Okay then; also, how big is this game memory wise? Is it still about 4-5GB?
It's just under 2 GB.
Only that much? I remember it being a lot more space O_O
Well, I'm not worried about being able to run it; IIRC, they said if you could play BG2 on your computer, you can play the enhanced edition too.
five CDs seemed like a lot back in the day when you didn't have an external you could rip them all to without even eating 1% of it
SoA is bigger though, I think my SoA+ToB folder is like 7 gigs or something
How much of that is mods? (Which I grant still will not be very large.)
I have the widescreen mod and a couple other QoL ones, but that's all. The installation itself I think is like two and a half gigs or something, but I have the disc images too
Eat it You Nasty Pig. on
it was the smallest on the list but
Pluto was a planet and I'll never forget
Okay then; also, how big is this game memory wise? Is it still about 4-5GB?
It's just under 2 GB.
Only that much? I remember it being a lot more space O_O
Well, I'm not worried about being able to run it; IIRC, they said if you could play BG2 on your computer, you can play the enhanced edition too.
You should be a little worried due to bugs. I have an awesome computer but it stutters and fucks up constantly for me. I'm sure it works fine for plenty of people, but, yeah.
hi5, fellow stuttery mess brother.
It is slow in general and stutters like a thing what stutters when I mouse over my doods.
My solution was to install BGTrilogy and thumb my nose at it, because that runs just fine.
Sweet jesus my party of four has been ruined by this black bear three times now.
The real Baldur's Gate begins when you fight the mage assassin at Friendly Arms Inn. Fucker took me 3 tries first time I fought him.
Magic Missile is such a freaking lowbie killer it's not even funny. I used to screw with my tabletop players by giving the first major NPC to fight of each campaign a wand of magic missiles.
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EmberquickMaster of DungeonsDeep UndergroundRegistered Userregular
I have to say, it's a blast from the roleplaying past to be playing D&D 2E rules again. It's been 10-12 years since I've even *thought* about this stuff.
-- Right, right, cant' cast any arcane spells in armor.
-- Yes, yes, the *lower* your AC the better.
-- Ah, I remember, Roll high for attack, low for saves.
-- What's a longsword's speed factor again?
It's a potent reminder of how the game has changed, and fun to dive into again.
ranger --> archer is the easiest way to complete both games with the same character. berserker and fighter/thief are also good starter classes since berserkers are immune to status effects that tend to ruin newbies and fighter/thief is really versatile
I seem to remember that archer is one of the few "stupidly strong in Throne of Bhaal" kits that's also incredibly powerful in the first part of the original game.
Stuff like Monk, Kensai, Sorcerer all take a while to get going
I've always been fond of Fighter dual to cleric. (or maybe it's the other way around?) Anyway, crom faeyr, flail of ages and five stars of proficiency is just sick. And I think the epic level stuff for cleric and fighter synergize well.
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EmberquickMaster of DungeonsDeep UndergroundRegistered Userregular
edited November 2012
So, In a fit of madness I made my main character a human bard with the blade kit.
He can't hit crap with two-weapon style right now, so he's singing and spell slinging while the rest of the party does the bulk of the fighting.
Has anyone played a bard as their main before? Are there some dual-classing combos I should be thinking about?
I've always been fond of Fighter dual to cleric. (or maybe it's the other way around?) Anyway, crom faeyr, flail of ages and five stars of proficiency is just sick. And I think the epic level stuff for cleric and fighter synergize well.
This was my favorite character from my tabletop days. He used two scimitars before a certain dark elf made it famous. It was the symbol of his deity. Not so useful in BG though, so I go with maces/flails/etc.
So, In a fit of madness I made my main character a human bard with the blade kit.
He can't hit crap with two-weapon style right now, so he's singing and spell slinging while the rest of the party does the bulk of the fighting.
Has anyone played a bard as their main before? Are there some dual-classing combos I should be thinking about?
No dual class. Just stick with the blade. Once you get into some of the higher mage spells, you'll be ripping through everything. Blade is crazy good. Protip: free action + defensive spin.
Bards cannot dual class as far as I remember, this makes them significantly weaker in BG2/TOB later on.
Blades are okay, I'd take a fighter/thief over it any day though. Skald is the best bard kit because it actually makes the most of their unique skill, but they lose their advantage somewhat when you get access to High Level Abilities.
Steam / Xbox Live: WSDX NNID: W-S-D-X 3DS FC: 2637-9461-8549
Blades are okay, I'd take a fighter/thief over it any day though. Skald is the best bard kit because it actually makes the most of their unique skill, but they lose their advantage somewhat when you get access to High Level Abilities.
I would argue that Blades are more powerful than both Skalds and Fighter/Thieves.
Blades become stupidly powerful relatively quickly in BG2. Bards level up much faster then mages/sorcerers and so have a consistently higher spell level (they have fewer and lower level spells than mages, but Bard spells will hit harder). While their spin abilities, especially offensive spin, are devastating when used properly. Hasted, extra attack, and max damage per hit - dual wield to get the best results. Really the only drawbacks to blades, and bards in general, are their item dependence and their need for micro management/knowledge of game mechanics.
As soon as Blades start gaining feats they far outclass Scalds. But, even before that - Blades are an easily solo-able class, Skalds depend on a party for their effectiveness.
Favorite classes to play in BGT:
Multiclass Fighter/Thief with invisibility potions. Backstab everyone.
Archer Ranger kit. Your bow is a minigun.
Wizard Slayer Fighter kit with ranged throwing weapons/bows (asuming you fixpack the class). Laugh at mages all day long.
Rogue Rebalancing mod's Blade and Jester Bard kits. Either master of stabbing things or master of crowd control.
bards are weaker fighter/mages. they can only get to level 6 mage spells and offensive spin does not stack with haste so their strongest ability ends up doing nothing. they also get 1 attack per round and thief THACO while the F/M gets fighter stats for both. The one thing they do get is improved bard song.
Way too much bard hate in this thread! Blades are amazing and have some serious advantages of fighter/mages, fighter/mage/thieves, and whatever else. A lot of this comes down to their leveling speed. Blades don't get as many spells as mages, but their level is MUCH higher, making any level-based spell much more powerful. Also, Use Any Item cannot be overestimated, and can pretty easily let the Blade reach 100% magic resistance.
But really, their power comes from improved bard song and mislead. Improved bard song gives 4 AC, 4 THAC0, 4 damage, 5 magic resistance, and immunity to stun, fear, confusion, and normal weapons. Mislead summons a copy of yourself that can't attack or cast spells -- but it can sing. And improved bard song is cumulative, and you can have more than one mislead image. So you cast mislead, say, four times, make all the images sing, and you (and your entire party, if you have one) have a bonus of 16 AC, 16 THAC0, 16 damage, 20 magic resistance, and all the immunities. Also, while mislead is up, you are permanently invisible and improved invisible. You become visible briefly when you attack, but the invisibility reapplies itself almost instantly afterwards. Furthermore, the range on bard song is infinite, so you can tuck the images away in a corner of the map and walk around with impunity. The invisibility can't be dispelled even by true sight if the images themselves are out of range.
When it comes to gamebreaking powergaming, blades are right up there with the best of them.
bards are weaker fighter/mages. they can only get to level 6 mage spells and offensive spin does not stack with haste so their strongest ability ends up doing nothing. they also get 1 attack per round and thief THACO while the F/M gets fighter stats for both. The one thing they do get is improved bard song.
Except that Blades get high level traps(time and spike), use any item, and can cast at a higher level than a fighter/mage. Tensor's, skull trap, improved haste, etc...all cast at a significantly higher level. Misleads can use bard song, simulacrums can cast mislead - all this stacks. Also, thaco begins to mean less as you approach end game. Anyway, there is a lot of micromanagement exploits and cheese available with this class.
Blades are one of the most powerful classes. Personally, because of my game knowledge I find Blades to be more powerful than fighter/mages. However, I doubt this would be the case if I was not as familiar with the game as I am.
Skull trap, stoneskin, tensor's transformation, melf's minute meteors (really good on a blade, because it lets him attack with his off-hand weapon from range) -- those are some of the big ones, off the top of my head. I'm not saying a blade is a better mage than a real mage, or even a fighter/mage. That's definitely not true, as the level 7+ spells are some of the best. But the level advantage is not insignificant, especially when you combine it with the blade's other qualities, some of which I mentioned above. The level advantage is pretty nice though. At, for example, a million experience, a mage is level 12, a fighter/mage is level 10/11, while a bard is level 14, almost 15. Fighter/mages are definitely great, but so are blades. They're just different styles.
Edit: Pretty much what certainfool said. They're both some of the strongest classes in the game, really only losing out to straight mages/sorcerers and wizard slayer dual to thief, in my opinion.
Hadn't refreshed this in awhile and missed Vi Monks comments. Which I fully endorse.
I don't think this really helps anyone trying to play bg ee though. Which has run perfectly well for me. Though, I find it to be overall inferior to what the mod community had accomplished.
I just always played a paladin and brought along aerie. That spell she got which was like a fireball that only hurt people who didn't like you? Awesome!
Heh, agreed. BG2 combat has a lot more depth to it. I'd appreciate it if someone converted BG to a high level campaign. Wouldn't make any sense story wise. But, the game would be more interesting to play.
Offensive Spin is better than Kensai's Kai. It's 10 attacks per round with hit bonuses all doing maximum damage.
Defensive Spin is tank mode, especially combined with protective magics.
And I always thought Fighter/Thieves laughed at Fighter/Mages. Hello, I'm going to X5-7 damage backstab you with grandmastery, epic strength, and imposible to miss hit percentages.
Offensive Spin is better than Kensai's Kai. It's 10 attacks per round with hit bonuses all doing maximum damage.
Defensive Spin is tank mode, especially combined with protective magics.
And I always thought Fighter/Thieves laughed at Fighter/Mages. Hello, I'm going to X5-7 damage backstab you with grandmastery, epic strength, and imposible to miss hit percentages.
Offensive spin lasts 24 seconds, granting the blade +2 to hit, +2 to damage, hasted movement, and an extra attack. As well, all of his attacks do maximum damage for the duration of the ability. Its main advantage over kai is the it lasts longer. Kai is amazing for destroying a single enemy, or several closely bunched, quickly. But, when multiple enemies are present I find offensive spin to be more useful.
I've always liked playing thief/mage's. I don't have much experience playing fighter thieves as I always got bored with them.
Speaking of which, Swashbuckler is an abomination as Backstab is way too good to give up. Either multi or dual from Wizard Slayer or Berserker.
The whole point of swashbucklers was to remove the need for a Fighter/Thief Dual Class build; so you could basically have a utility fighter; one that could dual class to a Mage or whatever. Actually, if you don't mind the lack of a Backstab, a Swashbuckler/Mage is a pretty good build, mostly because you can get maybe a bit of points into lockpicking and pick-pocketing and an AC bonus as a mage.
Cleric/Mage or Fighter/Clerics are still my favorite multi-classes, though. Once you got Robes of Vecna, Cleric/Mages were insanely useful. Aerie actually became quite the asset with that.
As for the whole stuttering game-play thing, I might consider just turning down the various graphics options. Really it's the additional content that has me interested, more than anything.
XBL: GamingFreak5514
PSN: GamingFreak1234
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EmberquickMaster of DungeonsDeep UndergroundRegistered Userregular
Skull trap, stoneskin, tensor's transformation, melf's minute meteors (really good on a blade, because it lets him attack with his off-hand weapon from range) -- those are some of the big ones, off the top of my head. I'm not saying a blade is a better mage than a real mage, or even a fighter/mage. That's definitely not true, as the level 7+ spells are some of the best. But the level advantage is not insignificant, especially when you combine it with the blade's other qualities, some of which I mentioned above. The level advantage is pretty nice though. At, for example, a million experience, a mage is level 12, a fighter/mage is level 10/11, while a bard is level 14, almost 15. Fighter/mages are definitely great, but so are blades. They're just different styles.
Edit: Pretty much what certainfool said. They're both some of the strongest classes in the game, really only losing out to straight mages/sorcerers and wizard slayer dual to thief, in my opinion.
Wow, and here I thought I was going to have a rough go of it as a blade!
Well . . . in BG EE i kinda am, but I'm only second level. With every wolf-inflicted death I suffer, I encourage my Blade as I reload: "It's okay, buddy. When you get to BG2 you're gonna *be* somebody!"
Hmm, so now I have to wonder: will there even be a BG2 EE? And if not, will my BG1 EE saves transfer over to regular BG2?
Heh, agreed. BG2 combat has a lot more depth to it. I'd appreciate it if someone converted BG to a high level campaign. Wouldn't make any sense story wise. But, the game would be more interesting to play.
This is something I never realized I wanted until right now. I played BG1 once, way back when it was released, but I've played BG2 more times than I can count. I just love the gameplay.
Skull trap, stoneskin, tensor's transformation, melf's minute meteors (really good on a blade, because it lets him attack with his off-hand weapon from range) -- those are some of the big ones, off the top of my head. I'm not saying a blade is a better mage than a real mage, or even a fighter/mage. That's definitely not true, as the level 7+ spells are some of the best. But the level advantage is not insignificant, especially when you combine it with the blade's other qualities, some of which I mentioned above. The level advantage is pretty nice though. At, for example, a million experience, a mage is level 12, a fighter/mage is level 10/11, while a bard is level 14, almost 15. Fighter/mages are definitely great, but so are blades. They're just different styles.
Edit: Pretty much what certainfool said. They're both some of the strongest classes in the game, really only losing out to straight mages/sorcerers and wizard slayer dual to thief, in my opinion.
Wow, and here I thought I was going to have a rough go of it as a blade!
Well . . . in BG EE i kinda am, but I'm only second level. With every wolf-inflicted death I suffer, I encourage my Blade as I reload: "It's okay, buddy. When you get to BG2 you're gonna *be* somebody!"
Hmm, so now I have to wonder: will there even be a BG2 EE? And if not, will my BG1 EE saves transfer over to regular BG2?
They've said there will be a BG2 EE. That's about all the information we have on it, I believe. As for transferring your saves to regular BG2, I have no idea. Haven't picked up the EE yet.
Wow, and here I thought I was going to have a rough go of it as a blade!
Well . . . in BG EE i kinda am, but I'm only second level. With every wolf-inflicted death I suffer, I encourage my Blade as I reload: "It's okay, buddy. When you get to BG2 you're gonna *be* somebody!"
Hmm, so now I have to wonder: will there even be a BG2 EE? And if not, will my BG1 EE saves transfer over to regular BG2?
Bows and wands are your friends here - they will get you over the level hump.
This is something I never realized I wanted until right now. I played BG1 once, way back when it was released, but I've played BG2 more times than I can count. I just love the gameplay.
I hadn't thought about it either, until I sat down with BG EE and thought...boring. The versatility in BG2 is still unmatched in my experience. There is nothing I have ever played that allowed for so many different styles of effective combat as BG2.
One thing I do like about BG is the lethality of everything. It can be a struggle to stay alive at low levels. Unfortunately that forces combat into pretty repetitive patterns of success.
One thing I do like about BG is the lethality of everything. It can be a struggle to stay alive at low levels. Unfortunately that forces combat into pretty repetitive patterns of success.
I agree with this, though the difficulty-enhancing mods in BG2 certainly do wonders to up the lethality.
Posts
I have the widescreen mod and a couple other QoL ones, but that's all. The installation itself I think is like two and a half gigs or something, but I have the disc images too
Pluto was a planet and I'll never forget
hi5, fellow stuttery mess brother.
It is slow in general and stutters like a thing what stutters when I mouse over my doods.
My solution was to install BGTrilogy and thumb my nose at it, because that runs just fine.
Probably.
And we might even give you good advice!
It stands for To Hit Armor Class Zero.
No go forth.
Currently playing: GW2 and TSW
Currently playing: GW2 and TSW
Magic Missile is such a freaking lowbie killer it's not even funny. I used to screw with my tabletop players by giving the first major NPC to fight of each campaign a wand of magic missiles.
-- Right, right, cant' cast any arcane spells in armor.
-- Yes, yes, the *lower* your AC the better.
-- Ah, I remember, Roll high for attack, low for saves.
-- What's a longsword's speed factor again?
It's a potent reminder of how the game has changed, and fun to dive into again.
And I would guess that bugs will be fixed
like the stuttering and others.
Stuff like Monk, Kensai, Sorcerer all take a while to get going
He can't hit crap with two-weapon style right now, so he's singing and spell slinging while the rest of the party does the bulk of the fighting.
Has anyone played a bard as their main before? Are there some dual-classing combos I should be thinking about?
This was my favorite character from my tabletop days. He used two scimitars before a certain dark elf made it famous. It was the symbol of his deity. Not so useful in BG though, so I go with maces/flails/etc.
No dual class. Just stick with the blade. Once you get into some of the higher mage spells, you'll be ripping through everything. Blade is crazy good. Protip: free action + defensive spin.
Blades are okay, I'd take a fighter/thief over it any day though. Skald is the best bard kit because it actually makes the most of their unique skill, but they lose their advantage somewhat when you get access to High Level Abilities.
I would argue that Blades are more powerful than both Skalds and Fighter/Thieves.
Blades become stupidly powerful relatively quickly in BG2. Bards level up much faster then mages/sorcerers and so have a consistently higher spell level (they have fewer and lower level spells than mages, but Bard spells will hit harder). While their spin abilities, especially offensive spin, are devastating when used properly. Hasted, extra attack, and max damage per hit - dual wield to get the best results. Really the only drawbacks to blades, and bards in general, are their item dependence and their need for micro management/knowledge of game mechanics.
As soon as Blades start gaining feats they far outclass Scalds. But, even before that - Blades are an easily solo-able class, Skalds depend on a party for their effectiveness.
Multiclass Fighter/Thief with invisibility potions. Backstab everyone.
Archer Ranger kit. Your bow is a minigun.
Wizard Slayer Fighter kit with ranged throwing weapons/bows (asuming you fixpack the class). Laugh at mages all day long.
Rogue Rebalancing mod's Blade and Jester Bard kits. Either master of stabbing things or master of crowd control.
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
But really, their power comes from improved bard song and mislead. Improved bard song gives 4 AC, 4 THAC0, 4 damage, 5 magic resistance, and immunity to stun, fear, confusion, and normal weapons. Mislead summons a copy of yourself that can't attack or cast spells -- but it can sing. And improved bard song is cumulative, and you can have more than one mislead image. So you cast mislead, say, four times, make all the images sing, and you (and your entire party, if you have one) have a bonus of 16 AC, 16 THAC0, 16 damage, 20 magic resistance, and all the immunities. Also, while mislead is up, you are permanently invisible and improved invisible. You become visible briefly when you attack, but the invisibility reapplies itself almost instantly afterwards. Furthermore, the range on bard song is infinite, so you can tuck the images away in a corner of the map and walk around with impunity. The invisibility can't be dispelled even by true sight if the images themselves are out of range.
When it comes to gamebreaking powergaming, blades are right up there with the best of them.
Except that Blades get high level traps(time and spike), use any item, and can cast at a higher level than a fighter/mage. Tensor's, skull trap, improved haste, etc...all cast at a significantly higher level. Misleads can use bard song, simulacrums can cast mislead - all this stacks. Also, thaco begins to mean less as you approach end game. Anyway, there is a lot of micromanagement exploits and cheese available with this class.
Blades are one of the most powerful classes. Personally, because of my game knowledge I find Blades to be more powerful than fighter/mages. However, I doubt this would be the case if I was not as familiar with the game as I am.
Edit: Pretty much what certainfool said. They're both some of the strongest classes in the game, really only losing out to straight mages/sorcerers and wizard slayer dual to thief, in my opinion.
I don't think this really helps anyone trying to play bg ee though. Which has run perfectly well for me. Though, I find it to be overall inferior to what the mod community had accomplished.
BG1 powergaming. Pick up bows. Fire arrows. Huzzah! :P
Defensive Spin is tank mode, especially combined with protective magics.
And I always thought Fighter/Thieves laughed at Fighter/Mages. Hello, I'm going to X5-7 damage backstab you with grandmastery, epic strength, and imposible to miss hit percentages.
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
// Switch: SW-5306-0651-6424 //
Offensive spin lasts 24 seconds, granting the blade +2 to hit, +2 to damage, hasted movement, and an extra attack. As well, all of his attacks do maximum damage for the duration of the ability. Its main advantage over kai is the it lasts longer. Kai is amazing for destroying a single enemy, or several closely bunched, quickly. But, when multiple enemies are present I find offensive spin to be more useful.
I've always liked playing thief/mage's. I don't have much experience playing fighter thieves as I always got bored with them.
The whole point of swashbucklers was to remove the need for a Fighter/Thief Dual Class build; so you could basically have a utility fighter; one that could dual class to a Mage or whatever. Actually, if you don't mind the lack of a Backstab, a Swashbuckler/Mage is a pretty good build, mostly because you can get maybe a bit of points into lockpicking and pick-pocketing and an AC bonus as a mage.
Cleric/Mage or Fighter/Clerics are still my favorite multi-classes, though. Once you got Robes of Vecna, Cleric/Mages were insanely useful. Aerie actually became quite the asset with that.
As for the whole stuttering game-play thing, I might consider just turning down the various graphics options. Really it's the additional content that has me interested, more than anything.
XBL: GamingFreak5514
PSN: GamingFreak1234
Wow, and here I thought I was going to have a rough go of it as a blade!
Well . . . in BG EE i kinda am, but I'm only second level. With every wolf-inflicted death I suffer, I encourage my Blade as I reload: "It's okay, buddy. When you get to BG2 you're gonna *be* somebody!"
Hmm, so now I have to wonder: will there even be a BG2 EE? And if not, will my BG1 EE saves transfer over to regular BG2?
This is something I never realized I wanted until right now. I played BG1 once, way back when it was released, but I've played BG2 more times than I can count. I just love the gameplay.
They've said there will be a BG2 EE. That's about all the information we have on it, I believe. As for transferring your saves to regular BG2, I have no idea. Haven't picked up the EE yet.
Bows and wands are your friends here - they will get you over the level hump.
I hadn't thought about it either, until I sat down with BG EE and thought...boring. The versatility in BG2 is still unmatched in my experience. There is nothing I have ever played that allowed for so many different styles of effective combat as BG2.
One thing I do like about BG is the lethality of everything. It can be a struggle to stay alive at low levels. Unfortunately that forces combat into pretty repetitive patterns of success.
I agree with this, though the difficulty-enhancing mods in BG2 certainly do wonders to up the lethality.