john salerno

i've already gotten the impression that some characters will leave your
group after a certain time, if you don't do things...are there any that you
really should keep in your group? and once you have 6 (which i'm about to,
fairly early on), how do you decide who to keep when someone else wants to
join! it seems to have a big impact, which is a good gameplay element, but
it makes me nervous!


---
John Salerno

devast8or

You're playing BG1 right?

AFAIK Minsc will leave (or maybe attack you) if you don't go rescue Dynaheir
fairly quickly. I'm not sure if anyone else in BG1 will leave, but I think
so.

As for kicking people out of the party: remember that some of them will
stick together - if you kick one out, the other will also leave. THis is the
case with Jaheira and Khalid, and also Xzar and Montaron. I'm not sure about
Minsc and Dynaheir.

Devast8or

draakje

It al depends on your playing style. But you don't need anybody specific
to complete the game. You can do it with a single mage without any
companions if you really, really want to :-)


Look what they offer, and what you need. At some points thieving skills
are handy, but most of the time no special skills are needed. Unless you
want to do Durlag's Tower, there you need at least one good thief.

There are a couple of pairs (like Khalid/Jaheira) which you can't
seperate (unless one of them dies).
Also take their alignment into account good obviously doesn't mingles
well with evil and they will complain a lot if you do. Or even leave or
fight amongst themselves.

But if your charisma is high enough (18) you can keep together any group
you like. Even evil companions while only doing good things.

--
Gert-Jan

I am not a complete idiot. Some parts are missing.

lammergeier

A long, long time ago, in a bedroom far, far away, I played the likes of
Exodus and Quest of the Avatar on a C64. After a long computer hiatus, I
found myself playing the Exile series on a PC. And now, latterly, Baldur's
Gate.

I've developed a liking for a party that is half fighters (for the front
line) and a mix of everything else (spellcasters and thieves, typically) in
the other half. Translated into BG1 with my fighter, Minsc and Kivan up
front, and Imoen, Dynaheir and Branwen backing them up, it worked very well.

From what I understand about the game, it really is just a matter of making
a team that suits your style. You'll feel whether someone is letting the
side down, and you can replace them or modify their role then.

As to people leaving, they alert you to their (singular) pressing concern
when you talk to them. And I'm pretty sure most don't even have one.
Jaheira's mine-sweeping and Minsc's damsel in distress quest are the only
two that spring to mind. I did fail to reach Dynaheir in time the first
time I played, and Minsc went ballistic one zone short of the Gnoll
Fortress. That was unpleasant - I had to go back a good couple of saves and
rush down there to beat the deadline. I don't know how that hamster puts up
with him.

Simon

--
oneirocrat [at] yahoo [dot] com

pm

I still have fond memories of Bard's Tale on the ZX Speccy. No computer
hiatus, but once an RPG addict, always an RPG addict!!


well.

This is a good setup. I think in BG1, I made life hard playing a mage first
time round. BG2 - whole other story of course...


The only downside to replacing is the lost XP. If you stick with a dud too
long, they take all that XP when you replace them.


<g> The first time I played, I dismissed Minsc totally. He's a good
character to have, but the lunyomiter hit maximum and I left in Naskel (from
memory that is where you pick up isn't it, at least 8 months since I played
BG1).

arundell

Be careful you don't let everyone in this group play your game for you.
Save. Experiment. If its not working, go back to your save. Try
everything. ****yze everything. Trust your instincts. Will a new
character help your party? You may need to find that out yourself.
Strategy games are one big long string of decisions. Some will be good.
Some will teach you a lesson. I think it is sometimes too easy to just
ask what to do or what will happen if.

I don't mean you shouldn't be posting here or ask questions. It's fun
for us. Just be careful we don't become a crutch that may spoil your
game. This is a game to savor, not rush to the end just to brag you beat
it.

arian

Once you have both of them in the party, yes.

--
Arian

Address me by name at North-net (with no hyphen), a 3-letter company
trading in the great south land.

draakje

No. Minsc will still leave as long as his friend is not saved. The clock
doesn't stop before that.

--
Gert-Jan

I am not a complete idiot. Some parts are missing.

kish

But you only have to worry about it if it's been ten days since you
promised to rescue her.

Really, this is only a problem because of insufficient immersion. No
one who actually lived in the Forgotten Realms would think it was safe
to leave a human in the hands of gnolls for more than ten days.

tiefling

IIRC about half of the npc's in game want you to do something and i
think of that half nearly all will leave unless the mission is
completed within 10 games days:

Minsc rescues Dynaheir
Safana and her pirate cave
Coran and the Wyverns
Kagain and the Trader wagon boy thingie
Eldoth rescue/elopes with Skye
Jahiera/Khalid and the mines
Edwin and his murderous ways...
Alora and the museum

Thats not quite half but i can't remember all of them, i think the
limit is 10 days on all of them but most people have them done well
before that except for maybe the Minsc one because you get him so
early and you spend so much time wandering around!

I think half the fun of your first run through this game is being
surprised by the encounters on each map. If you want to level up
quickly i would suggest heading to Durlags Tower and doing the upper
levels which are a goodly bit easier than the lower ones (with certain
spells), make sure you do the outside battlements upstairs. This
should get your party at least two levels alone but remember that
Quicksave is your friend!

Have fun...i know i still do when playing this game!

Rabain