Question on Baldur's Gate

[Cody211282]

I just got the Baldur's Gate four pack today and i was wondering should I start with the first game and go from there, or just jump right into the second. I have never payed the(yea I know way late on this one) and have only heard anything on the second game, so any input would be appreciated.

Also what s a good class for it anyway?

 

[DazZ.]

Get Baldurs Gate Tutu, and play the first one on the second games engine. Google will find it for you.

 

[Radeonx]

I'd recommend playing the first game, just to make sure that the stories stick.
Not to mention it is awesome.

 

[Slycne]

Also what s a good class for it anyway?

Fighter is always a good class to start with, and if you get used to it you can always multi-class down the line or re-roll rather than bringing your old character into subsequent games.

 

[snow]

Start with the first one. If you play the second one first, you won't appreciate the first one at all. The stories are connected as you're supposed to be the same character you made from the first game. There will be a lot of people who will recognize you from the first game, so it would be less confusing as to why so many people know you if you play them back to back...

Not to mention Baldur's Gate 2's intro alone will spoil the entire first game for you. Do what I did and play them back to back! You won't be disappointed.

 

[Baby Tea]

Download Buldur's gate trilogy, its mod the combines baldur's gate 1 & 2 So you play through the entire series uninterrupted.

Totally this.
I have BGT installed, and the transition between BG1 and BG2 is seamless. Plus you get higher resolutions (Instead of the 640x480 of the original), more spells, more races, and new classes. BGT is THE mod to get for Baldur's Gate. Totally awesome.

As for starting class, I'd agree with Slycne and say 'Fighter' to start. It's simple, but still very effective. You'll be able to experiment with the other classes from the NPCs that join your party and get used to them, and when you decide to play through again (Or if you decide to start over) then you'll know how to use them.

Also, as a general rule of thumb: Learn where the quick-save button is. And use it.
The auto-save feature isn't the greatest, and you will die. Use quick save. A whole bunch.

 

[Cody211282]

Thanks for the advice guys, I defently need to look into Tutu and Buldur's gate trilogy, they look awesome.

 

[Cody211282]

Download Buldur's gate trilogy, its mod the combines baldur's gate 1 & 2 So you play through the entire series uninterrupted.

PS. I was in your position like 6 months ago, and the games are still very good

Download Buldur's gate trilogy, its mod the combines baldur's gate 1 & 2 So you play through the entire series uninterrupted.

Totally this.
I have BGT installed, and the transition between BG1 and BG2 is seamless. Plus you get higher resolutions (Instead of the 640x480 of the original), more spells, more races, and new classes. BGT is THE mod to get for Baldur's Gate. Totally awesome.

As for starting class, I'd agree with Slycne and say 'Fighter' to start. It's simple, but still very effective. You'll be able to experiment with the other classes from the NPCs that join your party and get used to them, and when you decide to play through again (Or if you decide to start over) then you'll know how to use them.

Also, as a general rule of thumb: Learn where the quick-save button is. And use it.
The auto-save feature isn't the greatest, and you will die. Use quick save. A whole bunch.

Would you suggest the "Baldur's Gate Trilogy Tweak Pack" as well or just leave as is?

 

[Amnestic]

Would you suggest the "Baldur's Gate Trilogy Tweak Pack" as well or just leave as is?

I'm using it. Seems decent enough. Also using the Gibberlings 3 (G3) Tweakpack, but some of that is a bit...'advanced', and you're probably better off waiting until you've got at least one full playthrough under your belt first.

As for class, I've always been partial to a Sorcerer, since I don't think you ever get an NPC Sorcerer in your party, whereas you can find one of pretty much every other class (though not always class kits) in your NPC choices.

Plus they're a class which, if built and played right, can solo the (second) game with only a Quarterstaff.

 

[Cody211282]

Would you suggest the "Baldur's Gate Trilogy Tweak Pack" as well or just leave as is?

I'm using it. Seems decent enough. Also using the Gibberlings 3 (G3) Tweakpack, but some of that is a bit...'advanced', and you're probably better off waiting until you've got at least one full playthrough under your belt first.

As for class, I've always been partial to a Sorcerer, since I don't think you ever get an NPC Sorcerer in your party, whereas you can find one of pretty much every other class (though not always class kits) in your NPC choices.

Plus they're a class which, if built and played right, can solo the (second) game with only a Quarterstaff.

Sweet thanks for the info, I honestly think it was you yelling at me to get this game in the first place that made me break down and buy it on amazon.

 

[The Madman]

I personally prefer the tutu mod over the BGT, but regardless you're still playing the same game so it's all a matter of preference.

Anyway I'd like to recommend the BG1 NPC Project mod whenever I can. What it does is it adds BG2 style banter and dialogue between both you and the NPC companions throughout the game. Otherwise you'll quickly find most companions in BG1 tend to be extremely... well, silent and boring. More a stat utility than a genuine character.

It *does* change the game some so if you're intent on a 'pure' first playthrough it might be avoided. But that said if you want the best possible first experience I'd highly recommend it as it's extremely high quality and playing through the original game without it seems rather lifeless to me now. I mean by default, Imoen, one of the most important characters in the series, has two sets dialogue in the whole of BG1, easily a 30+ hour game. This mod helps add some life to the characters, and does so extremely well!

Yes, it works with the BGT mod as well.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

The choice of class doesn't matter so much as your choice of classes spread among the party. Fighter is probably the "easiest" to play as they have a LOT of HP and tend to have a very good armor save. They are also somewhat resistant to the most common non-trap related magic in the game.

Rogue is another choice I suppose but that's a tricky one. It can't stand up in combat terribly well thanks to low armor saves and a low HP pool but they tend to have the best saves versus most magic in the game. It is a jack of all trades sort of class however, and while one should be present in any party (and inded should probably stay out in front once in a dungeon in order to find the traps and whatnot) it can be tricky to play espcially in the early stages.

Magic Users are some of the hardest to play. Unless you invest heavily in CON, they start with a mere 4 HP meaning a single attack from ANY weapon can potentially kill them an first level. Of course, by the end of the game when they can cast 9th level spells you'll find them unstoppable badassess in every sense of the word, but for the first several levels all they can really be expected to do is support from the back. WAAAY in the back.

Paladins are a soilid choice for a party leader as well. They have some multitasking at their disposal, have a lot of HP and excellent armor and (generally) will saves. Their innate ability to turn the undead can come in handy in parts of the game. They are less proficient at simply wading in and crushing heads than a fighter but they can still be expected to stand toe to toe with the enemy.

I don't recall which game in the associated series I played first, either Black Isles "Icewind Dale" or BioWare's "Baldur's Gate", but I was actually forced to create an entire party myself (i.e. there were not intra-party interactions built into the game as a result). I did well having a Rouge as party leader, a Fighter, a Ranger, a Cleric, a Mage and, if I'm not mistaken, a Bard. Of course, the fight at the end of the game was brutal and left only my Ranger, Rogue and Cleric standing. Some of the high level spells bosses like to sling in those games are simply nasty, often resulting in instant death if the save fails or instant near death even if it succeeds (I'm looking at YOU power word: kill and finger of death).

 

[Amnestic]

Paladins are a soilid choice for a party leader as well. They have some multitasking at their disposal, have a lot of HP and excellent armor and (generally) will saves. Their innate ability to turn the undead can come in handy in parts of the game. They are less proficient at simply wading in and crushing heads than a fighter but they can still be expected to stand toe to toe with the enemy.

If you're going to play a Paladin, I'd always take the Inquisitor kit over a pureclass (though Cavalier is a decent alternative). Inquisitor loses his cleric spells and Turn Undead, but gets a few innate abilities (including True Sight, which is scrumptious) as well as some nice immunities built in.

Besides, I'm pretty sure Paladins always Turn at two levels lower than an even level Cleric, so you generally want your Cleric of the group to be doing the turning anyway, rather than your Paladins - although that *might* not matter after Cleric level 14 (Paladin 16), as I recall the Turn Undead table stops there.

 

[The Madman]

I don't recall which game in the associated series I played first, either Black Isles "Icewind Dale" or BioWare's "Baldur's Gate", but I was actually forced to create an entire party myself (i.e. there were not intra-party interactions built into the game as a result). I did well having a Rouge as party leader, a Fighter, a Ranger, a Cleric, a Mage and, if I'm not mistaken, a Bard. Of course, the fight at the end of the game was brutal and left only my Ranger, Rogue and Cleric standing. Some of the high level spells bosses like to sling in those games are simply nasty, often resulting in instant death if the save fails or instant near death even if it succeeds (I'm looking at YOU power word: kill and finger of death).

You're thinking of Icewind Dale, where you make your own party.

It's less of an issue in Baldur's Gate however since it's a much more narrative experience with NPC companions rather than custom-made ones, and the game steers you pretty clearly towards certain companion choices. Most every player will have Imoen with them, the rogue (Who also makes a decent dual-class mage later on) as well as khalid and Jaheira, the typical warrior/healer combo. Beyond those the rest is fairly optional, although again the game steers you towards Xan & Montaron as evil or Minsc & Dynaheir as good, classic mage/support character setup.

In that way Baldur's Gate is pretty friendly at least, leaving the player open to play whatever they most want without gimping their group.

That said I recommend the Fighter for a first playthrough. If you've never played with the ruleset before, BG can be a bit overwhelming and Fighter is the easiest to get into and has the most survivability so you wont end up reloading saves nearly as often as with any other class. Plus it's just an all-round useful class with the largest assortment of available loot and upgrades throughout the series as well as boasting a pretty damn cool class-specific questline in BG2.

 

[Coldie]

There's two things to keep in mind when selecting a character class: Stronghold (different classes get different keeps and different questlines associated with them) and the available recruitable PCs. Notably, there are no "pure" rogues in Baldur's Gate 2, a very limited selection of clerics, and just one paladin. Also, there are no sorcerers or wild mages at all, and those are really fun. Playing one of the paladin kits is a very rewarding experience, as is a dual-wielding bard or rogue (high level bards and rogues can equip anything they want).

Oh and, without spoiling much, I have to say that BG2 is a caster game. There are countless fights with enemy mages with countless layers of magic protection that must be stripped off with specialized dispel counters... Also quite a few annoying negative energy level-draining fights. Paladins have kits and weapons that can deal with both issues, wink wink nudge nudge.

I don't recall which game in the associated series I played first, either Black Isles "Icewind Dale" or BioWare's "Baldur's Gate", but I was actually forced to create an entire party myself (i.e. there were not intra-party interactions built into the game as a result). I did well having a Rouge as party leader, a Fighter, a Ranger, a Cleric, a Mage and, if I'm not mistaken, a Bard. Of course, the fight at the end of the game was brutal and left only my Ranger, Rogue and Cleric standing. Some of the high level spells bosses like to sling in those games are simply nasty, often resulting in instant death if the save fails or instant near death even if it succeeds (I'm looking at YOU power word: kill and finger of death).

While you can create an entire party in Baldur's Gate (by starting a multiplayer game, creating the party, switching back to singleplayer), you reaaaally don't want to. The recruitable PCs are fantastic, even if the selection is quite limited. The Icewind Dale games do require you to field the whole party yourself.

 

[Amnestic]

Beyond those the rest is fairly optional, although again the game steers you towards Xan & Montaron as evil or Minsc & Dynaheir as good, classic mage/support character setup.

Xzar, not Xan. Xan's the pessimistic Moonblade fellow. Xzar is the crazed Zhentarim Necromancer.

 

[squid5580]

From what I remember BG1 is tons harder than 2. But the story from 1 leads directly into 2 so you should start with one. Just remember 2 is far better.

 

[The Madman]

Beyond those the rest is fairly optional, although again the game steers you towards Xan & Montaron as evil or Minsc & Dynaheir as good, classic mage/support character setup.

Xzar, not Xan. Xan's the pessimistic Moonblade fellow. Xzar is the crazed Zhentarim Necromancer.

Damn, you're right, I stand corrected! Methinks that's also a first, normally I'm the one correcting others when it comes to BG, even if this was simply a slip of the tongue.

Plus Xan in useless and I often forget about him. Give a crappy mage with terrible stats and a miserable attitude the best sword in the game? That's just sadistic. At least Xzar is fun to click!

"I wanted infravision like the elves, but tis' more than just taking their eyes"

And of course when he enters combat, in a gloriously insane voice: "I am become Death, destroyer of worlds!"

 

[Cody211282]

I personally prefer the tutu mod over the BGT, but regardless you're still playing the same game so it's all a matter of preference.

Anyway I'd like to recommend the BG1 NPC Project mod whenever I can. What it does is it adds BG2 style banter and dialogue between both you and the NPC companions throughout the game. Otherwise you'll quickly find most companions in BG1 tend to be extremely... well, silent and boring. More a stat utility than a genuine character.

It *does* change the game some so if you're intent on a 'pure' first playthrough it might be avoided. But that said if you want the best possible first experience I'd highly recommend it as it's extremely high quality and playing through the original game without it seems rather lifeless to me now. I mean by default, Imoen, one of the most important characters in the series, has two sets dialogue in the whole of BG1, easily a 30+ hour game. This mod helps add some life to the characters, and does so extremely well!

Yes, it works with the BGT mod as well.

I've been trying to install this for the better part of an hour, but every time I do it runs into some sort of error.

 

[Coldie]

Damn, you're right, I stand corrected! Methinks that's also a first, normally I'm the one correcting others when it comes to BG, even if this was simply a slip of the tongue.

Plus Xan in useless and I often forget about him. Give a crappy mage with terrible stats and a miserable attitude the best sword in the game? That's just sadistic. At least Xzar is fun to click!

"I wanted infravision like the elves, but tis' more than just taking their eyes"

And of course when he enters combat, in a gloriously insane voice: "I am become Death, destroyer of worlds!"

And then there are Edwin and Tiax. The Saga sure has its share* of delightfully evil lunatics. You're making me want to replay it all again!

* And many other games' shares of lunatics AND turnips, too.