Of Helm's Clerics & The Improved SoA Final Battle

[Dundee Slaytern]

This is a chance for all the Cleric lovers out there to crack their noggins for excellent/viable tactics against the Improved SoA Final Battle Mod.

First of all, I pose a few questions.

Which Tear Creature is not immuned to Harm or Fire Storm?

Bolt of Glory can harm the Sword of Greed. True or False?

Blade Barrier/Globe of Blades deals what kind of damage?

Symbol: Death will affect summons. True or False?

What is the saving throw penalty of Symbol: Stun?

What is the enchantment level of the Seeking Sword?

Can Devas cast Insect Plague?

In fact, what spells can the Deva cast?

Have fun!

[wally p]

spoilers
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I know the dragon of Pride is not immune to fire storm (I don't know if the others are not as well--but this is from Leslie's aragorn story).


I think that getting the wand of spellstriking from WK is absolutely mandatory before this fight. and Implosion will be your friend [img]smile.gif[/img] certainly will make it easier to deal with irenicus, etc.


bolt of glory shouldn't damage the sword of greed as it is magic damage for undead but missile damage for others (BG spell reference) and I'm not sure the sword counts as undead or demonic. it is also another magic-resistance bypasser, so it should be aimed at the wraith, who is undead, i believe--though Sol's Searing Orb might be a better bet if his MR isn't too high--because even if he makes his save, he takes 9d6 vs 8d6 from bolt of glory. And with HRD activated, the cleric's thac0 should be so insanely low so as to hit him automatically.


blade barrier, etc deals slashing damage.

Symbol: Death should force everything to make a save vs death if it currently has fewer than 60 hit points. might be convenient to get rid of some of the smaller helpers running around.

the stun penalty is -4 though I'm not sure how many enemies in the final battle are immune to hold effects. possibly none of them--who knows. However, a better tactical choice might be to go with earthquake which deals damage, affects a wider area, and requires 3 sequential saves at -6, -2, and no bonus or a hold effect and a dropping of weapons (which is unimportant, but why be incomplete? [img]smile.gif[/img] ) one of the only advantages to symbol stun is the lengthy stun if it succeeds (lvl of caster up to 20 I believe, vs. 4 rounds per sequential save for earthquake). Still, doing some damage while you're up to stunning them might not be bad--and it offers a harder save.


the enchantment of the seeking sword is +4, i think.

I don't think the Deva can cast insect plague...they cast harm, cures, globe of blades (?) fireball, flame arrow, chaos, dispel magic, haste, magic missile, cure disease, remove curse, neutralize poison and mebbe some others.

though I think it casts the level dependent spells (like flame arrow, magic missile, dispel magic) at like level 1 or something. Last I played with Devas (a while ago) it would cast 1 magic missile, couldn't dispel anything, etc... It might be better going with elemental summoning and hoping for a prince. Sunnis is absolutely deadly.

[ 02-06-2004, 10:58 AM: Message edited by: wally p ]

[Rataxes]

I'm getting close to having to answer these, and lots of other questions I shudder at the thought of this battle.

Going through their stats in IE, it would seem that only the Dragon and Beholder are vulnerable to Fire Storm. Three Fire Storms should be enough to kill the dragon I reckon, as he fortunately only has 30% FR. The Beholder has 75% FR, so three Fire Storms should at least get him down to about 55% of his HP maximum. That is if his Fire shield doesn't increase his FR by 50% as regular fire shields do, then he'd just absorb the storms.

I believe Harm can be used on the Sword, as he's the only one without a high magic resistance. Harm could be activated before the fight begins, meaning I could kill the sword in a single round instead of in three, casting three Holy Smites. Hit him with Harm, and then use the Necklace of Missiles to preserve spell slots.

Globes of Blades could've been interesting, but all the tears have too good saves to make it useful. Symbol Stun would've had a good chance to stun all the tears, were it not for their high MR and immunity to Stun. Irenicus has 55% MR and is the only one not immune to Stun, so it *could* maybe be used on him. Getting about 25% chance to stun him for a turn isn't worth a 7th level spell slot in my opinion though.

The Seeking Sword is +4, useless against Irenicus third incarnation, but so are nearly all melee weapon setups. The Sling of Everard +5 looks like a much more suitable weapon against him. If I can strip him of his Stoneskins and outlast his Spell Trap/Spell Deflection, I could hit him very hard with Implosion. Cuts right through the cloak, and Irenicus has almost zero resistance to it's damage. Now here's one thing I don't remember, does Irenicus have the ability to heal himself in the third battle, and does he use it often if so?

I imagine a good opening to the battle would be to cast Harm in advance and run down to the Sword as soon as the fight is on. Touch him with Harm and finish him with the Necklace of Missiles. Move on to the Lich and turn him, before you run to the Dragon's staircase and hope the fat lizard blocks the way to give you some breathing room to prepare your next move (courtesy of Leslie)

It could be interesting to note that the Slayer form Irenicus takes in the 2nd phase does not seem to be immune to Hold, making him an interesting target for Implosion, even if it will damage him little.

[ 02-06-2004, 11:09 AM: Message edited by: Rataxes ]

[wally p]

don't forget energy blades with righteous magic.

that's potentially 270 damage per round (9 ApR * (10 missile damage + 20 lightning damage))

and will down most anything. additionally, they could be of +5 enchantment (?) which could punch through many things.

[SixOfSpades]

Originally posted by Dundee Slaytern:

Which Tear Creature is not immuned to Harm or Fire Storm?

I would say that Jon, the Dragon, and the Orb are all vulnerable, at least to Fire damage, once you knock their protections down.

Bolt of Glory can harm the Sword of Greed. True or False?

I believe that's true, although Holy Smite kicks more ass and casts a lot faster.

Blade Barrier/Globe of Blades deals what kind of damage?

Obviously, if it isn't Slashing, it should be. Good luck getting it through the Wraith's Saves, though.

Symbol: Death will affect summons. True or False?

True.

What is the saving throw penalty of Symbol: Stun?

-4

What is the enchantment level of the Seeking Sword?

4

Can Devas cast Insect Plague?

Nope

In fact, what spells can the Deva cast?

Ummm..... Heal, Globe of Blades, Firestorm, Cure Critical Wounds, Remove Curse, and a couple of other spells that are way too interesting for me to remember.