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Zaram Maldovar's Poorly Played No-Reload Cemetery (Attempts #1-42)

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  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    Attempt #7: Kala the Inquistor
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    I have a good feeling about this one....a LAWFUL good feeling. This will be my first time seriously playing a Paladin so wish me luck.

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    I don't need a battle tutorial, Gatewarden (runs faster)

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    So Kala decided to leave Imoen behind after having to ressurect her following the fight with Tarnesh. Can't have a dead sister on your conscience.

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    A very amusing bug let me recruit Neera in the middle of this fight despite the fact that my entire party was asleep. We lost Neera and Khalid in the ensuing chaos but that's what ressurection is for. Right?

    Why do my runs always start badly?
    BelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
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    Level 4?! I should've recruited Alora in an earlier run. That's a great place to start

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    And this seemed like a pretty good party to start off with

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    Die, drow!

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    Perhaps the gods punished me for killing Viconia because not half an hour later I accidentally stumbled across Zargal and he proved that he is instead strongest there is.
    JuliusBorisovBelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
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    Perhaps this 91 that was generated as the 1st roll during character creation is a good sign that my new character might fare better than his previous incarnations.

    Attempt #8: Bumbleblade the Cavalier

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    And right off the bat his shield is bigger than he is! I can tell playing a halfling paladin is going to be great!
    AerakarJuliusBorisovArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    And....he's gone. Although I have to admit this screenshot is rather hilarious.

    Please stand by while my friends help me make Attempt #9.

    I still believe I can do this!
    JuliusBorisovBelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    Attempt #9: Raguk the Kensai
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    Arvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    It seems I accidentally took Hull's antidote with me. Poor Nessa.

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    Isn't backstabbing fun?

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    And I was asking myself why Khalid was so vulnerable, lol

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    Stuck between a rock and an annoying place

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    30 Damage? I don't even think this guy has 30 hit points.

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    A critical hit and a critical miss at the same time? I guess opposites really do attract

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    Honestly that Con mod probably saved the party right here. This is a brutal fight when you're level 1

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    Turns out even early game Kensais can be night invulnerable with Potions of Defense.

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    I guess those Gnolls really wanted Dynaheir dead

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    I had hope having the canon party would be a good omen for me, apparently I was wrong :(

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    Kensais can wear girdles? Good to know.

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    Alas another failure! Still I'm holding to that hope that one day I will find the one and hopefully it will be...
    JuliusBorisovBelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    Attempt #10: Grax'lor the Priest of Lathander
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    I'm hoping that 97 stat total will get me far!
    AerakarJuliusBorisovBelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    The major consequence of having Eldoth in the party (if using the BG1 NPC mod) is not being able to use the Friendly Arm Inn as a shop. Kinda outweighs most of the good if you ask me

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    An odd choice of early game party to say the least, but strangely effective nonetheless

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    I kept Eldoth around a lot longer than I thought I was going to. He was very useful while the party was level grinding their way through Chapter 2

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    Nimbul might not be the most threatening of BG assassins, but he certainly has the coolest opening line

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    Chunked by two crits at the same time! What a way to go! Khalid and Ajantis make a great tag team.

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    And with that last good deed, Eldoth Kron takes a bow. I actually quite enjoyed having him in my party.

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    Have I mentioned before how much I love Xan's moonblade?
    AerakarJuliusBorisovBelgarathMTHArvia
  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    "The major consequence of having Eldoth in the party (if using the BG1 NPC mod) is not being able to use the Friendly Arm Inn as a shop."
    Leave him standing on the first floor and then talk to Bentley ;)

    "Have I mentioned before how much I love Xan's moonblade?"
    Get him a bunch of throwing daggers or a sling. Xan can't melee. Don't ever equip the Moonblade unless he is stuck in melee range, or you are working some kind of fire resistance strategy. Otherwise you will be spending a lot of gold on resurrection.
    ZaramMaldovarAerakarJuliusBorisov
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
    @Very_BigSword

    "Have I mentioned before how much I love Xan's moonblade?"
    Get him a bunch of throwing daggers or a sling. Xan can't melee. Don't ever equip the Moonblade unless he is stuck in melee range, or you are working some kind of fire resistance strategy. Otherwise you will be spending a lot of gold on resurrection.

    I never said I actually USE the moonblade. I just think it looks cool.

    I've been playing Baldur's Gate for many years now, one of the first lessons I learned as a child was never to put my mage on the front lines. Just admiring the Moonblade in all it's majesty. Also the on screen animation is really cool.
    Post edited by ZaramMaldovar on
    Arvia
  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    edited July 2019
    @Very_BigSword

    I never said I actually USE the moonblade. I just think it looks cool.

    I've been playing Baldur's Gate for many years now, one of the first lessons I learned as a child was never to put my mage on the front lines. Just admiring the Moonblade in all it's majesty. Also the on screen animation is really cool.

    Fair enough. I did not mean to come across as patronising. I've just seen a lot of complaints from people over the years complaining about Xan because they don't know how to use him, and they just *have* to use the moonblade because it looked so cool.

    By the way, why does your Montaron only have 7 HP? Fighter/thief Lvl 1 should have (10+6)/2 = 8 + con bonus. In my games he correctly has max HP at level 1 which is 9.
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    @Very_BigSword
    I can't remember whether it was the BG1 NPC Project or the Tweaks Anthology Mod but one of those mods had a component to turn Montaron into an Assassin instead, hence the lower amount of HP because he's a pure class now rather than multi-class.

    And now for a giant dump of screenshots because I haven't been posting lately.

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    Everyone Hates Bassilus- Vol. 2

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    One of the most depressing things for me about a no reload run is not being able to reload if Melicamp doesn't make it :(

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    These damned Flinds keep finding me!

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    This perfectly timed screenshot of a bandit getting chunked at the same time as he was put to sleep makes it look like he dissolved into dust rather than chunks. Random Bandit #63 is a Bhaalspawn confirmed?

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    I'm not much of a Dart user but the item descriptions on these darts in particular is pretty epic!

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    That is some troublesome placement (cracks knuckles) good thing it's just Hobgoblins

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    Waiting to fight Greywolf until my party was Level 3/4 was great because now I get to curbstomp him! After all the deaths he handed to me as a kid that felt pretty damn good.

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    Nice job, Xan. The Flinds must be purged!

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    Wild Dogs don't deserve an entrance that well worded.

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    Graxlor doesn't have enough intelligence points to come even reasonably close to pronouncing that name

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    Ok so it turns out Glyph of Warding is a pretty nasty spell

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    Umm...I'm a little busy, sir. Could you give me a minute?

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    (Screams in Triggered)

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    It was the point that I realized...I screwed up royally

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    In the immortal words of Aoln "Killed the Ogre, lost the party. Not really worth the trade if you ask me"

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    And the journey begins! Fingers crossed that the stuff is there when I get back

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    One party member up, four to go! Good thing Gibberlings are so easy to run from!

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    Honestly having to take down Skeletons seems a lot more epic when there's only 2 of you. I'm glad everyone's loot was still there though, Grax'lor only had so much inventory space but with Ajantis tagging along we were able to get all of it.

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    Ok THAT just isn't fair. You have no idea how terrifying it is to run into a surprise Basilisk in a no reload run. It's a really good thing that I have potions

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    The road to Nashkel is fraught with peril!

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    Return of the party!

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    And in typical fashion, Xan is the first to bite it after the party recovers! At least he didn't get chunked this time (see Attempt #4: Sovrek the Beastmaster on Page 1)

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    Ran into Mal-Kalen in Ulcaster and needless to say I GTFO'd as soon as possible. That guy is scary and I wasn't expecting his Skeleton Warrior friend on top of it all. I was so angry when it didn't grant any experience points.

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    Well that's an interesting combination and potentially deadly if I wasn't so high level at this point

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    Xan wasn't so lucky this time...and after we killed Droth he wasn't even ressurected :( Had to do it the long way. In any case, I've had a lot of fun and cleared out a couple more maps after this. I should after a few more screenshots later hopefully as I level grind myself into the pavement in preparation for Cloakwood.
    BelgarathMTHArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    11 years and I'm still finding new places

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    So I completly forgot about Xan's Sidequest and frankly these guys annihilated me.

    INTERMISSION!

    Time for the Redemption Run

    BelgarathMTHAerakarArvia
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
    Here's our lineup folks!

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    Our most successful character so far, Sovrek the Beastmaster returns as our main character! Will he save the Sword Coast? Only time will tell

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    Our 2nd character to be pulled from the ether is Ezra the Blade. Her stats have been changed slightly. She is now an Elf with 15 Strength and 19 Dex rather than a Half-Elf with 16 Strength and 18 Dex. It is my hope that our Wall of Swords in the making shall be of great use to the party!

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    Next is the wisecracking Constantine the Necromancer. His run ended brutally quickly but perhaps he will have better success as part of a full ensemble than by himself.

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    Then we have our original attempt. A shadowdancer cut down in her prime by a surprise black bear attack. Her party so far has been the only one to complete annihilate the Bandit Camp. Will see see Chapter 4 this time? We shall see.

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    Then we have Raguk, another character whose run was ended tragically short. Her alignment has been shifted to LG to fit better with this party. Let us hope she can redeem herself by aiding our newest group.

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    And finally our latest hero the mighty Grax'lor whose campaign was cut short by the enemies of Xan.

    Will our heroes redeem themselves, or will they be cast back into the void never to return?

    It is time to find out!

    AVENGERS.....Assemble!
    AerakarBelgarathMTH
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    I've decided to take a break from no reload run attempting for my own mental health. I might keep it back up in a few days but I'm going to play some BG2 without so much stress.

    Rest assured the party still stands and my character for Attempt #11 has already been pregenerated.
    Very_BigSwordAerakarBelgarathMTH
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    I have returned!
    However my Redemption Run will be eventually moved to another thread because I am eager to start my Attempt #11.

    Yes it shall be glorious.

    Attempt #11: Khira the Wizard Slayer
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    AerakarBelgarathMTH
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
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    I have moved my game to EE Trilogy, unfortunately my Wizard Slayer Rebalancing and the part of my Tweaks Anthology Mod that removes Class Restrictions both don't appear to be working.

    Nevertheless I am committed to this character so we shall see how far she gets.

    Edit: It turns out that my Wizard Slayer Mod actually is working (see Shatter Magic Ability below) but for some reason the class description still displays the original description. I have also restored my erasure of class restrictions. I am now free to play a Gnomish Barbarian/Thief if I so wish.

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    Post edited by ZaramMaldovar on
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    I didn't know Gibberlings could hit that hard without critting. Perhaps he's one of the Gibberlings 3?

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    The downside to Montaron as an Assassin is that he makes him quite squishy in early levels

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    And that's Strike 3 Montaron, the next time you die I'm not resurrecting you.

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    An amusing reaction to Montaron's death from Xzar

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    Khalid and Minsc have an interesting conversation.

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    I'm not sure which mod this is from, but I love it! I can literally sling fireballs at my enemies.
    BelgarathMTHAerakar
  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    edited July 2019
    I understand that the Xzar dialogue arises from keeping Montaron in the party while dead for a period of time. "Carrying the corpse" as such. NPC project is the only thing that keeps me re-playing BG1, so entertaining.

    Looks like assassin version of Monty should be kept off the front line. Without a helmet he is very vulnerable to any crits or one shots by a wolf or gibberling lucky damage roll. Of course, if you are deliberately putting him in front as a meat shield, it is inevitable. Lvl 1, leather armor, no helmet, no missile weapon - ugh. RIP.
    ZaramMaldovar
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    @Very_BigSword
    Montaron has always been a meat shield to me. A surprisingly resilient meat shield, but a meat shield nonetheless. If I were playing an Evil run I might keep Monty off the front lines, but since I'm not I'm going to keep Imoen.

    Also since it's EE Trilogy I'll be able to keep Imoen at higher thief levels rather than having only 7. I think Thief 11/Mage works much better.

  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    @Very_BigSword
    Also since it's EE Trilogy I'll be able to keep Imoen at higher thief levels rather than having only 7. I think Thief 11/Mage works much better.
    Interesting. Dealing with traps and locks only is fine but there are plenty more thievery tools available. Are you looking at stealth/backstabs with the extra points, traps/detect illusion, or other?
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    @Very_BigSword
    Not sure. Backstabbing is great but I've ever never really used detect Illusion. Does it have any use? I've always used True Sight instead.
  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    @Very_BigSword
    Not sure. Backstabbing is great but I've ever never really used detect Illusion. Does it have any use? I've always used True Sight instead.

    It is useful to the extent of freeing up a lvl 6 spell slot I suppose. But it takes a while to kick in, like the trap detection check. Also it gets around spell immunity:divination so SCS players love it. You can fit in attacks/actions around it between ticks but that is micro intensive. At least with true sight it ticks passively every round after casting.

    I would account for my playstyle and intended party composition before committing to it. If you plan to take Keldorn you can probably forget about it.
    Aerakar
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    @Very_BigSword
    I don't use SCS or Tactics. But in a LN party you had better believe I'm picking up Keldorn.
    Aerakar
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    Ok so one of my mods added way more to the Xvart village than I remembered

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    WAY more!

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    For the first time ever in one of my playthroughs, Dorn was killed before I even had a chance to talk to him. I was going to say no obviously, but I still would've like the chance to send him back to the Friendly Arm.

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    Apparently Thalantyr really enjoys turquoise

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    Dynaheir and Thalantyr do not like each other

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    Beat the crap out of him!

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    Ha! Nice try, Talos! Next time give it your A-Game!

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    Apparently the area with Bassilus is equidistant between Beregost and Nashkel. Who knew!

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    It appears that the same mod that improved the Xvart village did the same for the Nashkel Mines! I barely made it out of there alive but it was exhilarating!
    AerakarBelgarathMTH
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    Ok so Peldvale just got a lot more interesting!

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    TWO Ogre Mages? Well this isn't good

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    THREE! Looks like my run just hit a Road Block!

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    Ok that actually wasn't nearly as hard as I thought was going to be. Does anyone think Ogre Mages should be worth a tad more than 650 Exp though?

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    (Narrows eyes menacingly) Ah!...my true enemy.

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    Glyph of Warding is a nasty, nasty spell

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    A narrow escape...let's not poke anymore Shadow Druids until we get to Cloakwood shall we?

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    Nope!

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    It seems The Root of the Problem has been replaced with this unique throwing club (I honestly never thought I would mash those two words together). Not sure which is better, but this is pretty awesome!

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    Umm...Dynaheir? Edwin isn't traveling with us
    BelgarathMTHAerakar
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    @BelgarathMTH
    Thank you. It means a lot. I'm glad to entertain folks even if only a few respond.
    BelgarathMTHAerakarmonico
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
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    Gotta love auto pause. This screenshot is brutal!

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    It feels good to actually finish this quest for once instead of it bugging out.

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    <3 Prism was right! It's so beautiful!

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    So those assassins in the Area Far East of Nashkel had a few extra friends...as a result I almost ended up dying via Wild Dog! (How shameful)

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    I swear the tougher enemies that NTotSC provide are worth it in exchange for awesome items like these

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    Minsc reveals a bit of his hidden ranger knowledge. I think the theory that Minsc's former intelligence manifests itself as "Boo" seems like a pretty solid one.

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    Found a new cave near the Beregost Temple which adds a quest that I unfortunately can't finish (they want the Vampire Sword and I already screwed up the Charleston Nib half) but it did grant me a few zombies, two vampiric wolves and (I never thought I'd say this) a Polar Bear Doomsayer named Teddy.

    For those of you who want to try this mod with a no-reload run, be prepared for Teddy, he hits like a truck. He was doing an average of 25 damage per hit...without critting.

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    So Minsc's protection must have worn off right when I went to charge that Basilisk. Ah well, tis a minor setback

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    FOR MINSC! Honestly just seeing Khalid solo three basilisks like that without a strength potion is so badass.

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    Sorry about that, Minsc. In any case, Welcome Back!

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    I think I've said this before but Minsc and Khalid make a pretty great team!

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    So Drasus had a few extra friends too. Luckily for me they were just Black Talon Elites. It was a rough battle though.

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    We emerge victorious!

    Quick poll for those who are watching which is the hardest part of the Cloakwood Mines for you

    1. Getting in
    2. Hareshian (Mage on 2nd floor)- My personal choice
    3. Daveaorn
    Aerakarmonico
  • ZaramMaldovarZaramMaldovar Member Posts: 2,309
    edited July 2019
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    I'm kinda disappointed that Daveaorn's guard wasn't made a bit tougher.

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    I hate Lightning Bolts!

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    These guys spawned like 4 times while I was trying to sleep. When I finally got a wink the party was snoozing on a mountain of corpses

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    If what Elminster says is true there is certainly much more to Boo than meets the eye! But in any case here's just a really fun conversation!

    Edit: When Jaheria and Elminster are talking about "never saying it" they are refering to whether or not Boo really is a Minature Giant Space Hamster I lost that screenshot somehow, I apologize.

    In general I think it's great, I don't know if its the BG1 NPC Project or some other mod, but the canon party has a lot more banter than any other party I've taken along. It feels really great :)

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    (Facepalms) *Sigh* Minsc just....*sigh*
    AerakarBelgarathMTH
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