Baldur's gate rulebook!

xLegionx

Hi everyone!

So after hearing about the release of the enhanced edition I thought it time to play baldur's gate again. But then I realized....I hardly understand anything on the character sheet despite how long I've played the game. Idk what THACO means either or the purpose of the lore skill or what happens when you max your thief skills above 100. At first, I thought it was like a percentage number but when I saw I could increase it beyond I got confused at that point.

So I thought I'd post this to see if any experts on the baldur's gate rules, or basically 2nd edition experts, would be willing to take the time to type down what everything on the character sheet means and what it's specifically used for in the game.

Thanks a bunch!!

rogueace

Hey,
Thaco =" to hit ac 0 " it goes back to the d'n'd 1-20 dice role, if a goblin has a thaco of 20 it needs the role of a 20 on a 1-20 die, to hit armour class 0 ( ie just 5 percent), if the warrior fighting the goblin had a worse armour class of like 4, the goblin would need just 16, with a 25 percent chance to hit, so the lower the armour class the better and the lower the thaco the better, thaco 12 on ac -2 needs a 14 to hit. Yes percentages of hiding in shadows once went to a maximum of 99' then the idea of penalties , you could be in total day light and have a big penalty to your 99 percent hide in shadows and that modifies your chances or a bonus in a shadey grove! Any other questions?

xLegionx

So about the hide in shadow if I increase it past 100 or even 200 will I get a greater chance to hide in shadows while in combat or is there a huge penalty to that that it doesn't even matter? If I increase any of my other skills past 100 do I get any special abilities? Also what is the purpose of lore? When I increase my abilites (str, dex, etc.) what does it really effect? And how exactly do saving throws work?

And thanks for posting the above. Really helped clear up some misunderstandings I've had for god knows how long!

Syntia13

Lore is, basically, character's accumulated knowledge. In-game it is used for identifying unknown magical objects. If you give an unidentified item to a party member with a high lore, and right-click it in their inventory, there is a good chance that he/she will recognize what the object is and 'identify' it for you - no spell, scroll or spending cash at a store/temple required.
If memory serves, bards have the highest lore of all classes.
Some items are easier to identify than others, the hardest ones being cursed items. So if you have two or more items that look the same (scrolls, for example), but they won't stack together, and your high-lore char can identify one of them but not the other, that other item is most probably cursed. With lore of 90 + you can identify everything the game throws at you, thus saving considerable amount of time and cash.

As for hide in shadows.... I've got no idea. Somebody, help?

LadyRhian

Hide in Shadows can go over 100%, but I still think you cannot do it in combat. The target can be in combat with someone else, and thus be distracted, but to Hide in Shadows, you cannot move very much at all. You cannot do it while/if someone is watching you, either.

Belgarath

xLegionx said:

Hi everyone!

So after hearing about the release of the enhanced edition I thought it time to play baldur's gate again. But then I realized....I hardly understand anything on the character sheet despite how long I've played the game. Idk what THACO means either or the purpose of the lore skill or what happens when you max your thief skills above 100. At first, I thought it was like a percentage number but when I saw I could increase it beyond I got confused at that point.

So I thought I'd post this to see if any experts on the baldur's gate rules, or basically 2nd edition experts, would be willing to take the time to type down what everything on the character sheet means and what it's specifically used for in the game.

Thanks a bunch!!

You are looking for something like this?

http://www.amazon.com/Advanced-Dungeons-Dragons-Legends-Lore/dp/0880388447/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1344421093&sr=1-12&keywords=advanced+dungeons+and+dragons

Hope I helped

Zafiro

You should have a manual inside your game folder.

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/1992/basic-game-tips-for-new-players#latest

FrozenDervish

When any stat reaches 255 it will reset back to 1.

Talvrae

best thing i could say, try to find an old copy of the Player Handbook for Advenced Dungeons And Dragons 2nd editio

Awong124

I've never understood why D&D used the THAC0 system. Sure it works, but it's so counterintuitive. It's like they went out of their way to make it difficult. The AC and To Hit system in 3E is essentially the same thing but much more simple and user friendly. It seems like it would make more sense to come up with 3E's system first, since it's so much simpler.

Talvrae

Awong124 said:

I've never understood why D&D used the THAC0 system. Sure it works, but it's so counterintuitive. It's like they went out of their way to make it difficult. The AC and To Hit system in 3E is essentially the same thing but much more simple and user friendly. It seems like it would make more sense to come up with 3E's system first, since it's so much simpler.

Yeah well that's why they changed it

xLegionx

Talvrae said:

Awong124 said:

I've never understood why D&D used the THAC0 system. Sure it works, but it's so counterintuitive. It's like they went out of their way to make it difficult. The AC and To Hit system in 3E is essentially the same thing but much more simple and user friendly. It seems like it would make more sense to come up with 3E's system first, since it's so much simpler.

Yeah well that's why they changed it

Wait their changing the rules to 3rd edition or changing 2nd edition rules?

oldsch00l

I think he's not talking about BG:EE but about Ad&D in general. They changed the THACO system going from 2nd edition to 3rd because it was always confusing...

artificial_sunlight

I think you are looking for Dan Simpson's AD&D guide:
http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/75251-baldurs-gate/faqs/8566

Eidolon

xLegionx said:

Wait their changing the rules to 3rd edition or changing 2nd edition rules?

They're already on 4th edition, and rules have been changed even more; easier really but it's mostly aimed at their miniatures. Saving Throws have also been more simplified, and same goes for skills (though I personally am not a fan of the 4th edition skills)

3rd edition rules I personally liked the best. They got rid of the very confusing THAC0 and simplified many more things. Combat is so much simpler in 3rd edition.

Thels

THAC0 isn't something they deliberately sat down for and then discussed upon. It's something that grew over time.

Let's show it with saving throws first, as they're the same principle, but a little easier to understand. Characters start with high saving throw values, and these values become lower and lower as they level up. The idea behind this is pretty simple. You need to roll equal to or higher than your saving throw value to succeed, so the lower the saving throw value becomes, the higher your chance of success.

THAC0 is the same thing. It's the value you need to roll to hit AC0. So it starts high, but then becomes lower and lower as you level up, making it easier and easier to hit that AC0.

Of course not everything is as easy to resist or to hit. Therefor, Saving throws and THAC0 have modifiers. If a saving throw has a modifier of +2, it gives you a +2 on your saving throw roll (which effectively lowers the value you need to roll by 2). If it has a modifier of -3, it gives you a -3 on your saving throw roll (which effectively raises the value you need to roll by 3).

AC is the same thing. If your target is poorly armored, you get a bonus to your roll equal to his AC value. Say you have a THAC0 of 18, and your target has an AC of 4. That means you receive a +4 to your roll, so you basically only need to roll a 14 (because adding 4 to that will reach your THAC0 of 18).


TL;DR:

In 2nd edition, your level decided the value you needed to roll, while the effect you were trying to resist or the armor of the target you were trying to hit provided a modifier to your roll.

In 3rd edition this was swapped around. Your level decides your bonuses, while the effect you are trying to resist or the armor of your target determines the value you need to roll.