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Some more detailed questions about how thief skills work

February 16, 2015, 10:32 am
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I find myself not really understanding how to use all the thief skills in BG1:EE. I have never really used thieves before, other than rudimentary trap detection in the mines, so I'm not sure how it works, technically speaking. But this time I'm doing an all—evil playthrough, so I guess it's time I learned how to hide and steal. Strangely, none of the usual help websites seem to say anything about this. They just all assume everyone knows what to do.

EDIT: Well, after some more searching I found http://www.pocketplane.net/volothamp/bgguide.htm which explains every thieving concept and how to use it. My remaining questions are below.

Backstab: Hide, then strike at the enemy while hidden, get x2 damage. In the Goldbox games, you had to fix the enemy with a strike from the front (miss or hit OK) and then strike with a thief directly opposite. But how does BG1:EE define "behind"? As far as I know facing isn't implemented in this game.
http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/16267/please-explain-backstabbing

Move Silently: What's the relationship between this and the Hide skill? How do they work together? Ah, found this one answered at http://forum.bioware.com/topic/357939-thesis-hide-in-shadows/ and http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/34394/what-does-move-silently-hide-in-shadows-really-do
"There is actually only one skill which the game engine uses in calculating the success of a stealth attempt, which is the single figure called "Stealth" for a Ranger but is the average of the two figures called "Hide In Shadows" and "Move Silently" for a Thief."

I want to go into houses and rob them, but as soon as I unlock anything or grab anything I'm not stealthed any more and I get caught every time. Is stealth the same as invisibility? What's the difference? To keep stealth, does it matter if you STAY in shadows, or do you just need to START in shadows?

What does "LOS" mean, exactly? How do you know if you're in enemy LOS? I'm at Tersus' tent in the Bandit Camp, and no matter if he has his back turned, or not, he immediately detects me as soon as I touch the chest. Unlocking it is OK, but clicking on its inventory counts as a theft attempt.
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Funniest death screams.

May 25, 2013, 1:09 pm
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Just when I started to get bored with slaughtering the town of Beregost, I encountered the smiths at Thunderhammer Smithy. I got a good chuckle from Marl's buddy at Feildpost's Inn, funny stuff. But the smith's death screams had me laughing out loud. lol

Gonna be hard to top them!
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Will we ever see "Planescape: Torment: Enhanced Edition"?

January 15, 2015, 8:03 am
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Barbarian vs. Dwarven Defender

August 10, 2013, 8:19 am
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I actually joked about making a thread like this a month ago. I couldn't find one so I figured I'd make a thread for it.

So what does everyone think? (Ignoring the current axe bug with the Dwarven Defender and the dexterity bug with Dwarves in general) Which do people prefer and why?
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Canonize A Mod NPC

February 17, 2015, 4:31 am
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If you could choose one mod NPC to become an "official" party member in BG/BG2 - fully integrated, like the EE characters - who would it be?
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What do you think of Noober & Neeber?

February 17, 2015, 1:57 pm
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Do you like them or do you hate them? Do you kill them or do you let them live?
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Little things that annoy you

January 7, 2015, 6:12 pm
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I has been bugging me for some time: why does the Amaunator avatar give you a shield that belongs to Bane worshippers? It is even called the Saving Grace!
image

Are there other little inconsistencies in the game bug you?

PS: Hurray my first evil party in BG2, Dorn's wedding crashing ability really lowered my reputation. There seems to be very few banters though.
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Need logo help

February 18, 2015, 6:19 pm
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Just started managing my new team FC Baldur's Gate on xpert eleven.

Need a fitting logo, with the following specs:

Gif or JPEG
125px wide
150px tall
30kb limit

Anyone bored and super cool?
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sorc level 3 picks

February 18, 2015, 2:57 pm
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Hi all,
Despite my long experience with sorcerers, i am wondering which level 3 spells i should take for my latest sorc. Please note that this is for solo (mostly) no reload game.

The first 3 picks are obvious to me :
- MMM
- haste
- skull trap

For the last 2 i am pondering between :
- slow : nice debuff but i never use it much
- remove magic : same thing, useful in theory but i prefer to deal with magic users using improve invis and MMM and in the end i never use it.
- flame arrow : good damage but completely inferior to skull trap for a solo char (magic damage immunity is easy to get to be able to use skull trap at point blank, lots of fire immune, no aoe)
- vampiric drain : damage is really poor but the added hp can be interesting.
- ghost armor : good ac but not really interesting as a 4th pick (stoneskin is already there, ac bracers give almost the same ac)
- minor spell deflection. Would be very good if it gave deflection againsy level 8 spells (i hate maze traps...). Not so good with protection limited to level 7 (improve invis is a better protection against casters)
- invis on 3m could be ok but i already have the level 2 version

Everything else seems useless to me

What do you think?

Thanks for the help
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Screenshots, because i'm lazy

February 18, 2015, 6:44 am
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"It's handy, when you have an invisible pet minotaur in a dungeon full of trolls and bugs"
[spoiler] image [/spoiler]

"Being first level in an experienced party makes you not unuseful. Wisdome doesn't come automatically with experience."
[spoiler] image [/spoiler]

"An invisible cleric is also useful, when dealing with undead. In case of Uncle Marthur it's not clear that the walking corpses are run away from him because of his divine might or the alcoholic vapour, that surrounds him, but his method is effective nonetheless."
[spoiler] image [/spoiler]

"You forgot to memorize dispel magic? Use invisibility instead!"
[spoiler] image [/spoiler]

"When you are overwhelmed by enemies, use your charm to even the odds!"

[spoiler]image [/spoiler]
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Mods for Steam Versions

February 19, 2015, 5:15 pm
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I can't open these rocks

February 19, 2015, 9:06 pm
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image

Is it a glitch or do i have to have something in order to access this?
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"We're All Doomed". Blackraven's No-Reload SCS runs, Current CHARNAMES: Galatea the Enchantress

June 15, 2014, 9:15 pm
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Hey folks, I've decided to just use a single thread, this one, to report on the progress I make with different Charnames in my SCS No-Reload playthroughs. So far they just keep on falling, in early SoA at the latest, which is why I think it sensible to use a single thread instead of starting one or two new ones every week.

Most of the time I play a heavily modded version of the game, still BGT rather than EE as there are a couple of non-EE mods that I'm quite attached to (such as Item Randomization, Hard Times, Song & Silence, aTweaks).

Some of my playthroughs are heavily role-played whereas others can be seen more as technical/tactical... experiments, and may be more metagamed, though I do generally stick to Charname's alignment and personality. Other rules I tend to apply is to not abuse resting (which makes playing a spellcaster a bit more challenging), to give all creatures in the game including Charname and party members full hitpoints at level up as I don't like the 'luck factor' there, and to play no-reload. I still have a few savegames of fallen Charnames and I often tell myself I'll pick those games up again, but somehow I always end up rolling a new Charname. I might be convinced though by readers to go minimal-reload if they think a character was particularly interesting to read about.

OBITUARIES

[spoiler]
Other Charnames you might have read aren't included here because they never died. My playthroughs with Aya the Avenger and Grynne the 2nd (Half-Orc Wizard Slayer) are lost due to game crashes and simplified re-installs, with less mods. I kind of gave up on Serene (Half-Elf Beast Mistress) after a bug at near death status, but strictly speaking she never died.
[/spoiler]

† Nelsy †
CG Halfling Bounty Huntress
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Insta-killed by Jenkal’s backstab.
Nelsy was a friendly, kind-hearted and naive young Bhaalspawn. She died a premature death in Gullykin where she had wanted to meet more of her (Halfling) kind and make some friends. The villagers all received her amiably and one, Alora, had even joined her, much to Nelsy's joy, until Jenkal ended her bliss. Maybe she was a bit too soft to be a successful Bhaalspawn or even adventurer.

† Elloysia †
CN Gnome Transmuter
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Shoal’s kiss of death proved that not only males have to be wary of Nereids.
Elloysia was an aspiring young mage, and a very unlucky one at that as she could only cast Alteration spells. Would a wider range of spells have saved her though? Probably not.

† Teyl the 1st †
NE Halfling Priest of Cyric/Thief (solo)
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Charmed by Hareishan in the Cloakwood Mines.
Truth be told Teyl was a bit of a jerk: a double-crossing, conniving little trickster who was only out for himself and expected no less of others. Many would underestimate the sneak due to his unimpressive physique, his dapper appearance and the absence of friends surrounding let alone protecting him, but that’s exactly how he liked to work.

† Teyl the 2nd †
NE Halfling Priest of Cyric/Thief (solo)
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: PW Stunned by Rayic Gethras and subsequently slain by the wizard’s MMMs.

† Grynne the 1st †
LN Half-Orc Wizard Slayer
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Fainted in Mulahey’s Stinking Cloud and finished off by the latter's ‘improved’ Battle Horrors
With her honesty and her sense of honor Grynne could have been a Paladin if only she had been human, and probably a bit less suspicious of magic. She distinguished herself as a merciless hunter of evil arcane magic users, and had difficulty staying her hand even against non-evil casters.

† Gylliane the 1st †
TN Elf Swashbuckler/Mage
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Webbed by Kysus at the Cloakwood Mine entrance and finished off by the latter and two of his Ogrillon minions
Gylliane was a typical ‘what you see is what you get type of girl’, turning heads wherever she went with her elven beauty and very no-nonsense in her dealings with others: courteous when she could, ruthless when she had to.

† Gylliane the 2nd †
CG Elf Swashbuckler/Mage (solo)
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Unknown. During the final showdown she had already taken down Angelo and was gaining the upper hand against Tazok when all of a sudden she instantly died. One theory is that Semaj successfully petrified her, but it’s something we’ll never know.

† Lenno †
CN Halfling Swashbuckler
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Combination of (modded) Traps and Flesh Golems at Alaric’s Cave
Flamboyant, risk-prone and with an unmatched talent to choose the wrong friends and generally fail at missions, Lenno was unlikely to live a long and healthy life. Even so, his unfortunate death in a pirate cave came disappointingly early.

† Ocker †
NG Dwarven Skald
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Charmed and death-kissed by Shoal.
Ocker was a good Dwarf, noble of heart. A brave warrior poet who took his role as the leader of an adventuring party very seriously, Ocker would inspire his companions with his battlesong but suffered when he saw his friends in trouble, causing him to step into battle ill-prepared on more than one occasion. His valor in the end also meant his death.

† Vallon †
LG Human Undead Hunter
Date of Death: Unknown
Cause of Death: Panicked, cornered and slain by TorGal at Nalia’s Keep.
Vallon combined his outstanding fighting prowess with an impeccable moral integrity, and a humble disposition he often found lacking in fellow Paladins. He singlehandedly saved the Sword Coast from the brute Sarevok and was already making a name for himself in Amn before mind-altering magic ended his life.

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Baldur's Gate Pathfinder Campaign

February 20, 2015, 3:24 pm
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So, I'm going to be running the Baldur's Gate game as a table top game for my group of friends and I'll be using the Pathfinder ruleset. I've been doing some converting of NPC's from the game into pathfinder stat blocks and I'd like any and all freedback from the community. The game is going to go until about level 8 or 9, so some NPC's will be toned down to be more appropriate for a campaign at those levels (Sarevok wont be a level 16 fighter for example since he'd maul the group all by himself.)

Sarevok Anchev
Male Human Fighter (Two-Handed Fighter) 11
CE Medium Humanoid (Human)
Initiative +3, Senses: Perception +0
AC 26, Touch 12, Flat-Footed 23 (+13 Armor, +3 Dex)
HP: 120 (11 HD; 11d10+55)
Fort +14, Ref +9, Will +6
Speed 20 feet
Melee: Sword of Chaos +4 +25/+20/+15 (2d6+16+1d6 Life Drain/19-20x2) (All attacks after the 1st deal +19)
Sword of Chaos +4 Power Attack +25/+17/+12 (2d6+25+1d6 Life Drain/19-20x2) (All attacks after the 1st deal +28)
Special Attacks: Overhand Chop, Shattering Strike +3, Backswing, Piledriver, Deathbringer Assault
Str 20, Dex 17, Con 18, Int 17, Wis 10, Cha 15
Base Attk: +11, CMB +16(+21 Sunder), CMD 29(34 vs. Sunder)
Feats: Power Attack, Furious Focus, Weapon Focus Greatsword, Improved Sunder, Dazzling Display, Weapon Specialization Greatsword, Intimidating Prowess, Shatter Defenses, Cleave, Greater Weapon Focus Greatsword, Lunge, Step Up, Combat Refelxes
Skills: Acrobatics +11, Bluff +16, Climb +11, Diplomacy +16, Intimidate +21, Knowledge (Religion) +14, Swim +10
Languages: Common, Chondathan, Dwarven, Illuskan, Shou.
SQ: Two-Handed Weapon Training +3
Traits: Diplomactic - Sarevok treats Diplomacy as a class skill. Liar - Sarevok treats Bluff as a class skill.
Combat Gear: Boots of Speed
Other Gear: Sword of Chaos +4, Armor of Chaos +4

Deathbringer Assault: On each successful attack against a foe who is Shaken, Frightened, or Panicked, Sarevok has a 3% chance to deal an additional 20d6 piercing damage. A target who takes damage from a Deathbringer Assault must make a Fortitude Save (DC 20) or become stunned for 1 round.

Sword of Chaos +4: In the hands of Sarevok this weapon functions as a +4 Greatsword that deals an additional 1d6 damage per strike, this additional damage heals the wielder but cannot increase his hit points beyond his normal maximum. When someone other than Sarevok uses this sword it functions as a +2 Greatsword that deals 1 additional damage per strike, this additional damage heals the wielder but cannot increase his hit points beyond his normal maximum.

Armor of Chaos +4: This set of Fullplate has an improved maximum dexterity bonus by 2 (to a total of +3), reduces the normal armor check penalty by 2, which stacks with the normal bonus for being of masterwork quality (total -3), and grants damage reduction 3/-. While worn by Sarevok this Fullplate functions as a suit of +4 Fullplate that grants him a +3 resistance bonus to saving throws, and grants him spell resistance of 10 + his hit dice. While worn by someone other than Sarevok this armor counts as +2 Fullplate.


So, what do you think? Is he a little too powerful?

I'll post another NPC later on when I get the chance.
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Charnames Mother [SPOILER] and Gorion

February 20, 2015, 4:51 am
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Good day - I feel chatty today, sorry =P
Also, full of Spoilers about BG1 AND BG2:ToB, read only if you finished those.. =P

The background of charname always annoyed me a bit.
In BG1 Gorian claims that charnames mother was a former lover of him and Bhaal forced himself upon
the women.
The Solar in ToB says (If I remember correctly) that charnames mother was a priest of Bhaal who didn't..
realy mind Bhaals advances..

Soo I thought of a theory (which could be a completly old news..):
Both is true (shock!) in a way. Gorion is a good natured Harper, he found a dark women fights her and beats her.
The following time he tries to convert her to the good side and seemingly succeds. She becomes a Harper
spy within the temple of Bhaal (and Gorions lover). In truth, she never converts to ...whatever good god the
Harpers like and instead is a double-agent, feeding false information to the Harpers (but with enough truth in
it, so the Harpers don't realise it.. Sacrificing rivals and getting rid of weeklings and such.)
Bhaal comes, she gets pregnant and needs to lie to Gorion about the forcing part (even though Bhaal could have
forced himself on some people, that part is unclear). He believes her and when the Harper raid comes he saves
charname, maybe trying to find the mother but fails (I think it would be pretty chaotic there, so he *might* even
have killed her in the chaos without realising it himself.), thus thinking she died while giving birth.

The second problem is, why did he only save charname?
Well, according to what many other Harpers think, Bhaals essence is corrupting - and all Gorion knew was
that the temple was filled with the childs of Bhaal and his priesthood, evil parents AND evil environment.
So, he (might have) thought that he could save one of them if he concentrated his efforts (and the rest of his
live) on one child and thus he choosed the most promising one: the one of his former lover, the only "good"
mother he knew - he even might have thought himself as the father of charname, since he loved the mother.

So, he didn't abonden the rest out of malice, but of weakness. It is better to take and save one, then take ten
and lose them all...

Well, what do you think of my rambling? I never thought of this myself and also never saw it before, thus
I thought I could post it here.. sorry if other people had this idea before me >_<

Anyways, thanks for your time and have a nice day!
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New portrait for Neera

February 20, 2015, 9:54 am
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Neera has been one of my favourite NPCs since I first met her. But her portrait is IMHO one of the worst in BG2 (different size, style and color scheme; blurry...). So this week I decided to make a run for it! Here it is, steaming hot from Photoshop:

image

I will upload the BMP files in a while, still got some ingame color and contrast corrections to verify.
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I can't find Saemon!

February 21, 2015, 8:26 pm
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I finished up Spellhold, went to the tavern and was given the quest to get the horn at night. So I got the horn at night, and I went to the docks to search for Saemon. He was nowhere to be found where he normally was, so I figured the enhanced edition relocated him.
Did I do something wrong? How do I fix it? I need to find Saemon because I really enjoy the Fish City, and from a roleplaying perspective the 2nd encounter with Spectator in Ch. 9 won't make any sense if I don't run into him in Ch. 4
Is there possibly a cheat code I can use to spawn Saemon? Did I not look in the right place?
HELP!
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Hey, check this out in the "Challenges and Playthroughs" subforum

February 22, 2015, 1:16 pm
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Hi, I'm trying to promote my old friend @CharlestonianTemplar . He's been posting minimal and no reload playthroughs since our shared old days in the Bioware forums, long before EE or this forum came out.

I sent him a PM trying to get him to post more, and to advertise his prolific body of BG runs, but I've decided to take a chance and post publiclly. I really, really hope that he will not be offended at my presumption to become his agent. I think he has a great undiscovered treasure trove of posted BG runs, and he is one of the most experienced and insightful players around.

He is also a military man, and he often posts in the style of a military debrief or report, as though Charname is a lower ranking officer debriefing "the Brass." His Charname's run the gamut from revered hero to reviled villain.

Check out his latest here:
http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/33964/mythical-historical-hero-challenges-minimum-reload-spoiler-warning#latest

Here's my message to him:

Hi, old friend. Are you still actively serving in the military? If so, thank you for defending the rest of us.

I remember really liking your military debriefing report style of posting your BG runs, from our shared participation on the old Bioware forums, from at least a few years before EE ever came out.

I think you deserve a LOT more attention for your multitude of posted runs than you're getting. You're one of the most prolific posters of journalized runs to ever play Baldur's Gate, yet painfully few people know about you. You should be a forum star, just like Blackraven.

One of Blackraven's secrets is that he created his own thread in the General Discussion forums. That General Discussion forum has thousands or more people checking it per day than the relatively dead "Challenges and Playthroughs" forum. So, you are posting your hard work and your vast body of journaled runthroughs in a sub-forum that gets precious little traffic.

I strongly suggest you create your own thread, titled something like "Charlestonian Templar's Military Minimal Reload Runs - Journals from the Front Lines". You know, you need a hook, and to publicize yourself.

You deserve a bigger readership, and more exposure.

I might also suggest maybe going through just a few conversational threads each day, and clicking "like", "agree", or "insightful" on some of them. People notice who give them approval, and if they come to know you as somebody who gives them points and appreciation, they will be very likely to read your runs and give you back what you give out. :)

I hope you won't be offended, but I'm going to post this out where people can see it. Like I said, you deserve some recogition. I think you're one of BG's greatest undiscovered treasures of experience and great BG runs.

Sigh. I'm taking a big chance here. I really, really hope I'm not offending CT, or getting myself in trouble with the forum adminstation by making a post that directly concerns another forum member.
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Selections from ~Malcolm St. Clair Revealed: The Man, the Myth and the Mystery [@1622 Harpers]

February 22, 2015, 3:17 pm
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{ Well, technically "He" was an Elf , to begin with, so I am already making corrections. It seems there are many yet to be made...}

The following work draws largely upon long-sealed materials from the heresy trial of Minsc D'Aubrignac [1397] to which the author has been granted access. {~Probably because Duke Sauvignon, Malcolm St. Clair's Great-Great-Grand Nephew, now controls Chatelaan,where His Most-Hated Excellency, The Green Bishop now dwells under an O-So-Courteous domicile arrest~] Chiefly, this new material consists of an actual unedited journal which has never before been available to scholars... As of now, it is considered authentic.

--A brief note for enlightened readers ~In the latter part of the 14th Century of Faerun, Tymora be praised, which is the era in which St. Clair's tale is set, modern concepts of academic life and Universities were still unheard of. Knowledge and Learning, of almost any kind, at that time was a controversial key to powers, some of them Dark-Borne indeed, endowed with a seemingly awesome nimbus. This was the age when certain quite ordinary philosophers and astrologers began asserting that there is an invisible world which exists independently of the creative powers of Deity, the Gods and their respective clergy ~~The very Anti-Nomian Thesis which has led to our present world crisis.
. .Candlekeep, in 1386, was a zealously guarded fortress of the pure truths, dedicated to the Prophet Alaundo, Blessed be His Name. Very few ever gained admittance there unless they could boast of long-years of study and could afford the costs of tuitions. For the ill-favoredweal of Heresy had raised its head and all our hard-won fruits of Certainty were besieged...


* *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** **** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *

--from the Journal

< ~8 Myrtul, Friendly Arms Inn~

. Of course, Jaheira is right. I am certainly in a state of shock, one which her simple healing spells cannot
ease. And perhaps setting down on paper an account of this past week's events will help calm this ongoing explosion in my brain. Most definitely this is not the time to give in to anxiety, let alone despair. I have others to think of besides myself. Imoen, for one, and...well, really, just...we'll leave it at that. Tomorrow will come! And the next day and many days to come.

In time I am hoping to discover some clue that will lead to connecting with my proper relatives, dignified uncles and aunts, gracious cousins completely unknown at present. So, in my mind, this journal is for my Respected Uncle when finally we meet. Greetings to Thee, Kind Sir, and a Flourish!!

. It began, in Candlekeep, like any other day. I had completed my morning schedules and a rigorous set of self-designed exercises with just enough time left to rehearse some arcane mental formulas and affirmations prescribed by Ulraunt ~ I had only begun formal training in the Magical Arts some 6 months earlier ~ when Gorion, Master of Candlekeep, appeared.

This was unusual, as Imoen, my foster-sister and I, normally had little contact with Gorion ~an Initiate Elder Wizard-Sage~ except on Sundays, which included invariably a wonderful half-day set aside for us. Imoen and I were, and had been for almost 20 years, Gorion's wards -though neither of us know how that state of affairs had arisen. Imoen is fully human, so far as we know, while I, for the most part, stem from some branch of the Elven-rood. Sometimes we like to imagine that our unknown parents might have passed each other some day in the Marketplaces of Baldur's Gate, but mostly we just accept that Candlekeep itself has been our family and, as such, a full barrel more than many can boast of. Anyhow...where was I???

Oh, yes! ~Over the past few months, in our Sunday family times, I had vaguely begun to sense a certain cloud gathering, a distancing and mystery gradually arising from some hidden source. Now, it seemed from Gorion's mood and bearing, that disturbance had intensified with an undeniable Force, as if 'twere a sending from some larger Adult or arcane world of which I knew very little, as yet...

. "We are going on a journey, just you and I", Gorion said. "There is a certain perilous situation unfolding around us here which there is no time to explain. Listen closely. We must be on the move ere nightfall. A full moon tonight will serve us well in completing the first stage of this journey before our intentions become widely known."

"Now, take this purse, which must suffice, for no more could I gather without taking others into my perhaps unwarranted conscience. Enough. Use this to purchase what is necessary from Winthrop as if all your young skills might soon be tested. His prices will be fair values but, in truth, I would have better provided for Thee, so be shrewd, choosing ever Timely Substance instead of Counterfeit and Shows."

"But what could possibly harm us here?", I exclaimed, "-this place is a fortress and guarded beyond measure!!", surely there was some large fact I had missed!

"Candlekeep", he acknowledged, "is indeed a formidable obstacle for ne'er-do-wells, but it is not insurmountable. No matter how thick the mesh, at least one mosquito always finds its way through...", to which there was no reply, for who could judge the work better than the foreman and chief of its practice.

"Granted, but, please Father", I implored, "tell me where we will be going??" ~ for 'twould be a burden indeed to prepare all apiece for a Sea-voyage, a Great City, or some Wilderness Retreat??

"Alas, I cannot!", Gorion sighed, stroking his beard. "For I have not truly decided yet. All that is certain is that we will be safer on the move. Perhaps the woods might offer some secluded security, or perhaps the city of Baldur's Gate would offer a cover among its teeming throngs of people. I do not know where we shall end up, but I have a few friends here and there. Hmmm....I will think on this."

"But, a word to the wise in your dealings with Winthrop", he continued, "Comport yourself as if all is as it should be, as if no urgency attended your preparations. Even a few routine errands and duties performed might not be amiss, for surely the sight of thee, enarmored so suddenly and unannounced will be noted by many. But that cannot be helped. Go now, and do not delay o'erlong."

Well, it must be admitted, my first thought was to grab an early lunch, which I proceeded to do, and then I chatted for some time with old Firebead Elvenhair, a regular visitor from Beregost who was staying at the Inn.
Without mentioning directly any developing plans for a prospective journey I quizzed him, perhaps a bit more aggressively than usual, about current events in the greater world beyond the walls of Candlekeep. Just normal curiosity. But Firebead surely knew that something was afoot, for, in parting, he slipped me a sizeable purse of Gold Coins -- more than doubling the funds I had to work with, which very much eased my mind. The kindly old codger raised a finger to his lips forestalling further discussion.

And so, a few minutes later, I emerged from Candlekeep Inn clad as an armored warrior: Splint Mail, Long Sword, Helmet, Large Shield, Compound Long Bow and a generous supply of arrows, plus an extra hauberk of Studded Leather more suited to Stealthy pursuits [Hunting, for example] and, mayhap some few of those skills more proper to common thieves, such as pickpocketing. I hasten to add, respected Uncle, that such skills arose primarily as a sportive expression - in which Imoen was equally involved and Winthrop himself our chief tutor ~ and perhaps also as a veiled complaint, unacknowledged even by myself, against the jealously guarded sequestration of Candlekeep. Really, all that for a big pile of....don't get me started!!

Alas, Well-a-day!! We were hardly more than children. I, myself, really knew so little, -gleanings from Gorion's personal library, vague impressions of certain factions, Zhentarim, Harpers, Red Wizards ~ and, of course, his wonderful illumined map of this part of Faerun, the Sword Coast, though it is but a small thing to know that some place like Athkatla or Waterdeep exists, having seen it on a map. I warrant it to be quite another to have counted all those miles in one's journeying as mayhap shall come to pass ere our meeting, Dear Uncle.

And one thing more, I had memorized the Mage Spell: Grease, for I deemed Lord Gorion well able to wield a goodly stock of offensive spells ~ but perhaps this small effect controlling the ground of battle might achieve the unlikely status of actually being useful. The only other choice I had considered was Sleep, unlikely to be useful in any mischance that might pose a substantial nuisance for the Master of Candlekeep...

I followed Gorion's advice and made a leisurely circuit of the grounds doing odds and ends, some bolts for Fuller- whereupon he was so gratified that he passed on to me an heirloom dagger since he had little use for such an item anymore. Nice!! After the way he had abused me all these years I considered it....well-deserved!! Little things, just odds and ends, one of which was retrieving Scroll for the Level 1 Spell: Identify for Firebead from Tethtoril. Within minutes though, something happened which completely drove that fact from my mind.

I had stopped to make a donation at Oghma's Temple, then ran a couple of errands for Dreppin and Phlydia. Whereupon I thought to find Brother Godfrey in the Priest's Quarters for with him, at least, I wished to exchange a proper farewell, knowing him to be much devoted to silence.

But he was not there. Instead, I found a common thug, who must have been drugged or under some wizard's geas, for he boastfully attacked me with murderous intent, armed with nought but a dagger!! And, though I be but a Novice, paid the price in full... Swiftly I checked his body, mostly avoiding the blood, but found nothing noteworthy. Truly, a Footpad in Candlekeep, unthinkable!! And apparently there had been no trading caravan calling at the Fortress Gate for well more than a week. But wait, I remember now, his speech was not that of a lowlife brigand, not at all!! Something about "exposition" not being his "forte"!?? ~More like an actor of some kind.

Anyhow, my first thought was to go immediately to Gorion as any number of delays would certainly arise from this mischance. A man, however much a fool, was dead!! 5 minutes later Gorion and I were gone. Beyond the Gate.

And I was speechless. Trembling. There had hardly been time to wash my hands. And still I smelled the blood...








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Baldur's Gate NPC name's explained

February 22, 2015, 1:05 am
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Alright, first i must say that this stuff I am about to tell you could be not true... I never read these anywhere so it is more of a strong hunch I have based on what I know about the characters and mythology, make of it what you will.

Aerie - Name is connected with the Greek Goddess of Strife named Eris and is usually depicted with feathered wings and bird feet. I think Aerie has gone through her share of strife..

Viconia - This one might seem a stretch but bear with me. Name is connected to Virgo (Viconia, Virgonia, Virgo), Virgo is the star constellation that gets its name from the goddess Astrae the star maiden, who is associated with innocence and purity, the complete opposite of Viconia which is the irony of the name influence i would guess, also Astrae is deeply tied to Justice and Viconia is deeply tied to revenge..

Jaheira - Name is connected with the Greek Goddess Hera, the queen and mother of many gods. This might be a reason why Jaheira is so bossy and well mother-like all the time..

Haer'Dalis - So Fleur de Lis means flower of the lily in french, Haer means nothing, but Hier means last or yesterday depending on the context its used in. So Haer'Dalis means Last of the Lily.. Of note is that the Fleur de Lis is also known as Flower of Light. So him being a member of the Doomguard, a faction that believe that the decay and entropy of everything was not only inevitable but a good thing, and what was "supposed" to happen, makes this a very interesting choice of name. Potentially his name means Last of the Light, makes more sense to me than last of the lily but he is a bit flowery..

now for a few more obscure ones

Minsc - This one seems so obvious i just hate to point it out but here we go. Minsc is connected to the word Misc, the short form of miscellanious which is just another way of saying different. Minsc is different? Only to some i guess..

Imoen - Name is connected to the words " I'm owing". Which is something she must do alot of since shes good natured and a thief. She probably has a list..

Anomen - Name is connected to the words " An omen". An omen are phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change. For a spiritual guy that worships a dead god (Helm is dead), maybe him having this name is a kind of way of him being arrogant enough to think that his worship will bring Helm back to life?

Cernd - Name is connected to the word " concerned, which means worried, troubled or anxious. Since when you first meet him he was imprisoned for investigating a disturbance at a druid grove, that sounds concerned to me..

Edwin Odesseiron - His last name Odesseiron is connected with the words " Odds I run", or to put it in a more familiar order " I run the odds". Being a man who is constantly trying to manipulate others to get what he needs and talking to himself constantly to remind himself why he puts up with the fools, this name would seem to fit nicely..

Shar-Teel - Name is connected to sharp steel. Yup she does like it sharp..

Dorn - Name is connected to Thorn. He is a prickly sort I would say..

Solaufein - Alright he's not an NPC and the list would be massive if I started getting into all of the many names and their meanings so i won't, but I will make an exception for this drow since he was an important part of the story. Name is connected to Cellophane which is just a fancy way of saying clear plastic wrap. Compared to the other drow he becomes pretty honest about his state of affairs, no spoilers if you don't know about him but he is as transparent as drow come in terms of what kind of person he really is.

List is getting pretty long and I could probably find a bunch more but I will just finish up with a juicy one.

Sarevok Anchev - Alright so this one might seem like a big stretch as well, but I try not to waste your time with guessing and always back it up with reasons. The name Sarevok is connected to the words "scare and evoke" basically to create fear.. He wouldn't do that would he? The name Anchev is connected to the words "anchor and evil" basically to make evil take root or take hold.. He did sort of try and do that didn't he? Just a little? Maybe its just me..

That's all for today. I hope you found it insightful a little bit.

Not really sure why I felt the need to share any of this, I guess @Ravenslight efforts at luring me out of the shadows have succeeded a tiny bit... only a tiny bit.
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