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Old player, new questions!


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#1 Robin Hood

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Posted 25 May 2009 - 05:51 PM

Hi everyone,

I've played BG2 several times before, but it's been many years and I've forgotten a lot of it and therefore have a few questions. I'll be playing SOA/TOB with the patches from either Baldurdash or the BG2 Fixpack, and possibly other mods as well (see below).

First, are there any walkthroughs that are targetted towards custom parties in particular, or at least that take that play-style into account? My plan is to have four custom characters, leaving two slots open to pick up the various NPCs as required for different quests. I've played this style once before, and found it had a lot to say for it...you can get the various quests from each NPC and the occasional banter, but without it getting...cloying.

Second, what mods and patches do people recommend? It sounds like I'll want to use the BG2 Fixpack (after I figure out what WeiDU is and how to use it), and I've had Ascension and Unfinished Business recommended to me by a friend already. From what I've read, I'm thinking UB sounds good, but I'm not sure about Ascension. What's good, bad, and ugly about these or any other mods that you'd recommend? Also, as hinted at above, while WeiDU existed last time I played, it wasn't something I needed for the few mods I had...I only ever used plain-jane "copy to your overrides folder" mods...so if I need something else like WeiDU or whatever, please mention that.

Third, is there anything I might want to consider in terms of playing on a modern computer? For example, a widescreen mod (though I may just play it at 800 x 600...haven't decided) or something that significantly enhances (or fixes!) gameplay/graphics/sound with a modern computer's capabilities?

Finally, on a gameplay note, I was thinking of experimenting with a Wild Mage as one of my characters, but I'm not sure if I'll like it or how playable it is for a full run-through of SOA and TOB. Thoughts?


Thanks everyone!
Rob

Edited by Robin Hood, 25 May 2009 - 06:10 PM.


#2 Kulyok

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Posted 25 May 2009 - 11:31 PM

- Widescreen mod is very cool. It's worth it, definitely.

- Ascension is a classic mod, but its final battle can be very disappointing: certain unique monsters(the Five) do not die, and the game does not end. It's not nice at all. It's popular, however, and many people do finish the game. Install it BEFORE BG2 Fixpack.

- Dan Simpson's walkthrough is the best(for me, at least) - some custom advice there, but only for a few cases; Ascension mod has a walkthrough for difficult Ascension battles.

- Wild Mage is risky. It can be exciting, but wild surges are wild surges, and you won't be able to change your character mid-game without some export/console management(XP adjusting, for example).

- I'd recommend you to backup your baldur.exe, override directory, chitin.key and dialog.tlk before installing mods(easy backuping).
More info here: http://forums.pocket...php/topic,17555

- You don't need Weidu. Each mod has Weidu packed inside of it, so to say. So, just forget about it; it's fine.

- I don't play without Banter Pack and Flirt Pack. And G3 Tweak Pack, of course! If you like Nalia, de'Arnise romance is good.

Then again, every modder is confident of their mods, otherwise why would they mod? :) I like my Xan NPC/Assassinations/Dungeon Crawl, but see if they suit your preferences(morose NPC/evil side/comic side).

Have fun playing! And welcome back to the mod community.

#3 Jarno Mikkola

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Posted 25 May 2009 - 11:32 PM

after I figure out what WeiDU is and how to use it

WeiDU is an installation tool for most if not all todays Infinity Engine games(BG1/2+IwD1/2+PST) mod(ification)s. The WeiDU is used by running the mods setup-*modname*.exe, that is actually a renamed WeiDU.exe, it's renamed as setup-*modname*.exe cause it takes orders from a file called setup-*modname*.tp2... and it's always recommended that you use the latest WeiDU.exe from this archive(for windows, the Windows Binary). Although, most of the time, and nearly always the mod makes have updated the mods so there is no need to actually get that file cause the WeiDU.exe, when it is stated, actually auto-updates itself, from all of the WeiDU.exe's the the game directory.

As for the recommendation, I... don't have any, but you might want to look here for what's available. Yes, the BGTutu and BGT is actually BG2 mods, but they center on bringing the BG1 to BG2.

As for graphics on newer computers, if you have an NVidia card, ou'll need to read the first post from here.

Edited by Jarno Mikkola, 25 May 2009 - 11:33 PM.

Deactivated account. The user today is known as The Imp.


#4 Robin Hood

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Posted 25 May 2009 - 11:39 PM

As for graphics on newer computers, if you have an NVidia card, ou'll need to read the first post from here.

Indeed...it's even an 8xxx series at that, as the post mentions!

Thank you both for the recommendations and clarification. Sounds like I should probably leave Ascension alone. I'll have a look at the others mentioned, and any future recommendations, over the next couple of days. I'm just wrapping up a game of Oblivion before I go back to BG2.

#5 Kaeloree

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Posted 25 May 2009 - 11:50 PM

If you haven't played with Ascension before, I suggest you do; it really is better than the original ending, at least in my opinion. I'm not sure quite where Kulyok is getting her information from, since personally I've never experienced none of them being immortal, but...

I like to play with Fixpack (a must) Banter Pack and IEP Banter as my base, with other mods depending on how I'm playing. :)

#6 Kulyok

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 02:00 AM

I'm not sure quite where Kulyok is getting her information from, since personally I've never experienced none of them being immortal, but...


(frowns) What? My tens of tons of playthroughs are not enough, and, woe is me, my honest word is not taken? A duel, immediately!


Seriously, though: yes, I've experienced it at least twice, and I was very disappointed. My condolences to other players who experienced this(saw the bug reports), but, like I said, for many people it never happened at all. I still have hope that jcompton will receive an updated version some day - I recall that people tried to re-code some bits; maybe it will happen, who knows?

#7 Lord of Al

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 02:03 AM

Although you plan to play with 4 of your own characters, If you have any interest in the roleplay and loving your companions as I do, (it can lend a whole new edge to the game) I SERIOUSLY recommend you try bringing bioware NPC's and try some mod NPC's, most of the modded ones are incredibly made (in particular, I mention Xan, oh Xan, how I love your commentary so!) and a ton of others from G3, PPG and here. Banter, flirt packs, romance mods (De'Arnise by Jcompton is astounding) can make the game much more fun to play. I only mention these if its your cup of tea.

I also mention Virtue, as a nice twist on the reputation system, Dungeon-be-gone, for those who've restarted the game with a different character a thousand times, Assasinations for pure originality and inspired design (PPG) Questpack from PPG for more fun content, just make sure you go through the readme and pick what you want, and Divine remix, spell revisions from G3 can be interesting for questionable spell balance. These are just off the top of my head.

I suggest you poke around and take a gander at anything that strikes your fancy, If your in for the long haul, the BG Tutu or Trilogy with a whole new slew of NPC content with the BG1NPC project and using the BG2 engine, you can play from BG1 to BG2 and beyond, its not for the faint of heart however.

:P goodluck, and I hope you glean what you can from this meandering post.

EDIT: oh yeah! and take a look at Rogue Rebalancing, here, its quite neat

Edited by Lord of Al, 26 May 2009 - 03:16 AM.

My! What an interesting turn of phrase.

#8 Leila

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 03:12 AM

If you're not up to Ascension, which -can- be buggy, try Wheels of Prophecy (I think the two mods are compatible actually, but don't quote me on it) over at G3. I think most of the bugs are out, though I haven't tried the newest version yet... I also enjoy Rogue Rebalancing, Xan, Keto, Virtue, and the myriad of components of BG2 Tweaks. UB is good fun, and so is the Quest Pack from the same site--my particularly favourite component of that was an addition to Xzar's Harper quest. :3

Also, I'm not sure if you're taking a semi-custom party simply to avoid banter or if you'd like to have different/more useful classes. If it's the latter, I'd recommend Level 1 NPCs... it takes some getting used to, but you can change the classes of NPCs (say, making Imoen a barbarian) and choose all the skills they'd have at level 1, and when you meet them they level up immediately. It's very useful, especially if you're like me, who only plays clerics but likes all the cleric joinables.

#9 Lord of Al

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 03:18 AM

Also, I'm not sure if you're taking a semi-custom party simply to avoid banter or if you'd like to have different/more useful classes. If it's the latter, I'd recommend Level 1 NPCs... it takes some getting used to, but you can change the classes of NPCs (say, making Imoen a barbarian) and choose all the skills they'd have at level 1, and when you meet them they level up immediately. It's very useful, especially if you're like me, who only plays clerics but likes all the cleric joinables.


yeah, I forgot about Level 1 NPC's, grab it over at G3, another WEIDU pack, and handy if your very serious about the min-maxing
My! What an interesting turn of phrase.

#10 Icendoan

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 03:58 AM

Iirc, WoP is designed to work well with Ascension, but improves the dialogue/non-linearity of it, over the combat. :)

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#11 Robin Hood

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 10:10 AM

Also, I'm not sure if you're taking a semi-custom party simply to avoid banter or if you'd like to have different/more useful classes.

It's definitely for the classes. I sort of enjoy the banter to a point, though it does get a bit much after a while. Level 1 NPCs sounds VERY much like something I'd like to check out. I'll definitely have a look at that, as it would give a "best of both worlds" scenario. It's especially annoying to have...is it Yoshimo who's the traitor? anyway, whomever...abandon you part-way through, cuz he was one of the best thief-like NPCs there was in terms of traps and fighting and all that. Re-classing the NPCs would solve that problem quite nicely. (Though it might be rather odd for some of the NPCs like Jahiera...but I'll manage. ;))

#12 Icendoan

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 10:26 AM

Lo and behold, someone (IE, me) has written a mod entitled 'Keeping Yoshimo! It may not yet be complete, but it has fulfilled it's basic aims and is apparently very stable (I haven't had any bugs in a long while).

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#13 Robin Hood

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 11:07 AM

Lo and behold, someone (IE, me) has written a mod entitled 'Keeping Yoshimo! It may not yet be complete, but it has fulfilled it's basic aims and is apparently very stable (I haven't had any bugs in a long while).


That's a good idea as well, though it depends on how it was done...I dislike altering storylines that were intended by the game designers. Of course, that said, I seem to remember that the first time I had him abandon me (unexpectedly at that point, since I don't often use walkthroughs on first play), I managed to hack him back into the party with a hex editor or some such thing...don't remember the exact method I used any more...so I'm hardly in a position to point fingers. :)

#14 Icendoan

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 12:03 PM

Hey, if you don't want to use it, that's cool. In fact, it only makes Yoshimo temporarily leave the party, before and after Spellhold. All it really changes is him dying, and adds a little more to his past, that we hope isn't so utterly unbelievable that it would destroy Yoshimo's realism.

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#15 Robin Hood

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 12:20 PM

Hey, if you don't want to use it, that's cool. In fact, it only makes Yoshimo temporarily leave the party, before and after Spellhold. All it really changes is him dying, and adds a little more to his past, that we hope isn't so utterly unbelievable that it would destroy Yoshimo's realism.

Yeah, I found the actual storyline kind of less-than-impressive to be honest, but with the Level 1 NPCs mod, it resolves any issues there anyway, since I can make someone else a similar class with similar abilities, only customized to what I want.

It also occurred to me that this resolves the Wild Mage concerns as well, since I can just make one of the NPCs a Wild Mage and then add or remove them depending what I think of them. I did play a Wild Mage once before, but not really long enough to get a good feel for whether I'd like one long-term or not.

#16 Icendoan

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 12:39 PM

Oh, just remember, once you have installed it, you cannot install it again and update all your savegames with the new one. You'll be stuck with the changes you made when you started that game.*

* - An exception only occurs if you haven't met your newly changed NPC, so it won't be stored in your savegame. Imoen is a slight exception to THAT rule, as she has a different .cre file for Spellhold and Irenicus' Dungeon. However, certain mods change this (Imoen Romance, possibly BGT).

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#17 Robin Hood

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 05:21 PM

Oh, just remember, once you have installed it, you cannot install it again and update all your savegames with the new one. You'll be stuck with the changes you made when you started that game.*

That's no different than with a regular custom party, I think...unless, of course, you re-start.

#18 Erephine

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 07:33 PM

or something that significantly enhances (or fixes!) gameplay/graphics/sound


I can humbly suggest some of my own. :whistling:

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#19 Lord of Al

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 10:09 PM

or something that significantly enhances (or fixes!) gameplay/graphics/sound


I can humbly suggest some of my own. :whistling:


*gasp* how could I be so thoughtless! I use Erephine's mods on every single playthrough!

in an attempt to rectify, I, not humbly, but obnoxiously suggest you try Erephine's esteemed mods
My! What an interesting turn of phrase.

#20 Robin Hood

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Posted 26 May 2009 - 11:14 PM

I can humbly suggest some of my own. :whistling:

Sounds good. I've already got one or two minor graphics enhancements installed...an improved Robes of Vecna comes to mind...so this'll fit right in.

Of course, I rather cleverly/stupidly merged all the overrides I used into one convenient RAR file that could just be expanded into the Overrides folder easily next time I played. Great idea, huh? Yeah...just great...except that I didn't keep a record of which mods they were! D'oh! I think I can figure them out, though, with a little effort. But I digress....