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Ways to improve RP and difficulty

Hi,

Any good rules of thumb to improve BG saga RP and difficulty challenge?
What I really mean is: I am not looking for hardcore seetings type of things, but more something like - no max HP on levelling up, core rules, etc. Simple and easy tips to improve the overall experience without breaking the game or making it too hard.

Thanks!
[Deleted User]JuliusBorisov

Comments

  • bob_vengbob_veng Member Posts: 2,308
    don't rest in a dungeon (only towns and nature), unless you've cleared it
    don't rest more frequently than once in 24h
    OrlonKronsteendockaboomskiQuartz[Deleted User]
  • OrlonKronsteenOrlonKronsteen Member Posts: 905
    @gismorum - you are a master of discipline, my friend. I don't even have the willpower to ignore the game's Easter Eggs. :)
    Aerakar[Deleted User]
  • UnderstandMouseMagicUnderstandMouseMagic Member Posts: 2,147
    Can you use mods?

    There are some superb mods available that will completely change the way you play and what you can get out of the game.
  • RawgrimRawgrim Member Posts: 621
    Don't use Kits.
    Merrepi
  • The user and all related content has been deleted.
    OrlonKronsteenQuartz[Deleted User]Aerakar
  • fatelessfateless Member Posts: 330
    I consider the Girdle of Masculinity/Feminity an easy way out.
    Aerakar
  • OrlonKronsteenOrlonKronsteen Member Posts: 905
    SomeSort said:

    Don't wear helmets, period. Learn to fear criticals

    Kind of like the last holdouts in the NHL who refused to wear helmets on the ice. Brazen and gutsy. I usually do this with stalkers and fighter/thieves. It feels ridiculous wearing a heavy metal helmet in a stealth build.
    Quartz[Deleted User][Deleted User]Aerakar
  • ElysianEchoesElysianEchoes Member Posts: 475
    Can you make a 'fallen' blackguard? Will a blackguard lose it's abilities if reputation gets too high? The once evil knight that now seeks an atonement it cannot hope to achieve, in spite of knowing its soul is hopelessly forfeit . . . .
    ZaghoulLoldrup
  • Tad_Has_A_Cold_OliveTad_Has_A_Cold_Olive Member Posts: 183
    Make the quarterstaff your main weapon of choice. You start the game with a quarterstaff in your inventory, so obviously it's your character's favorite weapon!

    (I'm doing this in my current game right now.)
    [Deleted User][Deleted User]NimranAerakar
  • ZaghoulZaghoul Member, Moderator Posts: 3,938

    Can you make a 'fallen' blackguard? Will a blackguard lose it's abilities if reputation gets too high? The once evil knight that now seeks an atonement it cannot hope to achieve, in spite of knowing its soul is hopelessly forfeit . . . .

    I often do that with Dorn, cause my CHARNAME's are usually fanatic's and never likes 'other' ppl's deities or benefactors. Gotta remove the competition, I RP it as that anyway, ya see >:) . No blackguard abilities after, by the way. A bit tougher for Dorn but not impossible. B)
  • TheElfTheElf Member Posts: 798
    No resting in dungeons, or abusing rest in general, allowing spells to fail sometimes, and no cheese to memorize 9th level spells with sub 18 int. I find playing this way quite fun as it adds tactics to the game. You won't always have every spell you want available so you'll sometimes have to make do with something else. Plus your non-mages become a lot more important as you have to ration your spells when exploring.
    [Deleted User]
  • WatchForWolvesWatchForWolves Member Posts: 183

    Make the quarterstaff your main weapon of choice. You start the game with a quarterstaff in your inventory, so obviously it's your character's favorite weapon!

    (I'm doing this in my current game right now.)

    That's quite ironic considering that Quarterstaves are great weapons. Well, they are great two-handed weapons, at least.

    In BG you get a Quarterstaff +1 for free in Beregost, +2 in Cloakwood and +3 in Ulgoth's Beard. In BG2 Quarterstaff +1 is th first magic item you find, and there's a +4(!) version available in Adventurer's Mart. And in ToB there's the Staff of the Ram which does just absurd amounts of damage and you can +6 it. Oh, and it has a chance to stun with no save.
    GallowglassAerakarsemiticgoddessQuartz
  • SomeSortSomeSort Member Posts: 859

    Make the quarterstaff your main weapon of choice. You start the game with a quarterstaff in your inventory, so obviously it's your character's favorite weapon!

    (I'm doing this in my current game right now.)

    That's quite ironic considering that Quarterstaves are great weapons. Well, they are great two-handed weapons, at least.

    In BG you get a Quarterstaff +1 for free in Beregost, +2 in Cloakwood and +3 in Ulgoth's Beard. In BG2 Quarterstaff +1 is th first magic item you find, and there's a +4(!) version available in Adventurer's Mart. And in ToB there's the Staff of the Ram which does just absurd amounts of damage and you can +6 it. Oh, and it has a chance to stun with no save.
    A quarterstaff is also the highest-damage *one-handed* weapon in BG1. (The Staff Mace deals 2d4+2.) It's doubly-great if you give it to Alora, since two damage dice means her luck effect works twice. Plus there's the Staff of Striking, which is the best backstabbing weapon in BG1 (and one of the best early backstabbing weapons in BG2), though each attack burns a charge so you're probably not going to want to use it for general adventuring.

    The "problem" with quarterstaves is that while you can get high enchantments on them relatively easily, their low base damage means those high-enchantment quarterstaves still lag their lower-enchantment 2-handed peers in damage output.

    Take the +4(!) quarterstaff in Adventurer's Mart. It deals 7.5 average damage, which is only as much as a 2-handed sword +2. Lilarcor is available just as easily, deals 8.5 average damage, and carries a useful secondary effect, to boot (immunity to confusion and charm). Harmonium Halberd (also purchasable in the Adventurer's Mart) also deals 8.5 average damage, plus it gives +1 strength which guarantees at least +1 damage more (assuming you have 17+ strength already) and will also often bring a +1 THACO boost, too.

    The other "problem" with quarterstaves is that they rarely have useful combat improvements-- elemental damage to cut through stoneskins or status effect immunities, especially. Most of their enhancements tend to be of the "extra spells" or "use this item to cast a spell" variety.

    Which isn't to say that they're bad weapons. The Staff of the Ram is one of the best weapons in the game, though that's obviously ToB-only. Even before that, Staves are cheap, they don't break during the iron shortage, they deal blunt damage which is useful against skeletons / jellies / clay golems, and they have an amazing speed factor which is important if you're going to be kiting aggressively.

    But by and large I'd say they're the third-best 2-handed weapon, behind 2-handed swords and halberds and ahead only of Spears. I'd say they're the 2-handed equivalent of Maces or Bastard Swords.
    Quartz
  • WatchForWolvesWatchForWolves Member Posts: 183
    Base damage values quickly become irrelevant as enchantments, proficiencies and strength increase though.

    Regular dagger: 2.5 DPS
    Regular 2-handed sword: 5.5 DPS

    Dagger +5: 7.5 DPS
    2-handed sword +5: 10.5 DPS

    Dagger +5 with Grandmastery: 12.5 DPS
    2-handed sword +5 with Grandmastery:15.5 DPS

    Dagger +5 with Grandmastery and 22 Strength: 22.5 DPS
    2-handed sword with Grandmastery and 22 Strength: 25.5 DPS

    So the 2-handed sword goes from doing 120% more damage at "level 0" to doing just 13.3% more damage when everything is "maxed out". And the dagger takes only one hand, leaving the other for another weapon or a shield...

    Obviously individual weapon differences are still important though. No one actually runs around with a +5 dagger or a +5 two-handed sword, especially since neither exists.
  • RangeltoftRangeltoft Member Posts: 83
    Actually there is a +5 dagger in ToB
    Aerakartbone1
  • Grond0Grond0 Member Posts: 7,305
    And 3 different +5 2-handed swords :).
    Aerakartbone1
  • WatchForWolvesWatchForWolves Member Posts: 183
    I meant that they also all have secondary effects.
    Grond0
  • Eadwyn_G8keeperEadwyn_G8keeper Member Posts: 541
    edited August 2017
    Form a clear idea of who your protagonist has been all those years in Candlekeep and also the state of affairs with Imoen before game begins. Imagining Imoen is of course less important if your plan does not include her. With this foundation, really make an effort to RP Charname's experience of events.

    What would he/she really want to do first?? Run and hide. Take a ship to Cormyr. Find out as much information as possible. Hang out with some more experienced allies [Jaheira-Khalid] until events begin to make sense. Or be proactive and get ahead of the game. Usually I find myself in somewhat of a state of shock until settling down to clear the Nashkel mines.

    One difficult RP quandary is how to explain anything approaching a completionist run. Why in the world would adventuring all over the map seem like a good idea after the early need for Gold is greatly eased by the reward from Bassileus quest. A certain amount makes sense -- to lay low for awhile after the fame accrued from clearing out Mulahey's operation, to throw his nemesis out of his reckoning. But that only goes so far IMO.

    Questions to consider: How much general knowledge of the Sword Coast area, Amn and Waterdeep has Charname gathered during his/her Candlekeep years. Have those years been passive, angst-filled boredom or some sort of disciplined upbringing with training regimens devised by Gorion. Has he/she displayed any unusual level of general aptitude suggesting a unique destiny or is the whole Baalspawn nature something utterly strange that is sort of exploding from within.

    This really comes to the forefront after encountering Elminster in Baldurs Gate City. Do his references to Charname's lineage have real weight or is the protagonist [and other party members] still clueless about what is really going on. If so, what alternative idea does he have about his situation. Perhaps he thinks he is a classic hidden heir to a throne that threatens to upset certain balances of power should he emerge into public life??

    An HP restriction on Level-Up I sometimes use is to take random result anytime the character in question has triggered the Near Death script since his/her last Level-Up [due to weakened Constitution for a period of time]. And for any resurrected character to take random HP the rest of game.

    Enjoy!
    Post edited by Eadwyn_G8keeper on
    Loldrup
  • LoldrupLoldrup Member Posts: 291
    edited August 2017
    It seems I've missed a change to boast about my personal set of rules that I use to make BG significantly harder without using mods. But never fear! I will rectify that blunder right here and now:


    My preferred Baldur’s Gate restrictions:

    No character is allowed to use weapons for which they have any proficiency points. Exceptions:
    - Thieves may use melee weapons in which they have proficiency (but not specialisation!).
    - Special darts (stun and poison darts) may be used by anyone with any number of proficiency points in darts.
    - When fighting monsters for which specific weapons have bonuses against, it is okay to fight with these weapons even when one has proficiency or specialisation in it (except for the hammer 'The Knee-capper’. For small enemies (650XP and below) you shouldn't use it with proficiency points).
    - When fighting Karoug it's okay to use weapons in which one has any number of proficiency points.
    To pay for their privilege, thieves are not allowed to backstab mages.
    No purchased special ammo. Use only the special ammo you can find in the wild.
    No Web, Sleep, Horror, Silence, Glitterdust or Hold Person spells. You may however cast these from scrolls. Thus you can use these scrolls as 'special sauce’, just like potions.
    You may at most use the Command spell only once (successfully) against any given foe.
    No ranged weapons may be used against spell casters. This includes magically concocted ranged weapons such as Melfs Minute Meteors, but not the less powerful spell 'Magical Stone' (are there others?)..
    No magic missile spell against spell casters.
    Wizards may only be slain after all their minions have perished.
    No Fireballs against humans.
    No Dorn beyond his quest line.
    No dual wielding fighters.
    No short duration prebuffing before fights.
    Disallowed items:
    - all wands, except the Wand of Magic Missile.
    - Gauntlets of Dexterity.
    - Gauntlets of Ogre Power.
    - Rings of the princess or similar items.
    - Ankheg plate.
    - Drizzt's equipment (except if you actually kill him!).
    - Chesley Crusher.
    - The Stupifier unnerfed (on Android).
    - Dagger of Venom may not be used against spell casters.
    Magical items may not be sold (too rich too soon). As an exemption, items obtained through Pick Pocketing may be sold.
    If you ever need to kite an enemy for more than a short time, run away and come back later.
    The following enemies gives too much XP bonus and are therefore disallowed from being slain: Dread Wolves, Winter Wolves, Ghasts, Sirenes, Polar Bears, Golems, Basilisks, the Revenant, the undeads around Durlags Tower (except the two at the bridge). They may however be attacked late game, but still only as little as possible.
    Try to think twice before completing a quest: do you really want **2000** XP for saving Melicamp the Chicken? Or 500 XP for handing over a short sword to that halfling in Bereghost? Or 900 XP for talking down Marl? (I haven't visited Feldepost Inn yet - for that reason). Skip finalising such quests till later in the game where the extra XP doesn't matter. Stay low level - stay tense!
    Highest level of armor allowed for each chapter:
    Chapter 1: Leather,
    Chapter 2: Leather,
    Chapter 3: Studded leather, Hide armor,
    Chapter 4: Chainmail,
    Chapter 5: Splint mail,
    Chapter 6: Plate mail,
    Chapter 7: Full plate mail (Ankheg is never allowed).
    No equipment swapping during battle (potions, scrolls, ammunition exempted).
    No potion stacking using the same type of potion in a stack.
    No sleeping before half of NPCs are tired (and no fake travel to make them tired ;)
    When specialist mages reach level 3, they must dedicate half of their spell slots (rounded down) to spells that belong to their specialist school. The highest spell level the caster has access to is exempted from this rule.
    Once one of your party members reaches 5000 XP, you may only level up a party member when all members are ready to level up. After that, the next level up will have to wait until the condition is met again, and so on.
    You may morf to maps to pick up the NPCs you want.
    You may change the class of one NPC.
    You may NOT change character’s proficiency points.
    For one NPC, you may swap one stat for another.
    You may fix the HP of NPCs that had unfortunate level up rolls before they joined you.
    You may not change NPC thieves’ thieving skill points. Those are part of their personality.

    Eadwyn_G8keeper
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