27 réponses à ce sujet

[Vaeliorin]

So, I really want to use Yeslick in my party on this particular playthrough.  However, in the past, by the time I've gotten him, I've basically completed the lion's share of the game (I usually clear every area before continuing with the main plot beyond Nashkel) and so he ends up hopelessly underleveled if I try to use him.

This play through, I'm basically rushing through the main plot to get to the Cloakwood Mines (I've no intention of finishing them right away, just picking up Yeslick, clearing everything, and then finishing the mines), avoiding doing any side quests or clearing any more of areas than I have to to get from area to area.  Is this going to result in me missing out on sidequests?  I've never done anything like this before, so I'm not sure if any NPCs or quests disappear if I get too deep into the game chapter-wise.  Also, what are my chances of making it through the Cloakwood alive (I'm guessing not very good.  Low level + crap gear probably will make me spider/wyvern food)?

Anyway, here's to hoping my (eventual) Swashbuckler 15 > Cleric will manage to make it through alive.

[Irrbloss]

You don't miss out on any quests or NPCs from doing the Cloakwood mines early. The highest level you can get Yeslick at is 4/5 but it shouldn't be very difficult to make your way though the Cloakwood at those levels.

[Vaeliorin]

All right, thanks.  I just finished the Nashkel mines, and my PC is already level 3 (but he's a thief, so that's not very impressive.  )

[Sylvius the Mad]

I used to rush to get Coran the same way (my goal was always to reach him before I was level 4). There's no downside at all.

Well, there is a downside if you're picking up someone who wants to to perform some quest for him in some limited time (like Coran does), but I understand that's not the case with Yeslick.

[Vaeliorin]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...
I used to rush to get Coran the same way (my goal was always to reach him before I was level 4). There's no downside at all.
Well, there is a downside if you're picking up someone who wants to to perform some quest for him in some limited time (like Coran does), but I understand that's not the case with Yeslick.

That's why I haven't killed off Khalid and picked up Minsc yet.  I'm concerned he'd freak out about me not going after Dynaheir before going through everything to get Yeslick.

Though, admittedly, Khalid and Ajantis (who I picked up because I could do it without having to kill a bunch of stuff) have been having some interesting conversations on Law versus Chaos.  Khalid just sucks so much, though, that I have a hard time keeping him around.  It's so annoying that my thief has the highest carry capacity in the group.

[Matuse]

Yeslick wants you to finish the mines. You can't grab him and then leave Cloakwood without him getting whiney about it (and eventually leaving). Gotta complete the mines to keep him.

[HoonDing]

Has anyone ever used Alora? I always feel bad about upsetting her, but by the time you meet her she's completely useless.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Vaeliorin wrote...

That's why I haven't killed off Khalid and picked up Minsc yet.  I'm concerned he'd freak out about me not going after Dynaheir before going through everything to get Yeslick.

Though, admittedly, Khalid and Ajantis (who I picked up because I could do it without having to kill a bunch of stuff) have been having some interesting conversations on Law versus Chaos.  Khalid just sucks so much, though, that I have a hard time keeping him around.  It's so annoying that my thief has the highest carry capacity in the group.

One of the reasons I used to go for Coran so quickly was because I'd just killed Minsc to appease Edwin.

I can't go without Edwin for any length of time, so I have to visit the Gnoll Stronghold as soon as I'm done with Nashkel, but then I'd rush to Coran (having done effectively nothing else).  Now I don't need Coran, so I just keep Xzar.

[Vaeliorin]

virumor wrote...
Has anyone ever used Alora? I always feel bad
about upsetting her, but by the time you meet her she's completely
useless.

I've got an Inquisitor sitting at the very beginning of the game that I'd like to use her with, but you're right, by the time you can get her, she is kind of useless, so I probably won't end up being able to do it.

Also, I'm annoyingly stuck in the bandit camp.  I've got Ajantis (level 3, AC 1), Jaheira (2/2, AC -1), Khalid (3, AC 0), Branwen (3, AC 0), and Imoen (2 Thief/2 Mage, AC 6) and the PC (4 Swashbuckler, AC 2), and I keep getting my ass handed to me by 5 bandits and Taugosc Khosann.  This is seriously weird territory for me, as I've never had any real problems with the fights in BG beyond Sarevok and that demon under Ulgoth's Beard whose name I can never remember.

I guess my lack of levels and gear is starting to catch up to me.

Edit:  If anyone cares, Sleep + Hold Person allowed me to win without losing anyone.  First time I've ever needed to use magic against such minor enemies.

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Vaeliorin wrote...
That's why I haven't killed off Khalid and picked up Minsc yet.  I'm concerned he'd freak out about me not going after Dynaheir before going through everything to get Yeslick.

Though, admittedly, Khalid and Ajantis (who I picked up because I could do it without having to kill a bunch of stuff) have been having some interesting conversations on Law versus Chaos.  Khalid just sucks so much, though, that I have a hard time keeping him around.  It's so annoying that my thief has the highest carry capacity in the group. [smilie]../../../images/forum/emoticons/sad.png[/smilie]

One of the reasons I used to go for Coran so quickly was because I'd just killed Minsc to appease Edwin.

I can't go without Edwin for any length of time, so I have to visit the Gnoll Stronghold as soon as I'm done with Nashkel, but then I'd rush to Coran (having done effectively nothing else).  Now I don't need Coran, so I just keep Xzar.

Ah.  I've never used Edwin (I've never played an evil character through BG, so I can't keep Edwin/Viconia around because of my reputation.)  Admittedly, I've never used Coran either.

I really should at some point.  I rather like Xzar (could do without Montaron, but eh) and I've always wanted to try using Viconia.  Maybe if I finally manage to finish BG2 with this character, I'll go back and do an evil playthrough.

Edit 2: Grr...stupid boards screwing up formatting from copy-paste.

Modifié par Vaeliorin, 27 juillet 2010 - 05:03 .

[Rzepik2]

virumor wrote...

Has anyone ever used Alora? I always feel bad about upsetting her, but by the time you meet her she's completely useless.

Yup. She's useless.
Shame, 'cause she's cool character. And the only friend of Edwin.
This guy is into halflings, or something...

[Irrbloss]

Rzepik2 wrote...

virumor wrote...

Has anyone ever used Alora? I always feel bad about upsetting her, but by the time you meet her she's completely useless.

Yup. She's useless.

Have a mod move her to Gullykin.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Vaeliorin wrote...

I guess my lack of levels and gear is starting to catch up to me.

People talk about how weak mages are at low levels in BG, and individually they are, but with 3 or 4 in your party it's not so bad.  Crowd Control works wonders.

Low levels in BG would be easier if they'd implemented Command properly.  Command (level 1 Cleric spell) is supposed to be No-Save.  They fixed it in BG2, but by then it was too late.  If you're playing Tutu, then you have the proper Command spell.

I really should at some point.  I rather like Xzar (could do without Montaron, but eh) and I've always wanted to try using Viconia.  Maybe if I finally manage to finish BG2 with this character, I'll go back and do an evil playthrough.

I just like magic (you know that).  My standard BG group now is PC Sylvius, Viconia, Xzar, Edwin, Xan and an archer - usually Kivan, but Khalid works fine.

Of course, Kivan and Viconia will not co-exist peacefully forever.  The first time I took them both they came to blows IN DURLAG'S TOWER.  Not the best place to lose your only Warrior (Viconia won the fight).

[Son of Imoen]

virumor wrote...

Has anyone ever used Alora? I always feel bad about upsetting her, but by the time you meet her she's completely useless.

Yes, I enlisted her in a lot of my campaigns, if I don't keep Imoen. But always tweaked so I can recruit in Gullykin, where you can have her start with the NPC1Project mod. Strange thing is, if you have her start in Gullykin and recruit her right away (you can do it even before going to Nashkel, if you know the proper route to avoid any other enemies but hobgoblins), she'll be your most high-level character. With good points in all thievery skills but traps. That's why I keep Imoen as a trap-monkey 'till we're out of the Nashkel mines and all the way to level 6 or 7 I have Alora put all points in traps before anything else. But NPC's have much more personality if you let them have their own skills chosen instead of using the SCS component to choose them yourself.

Another fun character to move out of the city into the countryside for early recruitment is Quayle at the Carnival, to watch him grow in strength from a meagre 1 cleric spell and 2 mage spells into a solid support caster later on in the game.

[Vaeliorin]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Vaeliorin wrote...
I guess my lack of levels and gear is starting to catch up to me.

People talk about how weak mages are at low levels in BG, and individually they are, but with 3 or 4 in your party it's not so bad.  Crowd Control works wonders.

It seems to.  I still hate having to use it on simple enemies I've never had a problem with before.

Low levels in BG would be easier if they'd implemented Command properly.  Command (level 1 Cleric spell) is supposed to be No-Save.  They fixed it in BG2, but by then it was too late.  If you're playing Tutu, then you have the proper Command spell.

I am playing Tutu, mostly for the larger resolution.  I tried installing the widescreen mod, but it didn't work.  I don't mind playing at 800 X 600 anyway.

I really should at some point.  I rather like Xzar (could do without Montaron, but eh) and I've always wanted to try using Viconia.  Maybe if I finally manage to finish BG2 with this character, I'll go back and do an evil playthrough.

I just like magic (you know that).  My standard BG group now is PC Sylvius, Viconia, Xzar, Edwin, Xan and an archer - usually Kivan, but Khalid works fine.

Of course, Kivan and Viconia will not co-exist peacefully forever.  The first time I took them both they came to blows IN DURLAG'S TOWER.  Not the best place to lose your only Warrior (Viconia won the fight).

Yeah...that would definitely suck, although Viconia should probably be able to tank most anything in Durlag's Tower that's tankable.

Honestly, my preferred group is 3 divine casters (for healing/melee), 1 fighter-type, 1 thief-type (preferably a dual or multi-classed) and 1 wizard (who will spend the majority of the game shooting sling stones or arrows...I avoid using.)  If the NPCs allowed for it, I'd prefer having everyone in the party a multi-classed druid or cleric...but I like healing probably about as much as you like magic.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Vaeliorin wrote...

I like healing probably about as much as you like magic.

I like not getting hit.

Which is why I have never finished the Ulgoth's Beard questline.  That ambush as soon as your enter the town after having completed Durlag's Tower simply isn't winnable with a wizard-heavy party.  I've never even made it to the final battle (which is in some sort of basement, I hear - I've really never seen it).

[Irrbloss]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Which is why I have never finished the Ulgoth's Beard questline.  That ambush as soon as your enter the town after having completed Durlag's Tower simply isn't winnable with a wizard-heavy party.

Sure it is. Arrive invisible or throw up MI as soon as you arrive and start casting disabling spells. I'd say it's actually easier with a mage-heavy party, since you have as many disabling spells as you do. With a more conventional party you invariable get backstabbed and probably have to deal with the enemy fighter types while they are awake and able.

[Vaeliorin]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...

Vaeliorin wrote...
I like healing probably about as much as you like magic.

I like not getting hit.

I like not getting hit, too.  I just prefer to do it by having an absurdly high (or in this case, low I suppose) armor class.  I guess I prefer that because armor class is pretty much always in effect, whereas spells you have to cast and hope that the enemy fails their saves (which I find happens all too rarely.)  That, and you can swing a sword forever, while spells are much more limited.

Which is why I have never finished the Ulgoth's Beard questline.  That ambush as soon as your enter the town after having completed Durlag's Tower simply isn't winnable with a wizard-heavy party.  I've never even made it to the final battle (which is in some sort of basement, I hear - I've really never seen it).

Hmm...I don't perfectly recall that fight (I recall it happening, but not the exact composition of the enemy.)  Given the fact that pre-buffing wouldn't work too well (I'm not sure what the shortest travel time to Ulgoth's Beard is) I can certainly see that being a problem.  But I'm not overly versed in non-melee friendly tactics, since it's not something I've ever tried (or really wanted) to do.

[Vaeliorin]

Again, if anyone cares, Yeslick recruited, Khalid slaughtered by kobolds, Minsc picked up to replace Khalid, and the whole party is sitting around 16k XP.



I was surprised how easy it was to sneak through the Cloakwood...it's not something I've ever attempted before.



Party now is Jaheira, Yeslick, Minsc, Imoen (staying pure rogue), Xan, and PC (I ditched my Swashbuckler as he wasn't that fun, and started over with a Blade, doing the same basic thing.) We're headed to the Gnoll Stronghold to appease Minsc.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Your mention of the class kits reminds me of one of my objections to playing with Tutu.

You already know about how Tutu can allow you to specialise in a weapon that doesn't really exist in the game (Bastard Swords, for example) because of BG2's narrower weapon proficiencies.

But you've reminded me that BG2 treats specialist wizards as classes with a kit, which means you cannot dual-class to a specialist (I complained about this very loudly when BG2 came out, since a multi-mage party benefits tremendously from specialisation).

[Vaeliorin]

Sylvius the Mad wrote...
Your mention of the class kits reminds me of one of my objections to playing with Tutu.
You already know about how Tutu can allow you to specialise in a weapon that doesn't really exist in the game (Bastard Swords, for example) because of BG2's narrower weapon proficiencies.
But you've reminded me that BG2 treats specialist wizards as classes with a kit, which means you cannot dual-class to a specialist (I complained about this very loudly when BG2 came out, since a multi-mage party benefits tremendously from specialisation).

You don't even want to get me started on how certain rules (particularly about dual/multi-classing) and kits were implemented in BG2.  Or the lack of multi-class kits.  Also, not having stuff from the Complete X series (where X is a class or race...I want my fighter/bard back, darn it!)

I'm also annoyed by the lack of priest spheres, and specialty priests of non-human deities (my favorite 2E character was a dwarven fighter/specialty priest of Clangeddin (better known as an Alaghar) who had the warpriest kit.  He could use axes...stupid priests not being able to use non-bludgeoning weapons rule.)

Admittedly, implementing all that would be rather difficult, but I always get annoyed at the limited amount of things that are implemented in D&D games (particularly since they always seem to implement rules/classes/kits that I don't really care about, and leave out the things I'd like to have.)

[Sylvius the Mad]

Vaeliorin wrote...

You don't even want to get me started on how certain rules (particularly about dual/multi-classing) and kits were implemented in BG2.  Or the lack of multi-class kits.  Also, not having stuff from the Complete X series (where X is a class or race...I want my fighter/bard back, darn it!)

I'm also annoyed by the lack of priest spheres, and specialty priests of non-human deities (my favorite 2E character was a dwarven fighter/specialty priest of Clangeddin (better known as an Alaghar) who had the warpriest kit.  He could use axes...stupid priests not being able to use non-bludgeoning weapons rule.)

Admittedly, implementing all that would be rather difficult, but I always get annoyed at the limited amount of things that are implemented in D&D games (particularly since they always seem to implement rules/classes/kits that I don't really care about, and leave out the things I'd like to have.)

Once you start using the splat books, the rules get really complicated (and extremely difficult to balance if you don't know anything about the party - which the designers wouldn't).

The Complete Book of Humanoids.  The Complete Book of Necromancers (I actually had a guy I met on the old Interplay BG boards buy that one for me on eBay to save on international shipping - does anyone remember Becker?).  If you combine any two of those splat books you'd end up with a supercharacter.  Hobgoblin with a Thief kit?  Check!  And don't get me started on the Bladesinger.

[Vaeliorin]

I like Bladesingers...



The 3.X iteration of the character I get my forum name from was a rogue/wizard/bladesinger. Strangely, in 2E he was a ranger (who I actually created when I first got Baldur's Gate, strangely enough.)



I'd have at least like to have seen some demihuman deities available as specialty priests (but only to their specific races.)



I actually have a set of CDs floating around here somewhere that has all the 2E splat books and what not on them...also 250 or so issues of Dragon. It's the only software I've ever bought in a game store, oddly enough.



If I was at all familiar with IE coding, I might go through and make some of the things I'd like to play, but I don't know anything about IE coding, and it's not something I'm interested in enough to actually sit down and learn right now.

[Sylvius the Mad]

Vaeliorin wrote...

I actually have a set of CDs floating around here somewhere that has all the 2E splat books and what not on them...also 250 or so issues of Dragon. It's the only software I've ever bought in a game store, oddly enough.

I have that same Dragon Archive.

If I was at all familiar with IE coding, I might go through and make some of the things I'd like to play, but I don't know anything about IE coding, and it's not something I'm interested in enough to actually sit down and learn right now.

That would be a wonderful resource.

The d20 SRD is freely available online, but those 2nd edition optional rules make for a much richer experience.

[Son of Imoen]

One thing you can implement in BG is more cleric kits, letting you choose from about a dozen deities, by installing the divine remix mod. But it doesn't circumvent the limitation of not being able to dual to a kit. Multi-classed clerics can still only be 'general clerics' (as in "I serve every God" ). And the makers of the mod seem to be a bit biased towards Elven deities. I don't think there's a 'shorty' God for the chosing.

Modifié par Son of Imoen, 30 juillet 2010 - 08:56 .

[Incantatar]

There is a German mod which implements 100 AD&D kits and 300 AD&D spells with spheres. Regrettably there is no English version, perhaps sometime in the future.