Help Me Become a BG Powergamer (Possible spoilers I guess.)

iAmGoatBoy

So, I've played through the game in "vanilla" and EE, from Candlekeep through to TOB. In the process, I've become a decent player, made a few strong characters and found most of the best gear. Thing is though, I've always played on Normal or Core difficulty and whilst I always find a way to win, I don't exactly breeze through the game - even now I have a LOT of restarts in any given playthrough. In addition, I've never used any mods.

All that's changing now: having seen the love for it on these boards, I've finally installed the SCS mod and I plan on playing through the saga on Insane difficulty. Thing is, at my current skill level, I'll never make it past Nashkel under those circumstances, so I need you people to help me step up from being an OK player, to being an unstoppable power-gaming juggernaut. So, I was hoping a few of you could contribute:

A spell or ability that will get me through battles in SCS Insane.

A weapon or item that you can't do without, and how to best use it.

A piece of strategic advice for taking out a particularly tough enemy.

A miscellaneous tip for overall success (which NPCs to get, somewhere to visit early or late in my adventure, something completely random I haven't thought to ask).

When giving advice, bear in mind a couple of things... one, I'm familiar with the basics of getting a strong character i.e min/maxing stats, getting all the tomes and boosts from Lum's machine, finding components for OP forged gear and so on. What I need is advanced strategies that will help me progress to the level of the best players. Two, I'm not a masochist: I'm trying to make it through the game with these settings, not do it naked, solo, at level one without resting or reloads. I'll be playing with a very high-roll character (probably a multiclass fighter/mage) and using every non-cheating (i.e no using a console program to edit in gear or take out enemies) game mechanic available to me to give them all possible advantages.

So... strike me with your blade of knowledge, wise forumites!

Lemernis

Basic Strategy

Do not just stumble into battle. Use stealth to scout ahead. Use the element of surprise with a developed strategy in mind.

Use disabling spells such as Sleep, Horror, Blind, Glitterdust, Hold Person, Emotion: Hopelessness, and Chaos. Those are the main ones, but there are others such as Slow, Confusion, Domination, etc. (Do not underestimate Blind in particular.)

Area-of-effect spells that work over a large radius (Sleep, Horror, Blind, Glitterdust, Hopelessness, and Chaos) are a staple for mobs.

Target enemy spellcasters to shut them down with disabling spells. (Silence is another good one for specllcasters.) Also, anything that delivers repeated poison attacks over a period of time tends to disrupt enemy spellcasting.

Charm enemies (by spell, scroll, or Algernon's cloak) to draw the attacks from the enemy (unequip their weapons and use up their spells on enemy comrades).

Backstabbing is powerful in BGEE (and well into BG2EE as well)--launch attacks with same, targeting enemy spellcasters (good idea to also have a potion of invisibility handy just in case things get hairy after becoming visible).

Wands of Paralyzation are powerful. Use wands in general.

Use potions to their fullest potential. A temporary magic blocking potion can sometimes turn the tide, for instance. A Protection from Magic scroll can also be a literal game changer.

Other Tips:

The mace that stuns is a great item. Algernon's cloak, though nerfed for BGEE, is still powerful. Gregan's Harp in the hands of a Bard is a powerful item. The Dagger of Venom, Bolts of Biting, and Eldoth's poisoned arrows are good against enemy spellcasters. Similarly, the Light Crossbow of Speed firing Bolts of Biting while Hasted is pretty devastating. The Ring(s) of Wizardry and its counterpart for divine magic are must-haves.

Some of the stronger NPCs include Kivan and Coran (because bows are so powerful in BG1), Kagain (the quintessential tank), and Edwin (who gets the most spell slots). Baeloth is also powerful.

Gotural

Be aware that playing solo is far easier than playing in a 6-man party, you'll have to deal with poorly optimized characters (compared to Charname) who will get crush by a lot of foes.

Non-arcane casters in particular, suffer more from the Insane difficulty because when you have Mirror Image, Stoneskin and PfMW who cares about damage being multiplied by 2.

I would advise you on playing a 4-man party if you want to use the NPC of the game, but the choice is up to you. Take Keldorn with you if you play a 6-man party, even underleveled his dispell magic will still kick-ass.

At the moment i'm working on a solo SCS Insane no-reload of the saga, so maybe i can give you a few advices.

Things you should know : Web + Free Action is really great at lower levels. Poison bypasses Mirror Image and Stoneskin. Slow is one of the best "CCs" of the game because of the -4 save. Silence has a -5 save which is really good too.

Things you maybe don't know : SCS adds an option to put Spell Immunity to contingency. Use it because your ennemies will (most notably Improved Invisibility + SI : Divination or Project Image + SI : Divination)

Good luck my friend !

(Sorry for my english)

Skaffen

Check out

http://www.sorcerers.net/Games/BG2/SpellsReference/GeneralSpellInfo.htm

for a comprehensive overview of magic including some really nasty cheese.

And don't forget your potions!

Blucher

I daresay that I'm a fairly good player of these games and I've even made my share of "tougher & improved" enemy mods. They are fun to play with, but I have become disillusioned and bored with the various difficulty enhancing mods. It's all about knowledge and approaching each battle in just the right way. Once you know the tricks however, an enhanced difficulty game is as routine as vanilla, only more tedious.

My tip would be to dig into the scripts, creature, and item (esp. the undropable monster/npc-only items) files with Near Infinity. You'll see what's going on and what you will need to do to win should become more clear.

Just a note: your freedom to approach the game will much more limited with certain tactics becoming de rigueur in nearly every encounter. You might not like this, but many people do.

Corvino

Make sure you know your spells. Party-friendly AoE spells with save modifiers can be very potent used correctly. Greater Malison followed by Chaos and Slow (+/- Glitterdust at low levels) will soften up tough groups very effectively.

Mages can throw fireballs but are usually better as buffers/debuffers/disablers. Have a minimum of 1.5 mages in any party (1 pure, 1 multi). Your melee will do all the damage you need if they're buffed and the enemy is weakened.

If you suspect you'll have to fight, make sure you're buffed. There are some buffs you show have active at all times while adventuring - remove fear & protection from evil 10' radius (+2 AC bonus vs. all foes) have long durations and are generally good. Use Chant, Bless, Defensive Harmony and Haste/Improved Haste liberally as soon as you get them. Make sure you have Chaotic Commands, Death Ward and other situational buffs available when needed.

Protect your mages correctly. Mirror Image and Stoneskin are obvious. Learn to use Protection from Magical Weapons, Spell Immunity and spell protections to keep them out of harm.

Conversely, know how to strip enemy mages of their defenses. The tougher fights in BG2 are usually casters, even moreso with SCS. You need to be able to stop them casting and kill them quickly if possible.

Know the strengths and weaknesses of your party. Korgan is good because he has HP and hits hard, but great because of Dwarf save bonuses and Berserker Immunities. There are a couple of good dual-classes and multiclasses who gain a lot of versatility for minimal cost, Imoen covers 90% of your thieving and is a great mage, Anomen becomes a potent cleric but stays a good frontliner.

If you increase the difficulty and install mods then be aware you might get pushed toward slightly cheesy tactics. Get to know what they are. Chain Contingency with 3 Horrid Wiltings? Improved Invisibility & Spell Immunity: Divination?

Have fun.

mumumomo

first tip play solo. It is 10 times easier than i a group.
- you level much faster which breaks the difficulty curve, especially in soa. You can get 3mxp in chapter 2. At that level, your character is an unbeatable god. In a group of 6 they would have less than 1 mxp each. (Like fighter 12, far from a god)
- you keep all ressources which means you have much more way to protect yourself
- some protective items completely break some fights (like prot from undead scrolls)
- you don.t have to worry of your crappy npc, which have crappys stats and die very easily

Second tip : use arcane magic
It's defintely possible without it but arcane magic does make things much much easier.
Here are some spells that break the game.

Offensive spells

Less than 1.5 mxp : web, mmm, spider spawn. These will make 95% of the fights in the early game trivially easy.

1.5-3mxp : animate dead, mordy sword : 2 very powerful summons. Cast haste on them to double their damage output.
Mordy sword remains useful for the whole game since purely physical attackers (flike fire giants or mind flayers) cannot do anything to them.

3mxp and more :
time stop + improve alacrity+ adhw kills every thing very easily.(dragon breath is nice for magic resistant ennemies)
Summon planetar is very strong. The planetar can solo all soa by himself (he will need some help in tob though)
Shapechange (mind flayer)+ time stop will kill instantly any ennemy who is not timestop immune (like all the so called hard fights in tob (draconis, abazigaiĺ sendai,...)

For nearly infinite casting, just use project image.

Defensive spells :
mxp : stoneskin is a life saver. For the end game, pfmw is so OP it's not even fair.
For mages fight : imprived invisibility + SI divinition makes you untargettable
>3mxp, who needs defense when the time is frozen.

bbear

I recommend checking this thread out. It demonstrates how a Level 1 character can solo the BG2 SoA+ToB.

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/29615/is-it-possible-to-solo-level-1-the-bg-saga/p1

-Wands are OP. They hit at max level strength, are non-disruptable and cast at a speed of 1.
-Equip weapon/armor/shield with status immunity. Unlike immunity granted by spells, they cannot be dispelled. Also, you dont have to spend precious battle time to cast them so you can take the initiative. The must have are the Shield of Harmony, Ring of Free Action and Amulet of Power. Hindo's Doom+4 is great if you have no access to Death Ward/Avoid Death. Dragonslayer, Blackrazor and that Nymph Cloak are there for the fear immunity.
-Tank and Kite. At very low AC, enemies can only hit at critical hit. Kiting minimizes contact and you are basically immune to melee attack. Combine this strategy with the Reflection Shield and you are essentially immune to physical damage.

Lemernis

I dunno, for me much of the fun of combat in Baldur's Gate comes with coordinating the actions of a party of six. I enjoy bringing all their various skills together. And of course we get a sense of camaraderie through their personalities. I know they're just toons, but I invest them with more in imagination.

I find soloing an interesting tactical challenge, but a bit lonely feeling. And I can't really agree with the notion that it is easier. Skillful strategy and execution of a party of six in combat makes the game easier for me, compared with having just one set of skills. (That's using pause about every other second though, lol. It would be next to impossible in real time I should think.)

As always YMMV!

CrevsDaak

I guess that if you want nice exploits you'll need Spell Shield and Chain Contingencies, preferably a Mage/Cleric and a Mage/Thief for backstab with Mislead.
You can use Incendiary Clouds to heal yourself with a fire resistance over 100 and Improved Haste, it easily kills your enemies, gives you 'regeneration' and you can still attack.

Flashburn

@CrevsDaak‌
I think the elemental affinity thing is gone. I've tried using Incendiary Cloud on a party member with 127% fire resistance and they didn't heal from taking "damage."

CrevsDaak

@Flashburn‌ I don't really know, last time I used that exploit it was like a year ago with my vanilla BG2 Fighter/Mage solo run. Maybe it was changed in the EE.

mumumomo

Playing solo, the difficulty lies in planning your path through the game. However if you know how to do it, it basically removes the tactical challenge since you can be you more or less immune to everything the game can throw at you.

The problem is since i have started to play solo (a very long time ago), i cannot bear the groups anymore (too slow, weak and cumbersome)

CrevsDaak

mumumomo said:

i cannot bear the groups anymore (too slow, weak and cumbersome)

Yeah, the same happens to me, solo runs are easier for me, for that same reason.

bbear

Too much babysiting with a party. Solo is definitely more interesting for me.