Help! My party members die easily in the first BG.

nnecron

I went as far as 3rd level of Nashkel mine, and most of my party members are lvl 1 except for Jaheira who is lvl 2. Kobolts in this mine can sap half of my party members' health and in worst case they can kill any of us in one hit. My party is likely to get hit with arrows and that's what I'm really having trouble with. I get the feeling that if they gain a few levels I can complete this quest but I couldn't find any quests that give as many EXP points to accomplish that. Are there any basic combat technique I'm missing? I try my best to kill their archers but that's not helping much. What am I doing wrong?

My party members:

Ranger (my created character)

Imoen

Montaron

Xzar

Jaheira

Khalid

TJ_Hooker

With regards to getting xp and levelling up, you don't necessarily have to do quests. Simply spend some time exploring some of the wilderness areas on the map, killing any monsters that you come across. Also with any luck this will net you some gold to use in getting better equipment, which could also help you survive the mines.

nnecron

TJ_Hooker said:

With regards to getting xp and levelling up, you don't necessarily have to do quests. Simply spend some time exploring some of the wilderness areas on the map, killing any monsters that you come across. Also with any luck this will net you some gold to use in getting better equipment, which could also help you survive the mines.

It takes quite a while to do any of these you mentioned. Enemies I can hunt at the moment are limited in number and they don't give the party enough EXPs. If I wanted to hunt higher lvl enemies I can certainly go to places like Larswood or Peldvail, but I can't beat them without one of my party getting killed. I don't think it should take this long since this is my first major quest, and I'm having trouble with Kobolt Archers.

ST4TICStriker

nnecron said:

TJ_Hooker said:

With regards to getting xp and levelling up, you don't necessarily have to do quests. Simply spend some time exploring some of the wilderness areas on the map, killing any monsters that you come across. Also with any luck this will net you some gold to use in getting better equipment, which could also help you survive the mines.

It takes quite a while to do any of these you mentioned. Enemies I can hunt at the moment are limited in number and they don't give the party enough EXPs. If I wanted to hunt higher lvl enemies I can certainly go to places like Larswood or Peldvail, but I can't beat them without one of my party getting killed. I don't think it should take this long since this is my first major quest, and I'm having trouble with Kobolt Archers.

If archers are a problem then give Khalid a shield and force them into melee or get Xzar to cast armor and distract them.

You could also get Imoen to hide in shadows and sneak up on them to force them into melee, but that's a bit risky so you'll definitely Jaheria ready to cast some heals. Think about it having Jaheria ready to cast some cure light wounds mid-battle is really something you'd always want to be doing.

nnecron

I've managed to complete the quest thanks to you both. I still managed to let two of them die but I'll be fine.

Cygnus

I always try to get the party to second level before hitting the mines because otherwise it can be tough. First, try to complete all the small quests at Candlekeep before leaving. Then, after hiring Khalid and Jahiera, explore all the areas that you pass through to get to the Friendly Arm Inn, do all the mini quests at the inn, then fully explore the areas you pass through going to Beregost and Nashkel, then do all the mini quests available in those towns. You should be able to handle all this stuff with just a party of four. Then you only have to divide the XP by 4 characters and you can get to level 2 before hiring Minsc, so he will be level 2 already when he joins. Then you can choose between hitting the mines right away or rescuing Dynahier first to fill up the party (she will be level 2 if the party is). Works either way.

Ephant

Just did Nashkel mines with 1-2 lvl team, only had to reload twice 'cause of Neera chargin the kobolds my advice: 1) Take Kivan and give him composite longbow and 2) Make sure that the first one that hits the kobolds is a melee with ankheg armour (can be found in the fields, western Nashkel), big shield and a helmet

TJ_Hooker

Yeah with a little effort you can get a character with pretty low AC vs missiles. Get a melee tank, throw him in either plate mail or ankheg plate, and give him a large shield and girdle of piercing (assuming you haven't handed it over to Unshey or whatever her name is). If your tank has low Dex, get him the gauntlets of dexterity (can be grabbed fairly early on without too much difficulty). Equip him with the ring of protection +1 if you have one. You should then have as low as -7 AC vs missiles, all with equipment that is feasible for a level 1 or 2 party to get.

Madhax

You have Montaron, Imoen, and a PC Ranger. That's three characters capable of stealth. Use the stealthiest to scout ahead, and when you find packs of kobolds, try to set up multiple surprise attacks. Attacking out of stealth gives you a major THAC0 bonus even for the ranger, which means you should be able to take out several kobolds as soon as combat comences. If you can time moving Khalid or Jaheira into the fray as you make your sneak attacks, the surviving kobolds will split their attention between different targets. Even if you are unlucky and take a few hits, they won't be able to focus down your characters.

I forget if Xzar can learn Sleep, but if he can, a well-aimed cast will incapacitate whole groups of kobolds, making them easy pickings.

Time4Tiddy

At the beginning, you'll always want to juggle your tank to whoever has the most hp. With your party you have Khalid, Jaheira, and yourself (ranger) all of whom can wear heavy armor and equip a shield. Whoever has the most hp should be in the front, with the lowest AC possible, quickly closing in to ranged attackers so they have to switch to their melee weapon. Give them Boots of Avoidance and a large shield +1 and they will be hit by almost no missile attacks. Don't worry about your tank staying on the first target, keep him moving to the next ranged and the next until they are all using melee and attacking him/her.

Trust, everyone has trouble with ranged attackers at low levels. Any enemy waylays with archers during map transition will pretty much guarantee all your mages and thieves to drop, until you are level 4-5.

kilroy_was_here

I'm surprised you even managed to get to the mines with that party. The Xzar/Montaron and Jaheira/Khalid combos do NOT get along. Don't plan on having them together for too much longer.

emjay

Pretty sure xzar can't use sleep. And to be honest I always struggled more with a lvl 1 party on the way back from the mines than doing the quest itself

Nazad

Hey nnecron, sorry to hear your party's getting killed. Trying the Nashkel mines at level 1 or 2 usually results in the party being killed. But this won't be your only experience with nasty archers. I've dealt with this by designating a point character who has items that grant resistance against piercing attacks as well as missile attacks and having that character take the pain. If xzar's alive, he can cast sleep, horror, and glitterdust, all of which will shut down living enemies. Glitterdust's better: it will blind undead. Xzar's weakness is that he can't cast illusions, which are mostly defensive.

SirHables

Try different formations. Allow your strongest party members to go at the front, and your weaker ones at the back. Then the tanks at the front can absorb some damage and act as a shield, while you plan your attack with the mages/Theives/other classes behind. Pause constantly, think strategically and don't be afraid to run.

Also, I wouldn't keep Xzar and Khalid in the same party for long. Having a Lawful Good (Khalid) and a Chaotic Evil (Xzar) character in one party will end in mayhem.

Gallowglass

nnecron said:

It takes quite a while to do any of these you mentioned.

No, not compared to the rest of the game. This is a long game. If you try to play through it in a fairly complete way (explore all areas, complete all quests, etc.), then it's likely to take hundreds of hours of playing time - even for an experienced player who already knows where everything is and how to defeat every enemy, a completionist run takes 100+ hours of playing time. Depending upon how many hours-per-day you have available to play, it'll probably take several weeks or even months to finish.

KidCarnival

Xzar can cast Sleep (enchantment, not illusion). It's a good idea to grab the Wand of Sleep from High Hedge, regardless which mage you have (or Garrick). The wand isn't too expensive (around 2000 gold), has 20 charges, and puts pretty much every hostile group to sleep - it's also great for ankheg hunting if you decide to get some XP and level your party up first.

Qaeta

nnecron said:

TJ_Hooker said:

With regards to getting xp and levelling up, you don't necessarily have to do quests. Simply spend some time exploring some of the wilderness areas on the map, killing any monsters that you come across. Also with any luck this will net you some gold to use in getting better equipment, which could also help you survive the mines.

It takes quite a while to do any of these you mentioned. Enemies I can hunt at the moment are limited in number and they don't give the party enough EXPs. If I wanted to hunt higher lvl enemies I can certainly go to places like Larswood or Peldvail, but I can't beat them without one of my party getting killed. I don't think it should take this long since this is my first major quest, and I'm having trouble with Kobolt Archers.

I think what you are having is a fundamental misunderstanding of how the game is built. It generally doesn't intend for you to run headfirst at every objective. Subquests are EXTREMELY helpful for leveling up, although some can be tricky to ferret out. Talk to EVERYONE, explore areas fully before leaving them. Most of the best items I have (and more amusing quests) have been found while exploring.

Also, as some other posters have mentioned, ABUSE the crowd control spells. Sleep, web, and hold person are my personal faves.

Iecerint

In Nashkel you can pick up the hidden Ankheg and complete a quest that gets you a very fancy long-sword. This kind of fancy equipment helps make the mines trivial.

Purudaya

I remember spending forever in the Nashkel mines during my first playthrough (forever ago) - it can be a hard quest with the whole party at level 2, much more so below that. Like others have said, I would suggest having Xzar memorize sleep: well-timed, it will incapacitate whole groups of kobolds for your melee characters to chop up. Also, don't be afraid to rest; yeah, you will be interrupted here and there, but the kobold groups that attack during rest are a little more manageable iirc. It seemed weird to me to be resting for several 8 hour stints while storming a mine, but I used the same strategy for my BG:EE playthrough.

Don't get discouraged if the game seems hard in the early levels (that's AD&D) - combat will get more satisfying as you level up and your party becomes more versatile.

kamuizin

dude i will be direct, i didn't read all the posts here, but if you want early high level party here's how to get it:

keep your party the shortier possible atm (if you want Xzar and mont do some quests before get them). 2 or at maximum 3 characters on the party.

East of Candlekeep to south of friendly arm inn.

Go to FAI and take the quests listed there (making some in the process).

If you're a hardcore and patient player, go to the north of friendly Arm Inn and kill a bunch of ankeghs, after that you problem is solved, if you have only 2 or 3 persons in your party and you killed all the ankeghs on the field and in the ankegh cave you're probally lvl 3 (or 4) now.

If you want to do the normal and long process, go to beregost, make some quests there (kill/work for Silke, kill the assassination attempt in the red shaft, kill/make peace with the drunken on feldpost inn (if i'm not wrong), give the fateful coin book for the gorion's friend in one of the houses of beregost, and take all the quests there that you want.

Try to make the Cyric's priest Bassilus quest, the berserker captain quest and melicamp the chicken quest, they're near each other on the ARs.

Done, now you're at least lvl 2 (with a full party) or 3 (maybe 4) with 2 or 3 persons on the party.

If you want, explore a bit more the open areas before pursue the main quest, with the good equipment you would have, probally you will find no more problems on the mines.

zur312

take kagain from beregost
go for gloves dexterity
tank the f out of them

Luigirules

Guy last posted in December.

I think he's fine by now.

zur312

or he is stuck in nashkel mines!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Necomancer

You know what I like about the Baldur's Gate forums?
Some guy will be "I CAN'T BEAT THIS DUDE!"
and others will be "Have some genuinely useful advise that isn't 'stop playing badly' or 'start a new game' and that can actually help you in your situation."
And the guy is all "I BEAT IT THANK YOU!"
And the others will be all "Have some genuinely useful advise that isn't 'stop playing badly' or 'start a new game' and that can actually help you in your situation."

And this will go on for awhile. Its awesome how much you guys care. Seriously.

CaptRory

@Necomancer The community is pretty tight knit after all this time. It takes a certain kind of person to enjoy playing a game this old and difficult for so long. I think most of us want to share out love of this game with others and don't want them to get too discouraged to continue.