Postby Ragorn » Mon Jul 01, 2002 12:57 am
****** CHAPTER THREE SPOILER ALERT ******
****** CHAPTER THREE SPOILER ALERT ******
****** CHAPTER THREE SPOILER ALERT ******
When I fought Klauth, I was a 17th level Cleric/Fighter/Rogue. It took me maybe... 25 save-and-load sessions before I finally killed him. He breathed me for about 120 every time, and the reflex save was so high that even with 4 levels in Rogue, I couldn't make saves to fully avoid damage. He would also target me as soon as I stepped into melee range.. he'd use Knockdown first, which always hit, then destroy me before I could stand. This was the only fight in single player I had any trouble with, but it was a BITCH.
***** THE SPOILER IS OVER *****
400+ hp characters are not impossible, but infinitely unlikely unless you use the toolset or utilize the hit point trick (simply cancel your levelup if you don't get the max, it'll reroll your hit points). A 20th barb who gets MAX hit points every level (1d12 per level) only has 240 hit points before modifying for con. Assuming.. oh let's say 20 con, that's +5 per level or another 100. 340, plus toughness is 360. Getting to 400 would require at least a 24 con and maxing your d12 rolls on EVERY LEVEL. It's simply not possible unless you cheat. My Cleric(11) Fighter(4) Rogue(3) has about 150 hit points without the toughness feat.
The toughness feat is fine, I think. It gives the benefit of +2 con, which isn't completely outrageous when you consider that the +con items in the single player are boots and not miscellaneous magic items like they are in Pen&Paper.
As for the Harm spell, there is one steadfast rule of Dungeon Mastering: Single Powerful Monsters Are Not A Challenge. A talented DM will create a challenging encounter by adding monsters and circumstances, not by increasing the CR of a single monster. Just like on Sojourn, a room with 5 7th level monsters is MUCH harder than one 16th level monster of the same type. Our party of 9th level characters got DESTROYED by three 7th level monsters in a room with a large pit.
Harm isn't the only way that single enemies are highly ineffective, but it's a good example. The attack of opportunity system also favors a party of 5 who completely surround one big hefty monster. If the fighter gets a lucky disarm roll, your 25th level fighter/rogue monster is screwed. If the cleric lands a Hold Person or similar spell, your monster is screwed. If the fighter goes full defensive while 3 mages scatter and cast offensive magic, your single monster is screwed. The NWN single player doesn't showcase enough truly difficult encounters... they tend to provide difficulty with either HORDES of goblins or single large bosses who fall instantly.
**** ANOTHER SPOILER COMING ****
If you had to fight Aribeth, Maugrim, and Morag all at the same time at the top of the Host Tower instead of a bunch of pussy lizardmen, it woulda been tough. But unfortunately, most of the dungeons in the NWN campaign are a crawl through 50 rooms packed full of easy monsters culminating in one tough boss monster that folds easily.
I think this, like most of the other issues I've come across, is a campaign issue and not an engine issue.
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- Ragorn
Jenera says 'i managed to match a little, ragorn's outfit is hideous.'
