Is "Magic Resistance" a cheat?

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You see, we all know that the level 5 Priest spell, "Magic Resistance", can be used in interesting ways, especially at low levels. In fact, since it "overwrites" any other magic resistance the target has, it is more useful as an offensive spell than as a defensive one.

I have always thought this as a perfectly lawful (and quite intelligent) use of this spell. Just like using Improved Invisibility to get a +4 AC and +4 THAC0 on first strike rather than as a sneaking spell.

But I have read on this messageboard that someone considers this cheating, just like placing hundreds of traps (which IMHO is cheating ONLY if you set them without your character knowing why or where to do it).

What do you think?

 

First let me spit on traps issue.
The actual usage of that should be time limited - so that game removes all player's traps when you hit the rest button.
I do think this was supposed to be made, because too many traps set on the screen will crash the game when you hit the map button.
Anyway, I'm thinking on making and adding this in SPfix. So D.S.'s must have docs will become almost unusable when I do remove all bugs he described how to exploit.

The Magic Resistance spell is not cheating. I don't know where you've heard it's cheating.
You have noted in that spell description that it SETS MR to a fixed number no matter creature's or NPC's actual MR. If it was cheating, then it would never be stated in the description.
Just like Protection from Magic scroll that you may cast on the target and prevent any spellcasting from that target. It is stated in the description what does it do and it's your choice if you'll use it on yourself or on enemy.

For Improved Invisibility I don't know what are you talking about. According to description you don't get +4 THAC0, but enemies get -4 THAC0 if you're attacked.

 

Thank you for removing my doubts. I have looked around to find out where I had heard that "Magic Resistance" was a cheat, and actually it was just a despiseful message by C'Jakob. ("Well, yes, Dragons, all of them, are ridiculousy easy when you summon hordes of elementals, cast every protection spell imaginable on your party, set dozen of traps around it, cast Magic Resistance on the Dragon, and then have some Kensai/Mage with the XP cap removed have a whack at it. ")

I apologize for the Improved Invisibility error. Of course, it lowers the enemy's THAC0 by 4 (ie improving your AC by 4), not improves your thac0 by 4.

As for traps, I disagree with you. There is no reason in the world why a non-magical trap should disappear after a few hours. Of course, one could ask how does a thief manage to carry around thousand of traps and why he cannot set them all at once, but this is arguing about the whole D&D system (which IMHO is really absurd: e.g., if you know a spell formula by heart, why can't you repeat it over and over during the day?). Surely traps create game-balancing issues; to your satisfaction, in ToB there is a limit to the number of traps you can set in a certain area. This has been done to avoid crashes, but turns useful for balancing too.
Another apology of traps: someone pointed out that a dragon would surely notice a thief setting traps, sleeping, setting traps, sleeping, etc. all in front of him (except for the Shadow Dragon of course). True, but a dragon would equally notice and positively get angry at a cleric who summons elementals inside his lair. The whole dragon-fighting system is flawed in BG2: eg, if Firkraaf were not an idiot, would either slay you on the place as soon as you enter uninvited or shut the lair door behind you.

 

*sigh*

Israfel, I never said Magic Resistance used offensively was a cheat. I said it was cheap.

Extremist is right: you can cast the spell on whoever you like; I just oppose doing because it's not much of a challenge.

You can't compare Improved Invisibility with Magic Resistance; If a thief/wizard wants to get that first hit on whatever might be lurking down in the celarr, it's perfectly reasonable to cast Improved Invisibility. Casting Magic Resistance is cheap if you know another person's MR. Can you walk up to a dragon and say, "Oh, your MR's 65%, so I'll just cast Magic Resistance instead of Lower Resistance."? (Well, an experienced adventurer or sage would know that dragons or golems have resistance to magic, so I suppose there's rebuttal for that.)

As for snares, a thief doesn't just have some magic bag that contains dozens of traps in there. The game is designed to have 3 or 4 traps, not 20. Laying a few traps around a dangerous place is sensible; but laying 20 of them around a place you already know has a dangerous enemy is just cheap.

Whether you want to do those things is up to you. It's just my philosophy that one should play games (or at least CRPGS) more realistically.



[This message has been edited by C'Jakob (edited March 30, 2002).]

 

You know when I first played BG2, I didn't know about magic resistance of creatures at all so I have never (LISTEN UP) used either lower resistance or magic resistance. I finished the whole game and never missed them.

How come you guys how much is a monster's magc resistance anyway?

 

In fact, I never know the enemy's MR before casting a lowering spell, and as such I am nearly always in doubt between using Lower Resistance or Magic Resistance (except for creature who I have met previously and recognised being nearly at all immune to magic).

As for traps, well, I think that any sane thief would guess that a dragon is worth 20 traps at first glance.

 

Any sane thief wouldn't be laying 20 traps around a dragon in real life; the dragon wouldn't just sit around and stand the indignity of someone doing that. Imagine if I set dozens of snares around you and then challenged you to a duel; what would you do?

 

Imagining a top IQ thief hiding in stealth fully using the advantage of deep night and then laying up to 20 traps around the big snoring monster from his superbig backpack, then perhaps...but...

 

And to all those who say that attacking dragons while they're still 'blue' is a cheat:

If you were walking through a dungeon and found this BIG, HUGE room, decoated by dragon motifs, and then you go in and there's this big red dragon in there who you know is actually Lord Jierdan Firkraag what would you do?

Personally I would either RUN AWAY or ATACK HIM. One thing that I am completely certain I would not do is TALK TO HIM !!!

 

Hmmm, I wouldn't do that actually.

Firkraag is for sure an old beast, he should know something that could interest a real adventurer.
So, first interrogating, then nailing!

 

I'd simply kill him, then have his spirit summoned by a priest and ask him the questions I wanted. Less dangerous, plus now he knows I'm not just the 1000th foolish adventurer who pathetically tries to steal his trasure but fails miserably. Of course, if he doesn't want to answer then he wouldn't have answered while still alive either

 

Give these ancient dragons a chance...
Talk to them a bit and let them know you want to fight them, so they can prepare for battle. Give them a stay of execution.

 

Another great way is to download a mod on this side... Improved dragons battle.
I think it's with the Solaufin mod.
Anyway... The dragons now act like a 'smart' dragon would... Using wing buffet often as well as his breath weapon (which hurts). And they won't just sit around and watch you set snare around anymore.
Heh... I battled Firkraag with my party exported from TOB. Which means they're all more than level 30.
And the beast actually won the first battle!
Easily, I would even say. And I thought I was good at nailing dragons...
But hey, he didn't win the second battle
I think anyone should try this.