I’ve personally found great effectiveness using cloud of daggers maybe more than any other spell. Funnelling enemies through a passageway with multiple cloud of daggers cast on the spot is probably my current meta. Then I utilize thunder wave/ black hole to keep the enemies on the other side of the daggers once they make it through.
Another thing if found amazing success with is getting a party to strength 20 as fast as I can, which then I find 90% of enemies can be thrown off cliffs for instant kills. Throwing enemies off cliffs also only requires stealth checks where the body hits the ground and dies.
Lastly there is a fun little cheese strategy I’ve picked up that I don’t see anyone talking about. If you cancel an improvised weapon attack with an NPC before you deal damage, you can move NPC’s without angering anyone.
If there is a patrolling guard past some chasm or whatever, when they get close, jump into turn based and try a shove off the edge as they pass it. They won’t register a failed shove as an attack and will just tell you to back off. So you can keep trying till you get them. Thin out a few guards before a fight.
Might be common knowledge now, but I was playing with a friend the other day who never thought of it.