Finishing the Snake Temple.. the Last Whopping Battle

Yes, running back through the hallways seems to be a good strategy for that battle. That's what I did and ended up with all the priests and the high priestess bunched together in one of the hallways. I cast Fire Storm and it was over : ).
Once I noticed poison was going to be a real problem at the serpent temple I immediatly started building up the Vine Sphere on my priest. (cure poison is lvl 4) I actually did D'Soto's quest (well, all of it except the masque) and the Boogre Dungeon first because I was stuck at the temple. I was probably a little on the powerful side when I did finish the temple. hehe.

Just for those about to approach this whole maguilla, the last battle involving the uglyfaced (yes, yes, ok, "masked") High Priestess, I had to do it a half dozen times to finally get through it. How I managed to accomplish it was:

Zapped her while she was droning on with a Meteor spell and ran like hell back into the narrow hallway...

Ran all the way back to the wider hallway around the corner (where the lift is located) and planted myself in a corner there, so I could look down the length of one of the narrow halls leading to the auditorium. She never seemed (nor any of her priests) to be able to get down that hallway, and whenever they started, I would blast them with distance spells (Elemental Blast, Force of Mind, Meteor). When I saw them shooting stuff at me, I just sidestepped out of the line of fire. (Be sure to sidestep FAR, since whatever she shoots seems able to turn corners and go a distance.) For some reason if I placed myself in front of the lift opening, they didn't come after me. (By the way, I kept seeing messages of the more powerful Priests continuing to fire off spells and doing damage to the weaker Serpent Keepers, even though they were on the other side of the lift and unable to touch me. Idiots.)

When I had recovered enough mana points, I'd ease back sideways to the corner. If there was anyone at the other end of the narrow hallway, I'd blast them again.

Unfortunately I did wind up with most of the party getting poisoned (I think this is unavoidable), but eventually the High Priestess wound up in front of the remaining pack of goobers, and when I finally toasted her backside, all the other priests disappeared!! I grabbed the mask, rousted the two Treasure Chests in the auditorium and got the hell out of Dodge, back to town.

You might want to pack along some Cure Poison potions and NOT use them until the battle is over... you'll just wind up re-poisoned so long as the fight goes on.

Along the way back to town I had to get my Priest (now a Monk) to "Great Heal" everyone a couple times to keep them alive, but once I made it back to town a quick trip to the Temple got them all "antidoted" for about 100 gold each (cheap at twice the price).

PS:

I am now sending my Rogue on the Bard Quest.... so it's back to the Temple once more. The scroll I'm looking for is supposedly somewhere in Krueg's quarters (you remember, that mouthy creep you first meet when you come up the stairs from the back entrance.)According to what I've been able to find out, even though the scroll wasn't there before, it will be now that I'm on that quest.

More to follow.

GADS! I wish I had had your spells. After rushing in and dying quickly, I reloaded . . . did a cowardly fire drop from the doorway and high tailed it down a short hall, around a corner and up the sloping long hallway. With my curser poised at the corner, I immediately laid a firedrop spell on the first snivelling priest to come into view. I used all distance weapons and spells. Between the corner, the slope, the limited width of the hallway and the firedrop spells "holding" them at a distance, I was able to stay out of range of the venom and save my miserable hide.