New baldur's gate II player

[Minigud]

Well this is the story, i got this game when i was a kid long time ago and i never finished it due the difficulty it was for me at that time. Finally i have built up some courage to try again and i have now played and left the dungeon where me and my friends was taken as prisoners. Im now going for the big quest to get my dear friend back from the wizards. Thing is, i made a fighter and put 6 skills on long sword and i feel that's a mistake? Well im not quite sure but i feel my team is a mess. I tried to fight some adventures up in a tavern and there was little i could do before i died. So if there is any beginners tips for character buildup and where i should proceed to quest that would be highly appriciated. I do know there is a great walkthrough but i do not dare to look at it since i will probably not take my eyes off it if i do so please, some direction would be perfect!

mini~

[mr_sir]

The party you can fight in the tavern in the Promenade are pretty tough early on so don't feel bad about dying. BG2 is pretty non-linear so some quests/battles can be quite hard at a low level. If you are looking for an easy-ish starting quest, try checking out the circus in the promenade

[Ian Kognitow]

Filling up your PC in the long sword is fine - you'll just want to make sure your other party members are proficient in other things. You'll mainly want to keep track of your Thac0, number of hits, and hit/damage modifiers in your statistics to make sure you're being efficient.

The game is pretty good about making sure that the battles you encounter will be generally commensurate with your experience level. Even though you might run into some situations where you will be severely outmatched, you are typically given warning in advance that you probably shouldn't be there or dialogue options to avoid an immediate fight. If you want to avoid using the walkthrough to avoid knowing about exact situations, the Xyx spell-guide is often considered the best strategic reference tool around. It will pretty much tell you everything you need to know about spellcasting. You can find it at: Baldur's Gate II - Spells Reference

[DaemonJ]

You should be good going with long sword but you should also get a point or two into a blunt weapon as well.

Also download one of the many fix packs that contains the un-nerfed Grand Mastery tables to take advantage of all those points in long sword.

I also highly recommend installing the Ease of Use mod as it greatly improves the playability of the game overall.

The fight you mention was most likely with Pebblecrusher and his gang and they are indeed tough, especially when just coming out of Irenicus' dungeon. Get a few more party members and levels and then give the gang another go.

[Minigud]

circus quest completed! and im glad to hear my save is not all screwed up, going to search some other districts now for more quests. I found a lad offering to get my girl back for 20,000 but i said i would come back later with the cash.

mini~

thanks for all answers!

edit: another thing i was thinking i should ask of is the weapon stats. I find it very confusing to see which weapon is the better. anywhere i can read about exactly that?

[Deadalready]

Save often into multiple slots, just remember if you ever need to visit an area outside of Athakatala, you need to go to the Gates District and exit through the gates right of the area.

It's probably debatable, but I think it's possible to do any quest at nearly any level, just with superiour planning and tactics.

[rbeverjr]

Hi, I posted some guides for new players (and to help remind myself of the particulars should I come back to the game in a few years). I think the guides contain a minimum of spoilers - certainly much less than any walkthrough. I hope that you will find some useful information in them. See the links below:

http://www.gamebanshee.com/forums/baldu ... t=rbeverjr

http://www.gamebanshee.com/forums/baldu ... 76082.html

http://www.gamebanshee.com/forums/baldu ... 75429.html

Personally, I would never had placed 5 stars in the longsword, particularly at the very beginning. The team of supporting NPCs is important to a beginner too. However, once you are very familiar with the game, you will be able to win no matter the team or the weapon simply by the expert use of your resources and abilities. In the mean time, save often!

[Henry Gondorff]

As I understand the second question given, it is not a question of which actual weapon is the best in BG but a general question on how to compare different weapons.

Unfortunately I cannot claim to be an expert on the matter, but when comparing weapons I usually look at two stats: Damage and speed factor.

A simple explanation of "damage" is that the higher the stat the more possible damage. It is worth noticing that a damage stat of 2d4 is better than 1d8 since the minimum damage in the first case would be 2 and in the last case only 1. The maximum damage is 8 in both cases.

Speed factor expresses how "fast" the weapon is. The lower the number the faster the weapon. The speed factor of a "small" weapon - for instance a dagger - is usually better (lower) than of a "large" weapon - for instance a two-handed sword - which if you think about is quite logical.

These are of course only basic stats and you should always consider the special features of enchanted weapons when comparing weapons. Some have special abilities that can come in quite handy - for instance various immunities - speciel damages (fire, acid, electrical etc.) - improved thac0 etc.

As stated above I am no expert and if someone in this forum would give a more in depth explanation (and correct my explanation above if it is incorrect) it would be greatly appreciated.

[rbeverjr]

Weapon selection: In general, I don't care about the weapon's base damage or it's speed factor. Eventually, your fighters will get more damage from their strength bonus and/or special damage of the weapon. Also, your fighters will have enough HP and AC, that they can trade blows and need not go first in the round. Yes, it is good if the average damage is more than the next weapon and the speed is quicker, but it isn't that important. What's more important is that the weapon can hit the monster that you are attacking. If it can't, your damage is 0. In SoA, a +3 to hit weapon will hit most every monster. Demiliches are one exception, and of course monsters protected by magic can be immune while the spell lasts. A +1 to hit weapon will do no damage to some monsters. So, that's the first consideration. After that, you look at the special effects. I believe in offense. So, the Stun effect of Celestial Fury (CF) and the Slow effect of the Flail of Ages (FoA) are extremely important. Weapons that give extra attack with CF or FoA are nice (like Belm, Kundane, and Scarlet-ninjato). There are weapons that provide immunities or are particularly effective against some class of creatures, like Daystar vs undead. I tend to use these weapons only in the appropriate circumstance.

[CFM]

edit: another thing i was thinking i should ask of is the weapon stats. I find it very confusing to see which weapon is the better. anywhere i can read about exactly that?

Speed Factor/Casting Time:

Speed Factor (and Casting Time for spells) is how fast you can get an attack (or spell) off. Lower values are faster. If an enemy wizard casts, say, Chain Lightning (Casting Time of 5), and at the same time, you attack with a magic Dagger +1 (Speed Factor of 1), then your attack will happen before the enemy wizard finishes casting the spell. If you successfully hit the enemy wizard before he finishes casting his spell, then his spell will be disrupted and fizzle. Charging a wizard with a big, heavy, slow, two-handed sword is not always the best way to go.

THAC0:

"THAC0" is an acronym for "To-Hit-Armor-Class-0 (zero)". The higher the plus value a weapon has, the better the bonus you'll have "To Hit" an enemy. A magical sword with a +2 THAC0 is better than a magical sword with a +1 THAC0.

An attacker successfully hitting an enemy depends on:
- The attacker's Base THAC0, determined by the attacker's class & level. Lower THAC0 scores are better.
- The THAC0 adjustment of the attacker's weapon (if any).
- The THAC0 adjustment of the attacker's Strength (for melee attacks).
- The THAC0 adjustment of the attacker's Dexterity (for missile attacks).
- The THAC0 adjustment of the attacker's mastery (if any) with the weapon being used. Using a weapon you are NOT proficient in will yield a penalty adjustment.
- The defender's Armor Class, determined by armor/shield/items worn or carried by the defender (some items confer AC bonuses when used or worn), and the defender's Dexterity adjustment (if any).

"Plus" THAC0 adjustments (+1, +2, +3, etc) will actually lower your Base THAC0 score, which is better. "Negative" THAC0 adjustments (from unusually low Strength, cursed weapons, weapons you're not proficient with, etc) will raise your Base THAC0 score, which is worse.

Damage:

Random numbers are generated, behind the scenes all throughout the game, using simulated dice rolls: 4-sided dice, typical 6-sided dice, 8-sided dice, and so on.

"d4" indicates 4-sided dice, "d6" indicates 6-sided dice, and so on.

"1d4" means simulate a 4-sided die roll once (i.e. randomly generate a number from 1 to 4).

"1d8" means simulate an 8-sided die roll once (i.e. randomly generate a number from 1 to 8).

"2d4" means simulate a 4-sided die roll twice (i.e. randomly generate a number from 2 to 8).

"1d4 +1" (for a magical Dagger +1, for example) means simulate a 4-sided die roll once, and add 1 (i.e. randomly generate a number from 2 to 5).

Whew, you never realize how crazy AD&D 2nd Edition Rules are until you try explaining them. Hope this helps.

[CFM]

So if there is any beginners tips for character buildup and where i should proceed to quest that would be highly appriciated.

How about building a level 1 character and proceeding out of Candlekeep into the Iron Throne intrigue of the Sword Coast. Have you played Baldur's Gate:The Original Saga?

Same great game, just a lesser screen resolution, and beginning level characters.

There are SO many game mechanics/abilities/spells/items/options/nuances thrown at you in BG2, that BG1 might be a better "beginners" game. Plus you're missing the first half of the whole story!

[Minigud]

but i dont know where to buy such a game, and bg2 has always been something to conqueor since i failed when i was alot younger! I have done alot of quests in the main city now, but when i level up i never get to put new skills ( no idea why ) and not sure what kind of weapons i should use, or spells! but so far so good =)
I killed the tanner monsters really good ( the murderor ) so i'd say my party is decent?