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How have your opinions changed about NPCs (both old and new)

booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
in Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition
Sup fools!
Been thinking how my view on the characters have evolved over time, and how often my initial attitudes toward certain characters have changed after playing through their story.
Most notably the first time I played I was just like "Wow, this Anomen guy is a rule douche!"... but then later I played a female paladin and did the romance and ended up greatly enjoying it, finding him the most realistic character in the series.
Similarly I thought Jan was the most annoying guy ever when I was younger, but now find him absolutely hilarious!
On the other hand, I initially thought Korgan was a cool typically irritable dwarf, and would be a joy to have along. After a while though, I just thought he was too one dimensional and never really shows much during the course of the story.
I know many say that Minsc's antic grow stale after a couple playthroughs, and while he is still my favorite character due to finding him amusing, I understand exactly what everyone is talking about when it comes to him (though having Boo goes a long way)
Of the new EE characters my first thought was that I would enjoy Dorn and Hexxat the most, but ended up actually enjoying Neera quite a bit after initially finding her voice very annoying and now think that Rasaad is among the most awesome characters in the game.


How have your opinions grown over time? Any character surprise you? Any disappoint you? I (and I'm sure many others) would like to know!
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Comments

  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    I always found Anomnomnomnomen cool until he started making idiotic comments against everyone else in the party, but didn't drop him because of power gaming reasons (he already had HLAs, so it wasn't worth dropping him). I might not like Anomen's attitude much but he is very good written and I don't find him so amusing to have around.

    One that I almost killed all the times was because he had betrayed Yoshimo, I only took him twice, the first time in a F/M solo run because I needed a thief for Spellhold, well, WRONG CHOICE!! I always liked him as an NPC and wished to save him (anyway I got angry and killed him a pair of times before taking him again to Spellhold, reading the dialogue and realizing that he had been charmed, then I always wanted to help him. The second time it was to check the dialog :P I've missed.

    I always found Korgan a bloody idiot, until I started using him in my evil run (Rasaad leaved because I've sided with Bodhi and that's very easy to explain, and I had an empty slot them... and needed a good fighter, so), he's funny and and maybe a little more evil than I expected but he had some very funny banters. He is a real killer with Axes, he does not deal the insane amount of damage my Fighter PC deals (she deals a max damage per round of 88 slashing IIRC) but he is a very good frontliner anyway.

  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    Thanks for the response guys! This topic really interests me. I wrote it before getting on a plane and hoping to have a bunch of interesting things to read when I got home but only you two responded :(

    @Silverstar
    I agree a lot about Neera being far better in the second game compared to the first (though I liked her then too). I do like Aerie, Anomen and Imoen though, so I tend to favor a lot of characters that others find annoying.
    Also "sup fool?" is a somewhat common greeting in the states, and the one I usually use when I see my boys back home. It is not meant to be an insult, and I also use "como estas, bitches?" from the Anchor Man movies (the only part I found funny)

    @CrevsDaak
    Totally agree about Yoshimo! Yoshimo was always my favorite NPC, even with the betrayal. He's just way cool and the story makes me sad, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. Yoshimo has more swag than anyone in the game.
  • MacHurtoMacHurto Member Posts: 731
    So far I have only played with the new characters. However I trailed jaheira along for a little bit and boy, she is a bossy b**** that one. 12 years ago, i thought she was awesome. I guess My view on women has changed :-D
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    @booinyoureyes "como estas, bitches" means "how did you are, bitches", you should say "como estan, bitches" for plural. Anyway I tend to say almost the same phrase to greet my friends, I say "como andan las putas", what means "how you bitches are going" or "how the bitches are going", depends on what you want to say.
  • WebShamanWebShaman Member Posts: 490
    Actually, "como estas, bitches" means "how is you (doing), bitches", and yeah, one should say "como estan, bitches" which would be "how are you (doing), bitches". Now, I am not sure about the "doing" part - my spanish is not that good anymore.

  • MacHurtoMacHurto Member Posts: 731
    edited February 2014
    Not wanting to derail this thread but "como estas" and "como estan" (assuming a latin american speaker) would both be "how are you" :-) (singular & plural)
  • WebShamanWebShaman Member Posts: 490
    That is true, but to express it correctly in spanish, one has to write the equivalent in english (kind of complicated, I know) to see why one cannot say como estas in the plural form.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    edited February 2014
    CrevsDaak said:

    @booinyoureyes "como estas, bitches" means "how did you are, bitches", you should say "como estan, bitches" for plural. Anyway I tend to say almost the same phrase to greet my friends, I say "como andan las putas", what means "how you bitches are going" or "how the bitches are going", depends on what you want to say.

    Yeah, but I'm pretty sure in the movie they said it incorrectly (which just makes it even funnier)
    I actually didn't like the movie all that much (its rare that I enjoy a pure comedy... I like comedy, but I tend to laugh more at humorous moments in movies that are not necessarily "comedies")
    Rush Hour is the best "pure" comedy series for me
    Silverstar said:

    Come to think of it, my opinion of Nalia has also improved with EE because she, like other female mages, are no longer stuck wearing that ugly burlap-sack-skirt thing when in no or minimalistic robes.

    Clearly you want even MORE minimalism you naughty raccoon you!
    Post edited by booinyoureyes on
  • elementelement Member Posts: 833
    edited February 2014
    Mazzy when I was a kid doing my first run i didn't think that much of her and thought she was boring but over time i've come to like her much more as a character to the point id say she's my favourite

    maybe as ive grown up my sensibilities have changed or perhaps its because of the fetish I developed for short girls with hairy feet whatever the reason it will forever be a mystery

    I also like Aerie more I used to think she was a bit of a whiner but when you actually think about what she goes through she's surprisingly well adjusted and her traits are completely understandable considering from her perspective she is physically disabled and disfigured

  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    It is funny that quite a few people say Mazzy, since I had the same attitude as well when I was a kid. I just thought she would be all boring and I just thought she was too straight edged, kinda like Keldorn without his badass elder-statesmanism. Plus 13 year old Boo was all like "Mazzy can't be all that great, she's too short"... but now I LOVE shorties! Also when I saw how she treated Valygar I was like "wow, what a bitch!"

    I think she's really cool now, and I grew to have an appreciation for her voice. The voice acting is wonderful for her, plus her quest is kinda neat. I like her character... its pretty lame that they wont let her be a paladin. I think its cool how she gets along with Keldorn as well. Also love how she's unafraid to tell off evil characters, and doesn't even pretend to be friendly toward people she doesn't like. Pretty awesome.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    edited February 2014
    A little corrextion about spanish: the word to make the phrase look like plural in english should be "thee", as a native spanish speaker I can correct here a little :) and como estan/estas don't invludes the word doing nor going, como andas/n includes one of them, they literally mean the same for this particular case.
    I remeber when I had a 2 hours debate with the english teacher about this XD

    @Silverstar I completely agree with you, the greatest enhancement in BG2:EE was adding the BG1 inventory anations for female Elves, they didn't had boobs at all (really talking I miss the BG2 inventory animations, they were cool).
    Edit1: I missed much more my female PC's boobs in BG2.
    Edit2: I still joking.
  • MacHurtoMacHurto Member Posts: 731
    @CreevsDaak actually, "thee" is singular :-)

    Never tried Mazzy, now that I think of it. I guess I will have to give her a chance, seeing the posts here
  • TaearTaear Member Posts: 90
    edited February 2014
    booinyoureyes said:


    I think she's really cool now, and I grew to have an appreciation for her voice. The voice acting is wonderful for her, plus her quest is kinda neat. I like her character... its pretty lame that they wont let her be a paladin. I think its cool how she gets along with Keldorn as well.

    I'd never used the NPCs in BG2 - I'd played BG1 over and over and over and created my own party because the NPCs there were so boring and I just carried it over to BG2. However, now I've gained appreciation for them because I actually know the voice actors from other games/shows/etc.
    Mazzy is Jennifer Hale who is amazing as Sheperd in Mass Effect and Bastila in KOTOR and I took her specifically for that, while Yoshimo is Maurice LaMarsh (Kif in futurama) and they're both pretty great just to hear the stuff they say.

    It's not just David Warner who is famous!

  • VarwulfVarwulf Member Posts: 564
    Korgan:
    Before: Annoying, pointlessly evil, totally unlikable.
    Now: Best damn thing since a strong swig of Dwarven Ale.

    Jaheira:
    Before: Kind of annoying and preachy/passive aggressive, but kinda hot too.
    Now: Kind of annoying and preachy/passive aggressive (but in a better way), oh, and kind of hot too.

    Hmm, perhaps I will post more later :)
  • SkaffenSkaffen Member Posts: 709
    Cernd:

    Before: Booooring and no competition vs. Jaheira.
    Now: Still booooring and still no competition for Jaheira
  • tennisgolfbolltennisgolfboll Member Posts: 457
    I love the old npc even more after the new ones showed me they cannot match them.

    For my favorite npcs ever id rank these the highest by far:
    Korgan 10/10. He is so funny and has depth (he will never harm children and does not like slavery yet needs little excuse to hack away and HE finds it funny when he does)
    Aerie 10/10 great romance
    Keldorn 10/10 (what an ending he has, matches any blockbuster)
    10/10 Canderous (kotr)
  • starskystarsky Member Posts: 44
    after all this time I finally gave Cernd a try

    Never again.
  • TwaniTwani Member Posts: 640
    I hated Anomen when BG2 first came out. 'Guys get three hot elf gals and I'm stuck with this ugly human who only wants to talk about himself and whines to me? HOW DARE YOU BIOWARE. I'm playing male!'

    In time, I realized that, first of all, all BG2 romance options whine to you. A lot. And second, Anomen is a product of a horrible upbringing and reflects that, and is more a damaged guy who needs emotional care and love more then anything.

    I still don't romance him, mind: I think he needs therapy more then romance (same with Aerie, Viconia, and maybe even Jaheira, honestly). But now I like him and use him for what he's worth.
  • SilverstarSilverstar Member Posts: 2,207
    Twani said:

    I still don't romance him
    ...
    and use him for what he's worth.

    Heh. Well I'm sure he's okay with that too.
  • DetroitRedWings25DetroitRedWings25 Member Posts: 244
    After dealing with Aerie and Anomen's incessant whining I feel as though I'm capable of handling anything... even Dell Griffith!
  • CoutelierCoutelier Member Posts: 1,282
    DetroitRedWings25 said:

    After dealing with Aerie and Anomen's incessant whining I feel as though I'm capable of handling anything... even Dell Griffith!

    If you genuinely think Aerie whines, then no, you're really definitely not ready for that. Yet alone shows like 'My Super Sweet 16'; a few minutes of that and you'll soon realize how mistaken you were about those NPC's.

    My opinions of the original haven't changed in a while. With the new NPC's, I really liked Neera at first, but she's gone down in my estimation. Although that's not so much because of Neera herself admittedly; I just really hated that hippy guy in her quest.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    Coutelier said:

    With the new NPC's, I really liked Neera at first, but she's gone down in my estimation. Although that's not so much because of Neera herself admittedly; I just really hated that hippy guy in her quest.

    He was kinda out of place but...that guy was hilarious!
  • CoutelierCoutelier Member Posts: 1,282
    booinyoureyes said:

    Coutelier said:

    With the new NPC's, I really liked Neera at first, but she's gone down in my estimation. Although that's not so much because of Neera herself admittedly; I just really hated that hippy guy in her quest.

    He was kinda out of place but...that guy was hilarious!
    If he was a joke encounter tucked out in the wilderness somewhere, I might have had more patience for him. It's like the diner in Attack of the Clones; just much too contemporary and brings me out of the setting.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    I totally get that (and agree in most cases) but in this particular situation, being that he was a wild mage, I am more forgiving. He was really just comic relief, and not a key character in the game.
  • TwaniTwani Member Posts: 640
    Silverstar said:

    Twani said:

    I still don't romance him
    ...
    and use him for what he's worth.

    Heh. Well I'm sure he's okay with that too.

    Probably. I imagine Anomen is pretty open to anything that might get him some fem!CHARNAME attention. >.>

    I'm trying to think of other characters. I used to think Aerie obnoxious, too, but now I think of her like Anomen- in need of therapy more then a romance, but a decent person at heart. Jaheira I've gone back and forth on a few times, due to how quickly she starts hitting on the male CHARNAME after Khalid's death... but now I just play fem!Charname's, and don't have to worry about it.

    Nalia is an interesting case. I really liked her in SOA, then really disliked her after she got all arrogant and snotty in TOB. Now I'm pretty much indifferent to her. She's a girl who thinks she's suffered far more then she actually has, but she truly does mean good in the world. I'm not sure that leads to acting like a little witch to the Bhaalspawn in TOB, but... grief does very weird things to beings, as I am surely aware of.

    And Valygar, I've always liked, never found boring. I feel a need to point that out.
  • ThrasymachusThrasymachus Member Posts: 903
    edited February 2014
    My impressions have gone from 'good' to 'bad' for:

    1. Minsc. (I just don't find him amusing anymore. Sorry Boo!)
    2. Aerie. (I never really liked her, but now I find her intolerable. I find even her voice unpleasant.)

    My impressions have gone from 'bad' to 'good' for:

    1. Anomen. (I used to find him annoying. Now I find him amusing. Especially the snarky CN version!)
    2. Haer'Dalis. (I always liked his personality. But now I know how to play a blade semi-properly.)
    3. Jaheira. (I used to find her bossiness annoying. Now I'm fine with it.)
    4. Rasaad. (I like his personality in BGEE, but he wouldn't stop dying. Now he's better in both BGEE and BG2EE.)
    5. Neera. (She is a bit grating in BGEE, but quite fun in BG2EE.)

    My views of the other original NPCs haven't really changed (Cernd is still bland and useless; Valygar is still cool; Mazzy rocks; etc.). I haven't played Dorn or Hexxat in BG2EE yet (but I like Dorn in BGEE).
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