Playing Baldur's Gate

World Savior

Hey, guys. I tried to play Baldur's Gate a while ago and I had a lot of fun with it, but I kinda just stopped. Now, though, it's the summer months, and I find myself with time on my hands, so I'd like to revisit the games. Before I do, I was wondering if you guys could point me to any mods you think are essential or make a better first playthrough - nothing really game-altering like new mechanics or companions, though. If you had any advice for first-time classes or whatever, that'd be great as well.

Pole Dancer Impersonator

Do you mean regular Baldur's Gate, the Enhanced Edition or Baldur's Gate with Baldur's Gate 2 in which case we're either talking about Tutu or Trilogy?

You've got fixes and the Unfinished Business pack that should be available for every version.

I would also recommend the BG1 NPC mod (I don't know if it's compatible with the Enhanced Edition yet) even for a first playthrough because it adds many lines that build up on party NPC and make them even more interesting in the first game. Definitely a must have mod.

There is a widescreen mod and a UI mod that you may want to use unless you're running the Enhanced Edition (but I think I remember you got BG1 and 2 from Gog).

Other than that you may look into adding NPCs for the game. Indira is one I really like but there is also Finch that is very likable (but it can only be used with Tutu).

Anyway that's all I can say from memory without having more information about the game you will be running (vanilla, Enhanced Edition, Tutu or Trilogy).

World Savior

Yeah, I bought BG1 and 2 off Gog, so I'll be playing them with EasyTutu.

Pole Dancer Impersonator

Look for Tutu Fix (some elements are already included in Easy Tutu), BG 1 Unfinished Business, you've got various Tweaks and Fixes. BG 1 NPC is a must have.

You can find some information right here:

https://bellesakurasaloon.frenchboard.com/t353p15-return-to-the-sword-coast

But if you need a recap just keep reading.

Here is an example of a weidu log I had for an Easy Tutu install:

Spoiler:

Here are some links for the mods:

http://usoutpost31.com/easytutu/

You will find mods on different websites:

http://www.pocketplane.net/mambo/

http://www.gibberlings3.net/

http://www.spellholdstudios.net/

http://www.sorcerers.net/Games/BG2/index.php

You'll need the widescreen mod and you can also add this UI mod:

http://www.moddb.com/games/baldurs-gate-ii/downloads/widescreen-mod-v305-by-the-bigg

http://www.shsforums.net/files/file/990-w-gui/

I would like to suggest Trilogy instead of Tutu for one reason and that's the seamless integration allowing you to move from BG1 to BG2 without messing with the saves. It's as if your playing the same game. I used to be a Tutu fan until I gave Trilogy a try.

As an indication here is my weidu log for Trilogy:

Spoiler:

As far as I know the only thing missing is the Finch NPC mod.

In any case it's very straightforward and it shouldn't take more than an hour to set up your game once you've downloaded all the mods.

World Savior

Jesus, Cara, this is great. Thank you so much!

Emperor

I've played BG 1 a few times. I've played BG 2 so many times that I know the game by heart. I've played Throne of Baal... 1 time. I think I finished it... not sure...

Pole Dancer Impersonator

Not a big fan of Throne of Bhaal myself, I like the gameplay additions but I much prefer lower level games and I've played BG1 and Tutu a lot more.

dragoniguana wrote:: Jesus, Cara, this is great. Thank you so much!

No problem, all I did was copy and paste.

Emperor

Carabas wrote:: Not a big fan of Throne of Bhaal myself, I like the gameplay additions but I much prefer lower level games and I've played BG1 and Tutu a lot more.

Yeah, I agree. When your level is too high, you start facing insanely powerful villains or hordes of enemies that are more frustrating or annoying than dangerous. As you get stronger, you strategize less and less, which is always a shame. Why would you position your character and NPCs in a way to maximize abilities when you can just go through like a tank?

Pole Dancer Impersonator

It gets beyond silly when everyone has at least +3 weapons and an immunity to normal weapons. You start using several Time Stop spells for every battles it becomes a bit silly.

I've tried Tactics and mods that increase difficulty but some of these mods are just stupid and you have to cheese your way through the game. Throwing Death Cloud out of your line of sight to take out enemies before they can see you is not interesting.

Catnip Purveyor

For a first time class, I recommend Inquisitor. His Dispel Magic and True Sight are really useful against all the mages you'll fight in SoA. The downside is that you have to maintain a good (or at least neutral) reputation.

Pole Dancer Impersonator

You're not going to recommend a Pally now are you? I hate being lawful good in these games. Wink

I recall D has already played a Sorcerer so I would recommend a Wild Mage because it's much more versatile, great fun and pretty much the most powerful casting class at higher levels.

My personal favourite would be a Bard (Jester) or a Thief (detect invisibility and all the cool abilities) but if we're talking power and ease of use there is something to be said about the Cleric Ranger multiclass.

My current character is a Beastmaster that I'm going to dual into Cleric but I wouldn't recommend that for a new player (Beastmaster has the worst reputation and the synergy with the Cleric class is subpar).

Catnip Purveyor

Hey, I like Pallies. :-P

I created a Jester a while ago in BGEE. I've never played the bard quests in BGII before, so I figured I'd take her all the way through.

Pole Dancer Impersonator

I've played a Jester throughout Tutu and then take him to SoA but I lost my saves, started over and lost my saves again... I gave up but I have fond memories of playing that guy.

Emperor

In BG 1, it makes sense to be a fighter, ranger or cleric, but in BG 2, the best class IMO is mage. Once you get to the higher tier or spells, you can kick some serious ass. I have a friend who played with no party companions, just his mage character, and he finished the game.

Pole Dancer Impersonator

Soloing will make the game too easy simply because you get so many extra levels it completely breaks the game.

People claim they solo for the challenge, truth is there is no challenge left if you just farm XP to level up quickly and depending on your class there are different ways to harvest a lot of XP when going solo.

In BG1 you can get away with a low level mage if you get the ring of wizardry early on. In fact I'm convinced they put it there so that level 1 mages could have a fighting chance in this game.

» Baldurs Gate Enhanced Edition
» Dustpaw : The Gate of Fear (2 of 5)
» Baldur's Gate is back
» Baldur's Gate II - Quallo's Story.
» Baldur's Gate Alternate NPC Portraits: Paint BG