|
 The annual classic returns! Who is up for the ironman challenge this year? Who will be the true heroes that compete for honor, glory, and the chance not to be killed by wildlife at level 1? Sharpen your swords, review your spell book, and roll those stat dice 200 times because Ironman is here! Hall of Heroes Current Adventurers: Vincenzo the fighter/thief is about to start Throne of Bhaal. Nadia the solo fighter/thief made her way to Baldur's Gate proper. George Oscar the mage/thief just slew Moretherene the green dragon. Mickey the solo sorcerer just cleared the Twisted Rune headquarter. Corbomite E. Hayes the Dragon Disciple is headed for the bandit camp. The Honored Dead: Ty Cobb the human Berserker and Cy Young the elf Sorcerer. One the Lonely was eaten by a wolf. Stan the solo fighter/mage/thief was vanquished by Tarnesh. HULK the barbarian was felled by his charmed companion Jaheira. Deak Leaflover the half-elven Avenger was slain by Neira the assassin. Corbomite A. Hayes the Half-Elf Dragon Disciple was killed by skeletons. Corbomite B. Hayes the Half-Elf Dragon Disciple was devoured by vampiric wolves. Tulidain the fighter/cleric was mauled by a cave bear. Lasairfhiona the Human Blade was killed by a xvart. Two the Lonelier Thief melted into a puddle of goo. Walter Johnson the gnome fighter/illusionist failed to save the grand Dukes. Owynna the solo Fighter/Thief was clobbered to death by umber hulks. Nadia the Blade died under extremely mysterious circumstances in Durlag's labyrinth. Corbomite C. Hayes the Half-Elf Dragon Disciple met his end in a stupid hard custom content fight. Erin the solo elven Kensai was reminded by "improved" Ilyich why you don't install Tactics. Jomo the shaman was murdered by a named hobgloblin with a bow in the bandit camp. Barry the dwarven defender accidentally and quite fatally stumbled into the Twisted Rune's headquarters. Blaxploiter the solo fighter/illusionist's brain made a fine meal for some eldritch horror. Willow the Mike the necromancer rolled a critical miss on his way to the Friendly Arm Inn. Cassandra Roguestone couldn't get her fix in time. Rembront the Wild Mage fell to a basilisk's melee attack. Jumbo the shaman was slimed by a mustard jelly while dancing. Westley the Cavalier was slain by a vampire and a brainwashed thief. Oscar the necromancer displayed poor prowess in the martial arts against Belhifet. Gary the dwarven defender was swallowed by a Maze trap in the Sahuagin City. Corbomite D. Hayes the Dragon Disciple met a stupid fate in the last stupid fight of Neera's stupid stupid quest. Rekka Bashensmash the solo Undead Hunter was bored to death by a beetle's fart. Shaw the kensai fell during the (actual) Siege of Dragonspear. Rincewind the wild mage, another victim of the Twisted Rune. Buggrit the solo Stalker was shocked by Silke's thespian talents. Liz the solo Shadowdancer died in the Planar Prison. The Victorious: Vincenzo the fighter/thief wrested his soul back from Irenicus! Honors: Ironling, Ironman, Purist (3), Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader (3), Battlemaster, Roleplayer (3), Siege Breaker, Gaxkang's a Wuss Softface the cleric has slain Melissan but turned down godhood! Honors: Ironling, Purist (4), Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader (4), Battlemaster, Roleplayer (4), Siege Breaker, Ironman, Gaxkang's a Wuss, Irongod, Helm's Champion Owynna the solo Fighter/Thief backstabbed her brother Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster, A God Among Men Blaxploiter the solo fighter/illusionist has killed Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Honorable Trader, A God Among Men Kala the Elven Sorcerer has vanquished Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Honorable Trader, Iron Party, Battlemaster, Roleplayer, A God Among Men Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me Erin the solo elven Kensai has saved the world from Belhifet! Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Melee Champion, Conan the Bhaalspawn (2), Honorable Trader (2), Iron Party (2), Battlemaster, Siege Breaker Barry the dwarven defender has slain Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Born Hero, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Melee Champion, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster, A God Among Men Cassandra Roguestone and ALAUNDO'S CHOSEN have beaten back IRONTHRONE, Sarevok, and Baldur's Gate. Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader Westley the Cavalier has toppled Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Born Hero, Purist, Honorable Trader Oscar the necromancer proved to be a better villain than Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Iron Party, Battlemaster, Roleplayer Gary the dwarven defender has pulverized Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Melee Champion, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster, A God Among Men Rekka Bashensmash the solo Undead Hunter bashed and smashed her brother Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honorable Trader, Iron Party, Battlemaster Shaw the kensai has restored balance to the Force. Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader George Oscar the mage/thief repeatedly backstabbed Sarevok to death. Honors: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Battlemaster Mickey the solo sorcerer has killed Squirrelvok! Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster Fire & Fury made short work of Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Honorable Trader Silas the Cleric/Thief has felled Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader. Liz the solo Shadowdancer has murdered Belhifet. Honors: Siege Breaker, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honorable Trader, Iron Party. Rina the Berserker defeated Belhifet. Honors: Siege Breaker, Honorable Trader, Iron Party Sarah the solo archer has killed Belhifet! Honors: Ironling, Born Hero, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Conan the Bhaalspawn (2), Honorable Trader (2), Iron Party (2), Battlemaster, Siege Breaker Bench Warmers: The following adventurers have not been updated in a while, and are hereforth temporarily banished to Limbo until such time as they make a reappearance. Ed the shadowdancer has entered the fray. Doomed Bastard the priest of Lathander has begun his quest. Lenore the solo F/M/T is now heading to Nashkel to actually start the plot. Kala the Elven Sorcerer is busy slaying dragons around Amn and has reached epic levels! Redd Shirt the blade rides forth from Candlekeep to glory! Official Melicamp Death Counter:  Melicamp has survived 15 times Melicamp has died 12 times Official Arabelle the cow Death Counter:  Arabelle has survived 13 times Arabelle has died 1 time Suspicious fucked around with this message at 21:48 on Jun 23, 2018 |
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 04:16
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 4, 2024 05:21 |
|
|
FAQ Q: What exactly are the rules for an Ironman run? A: An Ironman run is simple. You do not load the game for any purpose other than continuing where you left off, or in the event of a bug/crash. If you are killed or if you load for any other reason, the Ironman run is over. Re-rolling stat during character creation is allowed. Q: Spoilers? A: Yes, this thread is full on spoilers. This is an Ironman thread, so it's assumed that everyone has probably played the Baldur's Gate series at least once or twice already. No spoiler tags are necessary. Q: Is it ok if I narrate my run like a regular Let's Play? A: This usually ends up being case specific. Obviously we don't want 20 people doing overlapping play by plays of their whole game. However, if you think you can write a solid humorous/dramatic narrative then give it a shot. If people like it, you can continue. If not, you can stop. You can also stream your ironman run and link it here. If you do, please at least post highlights and milestones in the thread if you want me to officially record your progress. Q: Are there any rules as to difficulty level/mods? A: No. You may play on any difficulty or with whatever mods you want. However, if you play on lower than "core rules" or if you use content mods which add OP items or something, then everyone will think you're a big baby. Q: Is this a competition? Is there any verification process? A: Not really, and no. There is no prize or prestige to be won besides nerd-cred, and progress is reported purely on the honor system (verification being 100% impractical). However, if you lie about your Ironman run you will have to live with the fact that you are a poopy head. If someone has a truly epic run I may issue an award in the form of a forum upgrade/new avatar. This is an entirely non-binding offer and completely dependent upon my subjective judgment. Q: Do I have to start in BG1? A: No. You can start at any point you want. However, there is definitely more nerd-cred in starting at BG1, and I will not include anyone who starts at ToB in the Hall of Honor (cause that's for babies). Q: How do I set up custom portraits? A: The measurements for player portraits are 38X60 pixels for the smaller portraits (8-bit color runs faster but it can be up to 24 bit color), and 110X170 pixels for the larger portraits. To use a custom portrait, place it in the Portraits directory (in the install directory for the game) and add an S to the end of the small portrait name and an L to the end of the large portrait - otherwise the two names must be identical. The names must be 1-7 letters long, maximum - so the filename with the S or L added to the end is no longer than 8 total characters. The portrait files must be in BMP format. For example: XXXXXXXS.bmp for small (38x60, 8-bit) XXXXXXXL.bmp for large (110x170, 24-bit) For the Enhanced Editions, the measurements for player portraits are 210x330 pixels. Portraits are automatically resized by the game, so you don't need to make small and large versions of the same portrait. (If downloading a portrait pack with multiple sizes of the same portrait, keep the largest one.) The portrait files must be in BMP format. The Portraits folder must be created in the game directory found in "My Documents." The file name cannot exceed 8 characters. Other Info and Links When registering a character please include the name, class, and a screenshot of the character sheet upon creation (the Print Screen button will take a screenshot and deposit it in your Baldur's Gate folder). Irfanview of course is also an easy alternative. This thread is screenshot friendly! Feel free to post a screenshot or string of screenshots if you want to share an epic battle, a humorous development, or whatever else as long as it's interesting (if you just post eight screens of noober dialogue you will get yelled at). However, please use [timg] tags if you're posting large images. In the next section is a list of honors to be competed for (if you care) and dishonors to avoid (unless you don't give a poo poo). These are purely for amusement and you may strive for or ignore them as much as you desire. Characters who complete an Ironman run (any portion) will be moved to the Hall of Honor, and any honors they earned will be listed. Note to all adventurers: If this thread gets going in full it is possible I will occasionally miss posted updates about characters. When posting an update for your character, please include his/her name and class in bold. For example, Garrick the Assassin completed BG1. Also, if you post updates like "Kornak the Barbarian" has cleared the Nashkel mines, I will update your status accordingly. Main Baldur's Gate thread is over here. Some custom portraits here: http://www.kirith.com/ The main modding sites for you to start with are: Gibberlings 3 Spellhold Studios Pocket Plane Group List of mods we like: *ToBEx - Hardcode hacks to change things normal mods can't. Assassinations - Extra content, especially for the Evil characters. BG1 Unfinished Business - Restoring cut content for BG1. Unfinished Business - Restoring cut content for BG2. Almateria's Restoration Project - goon-made mod to restore even more BG2 cut content. SCS - AI and challenge mod for both BG1 and BG2. Requires hotfixes (Already applied on the download on that page) to work on current versions of the Enhanced Editions of BG1 and BG2 BG2 Tweakpack - Options for changing your game galore. Rogue Rebalancing - Changes Thieves and Bards to be more like in PnP, adds extra items for Rogues, and adds a very challenging and optional encounter to BG2. aTweaks - Tweaks various creatures, including demons and elementals to be more like in PnP. Also has a wide variety of other tweaks not found in other tweak packs. *Not EE-compatible.  Modmerge is required to mod the Steam and Gog versions of BG:EE with the Siege of Dragonspear expansion. This list is missing a few entries compared to 2 years ago since some of the links were broken. Feel free to post any mods you think should be added here. Note: All honors on this page are purely for entertainment purposes and in some cases to give veteran players something new to try for. Feel free to ignore these completely if you think they are dumb.   Ironling: Complete Baldur's Gate 1Siege Breaker: Complete the Siege of Dragonspear expansion (requires Ironling)  Ironman: Complete Baldur's Gate 2 (requires Ironling, does not require Siege Breaker) Irongod: Complete Throne of Bhaal (requires Ironman) Strategist: Complete Baldur's Gate 1 with the Sword Coast Stratagems mod. Tactician: Complete Baldur's Gate 2 with either the Sword Coast Stratagems or the Tactics mod. Born Hero: Do not reroll your stats during character creation, take the first set given to you (redistribution is ok). Purist: Do not use any mods that add/modify content (except Tutu, Ascension, SCS, or Tactics), do not create extra characters for your party, do not modify existing NPCs (convenience mods like infinite stacks ok). Double Damage: Complete the game on Insane difficulty.Legacy of Bhaal: Complete the game on Legacy of Bhaal difficulty.  Overcoming Adversity: Complete the game as a Wizard Slayer, Shapeshifter, Beastmaster, or non-Blade Bard (requires Purist). Librarian: Find every stat tome in Baldur's Gate 1. Trap Dodger: Complete Durlag's Tower. Melee Champion: Complete Baldur's Gate 1 without member of your party ever using any missile weapons. Conan the Bhaalspawn: Complete the game without ever having an arcane spellcaster in the party Honorable Trader: Do not steal any wares from merchants. Iron Party: Do not resurrect any dead party members (stone to flesh and freedom allowed) OR never have a party member fall in battle. Exception: Getting killed and revived by Shoal the Nereid does not invalidate this honour. Battlemaster: Kill Sarevok in Baldur's Gate 1 without summoning any creatures or laying any traps.Blind Faith: Complete the Siege of Dragonspear expansion without having played it before.  Dragon Slayer: Kill Firkraag, the Shadow Dragon, the Black Dragon at Suldanessellar, the Silver Dragon, and the Dragon in the underworld. Helm's Champion: Kill Saladrex and Demogorgon in Watcher's Keep Gaxkang's a Wuss: Kill Kangaxx. Legendary Arms: Acquire the Equalizer, Crom Faeyr, The Wave, The Silver Sword, and the Short Bow of Gesen. Swiss Valor Award: Complete the game with only neutral aligned characters in the party (lawful, true, or chaotic, must have at least 4 characters, requires purist). Roleplayer: Do not have a good aligned character and an evil aligned character in the party at the same time (includes PC, requires purist). Leader of the Underdogs: Complete Baldur's Gate 2 or Throne of Bhaal with a full party of six without using Aerie, Keldorn, Edwin, or Haer'Dalis. {requires purist). A God Among Men: Complete the game alone. Do not remove or modify the level cap (requires purist).  OP-ium Addict: Play as a Kensai/Mage, Kensai/Thief, Berserker/Cleric or Cleric/Mage Scroll of Wuss: Use a scroll of Protection from Undead or Magic when fighting a lich, demi-lich or vampire. Don't Hurt Me!: Play the game on a difficulty lower than Core Rules.Note: Any honors that restrict choice of party members in any way (class, alignment, or anything else) do not apply inside Irenicus' dungeon in Baldur's Gate 2. You may use anyone you want while inside it, but will have to boot the appropriate people once you reach Waukeen's Promenade. Note: Any honors/dishonors which do not apply to a specific game in the series can apply to any. For example, Double Damage can apply to any game in the series, and you can earn it up to four times if you go all the way From BG1 through ToB. Thanks to Gutrot for all the wonderful badges. Suspicious fucked around with this message at 04:09 on Dec 31, 2017 |
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 04:16
|
|
|
It Begins! Rest in peace: Ty Cobb the human Berserker, Cy Young the elf Sorcerer. So begins the tale of Walter Johnson the gnome fighter/illusionist.  
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 05:25
|
|
|
Vincenzo the fighter/thief begins his adventure. I decided I'd do my gimmick run(s) after a serious attempt this year instead of the other way around. Got the Imoen roll (89) in less than a minute and went with it. Getting more would be extremely unlikely and I feel like 89 is already overkill for a fighter/thief.  Started my thieving ways early by snatching the star sapphire in Candlekeep and other goodies in the Beregost manor house. Robbed the latter at night so the woman on the second floor would be sleeping.  Something awful happened to poor Montaron at the carnival. It had absolutely nothing to do with me wanting to make room for both Dorn and Edwin.   Speaking of Edwin, he wanted Dynaheir dead, so I obliged. I had no idea it made Minsc go berserk when you return to Nashkel. Shows how often I run an evil party.  With reputation at 14, it was the perfect time to try stealing Algernon's cloak. Attempt successful, didn't have to lose the 5 rep to get it.   While fighting skeletons to get a skull and generally minding my own goddamn business, a neutral bear wandered into my back line, turned hostile and went apeshit on my mages. This is why you cull wildlife whenever you can. Melicamp survived! (so did Arabelle)   Then I went to area north of the Friendly Arm Inn to grind ankhegs to get everyone to level 3/4. I didn't forget to do the other thing to do when you visit the area: kill Ajantis. Between all the sleep and command spells at my disposal, the early game was thoroughly uneventful aside from the bear mishap. Vincenzo the fighter/thief is on his way to the Nashkel mines.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 06:28
|
|
|
Priest Softface, Cleric of Tyr enters the ring! Spent 15 minutes to get a 91, somehow less than the character I rolled up for shits and giggles so I could play on the ride back from family time. My very first weapon broke the very first time it hit someone, which has never happened before. Guess Imoen doesn't get any armor to start!  rip  Ran into a wolf while I was kiting a bear. I expected the run to end right there, but somehow pulled it off.  Thwarted my first assassination attempt, and hit the next level!   You might say Tarnesh is... dead tired now.  Met a new friend, who also loves god!  And another assassin!  This new friend loves a rat. I got tired of Minsc years ago, but I'm trying for a good character run for once.  Baldur's Gate would never include references to the outside world and sticks to serious lore.  As a good run, I naturally committed genocide on this xvart village.  Not assassins, just jerks!   The dart master almost ended my run right here  Imoen's being such a drama queen. We're doing good deeds and making the world a better place!  I'm level 4 at this point, and even Minsc and Ajantis are level 3. How is she level 2?  OH COME ON  A quick Command and Hold Person let me dunk hard on Mulahey.  Before taking a break, another assassin!  Here's how it looks at break time, and Priest Softface has cleared the Nashkel Mines!
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 07:25
|
|
|
HULK the barbarian has begun to smash! Definitely not a born hero but it didn't take long to get here. I'm running Enhanced Edition Trilogy with a fair few mods, mostly some of the smaller quest mods (none of the big ones; I did Dark Side of the Sword Coast once, and once was enough) and extra NPCs (though I'll probably only use one, maybe two of those), a few tweaks and odds and ends, and that one that adds IWD spells and (notably for HULK) two-handed axes to the game. Also running on Insane with the extra damage turned off (so I'll still get extra monster spawns). I'M SURE EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE.   Getting the usual opening smashing out of the way.  She's new! Finch, a gnome cleric whose battle cry of "I'm a hero and I AM A LIBRARIAN" pretty much ensured that I had to keep her around. I can't recruit her yet.  HULK SMASH BEAR (oh gently caress oh gently caress oh gently caress). Turned out all right a couple of healing potions later, though. Thank heavens for barbarian hit dice.  Instead of heading straight to the Inn, I kip down to High Hedge to pick up the first of a few friendly faces. I also pop in this abandoned house to loot it...  ...only to find that, thanks to a quest mod, it's not exactly abandoned. (It's hard to tell because of the dialogue, but yes, that is an actual werewolf. And I'm still level 1 and my only magic weapon is that dagger I got in Candlekeep, so yeah, we're not sticking around).  The werewolf is connected to this lady. She wants a cure for her husband, and Thalantyr offers a couple of options with varying changes of success. We'll come back to this unless I forget or something. Anyway, after grabbing Kivan and doing a little early shopping, I head on over to Beregost.  This, uh, wasn't part of the plan. But it all works out, and Neera joins up, and I'm sure it will lead to a long and fruitful partnersh...  Oh. Okay then. Gotta love that Iron Crisis, though! (I don't actually like Neera much at all, though I wasn't trying to get her killed.)   I do however reunite with a new old friend, and Finch joins the party while we  We now finally make our way up to the Friendly Arms Inn, smash Tarnesh, and pick up Jaheira (one of my mods lets me split up NPC couples without resorting to foul murder, so Khalid stays behind).  Heading back down to Beregost, I run into this encounter, which I think is added either by Unfinished Business or the BG1NPC project. It's a bit touch and go, but ends in our favor. HULK is on his way (back) to Beregost docbeard fucked around with this message at 10:53 on Dec 28, 2017 |
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 10:51
|
|
|
Thanks for taking the time to create the OP, Suspicious. I was really looking forward to this. So begins the tale of Owynna, the solo Fighter/Thief.  Somehow it took less than a minute to roll these stats. Not that Fighter/Thieves benefit much after maxing STR/DEX/CON, but still nice.  This is probably old news for the veterans in this thread, but despite owning the game for over a decade, I only recently learned that one of the drawers in Winthrop's inn is trapped. The trap doesn't do anything as far as I can tell though.  My first goal is grabbing a few Potions of Master Thievery from the merchant near Durlag's Tower. On the way there, I kill some Basilisks with my good buddy Khorax. By which I mean he does the actual killing while I stay far behind and pray none of the beasts notice me.  Thanks to the potions, I manage to steal a cloak...  ...and a nice ring. Those are probably the only times I'll actually use the Pick Pocket skill in BG1.  A fun thing you can do with Algy's cloak is charming Silke and then having her cast Improved Invisibility on your character before turning her hostile. Not only does this mean she can't cast it on herself, it'll also prevent her from frying you with Lightning Bolt. I didn't take a picture, but Mulahey also falls easily to the cloak. Once charmed, I had him waste all his divine spellls, turning him into a barely competent Fighter.  Melicamp status: Deceased  Greywolf is the first fight that gives me trouble. I forgot how hard he hits. Fortunately, the +3 staff I picked up in Ulgoth's Beard combined with the Two-Handed Weapon proficiency means I attack with a speed factor of 0, so I can kite him around pretty well. Owynna is on her way to the Bandit camp. Samuel Clemens fucked around with this message at 11:21 on Dec 28, 2017 |
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 11:16
|
|
|
Oooh I want to play this but I've so much other stuff I should be doing 😧 maybe I'll try to squeeze in a solo mage
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 13:44
|
|
|
Another update because I have the week off work  and it starts with me getting paaaaaaid!  Finally got this cool book identified so I can be less socially awkward!  Now it's my chance to assassinate somebody!  Melicamp died  But Arabelle lived!  "Okay, Billy's dead. Now roll a different character and try to pick a better name, jerk."  I think this is also the last text I sent.  Usually I make this area one of my last so the Doomsayer goes down a lot quicker. Ended up having to run across the map with him, and it didn't help when I had Minsc go berserk. Remembering that I had two Wands of Magic Missile finally brought it down though! As an aside, does anyone else clear areas like this? I've been doing this for years and it just occurred to me that it might be unusual.  Anyway, after clearing out the area lousy with basilisks (and gnolls, forgot that part!), Priest Softface is heading for the Bandit Camp.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 13:48
|
|
|
I do that too, I can't help it. I think of it as the equivalent of pretty borders.  I've been goofing with several characters lately and I think I'm settling for a skald as it seems safe enough. Watch me fail miserably later today.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 17:36
|
|
|
Never done an ironman run or a solo run before, so I'm not gonna feel guilty about going F/M/T removing the xp cap, rerolling for an hour, and wand-monkeying like a boss. 100% chance I die to something stupid.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 20:43
|
|
|
The Little Kielbasa posted:Never done an ironman run or a solo run before, so I'm not gonna feel guilty about going F/M/T removing the xp cap, rerolling for an hour, and wand-monkeying like a boss. My number one killer in the early game is the priest guy with the hammer since I'm always stupid enough to try to take him on, leading to me getting held and beaten to death
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 20:50
|
|
|
I've only finished the game once before, I'm sure I'll do fine.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 22:27
|
|
|
netcat posted:My number one killer in the early game is the priest guy with the hammer since I'm always stupid enough to try to take him on, leading to me getting held and beaten to death The Greenstone Amulet is definitely a solo player's best friend in BG1.
|
|
#
?
Dec 28, 2017 23:54
|
|
|
So glad this started again, I love these threads.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 00:07
|
|
|
Owynna continues her journey. The bandit camp is pretty simple when you talk your way in. Even the tent guards don't pose much of a problem after their mage gets squashed.  On the way out, I charm Taurgosz, lead him away from the rest of the bandits, and kill him for his nice Full Plate. I guess I could've simply bought it in Beregost, but hey, this one's free.   I did some minor questing (mostly gathering the Charisma and Constitution tomes), getting Owynna up to level 6/6 before tackling the Cloakwood. HP rolls could have been better, but they're still above average, so I suppose I can't complain.  I remember Drassus being a giant pain, but he plays pretty nicely this time around. Once he's separated from the group, he's easily taken out, and the Boots of Speed are mine.  Davaeorn also goes down without any trouble thanks to a Protection from Magic scroll.  Owynna reaches the city of Baldur's Gate.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 02:42
|
|
|
Vincenzo the fighter/thief cleared the Nashkel mine... ... and forgot to take a screenshot. Here, have a shot of me killing that coastal ogre mage guy instead. He didn't even have time to cast his lightning bolt! Wands of fire are pretty good.  My party of evil miscreants was whining nonstop about high reputation so I helped Silke kill random dudes for an easy -2 rep.   Then I decided I wanted Baeloth instead of lovely ol' Xzar so off I went to grind my way to level 5 to recruit him. Don't mind Xzar's corpse in the second screenshot, he was just trying to leave with a bunch of MY stuff and I curtly told him "no."   Feeling fancy, I tempted fate by doing 2 encounters I normally skip in ironman. For the mage and his mustard jellies I buffed up with potions of giant strength and chunked the hell out of him. As for the Doomsayer: wands of fire are still pretty good.  Bandit camp. Baeloth cast web, Edwin horror. All 4 hostiles were immediately disabled. NEXT.  Whoops, no cloakwood screenshots other than that BULLSHIT waylaid encounter with 4 ettercaps and 4 web traps that I got TWICE on my way back. I cleanly got away the first time, but the second time Viconia got webbed and died, thankfully to poison so she wasn't chunked. Had to leave a bit of loot behind to carry her gear back with me, but nothing worth more than a few hundred gold pieces so who cares.  And hey I arrived at the big city and got the blank log bug which usually happens when I've been playing for too long without reloading. It was a good place to stop. Vincenzo the fighter/thief has reached the big city.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 03:19
|
|
|
Doomed Bastard, Dwarven Cleric of Lathander, has begun his quest. Haven’t done much so far other than pick up Khalid and Jaheria, but I did have this auspicious start when it came to Tarnesh: Perhaps he’s not so doomed after all! Also I like how everyone just knows Tarnesh is evil - this was an unprovoked attack before he’d even said anything and yet the guards are totally cool with it.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 11:09
|
|
|
HULK the barbarian's heroic rampage across the Sword Coast has begun with a return trip to Beregost. A certain amount of looting later... Oh hey, it's our old buddy Elfpants Firehead. He shares HULK's love for the fiber-rich written word except he just sort of stares at books and scrolls rather than eating them. I give him a book, he gives me a lunchbox. Heading south now.  A little girl's pet rabbit has run off. SORRY IRON CRISIS, YOU'LL JUST HAVE TO WAIT.  A friendly misunderstanding with the local constabulary. I'm sure there's a peaceful solution here...  Well, eventually peaceful.  And ANOTHER friendly misunderstanding! Those wacky Flaming Fist! But hey, free plate mail. Viconia's explanation of "I worship an evil goddess but she's a SURFACE goddess" is met with a certain amount of skepticism, and we send her on her way.  A crossover for the ages, in the Mighty Marvel Fashion! EXCELSIOR!  In a nearby cavern, HULK meets a kindred spirit. This we actually do solve peacefully, and Kessy is reunited with her rabbit, and we're left with a promise to find another pet rabbit for Ugh the Ogre. We'll get right on that.  Speaking of caves, there's a new one (added by some mod called Aurora) near the little hobgoblin camp just north of Nashkel. (At least I don't think it was always there.) It's full of goblins. Surely not a problem for our intrepid adventurers...  This turned out to be a wee bit tougher than I'd expected; the goblin elite archers fire poisoned arrows and the worgs hit like a truck. And there's a goblin shaman in the last wave. Still, we prevail and get a pretty nice magic shield out of the mix, which goes to Finch.  We make our way to Nashkel, picking up Shar-Teel along the way (though she doesn't stick around long, but long enough to get into some high-larious arguments with Kivan where I kind of want to kill them both). Pictured above, the next assassin, who's totally not a big deal.  The Manor House in Nashkel has a purpose now; it's the endpoint for Finch's major sidequest, acquiring some interesting books from all over the Sword Coast in order to start a library.  Oh hey, it's...you. (Another mod. Aerie doesn't join your party, but she gives you an in for the wizard fight in the carnival, and then becomes a temple/merchant with a smattering of low-level magic weapons and items. Nothing too exciting.)  HULK's hostage negotiations go pretty much as expected.  As does this attempt to rob HULK blind. HULK NEED ALL HIS DELICIOUS MONEY  While we're here, we recruit Quayle to round out the party. (I was originally going to go with Valerie, a mod-added NPC sorcerer who's pretty cool, but I decided I wanted someone slightly more durable, and I almost never have Quayle in the party. The mod that's supposed to move him here from Baldur's Gate didn't work, or got overridden by something else, so I resorted to a bit of console-fuckery. I regret nothing.)  Finally, we toss Kivan aside for Minsc (temporarily). This is pretty much going to be my rotating quest NPC slot for a while.  I'm initially a little worried about this ogre encounter, but a sleep spell trivializes it. While we're in the area, we pick up a magic two-handed sword for Minsc.  ARABELLE LIVES  These fools, not so much. Next Stop: Gnoll City
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 12:47
|
|
|
Once more unto the breach, dear friends. I was thinking about doing a solo blade, but finally decided to roll gnome fighter/illusionist, as I’ve never done that before. Honestly, I will try to rush through BG1 as fast as possible, not that familiar with it and I'm eager to get to Bg2, unless I die in a stupid way though.  Blaxploiter, the solo fighter/illusionist is ready. I breeze through Candlekeep and the surrounding areas without much problems.  Arrived at the Friendly Arms Inn, pick the freebie ring and killed Tarnesh, shield is a great spell against pesky magic missile spammers. Now to Beregost.  First thing first, I murder Neera and loot her body, gimme that gem bag girl, I want all containers. On the same note, I get the scroll case from Firebead Elvenhair's quest. Once this is done, I fool around a bit for some xp and money, then get to High Hedge for some needed supplies.  Once this is done, I fool around a bit for some xp and money, then get to High Hedge for some needed supplies. Obviously, at this level I need to kite around and shoot things constantly, annoying but necessary. The next step is a powergaming classic.  Bassilisk hunting, sweet sweet xp. I’m super careful to not aggro dangerous baddies like the annoying mage in the area, I’ll come for him later.  That went well, now I’m off to pick the triad of cheese, the wands of summoning, fire and paralyzation, forgot to take screenshots of this. When I’m done, time to tackle the main quest.  Killed Mulahey, Nashkel mines cleared. Next update, the Bandit Camp.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 13:08
|
|
|
Suspicious posted:... and forgot to take a screenshot. Here, have a shot of me killing that coastal ogre mage guy instead. He didn't even have time to cast his lightning bolt! Wands of fire are pretty good. I don't know it's always been like this or if that's an EE change, but Wands of Fire seem to do crazy amounts of damage. They're like twice as powerful as the actual Aganazzar's Scorcher spell.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 15:16
|
|
|
Samuel Clemens posted:I don't know it's always been like this or if that's an EE change, but Wands of Fire seem to do crazy amounts of damage. They're like twice as powerful as the actual Aganazzar's Scorcher spell. I think wands cast at a preset level, typically a higher one than your low-level BG1 mage is capable of. Sorry for not hosting this year, glad someone else picked it up. Not sure if I'll do a run but I'll certainly be watching the thread.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 16:32
|
|
|
Samuel Clemens posted:I don't know it's always been like this or if that's an EE change, but Wands of Fire seem to do crazy amounts of damage. They're like twice as powerful as the actual Aganazzar's Scorcher spell. I think they always did a ton of damage. Wands of Fire are great and they're definitely a staple of my solo runs if I can use them.
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 17:36
|
|
|
I'm trying to force myself to get back onto a regular sleep cycle so I have a fairly substantial update. Starting with meeting this idiot. I've never met Baeloth outside of SoD so this was new for me!  They call him a chill hobgoblin but he really wasn't very chill.  Bandit camp got wrecked and looted though!  Some incredibly rude wizards just east of the Friendly Arm Inn.   They killed Xan, but he got better. And it's a good reminder to always cast Remove Fear before going into battle with wizards!  Minsc kissing a pretty lady didn't go so well for him.  We got our vengeance on him though!  For this group of sirines I had Minsc go invisible and sneak up, he ended up getting charmed, poisoned, and brought down to 1 hp. Then a sirine hit him and he died!  If only I hadn't been saving this guy for after the battle for a patch-up! :V He, also, got better.  Lady just tell me my drat fortune.   After Minsc's death I decided to make the whole party invisible and sneak up like a special ops team and murder the next group. Still got 2 party members charmed, but no one died!  And I got a cool book out of it!  This was the worst assassination attempt yet.   After clearing out the Firewine Ruins I decided to take a risk! It very nearly killed me (that Potion of Magic Blocking went off right when another Magic Missile barrage was on the way, and cancelled the Melf's Acid Arrow DoT), but I got him in the end!  not everyone appreciates fat jokes I guess  lmao eat it wyverns  I was, of course, shaking in my boots from this singular guard.  rip  Stopped by Durlag's Tower and picked up a really cool book  Give my regards to Queen Dopplepopalus   Just as soon as I met a new friend, he died  A new winner for worst assassination attempt. Or just an ogre I pissed off, I've never been that sure about this encounter.   Two cool new books!  Maybe it's a good thing my new friend died...   Some thieves have honor. I've never actually fought this wizard, I always get my thief friend to do it for me.  After this jerk poisoned me, I decided to poison him back with steel.  Ugh, he sent me to prison for the minor crime of murdering his daughters. Who does he think he is, Judge Judy and executioner?  Imoen didn't make it past ankheg bard. But she also got better when I reclaimed that horrible wizard's cloak. And since I was getting incredibly sloppy I decided to take a break there. I wanted to get back to Candlekeep today, but for the moment Softface is in the Big Town!
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 19:33
|
|
|
Vincenzo the fighter/thief created an LPix account because Imgur is hosed today. The first thing I always do in the city is steal the cloak of Balduran from the named courtesan in the Undercellar, otherwise I'll forget to do it.   My group of utter badasses was QQing about reputation again so I had to shake down a couple of noblewomen to increase my thug cred.  Bunch of posers tried to strut about and I wasn't going to let that fly. With the help of web and horror, all 6 were down for the count before Gorpel Hind had time to do anything.    I briefly considered not cheesing the Iron Throne fight but changed my mind. Got into a good position thanks to invisibility and unleashed the flames of hell.  Killed some doppelgangers in Candlekeep.   And ambushed a would-be ambush.  Then I ruined Sarevok's plan and save the dukes. Well, *a* duke. The mage lady died as soon as the fight began. Also, note to runners: in the EE Sarevok WILL target Flaming Fists and possibly even the dukes if you run away from him! You have to suck it up and tank him for a few rounds.  This is why you don't ironman tired; you'll make mistakes and forget things. The mistake: I didn't have Kagain draw aggro or do anything for that matter. What I forgot: the archer in that ambush has arrows of detonation. Ouch. After that close brush with death, I decided to carefully backtrack to an inn and called it a night. Vincenzo the fighter/thief is on his way to do Tales of the Sword Coast content!
|
|
#
?
Dec 29, 2017 23:11
|
|
|
Mountaineer posted:I think wands cast at a preset level, typically a higher one than your low-level BG1 mage is capable of. True, but the Scorcher normally doesn't scale with caster level. The Wand version is just far more powerful for some reason. Not that I'm complaining. ----  This encounter shows how most fights go now that I have the Boots of Speed. Stealth -> Backstab -> Run out of sight -> Stealth -> Backstab -> Repeat. No one in BG1 has any Divination spells memorised and only two creatures can innately see through invisibility, so the AI is helpless against this tactic.  Before moving on with the main quest, I take a trip around the world to gather some consumables. The mage in the Firewine dungeon is noteable for dropping one of the very few Potions of Power. AFAIK, there's only three of those in the entire game.  Normally I'd consider fighting these guys for the Ring of Free Action, but since I got one of those way back in Ulgoth's Beard, there's no reason not to just sneak past them.  This is my favourite random house in Baldur's Gate. It looks so unassuming from the outside, then you walk in and boom, four Ogre Mages out of nowhere.  After all this questing I've reached max level and accumulated most of the endgame gear. Pretty spiffy, no?  The return to Candlekeep proves uneventful. I loot all the important items and avoid the mercenaries.  I do kill this jerk on my way out because I've never done it before and was wondering if he drops anything valuable. Turns out not really.  Upon returning to the city, I run into an odd bug. These guys are still at the top of the Iron Throne, even though I'm pretty sure they should despawn after Chapter 5. Leaving the area and coming back made them disappear, so no big deal.  Not much left to do aside from killing the two lovebirds. Owynna is heading to the Ducal Palace
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 00:48
|
|
|
Suspicious posted:Vincenzo the fighter/thief created an LPix account because Imgur is hosed today. I was having the same issue yesterday and had to upload each screenshot individually. It was maybe the most tedious thing I've done all week. But back to the adventures of Priest Softface, Cleric of Tyr!  Since I had already gotten the Wisdom tome from Durlag's Tower, I decided to go back for the quest one now that I wasn't going to be poisoned to death. Unfortunately I found out that there is no way to pickpocket the tome from the Priestess - I shuffled Imoen for Safana real quick and got her up to 200 Pick Pocketing and still couldn't get it. Then I shuffled them back, murdered the Priestess and got the tome anyway for no rep loss!   Xan got in a bit of a Three Stooges routine with one of the fighters. I hate that Xan's special thing is a melee weapon, and that's probably why I've taken him once in almost two decades.  At least Tethtoril is a bro.  Third Wisdom tome! Bonus spell numbers are getting kid of ridiculous by now.  And the Strength tome, so I never have to worry about encumbrance again.  I finally figured out the deal behind these two on this run.  But even though Sarevok is supposed to be confirmed as Grand Duke tonight I'm going to go fight werewolves. Seems like the right thing to do.  With the Sirine Queen dead, Minsc's undone death has been avenged!  I've kind of figured this character was the start of the infamous Bioware Romance. Do two or three small tasks and then ask someone to come away with you forever, and they betray their people for no other reason than you brought them flowers and a cloak. Buuuut, gamers!  Buuut I'm not getting stuck in this idiot tower for all eternity.  Lost someone in the second fight. Seems like this is going to go well! Luckily I stashed her stuff in a nearby bookcase and got her raised back in Beregost so I could move on.  Hmmm a chess board how am I going to solve this...     With Wands of Fire and Oils of Fiery Burning, of course!  And now that I'm at the Demon Knight (and the level cap) I'm going to hang it up for the night. I'll need a bit to think about buffs and strategy for how I'm going to attack him. So right now Priest Softface is about to face the Demon Knight!
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 11:42
|
|
|
Good luck. The Demon Knight is in my opinion the toughest fight in the first game. If only because he's one of the few smart enough to dispel your buffs. ----  I think someone in the Games thread was asking for a reliable way to solo the Ducal Palace. Here's the best strategy I could come up with. Stand in the doorway (so you don't trigger the cutscene) and charm Liia, the wizard. If she makes her save, just leave and rest to refresh the charge. Everyone is kind enough to wait for you before the action starts.  Once she's charmed, move her to one of the corner rooms and have her buff up. She's fairly high-level, so she gets quite a few Stoneskins and Mirror Images. Why her AI isn't capable of using these on its own, I have no idea.  After that, the fight is mostly a done deal. Arrows of Dispelling remove the Greater Doppelganger's Haste, and they can't really hurt a fully buffed Warrior anyway. I even manage to have both Dukes survive.  With Sarevok in hiding, this seems like a perfect opportunity to do the TotSC content. First stop, mage island.  I think this is the first time I've gotten a triple-digit backstab on this playthrough. Always very satisfying.  Up next: Durlag's  If anyone's ever managed to disarm the altar trap, please let me know, because as far as I can tell, it's impossible even with 100 in Find Traps.  At least that's the final tome, so Owynna is as strong as she's ever gonna be (until the sequel anyway).  Whoever designed this area had an extremely unhealthy obsession with traps.  SO MANY TRAPS!  Including this fun one which just flat-out kills you without allowing for a save. There are definitely some old-school design sensibilities that I'm glad have disappeared.  After a brief rumble with Dwarven Doom Guards, I decide to take a break before tackling the last two areas. At least now I have Durlag's Goblet, which should make the rest of the game relatively easy.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 14:46
|
|
|
Vincenzo the fighter/thief wrapped up BG1. So sorry Tamoko, but there's an achievement for killing you that I don't have yet and that's the only excuse I need. I'll say hi to Yoshimo for you.  Anyway, it's   First floor. The warder fight went pretty well.  The second floor is my favorite floor overall because you don't have to fight anything except a few ghasts, unless you're full clearing it (don't). It still has a lot of traps.  The third floor has the chessboard fight. I fireballed it, just like everyone and their dog does. Watch out for the queen, she's a wizard and casts horror and other spells.    Fourth floor. Bulldozed the Demon Knight. Just send a tank ahead of everyone else to bait and absorb the dispel and mass arrow/bolt/bullet him to death. Very easy fight if you don't use the mirror.    Thoroughly embarrassed Aec'letec. Hot tip: use potions of magic shielding and buff the hell up.  Killed a couple of Loups Garou to stop some sort of lycanthropic invasion plot I guess?  Stopped by the ice island to get Edwin a scroll of Stoneskin.   Sarevok time. I got greedy with Dorn and hasted him instead of leaving him equipped with Spider's Bane. Because of that, he was webbed for most of the fight. Kagain took a beating but I was never in any real danger of losing the fight. Tazok didn't show up, which I guess makes sense since he appears in BG2. Vincenzo the fighter/thief slew Sarevok and is on his way to Dragonspear! Honors earned: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster, Roleplayer
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 15:10
|
|
|
I didn't have most of last week off but I have a long weekend and it's ten below outside so let's get to smashing! Before we head off to rescue Dynaheir, there's a bit of business to attend to in Beregost.   Spiders are a pushover and Silke falls under the weight of like eight command and hold spells. And with her dead, that gives everyone except Quayle a magic melee weapon (and if Quayle's trying to hit things, something has gone very very wrong). Back at High Hedge, I decide to roll some dice.  The way this quest works is, you're given three options for attempting to cure the werewolf. (Or you can 'cure' him the obvious way, but meh.) This option, involving some berries I picked up in Beregost, is the fifty-fifty shot. The others involve the blood of a loved one (a one-in-ten chance) or Belladonna (nine-in-ten but that would involve waiting til Werewolf Island) so I decide to play the Melicamp-level odds.  C'mon big money big money no whammy no whammy...  Hooray! Our reward is the promise of a 'good weapon' in the house chest.  That'll do! Not that I have anyone right now who uses long swords. (I could pick up Shar-Teel again but...naah.)   Making our way across the Sword Coast, we run into some losers.  And this guy. We help him out with his gnoll problem and send him on his way. I don't need his stuff and I don't care to try fighting him just now.  I can't remember what we were fighting, an Ogre or a Flind or something, but apparently I installed the mod that lets armor and shields break too.  La la la, just committing war crimes, nothing to see here.  This fight turned out to be a bit tougher than I expected, mostly because Neville has a magic longsword.  It's clobbering ti-, wait, that's someone else.  Oh hey, a quest item.  About ten thousand gnolls later...  Success! She and Minsc go off on their merry way.  And Hulk finds a delicious book!  We hitch a ride back to Nashkel with this cheery fellow.  I won't be recruiting Dorn just yet but let's get his cutscene out of the way.  Speaking of books, here's something I forgot to do last time I was at the circus. It's one of the books for Finch's library, and grabbing it gets us a bit of XP. A brief side excursion to pick Kivan up again later, and HULK the barbarian is off to the Nashkel Mines.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 15:32
|
|
|
Think I'll limit myself to solo runs this time. With that in mind, I'll start with One the Lonely Thief. No one really does vanilla single class Thieves so I'll give it a try. I leave Candelekeep and make my way to the Friendly Arm Inn without any problems.  I ignore Tarnesh for now, but I kill some hobgoblins for this lady. Also pick up Evermemory so I can sell it.  I head back into the woods south of the Inn so I can kill that ogre with the magic belts. Unfortunately while kiting him around a wolf unexpectedly pops out of the fog and kills me in one hit. RIP One the Lonely, eaten by a wolf.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 17:25
|
|
|
The Little Kielbasa posted:Never done an ironman run or a solo run before, so I'm not gonna feel guilty about going F/M/T removing the xp cap, rerolling for an hour, and wand-monkeying like a boss. Didn't take too long to roll up these stats:  Vanquished Montaron and Xzar, kited a couple bears to death, snagged the ring of wizardry and....oh. Oh dear.  Stan was assassinated on the steps of the Friendly Arms Inn Notes for next time: learn shield and monster summoning at the outset.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 18:27
|
|
|
docbeard posted:
Is Brage's portrait Zahua from Pillars of Eternity? Because that's surprisingly fitting. Mountaineer posted:I head back into the woods south of the Inn so I can kill that ogre with the magic belts. Unfortunately while kiting him around a wolf unexpectedly pops out of the fog and kills me in one hit. Baldur's Gate Ironman 2018: Unfortunately a wolf unexpectedly pops out of the fog and kills me in one hit
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 19:48
|
|
|
Mountaineer posted:
Rest in pieces friend, hit the reroll button again.
|
|
#
?
Dec 30, 2017 20:13
|
|
|
Samuel Clemens posted:Is Brage's portrait Zahua from Pillars of Eternity? Because that's surprisingly fitting. I think it is, I assume the consequence of the portrait replacer I'm using. (I hadn't really intended to install it, but I'm kind of enjoying having it around.) I've seen Grieving Mother show up too.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 00:33
|
|
|
HULK has smashed mine-saboteurs and bandits alike...BUT AT WHAT COST?!? (Actually not much of a cost)  First we bail our good buddy Prism out of the jam he's found himself in. By which I mean we murder Greywolf the lawfully-appointed bounty hunter, let him finish his 'masterpiece', and then recover his stolen goods. It's only recovering the gems that gives us a rep hit. (In fairness, we're not turning them in for the bounty.)  Mines, kobolds, traps, blah blah blah. Negotiations quickly break down with Mulahey...   HULK SMASH CLERIC Also Finch can now cast Holy Smite.  In addition to the usual documents pointing us toward Tranzig and Tazok and the bandit camp, we get this little note from someone who's looking to join up.   On our way out, we meet these lovely ladies. The fight does not go well for them. Of note, as we all know, a barbarian's rage will protect from spells like Rigid Thinking (as HULK's thinking is quite rigid enough already). This will become relevant later.  We also shove this fellow back into his grave as usu-  ...well, poo poo  Thanks for the timely heal there, Quayle ol' buddy.  I wasn't really planning on doing the Mustard Jelly fight with Jaheira out of the picture, but it turned out all right.   As did this, uh, epic battle. Rasaad decides to come by and tell us off afterwards. His condescending attitude totally reminds us that we should probably raise Jaheira. (I was considering going full Iron Party here, but I like having her around.)  I guess it's late enough to be considered night in Beregost. We give this guy the passphrase from his letter, but he does not take the news that Mulahey is dead particularly well, and we are forced to smash him. What a shame.  We get a clue that his organization are going to be ambushing someone called Bashrik Sparklehammer at the crossroads up north. (My understanding is that this quest doesn't really end in a satisfying fashion but I'll pull this string as far as it goes.)  Eh, she was dead earlier this morning, you'd be in a bad mood too.  We head up to Larswood and run into another round of Surprise Goblins. Nothing we can't handle at this point- Oh. Did I forget to rage? I may have forgotten to rage. And HULK just got tagged with Rigid Thinking. This could be...bad. (It ended up all right, but I had to kite HULK around chasing the rest of the party so that he'd fight goblins instead of, er, us.) We did get an unexpectedly cheesy set of boots that lets us summon a vampiric wolf once a day. I CONSIDER IT WELL-EARNED.  Clearing out Larswood and Peldvale otherwise went off without much incident, and we found another book for Finch in Peldvale. Finally, it's off to the band-  OH COME ON Finally, it's off to the bandit camp.  HULK gets a nice new weapon.  Finch gets another book.  These dudes get smashed. Still a bit of mopping up and looting to do in the camp, but then HULK the barbarian is off to the Cloakwood.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 03:15
|
|
|
Alright, let's try this again. Two the Lonelier Thief is here to offer another life to the Lord of Murder. Same solo vanilla Thief as before, but a better stat roll lets me max out Charisma this time. Might as well, not like more intelligence or Wisdom would do much for a Thief.  My opening moves are also the same, heading for the Friendly Arm Inn right away, avoiding Tarnesh for now, and getting this lady's ring back from some hobgoblins.  I skip the belt ogre this time and just go straight to Beregost where I get my first level up from talking down an angry drunk. I put all my new skill points into pickpocketing, and head upstairs to steal Algernon's cloak.  Level 3 comes soon after while I'm hunting more hobgoblins to get the stealth boots they're holding.  After selling the Evermemory ring I do some shopping in Beregost, High Hedge, and the Nashkel Carnival so I 'll be mostly set on equipment for a while.  I head back to the Friendly Arm Inn to start Landrin's spider house quest, and also kill Tarnesh just out of principle even though I could sneak past him. He frightens Two but I come prepared with a Shield spell from my shiny new amulet so his magic missiles do nothing while the guards take him down.  The Wand of Sleep ensures an easy belt ogre kill, no wolf surprises for me this time.  Back in Beregost using both a Potion of Insulation and a scroll of Protection from Electricity to facetank Silke's lightning bolts might be a bit wasteful, but that 900 exp from her is worth it at this point.  More Wand of Sleep action makes clearing the spider house a breeze, earning Two another level. At level 4 I'm more comfortable venturing farther afield, so I head out to the Gnoll Fortress to get the charisma tome. Turns out the Necklace of Missiles one-shots the ogrillons guarding the bridge there, which is good to know.  Between the tome and Algernon's cloak, Two is one incredibly charming rogue. Two the Lonelier Thief is gathering items and experience, ignoring the plot.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 03:55
|
|
|
We rejoin Priest Softface with her about to take a run at the Demon Knight. I expected the fight to be harder, but Animate Dead makes it a cakewalk.  It turns out there was a demon in that knife, who knew?! After punking out the guys who stole it I make it up to their shack and see they've already summoned it. I quickly nope back up the stairs to prepare for the fight.  Their wizard followed me up the stairs! I make quick work of her and begin actual preparations once Xan and Dynaheir finish clearing out the cultists with Wands of Fire.  Free Action and Gaze Protection, the fight essentials. Aec'Letec is as good as dead.  Oh gently caress, missed one! This is definitely Xan's fault and not mine.  And on the last round of gaze protection he goes down. Good shot, Imoen! Now that the demon has been sent back to the Abyss, it's time to get back to politics.  "Who, mom? Who in the media misled you?"  The fight goes off without a hitch (actually no I had to heal Belt a few times while waiting for Xan's Greater Malison and Chaos to go off) and then the maze, followed by the incredibly cool undercity! Like gently caress I'm risking those mercenaries to get to Sarekok's front door.  Semaj came at us and a Battle Horror spawned, but we quickly took them out before buffing up and beginning the fight proper. I went into melee with him for a while, but it got a little close.  Sarevok's Dead! Priest Softface has slain Sarevok! And now to delve into Siege of Dragonspear. Honors Earned: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster, Roleplayer
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 07:12
|
|
|
Enter Deak Leaflover, half-elven Avenger. Having never attempted a playthrough of Baldurs Gate before with a druid, I thought why not with one of the lesser used subclasses. Deak isn't exactly strong out of the gate (playing on core rules with a few rerolls for a respectable 86 stat total) and I decided to forgo spears, which I was keen to try out for the first time, with clubs allowing me to use a buckler for that sweet -1 AC.  It starts as I expected, getting beaten on by Carbos. Even this fight felt hairy with my paltry 8 HP and terrible Stregnth. A sign of things to come....  Next, a story in 3 images. First after deftly felling an ogre south of the Friendly Arm Inn using my memorised entangle and many arrows, a wolf proves to be the fledgling parties first true challenge.  Imoen has taken several hits, it seems like tymora favours the wolf here. Thankfully I have a decent pile of healing potions from some lunatics on the previous map  After chugging a few of aforementioned tonics, it was time to flee north to safety. We will have to AVENGE another day. 
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 13:32
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 4, 2024 05:21 |
|
|
So, Hulk's rampage through the Cloakwood was going well until that Hamadryad turned out to be tougher than I remembered... RIP HULK the Barbarian, killed by what I'm pretty sure was Jaheira's charmed spirit snake.
|
|
#
?
Dec 31, 2017 14:35
|
|