(My first post on the board).

Finished TOB an hour ago and man were those final fights tough [img]smile.gif[/img] But satisfying.

My party was
Conan, half orc kensai
Sarevok
Keldorn
Mazzy
Imoen
Viconia

So a heavy tank oriented party. My two tanks were my kensai and Sarevok. Kensai has low AC, I know but I used an AC buff a lot and potions. Best thing about the kensai is that he's like the lawnmower man, cutting down the enemy faster than they can cause him damage. With Keldorn I often needed him to stop attacking to cast a special ability so to me he was a backup tank.

is it worth playing again? I think so and I want to use different characters next time with some mods installed. Not being very familiar with AD&D prior to the game I found mages confusing and very weak but I think I will give the mage a shot as my character. Sure I had Imoen but I don't think its the same experience with an NPC mage as it is with my own character, I mean the difference is the level of emotional attachment.

ANyway my post has little point to it except to say thanks for the hints when I had an extra tough time in game. I've been reading since April when I started & finished IWD.

Sprinter

Good to hear you got through! I'm a big fan of melee heavy parties myself.

I think that going through with a mage is an excellent idea. You may be better off with more of a hybrid, like a multiclass fighter/mage. That way, your protagonist is not 100% reliant on magic. Magic, once you understand the system, is both fun and enjoyable. Some mods might help spruce up the game a bit, but I wouldn't advise anything extreme, like Tactics. Maybe something like Icelus' Unfinished Business. With or without mods, it's definitely worth a run-through. Personally, I can say I've finished it 7 times without mods, and only once with them, but that's just me. Many people, like Xen, advise them. It's a personal choice.

And welcome to the forums! [img]graemlins/cheers.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/thewave.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/cheers.gif[/img]

I would say Heck yeah! I haven't quit playing it since I got it two and a half years ago. BTW do they have a 12 step program for me?

Seriously, you will always have a different experience with it, just try new PCs and take along different NPCs. Download a mod or two; if you need the game to be more of a challenge get Tactics, want it to be more userfriendly download ease-of-use, need cheesier weapons go for item upgrade, and for a different experience their are a bunch just like unfinished business mentioned by TrueMoose.

Enjoy!

Yep as you said you used mostly heavy melee party, that's kind of powergaming. Try playing the game with bard or something similar, now that's where the fun is, IMHO.

Thanks for the replies, forum friends. I've already started another game and this time I have determined to play a spell caster as my main character, I picked a female sorceror using a very fascinating portrait (one I can stare at it for days, hehe) garnered from the web. I've read that sorcerors are really require that the player knows the spell casting system and I don't think I really do but now is my chance to learn. Also I think sorceror is a class that fits the child of Bhaal theme very well, considering the the sorc's power is innate (possibly from the bloodline).

Question, is it very difficult to play with 3 mages + 2 fighters and a cleric? I have a hard time kicking Imoen out of my party as she is my character's childhood friend, and I also want to have Jan in my party since I have not use him yet.

No, that kind of party mix-up will be fine, just don't forget to stick a nice full-plate suit on your cleric and use him/her as a secondary tank. You'll probably find it a little tough at the beginning, but when your mages start hitting top levels, you'll be unstoppable.

[ 06-12-2004, 09:01 PM: Message edited by: shamrock_uk ]

Welcome to IW!!! [img]graemlins/thewave.gif[/img]

The sorceror is a difficult class to use at first, but it taught me how to use spells when I didn't really know how to use them.

That party should do the trick since Jan can do your thieving for you since he's an illusionist/thief. I suggest you take Jaheira as a druid insead of a cleric. She can heal you more than enough and will fight better than any NPC cleric like Viconia or Anomen, IMHO.

Very useful spell reference:

http://members.chello.nl/~j.vanthull/BG2SR/Main.htm

[ 06-13-2004, 05:51 AM: Message edited by: shamrock_uk ]

Welcome to IW! [img]graemlins/happywave.gif[/img]

Congratulations on your victory. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Shamrock_uk, thanks very much for the link. It is precisely what I have been hoping to find to help me make better use of my character's spells.