Which Baldur's Gate 2 romance is your favorite... and why? *SPOILERS*

Sniiiimon

If a similar poll already exists, I apologize beforehand.

Now my favorite romance is with Aerie. I'm well aware that she focus a great deal on the lost of her wings and everything that that entails. But I never found her to be "whiny" per say, as most people do. I mean wouldn't *you* be troubled if you lost a pair of limbs the way she did and along with them... well, pretty much everything else? That aside, I think she's a sweetheart. And while she starts of as somewhat meek she becomes a badass adorable in ToB.

For some reason I never play as female characters in Baldur's Gate, so I can't comment on the Anomen romance.

Jaheira... While I don't think her romance is bad, I just find it so darn implausible that she "gets over" Khalid so quickly!

As for Viconia... I've never tried to romance her. But I'm thinking about doing so with my Bhaalspawn paladin. Now *that* would be an interesting couple!

Let me hear your opinions and thoughts people!

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Sniiiimon

From you, @Bhaaldog? Nah. Not really. I think you've made your case already. :P

Aristillius

Jaheira.. very turbulent and immersing. Barring Khalid's death it is very realistic. Also, I really like Jaheira

Kamigoroshi

Dorn has some real possibilities to become my favourite Baldur's Gate 2 romance. Corrupted to the core? Check! Of orcish heritage? Check! Interesting personality? Check!

Good ol' Viccy is simply not evil enough for my taste. Not to mention my natural dislike of all that is elvish, which rules out pretty much 98% of all BG2 romances for me (including new BG:EE characters).

Lord_Tansheron

I know some people have problems with her, but I've always sort of liked Aerie. She's got some serious issues, but that fits in well with her overall character.

Viconia is a shmexy drow and definitely a hot (pun!) choice as well, but I'd like her more if she was a bit more evil and a bit less obvious in her tsundere-behavior.

Oh and: you could have left our Anomen, since this is a poll where people see what you vote for. I doubt anyone, even actual fans, will want to publicly come out as an Anomen-lover. The stigma would be unbearable - and rightly so!

Sniiiimon

Oh come on now @Lord_Tansheron, he can't be *that* bad of a character!

...Can he?

Gallowglass

The Jaheira romance is more complex and difficult than Viconia or Aerie, so I much prefer it for the depth of content.

I never tried romancing Anomen with a female Charname in original BG2, but I'm currently playing through BG:EE with a female Charname who will very probably try out the Anomen romance when BG2:EE comes out. I gather that it doesn't have as much content as the Jaheira romance for male Charnames, though.

@Lord_Tansheron: I agree that Anomen is an irritating oaf (and also a rather poor Cleric) when you first meet him, but if you persist with him until he succeeds in his quest to become Sir Anomen, then he changes drastically. He changes alignment, apologises for his previous boorish behaviour and becomes a pleasanter personality (although I seem to recall that you may also need Keldorn in your party for that to work), and gains stats to become a very good Cleric. From that point on, I like him a lot, he's one of my favourite NPCs, and I have no embarrassment at saying so publicly. But definitely only after he changes!

Dazzu

Saeri... haha, no! I never get tired of openly shaming that turd.

BlackBrilliant

Aerie annoyed me to no end, so clingy, childish. Jaheira, I just couldn't buy that she gets over Khalid so quick. Never tried Anomen. I thought Viconia's was rather complex and interesting, someone that is evil but obviously with some deep personal issues making her question her ways.

Sniiiimon

Dazzu said:

Saeri... haha, no! I never get tired of openly shaming that turd.

Oh no. No. No no no. No. Not her. Anyone but her. I would rather date Madulf for Helm's sake!

Edit: Huh. I actually thought that Viconia would be in the lead... Oh. Now she is.

Coutelier

I said Aerie, even though the ToB bit of her romance is terrible. I don't know what they were thinking; it's just not the right medium for that kind of story.

And even though all the annoying things people say she does are only really in the romance. But I don't really have too much of a problem with that; if a romance is going to work, then you should trust someone enough and be able to confide in them. Besides, she's fine outside the romance; sort of quiet, lacking confidence, but determined. A bit naive, naturally, a lot to learn about adventuring... rather like the schmuck who fled Candlekeep not so long ago.

trinit

i think viconia's romance is the most interesting of bioware romances. that said i hope some of the new characters could take that place!

Sniiiimon

I couldn't agree more, @Coutelier. As I stated in the OP, I never found her confiding in me as "whining". She's scarred, in more ways than one. By revealing her past and how she really feels about it she eventually comes to terms with it... as well as her future. Sure the way there is rough and not very pleasant... but hey that's how life is! That's why I love her so darn much!

But seriously, the baby thing? Stupid. -_-

toanwrath

I have not tried the Anomen romance, but I like all of the other ones okay. Jaheira and Aerie could be a lot worse, but Viconia's is the one that interests me the most (and it's the one I've never fully completed, though I am in a Viconia romance playthrough now).

Nonnahswriter

Sniiiimon said:

But seriously, the baby thing? Stupid. -_-

Well, that's what you get, failing to be careful. :P

(Though I haven't actually played through the romance in ToB, so I've no opinions on the matter. Just poking fun! )

Is it true that you don't have children with any of the other romances besides Aerie though? Even in the epilogues, it didn't mention having a family with, say, Jaheira. Which seems strange considering you spend your whole life with her, but then again she didn't have any children with Khalid. Maybe she's just infertile?

Nifft

Jaheira's romance was the most interesting plot-wise, so she gets my vote.

Viconia might give birth to baby Bhallspawn with high Magic Resistance, but they'd be just as likely to have Daylight Blindness, so that's a wash.

Aerie's romance had one excellent theoretical feature: winged baby Bhallspawn. You thought normal toddlers were trouble? Wait until these teething terrors take wing, throwing tantrums and Laroch's Minor Drain at their 1d4 HP commoner babysitter, their wing-buffets shattering fragile furnishings no matter how high you shelve them... oh yes, chaos shall be sown by their passage, indeed.

But I'm still voting for Jaheira.

Coutelier

Nonnahswriter said:

Sniiiimon said:

But seriously, the baby thing? Stupid. -_-

Well, that's what you get, failing to be careful. :P

(Though I haven't actually played through the romance in ToB, so I've no opinions on the matter. Just poking fun! )

Is it true that you don't have children with any of the other romances besides Aerie though? Even in the epilogues, it didn't mention having a family with, say, Jaheira. Which seems strange considering you spend your whole life with her, but then again she didn't have any children with Khalid. Maybe she's just infertile?

Viconia does in the epilogue. Not Jaheira, and Anomen I can't remember at all.

Sniiiimon

Nonnahswriter said:

Is it true that you don't have children with any of the other romances besides Aerie though? Even in the epilogues, it didn't mention having a family with, say, Jaheira. Which seems strange considering you spend your whole life with her, but then again she didn't have any children with Khalid. Maybe she's just infertile?

As far as I know, Aerie's indeed the only one. But why could it not happen during the epilogue and ONLY there? Having a baby mid-adventure, in-game? S t u p i d.

As for Jaheira, I have no clue, although I suppose infertility is a possibility. But as it stands right now there is no clear answer to that question.

Coutelier

Jaheira's romance obviously does give the most in terms of quest experience and items, and Aerie's the least because it's just dialogue. Well, she does get a baby, possibly... I'd still rather have the harper pin.

So I've often thought about ways to make the other romances 'better', or at least equal in depth to Jaheira's. With Aerie, I probably wouldn't go for the wings stuff immediately. It would make more sense for her to get to know and trust you first (since she never talks about it to the other characters). So two or three more dialogues at the beginning talking about other things she's interested in, why she wants to explore and be an adventurer etc. Maybe the last one the bhaalspawn tells her about Irenicus and being shut in the birdcage in the dungeon, and that combined with her growing feelings acting as the trigger that causes her to start reliving her own experiences.

Then a quest that would involve her receiving tips from a mysterious stranger, leading her around Amn to some of the slavers who caught her and broke her. Some of them will fight, some of them might be repentant and she would have to decide what to do with them, like letting them go or handing them over to the authorities or to the Harpers. And finally the big boss who has become a slaver lord. After that, the person who had been giving the tips might turn out to be someone she helped once, a long time ago, and then she would get her reward in the form of a unique item or special ability.

If I knew how to mod, I might try to create something along those lines.

atcDave

What can I say, I like nice girls.

Jaheira's is also interesting, and I enjoy the more complexity to it. But Aerie is always my first choice. Anomen was fun, once. I can't bring myself to play evil. I'll rescue Viconia and send her on her way, but I'm not interested.

OzzyBotkins

Definitly Viconia
she had the most interesting and complex personality of any NPC in the Baldur's gate seris
the Nalia Romance mod was the best
Aerie romance was cute and tedious ( lets takl about my wings, again)
Jaheira romance was OK
there should have been a romance for Mazzy
who tragically lost her beloved patrick
the romance componant was an important part of BG2

Sniiiimon

@Coutelier - Well I for one know nothing about modding, but everything you brought seems plausible to me. Maybe the cut contend in which Aerie would turn into a bird could be incorporated into the mod as well?

@atcDave - I like nice girls too. But I love strong, kind women. And this is eventually how I see Aerie: as a strong yet kind women.

OzzyBotkins

Just a side note
I pulled the dice out of my desk the other day
and rolled a few CHARNAMEs old school PnP style
used a D20 and a D6 for race and gender
then D6s ( old house rules) for stats
rolled it straigt down the the line
STR first then DEX then CON , INT WIS ,CHA
got a few interesting ones but I think I am going to add one this to my BG:EE play list
Human Female ( no definite alignment probabaly LN or LG)
(Branwen's portrait)
STR 17
DEX 12
CON 16
INT 11
WIS 18
CHA 13
Total points 87
so I think I will use this as a guide line when I roll this on the BG:EE game
maybe use as a fighter through BG:EE
then import to BG2:EE when it comes out and duel to Cleric
would make a good romance character for Anomen

Coutelier

Sniiiimon said:

@Coutelier - Well I for one know nothing about modding. but everything you brought seems plausible to me. Maybe the cut contend in which Aerie would turn into a dove could be incorporated into the mod as well?

I don't know about that; I think that was probably cut for good reason. I think it cheapens her character development, which is about coming to terms with things and who she is now. And, while she might be able to fly that way, it ignores all the other issues she has, like being separated from her family and people and not knowing the fate of her parents.

I just don't think being an animal is something she would really want. Like Imoen missing Candlekeep, she also misses her home and childhood and dreams of things being how they were, when she was happy and carefree. But deep down I think she knows that isn't possible. Even if she had her wings back, she knows too much about the abuse and suffering that goes in the world and could never settle or be at rest in an isolationist enclave, since she has the power to get out there and help people.

Edwin

Viconia. Just because I love Grey Delisle's voice.

Although It was interesting when Aerie popped out a baby right in the middle of the final battle with Mellisan.

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Itstucktwice

I am actually a fan of the Nalia romance mod. I feel like it does a good job of making Nalia a little more likable and she always seemed like she should have been an option anyway. For unmodded, I would choose Viconia.

TJ_Hooker

Your Mom! AHAHahaha..haha...ha. Ahem.

I'll see myself out.

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Sniiiimon

Oh but @Coutelier that's just the thing: she was to turn into a bird just ONCE. It would be during this that she finally come to terms with what she has lost but also what she has to gain. The event would both harden but also heal her, so to speak. And it was after this event she would begin using her new voicesset which she has in ToB! It was cut along with so many other things (like Minsc's quest/search for Boo, who would suddenly disappear) due to time restrains.