powerful spells

[Rockstar]

hey guys,

there sounds like there are many solo magic users in this forum and i'd like to know what are some of the most valuable, powerful spells in the game? maybe break your answer into two sections (for low level and high level mages)

also, what are some great spell tactics that can be used with spells and how they can be combined or used in combos.

Thanks

[Bozos of Bones]

Well now, low-level mages are not complete without Chromatic Orb. Next comes the Skull Trap as it has the same radius as a fireball, but almost nobody in the game has slashing resistance over 5%, while fire resistance is very often found. And it doesn't have a maximum danage, as opposed to the Fireball's 10d6. Next to all the sequencers and contingencies, we have the one and only Abi Dalzim's Horrid Wilting, which has a potential to do more damage than a Meteor Strike or a Red Dragon's Breath. Timestop is a must have, and Improved Alacrity really helps in Timestops(imagine bombarding an area with 9 Skull Traps in 1 second). Banshee's Wail is also cool .
Other effect spells include the Dispell, Spell Thrust, Magic Resistance(with which you only need to cast one Lower Resistance), Lower Resistance, Greater Malison(one of the most usefull spells in the game) and the Symbol/Power Word: Stun. Summons are rarely usefull for anything but drawing fire, and I almost never invest in those.
Also mind that this is only the arcane list of spells, the divine also has some nicities. Not as near as mages, but some are nice(like the amazing no-save Implosion).

[solace in fire]

From my experience with the spells of the game, I'd rank the following as crucial (mage spells, since I don't know much about priest spells):


Lvl 1 - The only absolute-must spell is Magic Missile. It deals about as much damage as a solid hit from Minsc with a Two-Handed Sword would do, and it has a really fast casting time. Other spells that are good are Spook (to scare enemies) and Chromatic Orb (can instant kill, does elemental damage, etc). Identify is also important.


Lvl 2 - Detect Invisibility is important, because you can't target enemy casters with spells if they are invisible, and this gets really annoying. If you are soloing a caster, get Invisibility--- if you are in a group, don't, and get the level 3 spell Invisibility 10 Radius. Melf's Acid Arrow is a good offensive spell. Mirror Image is an excellent defensive spell. Web is good in conjunction with Area-of-Effect spells (like Fireball and Cloudkill), and Strength is good for buffing up party members.

Lvl 3 - Dispel Magic is crucial. It can remove negative magical effects on party members, and remove positive effects on enemies. It is a lot more versitile than Remove Magic, but Remove Magic has the advantage of you not risking dispelling all the beneficial buffs on your party. Fireball is a powerful offensive damaging spell. Flame Arrow is highly damaging as well, but doesnt affect an area. Haste is an absolute MUST if you are in a group--- the benefits are too numerous to mention.

Lvl 4 - GREATER MALISON! Reducing your enemies saves is such a great advantage! Minor Sequencer is very good as well, as it lets to basically get a few extra spell slots. But perhaps the best spell this level is Stoneskin. No mage should be without it.

Lvl 5 - Animate Dead. It isn't so great to begin with, but at Level 15, you can summon a very powerful skeleton warrior. Breach cancels defensive magics like Stoneskin and Protection from Normal Weapons, which can get really annoying. Cloudkill is an extremely powerful offensive spell. You should get Lower Resistance, for fights with powerful enemies with resistances to different types of damage---it will be almost impossible to kill any Dragon without this spell. Sunfire is a better Fireball.

Lvl 6 - Chain Lightning is a much better version of Lightning. Contingency is an absolute MUST. True Sight is excellent as well.

Lvl 7 - Finger of Death in conjunction with a Greater Malison is an almost guarenteed instant kill...even if it doesn't, it will deal a good bit of damage. Limited Wish is so versatile, it is really worth getting. Mordenkainen's Sword is undeniably useful. Spell Sequencer gives extra spell slots.

Lvl 8 - Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting is an incredibly good area-of-effect offensive spell. Pierce Shield is a must as well, as it combines Lower Resistence with other dispelling effects. Spell Trigger can be the coolest spell in the game, as it allows you to mix-and-match so many different combinations of spells...

Lvl 9 - Imprisonment is excellent. But is isn't recommended to be used to defeat powerful enemies, because it gets rid of all of their loot, so you won't get all of the fancy equipment. Shapechange allows you to assume many interesting forms (it is a lot better than Polymorph Self). Spell Trap is a life-saver. Wish is really neat but not needed. But the most important spell in this level is TIME STOP. You must get that spell, as it virtually stops time for a duration, allowing you to do as you please while everyone else is frozen still!


~

I haven't gotten to Throne of Bhaal yet, so I can't comment on any of the Level 10 spells.

[Dundee Slaytern]

Originally posted by Bozos of Bones: ~~ Next comes the Skull Trap as it has the same radius as a fireball, but almost nobody in the game has FFFFFF">slashing resistance over 5%, while fire resistance is very often found.

That should be Magic Damage Resistance.

And it doesn't have a maximum danage, as opposed to the Fireball's 10d6.

It does. 20d6.

Summons are rarely usefull for anything but drawing fire, and I almost never invest in those.

Hmm... this is subjective. In some cases, summons can actually do all the work for you. The Skeleton Warrior for example, is an excellent summon against foes that only use unenchanted weapons( and this is often the case in SoA), lasts for over 8 hours, has many immunities and extremely high Magic Resistance.

The Mordenkanein Sword has a maximum duration of 2 turns, but during those 2 turns, 95% of your enemies will be hardpressed to even scratch it. Illithids will be sliced sushi if you unleash some hasted MSwords on them.

Early in the game, the Spawn Spider + Web combo is gold.

Come ToB, we have the Planetar. Immunity to unenchanted and +1 weapons, an impressive spell-list, a vorpal weapon, etc... ...

Finally, we have the most powerful summon of them all.
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The Bunny Nuke combo. Assuming only 20 bunnies( it can be much, much more), you can deal at least 480-3840 Magic Damage in a targeted area, with assorted 20-160 Magic Damage around the map in AREAXXXX. Cast this spell ONLY if you want everybody to die in AREAXXXX.

Also mind that this is only the arcane list of spells, the divine also has some nicities. Not as near as mages, but some are nice(like the amazing no-save Implosion).

Just a note that Magic Resistance is a Divine spell then, as you mentioned it above.

[Q'alooaith]

Melf Minute meators, or somthing like that is a must have spell..

I'm amazed no one has mentioned it, a bunch of stones that do elemental damage that strikes though stoneskins..

[solace in fire]

The use of Melf's Minute Meteors and Flame Arrow are virtually interchangeable... I guess its just a matter of preference.

[Dundee Slaytern]

Simply because this spell almost always gets ignored in "What Spells Must I Have?" kind of threads.

I present to you, FF0000">Emotion:Hopelessness( level 4 arcane spell, School of Enchantment). Many a battle can be won instantly by the quick usage of this spell.

It is party-friendly, area-of-effect and knocks most living things unconsicious. Strangely though, it is probably one of the most underrated( and underused) spells in the history of BG2.

Fights like the Guarded Compound will turn into a walkover if you use this spell. Koshi will be dreaming in la-la land along with his comrades as you stab them to death while they slumber.

Also, it is not only humans that are affected by this spell. Giants are affected too... creating some pretty funny scenerios in ToB. The actual list of affected creatures is quite huge. Some creatures who are immuned to Emotion are the Undead, Dragons , Golems, and Bosses.

To aid Emotion, which depends on saving throws, Greater Malison can be used. My favourite Spell Sequencer is a Greater Malison + Emotion + Slow combo. Very nasty.

[Illumina Drathiran'ar]

Originally posted by solace in fire: The use of Melf's Minute Meteors and Flame Arrow are virtually interchangeable... I guess its just a matter of preference.

Ah, but you can go to sleep with some Meteors equipped, and wake up the next morning ready to go, Meteors and Stoneskins in place.

[Dundee Slaytern]

Originally posted by solace in fire: The use of Melf's Minute Meteors and Flame Arrow are virtually interchangeable... I guess its just a matter of preference.

Not quite.

MMM: Creates a stack of +6 enchanted minute meteors in your weapon slot. You get 1 meteor per level of your caster, up to a maximum of 20 meteors. Each meteor weighs 1 pound, so be careful not to accidentally burden your Mage. Having MMM active also means that your Mage's Attacks per Round(ApR) is set to 5. This is much faster than your base ApR of 1.

As it is a weapon, MMM will ignore Magic Resistance. The damage of MMM is spilt into two. One physical, one fire. This is handy against enemy Mages as the physical damage removes stoneskins, while the fire damage bypasses it to disrupt their spellcasting. Only Protection from Magical Weapons will throughly protect an enemy Mage, as MMM can even bypass Absolute Immunity.

Be warned though, the fire damage of MMM can bounce off an enemy Mage's Spell Turning. Not the physical damage though.

FArrow: Magically creates one or more arrows( depending on your caster's level) which deals both physical and fire damage. At the maximum of 4 bolts, you can potentially deal 20-120dmg per shot, assuming that the enemy fails its' save and has no fire resistance. This makes FArrow as an useful instant assassination skill, as you can load up a Spell Sequencer with 3 of these babies.

FArrow however, can be blocked by the following,

Magic Resistance
(Minor) Globe of Invulnerability
(Minor) Spell Deflection
(Minor) Spell Turning
Spell Trap
Spell Immunity:Conjuration

Not to mention that certain creatures are just simply immuned to level 3 spells.

[Q'alooaith]

Shhh, don't tell everyone about emtion..

I first found out about it when playing an enchanter for the first time..

other highly underated spell's are grease, and to a much lesser degree sleep..

Another powerfull if very cheesy spell is freedom, coupled with imprisonment you can start raking in the xp.. but that's kinda cheating..