I'd question the viability of a solo LoB challenge without summons! It might still be doable, but it could be pretty ugly, at least in a no-reload context.
One of the reasons I don't like challenge runs is that they so often devolve into a metagame of finding ways to subvert the very challenge itself - like when solo runs rely on being anything but solo through summons etc.
I imagine there could be several methods to do solo LoB without summons, but it would likely involve a lot of tedium and/or cheese. Not my cup of tea. I like actually using the full arsenal at my disposal, and I'd rather tune up the enemies or tune down my own power if it means I'm still using a lot of different things. That being said, the boundaries are, naturally, very fluid. I also have things I refuse to use, and things I prefer over others.
I imagine there could be several methods to do solo LoB without summons, but it would likely involve a lot of tedium and/or cheese. Not my cup of tea. I like actually using the full arsenal at my disposal, and I'd rather tune up the enemies or tune down my own power if it means I'm still using a lot of different things. That being said, the boundaries are, naturally, very fluid. I also have things I refuse to use, and things I prefer over others.
Pretty much the same for me. I'm about maximizing power within boundaries of the game.
Although recently I was thinking of modding IH into party buff of +1APR with no fatigue so that suddenly a monk in the party would be an interesting choice but who knows.
Going to finish my current run and maybe go IR/SR trilogy run later on.
Also I'm tempted into dual bard run with Jester and Skald. Something like FMT, FMC, Jester, Skald, Archer, Sorcerer. With sorc applying -4saves GM and archer -10 with called shot think jester will perma CC anything except undead or highly resistant MR enemies. One thing I never liked about this kind of setups is that they tend to perform less on the enemies that I have the most problems with anyway so like arrow to a knee of sorts. But they are fun
Although recently I was thinking of modding IH into party buff of +1APR with no fatigue
This is literally what Spell Revisions turns IH into Though it does not work on Monks still, Monks get a ton of good items from Item Revisions. They're actually pretty good damage dealers, with the only problem being that they fall over dead as soon as someone looks at them. But there may be ways around that, and Monk is very high on my list of things to test in LoB. If I ever find the time.
OMG this game is tough when you start off. Without any bonus XP, as I understand LoB used to implement, you're just at such a low level and it feels like it's for such a long time. You really have to be careful and pick your battles.
Here's my party:
1) Elf FMT (he's using daggers now, as throwing daggers now have 0 weight and they're very powerful with his 18/00 STR; long term plans are for Carsomyr through UAI. I figure that'll pair well with stoneskins and mirror images)
2) Gnome F/I (using hammers in melee and axes at range, I was extremely patient and rolled an 18/00 STR on him too; aiming for Azureedge at range in BG2 and Axe of Unyielding in melee)
3) Dwarf F/C (uses mace and slings now, will aim for FoA in BG2)
4) Elf Archer (shortbows now because they're the best in BG2)
5) Half Elf Totem Druid (slings/daggers; weapons don't matter much but these summons are helping so much. I really think I would've given up without her)
6) Half Elf Skald (I just have her hold a weapon and put a point in weapon and shield style for the added defense) I rolled a 98 for stats on her. I've never rolled so high before.
Any more advice for me? Tactics or weapon proficiencies I should be building for?
I'm going to try to get that wand of monster summoning very soon. My Skald will have a CHA of 21 shortly, so hopefully it won't hurt too much when I need to recharge that sucker.
I'm going to have to look around online on where to find more wands of monster summoning. I'm learning quite quickly that summons + skald (and good missile weapons) are a quick path to victory in this game!
EDIT: Where is the scroll case in this game? Tethtoril never offered it to me!
You get the scroll case for completing Firebead's quest in Beregost. More wands of monster summoning are available as soon as you get access to Sorcerous Sundries - you can simply buy them there.
Your party looks very strong, so I think you should be fine once you get a couple of levels under your belt. In order to do that, using level 3 spirit wolves or the protection from petrification spells to kill the basilisks is very helpful, if you haven't done so already. The sirens can also be taken down with spirit lions, who are immune to charm, but there are often nasty hobgoblin elites nearby. Once you have level 5 spirit animals, going for the ankhegs is also a very decent choice. Keep in mind that all of those opponents will eventually kill your spirit animals, so you will have to back them up with quick damage and decent control.
Generally, I would avoid most random monster fights right now - until you get your totemic druid to level 6. Once you have two spirit animals at your disposal, you should be able to clear any map in BG1 with 1-3 rests.
Make sure you spoke to him in Beregost and with the main character (or Imoen, but you don't have Imoen). Speaking to him with another character doesn't give you this quest.
Make sure you spoke to him in Beregost and with the main character (or Imoen, but you don't have Imoen). Speaking to him with another character doesn't give you this quest.
Make sure you spoke to him in Beregost and with the main character (or Imoen, but you don't have Imoen). Speaking to him with another character doesn't give you this quest.
From my current experience, it's very useful to have the ability to use the various infinite ammo ranged weapons in BG2 - like Firetooth (both the throwing dagger and the crossbow of the same name), Gesen's/Tansheron's, the Crimson Dart etc. On the other hand, for those characters tanky enough to go into melee range, I guess going for Foebane + a speed weapon (or a shield, depending on the situation) is still a very strong choice. The Answerer might also be extremely useful as a mainhand weapon.
I also plan on using the Ravager +6 combined with some GWWs, as its the only vorpal weapon that doesn't allow for the opponent to roll a saving throw in the EE. Not sure if it's worth it, but I'll give it a shot.
For the entirety of BG1 and SoD, ranged weapons are generally king, so getting at least to specialization for one type of ranged weapon is highly recommended for any fighter-type. These will still be useful later on - I've just finished SoA with my current party, and I barely had to use any melee weapons at all, as I could mostly just stand behind a wall of summons and throw/shoot things at my foes.
What are the best weapons to build towards? I’m still early in BGI (I’m in the bandit camp), so I have plenty of time to modify everybody in my party.
TIA
That depends on a number of factors. One is, of course, the classes in question, and how many proficiency points they have. If it's a class limited to ** in a weapon, you can easily afford to spread around the points according to what point you are at in the saga. If it's a class with access to Grand Mastery, things get more complicated. For some, it's easy - Archer, for example, knows they will max out two ranged weapons by mid-SoA. They can simply choose one of them to be weighted towards BG1 (Crossbows, I think? IIRC Army Scythe is the best ranged weapon in BG1 but I never play BG1 so I may be wrong) and then get the other one for BG2 later (usually Short Bows, though that can change with mods; e.g. Longbows are best with IR). With melee weapons, however, there is a lot more variety and, consequently, it can be more difficult to choose the best ones for your setup.
In general, it pays to plan ahead. Know what will be available when, and what you're building towards. Then decide where you want to maximize your power - it isn't necessarily optimal to weight everything towards ToB endgame, as that may actually (and somewhat paradoxically) be less difficult than certain other parts of the game (early/mid SoA for example can be brutal, depending on mod settings).
For me personally, I've made some handy reference charts for myself, including a weapon ranking that shows me all the relevant weapons sorted by average damage. That way, I can fairly quickly decide for each new party what weapons I'd like to use, and plan around that accordingly. Of course, weapon availability and personal preference of party power resp. part of the game aren't easily spreadsheeted so I play that by ear alongside the list.
What are the best weapons to build towards? I’m still early in BGI (I’m in the bandit camp), so I have plenty of time to modify everybody in my party.
TIA
That depends on a number of factors. One is, of course, the classes in question, and how many proficiency points they have. If it's a class limited to ** in a weapon, you can easily afford to spread around the points according to what point you are at in the saga. If it's a class with access to Grand Mastery, things get more complicated. For some, it's easy - Archer, for example, knows they will max out two ranged weapons by mid-SoA. They can simply choose one of them to be weighted towards BG1 (Crossbows, I think? IIRC Army Scythe is the best ranged weapon in BG1 but I never play BG1 so I may be wrong) and then get the other one for BG2 later (usually Short Bows, though that can change with mods; e.g. Longbows are best with IR). With melee weapons, however, there is a lot more variety and, consequently, it can be more difficult to choose the best ones for your setup.
In general, it pays to plan ahead. Know what will be available when, and what you're building towards. Then decide where you want to maximize your power - it isn't necessarily optimal to weight everything towards ToB endgame, as that may actually (and somewhat paradoxically) be less difficult than certain other parts of the game (early/mid SoA for example can be brutal, depending on mod settings).
For me personally, I've made some handy reference charts for myself, including a weapon ranking that shows me all the relevant weapons sorted by average damage. That way, I can fairly quickly decide for each new party what weapons I'd like to use, and plan around that accordingly. Of course, weapon availability and personal preference of party power resp. part of the game aren't easily spreadsheeted so I play that by ear alongside the list.
Care to share that spreadsheet? Krunchyfrogg@gmail.com.
FMT is currently level 2 in fighter. ** in dagger ** in greatsword. Eventually I want to wield Carsomyr. I’m debating between the next slots going to staff vs. going to two handed style. I know Spiders Bane is nice in this game but there are things that need blunt weapons to damage. I think using the dagger of venom with a shield is a better option than spiders Bane most of the time anyway.
F/Ill is currently level 3 in fighter. ** in hammer ** in axe * in katana. I figure I’ll build him towards celestial fury before using axe of unyielding. I should probably be building towards twf though.
F/C is currently a level 3 fighter. ** in mace ** in sling * in flail. Building towards flail of ages.
Archer is level 3. *** in short bow (longbow might’ve been better in BGI but I know short bows rock BGII and I plan on using one right away) * staff * two handed style. Next ** will go to shortbow and it won’t matter much after that.
Totem druid is level 4. * in dagger, sling and club. I suppose I’ll choose sword and shield style soon so I’ll have slightly better defense.
IDK what my skald is proficient in. It really doesn’t matter. She’s gonna sing no matter what.
Attached to this post. But keep in mind it's very rudimentary and intended for personal use only, so don't expect too many explanations Also, it's specific to my mod setup, especially Item Revisions/Spell Revisions. Without those mods, things look VERY different.
Also math probably has mistakes somewhere. I suck at math.
A question: Does anyone here know if there's a 100% secure way to get through the spirit warrior maze in Watcher's Keep level 5 on LoB difficulty? I found some information online, but I would prefer some first-hand experience regarding the current patch.
No method that I am aware of, other than the optimal path you would always take. RNG is involved either way, it's just that in LoB it's a lot more punishing if things go wrong.
Unless they've fixed it by now, I haven't had time to play in forever.
NM mode I've beaten it exactly 6 times in a row with no failure.
north - east - north(get scroll) - east - north(use scroll) - west - archway
I count the number of hits the mummy does to the warrior (don't ask me why) and I've seen everything from 19 hits to 22. Its random. I don't know what happens if your luck is worse than this, perhaps 23 hits means death. Either way save before hand and take this path. With my sample size of 6 I have 100% success. Your results may vary. Note: I use only a few tweakpack conveniences but no mods otherwise.
By now, I've created a test run to see if @Tredvolt 's method works, and so far, it hasn't failed yet - I've even gone further, taking additional damage on purpose (by fighting the goblin to the east, for example), and I still had success - so I'm propably going to try it for my current no-reload run, provided I make it to this point. A couple more tests, just to be sure, are propably in order first.
I might be starting new run tonight. Finding some time to play is hard recently between private life, work and blogging.
This time I'll go for ultimate trilogy party. One thing I don't like is that summons are pretty much a must if smooth run is the target as they nicely smoothen out the difficulty curve. While I'm able to defeat most fights with no summons, heck most of my playthroughs was without any summons used, this time I want to see how smooth can it get.
FMT (angurvadal, blackrazor, daystar, answerer, carsomyr) FMC (crom, foa, doe, shields as swap) Skald Sorcerer (I can't make myself not use one) Archer (short bows, xbows) Totemic Druid -> Fighter (slings, scmitars; or spears maybe?)
I'm still considering what level to dual druid at. Problem with dualing to fighter is that druid levels very quickly so dualing at 11 (optimal for 3 summons per day) means I will be left out with weak warrior for most of SOD and half of ch2 in bg2. But it's nice since totemic druid is very strong for most of BG series and warrior is nice for 17GWW with sling lategame. Still thinking about F/C dwarf though for strong ranger damage dealer but D->F dual allows for iron skins and insect plaque and spirit animals are just too strong.
Not sure yet about the last member (druid/fighter).
Recently I also became very fond of FMC since thanks to MC sequencer with bless/chant allows for insane party boost mid fight. This also pairs nicely with summons from totemic druid.
Lastly, I feel like dropping sorcerer for some sort of mage dual/multi would be advategous to me but somehow I can't make myself do it. I just like enormous spellbook early in bg. Being able to cast slow/greater malison/spell thrusts/glitter dust early on boosts entire party by such wide margin that delaying this due to multi might just not be worth it. Also duals tend to use those spell slots defensively because they go in melee. Who would want ranged mage dual, blehhh!
Maybe I should go FMC or MC ranged so I can shot slings and still get mage spells and sequencers but then what is the point of MC when most of cleric buffs are buffing melee.
Too many chocies in this game.
Maybe I will just go noreload if I'm using summons. Will see.
Interesting fact... something is bricked with LOB when custom party member is removed to let cernd join. After she rejoins her levels are maxed out.
LoB does do weird things to characters not in your party, since it just globally buffs every NPC. Usually this is easily fixed if you reload once after the character (re)joins, the LoB buff will disappear and the intended stats should be restored. HOWEVER it sometimes still bugs out and gives you extra uses of level-based abilities (like kit abilities), you'll have to change those manually.
Hi @Lord_Tansheron, If you or anyone have some unmodded saves that can reproduce the LoB status issue, could you send them to the bug reporting thread as they might be needed to investigate the issue (stated below).
Comments
I imagine there could be several methods to do solo LoB without summons, but it would likely involve a lot of tedium and/or cheese. Not my cup of tea. I like actually using the full arsenal at my disposal, and I'd rather tune up the enemies or tune down my own power if it means I'm still using a lot of different things. That being said, the boundaries are, naturally, very fluid. I also have things I refuse to use, and things I prefer over others.
None of us play on this setting without a level of metagaming involved.
Although recently I was thinking of modding IH into party buff of +1APR with no fatigue so that suddenly a monk in the party would be an interesting choice but who knows.
Going to finish my current run and maybe go IR/SR trilogy run later on.
Also I'm tempted into dual bard run with Jester and Skald. Something like FMT, FMC, Jester, Skald, Archer, Sorcerer. With sorc applying -4saves GM and archer -10 with called shot think jester will perma CC anything except undead or highly resistant MR enemies. One thing I never liked about this kind of setups is that they tend to perform less on the enemies that I have the most problems with anyway so like arrow to a knee of sorts. But they are fun
Here's my party:
1) Elf FMT (he's using daggers now, as throwing daggers now have 0 weight and they're very powerful with his 18/00 STR; long term plans are for Carsomyr through UAI. I figure that'll pair well with stoneskins and mirror images)
2) Gnome F/I (using hammers in melee and axes at range, I was extremely patient and rolled an 18/00 STR on him too; aiming for Azureedge at range in BG2 and Axe of Unyielding in melee)
3) Dwarf F/C (uses mace and slings now, will aim for FoA in BG2)
4) Elf Archer (shortbows now because they're the best in BG2)
5) Half Elf Totem Druid (slings/daggers; weapons don't matter much but these summons are helping so much. I really think I would've given up without her)
6) Half Elf Skald (I just have her hold a weapon and put a point in weapon and shield style for the added defense) I rolled a 98 for stats on her. I've never rolled so high before.
Any more advice for me? Tactics or weapon proficiencies I should be building for?
I'm going to try to get that wand of monster summoning very soon. My Skald will have a CHA of 21 shortly, so hopefully it won't hurt too much when I need to recharge that sucker.
I'm going to have to look around online on where to find more wands of monster summoning. I'm learning quite quickly that summons + skald (and good missile weapons) are a quick path to victory in this game!
EDIT: Where is the scroll case in this game? Tethtoril never offered it to me!
Your party looks very strong, so I think you should be fine once you get a couple of levels under your belt. In order to do that, using level 3 spirit wolves or the protection from petrification spells to kill the basilisks is very helpful, if you haven't done so already. The sirens can also be taken down with spirit lions, who are immune to charm, but there are often nasty hobgoblin elites nearby. Once you have level 5 spirit animals, going for the ankhegs is also a very decent choice. Keep in mind that all of those opponents will eventually kill your spirit animals, so you will have to back them up with quick damage and decent control.
Generally, I would avoid most random monster fights right now - until you get your totemic druid to level 6. Once you have two spirit animals at your disposal, you should be able to clear any map in BG1 with 1-3 rests.
TIA
I also plan on using the Ravager +6 combined with some GWWs, as its the only vorpal weapon that doesn't allow for the opponent to roll a saving throw in the EE. Not sure if it's worth it, but I'll give it a shot.
For the entirety of BG1 and SoD, ranged weapons are generally king, so getting at least to specialization for one type of ranged weapon is highly recommended for any fighter-type. These will still be useful later on - I've just finished SoA with my current party, and I barely had to use any melee weapons at all, as I could mostly just stand behind a wall of summons and throw/shoot things at my foes.
In general, it pays to plan ahead. Know what will be available when, and what you're building towards. Then decide where you want to maximize your power - it isn't necessarily optimal to weight everything towards ToB endgame, as that may actually (and somewhat paradoxically) be less difficult than certain other parts of the game (early/mid SoA for example can be brutal, depending on mod settings).
For me personally, I've made some handy reference charts for myself, including a weapon ranking that shows me all the relevant weapons sorted by average damage. That way, I can fairly quickly decide for each new party what weapons I'd like to use, and plan around that accordingly. Of course, weapon availability and personal preference of party power resp. part of the game aren't easily spreadsheeted so I play that by ear alongside the list.
FMT is currently level 2 in fighter. ** in dagger ** in greatsword. Eventually I want to wield Carsomyr. I’m debating between the next slots going to staff vs. going to two handed style. I know Spiders Bane is nice in this game but there are things that need blunt weapons to damage. I think using the dagger of venom with a shield is a better option than spiders Bane most of the time anyway.
F/Ill is currently level 3 in fighter. ** in hammer ** in axe * in katana. I figure I’ll build him towards celestial fury before using axe of unyielding. I should probably be building towards twf though.
F/C is currently a level 3 fighter. ** in mace ** in sling * in flail. Building towards flail of ages.
Archer is level 3. *** in short bow (longbow might’ve been better in BGI but I know short bows rock BGII and I plan on using one right away) * staff * two handed style. Next ** will go to shortbow and it won’t matter much after that.
Totem druid is level 4. * in dagger, sling and club. I suppose I’ll choose sword and shield style soon so I’ll have slightly better defense.
IDK what my skald is proficient in. It really doesn’t matter. She’s gonna sing no matter what.
Also math probably has mistakes somewhere. I suck at math.
Again, I’m playing on a stock (non jail broken) up to date iPhone.
I just finished Baldur’s Gate I. I imported all the characters into Baldur’s Gate II.
I start a new game, I import all my characters into the new game, and when I hit “play” the game crashes.
I’ve done this three times, including rebooting the phone and it keeps on happening.
Any ideas?
Let’s see what happens.
Unless they've fixed it by now, I haven't had time to play in forever.
By now, I've created a test run to see if @Tredvolt 's method works, and so far, it hasn't failed yet - I've even gone further, taking additional damage on purpose (by fighting the goblin to the east, for example), and I still had success - so I'm propably going to try it for my current no-reload run, provided I make it to this point. A couple more tests, just to be sure, are propably in order first.
This time I'll go for ultimate trilogy party. One thing I don't like is that summons are pretty much a must if smooth run is the target as they nicely smoothen out the difficulty curve. While I'm able to defeat most fights with no summons, heck most of my playthroughs was without any summons used, this time I want to see how smooth can it get.
FMT (angurvadal, blackrazor, daystar, answerer, carsomyr)
FMC (crom, foa, doe, shields as swap)
Skald
Sorcerer (I can't make myself not use one)
Archer (short bows, xbows)
Totemic Druid -> Fighter (slings, scmitars; or spears maybe?)
I'm still considering what level to dual druid at. Problem with dualing to fighter is that druid levels very quickly so dualing at 11 (optimal for 3 summons per day) means I will be left out with weak warrior for most of SOD and half of ch2 in bg2. But it's nice since totemic druid is very strong for most of BG series and warrior is nice for 17GWW with sling lategame. Still thinking about F/C dwarf though for strong ranger damage dealer but D->F dual allows for iron skins and insect plaque and spirit animals are just too strong.
Not sure yet about the last member (druid/fighter).
Recently I also became very fond of FMC since thanks to MC sequencer with bless/chant allows for insane party boost mid fight. This also pairs nicely with summons from totemic druid.
Lastly, I feel like dropping sorcerer for some sort of mage dual/multi would be advategous to me but somehow I can't make myself do it. I just like enormous spellbook early in bg. Being able to cast slow/greater malison/spell thrusts/glitter dust early on boosts entire party by such wide margin that delaying this due to multi might just not be worth it. Also duals tend to use those spell slots defensively because they go in melee. Who would want ranged mage dual, blehhh!
Maybe I should go FMC or MC ranged so I can shot slings and still get mage spells and sequencers but then what is the point of MC when most of cleric buffs are buffing melee.
Too many chocies in this game.
Maybe I will just go noreload if I'm using summons. Will see.
If you or anyone have some unmodded saves that can reproduce the LoB status issue, could you send them to the bug reporting thread as they might be needed to investigate the issue (stated below).