I just killed the shadow dragon by setting about 10 traps in its circle. When I shot it with an arrow the traps were sprung and the Dragon was Near Death. It only took another shot or two with arrows to kill it off. How many of you consider this tactic to be cheating? I don't because if I was really facing a dragon and could set traps to kill it and make my life easier, then that's what I would do.

Domer

Not cheating at all and good for you ! http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...iles/smile.gif

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I refer to these types of strategies as "legal cheats" -- items in the game that allow for an easy victory.

I look at it like this. The developers made the game playable. Traps make some victories possible. When I played solo as a first level theif (after dualling from a mage), traps saved my hide on more than one occasion. There are several battles that I could not have won if it weren't for traps.

On the other hand, using traps every time you meet a tough opponent really makes the game boring quickly. If you can kill a dragon every time by setting 10 traps, what's the thrill of killing a dragon? For variety, and personal satisfaction, I have tried other strategies after killing the dragon with traps the first time through. The most fun was lower resitance followed by 15 magic missle spells.

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Other legal cheats would include:
1)Drinking many potions of thievery and then buying and selling from thieve's merchants.
2)Having a high reputation and high charisma and selling and buying from the Priestess in the Underwater City (she sells lower than she buys).
3)Using a Wand of Cloudkill on an unseen opponent.

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"The supreme irony of life is that no one gets out of it alive." Job: A Comedy of Justice

[This message has been edited by Father Bronze (edited 03-15-2001).]

it is not cheating, but it is a bug. the dragon was like:" ohh... the hell they doing?? ahhh, I see, they are setting traps around me, so I will die later. hmm, pretty smart."

In the case of the *shadow dragon*, I wouldn't consider it cheating because of the wardstone. If you have the wardstone, he can't see you...so technically you could probably set traps w/out him noticing. I wish that I'd thought of that!http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...es/biggrin.gif

I kind of thought it was curious that if you shoot at a friendly character they turn hostile, but if you surround them with traps at there feet, they don't seem to view that as a hostile action towards them. Maybe they think you are just setting them up to proctect them... anyway. I shall search for new ways to beat dragons because it is too easy and makes the game boring to use the same tactics everytime, especially this one.

use wand of cloud kill on unseen opponent is DEFINATELY not a cheat, not even legal cheat.

If I am an adventure, and I saw my enemy just "vanished" in front of my eyes, my first reaction is to predict where he could be and throw a cloud kill there. it is not cheating

I agree, sort of.

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I used that exact strategy when trying to kill Neb. He vanished. I cast cloudkill (since I didn't have any dispel invisibility or true sight spells handy) and fireball until I had taken him out.

However, it is too easy to use cloudkill. Dragons for example. If you know where the dragon is (after say -- reloading) you can go up, just outside of sight and cast cloudkill into the fog of war. Do this 8-10 times and the dragon dies. I guess on higher difficulties, the dragon will run out of the cloud, but on the normal setting he/she just sits there and chokes to death -- every time.



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"The supreme irony of life is that no one gets out of it alive." Job: A Comedy of Justice

yes, that is just a design flaw. heh, you can CERTAINLY try this strategy in IWD: heart of winter. you will end up having a dozen dragons on your tail... http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...iles/smile.gif

i've just saved after killing the shadow dragon but i shot a wand of cloudkill into fog of war, then beat the sh*te out of him and am not sure if i can justifie this as not cheating or not

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Bruce The Aussie, Camp Barbarian Hunter OHF

Naw. You just softened him up a bit.

thanks (my consence feels better about it know)

Legal cheats? What has the world come to?? Better change the "c" word with "techniques", it is not really cheating if it is in the game. It is more like taking advantage of loop holes in the game. http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...es/biggrin.gif

P.S. "It is not cheating unless you get caught!!" http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...miles/wink.gif

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Long live H22A1!!!!!

250, I agree with you on that one mate!
I've never used it on a dragon though, but there is one situation in the dungeon in the Windspear hills where it always saves my hide. I don't want to spoil anyone though, but I consider it a tactic, not even a 'legal' cheat!

Wands of Cloudkill ROCK!

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Time is an illusion. Lunchtime doubly so.

Know I once too battled dragons honarably.

Then I noticed the *$#*&#@#*%$# thing was casting stoneskin on himself.

I realized that the kid gloves were off then. This was WAR!

Still, setting traps is kinda cheep. So is that cleric spell, magic resistence. But hay, all is fair in love and war right?

I would suggest trying to kill a boss the honarable (hard) way first, and if that don't work then cheep him. No enjoyment out of a game that is too easy to win.

I cheep shotted Jon in his lab on the aslium with six magic missles cast from 3 differant sequenced mages. Teach him to walk about without propper protection. He left in such a hurry he didn't even bother to send "us" in. Cheep? Youbetcha, but he had it comming.



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--Kellin da Mage--

I think all is fair with the shadow dragon. You do have the wardstone after all. I think Firkag or Adalon (sp? the silver dragon) should preemtively attack if you set a trap or do the magic resistance trick. They can see you set the trap and if you cast magic resistance, they should "sense" it and realize that you are up to no good. Actually, I think even the shadow dragon would notice that and realize it was a prelude to an attack by an unseen enemy: stoneskin and wing buffet time. If I were Black Isle, I would have fixed that in the patch if it were not too difficult.

When I have fought Firkag (or the shadow dragon), I hastened my cleric and cast magic resistance RIGHT before unleaching my magic attacks. I feel this maked it fairer in that the dragon should turn red when my cleric pulls that stunt. I just force it. The haste helps my cleric (sometimes) clear out fast.

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- Cayle

Taking advantage of a deficiency in the game engine isn't considered cheating. It's what's called a "cheesy solution". http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...iles/smile.gif It's pretty much a judgment call - everyone has their own standard of when a solution stops being creative and becomes cheesy. For example staying out of range to cast cloudkill on a dragon is fine in my opinion because that is a reasonably valid form of attack. But by just standing there and choking to death while you cast 5 consecutive cloudkill spells makes it a cheesy solution because it is unrealistic for a dragon to just stand there. But who cares anyway? It's your choice, as long as you enjoy the game. http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...iles/smile.gif


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http://www.angelfire.com/anime2/memnoch/genwalk.gif Memnoch - Custodian of the Order of the Holy Flame http://www.angelfire.com/anime2/memnoch/fire3.gif

I agree. The part about Entangle/Web/Stinking Cloud spells not making enemies hostile makes it too easy (especially with groups of adventurers like in the Promenade inn or the group in the sewers). But until they fix it, "Computer Error in your favour"

Mmmmm... I love cheese... http://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...es/biggrin.gifhttp://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...es/biggrin.gifhttp://www.tgeweb.com/ironworks/cgi-...es/biggrin.gif

For those who just have to ease their mind about traps, set them outside the dragon's vision and lure it to them, thats not cheating, thats an ambush.

I DID IT! I finally beat firkrag woo hoo! the best part is i found out running up to him and pounding the sh*te out of him works. i actually found the cloudkill thing didn't work because he kept healing himself. yay for me.

I keep meaning to try that traps thing, I even upped Yoshimo's ability to 95%, but what did I do? Nooo, I had to go and haste my Cavalier and Kensai/mage and Draw Upon a Little Holy Might while I was invisilble and I accidentally sliced up Red Man before I rememberd to try it. Oops.

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and the flaming sword turning every way, guards the tree of life.

remeber there is only ONE wardstone, so the shadowdragon is likely to avoid ONE guy who carries it than everyone else. he should certainly see your party members