Legacy of Bhaal Antics: Chapter 1 Restartitus

[Black Elk]

OK so here we go ignoring sound advice and trying to complete BG1 EE's most absurd difficulty setting between netflix shows lol. Why? Who could say really, I'm still not sure myself. It doesn't seem to me that this difficulty setting was particularly well designed for a lvl 1 BG1 Charname. Maybe a lvl 7+ BG2 Charname, but for the first game the going is pretty rough. Still they threw the gauntlet down, so here I am hehe.

We've got 2 Charnames in the running right now, because, as usual, I can't decide whether I want to roll with a Good party or a more "Mixed Alignment" party. We just did both, cause why not hehe

In this corner, wearing the blue trunks, the defending Champ: Wick Worthington...

Fighter/Cleric of Candlekeep! A man who needs no introduction, and probably isn't going to get one anyway lol. You know him, you love him, it's local legend Wick No One is more Worthy Worthington! He's got the look and the moves (like Canderous) and relies mostly on his wits to get the job done. Known as the slingmaster of the Coast Way, he's punching well above his weight class here, with a mean left hook and the 1, 2 combo - Command & Hold Person! Like really just those two, over and over and over lol. Good plan Wick! Stick with what works.



And in this corner, wearing the red trunks, the Challenger: Uhtred of Bedinbruh...

Born a Warrior, but raised as a Wizard - Uhtred, son of Ughtred, lord of Bedinbruh - He's all about his reputation (making sure the dream abilities get a nice even split) and taking this narcoleptic power fantasy to it's most ridiculous logical extreme. Like he's just hitting the hay non stop, and camping wherever, all the time. Known to some of his detractors as Uhtred the Uxorious, or Uhtred the Unready, in truth he's really just led by his heart (and the questionable BG1 EE romances) with some occasional decision paralysis there. Like he'll keep randomly swearing oaths and getting himself in the weeds trying to choose between the various priestesses, this way or that with the hangers on, but still trying to keep it true somehow. As an aspiring Arch Mage, Uhtred knows he'll have to rely on his brains as well as his brawn, and cultivate a solid crew, but when the going gets tough it's bastard sword and board all night. When the webs are truly tangling, light crossbows! - Destiny is Bhaal!



Our rules are very strict. Theme for BG1 is Wedge of Tomorrow attack pattern delta, where we try to restrict our quicksaves and abide by the chunks as best we can. 2 second time machine will allow for occasional time saving reloads on the more annoying stuff, like area transition ambushes, but generally with the goal to keep that stuff as low pro as possible. I feel like there's a real grey area here about how much time one wants to waste, but low reload at least in the sense that these combats take so excruciatingly long to strongarm that we'd prefer to avoid them where possible. I'm keeping a loose tally as I go, just to see how reproducible my route might be, since I'm trying for Dual Class humans where I can. So far so good. I mean sorta, clearly not everyone is going to make it, as Montaron already bit the dust vs Tarnesh in that first run, so we'll have to see how things go. Didn't want to overburden the other threads with this nonsense, but for hot tips we're all ears!

First stretch looked pretty similar in both instances though. Here are the Cliff's notes on those highlights. Not sure if either of them will make the grade or if we'll end up trying yet again, but I think this is sorta like Prologue Chapter 1 cause the game doesn't really start in earnest until Tarnesh is dead right? lol So silly

Spoiler

Where'd you come from!?

Best I can figure the whole LoB mode keys off either routing around all the initial setpiece combats (kiting NPCs out of the way, or using stealth to weave around the chokepoint encounters) or else using stunning or immobilizing spells like Web and Hold Person. The normal interrupts like Larlock's, Command, Horror etc. just aren't really enough to dust the early combats in Chapter 1. They're useful in combination with Web and Hold Person, but the HP bloat, enemy bonuses and increased movement speed really seem to require paralyzing magic to manage. Of the two spells Hold Person is easier to acquire first, basically Branwen or a Cleric at lvl 3, but that's no mean feat in LoB, unless the player is going to the Gardens immediately, like as the literal first thing to do. Korax is not totally reliable either, even when threading the needle perfectly between the Gnoll spawns, he can still get caught up if the greater basilisks start charging, or if Mutamin avoids the stun. Lvl 4 is probably pushing tin, but lvl 3 seems doable, so I think Legacy of Bhaal just kinda assume this approach. Either that or some sort of solo rogue thing maybe, but the downside there is that most of the XP is awarded from actual combats and grinding it out that way, so kinda hard to hit the level 3 power spike. The belt of the antipode allows for some White Wolf hunting, but sorta the same deal there, like Charname is trekking pretty far afield and off the beaten path to pursue those antics, and the Garden's just seemed simpler. Or so we thought hehe

Catch ya next round gang!

 

[Black Elk]

Right then, both Charnames just fully wiped TPK for the Mines, so this seemed like a good place to stop and take stock again lol.

Thus far the tally seemed pretty even. Wick and Uhtred are each at right around 2 dozen reloads just to get to Mulahey, but they struggled in different areas of the Mines.

For Uhtred the main problem was the first Giant Spider, probably half a dozen loads right there, just to knock out a single 8 legged opponent. Branwen had only prepped a couple Commands and we decided to gamble by memorizing another Hold Person slot instead of Slow Poison. I decided to split the second level Mage Scrolls we'd gathered between myself and Imoen. I took Horror and she opted for Stinking cloud. Using both Dual Mages together and camping right there on the bridge for Branwen to rework her spell list, we eventually got to the next area, but not before many horrific poisonings.

For Wick the problem was more the Mulahey battle itself, and that fire arrow Kobold who refused to be held right beforehand. Again probably half a dozen loads just trying to get through the door for some reason. Rough RNG seems to be the name of the game for this one, like either the 3rd paralyzing spell is going to land, or it isn't, and if the latter than the battles seem to go south pretty quick. We even had our Invoker and Big Steel, cause Wick detoured vs the Gnolls to rescue Dynaheir. Khalid was killed in the attempt, which was a bummer. Had to raise a mound to him when leaving the Gnoll Stronghold. Compared to that we figured Kobolds would be no prob, but alas the little barkers were even tougher than the big ones! We managed to stun and kill Mulahey eventually, dodge the Kobolds and Skeletons to flee the room, finally (again probably half a dozen attempts) then just got absolutely ruined by Telka immediately afterwards. Go figure! Got greedy, should have resupplied again first lol.

When TPK wipes crack off I'm going by Chapter save basically, which is more redundant than necessary probably, but feels somehow still above board to me. Like just to see how far I can get from the Korax save, or if it's even doable. I'm trying to pick up the rest of the crew where it makes sense to me, since I don't feel like solo would work well for keeping my interest and I really seem to need the full party comp to blast past the enemy HP, even when totally over-levelled. Like basically 5 or 6 deep for the party depending on the area, which makes sneaking past a bit trickier. Technically we're on Wick 2 now, like dude is trying for the sequel. Uhtred has only just now arrived at Mulahey for the first time. Plan is to attempt a sneak plus invisibility potion to nab some spells and hopefully get a nap in before we face him. Like I'm pretty sure the web spell is waiting for us in that chest if only we can make it in and out without being noticed. Fingers crossed!

So far the worst Legacy of Bhaal nightmare of all was thinking I could somehow kill the rats in the cellar for that extra modicum of XP, if I just like left and took a shower. Let the game do it's thing right? I came back refreshed only to find myself trapped in this position... Body blocked by the rats! Serves me right.

I cooked dinner and eventually he managed to land the final whack, not to defeat the rats mind, just to kill the one rat that was blocking us in place and then deciding it really wasn't worth the XP after all. Just goes to show what we're dealing with over here heheh.

At this pace we may never see Chapter 4! Or at least not till next weekend lol

 

[Antimatter]

The LoB setting is just a port of the Heart of Fury setting from the original IWD. It has never been criticized in that game, and yet for the BG crowd, the setting looked weird and out of place. I think the unfortunate placement of those rats in the tutorial section of BG1 (that couldn't be modified in the EE as it had a rule of not modifying the original content) made things look worse than they are. There is no need to fight those rats as all you get is small XP and gold.

It'll get better once you get all characters and level them up so that you could have disabling spells.

 

[Black Elk]

Yeah it seems to work alright at lvl 4 and up actually, if one dodges the more ridiculous spots. Sorta like a rollercoaster 'must be this tall to ride' I suppose, cause carving through the flat HP is the chore. It's definitely pretty tough, because the extra enemy attacks are brutal, but also kinda one dimensional. Main prob is that all the sleep spells are pretty borked which is a big nerf to early crowd control options. Once we get hold person the scales started to rebalance a bit. Like basically where we steamroll the encounter, perfect combo and everything lands in rapid succession, or else somebody whiffs and then everything goes haywire, enemy steam rolls us instead. I don't even want to know how many reloads it took to finally kill Telka. Probably 100 lol. Like scrambling to pick up the poison darts and start hurling them back hoping for a poison kill.

Uhtred is doing a better job keeping his people alive, but lagging on the plot progression as a result. Gotta catch em all, but now we're stuck trying to decide who comes along, predictably. I like the bridge in Nashkel as the main spot for a walk of legends. More convenient than the Friendly Arm for now.

Meanwhile Wick 2 is charging ahead...

He's like knee deep in thick of it, trying to decide whether it's worth pitching camp in the middle of the Bandit hideout hehe.

I think it's probably doable!

lol might have been wiser to stick with Insane

 

[Black Elk]

Darkhorse surprise! Now we got another restartitis contender lol

This is Imsomnia - Imoen's evil stepsister... Basically a mirror inversion, or alter ego, or perhaps a childhood imaginary friend (Drop Dead Fred style). Whereas Imoen hits the books and then hits the hay neutral good, Imsomnia just stays up all night planning her heists and backstabs, drifting neutral evil. Her specialty is lockbusting with a complete lack of impulse control.



First big score was on day one! While Imoen was busy gathering potions and daydreaming of high adventure, Imsomnia was out there stealing everything not nailed down. Hussling the gems and sharpening the short swords, with change to spare. She's got her eye on the prize and the enchanted dagger, though for starting proficiencies we went more or less with the Imoen template.

Trying to roll up an 87 point Thief actually took way longer than I thought it would. I forgot that rogues lowball pretty hard. Saw a few 85s and 86s pop up, but then bam - out of nowhere - a 90! Tadow!

We put the extra points in STR, INT and CHA, just to have her slightly ahead and put Imoen on edge, but with basically the same spread and the same dual class option. For evil party comp the missing piece of the puzzle is probably just a pure class thief so I think we may push that a bit.

"I'm ready to go right now"

hehe

 

[Black Elk]

I think Imsomnia is about to pull ahead of the other Charnames.

Turns out the Dust Memphit is a pretty boss familiar.

He's the MVP thus far for sure. Allowed us to overcome that last Lesser Basilisk to hit lvl 4 Then came super clutch flying around in the stinking cloud to kill the spiders and the more annoying fire Kobolds. I think usually I keep the familiar in the pack and call it a day with the HP boon, with the enemies all bloated to the ceiling seemed only fair. But this guy is definitely front lining it like half the time now. The glass dust special is particularly helpful since it's brings the enemy THAC0 into a more manageable range. Like where Imoen landed her darts or Khalid sometimes actually hits something, which is a definite plus.

Uhtred has the Fairy Dragon, but I hadn't really been using it much. I briefly considered Cleric Ranger for Wick, to also try for a mini Dragon there, but the leather armor restriction didn't really match his portrait which is more blue steel than like Beast Master. I think that kit is a bit of a miss for just giving the standard mage familiar instead of some kind of cool lion or a blink beast or whatever. Like there are a bunch of creature models that might have been supped up for a Beast Master. For Druids sorta the same deal there with the Shifters. I considered Fighter/Druid as my most classic for BG1, but the early spell lists are kinda rough for this mode. Jaheira pulls her weight well enough so it's probably something to return to there.

Really the big leg up is just bringing Branwen and Viconia along together. For Villain I dipped reputation early with Viconia on board, so dreaming of Larlock's Minor Drain, but then figured we'd do some more heroic deeds via plot progression just to keep us in everyone's good graces. Jaheira and Khalid don't know about any of our misdeeds at Candlekeep, and so far it hasn't come up. They'll probably get ditched at the bridge if this next part goes to plan, cause Khalid's been a bit judgy. So far he's though he's been pretty reliable, and the villainy does feel more rewarding with someone to disapprove our actions. Even when we climb up to reputation 9 he still call's it shameful. We gave him Greywolf's swords to cool down, since then he hasn't muttered much. Dust Memphit is on the case lol

Go time! Finally made it to through the first gate and up to the cave door...

Some other random thoughts revisiting BG1 for the umpteenth time...

So this is still my favorite Baldur's Gate game and the one that gives me the most warm and fuzzies. It's easy to dive back in. There's just something about it. Always hits the spot for me. I enjoy the color grading and sprites of the original especially, but the EE's do most things well enough for me to not mind overmuch. I think I prefer the SoD UI to the recreated BG1 stone-effect UI because the overall visual is more subdued and monochromatic.

The BG1 to me just has a bit too much blue in the background and too much yellow in the trim. I feel like the stone UI comports more with the BG2 visual style which is super heavy on the cyans, magentas, and golds. I mean the BG2 companion portraits especially all have that sort of color scheme baked-in. The BG2 world map is louder (more vibrant), and the icon buttons are all a warm blue cyan. The background for the UI there is a warm parchment color though, so this works well there. For BG1 though they shifted to blue for the dominant stone color and this changes the overall present too much for me. Like it just makes all the gold pop too hard and look sorta garish to me, I much prefer that toned down even if the actual visualization (the detailing and patterning) is closer to OG BG1 with the stone, I couldn't get past the color grading hehe. The other thing, not really an issue in BG1 but more pronounced in BG2 is how the status effect icons display over the in-game portrait. I feel like this is one area where they could have used some more Enhanced attention. Even with an upscaled UI I think there was still room with a modern display to do something more there.

For example maybe moving all those status icons on Char portraits from a horizontal orientation to a vertical orientation, then placed off to the side of the portrait instead of pasted directly on top. Like basically just widening the pillar box slightly on the margins by a couple px they could fit 2 or 3 columns for status icons that way.

Buffs might arrange by duration so maybe perma or daily buffs in one column, shorter duration buffs/debuffs might display alongside them so when they pop up it's more noticeable. The portraits are all in Profile (taller than they are wide) so to me it would make more sense to do the icons vertically. Even going 3 columns deep would be better than seeing icons display over peoples faces. I also think it would have been easier to parse and less visually distracting. These are minor little things, but it's the sort of redux I can get behind. Like to me the quick loot tab is great, I don't mind QoL conveniences of that sort. Stuff like that I think has a place.

The aesthetic and color grading or sprites for the helmets I do miss though. I feel like some of the mechanical and narrative stuff in BG1 was made just a bit too BG2 for my tastes. Stuff like Class Kits and new NPCs to slot in for those roles, a badass Familiar that juices the Charname Wizard's HP, weapon proficiencies in fighting styles etc, those all still feel sorta out of place to me in BG1. I just still have a hard time choosing to play as say a Sorcerer or Barbarian, or special Class kit that grants all sorts of specials. Like when I see Shar-Teel with proficiencies in Two Weapon Fighting baked into her archetype or whatever, that stuff will irk me slightly. It's not like they made her into a Kensai with a Katana or anything granted, but still, just not really my memory there. I think an Enhancement might have been something like allowing the player to assign weapon specializations or skills upon recruitment the way stuff was handled in BG2 when importing a BG1 Charname or Gamesave. In BG1 everyone felt way more versatile because the weapons categories were broader, fewer points to distribute, to me this might have recommended an extra couple proficiencies for flavor.

So for example allowing Khalid or Kivan to have their proficiency in Large Swords or Bows, or Montaron to have a starting Crossbow proficiency. They went from something like 8 weapons categories to the 20+ weapon types of BG2, but most Classes still only get like 1 or 2 points to distribute, and the 4 points that warriors get don't really match the same versatility that those characters would have had using the BG1 system. The penalties for being non-proficient in anything are pretty hardcore, so it just really locks the player into whatever choices were made there for the NPCs defaults. In some cases the choices feel thematic, like to match the portrait or starting weapon in their hands, other times sorta arbitrary. Some characters are just kinda screwed due to having poor ranged options by default. Like if your Wizards can't throw a dart or sling a bullet to save their lives, that's rough going.

Probably everyone could have just been given a starting proficiency in Quarterstaff and Slings as a freebie since those weapon types are available to all classes. Darts and Daggers are sorta similar since those are also pretty universal for most classes. This would have freed up a point or two to provide a more useful spread of core proficiencies, and allowing the player to choose their core weapons or specializations from a wider baseline of proficiencies as they level up. For Thieves the distribution of skill points is also sorta rough. The set traps and detect illusion skills and the way stealth is handled BG2 style, these all sorta buckle a bit when brought into BG1 where you can get the blowout lockpick or find traps or just any single ability maxed out right away. I think a better solution might have been fewer points distributed across each of the starting skills where the player starts in that range of like 10-25 points depending on fantasy face. So like not hitting 100s at lvl 3 in anything, but more rounded with maybe a 60 or 75 at the high end if the character is min/maxing that. I just feel like it could somehow scale better for a BG1 lvl 1 character. Lockpicking is more of an xp farm than trap disarming, but they both have an impact early on. Some of this absurdity is easy to sweep under the rug if doing this Legacy of Bhaal thing where the enemy HP spam is so crazy, but I just mean in general like for any difficulty just the way the character progresses under the BG2 scheme but from lvl 1 instead of lvl 7.

For class kits or NPCs with class kits, say Branwen becoming a priest of Tempus with extra special abilities chaos of battle and fighter power, that stuff is kinda fun. But I also feel like it was a bit arbitrary. Like Branwen gets a bunch of badass new abilities but Viconia just has her same old same old? I mean her magic resistance being fixed for healing is nice sure, but I could have gold for a cool priest of Shar special to match some of the others. It's kinda tough once you open the door there I suppose, but some characters the BG1 specials were way better in some instances than others. Like Faldorn's Wolf or Tiax's Ghast, those are some impressive summons. Xan's Moonblade on the other hand? Just not quite at the same. It's always a bind but I like to amp the NPCs up where we can, like maybe the ones who don't get impressive amulets get the Tome of whatever. We'll have to see! So far so good/villainous

I'm usually just happy to have Viconia around. Here's my favorite piece of BG3 concept art, I saw it floating around on the wiki. For Shar!

Feels like home! hehe

 

[Black Elk]

So this will have to count as a digression, but one of the things that still irks me about the Enhanced Editions is the inconsistency with much of the artwork. I mentioned the color grading of the UI, but this is a bit more expansive. For example one of the selling points of the EEs were all those hand painted cutscenes to replace the early 3d cinematics. Not to diminish that work, cause I'm sure it was a difficult challenge, but this is very similar for me to watching SW without the opening 20th Century Fox fanfare. Like sure, if that wasn't what I was used to maybe I wouldn't care, but it really sets the tone cause it's the first thing. Along those lines, restaging the opening cinematic, like Sarevok's intro kicking the shit out the dude with the funny helmet. It used to look like this...



What happened to his helmet anyway? Instead of the badass 3d intro where we saw the dude stumble through the door and then Sarevok with all those dramatic cuts, knocking his helmet off, the guy pleading for his life etc. Instead we get this freeze frame comic book animation thing. The staging and tone is quite different. It reminds of the way people try to sell novels these days by making them into animated shorts. The original shots, while somewhat jank and pixelated by todays standards, were still more dynamic and included more foreshadowing dialogue. Also they ditched that killer transition at the end where the blood pools and runs into the BG Skull? Like why? I just don't get it lol. It'd be different if they rotoscoped it shot for shot, but the sequence was changed and abridged. Looks like this now every time I launch the game.



Like tell me the 98 didn't have way more impact hehe. To me it looks cooler as well. Sarevok seems more menacing in the OG, so I just have a hard time seeing the point. Sure the original might be a little rough two decades on, but it was also a snapshot of a moment in time for the development of 3d art and was rather exceptionally done. There are little things like that all over the place, but it's emblematic to me of Enhancements that don't actually enhance what they are replacing. Not in every instance, like some of the camp scenes are pretty nice and there are chapter transitions that work rather well, but it seems like zots that could have gone to other stuff.

Starting with the portraits... probably everyone has seen by now the image of the BG1 characters showing the original models used for reference. So for example the portrait I'm using for Wick Worthington (Canderous) that's the self-portrait of the portrait Artist, Mike Sass. The one I'm using for Uhtred is John Gallagher. Imsomnia is the wife of the terrain artist etc. None of them are professional models, they're all like programmers or friends or spouses of people who worked on the game. To me there is something very charming about that approach. I think it speaks that desire, to see oneself transformed into a badass Ranger or Rogue or Wizard through the magic of paint. There's something cool about that which makes the amateurism of the modelling appealing. Also, all the portraits were created by just the one person, so there's a stylistic cohesion and uniformity to everything we see.

I wouldn't call the BG1 portraits particularly realistic, I mean nobody is going to hold their sword or whatever weapon that close to their face, but it works thematically for BG1, where at least everything feels as if it were being drawn from the same well. By the time BG2 rolls around, we have the same artist on the case, but employing a different style. So much so that if you look at the BG1 portraits and the BG2 portraits next to each other in the same party, the differences really jump out.

For one thing the BG2 portraits use an almost completely different color palette. The grit and high saturation of the BG1 portraits gives way to a smoother but also much flatter overall read. The dominant colors trend towards pastels, so you'll see a lot of yellows, pinks and light blues across all the portraits. This is consistent with most of the BG2 portraits, so again there is a stylistic cohesion there, but they don't work all that well with the BG1 set. Pretty clear break between the two games. If for example, the player choose a BG1 portrait for their BG2 Charname that image will tend to stand out pretty markedly. We see a couple celebrities start intruding too, some sorta obvious, and I think it just loses some of that BG1 portrait charm. This is unfortunate because one recognizable pop face sorta ruins it for all the others. Like it probably would have been better to cut Nalia or Viconia right? Rather than using magazine clippings of famous actresses or whatever. Not to belabor the point too much, I mean I still dig the BG2 portraits and it's kinda water under the bridge there. Like maybe I could gripe in the year 2000, but they're all so iconic now. Still, BG1 everything felt somehow more personal and imbued with whatever character or special something those random peeps brought to the table during the og BG1 reference shoots.

With the BG2s I get the impression that dude must have been a bit more behind the 8 ball. To me they're just not as strong overall. More issues with the anatomy and the foreshortening, some probs with the blocking of forms or the textures/tones. The BG2's just don't seem to be executed with the same verve as the BG1s. I think the painting process was probably pretty different too, where the BG1s appear to be more photo comp overpainting, the BG2s are more fully painted out. I mean they're better paintings technically in that respect, but I'm not sure they're better BG portraits for it. Also comparing that work to the Kotor stuff from around the same period, I feel like he was maybe more into Star Wars by then, cause I fucking love that Kotor cover! I think he upped his game on that one for sure! Hard to say really, I can see a progression and improvements in technique, but I think BG2 might have been a time for some growing pains. Like for BG1 it feels like he had the face first (the rando coworkers) and then went for the character idea from there, based on that specific person, whereas with BG2 it might have been the exact reverse - like where he had the idea first, but then had to go hunting for the right face? I get the sense that models might not have been in the budget or something, so he just had to strongarm it? Still the same guy though, so you can see a through line there, even if the style is pretty different comparing them to the BG1 portraits.

For portraits that were added to the EEs the inconsistencies feel more pronounced. It starts with the cropping.

In BG1 and BG2 all the portraits are basically headshots, or head and shoulders, with some jazz hands here or there to liven things up. For the EEs the crops all seem to be from the waist up, or more full body. Their skulls will appear much smaller when the image is auto-downscaled and presented alongside the others off to the side of the screen. This might match more closely the look of the Icewind Dale portraits, where they had a large full body portrait and then a medium and smaller size image which just cropped in to show the face as a detail, but that's not what was going on with the BG1/2 images. I mean I love the Justin Sweet IWD II portraits as much as the next person, but it's a whole different vibe there with the full body shot. I also see a lot of what we might call the Ringling digital painting style circa 2000, where everything is very loose and concept art-y. Brushes that just look very digital and sorta choppy. Doesn't mix all that well with the other stuff from the standard BG1/BG2 portraits. None of the EE crops really align with each other eg. the head sizes are all over the place when scaled down to the smaller sized portraits. The proportions are kinda wonky, super long necks, heads in just the top third of the image, whereas the Sass portraits all still had the face taking up at least half the canvas.

Just seems like they could have given us a better spread. For the promo art too, some odd juxtapositions or color choices, or just looking kinda choppy. The EE portraits where again the vibe is very flat, so the forms or cast shadows just kinda look half done. Dorn or whoever alongside say BG1 Minsc, it's just a very different visual. I think the EE portraits mesh better with the BG2 portraits, which are similarly flat-ish, but next to the BG1s they sorta just look unfinished. Like they needed a final pass to tighten things up and bring them in line with the others.

For me this creates a dilemma with the custom portraits in both BG1 and BG2, because often times changing just 1 image means I have to change like 20+ so they can agree and play nice with one another. For example, using all IWD portraits for everyone and just going for the closest available. Then there is the Imoen and Viconia SoD images which also seem a bit off. Like Imoen's face flip or how Viconia is redrafted with hella gaussian blur applied to disguise the changes made to her face. I get the reason why, but still, could have used some serious elbow grease there instead of just modifying the existing image and leaving her blurry.

Just one of those things. I try to get past some this stuff and pretend it's not a big deal, but it's kind of a big deal honestly. Baldur's Gate was a masterpiece! So I just wish they had been able to pull out all the stops for it. I don't know sour grapes I guess, I can still power through, but I still wish I could convenient launch this thing in a Classic mode. Or have that mode at least for historical provenance. I'm torn because there's a lot that I enjoy about the EEs, but the look is hard to get beyond sometimes.

We try our best though

Just grab the ring of Holiness and run!

I mean right? heheh

 

[Black Elk]

Further random thoughts while we prep to sneak around the Lighthouse. Gotta get Branwen her tome of CON for 4 more hitpoints hehe.

So here's a thing that I would have enjoyed as an Enhancement for BG1... Some Mage robes with trim colors that aren't just red, orange, or yellow! hehe

I think they could have done more with the colors for the regular equipment and +1 enchanted armors, weapons and shields, like just to provide for some visual variety where duplicate items are encountered. For example, the Traveler's Robes or Adventure's Robes or Robes of Electrical resistance etc, I'd like to have seen those coming in a few different color combinations. The same could have been done with say chainmail or studded leather, where each merchant offers a different color combo. I know all this can be achieved via EE Shadowkeeper but it sort of defeats the purpose of aesthetic progression to just have access to everything all at once. It invariably kills my drive once I start in on that stuff if it's total freedom front loaded. I don't particularly go in for dyes as a concept here, but even that would have been alright, if at some side merchant in an optional hub area with costs in GP. I prefer a build up where we start somewhat more limited but get more options further along in the game.

The ultimate goal is of course black on black, cause that always looks boss, but where there's a bit of a gradation. Power spikes just like leveling from XP, but the color palette version of that. Starting with the darker greys and browns maybe, before eventually going pitch towards the end. Or pick whatever color you're into, but some way to get closer to that ideal over the course of the run. Like the Red Knight who's actually red instead of pink or some sort of burnt orange, or the Green Knight who's actually green instead of lime chartreuse, you know what I mean right? Just getting closer to the optimal color combo goal in the endgame is always fun. I like that sort of stuff for a redux, cause it's what I always wanted from the original, like when it first came out. To me that sort of stuff is gameful without being overly intrusive. I can see a few ways it might have been done, but a cool option would been to focus on Winthrop, giving him some extra options at the outset, just to set the tone for the thing. Like priming the player for some more colorful options in the EE that way, but without making it too on the nose. I think another concept that would have been interesting in BG1 is the Stronghold concept of BG2. Without going into a full class based system I think a single stronghold attained sometime in the midgame would have been a cool way to introduce any of the additional EE content. Like instead of placing people at the Friendly Arm Inn or Nashkel to have them introduced via that new spot; the EE adventures all linked back to that branch/path.

An example of an area that fits pretty seamlessly would be the one where Dorn has to face down the Necromancer. I'd have preferred they set it up such that the new area is where EE NPCs are recruited, rather than meeting them super early on. I just think that would have been a more enjoyable Where's EE Waldo sorta experience for me. Instead of having something just sorta thrown at me to jack up the sense of pacing I remember at the beginning. Like there's a point in the midgame where things tend to drag after cloakwood but before the city, I think that would have been a good point to have some branch content that could draw the player along, or give them specific reasons to revisit the earlier locales in later chapters.

For me it's more just how everything is so front loaded, although I suppose it's possible that they felt people maybe lose interest right at the start somehow. Or perhaps that the game just really needed a few very powerful NPCs that would be easy to use mechanically for newer players, cause they have more specials or spells. Stat blocks and starting equipment that are more optimized and straightforward for the new player to use. In that sense I suppose they'd do the trick.

On balance Neera is a way better specialist mage than Xzar or Xan. No one holds a candle to Edwin with his amulet, but she's got him beat on known spells in the starting spellbook, that's for sure. Neera also has her proficiency in the Sling which gives her the leg up on just about every other mage except Dynaheir for the ranged attack option, but without the added baggage of Minsc. She also has a nice staff and a robe, a gembag. In my view this is like a QoL type character for the new player, so I understand why they would be included from that standpoint. I think of all the EE portraits hers is probably the best for fitting in with the BG1s, so she gets a bit of a pass on that front. Like she's alright, though not for this run. I didn't like how she was trying to recruit in ahead of Imsomnia with 16000xp. Didn't want her stealing our thunder, but I was willing to steal her Traveler's robes and the bag of gems.

Dorn is similarly very useful for the Evil party comp. Like he blows Kagain and Shar-Teel out of the water as a front liner, coming stacked with a 19 and optimized stats. Also high CHA for merchant trades. Like if you're a villain it's hard to pass over because mechanically he's just better. The voice acting is solid too, least for me, so I may take him on board, but I do think his portrait is a bit blocky compared to the others. Just a different style of illustration, reminds me more of the Wizards 3e artwork style just the way the armor and the sword and such are handled and the more singular tone.

Baeloth is just absurdly overpowered, to the point where he makes even Edwin look like a joke. So I imagine he might have been used a trainer character to make it easier for players to get their heads around the arcane spell list. His intro unlike the others is pretty random though, so I'm not sure he'd really fulfill that purpose all that well. Like the by the time he's encountered the party is already levelled into the midgame, but I suppose that's also the point when the player might need the hot tips on which spells are pretty optimal.

Rasaad feels like more of a flavor choice, since Monks are pretty underwhelming at the start. They are pretty easy to use, but feels like a bit a trap character, since he's much more useful if recruited later on. I think if they wanted to showcase the Monk he should have showed up in Baldur's Gate instead of Nashkel, where he might have added a bit more to the mix recruiting in at like lvl 6 say instead of lvl 2-3. His portrait is a bit rough for me, like it's well executed, but he totally looks like a villain to me rather than a lawful goodly Moon monk. He's kinda hard for me to slot in, though I can imagine a run where he might make an appearance at some point.

Dude kept trying to steal my killshot vs Nimbul! As if we didn't have it handled lol.

For this run I went with Dorn...

I switched out his portrait for this image by Dave Rapoza, cropped to the L, M, and S sizes. It's from his tutorial how to paint an Orc. I've seen it ripped off many times since, probably by AI gen or whatever grift, but I prefer the OG image. Even if I had to crop a little off the shoulder so it would fit the dimensions.

I think it works alright alongside the other BG1 portraits, such that it doesn't stand out too hardcore by it's sheer awesomeness. Fits Dorn's look well enough for my taste at any rate. I just keep the helmet on at all times and imagine him with that look hehe

We did some brief detours to retrieve the regulars and park them at the Bridge, but this should be the crew unless we get chunked out. Usually I'd give the Tomes to Charname and go all ham trying to build for the ultimate BG2 continuation, but with this LoB thing I'm just trying to finish the first game first so I haven't planned that far ahead. Instead I'm giving all the tomes to the Companions to make them more ultra. I decided on Branwen for Con, probably STR will go to Shar Teel cause she's struggling a bit. I opted for the proficiency in crossbow rather than specializing the longsword or 3rd point for Mastery in Two Weapons.

The way things have been going everyone needs a ranged option. I've sort of abandoned my count on LoB reloads. Just about every encounter I'm pulling best 2 out of 3 antics, but slowly getting there. Burning through the wand of paralysis charges like it's going out of style lol. It's been a slog vs the Undead cause Turning just doesn't seem to be very effective. I ponied up for some protection scrolls to go grab Ashideena for Branwen. She's on the Spiritual Hammer trying to make it happen. Pretty hardcore. I have her on the front line most of the time. Viconia tanking and Shar Teel either kiting or in the backfield to protect my sniper mages.

So far seems to be getting the job done, albeit rather slowly. Hopefully we'll pick up some steam when I hit the lvl 5 spike, but I got a feeling that might take all weekend.

 

[Black Elk]

Faldorn is probably my favorite character in the Baldur's Gate franchise, so we almost immediately ditched Dorn once we ran into her lol

It always stung a bit that we didn't get to recruit her in BG2, so I enjoy crossing paths with the Shadow Druids and trying to work her into the mix. Her we gave her the Paws of the Cheetah and the Ankheg Plate. A Club would have probably been optimal but I wanted someone to rep the Talon.

With the boss Buckler along with the Brawling Hands she can tank almost as well as Viconia, but with a bit more focus, since I'm constantly having to break and cast Hold Person with the clerics lol. She could go a bit deeper I think with a ring or cloak, but trying to spread the love around a bit. Usual combo thus far is something like Stinking Cloud and Web to open with some light Horror or Dust sprinkled in. Then Holding or Command to make em bow down.

She's the closest to hitting her lvl 6 power up at the moment. Good old Druid XP table! She's working the insect clouds for now.

Our trek to and through the mines was indeed perilous. We decided to ditch Dorn yet again at the last minute to bring Yeslick back to the surface. Bit gamey there, but we knew Dorn would just pout off and head back to the Inn with no real risk of drowning in despair. What can we say, gotta soft spot for the Dwarves, even if his minor contribution was pretty meh.

We sent him off to the Bridge of Doom with the others. Benched Shar-Teel a couple times just to corral the randos, but she's pulling up on the rest of the gang now. I'm not sure who will end up helping us bring the pain to Sarevok, but figured it was best to have options.

We also have a pair of twin Skeletons - the Fumigators, who go toe to toe now. So most of the pressure is off the Argonauts.

With the Wolf out front on point and darting, Faldorn is pretty formidable!

Imsomnia had to dust a Commoner when all was said and done, just to even the scales, while Imoen and the rest of the crew were panic napping the area transition.

Getting through the mines to Davaeorn was more like best 5 out of 7 lol, but we know who's the Arch Magi of Evil now!!!

It was an extremely satisfying chunk out, courtesy of the Dread Wolf!

Feels about right lol

Random swarms of Ankhegs and Bandits had us dodging a fair portion of the campaign. Just to avoid too much slog we kept it to the main story beats, so we're about to hit the City here at lvl 3/5 for my Thief-Mages.

Once Haste is attained the script is pretty much flipped. I gave it to Imoen so I could focus on debuffs for myself, Remove Magic and Spellthrust for now. Mostly it's the Priest doing the dirty work, but everyone is pretty stabby. I had to resist the temptation to blow my whole wad on the Army Scythe. Trying to keep some ready cash so we can juice the spellbooks and maybe snap up a matching Arch Magi robe for Imoen eventually. Gold has been a bit tight from the trash mobs we've been dashing past.

Knock knocking on the Gates, almost at the halfway point! Fingers crossed that we can maintain forward momentum hehe

 

[Black Elk]

Heya! Just hit the town running!

First stop was to the Sundries to pick up a scroll of Monster Summoning I for good measure. Imoen and Imsomnia each have a single third level 3 spell slot to fill right now, similar to their Thief antics it really takes the team effort to get the job done. Spellthrust and Remove magic are more situational though, now that we're through the Mines. Most times just having more bodies to distract and carve up the opposition seems to work somewhat better than a counter mage set up. Obviously Imoen is more support utility flavor with the Haste and Find traps - like johnny on the spot with a magic missile or larlock's sometimes, but mostly just the speed power ups. Ride high then crash and burn at the Elfsong for like a week.

Plan was to nab the Nymphs cloak for sure. I ended up bogarting the Charisma tome from the Gnoll Stronghold so we could at least say Charname got a 19 in there somewhere. With the cloak on top of that we're pretty solidly in charge. It's hard to refuse anyone with the 21. And anyway we figure we could use the lucky discount since we left much treasure behind in earlier chapters.

Priorities number one were the easy-get Tomes and the Gauntlets of Strength, just so Viconia can function properly. Like doing her level best to draw down most of the heat now. Villainy dictates that she'll end up eating all 3 tomes of great Wisdom and the manual of Dexterity so she can flex with a 20 there.

Right now she's at AC -6, with the boots of 'never trippin' bout arrows' and the belt of 'slash of me if you can' she's pretty much set.

A little room still left to grow there, but we're still spreading the kit around. She's pretty hard to hit already, so I just went reckless no helmet, for the crit danger flare lol.

I had to steal the Paws of the Cheetah from Faldorn to make it in and out clean. That flying Ship heist and to sort out the guild required some fancy footwork. But the fleet feet felt pretty nice, so I think we'll keep them forever now till the end of time. Faldorn would understand, right? hehe

We've been keeping a nice assortment of totally matching robes. Imsomnia has a collection of elemental resistance robes, and Imoen has a very similar collection of physical resistance robes. Although I don't think we've worn any of them even once lol. For now I have Imoen in the bonus elven chain, cause still a bit broke to go back for Arch Magi robes, although hopefully we can pour on the Charm now and save a couple bucks.

About to go for a break and enter on the Tower, though not sure if we'll get to the top. Just stealing the INT tome should be enough to get Imoen up to par. Then go geas hunting to get Viconia all wisened, cause she's already cracking wise heheh

 

[Antimatter]

That's really nice progress there. Yeah, as soon as you get 6 characters with ~35-60 HPs each, and a repertoire of disabling and buffing spells, Legacy of Bhaal becomes playable enough.

Definitely agree with the zoom level of the portraits, I've always done the same thing, tweaking EE portraits to fit the zoom level.

 

[Black Elk]

Yeah for sure, the Haste power up in particular makes it sort of a wash once there's a little cushion to work with.

We back tracked for Imoen's robes and the Army Scythe just to make sure we'd be firing on cylinders.

Also picked up a 3 potions of explosions with the chump change we had left over.

The Iron Throne fight was actually pretty tough. We went for it at level 5/6, and only just made it out by the skin of our teeth. Just wildly kiting between the staircases lol.

I opened per the usual with Web, then tried to separate the enemy into two groups by darting downstairs immediately, then back upstairs, then downstairs again. Like a Three Stooges bit pretty much lol.

For a fight like that where the opponent has twice as many goons, all crazy spellcaster heavy, and a super awkward room with wonky sight lines - I found that it was way more effective to simply rush in with melee. Then bounce to the stairs and make for the area transition before any of their disabling spells could land hehe.

I burned through at least half the charges on both Wands of Paralysis, but we eventually picked them apart. It just takes a really long time, also plenty of cheap shots and making sure to kick them while they were down.

As always having a couple skeletons to hang out at the bar was pretty handy. Imoen felt only somewhat sorry for that one innocent merchant who got caught in the crossfire, but it really couldn't be helped. Like it's either that or risk Viconia getting chunked by enemy flame strikes and we weren't about to see that go down again. So far Shar Teel has cost us the most gold for unforced error resurrections trying to play it safe, but when the chips were down just having her rush in was pretty badass.

We're all up to speed now though and ready to head back to Candlekeep.

Fingers crossed!

 

[Black Elk]

Another digression, slightly less long winded, but with more hyperventilation lol

So about Haste...

and also the Boots of Speed....

For me this is for sure the most significant power spike in the entire game BG1, and it really shapes the playpattern more than anything else during the home stretch. The single best spell and the best single item available in the whole campaign, both juice the movement speed. Since positioning and kiting is still the most important thing going on tactics-wise most of the time, it's hard to ignore how much of a role they play in strongarming these encounters. On the one hand they're my favorite, but also probably the most frustrating, in the sense that they completely subordinate and pancake every other potential tactic one might employ. Like unless you know for sure that the enemy is going to dispel magic or that you're very likely to be poisoned immediately if the blood's up, there's really no situation where casting Haste would be the wrong call. I mean right?

Also it's not like PnP where casting this spell takes a year off your character's life, so there's very little downside aside from light fatigue-geree. Most times we'll be camping right after the encounter regardless, which means that there's really not much of a downside at all. The spell has been changed somewhat in more recent editions, but it's still a go to and BG3 has a similar issue when the Arcane Spellcasters start getting Haste-y and the whole game has to recalibrate around that change.

In Legacy of Bhaal the enemies are effectively Hasted at all times. Not exactly, but they have an increased number of attacks, higher movement speed, better AC etc so it's very similar. All the perks that would typically come from Haste, but with a little room for the player to still edge them out on even ground. Trying to counter whatever the enemy is trying to do without using Haste is very difficult, especially with the HP bloat, and so the result is essentially both sides operating at warp speed.

I don't think I've ever felt that BG1 plays more like the original Warcraft or Starcraft or Age of Empires so much as when both sides are getting all haste-y in this way. Like just running at a breakneck pace the entire time and with all the ensuing chaos and spacebar slamming to issue orders what feels like every half second.

Then I think about how this sort of fantasy trope is typically handled in film/cinema. Basically there are two options in that case. They can give us the subjective PoV, where the rest of the world slows down because the player has become so preternaturally fast (eg. the Matrix, Interview with the Vampire, the Flash, or any of those flicks), effectively the D&D spell "Slow" being cast on the world... Or we can have the exact opposite, where we see the world at normal speed and the character just looks like a blur, like fastest ants you've ever seen. Most often some combination of these two, where we see interstitials from both types of PoV in order to create a compelling sequence.

This works well enough in movies, but in games it can be rough. In shooter type games you'd maybe get the slo mo quickdraw ala Red Dead or Black Ops, but in a party based system that is pretty hard to calibrate in a way that's satisfying. Also there's just the more general problem of trying to create an impression of speed by slowing everything down which is a bit counter intuitive. I mean if we didn't have to have a spell called Slow as well as one called Haste, could probably be the same spell more or less, at least from how it's visualized. Then we also got the more extreme Stop Time down the road which relies on more VFX and Sound to carry the concept home there.

I almost feel like they should have nerfed the Haste spell right away, and given us a form of it more like the higher level Improved Haste (e.g. single target) but keeping the fatigue and all the rest, just like a lowball version. It should probably cause direct damage afterwards to the recipient, in addition to fatigue so there's more of a cost/benefit calculus (dmg is a lot more real than fatigue in the immediate aftermath), but again just a single target spell. Similar to Invisibility vs Invisibility 10 ft radius, I think we could have had a spell called Minor Haste which substitutes in for the Third lvl Spell version. Treated like an oil of speed (single target) the effect would still be very powerful for a spell that can be replenished as often as one can rest, but not quite as game changing for the whole encounter design from then on. I mean Imoen and Monty both know how to quaff a speed potion right from the getgo, so it's not that big of a stretch, but applied across the entire party x6 plus every summon, it all becomes quite racy.

The current spell Haste, should probably have been reserved as some crazy Nether scroll that Edwin would kill us all just to get his hands on. Like maybe with a whole separate narrative treatment to make it feel like a really big deal. Used in a fight like the Iron Throne or for the end battle psyche outs, such a spell would have felt sufficiently awesome and also timely, but to build the whole final arch of the game around being able to grind it out with Haste is pretty ridiculous. Like according to the old tomes I used to read, casting Haste 100 times in a campaign would have us looking something like a Crypt Keeper or the dude at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark, with all our life force drained out of us from burning the candle at both ends and then pouring gasoline on top. For the RTS vibes, slowing the record player way down would probably have been advisable. I don't know like where in Haste world 6 seconds equals 12 and they go that method, slight slo mo visual FX to sell it, rather than doing the opposite eg 6 seconds = 3 seconds or whatever. I know they got the whole hard limit of 6 seconds equivalent to a game turn, but this sort of magic would really recommend a more flexible PoV for the hour glass. Perhaps a slider ala og Shogun? Not sure what would be optimal. For the game as it seems to be designed, (ie 2 second time machine, a near continuous reload at will, and ability to sleep anywhere like my grandpa lol) that a good encounter is one that would require several reloads. Perhaps dozens upon dozens of reloads for a big set piece, as the player tries to tease out the timing with a very narrow margin of error and everything moving as fast as humanly possible. Indulging the somniac power fantasy. To do the other thing seems a bit harder, like heading back to the Inn to find a real bed or not reloading unless someone literally explodes into chunks and trying to spend the gold on that. The little things to tie down the economy, which are all ultimately elective and on the player, but the mode here seems to just go for broke from the other direction hehe.

In normal games I'd probably just avoid the spell like maybe playing an Abjurer to maintain more of a sense of challenge, though it's hard to work around when the enemy is on the rush, just trying to dispel takes a couple seconds and in that span of time could be catching a throwing axe to the back. The boots I feel like you can sorta work around those as well, but using a more awkward formation where the Cheetah Paws are constantly getting body blocked by friendlies, but again pretty tough when it's the other side coming at ya. I think the Legacy of Bhaal is probably trying to achieve the heart rate of an average hummingbird, so I guess we just roll with it, but yeah I don't know there. I'm drawing blanks to think of what they might do short of just removing it entirely somehow to avoid the kinks. Seems like one of those BG things that just can't really be avoided hehe

Least we got the look though!

On to another take 5 - with the handfull of Skeletons, the Dread Wolf and a Dust Memphit lol.

We stopped off to chill with Winthrop for a couple nights, pawned off all the stuff we weren't using and then hit the books.

Now that the Woodland being is also on the team I feel like we're ready for whatever! Faldorn got her grizzly form as well but the Woodland being is the big get hehe. She's definitely the tip of the tops like the lonely pines. Viconia camped on another Wisdom tome to hit her 17. It'd probably be good enough Gov'ment work, but we'll likely sneak to Durlags to snap up the 3rd before all is said and done. Strength Tome is a bit more of a bind. Shar-Teel has been eyeing it, but she's also not a long haul option for any sort of BG2 Legacy attempt. Viconia we could push to 11 or Imoen to 10, but they're the only two on the crew looking to carry over. Maybe Dorn I suppose. We haven't checked in on him in a while lol. Ever since that ruckus when we first got to town, seemed a little suss, but he could hit a 20 I suppose. Might make sense, we'll have to see how it feels. Meantime don't think we really need him, and Viconia can carry whatever we need her too thankfully. We gave her the cloak so she could hit -7 AC and whatever else she wants. Except for the gems, we hold onto all of those! hehehe

 

[Black Elk]

The battle in the Ducal Palace was pretty ridiculous. I mean there was always zero chance that Belt was going to make it out of that one alive, but Lady Jannath too!? Just mercilessly exploded by the super doppelgangers. Had another attempt where I tried to test our Charisma and force of will by chunking a couple nobles before they could transform. I managed to pull that off without Belt and Liia going immediately hostile so I thought we could maybe pull it out, but then the skeletons killed one of the Held guards, and half my party decided to just quit mid battle. Only Viconia and Shar-Teel had the guts to remain, even Imoen dipped, but alas they were too many and we also got chunked.

After a couple thoroughly humiliating wipes where everybody just got gored to the floor, we decided to try for a different strategy. Belt being all reckless and diving headlong into the fray seemed doomed to die from the start, so we didn't even bother, but thought perhaps if we could just keep Liia alive long enough for her to get off her Mirror Image we might be able to pull something out. Plan was to use Barkskin on the Dukes then wildly kite with as many characters as possible to force the Greater Doppelgangers to chase us instead. They're quite fast! I sent the priests and skeletons to try and body block Duke Jannath up top, so she wouldn't rush in and get herself killed immediately like Belt. Skeletons to defend! Priests to just keep casting cure light wounds and pray she wouldn't reposition again hehe.

Shar-Teel went down fast tripped up the guards who were trying to help. Then Faldorn nearly got herself killed as well, trying to round a corner in the side room. She got off 2 insect clouds early and those ended up being our most effective direct damage. The Woodland being also came pretty clutch with the second cast of Barkskin on Duke Jannath and Hold Monster which allowed the Fist to knock off one of the Greater Doppelgangers. I had Viconia on the flame strikes with the wand of the heavens, even though the damage felt pretty negligible per strike, we just kept firing and firing away on the gangers who were already getting swarmed and eventually overwhelmed them.

We got warped to the Thieves Guild with a quickness and Shar-Teel's body still intact. Dropped the dime to raise her, but she immediately demanded we return to the Ducal Palace to recover her swords. I guess she just couldn't bare the thought of some random Flaming Fist guard coming up on her gear. Seemed sensible hehe.

I ended up giving her the Tome of Strength, even though I know she won't be long for this world. I figured we owed her for springing us from jail that one time via the power of nepotism. I thought Dorn might come in handy for the final fight vs Sarevok, but when we went back to retrieve him he was still pretty far off hitting lvl 6. Shar-Teel was right on the cusp, so we just kept to the team. I still think Branwen might be our best fighter once she gets her main spells off and charges in with the hammer, but Shar-Teel earns her keep. Dilemma is what to do now.

We're a bit under-levelled to try for the final fight, but grinding to lvl 7 seems like it would take a while if back tracking. I'm a little nervous to try for the Island in case we get stuck with no good silver weapons at the ready. Like I just don't know if we can rely on Shar-Teel's weapon proficiencies alone for that, amusingly nobody else knows how to use a dagger lol. Durlag's might be safer if we can just sneak our way past whatever horrors might be waiting for us on that one bridge. Maybe nail a few more basilisks and get Viconia fully up to spec? Will have to see. Least we're over the hump though lol

 

[Black Elk]

It was near disaster when Branwen got chunked by a Mustard Jelly right as we were about to complete the Maze!

Decided to double back to buy more arrows, and forgot we'd hastily run past them the first time. The freedom of action ring screwed me, as we'd been web slinging and had her charging in for the heavy hits. Should have seen that one coming I guess lol. Oozes just brazenly climbing the stairs and everything!!!? But we chose to abide by the code of chunk outs. It was not a TPK wipe and Branwen fought valiantly against that fucking slime, so we didn't want to tempt fate.

Viconia claimed Ashideena for herself, and we sold the rest of Branwen's gear to buy a Wand of Monster summoning. Pit stopped to the Friendly Arm to re-recruit Dorn. He was behind the lvl curve, still at Black Guard lvl 5, so I wasn't sure if we'd have the juice. We had stopped off to Durlag's earlier to get Viconia the tome and I thought about grinding the Basilisks, but opted to just charge back to the Gate and attempt the final battle.

We opened by isolated Semaj then just went for the kill.

Viconia came MVP status for sure! I don't even know how we managed it, but somehow Sarevok got held, so we hit the mat with the wand of hella Gnolls and Hobgoblins. Just oldschool zerg tactics heheh. Seemed to do the trick!

Now that we got the final save I might actually try the SoD continuation at some point, just for kicks, but before that - straight to BG2!!!

We're right at the low end start for BG2 xp, which seems like it could be entertaining hehe

Happy labor day gang! lol

 

[Antimatter]

Ohhh, congrats! That's some achievement for sure. It was an exciting tale, with lots of side commentary that I enjoyed. Be careful in SoD: the difficulty increase (in terms of enemy AI and their abilities) is substantial.