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So I never really played BG, beyond the first INN and mine thingy 15 years ago. Now I got both the first and 2nd one on steam, Expanded Edition. Would it be worth it to go through both of them (I think you can import your characters from one game to the other?) without a single guide and such? Can you end up making the game unfinishable like old games used to do sometimes if you chose the wrong options? Also how long would that take? 40 hours is my current guestimate.
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Jul 23, 2017 15:45
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I'd say something like 100-200 hours depending on sidequests.
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Jul 23, 2017 15:56
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StarMinstrel posted:So I never really played BG, beyond the first INN and mine thingy 15 years ago. Now I got both the first and 2nd one on steam, Expanded Edition. Would it be worth it to go through both of them (I think you can import your characters from one game to the other?) without a single guide and such? Can you end up making the game unfinishable like old games used to do sometimes if you chose the wrong options? Also how long would that take? 40 hours is my current guestimate. I'm doing this very thing right now. I have 43 hours played and I'm just starting Chapter 6 in BGEE and I haven't touched the Tales of the Sword Coast content yet. 40 hours to do everything blind seems impractical. On this very topic, about how long does the TOTSC content take to complete?
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Jul 23, 2017 16:09
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StarMinstrel posted:So I never really played BG, beyond the first INN and mine thingy 15 years ago. Now I got both the first and 2nd one on steam, Expanded Edition. Would it be worth it to go through both of them (I think you can import your characters from one game to the other?) without a single guide and such? Can you end up making the game unfinishable like old games used to do sometimes if you chose the wrong options? Also how long would that take? 40 hours is my current guestimate. Hah, yea, 40 hours is like speed run level of time. How well do you know 2nd ed rules? If you have a good knowledge you could finish the games I guess.
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Jul 23, 2017 16:13
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bongwizzard posted:Hah, yea, 40 hours is like speed run level of time. How well do you know 2nd ed rules? If you have a good knowledge you could finish the games I guess. Not sure about the numbered editions stuff, I just mostly remember back when i was 12 and getting confused at how armor with a big number = shittier armor (I know how it works now though, which is that basically the armor number is what it substract to the opponent rolls to hit you). Other than that i recall wizards can only cast spells once a day, needing to rest often and taking your time exploring. Oh and I think I recall ranged classes own at first, but get milquetoast later on, until you can get good equipment for your melee classes and good spells for your mages who become unstoppable forces of apocalypse. One more question : Can I just pick whoever I want for my party as long as their alignment coincide? Since it's an old game I wouldn't be surprised if it was one where "woops! You pissed off this character and now it's gone forever. gg." Popoto fucked around with this message at 16:36 on Jul 23, 2017 |
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Jul 23, 2017 16:26
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I respec'd my 6/6 F/C dwarf to **Warhammer, **two weapon style, *sling, and *flail/maces. He's going to be headed into battle now with Ashideena in his main hand and The Thresher in his off hand. This is a change from **Warhammer, **Sword+Shield style, and **sling and using Ashideena and Shield of the Falling Stars. This loving game is so much fun.
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Jul 23, 2017 16:35
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StarMinstrel posted:Not sure about the numbered editions stuff, I just mostly remember back when i was 12 and getting confused at how armor with a big number = shittier armor (I know how it works now though, which is that basically the armor number is what it substract to the opponent rolls to hit you). Other than that i recall wizards can only cast spells once a day, needing to rest often and taking your time exploring. Oh and I think I recall ranged classes own at first, but get milquetoast later on, until you can get good equipment for your melee classes and good spells for your mages who become unstoppable forces of apocalypse. This FAQ should get you through the first game; https://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/75251-baldurs-gate/faqs/8566 The second game gets into the wizard-duel stuff where some system mastery is really really helpful unless you know enough to plan your party to work around it. And yes, there are NCPs who will fight and/or leave if you have them in the party together or your rep drops to much.
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Jul 23, 2017 16:43
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StarMinstrel posted:Can you end up making the game unfinishable like old games used to do sometimes if you chose the wrong options? Wildtortilla posted:On this very topic, about how long does the TOTSC content take to complete? And then there's Durlag's Tower. I don't really know how going through that will take someone who has never seen the puzzles and enemies before. I'd say at least 8 hours, but probably 10+. StarMinstrel posted:One more question : Can I just pick whoever I want for my party as long as their alignment coincide? Since it's an old game I wouldn't be surprised if it was one where "woops! You pissed off this character and now it's gone forever. gg." Some NPCs also have their own quests that they want you to take care of, and in BG1 they'll sometimes put you on a timer without the game telling you exactly how much time you've got. The only really problematic one is Kivan - if you run into him, only hire him once you've finished the second chapter of the story and know where to go for the next main story quest.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:02
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TOTSC werewolf island is like a 10 hour quest too.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:09
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That's actually one of the two minor quests I was thinking about.  3 hours may not be realistic for a first time playthrough, but it's a lot closer than 10 imo. Everything about that island is very straightforward, apart from one battle.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:14
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So I never finished IWD2 back in the day and I wanna solo it. Thinking about leveling a paladin to 2 then putting all other levels into cleric. Thoughts on race/stats/skills/feats? Thinking either human or aasimar. Not sure how to spread the stats since you need a bit of everything. I haven't played this since it came out so I'm rusty on the skills and feats I'll need. Concentration + diplomacy + spellcraft 10 or whatever gets me the elemental damage spell feat?
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Jul 23, 2017 17:15
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Wildtortilla posted:I respec'd my 6/6 F/C dwarf to **Warhammer, **two weapon style, *sling, and *flail/maces. He's going to be headed into battle now with Ashideena in his main hand and The Thresher in his off hand. This is a change from **Warhammer, **Sword+Shield style, and **sling and using Ashideena and Shield of the Falling Stars. I'm in a similar spot... With a half orc and maces instead of hammers. I have to add that I love the description on The Thresher and since I'm quasi RPing as a cleric of Helm it makes it even better. Also I envy those of you just discovering this game. The iron man threads have made me unable to play it any other way and I still haven't really played through Dragonspear past where my last character bit the dust.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:20
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Do you have to complete Durlag's in one shot? Meaning when I go in, does the door close behind me and not re-open until I see it through. Playing BG makes me really excited for IWD. I really dig this combat system and IWD being primarily combat sounds so good.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:23
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Wildtortilla posted:Do you have to complete Durlag's in one shot? Meaning when I go in, does the door close behind me and not re-open until I see it through. You can go in and out as you please. If you can complete the first sub-level though you should generally be able to go through the whole thing.
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Jul 23, 2017 17:28
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Wildtortilla posted:Do you have to complete Durlag's in one shot? Meaning when I go in, does the door close behind me and not re-open until I see it through. EDIT: Turns out you can just walk into one of the guardian rooms and you'll automatically be teleported down to the final floor if you choose to escape the tower early. Olive Branch fucked around with this message at 17:52 on Jul 23, 2017 |
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Jul 23, 2017 17:49
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Wizard Styles posted:That's actually one of the two minor quests I was thinking about. I'm probably just slow as poo poo. I remember it taking me a few days to complete but maybe I wasn't playing a lot.
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Jul 23, 2017 22:22
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Werewolf island takes at most 1 hour. It's 2 small areas: a village and a mini wilderness that contains a mini dungeon. Even if you do all the fetch quests and talk to everyone you can't possibly stretch this out to multiple hours without taking a nap in front of your computer.
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Jul 23, 2017 22:27
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Wildtortilla posted:Do you have to complete Durlag's in one shot? Meaning when I go in, does the door close behind me and not re-open until I see it through. going from bg2 to iwd is really jarring the bg2ee engine is insanely good and the iwdee engine is insanely not quite there Washout posted:TOTSC werewolf island is like a 10 hour quest too. 
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Jul 24, 2017 00:55
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All right, read up some documentations, and a bit on classes. I ended up choosing the ShadowDancer kit, since sneaky whirlwind of death is usually what I end up playing in RPGs if possible. I rerolled a bunch until I had a total dice roll of 90 (not sure if it could go higher but my attention span was used), and ended up with: STR 15 DEX 19 (am an elf) CON 17 INT 10 WIS 11 CHA 18 I went with higher CHA since I think I read it's advantageous to Shadowdancers? Not sure why. Does it play into being able to stay hidden? Otherwise hopefully it unlocks more funny dialogue options. Otherwise I went with Chaotic Neutral because rules be drat and others too! /edit Oh and I went with Core Rules, I figured saving often and trying to understand what happens should make it so it's not TOO much of a hard learning curve. I just like playing on what's deemed normal settings. I guess I can keep people updated on my trip report if that's something people like here? Popoto fucked around with this message at 03:25 on Jul 24, 2017 |
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Jul 24, 2017 03:22
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Charisma is basically a dump stat in Baldur's Gate. I think the only thing it affects is giving you slightly better merchant prices.
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Jul 24, 2017 03:34
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Gobblecoque posted:Charisma is basically a dump stat in Baldur's Gate. I think the only thing it affects is giving you slightly better merchant prices. Oh well! That's that then. I'll just have slightly less optimal STR since that's where I would have put the points if I decided to go for less CHA.
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Jul 24, 2017 03:37
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swap to normal difficulty when scribing spells or leveling up, unless you really like save scumming
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Jul 24, 2017 04:05
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Gobblecoque posted:Charisma is basically a dump stat in Baldur's Gate. I think the only thing it affects is giving you slightly better merchant prices. There are a few quest rewards too, but nothing earth-shattering.
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Jul 24, 2017 04:08
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Meyers-Briggs Testicle posted:swap to normal difficulty when scribing spells or leveling up, unless you really like save scumming Can I Ironman it and not hate myself later on? It just feels a bit cheaty to switch back and forth, to me. Mostly what I was meh about "normal" was the 75% enemy dmg and your characters cannot die thing. Popoto fucked around with this message at 04:16 on Jul 24, 2017 |
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Jul 24, 2017 04:12
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Characters can still die. It says characters cannot die *permanently* but that's still incorrect. What can't happen on normal is a character being "chunked" by high damage, but they can still die permanently to vorpal hits, disintegration, petrification + shattering, etc.
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Jul 24, 2017 04:34
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Siege of Dragonspear in the rearview. It was decent. But the gameplay was up and down. (TOO MANY SWARMS OF ENEMIES). I loved some of the unique characters though. -I think M'Khiin is great and wish she was in BG II. -I like Glint. It's like having a muppet in my party. Oh, and goodbye and good riddance to Baldur's Gate. Twice I saved that city and twice they hosed me over. gently caress them. I know who my real friends are... Dorn, Viconia and Neera and Imoen...I guess
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Jul 24, 2017 04:46
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Suspicious posted:Characters can still die. It says characters cannot die *permanently* but that's still incorrect. What can't happen on normal is a character being "chunked" by high damage, but they can still die permanently to vorpal hits, disintegration, petrification + shattering, etc. Seems fair. I thing I'll go down to Normal difficulty, and take the 25% less enemy damage as a first timer bonus!
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Jul 24, 2017 05:00
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I started up a staff kensai run that I got some killer starting stats for (and dumped cha) so I can dual him to either thief or mage for Bg2 and this dude actually demolishes everything. With a shield amulet you're at minus 3 ac and Kai can basically slaughter anyone in the round it's up. With the blur effect cloak and elves bane most archers only hit on a 20 too. Worst thing is the lack of helmet for crit avoidance. I guess I could die if I took an unlucky round but really I just have Garrick and Branwen following me around for the buffs while I turn the entire sword coast into gibs What's the consensus on using the claw of kazgaroth on a fighter? I've got 19 con now so I'd lose a good bit of hp not sure if it's worth the trade. Does it stack with the cloak of displacement? I wish the blur effect was toggleable in the enhanced edition, I don't have the capability to download a mod to take it off. flashman fucked around with this message at 05:05 on Jul 24, 2017 |
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Jul 24, 2017 05:00
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ChrisBTY posted:Siege of Dragonspear in the rearview. I like how when you're in prison at the end it turns into a roast on your character. The single mom archer lady comes by to tell you that she doesn't know if you're guilty or not but that you should kill yourself anyway. And then Viconia showed up to call me a pussy for getting caught or something. They should have gone all in and have all the companions show up to talk poo poo on you.
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Jul 24, 2017 05:10
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Gobblecoque posted:I like how when you're in prison at the end it turns into a roast on your character. The single mom archer lady comes by to tell you that she doesn't know if you're guilty or not but that you should kill yourself anyway. And then Viconia showed up to call me a pussy for getting caught or something. They should have gone all in and have all the companions show up to talk poo poo on you. Not really what I'd hope for. Me through the entire game: I'm not really comfortable with people calling me hero. I'm not really a hero. End of the Game: Corwin: Please martyr yourself, you're a hero right? Me: First off, gently caress you. Secondly, have you listened to me for like a nanosecond of this entire campaign? Or are you just using the hero tag to guilt trip me into giving of myself, AGAIN, for a city that only uses and hurts me. I'm a guy who almost always gives the nicest reply to every dialogue regardless of what kind of character I'm playing. But I went full dick at the end of SoD. Because gently caress those guys. And double gently caress John Irenicus. But that's old hat.
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Jul 24, 2017 06:04
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"Does the fact that I'm a Paladin and have retained my abilities not suggest some kind of mind control or framing?" "Stop making sense!" "You're lucky I was planning to ditch this city and do hero things somewhere else anyway."
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Jul 24, 2017 06:08
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Siege of Dragonspear would have been much better as a standalone with a new protagonist, IMO. There's just something that doesn't work about having this middle chapter that never gets referenced again, with dramatically higher stakes than the beginning of Baldur's Gate II. Still a fun expansion, though.
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Jul 24, 2017 06:54
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It at least answered the question "Why the hell can't I just go back to Baldur's Gate and get help and money instead of loving around Amn?" I kind of hope they'd make a small followup DLC for Throne of Bhaal to tie off SoD's loose ends, but honestly Beamdog should get out from BG's shadow and do their own thing, ideally still D&D though.
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Jul 24, 2017 06:58
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I mean, at the very least, they should tie up the whole Skie's soul is trapped inside a magical dagger thing, because, uh, as much as I didn't like the character, fridging them for plot development and then not tying up that loose end is very, very bad. But that's just me.
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Jul 24, 2017 07:06
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Kavak posted:It at least answered the question "Why the hell can't I just go back to Baldur's Gate and get help and money instead of loving around Amn?" Here's to hoping they take all the cool super long modules for 2nd ed and make them all into fleshed out games. I take it back they need to do hollow world, no one has ever done hollow world before.
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Jul 24, 2017 07:55
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Azuren posted:So I never finished IWD2 back in the day and I wanna solo it. Thinking about leveling a paladin to 2 then putting all other levels into cleric. Thoughts on race/stats/skills/feats? Thinking either human or aasimar. Not sure how to spread the stats since you need a bit of everything. I haven't played this since it came out so I'm rusty on the skills and feats I'll need. Concentration + diplomacy + spellcraft 10 or whatever gets me the elemental damage spell feat? Paladin/Cleric is pretty bad, it's actually worse than a single class Cleric since your extra spell levels would give you more AB and damage than your two levels of Paladin. Easiest classes to solo would be Svirfneblin Monk(1)/Cleric since you can basically ignore all AC checks or Aasimar Paladin(1)/Sorcerer since you can ignore anything that checks your save. Drow Rogue(1)/Wizard could probably do it too but would be more interesting to play and not completely overpowered. Just max INT and take Rogue first level, dump all your points in Rogue skills and then you have enough INT to keep building them from there. e: also I will say that IWD2 is very tedious to solo because of the weird way the experience system works, you'll level up quickly until midgame and then stop gaining experience entirely unless you start adding level 1 dudes to your party to drag your average party level down. The Phlegmatist fucked around with this message at 08:35 on Jul 24, 2017 |
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Jul 24, 2017 08:32
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I'm thinking about my time with BG so far (I'm at the start of ch 6) and it's far easier (I'm playing on normal difficulty) than I was expecting. I didn't even have early game level 1 struggles. Does the difficulty pick up or is this a side effect of playing RPGs for 25 of my 31 years? The only tricky fights I've had were at the end of chapters 3 and 4.
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Jul 24, 2017 11:20
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The BG games aren't overly difficult overall I'd say. In 1, the main difficulty comes from surprise damage-spikes due to the inherent volatility of low-level DnD with low HP and generally low chances to hit. Hence wolves at level 1, and anything that attacks at range and shows up in groups like Kobolds and Archers being the big dangers, with big groups in general posing the threats. Special mention to Sarevok in his near magic-immune glory, although potions tend to tilt the balance of that - without any, your characters are likely just walking meatbags in melee-range of him, but while souped up on performance-enhancing In BG2, on the other hand, you actually run into a lot more dangerous individual characters/monsters and smaller groups, and the danger comes from magic and to a lesser extent general dickishness (like assassins with potions of invisibility) rather than straight-forward pin-cushioning. The thing about this kind of danger is that it's extremely punishing when you don't know it's coming, or don't know what the correct response is, but it's often (though not always) simple to counter when you're experienced with the game. I remember as a kid, mages were my loving bane because I couldn't get their defenses down at all - a combination of many defense-stripping magic having limits like only a chance to work or only stripping 1/2/3 protections, and not knowing that Liches are immune to Breach which meant I kept being certain that Breach didn't actually work at all. That said, sometimes - especially if you're not following some optimal route through the game or running with an optimized party - you're just not gonna have the easy answer at hand, and these kinds of fights can be kinda fun puzzles figuring out the best way to stay alive and win. If you're not DnD experienced, your first playthrough could be pretty challenging though. Insurrectionist fucked around with this message at 11:57 on Jul 24, 2017 |
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Jul 24, 2017 11:54
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Kavak posted:I kind of hope they'd make a small followup DLC for Throne of Bhaal to tie off SoD's loose ends 10 minutes of content, 10/10 anyway.
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Jul 24, 2017 14:19
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Wizard Styles posted:"Hey, city full of shitcunts that wanted to execute me, guess who's the god of murder now?" Oh Gods yes. End of ToB before SoD: I will be a nice God of Murder. End of ToB after SoD: I may eat Corwin's child in front of her. Just, Christ Corwin. Dorn is an evil motherfucker who literally butchered an entire village and he's cooler than you're being right now. That's who you are Corwin. My new favorite NPC is the Burning Fist Mercenary at the end who was like 'eh, he saved us from the Iron Throne and the Crusade. One rich brat is a small price to pay.' It was all like. " 'You', you come with me now. I will find you a name and a portrait." I just started BG II. SoD kinda changes the dynamic of that game. Imoen: I hate this lab, it's the worse place ever. Me: I just came back from literal hell so...
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Jul 24, 2017 15:00
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