Party Questions
Q. Which is the best of the three Clerics to take with your party?
A. That depends on what you're looking for in a cleric. You may want one that is flexible with your party's alignment. For Good/Good-Nuetral parties, you would probably consider Aerie or Anomen. Evil/Evil-Nuetral parties would best be off with taking Viconia, and in some cases Anomen depending on how you want to play it.
If alignment means squat to you, however, then you can focus more on the character's classes. If you want a major spellcaster that will sit in back, then Aerie's Mage spells along with her Cleric ones would be a prime choice. If you're looking for a front-line fighter, then consider Anomen, who was dualed from a Fighter at level 7 and can use healing spells during combat. If you're looking for a flat-out healer/summoner who would focus on spell casting and in some cases be a side-line fighter, Viconia's high magic resistance would fit the qualifications.
Essentially, there is no perfect choice. It depends on what your party's balance is of fighters and spell casters. Different Clerics have thier own special abilities that may or may not be useful to your group. The best choice is to experiment and see which does the job that needs to be done.
Q. Which is the best romance?
A. The age-old debate. In Baldur's Gate 2,there are four romances. Three of them are female, only one male. The Druid Jaheira and the Clerics Aerie, Viconia, and Anomen. Some romances are more focused than others, and each has thier own style. The rundown:
- Jaheira - Probably the most solid, longest and most confusing of the relationships. Jahiera is getting over the loss of her husband and is pretty much measuring you up to see how you compare to her standards. She's tough and pretty hard to get though to, but probably the most fun romance.
- Aerie - A shy, quiet girl. The romance isn't as focused as the others, and mostly you'll have to sit and listen to a lot of her personal angst and rants. Not the most interesting overall, but some people would disagree. Especially those who have also had Hear'Dalis in the party while romancing Arie.
- Anomen - The only romance option for female Players without the aid of mods. Not as compicated as Jaheira, but still as frusterating as all heck. You'll have to wade through a bunch of exaggerated stories of heroism from him, and he'll mark down your history with Sarevok as just hear-say and rumors. But if you work with him and his sidequest, you can reshape his persona to fit your liking.
- Viconia - The famous, sharp-tounged Drow from BG1. An important thing to note is that Viconia will not romance PCs who are Elves. This romance, as told to me by others, is fun as you get to snap back at her every so often after some of her remarks on you. She'll begin to respect you for it, but don't get too carried away. Viconia is a major favorite among the romances.
Please note that there are some wonderful Mods and add-ons like Kelsey and Tashia that can be installed in BG2 that aren't included here.
Q. Which stronghold is the most fun?
A. Another good question. They're all fun to try, but for length and profit, you'd go Fighter with Nalia's Keep. You don't have to have Nalia in your party: just clear the place out. If your PC is a Fighter, Barbarian, Monk or Subclass, she will offer you control of the place. You get to make major decisions, collect taxes, and have full run of the whole nine yards. Fun.
Wizards who do Valygar Corthala's quest will inherit the Planar Sphere. This stronghold comes later in the game, but you get to train three apprentices in the art of magic. They will craft magical items that you request, but beware as they can die in the process. This tends to make the Cowled Wizards a little uneasy about you. The best idea is to consult GameBanshee's guide on the way things work.
A level 14 Druid can challenge for control of the Groves that are being overrun by Faldorn and the Shadow Druids. Once you've become the Arch Druid you'll be consulted by an informant when you're needed at the Groves for help. Descent stronghold, but not too rewarding.
Paladins get quests for the Radiant Heart. A series of tests will be pressed on you after you've killed Firkraag, and it's a lot of running this way and that. It's reccomended you consult GameBanshee's Quest guide for more help. Some nice rewards with this one.
Priests get to dig around thier respective Churches. The Temple of Helm will recruit you (Not depending on your alignment - it's always Helm) and send you down into the Sewers. Deal with the mess there, then go and find your respective church. From there on out you will recieve your jobs. Consult GameBanshee for more information.
These are just a few of the strongholds. The Quest Page can be located at
http://www.gamebanshee.com/baldursgateii/quests.php .
Q. Who should I take in my party?
A. ....... Don't ask me this. Please, don't. If you really want advice on what other people say is the "perfect party", then you can go dig up an old thread in the forums. If you want to play the game like a true Role Player, pick up characters as you go along and see what works best for you. You can't keep all of them, and you probably won't want to, but experiment with different characters. You may take a full six people, or you may solo with your PC. There is no such things as an unltimate killing party. You may load up with six warriors, or you may go one warrior and five mages.
A balanced party usually goes 2 Fighters of some type, 2 mages, a Thief and a cleric. Feel free to change the formula as you choose. The typical good/nuetral party [before you get Imoen back] usually goes with Minsc, Jaheira, Anomen, Yoshimo, and Nalia with the PC. If your PC is a Thief, then throw out Yoshimo and take a mage like Edwin. Don't like Anomen? Take Viconia instead. Have a bias against Miniature Giant Space Hamsters? Trade Minsc for Valygar or Keldorn. Whatever you feel like.
Just be aware that not all NPCs care for your choice in other party members.
Q. What party members don't get along?
A. A quick runthrough for the major ones. Keldorn or Valygar will slay Viconia if they're together in a party. If you make Anomen fail his test, he will attack Keldorn and Aerie (She can be revived, unlike the others). Valygar, Keldorn, and Minsc will break away from the party to kill Edwin if he is present. Korgan will kill Aerie.
Jan comes close many, MANY times, but nobody ever actually attacks him.
Q. Which characters make for the most amusing party?
A. Mixing and matching personas can be fun. Dialogs that won't lead to sure death like the ones above can be very amusing, especially if they come up in a rather tense period in the game.
For the most amusing (and longest) dialogs, you'd probably want Jan Janson in your group. He'll make jokes on everybody, including Keldorn, Valygar, and even the Player. Only Viconia and Mazzy can really match wits with him. Anomen gets in conflicts with a good number of characters (Jan, Hear'Dalis, occasionally Player Character), especially if he failed his test. Unsurprisingly, Imoen has enough tact to sweet talk the entire cast of NPCs... Even Korgan. If you want to have a little fun with a mismatched group of alignments, here's your couple. The only way to have the most fun is to really sit and wait to see what your party comes up with.
Q. My character is Dual/multi classed. Will I get two strongholds?
A. No. A Dual-classed character will get the Quest for the class he is currently active in. I.E. a Fighter-gone-Mage will get the Planar Sphere. Not Nalia's Keep. Multi classed charactors such as Fighter/Mages will get whichever Quest he addresses first. If he does Nalia's Keep and accepts it first, he will not inherit the Planar Sphere.
Q. When should I dual my PC?
A. You'll usually want to dual in the level 14-16, simply because it takes too long to catch up to your previous class if you do it any later. But if you're really sick of your first class, or have maxed on XP, go ahead and Dual.
Q. Who did the NPC voices for BG2?
A. Jcompton has posted the master list of NPC, minor character, and background character voices at
http://gamebanshee.com/forums/showthrea ... did=24510.
Q. Can NPCs get familiars?
A. Nope. Only the Protagonist can summon a familiar. Though only mages are supposed to be able to do it, any PC can with a little cheese. Consult our local cheesemaster UserUnfriendly on how to cast spellscrolls using potions.
