Okay I finally got the pantaloon thing done and now I'm wondering who should wear it when I go up against Melly. My party is:

Me (plaing ol' Fighter)
Jaheira
Anomen
Imoen
Kelsey
Sarevok

Are there any general stats/quirks on this thing I should know about?

I gave it to Sarevok, and added a ring of protection +2, and the cloak of the sewers and a nice amulet (forgot which one). Got him a VERY nice AC. He was very much a tank. :) But if you're a fighter, you could try it on for size as well, if you like. Or even Anomen.

I'm pretty sure the big metal unit is classified as a "non-magical" armour, so you can add stuff like ring of protection +2. Neato :) Quirks...? When you put it on you look like an adamantite golem. I think you even get the increased movement speed bonus, but I don't know if if affects your attacks per round. Have to check.

There's a good question. Does anyone have the actual stats on this thing?

On a side note, anyone who has ever gotten an Adamantine Golem stuck in a doorway and killed it will get to see what it's like... :evil:
Just like above, you'll be unable to go through small doorways while wearing it.

Imagine my surprise when I realized my pure class kensai could equip the Big Metal Unit, giving my kensai who already had the best attack in my party the best defense also... he was literally going one on one with dragons and winning; even Demogorgon wasn't much of a threat. It became rather ridiculous, as the BMU was taking all the challenge out of the game, and I couldn't bring myself to stop using it.

Considering how hard it is to get the BMU, I don't think it's really overpowered. After all, what are the odds that you'd find this pretty amazing item on your first run through the game?

Actually when I used it I found it a pain. I couldn't pass through small doorways with it and had to constantly take it off then put it back on once I reached the other side.

Base AC of -10, with all the plate mail bonuses.
+5% magic resistance. Protection from backstab. No spellcasting or thieving.

So it works out at the equivalent of +11 full plate?

Now on one hand that sounds completely amazing - especially when you consider that the next best armour in the game is a mere +5 full plate - but when you get into the later parts of TOB your AC doesn't tend to make that much difference. I had a solo thief with an AC of -24 who got hit so often I might as well have sent him naked into battle for all the good the armour did.

How did you get an AC of -24?

Shurrupak's Full Plate +3; ring of protection +3; cloak of protection +1 (or +2 I can't remember); Dexterity of 19 or 20; a few items Cespenar forged for me that boost AC.

Even with all that, I was getting hit more often than not. Enemies late in TOB seem to have lethal critical strike ranges and with several attacks every round, the odds of them hitting you are pretty good.

I guess that's when you start missing Stoneskin...

Stoneskin would have been a godsend. Maybe when I play through again, I'll play a thief/mage so I can regularly cast Stoneskin.

Two words: Gargoyle Boots. They saved my life several times when I was down to my last few hitpoints, looking for some way to just survive this fight. Then I remembered the boots.

They worked very nicely on Sarevok as well. Imagine that poor Salamander who saw this demigod charging toward him, the earth under his feet shifting to protect his entire body, and that two handed sword lays a Deathbringer assault on the first hit... ah, the memories.

@david w Thats impossible, unless you used a mod or something. Enchanted armor, ring of prot. +3 and cloak of protection wouldnt all go on the same character without that message about magical items already being equipped.

On a side note, my fighter has -26 AC when wearing no armor or items that increase AC. Lol :D

I *did* have a mod. The one that allows you to wear more than 1 magic ring as well as magic armour. It might be a cheat but it's way it's done in 2E AD&D.

Stoneskin would have been a godsend. Maybe when I play through again, I'll play a thief/mage so I can regularly cast Stoneskin. If you could wear plate, then you had "use any item." And if you had that, you could also use scrolls of stoneskin and mirror image, which abound in the game. Ilbratha also might have come in handy.

Speaking of Use Any Item, I love giving my thief characters NPC weapons and items :D I don't know why but I get a kick out of being able to use stuff like Cernd's cloak, or Haer'Dalis' blades when the info on them says something along the lines of only this person can use them. Hehe! Now if only I could use the Tsuki no Ken...

Now if only I could use the Tsuki no Ken... Maybe if you worshipped Eillistrae she'd have let you keep it. :p

@david w
It may have been completely within rules with PnP 2ed. I dont know why it isnt so in the game, but that's not the case. The case is that the game is designed for characters not wearing two magical protection items.
*shrugs*
Not that it makes that much difference anyway.

Oh, and yeah i think Pantaloons are overpowered.

Okay, so it's a *little* cheat but I can live with a guilty conscience for this once.