Argh! Killed again...

Hi,

I am currently exploring the castle taken over by a bunch of trolls. The monsters are fierce! A single troll is quite challenging, but the golems (don't know how they are named exactly in the english version -- those beasts in the "cellars") a simply fatal. I cannot remember they were that hard in "Icewind Dale". I can only kill them one by one -- what I am considering as cheating. Two or more of them and my beloved heroes get mowed down almost instantly.
Is my party just too low at level (about level eight), am I too dumb (dont answer, it's just rhetorical)? If the first is true, why am I send on such a mission so early in the game?

CU, Jan

[Tobbin]

I had the same problem when I first went there too. It gets even worse when you get in further. It's a good idea to level up some before heading in there. Also, any weapons you can find that are fire based are definitely a good idea as well. The game does allow you to rest in there, so I would recommend doing it as often as you can. I was worried that if I didn't get there in time, the keep would have been taken over, but a lot of people say that it's not time critical.

[Memnoch]

Le Bon, you're probably talking about the umber hulks. Did you find the dog meat, cook it and feed it to them? That way you don't have to fight them if you don't have to.

Tip - if your clerics have access to the spell chaotic commands this will make you immune to their confusion gaze.

[Tobbin]

Hmmm. And here I thought the Umber Hulks weren't really that difficult. I never did make the dog stew. But I did find some bones though. That drew them off too. I really preferred using Sanctuary and then using my thief to backstab the hell outta them things. I used a scroll of Righteous Magic and popped them with my ranger/cleric. Would back outta the room and cast sanctuary again. By then there were only 2 left so I let the rest of the party rush em. The thief backstabbed one of them and the rest of the party took out the last one. Not too hard. Trolls regeneration was harder to fight and so was the Yan-Ti Mages (they blasted me with confusion). Party kept beating me up.

Minor Spoilers !

The quests early on are not time-sensitive, I , in fact, did all quests that take place outside of Atkatla in chapter 6 when I found most of them too easy. So do not worry about putting them off, if it helps. If you are talking about the monsters downstairs in Nalia's keep they are called umberhulks, the golems are the huge ones in the big chapellike room upstairs. Have
you already got a priest in your party that can cast 5th level spells ? Just checked it, priests gain the first 5th level spell at level 9. Anyway, you could use the 5th level
"Chaotic Commands" to protect your leading guy/gal from the Confusion spell they usually cast at the start of a battle. Equip your main fighter in such a way that he has the best ac possible and with all healing potions available. Even at that point of the game you should have at least one guy with an ac below -5. Cast defensive harmony, then your main guy should open the door to the room with the umberhulks and block the doorway. Have the rest of your party stand back to avoid being affected by Confusion. Then have them attack with range weapons and spells, but mostly range weapons, since umberhulks , or is it humberhulks ?, possess some magic resistance. Some spells, that you might already have and that might be very effective
with the umberhulks cramped up in front of the door are Emotion, Confusion and holysmite. Concentrate all your attacks on one foe at time - dead monsters cannot damage
you anymore, while injured ones do as much damage as uninjured ones. Do not worry if your character blocking the door is mainly busy drinking potions instead of attacking himself. His main job is staying alive. If you have another character with decent hitpoints and a decent ac you can swap roles
if necessary.

There is another way to beat the umberhulks that involves a little trick provided for in the story of the quest. It involves the dogs in the courtyard of the castle. If you want to be spoilt in a more detailed way, say so.

Spoiler:









A warning: right after being done with the umberhulks in the very next room you will have to face the main villain of the quest.
That was the only battle in the quest even challenging for my party (at around level 14). It is possible, though, that the program provides for the strength of your party by adjusting somewhat the power of the opposition, not sure about.

So, just give it a try before giving up. There is nothing wrong with returning later, either, though.

So long,

Ramon