can a thief backstab with a short sword or long sword?
when i click on the attack icon it sais "leaving shadows" does the backstab mod
work then?

IIRC the thief needs a piercing weapon to backstab, so a short sword could do it but not a long sword. Not sure, though.

A backstab can be made with any melee weapon from the thief list, but ONLY melee weapons from the thief list because a backstab must be a melee attack
IF memory serves this means a backstab can be made with clubs, daggers, long swords, short swords, quarterstaff and katanas.
Has anyone ever tried to backstab with a quarterstaff?

If it's melee and a theif can equip it, then he/she can backstab with it.

Yes, and it will work, although Memnoch has disagreed with me on this in the past. The only thing is that the staff must be usable by a single class thief - MU/thieves can't backstab with the Staff of the Magi, for example.

"stabbing" is a word that has something to do with sharp pointed objects. In IWD, I usually give my thief a dagger to use in stabbing. most daggers have the ability to multiple the damage of stabbing, which means that they are for that purpose. definitely it's so ridiculous to backstap using a quarterstaff... I prefer knocking it on a stupid skull.

Whar are the pre-requisites to a successful backstab?

1. Thief must be stealthed or invisible.
2. Thief must be behind the victim.
3. Thief must use a melee weapon that a single-class thief would be able to use.
4. Have I left out anything?

Is it possible for a thief who fulfils the conditions above, miss the backstab but stillhit the target (ie does onyl normal damage)? Or would a successful hit be an automatic backstab?

What about backstab with Carsomyr +6??

Carsomyr +6 is not a weapon that a thief can use unless he has use any item , and that doesn't count for backstabbing.

Actually, the Staff of the Magi is a valid Backstab weapon--all Staves are. It's the type of weapon, not the weapon itself, that must be usable by a true-class Thief.

Weapon types not usable by Thieves (Axe, Mace, Halberd) cannot be used to Backstab. If you're a Fighter/Thief and you try to Backstab with a Bastard Sword, you'll get the message "Your weapon is not suitable for Backstab." Even if you use the Assassination ability, you get the same message.

I've heard that in BG2 without ToB installed, Stalkers were able to Backstab with any weapon, even 2-Handed Swords. This was corrected in ToB, however.

Have you actually tested this out? I agree, the Staff of the Magi should be a valid backstab weapon; unfortunately, the game's programmers did not make it one. To make sure, I created a MU/thief, started him up in the first dungeon, cheated a Staff of the Magi into his hands, and had him try to backstab a goblin. Sure enough, I got the "Your weapon is not suitable for Backstab" message. The programmers' backstab criteria are whether or not the specific weapon is usable by a single class thief.

Carsomyr +6 is not a weapon that a thief can use unless he has use any item , and that doesn't count for backstabbing.</font>[/QUOTE]But....wait....what if the thief is, say, a frost giant and he's hiding in some really big shadows and he's using Carsomyr like a dagger ---- could he backstab then? :D :D :D

....Just remembering the item description for Joril's Dagger. Now it's time to take my meds [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 09-04-2002, 09:16 PM: Message edited by: Desuma Malevois ]

Desuma Malevois, Actually unless that particular frost giant is a multi-class paladin thief it isn't going to happen. Actually that is just why it won't happen. 1)Paladins must be human. 2)Paladins cannot dual or multi-class in any way whatsoever. 3)In short, you would have to hack up your character to the extreme to make this even a slight possibility.
In other words it is not technically possible.

The answer to the earlier question about "can a backstab be successful but still do normal damage" the answer is no. The backstab modifier gets higher with levels- at low level, a backstab does double or triple damage and at a very high level it does 7x damage IIRC.

Oh lighten up. The comment was made as a joke. If you're gonna split hairs, let's consider this:
Let's assume for a moment that we're no longer in BG-land but in DND proper. After all, that's the only way to play a frost giant.

1) Paladins can be of any race as long as they're LG.
2)Paladins can dual and multiclass just like any other class. The only class I can think of that requires total devotion is the Monk.

Ask a funny rhetorical question, get a straight answer :D

Of course, one could also say that it would be impossible to play a frost giant thief because there is no way he'd fit through the doors of the first dungeon. He'd probably starve to death. :D

Thank you for your reply, Firestormalpha; I truly appreciate your spirit of helpfulness [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 09-04-2002, 11:05 PM: Message edited by: Desuma Malevois ]

<font color="lightblue">AFAIK, that is in 3rd Edition. 2e Paladins must be human, and can`t dual or multi.
I *think*- don`t quote me on this ;) </font>

I just stuck with a shortsword and a shortbow with my assasin and had no trouble killing/backstabbing. Poison blade works on the arrows too so you can deal with mages easily.

Warby

Illumina just back off already. When you respond to my posts it's like a disease has entered the area. You're are infectiously grumpy. My own posts are hardly ever serious, and usually are intended to match the mood. I just happen to use my own cynical humor sometimes. Get over this little personal vendetta you seem to have against me.

yes, there is more proof that only single class-thief usable weapons can be used to backstab, Valygar's sword will not allow a backstab, as it is not usable by a single class thief.

about the backstab multiplier, assassins are the only subclass of thief that can get a x7

otherwise it is x2 for lvl 1-4
x3 for lvl 5-8
x4 for lvl 9-12
x5 for lvl 13+

also, if we were talking about standard AD&D, and not BG, then paladins CAN dual-class, as long as they have 15 in strength and charisma (17 chr is minimum) and they can go to any class allowed by their alignment, ie no bard, druid, thief, etc., or another class can dual class into a paladin (usually requires special dm permission, and judgement as to whether the character has acted in a consistent manner with his alignment throughout his entire adventuring career), as long as he has a 15 in the primary attributes of his previous class, and a 17 str, and chr, although strictly by the rules he could not dual class from a fighter-type class to another (he couldn't go from a ranger or fighter to a paladin, despite what Salvatore allowed Drizzt to do) His powers would remain usable in either case as long as he stayed true to his character's code of honor that the paladin class held on to, but breaking from it would have the normal results. and yes according to the rules the monk is the only class that cannot dualclass at all.

also interesting to note is that one Faerun(forgotten realms) rangers and druids are compatible for multiclassing by 1/2elves, and elves. And in Krynn(dragonlance) elves and 1/2elves are allowed to become paladins, but not solamnic knights.

just one more before I go... according to AD&D 2nd edition rules holy swords (ie Carsomyr) CAN be used by any class, but they are only +2 weapons in the hands of non-paladins, so even a thief with use any item would only have Carsomyr+6 as a +2 two-handed sword without any of the spiffy zestiness that makes it sooooo much fun.

Hi, Firestormalpha!

I'm not sure what the history is between Illumina and you, having just begun reposting here after a layoff of several months, but let me say that I wasn't quite sure myself whether or not you were being serious in the post in question. My own sense of humor sometimes has the same effect on people. You should have seen the brouhaha that happened here when I started the KFA thread as a joke. Oy ve!

At any rate, perhaps the use of smilies might help? [img]smile.gif[/img]

If you could backstab with the Staff of Magi ... that would be too power full!!! Imagine doing a backtab, than going invisible before your foes even know what happened and doing it again!!!

I just discovered a nice spell for any Thief-Mage. MISLEAD rules (until someone casts True Sight). You will become invisible and can backstab as many times as you want (as long as you do it from behind) without any need to hide in shadows. Your enemies will go after your misleaded image so you should be able to hit them easily from behind.

Really the staff is a powerful tool for backstabbing, anyway. All you really have to do is get behind the victim with the staff, pause the game, go to the inventory screen, replace the staff with an appropriate weapon, backstab, pause again, go to inventory, re-equip the staff, rinse and repeat.

I really like that trick with the Mislead spell. Thanks for sharing it [img]smile.gif[/img]