BG2/ToB - Tactics Module Review

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The Improved Ilyich encounter is not meant to be that serious.

Other components are definitely worth use.

 

Well I re-installed it again about an hour later to try again. And I laboured through it and even beat Improved Ilyich, much to my surprise.

Holy crap about the Fallen Deva though.

 

Yes, that certainly is a little tough so early on!

 

I like Improved Illych so much that I can still recount several of my runs through it (I must confess I have started a new group a few times just to beat Illych with a different character). I have a mini-walkthrough in my head of how to win that battle. It would be fun to hear (in detail, of course!) how other people have battled those little buggers. The difficulty makes for some great stories.

 

I just got everyone all jammed up in the hall so that I could face one at a time. I then used summons (1 spell memorized and 1 from the wand) to hold Illych up for a while while I hit him with my dual-axe wielding maniac and Minsc & Yoshi on the bow and Jahiera with a sling and Immy with some spells. I was lucky though, because Kazmarov (or whoever she is) was in the other room with her Crossbow and +3 bolts (which is pretty lame considering you don't even have +1 arrows. All you've got is 5 poison arrows, I forget the exact name.)

Once I realized that procrastination was good in this case, it became a lot easier.

I beat him on my first try, albeit I used some cheesy tactics, such as running away scared and slept so that the Fallen Deva would be unsummoned. I don't feel too bad about it though since I hit Zhivago about 4 times while he was casting and he still got it off!

I also realized the key was to a) kill Illych first, b) pick up his +2< weapons, c) kill other demon which requires +2 weapons to hit, d) survive long enough to wipe out Zhivago so he doesn't start his chain of Bolt of Glory spells, e) survive long enough to regroup, re-buff and get a second wind! f) don't rely on confusion to help you. Or blindness. Or spook. Or any low level disabling spell.

 

Thinning the herd to eliminate one at a time is very important, as you say. But it can be done in any order, as long as you are careful, fast, and/or lucky.

If you draw the demon first, you're going to need Imoen's lightning bolt and all the scrolls you can find. If you fail, might as well start over--unless you can create a trapping situation with Yoshimo (not impossible).

The Jailkeep Golem is interesting. If you can get him alone--and I have trouble with that sometimes--you can take him with Jaheira, a potion of speed, and the quarterstaff +1. But if that golem comes with anyone else, especially Illych, you are in serious trouble.

If you draw Rasputin (the monk), you'll definitely want to pin him down with something--his quivering palm is awful. I frequently use the wand of monster summoning here. I once scored a lucky hit with ghoul touch on Rasputin, which might have been the most ironic win I've had.

Karamazov, if you can get him alone, is the most straightforward to defeat, since his best attacks are with that crossbow. Unfortunately, he's hard to isolate from the pack, and as you hinted, he'll pick you apart if he can fire on you from behind his allies.

Your trouble with Zhivago is unusual--I can always interrupt his casting. In fact, I've burned out his entire spell book with archers, which is pretty darn funny. The problem is that he's so hard to hit.

The great thing about Illych is that, if you can get him before the demon, you can lead him on a merry chase through the hallways until he's in a tight spot. Then zap him with a bouncing lightning bolt, and he's finished. If you can't do that, then you need to use summons to absorb his "Landwar in Asia," because you'll never beat him if your frontliners are slowed and fatigued. Anytime you can take down Illych, the rest of the battle is cake.

Anyway, as I said, my favorite battle in the game.