Which is why we can only mechanically guesstimate the operation of a cloud spell-- in part because we don't actually let archers just fire into the cloud and in part because effects which just break line of sight are defeated by other spells which are nonsense in this case (see invisibility should not help you against obscuring mist, but it would if that was the effect we used; concealment isn't defeated by see invisibility, but you can't use it to hide in NWN2).t-ice wrote:And the true power of the cloud is not even in (total) concealment (20% / 50% miss chance), but in "you can't use sight to target an enemy". Which means the archer is left guessing where to bombard, which in semi-enclosed quarters means hitting an enemy around one in every five to ten arrows. (Picking a tile with someone on it, plus total concealment)
So, yeah, "I can sometimes run it" is the best I can say; Obscuring Mist is totally on your spell list, and you can use it to make it harder to shoot people-- in both directions. If you do it on a moving ship or on a windy day (or against opponents with access to fire magic), you can expect it won't help for the full minute/level. Though we might end up spending whole sessions turn-basing a fight in some applications.