In BG1, if confronting Bassilus with Xzar in the party, Xzar frightens Bassilus by claiming he is the man's doom. Bassilus shouts the name "Uncle Lester!"
In BG2, Uncle Lester rises from the grave to torment his family for throwing a cheap funeral. Doom indeed.
Just another connection between the games, the kind I seem to discover more of each time I play.
Oh, but in that case it has been written after BG2's development, as the quote you have mentioned is from the NPC project .
For a legitimate connection between games, I almost never talk to Calahan on Brynnlaw unless I'm getting Ginia and Ason to safety, so I only just now learned that he's the same guy from Ulgoth's Beard that warns you about Mendas.
For a legitimate connection between games, I almost never talk to Calahan on Brynnlaw unless I'm getting Ginia and Ason to safety, so I only just now learned that he's the same guy from Ulgoth's Beard that warns you about Mendas.
Whenever you say that you don't always save ginia and ason, a completionist player loses his wings.
Whenever you say that you don't always save ginia and ason, a completionist player loses his wings.
I'm too busy wondering why you can't just hire him to take yourself back to the mainland after Spellhold. He's certainly more trustworthy than Saemon. Hell, a really savvy player could (or should) ask Captain Golin to take you back in exchange for saving Claire, seeing how Saemon would have already betrayed you and left you with no sure means of transport back after you (presumably) would defeat Irenicus at the asylum.
Whenever you say that you don't always save ginia and ason, a completionist player loses his wings.
I'm too busy wondering why you can't just hire him to take yourself back to the mainland after Spellhold. He's certainly more trustworthy than Saemon. Hell, a really savvy player could (or should) ask Captain Golin to take you back in exchange for saving Claire, seeing how Saemon would have already betrayed you and left you with no sure means of transport back after you (presumably) would defeat Irenicus at the asylum.
That's like asking why you can't just buy your own ship and sail there (and back) yourself.
Whenever you say that you don't always save ginia and ason, a completionist player loses his wings.
I'm too busy wondering why you can't just hire him to take yourself back to the mainland after Spellhold. He's certainly more trustworthy than Saemon. Hell, a really savvy player could (or should) ask Captain Golin to take you back in exchange for saving Claire, seeing how Saemon would have already betrayed you and left you with no sure means of transport back after you (presumably) would defeat Irenicus at the asylum.
That's like asking why you can't just buy your own ship and sail there (and back) yourself.
You don't know where the island is.
And I assume Captain Golin has already left to take Claire and her brother away from the island before you leave spellhold.
Whenever you say that you don't always save ginia and ason, a completionist player loses his wings.
I'm too busy wondering why you can't just hire him to take yourself back to the mainland after Spellhold. He's certainly more trustworthy than Saemon. Hell, a really savvy player could (or should) ask Captain Golin to take you back in exchange for saving Claire, seeing how Saemon would have already betrayed you and left you with no sure means of transport back after you (presumably) would defeat Irenicus at the asylum.
That's like asking why you can't just buy your own ship and sail there (and back) yourself.
You don't know where the island is.
And I assume Captain Golin has already left to take Claire and her brother away from the island before you leave spellhold.
It's an island overrun by pirates. How closely guarded a secret can it be?
You guys should consider that the game calls that territory "the pirate isles", so first of all we'd have to find out which one. Also, none of these islands are safe , even to other pirates. And even if they did help you, why would they act against the wizards of spellhold? Finally, even though I suppose that that's still part of Amnish territory, it goes without saying that the seas are misterious and dangerous to who's not a sailor or pirate, so the whole mistery behind it is totally justifiable.
For the interaction with Vecna it appeared to me that the haste effect was applied after the adjustment for Vecna (as in your example, but not your text). So for strength (which takes 9 to cast in EE), haste alone would reduce that to 4.5 - meaning it would cast almost immediately if the Vecna adjustment were applied later. In fact I think Vecna is reducing 9 to 5 and then the haste effect cutting that down to 2.5.
Um, I don't think you want to interact with Vecna. He's not a very nice guy.
For the interaction with Vecna it appeared to me that the haste effect was applied after the adjustment for Vecna (as in your example, but not your text). So for strength (which takes 9 to cast in EE), haste alone would reduce that to 4.5 - meaning it would cast almost immediately if the Vecna adjustment were applied later. In fact I think Vecna is reducing 9 to 5 and then the haste effect cutting that down to 2.5.
Um, I don't think you want to interact with Vecna. He's not a very nice guy.
His body parts have a high-risk, high-reward appeal to them. Just don't buy into any rumors of a "Head of Vecna". Those are very unhealthy for your adventuring party.
If you want to get the Gauntlets of Dexterity without triggering the lich fight that happens at higher levels, you can avoid it by using the east entrance instead of the west one. This lets you avoid the trigger right here:
Using the east entrance means you never have to cross the trigger. No trigger means no lich.
You can also avoid spawning vampires in Firkraag's dungeon by hugging the southeast wall of the corridor nearby (not the one directly adjacent to the vampire room, but the one before that corridor). And you can avoid spawning the Vampiric Mists near Gaal in the Unseeing Eye quest by hugging the south wall of the toxic cloud room.
I knew there had to be a reason that the Vampiric Mist spawn in particular was so inconsistent. I think I'd narrowed down the possibilities to being a matter of where you walk, but I've always been too lazy to do this much testing for monster spawns. I'd just rather get it over with one way or another.
In Planescape Torment, there is a secret item called the Shriveled Pebble. Here is its description:
SHRIVELED PEBBLE Weight: 0
This tiny pebble looks like it was chipped from a larger piece. The edges of it are jagged, like teeth, and the texture of it makes the small stone seem more like a withered seed than a stone. It has a faint reddish color about it, as if it was once stained with blood.
However, that's not what it really is, because it's an unidentified item. Here's its real description:
EYE OF VECNA (Cursed Artifact) Special: Doubles all 1st Level Mage Spells Doubles all 2nd Level Mage Spells +35% Resistance to Magic +4 Save vs. Death Magic -3 to Wisdom -3 to Intelligence Weight: 0
Many tales are told of the arch-lich Vecna.
It is said that Vecna was one of the Planes' mightiest sorcerers, able to draw life from dust and send it back again, extinguish lives with a glance, and make the earth shudder beneath his touch. He was said to be so powerful that when the end of his life drew near, death refused to take him into its kingdom.
And so Vecna died, yet lived on.
Abandoned by death, Vecna became the master of a vast kingdom on a prime world called Oerth. Neither kind nor just, Lord Vecna's rule was one of great horror and suffering, and it is said his reach was so great that even the Powers of Oerth feared to cross him for fearing of drawing his eye.
Yet, while Vecna's gaze traveled ever outward in search of new conquests, he failed to see his own end when it came for him... in the form of his lieutenant, Kas.
As was fitting for Vecna's left hand servant, the arch-lich had fashioned a terrible weapon for his lieutenant as a symbol of his authority. Vecna made this weapon with such skill it is said that part of the sorcerer entered the blade, and it was this sliver of Vecna that gave the blade its life and its treacherous nature. Where once there was lifeless steel, there became thought, intent, and, perhaps most horrible of all, a voice.
The sword whispered treacheries to the ambitious Kas, night upon night, month upon month, year upon year, until one night, the remains of Kas' discipline was seduced by the rippling edge of the blade. Convinced by his blade that he was Vecna's superior, Kas confronted his dread master upon his Dessicated Throne, and the two of them fought a terrible battle.
During the battle, Kas was killed, but before he fell, his blade had dismembered his former master, scattering his remains so that no one may draw them together again. And so it has come to pass that pieces of Vecna have made their way across the Planes... one of these is the Eye of Vecna. It carries with it a bloody, violent history, so much so that many scholars refuse to speak of its treacheries, for fear the eye will come to them, seeking to add another victim to its bloody chronology.
The Eye of Vecna was instrumental in the extermination of the House of Hyeric, once the ruling dynasty in Nyrond. It is said to have been behind the sundering of the Conclave of Tyssis-on-the-Sea, which led to the three-cycle war that poisoned the seas of Malhatai and left the oceanic world barren of life. On the ashen Plane of Ghalentir, it possessed the gentle father of Sasaran, a babe with the potential to lead his suffering people from their shadowed lands to the Gates of Paradise... had not the eye drove Sasaran's father to murder his son as he lay sleeping in his crib. All these kingdoms, all these futures, the Eye of Vecna laid waste.
The Eye's powers are said to shift with each new owner, but one thing is certain: no good ever comes from whoever has the misfortune to possess it. It is destined to betray its wearer at a critical moment, failing him when he needs its power the most.
In Baldur's Gate 2, the description of the Robe of Vecna says that it's not nearly as powerful as the Hand or the Eye of Vecna. However, although the Eye of Vecna does seem to be really powerful, it's nowhere near as powerful as the robe.
Vecna should be more careful with his body parts... his hands, eyes and head seem to be everywhere in the multiverse!
I shouldn't be telling you this, but:
The head of Vecna is a hoax. Two adventuring parties were pitted against each other, and so one of them concocted the legend of a Head of Vecna plus a fake dungeon to contain it, even hiring bards to spread the rumors farther. It worked even better than they expected, with their rivals finding the "artifact", and killing each other for the "honor" of decapitating themselves to attach the head to themselves and gaining its powers.
Vecna should be more careful with his body parts... his hands, eyes and head seem to be everywhere in the multiverse!
I shouldn't be telling you this, but:
The head of Vecna is a hoax. Two adventuring parties were pitted against each other, and so one of them concocted the legend of a Head of Vecna plus a fake dungeon to contain it, even hiring bards to spread the rumors farther. It worked even better than they expected, with their rivals finding the "artifact", and killing each other for the "honor" of decapitating themselves to attach the head to themselves and gaining its powers.
Vecna should be more careful with his body parts... his hands, eyes and head seem to be everywhere in the multiverse!
I shouldn't be telling you this, but:
The head of Vecna is a hoax. Two adventuring parties were pitted against each other, and so one of them concocted the legend of a Head of Vecna plus a fake dungeon to contain it, even hiring bards to spread the rumors farther. It worked even better than they expected, with their rivals finding the "artifact", and killing each other for the "honor" of decapitating themselves to attach the head to themselves and gaining its powers.
Comments
Wait, no, he mentioned Suldanessellar to the party beforehand. And all of Jon's journal entries. Not smart, Saemon.
And I assume Captain Golin has already left to take Claire and her brother away from the island before you leave spellhold.
Choo choo.
Some modding could make him into a valid route to Spellhold, avoiding both Bodhi and the Shadow Thieves.
Finally, even though I suppose that that's still part of Amnish territory, it goes without saying that the seas are misterious and dangerous to who's not a sailor or pirate, so the whole mistery behind it is totally justifiable.
Using the east entrance means you never have to cross the trigger. No trigger means no lich.
You can also avoid spawning vampires in Firkraag's dungeon by hugging the southeast wall of the corridor nearby (not the one directly adjacent to the vampire room, but the one before that corridor). And you can avoid spawning the Vampiric Mists near Gaal in the Unseeing Eye quest by hugging the south wall of the toxic cloud room.
SHRIVELED PEBBLE
Weight: 0
This tiny pebble looks like it was chipped from a larger piece. The edges of it are jagged, like teeth, and the texture of it makes the small stone seem more like a withered seed than a stone. It has a faint reddish color about it, as if it was once stained with blood.
However, that's not what it really is, because it's an unidentified item. Here's its real description:
(Cursed Artifact)
Special:
Doubles all 1st Level Mage Spells
Doubles all 2nd Level Mage Spells
+35% Resistance to Magic
+4 Save vs. Death Magic
-3 to Wisdom
-3 to Intelligence
Weight: 0
Many tales are told of the arch-lich Vecna.
It is said that Vecna was one of the Planes' mightiest sorcerers, able to draw life from dust and send it back again, extinguish lives with a glance, and make the earth shudder beneath his touch. He was said to be so powerful that when the end of his life drew near, death refused to take him into its kingdom.
And so Vecna died, yet lived on.
Abandoned by death, Vecna became the master of a vast kingdom on a prime world called Oerth. Neither kind nor just, Lord Vecna's rule was one of great horror and suffering, and it is said his reach was so great that even the Powers of Oerth feared to cross him for fearing of drawing his eye.
Yet, while Vecna's gaze traveled ever outward in search of new conquests, he failed to see his own end when it came for him... in the form of his lieutenant, Kas.
As was fitting for Vecna's left hand servant, the arch-lich had fashioned a terrible weapon for his lieutenant as a symbol of his authority. Vecna made this weapon with such skill it is said that part of the sorcerer entered the blade, and it was this sliver of Vecna that gave the blade its life and its treacherous nature. Where once there was lifeless steel, there became thought, intent, and, perhaps most horrible of all, a voice.
The sword whispered treacheries to the ambitious Kas, night upon night, month upon month, year upon year, until one night, the remains of Kas' discipline was seduced by the rippling edge of the blade. Convinced by his blade that he was Vecna's superior, Kas confronted his dread master upon his Dessicated Throne, and the two of them fought a terrible battle.
During the battle, Kas was killed, but before he fell, his blade had dismembered his former master, scattering his remains so that no one may draw them together again. And so it has come to pass that pieces of Vecna have made their way across the Planes... one of these is the Eye of Vecna. It carries with it a bloody, violent history, so much so that many scholars refuse to speak of its treacheries, for fear the eye will come to them, seeking to add another victim to its bloody chronology.
The Eye of Vecna was instrumental in the extermination of the House of Hyeric, once the ruling dynasty in Nyrond. It is said to have been behind the sundering of the Conclave of Tyssis-on-the-Sea, which led to the three-cycle war that poisoned the seas of Malhatai and left the oceanic world barren of life. On the ashen Plane of Ghalentir, it possessed the gentle father of Sasaran, a babe with the potential to lead his suffering people from their shadowed lands to the Gates of Paradise... had not the eye drove Sasaran's father to murder his son as he lay sleeping in his crib. All these kingdoms, all these futures, the Eye of Vecna laid waste.
The Eye's powers are said to shift with each new owner, but one thing is certain: no good ever comes from whoever has the misfortune to possess it. It is destined to betray its wearer at a critical moment, failing him when he needs its power the most.
In Baldur's Gate 2, the description of the Robe of Vecna says that it's not nearly as powerful as the Hand or the Eye of Vecna. However, although the Eye of Vecna does seem to be really powerful, it's nowhere near as powerful as the robe.