Not that it matters now, but I generally allow myself to test if I tell myself that, succeed in the test or not, I'm not allowed to actually do that action in the main play through. It's information-gathering for the next character, but not going to actively affect this one. Of course, this means that I can't generally do this with plot-critical events, unless if it's only to test an enemy's immunity or lack thereof to some effect, but even if I uncover a weakness with this test... I wouldn't allow myself to do it.
Good work, everyone, by the way; it seems I needed some time off from BG. I'll be heading across the ocean for a short-term mission trip in two weeks or so, with all the preparation that's going to take, so I might be a bit active for the next two weeks before dropping off again.
I don't test now and the testing I did in no-reload tended to be after my character died so I could understand what went wrong or what would have worked. I occasionally check variables in the console, or fix the odd issue encountered in multiplayer such as where one player transitions and another does not or where a "known" amount of xp has been lost from a session drop.
It would be interesting to see if you can persevere with an evil playthrough. I've tried a few times and always ended up doing a lot of good path actions because the alternative has no reward, dire consequences or I can't contemplate doing what would be the evil option. I don't know if you recall one of Blaggerd's earlier runs to part way through SoA where I either died because of his actions or got so fed up I quit, and I believe I had an earlier run with the same consequences. There are lots of nice touches with evil options but ultimately I find it too difficult to follow to the extreme.
Not sure yet if I'm gonna do a no reload run, but:
Just bought the enhanced edition of both games. It's been like 15 years since I played the games, I was twelve years old or something, younger even for BG1
Going to do a multiclass character for the first time, across the entire trilogy. Anyway, I was thinking along the lines of 'I've played this game before, lets quickly make a character, run my ass through Candlekeep and get this going'. Ultimately, I've already spent more than two hours on the character creation screen and looking up how everything works again. 15 years is a long ass time.
Though I'll easily admit about half of that time was spent rerolling scores. Aah, just like the old days
And just like the old days, I clicked past the 95 roll
Alright, lets get this party started. I'll start out as a no reload game, but if I die or something I'm going to continue anyway and just stop posting in here
Serg BlackStrider, Grimwald the Wise and Blackraven like this
@Farangbaa - if you do die, but still want to post about your adventure, just make a new topic (what's been called in the past as a "campfire" thread) and post your adventures in there, this will others to share in your adventure.
"Had it been really just three month since I've left Candlekeep?", Sarya thought when the walls of her former home came into view. But there was no time to think about it any further as suddenly some Ogre Mages appeared out of nowhere. Apparently the bounty on Sarya's head had been raised to 10,000 gold now. "This Sarevok must be really desperate", Sarya thought as the Ogre Mages were dispatched easily...
Spoiler
Once Sarya had given the 'History of the Nether Scrolls' book to the Gate Keeper, she and her companions were allowed to enter Candlekeep. As it had been a long journey from Baldur's Gate to Candlekeep they went to the inn directly. Their friends had gone to their rooms already but Sarya and Conan remained downstairs talking about their relationship...
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And so the two now ex-lovers went to bed... together and very drunk...
Sarya hadn't slept well, again she had one of those nightmares. In the morning she woke up with a thick head. She tried to remember last night... Coran had broken up with her, said he needs his freedom, she had tried to remain strong, lied to him saying she felt the same when actually she had felt her world break apart. Then they had started to drink and the rest of the night was a blur only. Did they really? ... Sarya wasn't sure. When she woke up she had found herself naked but alone on the bed, her clothing scattered about the room. She sensed Coran's scent lingering in the bedding and she tried to inhale as much as possible. Tears started to well in her eyes... 'I did it all wrong', she cried...
After breakfast the party entered the great library going directly to Gorion's old room where Sarya found her father's letter... and for the second time this morning her world seemed to fall apart...
Spoiler
A short time later the party was arrested for murdering the leaders of the Iron Throne but Tethoril helped them to escape into the catacombs beneath the library. Without any problems they found their way through the catacombs into a cavern where they ran across Prat and his men. Dorn, Khalid, Jaheira and Coran drank a potion of invulnerability, Sarya casted Invisibility on Dorn wielding Spider's Bane while the two rings of free action were given to Jaheira and Khalid. Also Edwin went invisible.
Spoiler
Immediately Dorn (who had already positioned himself next to Prat), Khalid and Jaheira attacked Prat while Edwin casted web into the cave...
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Prat went down first...
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... Sakul was next...
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... with Tam following soon...
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... and Bor being last...
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Once Sarya had slain the two Greater Basilisks...
Spoiler
... they party was able to leave the cavern. Instead of returning to Baldur's Gate they decided to go to Beregost to sell some unneeded gear. From there they went to Durlag's Tower...
Sarya: Jester(8); HP 63/70; XP 105,297; Kills 203; Kills XP 69,996; Greater Basilisk (7,000); Items (i.a.): Deep Red Ioun Stone, Elven Chain Mail, Legacy of the Master, The Amplifier, Whistling Sword+2, Protector of the Dryads+2, The Guards Ring+2, Algernon's Cloak, Greagan's Harp (Domination 3x/day) Dorn: Blackguard(7); HP 60/70; XP 99,352; Kills 262; Kills XP 133,555; Greater Basilisk (7,000); Items (i.a.): Helmet of Charm Protection, Full Plate Mail, Xarmous's Second Sword Arm, Spider's Bane+2, Army Scythe+1, Ring of the Princes+1, Cloak of Balduran Jaheira: Fighter(6)/Druid(7); HP 66+5/77+5; XP 106,905; Kills 184; Kills XP 84,250; Greater Basilisk (4,000); Items (i.a.): Helm of Balduran, Ankheg Plate Mail; Shield of the Falling Stars+1; Brawling Hands; Honorary Ring of Sune; Amulet of Spell Warding; Root of the Problem+1; Sling+1, The Spirit's Shield+2 Khalid: Fighter(7); HP 75/91; XP 99,944; Kills 305; Kills XP 113,699; Battle Horror (4,000); Items: Gift of Peace, Full Plate Mail, Hands of Takkok, Ring of Princes+1, Varscona+2, Composite Longbow+1, Cloak of Displacement Edwin: Conjurer(8); HP 43/48; XP 99,239; Kills 55; Kills XP 17,528; Andarthe (4,000); Items: Ioun Stone (INT+2), Robe of the Evil Archmagi, Quarterstaff+1, Sling of Unerring Accuray, Evermemory, Cloak of Protection+1 Coran: Fighter(6)/Thief(7); HP 47/51; XP 92,349; Kills 101; Kills XP 54,021; Davaeorn (6,000); Items: Cowl of Acuity, Shadow Armor+3, Dale's Protector, Masterbelt, Harrower+1, Dead Shot+2, Whispers of Silence, Worn Whispers
Other items (belts, boots, rings) are swapped as needed.
To be continued...
Gate70, Grimwald the Wise, Blackraven and 1 other like this
Butch is gone. I can't be bothered with doing a detailed write-up (there's only so many hours in a day), so what follows is a short overview. Butch's return to Baldur's Gate was a big success. With his companions he saved Duke Eltan from a Greater Doppelganger poisoner,
Spoiler
slew two assassins that had been hired by Sarevok to kill the city's Dukes,
Spoiler
as well as a handful of Greater Doppelgangers at Sarevok's coronation.
Spoiler
They presented evidence of Sarevok's murderous plans to Duke Belt and Duchess Liia, and followed Sarevok to his lair in the undercity below Baldur's Gate. On the way there, a gang of Iron Throne mercenaries made the mistake of opposing the party.
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Angelo,
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Tazok,
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Semaj,
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Diarmid,
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and indeed Sarevok himself,
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all found their deaths at the hands of Butch and co.
The party disbanded shortly after saving Baldur's Gate. Faldorn and Yeslick returned to the Cloakwood to report back to Amarande and to see if the mines could be reopened, respectively. Ajantis traveled to Amn, to report to his mentor Lord Firecam about his experiences on the Sword Coast. Quayle, Keiria and Butch continued together, and were joined by a Half-Elven Cleric, Jet'Laya, and a Drow Assassin, Vynd. The rest is history. Rather than seeing the companions off to Amn, or having them help Jet'Laya in her search after her lost sister, Blackraven thought it was a nice idea for the new party to check whether Hae'Ball, the solitary merchant that dwelled in his Larswood tower could be pickpocketed for a Manual of Gainful Exercise. The hermit had other plans though. Before a first pickpocketing attempt could be made, he was already hostile, as if he had foreboded the party's scheme. A Nature's Beauty did both Butch and Keiria in.
Spoiler
I checked Haeball's characteristics in Shadowkeeper. He's a lvl 16/16 Fighter/Druid, with six lvl 7 spells, 45 MR, 248 HPs, -6 AC (enhanced by a cloak that reduces AC by 3). I wonder what that dude's doing in BG1. Give him some HLAs (which he's entitled to at those levels), and he'd fit right in ToB.
@Corey, that's right. It's the case that prompted me to ask people about their testing habits. I only wanted to see whether I had remembered correctly about the Strength Tome before doing Jet'Laya's quest and then moving on to Amn. Didn't know he'd be hostile...
I did test yesterday. Fwiw Haeball does carry the tome, but it cannot be pickpocketed. He must be killed in order to obtain it.
Thanks for your sympathies.
Blackraven said: "I checked Haeball's characteristics in Shadowkeeper. He's a lvl 16/16 Fighter/Druid, with six lvl 7 spells, 45 MR, 248 HPs, -6 AC (enhanced by a cloak that reduces AC by 3). I wonder what that dude's doing in BG1. Give him some HLAs (which he's entitled to at those levels), and he'd fit right in ToB."
WAIT... ... ... WUT???
Thats ab so lu te ly rediculous.. moronic even.. cant speak..
Sorry man, I hoped Butch would get far. At least now I might get to see your new pc's on a more regular basis because although I liked your narrating, I would rather like to see you get busy (progress fast) in bg2 and TOB following Eren, Last Child into the hall of fame. You'd certainly deserve it.
Hard luck Blackraven. I've lost count of the number of times my characters have died after saying - I just wonder what happens if ...
On the positive side I think if you simply stick to known tactics the game's more likely to become boring, so the occasional dose of risk and excitement venturing something new is probably a good balance to have - even if it leads to the odd tragedy .
Grimwald the Wise, Blackraven and Golden28 like this
The Tale of Marduk started out quite rocky, as we all know. His 'father' was brutally slain and thus he was left to fend on his own. Luckily, Imoen followed them. She joined him. They went to Gorion's corpse and got their hands on a letter from E.
(is he a dope dealer or something? )
Then it was time to travel to the Friendly Arm Inn, but not before running into a rather odd duo: Montaron and Xzar. They joined up. Also picked two rings from trees on the way. Sweet.
At the Friendly Arm Inn got attacked again, of course, but Xzar did some magicy stuff and the assassin quickly fell. Way before Marduk could get his Doom-spell off. He ended up looking rather silly enchanting a corpse after waving his hands about like he was doing some hip fitness program.
Picked up a ring from hobgoblins for some woman, acquired other quests and Khalid and Jaheira. Next stop: some Ogre holding some gnome's belt and then Nashkell.
Grimwald the Wise, Epsil0, Blackraven and 1 other like this
Thanks everyone for their sympathies. I was indeed a bit sad about my curiosity and about ridiculous Haeball (as Golden rightly pointed out), though I agree with Grond0 that trying things out keeps the game from becoming a drag. Either way there's always another character to roll... Actually, I rolled two, so yes Golden, I haven't given up yet
The characters I created are Zelda, a female LE Anti-Paladin (a nerfed version of Weimer's Tactics mod kit), and Ace, a CG, Morte-voiced Dwarven Swashbuckler. The former motivated by a desire to try a genuinely evil playthrough, something I might not be capable of, and the latter inspired by what I consider to be a great portrait that I stumbled upon while reading a WotC guide on the different planes. Love it when a portrait is so good that it decides the character for you - much better than spending hours searching for a fitting portrait for the character you have in mind.
Ace is first. It's been a while since I last played a fun, laid back type of guy, so this should be a nice change as far as the roleplaying is concerned. I was tempted to go solo to see if I could contribute to the discussion that Grond0 and Alesia had on the late-game viability of Fighter/Thieves and Swasbucklers, but I felt and feel like running a party again. I enjoyed the party dynamics with Butch, and it would be nice to improve my pitiable track record with parties (last one to reach SoA was Serene's, the Beast Mistress whose run ended about a year ago in Chapter 2 after a weird bug).
Here's Ace:
Spoiler
So far, Ace and Imoen (Charming Rogue) have safely navigated the Coast Way between Beregost and Nashkel, questing their way to level 3 (close to 4). Gavin (human lvl 3/1 Fighter/Priest of Lathander dual) has recently joined them. The party is currently escorting a talking chicken to Thalantyr's abode to see if the grumpy Conjurer is capable of transforming the creature into its alleged human form.
Ace's personal item (I sometimes grant those) is a Rogue's hat that protects against criticals and fear effects, a RR item normally only for sale in Baldur's Gate. It just fits Ace too well.
I checked Haeball's characteristics in Shadowkeeper. He's a lvl 16/16 Fighter/Druid, with six lvl 7 spells, 45 MR, 248 HPs, -6 AC (enhanced by a cloak that reduces AC by 3). I wonder what that dude's doing in BG1.
He's a Dark Side or Dark Horizons addition is he? Probably the same thing as all those overpowered assassins and magic items, then.
Those mods unfortunately aren't exactly known for their restraint...
That's still ridiculous, either way. I can't imagine defeating him with any kind of normal BG1 party...
Marcus and Co. have cleansed the Cloakwood Mines of the Iron Throne filth!
The invasion actually went more smoothly than expected. No real troubles on level 1, and we were able to locate a suitable conspicuous giant plug quite easily. On level 2, Hareishan proved to be a nuisance, but with SCS she (she?) doesn't do the Lightning Bolt thing, apparently, and thanks to the better calls for help the fight ended up taking place far nearer the stairs, so we didn't have to worry about the traps. There was a big choke-up of summoned creatures and guards in the corridor, each being Glitterdusted in turn, and so forth, but eventually we prevailed and rescued Yeslick. I debated Shadowkeeper-ing him over to Spiked Weapons, but I had The Root of the Problem in my pack so left him with Blunts. Some Splint Mail, a Helmet, and Marus' spare Large Shield +1 had to do for the rest of his gear.
Natasha was far more dangerous on level 3, causing some serious damage to most party members via an array of damaging spells. I think she actually opened with a Sunfire, hitting Safana and Marcus, which wasn't very nice. The Ogre Mage further along was a nuisance, Dispelling Marcus' Improved Invisibility and going Invisible himself, but luckily didn't do too much damage to anyone who wasn't already a skeleton.
We were actually able to rest safely a couple of times, and so braved the fourth and final level. Ouch! Davaeorn sure as hell put the fear of Bhaal into me, opening as he did by clearing out my skeletons with a Fireball - and also seriously injuring some of the crew. There was a lot of us staying in the "reception room" shooting at him when he showed up and constantly resummoning skeletons and trying to kill the Battle Horrors in melee with magic weapons, but not really doing much. After a while, though, Davaeorn and his bodyguards holed up in a side room, and with many of his buffs expiring (Minor Globe in particular - we tried twice to Dispel this, and the first time he teleported away before being hit, the second we got his Mirror Image but the Globe stayed up) he actually proved to be far less of a threat. I think he'd spent most of his offensive spells already on the summoned creatures, and Imoen was able to hit him with Melf's and then Magic Missile whilst more summoned creatures mobbed him in melee and the rest of the party attacked at range.
Sadly, when he died, his Horrors went with him, so we didn't get any XP for those (even though one of them was significantly injured).
We then had a field day looting his chambers. Here's a question for the TuTu-ers - is it normal for Davaeorn to drop a Bag of Holding filled with BG2-style magic weapons and armour? I have a Short Sword +2 here (but not the named BG1 version) and a similarly unnamed Two-Handed Sword +3 (the "strongest" sword in the vanilla game - not counting Spider's Bane - is The World's Edge, a +3 found deep in Durlag's Tower). A couple of scrolls and trinkets, fine, but I think I might just shelve these since this seems a bit silly. I already got a Robe of the Good Archmagi (sinking Marcus' unbuffed AC to 0), Gauntlets of Ogre Power (Marcus already has 18/99 so I gave them to Branwen), a Tome of Leadership of Influence (probably also for Branwen), the Heavy Crossbow of Accuracy ("The Guide"), and more.
Anyway, the present party is
Spoiler
Marcus, CG Elven Fighter 7/Mage 7
Weapons: The Dead Shot / Spider's Bane
Most Powerful Vanquished: Greater Basilisk
Recently learned Stoneskin, amongst others, which should help.
Branwen, TN Human Cleric 8
Weapons: Sling +2 / Ashideena
Most Powerful Vanquished: Shoal the Nereid
Deaths: 2 (Sword Spider, Kahrk)
Imoen, NG Sorcerer 9
Weapon: Darts
Most Powerful Vanquished: Guard
Levelled up after killing Daevorn. I picked Horror (eh), Remove Magic (things like Globes are becoming a nuisance, though Marcus knows Spell Thrust) and Greater Malison (because lowering saves is good) as her new spells.
Safana, CN Human Swashbuckler 9
Weapons: Heart of the Golem / Throwing Daggers
Most Powerful Vanquished: Dread Wolf
Not far off L10 (at 160,000, very close to the TotSC level cap IIRC - though I think I have it removed). She didn't do much in the fight with Davaeorn, but she was instrumental in removing traps and opening locks. I'll want her for Durlag's, but now that Baldur's Gate is open I don't know if I don't want to reduce the party a bit, for a while.
Yeslick, LG Dwarf Fighter 7/Cleric 7
Weapons: Sling +1 / The Root of the Problem
Most Powerful Vanquished: Davaeorn
I was thinking of dropping him, because Branwen is our Cleric and a higher level... but then, he's only one level behind her, and it's not like she's going to reach the 225,000 XP she needs for L9 any time soon...
He's a Dark Side or Dark Horizons addition is he? Probably the same thing as all those overpowered assassins and magic items, then.
Those mods unfortunately aren't exactly known for their restraint...
That's still ridiculous, either way. I can't imagine defeating him with any kind of normal BG1 party...
Haeball is a Dark Side of the Sword Coast addition, which like Dark Horizons adds several OP items (but not as many). I avoid (or sell) most of the spoils, stuff like weapons that give extra APRs or items that give insane bonuses.
I think Butch found and ignored an item that made the user immune to normal weapons. Can't remember what it was.)
Anyway, I'm sure Haeball can be beaten with a normal BG1 party (or even solo character). I'm definitely going to try. Bastard has to pay for what he did.
We then had a field day looting his chambers. Here's a question for the TuTu-ers - is it normal for Davaeorn to drop a Bag of Holding filled with BG2-style magic weapons and armour?
No idea about the origins of Davaeorn's Bag of Holding (I'm a BGT man), but a +2 short sword doesn't sound that extreme for BG1. The +3 two-hander is a bit more questionable I agree. Nevertheless I think that a little extra offense isn't that likely to unbalance your game. My no-reload failures are mostly due to defense issues (or plain recklessness on my part), not because it takes me too long to kill a foe. What I do mind is the loss of accomplishment I feel when securing an enchanted weapon if such weapons are ubiquitous in the game. Anyway you probably know what to do with the weapons you found.
Ace, 1st and final update:
Ace wasn't meant to become a hero. Sneaking stealthily past a Dire Wolf and some overpowered Dark Horizons scum, he went alone after the Rogue Ogre south of the FAI. When he began kiting the Ogre he discovered that a Dark Horizons priestess, Malious, had followed him (while he was still invisible. Then this happened:
Spoiler
I didn't wait to see how this was going to end.
Could have quaffed a potion of invisibility, but decided to gamble.
Time for another solo attempt I think.
Anyway, I'm sure Haeball can be beaten with a normal BG1 party (or even solo character). I'm definitely going to try. Bastard has to pay for what he did.
That's the spirit
Sorry to hear about Ace, though. That priest was bad luck but better first kill the Dire Wolf next time (that's what I usually do - in case I have to run from a powerful enemy I don't want other potentially dangerous enemies in my back). And where's your party? I've seen quite a few times that disabled party members get ignored if there are other party members around.
I'm not sure if the bag of holding comes from Tutu. I think not. I get it but I think that it is the result of another mod. Not sure though.
I recall hearing that the Bag of Holding was added, and that's cool. It's fairly late in the game and, anyway, I think even the original rules of the no-reload were that you could add yourself one, because it's a "don't die" challenge, not an inventory micromanagement challenge. However, this thing is full of high(ish)-level scrolls, magic weapons, magic armour, etc. Seems like overkill, especially when I already got a bunch of stuff from Davaeorn's lair.
No idea about the origins of Davaeorn's Bag of Holding (I'm a BGT man), but a +2 short sword doesn't sound that extreme for BG1. The +3 two-hander is a bit more questionable I agree. Nevertheless I think that a little extra offense isn't that likely to unbalance your game. My no-reload failures are mostly due to defense issues (or plain recklessness on my part), not because it takes me too long to kill a foe.
BG1 has a Sword Sword +2 but it's a unique named item (The Whistling Sword?) found in a certain place, and anyway it'll have been Item Randomised away in my install. This bag also has other +2 and +3 weapons which look like they came from BG2, and some magic armour and shields and things as well (I forget, but at least a +2 Small Shield and some +1 armour).
I think I'm just going to empty the stuff into a barrel in Beregost or something and leave it for some peasant to find.
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