The Ring of Wizardry...

Darkstar_Aurora

...will this lovely trinket still be found underneath a rock beneath an evergreen tree East of the road to the Friendly Arm Inn?
More importantly, will this ring's enchantment be the same as it was in the original game (doubles 1st level wizard spells) or that which it possessed in Baldur's Gate II (which gave bonus 5th, 6th, and 7th level spells)?

Amardarial

Sylvus_Moonbow said:

This ring was removed on a Tales of the Sword Coast update. I can't say for certain, but TotSC is bundled with BG:EE, so there's a good chance this ring will no longer be available.

Odd....my ToTS games still had it, even with all updates.

reedmilfam

So did mine. Before TuTu, even. So, I'm not sure what to expect.

CaptRory

I found it there the last time I played. And I installed all the updates. No Tutu on that oen though.

Aliteri

Sylvus_Moonbow said:

Hrm, could be because I'm playing with TuTu then that it wasn't there? I thought having TotSC removed it and now I'm learning it could be TuTu? I mean, I just read three posts that it does exist!

Sure you didn't install some tweak? I don't remember ever not having the Ring of Wizardry.

Quartz

- There are two Rings of Wizardry. One is the dumb easter egg one under the tree at the Friendly Arm Inn. The other, which is actually legitimate, is in the city of Baldur's Gate, you kill a mage called Sunin for it (http://www.mikesrpgcenter.com/bgate/maps/bg-southwest.html). If they DO remove the easter egg one, don't act like it's the end of the world, there is still a legitimate one that people seem to forget about for some awful reason.

- Your question about its behavior is an excellent question, although since there are no 6th and 7th level spells in BG1 I am presuming it will be the default behavior. The level cap may raise to allow 6th level spells (we don't know), but my point remains.

- Props to @Sylvus_Moonbow for doing their research.

CaptRory

The great thing about the Friendly Arms ring, is that it makes mages more useful at low levels. Two first level spells become four first level spells. In a big fight or over several small fights, a mage just doesn't have enough Magical Muscle. Clerics can wade in and thump the bad guys if they run out of magic (whether or not they use what magic they have to buff themselves). Mages don't really have a backup.

Quartz

CaptRory said:

The great thing about the Friendly Arms ring, is that it makes mages more useful at low levels. Two first level spells become four first level spells. In a big fight or over several small fights, a mage just doesn't have enough Magical Muscle. Clerics can wade in and thump the bad guys if they run out of magic (whether or not they use what magic they have to buff themselves). Mages don't really have a backup.

I agree and all, but it wasn't until 2011 that I discovered said Friendly Arm Inn ring. I made it without for 12 years (started playing in 1999). It's a nice convenience exploit/cheat, but you can do without.

CaptRory

You can do without a lot of things. It's not really a good argument to say you can do without it. You can do without the internet, and computers, and electricity too. Along with antibiotics and automobiles and interchangeable parts.

And it is neither an Exploit nor a Cheat. It's an Easter Egg. You're not breaking the game to get it, so it's not an exploit, and you're not hacking, editing, or using a code so it's not a cheat. It was intentionally put there by the developers for whatever reason.

The_Mage

I am not of the opinion that the Ring of Wizardry unbalances the game to such a large degree that it is considered cheating/exploitation.

That Ankheg Armor and Pearl, on the other hand.

Aliteri

Quartz said:

- There are two Rings of Wizardry. One is the dumb easter egg one under the tree at the Friendly Arm Inn.

I don't understand why call it illegitimate.

And I swear its not just a easter egg. I swear I read somewhere that people talk about a crazy gnome talking about a ring.

Gilgalahad

I'm a bit rusty but yes the ring has to do with ToTSC or it's patches. I seem to remember the 1st time i installed totsc the ring wasn't there but i can't for the life of me remember if and which patch may have removed it. As for that crazy gnome i seem to remember that was a cursed ring(feeblemind?) assuming it's the same gnome you're talking about on one of the seaside maps.

Quartz

CaptRory said:

You can do without a lot of things. It's not really a good argument to say you can do without it. You can do without the internet, and computers, and electricity too. Along with antibiotics and automobiles and interchangeable parts.

And it is neither an Exploit nor a Cheat. It's an Easter Egg. You're not breaking the game to get it, so it's not an exploit, and you're not hacking, editing, or using a code so it's not a cheat. It was intentionally put there by the developers for whatever reason.

Your first paragraph is good. But what I'm saying is it's not the end of the world so you (and no one else) needs to freak out. You honestly don't think I'll be saddened by its disappearance, if it IS removed? I sure will. I like to have two mages on frequent occasions, so that will put a huge dent in my spell-casting abilities, particularly early on. It'll make me sad but there are so many other things that are far more worthy of my worry.

Okay, call it whatever you want. I said exploit/cheat so that no one would say I was a sour puss. Turns out I can't win, I'm still a sour puss. Easter egg/exploit/cheat/whatever the hell you want to call it, does that satisfy you? I was just trying to refer to it under a different name. I wasn't trying to make a statement.

Aliteri said:

Quartz said:

- There are two Rings of Wizardry. One is the dumb easter egg one under the tree at the Friendly Arm Inn.

I don't understand why call it illegitimate.

And I swear its not just a easter egg. I swear I read somewhere that people talk about a crazy gnome talking about a ring.

That's Mac Arcand referring to the Ring of Folly, area above the Seawatcher Tower. Little known fact if you give that cursed item to him he'll give you an Oil of Fiery Burning. Pretty sweet, very easy sidequest.

The_Mage said:

I am not of the opinion that the Ring of Wizardry unbalances the game to such a large degree that it is considered cheating/exploitation.

That Ankheg Armor and Pearl, on the other hand.

I was just trying to refer to it under a different name. I wasn't trying to make a statement. Peace.

Aliteri

@Quartz

Oh, HAH! I remember that side quest!!

Its lovely when my brain starts mixing my memories like this, I've 'remembered' the peasant in Friendly Arm talking about a sad gnome who kept going on about his lost ring for years. Thanks for resolving my doubt.

Lekian

Well I hope it is there as my first playthrough will be with a Mage.

I was planning to use it and I do not consider it a cheat at all as it was originally there in Vanilla. Who knows who hid it in that tree in the first place but I consider it completely fair as Mages on low levels are fairly weak.

Quartz

I really wish I could just edit my posts to delete it all after all this nonsense. I. Did. Not. Mean. To call it actual cheating!! Chrimeny.

Dragonspear

@Quartz

Man sometimes I really feel for you.

Brude

To add to what @The_Mage and @Quartz were saying --

My problem with that first Ring of Wizardry is that it's not referenced in the game world.

From a roleplaying perspective, your characters wouldn't know about it and it's impossible to find through casual exploration (unlike, say, the diamond or the Ring of Protection from the previous two areas). So to get it and to use it may not be cheating, but it always feels like a bit of a 'fudge' to me.

Same goes to the Ankeg armor in Naskell. Part of me wishes both of these so-called 'Easter eggs' would be removed because the temptation to use the both early on is overwhelming.

Dragonspear

@Brude

But it could just be that you're RPing a character that also has a bit of explorer in them.

Some examples:
Rangers (Any, although fun for beast master would be that the local wildlife told him. This excuse could also apply to druids)
Cleric/Paladin (Less plausible but had a dream from their deity)
Assassin (always looking for new things to put in their poisons)
Bard (Whimsical by nature. They'll want to explore everything just because anything could turn into a good song)

As of right now though I can't think up things for Fighter/Barbarian/Monk/Sorcerer/Mage/Other Thieves off the top of my head

Cuan

@Brude

It is not inpossible to find through normal play. The first easter egg item I found was the ring of protection +1 on the rock on the crossroads just after you start the game. And I found this by accident when moving my cursor over the rock whilst fighting 2 wolves.

From that day onwards I use to search every rock/black hole or suspicious (in my head) looking object. I spent hours doing it. I found the wand of cold on the Nashkel mines, the wing of wizardry, ankheg plate with gem and the hidden compartment in one of the inn rooms - cant for the life of me remember what was in it - but I found those and a few others I hvent listed without any help and on my own. Just from being OCD with my mouse curser .

One I never found however until I finally gave in and looked online, was the gem in the tree on the starting zone where Gorion dies.

The_Mage

Now, of course, with the highlighting power of the TAB key, these secrets will reveal themselves quite easy.
I am of the opinion, however, that you can justify finding these items quite easily by appealing to the explorative nature of any character, without any relation to character class. Besides, since we are adventurers anyway, should not we be inquisitive about anything?

Quartz

You guys go a looooong way to justify "role-playing."

colonel_burger

It's clearly unbalanced, that's why they hid it in a tiny crack of a tree very few people were expected to find. Same goes for the Ankheg plate.

Just use it, who cares, but don't pretend its justified. I'm not judging, I use it every time I play now! Still, I never knew about the ring's hiding place until I looked it up online after getting it off that wizard's corpse, and finding there were 2 in the game. Imagine my surprise.

BG was made back when devs used to load easter eggs into games for giggles. DN3D anyone?

junk11

the ring is like the epic item u find accidentally during adventure
there is no clear rule saying u cannot find an "epic" item before level 20 or something
but ye, rpg usually wouldn't allow you to wield legendary weapons before the very end..
however, such ring doesn't really grant you lvl 7 spell instantly or giving you insane dps...
in my opinion is actually quite good to put some "not so overpower" surprises in the game.
you never know what u miss or what u will find...
of course, most ppl know that already...(through multiple playthroughs or simply walkthrough) which is the downside
u cannot make it appear in random chest drop unless u play with mod..

Sed

I read somewhere that the tab-key won't work for all "hidden" things :-D

Shin

@Brude I believe Tutu adds a reference to the ring being there, while BGT removes the ankheg plate. However, I don't see an issue with a lack of references either. Just imagine your character takes a stroll around the Friendly Arm and happens to notice something glinting in the sun, or something along those lines.

James

Sed said:

I read somewhere that the tab-key won't work for all "hidden" things :-D

It was this tweet from Trent -We decided the tab key should be akin to searching an area. It only applies when you mention it to your DM, you can't auto search -

I have no idea what that means

Quartz

Shin said:

However, I don't see an issue with a lack of references either. Just imagine your character takes a stroll around the Friendly Arm and happens to notice something glinting in the sun, or something along those lines.

colonel_burger said:

Just use it, who cares, but don't pretend its justified.

This. Can we stop. Please?

ST4TICStriker

Quartz said:

Shin said:

However, I don't see an issue with a lack of references either. Just imagine your character takes a stroll around the Friendly Arm and happens to notice something glinting in the sun, or something along those lines.

colonel_burger said:

Just use it, who cares, but don't pretend its justified.

This. Can we stop. Please?

I know right!

I am sick of people finding Easter eggs in the game and then using them!!!
It's obvious that the developers didn't want people to use them and that's why they didn't put them in the game.

People are "Exploring" (We all knew they mean hacking) these items into the game. It unbalances EVERYTHING and ruins my experience.

I demand you remove these CHEATS so that no one can every use them again, if my request is not met I will cancel my pre-order and spend the money on kittens.......to strangle

/"Not" Sarcasm

Debaser

The best Items I found in random searches were the Ring of Wizardy (Friendly Arm Inn), Ankeg Armor (Naskel), and the Ring of Fire Protection (Valley South East of Naskel), the the Fire Protection ring is honestly the most valuable because it's good for the entire game no matter what, but to be honest...those three items were always in use by someone in my party.

Eiler

It is still there. ToTSC did NOT remove it. It is possible however that some 3rd party mod did remove it.

Actually both instances of the ring are still there and I tend to grab both of them when I play through the series.

Sylvus_Moonbow said:

This ring was removed on a Tales of the Sword Coast update. I can't say for certain, but TotSC is bundled with BG:EE, so there's a good chance this ring will no longer be available.