10 replies to this topic

[berelinde]

I don't play the thief class very well, and I don't play it very often, but there's something I've been meaning to ask, and have been too embarrassed at my own ignorance to do so. However, after considerable thought, I'd rather appear ignorant than continue in that state, so I'm going to ask anyway.

How does a thief backstab in game?

There doesn't seem to be a button for it that I can find. I've tried attacking an opponent while invisible, using the "thief tools," which just results in pickpocketing, and creeping up from behind and just attacking normally, but it's always just regular damage. Is there a special ability button or something?

[Kulyok]

Took me a few months back in 2002(?), too. You have to hide in shadows(or become invisible), then position your thief right behind the guy you're backstabbing, then attack.

[vilkacis]

Just attack from a "mostly from behind" angle while hidden (or just plain invisible). The attack becomes a backstab automatically under the right circumstances, there's no special command for it (and, iirc, no way to turn it off in case you for some reason do not want to cause extra damage... not that it'll ever happen )

Some creatures may not be back-stab-able, though.

[edit] Oops.

Edited by vilkacis, 05 January 2008 - 11:06 AM.

[aVENGER]

You also need to use a weapon which is suitable for backstabbing.

In unmodded BG2, only the melee weapons which are usable by the thief class (dagger, short sword, long sword, scimitar/wakizashi/ninja-to, katana, club, quarterstaf) fall into this category.

[berelinde]

Thanks, everybody!

Leave it to me to be baffled by something obvious.

[DavidWallace]

And the game employs double standards, incidentally: enemies can backstab from any angle, they just have to be invisible. (The AI scripting isn't clever enough to choose a particular angle of attack.)

[Kulyok]

Ah, I wondered about that, too. (I recently had browsed backstabbing scripts, and I wondered why there was nothing about positions). Well, good for 'em, I say.

[WizWom]

Making a backstabbing script for PCs was an interesting task; a not entirely satisfactory one, unfortunately. I managed to get about 75% success rate.

[Solar's Harper]

Backstabbing comes with another factor, in the event your thief character develops Assassination at their premium levels, it highly increases the chance of a successful backstab, as a player's THACO can ruin such an advantage, and once the enemy is attacked, 8/10 times they actually detect your character.

[WizWom]

Backstabbing comes with another factor, in the event your thief character develops Assassination at their premium levels, it highly increases the chance of a successful backstab, as a player's THACO can ruin such an advantage, and once the enemy is attacked, 8/10 times they actually detect your character.

Yes, I'd say "every strike is treated as a backstab" is "highly increased" ;-)

Assassination
Using every clever trick an experienced thief has learned in countless battles, this ability allows every strike in the next round to act as a backstab, using the thief's existing backstab modifier to determine damage.

For assassination, you need do nothing more than turn it on. Best to do it while getting hit by an improved haste, though.

[Zyraen]

I only eventually found out about backstab from my brother who used an F/T. That was after I finished BG2 SoA twice.