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 That's right folks, it's time for the official 2016 Something Awful Baldur's Gate Ironman Challenge! It is here that true heroes will compete for honor, glory, and the chance to not be killed by wildlife at level 1. So sharpen your swords, review your spell book, and roll those stat dice 200 times because Ironman is here! Hall of Heroes Current Adventurers: Elayne the Ironling Berserker/Mage reaches epic levels, but hasn't even gone to Spellhold yet. Floog the Beastmaster kills Tranzig, but fails to get Elminster. Joe Average the Ironling Fighter enjoys the sunlight after escaping the underdark. Shawluck II the Inquisitor floods the Cloakwood mine. Aegwyn the Fighter/Mage is licking her wounds after a big fight with some Ogre Berserkers. Comstar #9 the Inquisitor prepares for the bandit camp. Joanne the Ironling Avenger begins the sidequest bonanza in Athkatla. Mulligan the Fighter/Cleric defeats Mulahey with a little help from Talos. Bhaal Junior and Friends rid a castle of its troll infestation. Dostngosp Teachevils the Ironling Berserker/Cleric sets sail for Spellhold. The Honored Dead: Shawluck the Bold the Fighter crashed a spider house party and regretted it. Staverenella "Stabs" Greenleaf the Mage/Thief no longer exists. Victoria the Wild Mage fought the law, and the law won. Dahlia the Archer got pulled six feet under by ankhegs. Ironman the Sorcerer got confused and forgot swords were pointy. Nupnups the Cleric was eaten by a bear. Kala the Fighter/Mage died to Bassilus. Dozer the Fighter/Mage ran afoul of some bandits. Jari the Fighter/Thief was capped by ettercaps. Min Farshaw the Ironling Sorcerer had her soul dragged to hell by demons. Laric the Blade joined his friends in death. The Red Queen the Inquisitor was unexpectedly slaughtered by hobgoblins. The Mighty Morphin' Power Mages were killed by Bassilus. Comstar the First the Swashbuckler was petrified by a basilisk. Fonkin Hoddypeak the Wild Mage shamefully died to an assassin before leaving Candlekeep. Tim the Enchanter was ambushed by gibberlings near Candlekeep. Vicky II the Wild Mage was felled atop the Iron Throne building. Comstar the Second the Swashbuckler summoned Kahrk the Ogre Mage, with unfortunate results. Kale the Ironling Monk was Imprisoned by Kangaxx the Demi-lich. Comstar the Third the Cavalier was mauled by a bear. Garvok the Cleric/Thief fought the gnoll chieftain and lost. Chester the Jester learned that altruism just gets you murdered by skeletons. Comstar Goes Forth the Barbarian was killed by a (mod added?) succubus. Comstar V the Fighter/Mage/Thief actually died to the wolf outside Candlekeep! Leviss the Cleric/Thief was eaten by ankhegs. Scruffy the Ranger got caught between slimes and ghouls. Comstar VI didn't enjoy his stay at bandit camp. Stilton the Kensai used to be an adventurer until he took an arrow to the throat. Comstar Seventh the Priest of Helm was no match for Greywolf. Comstar the Eighth the Archer was poisoned by Phase Spiders in Cloakwood. Ward the Wizard Slayer was too special for this world. This space is dedicated to the memory of netcat's unnamed and undocumented characters who have died. The Victorious: Min Farshaw the Sorceror defeated Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Punchy the Monk punched Sarevok in the face! Honors: Ironling, Purist, Roleplayer, Honorable Trader. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Elayne the Berserker drank her way to victory against Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Melee Champion, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honorable Trader, Iron Party, Battlemaster, Roleplayer, A God Among Men. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Joe Average the Fighter proved to be above-average at brother-killing! Honors: Ironling, Born Hero, Purist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster Doug the Inquisitor triumphed over Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honorable Trader, Battlemaster. Cruach the Blackguard won a hard-fought victory over Sarevok! Honors: (Finlay did not claim any honors). Randomella the Shadowdancer defeated Sarevok! Was it skill, or was it the RNG? Honors: Ironling, Purist, Librarian, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honourable Trader, Iron Party, Battlemaster, Roleplayer, A God Among Men. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Randomella the Shadowdancer reclaimed her soul from Irenicus! Honors: Ironman, Purist, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Iron Party, Gaxkang's a Wuss, Legendary Arms, Roleplayer, a God Among Men. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Randomella the Shadowdancer ascended to godhood! Honors: Irongod, Purist, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honourable Trader, Iron Party, Roleplayer, A God Among Men. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! Joanne the Avenger didn't need any mages to help her defeat Sarevok! Honors: Ironling, Honorable Trader, Conan the Bhaalspawn Dostngosp Teachevils the Berserker defeated Sarevok all by himself! Honors: Ironling, Strategist, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Melee Champion, Conan the Bhaalspawn, Honourable Trader, Battlemaster, A God Among Men Bhaal Junior the Shadowdancer defeated Sarevok with his RNG buddies! Honors: Ironling, Born Hero, Librarian, Trap Dodger, Honourable Trader, Battlemaster. Dishonor: Don't Hurt Me! 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. Geti Lapoint the Archer never became more than a character sheet. The Tyrant the Blackguard was last seen at High Hedge with a chicken. Senka the Fighter/Thief was last seen fighting an assassin in Beregost. Leandra Moonshadow the Shapeshifter was last seen leaving the Friendly Arm Inn with a fashionable pair of pantaloons. Cu Chulainn the Berserker was last seen leaving Candlekeep. Official Melicamp Death Counter:  Melicamp has died 9 times. Melicamp survived 12 times. Mountaineer fucked around with this message at 22:45 on Feb 15, 2016 |
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Dec 31, 2015 15:31
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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) If someone wants to give me the relevant information for the Enhanced Editions I'll include it in the OP. 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 BG2 Tweakpack - Options for changing your game galore. *Not EE-compatible. This list is missing a few entries compared to last year 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 1 Ironman: Complete Baldur's Gate 2 (requires Ironling) 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 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 the highest 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 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. Battlemaster: Kill Sarevok in Baldur's Gate 1 without summoning any creatures or laying any traps. 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, 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 three times if you go all the way From BG1 through ToB. Thanks to Gutrot for all the wonderful badges.
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Dec 31, 2015 15:33
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Just seeing the thread title alone has the entire opening sequence playing in my head now  I haven't jumped back into BG in a bit and I've never done an Ironman run...might end up giving it a shot.
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Dec 31, 2015 15:57
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I'm in; I'll be playing the EE versions and starting at BG1. Solo 
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Dec 31, 2015 17:53
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TheHoosier posted:I'm in; I'll be playing the EE versions and starting at BG1. Solo Die well, friend. Anyway, guess I'll get things started with my own run. I have some gimmick ideas, but I'm starting with a fairly normal run. Going with Monk since I haven't actually played one before.  Punchy the Monk, since I'm awful at names.  Punchy survives his first battle!   The fearsome wolf is defeated!  Things go sour at the Friendly Arm Inn, though. I try to ambush Tarnesh with ranged attacks, but he manages to cast Horror, only to flee in terror himself when the damage I inflict causes him to panic. This results in Punchy, Imoen, and Tarnesh all randomly running around in mutual terror. Tarnesh recovers first and unfortunately Imoen wanders over to where he is and gets killed. Since Tarnesh isn't blocking the Inn's entrance anymore, Punchy slips inside to grab Khalid and Jaheira before heading back outside to finish the fight.  Then I gently caress up the fight with the belt ogre and Jaheira dies for it.  Finally we go down to Nashkel to grab Minsc and fight Neira. The assassin casts Rigid Thinking on Minsc, causing him to going on a rampage, first killing her, then the Nashkel innkeeper, then another innocent bystander. This hasn't done good things for Punchy's reputation and it means I can't use the Nashkel inn. A rough start, but at least I haven't died!
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Dec 31, 2015 18:10
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I'm in. I'll be running a solo Human Berserker through BG1, then dual-classing to Cleric at level 9 if/when I get there in BG2. Both games will be with a full install of SCS, as well as a few other mods like Unfinished Business, ATweaks and Rogue Rebalancing. Anyway, on to the 1st run.  Meet Dostngosp Teachevils. Exceptional in almost every way, but with all the charisma of a wet fart. Definitely not a Born Hero. The tutorial and Tarnesh went by without much fuss. Rage blocked Tarnesh's non-damage spells, and gave more than enough HP to survive his 2 Magic Missiles. I got the Diamond, and the Rings of Protection and Wizardry along the way, and sold the 2 I can't use for a cool 9,500 gold.  In Beregost, I picked up the Stupifier mace and killed Algernon for his cloak. I also got this from Feldepost's Inn, it's added by BG1 Unfinished Business. Rage gives immunity to Charm, but I'd rather have the permanent resistance and save Rage for more dangerous things, like Basilisks.  Just north of Nashkel, I got this from a kind nobleman. The BG1 NPC Project adds this for low Charisma PCs.  Improving my reputation (from 6 to 11) after killing an innocent fat man for his cloak went smoothly, not too much difficulty in the early game. This Ghast was the only real threat. Luckily it and the Hobgoblins died without hitting me.   This is how things stand right now, with Dostngosp just west of Nashkel, near the Xvart Village. The only things I'll need to buy from now on is potions later on, every other upgrade for equipment is looted. Next time, wilderness exploration, up to and including the Gnoll Fortress.
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Dec 31, 2015 18:49
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 The Adventure Begins  This leather S&M outfit will certainly protect me  All too easy   GIMMIE YOUR GEAR AND SHOVE OFF YOU'RE SO ANNOYING  ~The Great Enemy~  *gasp, wheeze* Pay no mind to the minus-1 healing pot  Not a bad start!
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Dec 31, 2015 19:44
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 Welp, it already ends I made it to Friendly Arm, and we know what comes next...  Lucky crit sends him scurrying, but he somehow still got the spell off   Guard kills him. Rats.  After jacking Khaleid's, Jaheira's, and Kagain's poo poo. I don't need help, dad!!!  Silke, eh? Sounds hot.  Judicious use of Wand of Magic Missile prevented Lightning Bolts. Another W for the good guy    Nice ambush, brah.  poo poo I can't move!! Fuckin' forgot about the spiders...  RIP, big guy. That didn't last long. Shawluck the Bold, Level 1 Human Fighter, mauled by eight-legged freaks I'll probably load up another character and try again. Still solo, of course... Any tips would be appreciated.
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Dec 31, 2015 20:42
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I might give this ago as I've never played BG before but these DnD-like RPG games never seem to hold my interest, excluding Fallout 1/2. Edit: Purchased and downloading. Now to sleep. Vapor Moon fucked around with this message at 21:53 on Dec 31, 2015 |
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Dec 31, 2015 21:44
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TheHoosier posted:I'll probably load up another character and try again. Still solo, of course... Any tips would be appreciated. Ironmanning this game is really hard. Soloing this game is ridiculously hard. Soloing as a fighter is utter insanity pants-on-head hard. If you don't know every last inch of these games, hire as big a party as you possibly can, or at least pick a class with a much bigger toolbox. That said, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy seeing a good death to spiders right on the first page of the thread. As long as you feel the moxie, feel free to keep throwing fighters into the grinder!
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Dec 31, 2015 22:05
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Mzbundifund posted:Ironmanning this game is really hard. Soloing this game is ridiculously hard. Soloing as a fighter is utter insanity pants-on-head hard. If you don't know every last inch of these games, hire as big a party as you possibly can, or at least pick a class with a much bigger toolbox. With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with?
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Dec 31, 2015 23:48
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evilmiera posted:With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with? I would recommend the Archer kit for Rangers. You'll be able to stay on the back lines and will absolutely dominate BG1 with a huge number of attacks at super low THACO. Remember to put 18 in strength so you can use composite bows! It drops off a bit in late BG2 and ToB, but by then you should have high-level mages to carry you. Plus it's not that they are bad late game; when I used one I went from getting 60% of kills in BG1 to 20% in ToB.
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Jan 1, 2016 00:09
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evilmiera posted:With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with? If you can handle dual-classing (and suffering through low levels with that second class for a bit), a human berserker/cleric is brutally effective. If you don't want to fiddle with that, Inquisitors are pretty broken, and in BG2, mages are ridiculously powerful as long as you know the magic system well enough to break it over your knee.
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Jan 1, 2016 00:20
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Our first death! Would one of you doing a solo run mind talking about your strategies a little bit? I can solo a F/M/T, but don't do so well with anything less versatile, so I'd love to pick up some pointers. evilmiera posted:With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with? I'm quite fond of the Fighter/Thief multiclass. Fighter/Anything multiclass or dualclass is pretty good, honestly. Mountaineer fucked around with this message at 00:57 on Jan 1, 2016 |
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Jan 1, 2016 00:53
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Are there any mods to make the UI any easier to deal with? I really don't like going through Long Lists of Spells, so just having 3 favorite spells doesn't really cut it.
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Jan 1, 2016 01:11
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Mzbundifund posted:Ironmanning this game is really hard. Soloing this game is ridiculously hard. Soloing as a fighter is utter insanity pants-on-head hard. If you don't know every last inch of these games, hire as big a party as you possibly can, or at least pick a class with a much bigger toolbox. The plan was to dualclass into a Mage, but best-laid plans and such... I felt good getting past the first couple mage fights. I was cruising right along kiting mobs with a composite longbow. I just got caught with my pants down. Sucks but that's the game. Ill be doing Thief/Cleric multiclass next. We'll see how that goes.
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Jan 1, 2016 03:44
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I ran a Mage/Thief through BG2 a ways back, and I think I ran another solo (forget what, might have been FMT) through all of BG1 and a bit of 2. Soloing is really interesting in how it changes the game. You absolutely must have protection or a plan for nearly every save-or-die spell and effect (hold, sleep, confusion, etc), which does make Berserkers one of the most attractive solos just for their rage's suite of immunities. Ranger/Cleric is also super super strong with a ton of useful buffs to get you through tough situations and actual combat ability.
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Jan 1, 2016 04:24
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evilmiera posted:With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with?
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Jan 1, 2016 04:41
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Yup, this is still the case.
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Jan 1, 2016 04:44
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At some point the BG2EE was patched so that by default Ranger/Clerics only get low level druid spells, apparently as intended. But it's only a quick .ini fix to restore them to their previous, broken form.
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Jan 1, 2016 04:53
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A completely ordinary human is about to go on an epic adventure where death awaits him at every turn! Look how excited he is!
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Jan 1, 2016 05:06
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Nupnups the Halfling Cleric is a go! Stats were not rerolled or redistributed
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Jan 1, 2016 08:45
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evilmiera posted:With the current state of things, what with the EE, which classes do you feel are the easiest to roll with? The easiest in my mind is a mage/thief. Elf for the spell immunities and extra dex point for early-game archery and survivability. Early game you can use archery practically as well as a fighter, and that's the point when archery is at its strongest. In BG1's midgame you can roll to success on infinity wand charges, money won't be an issue. In BG2 you can do hilarious things like Spell Immunity:Divination + Mislead + Tenser's Transformation -> BackstabBackstabBackstabBackstabBackstab, and when you run into the rare things that can see invisible innately, you've got project image and simulacrum and all the ridiculous mage nonsense you can get up to. At no point do you have to worry about traps. I think I give mage/thief the edge over fighter/mage/thief, just because your spell power will level faster and provide a better edge at the stage when destroying an entire encounter with one skull trap is viable. Fighter/mage/thief is nice in BG2 because you can equip Vhailor's Helm and the Shield of Balduran, but since we're talking about a solo character, it won't take TOO long into BG2 before you can just get the Use Any Item high-level ability from your thief class, and then you can equip both of those things anyway. If you aren't going to solo, fighter/mage/thief will just level too slowly, and mage/thief doesn't need to equip either of those items early because you can just have another party member use them.
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Jan 1, 2016 08:46
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I'll have to try this again - last time I never got past BG1 I think. Most shameful display was getting killed by a a wolf on the first map.
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Jan 1, 2016 11:49
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The adventure begins! I'm playing an Elvish Sorcerer. We take the first stats and put them in the order we like.  Learn some good longterm spells rather than spells that will be super useful right away.  I have the diamond ring+1 and ring of wizardry  I help Marl with his loss  I do some minor no combat quests and level up! Note: There has been no combat all so far  After getting level 2 I gather a party to venture forth with  Now it's time to rescue a witch.
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Jan 1, 2016 12:22
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Mountaineer posted:Our first death! Since I'm playing a Berserker, my strategy is for the most part really simple, just walk near an enemy and let the Ease-of-Use AI from SCS deal with any threats. I will occasionally have to select a target myself, say for example giving priority to killing a Hobgoblin Elite vs. a regular Hobgoblin, but for minor threats it works well. For mages, I immediately use the Shield Amulet you can buy at the Carnival. Magic Missile is a dangerous spell in BG1, Sequencers containing 2 of them even more so, immunity to that spell is huge. After that, I use Rage and try to beat the mage to death. Most mages in BG1 will be almost out of spells by then. I killed Zordral with this method, although he is fairly low level as far as mages go in this game. I may need a little more finesse to beat the likes of Drasus's goons and Davaeorn though. For the most part though, soloing BG1 is just picking the fights in a sensible order. I'm using SCS, so I can't risk Basilisks yet, because they're sensible enough to change target with that mod, so I can't just let Korax tank. I can do the west side of the map though, so I'm clearing that first.
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Jan 1, 2016 13:01
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Punchy the Monk has cleared the mines and is now faffing about the Sword Coast aimlessly. First I recruit Branwen and Dynaheir. Khalid gets abandoned in a farm house.  After the gnoll fortress I go about doing various good deeds to get my reputation out of the gutter.  That includes trying to help Melicamp who, as usual, dies instead of giving me my XP and rep point.  Dynaheir reaches level 2, giving her enough castings of Protection From Petrification that I feel comfortable going basilisk hunting.  Now well over-levelled, I finally clear the iron mine and kill Mulahey.  Back in Nashkel, Nimbul ambushes the party but I came prepared with Remove Fear so he doesn't get to do much before dying.  I finish the session with some ankheg grinding. I've dual-classed Imoen and I want to get her Thief levels back before proceeding to the bandit camp and Cloakwood.
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Jan 1, 2016 16:16
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My first Ironman! I hope the Xvart that inevitably slays me becomes a champion among his people! I'm going with an evil M/T named Stabs, and playing on Core Rules difficulty. I only rerolled 74 times for these stats!  I hope the portrait is cartoonishly evil enough because I couldn't be bothered to add customs. After a lot of kiting, the ogre is dead and the belt is mine!  Making my way to the Friendly Arm, I'm set upon by a laughably unfair ambush. Maybe because I was rude to the guy warning me about danger? Regardless, it signaled the end of my Ironman run.  I did manage to kill one of them before dying, at least. Devorum fucked around with this message at 18:36 on Jan 1, 2016 |
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Jan 1, 2016 18:07
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Nupnups the Cleric, day 1 Ran into some jerk named Shank who tried to kill me for no reason but I poked him really hard with my stick and he didn't get back up. I also found a Warhammer hidden in a crate inside his house which was nice.  Came across another jerk named Carbos who also tried to kill me because ??? so I used my new hammer to give him a good bonk on the head and down he went in a single blow.  This Hull guy is also a jerk even after I was so nice to him.  Some weird hippies singing in the flowers. In hindsight I should have tried smacking them with my hammer to try and fix their odd brains  Gorion is a badass wizard man! Too bad he ran out of magic and isn't much of a punch wizard. RIP  Also yes that is a fiery death arrow about to split my skull but I am smart and purchased a shiny helmet so it glanced off as I fled.  After those harrowing events I ran into Imoen. It's nice to have a hand and a friend right now.
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Jan 1, 2016 20:40
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Last year, Rolf the Second the fighter/cleric made to Irenicus' dragon. Let's see whether Victoria can do better! Victoria is a born hero elven wild mage, playing on core rules in the Enhanced Edition. Shank and Carbos were both dispatched. Phew! It took a while as a single-class mage with no proficiency in quaterstaves.  Gorion gets killed, so on and so forth. Imoen, Z & M are recruited as meatshields. Killed a couple bears, then headed to the inn. Victoria casted Shield to ensure no Tarnesh gibs and we charged forth.  Losses were acceptable. Monty, if you can't hide in the shadows, you deserve what you get. Picked up two more nice meatshields in the FAI, decided to take on the belt ogre. Thought that +3 piercing AC would help Victoria not get pin-cushioned to death by arrows. Unfortunately, during operation kiting a dire wolf appeared at our flank!  Khalid stepped up to the plate, donned his shield, and managed to tank both long enough for the rest of the team to plink them to death. Phew! Arrived in Beregost without issue, then discovered that Firebeard was glitched and not giving his quest! I just spent 3 gp on a book for you, old man! So I killed him. Probably risky, but he got stun-locked and the party got a cool 2700 xp.  I then did the Silke quest, with Victoria staying well out of range in case of lightning. Fortunately, it wasn't necessary. Some good rolls meant that Silke only got off a single chromatic orb. I decided to recruit Neera next. Probably not going to keep her for long, but I wanted that gem bag, and who doesn't want 2 wild mages in an Iron Man party? The fight against the red wizard went off without a hitch; as long as that first mirror image is stopped, mages go down fast. Finally, the party took out the assassin in the Red Sheaf Inn with some kiting.  Next, the party will probably grab the chicken and whatever other easy quests I can find.
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Jan 1, 2016 21:23
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Oh boy, two wild mages. Last year, someone did a run with six wild mages. I hope someone does that again. Maybe I will, if Punchy dies.
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Jan 1, 2016 22:10
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Nothing on the UI front? I was kinda thinking about doing a solo run, but I'm not sure how that'd pan out for a non-spellcaster. I'm not exactly the best player.
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Jan 1, 2016 22:15
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Gharbad the Weak posted:Nothing on the UI front? I was kinda thinking about doing a solo run, but I'm not sure how that'd pan out for a non-spellcaster. I'm not exactly the best player. Last year I took a half orc fighter-thief solo most of the way from beginning to end. I died in the last big trial before the final showdown in Throne. It's doable, but you have to know how to abuse poo poo inside and out, and I'm not sure it's at all viable without being at least part thief in the early game.
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Jan 1, 2016 22:26
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I honestly expected to at least make it to the inn. I might give it another go with a new character this weekend. Just so it's clear: Staverenella "Stabs" Greenleaf has died. Details are in my post above. RIP. Devorum fucked around with this message at 00:47 on Jan 2, 2016 |
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Jan 1, 2016 22:54
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Jari, Dwarf Fighter/Thief joins the death march and is off to an underwhelming start! Jari gets the first notch on his belt... sword... hilt? I don't know, man. He kills his first dudeman, appropriately named Shank.  Plot characters die, "the dawn is especially cruel," and we ditch Imoen after nicking her stuff. Eventually we come upon everyone's favorite OTP, Montaron and Xzar. Jari fails his charisma check with Xzar, and he doesn't bribe us with potions.   After picking through the bits of gibbed mage at the ambush site, the party comes across a rock. "Ooh," I think. "This will be the perfect place to hide in shadows and lurk around for the w-"   With bruises to show for it, the dreadful wolf is dispatched. The party continues onward to the Friendly Arm Inn. A wizard friend approaches, and I forgot to hide in shadows. Again.   I guess I should be thankful for "shorty" saving throws.  Monty bites the big one (RIP sweet prince). Jari comes pretty close to doing the same. And then a guard takes away all of our XP. After this I decide to save and cautiously back away. Because hey, y'know... I'll continue this when not nursing a New Year's Day hangover. Mus fucked around with this message at 00:20 on Jan 2, 2016 |
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Jan 2, 2016 00:07
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A short update for Dostngosp Teachevils Not much to say about the south west corner of the map, there isn't really much in the way of difficult enemies, especially for a solo Berserker. With the exception of Winter Wolves, the xp is pretty poor too. Some valuable loot though, including the Charisma Tome, which I used once I got it identified. 1/8 Tomes found.    There were some high xp fights however. Thalantyr's 2 Flesh Golems hit hard, but they can be stunned with a little luck. I was surprised how well the Doomsayer fight went, I was only hit twice.   How things stand right now. Next time, More exploration of the Sword Coast.
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Jan 2, 2016 00:24
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Victoria the Wild Mage has been slain! Not, surprisingly, due to her magic, but to her evilness. No screenshots, alas. Completed the spider house quest with a single sleep, saved the chicken, and then began to assemble my full party. Went to Nashkel to trigger the Dorn encounter and recruited him, ditching K+J. I then went to grab Viconia, which dropped my reputation low enough that Imoen left the party, something that I never knew could even happen. I immediately killed her for treachery, of course. Lawful evil, ya know? I then decided to go to Beregost to rest up, before hitting up the east coast to boost my reputation and get Safana. I should have bit the bullet and paid at the church, because a flaming fist hit squad was waiting for me. The mage hasted the whole group; Dorn died immediately while the rest of the party fled to the edge of the screen, but the flight was futile. The mage hit them with a confusion and the cleric with hold person. No one lived long after. Moral: don't let your rep drop too low, or the game will throw level 7 (!!!) enemies at you when you are only level 2!
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Jan 2, 2016 00:29
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Not much plot has happened to Ironman the Elvish Sorcerer. The first of the tomes has been acquired and was promptly read by our hero increasing his Charisma by 1.  The party tried to help out some poor girl but ran away when the casting animation for Gate played. The spell seemingly never went off because we never found any demon and the poor girl died. She had a gem bag though which we took. Later it was a lot of wandering around some wilderness areas. We killed some baskilisks including and a evil mage that was controlling them. Dynaheir died to a kobold due to me not paying attention and had to be resurrected. The party went and killed some undead and a mage with some mustard jellys and some more assassins after that. A few other random fights not worth mentioning. We helped a chicken turn back into a man at some point. Then it was off to the lighthouse to deal with the sirens and the treasure they guarded. Dynaheir voluntered to scout for us and we managed to kill the first band but Khalid died to a dominated Minsc. The next band Dynaheir thought casting horror would do the trick but one Siren resisted and dominated Minsc and Imoen. The party managed to survive long enough to kill all the sirens and the dominations to wear off. Inside the cave was our prize!  We leveled up a few times since the last update and this is how things stand now. 
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Jan 2, 2016 00:50
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Joe Average sets off on his grand adventure! He never imagined something like this could happen to him. Not that he's dumb, mind you. Just as boringly unimaginative as the next guy. The Tarnesh fight went really well! Between the wand of missile and Xzar's two casts of minor drain, his mirror image and horror spells were interrupted. He died very shortly thereafter.  Joe Average's first hurdle: minimum stats requirements on equipment. It seems the bastards swords he decided to specialize in are actually too heavy for him to wield! If only he had the foresight to look this up before starting! Curse his 10 INT and 10 WIS! Wait, enchanted items are usually lighter right? Maybe their stat requirements are lower?  Ah, nope. Well I'm still keeping this bastard sword +1 I swiped from Taerom's smithy at night. His prices are so outrageous I don't feel one bit guilty.  Oh hey, BG1EE's instant loads are neat but they make aggroing Landrin's spiders and running outside suicide. Poor Jaheira heroically bit the dust...  ... as our remaining heroes bravely ran in circle while chipping away at the spiders' health. As least kiting still works!  Why does a mage you can easily encounter at level 1 have so much health!! Probably should have recruited Branwen first for her remove fear, but this turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Imoen and Jaheira were already level 2, Khalid and Joe weren't. They got all the exp from the kill which bumped them to level 2. Silver lining!  With Branwen's command spell, Neira the assassin was forcibly made to take a nap she never woke from. Next!  With BG1EE's jacking of the movement speed of wildlife, the polar bear encounter on the way to the gnoll stronghold is ridiculously deadly. Not a lot of room to kite, either. Anyway, with 14 reputation (started at 10 +1 for Joia's ring +1 for Firebead's book +1 for telling the truth to Oublek +1 for returning Brage alive) and Imoen's 16 CHA, Jared gave his best reward: the boots of cold resistance!  Joe was pretty low on funds so he went after Bassilus for the whopping 5000 gold reward. The mad cleric saved against Branwen's command, so plan B was to send Jaheira up ahead of the party to bait his rigid thinking and hold person spells. It worked, and he died before doing anything else. No damage taken!  Melicamp died because of course he did. He always dies when I'm playing ironman, but never otherwise. The game knows.  Joe needed more easy(ish) exp to get closer to level 4 so he went after the fixed vampiric wolves encounter in the Temple area. Accidentally aggroed both of them at the same time but Jaheira kited like a pro and was only bit once by a warg.  Stopped by Ulcaster's to grab this puppy for Dynaheir. With the necklace of missile from the Nashkel carnival, group encounters will get toasty.  Joe went for the second luck-based reputation boost, saving Arabelle the cow from the xvarts. They didn't get a bunch of critical hits like they usually do when I'm playing ironman and she was successfully rescued! Currently level 4! Next objective is to max out reputation. Gold spent to raise dead party members: 600
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Jan 2, 2016 01:46
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| # ? Apr 16, 2024 18:51 |
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The party delves into the Nashkel mines and clears it with ease. They find an assassin waiting for them back in town but he was not match for our heroes.  The bandit camp is laid waste and our three fighters now have full plate or better.  Now a new mine to clear! 
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Jan 2, 2016 03:31
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