Eye of the Beholder 2 Walkthrough - The Azure Tower, Level 5
By Daniel D'Agostino, 2011-11-19 / EOB2 Walkthrough / EOB2 Info
First Encounters
Before you are dropped in this level from Azure Level 4, make sure you rest and pray for / memorise spells that are useful in combat. The Frost Giants that inhabit this level cause damage to the whole party with each blow, meaning weaker members (especially clerics and mages) will die quickly (one reason why I opted not to take San-Raal this time).
Haste (Mage Level 3) is a must. I tend to use the Cleric spells of Bless, Prayer and Protection from Evil 10' Radius as well. Casting Aid on all party members will give you a little more hit points than your maximum, meaning weaker party members have an added chance of survival. You can also cast Mystic Defense from the Starfire wand - I'm not sure what this does exactly, but it's free.
As for offensive spells, the usual Fireball and Lightning Bolt work quite well, and Cone of Cold tends to be recommended, although I haven't really see it affect the giants at all. Hold Monster (Mage Level 5) has a chance of paralysing a giant, at which point he becomes a sitting duck. Slay Living (Cleric Level 5) has a chance of killing a giant completely, but doesn't always work. Flame Strike (Cleric Level 5) is also effective.
You start in an alcove, with a Mage Scroll of Cone of Cold at your feet. Although the giants won't attack until you step out of the alcove, you can't rest because a giant is patrolling nearby. First, you have to kill 3 giants at one go. After resting, you need to kill another four.
Pits and Giants
At the end of the corridor are three west turns. The first takes you to five pits in a row, while the other two are connected, and have one or two giants and three pits. You can kill the giants for experience, but there is nothing more you need to do.
Using the first (southernmost) west turn, you cannot cross the five pits all at once, but you can cross the first two and then take the south turn. Here you need to kill two frost giants; this is not easy as you have no room to move back. Behind the door at the end of this passage are another two frost giants (optional).
Go back to the pits. Observing their pattern, you should realise that there are two chances of crossing. One reopens the pit at the end very quickly, so you have no chance of getting past. Cross north and then west at the other opportunity. Rest and save once you reach the door to the west.
King of the Frost Giants
There are three western doors in this part of the level. There are pits in the north corridor (including in front of the second door to the west), but you can cross them if you time it right. The first door to the west has two giants, and another door behind them has yet another two (all optional).
The northernmost west door has a giant in front of it. Another two are waiting behind this door (all optional).
Choose the right moment to cross the pits and go through the central (second) door to the west. Don't tarry in front of the door because a pit opens here. Kill the two frost giants, and also the other three waiting behind the next door.
Behind a final door is the King of the Frost Giants. Rather than attacking you, he recites a poem and then "mysteriously turns to dust", leaving behind Talon's Tongue.
With Talon's Tongue in your possession, head for the portal and activate it using the Stone Dagger. This takes you back to the Priests' Quarters, from where you can now access the Crimson Tower.