I played BG1 back in the day but never touched 2, should I patch the original version to run on modern systems or just get/pirate EE?
also applies to the other DnD games they re-released
is the enhanced edition of BG2 worth it?
I played BG1 back in the day but never touched 2, should I patch the original version to run on modern systems or just get/pirate EE?
also applies to the other DnD games they re-released
The EE version of bg1 is extremely bad and ruins the game. The EE version of bg2 is far worse than the original but functional, as there wasn't much to ruin in the first place.
Can you explain? Why say something like that with no details
Worth what?
It’s totally fine. I would go with it.
Buy ee, play vanilla + mods.
This is your best bet if you don’t already own the original games. If you buy the EEs on gog, you get the originals bundled with them, which is the only way to buy them nowadays.
I think the BG EEs are bad and I’d suggest playing lightly modded originals. I don’t think they’d be bad if Beamdog had simply updated them with QoL features and left them alone, but they couldn’t restrain themselves and added awful fanfiction tier npcs (there’s multiple trannies in the games they made) and a bunch of questionably balanced magic items and I believe they also added dialogue that wasn’t in the original games, which is disrespectful.
The only EE I think is worth playing is Planescape Torment. That one’s a straight improvement over the original. Otherwise, play bg1 then bg2 then ToB and that’s the series. Stay away from siege of Dragonspear, it’s a fan fiction interlude beamdog inserted between bg1 and bg2. I disliked bg3 as well, it has nothing to do with the originals and I didn’t enjoy it. Otherwise, I replayed bg1 and bg2 within the last year, I think they’re still fun. Ask us with any questions, we can give you advice about what mods to use or not use and general game help.
what mods should I use? I was thinking of following the guide on the GOG forums
>what mods should I use? I was thinking of following the guide on the GOG forums
Widescreen resolution patch (I'd recommend 1280x720 or 1920x1080, anything higher makes everything tiny. Those will get you a modern 16:9 aspect ratio but still something close to the originals (640x480 for the original game, IIRC BG2 let you go a bit higher but still 4:3 ratios)
Fix pack (just install the bare minimum, not the more questionable choices)
Tweak pack (think it's called the tweaks anthology now). I would be very judicious with these and install as little as possible, think about every option and only install the ones you really want.
>not the more questionable choices
Exblain
The fix pack distinguishes between things that are objectively bugs/typos, and then things that are more subjective and consist of trying to interpret developer intent. I would err on the side of caution and use the former while rejecting the latter.
>The only EE I think is worth playing is Planescape Torment. That one’s a straight improvement over the original
No it's not, that game is even buggier than the original.
>Is it worth it
Yes, when you get the mod that removes all the EE story shite.
You play EE's for the conveniences they bring in a single package - like wide-screen support and proximity looting; rather than having to juggle a half dozen mods, not for the extra fan content.
>Yes, when you get the mod that removes all the EE story shite.
The story stuff isn't even close to the main issue.
Much of the EEs were repackaging years-old community mods. About the only QoL feature they added that was new was the area looting (a cool feature, I admit)
not to toot the beamhomosexuals' horn, but they did add zooming, which is a feature I didn't know how much I wanted before I got it
so whats a good party to get into this game?
I made a bard
I have realized that might have not been a good idea
>so whats a good party to get into this game?
>I made a bard
>I have realized that might have not been a good idea
Bard is a really shitty class in this, unfortunately. I would probably start over with you. I like including bards as skill monkeys/support with their songs, but they're just not good in this. They can't replace a thief because all they get is pickpocket, they can't handle traps and locks, so they're like a gimped shitty thief/mage.
For party composition, it depends on your alignment. Good party members will be unhappy if you do bad shit, evil party members will be unhappy if you do good shit, and if it gets extreme they can tell you to frick off and permanently leave. Neutral party members will complain at either very high or very low reputation, but won't leave IIRC.
You'll want at least one tanky melee, at least one arcane caster, at least one divine caster, and someone who can handle traps and locks. Past that, it's up to your preference. You could double up on the arcane and/or divine casters, you could have a ranged damage specialist to snipe at enemy squishy mages, and adding more melee frontliners is always a solid choice. You can have multiple rolls be handled by one class, e.g. a cleric can be a beastly frontliner and divine caster at once, you can have a cleric/mage multiclass to cast all the spells, you could have a fighter/thief specializing in ranged sniping, etc. For a full party of six, I'm a fan of three frontliners, a cleric, a thief, and a mage, but that's a pretty simple and basic composition.
There's a lot fewer party members than BG1, so your options are more limited. Assuming you want to play a good party, and you want to use the companion NPCs and not roll a custom party (though you do have this option if you want, you'll merely be losing party member banter and quests), I would probably roll a tanky frontlier MC, grab Minsc (ranger, built for melee)from the starting area, Keldorn (inquisitor paladin, built for melee) from the government district sewers, grab Anomen (fighter/cleric) from the slums tavern, Nalia (mage/thief) from the slums tavern, and Aerie (cleric/mage) from the promenade circus, right after the tutorial dungeon. I'd probably swap out Nalia for Imoen (also a mage/thief) later in the plot, just for BG1's sake. She's like a sister to you, y'know?
Gnome fighter illusionist. Do not play the EE thoughbeit, it is aids and trash.
Run out of Mahiro images?
Every class works.
You can make anything viable , even with SCS the game is not that hard once you grasp the mechanics.
You get a shitload of potions, wands or scrolls, do not be afraid to use them instead of hoarding them.
Disregard Spergs like
instantly, they can only get their dicks hard if their dopamine-addled brains see LE BIG DMG on screen.
One of the most fun playthroughs I had was with Bard with no Stat rerolls.
Used him as the dedicated Buffer/Debuffer/Web-Caster.
Druid shapeshifter joined the chat
In my opinion the standard party that will never leave you walled is
>CHARNAME
>Keldorn
>Anomen
>Jan
>Jaheira
>Nalia
Lots of people like Aerie for her lategame potential but I find her multiclass takes too long to get good, and unlike Jaheira she doesn't have much to offer besides spells that other people can cast better until she gets to stupid levels and puts cleric spells into contingencies. If you want to romance her, take her instead of Nalia.
You can use Cernd instead of Jaheira if you want a druid who stands a reasonable chance at reaching Archdruid levels, but he's way worse at tanking. Ultimately I don't think any character is a wasted slot in this game, though.
>Lots of people like Aerie for her lategame potential but I find her multiclass takes too long to get good
Dude, she's the best pretty much immediately, just DUHM with flail of ages and go to town. All the best spells in bg2 are low level and she gets them immediately, stoneskin, mirror image, all that good stuff. Only charname can be stronger out the gate, and only sometimes.
Cernd is the worst character in the game and arguably the only useless companion in the entire game.
The only reason that anon mentioned Cernd was in the context of wanting a party member to become archdruid.
>that anon
this is gunna be one of those threads huh :/
>this is gunna be one of those threads huh :/
What did he mean by this?
I've seen posts that say a good way to enjoy BGEE/BG2EE is to install the mod that removes the new npcs + the mod that restores the classic cutscenes. Regarding the mod that removes the new npcs, I see it allocates their items all over the world. Are these items fine or do they break the game balance?
>I've seen posts that say a good way to enjoy BGEE/BG2EE is to install the mod that removes the new npcs + the mod that restores the classic cutscenes.
100% correct about the two mods, but don't worry about the items.
>Regarding the mod that removes the new npcs, I see it allocates their items all over the world. Are these items fine or do they break the game balance?
I've never played the EEs, but just from the raw stupidity of everything else that they added, from the characters, to the dialogue, I wouldn't trust Beamdog to add anything, and so would remove them simply out of principle.
EE is dogshit that makes the game look worse, breaks certain interactions, and introduces buggy items. People disingenuously shill it because its the only version SCS is compatible with, which is a shit mod. Just play with a resolution mod and that's it.
I've been hesitant to say this, because usually I'm strongly against shilling e-celebs and other attention starved homosexuals, but at this point I feel he has solidified his status in the Autism Hall of Fame enough to get a recommendation: check out Davaeorn's videos if you want a deep-dive understanding of the game mechanics, classes, companions and equipment.
Here's a class guide. It's only 4 hours long. Well, closer to 5 but whatever:
tl;dw: all classes are viable, even on the hardest difficulty on no-reloead, play what seems fun to you
All you really need to know is that the meta is using magic buffs to survive melee and that stacking resistances is more important than AC. All the good companions in bg2 are multis that can self buff. Taking a pure caster is not fun because you'll just be spamming HW, and taking a pure tank is not fun because you'll be a shitty version of a multi until you get HLAs. Buffs are haste, stoneskin, mirror image and blur. Spell Immunity abjuration for imprisonment. Chaotic commands for all other CC. Dispel order is secret word or spell pierce into breach, but usually just breach.
>mahiro spammer
Post hidden!
Enjoy watching a 4 hour video to learn what I just told you in 30 seconds.
Go with EE and don't get baited by the local chuds. By now EE has significantly less bugs than the original and the engine works better for mods, especially the newer ones.
what the frick is a chud
My party is
Main char cleric
Mimsc
Keldorm
Jaheira
nalia
Yoshimo
Who would be a good swap for yoshi?
Misc stays frick you
Haer'dalis would round up your party nicely. If you feel nalia's thief skills are a bit too iffy Jan would be a perfectly good inclusion as well.
You actually managed to typo Minsc twice.
I guess that's somehow fitting.
>Who would be a good swap for yoshi?
Imoen is a popular choice (when you can actually get her).
I’d ditch yoshimo for aerie. Gets you another divine caster and another divine arcane caster. Nalia is plenty to handle traps and locks and you can swap her for Imoen later if you feel like it
I started EET with SCS like 4 times but never got passed BG1, always lose interest and play something else.
the EE versions of Icewind Dale 1+2 and Neverwinter are not as bad...right?
Iwd1 EE I can’t speak for.
Nwn1 EE is simply some graphical improvements and no gameplay improvements. Apparently it also breaks compatibility with some older modules.
Iwd2 ee is a fan made mod pack. There are some posters here who love it and think it’s great, I think it has a bunch of poorly thought out changes and a bunch of random kitchen sink additions, I dislike it.
Imo the only good EE is PS:T, which is simply a direct improvement on the original, without adding any stupid or questionable changes.