Hi all, This is probably another noobish question, but here we go: When you pre-buff before a big battle, is there any way to do it with the game paused? I'm used to Baldur's Gate where you pause the game and then get everyone to cast Bless / drink potion of Strength / cast Mirror Image - then you unpause and everyone applies their buffs simultaneously. But in TOEE I can't find a way to do this - you have to apply buffs in real-time. Which means that if you're applying a lot of "1 round / level" duration buffs, the first ones are wearing off while you're still applying that last ones! Is there any way round this? I've tried hitting C to enter combat mode, but if there are no enemies around it just cancels automatically after the first character has taken an action. So I'm left frantically trying to apply buffs as quickly as possible so they don't wear off. This seems rather strange considering the way combat works in this game - i.e. you can spend as long as you like deciding on what to do for each action! Is there anything I'm missing?? Thank you! Riven Target of Revenge ambush = evil
I think the best you can do is to press c just after each buff is cast. This removes the franticness, and you save the time lost going through the radial menu, but you still lose time off the first buffs cast while the others are being cast.
The obvious answer here is to NOT CAST THE ONE ROUND/LEVEL spells first!! Start with the 1 hour/level, then go to the 10 mins/level, then the 1 minute/level. FINISH with the one round per level stuff. OR wait 'til you're IN combat to cast those. The only one I can think of worth casting is Haste, anyway.
And on your fighter a bullstrength & bear's endurence, and bless for the rest. In really tough battles, some stoneskins might help too, but haste is an in-battle spell to cast.
Thanks for the advice about pressing C after casting each spell. I had thought to cast the spells in reverse order of duration not surprisingly!! <spoiler> The Target of Revenge ambush is REALLY HARD! I'm struggling to last two rounds without character deaths, even with all these buffs... certainly don't want to be spending one of those rounds casting Haste, Divine Power and so on. Maybe I need to recruit some more powerful NPCs and wait til I've levelled up to level 8 or 9! PS by the way - great name Nyarlathotep!
It`s one of the things I like in ToEE - you can`t cast just about everything and enter combat without worrying some of the buffs won`t fade fast. Although you can still use most of them pre-battle, using the advices above and hardly losing out on their duration time. Myself, I was used to pre-buffing in the real time - making a plan for the order in which spells should be cast, and then just execute it as perfectly as possible. Not the most comfortable, but hey, it`s been a good reflexes training (and a lot of mad clicking...). Hmm, Fire Shield could be another. It is challenging battle, I agree. Also very satisfying. I managed on my second approach, without great difficulties (the first time I had one character dead, as I didn`t know what to expect). Party of 5 PC`s, all on level 6 (Bard, Rog, Wiz, War/Barb, Cler/War). I don`t use mind-controlling spells or abilities (many bugs, making it too easy), not a fan of crowd-control spells either (actually I used one Web there, first time ever, just to destroy it one round later with a well placed fireball - oh well, at least now I know how it works), also no summoning monsters that time. What I want to say is - no, I don`t think you need powerful NPCS or 8th/9th party level. It`s down to tactics, experience, and plain luck - sometimes one saving throw might be crucial (enemy spellcasters can be a real pain). Check your enemies carefully, their attack/damage rolls, figure out who is dangerous and who isn`t (for example, one of the traders and his shortsword only tickle, even on your casters). As to Haste - I think it is worth to sacrifice one round to cast it. Then again, I wouldn`t know since I was forced to use it to counter the enemy`s Slow.
Crumbs - finally finished the Target of Revenge encounter. I'd left it until I was Level 8 and had recruited Rufus and Burne, which with retrospect was a bit of overkill. I killed the enemy wizard in one round, Burne cast Charm Monster on the big fighter with the spiked chain and we made mincemeat of the rest. I think the assassin is the real problem - if I'd done things so I met him alone earlier on I think Target of Revenge would be MUCh simpler. The problem is that without being high level it's very difficult to raise your entire parties' AC and hp to a point where the assassin can't kill someone in round 1 (since he always seems to win initiative). But once that first round's over he can't easily sneak attack and is much less of a threat. Just my thoughts anyway. Fantastic fight - I can't recall who it is who designed this encounter (Livonya?) but it really is very fun and adds a nice bit of a colour (and danger!) to the game. Now to spend the huge amounts of loot I've gained from it....
I have always though that the Target of Revenge encounter was one of the best in the game. Possessing powerful enemies, backed by solid tactics, at an extreme difficultly level (but still not totally impossible at lower levels). Plus, it fits into the story perfectly. The best part for me is that you are warned beforehand that “people” are looking for you. Hey, if you think you are the bad*ss adventures and nothing can touch you, well… you get what you deserve. Of course the first time I played it I got TPKed! Kudos and cookies to the modder(s)! :thumbsup:
