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Let's discuss the Steam Achievements

February 9, 2016, 3:35 am
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As mentioned in the latest Beamblog entry, Beamdog are in the process of testing the Steam achievement system. I've thought it would be a good thing to discuss this system as it's now, so that we could give them our feedback.

BGEE has currently only 5 achievements:

Loremaster - Have a Lore skill of 100 or more.
Untouchable - Have an Armor Class of -15 or lower.
Godlike
Dark Places
Dragon Slayer

https://steamcommunity.com/stats/228280/achievements/

BG2EE has a lot more:

[spoiler=93 achievements]

The Book of Kaza
Track down the Book of Kaza for Korgan.

Family Matters
Help Keldorn settle matters with his family.

Homecoming
Help Jan's loved ones.

Restored
Find a way to break Jaheira's curse.

Sisters
Help Mazzy Fentan's sister.

Absolute Power
Help Nalia prove the corruption within the Roenall family.

Spherical Stronghold
Acquire the Planar Sphere.

I'll Keep This
Acquire de Arnise Keep.

Peace At Last

Friends Like These

Planehopper
Rescue Haer'Dalis from a grim fate.

The Nether Scroll
Help Edwin track down the Nether Scroll.

Twisted Victory

A Battle for the Ages
Defeat Kangaxx the demilich.

Freedom
Free the mage, Vithal, in the Underdark.

No Child Left Behind
Find and return Garren Windspear's missing child.

Double Cross

Triple Cross

Reunited
Reunite Cernd with his estranged family.

I Dub Thee
See Anomen join the Order of the Most Radiant Heart.

To the Limit

Don't Mind Us

Guild Times
Acquire the thieves' guild.

Divine Domain
Acquire a chamber in your temple.

Black Dragon Slayer

Shadow Dragon Slayer

Red Dragon Slayer

Time to Slay

Silver Dragon Slayer

Green Dragon Saviour

Epic Priest
Reach level 30 with a cleric, druid or shaman.

Epic Warrior
Reach level 30 with a fighter, ranger, paladin, monk or barbarian.

Epic Rogue
Reach level 30 with a thief or bard.

Epic Mage
Reach level 30 with a mage or sorcerer.

In Balduran's Image
Don the sword, shield, helm, and plate of Balduran.

Ancient Power
Purchase the Robe of Vecna.

The Play's the Thing
Obtain the deed to the theater.

Home Grove
Speak to the Spirit of the Grove.

Cabin In the Woods
Acquire your own cabin.

Orderly Surroundings
Acquire a chamber within the paladin order.

Welcome, Brother

A Sister's Sacrifice

Legendary Relic
Construct Crom Faeyr.

The Holy Sword
Recover Carsomyr, the Holy Avenger.

Fury of the Heavens
Acquire the Celestial Fury blade.

Light in Darkness
Find the source of evil in the temple ruins outside the Umar Hills.

Fang and Claw
Put a stop to the strange animal attacks at Trademeet.

A Daring Escape

Worst Day Ever
Have Disease, Fatigue, and Poison active at the same time.

Best Day Ever
Have Bless, Chant, and Luck active at the same time.

Oathbreaker
Become a Fallen Paladin or a Fallen Ranger.

Picking Sides
Raised enough gold to hire assistance.

Across the Sea

To Hell and Back

Staked

Return to the Surface

Inmates Running the Asylum

Murder Incarnate
Kill 1000 creatures.

Villain
Acquire Despised Reputation.

Flying Solo
Complete the game solo.

Grandmaster
Become a Grandmaster.

Loremaster
Have a Lore skill of 100 or more.

Untouchable
Have an Armor Class of -15 or lower.

Lord of Murder
Complete the game on Legacy of Bhaal difficulty.

Friend of Volo
Complete the game on Story Mode difficulty.

Hero
Acquire Heroic Reputation.

Juggernaut
Reach 150 hit points.

Sacrifices Must Be Made
Finish the game with a full party of dead allies.

Leave No Friend Behind
Finish the game without any party members dying.

Shadow Ally

Friend of Darkness

Wand Collector
Disarm the traps in the lower level of the wizard's dungeon.

The Fifth Challenge

The Fourth Challenge

The Third Challenge

The Great Detective
Solve the Skinner Murders.

Best Friends
Return Wellyn's missing bear.

Trade Must Flow
Break the trade monopoly in Trademeet.

Close the Eye
Destroy the Cult of the Unseeing Eye.

Heart of the Abyss
Discover the secrets of the Planar Sphere.

New Ownership
Put Hendak in charge of the Copper Coronet.

The Second Challenge

The First Challenge

Felling the Giant

Hell's Pocket

Took a Chance

Unknown Risks

Dragon's Demise

The Seven Statues

Heavy Is the Head

Sieze the Throne

Solar Supremacy

Godlike
Increase an attribute score to 25.

[/spoiler]

http://steamcommunity.com/stats/257350/achievements/

I think that the BG games didn't need any achievements, but since they're already worked on, there's no harm in getting them.

My view is that there're too many achievements. 93 is too much. I see a lot of quest achievements and personally think that the majority of them are not needed. Maybe only the achievements about the main quest should stay, and about rare (more hidden) quests, like the Twisted Rune.

I like achievements that don't include any quests: Finish the game without any party members dying, Complete the game solo, Complete the game on Legacy of Bhaal difficulty.

The achievement I would like to be added a lot is Finish the game without the main character dying. BG has a rich history of no-reload runs and this achievement will really be of a help to us, no-reloaders.

Also, it's unclear how the "Flying Solo" achievement could be transferred to BGEE, since Imoen joins the party automatically.

I don't have a steam version of the game, but if I did, after the achievemens are added, I would be trying to get all of them, which would mean new and new runs through the game (and this is a good thing).

P.S. The visuals of the achievements are superb. The icons look nice.
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The Black Hound as a possible expansion for either BG2EE or IWD2EE?

December 13, 2015, 8:52 am
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As we all know Beamdog was allowed to create a new expansion for BGEE, The Siege of Dragonspear. Does this mean that they can create expansions for the other enhanced editions as well? Whatever the case it got me thinking about the possibility to recreate Baldurs Gate 3: The Black Hound as an expansion for either BG2EE or as an expansion for IWD2EE if that's ever released.

The reason I say as an expansion for Icewind Dale 2EE are the following excerpts from The Black Hounds Wikipedia page:

"The game would not have been a sequel to Baldur's Gate II in terms of story but rather gameplay, however, it did continue part of story of Icewind Dale II through joinable NPC's, specifically Maralie Fiddlebender, who would have been an adult in the story. There was a hound featured in the storybook of Icewind Dale II of which Maralie narrated, according to the developers, the game would have revolved around this hound."

and:

"None of the characters from the previous Baldur's Gate games would have returned, the cast would have been completely original as well as the story, although characters from the Icewind Dale series would have returned."

also:

"The game was announced in 2002 and was said to use the D&D 3rd Edition ruleset."

Since Icewind Dale 2 makes use of the 3rd edition ruleset The Black Hound would be more suitable as an expansion to IW2EE than BG2EE. But that depends on if IWD2EE is ever released or not.

Do you think it would be possible to recreate The Black Hound and release it as an expansion to one Beamdogs many enhanced editions? Maybe hire MCA to lead the project since he is free now. He did comment on the script fo Siege of Dragonspear and he have also said that he would gladly help out with the enhanced edition of Planescape Torment if that's ever released.


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David Gaider is Back!

February 10, 2016, 9:41 pm
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Present your fully drafted kit ideas here

February 10, 2016, 10:40 pm
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I wonder how many other players draft ideas for new kits like I do. If you do, post them here for others to see and maybe even have an interested modder make them a reality. They can be either ideas taken from PnP or wild creations of your own imagination. They don't have to be balanced, but feel free to comment on ideas for balancing them! Here are my drafts that I have lying around.

Dragon Fist (monk) - a glass cannon, probably the most imbalanced

[spoiler]DRAGON FIST: There is a sect of spiritual warriors said to have the blood of ancient dragonkin running through their veins. These warriors harness the power of their dragon blood to unleash powerful flames from their hands and feet in the same ways monks wield ki. The chaotic instincts and imbalance in the dragon fist's blood often cause practitioners to be destructive and violent in nature, but not necessarily malevolent like their draconic ancestors.

Advantages:
- +1 bonus to Strength.
- +2 bonus to AC.
- +4 bonus to hit and damage rolls against dragons.
- May use the Dragon's Rage ability once per day. Gains one use at level 1 and an additional use every 6 levels thereafter.

DRAGON'S RAGE: The enraged state lasts for 1 turn. While enraged, the Dragon Fist gains a bonus of +2 to his damage rolls as well as +2 to Strength but a -2 penalty to attack rolls and Armor Class, and becomes immune to charm, confusion, fear, feeblemind, hold, imprisonment, level drain, maze, stun and sleep. The Dragon Fist also gains 15 temporary Hit Points which are taken away at the end of his berserk spree, possibly knocking him unconscious. However, upon activation the Dragon Fist has a 50% chance of going losing control for 4 rounds, attacking the closest target in range.

- 5th level: Each successful attack lowers the target's resistance to fire by 2% for 3 rounds. This can reduce fire resistance to below zero.
- 7th level: Chance of losing control with Dragon's Rage lowered to 40%.
- 9th level: May use Breath Weapon once per day.

BREATH WEAPON: The Dragon Fist breathes a gout of flame up to 30 ft. long, inflicting 3d8 points of fire damage on all creatures caught within the 140-degree cone.

- 11th level: Gains 10% resistance to slashing, piercing and missile damage. An additional 5% is gained at levels 16 and 21.
- 12th level: Breath Weapon damage increases to 4d8.
- 13th level: Chance of losing control with Dragon's Rage lowered to 30%.
- 14th level: Gains 2% Fire Resistance per level (starting at 28% at 14th level)
- 15th level: Breath Weapon damage increases to 5d8.
- 16th level: May use Flame Blast ability twice per day.

FLAME BLAST: The Dragon Fist launches a ball of fire at the target which explodes dealing 3d6 fire damage to everyone around the target within a 15-ft radius. All targets struck must make a save vs. breath weapons or be stunned for 1 round.

- 18th level: Breath Weapon damage increases to 6d8.
- 19th level: Chance of losing control with Dragon's Rage lowered to 20%.
- 21st level: Breath Weapon damage increases to 7d8.
- 21st level: May use Hellfire Blow ability once per day. An extra use is gained at 35th level.

HELLFIRE BLOW: The next successful attack deals 10d6 fire damage in a 30-ft radius and knocks all targets unconscious while sending them flying for 1 round. Those who roll a successful save vs. breath weapons take half damage and are not knocked unconscious or sent flying.

- 24th level: Breath Weapon damage increases to 8d8.
- 25th level: Chance of losing control with Dragon's Rage lowered to 10%.
- 31st level: Chance of losing control with Dragon's Rage removed.

Disadvantages:
- Alignment restricted to chaotic.
- May not find traps or use stealth.
- Does not gain standard monk armor class bonus.
- Does not gain magic resistance per level.
- May not use the Lay on Hands ability.
- May not use the Stunning Blow ability.
- May not use the Quivering Palm ability.[/spoiler]

Spellthief (bard) - a mage/thief like class

[spoiler]SPELLTHIEF: Spellthieves use skill and arcane magic to drain the abilities of their opponents and turn their foes' own powers against them. Spellthieves love the challenges that adventure brings, and they relish finding unique and inventive ways to use their abilities. Because they have such a wide variety of abilities, spellthieves can adapt themselves to overcome nearly any challenge, but they have neither the overpowering arcane might of wizards nor the brute force of fighters. Spellthieves never cast two spells when one will do, and they excel at using misdirection and deception to overcome seemingly stronger opponents.

Advantages:

- +1 bonus to save vs. spell every 5 levels.
- Has a unique bard song.

Level 1: Recalls a random spell up to level 3 (50% chance of success)
Level 11: Recalls a random spell up to level 5 (50% chance of success) and one up to level 3 (100% chance of success)
Level 21: Recalls a random spell up to level 8 (50% chance of success and one up to level 5 (100% chance of success)

- May use the Steal Magic ability once per day per 10 levels.

STEAL MAGIC: For 2 rounds, the spellthief's attacks steal a spell from their opponent and restores one of their own up to any level equal to half of the spellthief's levels rounded down (e.g. level 12 can steal up to level 6 spells)

- Level 6: Backstab multiplier of x2.
- Level 9: May use the Steal Resistance ability once per day per 10 levels.

STEAL RESISTANCE: For 2 rounds, the spellthief's attacks steal a cumulative 5% of the opponent's magic resistance for 5 rounds.

- Level 10: Gains 5% magic resistance. An additional 5% is gained at levels 25 and 40.
- Level 18: Backstab multiplier of x3.
- Level 30: Backstab multiplier of x4.

Disadvantages:

- Two less spell slots per level.
- Alignment restricted to non-lawful.
- May only use weapons available to thieves.[/spoiler]

Mystic Fire (paladin) - a semi-paladin/mage

[spoiler]MYSTIC FIRE: Knights of the Mystic Fire are paladins dedicated to the church of Mystra, goddess of magic. Aside from traditional virtues of paladinhood, Mystic Fire Knights devote part of their lives in the discovery and study of ancient magic.

Advantages:
- Able to use wands and scrolls.
- +1 bonus to save vs. spells.
- +2 bonus to lore per level.
- At level 9 onward, gains two spell slots per spell level.
- May cast the following spells as priest spells:

Level 1: Magic Missile, Chromatic Orb, Identify, Shield
Level 2: Mirror Image, Web, Melf's Acid Arrow, Strength
Level 3: Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Slow, Remove Magic
Level 4: Minor Sequencer, Fire Shield (Red), Secret Word, Stoneskin

- 10th level: +1 bonus to save vs. spells.
- 13th level: May cast 'Shatter Spell' once per day.

SHATTER SPELL: Knights of the Mystic Fire are able to smite spellcasters and disrupt their defensive spells as well as their ability to cast magic. For the next 2 rounds, attacks made by the Mystic Fire dispel combat protections and cause spell disruption for one round if the target fails a save vs. spell.

- 19th level: Gains an extra use of Shatter Spell.
- 20th level: +1 bonus to save vs. spells.
- 25th level: Gains an extra use of Shatter Spell.
- 30th level: +1 bonus to save vs. spells.

Disadvantages:

- -1 penalty to Strength and Constitution.
- May not use the following High Level Abilities: Whirlwind Attack, Greater Whirlwind Attack, Deathblow, Greater Deathblow, Hardiness, Summon Deva
- May not use Protection From Evil.
- May not Turn Undead.
- May not use Lay on Hands.

HLAs:

Arcane Knowledge
An experienced Mystic Fire Knight develops more knowledge of arcane spells closer to that of an actual wizard. The Mystic Fire Knight gains -1 to spell casting time permanently and learns Spell Immunity, Contingency, Globe of Invulnerability and Mordenkainen's Sword as fourth level priest spells.

Extra 1st-4th level spells
Choosing this ability allows the mystic fire to cast one additional Level 1st-4th level spell.[/spoiler]

Loremaster (bard) - a mage-like bard

[spoiler]LOREMASTER: (No background yet.)

Advantages:

+2 spell slots per level
Bard Song 'Recital':
Level 1: +1 INT, +20 Lore
Level 11: +2 INT, +25 Lore, immunity to confusion
Level 21: +3 INT, +30 Lore, immunity to mind-affecting spells

May use 'Empower Spell' starting at level 5.

EMPOWER SPELL: For the next round, the loremaster's spells have no cast time and are cast at 1.5x his spell level.

Disadvantages:
May only be proficient in quarterstaffs, slings, clubs, crossbows and darts
THAC0 progresses as that of a mage (or just -1 THAC0 per x level, haven't decided)
May not take the following HLAs: Use Any Item, Magic Flute, Set Exploding Trap, Set Spike Trap, Set Time Trap, Enhanced Bard Song.

Unique HLAs:

Arcane Fountain: The loremaster may use his knowledge of magic to cast any arcane spell of his choice. However, there is a 20% chance this spell will fail. The loremaster must take a round to channel, then cast the spell (with whatever casting time the spell has)

Extra 6,7,8 Spell Slots: Same as Mage.[/spoiler]
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Future potential projects: IWD2:EE, PS:T:EE & BG3 - your opinion

October 3, 2014, 8:19 am
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i post this thread in response to trent oster's interview http://www.rpgamer.com/games/icewind/icewindee/icewindeeint.html - pls read it first, there the problematic nature of making IWD2:EE and PS:T:EE is brought up

In my opinion Beamdog should make all three games in the following order:
1. develop the 'Infinity Plus Engine, 3E' for IWD2:EE and release it first
2. completely remake PS:T in this new engine (yes, with 3E rules)
3. make BG3 in the same 3E engine

My reasoning for the above:
1. you'll have to do step 1 if you ever want to get IWD2:EE out >>> no other way around it
2. 2E in Torment doesn't work: the ruleset is unnecessarily complicated since the tactical aspect of the game is very straightforward >>> 3E is more straightforward and would suit the game much better (so the engine developed for IWDII:EE should be used)
3. 3E is better than 2E overall and interesting features presented in IWD2 are unused there and in IE games in general >>> making BG3 in 3E instead of 2.5E would make it a better and fresher game

THE ACTUAL POLL QUESTION: What should be the general course of further development and should Beamdog use (the hypothetical) 'Infinity Plus Engine, 3E' in any subsequent projects? (the poll options suggest the answer to this as well)
Simple english - what should beamdog make in the future?

***however*** the questions of whether and how they should make IWDII:EE and the order in which the games should be made/released is not included, because it is a less contentious of an issue i suppose.
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The new official portraits from The Familiar Magazine

February 11, 2016, 3:23 pm
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You may have read around here that the first issue of Beamdog's digital magazine brings us two new official portraits by artist Thea Kent.

image

They're gorgeous and... they have to be converted to BMP because when you download them from the app they're PNG image files.

So I did that for you. Enjoy. The BMP portraits are attached to this post.

P.S.: hope I'm not breaking any rules. I assume it's okay to share them here since they're free and everything.
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Bad to worse. [minor, old, spoilers]

February 11, 2016, 1:52 pm
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Ever have one of those days where it all goes wrong?

In my limited reload run through BG2, CHARNAME M/T and his noble allies, Jaheira, Anomen, Mazzy, Jan and Valygar were all bravely adventuring through the Druid Grove.

It was all going swimmingly, everyone's on decent health, starting to clear out the troll mound when.... critical cascade failure. Two giant trolls appear, get joined by two more from the fog of war, and all decide to focus fire Mazzy to death in two rounds flat, not even one of them failing their save against CHARNAME's Chaos.

As soon as she fell, they turned and took down Valygar in another few rounds, then Anomen, despite him managing to blind half of them with his last holy smite. A heavily injured Jan managed to take one down with his wand of fire just before dying himself, before Jaheira managed to survive long enough tanking three at once for CHARNAME to finish putting up fresh stoneskins, mirror images and fire shield before taking down all three trolls at once like a sexy elven god of war.

Annoying, but not the end of the world. Naturally Jaheira doesn't have harper's call memorised, but it's pretty late, so after picking off the last troll in the troll den, the pair head outside to take a nap, dropping some snares just in case of an ambush before resting...

Romance event. Jaheira caught by five bandits, and CHARNAME didn't have any stone skins left active after all that troll slaying, so instant 50% damage and everyone is clustered in the cramped quarters of the opening of the troll den.

Three perfectly aimed skull traps and some melee later, and a heavily wounded CHARNAME and Jaheira emerge victorious! Phew! That was tough, but now we can finally raise-

And then Meronia shows up.

"Hey, Jaheira! Come to a Harper meeting!"
"Okay! It's not like I had anything else to do today! Teehee!"

So now CHARNAME has been left completely alone in the middle of a hostile area, has used a bunch of his best damage spells for the day, and is surrounded by mounds of loot for his party that he can't possibly carry.

CHARNAME is... going to be romancing Aerie this run.


So what are some nightmare situations you've had in the past?
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Concept art? Art assets? Stuff?

August 31, 2014, 10:31 pm
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So as an artist myself, I really love seeing concept art, story boards, character designs and stuff like this.
I wonder if there is any stuff like this both the devs and the users have available and would feel like sharing here.

Also, I was wondering if the devs would be willing to put together some sort of an "homepage asset pack" based on BG and IWD. I know that some developers do that. It's usually transparent logos and stuff like that people can use for making fanpages and blogs. Wallpapers and stuff would be also nice.

Give me some sugar here ;)
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What is Your Favorite Piece of Music from the BG Trilogy?

February 12, 2016, 5:09 pm
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The Baldur's Gate soundtracks are amazing, aren't they?

My favorite piece of music from BG1 is "Safe in Beregost." It has a calming, yet slightly tragic feel to it. As if you're OK while you are there, but you're going to have to leave soon and face a world full of evil and ruthlessness.

My favorite piece from BG2 is "Trademeet." Just a beautifully composed piece of music. Short and sweet, but long enough to make you feel like you are in a place of affluence and beauty.

My favorite piece from ToB is "Bhaalspawn Battle." Epic music that fits the epic battles you fight.

What are some of your favorites? :)
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Baldur's Gate convention

February 13, 2016, 12:21 am
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I heard about a Zelda convention (in Scotland I guess), so I thought "Hey, where is my Baldur's Gate convention?!". Does one exist already and if not, why has nobody done anything about one the biggest injustices (certainly bigger than Irenicus stealing your soul or Sarevok trying to annihilate a few people) in the human (or maybe even elven) history?
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Killing Kangaxx with Flasher Master Bruiser Mates

December 25, 2014, 7:35 pm
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I have just realized that it is possible to beat Kangaxx without using any scrolls or spell protections, at low levels, just by using a weird trick with Jan's Flasher Master Bruiser Mates, the peculiar little skulls that people barely ever use, because of their pitiful damage and low enchantment level. I refer specifically to Kangaxx's demilich form, but the flashers should be just as capable of defeating his lich form.

First, some statistics. The flashers do 1d2+1 damage. They have a stun on hit effect that lasts for 12 seconds, with a save at -1 to avoid the stun. The stun effect does not bypass magic resistance, but has a spell level of zero, meaning it bypasses all spell level immunities. Kangaxx is immune to spell levels 1 to 9, but is not immune to stun. But the flashers have an enchantment level of 1, and Kangaxx can only by harmed by weapons with an enchantment of +4 or more. Jan has 1 base APR, or 2 if he uses the Light Crossbow of Speed. Under normal circumstances, Jan cannot even hit Kangaxx in his demilich form with his flashers.

However, there are two tricks that together allow Jan to hit Kangaxx with his flashers and stunlock him with a high chance of success. I have tested this and it works as intended, though I have yet to beat him with it. But if we have the right setup, it should be possible to defeat Kangaxx using an approach based on flashers.

The recipe is thus:
-Jan and a bunch of flashers (one stack of 20 should be sufficient)
-Firetooth +4 (the crossbow, not the dagger)
-One casting of Improved Haste
-One casting of Polymorph Self
-One casting of Shocking Grasp
-The War Hammer +1, +4 vs Giantkin, and somebody to use it (no pips required)
-The Flame Tongue, and somebody to use it (no pips required)
-And, of course, a way to beat Kangaxx's lich form, if the flasher method does not work.

All this can be easily obtained right out of the first dungeon.

Jan casts Polymorph Self, shapeshifts into a spider, and casts Shocking Grasp via a sequencer or a scroll. He makes on attack, expending the Shocking Grasp attack and allowing him to use normal weapons. He equips Firetooth and his flashers. We cast Improved Haste on him. He now has 8 APR with the flashers. Firetooth is there for the THAC0 bonus, but any other crossbow would work fine as well.
We have one person with bad AC stand next to Kangaxx. Going unarmored or wearing Missile Attraction +2 will work fine.
When Kangaxx comes out in his demilich form, he will spend his first round using the Demilich Wail, which we can survive without spell protections if we make our save. After that, he will start casting Imprisonment, and the only way to avoid it is to use spell protections or a scroll of Protection from Magic or Protection from Undead. In order to survive after the first round, we must kill or disable Kangaxx within about six seconds.

Normally, we can't hit Kangaxx with the flashers. But if we target our high-AC character with the flashers, the flashers will land a hit, explode, and affect Kangaxx as an area effect. Note that the flashers use a unique projectile that, unlike a normal Skull Trap, will not affect the party. We are basically attacking our own party so Kangaxx will be hit indirectly, while our own party will be safe from the flashers.

Kangaxx has a save vs. spell of 4. With the flashers' save penalty of -1, he should have a 75% or 80% chance of avoiding it. Jan will hit our target character 8 times in that first round unless he rolls a critical miss, which means Kangaxx's chance of getting stunned is equal to 1-0.75^8 or 1-0.80^8, which is about an 80% to 90% chance of stunning him. If we fail to stun him, he imprisons us. If we succeed, we can then try to keep him in stun lock by continuing to fire flashers after him, while the rest of the party attacks with the War Hammer +1, +4 vs. Giantkin and the Flame Tongue, or other +4 or +5 weapons if we have them. We hit automatically, so even at 1 base APR, we could take him down within 5 rounds. Kangaxx's chances of escaping stunlock within that time are very low.

Testing found that Kangaxx could in fact be stunned by the flashers, though he only took 1 or 2 damage from the hits, as Firetooth's fire damage bonus has a spell level of 6, which Kangaxx is immune to. I have not used this trick to beat him yet, but he can be stunned with flashers if we attack indirectly.

This means Kangaxx can be beaten at low levels without the defenses we would normally require. Jan and his flashers have tremendous potential if we turn him into a spider, and there's actually a good reason to wear Missile Attraction +2.

Any thoughts?
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The battle of modders - Just an idea.

February 13, 2016, 2:01 am
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I don't know if this is the best place for this discussion, eventually it can be moved to an other board.

I am not a modder, and I think that they are somehow the best players of this games. Because they have the deepest knowledge of them, they see the battles not at the level of what the toons do on the screen, but at the level of why they do it. At a script or code level. No surprise for me that some of them play very seldom and find modding the game more interesting than playing it, at the level they see the game is much more challenging, who can write scripts to have enemies fighting in an effective way is also much more effective fighting scripted enemies.
This part of the Solaufein Mod readme is enlighting about:

"Q: Undead Solaufein keeps ending my life. Why isn't Solaufein this powerful
when he's on my side?

A: He is this powerful on your side. Actually, he's more powerful on your
side (if you know how to use him)."

And I know that some modder communities organize modding contexts where each modder can compete with his mod based on a certain theme.
I had an idea of a different kind of context, the battle of modders.
The rules are quite simple, an empty area is chosen and a party composition is decided. Then a modder has to script his party as an enemy group, the other modder write custom scripts for his toons, the parties are identical.
And the number of code lines for both the modders is also identical.
With AI activated the "player" modder's party is teleported to the area, or enter it in another way, and the "game" modder's party wait there scripted to be hostile. Then no more player's intervention, only AI against AI, the party with a better one wins.
Each modder meet each other one and in the end the one who has the largest number of victories wins the context.
I suppose that one of the members of the "game" party has to be regarded as a charname, if he die is game over, other way that party would be at advantage. And maybe some other rules can be set, like not using reallyforcespell, you modders know how to do it, I can just guess about it.

If you modders are interested it can be an interesting way to find a new challenge in a game that you know so well.
And I see also some collateral benefits, as a lot of material for improving the game AI would be produced and shared. And tested is an unusual way, AI against AI.
If the battles are recorded it can also be very interesting for regular players to see them on You Tube, a lot of IE material is there, but that would be something completely new and different from the many let's play that now we find.

I just had the idea, that imho is enough interesting to be shared, now is up to you decide if that kind of new challenge appeal you or not.
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BGEE & BG2EE no reloads solo run

January 16, 2016, 8:57 am
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One character, to go from Candlekeep to the end of TOB. What are you making? How do you outfit this character?
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Dan Tudge interview in Familiar Magazine (or: Oh, This Crap Again)

February 13, 2016, 4:09 am
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For those who haven't read it yet: the first issue of Familiar Magazine has an interview with Dan Tudge, director of Sword Coast Legends.

And I took emm-effing issue.

If there's one rhetorical trend I am well and truly sick of in the game industry, it's when developers foist the blame for poor reception onto players, as if the only reason their product has mixed reviews is because the audience has somehow "misunderstood".

Here's a gem when Tudge is asked about the lukewarm response to SCL: "I think we've been very polarizing. One reason is that we didn't do a literal translation of the D&D rules, we did an adaptation."

Really, Dan? You did an adaptation? You mean like every other D&D video game that has ever been or will ever be released? That's the problem people are having? You sure? That's what everyone's been complaining about?

The disingenuous part here is that if you really want to know why SCL isn't so much the new Baldur's Gate as it is the new Daggerdale, all you have to do is read those mixed reviews. Because they'll tell you, in full detail. Tudge's problem isn't that the players don't "get it" - it's that they do, and they're not impressed.

The moral of the story - and yes, I'm looking at you, Beamdog, because you gave space for that BS on your platform - is that if you make questionable design decisions, or take shortcuts, or get your community gassed up for features your game doesn't actually contain, don't think you can fool anyone afterwards by saying it's the audience's fault for missing the point. They already paid their dues, and they don't owe you anything.

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The Ultimate Temptation Test: My diabolical idea for a Carsomyr/Pale Justice type weapon

February 13, 2016, 10:20 am
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Imagine the most powerful weapon in the entire game. A sword that can cut through evil like nothing else on Faerun. A true weapon of justice.

Such a majestic holy armament would require a huge quest to attain it. You would have to accomplish great deeds and pass many tests.

But then, at the end, you are required to finish one last trial: do something heinously evil. A thing that keeps children up at night. You have to weigh the benefits you can do with such a powerful weapon with the sheer depravity of the act you have to perform.

But here is the catch: unknown to the player, the act is so despicable and so unholy that it would cause any paladin to fall immediately upon its completion, rendering them unable to wield this weapon that is reserved solely for the most honorable among us. It will still sell for a ton with the right buyer, but nobody who could ever obtain such an item of great power would ever be able to use it.

It is the ultimate test for a paladin: they must sacrifice great power, one of the biggest temptations for any adventurer with the goal of doing good and improving their world, in order to maintain their honor. If you can resist then you are what a paladin is meant to be: a disciplined agent of righteousness. But only if you cast Excalibur back into the lake.

WWKD? (What would Keldorn do?)
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Adratha's Remains.

February 14, 2016, 2:54 am
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So I'm playing with a bunch of mods and one of them adds Adratha's Remains as an item. I have no clue what to do with them, but feel like there's some reward related to them. Does anyone know how to utilise them?
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The Nightmare Mode Thread

February 7, 2015, 12:16 pm
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Post your Nightmare Mode experiences here, from challenges to fun moments.

Here's me killing Niz, the Black Dragon in Suldanessellar.

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Party
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FMT
Berserker 7/Cleric
Kensai 9/Mage
Inquisitor
Assassin 9/Fighter
Sorcerer

Apparantly Nightmare mode gives monsters 3 * Normal HP +80, so he should have 680 HP. I managed to deal 686, so that's pretty accurate. The reason I used such cautious tactics was to ensure easy tallying of damage.
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Baldur's Gate & Icewind Dale Jeopardy! (May contain spoilers!)

May 23, 2014, 4:01 am
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Dear Ladies and Gentlehamsters,

welcome to the Reverse Question Thread, or
"Baldur's Gate Jeopardy" if you like.

In this thread I want users to provide answers.
But without any questions asked beforehand.

Instead it works the other way around.
You present answers and the others must find
appropriate questions that fit your given answer.

Example: Answer: "Boo"
Possible Questions: "Who's the cutest miniature space giant hamster?"
"What's the name of Minsc's animal companion?"
"What is Oob spelled backwards?"

Please post only one new answer at a time.
However you may post several questions to all answers given so far in this thread.
Answers and questions have to be Baldur's Gate related.

I'll start first:
Answer: "Plug tails"

Now it's your turn to think of questions that fit that answer or to provide
a new answer.

Have fun!

for clarification: You can provide questions to old, given answers as many as you like.
The rule above just says that you must not provide more than one new answer at a time.

for example: You do not always have to provide a question to the latest answer.
Just provide questions to any previous answers you like.

Announcement: With the upcoming Icewind Dale:EE I hereby extend this thread to the Icewind Dale games.
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The ultimate dart-flinging build

January 3, 2016, 8:27 am
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I'm thinking of playing again with a dart-focused build. There are a lot of interesting darts available for sale in BG1, and the crimson dart can be acquired early in BG2 - although that is as good as it gets (other than 5 darts/day from the cloak of stars).

But how should I configure the PC?

Option 1 is a straight fighter, taking grand master in darts to effortlessly hit the 5 APR cap at level 13. As a straight fighter, I can pick any race, so probably go with a halfling for shorty-saves, dex bonus and theme, a half-orc for the 19->20 con in BG1, or a dwarf for similar reasons, with shorty saves, but a dex penalty? Halflings are my preferred choice, as this is a combat build that does not suffer unduly from not having a strength bonus.

Why unkitted? Kensai are not allowed to use darts, berserkers are not allowed to specialize in darts, and Wizard Slayers do not get to use Legacy of the Masters/Gauntlets of weapon mastery, that are important for a +2 damage component.

Option 2 is more interesting, a swashbuckler -> fighter dual class. Dual means I must be human, but Swash gets me some nice bonuses. If I dual at 5, I get +1 to hit and damage on each dart, and +2 AC compared to a regular fighter, AND I get to regain my abilities in BG1. I also get 125 skill points, which should max a useful skill or two.

Dualing at 10 means I complete BG1 as a thief, and dual for the start of BG2. As above, but with an extra +1 on each bonus (+3 AC, +2 to hit/damage) and complete 100% on all the interesting skills. Given the lack of STR bonus or other ways of boosting damage/dart, that is sounding quite nice, and may be the sweet spot for the change-over? Although it will be interesting to see how SoD plays into xp caps.

Dualing at 15 is more of the same, I can complete 100% on all skills, but don't get my Swash bonus back until level 16 as a fighter, which is a combined swash/fighter xp total of 3,100,000 - essentially right at the end of SoA for a party of 6 - although potentially much sooner if soloing (I always play party-of-6 though).

Dualing at 25 is the ultimate, if we didn't have to play all the way through. +6AC, +5 to hit/damage, and use-any-item HLA. Why does that matter? We have enough pips coming as a fighter to get grand master 2-handed sword, and both pips in 2-H weapon style, in addition to grand master darts - so we can fling 5 darts/round, and then switch up to Carsomyr when something bigger than +3 crimson darts are required. This requires 7.8 million xp to recover the Swash bonus though, which means you won't actually have that bonus for almost the entire game, and it is not clear that a party of 6 will reach that xp total by the end of ToB. Not sure if you could get this soloing in SoA, which might make it a worthwhile effort, just to say you did it?

Option 3 looks back at the swash dualing early, and tries an assassin instead. Assassin gets +1 to hit/damage, so is as good a way to pump darts as a swash until level 10, although no AC bonus, and lower thief skills. The trade-off is that you get poison weapon ability - do you get the 3rd dose at 8th or 9th? Either way, it is a tough call between Swash 5, and assassin in the 4-9th level range.

Option 4 does it the other way, and starts with a fighter 13, and then dual into a class that will benefit from darts. Dual into mage is the obvious, although by the time you get your mojo back, the mage-casting should outweigh the dart contribution. Dual-into-thief feels underwhelming compared to dual-from-thief-kit. Clerics don't get to play with darts, but IIRC, druids do. Dual into an unkitted druid? That has potential, but 14th level druid is a huge xp barrier after 13 fighter levels. Druids do add interesting versatility to the mix though, with Iron Skins for extra durability, the inevitable killer bees when darts aren't hitting the spell casters fast enough, a switch-up to energy blades as a HLA, and other assorted fun. On balance, I prefer options 1-3 though.

Option 5 - do Ranger Archer kit bonuses apply to darts? Missing out on grand mastery hurts, but +1/3 levels to attack/damage helps, potentially reaching +11 at 33rd, more if the opponent is a favored enemy. You can get regular weapon specialization for darts from the start of BG1 for +1/2 APR, +1 APR for 13 level ranger, the full 5APR will require gauntlets of extreme specialization from the lowest levels of Watcher's Keep. Plus you get called shots, and the option to be an elf (+1 dex, bonus with some swords). Down side is no running around in full plate armor, and the nagging feeling that you really should be using a short bow instead. Also, no specialization in your back-up melee weapon.

Option 6 - some other cunning combo I have not considered, Barbarian? (no grand master means low damage)


I'm currently leaning toward options 2 and 3, would definitely go 5 if grand mastery were allowed - regardless of bonus, grand mastery feels like an important part of the flavor of such a build.

So which combo would be favorite here? And if I go option 2 (or 3), at which level should I dual?
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Max Stats Cheat With Ipad

February 16, 2016, 9:42 am
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Hi All,

This isn't my idea, i've heard it buried in some thread and thought I'd bring it back to light.

If you want to up your stats on an ipad, one way to do it is to do a first runthrough and export your character every time you find a tome of {understanding, gainful exercise,...}--before you use the tome!!! Then I like to create a "chosen of Oghma" character. Multiplayer him in a new game, and invite all your old characters which were exported with a book in their inventory. Give all your books to Oghma's chosen and export. You can kick out others and reimport them until chosen's inventory is all books.

Next, for the character you want to use on a runthrough, create your character and start a multiplayer session. Have Oghma's chosen pay him a visit. Use all the tomes you like. Export character. Start a new single-player runthrough importing your well read character. Viola.

I like to rp this as charname visited by the chosen of Oghma in a fevered dream just prior to the beginning of BGI. No, I have no shame. Cheers. This can also be done with any other inventory or deck of many things, etc.

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