For some unknown reason, my thread committed to discussing Dynaheir recently had a revival, and this was always a character review thread I had wanted to make, as it saves everybody else from seeing me go off on one in the middle of an entirely unrelated thread!
Of the original NPCs, I was quite surprised to find that with the exception of the polarising romance options introduced in the second game (Aerie & Anomen), Nalia as a character seemed to take the brunt of community criticism.
This thread is dedicated to discussing her character, and putting a statistic to the public opinion of Nalia.
Personally, I really liked Nalia, who I thought existed as an NPC in her own right, despite accusations levied against her that she was merely an intermission Imoen before Imoen could be collected. Imoen was originally supposed to die during the events of BG2, however, which suggests that the actual writers had intended for Nalia to be the dual-class Mage centre stage among the optional NPCs. Her personality is a nuanced product of her upbringing that does not always lead with its best foot forward, sometimes compromising the charisma of her character, yet her personality is not inevitably bound up in the story of the protagonist, while Imoen fills the role of an understudy pushing the agenda of the story with little integrity as a personality (at least in BG2). That said, I don't dislike Imoen, I merely refute claims that Nalia is a belittled version in both her build and her personality.
But what do you think?
PS: The options proposed on the poll refer exclusively to the 'canon' content of the game, and does not take account of any Mods or additional writing created for Nalia in the EEs. If these are a factor in your decision, feel free to elaborate this in the comments.
Of the original NPCs, I was quite surprised to find that with the exception of the polarising romance options introduced in the second game (Aerie & Anomen), Nalia as a character seemed to take the brunt of community criticism.
This thread is dedicated to discussing her character, and putting a statistic to the public opinion of Nalia.
Personally, I really liked Nalia, who I thought existed as an NPC in her own right, despite accusations levied against her that she was merely an intermission Imoen before Imoen could be collected. Imoen was originally supposed to die during the events of BG2, however, which suggests that the actual writers had intended for Nalia to be the dual-class Mage centre stage among the optional NPCs. Her personality is a nuanced product of her upbringing that does not always lead with its best foot forward, sometimes compromising the charisma of her character, yet her personality is not inevitably bound up in the story of the protagonist, while Imoen fills the role of an understudy pushing the agenda of the story with little integrity as a personality (at least in BG2). That said, I don't dislike Imoen, I merely refute claims that Nalia is a belittled version in both her build and her personality.
But what do you think?
PS: The options proposed on the poll refer exclusively to the 'canon' content of the game, and does not take account of any Mods or additional writing created for Nalia in the EEs. If these are a factor in your decision, feel free to elaborate this in the comments.