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Strength Spell Stacking?

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Hi,

Does the Strength Spell stack with itself? Aka, can I cast it twice and get 18/00 Strength? Can someone verify if this still works or not?

Thanks,

Bill

House DeVir

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Greetings,

So couple weeks ago i started to read Drizzt's Novels, starting with Drizzt's Origin story.

The Question i have is House Do'Urden destroyed House DeVir on the birth of Drizzt, with only Alton DeVir the lone survivor who disguised himself as the Faceless Master.

How and where does Viccy come into this? She must of left the Underdark a long time ago, but from BG1 i get the impression she has not been on the surface long?

Anyone have a concept of a time frame? Like how old is Drizzt when he walks the Sword Coast and Viccy must be reaaally old?

How to Update GoG IWD Enhanced Edition to 2.3

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All,

The GoG downloads section only has a patch to put IWD:EE up to v1.4. Is there a way to get my game up to the current 2.3 Version?

What is your best tank for LoB(nightmare mode)/SCS and why?

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Hello BG veterans and all enthusiasts!

Let’s discuss our favorite/best tank character for well-known Legacy of Bhaal difficulty in BGEE/BG2EE (with or without SCS). Please specify as much in depth details as possible so we all can learn from your expertise.
So far I tried R/C extensively in LoB/SCS (not all mage setting maxed out) and I found it superb so I’ll post a short summary of it.

Advantages
- Has cleric spells so can serve as your single cleric in party
- Has super low AC when using shield and plate armor; for most of game requires enemies to get natural 20 rolls to score a hit on him, especially if you run with skald
- If druid spells are on (setting in baldur.lua) iron skins are just amazing because they allow him to single tank most of encounters not to mention other druid spells
- Does decent damage
Disadvantages
- Less weapon proficiency points than F/C or dual
- More restrictive than F/M options in terms of gear and weapons

At this moment, I’m trying to get F/C full BGEE and BG2EE run in 6man party. Start of the game is though as he can’t stand in melee for basically a single round but this might change later. Not sure yet if without iron skins he will be viable until late TOB.

Interesting options are F/M, F->M, FMT that I didn’t had a chance to try yet. Not sure if any other combinations can withstand the battering of 10 enemies at once as they will get quite few natural 20’s on the tank in short period of time. I also try to avoid summons if possible so I don’t plan my tank around them taking the hits.

What are your tanking choices for LoB?

ps. I know there is general topic for this but I wanted to focus this purely on the matter on tanking choices.

Future BG-related content?

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With the most recent statement regarding 2.4 mentioning that it would be mostly bug fixes, and with the lack of information about updates to the BG universe in the future in general, I'm unsure whether Beamdog is still planning on expanding upon the BG universe. I loved the majority of the new content in SOD, and was hoping for updates that would integrate it more with the other two games, and tie the universe together in a more cohesive manner. It would be amazing, for example, to be able to rescue Caelar in BG2, or to more fully integrate Ascension into BG2 (which was created by a Bioware employee to begin with, iirc). There's so much more room to expand.

I really hope the release drama, as crazy as it was, does not discourage Beamdog from making future updates to the universe. People obviously had a right to disagree with some of the choices made, but the level of outrage used to express it was ridiculous. It's all very, very sad.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the future. It's been a rough ride, but the content Beamdog has released has gotten better and better, and I want to remain optimistic.

The Complete FR Novel, Comic and Game Timeline Part 3

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My break is over, now here is part 3 of my list of licensed Forgotten Realms based novels, comics, tabletop games and video games with a confirmed timeline (and those without a confirmed timeline that I can only make carefully thought out guesses). I will start from 1401 DR and end in 1491 DR, and this list will be pretty short because the 4th edition setting seemed not only unpopular to gamers like us, but also the authors like Ed Greenwood and R.A. Salvatore, I mean, jumping 100 years into the future, especially after the Spellplague without their consent... That means half or most of the characters they created that don't have a long lifespan like elves or dwarves are either old or dead. So, without further ado, let's get started.


Here is the link back to part 2 if you've never seen it and are interested.

https://forums.beamdog.com/discussion/60669/the-complete-fr-novel-comic-and-game-timeline-part-2/p1?new=1

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"Gauntlgrym" of The Neverwinter Saga (Written by R.A. Salvatore) (begins in 1409 DR)

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"Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale" (A game developed by Bedlam Games, playable on PlayStation 3 (downloadable via PlayStation Network), Xbox 360 (downloadable via Xbox Live Arcade), and Microsoft Windows (downloadable via Steam)) (begins and ends in 1420 DR)

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"The Godborn" of The Sundering Saga (By Paul S. Kemp) (begins and ends in 1450 DR)

"Sandstorm" continues in 1450 DR, the Second Era of Skyfire ends

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"Dawnbringer" (Written by Samantha Henderson) (begins in 1460 DR and believe it or not, ends in 1600 DR!) Amazing, isn't it, jumping 121 years from the 4th edition setting!

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"Gauntylgrym" of the Neverwinter Saga ends in 1462 DR

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"The Companions" of The Sundering Saga (By R.A. Salvatore) (begins in 1463 DR) Drizzt's deceased companions begin to reincarnate in this story

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(Realms of the Dead book "The Resurrection Agent" (By Erin M. Evans) (1463 DR)

"The Last Legend of Gedrin Shadowbane" (By Erik Scott de Bie) (1463 DR)

"Neverwinter" of The Neverwinter Saga (by R.A. Salvatore) (1463 DR) This novel is intentionally tied in to the Neverwinter MMORPG game because in one part of the book, the moon elf lich Valindra Shadowmantle led an attack on Neverwinter for the purpose of powering up the Dread Ring in the Neverwinter forest, a location that can be visited in Module 2 of the Neverwinter MMORPG

"Charon's Claw" of The Neverwinter Saga (by R.A. Salvatore) (1463 DR)

"The Last Threshold" of The Neverwinter Saga (By R.A. Salvatore) (begins in 1463 DR)

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"Corsair" of the Blades of the Moonsea Trilogy (By Richard Baker) (prologue is in 1466 DR)

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"City of the Dead" (By Rosemary Jones) (prologue set in 1467 DR)

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"Shadowbane: Eye of Justice" (By Erik Scott de Bie) (prologue set in 1470 DR)

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Realms of the Dead book "Feast of the Moon" (By Cristopher Rowe) (1471 DR)

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"The Orc King" ends in 1472 DR (prologue and epilogue both take place in this year)

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"Avenger" of the Blades of the Moonsea Trilogy (By Richard Baker) (begins in 1473 DR)

"Venom In Her Veins" (By Tim Pratt) (possibly 1473 DR)

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"Ghosts of Dragonspear Castle" (Tabletop game created by Christopher Perkins (the guy who usually is the DM for Acquisitions Inc.), and Jeremy Crawford) (1474 DR) Not sure about the realm year, just a wild guess

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"The Fall Of Highwatch" of The Chosen of Nendawen Trilogy (By Mark Sehestedt) (1475 DR) This novel takes place a century after "Frostfell"

"Hand of the Hunter" of The Chosen of Nendawen Trilogy (By Mark Sehestedt) (1475 DR)

"Cry of the Ghost Wolf" of The Chosen of Nendawen Trilogy (By Mark Sehestedt) (1475 DR)


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"Swordmage" of the Blades of the Moonsea Trilogy (By Richard Baker) (begins in 1477 DR)

"The Devil You Know" of the Brimstone Angels series (By Erin M. Evans) (1477 DR) Though no realm year has been officially confirmed, it shouldn't be hard to narrow down once you realize that this story takes place before Farideh made the warlock pact in the "Brimstone Angels" story, which comes up next afterwards.

"Brimstone Angels" of the Brimstone Angels Series (By Erin M. Evans) (prologue is in 1477 DR)

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"Unholy" of The Haunted Lands (By Richard Lee Byers) (1478 DR)

"Brimstone Angels" continues and ends in 1478 DR

"Brimstone Angels: Lesser Evils" (By Erin M. Evans) (1478 DR)

"Cold Steel and Secrets" (By Rosemary Jones) (1478 DR)

"The Captive Flame" of the Brotherhood of the Griffin series (By Richard Lee Byers) (begins in 1478 DR)

"The Adversary" of The Sundering saga (By Erin M. Evans) (1478 DR)

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"Neverwinter" (The MMORPG game developed by Cryptic Studios, originally playable only on Microsoft Windows PC, but now playable on Xbox One, and PlayStation 4) (main module begins in 1479 DR) The game's prologue begins with Valindra's forces attacking Neverwinter for the second time, and you have to stop them, and throughout the game there are various evil forces that threaten Neverwinter and its allies, not just those allied with Valindra

Realms of the Dead book "Wandering Stones" (By Bruce R. Cordell), "The Bone Bird" (By Jaleigh Johnson), "A Prayer for Brother Robert" (By Philip Athans), "Dusty Bones" (By Rosemary Jones), and "A Body in a Bag" (By Erik Scott de Bie) (1479 DR)

"The Captive Flame" ends in 1479 DR

"The Rose of Sarifal" (By Paulina Claiborne) (1479 DR)

"Whisper of Venom" of the Brotherhood of the Griffon series (By Richard Lee Byers) (1479 DR)

"The Spectral Blaze" of the Brotherhood of the Griffon series (By Richard Lee Byers) (1479 DR)

"The Masked Witches" of the Brotherhood of the Griffon series (By Richard Lee Byers) (1479 DR)

"Prophet of the Dead" of the Brotherhood of the Griffon series (By Richard Lee Byers) (1479 DR)

"Prince of Ravens" (By Richard Baker) (1479 DR) This novel was part of the D&D event "Rise of the Underdark"

"Swordmage" ends in 1479 DR

The story of "Corsair" continues on from the prologue this year in 1479 DR

"Blackstaff Tower" of the Waterdeep series (By Steven E. Schend) (1479 DR)

"Mistshore" of the Waterdeep series (By Jaleigh Johnson) (1479 DR)

"Downshadow" third novel of the Waterdeep series, first novel of the Shadowbane series (By Erik Scott de Bie) (1479 DR)

"City of the Dead" of the Waterdeep series (By Rosemary Jones) (1479 DR excluding the prologue which was in 1467 DR)

"The God Catcher" of the Waterdeep series (By Erin M. Evans) (1479 DR)

"Elminster Must Die" (By Ed Greenwood) (1479 DR)

"Bury Elminster Deep" (By Ed Greenwood) (1479 DR)

"Elminster Enraged" (By Ed Greenwood) (1479 DR)

"Shadowrealm" ends in 1479 DR

"The Fanged Crown" of The Wilds series (By Jenna Helland) (1479 DR)

"The Restless Shore" of The Wilds series (By James P. Davis) (1479 DR)

"Wrath of the Blue Lady" ends in 1479 DR

"Sword of the Gods" (By Bruce R. Cordell) (1479 DR except prologue)

"Sword of the Gods: Spinner of Lies" (By Bruce R. Cordell) (1479 DR)

"The Edge of Chaos" (By Jak Koke) (1479 DR)

"Spider and Stone" (An ebook novel by Jaleigh Johnson) (1479 DR) This is the last book that ties into the D&D event Rise of the Underdark

"Sandstorm" story ends in 1479 DR

"Unbroken Chain" (By Jaleigh Johnson) (1479 DR)

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"Chosen of the Sword" (By Erik Scott de Bie) (1480 DR)

"Avenger" ends in 1480 DR

"Circle of Skulls" of the Waterdeep series (By James P. Davis) (1480 DR)

"Shadowbane" of the Shadowbane series (By Erik Scott de Bie) (1480 DR)

"Unbroken Chain: The Darker Road" (By Jaleigh Johnson) (1480 DR)

"Shadowbane: Eye of Justice" of the Shadowbane series (By Erik Scott de Bie) (story continues into 1480 DR after the prologue)

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"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (main module ends in 1481 DR, Module 1: "Fury of the Feywild" begins in 1481 DR)

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 1: "Fury of the Feywild" ends in 1482 DR, Module 2: "Shadowmantle" begins and ends in 1482 DR) In the climactic end mission of Module 2, you get to fight Valindra and put an end to her threat once and for all, and believe me, she doesn't go down easily, you'll need a full group to face her. Then again, no lich goes down easy

"Murder in Baldur's Gate" (The Sundering Tabletop Adventure #1) (Tabletop game created by Ed Greenwood, Matt Sernett and Steve Winter) (1482 DR) This tabletop game ties in directly with the Baldur's Gate games and novels, with Abdel Adrian, the much hated protagonist of the Baldur's Gate novels as one of the NPCs, and even Coran is in the game, and the game's story ends with the inevitable resurrection of Bhaal. The fact that Abdel lived more than 100 years before he got killed off signifies that Imoen and the game protagonist could live that long too if he/she is human, half-orc or some other race with a short lifespan compared to elves, half-elves, halflings, gnomes and dwarves, and chose to remain mortal at the end of the ToB game. Being a Bhaalspawn guarantees longevity

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"The Last Threshold" and "The Companions" end in 1484 DR

"Dungeons & Dragons: Cutter" comic book series issue #1 "Birthright", issue #2 "The Lost Child", issue #3 "Sword, Wielder", issue #4 "A Dark Path", issue #5 "Homecoming" (comic books written by R.A. Salvatore and his son Geno Salvatore, art by David Baldeon, colors by David Garcia Cruz, letters by Neil Uyetake, cover art by Steve Ellis) (1484 DR, before "Night of the Hunter")

"Night of the Hunter" of the Companions Codex series (By R.A. Salvatore) (1484 DR)

"Rise of the King" of the Companions Codex series (By R.A. Salvatore) (1484 DR)

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"Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf" of the Companions Codex series (By R.A. Salvatore) (begins in 1484 DR and ends in 1485 DR)

"Legacy of the Crystal Shard" (The Sundering Tabletop Adventure #2) (Tabletop game created by R.A. Salvatore, James Wyatt and Jeffrey Ludwig) (1485 DR)

"Archmage" of the Homecoming series (By R.A. Salvatore) (1485 DR)

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 3: "Curse of Icewind Dale" begins and ends sometime after month of Eleint in 1485 DR) This may come as a shock to those who have read "The Crystal Shard", but in Module 3, the main villain is none other than the villainous mage Akar Kessel, who comes back from the dead as a powerful wight.

"Scourge of the Sword Coast" (The Sundering Tabletop Adventure #3) (Tabletop game created by Tito Leati, Matthew Sernett and Chris Sims) (1485 DR) Just a wild guess on the realm year.

Tyranny of Dragons Adventurers League game story modules "Corruption in Kryptgarden", "Defiance in Phlan", "Secrets of Sokol Keep", "Shadows over the Moonsea", "Dues for the Dead", "The Courting of Fire", 'The Scroll Thief", "Drums in the Marsh", "Tall Trees Tell," "Outlaws of the Iron Route", "Tyranny in Phlan", "Dark Pyramid of Sorcerer's Isle", "Raider of the Twilight Marsh", "Pool of Radiance Resurgent", and "Escape from Phlan" (1485 DR)

Neverwinter (MMORPG game) (Module 4: "Tyranny of Dragons") (begins and ends in 1485 DR)

"Legends of Baldur's Gate" comic book series issues 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 (Written by Jim Zub, art by Max Dunbar, colors by John-Paul Bove (and Joana Laufente in issue #2), letters by Neil Uyetake, edits by John Barber) (1485 DR) These comic books bring Minsc from the Baldur's Gate games from the 2nd-3rd edition time frame into the 5th edition time frame of the Forgotten Realms in a very interesting way, and Coran appears in this series too. If you haven't read these comic books before, you'll enjoy them, I know I did

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 5: "Rise of Tiamat") (begins and ends in 1485 DR) Linu La'neral, one of the companion characters from Neverwinter Nights is in this module's story and is one of the NPCs that helps player characters fight against Tiamat in the end of the module's story

"Dead in Thay" (The Sundering Tabletop Adventure #4) (Tabletop game created by Scott Fitzgerald Gray) (1485 DR)

"Sword Coast Legends" (A game developed by N-Space and Digital Extremes, playable on Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One) (possibly 1485 DR) This game was designed to be the spiritual successor of the Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale and Neverwinter Nights game series in terms of gameplay. The devs of SCL's forums said that this game is set somewhere between 1490 DR and 1492 DR, answering someone's question about the game's time frame in the Forgotten Realms, but after I realized that the Rage of Demons DLC likely takes place somewhere between "Maestro" and "Hero", I'm beginning to believe that Sword Coast Legends's developers gave a random answer, they never had a time frame firmly in mind when they made this game, the in-game journal does not keep track of the game's time and day, month and year like Icewind Dale, Baldur's Gate and Neverwinter Nights did.

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Elemental Evil Adventurers League game storyline modules "City of Danger", "Embers of Elmwood", "The Drowned Tower", "Mayhem in the Earthspur Mines", "Flames of Kythorn", "Breath of the Yellow Rose", "Bounty in the Bog", "Foulness Beneath Mulmaster", "Eye of the Tempest", "Cloaks and Shadows", "Oubliette of Fort Iron", "Dark Rites at Fort Dalton", "The Howling Void", "The Sword of Selflaril", "Black Heart of Vengeance", "Boltsmelter's Book", and "Mulmaster Undone" (1486 DR)

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 6: "Elemental Evil") (1486 DR) Minsc makes his first in-game appearance in this expansion of the game

"Archmage" ends in 1486 DR

"Out of the Abyss", Tabletop game adventure (Published by Wizards of the Coast) (1486 DR)

Rage of Demons Adventurers League game storyline modules "Harried in Hillsfar", "Shackles of Blood", "The Occupation of Szith Morcaine", "It's All in the Blood", "Bane of the Tradeways", "No Foolish Matter", "Herald of the Moon", "The Malady of Elventree", "The Waydown", "Quelling the Horde", "The Quest for Sporedome", "Hillsfar Reclaimed", "Writhing in the Dark", "Death on the Wall", "Szith Morcaine Unbound", "Assault on Maerimydra" (I enjoyed playing this part, and fighting Grazzt in the end was challenging for me and my party), and "Blood Above, Blood Below" (1486 DR)

"Maestro" of the Homecoming series (By R.A. Salvatore) (1486 DR)

"Sword Coast Legends: Rage of Demons DLC" (1486 DR) Drizzt is in this DLC's story, making Sword Coast Legends the fifth D&D game allowing the player's character to adventure and/or fight alongside him. The first one was Baldur's Gate, the second was Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn, the third was Demon Stone, and the fourth is the 8th and 9th module expansions of the Neverwinter MMORPG. It is unlikely this DLC is set in 1490 DR, years after "Maestro" and "Hero", because in this DLC, it is obvious that Drizzt is still affected by the faerzress since "Maestro", he is not the compassionate drow we knew anymore, he enjoys hunting worthy prey and will almost not hesitate to attack anyone in his way unless they prove to be a worthy ally against his prey, and he has no intention of returning to Catti-Brie even if you urge him to, because he is aware that he is not entirely sane, and he does not want want to be near anyone he cares about until Demogorgon is defeated, which he believes will clear his mind.

"Hero" of the Homecoming series (By R.A. Salvatore) (1486 DR)

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 8: "Underdark", story written by R.A. Salvatore) (1489 DR) Through this module's story, your character gets to fight alongside Drizzt and his reincarnated companions against Demogorgon's demonic forces I think the story takes place during or after "Hero", I need to read the book first to know for sure.

"Fire in the Blood" of the Brimstone Angels series (By Erin M. Evans) (1486 DR)

"Neverwinter" (MMORPG game) (Module 9: "The Maze Engine") (1489 DR) Drizzt and Minsc both appear in this expansion together

"The Reaver" of The Sundering saga (By Richard Lee Byers) (1486 DR)

"The Sentinel" of The Sundering saga (By Troy Denning) (1486 DR)

"Ashes of the Tyrant" of the Brimstone Angels series (By Erin M. Evans) (1486 DR)

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"The Herald" of The Sundering saga (By Ed Greenwood) (1487 DR)

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"Spellstorm" (By Ed Greenwood) (1488 DR)

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"Death Masks" of the Chosen Heirs series (By Ed Greenwood) (1491 DR)

Neverwinter (MMORPG game) (Module 10: "Storm King's Thunder") (1491 DR) Reincarnated Wulfgar and Cattie-Brie are in this expansion of the game and one of your in-game allies.

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That's about as far as I can get for now. In the meantime I will try to dig up some interesting information about all the novels, comic books and games I listed whether I have read or played them or not, something that'll pique your interest. And the reason why I skipped over adding Module 7 of the Neverwinter MMORPG, "Strongholds" is because there is no real storyline behind that expansion, just competitive gameplay based around strongholds. In the years to come, as more books get published and more games get released, I will modify this list from time to time as new information gets revealed. Remember, not everything is final in this list.

Optimal Charname Class/Character

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Just to clarify from the start, this is not the usual "Best class in BG?" type discussion. Also there will be a lot of subjective opinions on my part so don't take anything I say as me stating some facts.

I consider myself someone with severe rerolleritis(and I'm fine with that). And after making a huge amount of different characters I've started to think about what type of character is "best" in BGEE+BG2EE. And by best I mean optimal with a group. For example a very "bad" character to make would be a (female)mage/thief. My reasoning would be how you are giving up a lot of story and choices by being female in BG(won't mention this again because it holds for any charname) and since there are a lot of mage/thief s and possible dual thief->mage there is no real point in making a mage/thief since charname will only be a slightly better version of those. An example of a "good" charname would be a (male)cleric. Reason being charname is the only character in the game to reach over 20 wisdom and therefore getting massively more casts per day than any other cleric NPC. Another "good" character would be any sorcerer because of the simple reason that it's the only sorcerer you will be able to both tailor with spells and carry between all three games.

But what is the overall most "optimal" character when in a group? We have Neera a wild mage that can absolutely rival a sorcerer in power(because nahal's) so maybe sorcerer is not a very optimal choice(unless of course more magic users the merrier)?

Thief is probably a pretty bad choice in itself because of how many thief type characters we already have(and how quickly they peak) so I'll skip this one.

How about some type of frontliner type class? Dorn must be considered one if not the best frontliner with very high strength and blackguardness. Can charname rival someone like that? A halforc berserker can reach 20 str and 20 con in bgee, which is in some ways better but a blackguard brings spells. A human blackguard could reach 19 in both and keep the immunities and cleric spells and probably end up better than Dorn. Then we also have the multiclass fighter/mage, a lot more utility as a frontliner than Dorn. But since we have so many mage/thieves already and a tenser's would at the very least make them equal. So there are already a lot of seriously good frontliners at our disposal. Making charname a frontliner seem to also be a pretty bad choice(especially since a charname death means game over).

Then we have the divine casters. As mentioned before a charname divine caster will be the best divine caster in the entire game and there really isn't anyone that could match the attributes and casts per day. So then we have druid and cleric. Out of the two druid brings some powerful anti caster spells(the most dangerous type of enemy in the game) while cleric brings powerful buffs and utility like resurrections(but we do get the rod of resurrection... So maybe we could live without it and frankly I tend to reload if I lose anyone :wink: Don't judge). Out of the two I think a druid(my opinion, I think they become really good later on. Much better than a cleric) would come out on top because of how bad the druid NPCs are and how many clerics(if they even would be needed at that point) we have at our disposal. They also get call woodland beings, basically a pocket cleric. And out of the kits I would say avenger because of how many great mage spells they get.

So when I consider what we have on offer an avenger seem like a pretty tempting choice because of how superior one would be compared to others of the same type. But do we even need a divine caster? Wouldn't simply another finely tailored arcane caster be better? We have a lot of great mages and half-mages already so does the need for yet another good mage outweigh the best divine caster we can possibly get? Unsure, I mean maybe because of a pretty recent(?) change to the mage kits, namely the change to the saving throws enemies make against specialists specialised spells(ssssssss). And to get to the point, enchanters(there is a great playthrough thread on them, if you know of it please link it!). They now bring something very unique and powerful. A -2 save penalty for targets of your enchantment spells, as in your "control" type spells, as in the probably most powerful school in the game if the target fails their save. And to my knowledge there is only a single NPC enchanter in the trilogy, Xan. And you will only keep him in the first game. An enchanter would complement other arcane users wonderfully letting them devote more spell slots to flat damage, dispels and defence. Then we also have the mage/cleric, directly competing for a spot with Aerie but with the advantage of being a much more powerful divine caster, probably being a better divine caster than any pure NPC because of interactions with arcane spells. But they end up a weaker mage and if divine spells aren't even needed at all with all the potions and scrolls that get tossed in our face maybe they are not very useful?

My choice
So this long post brings me to Avenger, Enchanter or mage/cleric as the most optimal class for charname. And just to clarify why I did not choose my beloved sorcerer for the finals, Neera combined with any mage/thief should bring enough spell diversity to take away the sorcerers advantage of flexibility. This in not a discussion of what is the best solo class in the game but what complements a group the best.

Which one I would say is the most optimal choice is pretty hard to say. There are no enchanters for most of the game but a divine caster charname could be a serious asset considering how strong one could be in their role. And then we have the possible peak of how useful more arcane spellcasters are. Two or three at the most must be it from my experience. After that I would rather have another simple pleb fighter because of how annoying it would be to waste powerful spells and (actual in-game)sleep on simple gibberlings because you don't have enough normal damage. Mage item and scroll starvation should also be a factor from there on as a further con of an arcane caster. But charname could fill the final third spot as an arcane caster. So it doesn't have to be problem. The arcane part of the group could be Neera(Only NPC wildmage), some mage/thief(Probably Jan because Illusionist spec and his insider knowledge of the turnip market, the latter being the superior asset of course) and an enchanter or mage/cleric charname. If mage/cleric is chosen there is no need for more divine casters and one could safely reduce party size for more xp or add another fighter or a paladin to make smaller encounters easier and less annoying another advantage would be the huge spell pool. Or one could take an enchanter making the most powerful spells even more effective. OR take an avenger, also allowing for a smaller group while also trivialising most mage encounters. And on top of that finally find some use for the druid only items. A very hard choice to pick the winner but in the end... I still have no idea :smiley:

What do you guys think? What class would be the most optimal considering what we have on offer from NPCs? Am I missing some big advantage or disadvantage of having a X charname in a group?
Discuss.

Come share your odd gaming habits! What do you refuse to do in BG? What wierd ideas do you love?

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It seems like a lot of people like to make their games more "realistic" or more "awesome!" by creating their own rules or play-styles. Many people refuse to use certain tactics, or like to adopt some odd, unorthodox techniques for roleplaying reasons. Many others like to sacrifice POWER! for STYLE . Other times people do things or refuse to do things because it would be out of character (like refuse to case Animate Dead with cute little Aerie like @Dragonspear ). Others, like @belgarathmth don't enjoy using bags of holding or switching/carrying copious amounts of items because they think it breaks immersion.

So I thought I'd start a thread where everyone can share their oddities! A chance to share your ideas and eccentricities.


Okay, I'll start.

I never backstab with quarterstaves, because I think sneaking around then poking someone looks lame!

Who's next?

Best Ranged Damage Custom Party

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Dear all,

I'm wondering what you all think would be the most effective ranged damage custom party?

I'm thinking

6 Archer (Ranger) X Characters

or

6 Assassin 4 / Fighter X Characters

Is there a better class combination / method to getting high consistent ranged damage?

Thanks,

Bill


Collector's edition, has anyone received it?

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^ as title says.

I've been lurking looking for recent threads about this but am I the only one still waiting?

Advice for evil party composition of SoD/BG2EE run

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I am planning to start an evil playthrough of Siege of Dragonspear and continue into BG2EE. My main character will be a neutral evil male Dwarven Defender. I already know a few of the companions I want to use, but I could use some advice on filling out my party for maximum enjoyment and effectiveness.

Ignoring the brief interludes in the city of Baldur's Gate and chateau Irenicus, my party composition would go as follows:

Tank: Dwarven Defender
Thief: Safana -> Hexxat (-> Imoen?)
Cleric: Viconia
Mage: Baeloth -> Neera
Secondary warrior: ? -> Dorn
Flex: ? -> ? -> ?

For thief my intention is to use Hexxat in BG2EE, but if she proves too annoying or I'm desperate for additional mage power I'll switch over to Imoen when she is available. For my secondary warrior I don't really have any great options pre-Dorn. I could either see if Rasaad will tolerate me or just make do with something that doesn't fit the role like M'Khiin.

My flex pick is very much uncertain. Initially in SoD Corwin would be a strong option, but I don't know if she'll put up with my malevolence. Later on I'd like to switch over to either Jaheira or Voghiln, but I am again uncertain how well they'll tolerate me. In BG2EE I have a lot of options that could work, but Jaheira or Haer'dalis certainly stand out. I'm definitely open for suggestions here.

Finally, I need to determine which romance to pursue in SoD. As a Dwarf I believe my only female option in BG2EE is Neera, which is why I've selected her over Edwin in my party. In SoD I have more options, including Neera. I don't think there's continuity between the two games and my evil Dwarf certainly doesn't care, so I'm simply looking for the most interesting option to pursue.

Portraits and their real life counterparts

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Hey dudes.

I understand that certain portraits used in game were based on real photos of real people. I did a bit of research but couldn't find any concrete answers. Does anyone here know of any specific examples? I do know of Viconia's BG2 portrait origins, but are there any other such instances?

My curiosity got the best of me this morning, so, here I am.

Thanks dudes.

Character Stat Upgrade Ala Planescape Torment?

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I was wondering, across the whole Saga, including Siege of Dragonspear, how many possibilities are for character upgrades, like the stat increases for planescape torment?

Unkitted Clerics

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Hey dudes.

I've been looking through the classes very deeply lately, because I'm still not sure which one I want to play next. I felt like I could always weigh out some good positives and negatives for playing each class or kit, but when it comes to clerics, I couldn't quite see any bonuses to playing just a regular old cleric over a priest of Talos, Lathander, Helm, or Tyr.

Does anyone play unkitted clerics these days? Or is that a thing of the past?

X-men in the Baldur's Gate serie

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If X-men were in BG, what race/alignment/class would they be (EE Keeper authorized)?

Some obvious:
Phoenix: Human Chaotic Evil Dragon Disciple
Wolverine: Dwarf Chaotic Good Barbarian
Gambit: Elf Chaotic Neutral Thief/Mage
Storm: Half-elf True Neutral Avenger

And some less obvious:
Psylocke: Elf Neutral Evil Blade (she is an assassin to start with, but I feel that the assassin class doesn't fit her)
Nightcrawler: Halfling True Neutral Shadowdancer

Heavily EE Keepered:
Beast: Gnome Neutral Good Ranger
Colossus: Half Orc Lawful Good Dwarven Defender

Some I cannot quite figure out:
- Bishop (Ranger Kit Archer or a good aligned warlock type?)
- Rogue (Wizard Slayer or Fighter/Necromancer or even monk?)

I'm at a lost here:
- Professor X (the wheelchair....)
- Iceman
- Angel
- Cyclops

Your thoughts on this....


Making Call Lightning more useful.

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I am thinking of modding Call Lightning to remove the 'outdoors only' flag so that it can be used anywhere. I think this would be an awesome boon to poor druids and the less useful spellbook they have. The problem is that I am worried that removing this restriction will make the spell too powerful. Compared to Flame Strike it would be doing 2d8 more points of damage AND hitting multiple times. How would I re-balance the spell to accommodate this change? I was thinking of one of the following options:

2d6 + 1d6/level damage

1d6/level damage

2d8 + 1d4/level damage

Should I use one of those options? Does anyone have any other suggestions?

What is Conan's class and stats (the Howard/Busiek et al. character)?

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... and before you can say "Barbarian. Duh!", consider all this:

- He 'duals' into 'Thief' early in his career.
- Later gains 'prestige classes' as a... err... 'Champion' [leadership bonuses, though not healing spells, as well as some mystical immunities, which probably approximates a non-spell casting Paladin].
- He is not a typical 'good-guy' but his word is his bond (though he is not bound by laws of the land); he attempts to protect those that ask for it (especially 'damsels', but also those linked by a battle-bond)
- He is superbly intelligent in the tactics & tricks that he employs; also has the wisdom to discern his path
- He successfully battles Wizards
- His minds is impervious when in 'rage' (e.g. 'God in the Bowl' etc.)

I'd say, he should be:

Berserker 6 / Thief 5 / Pirate 4 [Skald-like thief kit] / 'Champion' 10 [imaginary paladin kit]
Neutral Good
18-75/16/18/14/14/17
(e.g. his dex is high, but not as high as, say Janissa)

with a scattering of special abilities corresponding mental save bonuses etc.


Anyone else wanna give a shot at this?

I'll give them credit, they've got balls...

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I messed with mods to make the vampire race show up on the records screen as in BG2EE and gave it to my PC. It, uh, results in some unintentionally hilarious moments in dialogue.

This lot just casually tried to waylay and mug a vampire:

Neverwinter Nights Enhanced Edition?

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Sorry, but I had to ask the question: Is a Neverwinter Nights Enhanced Edition a feasible idea in the distant future?

For starters, Neverwinter Nights came out the same year as Icewind Dale 2, which is up for grabs as a possible Enhanced Edition project.

In contrast, I realize Neverwinter Nights was built on a newer (no longer isometric) engine, which some might view as modern enough and unfit for being "Enhanced".

So what are your thoughts? I have not seen any Dev commentary on the subject (though IWD and IWD2 were mentioned as being of "interest" to the Devs).

It is more of a curiosity of mine than anything, mainly because Neverwinter Nights is what got me back into the Infinity Engine games after almost a decade of not playing them.

I personally would welcome an Enhanced Neverwinter Nights, after Baldur's Gate 3, IWDEE, IWD2EE, and Planescape: Torment EE of course :)

Edit: Subtopic - I also remember thinking about how cool Neverwinter Nights could/would have been if the loading screens in Baldur's Gate were correct about transferring your characters to Neverwinter Nights and had come true. Neverwinter Nights on the Infinity Engine? Yes please :)

I get a kick out of the mods that have brought Icewind Dale and Baldur's Gate to the NWN2 engine, because if I had more skill and knowledge (and time) with the Infinity Engine, I'd love to personally bring Neverwinter Nights to the Infinity Engine as an Icewind Dale 2 mod.

BGEE + BG2EE + SoD at €16.19 with Bundle Stars

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