Druid and Bard Help

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Found this game hidden away with old CDs and have started playing again. Getting back into the 2e has confused me a bit. Really disgusted with my initial party's weapon selection. Wanted my druid to use scimitar, but now I'm headed to Dorn's Deep and I am yet to find a magic one, back up in spear, so she is now used (?) Poker +3. But the 1D6 damage is a disappointment. If I had known how many morningstars I would find, I would have had everyone in the party use one. I only have my cleric using a shield right now, since O hate switching them out when I want to use bows.
Also, I love my bard. He is #3 in the party in kills using greatsword (mostly bastard sword+2/ ice effect). He also has the crossbow of defense, which is cool, especially since he is the only one in the party that can use them. But now I wish I had given him a sling instead since all the cool bard items seem to go in the shield slot. He could really use the extra spells.

So my questions are: Are there any good weapons for the druid? I have the archdruids staff, and its effects are great, but as a weapon, it sucks.

For next time, I will give the bard a sling, but when do you start finding any other bard only items? I bought the ones from the general store.

Finally, I have the generic dwarf fighter specializing in axes. Then I found the throwing axes +2. I was a little hestitant to use it as My tactics are hanging back and pepper the enemies with as many missles until they reach me, then switch to melee. But its range seems to equal the longbows. Any confirmation of this?

 

The best way to use that dwarf fighter is to have him chuck the throwing axe, and switch to a melee weapon when the enemy gets close. Yes, it's got the same range as a bow (weird, eh?).

Since you're already proficient with axes, the cool thing about the dwarf fighter is that he can use a shield now all the time!

 

About your Bard: My own decision, reluctantly, was to reject Bard items that took up the shield slot, so that my Bard could continue to use the longbow, a weapon much superior to the sling. You could do both--the longbow and the lyre that gives you extra spells--but it would certainly be awkward, firing off the extra spells before switching to the longbow, or switching early and losing the spells. Even so, that's probably a playable solution. (Think Melf's Magic Arrow.)

 

^I generally play like that. First I fire my extra spells, and then switch to longbow for extra punch. Tedious, maybe. Effective? Yes.

 

About your bard:
There are no cool bard items for the shield slot. The few bonus spells you would get from the lyre are nearly useless if you consider the extra damage you can do with a 2-handed bow compared to a sling because of the extra attack per round. I wouldn't even use it if it was for free.
The cool bard only items are used in the quick item slot.


About your druid:
Druids are no fighters, druids are spellcasters. A few spells used wisely can help more than many attacks.
They get only one attack per round.
It doesn't matter too much if your weapon does 2 damage more or less.
If you want to do melee damage then shapechange, polar bears get 4 attacks per round and you can even add the weapon bonusses by casting dispel magic onto the shapeshifted.
Boring beetles get 2 attacks per round and are highly resistant when you add items which give resistance bonusses.
You can find a spear+5 and an even better longsword your druid can use in chapter 6, the lucky scimitars you can buy in Kuldahar are more useful than many +3 weapons, including morning stars. You will also find a +3 scimitar in chapter5.


The throwing axe +2 is a nice weapon, get ***** in axes for your fighter as soon as possible, it does help far more than stated in the manual.
You'll still do better damage with melee axes since you don't get a strength bonus to damage for this axe.

 

With my Bard, I ended up using that shield slot for a buckler eventually, and having that Axe with an AC bonus in my main hand. After he reached level 11, I don't think my Bard ever did anything other than sing again.

That level 11 song is such a game-breaker.

 

Only if you have HoW.

 

Yeah, I always switch to melee weapon once the monsters close. The dwarf is using the defender axe right now, AC = -5 right now, will need to go back to town to pick up a shield, I think I sold a magic one a while back. True tanking coming with AC of -8 or 9, hehe.

On the druid, she only has one level 5 spell now, so no big nukes as of yet, and why bother on the shadow creatures in the hand. I use her summoning for cannon fodder. She slings away until it melee time. I really use her as a healer, even with the cleric, as he has better level 2 spells, so she loads up on CMWs. Her AC is the worst of the group, so having the reach weapon is probably a good idea.

I don't have HoW, although I always keep an eye out at game stores, it is probably a lost cause, too bad because I would like to play it and the other expansion. As well as the new bard songs.

 

Personally, I like my bards using longswords. There are a couple longswords in the game that grant an extra attack.

 

kmonster said:

If you don't have HoW, it's not worth playing a Bard.

 

Oh no, Klorox, the bard has been fun. He is, as designed, everyones backup. Actually he has been pretty good in fights, either with his xbow or using two handed sword (17str). He has magic missle, especially handy as of late when 2 opposing spellcaster are going off at once, he blasts one, the wizard blasts the other. In big fights I like to lay down web from the wiz, entangle from the druis, and grease from the bard. Gotta make 3 saves to reach me. Now add pepper shots and oooo cloudkill, hehe. And don't forget his pickpocketing, I hit everyone.

In other news, I found the mithral plate for the dwarf fighter, AC now at -12 (-14 with prot from evil 10').

Question: I have the bone flail +4, +5 vs elves. Does this work against the drow, does the game recognize drow as elves?

It also seems the magic shop reset itself, I expected new scrolls each chapter, but all the stuff I sold him is gone, all scrolls seem to be here, even the ones I already bought. The only item he has is some kind of fire robe, which I bought. No matter, at least its less cluttered.

 

Orrick's inventory changes at the start of chapter2 and chapter4, it won't change in your game anymore.

 

About the Bard: The solution I finally chose was to take the lyre, use two 2nd level buffing spells on other characters--if you don't like this, Melf's Acid Arrow is certainly as effective as anything you could fire from the longbow--then use either Fireball, Dire Charm or Slow on the next target, then re-equip the long bow.

The important thing is to realize that the extra spells can be regarded as "free" spells, substitutes for the arrows you would otherwise be firing, and generally to use them, unless you buff, as though they were arrows.

[ May 24, 2006, 04:50: Message edited by: Cernak ]