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Peytin of Rothmire · 12-25-2002, 01:18 AM

1) Both Lord Brass and Cadaukor are right. You are free to go to HOW(the town of Lonelywood) at almost anytime in IWD through the town of Kulduhar. But I think once you are there, you must finish it before returning. I'm not positive as I've never tried to go back until I finished HOW. If you choose an expansion only game you will go directly to Lonelywood with no chance of returning to HOW. Ideally, you would place the badges near the end of HOW but don't go up the staircase. Instead, return to Kulduhar and enter the formally locked door to travel to Lonelywood and begin HOW. If you have a saved game near this point in IWD, boot it up and choose this option. This will maximize your exp before beginning HOW and will allow you to return after finishing HOW to finish the final few IWD battles. If you have HOW, you should d/l ToLM as it is well worth the hours of d/l time. It works the same as HOW in that once you go you must finish it before being returned to HOW. You can begin ToTL by speaking to the character in the inn that offers the adventure quest. Begin this just before leaving for the Isle of Ice. The above description is the way to play all three as one complete game. Much like BG1, the final IWD battle occurs at the end of the expansions.
2) Follow Cadaukor's advice and stick with trolls.
3) The druid and bards classes are better balanced, making them more interesting characters to play throughout IWD also. The areas remain intact. I think there has been some debate on previous posts regarding creatures "calling" to their fellow enemies for assistance. I don't know if this is the case.
4) The bag of holding, if I recall correctly, is a spoil of battle that occurs about 3/4 of the way through HOW. Not so great at that point in the game unless you venture on to ToLM.
5) Personally, I can't comment on HOF as I'm still building a decent party to tackle the game in that fashion. Currently, I'm playing two diff parties, leveling characters as they go to get them fit. There are many previous posts in which HOF is discussed however.

Frankly, If you've gone through the BG series and enjoyed them as I did, you should continue through HOW and ToLM. While, the IWD series is not as large in scope as BG, I have found it to be more versatile in terms of replay, largely due to it being a shorter game overall and as such, you can play through with the same characters in a shorter span and level up.

12-25-2002, 01:18 AM	#4
Peytin of Rothmire Manshoon Join Date: September 20, 2002 Location: Pennsylvania Age: 54 Posts: 151	1) Both Lord Brass and Cadaukor are right. You are free to go to HOW(the town of Lonelywood) at almost anytime in IWD through the town of Kulduhar. But I think once you are there, you must finish it before returning. I'm not positive as I've never tried to go back until I finished HOW. If you choose an expansion only game you will go directly to Lonelywood with no chance of returning to HOW. Ideally, you would place the badges near the end of HOW but don't go up the staircase. Instead, return to Kulduhar and enter the formally locked door to travel to Lonelywood and begin HOW. If you have a saved game near this point in IWD, boot it up and choose this option. This will maximize your exp before beginning HOW and will allow you to return after finishing HOW to finish the final few IWD battles. If you have HOW, you should d/l ToLM as it is well worth the hours of d/l time. It works the same as HOW in that once you go you must finish it before being returned to HOW. You can begin ToTL by speaking to the character in the inn that offers the adventure quest. Begin this just before leaving for the Isle of Ice. The above description is the way to play all three as one complete game. Much like BG1, the final IWD battle occurs at the end of the expansions. 2) Follow Cadaukor's advice and stick with trolls. 3) The druid and bards classes are better balanced, making them more interesting characters to play throughout IWD also. The areas remain intact. I think there has been some debate on previous posts regarding creatures "calling" to their fellow enemies for assistance. I don't know if this is the case. 4) The bag of holding, if I recall correctly, is a spoil of battle that occurs about 3/4 of the way through HOW. Not so great at that point in the game unless you venture on to ToLM. 5) Personally, I can't comment on HOF as I'm still building a decent party to tackle the game in that fashion. Currently, I'm playing two diff parties, leveling characters as they go to get them fit. There are many previous posts in which HOF is discussed however. Frankly, If you've gone through the BG series and enjoyed them as I did, you should continue through HOW and ToLM. While, the IWD series is not as large in scope as BG, I have found it to be more versatile in terms of replay, largely due to it being a shorter game overall and as such, you can play through with the same characters in a shorter span and level up.