Ironworks Gaming Forum - View Single Post

LennonCook · 01-03-2003, 10:25 PM

I personally like Aerie alot... a Mage and a Cleric in one; The Robe of Vecna and Amullette of Power seem to affect her priest spells aswell.
Only thing with Aerie is - do not *ever* use her as a tank. But, she isn`t strictly necesary. Keep her if you want a secondary mage and Cleric.

Edwin is *the* best NPC Mage in the game (despite his lack of Divination spells - True Sight and Identify), but give the spell casting time improvement items to your secondary mage (if you have one). Edwin is also a *decent* tank; if you must send a Mage into melee (not recomended), use Edwin + Staff of the Magi + Fireshield: Red. Then use another mage to fireball the distracted enemies... do *not* send Edwin into melee if he is your only mage.

In a party game, Druids are essential verse spell casters. Insect Plague is a must have. 100% spell casting failure = bye bye mages... if you launch it soon enough, IP seems to disrupt spell triggers aswell.
The only problem with this spell is that it is suceptable to Magic Resistance. Use your mages to cast Lower Resistance first against highly resistant boss-monsters. Dragons are spell casters, too

.
If you have the Shapeshifter rebalancing mod (part of the Ease-of-Use package), get Cernd. If not, Jaheira is better.
Only problem is, neither of them have a very well-developed character...

To make up for Edwin`s lack of True Sight, you need only one thing: Keldorn. Insta-casting true sight, insta-casting dispel magic at twice the power of the mage spell, and can wield Carsomyr.

What`s missing ?? A thief, and a cleric.
Jan is the best NPC thief in the game, bar maybe Yoshimo. He also makes a good backup Mage. If you don`t want Edwin because he`s Evil, use Jan as your Primary and Aerie as your secondary. If you do want Edwin, keep Jan as a thief, and Aerie isn`t realy necesary. (Improved) Invisible is good for Jan, because of backstabing. His only real problem is that he misses out on Necromancy spells - Death Spell, Albi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting, etc. He is still a good primary mage, but be wary of this loss of spells - if you use them alot, he shouldn`t be your only mage.

All that`s missing is a good Cleric. If you *realy* want one (the healing isn`t strictly necesary), then let`s look at the options:
Viconia - Evil, 2 rep loss for having her, and she fights with Keldorn. She`s the best NPC Cleric in the game, but not suited to this party.
Leaving, Anomen - badly made Character, bad quests... if you realy want a Cleric, just stick with Aerie.

So,
Protagonist, Edwin or Aerie, Jaheira or Cernd, Keldorn, Jan.

Mage, Druid, Tank (good tank once you get the gauntlets of dex), Thief, Backup mage, Cleric if you want one; and a bit of room for movement. Works with any class protagonist, and there`s an optional spot for a favourite NPC.

Want me to go into the weapons et al they`d use ??

[ 01-04-2003, 01:14 AM: Message edited by: LennonCook ]

01-03-2003, 10:25 PM	#5
LennonCook Jack Burton Join Date: November 10, 2001 Location: Bathurst & Orange, in constant flux Age: 38 Posts: 5,452	I personally like Aerie alot... a Mage and a Cleric in one; The Robe of Vecna and Amullette of Power seem to affect her priest spells aswell. Only thing with Aerie is - do not ever use her as a tank. But, she isn`t strictly necesary. Keep her if you want a secondary mage and Cleric. Edwin is the best NPC Mage in the game (despite his lack of Divination spells - True Sight and Identify), but give the spell casting time improvement items to your secondary mage (if you have one). Edwin is also a decent tank; if you must send a Mage into melee (not recomended), use Edwin + Staff of the Magi + Fireshield: Red. Then use another mage to fireball the distracted enemies... do not send Edwin into melee if he is your only mage. In a party game, Druids are essential verse spell casters. Insect Plague is a must have. 100% spell casting failure = bye bye mages... if you launch it soon enough, IP seems to disrupt spell triggers aswell. The only problem with this spell is that it is suceptable to Magic Resistance. Use your mages to cast Lower Resistance first against highly resistant boss-monsters. Dragons are spell casters, too . If you have the Shapeshifter rebalancing mod (part of the Ease-of-Use package), get Cernd. If not, Jaheira is better. Only problem is, neither of them have a very well-developed character... To make up for Edwin`s lack of True Sight, you need only one thing: Keldorn. Insta-casting true sight, insta-casting dispel magic at twice the power of the mage spell, and can wield Carsomyr. What`s missing ?? A thief, and a cleric. Jan is the best NPC thief in the game, bar maybe Yoshimo. He also makes a good backup Mage. If you don`t want Edwin because he`s Evil, use Jan as your Primary and Aerie as your secondary. If you do want Edwin, keep Jan as a thief, and Aerie isn`t realy necesary. (Improved) Invisible is good for Jan, because of backstabing. His only real problem is that he misses out on Necromancy spells - Death Spell, Albi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting, etc. He is still a good primary mage, but be wary of this loss of spells - if you use them alot, he shouldn`t be your only mage. All that`s missing is a good Cleric. If you realy want one (the healing isn`t strictly necesary), then let`s look at the options: Viconia - Evil, 2 rep loss for having her, and she fights with Keldorn. She`s the best NPC Cleric in the game, but not suited to this party. Leaving, Anomen - badly made Character, bad quests... if you realy want a Cleric, just stick with Aerie. So, Protagonist, Edwin or Aerie, Jaheira or Cernd, Keldorn, Jan. Mage, Druid, Tank (good tank once you get the gauntlets of dex), Thief, Backup mage, Cleric if you want one; and a bit of room for movement. Works with any class protagonist, and there`s an optional spot for a favourite NPC. Want me to go into the weapons et al they`d use ?? [ 01-04-2003, 01:14 AM: Message edited by: LennonCook ]