Party Comps (Continuity through BGII:EE)

Caikeigh

Hi all, just returned to this lovely saga (after playing through years ago with the original release of BG1) - never played BGII, however, and am just getting acquainted with the changes made in EE.

Can anyone help me pick the best/most balanced parties for these Player Characters? I'd like the most continuity possible (that is, most or all NPCs being in both games with decent banter - and if not, replacement NPCs for BG2 are great too!)

• CHARNAME 1:
  Halfling, Fighter/Thief, female, Chaotic Good
  Generic goody playthrough, with all the goody canon characters (Jaheira etc). Don't really need help with this one but open to suggestion. No romance because apparently Rasaad doesn't like shorties
  
  
• CHARNAME 2:
  Elf, Mage/Thief, male, Chaotic Neutral
  Will probably romance Neera, since for some reason she's not bisexual? So Neera + whoever party, no more mages.
  
  
• CHARNAME 3:
  Half-Elf, Blade or Jester, either gender, Neutral Evil
  for Dorn and Viconia and all the other awesome evil NPCs Who's your best baddies for a Bard?
  
  

Gallowglass

Hmm, well, okay ... for maximising continuity, you need a list of which NPCs continue between games. And since you don't specify to the contrary, I'll assume that you'll play SoD between BG1ee and Bg2ee.

Joinable in all three games: Minsc, Rasaad, Jaheira, Neera, Dorn, Edwin, Viconia.

Joinable in BG1ee and SoD* but not BG2ee: Dynaheir, Khalid, Safana, Baeloth.

Joinable in BG1ee and BG2ee but not SoD*: Imoen.

Joinable in SoD* and BG2ee but not BG1ee: none**.

Joinable in only one of the three games: everyone* else.

* This is ignoring the prologue of SoD (in which your whole end-BG1ee party can carry over, but those not listed above will not stay beyond the prologue).

** The devs have said that this may possibly change later, i.e. some new joinable NPCs from SoD may (just may) later be added to BG2ee, but they haven't made any promises.

Using the above as a continuity guide, and prioritising character-continuity over power-gaming perfection, my suggestions for balanced parties for each of your proposed protagonists are as follows:-

1) Minsc, Jaheira & Neera throughout. In BG1ee+SoD, add Dynaheir & Khalid; in BG2ee, add Anomen & Nalia. Romance Anomen. Note - this is a little light on divine casting in BG1ee (with Jaheira as sole healer/buffer/etc.), but it's do-able, and maximises character-continuity at the expense of perfect balance; however, it's perfectly balanced for BG2ee.

2) Rasaad, Jaheira & Neera throughout. In BG1ee, add Khalid & Branwen; in SoD add Khalid & Glint; in BG2ee add Keldorn & Anomen. Romance Neera.

3) Dorn, Edwin & Viconia throughout. In BG1ee, add Safana & Kagain; in SoD, add Safana & M'Khiin; in BG2ee, add Korgan & Hexxat. Romance Viconia (if male) or Dorn.

Of course, there are various other party combinations which could also be justified. I don't claim that my way is the only way!

Caikeigh

Thank you for the clear and comprehensive list of who carries over! Was having trouble finding one as neatly laid out as yours.

Helpful suggestions too, a starting point at the very least. Only disappointment is Minsc. Loved him originally, but the character gets a little old the next time around. I may play around with the tanky fighters for that party.

On an unrelated note, I really enjoy your name - Gallowglass. Rolls off the tongue.

Gallenger

I don't know how many times you've run through BG1, but there are *plenty* of characters worth taking there that you can't find heads or tails of in BG2, and it would simply be tragic if you didn't ever adventure with them because of bg2. Since Gallowglass pointed out the specifics I'll run through my suggestions which may or may not have continuity's sake at heart lol.

That said. ..


Charname 1: For bg1 you want the canon party of Imoen/Jaheira/Khalid/Minsc/Dynaheir. That's fine. SoD the party will be virtually the same with the addition of Glint and subtraction of Imoen. In BG2, I would strongly encourage you to take Mazzy because she's a halfling too and halflings have to stick together. The party would be something like: Jaheira, Minsc, Mazzy, eventually Imoen (Nalia/Yoshimo ---) Imoen) Aerie. You won't get any romance options, but this party should be pretty fun. Mainly because you've got 2 divine casters, 2 arcane casters, and 3 nice meaty tank options for you to stab around. Minsc and Aerie have great banters, and Mazzy is pretty funny in her own right. She's often overlooked because you can get Minsc/Anomen/Keldorn faster than her But she's still a great companion.

Charname 2. For the first game, and since you're playing CN, screw continuity. CN people don't get along well with others for that long! lol. The party in BG1 should be something like: You, Neera, Branwen ---) FALDORN (FALLLLLDOOORRRNNN), Kaigan (to be replaced in BG2 by Korgan), Safana (if you intend to do anything other than lock/traps) if not, Garrick would be a neat option. If you take Garrick instead of Safana, your last slot could be filled by almost anybody (keep Branwen as a tank, or get Coran I think he'd be a good fit in the group) None, but Neera will appear in BG2 and party members. SoD will be pretty straightforward with you taking Neera and M'Kli the goblin + 3 others (jaheira + Khalid + Corwin wouldn't be bad) In BG2, you'll have more slim pickins'. Yourself, Neera, Korgan, JAN (or Haer'Dalis if your rogue skills are spent lock/trap), + 2 others. I would suggest trying out CERND - he's neutral, can turn into a kinda silly werewolf form, but cast druid spells whilst wearing no armor what could go wrong. But if you feel bad leaving Imoen out of the party, you could take Imoen + one of either Dorn/Minsc/Anomen (failure)/Valygar


Charname 3: BG1: You, Viconia, Edwin, Dorn, Shar-teel (dual her to rogue at level 3 IE when you find her), then EITHER Kagain or Bealoth (or Kagain ---) Baeloth). I would assume Baeloth if continuity is important to you (it seems to be?) since he appears in SoD. SoD: Viconia, Edwin, Dorn, Baeloth + 2 others. I would suggest Jaheira and Minsc/Khalid. BG2: You, Viconia, Edwin, Dorn + 2 others. I would suggest Hexxat (either ---) Imoen or forever Hexxat) and Korgan.


Sirs/madams not appearing in these playthroughs (SHAME!!) Tiax, Xan + Ajantis, Xzar + Monteron, Skie and Eldoth, Rasaad, Wilson , Keldorn, Vohlin, Haer Dalis.

Gallowglass

Oh yes, I absolutely endorse @Gallenger's general point: it's definitely well worth exploring all of the available companions over multiple re-plays. However, that obviously ignores the criterion of character-continuity requested in the original post, so there are numerous excellent companions whom I didn't bother to include in my suggestions. It takes a lot of re-plays to give every possible companion a fair go!

In construction of my own parties, I do take some account of character-continuity, just as @Caikeigh wishes to do, because it often suits my role-playing to assume that my protagonist likes to continue working with old friends, when they're available and fit the current requirement. Tip for considering character-continuity when it matters to your run: first work out your team for BG2ee, then work backwards to BG1ee+SoD to decide who might already have been with you from before.

@Gallenger - one quibble with your suggestions: in the third group, you're trying to put Dorn and Shar-Teel together for BG1ee. That's generally a bad move, since those two will eventually fall out and fight (in current versions - this wasn't true when EE first came out, the incompatibility was added in a patch).

OrlonKronsteen

@Gallowglass I thought the incompatibility between Dorn and Shar-Teel only occurs during certain circumstances

if another female character in the party is killed?

Caikeigh

@Gallenger Love your lists as well, thank you! Definitely agree with your point on CN Alignment - hadn't really thought about it that way, but from a RP perspective, it 100% fits that character. (The first two CHARNAMEs are both tweaked imports from PnP play, so they're more RP-oriented than the 3rd.)

My only trouble with working backward as @Gallowglass suggests is that I have never played BG2 at all (no major spoilers please : ) so it's hard to gauge what my party should be. I've heard a few characters from banter videos (Haer'Dalis, Aerie, and Korgan) but only really liked H'D out of those three, and I'm sure there's way more BG2ee has to offer!

Also, TOTALLY forgot about Tiax! That guy is hilarious! Definitely need to rethink things... As you suggest, I'll stick to the core "continuity" group for CHARNAME #1, and then mix it up for the other two.
How do these parties look, in your opinions?

CHARNAME #2 (Mage/Thief multi, handles traps/locks, won't bother with backstab or traps until those are maxed)
Neera (Wild Mage with darts/sling (whichever) and her staff)
Branwen/Faldorn (for healer role + offtank damage)
Kagain (for true tank - but I don't like what I've seen of Korgan, so need a replacement for BG2...)
? Rasaad ?? (dead weight/some damage, mostly I just like the character)
? Garrick ?? (also feels unnecessary, but convenient for lore?)
I also really like Alora, but she's unnecessary when #2 covers most thief skills... unless I alter #2's points in another program?

CHARNAME #3 (Evil bard kit, wield scimitar etc + crossbow most likely)
Dorn (tank/dd role, new character to explore, possible romance)
Montaron (cover the other thief jobs + offtank damage)
Xzar (temporary mage) -> Baeloth (ditto Dorn, just mage instead)
Branwen -> Faldorn -> Viconia (healer role, possible Vic romance if male)
+ ??

#3 feels a little tank heavy? Also later, would probably replace Monty with Tiax? (for extra healing/thief skillz and nostalgic amusement, plus that Ghast is nice)

Gallenger

I've successfully run through the game with Dorn and Shar'teel together. They have fought before, but not typically to the death.

Yeah Alora wouldn't be bad if you chose to focus instead on the stabby-stabby action. If not, I'd just stick any old fighter in there, though I think Coran would best fit the theme of the group since he's kind of flippant lol. I wouldn't be too scared of Korgan just yet, not many players give him a chance, but he's actually pretty fun once you spend some time with him. He's grumpy in a funny way.

For #3 Edwin is basically your go to for continuity because he's in all the games Unless you have a particular dislike of him. It'll still give you a goodly portion of the game with Xzar and Monteron though, and then you can grab Shar-teel and dual her once you get Edwin - that's how I'd handle it at least. You can reasonably grab Viconia *very* early as well so you wouldn't have to worry about Branwen unless you want to approach it that way. If you're scared that Dorn + Shar'teel may duel to the death, you can always just get Tiax once she's dead lol. But if you'd prefer to run through with Xzar and Monteron you can have lots of fun with them. You also don't necessarily need Monty to be a front-liner either, since he's a halfling with 2 pips in slings he can be a very effective archer - particularly if you boost his STR score because slings give STR bonus damage.

Evil parties do have a lot of front-liner options though, they also get the 2 best arcane casters, and debatably the best cleric ("best" is hard to define).

Gallowglass

For your proposed team for your CHARNAME #2 in BG1ee, I wouldn't include both Rasaad and Garrick. One or the other, but then I'd recommend filling the other slot by taking both Branwen and Faldorn. You're quite right to ignore all other Thief skills until Open Locks and Find Traps are fully functional, any other Thief skill is an afterthought to add later (unless you have more than one Thief in the same party).

No, your proposed team for your CHARNAME #3 isn't too tanky - tankiness works well in BG1ee. You can't replace Montaron unless you're also prepared to lose Xzar (which you won't be wanting to do), because those two are compulsorily paired (unless one gets killed, etc.) Instead, it'd make sense to take Tiax for your final slot (focussing on "other" Thief skills, while Montaron will cover locks and traps). However, this team appears to have abandoned your earlier criterion of character-continuity, since Dorn is the only one among them who can continue through SoD/BG2ee.

Leokosta

Just dropped by to say this community is awesome. The willigness to help people is awesomw, unlike others sites/forums. Sorry for any mispels ( I am kind drunk ). Cheers from Brasil.

PentiumD

My Evil party consist of these companions. Hope this help in your evil choices

PC - Swashbucker - Dwarf Female - Utility / Thief
Dorn - DPS / Utility
Garrick - Main Arcane Power
Kagain - DPS / Tank
Viconia - Main Healer
Feldorn - Support / Utility / Secondary Heals