BG2:EE enhanced the way i would like.

raywind

First of all BG1 had more npc characters thus more replay value BG2 was in a way better game with less options for party and here is my personal opinion how to fix this problem. Constructive criticism is welcome trolls keep out.

list of things i would like to be added.

1.When you have finished with thieves guild guests i would like to be able to recruit/hire thieves from there one of each kit and basic thief, maby like evil assassin for hire and neutral bounty hunter for hire for the plain thief and swashbuckler there should be some other reguirement to get them to join. Price would be around 100gold a day or if you are a thief your self and get the guild to your self then for free.

2.For fighters there should be option for each kit also after fighter stronghold guest is finished. Some side guest that starts from keep would be the place to obtain them like rescue mission or something else like that. This would not be open to other than fighter classes that can obtain the keep.

3.For druids when you get to lvl 15 with druid and get the leadership of the grove you could force minor druids to join your party, again not available to other classes.

4.I would like to remove keep from monks and get some monastery for them where you could gain guests. These guests would be available for every class and could gain monk member from those guests, but leadership of the monastery would be available to monks only.

5.For rangers i think there are enough of them in game allready but would be nice to add them anyways somehow.

6.Mages could tell those mages at sphere to follow him/her and join the party if needed, they would be low leveled ones at the start like 5lvl mages. Available to everyone.

7. Bard "stronghold" allready has one blade but would be nice to add more joinable bards there to be had. Perhaps a guest to find new actor for the play or something like that to obtain them.

8.Clerics and paladins are like rangers that i dont know enough about them to give a good way to add them but something guild oriented thing to gain them or so.

Hope my english is good enough to be understandable.

Ward

@raywind Your english isn't the problem, it's my lack of opinion on this matter.

MReed

Note that adding new NPCs (over and beyond the three introduced in BG1 that will carry over to BG2) has already been promised, so you'll be getting more NPCs one way or another.

While, conceptually, this makes sense and improves the value of strongholds, it has the very unfortunate effect of guaranteeing that the new NPCs you have access are of the one character type you are already certain to have in your party -- CHARNAME's class. As such, I can't see these NPCs being particularly valuable when they are available, so....

I think it makes much more sense to leave the strongholds alone (or, if the contract supports it, extending them in other ways) and add the new NPCs as stand-alone characters like the existing NPCs. This allows the player to access any / all of the new NPCs on all play-through, without regards to his/her class.

Tanthalas

I honestly hope that they'll expand on the strongholds in BG2EE.

One of things that has always irked me with the stronghold quests is that for most of them the big quest was the quest that gave you the stronghold. I think all stronghold storylines need a big quest/fight to finish them up.

balalaika86

If there is one thing I'd really want for BG2EE it is a unique stronghold for monk characters. The d'Arnise keep doesn't really fit a monk. Besides, Amn is supposed to be full of monasteries.

RedGuard

I'm a bit ambivalent on most of what's asked here, but I do like the idea of Monk's getting a separate stronghold quest line.

ryu1

interesting...perhaps we can also hire courtesans for entertainment during adventuring

LordsDarkKnight185

I detest hirelings, absolutely hated it in NWN and ddo. Full NPC's (no X gold a day BS) or nothing at all i say!

Senash

I don't really like the hiring companions in the strongholds idea... We will have new NPCs anyway (it was already promised that the 3 new ones in BG1 will be available in BG2 too for start, if I remember correctly). And hiring someone for money was never really appealing for me (I never really liked the way Korgan joined the team either, but oh well, there can always be a couple of NPCs, you can "hire").

But I do agree on the new stronghold for Monks and expanding the stronghold questlines. I would like the further quests in the DeArniss keep and the Planar Sphere for example to take you to different rooms of the building (or planar vehicle or whatever it is). Those places are so big, and have beautiful places, yet you just always go to one room, where you can talk to the quest NPCs

ajwz

Tanthalas said:

I honestly hope that they'll expand on the strongholds in BG2EE.

One of things that has always irked me with the stronghold quests is that for most of them the big quest was the quest that gave you the stronghold. I think all stronghold storylines need a big quest/fight to finish them up.

More to the point there is no point in having them beyond the sake of a relatively small amount of xp or gold, and just from a roleplaying standpoint. Most of them are too far out of the way and none have a USP which makes them ever worth visiting other than to update your stronghold questline.

Kilivitz

I'll probably get flak for this, but I wouldn't be too thrilled about a Monk stronghold. I'm pretty sure the Monk, Barbarian and Sorcerer were only included as a compromise with Wizards of the Coast, considering that by the time BG2 was released, D&D 3e was already the current iteration of the game.

Also, I don't think they'll spend their time expanding the stronghold quests, as those have a somewhat limited accessibility. I guess they'll focus on new content that's accessible to all players, regardless of class.

ARKdeEREH

@raywind Your suggestions remind me of the stronghold quests in Oblivion, like when you can get assassins to accompany you on quests after completing the Dark Brotherhood stronghold quest. I think it would be fun to have the option to do something like this. As someone pointed out this would make it so that your party was lopsided in favor of one character class, but I think it would be interesting to have the option nonetheless. I created an all paladin party once because I thought it would be fun to try something new, and it was.