If you join up with Lareth and buy his hammer off him, does that hammer start the assassin quests/chain if I sell it to the traders? Or must I kill him for the boots/necklace.
I would say his stuff starts it, yeah, though later (when the random_encounter script is choosing an appropriate foe) there may be a caveat. I'm just guessing. Strange if there isn't.
Is it supposed to make me fight a group of thugs with a leader instead of the assassin? If so, I am dissapointed, no magic items.
Is that just outside the moathouse as you are leaving? If so, I think that's a standard event. The assassin event occurs a lot later. But I thought you had to kill Lareth before the gang of thugs et al event occurred.
Yep, you have it right. *spoilers* The order is: Kill Lareth, kill dudes outside Moathouse, sell some of Lareth's stuff to the scruffy traders in Hommlet, get ambushed by an Assassin, get ambushed by some fellows in your pad in Nulb. All in all, they're some of the most fun scrapes in the game - they can sometimes be difficult even if you show up buffed and prepared. The Assassin has a habit of winning initiative and destroying some hapless Wizard.
I'm getting nearer to end game now and thinking of a LE party next, but will Lareth stay with the group, or is he bound to betray anyway? He led me last time to a cave and said it was a secret way in. Nothing happened, it was empty and no entrance. Looking back though it was the same spot the orc lair was in only I hadn't triggered that quest to start by the Elder in Hommlet.
This is what I did: 1) Got the drow note 2) Delivered it to Lareth 3) Joined with Lareth 4) Asked Lareth to buy his starting equipment, he gave me a mace 4) Lareth took me to the cave, we cleared it out together 5) Went to town, Lareth left me 6) I sold his mace to the traders (Note: I dont know if this is enough to trigger the assassin chain since this item does not have his name on it). 7) Went back to kill Lareths followers in the moathouse 8) The backdoor moathouse ambush did not occur. The reason I am slightly confused is that I normally get the assassin ambush by now (when I sell the legs/necklace). And Ted (I believe) told me I may get another encounter b/c of the mace. So when I got attacked by some thugs on the highway, I did not know if that was the new encounter. I guess not. Now I am attempting to free Lareth from you know where (not giving away a spoiler). If he lives, I am assuming no assassin ambush.
The Orc cave thing is a bug, which will be fixed soon enough (the original locale Lareth took you to has been moved). You don't get the ambush if Lareth isn't dead, I believe.
