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On September 21 2010 09:18 Caphe wrote:Show nested quote +On September 20 2010 22:02 Biff The Understudy wrote:
i really recommand you the following mods:
BGTrilogy
Ascension
Solaufein
Enjoy the best rpg ever. I'm about to start BG2 for the first 2. Can you tell me more what these Mod do? I dont want anything to mess with my first experience but also want the most out of the game. And heard that there is a wide screen mode? Is this ok toinstall this mod as well？
BGTrilogy or BGT for short is the alternative to EasyTutu. They both aim to play BG1 using the BG2 engine, which provides superior graphics and ease of use as well as access to the abilities and kits that are normally exclusive to BG2. For example you could play a monk from level 1 (if you're crazy) using tutu or BGT and take him all the way through the original game. Monks were added in BG2, so you would not normally be able to do this. Most of the things you can do are not balanced for lower levels however, so trying to play a kensai might be very difficult, where as getting a familiar for your mage early on would provide you with an extremely powerful ally. Also some spells work differently. For instance you can no longer summon a massive horde of monsters without mods or exploits in Tutu unlike in vanilla BG1 where this was a popular tactic to cheese your way through difficult fights. The main difference between Tutu and BGT is that BGT combines BG1 with BG2 aiming for a smooth transition between the games as if you were merely moving to a different act. Tutu keeps them separate. Personally I prefer tutu, as BGT had some issues with experience values not quite working in both games due to the fact that BG2 deals with much higher level characters, but they may have been fixed since I last checked. Both are trivial to install, and both support most of the popular mods, so the decision mostly comes down to preference.
Ascension is a collection of additional developer content mainly dealing with the BG2 expansion. It includes some AI improvements, encounter improvements, and generally makes the game much more challenging. It also adds some other things, but it's hard to say what they are without massive spoilers.
Solaufein is another mod that is difficult to explain without spoilers. Lets just say it fleshes out a popular BG2 character,. It is one of the most popular mods out there so it is probably worth installing if you are into fanmade story content. If you want to experience the story as written you should probably hold off until your second playthrough however. Of all the NPC mods out there it is probably the most(only?) well written one.
On September 21 2010 10:56 Dfgj wrote:
I always want to do a solorun of BG2 but lose motivation early on =( Any thoughts on a class/combo I'd find particularly interesting to make an attempt on?
I have played too much BG2.
Try a blade if you want a challenge. They are really fun, and don't require as much planning as the uber powerful dual class builds out there. They aren't the best class for utility or power, but you get some useful skills, unbelievable tanking ability, and serviceable spellcasting. You will need to learn how to fully abuse items, scrolls, mislead/simulacrum etc to solo without reloading, but it is a lot of fun. For the easiest soloing I think cleric/ranger, fighter/thief, or mage/thief are the best. Without being part thief you will not be able to deal with traps. Maze traps and charm traps have the potential to end the game if you are susceptible to those spells. You could also just play a sorcerer, stay away from trapped dungeons, and own everything after you gain access to the abusable spells.
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On September 21 2010 10:56 Dfgj wrote:
I always want to do a solorun of BG2 but lose motivation early on =( Any thoughts on a class/combo I'd find particularly interesting to make an attempt on?
I have played too much BG2.
I have lately done a solorun with a sorcerer, it was quite fun. While you are pretty weak at the beginning, you tend to get near godlike power when progressing further because you level so fast. Roasting some robbers instantly because they dare to approach a mighty wizard is just incredible. Obviously, this diminishes lateron again, but burning everything to ashes within seconds would be boring otherwise anyways. But generally, i find Casters to be much more fun then other classes, since they are way more versatile, and you have different options then just hitting stuff and hoping it dies before you do.
Edit: As a sorceror, you can deal with traps, but in many cases only by reloading and using the right Spell Immunity beforehand. But i think i went through about all sidequests, so there is no area that you cannot deal with.
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TBH I'd avoid any content mods for a first playthrough, because you should experience the game for itself before adding fanfiction to it.
Classwise, I've played a lot of wizard/sorcerer, but only tried a Blade once - that could be interesting to give another shot, thanks for the tip.
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If it's your first time playing, do not install ascension unless you want to live by an online guide throughout the whole game. You really need to have a good party (or an extremely well planned single character) to last through the boss fights in the expansion, and achieving that is an effort that lasts the entire game.
There isn't that much content in ascension anyway, the most noticeable is the increased difficulty in boss fights just in case you find Insane difficulty too easy.
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BG2 is a great game. Warrior/Theif/Mage combo for the main character and you can take out anyone solo. But definitely not recommended for the beginners.
As many people mentioned above, the game is beatable with almost any combination of characters though some fights might be challenging but that's only adds excitement 
BG1 though will always stay my favourite RPG. What I found really disappointing in all Black Isle production following BG1 is the fact that they don't provide area which is simply meant to be explored and not connected to some mega quest or the main storyline. I loved the time I spent wandering across Sword Coast with my faithful party while I wasn't given that opportunity is BG2. Because of that in BG1 I felt greater freedom. And each area had some interesting NPC and quests. Also I prefer Baldur's Gate to Atkathla. I literally checked every single building in Baldur's Gate, checking for hidden gems and new quests. It took hours. Compared with it, the main city of BG2 lacks in terms of possible quests and again freedom what to do.
Now, someone posted that BG1 is more frustrating. I personally haven't discovered anything frustrating in it. I loved the every single moment of BG1.
I also prefer the storyline of BG1 compared to BG2 which I found a bit disappointing near the end. But that I suppose is very personal.
The main reason why BG2 is behind BG1 in my personal ranking is exactly this lack of freedom and lack of small quests.
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On September 20 2010 22:43 CrY. wrote:
baulders gate 1 is the best RPG ever made, period..but shadows of amn wasnt far behind...i miss the days that companies took pride in their work and added nuances that generation Y gamers dont get to experience..seriously in BG 1 i went off the map in uncharted wilderness and found a talking bunny rabbit named fred, then i got him a cure and it turned out to demon who wanted my D at first then tried to kill me and i found a note on the body that directed me to a little house in tradewind where the family was dead...
comparing dragon age isnt realistic, all RPGs in this era are super linear..some games have poked through the drivle like Bethesda games but Bioware back in the day was easily the gaming company for RPGs..ever.
I completely agree with you regarding BG1. I finished the game around 10 times probably trying out every single quest, exploring every single area that was explorable and checking out every single house to which you could enter (including every single one in the city Baldur's Gate). BG2 is still an excellent game but it lacked that freedom.
The last time I played it was years ago, probably more than 5 years has passed but I feel I will give it a shot again when I will be back home for the Christmas.
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Just wanted to say that BG is awesome  I've installed the BGTrilogy thx to this thread ! It's my first time playing this sort of game, back in the days i was not interested in those game, may be i was just a dumb child back then :D
My first run of BG ended like that: I went to the Inn and talked to the Innkeeper (Winthrop, the fat one in BG I), he made his joke on me etc. and curious as I am tried to test the functionalities of this game, attacked him with my long sword (first item bought ), which i just bought from him. He was dead after a few strokes and i looted his corpse, but suddenly some other guy in the Inn attacked me with some magic and I died. This was the end of my first journey xD. Time to create a new character ... hehehe
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Thx a lot Groslouser & Aquafresh!
somehow i think that baldurs gate 2 made HUGE steps Backwards in turns of Userfriendlyness and handling. THe menu looks poor comapred the one of bg1, the first level is very confusion, too difficult (on normal at least) and all doors locked = no way further.
Also i have to complain about the lack of Hotkeys from bg1 m= map, but pressing m again removes it. (not this way here)n
no quickload
esc doesnt even open menu
wtf is this.
they should creat baldurs gate 2 story in Baldursgate 1. i played it now 2 houres and all i see is they dissaproved from the original. (ok tab is nice, but thats about it)
i think i need to fall back to mods...
Are there mods which give me Baldursgate Style Interface & Hotkeys ? would be awesome...
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another one here that thinks BG1 > BG2 = just because more freedom to explore and it was more challenging.the only bad thing about it was monster summoning was too good.
by the way the archers in firewine ruins are gay
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Is the game quite balanced in terms of class viability ? Like in, you're not screwed if your main is a thief or a bow user ?
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On September 21 2010 23:19 Alaric wrote:
Is the game quite balanced in terms of class viability ? Like in, you're not screwed if your main is a thief or a bow user ?
Early game = Warriors/Thieves
Late game = Magic users. Specifically Sorcerors
When you get to level 20+ with a mage, you really start becoming a demi-God
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Have any of you guys had experience in running BGT in multiplayer, a friend and me are trying to play using just the trilogy and bugfix, we both did identical installs, both use windows 7, his copy runs fine but whenever I try to create or join a tcp/ip game I get dropped back to desktop.
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On September 21 2010 23:33 lastmotion wrote:
When you get to level 20+ with a mage, you really start becoming a demi-God
Well as long as it's an overpowered class rather than an useless one which I wouldn't be able to pick for my main, I'm fine with it.
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i just installed it too, the mention of voodoo family of graphics cards got me all nostalgic all on its own.
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On September 21 2010 23:33 lastmotion wrote:+ Show Spoiler +On September 21 2010 23:19 Alaric wrote:
Is the game quite balanced in terms of class viability ? Like in, you're not screwed if your main is a thief or a bow user ? Early game = Warriors/Thieves Late game = Magic users. Specifically Sorcerors When you get to level 20+ with a mage, you really start becoming a demi-God
And guess what....
I'd like to add as a D&D fan that it is the only reason making lvl16+ available a "logic" choice whereas in NWN it just makes no sense: it is a lifetime achievement or something you can attain with a "little help".
And oN_Silva you can tune the hotkeys to your liking in BGconfig (in the same folder as you shortcut), as for the door... if you can't lock pick them then they might be a part of the puzzle called "let's get out of here"... just saying...
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Ha, in Throne of Bhaal, it's essentially the battle of the demi-gods. You take on armies of elite troops, legendary creatures, and spawns of Bhaal similar to yourself. The end boss is practically a true god.
You gotta admit, the Baldur Gate saga is truly an epic tale from start to finish.
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On September 21 2010 01:32 Night[7] wrote:(and probably torment which I haven't played yet but definitely will if I can get that widescreen mod to work )
Make sure to patch w/ the official 1.1 before trying to do the widescreen patch or it wont work. Took me a few hours of searching around to figure out that one.
There's also "GhostDog's PS:T UI mod v2.1" which makes the widescreen UI look better.
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This thread definitely has me interested in giving this game another go. I remember playing BG2 several years ago, but never got around to trying BG1 since I assumed it was just too outdated for me to enjoy. Hopefully some of the mods mentioned in this thread can change that, though I am curious about this:
On September 21 2010 11:05 Aquafresh wrote:
The main difference between Tutu and BGT is that BGT combines BG1 with BG2 aiming for a smooth transition between the games as if you were merely moving to a different act. Tutu keeps them separate.
Let's say I install BGT and really sink a lot of hours into the BG1 portion of the game. After finishing it and "transitioning" into BG2, is it likely that my characters would be far overpowered for most of the early content that was designed around starting BG2 from scratch? I'd really prefer the game be challenging, and don't want to start with some huge advantage.
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On September 21 2010 10:56 Dfgj wrote:
I always want to do a solorun of BG2 but lose motivation early on =( Any thoughts on a class/combo I'd find particularly interesting to make an attempt on?
I have played too much BG2.
Kensai/thief
+ Show Spoiler +Carsomyr... oooyea
Pleas note though that this can get ridiculously hard if you want all the kensai abilities before switching to thief, since you have no party members to rely on while you are stuck in the early levels.
But I mean CMON! It's carsomyr, slaughtering mages doesn't get easier.
Make sure to patch w/ the official 1.1 before trying to do the widescreen patch or it wont work. Took me a few hours of searching around to figure out that one.
There's also "GhostDog's PS:T UI mod v2.1" which makes the widescreen UI look better.
Thanks :D Will definitely get to work on this.
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Can someone tell me how to get Jaheira to memorize the "idification" spell?I found a staff and braclet and now finally a scroll but I checked all available spells and there was no indification, even though I have now the scroll!
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EPT
