immediately after the initial dialog.
3. Shangalar will teleport itself in the alclove. It will cast Simulacrum, then Time Stop, then it (the real Shangalar) decides to follow you to the stairs. As any lich, Shangalar is slow in movement so that the Time Stop is over when it reaches you.
4. Kill Shangalar (Shangalar will pay for its unsufficient protections and spending the whole Time Stop by approaching you) then do something with the simulacrum. True Sight should work, Tansheron's Bow works well. So much for Shangalar.
5. What to do next depends on your possibilities and fighting strategy. I became a summoner somehow so that I summoned sword spiders and sent them into the room. I protected my summoned creatures from evil by my paladins because there was (or had been summoned?) a Pit Fiend in the room. Anyway, my sword spiders got Vaxal (the beholder) soon - perhaps with the aid of the Pit Fiend.
6. Shyrezza (the vampire, most probably the second strong vampire after Bodhi - drains 4 levels per attack) got killed by the Pit Fiend. It seems that a moster must reveal itself by some action to attract Pit Fiend's attention. That seems to be the way the whole strategy works: the summoned creatures trigger actions of the monsters in the room.
7. Cast Protection from Evil 10' and finish the room. The Pit Fiend is helpless against Protection from Evil.

Nighthawk · Post by **Nighthawk** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 12:00 pm

Quitch: You say you know who the Twisted Rune are? What do you know? How did you find out?

They seem to suggest that you can find out about them, but so far I haven't heard of anyone finding out about them other than by finding them.

As far as the guarded compound goes, one of Isae Roenall's documents talks about a group of slavers operating out of the temple district.

Weasel · Post by **Weasel** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 12:12 pm

@Nighthawk...In the Mind Flayers area in the sewer isn't there a note about them setting up a plan or something along them lines to take over Athkatla?

Could this be tied in to the Twisted Rune too?

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[This message has been edited by Chrissy(Edit 3-27-2001)]

Genesis · Post by **Genesis** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 12:15 pm

I just had a thought...couldn't you use those mind control collars on the guys in twisted rune quest and turn them on each other? Anyone tried that?

ivar · Post by **ivar** » Mon Jan 29, 2001 12:55 pm

Originally posted by Genesis:
I just had a thought...couldn't you use those mind control collars on the guys in twisted rune quest and turn them on each other? Anyone tried that?

Yes I did this few days back and it was a breeze. I used it on Shangalar, then took out everyone else using him as ally. He used up most of his spells, I then summoned a few creatures attacked him using them and the fight was over.

samcu · Post by **samcu** » Tue Mar 13, 2001 7:36 pm

This is how I did it in Chapter 2 without much damage, except the self-inflicted:

1) Get the ring of gaxx and Shield of Baldurian first.
2) Summon spiders or whatever for the distraction.
3) Wand of cloud kill the main room with two to three overlapping each other, make sure the summonings is not hit.
4) Put everyone as far back towards the stairs as possible
4) Use the boots of speed, shield and the gaxx on the fighter to start fight, get fighter back out of shanglar's view.
5) Get as many melf's minute metoer ready (I had 4 mages)
6) Pound the vampire to avoid level drain, then the shanglar's double with the meteors.
7) When time-stop, the summonings should cop all the symbols and die...
8) By the time he comes to you, you will just finish him easy...

Hazim ibn Gorion · Post by **Hazim ibn Gorion** » Tue Mar 13, 2001 7:43 pm

I cannot understand why people think using traps and glyphs is "cheap". What the hell are they there for?! It's like saying that having your mage cast magic missle is cheating. I don't get it. I don't spend all those thief points in traps for nothing, and I absolutely refuse to feel wussy about it. It's part of the game. Deal with it.