A second Bhaalspawn arrived in Amn after my Elven Assassin, a Dwarven Fighter named Thani Magebane. As her last name suggests, I haven't overcome my Wizard Slayeritis yet...
Thani is LE (mostly for the Human Skin armor and because she'll end up evil in Hell anyway if she makes it there). She started out specialized in Maces and Short Bows.
I edited the Claw and Horn of Kazgaroth in Near Infinity so that they can be used by Wizard Slayers, as in the original game. I did this first and foremost because previous experiences with my WSs showed me that there's at least one inevitable SCS encounter (possibly more if one is unlucky) where charname can only survive through good saves rolls. I wanted to reduce the role of that luck factor. Apart from that, I can see justifications in the game rules for granting the WS access to said items. The Claw is not a ring (even though it's equipped in a ring slot), and both the Claw and the Horn are parts of the beast Kazgaroth, which make them unique items whose inherent protective and harmful properties could be different from the magical enchantments that are intenionally placed on items such as rings, cloaks etc. that the WS cannot use. The whole issue of the WS being unable to use an enchanted ring but being free to use a weapon with the same enchantment is a bit artificial anyway imo. From an RP perspective I like the idea of the relentless WS resorting to items that hurt them: anything goes in their crusade against magic.
Here's a brief account of how Thani survived the Sword Coast. Upon leaving Candlekeep, she went straight for the most rewarding quests in terms of XP. This meant
- Shoal,
- Thalantyr, but he failed for the 4th playthrough in a row to save Melicamp,
- Brage (quick route to Nashkel where Ankheg Armor was picked up, Large Shield +1 and PfPetrification scroll were bought),
- Basilisks and Mutamin,
- Ankhegs, after a quick stop in Beregost to pick up the Stupefier +1 mace,
- Brun, Fishermen/Tenya.
These quests brought Thani close to 64k XP (level 7), partly thanks to an attempt to rest in the Ankheg Cave. Proficiency pips at levels 3 and 6 went to Flails (an investment for SoA).
With her hunger for XP sated, Thani's next objective was to acquire sufficient gold/treasure to be able to get Taerom's full plate, the Claw & Horn of Kazgaroth, a number of relevant green scrolls, a good supply of health potions, plenty of arrows of biting for Mulahey and Venkt, and even the red ioun stone sold at Thalantyr's for the sole purpose of increasing AC by 1. To that end inter alia Greywolf (varscona and emeralds), the Western Cloudpeaks (two enchanted halberds), the Gnoll Stronghold (gauntlets of dex), FAI (ring of wizardry) were visited. Reputation was artificially raised at Keldath's. When she had everything she thought she'd need, she started pursuing the plot quests.
In the Nashkel Mines the third level can be complicated because there are many tougher Kobolds and a Shaman that casts Horror. Thani lured most Kobolds to the opening with the Huge Spiders and slew them, before the Kobold Shaman horrored her indeed.
With most Kobolds already out of the way, too few remained to actually hurt her, so when the spell wore off Thani slew the remaining Kobolds and went down to seek out Mulahey. She hoped to poison him with her arrows of biting, but she didn't succeed. (As a priest, Mulahey must have fairly good saves vs death.) She ran outside as he started casting Hold Person, and when she came back she saw that he and his lackeys had followed her to the entrance. She pulled off one more peek-a-boo, but when she appeared again she found herself surrounded by Mulahey, Kobolds and Skeletons, and no longer able to leave the premises. All she could do was fight Mulahey and hope to stun him with her Stupefier. (I didn't equip the Claw of Kazgaroth because I hadn't decided yet in what circumstances she would be allowed to use it.) She hit him various times, but the priest wouldn't be stunned. A crucial save vs spell kept her from being held, before she felled the Half-Orc.
I really missed my other WS' darts of stunning here. My decision to go for maces (rather than long swords or hammers for Varscona's/Ashideena's elemental damage) and shortbows (rather than darts with their high no. of APR and their stunning variant), and to invest two pips in flails, was a risky one for BG 1. However, in BG2 these proficiencies are just about optimal.
In Nashkel Nimbul was left to the Amnian guards with Thani staying out of the assassin's sight until he panicked, at which point she finished him off with her bow. (This has become a favorite tactic to deal with Nimbul with vulnerable characters such as my WS.)
Tranzig was easy as he often is. Arrows of biting did him in. Just like Mulahey, the Bandit Tent did not go completely as desired. Venkt survived Thani's initial onslaught with her arrows of biting, went invisible, healed himself and showed up later to start casting spells again. Thankfully he didn't survive a second ranged assault, so that Thani could finish off the other bandits without much difficulty.
After having dealt with the bandit camp, Bentan was killed for his green scroll of PfMagic and for reputation management, as it helped her get Horror as her third (and later fourth) Bhaalpower. (Needless to say I suppose, that Thalantyr's and Hafiz's scrolls of PfMagic were also acquired.)
Cloakwood was done in two instances. First Aldeth was slain, the Cloak of Non-Detection retrieved and the Spiders dealt with. I permitted Thani the use of the Claw of Kazgaroth here, combined with a green scroll of PfPoison (important because the Claw imposes a penalty on saves vs death). When she failed to lure only the Sword Spiders out of Centeol's den but rather saw herself confronted with all monsters that inhabited the den, she even blew the Horn of Kazgaroth for a further improvement of her save vs spells score. It may have helped because she saved indeed at one point.
Thani returned Chelak's body to Tiber and traveled to Beregost to sell some loot (Kondar, Cloak of Non-Detection, gems etc). Her second visit to Cloakwood was much more straightforward. She had just reached the level cap and wasted no time dealing with Druids or Wyverns. Drasus was poisoned but as soon as he closed in on her, his Berserker rage and a potion of frost giant strength made him the superior fighter so she left the map and returned in the hopes of fighting him on equal terms. She still needed potions of healing but in the end she did prevail.
Genthore too was engaged. (I did this because keeping his Fallorain's Plate Mail would make Ilych drop that armor in BG2's opening dundeon, which is better than the random Mail of Dead.) A ranged fight with him was decided by her super marksmanship and her arrows of biting.
Dealing with Davaeorn lair wasn't as hard as it could have been. Thani spent her first PfMagic on the encounter, managed to poison the wizard various times until he fell, and she never got surrounded by hordes of guards blocking her path.
Before going to Baldur's Gate, Thani secured the WIS tome at Durlag's Tower, and the CON tome and other loot from the treasure cave in the Lighthouse area (for which purpose another scroll of PfMagic was used). In Baldur's Gate Thani upgraded her stats further (all tomes were acquired) as well as her attire, with the Helm of Baduran, Shield of the Falling Stars, Sparkburst (a Rogue Rebalancing shortbow for sale at the Thieves Guild, and lots of healing potions and enchanted arrows.
The Iron Throne fight went very well, as Thani managed to somehow get rid of Naaman after she dispelled his protections. Naaman is by far the hardest enemy for my WSs because of his many Charm spells. The others were mostly dealt with using arrows of biting (the harder hitting foes Gardush and Zhalimar Cloudwulfe) or in melee.
At the gates of Candlekeep Thani deicded to cast PfMagic on herself in order to deal with the Ogre Magi. Interestingly, various Charm Persons were cast at her before she completed reading her green scroll. (This encounter was reason I edited the Claw and Horn into WS-accessible items.) She saved against the spells cast at her, and proceeded to slay the monsters.
In the Candlekeep catacombs she secured another green scroll of PfMagic (bashing a lock with DUHM) and she discovered that she hadn't ID'd the scroll of PfPetrification she had found in the Iron Throne building. She had the Claw of Kazgaroth still equipped from the Ogre Magi fight, and she blew the Horn as well, reducing her saves vs spell to 2. However, her Boots of Speed carried her past the Basilisks before they could gaze-attack her, allowing her a safe escape.
Two Spiders followed her outside, and Thani, annoyed by especially the swift Sword Spider, decided to fight them. She reconsidered that decision however, when one of the Basilisks gave her a good scare by simply appearing.
Back in Baldur's Gate Thani picked up a last scroll of PfMagic, in Ramazith's tower, forcing the lock on the drawer with DUHM. In the Undercellars she managed to stun Slythe with her mace, which gave her a good opportunity to seriously hurt the assassin without having to fear his backstabs. It prompted her to cast PfMagic on herself because Krystin was still around. Slythe then fell to her arrows of biting.
The Doppelganger fight was messy as usual. Thani limited herself to dispelling haste and other protections and trying to disrupt the Doppelganger casters. The Mage nevertheless pulled off a Confusion and a Sunfire, killing most of the Fist officers. Thankfully this happened when two of the Doppelgangers had just been slain by Belt and Thani. The latter two also managed to dispatch the Shaman and the Mage respectively, making it possible for the duo and one Flaming Fist Officer to slay the last Doppelgangers with relative ease.
Thani lured Belt, who was seeking conversation with her, to one of the antechambers, safe from Sarevok, where the two waited for Winski to intervene.
In the Undercity it seems impossible for a non-invisible, low CHA charname to prevent hostile Tamoko and a number of Skeleton Warriors from entering Sarevok's sanctum, so there was a pre-finale battle to be fought first. Thani focused on Tamoko and, protected still from magic, had little difficulty with Sarevok's former lover. The Skeleton Warrior archers were giving her a hard time though. Fortunately Thani had a PfUndead scroll stored in her pack. When she cast that protection on herself, the undead were easy pickings (even though they tended to walk off toward Sarevok & co, so Thani couldn't always follow them).
In the final battle Angelo was dispelled and poisoned until he fell.
Semaj showed up but disappeared after he too saw his protections dispelled by Thani's arrows. Thani, both impatient and confident that her arrows of dispelling would do their job, then proceeded forward in order to provoke all remaining foes to attack her. First she dispelled Sarevok's and Diarmid's haste.
Semaj too had no answer to Thani's arrows of dispelling and biting, and soon bit the dust.
The most dangerous foe that remained was Diarmid. Even though Thani had cast PfPoison and PfAcid on herself to counter the archer's enchanted arrows's effects, he just kept hitting her hard. She quaffed various healing potions before she realized she had to use the statues for cover.
Tazok and Sarevok fell to Thani's Arrows +2.
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