The fight is awesome - if adding specific parameters for higher chance of success is a bad thing, why not remove all buffs, spells, and strategically crafted combat zones?
I think y'all are missing the entire point - if this golem WAS NOT at the forge, it would decimate everything in its path during current EA. The reason we are able to defeat it is BECAUSE of a chance discovery. The golem was crafted using the surrounding minerals and forged by a special forge with specific instructions for operation - if that same forge cannot destroy what it created, how would it have forged the parts in the first place?
This is a guided story, but you do not HAVE to fight OR defeat the golem if you do not want to - we do not know the ramifications for leaving it dormant, activating it and running, or defeating it. Where choices matter, a giant impenetrable golem seems like an extremely valuable weapon in the hands of some powerful people, and doubly valuable as a plot device.
The fact you unleashed it knowingly (after reading the texts and books around Grymforge) makes me question your decision in the first place. After you released it, would the ethical decision be to destroy it, given that Grymforge is occupied by a CULT??
Let's say you release the golem and leave it alone - it's still possible to forge while the guardian is there, though you need to have your entry and escape planned. Does the cult of the absolute figure out how to control it? Is there a power struggle between parties involved (only there as slaves or for profit anyways) over who controls this giant impenetrable robot?
We're in the Grymforge fighting a product of the Grymforge - where you see a gimmick, it is logic. What did you think the first time you experienced it blind?
If there is anything to complain about, it would be the crafted items from the forge not being enhanced/enchanted with a +1 at least. While the Splint/Shield/Helm reeling combo is insanely powerful on one character (funny seeing enemies at +40 reeling), each item on its own simply fills a niche on par with other items.
As far as characters running into lava, yeah, pathing decisions with lava are a little rough right now, but it's also entirely avoidable. My first time I had 1 character at each device required to operate the forge and did not experience any issues - that's player choice.
