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"Let the Fates Decide" Game Journal (there will be major spoilers)

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  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited June 2014
    Story-wise I would absolutely love for Shar-Teel to join. She is Angelo's daughter, don't forget! There's a lot to work with there. I think she's one of the most interesting characters I could hope to add at this point for this party. The wheels are already turning in my head.

    I'm not sure if it will even be necessary for the party to return to Nashkel now. I do want to play out the battle between Edwin versus Dynaheir and Minsc, though, in case someone later gets chunked and/or leaves the party.
    Post edited by Lemernis on
  • kcwisekcwise Member Posts: 2,287
    Among the spoils from this brief battle was a spell scroll to defend against evil creatures (curious), and some gold and a piece of minor jewelry. We also insisted to Minsc that he take and wear one of their helmets, to which he eventually agreed after Imoen first rinsed it well in the river.
    Nice touch. :) I've always wondered about that. No matter how filthy the monster or undead, the characters in games just grab up the nearest armor or nifty item and strap it on their bodies without comment. Yuck! And I don't want to even think about all the trash barrels and dung heaps they search, hoping to find a gem or two. Who does that? Adventurers I guess!
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited June 2014
    Well, it was a much more interesting fight this time, actually.

    I moved Oracos closer to where the fight breaks out, CLUAed Volo, and had Orcaos punch Volo to turn him hostile. (This all being game engine stuff, and not actually happening in the story.) Then I commenced as before.

    Edwin knocked Dynaheir unconscious with Color Spray. Minsc lost control immediately from his berserker rage and attacked Dynaheir, killing her, of course (although not chunking her). In the meantime Edwin pumped Minsc full of Melf's Acid Arrows, injuring him very badly. Edwin tried to Color Spray Minsc, but to no avail. Minsc's berserker rage mindlessness wore off (i.e., he regained control of himself) and he attacked Edwin. Edwin again attempted to Color Spray him, and again Minsc saved against it. Minsc killed Edwin.

    (Note: Edwin had retreated to the other end of the bridge for safety when he saw Minsc enter his rage and the ranger began attacking Dynaheir. Then Noober started pestering Edwin. Edwin killed Noober with his staff.)

    So at this point Edwin was dead, Dyna was dead, and Minsc was severely injured. The only thing to do next was wait and see whether Minsc got killed from the HP loss in the aftermath of the berserker rage...

    ... and Minsc survived with 1 hit point!

    Note that but for one scant hit point all three of these NPCs would have died permanently (with no allies around to res them).

    So I will RP that Minsc took Dynahier to the temple in the hope of having her returned to life. However he did not have enough equipment to sell off to raise the 600 gp fee to resurrect her! Minsc asks the temple not to bury her, because he will seek to assemble the funds to pay for her resurrection. The priest advises that Minsc has a tenday to return with the 600 gold required.

    Minsc must now decide whether he will

    1) stay put in Nashkel and hope that Oracos' party returns and will pay to have Dynaheir resurrected, or

    2) set off in pursuit of Oracos' party, or

    3) tries something else to raise the gold.
  • lolienlolien Member, Moderator, Translator (NDA) Posts: 3,108
    Don't you think, that i's enough for Minsc to see Edwin to go berserk? And i think that there is a real chance for Edwin to ambush the pair.
  • kcwisekcwise Member Posts: 2,287
    Puny Wizards. The tragic downside to Hulk Smash.
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited June 2014
    Note that Faldorn has, by persuading Oracos to have Shar-Teel join, assumed control of the battle strategy for the party. It is not from ego that she does so, but it best serves completion of her mission. (Poor Yeslick. But he really isn't bright enough for that responsibility.)

    Also, by the same token Faldorn is sincere about what she expressed about Shar-Teel's character. There is more to come in the roleplay about Shar-Teel's history that sheds light on her hatred of men (especially strong ones), her apparent death wish, and why in particular the Iron Throne-as-nemesis appeals to her.

    Can anyone share the full canon backstory on her? I know that Shar-Teel is Angelo's daughter. She and Angelo have a conversation when the party is captured by the Flaming Fist upon return from Candlekeep (and it is learned that Scar is dead). I recall that Angelo releases them instead of attacking them because his daughter is among them. But what does Shar-Teel have to say to her father? (The game probably gives a journal entry about that encounter as well.)
    Post edited by Lemernis on
  • Fighting_FerretFighting_Ferret Member Posts: 229
    I like option 2. Minsc would know about the bounty for Prism and know that he could handle it. Bacillus is too much. Even though Minsc isn't that smart or wise, I don't see him teaming up with an evil PC without a strong presence to hold the coalition together, so he'd most likely help Dorn in the ambush encounter, but not join with him. If his main reason for treasure was satisfied, he'd return and bring Dynaheir back.
  • lolienlolien Member, Moderator, Translator (NDA) Posts: 3,108
    edited June 2014
    I repeat myself, but you tell a wonderful story here. I hope you don't get bored with our praise :)

    From the options i like the 4. It's the most interesting for me. (Ok maybe i'm Prism fan.)

    Edit: Minsc not necessarely knows first, that Dorn is evil, and Dorn is smart enough to use this.
  • kcwisekcwise Member Posts: 2,287
    edited June 2014
    Hmmm.. That's a tough one. My initial thought is to choose the second option as I don't think Dorn would want to travel around with Minsc and Boo. Also, I don't think Minsc would go after Bassilus since he doesn't know where to look and has a limited time to find the funding he needs. Besides, Boo would advise against it I think. :)

    When I consider the Dorn situation a bit more it might actually make sense for him to at least consider Minsc. We know Dorn is looking for someone to help him with his mission, someone who is less likely to frighten the locals when he is looking for more information. While Minsc would seem to be a bad choice in the "don't scare the peasants" category, it's entirely possible Dorn is growing impatient enough to hope a giant warrior with a purple tattoo and a hamster is at least less scary than an angry half-orc blackguard with a cursed blade. Also, once Minsc fills him in on his quest to save Dynaheir I think Dorn is cunning enough to bet a grateful wizard might have spells or abilities useful to him and his vengeance.

    That said, my vote is for option 3. I just can't see Dorn going along with waiting for Prism to finish his masterpiece.
    Post edited by kcwise on
  • kcwisekcwise Member Posts: 2,287
    edited June 2014
    I dug around in the BGEE files with Near Infinity (I'm hardly an expert so I may have missed something) and uncovered these three instances of information about Shar-Teel and Angelo. Aside from that I'm not aware of any other canon sources of information about the pair. I've read that Shar may have been intended to show up in BG 2 in Yaga Shura's lair, but aside from that unrelated tid bit there doesn't seem to be a lot of info out there about her.
    Your daughter is who speaks to you Angelo, or have you somehow forgotten?

    Greetings, Shar-Teel. It seems that you have finally found friends that share tastes similar to your own. I won't answer any questions that you give me; the only reason I do this now is for what we have shared in the past, Shar. You will be blamed for the death of the guards, so I would hurry. Goodbye, Shar, I hope to never see you again.

    Afoul of the Law
    It would seem that Shar-Teel is the daughter of commander Angelo Dosan. He has released us because of this, though I fear that this will be the only time he does us a favor. We will have to be careful not to be caught again.
    So, it seems like you have somewhat of a blank slate to work with, always good for roleplaying!

    Edit: I just realized what a shame it is Eldoth isn't still around so that Shar-Teel could smite him. :)
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited June 2014
    @kcwise Thanks! It's great that I have a blank slate for Shar-Teel.

    There is of course her bio as well:
    When asked about her past, Shar-Teel has very little to say. From the little she speaks of, it can be gleaned that she is an orphan. She also seems to harbor an intense dislike for Flaming Fist mercenaries, as well as an obvious disrespect for men in general. She seems to have something to prove and likely her childhood was not of storybook quality.
    Another open-ended question (I think!) is whether Angelo is a plant by Sarevok (via the Iron Throne) or was seduced into joining the dark side. I guess there could possibly even be some other explanation. But Angelo fights hard alongside Sarevok to the bitter end, so I think it makes the most sense to assume that he chose willingly to side with Sarevok.
  • kcwisekcwise Member Posts: 2,287
    Interestingly, in the novelization of Baldur's Gate Angelo is described as a half-elf.
    As one of the dukes of Baldur's Gate, an experienced mercenary commander, and a half-elf who'd already lived longer than most humans dreamed of, Angelo had met all kinds - but no one like Sarevok.
    And, after skimming through the novel again (it's been a long time since I read it and I tried to block most of it from my mind) it seemed as though Angelo was more of a dupe than anything. He had a feeling Sarevok was lying, but was too afraid to do anything about it.
    "When I am named grand duke," Sarevok said, "there will be no more Amnian cutthroats defiling our city... if we have to kill every man, woman, and child in that cursed realm to ensure it."

    Angelo swallowed in a throat turned dry.
    Ultimately, in the novel, Angelo leads the Flaming Fist mercenaries against Sarevok's cultists in the final confrontation between Abdel Adrian and Sarevok. As far as Wizards of the Coast is concerned that's canon, but in terms of the game it plays all sorts of havok with the story. And, Shar-Teel isn't mentioned at all in the novel that I could find. I wonder if she would count as human if she had a human mother and a half-elf father? Probably best to just stick with the game and your own formidable imagination.
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  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited July 2014
    Thank you @Sergio!

    Well, there was one vote each for (2), (3), and (4), i.e. no consensus. I therefore rolled a 1d3 where (2) = 1, (3) = 2, and (4) = 3. Result = 1. So option (2) it shall be.

    Prism: Dorn Doesn't Join
    2) Dorn and Minsc do not join forces for any particular combination of roleplaying motivation reasons. Dorn grabs the most valuable (unidentified/enchanted) items from his attackers and departs back to FAI. With the gear left behind on Dorn's slain foes Minsc is able to scrape together enough gold to resurrect Dynaheir. There is then no need to seek the Prism bounty. Result: Minsc and Dynaheir are both alive, although it remains to be determined what they do next.

    I'm reminded here that Minsc and Dynaheir would not hang around. So sadly, it seems their part in this adventure is over.

    So happy trails to Minsc and Dynaheir, and may they enjoy the blessings of their divinities as they complete their dejemma. :-)
    Post edited by Lemernis on
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited July 2014
    kcwise said:

    Interestingly, in the novelization of Baldur's Gate Angelo is described as a half-elf.

    As one of the dukes of Baldur's Gate, an experienced mercenary commander, and a half-elf who'd already lived longer than most humans dreamed of, Angelo had met all kinds - but no one like Sarevok.
    And, after skimming through the novel again (it's been a long time since I read it and I tried to block most of it from my mind) it seemed as though Angelo was more of a dupe than anything. He had a feeling Sarevok was lying, but was too afraid to do anything about it.
    "When I am named grand duke," Sarevok said, "there will be no more Amnian cutthroats defiling our city... if we have to kill every man, woman, and child in that cursed realm to ensure it."

    Angelo swallowed in a throat turned dry.
    Ultimately, in the novel, Angelo leads the Flaming Fist mercenaries against Sarevok's cultists in the final confrontation between Abdel Adrian and Sarevok. As far as Wizards of the Coast is concerned that's canon, but in terms of the game it plays all sorts of havok with the story. And, Shar-Teel isn't mentioned at all in the novel that I could find. I wonder if she would count as human if she had a human mother and a half-elf father? Probably best to just stick with the game and your own formidable imagination.

    Thanks, this is very helpful! I do have the Philip Athans novel also, although I've never read it. I dug it out and see that in addition to what you pointed out, Angelo is a duke of Baldur's Gate and he stays out of the final confrontation between Abdel and Sarevok.

    I'll definitely choose the game over the novel. In the game Angelo seems unambiguously "on board" as a member of Sarevok's team, and indeed a member of the high ranking inner circle. IIRC he is responsible for killing Scar (?) and poisoning Duke Eltan. I forget exactly what Angelo says to the party if Shar-Teel isn't among them, but it is hostile; and of course he attacks. I'm pretty sure Angelo's alignment (in-game) is evil, although I'll have to check to confirm. And as we know, he fights to the death in the final battle. So I'm writing him as a corrupted, evil spy/turncoat/conspirator against the Grand Dukes and Flaming Fist. Given Shar-Teel's issues with men, I will invent that Angelo's relationship with his daughter had a profound shaping influence on her.
    Post edited by Lemernis on
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    edited July 2014
    Thank you for the encouragement, Rufus! :-) and KC :-)
  • Very_BigSwordVery_BigSword Member Posts: 222
    I hope you have an unpatched copy of the game so your save will work!
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