09-20-2003, 05:36 AM
(This post was last modified: 09-21-2003, 11:15 PM by MongoJerry.)
MALDAR: ACT IV, IZUAL
After finishing his business with Meshif, Maldar returned to the Pandemonium Fortress, the last bastion of Heaven's power before the burning gates of hell. The Fortress itself was a marvel, but Maldar noticed that its inhabitants had some odd quirks. The Fortress had two shopkeepers, Jamella and Halbu, who despite repeatedly calling Maldar their "champion," charged Maldar outrageous prices for their wares. In addition, it seemed like they kept their best equipment in storage and were unwilling to show Maldar any quality elite weapons or armor. One would think that people worried about the future of the mortal realm itself would be more willing to help the one person capable of stopping the impending cataclysm. Also, Jamella kept offering to let Maldar gamble for equipment in her gambling parlor which seemed a strange business to conduct in an outpost of heaven.
Maldar gazed out of the Pandemonium Fortress archway that overlooked the plains of hell. To stop the cataclysm, he would have to slip by all of the minions of hell itself and battle Diablo in his own lair. The task seemed daunting.
As if that weren't enough, the archangel Tyrael gave Maldar an additional mission. Izual, a fallen angel who had once been Tyrael's most trusted lieutenant, had been punished for his transgressions by being bound within the form of a terrible creature which had been summoned from the Abyss. Tyrael had been forbidden by Heaven from venturing into hell, so he asked Maldar to free Izual for he felt that Izual had suffered long enough.
Maldar agreed to the mission, but as he walked away from Tyrael, he thought to himself, "This is a very interesting turn of events, my dear Tyrael. You went against the wishes of Heaven by giving the Horodrim the soulstones that Diablo and his brothers corrupted and in doing so you started the chain of events that led to our current predicament. Now you ask me to go against the wishes of Heaven by freeing your old lieutenant who showed Diablo and his brothers how to corrupt the soulstones. My motivation in this is clear. I have compassion for all beings, fallen angels or not. What is your motivation in all this, Mr. Archangel?"
Maldar passed through the Fortress's archway and walked out onto the Outer Steppes of hell. Could Maldar free a fallen angel in the middle of the horrors of hell?
The Outer Steppes had Corpulents, Doom Casters, and Doom Knights. These were easy to blind, imprison and get past, and I quickly found the entrance to the Plains of Despair.
![[Image: Maldar4_izzy1.jpg]](http://www.idiom.com/~gmonsen/diablo/Maldar4_izzy1.jpg)
In the Plains of Despair, I had to move more cautiously as it felt like there were wall-to-wall Burning Souls who liked to shoot from off screen. Every few yards, I had to cast Dim Vision at the edge of the screen in several directions to keep the Burning Souls nice and blind.
![[Image: Maldar4_izzy2.jpg]](http://www.idiom.com/~gmonsen/diablo/Maldar4_izzy2.jpg)
As I was dealing with a boss pack of Doom Casters, Izzy came out. I imprisoned him along with the Doom Casters and started firing Bone Spirits at him. Things went well until a boss Venom Lord pack and some Burning Souls also woke up. The Venom Lord boss was amp cursed, so whenever I Bone Prisoned him, the Doom Caster boss, and Izzy, they were able to chew through the bone prisons at a good clip. In addition, I had to keep casting Dim Visions in different directions to keep the minions and Burning Souls blinded. I spent so much time casting Dim Visions and Bone Prisons that I had to keep reminding myself that I was supposed to shoot Bone Spirits at Izzy, too!
![[Image: Maldar4_izzy3.jpg]](http://www.idiom.com/~gmonsen/diablo/Maldar4_izzy3.jpg)
Despite having to engage in a slow fighting retreat against the oncoming Izzy and the two bosses, Maldar managed to take Izzy down. Interestingly, Izzy's death caused the deaths of the monsters around him in the same way that the deaths of some other superuniques like Radament and Blood Raven do. With most characters, I usually kill all of the monsters around Izzy before engaging Izzy himself, so that's something I had never noticed before.
![[Image: Maldar4_izzy4.jpg]](http://www.idiom.com/~gmonsen/diablo/Maldar4_izzy4.jpg)
The City of the Damned had Abyss Knights, so I had to be careful again. Still, the going was steady, and I eventually found the waypoint and the entrance to the River of Flame.
Maldar returned to the Pandemonium Fortress and told Tyrael that Izual had been a willing participant in Diablo's plans from the beginning. Tyrael thanked Maldar for freeing Izual and then said, "But if what you tell me is true, then I fear we have been played for fools all along." Tyrael continued to talk about Izual's treachery and how now that Diablo and his brothers controlled the soulstones, they could turn the mortal world into an outpost of hell.
But Maldar stopped listening. He thought to himself, "No, it was only you, Tyrael, who had been played for a fool and only you who is responsible for our situation. Why do you keep meddling in the affairs of mortals against the will of Heaven? Do you think yourself wiser and more inclined to compassion than other angels? Are you therefore a simple fool unknowingly playing Diablo's game?
"Or are you the one orchestrating a game that not even Diablo and his brothers comprehend? I will continue to play the part of the obedient pawn, Tyrael. But know that Maldar, the Magnificent, is watching your every move for Izual was not Heaven's first fallen angel and won't likely be the last."
UP NEXT: The River of Flame
After finishing his business with Meshif, Maldar returned to the Pandemonium Fortress, the last bastion of Heaven's power before the burning gates of hell. The Fortress itself was a marvel, but Maldar noticed that its inhabitants had some odd quirks. The Fortress had two shopkeepers, Jamella and Halbu, who despite repeatedly calling Maldar their "champion," charged Maldar outrageous prices for their wares. In addition, it seemed like they kept their best equipment in storage and were unwilling to show Maldar any quality elite weapons or armor. One would think that people worried about the future of the mortal realm itself would be more willing to help the one person capable of stopping the impending cataclysm. Also, Jamella kept offering to let Maldar gamble for equipment in her gambling parlor which seemed a strange business to conduct in an outpost of heaven.
Maldar gazed out of the Pandemonium Fortress archway that overlooked the plains of hell. To stop the cataclysm, he would have to slip by all of the minions of hell itself and battle Diablo in his own lair. The task seemed daunting.
As if that weren't enough, the archangel Tyrael gave Maldar an additional mission. Izual, a fallen angel who had once been Tyrael's most trusted lieutenant, had been punished for his transgressions by being bound within the form of a terrible creature which had been summoned from the Abyss. Tyrael had been forbidden by Heaven from venturing into hell, so he asked Maldar to free Izual for he felt that Izual had suffered long enough.
Maldar agreed to the mission, but as he walked away from Tyrael, he thought to himself, "This is a very interesting turn of events, my dear Tyrael. You went against the wishes of Heaven by giving the Horodrim the soulstones that Diablo and his brothers corrupted and in doing so you started the chain of events that led to our current predicament. Now you ask me to go against the wishes of Heaven by freeing your old lieutenant who showed Diablo and his brothers how to corrupt the soulstones. My motivation in this is clear. I have compassion for all beings, fallen angels or not. What is your motivation in all this, Mr. Archangel?"
Maldar passed through the Fortress's archway and walked out onto the Outer Steppes of hell. Could Maldar free a fallen angel in the middle of the horrors of hell?
The Outer Steppes had Corpulents, Doom Casters, and Doom Knights. These were easy to blind, imprison and get past, and I quickly found the entrance to the Plains of Despair.
In the Plains of Despair, I had to move more cautiously as it felt like there were wall-to-wall Burning Souls who liked to shoot from off screen. Every few yards, I had to cast Dim Vision at the edge of the screen in several directions to keep the Burning Souls nice and blind.
As I was dealing with a boss pack of Doom Casters, Izzy came out. I imprisoned him along with the Doom Casters and started firing Bone Spirits at him. Things went well until a boss Venom Lord pack and some Burning Souls also woke up. The Venom Lord boss was amp cursed, so whenever I Bone Prisoned him, the Doom Caster boss, and Izzy, they were able to chew through the bone prisons at a good clip. In addition, I had to keep casting Dim Visions in different directions to keep the minions and Burning Souls blinded. I spent so much time casting Dim Visions and Bone Prisons that I had to keep reminding myself that I was supposed to shoot Bone Spirits at Izzy, too!
Despite having to engage in a slow fighting retreat against the oncoming Izzy and the two bosses, Maldar managed to take Izzy down. Interestingly, Izzy's death caused the deaths of the monsters around him in the same way that the deaths of some other superuniques like Radament and Blood Raven do. With most characters, I usually kill all of the monsters around Izzy before engaging Izzy himself, so that's something I had never noticed before.
The City of the Damned had Abyss Knights, so I had to be careful again. Still, the going was steady, and I eventually found the waypoint and the entrance to the River of Flame.
Maldar returned to the Pandemonium Fortress and told Tyrael that Izual had been a willing participant in Diablo's plans from the beginning. Tyrael thanked Maldar for freeing Izual and then said, "But if what you tell me is true, then I fear we have been played for fools all along." Tyrael continued to talk about Izual's treachery and how now that Diablo and his brothers controlled the soulstones, they could turn the mortal world into an outpost of hell.
But Maldar stopped listening. He thought to himself, "No, it was only you, Tyrael, who had been played for a fool and only you who is responsible for our situation. Why do you keep meddling in the affairs of mortals against the will of Heaven? Do you think yourself wiser and more inclined to compassion than other angels? Are you therefore a simple fool unknowingly playing Diablo's game?
"Or are you the one orchestrating a game that not even Diablo and his brothers comprehend? I will continue to play the part of the obedient pawn, Tyrael. But know that Maldar, the Magnificent, is watching your every move for Izual was not Heaven's first fallen angel and won't likely be the last."
UP NEXT: The River of Flame