4 réponses à ce sujet

[thebluesun]

 Hey guys, I know there are a few vets of SCS II on here so this seemed like a good place to get some advice before I get installing for my full trilogy run! I'll be running a normal full party to get back into the metagame (never finished ascension or all of SCS II, run SCS a fair bit though) but I have a solo F/C/M who will be running behind that in the no-reload thread with some of you

Anyway, questions! I normally run with most of these installed but I'm unsure this time around (been a while since I played).

a) Melfs nerfed to +2: yay or nay? I guess +6 is overpowered but its so convenient. Same to rod of ressurect nerf.

nerfed inquisitors dispel: I'm planning on taking Keldorn, but it seems like even at 1.5x (which I normally install) there will be a lot of periods where he barely out-dispels a bard. Given everyone else will be a multiclass becauase I think single class warriors lose out, I'm tempted to go with the standard 2x; is this unbalancing in terms of SCS II mages?

c) Similarly, I imagine Carsomyr really is overpowered without the nerf. Am I right? If I am, is it still worth running Keldorn with 2-handers with Carsomyr nerfed? 50% magic resistance in SOA is nice but I can eventually get 30% and wield another weapon, so seems like its probably not?

d) HLA spells as seperate special abilities: does this make things easier or harder, given your enemies get it as well? Does it distract from the games flow? Does it balance well?

e) Given I will celestial spam whenever possible, does improving celestials make the game easier or harder?

f) HLA's to mages & clerics: was going to go with selected for SOA and all for TOB, is that about right?

Also, its been a while, so how much excess cash do you end up with running a full party at various stages in the trilogy? I know its totally broken in BG1 and will be modding to fix that. Theres nothing to buy in TOB so I don't care, but I forget how the economy is in SOA?

Man, thats a lot of questions, especially given I've played the thing before! Sorry to be a bother, I just have this thing where I like to get my install just right...

[The Potty 1]

I'm probably not the best person to comment because I'm really kinda rubbish at this and SCS2 regularly whips my arse, so if you find it a breeze take this with a pinch of salt.

a) I don't use this spell anyway so always nerf it.
x2 seems broken. 1.5x seems OK.
c) Vanilla Carsomyr & the SotM were ludicrously overpowered, SotM doubly so because of the invisibility. Now Carsomyr's dispel gets a saving throw & the SotM loses the invisibility. I think this is fair.
d) Can't comment
e) Generally easier, ymmv
f) Yes
g) Kitting out a party of 6 is expensive, you start off hurting, but by the end you should have the best gear and enough cash to fill one mages spell book. 2 Mages will struggle.

Without wishing to derail your thread, here are my thoughts on SCS2.

Before SCS2 came out, I was installing Tactics / Ascension / Oversight / Quest pack / Def Jam / Spell 50 to get a balanced strategical challenge. When SCS2 came out we all gave a huge sigh of relief, and just installed that. Brilliant.

I think that SCS2 has gone overboard with the mage AI. Yes mages are by far the most powerful class in the game. Yes SCS2 plays fair. Nevertheless, the flavour of a full SCS2 modded game is characterised by two things: a second where your computer freezes up when a mage goes hostile, and mages scaring the crap out of me. As Gate70 said on a different thread, while almost every change SCS2 makes seems sensible and an improvement, I just don't enjoy the result very much.

Don't take this as hating on SCS2, I hold DW in absolute awe. There are people who breeze through this mod, but I've never hit my stride with it. The simplest solution is to not install the Smarter mages component, but this effectively cripples the mod and just about removes the challenge entirely. I think what I'm saying is I don't mind if SCS2 allows non-mages to cheat a small amount.

I'm currently planning a Tactics / Ascension / Def Jam / SCS2 w/o Smarter mages install. Regarding Def Jam (Ding0 Experience Fixer), I'll probably set kill XP to 75%, & skill /quest XP to 25%. I'll boost my PC's XP to 250k initially, so I start at a slightly higher level, but level much slower.

[Grond0]

I think you will need to make up your own mind on how you like to play the game. For what it's worth here's my take on it.

a) I don't nerf MMM. I agree it is a powerful spell, but that's true of many. Protection from magic weapons is far more commonly used by mages than the mantle type spells, so the main effect of nerfing is to prevent MMM from being used on creatures immune to +2 weapons - I think it should still be available.

The inquisitor gives up a lot in order to have his enhanced abilities. Yes at double strength his dispel is pretty automatic, but to my mind that's how it should be to reflect the specialist nature of the character.

c) I don't think the basic Carsomyr is as overpowered in SCS2 as in vanilla. As mentioned above high level casters almost always use PFMW, which means it needs to be used in conjunction with dispel in order to be effective. If you nerf it you will find that worthwhile enemies make their saving throw almost all the time, making the sword considerably less useful.

d) I quite like this change. Restricting the HLA to once per day use provides its own balance and gives an opportunity for trying out a wider range of tactics

e) Never tried with improved celestials.

f) I haven't noticed a lot of difference with varying installations of this component. The AI changes make mages more challenging whether or not they have HLAs available.

[thebluesun]

Thanks guys, obviously I have to make a decision eventually but somehow the less a decision matters the more I struggle to make it!

I've played with SCS 2 before, but my computer has been dead for quite a while and some components are new to me. With a couple (once per days HLA's) I like the sounds of it but its good to get an opinion because its a big change in the stages of the game I've played much less. And with stuff like cash, I just don't remember so I can't recall if I should be nerfing it as per BG1 or not, sounds like I will leave it alone.

TP1: Yeah, I think the mages thing is universally agreed, but spell battles are my favourite part of BG so its not a huge problem for me. It can be annoying when tinpot slaver mage is such a stepped up challenge, but overall I'm a fan. Without it I think I would feel guilty taking my almost-all-mages party along!

OTOH I have a couple of IRL friends who play just a little and when I recommend SCS I normally tell then not to install improved mages, or at the very least not to include pre-buffs, at least initially. I think if you don't really enjoy the magic system, it probably will become something unenjoyable. I tend to have smarter mages without pre-buffing, for what thats worth, though with contingency and triggers obviously not a grave difference.

Grond0: Cheers, especially for HLA comments, that was the component I felt least able to assess. It sounds like I will give it a go. Variety is good for the soul I suppose. Your thoughts on carsomyr run basically alongside mine; I was tempted to mod it so it gives a save with a -2 or -4 (i.e. is actually usable in TOB) but I think I will just run vanilla; a paladin not using the holy avenger is just too sad. I'll be scared enough of Firkaag I won't have it until post-underdark anyway.

Modifié par thebluesun, 14 mai 2012 - 06:46 .

[ussnorway]

The important long term decision is how many potion bottles get smashed... I play that 2/3 disappear, remembering that every man and his dog will suddenly be carrying a dozen on him they start to add up quickly and can break the game by giving you access to too much money from selling them.

I agree that SCS makes nerfing inquisitors redundant but IMO “Purifier +4” is the better general purpose pally-weapon I eventually put it in his offhand &/ or “Foebane +3/+4” (main) because the combination of magic resistance and life stealing works like a slow regeneration increasing his late game survivability & the fact that they are both Bastard swords helps justify spending the pips in DW style for the extra damage that using two swords puts out.