Your Favorite ToEE Quest/Plotline/Scenario/Battle

I'm glad folks like the Ice Tyrants. The difficulty stems from the doubling of damage dealt by cold spells - Cone of Cold in this case - by the Node (as per the module).
The Salamanders received a similar treatment.

Also note that opposing element spells do half damage in the nodes - e.g. Fireball does 1/2 damage in the Water Node!

 

You’re welcome. Those Cone of Colds were my downfall. I thought that my level 17(/18) Paladins with +3 Mithral shirts (+13 spell resistance), Helms of Brilliance, +6 cloak of Charismas, Rings or Freedom, Rings of Protection + (whatever there was to be found +1 or + 2?), Ioun stones and Percipient of Wound Closure were up to anything. No they weren’t. Two turns with the Ice Tyrants and they were all down. The Salamanders were far easier, of course. I was prepared for fire damage (the percipient of wound closure gives you a Trolllike(?) regeneration (btw. why?) and Trolls are vulnerable only to fire (and acid?)), since all the other damages would cause only nonlethal damage, why bother?

Not even Iuz were able to take down more than two of my Paladins before He was slain.

Ps. Did you change something with Iuz? There is still no coup de grace but Iuz went after another of my Paladins right after he dropped the first?

Pps. I was wondering why there is a reputation for killing a (pussyass) dragon (Dragon Slayer) but not one for defeating Iuz? Kicking the ass of a deity should imo be far more recognized matter that putting down a young but clearly sick (or other ways impaired) beast?

Ppps. Is there and/or will there be any repercussions for gaining Dragon slayer rep? Will Mell ditch me, etc? Last time she didn’t.

Pppps. And aren’t the Dragons intelligent beasts so in the future could there be a nonviolent way to solve the problem? Like getting your druid/bard/rogue to convince the dragon to find new hunting grounds from somewhere else (the Hickory Branch for an exmp.). I know I am preaching again, but what made the Fallouts great: the ability to solve quest in multitude of ways. In ToEE most quests require only brute force, yet there are so many skills… Still NOT complaining, Co8 ToEE is the most addictive game I have ever come up with.

 

From what I recall, they've always been hard, just... not as hard.

 

@ Sitra. Loved the Ice Tyrants and the fact that the damage rules for the Nodes were implemented. Players need wake up calls to keep them interested. Cakewalked through Earth Node and the desolate (yet visually stunning) Air Node only to be harassed by Blue Umber Hulks on Steroids and Obliterated by Beholder Kin. Remember saying "I really should have crafted those Boots of Winterland" when they spammed Cone of Cold.

@ Rocktoy. Regarding reputation for killing a dragon, to the general public it doesn't matter wether it was tough or not, all that matters their perception of what a dragon should be (pretty much like ours). Just like the Lich that wasn't really a Lich, the public thinks you killed a mighty undead Arcane Caster but that was never the case (and that was explained in the backstory). I'm totally with you on a nonviolent path to the dragon.

@ Gaer, pity it likely will not happen, but a nonviolent solution to Dragon would have been welcome. Was expecting a rousing speech from the it when I approached. A solution should only be available when certain flags are met: those who respect nature/the old religion (druids yes/ maybe rangers or those who donate a lot to Jaroo/ True Neutral parties maybe) thus those who observe it will not be displeased with the party (not that I noticed any in game effect). Maybe the dialogue option can use similar flags to those needed for the 'HillGiant'-Druid NCP to join. Just a thought.

Granted, this was no Ancient Red Dragon, but it should be a credible threat to the party by the time they finally meet one. Or there should be a great repercussion for killing the lesser dragon (Ancient White Dragon shows up in a later mod: My name is @#%*$!, you killed my great great great granddaughter and her brood, prepare to DIE!).

Otherwise, I agree that Combat is what shines in TOEE, and all out combat is favored to Choices. Thus HB mod shines. But no choices = playing console games like Final Fantasy (insert #), ie. movies that I push buttons on to make the next cutscene advance.
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Yet another great moment: Hickory Branch. Not only because it's flat out combat, not only because the party feels like it owns the map, and not only because the rewards are well worth it. But BECAUSE you get to meet Captain Krunch !

 

When Iuz appeared,I'm pretty sure my heart skipped a beat when I realized he wasn't just popping in to posture and leave. People talk about killing him, but he clove through all my fighter-type in one round. I was almost ready to reload, because the little mage certainly wasn't hurting him.

 

Could have something to do with the cleave then, since I wasn’t using reach weapons this time.

I know there is the endslide and it makes sense that there is no “vanilla” reputation for taking down Iuz, since there is no-one who would care. In vanilla the game was pretty much finished at that point, correct? Not much more that the Nods and you should already be reaching the highest level, right? That, of course, is no reason why it should stay that way, especially if there will be more to do after the fungus lady kicks the bucket. No? And the dragon as it is, is way too easy.

Could be fun, if the members of the old faith, would turn their backs on you, because of that. A bit like paladins falling, but with more depth in it. That would require a peaceful option to solve the dragon problem…

If that is how it is seen and how it should be, so be it.

The tyrants took me with surprise. I had the all-powerful percipient of wound closure and helms of brilliance for my level 17/18 paladins. I thought I had to protect myself only from fire damage (the only lethal kind) and never mind about the non-lethal. Should there be tyrants before the nodes (and reaching level 17) they will be more than a challenge. And that is only good.

 

Is it even possible to kill Iuz? How can you do it? I've really wanted to be able to kill him.

 

Read the post http://www.co8.org/forum/showthread.php?t=8852&highlight=killing and http://www.co8.org/forum/showthread.php?t=8888&highlight=wound+closure

 

Favourite Quest:
Brother Smythe's Hill Giant Head. Not only are you rewarded handsomely for your troubles, you also have to engage a terrible foe in battle, one that is usually way beyond your common fighting capabilities. It's a great Quest.
-Room for improvement: It would be nice to have a clue dropped somewhere that there is a giant inhabiting Emridy Meadows, so that it doesn't seem so much of a random occurence. Careful players can then use scouting (as normal) to determine the his exact location in the map.

Favourite Plotline:
Rannos and Gremag as the super-secret Temple agents. Of course, a clever player sees right through them and soon reads them like an open book - but what you know and what you can prove are entirely different matters.
-Room for improvement: Some way to talk their ignorant and naive man-at-arms to leaving the shop while the grown-ups talk business. It seems such a waste to kill the poor fellow who just seems to be in the wrong crowd. Of course, even better would be to give some evidence via dialogue that he is actually a fully flegded temple agent himself.

Favourite Scenario:
Has to be the Moathouse Ambush. I've always imagined that while I just run upstairs in the Hommlet inn to rest, Zert, Turuko and Kobort eye me with vengeful suspicion. They are too scared to come at my party during the night so they seek out some goons and prepare their ambush at the Moathouse after following my party there. The battle itself is just icing on the cake.
-Room for improvement: Actually, the Moathouse Ambush is pretty decent just the way it is. Great work.

Favourite Battle:
The horde of ogres and bugbears in the 4th level of the Temple. There is something very scary but rewarding in having to face this numerically superior enemy and still coming out victorius.
-Room for improvement: Not much per se, but more of this kind of battle would bring flavour to late-game NC battles, as so many of them include fighting just a few but skilled enemies or only relatively small groups. A high-level party could face a horde of hill giants or tyrants, for example.

 

I believe you can get a head off of the first hill giant you encounter, so you don't need to go to the Meadow to get it. I remember one game where I got a random encounter with a hill giant and some hobgoblins fighting each other. He slaughtered the hobgoblins, but they got a few hits in on him. One Entangle spell, and I stood back and peppered him with melee weapons for a couple of dozen rounds until he dropped. Surprisingly, his treasure included his head!

 

Not to be a stickler too much, General Ghoul, but you meant "peppered him with missile weapons" perhaps?

Unless you are going around throwing swords and axes and quarterstaves at him, and if so, I would like to know how, just for fun! oke:

 

Too much mead and ale! oke:

 

I agree as well, the dragon currently there is a pushover battle by the time your characters go to Verbabonc. Being able to talk your way into making him change his feeding grounds would be much more satisfying than the token dragon that's there. Having a druid have a dialogue with the dragon where social skills don't play any role, but you have to really watch what you say; where saying the wrong things at certain points would anger him and force him to attack would seem a funner solution since as pointed out, dragons are generally very intelligent creatures.

With a Druid in the party I imagine they would take great offense to fighting to kill the dragon and not participate in combat when given a second non-lethal option where both parties end up satisfied. Or you could make it an Adult Red or Black dragon which the druid wouldn't even try to entertain speaking with them, he would realize that the only way out of the situation is to kill the evil beast. Since most characters will be around lv 10 or higher by the time they see that quest, anything less than an Adult Dragon or older is going to be a pushover for the party; as it is now I could go into the battle with haste already cast and just let my wizard and sorc use their bows and would kill him in 1 round, 2 max (their average damage is 30-60 per hit). If the verbal dialogue option isn't put into place, I'd hope that in the next version that the dragon is seriously beefed up to actually cause fear in the party and even drop a few people in the battle. Making the battle actually a challenge and exciting would have a much better feel to it.

 

You are right. Any giant will give up its head for this quest to be successful. I fyou wait long enough there are giants aplenty in the Temple.