Is a solo wizard or sorcerer run possible?

Discussion in 'The Temple of Elemental Evil' started by Pelador, Feb 21, 2016.

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  1. florian1

    florian1 Established Member

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    Low level wizards in ToEE are much more effective than in the PnP D&D 3.5. Charm Person is not supposed to be so powerful, and wizards are not supposed to be able to scribe scrolls of spells of higher level than they can cast, I believe. It might also be that if you cast a spell from a scroll, there is no attack of opportunity for opponents in ToEE.
     
  2. maalri

    maalri Immortal

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    If you are able to Scribe Fireball and especially Charm Monster (not Charm Person) when fighting Lareth, then you are too high of a level for the encounter. Usually you hit the end of the Moathouse by about level 4 for the party, MAYBE 5. Charm Moster takes level 7 to be able to cast/scribe, though.

    Might wanna try the run a little lower.

    The Welkwood Bog encounter was designed as an Alternative to the "Homlett FedEx" quests, not in addition.

    If you are doing both, , and a lot of people do, and also getting a lot of Random Encounters along the way, I can see your party being 5th, but not higher.
     
  3. Gehennis

    Gehennis Established Member

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    Well he did say that he ditched his party and started a solo wizard- getting all that XP for one person he should be able to scribe the aforementioned spells (can't say for sure myself since I've only attempted a solo run once years ago...)
     
  4. Comrade Bingo

    Comrade Bingo Member

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    Indeed it is a solo run, and I was at level 4 during the moathouse. I didn't do the FedEx quests (CHA of 8 and zero PR skill points). Just the spiders and Jay's ring, which brought me passed level 2. Then Welkwood for another two level ups before going to the Moathouse. I had a lot of trouble with the frogs, but with a combination of withdraw movements around the map I managed to get them separated then put them to sleep individually.

    Then before going into the Moathouse, I went back to heal and I bought the Fireball and Charm Monster scroll from Burne's place. I could only memorize level 2 spells but I can write and scribe higher level so long as I have the required gold/XP. Is this a bug and are we not supposed to be able to do that?

    Edit: i checked the Scribe Scroll window again and there is no level requirement for scribing (unlike some craftable items). You just have to ''know'' the spell. I think in PnP you need to have it actually memorized while you scribe it, but that's not the case in ToEE.

    Even so, I mostly used Charm Person scrolls to clear the Moathouse. With greater spell focus, my DC for Lvl1 Enchantment was 17 and they had Will saves of almost nothing. With mage armor and protection from arrow it's easy to stay alive while you charm enough people. The ambush at the exit was a good challenge though.

    Then I did the Meadow on my way to Nulb, followed by the Assassin. I am now level 8 after fighting Rentsh and doing the fishing quest. However it's not a pure class anymore. I added a single level of ranger to add some flavor to the role playing and max out survival and spot skills.
     
    Last edited: Mar 3, 2016
  5. Pelador

    Pelador Member

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    I did the Fed ex quests in Homlett with mine and it meant that I was a high enough level to destroy the moat house forces including the ambush outside. Which was quickly dispatched with two castings of ice storm and burning hands when the survivors got into range.
     
  6. sonofliberty

    sonofliberty Established Member

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    Never tried a solo wizard, but it should be MUCH easier than a solo sorcerer. My favorite for solo is a Fighter(1)/Cleric(x). Still a challenge, but eminently doable. I prefer a human male with good charisma who worships Pelor. I take Weapon Focus Longsword and weapon focus Longbow along with improved initiative as starting feats.
     
  7. Pelador

    Pelador Member

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    I tend to grab everything that leads to great cleave as soon as I can when I use solo melee characters.
     
  8. Comrade Bingo

    Comrade Bingo Member

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    I kind of got bored with my solo. It's a nice change of pace early on but I miss the feel of a party. Eventually I cast domination on Alira, sort of like putting her under a geas to help me destroy the temple. After clearing most of the temple she died in a random encounter with some tough lizard men and I decided to simply add another 1st level PC sidekick.
     
  9. Nightcanon

    Nightcanon Garrulous Halfling

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    When I played with a party of 3, I was able to level up to 5th immediately prior to the battle with Lareth. IIRC, I did Welkwood but not the majority of the non-plot Hommlet quests (i.e. did the traders stuff and unlocked masterwork bows with the carpenter, but didn't do all the matchmaking and church donations stuff).
    Getting a solo character to 5th by that stage would seem to be a matter of staying alive long enough, not available xp.
     
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