Yay! Did the whole thing on Insane too. I just exported my game into HoW, and I will pick that up later (it's almost 6 am here... I've been playing all night!).

Ny party is powerful, and I am having a ton of fun. That last battle was really tough!

About HoW: Going on that quest the Halfling proposes in the Inn in the start of TotLM, right? Should I go with him right away, or wait a while? If I wait, when should I go?

[ 01-15-2006, 06:00 AM: Message edited by: Klorox ]

I wouldn't advice going there right away, becuase your party is probably still of too low level, and once you go to TotLM there is no going back till you finish it.

You can go there anytime before going to S** O* M***** I**. Once you go to SOMI you can't go back and do ToTLM. I personally suggest doing it as late as possible; that is after finishing G****F****, but before SOMI.

I second ZFR's recommendation. When Hjollder asks you if he can take you across the SOMI, decline, then go with Hobart.

Edit: and congrats on finishing the main game [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

[ 01-15-2006, 04:29 PM: Message edited by: Aerich ]

I third the recomendation ;)

<font color = mediumspringgreen>Fourth.

But don't be too hasty to leave Lonelywood on you new grand adventure. Poke around town a bit...

EDIT: Oh, yes -----> CONGRAULATIONS!!!

</font>--------------------<font color = mediumspringgreen>
What's a party,
without a song?
Bards ROCK!
Party On!!
</font>

[ 01-31-2006, 10:29 AM: Message edited by: NobleNick ]

Absolutely...CONGRATS! I remember feeling a sense of achievement the first time I beat IWD! That last battle was a tough one for my bard and party.

I agree with the rest of the recommendations re: HoW etc! I did it the other way and never finished!

I remember IWD1 fondly. Probably my favourite IE game of all time. Many like BG1 and it was indeed great and all but IWD had more of a 'magic' feel to it. I guess what it lacked in 'magic' it made up for in depth.

I dub thee, necromancer of the three month old thread :D

It's like I just beat the game all over again! ;)

Hehe sorry, I'm not used to seeing 1+ month old threads on the first page. In the first 5 posts. Guess this bored is slow.

Hehe sorry, I'm not used to seeing 1+ month old threads on the first page. In the first 5 posts. Guess this bored is slow. </font>[/QUOTE]This board is bored.

Boring ....

Finally finished the game and expansions on Insane together with myg. The extra experience really makes a difference compared to my previous attempts (We've never played that far into the game on normal).

The party consisted of:
Human Paladin Longsword, Axe, Flail, Greatsword
Dwarf Fighter/Cleric Hammer, Flail, Mace, etc
Human Fighter(13)/Cleric 5 stars in Mace, 3 in sling
Elf Fighter/Thief Bow/Longsword/Spear
Human Bard (all weapons, but started with crossbow and shortsword)
Human Fighter(7)/Necromancer 3 stars in crossbow and greatsword

The multis reached about level 22-23, the bard maxed out, and the duals and the paladin reached the high 20s.

We completed IWD before moving to HOW and trials of the luremaster. The paladin and the two clerics acted as tanks, with the dualled cleric turning out to be the most effective defensive tank towards the end of the game (entropy shield!). Some turning points were when the necromancer got access to web, and when the clerics got entropy shield.

In the expansion (we were about level 15 by then) my bard and necromancer became more of direct damage spell casters, with lots of acid storms and death fogs/incendiary clouds between them. Death fog must be one of my favourite spells as it acts both as an immobilizer and a damage dealer.

Some observations:

The necromancer was the most effective killer throughout the game, but mainly picked up after starting to use direct damage spells.

Ranged weapons are really a lot more useful than in Baldurs Gate 2 due to the relative lack of enemies that require magical weapons to hit.

The toughest battles: The ogres in the orc cave (pre-web:(), Yxunomei, the final battle in vanilla, the accidental summoning of cornugons in trials of the Luremaster, and the Luremaster himself.

The most annoying enemy award is shared between Wailing virgins, those axe-throwing sentries in lower dorns, and beholders. Luckily (and cheesily) beholders stay put in a death fog if they havent seen you for long enough.

The final battle in HOW was way too easy the levels gained by the party after doing the game in this order, but on the other hand the Luremaster would have been way too tough for a lower level party...

It's ridiculous that I had to wait for burial isle for the second fireball scroll. I almost considered dalekeeping this fairly standard spell into the bards inventory. The only other spell I used and couldnt find for both arcane casters was death fog, but it would have been overpowered to have two casters of that...