What is your least favourite magic item in BG? :(

SCARY_WIZARD

I have decided to make an opposite thread to the one about the magic item that people love the most.
Here is the thread: http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/20725/what-is-your-favorite-magic-item-in-bg1

In this thread, we are sad about some items that we dislike.


LEAST FAVOURITE
Dead Cat. Kitties shouldn't die.

LEAST USEFUL
Duke Eltan's Body. I tried to use him as a shield when I got attacked by an ogre mage while going through the Sewers, and he started to scream, and dropped him because I got scared, and then he stopped moving, and then Skie yelled at me.

LEAST POWERFUL
The Ossifier. I hit Minsc with this the other day, and he got mad at me.


What items in this first part of the Baldur's Gate Saga make you, my fellow roleplaying gamers, sad?

God

LEAST FAVOURITE
Gold. There's just too much of it strewn throughout most unreasonable places.

LEAST USEFUL
Shandalar's cloak. It does sell for a bit of gold, though not for as much as one would expect of a 'powerful magical item'.

LEAST POWERFUL
The baby from the werewolf village. Not only is it terribly ugly and badly dressed but it can't even transform into a werewolf and kill you if you don't return it to its mother.

sarevok57

LEAST FAVOURITE
leather armor +3, seriously the time you get here, this armor is so obsolete, the only class that needs leather is a thief, and by then you will already have shadow armor which is better in absolutely every way ( although I haven't play a stalker in enhanced edition, so I don't know what their best armor is in that game)

LEAST USEFUL
Know Alignment Scroll, this item is completely useless in every way, first of all a player only needs to know 2 things; are you good or evil? and detect evil already does that, and it affects multiple targets, not this spell, very useless indeeders

LEAST POWERFUL
Vampiric longsword, it's impossible to deal a single hit point of damage to anything in the game with this weapon, derp be derp be doo

KidCarnival

LEAST FAVOURITE - Gorion's Letter. It's not even magical, except for it's uncanny ability to return to you if you give it to a dismissed NPC to "deliver this letter to my friend E." No, that sadistic scroll will come right back, as a permanent reminder of your foster father's untimely death.

LEAST USEFUL - Eyes of Truth. First, it's misleading. It gives you infravision instead of True Sight. Second, it's useless for elves and half-elves because they already have Infravision. Third, Infravision is useless, regardless if by race or helm or spell. (That's 3 very good reasons why I'll wear this helm until the bitter end in my current run - perfect gear for lawful stupid.)

LEAST POWERFUL - Corrupted Iron from Nashkel Mines. Hell, even the level 2 spell Glitterdust is better! Metal dust, corrupted or not, should make enemies permanently blind if you throw it in their eyes, but nope, nothing.

sarevok57

I think dwarves and gnomes also have infravision, I remember the first time I could affort that ring, eons ago, I thought I was a boss because I finally had a magic ring

KidCarnival

OH yes, I shall also wear the Infravision ring, then I'll have DOUBLE-INFRAVISION! Fear me, Sarevok, I can see you in the VERY dark!

sarevok57

actually infravision is about seeing the heat off of bodies, did you ever notice that in SoA the shadow monsters aren't affected by infravision because they emit no heat? don't know if bg1 did the same thing

Ascerion

LEAST FAVORITE - Backbiter + 3 Cursed Spear. I love polearm class weapons, but I really was hoping that it had a chance to drain health on self. It's just too suicidal to use.

LEAST USEFUL - The Vampire's Revenge. No explanation necessary. Also, the "quest" is terribad.

LEAST POWERFUL - Studded Leather Armor +2, Missile Attraction. It must have a big red target painted on it. In the words of most Heralds, "Oh, shoot me now."

@sarevok57 Damn, you beat me to it on The Vampire's Revenge. Heh.

elminster

sarevok57 said:

LEAST FAVOURITE
leather armor +3, seriously the time you get here, this armor is so obsolete, the only class that needs leather is a thief, and by then you will already have shadow armor which is better in absolutely every way ( although I haven't play a stalker in enhanced edition, so I don't know what their best armor is in that game)

Avengers. Also anyone with strength lower than 6 (studded leather's requirement).

So there is theoretically some benefit from the leather armor +3.

However, since its on the fourth level of Durlag's either way I agree it has very little worth.

Ascerion

elminster said:

sarevok57 said:

LEAST FAVOURITE
leather armor +3, seriously the time you get here, this armor is so obsolete, the only class that needs leather is a thief, and by then you will already have shadow armor which is better in absolutely every way ( although I haven't play a stalker in enhanced edition, so I don't know what their best armor is in that game)

Avengers. Also anyone with strength lower than 6 (studded leather's requirement).

So there is theoretically some benefit from the leather armor +3.

However, since its on the fourth level of Durlag's either way I agree it has very little worth.

@elminster

Yeah, I had a mod installed that let me change the kits for NPCs, and I would always change Jaheira to an avenger. It seemed to fit her better. Anyway, she could only use leather armor at most, so I noticed that as well. I kinda like it better that way, I don't feel like she should be wearing the same heavy armor as Khalid. And she seems to really fit the anti-metal pro-nature avenger philosophy.

Sorry, kinda rambled there, heh.

sarevok57

cant druids wear the ankheg platemail? I know normal druids can

Ascerion

You mean Avengers? I think so. I think one of my tweaks disallowed the use of it on avengers, though. It's technically a plate armor, but it's made of a natural material. (Bug shells)

Kinda weird how they can use the metal from spears and scimitars, but not from the iron studs in studded leather, and such. You'd think it would be all metal, no matter what.

elminster

sarevok57 said:

cant druids wear the ankheg platemail? I know normal druids can

Normal druids can if they have strength at 8 or above. Avengers can't in BGEE (regardless of their strength).

Ascerion

God said:

LEAST FAVOURITE
Gold. There's just too much of it strewn throughout most unreasonable places.

LEAST USEFUL
Shandalar's cloak. It does sell for a bit of gold, though not for as much as one would expect of a 'powerful magical item'.

LEAST POWERFUL
The baby from the werewolf village. Not only is it terribly ugly and badly dressed but it can't even transform into a werewolf and kill you if you don't return it to its mother.

I was really disappointed with Shandalar's cloak. I was doing a run with Sword Coast Strategems, and those mages in the Ice Caves were freakin' insane. I really was hoping for a magic cloak I could use on myself, or at least a good reward otherwise.

I think I had to fireball wand spam them before they pre-buffed, after using all my innate abilities, setting traps, and all kinds of cheese, just to survive. I had saved after being teleported over my main save. I was like, "I've made a huge mistake." Lol.

(Love the mental image of the baby werewolf mauling the party in the middle of the night at camp)

@Scary_wizard

The kitty corpse isn't magical though. But it gets raised! I think so, anyway. She says something like, "Oh, kitty's done this before...." "Daddy will take her to the temple again." I think the journal makes a joke about cats having nine lives too, lol.

~Ascerion

Jarrakul

Okay, for this list I'm barring myself from anything that's not a magic item or that intentionally does nothing. There's just too many items that have no use, the "least useful" choice would be a 50-way tie. Similarly, I'm not going to pick cursed items. We already know they're terrible. That's what they're there for (except the few that are actually good, but they don't belong on this list).

LEAST FAVORITE
Ring of Invisibility. It's like a stack of potions that takes up a ring slot and costs about 5 times as much. If it was limited by uses per day instead of charges, that'd be something, but no. I suppose you could always sell it back and rebuy it to recharge it, but it's just so much easier to buy potions of invisibility. But the thing that really irks me is that until you buy the ring, you don't know that that's how it works. I hate that thing.

LEAST USEFUL
Gauntlets of Weapon Skill. +1 to hit and they go in the gauntlet slot, aka the slot with Gauntlets of Ogre Power, Bracers of Armor, Gauntlets of Dexterity, Bracers of Archery, and Gauntlets of Weapon Expertise. And you can and probably will get all of those before you get either pair of Gauntlets of Weapon Skill, so whatever use the skill gauntlets might've had is out the window.

LEAST POWERFUL
Everything of Infravision (except the Ioun Stone in the exotic item pack, because that thing is a helmet for folks who can't wear helmets). The problem with this stuff is that it's supposed to do something, but it just doesn't. It gives an effect that the game tracks, yes, but that effect does not interact with the rest of the game on anything but a graphical level.

@Ascerion, I think the girl only says the cat can be raised if your reaction bonus is high enough. But I will admit, the first time I heard it, it made my day.

DreadKhan

I love how there are 2 rings of infravision and the helm. I wonder if they stack? We really need Cespenar to combine these suckers into a helm of ultravision instead! Yeah, so everything can be purple instead of red. :0

SCARY_WIZARD

DreadKhan said:

I love how there are 2 rings of infravision and the helm. I wonder if they stack? We really need Cespenar to combine these suckers into a helm of ultravision instead! Yeah, so everything can be purple instead of red. :0

Or at least have us fork over a couple of glands from creatures that can see really, really well, and make a helmet with like...true sight, or something. :S

O_Bruce

Spear +1. Utterly useless. And there is also a magical throwing dagger - the main problem with this item is fact that it doesn't exist.

God

Ascerion said:

I was really disappointed with Shandalar's cloak. I was doing a run with Sword Coast Strategems, and those mages in the Ice Caves were freakin' insane. I really was hoping for a magic cloak I could use on myself, or at least a good reward otherwise.

Shandalar did not survive my disappointment and exploded into tiny bits

SCARY_WIZARD

God said:

Ascerion said:

I was really disappointed with Shandalar's cloak. I was doing a run with Sword Coast Strategems, and those mages in the Ice Caves were freakin' insane. I really was hoping for a magic cloak I could use on myself, or at least a good reward otherwise.

Shandalar did not survive my disappointment and exploded into tiny bits

That morning, he forgot to put on his periapt of wound closure. FOR THE LAST TIME.

KidCarnival

DreadKhan said:

I love how there are 2 rings of infravision and the helm. I wonder if they stack? We really need Cespenar to combine these suckers into a helm of ultravision instead! Yeah, so everything can be purple instead of red. :0

Oh my, that would be my fave item ever! The most useless helm - it would be completely overpowered, if infravision would be good for anything.

sarevok57

well if it is a helmet, it would at least provide protectin against critical hits, which in bgee my monk could really use, his AC is doing allright, but the critical hits, ah the critical hits, they hurt when you have no HP bonus ( thank you claw of kazgaroth)

terzaerian

LEAST FAVOURITE
+3 Cursed Berserking two-hander. I think this is the first cursed item I picked up and which got my goat.

LEAST USEFUL
Any dead bodies. So heavy, so useless.

LEAST POWERFUL
Flail / Halberd +1. I've never had anyone specced for them, ever.

Drugar

LEAST FAVOURITE
Cursed Berserking sword. A +3 greatsword early in the game, a dream come true! And then I slaughtered my entire party. Lesson learned, video game!

LEAST USEFUL
The Bard's Chain in BG2. It's a +3 Chainmail you find in Spellhold. By the time you get it you either A) have better armour for your fighters (Platemail) or Elven Chain for your bard, which doesn't impede his spellcasting like he bard's chain does (ironicly). However, it's a very shiny, colourful item so I *want* to use it, it's just that it's not as good as anything else you find when you do.

LEAST POWERFUL
Infravision items, as mentioned before. Just...why?

sarevok57

Drugar said:

LEAST USEFUL
The Bard's Chain in BG2. It's a +3 Chainmail you find in Spellhold. By the time you get it you either A) have better armour for your fighters (Platemail) or Elven Chain for your bard, which doesn't impede his spellcasting like he bard's chain does (ironicly). However, it's a very shiny, colourful item so I *want* to use it, it's just that it's not as good as anything else you find when you do.

you wouldn't happen to be talking about the jester chain+5 would ye? at the moment when you come there its the best armor in the game for bArBaRiAnS, although you have to sacrifice boots of speed for it

sarevok57

and there is also a +3 chainmail only useable by bards and it allows you the ability to cast spells, it can be found in the

astral prison first group of baddies

SCARY_WIZARD

sarevok57 said:

you wouldn't happen to be talking about the jester chain+5 would ye? at the moment when you come there its the best armor in the game for bArBaRiAnS, although you have to sacrifice boots of speed for it

KRONGDOR LIKE PRETTY BARD ARMOUR
MAKE KRONGDOR FEEL LIKE REBA MCENTIRE

Drugar

I've never played a barbarian and there's no barbarian NPC so I haven't had the pleasure. Guess I'm shifting Korgan to be one next game.

Still, changing it to allow spellcasting would make it a hundred times more useful and actually appropriate for the class it's supposedly designed for.

sarevok57

@Drugar did you ever get that melodic chain for your bard? its the second best armor in SoA that your bard can use, with bladesinger being the best