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Fair enough. Then at some point I will just play the version on GOG, which I've already bought. Party suggestions... GO!
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Oct 12, 2015 14:13
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BadAstronaut posted:Fair enough. Then at some point I will just play the version on GOG, which I've already bought. Party suggestions... GO! I haven't played for about 6 months, stalled out upon getting into the Underdark, but had a pretty decently easy time leading up to that point. Kenny Logins fucked around with this message at 14:40 on Oct 12, 2015 |
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Oct 12, 2015 14:37
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"Fighter 4/barbarian X" What does that mean... create human then dual at those levels?
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Oct 12, 2015 14:47
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BadAstronaut posted:"Fighter 4/barbarian X" 3rd edition you put the level into whatever class you want when you level up.
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Oct 12, 2015 15:10
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BadAstronaut posted:"Fighter 4/barbarian X" In IWD2 every time you level up you choose what class to put the new level in, up to a max of 3 different classes. It's the same for any race - your race only affects your favored class. Normally you get XP penalties if any one of your,classes is more than 2 levels above or below the others, but your race's favored class is exempt from this. So to play a fighter4/barb x with no penalties you either need to pick a race that has either fighter or barb as a favored class( I think half orcs and one of the halting subraces qualify) or be human, who are unique in that their favored class is always the highest level one.
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Oct 12, 2015 15:10
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BadAstronaut posted:"Fighter 4/barbarian X" The reason for 4 fighter levels is weapon specialization, I believe. Kenny Logins fucked around with this message at 15:16 on Oct 12, 2015 |
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Oct 12, 2015 15:13
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Geez. Complicated. Sounds like it will require quite a bit of reading to get right. Hope the game is worth it 
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Oct 12, 2015 15:48
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BadAstronaut posted:Geez. Complicated. Sounds like it will require quite a bit of reading to get right. It's the hardest of all IE games, so if you like the combat you should like it. There's a lot of nice little touches, like for example goblin war drums that will summon goblin worg riders until you destroy them. I'd rate it the third best IE game, just behind BG2 and PS:T myself.
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Oct 12, 2015 16:15
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Pwnstar posted:The real reason people like Baldur's Gate: the feeling when you crit a dude and he explodes into gibs as the screen shakes. BadAstronaut posted:Fair enough. Then at some point I will just play the version on GOG, which I've already bought. Party suggestions... GO! Sorcerer Bard with a level or two of Rogue Druid Tanky Cleric Caster Cleric It's the only way. If you opt for an inferior party, keep the casters at least mostly single-classed and multiclass the non-caster characters to cherry-pick the best abilities. Oh, and don't play Monks. Wizard Styles fucked around with this message at 16:59 on Oct 12, 2015 |
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Oct 12, 2015 16:56
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The one gotcha in IWD2 party design is that unlike the Baldur's Gate series, Icewind Dale 2 is actually extremely stingy with spell scrolls, so you don't want to have more than one wizard. Sorcerers are fine, stack as many of those as you please, since they learn their spells on levelup and don't need scrolls, but if you have more than one wizard then they'll be constantly competing over who gets to learn from the scrolls, and you'll get two lovely wizards that have anemic spell selection.
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Oct 12, 2015 17:02
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This is true, and iirc you'll have to buy a lot of the scrolls, so building two wizards is going to cost a lot of money even though at least one will still end up kind of lovely.
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Oct 12, 2015 17:04
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Why two clerics and not a single pure fightery tank?
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Oct 12, 2015 17:34
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BadAstronaut posted:Why two clerics and not a single pure fightery tank? 2) Fighters do not. Here's the FAQ I used to build my party mentioned above (with a few tweaks). The guy really goes deep on why you pick this and not that etc. The game is relatively complex from a character-building point of view and I can attest that party and suggestions will take you through the first few chapters until you figure out how you like to play it.
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Oct 12, 2015 17:38
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Kenny Logins posted:1) Clerics loving rule in D&D 3; This is true. Clerics are ridiculous monster stomping stompmonsters in 3e. Here's just some of the things Clerics get that in 3e that they didn't use to have in 2e. - No longer restricted to blunt weapons only. - Able to achieve multiple attacks per round even without buffs. - Ability to convert any spell they have memorized into a healing spell of the same level, so they no longer need to memorize healing spells, any spell they have can become a healing spell at a moment's notice. - Access to two clerical domains, each of which is a list of even MORE spells not on the cleric's normal spell list, themed for their deity. These can include ridiculous overpowered stuff off the wizard lists like Wail of the Banshee, Horrid Wilting, or the Power Word spells. - Their primary stat, Wisdom, used to give them access to more spells per day. Now it does that, makes their spells stronger and harder to save against, amplifies a lot of important skills, and improves their own Will saving throws. - They get two strong saves (will and fortitude), fighters get one (fortitude, the worse one) 3e Clerics are bananas.
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Oct 12, 2015 18:03
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Some of the Cleric kits get pretty good tanking spells, too. Mask gets Mirror Image and some other stuff like that, for example. You can get four levels in any warrior class for an extra attack per round down the road, though, that's definitely a good option. Edit: Also, the party I suggested above was mostly a for fun all-caster option, although it's also good. Wizard Styles fucked around with this message at 19:06 on Oct 12, 2015 |
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Oct 12, 2015 19:03
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There's just something off putting about playing a priest, hah.
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Oct 12, 2015 19:04
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Dyna Soar posted:There's just something off putting about playing a priest, hah. Forgotten Realms is more priest-y by default but some of the orders are still pretty loving metal.
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Oct 12, 2015 19:23
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Wizard Styles posted:This is why I like single-classed Kensais and can't play Pillars of Eternity without a Rogue anymore. I'm doing this one next time. I've always gone paladin/ranger/cleric/rogue->bard/druid/wizard (one is fine, bards don't learn from scrolls) but given how good clerics are I can see easily getting by without a true tank. Bards are fantastic and there is no reason to play a straight rogue - 1 or 2 levels unlocks the necessary skills and then you can enjoy the bardly goodness. Druids get so many tricks including, at high levels, turning into massive elementals and punching everyone to death. I like to play a Duergar cleric of Lathander both for the irony and mechanics; Lathander clerics get all of the great healing and fire spells as their domain spells, so you can heal up your mates even better and fireball some bitches on the next breath. Granted, at spell level 9 it is very hard to choose between full healing your whole party or dropping a Meteor Swarm on some suckahs, but then again you can always memorise Mass Heal as a non-domain spell.
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Oct 12, 2015 19:36
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Whats the most effective F/M type build in IWD2? I've been thinking about 1 or 2 Paladin / Sorc X / Fighter X. Does that work with no xp penalties if I have favored class paladin? Is it a bad idea for other reasons?
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Oct 13, 2015 01:04
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Big Sean posted:Whats the most effective F/M type build in IWD2? I've been thinking about 1 or 2 Paladin / Sorc X / Fighter X. Does that work with no xp penalties if I have favored class paladin? Is it a bad idea for other reasons?
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Oct 13, 2015 01:10
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Big Sean posted:Whats the most effective F/M type build in IWD2? I've been thinking about 1 or 2 Paladin / Sorc X / Fighter X. Does that work with no xp penalties if I have favored class paladin? Is it a bad idea for other reasons?
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Oct 13, 2015 01:53
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Hmmm good advice. I'll skip the F/M.
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Oct 13, 2015 03:09
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FYI, for any Mac GOG gamers, I was having trouble installing IWD2 Complete after upgrading to 10.11. I emailed GOG support and they're saying it's a known issue with SIP and to try disabling it. I haven't tried their advice yet but I'm hoping it works. Laptop IWD2 is something I'm not looking forward to losing. Anyone who wants to can PM me and I'll C&P them the support email, or else post it to the thread.
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Oct 13, 2015 14:50
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Big Sean posted:Hmmm good advice. I'll skip the F/M. The best fighter mage is a cleric. Alternatively, a Paladin 1 / Sorcerer X with high charisma for a saving throw bonus and then get defensive and melee offense spells.
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Oct 13, 2015 18:28
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AngryBooch posted:The best fighter mage is a cleric. Alternatively, a Paladin 1 / Sorcerer X with high charisma for a saving throw bonus and then get defensive and melee offense spells. Older edition, but there was a class in a splatbook back in 2nd edition that was a paladin/mage, called a paramander. Don't remember much about it apart from the theme and that it rhymes with "salamander"
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Oct 13, 2015 21:30
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JustJeff88 posted:Older edition, but there was a class in a splatbook back in 2nd edition that was a paladin/mage, called a paramander. Don't remember much about it apart from the theme and that it rhymes with "salamander" They were true neutral paladins. They got the ability to determine the exact alignment of any creature, resistance to magic cast by non-neutral spellcasters, and mage spells in exchange for not being able to horde wealth. Also apparently they weren't intended to be used by player for whatever reason? Emong fucked around with this message at 22:55 on Oct 13, 2015 |
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Oct 13, 2015 22:52
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The whole bunch of Paladin variants they published there, 'there' being Dragon 106 for those interested, were made up by some rando who TSR bought the rights from when they accepted his submission to the magazine. He put them up on his site when the internet came around, so they're pretty easy to find even if you can't turn up somewhere to  Dr#106.I think they're all supposed to be NPC classes just because no one at TSR had any idea what the gently caress was happening with Paladins at the time and their status was changed in between the submission and the publishing of the article, becoming a Cavalier subclass. So NPCing them made it a whole lot less confusing. Didn't stop them including a firm admonition to DMs to punish poor roleplaying of the class anyway so, yeah, they didn't know what the gently caress. Pretty common for TSR. Probably also wanted to protect the specialness and pureness of the Paladin concept, which was a real baby of the designers during early editions.
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Oct 14, 2015 01:41
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Kenny Logins posted:FYI, for any Mac GOG gamers, I was having trouble installing IWD2 Complete after upgrading to 10.11. I emailed GOG support and they're saying it's a known issue with SIP and to try disabling it. The only catch is you can't then re-enable SIP, it needs to stay disabled for as long as you want to be playing IWD2 Complete. That being said, as I understand it, prior to OSX 10.11, SIP wasn't even a thing, so if you felt safe on those, you're probably safe with it off on 10.11.
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Oct 16, 2015 22:10
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I've been playing IWD2 again and wow it sure didn't age well. The kludge of 2e and 3e rules combined with the lack of any motivation or story line really gets on my nerves quickly, the dungeons are gigantic, and the fights are way more numerous and seem to take longer. Finishing act 1 was a giant linear slog. The whole thing means you also spend a lot more time resting and rebuffing. It actually has a much worse story (i.e. none really) than NWN2 does.
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Oct 22, 2015 05:57
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Washout posted:
Are you still just starting act 2? Because there is a story, and while it's not on the forefront since it's supposed to be a dungeon crawler, it's still enjoyable. Dyna Soar fucked around with this message at 08:46 on Oct 22, 2015 |
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Oct 22, 2015 08:43
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Dyna Soar posted:Are you still just starting act 2? Because there is a story, and while it's not on the forefront since it's supposed to be a dungeon crawler, it's still enjoyable. The Chimera dudes taking over the world thing? Unless there is another angle it's pretty worn out, just an excuse to fight a string of bizarre boss fights.
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Oct 22, 2015 09:26
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Washout posted:The Chimera dudes taking over the world thing? Unless there is another angle it's pretty worn out, just an excuse to fight a string of bizarre boss fights. Faction x trying to take over / destroy the world /region / city is pretty much the plot to most games anyway. I liked Isair & Madae and the way the plot was built.
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Oct 22, 2015 12:24
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Washout posted:I've been playing IWD2 again and wow it sure didn't age well. The kludge of 2e and 3e rules combined with the lack of any motivation or story line really gets on my nerves quickly, the dungeons are gigantic, and the fights are way more numerous and seem to take longer. Finishing act 1 was a giant linear slog. The whole thing means you also spend a lot more time resting and rebuffing. But really feeling you on the rest/rebuff tip. One thing I wish the game could do is some sort of macro where you can have your buffs all lined up and automatically execute: it gets kind of old to have to go through 5 minutes of team management every time you rest. Playing an effective gimmick party that doesn't rely pre-buff would probably end up just as tedious. Stick with it, though. Once you're not just fighting goblins things pick up a bit in terms of interesting (and not simply difficult) combat.
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Oct 22, 2015 13:23
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The problem with IWD2's plot (and IWD1) is the party isn't integrated into it at all. You're just some random wrecking ball who shows up to kick over the bad guys' sandcastle. Baldur's Gate has the whole Bhaalspawn thing going on which, despite not being able to acknowledge the protagonist's race, class, gender, abilities, anything at all, still makes the protagonist a central part of the plot.
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Oct 22, 2015 16:43
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Mzbundifund posted:The problem with IWD2's plot (and IWD1) is the party isn't integrated into it at all. You're just some random wrecking ball who shows up to kick over the bad guys' sandcastle. Baldur's Gate has the whole Bhaalspawn thing going on which, despite not being able to acknowledge the protagonist's race, class, gender, abilities, anything at all, still makes the protagonist a central part of the plot. I wouldn't say it's a problem really since it's the whole point of the games.
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Oct 22, 2015 16:46
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Mzbundifund posted:The problem with IWD2's plot (and IWD1) is the party isn't integrated into it at all. You're just some random wrecking ball who shows up to kick over the bad guys' sandcastle. Baldur's Gate has the whole Bhaalspawn thing going on which, despite not being able to acknowledge the protagonist's race, class, gender, abilities, anything at all, still makes the protagonist a central part of the plot. Whereas in BG1/2, as you note, they don't engage with race/class/gender at all, except for in 2 with the class-based strongholds (which had varying degrees of success).
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Oct 22, 2015 16:58
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One thing I enjoyed about contrasting BG1 and BG2/ToB was that, in the first game, you feel like a player in a much bigger web of intrigue, and unwrapping the layers of deception one after another feels very gratifying. Sarevok's machination are sensible, fairly subtle, and quite believable. The second game is less "grounded", but it feels like a very personal journey of self-discovery that is entirely centered around the PC. I can't really think of any other games or serieses who had a more interesting and organic transition from "small fish, big pond" to "threat to all the cosmos." It mirrors the player's growth along the power curve from "Help, it's a wolf!" to "I just killed a demi-god - what of it?"
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Oct 22, 2015 18:13
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Morrowind's one is pretty decent
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Oct 22, 2015 18:20
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MrL_JaKiri posted:Morrowind's one is pretty decent The Elder Scrolls series has always been about the PC transitioning from Nobody to Demigod.
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Oct 22, 2015 21:44
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Kenny Logins posted:I've been finding that the writing in the small details (conversations, etc) is pretty well done but the larger plot is sort of left for you to take or leave. In that sense it is very "old school" in that it feels like playing a fairly standard tabletop D&D 3e game for the love of dice rolling and character building rather than narrative satisfaction. Obvious, that style of play and system weren't for everyone then, and they're still not. The ice castle is the same as the goblin fort was except even more annoying puzzles and even less monster variation. It picks up after the ice castle?
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Oct 23, 2015 03:05
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