Baldur's Gate: The Black Pits

[Fandraxx]

Hey all,

I currently may or may not be working on something involving the Black Pits and I was curious to know what other people think about it.

For me, it's a fun exercise in the combat of the infinity engine, mainly in the way that it removes the impact that non-combat elements have on party construction (i.e. - having a Paladin for conversations or a Thief for trap and lock management). I always thought the first game was way too easy, but had more character (mainly due to Baeloth), whereas the second game was definitely more challenging (in a good way), but pretty boring in comparison.

Obviously, neither of them have any real story, but, if Icewind Dale has taught us anything, its that the gameplay of these games is certainly good enough to overcome any lacking narrative.

But, what about everyone else? BP was never actually talked about all that much, even back around the time of it's release, so I'd love to get some opinions on it.

 

[m7600]

The Black Pits I & II are awesome, I really like them. Fighting waves of monsters is fun, but I also liked the story. Baeloth's alliterations are hilarious.

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

I like Baeloth's alliterations too, at least the BG1 and SoD part. It might be worth trying Black Pits one day, but I haven't played them yet. The "fighting wave of monsters" part didn't sound like that much fun to me, I'm more interested in narrative than mechanics. Which is maybe the reason I've never finished Icewind Dale.

 

[alice_ashpool]

I've done some solo runs and ironman runs of Black Pits 1 - could never really bring myself to commit to BP2 - Both interesting in their own ways.

 

[Antimatter]

I finished the Black Pits 1 once and had fun, definitely. It required me to create a concept behind 6 characters and their abilities / stats / classes. This allowed me to have a great moment in Siege of Dragonspear where you encounter The Concocter.

However, unfortunately, one of the party characters was a cleric/thief, and the Black Pits 2 has a bug where the thieving button is unavailable for cleric/thieves in that section (very odd, I know, but that's the reality). Not being able to continue with the party of custom characters I created and completed the Black Pits 1 with stopped fun for me, so I never really handled the Black Pits 2 (which is really unfortunate considering BG2 levels and abilities plus BG2 enemies create interesting fights).

To play adventures like the Black Pits, or even Icewind Dale, I personally need to have some connection to the character concepts I come up with.

 

[Fandraxx]

Thanks, everyone! Lotta good points all around.

Personally, I think Baeloth is just a misunderstood fellow. Look at how he displays affection!

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

Thanks, everyone! Lotta good points all around.

Personally, I think Baeloth is just a misunderstood fellow. Look at how he displays affection!View attachment 2476

Okay that convinced me, I'm going to play it some day.

 

[Fandraxx]

Okay that convinced me, I'm going to play it some day.

Baeloth is the best.

And, I should say, though I'm not the biggest fan of it, the second game does have some more concrete connections to the main games, specifically SOD.

 

[Fandraxx]

I've come to notice that the scribe in the second game, who chronicles your bouts in the pits, is (unfortunately) a fine example of modern journalism.

 

[WarChiefZeke]

I have always enjoyed the Black Pits as a lab to test out builds I don't ever intend to devote to a trilogy run. Clerics of Talos, Totemic Druids, Assassins, Jesters, All sorts of Cleric types from Deities of Faerun, etc.

And honestly I liked that there was some semblance of a story there. A little is a lot better than nothing since you can just fill in the blanks yourself.

Any adds ons to it are welcome.

I always tell myself i'm gonna start modding again but my games library is so full atm.

 

[Urdnot_Wrex]

I have always enjoyed the Black Pits as a lab to test out builds I don't ever intend to devote to a trilogy run.

Huh, I hadn't thought of it that way, sounds like a good idea. There are some classes and kits I've always wanted to experiment with, but taking them through the whole story takes far too much time, with so many games waiting to be played.

But which level can you reach in the Black Pits so that you can see what the class kit can do?

 

[Antimatter]

But which level can you reach in the Black Pits so that you can see what the class kit can do?

Black Pits 1 - caps at level 10, not at an XP level. This is 160k for rogues/bards, 250k for mages/sorcerers, 450k for clerics/monks, 500k for fighters/barbarians, 125k for druids and 600k for paladins/rangers.

Black Pits 2 - caps at level 40 (maximum)

 

[Fandraxx]

The eagle has landed.

We need more Baeloth.