Let's Play: Baldur's Gate Trilogy - Ch26 (Mae'Var)

[Tigranes]

Welcome back. Some of you will remember the adventures of the Obsidianites, who ironmanned the frozen North in not one but two Infinity Engine campaigns (see sig for links). The legend of Monty the Genocide Machine still lives on:



:respect:

Now, after a long wait, the Obsidianites return for the single greatest tactical squad-based real-time-with-pause Infinity Engine D&D Forgotten Realms adventure of all time; the Baldur's Gate Trilogy. I will begin with BG1Tutu with BG1 UI, through to the end of Throne of Bhaal. I'll go fairly light on the mods, packing only the essential tweaks/fixes, Unfinished Business, Ascension, and a few others. I will also make moderate use of SCS, the golden boy of all tactics/difficulty mods. I'll be able to show you guys the terror of AI-improved, pre-buffed, potion-chugging enemies that rolled max HP. Core difficulty. Most importantly, I will use semi-ironman house rules. The first two times a party member dies, I will pay to revive him; the third time, or if the member is chunked, we will replace him with the next Obsidianite on the list, at Level 1. There will be no reloading except for bugs.

As several of the previous Obsidianites are now in dormancy, I thought I'd open it up; if you want to be immortalized as the inaugural meatshields of Obsidianites III, tell me what kind of character you want to play. I will be using your avatars and forum names for easy identification, and can fill in gaps if you don't want to spell out everything. (Or you can tell me how you'd like to be levelled up over the course of the campaign.) With BG1Tutu, all BG2/TOB classes, including Wild Mage, are available. When we exceed 6, you will be on the waiting list.

Let it begin...



CHAPTERS:
1. Verily, It Begins
2. One Critical Hit From Death
3. It's Kobold Time
4. High Mortality Rates Are A Key Impediment To Economic Growth
5. Go On, Bleed Some XP For Me
6. On Fireball
7. One Dungeon, To Go, Please
8. City Life
9. In This Chapter, Stuff Happens
10. We At Durlag's, Part One
11. We At Durlag's, Part Two
12. We At Durlag's, Part Three
13. Cleaning Up
14. We Defeat Our Enemies With The Power of Capitalism
15. Aec Letec
16. Iiiiiiin theee eeeeeeeeend



CHAPTERS:
17. Next Gen
18. An Efficient Use of Human Resources
19. Profit Margins
20. Trolls
21. You Be Hidin' On Tor'Gal
22. Detective Work
23. On the Merits of Potions

24. Miss Me?

25. Dragonfight

26. Athkatla: The Buddy Movie

27. Love the Trees, Hate the Treehuggers

EPITAPHS:
Rosbjerg, the Bard: Dead by Nimbul the Assassin + Chromatic Orb, Nashkel
Enoch, the Cleric: Dead by Nimbul the Assassin + Magic Missile, Nashkel
Deraldin, the Cleric: Dead by Spiders + Poison, Durlag's Tower
Oner, the Barbarian: Dead by Spiders + Poison, Durlag's Tower
Greylord, the Archer: Dead by Greater Doppleganger + Cone of Cold, Durlag's Tower
Walsingham, the Fighter: Dead by Aec'Letec + Doom, Ulgoth's Beard
Sorophyx, the Thief: Dead by Two Lightning Traps and a Fireball Trap, Maze Underneath the Thieves' Guild
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Calax, Cleric: Chunked by Rune Assassin + Backstab, Tanner's House in Bridge District

Pidesco, Fighter/Illusionist: Drained by Thax'll'ssillyia, Shadow Dragon Lair

Gorth, Archer: Drained by Thax'll'ssillyia, Shadow Dragon Lair

TrueNeutral, Shapeshifter: Drained by Thax'll'ssillyia, Shadow Dragon Lair

Edited May 4, 2013 by Tigranes

[Deraldin]

If you go without SCS so that you can replace people who get chunked, how would you deal with the protagonist dying? Is one person just going to be exempt from dying or would you just rotate out when that person dies and a new character becomes the child of bhaal?

[greylord]

Heh, well a Ranger or bard would be right up my alley, depending on whether they could use another warrior, or simply needed someone to stand in the back and cheer them on.

 

Either way I hopefully get to use a bow?

Edited January 1, 2012 by greylord

[Tigranes]

I checked this just now, and it seems even in MP, protagonist death = game over. Sucks, as it's hardcoded and can't be modded out. Gah.

 

My current thought is to set a house rule so that if it's a full party wipe, it's all over, but if only the protagonist dies, I'll reload (and show you guys what happened). I'm also leaning towards non-SCS, or at least, SCS only with basic AI improvements, then I can try and deal with whatever wacky party we end up with. Feel free to hit me with whatever lulzy character you want to be - you can just tell me what race/class you want, or give me a full bio with stats and personalities, and I'll do my best to stick to that character both commentary & gameplay wise. BG isn't a very difficult game so we don't need to go with a by-the-books party.

[sorophx]

woohoo! nice, looking forward to it

 

I'd be glad to become a part of the group. a warrior up to level 4, then thief x/mage (conjurer if available) x - as you see fit (yes! to triple-classing), human. backstory I'll leave to you if you decide to pick me. stats, CHA (INT in case of wizard) and STR primary, followed by INT (CON in case of wizard).

 

I'll vote for SCS because I have no idea what that is.

[Oner]

Can I join too? ,o/

I'm open to any martial class you need.

[Enoch]

woohoo! nice, looking forward to it

 

I'd be glad to become a part of the group. a warrior up to level 4, then thief x/mage (conjurer if available) x - as you see fit (yes! to triple-classing), human. backstory I'll leave to you if you decide to pick me. stats, CHA (INT in case of wizard) and STR primary, followed by INT (CON in case of wizard).

 

I'll vote for SCS because I have no idea what that is.

Somebody needs to refresh their recollection of AD&D 2E multiclassing.

 

Because nobody else will volunteer for it, I suggest Enoch, the Lawful Neutral Priest of Helm. Somebody needs to keep you people in-line. With a hammer. If you're going with the more difficult tactical experience, feel free to twink him out with a few dual-classy fighter levels.

[sorophx]

Somebody needs to refresh their recollection of AD&D 2E multiclassing.

that's true.

 

well, if that's impossible, then fighter/thief

[Tale]

If I ever end up in it, it'd better be as Wild Mage or so help me!

[Rosbjerg]

Looks like I'm late to the party? If so, if someone dies and you need to have a spot filled I'd like to be part of it..

 

I'm open to any class really, but Rogue or Skjald would probably fit best.. and Neutral Good in alignment

[Deraldin]

Heh, well a Ranger or bard would be right up my alley...

I'm open to any martial class you need.

Because nobody else will volunteer for it, I suggest Enoch, the Lawful Neutral Priest of Helm.

well, if that's impossible, then fighter/thief

If I ever end up in it, it'd better be as Wild Mage or so help me!

I'm open to any class really, but Rogue or Skjald would probably fit best.. and Neutral Good in alignment

 

That's 6. I'm tossing my name in on the waitlist with a Human Fighter/Mage, dualled at level 9 since Tale called the Wild Mage.

Edited January 1, 2012 by Deraldin

[Nepenthe]

If I ever end up in it, it'd better be as Wild Mage or so help me!

And I should be a paladin or some other relentless crusader who doesn't give up, no matter what the odds.

[Tigranes]

OK, so that's plenty of people. I'll go with basic SCS and work out some solution to the protagonist problem, and begin - either now, or in ~8 hours, since I haven't slept since 5pm yesterday.

 

I'll focus on wacky parties rather than optimized powergaming, so there should be plenty of death and rotation in the early stages. Sorophyx, AD&D doesn't allow that kind of level progression - you could start as a F/M/T to begin with (all with no kits), or start as Fighter then dual class to Thief or Mage. Let me know.

[Cutlock]

HEY!

 

Baldur's Gate is not a trilogy, there are FOUR games, should be six, but sorry: BIOWARE DID NOT WANT TO FULLY EXPAND THE THRONE OF BHAAL.

 

So they got their lazy asses up, got bought by EA who then renamed all of their studios BioWare.

[Deraldin]

HEY!

 

Baldur's Gate is not a trilogy, there are FOUR games, should be six, but sorry: BIOWARE DID NOT WANT TO FULLY EXPAND THE THRONE OF BHAAL.

 

So they got their lazy asses up, got bought by EA who then renamed all of their studios BioWare.

 

What? I can understand claiming 2 games, but 4 is really stretching it. 6 games is right out of the question unless you are counting Dark Alliance, but that is clearly a separate series. Tales of the Sword Coast is not comparable to Throne of Bhaal and so shouldn't be counted as a separate entry in the series.

 

And what the hell does the EA purchase which happened 6 years after Throne of Bhaal have anything to do with this?

Edited January 1, 2012 by Deraldin

[Tigranes]

Hokay. I've taken the first six posters, and so begins the journey of the Obsidianites. I'm falling asleep but tomorrow we will get out of Candlekeep and make some headway. To reiterate, this will be Ironman on Core difficulty; dead party members will be revived, or if unable, replaced with new members from the waiting list. I have selected one of the Obsidianites to be our Protagonist; if he dies, I will show you what happened then reload, unless it is a party wipe, in which case, we begin the adventure anew.

 

As I already mentioned, I'll use the minimum number of mods to retain a relatively 'canon' gameworld. I will use SCS (Sword Coast Strategems), a famous mega-mod that dramatically improves the AI and raises difficulty, but only with a few milder components like general AI upgrades and, uh, faster bears.

 

So, let us begin...

 

1. Verily, it begins

 

Gorion's Journal, Final Entry

It's been a long day. More applicants, more idiots dressed up in tinfoil hats and wooden swords thinking adventure equals casual sex and alcoholism. What's even worse is that I have to be nice to them, even as I subtley inform them that they are best off finding alternative career paths in the used platemail sales industry. Namely, making the platemail 'used'. I knew the whole Wise Old Wizard schtick was going to come bite me in the arse someday - it really kills you. One day I'm going to snap and shove a finger of death in somebody's face. Probably one of those freaking acapella chanters.

 

They Never. Stop. Chanting.

 

Anyway. The point is that it's finally done. I've selected five precariously passable meatshields to accompany the Bhaalspawn on his flight. I'll tell them it's her very first ad-ven-ture, and they should all go whack some kobolds and celebrate with apple juice by the campfire. No need to tell them that Sarevok and his minions will be hunting them down, and there's a reason I've promised to pay their wages at the end of the month. For the sake of record, though, I guess I should still write their names down. Note: I followed posters' specifications, then took creative license. All ability rolls used the very first roll, then simply redistributed; colour schemes are strictly inferred from avatars.

 

This one's called Oner. Thinks a Gnome Barbarian is an 'untapped career niche'. Idiot nearly tripped on her own halberd and nearly killed herself at the interview. Ridiculous. Next we'll be seeing halfling paladins, harping on about justice beneath my waistline. Nice face, though. If only I were twenty years younger...

 

Bodilicious.

 

The ranger was pretty run of the mill. Called himself Greylord, I guess he's still going through that phase when boys call themselves Emperor of Everything and somesuch. Actually a pretty good shot with a bow, though, and should be the most effective of them all. That is, if he would stop this obsession with shooting skeletons. How does that even work? Do you make them trip on their own bones?

 

Number three insists it's a female halfling, but I'm convinced it's a minor demon from Hell, perhaps the result of an imp-human cross-breeding accident. Even has an unpronounceable name - 'sorophyx'. A little bit too obsessed with making squishy things go splat, but it should remain loyal to the Bhaalspawn. Maybe.

 

Sure has good fashion sense for a wacko.

 

I also thought an older adventurer should increase their chances of survival, maybe by half a percent. He's a bit too old and I don't think he can touch his own toes stretching, but seems to know what he's doing with that hammer.

 

They'll also need a rogue, but all I could get was this weirdo. Says he's a physical vessel for Ulfric Stormcloak, whoever the hell that is, and keeps singing on about shattering the frozen testicles of his enemies or something.

 

Sure has a smashing beard, though. Wonder if he uses any creams.

[Gorth]

OK, so that's plenty of people. I'll go with basic SCS and work out some solution to the protagonist problem, and begin - either now, or in ~8 hours, since I haven't slept since 5pm yesterday.

In case you turn out to have a suicidal, risk taking party and need the "understudy" to fill in for casualties, sign me up as a human ranger (archer). Always more fun taking people out at a distance.

[Tigranes]

Oh, and I've got a file on the Bhaalspawn, too. Trying to teach that idiot magic was the worst mistake I ever made. Grew herself rabbit ears on her seventh birthday. Tried to get them off, but somehow they're now wired with a dozen explosive enchantments. I guess whoever lops them off in battle is in for a surprise.

 

The white skin wasn't a magical accident, she just thinks it makes her look sexy.

 

In any case, that's enough words wasted. As soon as they're back with equipment, I'll escort them out to the Friendly Arm Inn, then let them go wild. That should be enough for that fop Elminster to finally leave me alone. Sick of him telling me what to do all the time, like he's some King of Wizards. Always sending those stupid letters that tell me nothing I didn't know. Here's a secret, hat boy, everyone knows you're 'E'. That's not a good way to protect your freaking anonymity.

 

Damn. I need some ale.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

 

Meanwhile...

The Obsidianites have assembled outside the inn for rudimentary introductions. The team not only begin with a war chest of 520 gold, but the most fiersome and versatile weapon known to the Realms: the quarterstaff. Why, with not one, not two, but six staves, we can deal enough crushing damage to flatten a small custard!

 

Oner: ...as I was saying, the Barbarian class enables a true expression of the anarchism that lies at the heart of our existence. Through rage, we transcend the trappings of rationality and convention that limits lesser beings, and tap into our true potential!

Sorophyx: And your inability to equip heavy armour?

Oner: Plate mail is but a material instantiation of the prison that is our society.

Sorophyx: Keep talking, I might be able to go cross-class and learn rage myself.

Tale: Guys, guys! We mustn't fight! We're a team! A unit! A party! A band! We're all here for each other!

Greylord: Sexually?

Tale: What? No! No, no. No!

Oner: Sexual prohibitions are a key ingredient to social control and repression, you know. It's only when we embrace our natural lust that we can truly be free.

Tale: No sexual freedom! Look, can we please just go buy some equipment?

Sorophyx: What kind of equipment?

 

Sorophyx: Oh, the boring kind. Fine. I know a good place, though, if we ever get to Nashkel. The guy's got a nice racket, you tell him you want to see his trouser Ogre-

Enoch: NOOOOOO!

Sorophyx: Alright, alright. You guys are no fun. I'm going upstairs, just make sure you buy a sword for me. Hey, Rosbjerg, come with me.

 

Rosbjerg: Um... why did you want me?

Sorophyx: Why, I have a business proposition for you, pardner! How about a little jiggling, a little shaking, and some nice cash for both of us?

Rosbjerg: This isn't about the trouser Ogre, is it?

Sorophyx: What? Oh, no! I mean, I'm going to rob these sleeping tenants blind, and you're going to stand there and keep watch for me. Although, now that you mention it-

Rosbjerg: Alright, alright. Do what you gotta do.

 

Sorophyx: I'm on fire, baby!

 

Sorophyx: A necklace, a potion, a ring- oh, crap, you were awake? Why are you awake? What are you doing?

Rosbjerg: Uh... Sorophyx?

 

Guard: Stealing within the sanctity of Candlekeep?! This is blasphemy of the highest order!

Rosbjerg: Listen, um, I don't even have any gold! This isn't - look, can't we just forgive and forget? Here, I'll sing a song for you to make up for it! Brave Sir Ulfric rode forth from-

Guard: Thieving scoundrel! *swing*

 

Sorophyx: RUN!

Tale: What? Where? In which direction? Why?

Sorophyx: RUN!

 

Somehow, the party made it while the lone guard was still on the second floor. I actually forgot that not all tenants are asleep. With no opportunity to even peddle the stolen goods, Sorophyx leads the party directly across Candlekeep, and to Gorion.

 

Gorion: Hurry, for there is no time to tarry! The keep is well protected, but not invulnerable.

Tale: Yeah, uh - we're ready to go. Right now, actually.

Gorion: Are you sure? I perceive with my wise, benevolent eye that you have not purchased metal armour for your fighter. Metal armour has a higher defense rating and can help you from being killed by monsters! Press E to equip some metal armour now.

Oner: I told you, I can't equip metal armour. It's against my religion.

Enoch: In fact, we don't even have any metal armour. What-

Gorion: Press E to equip some metal armour now.

Tale: Um... E!

Oner: Hey!

Gorion: You have equipped metal armour now. You will notice that it provides greater defense against enemy attacks. This means that you will die less easily in combat. You can equip and remove armour at the Inventory Screen, which is accessible using the I key.

Oner: I! I!

[Tigranes]

And so it is that the brave Obsidianites began their journey forth from Candlekeep. Due to the various tutorials on the way, it was already pitch dark by the time they reached the Clearing of Ominously Placed Stone Circles...

 

...and got ambushed.

 

Gorion: Run, child, get out of here!

Tale: Um...

 

Oh, just pretend she's not there. That's a common bug in Tutu, where the protagonist doesn't run away.

 

Tale: Are you sure that spike guy won't just lop my head off, too?

 

Don't worry. He won't do that until Chapter 6, cutscene 3.

 

Gorion: Hurrrrrrrk!

 

See? Told you so.

 

The dawn is especially cruel this morning. Gandalf- uh, Gorion, our wise and benevolent protector, was struck dead by cutscenitis! The Obsidianites are still dazed and frightened when a ginger talking head hits 'em from behind.

 

Imoen:Hiya! It's me, Imoen.

 

The Obsidianites enjoy breaking young girls' hearts. But she just won't take no for an answer.

 

Greylord: Burden of handsome man.

 

Indeed, Greylord. Now we must manually remove her again.

 

That sounds like a threat, Imoen. Are you sure you want to threaten the Obsidianites?

 

Sorophyx: Let's gut the chick and use her as monster bait. Kobolds are suckers for red hair.

 

Hrmm..

 

--------------------------------------------------------------

 

In the past, I've found the LARPish dialogue pretty tiring, so I may revert to one-man sarcastic commentary. Let me know if screens are bad, etc.

[Slowtrain]

You do the best play threads, tig.

 

I haven't played BG in a look time. looking forward to this.

 

Just curious: do you plan to do a lot of wandering and explore all the maps? Or are you going to follow the story more directly and not wander about so much?

[Rosbjerg]

That "hafling" is mighty suspicious... Also yay! for being a wimpy skald (sorry).

[Enoch]

Nice writeup, Tigs.

 

Those fountains look sick, though. I recall there being a fix available for all the water showing up green. (Although that may have been for TuTu, rather than the BGTrilogy mod.)

 

 

Also: Old? I'm only 32, dammit! That said, I call dibs on the Gauntlets of Dexterity, if I last that long.

[Deraldin]

BGT doesn't need the degreenifier so he must be using TuTu. Should really grab the degreenifier.

[Oner]

Damn, forgot to tell you I'm not into pint sized people.

Well, I'm not complaining, for I am Awesome.

 

Great as usual, Tigs.

[sorophx]

female halfling? that's an interesting combination. I guess that means it (yes, "it") will have to be fighter/thief