Alesia_BH
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Thanks, Borco! And so you know, I've been super-impressed with your runs lately. No pressure, but I'm looking forward to more Orrin!
The Candlekeep Annex: RPed Baldur’s Gate No and Low Reload Adventures
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Borco
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Correct - for sale. I've checked and Sorsha got hers at the Promenade (presumably from Ribald). Note that this was with the SCS "more copies of hard-to-find scrolls" component installed.
Alesia_BH
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Makes sense. That component does add Spell Shield scrolls. It's no longer available, as of v35.
Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: Spellhold, Part 2- Order
Congratulations, Spellhold. You surprised me once again.
Heading into Spellhold, I expected Alena's party to clear the Maze with ease and then fight a possibly chaotic battle with Irenicus. That's how it has always worked before. Not this time. This time Spellhold went topsy-turvy. The Maze was a chaotic mess, but the Irenicus battle was an orderly procession of quiet deaths. Go figure.
Here we see Alena, in the lead position, wearing the Ring of Human Influence and Nymph Cloak, convincing Lonk to release the prisoners. I'm sharing this mostly for OrlonKronsteen, so he can see what it looks like. Note that we're already buffed.
We have our allies. We have our buffs. We're ready to fight. Bring in on Jon-Jon.
Since this is supposed to be an ambush, catching Irenicus off guard, I wasn't opposed to letting Minsc land a couple of early hits before Irenicus's buffs triggered. I also let Imoen tag him with MAA. Fortunately, it wasn't enough to kill him. We want plausibility here, but we also want a fight.
Let's see what we've got...
The clones are on the field. They look scary, but Jon's protections are meager. Haer'Dalis gets the party starting, targeting Jon's Spell Shield. Aerie's Malison See Enemy: Contingency fires, as she waits with her Breach in reserve, aura clear.
Hmm, there's still a dish there. Maybe he's running Spell Turning, too. We didn't look closely once we noticed the absence of a globe or swirlies. Aerie, hit him with Secret Word. Imoen's turn is coming around soon, and she has Breach, too. Speaking of Imoen, she's in the southwest corner of the screen, drawing Irenicus's Remove away from the party. We made a point of using Haste in this fight for this reason exactly. Luckily for us he targeted someone running SI:A. We're looking good. Minsc stays close to Irenicus, while Alena and Jaheira fight their clones.
Alena lands a Harm on her clone. Imoen preps her Breach. Haer'Dalis times one to follow immediately, in case Irenicus Contingencies a combat protection. We have enough Breachs in our books that we can be aggressive.
Haer'Dalis's clone targets Imoen with Spell Thrust. That globe is a minor so that Spell Thrust is a threat. Or at least it would be. But guess who's running Spell Shield. Thanks, Haer'Dalis's clone, for justifying my obsession.
Alena's clone falls. Jaheira's clone is still standing, thanks to a stack of twenty extra healers.
Haer'Dalis's Breach finally launches. It's wasted, but who cares. I'm more interested in that sweet crit from Alena. We're rocking Righteous Magic DUHM for the first time, and it shows.
Some of you may have noticed th conspicuous absence of Boons in this run. I don't allow boon stacking so they're not quite as powerful in my games as they are in other people’s. Still, I should use them more. Now felt like a good time, a fitting way to send Irenicus off.
Untill next time, Jonicus, it's been fun.
But the fight isn't over. The murders are incoming and we still have some clones on the field. Ready your Blade Barrier, Aerie. As for you Mr. Efreeti, keep helping Minsc kill his clone. Wait a minute...What are you even doing here? We didn't summon you. And who the rock is that, holding Azuredge over by Aerie? That's a third Minsc, isn't it. What the hell? At least he's on our side.
I'm not sure why we ended up with three Minscs on the field. My best guess is that the clone used Vhailor, and the simmy of the clone had the wrong allegiance. That, or maybe one of the inmates charmed the clone's Simmy. Who knows. In any case, we're not complaining, we got another Minsc and a free Mr. Efreeti out of the deal.
With the inmates off the field, Alena can call her Firestorm. Nice work, but the murders are coming for you, so quaff that PoI. No need to take risks here.
And done! Hurdle cleared. Time for drinks at the Monkey. It's no Flagons but it will do.
Best,
A.
Congratulations, Spellhold. You surprised me once again.
Heading into Spellhold, I expected Alena's party to clear the Maze with ease and then fight a possibly chaotic battle with Irenicus. That's how it has always worked before. Not this time. This time Spellhold went topsy-turvy. The Maze was a chaotic mess, but the Irenicus battle was an orderly procession of quiet deaths. Go figure.
Here we see Alena, in the lead position, wearing the Ring of Human Influence and Nymph Cloak, convincing Lonk to release the prisoners. I'm sharing this mostly for OrlonKronsteen, so he can see what it looks like. Note that we're already buffed.
Since this is supposed to be an ambush, catching Irenicus off guard, I wasn't opposed to letting Minsc land a couple of early hits before Irenicus's buffs triggered. I also let Imoen tag him with MAA. Fortunately, it wasn't enough to kill him. We want plausibility here, but we also want a fight.
With the inmates off the field, Alena can call her Firestorm. Nice work, but the murders are coming for you, so quaff that PoI. No need to take risks here.
Best,
A.
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m7600
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The Five Flagons is my favorite stronghold in the game. I mean, having your own castle is awesome, the same goes for your own cabin in the woods. But the Turmish Play questline is absolutely amazing. Plus it's a reference to Macbeth!
Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: City of Caverns
We did it! We made it to the City of Caverns! You know what that means.
That's right! It's vacation time! How about some music?
Not going to lie, I think we all need this. Spellhold was rough. Jaheira, what do you have planned?
That computes. You've earned it. I know we've been hard on you at times, but you're a star. Go ahead and treat yo'self.
Now remember everyone, we still have work to do. This isn't all fun and games. First things first, we need to pick up that shark tooth thing. It's going to be dangerous, so take care...
Good point, Imoen, we're fighting Cloakwood enemies and we have L15 skelton warriors. I guess we really can laze a bit. How about you, Minsc, what are you up to?
Going for a swim? Have fun! Imoen can watch Boo for you. They've been developing a rapport.
But, whoah! Hey! Look: there's a bone golem. Remember how tough that one was back in the Umar Hills? True, Jaheira. We've come a long way since then. We can just Melf him and move on.
I know what we need! A game! A game we can all play together. You ready? It'll be fun!
Very cool, now we just need to grab that tooth thing. I think there's a beholder over there so let's think this one through. Oh, what was that Alena? The skellies killed him already?
I guess it's play time again then. How about you Aerie? You've been on the brink for as long as we've known you. Are you getting your relax on?
Oh, right: The Underdark. That's stressing you out, isn't it? Maybe you'll enjoy a game of volleyball. I hear Jaheira is really good, but maybe if you and Imoen team up you can give her a match.
Ok, bad idea. I'm not helping. Let's just keep moving then. Maybe we'll find a little something to cheer you up. Like, I don't know: THIS!
Or how about this! This one cheered me up...
Still not feeling it, eh Aerie. Haer'Dalis is going to be disappointed. Between you and me, he was hoping you two would take it up a notch on this trip. Clearly that's not happening. Speaking of Haer'Dalis, what is he up to? Scuba diving? Really? He never struck me as the type. Where is he exactly? Thanks, I'll take a look. Wait a minute, what the hell?
Figures, I guess. That must be one of your paramours from the Playhouse. I'm not even going to ask how you found her. Just keep it on the DL. I know Aerie isn't into you right this minute, but I'm pretty sure she'll be jealous. We don't want that. Can you imagine a jealous Aerie. Yikes.
So, let's see. We got the tooth thing. That means we're suppose to talk to the rebels. Go ahead and take the lead, Jaheira. These fishy-fishes can't dispel you so you're golden. Live it up while it lasts.
By the way, has anyone seen, Imoen?
Playing pirate, eh? Just don't hurt anyone...
Ok, fine. Don't hurt anyone important then. What I mean is, don't mess with Aerie. Alena insists. We need to keep the peace.
As a matter of fact, since Aerie is on the edge, we should let her decide how we finish up here. Agreed, everyone? Great. Just swell. That'll make Alena happy. Aerie really needs this. So what will it be, Aerie?
Burn the bastard, huh? I guess we should have seen that coming. Ok, let's do this. Buff up losers, it's time for a beach barbecue.
Aerie, you can open with Malison.
Haer'Dalis, play your harps.
Alena, would you like to do the honors?
As an old friend once said: Very good, very good indeed.
So, what do you think? Aerie did our vacation please you in the end? Take your time to decide.
You're happy, huh? Awesome-sauce! Glad to hear it! Off to the Underdark we go!
Best,
A.
We did it! We made it to the City of Caverns! You know what that means.
Not going to lie, I think we all need this. Spellhold was rough. Jaheira, what do you have planned?
Now remember everyone, we still have work to do. This isn't all fun and games. First things first, we need to pick up that shark tooth thing. It's going to be dangerous, so take care...
But, whoah! Hey! Look: there's a bone golem. Remember how tough that one was back in the Umar Hills? True, Jaheira. We've come a long way since then. We can just Melf him and move on.
So, let's see. We got the tooth thing. That means we're suppose to talk to the rebels. Go ahead and take the lead, Jaheira. These fishy-fishes can't dispel you so you're golden. Live it up while it lasts.
As a matter of fact, since Aerie is on the edge, we should let her decide how we finish up here. Agreed, everyone? Great. Just swell. That'll make Alena happy. Aerie really needs this. So what will it be, Aerie?
Aerie, you can open with Malison.
Best,
A.
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Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: The Underdark, Part 1
We have arrived. And in good time, I might add.
By now Alena is at Level 17. Her buffs can stand up to the Removes of many, if not all of her foes. The divine kit can't cover all threats, true, but Haer'Dalis is currently at Level 16, and he'll have multiple L6s soon. We are approaching the point when Alena, Jaheira and Minsc will no longer play second fiddle to the characters running SI:A. We are not there yet.
Against some enemies you'll start to see Minsc and Jaheira play a more assertive, forward role in our combat plans. Breach, not Remove, will become the greatest threat to them. In light of our fortuitous find on the Book of Infinite Spells, and SCS's limited use of True Sight, that threat is more manageable than the Removes of early SoA. That, at least, is my expectation. We'll see.
Let's move on to the first drow fight. We begin by sending Jaheira's fire elemental forward, to get a preview of our enemies buffs. Happily, they are not running ProFire. That's all we need to know.
Since Jaheira seems to be everyone's favorite spell target, we have equipped her with boots of speed, allowing her to draw spells away from the party. Here we see Jaheira drawing a trio of Silences away from the party. She'll surely be silenced herself, but she has already played a valuable role in this fight. Her elemental has drawn the attention of the drow, gathering them together in advance of Alena's Firestorm.
Since Sunfire doesn't bypasses magic resistance in the EE, Firestorm is the drow killing spell of choice. That works for Alena, but between the Sunfire MR change and the nerfs to Polymorph Self, the EE has majorly screwed the transmuter kit. If I do proceed with an Alastria 3.0 run, I may look into setting up a GemRB install. Making the polymorph weapons undispellable was sensible and fair, but the other changes went too far in neutering the kit, probably because nobody thought about it, transmuters being rare.
When it comes to Firestorms, one is good, but two is better. And do you know what's even better than that? Three via Chain Contingency. Aerie may be afraid of the Underdark, but by the endgame she'll be the ultimate drow killer.
The down side of sending Jaheira away from the party to dissipate those silences, is that she drew the myconids into the fight. Fortunately, it didn't matter. We're all running CC and the drow didn't last long enough against Alena's Firestorms to land a Breach. As of now, Haer'Dalis is the only one other than Jaheira on mushroom duty. The rest of us will join once this last drow is dead.
Come on everybody, join in on the fun! I typically use Skull Traps at L3 instead of Fireballs. Magic damage resistance is rarer than fire resistance, and damage type diversity is good. The upside of Fireballs is that we're typically running 100% fire resistance anyways. Our baby globes will level the playing field there, if and when we choose to use them. They're still aways off, though. Imoen is our only party member with an L7 and her wisdom is too low for baby globes.
Imoen and Alena look on as the rest of the party finishes the last myconid. Jaheira is still silenced and she's not happy about it. She continues to be Little Miss Take-One-For-The-Team.
Time for the balor. Imoen and Aerie, who both have ProMW, took the lead here. The summons are on the field just to give the balor something to swing at while he's ignoring our ProMW from line. I would have gone with five here instead of two, but I was worried about maneuverability. The quarters are tight, and if there's anything that can kill us here it's a movement error.
Speaking of movement errors, I usually prefer to stay to the south of the balor, so I have an exit route. In this case that felt unacceptably meta and cheesy. If you're thinking that's a weird place to draw the line, and a strange place to take a stand, I totally agree, in retrospect. Minsc, Jaheira and Alena should all have been to the south, near the doorway. The summons -five of them- should have been in front of them. That would potentially limit the movement of Aerie, Imoen and Haer'Dalis, but they can handle themselves. Plus they have an emergency Teleport Field.
Fireshield: Blue is more or less an I win button in this fight, but that's too cheesy for my taste. I was willing to use that against the trivial Windspear Hills guardians, as a test, but this is a real fight. Here we see Haer'Dalis on Breach duty, while Imoen goes LR. The inefficiency of our approach here is attributable to my desire to get everyone involved in the action. Since the Balor gets Stoneskins at will, but has no way to replenish his magic resistance, we should have just gone: Round 1: Aerie-LR, Imoen-LR, Haer'Dalis-LR; Round 2: Aerie-LR, Imoen- Sequencer: Skull Trap x 3, Haer'Dalis- Skull Trap, etc. Meanwhile, Alena, Minsc and Jaheira should have been been playing gin rummy with Papa Svirf. Alena's buffs can stand up to drow, but not balors.
Instead, Alena, Jaheira, and Minsc, ended up cowering in the corner while the SI:A kids did the work. Minsc is holding Lilacor here, as he should be, but Jaheira should be rocking Harmony. For those who are wondering, no, Jaheira isn't tossing darts of wounding at the balor. Those are cloak of the stars darts. They should really have a different icon. Come to think of it, Embarl's dagger looks like a dart, and it's blue, matching the cloak. That would be a good temporary substitute. I may do that.
There you go, Papa Svirf. We'll take that light gem now, thank you very much. And sorry, Jaheira, I know I started this post be celebrating Alena's L17 buffs, but the truth is you, Minsc and Alena are still second class to the SI:A kids when the going gets rough.
Moving on, can I just say what a delight it is to fight Kuo-Toans with a party. Oh, my. Those who have followed my runs over the years know that I hate, hate, hate, hate Kuo-Toans. Hate'em. I've gotten the impression that most people didn't get it. They're pushovers: What's the big deal? Having fought Kuo-Toans with a party for the first time in years, I now get why other people don't get why I loathe them. It's a night and day difference. As a soloist, the Kuo-Toan's speed and invisibility detection can make them a nightmare. With a party a Kuo-Toan fight is happy, happy chunky, chunky time.
They're definitely not worth full buffing for, but MSDs may be in order next time. Those MAA sequencer are annoying.
Likewise with the drow groups. With a solo warrior or thief these fights can take awhile. With a party they're over before they start. Firestorm + Malison + Blade Barrier did the heavy lifting.
With all the buff animations, it was hard to see and therefore target the drow at times, but we did get a few swings in. I'm pretty certain standing around in the Firestorm with the Blade Barriers up would have been enough, though.
Ok, everyone? Are we ready to meet Adalon?
On second thought, we should rest first. Back in the day, Spell Shield used to block the drow transformation. The new version probably doesn't, but better safe than sorry...
Right, well, we're drow now. And that means it's time to play who wore it better, Underdark edition. What do you think, everyone: Who looks best as a drow? Since this is so important, I'm not even going to put it in a spoiler tag. As for my vote, I'm not sure who wins, but I am sure who loses.
Best,
A.
We have arrived. And in good time, I might add.
By now Alena is at Level 17. Her buffs can stand up to the Removes of many, if not all of her foes. The divine kit can't cover all threats, true, but Haer'Dalis is currently at Level 16, and he'll have multiple L6s soon. We are approaching the point when Alena, Jaheira and Minsc will no longer play second fiddle to the characters running SI:A. We are not there yet.
Against some enemies you'll start to see Minsc and Jaheira play a more assertive, forward role in our combat plans. Breach, not Remove, will become the greatest threat to them. In light of our fortuitous find on the Book of Infinite Spells, and SCS's limited use of True Sight, that threat is more manageable than the Removes of early SoA. That, at least, is my expectation. We'll see.
Let's move on to the first drow fight. We begin by sending Jaheira's fire elemental forward, to get a preview of our enemies buffs. Happily, they are not running ProFire. That's all we need to know.
Fireshield: Blue is more or less an I win button in this fight, but that's too cheesy for my taste. I was willing to use that against the trivial Windspear Hills guardians, as a test, but this is a real fight. Here we see Haer'Dalis on Breach duty, while Imoen goes LR. The inefficiency of our approach here is attributable to my desire to get everyone involved in the action. Since the Balor gets Stoneskins at will, but has no way to replenish his magic resistance, we should have just gone: Round 1: Aerie-LR, Imoen-LR, Haer'Dalis-LR; Round 2: Aerie-LR, Imoen- Sequencer: Skull Trap x 3, Haer'Dalis- Skull Trap, etc. Meanwhile, Alena, Minsc and Jaheira should have been been playing gin rummy with Papa Svirf. Alena's buffs can stand up to drow, but not balors.
They're definitely not worth full buffing for, but MSDs may be in order next time. Those MAA sequencer are annoying.
Best,
A.
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Borco
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The contest might be slightly biased in favor of the Stoneskin-less trio, but I'd cast my vote to Imoen nevertheless. Sharp as a razor!
Anyway, congratulations for reaching Ust Natha, in spite of the hair-raising moments in the Spellhold labyrinth! I should say that your approach has been very classy so far and I really appreciate the integrity of your tactical decisions.
Anyway, congratulations for reaching Ust Natha, in spite of the hair-raising moments in the Spellhold labyrinth! I should say that your approach has been very classy so far and I really appreciate the integrity of your tactical decisions.
Alesia_BH
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I think the Stoneskins help, actually. They keep the color schemes clean, lol
I'd go with Haer'Dalis or Imoen. Imoen would be a clear winner, except katanas shouldn't be wielded with bucklers.
The big loser is Alena. Ankheg plate may be functional, but it's mega unfashionable. Plus she's wielding the EE's Reflex, a small shield with a large shield icon. That's always embarrassing.
Thanks! I feel like we turned the corner around the Planar Prison. Prior to that I wasn't happy with my play. I was leaning too heavily on my prior experience, either as a soloist or an all arcane party player. The opening battle in the Planar Prison was the first time I felt like we were fighting strong, as a team. The Torgal fight gets an honorable mention as an early success, but the battle plan was a bit too janky and resource intensive to qualify in my book.
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Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: The Underdark, Part 2- Simply Divine
For much of this run Alena has played a support role. Not anymore. With her buffs at L17, and with multiple Breach stopper options at her disposal, including Spell Turning form the Book of Infinite Spells, Alena can now play a more forward role in combat. In the Underdark, where magic resistance is the norm, she's also our most deadly damage dealer, thanks to her MR bypassing spells, most notably Firestorm. It shows in the party's combat stats. Take a look:
45% percent on the chapter. That's a long way from the single digit numbers of early SoA. For much of my BG career, I thought of clerics are strong in the early game and weak late. Astrid changed my opinion, at least when it comes to solo play. Alena is changing my opinion when it comes to party play. File this in the hot take category, but I'm beginning to think that we've all been wrong about comparative class power in BG2, at least when it comes to single class characters, and SCS/Ascension installs in particular. The consensus is, more or less, sorcerers/mages, warriors, bards, thieves, clerics, then druids. Druids are in the right spot, in my view, at least without the Icewind Dale spells. Bards are in the right spot, too, or very nearly. The same could be said for warriors and thieves, although that's debatable. As for mages and clerics, they may very well deserve to flip positions. Clerics can be halflings or dwarves, giving them the best saves. They get the best specific protections, Chaotic Commands, Death Ward and Remove Fear. They also get the all important Reflex, an undeniable difference maker in the Ascension endgame. They lack the awe inspiring offense of mages, but they have enough offense, and that's all that counts. Defensively, they trail mages through much of the adventure, but when it matters most, in the Ascension end game, they take the lead, thanks to the Reflex. It's hard to ProMW your way through all of the dispelling arrows at the throne, and all it takes is one to kill you. Hot take, as I said, but as one of a very small number of people who have soloed the SCS/Ascension battle on Insane with both a sorcerer and a cleric, I am, at this moment, leaning towards the cleric. I never thought I'd say that but here I am.
And here's Alena, rescuing Phaere. We're using a stripped down buff list here, with CC, ProEvil, Defensive Harmony and Haste doing the heavy lifting. Our battlefield positioning is sub-optimal, but it didn't matter.
We prevailed with no injuries, including Phaere and Solaufein. The aerial servant doesn't count.
The fight with Chandrilla's crew was broken and embarrassing. I never quite know how to handle this, and of course that's the point of the encounter. They intercept you on the way to Phaere, so if you've rested after receiving the mission and before the encounter, you can't rest again after. They're also here to kill drow, not the party, making them somewhat less villainous. I used to think they were good aligned. I now know they are not, which makes the kill or not kill dilemma less acute. By now it's just a matter of when: before Phaere, after Phaere, or later still.
This time I went with after Phaere, more or less by accident. A misclick triggered the encounter before I had intended. Forced to improvise, we sent the summons up ahead, and dumped Firestorms on them, a dirty tactic. By the time the storms died down, only Chandrilla, N'ashtar and Simba remained, with a full complement of Abjuration stuff at the ready, they went quietly. We were so confident we even let an unbuffed Jaheira finish off the mage in melee, a major tactical no-no in my book.
On our way to our next meeting with Phaere, we were flagged down by the aboleth. I sometimes avoid this mission because it's more trouble than it's worth. In this case I thought it would be fun. It was.
Here we are, buffed and ready. Note that we took Mass Invisibility from Imoen rather than having everyone cast II individually. Remember that. Minsc triggers the encounter with Mr. Efreeti and then charges. It's go time.
We open with a round of Spell Thrusts to sweep away the minors. Meanwhile, Alena is calling her Firestorm, while Minsc focuses on disrupting Qilue.
Alena's Firestorm starts to drip, drip, drip. Our mages move on to Breach. Qilue is dead by Minsc's hand and the mages are on the ropes.
More mages are incoming. They're met by coordinated abjuration assaults, followed by Sol's Searing Orbs from Alena. Sol's Searing Orb is a nice spell for drow fights, since it ignores magic resistance.
Remember that tactical error detection game I mentioned earlier? There's an error here. It's a hard one to spot, but I've already dropped a hint.
We're looking good, but Minsc has been Breached.
Hit the showers, Big Fella: you've earned it. You'll make it out of the Firestorm if you keep heading north.
Aerie lands a Spell Thrust on our newest victim. He tries to answer back with a Secret Word. Aerie’s Spell Shield catches it. What’s your next move? Aerie knows what her next move is. It's Breach and her beau is already swinging away at you. Thanks for playing.
In the end it's Alena, not Haer'Dalis, who gets the kill. We did ok here, but the mistake we made is the exact mistake I hope to avoid going forward. For those who are playing the game, that's another clue.
We dropped off Qilue's quivering thought machine, and hit the tavern. Wait, what? Did you just call Solaufein emasculated, Phaere? In case you forgot, you live in a matriarchal society. I'm not sure that's the insult you think it is.
Best,
A.
For much of this run Alena has played a support role. Not anymore. With her buffs at L17, and with multiple Breach stopper options at her disposal, including Spell Turning form the Book of Infinite Spells, Alena can now play a more forward role in combat. In the Underdark, where magic resistance is the norm, she's also our most deadly damage dealer, thanks to her MR bypassing spells, most notably Firestorm. It shows in the party's combat stats. Take a look:
And here's Alena, rescuing Phaere. We're using a stripped down buff list here, with CC, ProEvil, Defensive Harmony and Haste doing the heavy lifting. Our battlefield positioning is sub-optimal, but it didn't matter.
This time I went with after Phaere, more or less by accident. A misclick triggered the encounter before I had intended. Forced to improvise, we sent the summons up ahead, and dumped Firestorms on them, a dirty tactic. By the time the storms died down, only Chandrilla, N'ashtar and Simba remained, with a full complement of Abjuration stuff at the ready, they went quietly. We were so confident we even let an unbuffed Jaheira finish off the mage in melee, a major tactical no-no in my book.
Here we are, buffed and ready. Note that we took Mass Invisibility from Imoen rather than having everyone cast II individually. Remember that. Minsc triggers the encounter with Mr. Efreeti and then charges. It's go time.
Best,
A.
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WiseGrimwald
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Journal of Hal
We have arrived safely at the Gate.
Davaeorn had no answer to summoned skeletons.
By getting Viconia and Baeloth to join, we were able to recruit Dorn and so acquired the good bastard sword with protection from poison.
We have arrived safely at the Gate.
Davaeorn had no answer to summoned skeletons.
By getting Viconia and Baeloth to join, we were able to recruit Dorn and so acquired the good bastard sword with protection from poison.
OrlonKronsteen
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A-a-and I was this many years old when I finally learned that the Book of Infinite Spells can be used by all classes (sans wizard slayers). I'd always wondered why the item was so highly praised in walkthroughs and forums, especially since it doesn't even fetch much value at market. In some playthroughs, I wouldn't even bother picking it up, as I already had more gold than I'd ever spend and it was just another bit of junk to clog up my inventory.
Alesia_BH
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It can be super-useful or super-useless, depending on your party and the page you get.
It's been awhile since the Book of Infinite Spells has figured prominently in one of my runs, but with this crew, and the book on Spell Turning, it will literally be an every fight item from now until the end of the game. Alena and Minsc will make the most use of it.
Alesia_BH
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Quick Note:
I spent some time reading old runs last night, and it gave me a couple of ideas. I'd appreciate feedback on both of them.
Idea 1, Re-Write My Old Runs:
I've long been torn between my desire to play the game and my interest in writing Baldur's Gate inspired stories. Doing both at the same time doesn't work because I play much faster than I write. Last night, while reading my jester's run, it occurred to me that it would make a great story. It also occurred to me that there's nothing stopping me from writing it. I can't properly narrativize a current, active run, but I may be able to do it with an old, previously completed run.
What do we think? Would anyone be interested in a quasi-novelization of my old NR challenge runs? I'd like to do Alisa, the jester. After that, I'd like to do Arcadia, the F/M. Since Arcadia's initial run started out as a narrative, I can give you a preview of what that one would look like:
tavernrpg.com
Idea 2, A Four Bard Party:
I've run four mage parties twice now. Alena's run had gotten me thinking about doing it again, but last night, after reading Alisa's run, it occurred to me that a different take on that approach would be cooler. Four bards for the first time will surely be more interesting that four mages for a third time. What does everyone think? Does a four bard party sound interesting? I'm thinking Haer'Dalis and three player created characters, with one based on Silke and another based on Raelis Shai. My jester, Alisa, will be the PC
I spent some time reading old runs last night, and it gave me a couple of ideas. I'd appreciate feedback on both of them.
Idea 1, Re-Write My Old Runs:
I've long been torn between my desire to play the game and my interest in writing Baldur's Gate inspired stories. Doing both at the same time doesn't work because I play much faster than I write. Last night, while reading my jester's run, it occurred to me that it would make a great story. It also occurred to me that there's nothing stopping me from writing it. I can't properly narrativize a current, active run, but I may be able to do it with an old, previously completed run.
What do we think? Would anyone be interested in a quasi-novelization of my old NR challenge runs? I'd like to do Alisa, the jester. After that, I'd like to do Arcadia, the F/M. Since Arcadia's initial run started out as a narrative, I can give you a preview of what that one would look like:
The Candlekeep Annex: RPed Baldur’s Gate No and Low Reload Adventures
Alia, Halfling Kensai: Final Update I'm sorry to report that Alia fell to Gromnir. The new version of SCS made this fight much more challenging and I underestimated it. Alia was dispelled early, worn down by damage spells and ultimately cornered, with the aid of summons. Gromnir's crew just...
tavernrpg.com
Idea 2, A Four Bard Party:
I've run four mage parties twice now. Alena's run had gotten me thinking about doing it again, but last night, after reading Alisa's run, it occurred to me that a different take on that approach would be cooler. Four bards for the first time will surely be more interesting that four mages for a third time. What does everyone think? Does a four bard party sound interesting? I'm thinking Haer'Dalis and three player created characters, with one based on Silke and another based on Raelis Shai. My jester, Alisa, will be the PC
OrlonKronsteen
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@Alesia_BH In my opinion - and the context of that is I'm an almost-published fiction writer (who's been too lazy/apathetic to write anything in the last five years) - you would literally have to write novels (or novellas) to create an interesting piece of writing based on an old run. That's if you're doing it somewhat conventionally, of course. Good writing is fleshed out writing - even in the minimalist school. A narrative summary of events (in a conventional style) without character development, description, dialogue, and world-building would probably not be effective, unless it was completely stylized in some way, i.e. peppered with your great humorous passages, fourth-wall-breaking commentary, etc.. Maybe it could be done? I certainly couldn't do it, though. So I guess one of the things you'd need to ask yourself is how much do you really want to achieve in terms of word output? And/or can you break new grounds in terms of structure and style?
As for your question to me as a reader: if you did write a novella, would I be interested? I would be, but, sadly, I just don't have the time to read that much. I'm already spending more time on here than I've got.
Now, time for a major compliment - the narrative runs you're doing now are GREAT. Your sense of humour, delivery, and the way you pepper in strategic analysis are absolutely amazing. Thanks for sharing them. To that end, and as for my above opinion on the difficulty of novelizing an old run, if anyone could do it, it's you.
A party of bards would be awesomesauce. John, Paul, George, and Ringo???
As for your question to me as a reader: if you did write a novella, would I be interested? I would be, but, sadly, I just don't have the time to read that much. I'm already spending more time on here than I've got.
Now, time for a major compliment - the narrative runs you're doing now are GREAT. Your sense of humour, delivery, and the way you pepper in strategic analysis are absolutely amazing. Thanks for sharing them. To that end, and as for my above opinion on the difficulty of novelizing an old run, if anyone could do it, it's you.
A party of bards would be awesomesauce. John, Paul, George, and Ringo???
Alesia_BH
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Agreed. I'd need to do a proper novelization, and yes, it would be difficult.
My primary interest is in finishing Arcadia's story. That one had potential. The plan would be to do Alisa first, as a way of getting into practice. I'd then proceed to Arcadia. It is a major undertaking, but the process could be rewarding in and of itself. I've always wanted to get into fiction writing, at least in an amateurish sort of way, and a couple of BG inspired novella could be a good way to start.
Thanks. I definitely don't intend to abandon the style I've used in Alena's run. My writing has been extremely inconsistent over the years, but what you're seeing in Alena's run is in essence what I've been doing throughout my BG career. A little bit of story, a little bit of humor, and a little bit of tactics is a good formula.
If I did the four bard run, I'd use my usual style, the style you're seeing in Alena's run. As mentioned, it would be Silke, Raelis Shai, Haer'Dalis and my jester, Alisa. I might also consider doing four jesters. Reviewing Alisa'a run reminded me that the jester song is massively underrated. It would be interesting to see what four jesters could do.
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Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: The Underdark, Part 3- The Kuo-Toan Prince
I'm sorry everyone. I accidentally deleted this post's most important screenshot. I'm going to ask you to picture it instead.
It's the Spelljammer beholder encounter. The party is invisible, with the exception of Aerie. With her Blade Barrier up, under haste, Aerie strides forward, brimming with confidence. The beholder arrives. Aerie, who had pre-cast Polymorph Self and Spell Shield, flips to jelly form. You can guess what happened next. Jelly slicer reigns supreme.
Minsc isn't one for envy. He doesn't have it in him. Still, he has watched his witch triumph in solo mission after solo mission. Meanwhile, he hasn't gone solo since those early undead encounters. Not to worry, Minsc, we have a job for you. Ready?
We let Minsc and his Simmy take down the earth elementals. With the Simmy engaging, under RoAC II + Ilbratha MI, the real Minsc was free to flank, free from harm.
If you're wondering why we haven't used Simmy Minsc more, the answer is simple: we don't need him and he's dangerous. Simmy Minsc may be a low level knockoff of the real Minsc, but he still has Ages and boots of speeds. That makes him a potential nuisance if charmed or confused. In major fights I could see us freeing up a CC for Simmy Minsc. We'll see.
Simmy Minsc is gone now. Minsc should be running Ilbratha MI, but I haven't debugged it yet, and a magic resistance check failed once again. Sorry, buddy, you'll have to make due with the Defender and AoF.
Of course we can do more, if you're willing to accept a little help from your witch. Improved Invisibility? Defensive Harmony? Haste? What will it be? And no, sorry: we don't have an Improved Haste memorized.
A team player at core, Minsc invited everyone to join in for the fire elementals. Are you sure, buddy? This is your moment. I'm pretty sure Jaheira would appreciate a little front line action, though. It's been a minute since she's led the way.
Onto the Kuo-Toans. Sorry, Jaheira, these blokes can put up a fight. The ToD will take point.
As for you, Minsc. Don't worry, you'll get your turn. Once their lines are broken, and they're running in fear of Aerie's horror, you can feel free to charge in.
Jaheira, chucking sling bullets, is tagged with a MAA sequencer. She doesn't have Shield of the Archon yet, and we gave the Book of Infinite Spells to Alena, granting her room for two Firestorms. II is useless against Kuo-Toans, unless you have SI: D.
The ToD gets the finish. Jaheira, burning from acid, has a valid question: If I'm going to get hurt back here, why can't I get hurt up front? Fine, Jaheira, you'll get your moment. We promise
Ok, Jaheira. Heal up and get ready.
Jaheira charges ahead, Alena, running Holy Power + Righteous Magic + Boon of Lathander, joins her. Meanwhile, Haer'Dalis and Minsc cover our back. Haer'Dalis's Pixie Prick does good work here. It'll do even better work once Haer'Dalis has the Bracers of Blinding Strike.
Time for the main event. Alena brings her Firestorms. Jaheira, taking the lead once again, charges ahead to poison the tadpoles.
Haer'Dalis and Minsc wail away on the prince, while Alena unleashes her second Firestorm. Hurry up with those tadpoles, Jaheira, these fishy-fishes are dying quick.
Down goes the prince.
Minsc and Jaheira finish off the captain while Haer'Dalis, late to the party, looks on. Jaheira is injured again, but she's glad to have played her part.
Once we collected the Prince's blood, my first impulse was to head back to Ust'Natha. I changed my mind when I noticed the pathway to the Underdark exit, and was reminded of OrlonKronsteen's recent fight there. Maybe we should take them all down now? At the very least we could try separating the demons, to make life easier later on.
My intention here was to fight a textbook battle, as an example for OrlonKronsteen. I failed in that utterly and completely, on account of a super-silly mistake.
We took our buffs and sent the ToD up ahead. She's heading in the wrong direction at this very moment, but she'll figure it out soon enough. Note the glabrezu Remove, destined to bounce off of SI:A. So far so good.
With the ToD on point, drawing Removes and aggro, the rest of the party is free to approach. The ToD launches a Malison. Haer'Dalis follows by activating his harp. Alena calls Firestorm one. We're looking good, but Imoen's Secret Word isn't coming out. Hurry up, Immy. We need to take down that Spell Shield, stat.
The ToD finishes off the glabrezus while Alena releases Firestorm two, devastating the resistance. By now only the mage and priestess, both buffed with ProFire are standing. The mage has lasted longer than expected because Imoen never got her Secret Word off. Eventually we just gave up and had Haer'Dalis take down the Spell Shield. Meanwhile, Aerie is Breaching the drow priestess, exposing her to the Firestorm. This has been a sloppy fight, but we still haven't taken any damage, so I guess I can't complain. The drow wizard launches a Remove at Alena, with Jaheira and Minsc nearby. Haer'Dalis is rocking Chill Touch, so he can get over a mantle, if the mage chooses to use one. Damn it, Imoen, where are you? Your Secret Word moment has passed, but we need a Spell Thrust now. We've been banking on your turn on Abjuration duty and you've disappointed us over an over again, what's up?
Alena and Jaheira are dispelled. They quaff their invisibility potions and withdraw. This is your fault, Imoen. That mage should have been Breached by now. As for you, Minsc, your buffs survived. With the glabrezus dead, and the mage's Remove tapped, you're free to fight, just be smart about it. This should be a no injury encounter.
With the priestess neutralized, if not dead, Aerie turned her attention to the mage, launching a Spell Thrust doing Imoen's work for her. Meanwhile, Alena starts rebuffing so she can get back into the fight. This isn't funny anymore. Where are you, Imoen?
We finally land our Breach on the mage. It's insane that it took this long.
How's the rebuffing going, Alena? And wait a second, is that Imoen? What the hell, Immy! Why are you there?
Truth be told I had seen Imoen earlier. She was just so far away that I couldn't bring her into the action. I'm not entirely sure what happened to her, but here's my best guess. I found her in the tainted tadpole area, all the way back by the entrance. I think the walkway had been blocked by bodies when I gave her that opening Secret Word command, and she auto-walked back to the tadpoles, hoping to get around.
The drow wizard falls asleep, a victim of his long dead efreeti's lingering Stinking Cloud. This is your chance, Minsc. Get in there.
Nicely done, Minsc. We knew we could count on you.
By the time Imoen finally arrives, all that remains is the drow priestess, who had kept herself alive with healing spells and a lack of threatening actions.
Alena, who had re-engaged by now, was hoping to get the kill with her Sol's Searing Orb. Alas, Haer'Dalis beat her to it. We emerge unscathed but this was a super inefficient fight, on account of the Imoen debacle. One against many is fine, six against many is fine, too. Five against many when you think you have six isn't so great.
Best,
A.
I'm sorry everyone. I accidentally deleted this post's most important screenshot. I'm going to ask you to picture it instead.
It's the Spelljammer beholder encounter. The party is invisible, with the exception of Aerie. With her Blade Barrier up, under haste, Aerie strides forward, brimming with confidence. The beholder arrives. Aerie, who had pre-cast Polymorph Self and Spell Shield, flips to jelly form. You can guess what happened next. Jelly slicer reigns supreme.
Minsc isn't one for envy. He doesn't have it in him. Still, he has watched his witch triumph in solo mission after solo mission. Meanwhile, he hasn't gone solo since those early undead encounters. Not to worry, Minsc, we have a job for you. Ready?
We let Minsc and his Simmy take down the earth elementals. With the Simmy engaging, under RoAC II + Ilbratha MI, the real Minsc was free to flank, free from harm.
Simmy Minsc is gone now. Minsc should be running Ilbratha MI, but I haven't debugged it yet, and a magic resistance check failed once again. Sorry, buddy, you'll have to make due with the Defender and AoF.
My intention here was to fight a textbook battle, as an example for OrlonKronsteen. I failed in that utterly and completely, on account of a super-silly mistake.
We took our buffs and sent the ToD up ahead. She's heading in the wrong direction at this very moment, but she'll figure it out soon enough. Note the glabrezu Remove, destined to bounce off of SI:A. So far so good.
The drow wizard falls asleep, a victim of his long dead efreeti's lingering Stinking Cloud. This is your chance, Minsc. Get in there.
Best,
A.
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Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: The Underdark, Part 4
Back to Ust'Natha we go. We accept Phaere's eggs and Solaufein's. Aerie was tasked with the heist because of course she was. With Sanctuary and SI: D, success was guaranteed.
Since I have a long history of muffing up the dragon egg quest, sometimes intentionally and sometimes not, I don't believe I've ever seen this dialogue from Imoen. In any case, House Despana falls, and we get the rock out of dodge. The Ring of Spell Turning gives us another Breach stopper and we're happy about that.
We're ready Adalon: Let's do this.
Huh? Will you look at that? The way is clear. Even better, Alena has reached Level 19, one level above the Remove of the demon knights. Perfect timing.
It's tempting to leave now, but we still have work to do. We need the Greenstone Amulet and Soul Reaver, at least.
Let's start with the beholder hive. We tried to use a jelly slicer in the opening battle. That didn't work as expected. Contrary to my expectations based on recent reports, Spell Shield is dispelled by anti-magic ray in my install. The beholder still had little hope against the jelly, but anti-magic ray swept away Aerie's Blade Barrier. Bummer. Bummer, I say.
With no means of stopping anti-magic ray, we ended up clearing the hive with skeleton warriors. This is precisely why I've always preferred the original Spell Shield/Anti-Magic Ray interaction. Spell Shield's persistence under Anti-Magic Ray may feel cheesy to some, but when it is removed from the game, the player is nudged into even cheesier tactics, like cowering behind skeleton warriors. Beholders are cheesy enemies that require cheesy solutions. Of the available solutions, building a buff brew anchored by Spell Shield is among the most satisfying. I'd rather do that than this.
The hive went smoothly, for the most part, but there was one panic inducing moment. While Aerie was ahead shepherding the skellies, a group of mind flayers planar traveled back to the unbuffed party. Thanks to Free Action Protects Against Stun we had an effective option here, potion of freedom quaffs. Still, this was one of the sketchiest moments of the run. Prior to this I had been debating whether to do the mind flayer city. After witnessing this aggressive, far behind the lines use of planar travel, I decided to take a pass. I don't trust myself to protect a full party from Detonate and Ballistic Attack, not right now. I need to work on my SCS mind flayer party tactics first.
With the Greenstone Amulet in hand, and the mind flayer control circlets now off our radar, it was time for the demon knights. With Alena at level 19, I was hopeful that Jaheira, Minsc and Alena's buffs would survive the Remove onslaught. No dice, I'm afraid. Jaheira, Minsc and Alena were dispelled, leaving it all up to the SI:A kids again.
Here we see Alena inching forward again, running minimal buffs, reapplied in the hallway. Meanwhile Imoen, Haer'Dalis and the ToD do the heavy lifting.
With limited engagement from Alena, Minsc and Jaheira, the demon knights stay on the field long enough to outlast ProMW. Our arcane front line has been compromised, but by now there is only one demon knight left, and his spells have been spent.
The last demon knight falls, but we're not proud of our performance. I may do this battle again as a side experiment- I'm not satisfied with how I handled it.
With Soul Reaver in hand, we head for the surface. Classic battle plan here. The ToD leads the way, opening with an Abjuration assault on the mage.
Haer'Dalis follows with Malison while Alena preps her Firestorm.
With the Breach threat neutralized, Minsc and Jaheira advance. Having spent his Malison, and with the rest of his book unneeded, Haer'Dalis activates Tensor's.
No injuries so far as we move on to the next room. The ToD's Blade Barrier is looking fierce.
Jaheira is using her sling in this fight because we didn't bother to get her Ironskins up. Now that she's wearing the Girdle of Frost Giant Strength her sling bullets are deadly.
Aerie's Blade Barrier clears the way. Bodhi awaits.
Best,
A.
Back to Ust'Natha we go. We accept Phaere's eggs and Solaufein's. Aerie was tasked with the heist because of course she was. With Sanctuary and SI: D, success was guaranteed.
Let's start with the beholder hive. We tried to use a jelly slicer in the opening battle. That didn't work as expected. Contrary to my expectations based on recent reports, Spell Shield is dispelled by anti-magic ray in my install. The beholder still had little hope against the jelly, but anti-magic ray swept away Aerie's Blade Barrier. Bummer. Bummer, I say.
Best,
A.
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Alesia_BH
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Alena, Halfling Priest of Lathander, Canon Party Run: A Side Battle for Funsies
In my last post I mentioned that I wasn't satisfied with our performance against the demon knights. I also said I might try it again, as an experiment. Guess what: I did. That's what this post is about. Here's another take on the demon knight fight. It's also a preview of Imoen's tactical destiny.
Ok. Let's do this. Wish the demon knights luck. They need it. Imoen, the Disco Infiltrator, is coming for them.
Speaking of which, since this is Imoen's first time in the spotlight, let's get her theme song pumping.
We take our buffs. Alena, Jaheira and Minsc wait in the hallway because they don't have SI:A and this battle isn't going to last long. Aerie triggers the encounter with Kitthix. Here they come. ProMW, everyone.
Haer'Dalis charges the closest demon knight, while Aerie summons her Blade Barrier. Imoen is casting Limited Wish. The djinni arrives. Imoen selects a one time wish.
Pre-buffed with a potion of insight, Imoen gets the best options, including I wish for control over time.
The Imoen's Time Stop begins. She opens by casting Mislead.
Say hello to six backstabs per round under Time Stop, demon knights. One down.
Two.
And there's three, with the fourth soon to follow. The damage will be much better later in the game, when Imoen has BBoD.
Time resumes. Nice work, Imoen. Now clear out. The ToD will take it from here.
And done! Nice work, everyone. Especially you, Imoen. It's good to have you back.
Best,
A.
NW: When I do these side experiments, I always do them after the official no reload battle. I've never liked the parallel save method and I don't use it. I am, however, open to using my NR challenge saves to practice for future runs.
In my last post I mentioned that I wasn't satisfied with our performance against the demon knights. I also said I might try it again, as an experiment. Guess what: I did. That's what this post is about. Here's another take on the demon knight fight. It's also a preview of Imoen's tactical destiny.
Ok. Let's do this. Wish the demon knights luck. They need it. Imoen, the Disco Infiltrator, is coming for them.
Speaking of which, since this is Imoen's first time in the spotlight, let's get her theme song pumping.
We take our buffs. Alena, Jaheira and Minsc wait in the hallway because they don't have SI:A and this battle isn't going to last long. Aerie triggers the encounter with Kitthix. Here they come. ProMW, everyone.
Best,
A.
NW: When I do these side experiments, I always do them after the official no reload battle. I've never liked the parallel save method and I don't use it. I am, however, open to using my NR challenge saves to practice for future runs.
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