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I'm pretty sure Fade always had a romance component. Even so, I do remember Fade being pretty high quality, however, particularly when you compare her to that young Paladin NPC who came out - IIRC - at a similar time.
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Jul 29, 2014 11:23
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Ginette Reno posted:: Great advice, one thing I'd add is be sure to check what spells attack what saving throw. In iwd2 there are three saving throws: will, reflex, and fortitude. Try and tailor the spell youre using to the enemy youre fighting. In general spell casters have bad reflex and fortitude saves but high will, brute force things like barbarians and giants have bad reflex and will but good fortitude, and agile monsters have good reflex and bad will and fortitude. For this reason my MVP spell is chromatic orb, enemies have to make a reflex save or be hit with the nasty effect it deals. Later in the game a couple of them will lock down nearly any mage encounter. Like wise confusion or chaos will make any barbarian encounter a joke.
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Jul 29, 2014 11:26
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I'm getting the itch to write an NPC again, I'm a little more familiar with general OO programming so maybe scripting would make more sense to me now? I actually got a good ways into my last one, a pre-EE monk CNPC, but when it came to creating actual scripted content I balked. Plus having playtested the character for balance, I found that even an optimal human monk build (18 st, 18 dex, 16 con) tends to die quite easily. I could very well remake the character as a shadowdancer tbh, if I could be assed to relearn Weidu conventions (assuming they work with the EE games. I assume they must). Plus I'd have to secure some sort of fair use portrait. And spend who knows how many hours ripping sound bytes out of Ric Flair promos to make the voice set. Basic Chunnel fucked around with this message at 12:04 on Jul 29, 2014 |
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Jul 29, 2014 11:50
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Factor_VIII posted:Personally I don't mind his portrait. And he has a decent strength and constitution, good HP if you get him at level 2, you can get his charisma to 20 with a Nymph's/Algernon's cloak and a Helm of Glory to get the maximum store discounts and his lay on hands is cast instantly which makes it handy if someone is in danger of dying in the next few seconds. His dexterity is low, but if you give him the gloves of dex then his AC really improves and he also becomes a pretty decent bowman (starting with 1 point in longbows, means you can give him another point at level 3 to make him specialize in them). As a result I generally like to use him in my parties. I like his lay on hands more than anything. Also when I played EQ2 one of the guys we played with was a german named Ajjantis so Ajantis has a special place in my party now, it's like the old days for me! When I originally played the game my whole party was created by me so I never used any NPCs anyway. Really you're not missing much when you avoid the vanilla NPCs in BG1 other than more variation of response when you select people.
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Jul 29, 2014 12:10
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Deltasquid posted:http://artastrophe.deviantart.com/art/PaintBG-v2-409324931 I like how they have to label the characters because I sure as hell couldn't recognize anyone, maybe save for like two people
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Jul 29, 2014 12:45
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I like a lot of those portraits really, and I can definitely see the resemblances the artist is going for. Thing is, it suffers from the same problem a lot of portrait sets do by making everyone conventionally pretty (although it's not nearly as obvious). Take Jaheira, for example - the scars she has on her stock BG2 portrait, along with her incredibly pragmatic-and-not-stylish braids, say a lot about her character. I'd say the facial expression on that Jaheira portrait is pretty good but the long flowing hair and unblemished face cuts away a lot of Jaheira's hardness.
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Jul 29, 2014 12:56
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What are some essential addons for IWD? I only played through it once like 10 years ago, might be fun to revisit it.
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Jul 29, 2014 12:56
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FairGame posted:You have like 5 sets of saving throws, but really the only ones that matter are saves vs. poison/paralysis/death and saves vs. spell I think wands tend to use save vs. spell, even. The only time I've seen a save vs. polymorph is from the cursed potion of absorbtion or something. The one that petrifies you. The one you're missing is save vs. breath, which does see some use. It's for all the effects that aren't spells but also don't paralyze/poison/kill, like non-spell traps, item effects and the like.
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Jul 29, 2014 18:13
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Milky Moor posted:I'm pretty sure Fade always had a romance component. Even so, I do remember Fade being pretty high quality, however, particularly when you compare her to that young Paladin NPC who came out - IIRC - at a similar time. If you're talking about Saerelith you're really setting the bar kind of low 
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Jul 29, 2014 18:17
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Mr. Neutron posted:What are some essential addons for IWD? I only played through it once like 10 years ago, might be fun to revisit it. The fixpack and tweakpack, maybe Unfinished Business. There's not a ton of mods that exist for IWD
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Jul 29, 2014 18:25
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Ease of use is pretty much mandatory from what I remember (or maybe im thinking of IWD2). Just don't install everything in there because some of it is really lame. Like making Heart of Fury items drop in regular mode.
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Jul 29, 2014 19:22
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Milky Moor posted:I'm pretty sure Fade always had a romance component. Even so, I do remember Fade being pretty high quality, however, particularly when you compare her to that young Paladin NPC who came out - IIRC - at a similar time.
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Jul 29, 2014 21:50
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Mr. Neutron posted:There is nothing a mage can do that sorcerer cannot do better. A sorcerer can't dual or multiclass and is relatively weak compared to a monster like kensai/mage, berserker/mage or even fighter/mage/thief - I can only speak for BG2 though, I've not tested these things in IWD1/2 and I played them a long time ago with very suboptimal parties. I'm pretty sure IWDs don't support kits but duals/multis should still be more powerful than a vanilla class on later levels and heart of fury. If you're talking pure class, then yes, probably - in terms of raw power. Mages still provide better versatility and can read spell scrolls for massive XP gains early on. I do love to take a Sorcerer with me in BG2 for his massive utility with Wish spam. Mr. Neutron posted:What are some essential addons for IWD? I only played through it once like 10 years ago, might be fun to revisit it. Widescreen mod really makes it shine, IMO. Kubla Khan fucked around with this message at 22:20 on Jul 29, 2014 |
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Jul 29, 2014 22:15
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I've got a question for the thread. Earlier I was thinking of the first party I beat ToB with and started wondering who other people picked and which NPCs were most popular in a first time playthrough. Also, were the decisions based mainly on personality, usefulness or storyline impact?
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Jul 29, 2014 23:00
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I assume most people played BG2 the way they played BG1, just sticking with the first acceptable party members they came across on the critical path (hence the canon party from the beginning of BG2 being the first four non-evil party members that players typically come across through Nashkel). However, since BG2 starts squarely in the middle of a city and has no real core path beyond "go forth and do poo poo", that first BG2 party can vary somewhat. But they pretty clearly placed Yoshimo where they did to keep that canon party together - had the slot not opened up, taking Imoen back would be a harder sell. I recall my first party being Conjurer PC-Jaheira-Minsc-Imoen/Yoshi-Aerie-??? (probably either Valygar or Keldorn). I sent Sarevok on his merry way. Basic Chunnel fucked around with this message at 23:13 on Jul 29, 2014 |
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Jul 29, 2014 23:11
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My first BG2-ToB party was Sorcerer PC, Jaheira, Minsc, Imoen, Aerie and Jan. The first three were also part of most of my BG1 parties and I could never rationalize kicking them. Aerie was the first party member you met after Chateau Irenicus, which I think that got her an honorary spot in the long-time member roster, and I certainly did not appreciate Anomen at age 16. I don't think I need to explain Jan. The only character I still have never managed to kick from the party is Jaheira. If you get to far in her personal quest she'll say she's sacrificed everything for you and has nowhere to go in Athkatla if you kick her. 
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Jul 29, 2014 23:15
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I honestly don't even remember what my first party was any more. That was so long ago. I think I had Aerie, Imoen, Minsc, and Anomen. I don't recall who else I had, or what class I played, but I'm pretty sure I had at least those four.
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Jul 29, 2014 23:44
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I think my first BG2 party had a Gnome Illusionist, Yoshimo/Imoen, Minsc, Viconia, Keldorn and Jaheira. The Viconia and Keldorn combination was problematic since they try to kill one another. I got through the game by just reloading whenever that event triggered. Also, if Viconia turns undead she will turn Keldorn, which was problematic as it caused him to panic.
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Jul 29, 2014 23:59
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I never knew that about turn undead! Does it happen to any other characters?
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Jul 30, 2014 00:05
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Catastrophics posted:I never knew that about turn undead! Does it happen to any other characters?
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Jul 30, 2014 00:21
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My very first SoA party would have been Paladin PC (Undead Slayer - I didn't figure out about the Inquisitor until later), Minsc, Aerie, Anomyn, Nalia, and Yoshimo/Imoen. Yeah, I was pretty mage-heavy.
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Jul 30, 2014 00:25
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Kajeesus posted:The one you're missing is save vs. breath, which does see some use. It's for all the effects that aren't spells but also don't paralyze/poison/kill, like non-spell traps, item effects and the like. There's a trap on a door that's a bridge in the sewers that petrifies you - I think that saves versus petrify but now I'm thinking it may be a save versus breath. It's easily the worst trap in the game, all the others can just be walked over if you're okay with a little damage. My first BG2 party was all the characters I made myself from BG1 (with two rerolls for new classes, of course). I only played through with the NPCs FAR later when a friend told me they had their own quests. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one to do that! I had a Stalker, Monk, Sorcerer, Cleric, Bounty Hunter and then a sort of rotating final slot that for a while had a druid in it but I eventually used a Barbarian. I was so disappointed with the shapeshifting that I couldn't bring myself to carry on using the Druid at all.
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Jul 30, 2014 07:02
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In Baldurs Gate 2 Enhanced: what stats should a sun soul monk be going for? It's not super clear. Does wisdom affect any of the special abilities?
LibbyM fucked around with this message at 09:12 on Jul 30, 2014 |
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Jul 30, 2014 09:01
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I just remember switching party members like mad in my first BG2 playthrough. I clearly remember having Cernd of all people at the final battle, as well as Keldorn because he attacked me since my rep had dropped so low from using Slayer.
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Jul 30, 2014 09:38
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LibbyM posted:In Baldurs Gate 2 Enhanced: what stats should a sun soul monk be going for? It's not super clear. Does wisdom affect any of the special abilities? Nope wisdom is useless. If you're min maxing 18 str/dex and 16 con. Pump the rest into intelligence.
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Jul 30, 2014 09:41
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netcat posted:I just remember switching party members like mad in my first BG2 playthrough. I clearly remember having Cernd of all people at the final battle, as well as Keldorn because he attacked me since my rep had dropped so low from using Slayer. Eurgh, I took Cernd along too. I picked him up near the start and kept him with the group waiting for him to do something interesting, convinced that most of his banters with the other NPCs just hadn't triggered yet. I forgot to put my final party in my original post- Cernd, Minsc, Imoen, Jan and CN Anomen. My PC was a blade.
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Jul 30, 2014 13:14
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Captain Oblivious posted:If you're talking about Saerelith you're really setting the bar kind of low When I paid attention to the BG2 modding scene, the three big NPCs - maybe the only three, really - were Fade, that one and some guy who I think was called Kelsey?
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Jul 30, 2014 14:29
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kelsey, Solaufein, a few others. They were universally terrible, or an author self insert. Or both. I never saw the point of more npcs so maybe i'm biased.
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Jul 30, 2014 15:03
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quote:Saerileth is a 15-year-old human paladin of Tyr. She hails from Mount Celestia in the Outer Planes. She is young, romanceable (for good-aligned humans, elves, and half-elves), and beautiful. She is complete through ToB, and she has quests and a flirt/chatpack. ... Saerileth will love you like no other. We hope you will play her mod repeatedly. That pretty much sums up BG2 NPC mods.
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Jul 30, 2014 15:17
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Milky Moor posted:When I paid attention to the BG2 modding scene, the three big NPCs - maybe the only three, really - were Fade, that one and some guy who I think was called Kelsey? One I remember, and actually used for a while because I was a teenager with terrible taste, was Chloe. She was the daughter of some wind god or other and had 25 dexterity and she was a lesbian who romanced Imoen if the PC didn't romance her. After I typed that, I reread it, and now I want to go back and kick my teenage self in the groin.
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Jul 30, 2014 15:47
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razorrozar posted:25 dexterity I'm pretty sure that's outside the realm of even half-gods, Charname being limited to like 18 dex and all that.
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Jul 30, 2014 16:01
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My first BG2 party was my human fighter with 20+ Charisma/~10 Dex and Strength/18ish Int ( I was 12-14ish and thought of the stats as personal stats, rather then in gameplay terms. ), Aerie, Keldorn, Minsc, Jan, and Anomen. By the time I hit ToB I was sick of Anomen's poo poo, so I traded him in for Sarevok, which led to my party being 4 front line fighters a cleric/mage, and Jan. I remember HATING Jaheria because it felt like she was trying to take over the party, so I constantly enjoyed kicking her out at the start. I also beat the entire game on Core Rules, which I'm still not sure how I managed it. When I went back at a later date after finally beating BG1/knowing how to play the game/being an adult, I went Wild Mage PC/Minsc/Jan/Mazzy/Jaheria/Keldorn.
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Jul 30, 2014 16:02
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Mr. Neutron posted:That pretty much sums up BG2 NPC mods. It really doesn't, to be honest. Everyone remembers the memorably lovely mods and overlooks that there's quite a few who fit in fine and may not be particularly good but aren't notably bad, either. Saerileth and Chloe are two of the very worst.
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Jul 30, 2014 16:14
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Thanks for the advice about monk stats.
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Jul 30, 2014 17:06
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Deltasquid posted:I'm pretty sure that's outside the realm of even half-gods, Charname being limited to like 18 dex and all that. 
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Jul 30, 2014 17:18
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Factor_VIII posted:In 2E, 25 is the maximum stat possible. With enough stat-boosting tomes it is theoretically possible to get that stat, so maybe she started out with an 18 and found a cache of dex tomes before meeting the PC. Her wind god mother meets her in her quests, iirc, so unfortunately she really is Mary Sue incarnate.
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Jul 30, 2014 17:22
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Mr. Neutron posted:That pretty much sums up BG2 NPC mods. There's nothing wrong with the age: 15+ has universally been the starting age for D&D characters (elves start at 115). What is wrong is all the sex and the emphasis that person puts on sex. The MC and Imoen are likely the same age when they leave Candlekeep.
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Jul 30, 2014 18:30
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Arivia posted:What is wrong is all the sex and the emphasis that person puts on sex. What do you mea- 
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Jul 30, 2014 19:07
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Enormous masses of hair, pulsing and undulating.
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Jul 30, 2014 19:14
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jneer posted:What do you mea- ew. gross. so gross. The NPCs are half the reason to play BG2 - why would someone replace them with THAT?
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Jul 30, 2014 20:12
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