soloing mage tactics

Rockstar · 01-01-2005, 10:43 PM

hey,

this is more a question for the highly experienced baldur's gate players, but let's all face a fact. mages are very very weak on low levels and trying to solo one from start to finish in the whole BG story line is extremely hard in BGI and less so in SOA.

I wish to solo a mage. If there is any body here who has done this and can give me some big pointers on combat hints, powerful spell types/tactics/combinations, and even just great mage tips on how to survive the ruthless world all alone lol [img]smile.gif[/img]

thanks for any help

Brainless One · 01-02-2005, 12:06 AM

Yes. It IS very hard, and if you haven't already started, I would highly recommend being a specialist of some sort. The one spell that you gain per level is essential. As is grabbing that nifty ring at Friendly Arm Inn, assuming it is in your game. Early in the game, I would suggest relying heavily on Charm Person. Having a Hobgoblin or such as a distraction and potentially an actual warrior while you stay back and attack from a range works almost every time. Although Melf's Acid Arrow is fairly good damage-wise, most of the time you won't survive long enough for them to take it all. I would mainly use 1st level spells for offensive, 2nd for defensive (MIRROR IMAGE!!) and when you reach third level, offensive. Although in BG2 Skull Trap is arguably much better than Fireball, I think Fireball is better for BG1, because there have been many times I have waited and waited for a Skull Trap to go off when enemies rush by it. One last thing I can think of off the top of my head, when fighting the Sirines or similar enemies, instead of waiting for hours and hours on end for Dire Charms and such to fade, cast Protection from Evil via a scroll before you fight, it will protect you from these effects. OH! Keep every scroll you get! Carry along a few lower level odd ones (things like grease that you wouldnt normally use) because the amount of spells you can cast daily is pathetic. Except of course useless ones like Detect Evil, which is only really helpful your first time through the game. I hope some of these basic tips help, and good luck!
-Brainless One

Rockstar · 01-02-2005, 03:32 AM

thankyou oh brainlessone lol. The weight of your help is actually contrary to your name [img]smile.gif[/img]

any other help is appreciated

thanks

kev · 01-02-2005, 08:57 AM

Try 2 solo games. Play the first as a fighter then use the same charactor as a mage in the second game.
I use my BG1 Fighter or Paladin in my BG2 games as a mage. They end up being a mage with very high hp & strength.
The biggest problem is that it takes about an hour to roll a charactor that is 18 in strength, constituition, dexterity, and intelligence. You still have to have about 14 charisma.

Dace De'Briago · 01-02-2005, 11:06 AM

The sleep spell is massively effective against groups of low level enemies.

Ignore the post above relating to constitution, 16 will suffice (tome to increase it, familiar to decrease it).

Oh, and you may as well grab a familiar ASAP for the bonus HP.

Its a shame really you arent a cleric/mage multiclass... thats soooo much simpler.

Rockstar · 01-03-2005, 05:10 AM

yeah, but i'm only interested in a pure mage class (probably a specialist, but that is another issue that i do not need discussing lol)

cheers.

any other pointers to survive the weak, kitten like levels?

Brainless One · 01-04-2005, 01:38 AM

Try not to do as many adventuring runs, trying to take down large opponents. Instead, try to level-up as soon as you can by doing simple quests and sticking to safe areas like cities. By the time you finish most of these simple quests or defeating small yet experience-full enemies, you should have a fairly manageable repertoire of spells to choose from in combat. Don't be afraid to buy up on high-level scrolls just for casting from, rather than writing. It's always handy to have hordes of summoned monsters when all else fails. =P
-Brainless One

Rockstar · 01-13-2005, 11:37 AM

hey

how do you select quick spells?

Illumina Drathiran'ar · 01-13-2005, 11:40 AM

Right-click on the quick spell slot. Your list of spells will pop up... Select one from the list.

Terthe · 01-13-2005, 05:47 PM

The main thing that helped me was to go for mostly spells that kill and/or incapitated large groups of enemies at a time.

01-02-2005, 08:57 AM	#4
kev Drizzt Do'Urden Join Date: April 4, 2002 Location: North Western Australia Age: 60 Posts: 670	Try 2 solo games. Play the first as a fighter then use the same charactor as a mage in the second game. I use my BG1 Fighter or Paladin in my BG2 games as a mage. They end up being a mage with very high hp & strength. The biggest problem is that it takes about an hour to roll a charactor that is 18 in strength, constituition, dexterity, and intelligence. You still have to have about 14 charisma. __________________

01-13-2005, 11:40 AM	#9
Illumina Drathiran'ar Apophis Join Date: July 10, 2002 Location: I can see the Manhattan skyline from my window. Age: 39 Posts: 4,673	Right-click on the quick spell slot. Your list of spells will pop up... Select one from the list. __________________ http://cavestory.org PLAY THIS GAME. Seriously. http://xkcd.com/386/ http://www.xkcd.com/406/ My heart is like my coffee. Black, bitter, icy, and with a straw.

01-13-2005, 05:47 PM	#10
Terthe Elite Waterdeep Guard Join Date: January 11, 2005 Location: Australia, NSW, Camden Age: 34 Posts: 9	The main thing that helped me was to go for mostly spells that kill and/or incapitated large groups of enemies at a time. __________________ Fun is a good sneak attack and lots of gold. Tanks can have the glory.

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01-01-2005, 10:43 PM	#1
Rockstar Zhentarim Guard Join Date: January 4, 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 300	hey, this is more a question for the highly experienced baldur's gate players, but let's all face a fact. mages are very very weak on low levels and trying to solo one from start to finish in the whole BG story line is extremely hard in BGI and less so in SOA. I wish to solo a mage. If there is any body here who has done this and can give me some big pointers on combat hints, powerful spell types/tactics/combinations, and even just great mage tips on how to survive the ruthless world all alone lol [img]smile.gif[/img] thanks for any help

01-02-2005, 12:06 AM	#2
Brainless One Zhentarim Guard Join Date: July 24, 2002 Location: Arm's length from my monitor. Age: 35 Posts: 367	Yes. It IS very hard, and if you haven't already started, I would highly recommend being a specialist of some sort. The one spell that you gain per level is essential. As is grabbing that nifty ring at Friendly Arm Inn, assuming it is in your game. Early in the game, I would suggest relying heavily on Charm Person. Having a Hobgoblin or such as a distraction and potentially an actual warrior while you stay back and attack from a range works almost every time. Although Melf's Acid Arrow is fairly good damage-wise, most of the time you won't survive long enough for them to take it all. I would mainly use 1st level spells for offensive, 2nd for defensive (MIRROR IMAGE!!) and when you reach third level, offensive. Although in BG2 Skull Trap is arguably much better than Fireball, I think Fireball is better for BG1, because there have been many times I have waited and waited for a Skull Trap to go off when enemies rush by it. One last thing I can think of off the top of my head, when fighting the Sirines or similar enemies, instead of waiting for hours and hours on end for Dire Charms and such to fade, cast Protection from Evil via a scroll before you fight, it will protect you from these effects. OH! Keep every scroll you get! Carry along a few lower level odd ones (things like grease that you wouldnt normally use) because the amount of spells you can cast daily is pathetic. Except of course useless ones like Detect Evil, which is only really helpful your first time through the game. I hope some of these basic tips help, and good luck! -Brainless One

01-02-2005, 03:32 AM	#3
Rockstar Zhentarim Guard Join Date: January 4, 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 300	thankyou oh brainlessone lol. The weight of your help is actually contrary to your name [img]smile.gif[/img] any other help is appreciated thanks

01-02-2005, 11:06 AM	#5
Dace De'Briago Silver Dragon Join Date: December 28, 2002 Location: Wales Age: 44 Posts: 1,617	The sleep spell is massively effective against groups of low level enemies. Ignore the post above relating to constitution, 16 will suffice (tome to increase it, familiar to decrease it). Oh, and you may as well grab a familiar ASAP for the bonus HP. Its a shame really you arent a cleric/mage multiclass... thats soooo much simpler.

01-03-2005, 05:10 AM	#6
Rockstar Zhentarim Guard Join Date: January 4, 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 300	yeah, but i'm only interested in a pure mage class (probably a specialist, but that is another issue that i do not need discussing lol) cheers. any other pointers to survive the weak, kitten like levels?

01-04-2005, 01:38 AM	#7
Brainless One Zhentarim Guard Join Date: July 24, 2002 Location: Arm's length from my monitor. Age: 35 Posts: 367	Try not to do as many adventuring runs, trying to take down large opponents. Instead, try to level-up as soon as you can by doing simple quests and sticking to safe areas like cities. By the time you finish most of these simple quests or defeating small yet experience-full enemies, you should have a fairly manageable repertoire of spells to choose from in combat. Don't be afraid to buy up on high-level scrolls just for casting from, rather than writing. It's always handy to have hordes of summoned monsters when all else fails. =P -Brainless One

01-13-2005, 11:37 AM	#8
Rockstar Zhentarim Guard Join Date: January 4, 2003 Location: Australia Posts: 300	hey how do you select quick spells?

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