Justification fot not taking Imoen
velehal
Member Posts: 299
Does anybody know any good role-playing justification for not taking Imoen after rescuing her from Spellhold if charname is good aligment and had her in the party in BG1?
While I can pretend that charname wants to protect her sister there are two problems with this justification:
a) Imoen does not want to be protected, she wants to be part of the party
b) I do not want to protect her, I really like her but I am scared of her. I know that she is great liability in Ascension
While I can pretend that charname wants to protect her sister there are two problems with this justification:
a) Imoen does not want to be protected, she wants to be part of the party
b) I do not want to protect her, I really like her but I am scared of her. I know that she is great liability in Ascension
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Comments
b) I've never tried Ascension, so I don't really have an answer for this, but I guess one question to think about in general is whether what happens to her in Ascension happens later in the game, is therefore meta knowledge, and, from a RP standpoint, whether you think it's fair for your character to make choices based on this knowledge? Everyone has a different take on how strict their RP should be.
make sense if your reason for going to Spellhold was to find her and you view her as your sister. I would love the game to allow a 7th npc from this point - likewise to let Yeslick at least leave Cloakwood Mines with you would be nice too
Edit: As FrozenCells says it’s basically “good luck getting home Nalia” 90% of the time, which feels bad but less so and explicable
This is a good point. I think we can clarify the difference between abandoning Imoen - or any character, for that matter - in Spellhold, and removing them from your party once you crawl out of the underdark. I kind of figured the latter was meant in this thread, but I could have been wrong. Heck, IIRC, even Edwin, who's pure scum, complains if you try to dump Imoen in Spellhold.
My solution has always been to go to Spellhold with a party of five or less, so there's always room to take Imoen. I'll still often remove her - either for party balance or RP reasons - once I get back. But even on a blackguard run I'll get her out of there.
This is what I often do because the game has limitations without providing an in-game reason. I think these sorts of head-cannon justifications can be really fun and add to the overall narrative of the story. (Example: Jaheira and Khalid leave my party after Nashkel because they are going to do some Harper business elsewhere and investigate other sources to get to the bottom of the Iron Crisis, conveniently leaving me with space for Kivan and Branwen. It's a sign of their growing faith in the PC and gives the PC a taste of independence, etc.)
Before their soul is taken, the last the PC sees of Imoen is a broken husk in Spellhold, and before that, someone who was clearly deeply affected by torture. I think a good-aligned PC could justify her not actively fighting with the group because they want to protect her, so she just follows along. (You'd have to mentally block out the dialogue where you are reunited and you have to tell her she can't join - mod idea??)
Chapter 1 = utterly invincible
Chapter 2 = invisible
Chapter 3 = haunting your dreams
Chapter 4 = more dream haunting, no-one else can escape spellhold on their own, she just waltzes right out
Chapter 5 = reveals her true form as a litch-drow
Chapter 6 = Bhodi often abducts others close to you, but never imoen because she is already undead
Chapter 7 = can’t really think of anything for chapter 7 at the moment
but is also true that, as @jsaving told, if you know that you are going to rescue her, knowing that a more then 6 people party for some unexplained and mysterious reason is not possible and also knowing how difficult is to get to spellhood, so probably also to return to the main land, to leave for the island with a 6 people party is a very dumb choice.
also if the 6th is yoshimo as you have almost no clue of what will happen.
with metaknowledge you know both what will happen if yoshimo is in the party and that imoen, but only imoen, will find her way to the main land, but if we are talking of RP reasons is dumb to leave for the island with a 6 people party, any composition, and to leave imoen it the condition you find her in the maze is always an evil choice.
then, returned to the main land imo there are so many possible RP reasons to don't continue to have her in the party, or at least to have her only in the very moment when you can restore her soul.
when i was younger i used to climb free solo, no rope used, and also my sister was climbing, but i would never brought her with me in my free solo runs as them are very risky, a single error or a single piece of rock that breaks means 100% chance to die. if she wanted to adventure in rock climbing i preferred her safe doing it with other people that actually uses the rope. to go trough SoA and ToB, face one of the most powerful mages of faerun, the five, the dragons and the rest is at least as risky, if you care for your little sister don't take her with you, does not matter how she want to come with you (mine did not want it much by the way...
and this is only one of the many possible good RP reasons to tell imoen, after you have brought her with you safe to the main land: "heya lil sister, better you stay home, there is no place for you in my party. but as i have found a way to restore your soul i will let you know it, don't worry about it".
and this is what i usually do when for some reason i prefer to don't have imoen in the party.
EDIT: as i care both of RP and PG issues at the same time, i don't feel that are opposite things, when i run a 6 people party and don't want imoen with me i swap one of my toons for yoshimo, and i should not as i am using meta knowledge doing it, then i take imoen with me, but in the way that steals the less possible xp from my party members. right after entering a new area like the city of the fishes or the underdark i park imoen in a safe place and play in 5 people all the area, then i rescue her right before leaving her.
also as you can return to the underdark i try to do the minimum amount of battles while in 5 people to don't loose too much xp with the 6th, then, as adalon shows me the way to the surface i return with the 6th member to do all what has been undone. as the beholder area is the one where you can get what you need to progress the main quest with a single battle usually is my choice, that, killing the demon to get the stone to meet adalon and what happens in the drow city are the only things that you have to complete in 5, all the rest, the 3 big dungeons with, the imprisoned mage, freeing the people prisoner in the giant gem and even the random battles you find as you walk in the main underdark area can be delayed with some invisibility spells or potions.
this way to have imoen in the party until you reach the main land has really a minimum impact on the toon you leave at home.
So either pick evil alignment or at least neutral and do what you want for max power, or if you truly want to roleplay good character, then go with small party and carry Imoen through Underdark until she is restored and allow her to leech 1M+ XP and free her from the party afterwards.
Who's Imogen, is that Imoen's stunt double?