I nearly always play with Imoen. Although, I keep her as pure thief in BG2. I have a weakness for Boo and his companion too, so Minsc is in the party most of the time. I tend to stick to the canon party in BG 1 but may swop a couple in and out sometimes. In BG 2 I chance partymembers more frequently, it depends.
If I don't have Edwin in my party, I feel wrong. I'm so used to having him and his extra spells and snarky bullying humour as my primary arcane spellcaster, Viconia as my primary divine spellcaster, and Aerie as my secondary spellcaster. The mayhem!
Yep, can't finish a game without the canon party as well. And two free slots in BG2 are always filled with Haer'Dalis (I'm a sucker for Planescape setting and love his kit) and Keldorn (Carsomyr, nuff said).
I used to almost never pick up Valygar. Maybe it was because I already had a ranger in Minsc, but Valygar was never that much appealing. Eventually for the sake of trying out different NPCs I recruited him and I'm glad I did.
Valygar, combined with gauntlets of ogre power, Celestial Fury and his default katana is an absolute beast, on the level of Keldorn with Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity. That, and his banters with my Charname, who's most of the time a spellcaster, and his link to Irenicus through the Unfinished Business mod make him a mainstay in almost any party I roll.
I used to almost never pick up Valygar. Maybe it was because I already had a ranger in Minsc, but Valygar was never that much appealing. Eventually for the sake of trying out different NPCs I recruited him and I'm glad I did.
Valygar, combined with gauntlets of ogre power, Celestial Fury and his default katana is an absolute beast, on the level of Keldorn with Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity. That, and his banters with my Charname, who's most of the time a spellcaster, and his link to Irenicus through the Unfinished Business mod make him a mainstay in almost any party I roll.
While he Valygar is powerful with that setup, he is far away from Keldorn.
I used to almost never pick up Valygar. Maybe it was because I already had a ranger in Minsc, but Valygar was never that much appealing. Eventually for the sake of trying out different NPCs I recruited him and I'm glad I did.
Valygar, combined with gauntlets of ogre power, Celestial Fury and his default katana is an absolute beast, on the level of Keldorn with Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity. That, and his banters with my Charname, who's most of the time a spellcaster, and his link to Irenicus through the Unfinished Business mod make him a mainstay in almost any party I roll.
While he Valygar is powerful with that setup, he is far away from Keldorn.
Fair enough, he's not on Keldorn with Dex gauntlets and Carsomyr's exact level but he's still pretty good.
I used to almost never pick up Valygar. Maybe it was because I already had a ranger in Minsc, but Valygar was never that much appealing. Eventually for the sake of trying out different NPCs I recruited him and I'm glad I did.
Valygar, combined with gauntlets of ogre power, Celestial Fury and his default katana is an absolute beast, on the level of Keldorn with Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity. That, and his banters with my Charname, who's most of the time a spellcaster, and his link to Irenicus through the Unfinished Business mod make him a mainstay in almost any party I roll.
While he Valygar is powerful with that setup, he is far away from Keldorn.
Fair enough, he's not on Keldorn with Dex gauntlets and Carsomyr's exact level but he's still pretty good.
110% agree, and he blows Minsc out of the water, taking the spot as the best ranger in the game.
In BG1 and 2 i always take Jaheira and Viconia. Having a backup healer is something i have become used to and i like never needing to buy potions. Also Viconia is nearly invincible and Jaheira just becomes a beast with spears and staffs... and iron skin.
I seem to like to have Xan around in BG1 over other mages, he just buffs and hides mostly and if i need to open a lock or identify something. I find his fire resistance to come in handy alot too.
In BG I always have Haer'Dalis, I don't like mages very much (i have my reasons) but Haer'Dalis can be a great one and a great fighter as well.
::This is a crosspost, since it fits both discussions::
In BG1 I made an interesting discovery, almost by accident. Jaheira takes a while to level up, due to being dual class. Some folks might want a different, single class druid because of this, since they level faster. However, possibly because of her warrior training, Jaheira, unlike pure druids, is able to wear plate mail AND still cast spells. Might be a bug, since Imoen when dualed to mage can't cast spells in any sort of armor, but it makes Jaheira's slower level progression worth while IMO. Give her decent (or Ankheg?) plate, medium shield and a +2 club and Jaheira is able to stand in as a melee fighter as well as providing spell support before and during combat.
::This is a crosspost, since it fits both discussions::
In BG1 I made an interesting discovery, almost by accident. Jaheira takes a while to level up, due to being dual class. Some folks might want a different, single class druid because of this, since they level faster. However, possibly because of her warrior training, Jaheira, unlike pure druids, is able to wear plate mail AND still cast spells. Might be a bug, since Imoen when dualed to mage can't cast spells in any sort of armor, but it makes Jaheira's slower level progression worth while IMO. Give her decent (or Ankheg?) plate, medium shield and a +2 club and Jaheira is able to stand in as a melee fighter as well as providing spell support before and during combat.
Mages and Sorcerers use Arcane spells, arcane spells cannot be used with any armour (except Elven Chainmail). Druids and Clerics use Priest/Divine spells, these are unaffected by armour.
Also Jaheira is Multi-class, this means that she gains experience towards both Fighter and Druid Levels, whereas when you Dual-class, a character stops gaining experience in their first profession, and all future experience goes towards their new class. Thus Jaheira is basically 50% Warrior, 50% Druid, Imoen will eventually become a very accomplished mage, but she will never progress beyond an "average-but-good-enough" Thief.
::This is a crosspost, since it fits both discussions::
In BG1 I made an interesting discovery, almost by accident. Jaheira takes a while to level up, due to being dual class. Some folks might want a different, single class druid because of this, since they level faster. However, possibly because of her warrior training, Jaheira, unlike pure druids, is able to wear plate mail AND still cast spells. Might be a bug, since Imoen when dualed to mage can't cast spells in any sort of armor, but it makes Jaheira's slower level progression worth while IMO. Give her decent (or Ankheg?) plate, medium shield and a +2 club and Jaheira is able to stand in as a melee fighter as well as providing spell support before and during combat.
Fighter multiclasses can wear armor, but arcane classes can't cast spells while wearing it (unless it's a special elven amor), divine casters (clerics, druids) can. Jaheira as a druid probably should have been restricted from wearing metallic armor, but hey, house rules an all that.
The thing about BG2 NPCs is that almost all of them have a unique personality, a specific history/fate and a unique skillset, so I mostly just pick whomever fits my party best or whomever I feel like bringing along at the time. Even Nalia has her interesting moments and strengths.
BG1 NPCs are less concrete and it's mostly just a floating persona + skillset you're choosing to bring with you, making it easier to pick party members based purely on merit. Over time though I've grown rather used to bringing Xan along. It's just so easy to hit level 3 before you reach Mulahey, and if you get to Xan by then he spawns as a level 4 mage with the just the right spells and just 1 level shy of Haste. Very convenient for many setups. It's also hard not to crack a smile whenever he spouts those signature pessimistic quips. You can almost imagine him smiling privately as he proclaims "Our quest is vain!" before slashing some unfortunate monster into bloody chunks with his Moonblade.
Fighter/druids should not be able to use metal armor and shields (they can but there's a penalty) but yeah what's the point of enforcing that? If we start going native with all the AD&D stuff we'd end up with a very different game. So we make due with IE "standard" rules (as mentioned above): arcane casters can't cast spells while using most armor, divine casters can.
For me, I can't imagine ever playing without Xzar and Monty. I know they're not the best NPCs in terms of stats but they hold a special place in my heart. I still can't get over how
*SPOILERS*
they both die in BG2. Darn Harpers, using such a cheap trick to make ME kill my favorite psychotic necromancer!!!!! REVENGE SHALL BE MINE! MWOOHAHAHAHA!
Whether it's BG or BG2, once Viconia is in my party, she's always a permanent member. Her biography and personality meshes so well with my (usually) female Necromancer PC that it just doesn't seem right to not have her in the party.
In BG, I usually don't go to Peldvale until my PC is 5th or 6th level, as I can't imagine Viconia would be any lower in level having been a priestess of Lolth and being 200+ years old.
In BG2, rescuing her from the Beshabite fanatics is one of the first things my PC does after meeting with Gaelan "Coo!" Bayle.
I remember the first time I played BG2, Keldorn joined my party (with Viconia) for the Unseeing Eye quest, which (not too surprisingly) resulted in a heated exchange and eventually a fight between the two. With some "help" from my PC, I think we ended up selling his armor and sword sometime later. ^.~
Whether it's BG or BG2, once Viconia is in my party, she's always a permanent member. Her biography and personality meshes so well with my (usually) female Necromancer PC that it just doesn't seem right to not have her in the party.
In BG, I usually don't go to Peldvale until my PC is 5th or 6th level, as I can't imagine Viconia would be any lower in level having been a priestess of Lolth and being 200+ years old.
In BG2, rescuing her from the Beshabite fanatics is one of the first things my PC does after meeting with Gaelan "Coo!" Bayle.
I remember the first time I played BG2, Keldorn joined my party (with Viconia) for the Unseeing Eye quest, which (not too surprisingly) resulted in a heated exchange and eventually a fight between the two. With some "help" from my PC, I think we ended up selling his armor and sword sometime later. ^.~
I tried to 'help' out Viconia too when i romanced her and forgot to add the 'no fighting' option from BG2tweak. I wasn't as lucky as you, he ended up killing both me and Viconia that day.
I remember the first time I played BG2, Keldorn joined my party (with Viconia) for the Unseeing Eye quest, which (not too surprisingly) resulted in a heated exchange and eventually a fight between the two. With some "help" from my PC, I think we ended up selling his armor and sword sometime later. ^.~
One of these days I'll break my compulsion to take Keldorn on every playthough so I can play with Viconia & not have to kill him. I know I could install the happy party mod but unfortunately AFAIK it doesn't resolve the issues between them just stops the conflicts from triggering (or uninstall the Keldorn romance mod, um, yeah, not sure I can manage that).
For me, I can't imagine ever playing without Xzar and Monty. I know they're not the best NPCs in terms of stats but they hold a special place in my heart. I still can't get over how
*SPOILERS*
they both die in BG2. Darn Harpers, using such a cheap trick to make ME kill my favorite psychotic necromancer!!!!! REVENGE SHALL BE MINE! MWOOHAHAHAHA!
I think it's a shame. I really loved them, I know they're the first people you come across so unless you're soloing it makes sense to take them along for some of the journey but I loved Xzar's soundset.
I remember the first time I played BG2, Keldorn joined my party (with Viconia) for the Unseeing Eye quest, which (not too surprisingly) resulted in a heated exchange and eventually a fight between the two. With some "help" from my PC, I think we ended up selling his armor and sword sometime later. ^.~
One of these days I'll break my compulsion to take Keldorn on every playthough so I can play with Viconia & not have to kill him. I know I could install the happy party mod but unfortunately AFAIK it doesn't resolve the issues between them just stops the conflicts from triggering (or uninstall the Keldorn romance mod, um, yeah, not sure I can manage that).
I didn't know there was a Keldorn romance mod. It sounds interesting, especially given his wife's infidelity and the path your PC encourages him to follow after he finds out about it.
I remember the Edwin romance mod for BG2 was very well written and, as one would expect, hilarious. I usually take along Edwin in BG2, so it just doesn't feel the same without the mod in BG2EE.
Neera's my mage of choice in BG1. With Evermemory and the Wild Mage spell bonus, at level 7 she currently has 10(!) first level spells. So I give her shield and 9 magic missile spells. If she never casts that silly reckless dwoemer spell and uses chaos shield, there is very little chance of a wild surge, and she becomes like a gatling gun in combat, firing off a slew of magic missiles one after the other.
I changed Imoen over to mage at level 7 thief; she's up to level 5 mage now. I was worried about not having a thief, until I discovered I really didn't need one, at least at this point in the game. Locked containers? MyChar can bash most of them, and Neera and Imoen both pack knock spells for those I can't. Traps? No problem. MyChar has become a total beast. Procedure for disarming traps: everybody else hides around a corner while I run through them
There's a side bonus to having Imoen and Neera as mages together also; being of different alignments (neutral and good), I was able to buy Archmage robes for each of them. And when Imoen hits level 8 mage, she can also pull out her old +1 shortbow and +2 arrows of fire (as well as being able to use her +2 sword for backstabbing), should she run low on spells during a prolonged combat. Fewer spells than Neera but more HP.
@Mortianna: https://kerzenburg.baldurs-gate.eu/files/jastey/KeldornRomance_150114.zip linky for the EE compatible mod curtesy of @missescalla, the link for original BGII mod is in my profile info. The Readme is posted in the general modding forum. Back with the topic I've had to force myself to leave Aerie in the circus this time, she's so eager. I wish someone would mod a seventh slot so you can try NPCs without disrupting your core 5.
Never tried him; he was a shill for that slimebucket Silke so I disliked him instinctively. What does he bring to the table?</p>
He's a bard with some decent stats, he brings a lot of things to the table.
- High level spell casting - Lore that lets him identify stuff just by looking at it - Great with the light crossbow of speed (let him use those bolts of biting and lightning to mess up mages and deal high damage) - There is a nice elven chain mail he can use in BG:EE that lets him throw spells while having armor on - You can get him VERY early - Higher base HP compared to mages. Bard D6 Vs Mage D4. - Can use all weapon types in the game - Pickpocket so you don't have to spend a rogues skill points on that - Song that removes fear, really useful on early levels and when fighting creatures that use horror. - Uses the same progression table as the rogue, so he levels up very quickly and can reach the highest level possible in BG:EE, level 10. - Teach him the level 1 mage spell Friends and he'll have 21 charisma after casting it, so he can be the person you use to talk for better quest rewards and shopping.
He has some really nice things going for him, you just have to think of him as an utility tool instead of a scalpel.
With Garrick you should also consider making him proficient with halberds and then give him the BG:EE halberd +2: Chelsea Crusher (I believe it's called), which does 1d10+6 damage. The drawback is that it sets your attacks per round to 1, but for a bard that is not a big issue
Comments
Xzar and Montaron
BG2 SoA
Edwin and Yoshimo
BG2 ToB
Edwin and Sarevok
Valygar, combined with gauntlets of ogre power, Celestial Fury and his default katana is an absolute beast, on the level of Keldorn with Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity. That, and his banters with my Charname, who's most of the time a spellcaster, and his link to Irenicus through the Unfinished Business mod make him a mainstay in almost any party I roll.
I seem to like to have Xan around in BG1 over other mages, he just buffs and hides mostly and if i need to open a lock or identify something. I find his fire resistance to come in handy alot too.
In BG I always have Haer'Dalis, I don't like mages very much (i have my reasons) but Haer'Dalis can be a great one and a great fighter as well.
In BG1 I made an interesting discovery, almost by accident. Jaheira takes a while to level up, due to being dual class. Some folks might want a different, single class druid because of this, since they level faster. However, possibly because of her warrior training, Jaheira, unlike pure druids, is able to wear plate mail AND still cast spells. Might be a bug, since Imoen when dualed to mage can't cast spells in any sort of armor, but it makes Jaheira's slower level progression worth while IMO. Give her decent (or Ankheg?) plate, medium shield and a +2 club and Jaheira is able to stand in as a melee fighter as well as providing spell support before and during combat.
Also Jaheira is Multi-class, this means that she gains experience towards both Fighter and Druid Levels, whereas when you Dual-class, a character stops gaining experience in their first profession, and all future experience goes towards their new class. Thus Jaheira is basically 50% Warrior, 50% Druid, Imoen will eventually become a very accomplished mage, but she will never progress beyond an "average-but-good-enough" Thief.
BG1 NPCs are less concrete and it's mostly just a floating persona + skillset you're choosing to bring with you, making it easier to pick party members based purely on merit. Over time though I've grown rather used to bringing Xan along. It's just so easy to hit level 3 before you reach Mulahey, and if you get to Xan by then he spawns as a level 4 mage with the just the right spells and just 1 level shy of Haste. Very convenient for many setups.
It's also hard not to crack a smile whenever he spouts those signature pessimistic quips. You can almost imagine him smiling privately as he proclaims "Our quest is vain!" before slashing some unfortunate monster into bloody chunks with his Moonblade.
Fighter/druids should not be able to use metal armor and shields (they can but there's a penalty) but yeah what's the point of enforcing that? If we start going native with all the AD&D stuff we'd end up with a very different game. So we make due with IE "standard" rules (as mentioned above): arcane casters can't cast spells while using most armor, divine casters can.
*SPOILERS*
they both die in BG2. Darn Harpers, using such a cheap trick to make ME kill my favorite psychotic necromancer!!!!! REVENGE SHALL BE MINE! MWOOHAHAHAHA!
In BG, I usually don't go to Peldvale until my PC is 5th or 6th level, as I can't imagine Viconia would be any lower in level having been a priestess of Lolth and being 200+ years old.
In BG2, rescuing her from the Beshabite fanatics is one of the first things my PC does after meeting with Gaelan "Coo!" Bayle.
I remember the first time I played BG2, Keldorn joined my party (with Viconia) for the Unseeing Eye quest, which (not too surprisingly) resulted in a heated exchange and eventually a fight between the two. With some "help" from my PC, I think we ended up selling his armor and sword sometime later. ^.~
I remember the Edwin romance mod for BG2 was very well written and, as one would expect, hilarious. I usually take along Edwin in BG2, so it just doesn't feel the same without the mod in BG2EE.
I changed Imoen over to mage at level 7 thief; she's up to level 5 mage now. I was worried about not having a thief, until I discovered I really didn't need one, at least at this point in the game. Locked containers? MyChar can bash most of them, and Neera and Imoen both pack knock spells for those I can't. Traps? No problem. MyChar has become a total beast. Procedure for disarming traps: everybody else hides around a corner while I run through them
There's a side bonus to having Imoen and Neera as mages together also; being of different alignments (neutral and good), I was able to buy Archmage robes for each of them. And when Imoen hits level 8 mage, she can also pull out her old +1 shortbow and +2 arrows of fire (as well as being able to use her +2 sword for backstabbing), should she run low on spells during a prolonged combat. Fewer spells than Neera but more HP.
Never tried him; he was a shill for that slimebucket Silke so I disliked him instinctively. What does he bring to the table?
- High level spell casting
- Lore that lets him identify stuff just by looking at it
- Great with the light crossbow of speed (let him use those bolts of biting and lightning to mess up mages and deal high damage)
- There is a nice elven chain mail he can use in BG:EE that lets him throw spells while having armor on
- You can get him VERY early
- Higher base HP compared to mages. Bard D6 Vs Mage D4.
- Can use all weapon types in the game
- Pickpocket so you don't have to spend a rogues skill points on that
- Song that removes fear, really useful on early levels and when fighting creatures that use horror.
- Uses the same progression table as the rogue, so he levels up very quickly and can reach the highest level possible in BG:EE, level 10.
- Teach him the level 1 mage spell Friends and he'll have 21 charisma after casting it, so he can be the person you use to talk for better quest rewards and shopping.
He has some really nice things going for him, you just have to think of him as an utility tool instead of a scalpel.