Favourite and least favourite spells

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What are people's favourite and least favourite spells and why. I would particularly like to hear about some of the more ingenious / wicked spell combinations that people have come up with.

Here's my contribution:

Favourites

• Horror: Never ceases to be useful for thinning the ranks of your enemies.
• Web: Supremely overpowered spell. Nullifies the threat from groups of tough enemies, making them unable to do anything while you fire arrow after arrow and spell after spell. Some enemies will eventually engage you hand-to-hand, but they're only likely to get to you one at a time.
• Skull Trap: Keeps on giving long after other damage spells have maxed out. Does big damage to most enemies. It does have a short range, however, with attendant friendly fire risks.
• Emotion: Hopelessness: Another great spell for thinning enemy numbers. Enemies who fail their saves are as good as dead. Once you're done with the guys who made their saves, you can kill the others at your leisure.
• Greater Malison: Makes everything else so much more effective.
• Feeblemind: Good for turning boss enemies into harmless, drooling idiots. Then proceed to chop them to pieces.
• Death Spell: Kills many of the enemies that you might face (umber hulks, trolls, yuan-ti, etc.) instantly. Remains useful for taking out pesky summons.
• Finger of Death: The single most satisfying spell you can cast. Precede with Greater Malison.
• Horrid Wilting: The daddy of big damage spells. Nice and party friendly, too.
• Insect Plague: Disables enemy spell casters and can make them run around like big scared idiots as well. Nice one.
• Holy Smite: Perhaps the only really worthwhile cleric damage spell, this is one that keeps on giving as you level up. Nice and party friendly, too, as long as you haven't got anybody evil along.
• Aerial Servant: This is the best summons by a long way. Aerial servants are as hard as nails.

Least favourites

• Lightning Bolt: I always do more damage to myself that to the enemy.
• Cone Of Cold: Another great way to hurt your companions.
• Carrion Summons: 6th level spell and two whole carrion crawlers. Talk about underwhelmed.
• Energy Drain: While you would find it irksome to be the victim of this, it has almost no useful effect on an enemy. Less damaging than Magic Missile.
• Cause xxxx Wounds: Why not wallop the enemy instead?
• Blade Barrier: Waste of a spell. I don't think that I've ever got damaged by an enemy cleric's barrier. Seems just as likely to hurt your friends as your enemies, anyway.

While I don't hate them per se, I almost never cast the various magic protection removal spells (from Spell Thrust to Spellstrike). I always seem to have something more useful to do.

Favourite combination. Take one large group of enemies (say the Slave Lords) and cast web. Slows them down nicely. Follow with Greater Malison to ensure that they won't get free in a hurry and then throw a Skull Trap in their midst. A little Chaos doesn't go amiss, just to make sure that they don't do anything intelligent while you're killing them.

One of my favoured dragon combinations: Lower Resistance, Greater Malison, Feeblemind.

 

I run melee-heavy parties, so I generally end up using spells like Breach, Pierce Magic, Remove Magic, True Sight, etc. the most. Beyond that, it's generally either party-friendly area-effect spells such as Chain Lightning and Horrid Wilting or individual attack spells such as Acid Arrow or Flame Arrow. A quick Acid Arrow into an enemy spellcaster works wonders at disrupting their spells.

 

Lower Resistance is an essential spell for any wizard or mage
Incendiary Cloud is one of my favourites, I love those damage over time spells especially this one though and it works good on certain dragons if you use it with Lower Resistance
Horrid Wilting is the best over all though it just ownz

 

Hm, Haste is a great spell too. Extra attacks. Higher movement rate. Can tip the scales in most melee battles.

I like PfE too. Not the 1st level spell but the Paladin ability though - better saves and to hit. PfE 10' radius is even better.

Defensive Harmony. A fast and easy way to increase the AC of your entire party.

 

Flame Arrow. At higher levels, this can do more damage than fireball can!

Chain Lightning: Party Freindly, really strong, and more reliable than lightning bolt.

Time Stop: You Win!

Simulacrum: My favorite summon-like spell aside from Aerial Servant.

Dislikes: Color Spray

Ice Storm\Fire Storm: Too risky unless the group runs or is immune.

 

Stoneskin/Iron Skins haven't been mentioned (maybe because they're pretty obvious). Chaotic Commands is great; too bad it only works on 1 person. Improved Invisibility is another good one for a melee attacker.

In general, I dislike any offensive spell where you have to walk up and touch the enemy to do damage.

 

Mislead and simulacrium are great for any mage or especially the solo figher/mage.

Magic Missile still rules all though.

 

I like fireball for obvious reasons. Strength of one is pretty good also.

 

Melf's Meteors, Spook, Mislead + Tenser's + Backstab, Bolt of Glory, Improved Invisibilty + Blur (+7 AC bonus).

I usually play without Stoneskin on my Fighter/Mage's

 

Favorites:

Find Familiar -> Some additional HPs and what is a decent spellcaster without a familiar? Incomplete.

Mirror Image -> Hit me - if you can find me.

Flame Arrow -> Devastating when cast by a highlevel mage or bard.

Vampiric Touch -> Quite potent and adds temporarily HP to the caster. My bard often charges in when an opponent has been badly hurt and claims the victory. Must be frustrating for Korgan and Keldorn.

Lightning Bold -> Wonderful straight forward kind of spell, but only for wide areas and when no pesky peasants are around. My main spell against dragons.

Skull Trap -> Nasty thing, but I use it not too often. Much hassle to keep party memebers out of harms way.

Finger of Death -> I like the idea of this spell.

Horrid Wilting -> For obvious reasons.

Doom -> Instant casting and lots of nice effects.

Holy Smiting -> Damage is based on level and quite good for a 3rd level spell. But dangerous for my evil characters.

Natures Beauty -> Again, I like the idea of this spell.

Well, I could go on... Dolorous Decay, Call Lightning, Flame Strike - all of them are great I think.

Spells I seldom (never) use:

The enchantment spells, other than Greater Malison. Dont know why.

 

my favorite spells are these:
Abi Dalzim's Horrid Wilting attached to a Chjain Contigency

Stone to Flesh

Discintegrate(spelling?)

Death Spell

Imprisonment( got it from SK, i never use SK that much though )

and Maze

these are good,powerfuk spells to dispatch enmies wuickly if used right

 

Favorites:
Abi Dalzim's Horrid Wilting
Finger of Death
Greater Malison
K's Warding Whip

Least Favorites:
There are quite a few worthless spells, too many to name... but 'infravision' is probably the least useful skill in the game.

 

favourite spells
stoneskin/ironskin
melf's minute meteors
insect plague
animate dead
mass cure
haste

least favourite spells
all the chaos-confusion type spells
summon animals I, II, III
ghoul touch, shocking grasp, etc
know alignment

 

Favorite spell: Power Word: Blind. Makes the toughest enemies easy. Works on Firkraag and the other dragons, works on Bodhi and Irenicus, works on liches, even works on golems (sometimes only after a couple of Lower Resistances. Nothing a Time Stop or Spell Trigger can't take care of). As soon as your enemy is Blinded, cast any spell. Don't have Abi Dalzim's anymore? Use your low level spells, or a sling; they don't do as much damage, but your enemy can't even see you, so you've got the time to whittle away health.

Terrific combination: Project Image and Wizard Eye. The only problems with the Image are a.) it can be dispelled and b.) it has no vision. The Wizard Eye takes care of the vision problem, and can also keep your Image from being dispelled if you scout far enough ahead. Use your Image to cast 5 Mordenkainen's Swords and chop up enemies without taking away any of your own spells.

Of course, a high-level mage (and especially a sorcerer!) has so many strategies available.... In my experience, though, the above spells have proven most consistently useful.

 

Favourite:

Breach
Holy Smite
Greater Malison
Sunray
Insect Plague (very good for low level parties fighting powerful magic users! A-1!)


Not so Favourite:

Know Alignment-doesn't really work on the people who I am really curious about!

As Splunge already said, any offensive touch spell.

 

Favorite Spells in level order.
Lv1 - Magic Arrow - Quick way to do good damage.
Lv2 - Mirror Image and Melfs Acid Arrow
Lv3 - Fireball - Burn Baby, Burn.
Lv4 - Stoneskin and Minor Globe - Get protected and then just storm in and let the Fireballing begin.
Lv5 - Cloud Kill - Damage over time, awesome.
Lv6 - Tough one, I dont know.
Lv7 - Same as 6.
Lv8 - Abi Dalzims Horrid Writing - Like CK, but even better since it doesn´t harm partymembers AND it looks very cool. Probably the coolest spellanimation of them all.
Lv9 - Time Stop - Well, you know what I´m talking about.

 

my least favorite spells are
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1. know alignment
2. idenitfy(just use the scroll!!!)
3. detect evil
4. find familiar(same as identify)
5. ray of enfeeblement
6. infravision
7. doom
8. prismatic image
9. pierce magic
10. and too many more to name

 

Doom+Chromatic orb = Great combination.

Favoutite spells:

Horrid Wilting: Almost too good to be true.
Horror: Rarely fails
Skull trap: Thieves eat your heart out.
Heal: Never leave home without it.
Time stop: Say no more
Call woodland being: Nymphs are great for charming and when your low on hp, cast vampiric touch on her!!

Crap spells:
Friends: Who really uses it?
Clairvoyance: Unless it's your first time playing, you'll never use it.
Polymorph self: Why?

 

Good:
-Magic missile (a true classic)
-Melf's acid arrow
-Fireball

Bad:
-Fox's cunning
-Owl's wisdom
-Bull's strenght
& all others like those

[ November 13, 2003, 18:22: Message edited by: Mayfairy ]

 

Now, in which game called "Baldur's Gate 2" do you find THOSE spells?