my new power party

[Philos]

Aerich pegged it perfect, late mid-game. Depending on how close your characters are to leveling, this is good time to move over to HoW. If you are close to leveling for a couple of characters you might want to take that "dip" into a couple of sections of Lower Dorn to get the level and then switch. Krunchy, you're sure right about Krilag, pretty wimpy for a "lieutenant" with a badge. My Paladin took him down one on one with little damage.

My gnome F/T has been a good sniper. I had him take axe and crossbow for weapons. The +2 throwing axe that automatically returns (can't remember its name) has made a good "missle" weapon for him now. Hardly uses his crossbow anymore.

[Aerich]

I've done that before, and switched back to crossbow after finding crossbows that shoot more than one bolt per round. It's nice with bolts of lightning and bolts of biting.

Yes, the other bosses are tougher than Krilag. Three of the last four have significant spellcasting ability, and they all have good supporting casters (especially if you increase the difficulty level over normal).