Point being if you use ranged, altitude, surfaces, and the broken stealth system you can cheese these combats, but outside of that you are going to get torn apart which is why you have so many people complaining about the difficulty.
Yeah well, Agincourt sort of proved that point didn't it? It may not be balanced, but history is replete with accounts of these factors lending themselves to overwhelming victory. I don't necessarily have a problem with it.
If you are trying to put down a rabid dog, you don't strip down, lube up, and attempt Greco-Roman wrestling techniques. You pick up a shotgun.
I think a lot of us may have forgotten how punishing combat was in the first Baldur's Gate and simply remember waffle stomping dragons and arch fiends in the sequel. I am personally less concerned about balance than I am fairness, and it is not an unfair fight. You may not be able to beat it the way you want to, but there is still more than one way to beat it. I thought this was a actually a fun encounter, because I hadn't even noticed the Gnolls on the rise when I was dealing with the Hyenas the first time, and I wouldn't have known what those Hyenas were doing if it weren't for an arcana check. It all felt refreshingly new and novel, and there is little I appreciate less than boring combat. I like that they are trying to make everything you fight feel unique and uniquely dangerous. Its not for everyone, and I am not trying to push my views on others, but I do wonder if he is more upset about Gnolls or losing.
