In the real world a solo wolf is very unlikely to attack a human. Humans are relatively dangerous due to tool usage (even a simple club is a dangerous weapon) and the wolf doesn't want to risk injury when there are easier targets around.
I could probably make it out of Candlekeep by running away. Wolves as mentioned probably aren't a major concern. It's otherwise pretty quiet on the road to the Friendly Arms Inn at which point Tarnesh would kill me.
In the real world a solo wolf is very unlikely to attack a human. Humans are relatively dangerous due to tool usage (even a simple club is a dangerous weapon) and the wolf doesn't want to risk injury when there are easier targets around.
I could probably make it out of Candlekeep by running away. Wolves as mentioned probably aren't a major concern. It's otherwise pretty quiet on the road to the Friendly Arms Inn at which point Tarnesh would kill me.
In the real world a wolf will attack a human if it was hungry enough. The hunter in the crossroads area explains that wolves have become more predatory lately because (due to the iron shortage) humans have been hunting their normal sources of food.
If I witnessed the death of someone I loved, I wouldn't like the person I'd become...
"Sarry, hey Sarry," one leg rests itself on a stool as another crosses it, there is a light sound of chains moving in the dark, signalling if not acknowledgement, then attention, "tell me more about Tamoko."
The sprinkle of chains sounded again, in reverse cadence to their last. That attention had been lost. "She died loving you," a hungry smile plays on cruel lips, "but of course, it was worth that which you stood to gain, right?"
(Note: I added a spoiler alert in the thread title.)
I wouldn't have any reason to enter the buildings where Shank and Carbos are. Nor would I run any errands. I'd just purchase gear and go. But I would find out as much as I could from Gorion about what is happening before we depart. And in fact he does share a bit. Gorion's tentative longer term plan is to disappear into the throng in Baldur's Gate or hide out in the wilderness (after collecting Jaheira and Khalid).
I think Imoen and I might well survive the attack by the diseased gibberling when we went to inspect the letter on Gorion that Imoen mentions. I'd be a wizard in that world, I think. So it would depend a lot on which two spells I had memorized. Assuming that Gorion trained me in the Art--and given that he is after all an epic level adventuring Harper with a mission to protect me--I might well have readied useful spells to fend off attacks, such as Sleep and Blindness.
Physically, I think there's a decent chance that I'd able to keep many level 1 monsters at bay with my quarterstaff as Imoen used her bow or the Wand of Magic Missiles. (Also my familiar would be a Fairy-dragon, so we could all disappearI'd be able to have him cast Mirror Image on me at least once in a pinch... oh, never mind.)
I think we'd probably follow the same direct path back to the road from Gorion's remains. As such we would not encounter the wolf, at least if this is BG:EE's world.
We would turn down Xzar and Monty's offer to join them in order to follow Gorion's instruction to find Khalid and Jaheira at the Friendly Arm.
Would we survive Tarnesh at FAI? Highly doubtful. However, if we were able to run or my Fairy Dragon couldturn us all invisibleMirror Image me, then maybe... Because the guards at FAI will definitely kill Tarnesh if one can flee the fight. The FAI has zero tolerance for violence within its walls.
Once Khalid and Jaheira have joined, the odds improve significantly. But the road south to Nashkel I would think we would only survive if we were smart enough to have Imoen scout ahead, and then skirt the main road to avoid ambushes.
In Beregost if we encountered Neera we'd help her out, and she would join. Protecting her is a relatively survivable fight.
We'd be focused on getting to Nashkel (most likely at Jaheira's urging). So there would be no visit to High Hedge, or attempt to collect the bounty for Bassilus.
Upon arrival in Nashkel there's a fair chance that we'd speak with Rasaad. If so, I'd likely accept his offer to join. He's behaving conspicuously as a martial artist and essentially offering his services for free as a bodyguard.
My first thought was it's about at best 50/50 whether we could survive Neira. But thinking on it a little more, at that point the fight is 4-6 people against 1, which really does not favor her. There may be a death or two among the party, but we'd resurrect the fallen. Even with casualties it's a survivable fight.
Minsc and Edwin I doubt we'd speak with. And even if we did, their side-quests would be deal-breakers.
As for the mines.... If we even made it this far, I'd probably insist that we turn back from the kobold ambush at the narrow bridge choke point over the lava in the second level. We would therefore never complete the quest, I don't think... I guess we'd return to Nashkel and report what we had found. Jaheira would probably push for a plan for a return stealth mission via invisibility potions with a two personcommando team, perhaps just her and Imoen, to sneak past the kobolds and investigate further. But I doubt that I would approve of risking Imoen's life unnecessarily for that.
We'd probably visit the Nashkel Fair, where there's a very strong chance of dying at Zordal's hands...
If still alive by then, we'd probably head next to Baldur's Gate. Unable to enter the city, we'd then probably follow the River Chionthor inland to Elturel (off the BG game map). Really not sure what we'd do next...
@Lemernis you make great points about not going into random houses and really just approaching the situation not as a video game, but as real life. No reloads, no reason to go into a stranger's home, no knowledge of secrets.
its pretty neat how everyone is saying "if i would make it this far" and such, but i think if i were suddenly hurled into the bg world, i would kick butt and go all the way, for example abdel from the novel series made it the whole way, and plus there is a saying that goes, anything someone can do, i can do better, i can do anything better than them, if lets say people in ToB are averaging over level 20, that gives chance it is quite possible to reach, now given that im quite fit, not to shabby on my dexitery for my size, and very strong, i think that i would do well, as long as i dont get way laid by 20 bandits and unpause the game and die instantly, then i should be pretty good off
well I probably wouldn't run into shank and carbos considering in rl I am not looking in all the random buildings for stuff to take, xp to gain, or quests to get. I would go straight to the inn for weapons and head out with gorion. I like to keep to the road so I would run into xzar and montaron and take them along but keep a constant eye on them because I wouldn't trust people I met so close to gorion's murder. as long as you stay to the road you usually don't get attacked except maybe some gibberlings, so I would make my way to the friendly arm inn and, depending on if tarnish decided to kill somebody else before me, make my way inside and be too tramatised to continue the journey. either sarevok would keep sending assassins and kill me or forget about me and I stay in fai. otherwise of course I would be dead to tarnish
The way I would answer this question depends on whether we are given magic or not, depending on our personalities. I have the disposition to be deeply in tune with spiritual or divine powers. I have enough intelligence to have trained in arcane "magic" (which, irl, I see as chemistry and physics, especially chemistry), but I did not in fact train that way.
My only chance would be to have three Cure Light Wounds spells granted to me by a god, and the assumption that I could cast them quickly, even while under attack.
I'm a really huge guy (6'4", 300 pounds), so I might be able to do massive damage by swinging a club or mace, but speed tends to trump physical size and strength, so my best chance against a dagger attack would be to throw my weight at the assailant and attempt to grapple. Young, in shape me, would have had much better chances than current middle-aged, out of shape me, of course. I would need to be wearing at least chain mail armor.
I would be extremely dependent on Imoen's archery skill to carry us through, having no martial skill whatsoever of my own. I would jump at the chance to join Monty and Xzar, creepiness notwithstanding. Beggars can't be choosers. Our odds of survival would increase significantly if I successfully talked them into coming with us to meet J&K before heading south to Nashkel, and if they got past Tarnesh (the odds of which would increase exponentially if my god gave me a Remove Fear spell), and we got J&K, then the five others might just be able to protect me long enough for me to get some more advanced divine abilities from my god.
Now, if we take magic out of the picture, then realistically, the only ones of us real-lifers who would stand a chance would be those who had real-life training in fighting and self-defense. Soldiers and police officers, basically. Maybe some martial arts experts and boxers.
Without some kind of magical gift, I wouldn't stand a chance. I'd never make it to the FAI.
In line with @belgarathmth's post, may we assume that we are Bhaalspawn? And does that mean ourselves but with Bhaal's divine blood, and at age twenty (that was a long time ago for me too!)? In the topic starter we're asked to imagine that we're Gorion's ward.
It sounds like we have different approaches here and maybe we should make rules
Some people are assuming themselves, right now, teleported into BG. Some (like me) are assuming it would be your current self, but having been raised in BG world. (In my example, I assumed I'd have done stuff like practice swordplay or archery instead of going to the gym or nerding out.) Some are making a whole new you, having been raised in BG resulting in a different adult.
Me, as I stand today irl: I'd probably not even make it out of candlekeep. I am not proficient with any weapons nor martial arts (I have some basic training in sword/shield, quarterstaff and archery from medieval re-enactment hobby, but I wouldn't take bets on me winning vs someone who uses a knife daily for a living), I don't know any magic and I have no divine powers either. I'm not particularly strong or dexterous, and I'm not fit in a "I go to the gym" way either. So, one of the first things that tried to kill me would probably succeed, if I couldn't outrun it.
However, if I were to assume that it was "me" as a natural denizen of the DnD world, I'd probably be a mage/cleric sorta person and I think I'd make it to FAA at least without issue (if I didn't die to a monster while running away and not paying attention to my environs when Gorion told me to). Hopefully by hooking up with Jaheira and Khalid, who are more experienced at this sort of thing, I'd have a chance to learn by experience and improve
I am in poor health, slightly overweight, don't exercise, and have forgotten most of what little I learned in school. I wouldn't last past my first encounter with something trying to kill me.
Yeah......if I had the stats and class I got from one of those What class are you? Tests (which were surprisingly close to my self assessment picks), you can bet your ass I'd be sitting pretty on an Abyssal divine throne within 1 1/2 years of leaving Candlekeep.
Me being a Bhaalspawn? I reckon the universe would need to implode and then explode again (in other words, make a reroll) to allow that to happen. Though, likely, even then it would remain impossible.
Well, if I were to consider myself in BG in reflection of who I am in real life than I might survived a good while. I studied Kenjitsu for 4 years. I am extremely comfortable with a katana but if I was raised in Candlekeep and trained by a guard, it would likely have been a regular longsword. I play the piano at concert level. I am built like a elf so chances are, I'm a fighter/mage that wished he was a bard. Or maybe I am a bard and only half-elf. I am certainly better than an novice that enters my kenjitsu class so Shanks wouldn't stand a chance. I might even be a cheesey Kensai/Mage if our fictitious theoretical world would allow it. I wore Kendo armor once and hated it. If anything, I would wear armor plating along my left arm as it'd be the likeliest place I would deflect a blow (oh yeah, that's just a shield). But being the fastest person in my class (fastest footwork not necessarily the fast blade) means I don't like being weighted down cause I can move into to striking range and get back out before my opponent can get a swing in (high dex I will guess). I would probably have prepared my travels to confront men, not wild animals and look to Gorion for his wisdom in the matter. Sadly, that wouldn't be a choice. Nevertheless, gibberlings and a real life wolf wouldn't be too threatening to me, but I certainly will not piss off that black bear near the cliffs. Probably stick to the roads and head straight to FAI but the encounter with the mage could go either way. I've trained to do a quick-draw strike so, whoever gets the first hit in really counts.
On the other hands, all my friends say I would be a rogue/thief. And there is some truth to that. But I don't want to be a fighter/mage/thief! You know how long it'll take to level up?
It depends on if I am a puny manling or a rock'ard Dwarf.
Seriously though, it's funny seein' so many of you say 'I'll use this spell and do that... etc'. Surely the whole point of this thread was how YOU would fare in the dangerous lands of Faerun. You with your normal human weaknesses and no magical abilities to speak of. I imagine even a pack of gibberlings would leave most soft modern humans screaming like girls.
Me on the other hand? I'd kick Sarevok's ass. Cos I'm a Dwarf Trollslayer!
Gorion gives me money to purchase equipment at the inn and I waste it all on booze and maybe a dagger. I go meet him and ask if I am ready to go, I check my pack and see I have ample supply of liquor for the journey ahead and nod my head.
During the ambush I do as I am told and I run. But I don't stop running at the road, I get all the way to Beregost and get lost in the crowds. I look for two things. One, a place to sit and catch my breath and then the nearest flaming fist. I would inform of my father's death to the gaurd (I am hoping it is officer val) then play the pity the card to see if I can get free room and board for the night.
In the day, I go out and wander the city looking for something to do and still being lost in the crowd. I decide to apply to jobs and fortunately I wander into a caravan shop run by an dwarf named Kagain. We become quick drinking buddies and am offered a job doing clerical things, like taking in money, assigning mercenaries to certain caravans and adventuring groups pertaining to area.
Eventaully one of these groups will clear out the nashkel mines and Kagain and I start advertising that it was our company that sent them. We'll watch the profits come in, and then that is probably where I will meet my end.
An Assassin will eventually find me alone, sweeping the shop, come in and ask questions about the place and who we hire out. He'll ask about my past and if I went drinking with a guy named Hull from Candlekeep. I'll be like "Oh man, Hull can hold his liquor. I haven't seen that bloke in ever." Then a dagger would be in my neck.
Comments
I could probably make it out of Candlekeep by running away. Wolves as mentioned probably aren't a major concern. It's otherwise pretty quiet on the road to the Friendly Arms Inn at which point Tarnesh would kill me.
"Sarry, hey Sarry," one leg rests itself on a stool as another crosses it, there is a light sound of chains moving in the dark, signalling if not acknowledgement, then attention, "tell me more about Tamoko."
The sprinkle of chains sounded again, in reverse cadence to their last. That attention had been lost. "She died loving you," a hungry smile plays on cruel lips, "but of course, it was worth that which you stood to gain, right?"
I wouldn't have any reason to enter the buildings where Shank and Carbos are. Nor would I run any errands. I'd just purchase gear and go. But I would find out as much as I could from Gorion about what is happening before we depart. And in fact he does share a bit. Gorion's tentative longer term plan is to disappear into the throng in Baldur's Gate or hide out in the wilderness (after collecting Jaheira and Khalid).
I think Imoen and I might well survive the attack by the diseased gibberling when we went to inspect the letter on Gorion that Imoen mentions. I'd be a wizard in that world, I think. So it would depend a lot on which two spells I had memorized. Assuming that Gorion trained me in the Art--and given that he is after all an epic level adventuring Harper with a mission to protect me--I might well have readied useful spells to fend off attacks, such as Sleep and Blindness.
Physically, I think there's a decent chance that I'd able to keep many level 1 monsters at bay with my quarterstaff as Imoen used her bow or the Wand of Magic Missiles. (Also my familiar would be a Fairy-dragon, so we could all disappear I'd be able to have him cast Mirror Image on me at least once in a pinch... oh, never mind.)
I think we'd probably follow the same direct path back to the road from Gorion's remains. As such we would not encounter the wolf, at least if this is BG:EE's world.
We would turn down Xzar and Monty's offer to join them in order to follow Gorion's instruction to find Khalid and Jaheira at the Friendly Arm.
Would we survive Tarnesh at FAI? Highly doubtful. However, if we were able to run or my Fairy Dragon could turn us all invisible Mirror Image me, then maybe... Because the guards at FAI will definitely kill Tarnesh if one can flee the fight. The FAI has zero tolerance for violence within its walls.
Once Khalid and Jaheira have joined, the odds improve significantly. But the road south to Nashkel I would think we would only survive if we were smart enough to have Imoen scout ahead, and then skirt the main road to avoid ambushes.
In Beregost if we encountered Neera we'd help her out, and she would join. Protecting her is a relatively survivable fight.
We'd be focused on getting to Nashkel (most likely at Jaheira's urging). So there would be no visit to High Hedge, or attempt to collect the bounty for Bassilus.
Upon arrival in Nashkel there's a fair chance that we'd speak with Rasaad. If so, I'd likely accept his offer to join. He's behaving conspicuously as a martial artist and essentially offering his services for free as a bodyguard.
My first thought was it's about at best 50/50 whether we could survive Neira. But thinking on it a little more, at that point the fight is 4-6 people against 1, which really does not favor her. There may be a death or two among the party, but we'd resurrect the fallen. Even with casualties it's a survivable fight.
Minsc and Edwin I doubt we'd speak with. And even if we did, their side-quests would be deal-breakers.
As for the mines.... If we even made it this far, I'd probably insist that we turn back from the kobold ambush at the narrow bridge choke point over the lava in the second level. We would therefore never complete the quest, I don't think... I guess we'd return to Nashkel and report what we had found. Jaheira would probably push for a plan for a return stealth mission via invisibility potions with a two personcommando team, perhaps just her and Imoen, to sneak past the kobolds and investigate further. But I doubt that I would approve of risking Imoen's life unnecessarily for that.
We'd probably visit the Nashkel Fair, where there's a very strong chance of dying at Zordal's hands...
If still alive by then, we'd probably head next to Baldur's Gate. Unable to enter the city, we'd then probably follow the River Chionthor inland to Elturel (off the BG game map). Really not sure what we'd do next...
My only chance would be to have three Cure Light Wounds spells granted to me by a god, and the assumption that I could cast them quickly, even while under attack.
I'm a really huge guy (6'4", 300 pounds), so I might be able to do massive damage by swinging a club or mace, but speed tends to trump physical size and strength, so my best chance against a dagger attack would be to throw my weight at the assailant and attempt to grapple. Young, in shape me, would have had much better chances than current middle-aged, out of shape me, of course. I would need to be wearing at least chain mail armor.
I would be extremely dependent on Imoen's archery skill to carry us through, having no martial skill whatsoever of my own. I would jump at the chance to join Monty and Xzar, creepiness notwithstanding. Beggars can't be choosers. Our odds of survival would increase significantly if I successfully talked them into coming with us to meet J&K before heading south to Nashkel, and if they got past Tarnesh (the odds of which would increase exponentially if my god gave me a Remove Fear spell), and we got J&K, then the five others might just be able to protect me long enough for me to get some more advanced divine abilities from my god.
Now, if we take magic out of the picture, then realistically, the only ones of us real-lifers who would stand a chance would be those who had real-life training in fighting and self-defense. Soldiers and police officers, basically. Maybe some martial arts experts and boxers.
Without some kind of magical gift, I wouldn't stand a chance. I'd never make it to the FAI.
Some people are assuming themselves, right now, teleported into BG.
Some (like me) are assuming it would be your current self, but having been raised in BG world. (In my example, I assumed I'd have done stuff like practice swordplay or archery instead of going to the gym or nerding out.)
Some are making a whole new you, having been raised in BG resulting in a different adult.
However, if I were to assume that it was "me" as a natural denizen of the DnD world, I'd probably be a mage/cleric sorta person and I think I'd make it to FAA at least without issue (if I didn't die to a monster while running away and not paying attention to my environs when Gorion told me to). Hopefully by hooking up with Jaheira and Khalid, who are more experienced at this sort of thing, I'd have a chance to learn by experience and improve
On the other hands, all my friends say I would be a rogue/thief. And there is some truth to that. But I don't want to be a fighter/mage/thief! You know how long it'll take to level up?
Seriously though, it's funny seein' so many of you say 'I'll use this spell and do that... etc'. Surely the whole point of this thread was how YOU would fare in the dangerous lands of Faerun. You with your normal human weaknesses and no magical abilities to speak of. I imagine even a pack of gibberlings would leave most soft modern humans screaming like girls.
Me on the other hand? I'd kick Sarevok's ass. Cos I'm a Dwarf Trollslayer!
Gorion gives me money to purchase equipment at the inn and I waste it all on booze and maybe a dagger. I go meet him and ask if I am ready to go, I check my pack and see I have ample supply of liquor for the journey ahead and nod my head.
During the ambush I do as I am told and I run. But I don't stop running at the road, I get all the way to Beregost and get lost in the crowds. I look for two things. One, a place to sit and catch my breath and then the nearest flaming fist. I would inform of my father's death to the gaurd (I am hoping it is officer val) then play the pity the card to see if I can get free room and board for the night.
In the day, I go out and wander the city looking for something to do and still being lost in the crowd. I decide to apply to jobs and fortunately I wander into a caravan shop run by an dwarf named Kagain. We become quick drinking buddies and am offered a job doing clerical things, like taking in money, assigning mercenaries to certain caravans and adventuring groups pertaining to area.
Eventaully one of these groups will clear out the nashkel mines and Kagain and I start advertising that it was our company that sent them. We'll watch the profits come in, and then that is probably where I will meet my end.
An Assassin will eventually find me alone, sweeping the shop, come in and ask questions about the place and who we hire out. He'll ask about my past and if I went drinking with a guy named Hull from Candlekeep. I'll be like "Oh man, Hull can hold his liquor. I haven't seen that bloke in ever." Then a dagger would be in my neck.