Lantern ON could enable Group AI for fights. Which doesnt work good at all in fights, from what i read.
Yes, if the lantern is on, it activates the group AI. And yes, the AI has some problems. It does some really weird stuff sometimes, like having my mage on mage aggressive setting (means cast alot of damage spells) suddenly run off to attack an enemy in melee. I read one recommendation to just use the default "Attack" AI and manage everything else like spells manually. What I found to be neccessary in the Black Pits quite often is to set my Cleric to "Cleric Defensive" so he autoheals injured partymembers.
Some feedback So, some feedback on BGEE: All in all, the port is a good job, with some issues that they need to iron out. Graphics are okay, but then I am not that big on only having the most fancy and shiny newest stuff available. Attention to detail is much more important for me (like in the already mentioned Spiderweb games) ; and some of the landscapes in BGEE look gorgeous, people really put effort into creating maps here. Yes, there are some things on the interface that could be improved. Namely the often mentioned spell help, and how you enter a building. As other mentioned, I also noticed some *serious* performance problems with lasting area spells like Web or (Mass?)Entangle in the Black Pits. Casting any of those slows the game down to a crawl on my iPad2. Playing on Core difficulty. Halforc Fighter, just to have it easy for the first playthrough. I went for Longswords (I remembered Longswords being really plentiful) and Dualwielding as specialisation; downside is that you cannot really use a (cross)bow, as this requires alot of juggling weapons around (when your offhand is in use, by weapon or shield, you cannot use a 2handed ranged weapon, be it bow or crossbow. Did not try using a 1handed ranged - like sling or throwing dagger - yet, because melee works just fine for now). Going good so far, but then I am only on my way to Neshkal now, after visiting the Friendly Arms Inn. Question about the Black Pits: Did anyone figure out how to damage the Clay Golems and Shambling Mound (2nd Tier 3 fight) ? Both types are almost completely immune to magic, so spells don't really help here. I found that magic (+1 or greater) blunt weapons should work, but so far I only have 2 chars (Monk and Cleric that can deal this damage type, and they are definitely not enough) . I will get some of those for my fighters and see if it works. Supposedly "Melf's Minute Meteors" should do damage against them too; however, the one time I tried it, they did not seem to do any damage.
It works alright for me, I use default scripts. But at the same time, I micromanage most stuff, and spells is a must to manage yourself. It's always been like this. Ordinary attacks works fine with default scripts. I have all my spell casters use projectile weapons when not casting spells, and when I use the attack button and the whole party is selected, they stand back and use slings etc. like intended.
Yeah, it's a lot of space needed to clear, however, if you haven't got much space left, you can download the update via iTunes and connect your iPad via USB to the PC, that way you'll need less space.
good times Really having a ball with this game. I bought it a million years ago for my Mac at a computer show (that's what us cavemen used to go to to buy games). Like may others, I am playing the mini game called, find the right spot to enter a building. And, as I played the game shortly after world war 2 ended, I can't remember the spells and the current way of discovering what is what is really not fun. Other than those two issues I'm excited to see other isometric adventure games ported to the iPad. Gimme a Diablo 2 and I'll love you forever.
I was talking about this before with another player - if you zoom all the way in, tapping on doors, containers, etc. works much better, and you can see spell descriptions by tapping and holding on them in the spell books (just like tapping and holding for inventory items). Re the party AI, I've been finding that in combat if I move a ranged character without assigning it a target, it will walk right up to a target and then start firing - really poor AI. I forgot about turning it off, so I'm going to try that to see if that fixes that problem. Also, someone else mentioned clicking on Boo causes a crash - I just got this last night. Amazing they let that slip through - who wouldn't want to tap on Boo to see what he does?? A 100% repro crash is a huge nono in my mind. Fortunately it's avoidable. Still loving playing the game though. Ha, I forgot how nutty Xzar is! And I missed Minsc and Boo.
A couple of tips. Tool Tips for spells and Special Abilities. It's not as easy as hovering the mouse over a spell like in the PC edition, but at least it works: Select a character with spells, click the spell icon so the various spells shows. Then click the "Help" button, navigate to the right in Help, and it shows the name of each spell. Get information on spells in Spell Book. Tap and hold the spell icon for a second, then release. A detailed description on the spell appears. This is important stuff. don't tap the memorized spells, as they'll get deleted, and you'll have to memorize them again by resting. Split a stack of arrows. Double tap quickly on the stack, and you should get an option to split the stack in smaller portions. Selecting doors, loot, chests, stairs etc. This is quite difficult and annoying, but until (if) a patch alleviated this issue, your best bet is to zoom all the way in close to select stuff. Especially loot from corpses can be right pain in the arse to select. EDIT A great tip found on the official forums regarding doors, stairs etc. "Anyway, to enter a door simply select your party, the whole party, then pause the game and tap on the door you wish to enter. If you see targeting reticles for your entire party where you tapped you missed the door. If you see only one reticle you have tapped on the correct spot. Unpause the game to enter the door. This has worked every time for me so far." This works for looting also!
Thanks for these tips. I guess my point was, the job of the gamer is not to use workarounds to play a game. That is the developer's role. Mine is to play a game that is intuitive and doesn't make me have to grab candles, a skull, some bat blood, spin around 40 times, cross my fingers, just to enter a building.
character builds? Hi all Having a heck of time deciding on what to build for a character....I prefer one that is not too hard, but adds some fun as well. I am thinking multi-class elf fighter/mage -- but not sure what min stats I should consider + where to put the 4 proficiencies? And which spells are the best on early levels? What about a Paladin? Which kit would you recommend here and same as above (min stats + skills)? Finally -- is it better to have your NPC (fighter, etc) focus on range/bows rather than melee?? Thanks all!!
+1 independant of the quality of the game itself.. this "port" is more than lacklustering in pretty much any aspect of user interface interaction.. somehow it feels like running a clumsy emulator rather than a real proper port.. its runs.. but thats it.. instead of adding questionable content i would have rather seen a proper tablet support and actual fixes of ancient quirks. had maybe too high hopes for this one..
I really think that's too harsh. I have zero problems playing the game using these workarounds, it ain't rocket science to just use pause when looting and targeting doors which have been the most glaring issues with this port. And as posted earlier, they're working on fixing all these issues and more. Until the patch, I'm having a blast with the game.
As you are a developer, I expected you'd have some understanding of the complexity of trying to take an INCREDIBLY complex PC game that's 15 years old and transferring it to a completely different system. There's a reason most PC games aren't ported over, it's because it is incredibly difficult and complicated. Considering that fact, I think the BG team has done an amazing thing just getting this game running as stable as this does. Of course there are quirks, but with how involved the developers are, it is clear they are willing to work to create the best possible game in the long run. They aren't going to be giving up. Once you understand the things that aren't perfect, primarily the inability to right click, it's easy to adjust and enjoy the hell out of the game. By no means is it perfect, but it is much better than it could have been. You're making it out to be an unmitigated disaster, which it isn't. Again, to expect immediate perfection on a complex PC game that utilized the full features of the computer mouse and keyboard is unrealistic. But even with the issues, it's still an incredibly solid, and awesome, game.
well we can agree to disagree for me it feel like "dosbox" or any other emulator running with some optimiziations for the title x.. i don't "feel" the tremendous work that went into this product you describe. after all this is baldurs gate an all time classic game and honestly the game deserved more than what was delivered.. imho. i find this product dissapointing.. and i don't care if they fix it or not or extend it or whatever since i can only judge what i have right now not what could be. this if from their website.. and this is pr junk.. i mean 400 issues fixed and basic stuff like pathing and entering buildings/stairs is still wonky.. way to go if such obvious flaws you see during the tutorial section have not been adressed.. again... i expected more.. this is an all time classic and not a run of the mill dos rpg no one cares about.. again.. this deserved so much more than this.. and i'm surely not the only one who is dissapointed (to some extend)
Well. Mr. Ugly... If you know everything so much better, why didn't you offer your help with them. So far you're the only 1 ranting about this game about how poor everything is.. Sure, there a few glitches... and IF HAD read the posts you could see that the version that is online, is not the correct version.. there is a newer one still pending that fixed some items. So it's up to the App store, and not their fault. Maybe you should find another hobby.
Heh. Everyone with 99 bucks around here is a developer. Add another four bucks and he also has a cuppa Starbucks. I tune out people who preface their opinions with "I'm a dev" unless they've produced something of at least equal quality to what they're whinging about.
I'm totally new to BG, can someone help me with a good build for a new player? I see fighter is recommended bu I think I would like someon else. What should I be spending skill points on, give as much detail as possible?
It almost is a port of an emulator... BGEE is a port of the BG2:ToB engine, running the older BG1 game. That's why it shares some bugs that BGTutu also used to have (an older total conversion of BG2 to run BG1).
Let's see what I can tell you...note that I am not very far into the main game yet, but like 3/4 done with the Black Pits. Also, I will not go into minmaxing here, but look at it more from a fun perspective. For details on the classes and kits, I recommend Gamefaqs. As BGEE uses the kits from the original BG2, look here: http://www.gamefaqs.com/pc/258273-baldurs-gate-ii-shadows-of-amn/faqs Just keep in mind that the maximum level is lower in BGEE than in BG2. Here is another good basic introduction: http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/1992/basic-game-tips-for-new-players/p1 This one gives more help on partybuilding, plus additional links: http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/11055/party-building-for-beginners And you might want to RTFM http://www.scribd.com/doc/53658330/Baldurs-Gate-Manual-PC Stats: I recommend reading up on what the stats do, e.g. at the link I gave above. In short: Strength - primarily for melee fighters Dexterity - thieves and archers Constitution - good for everyone, high CON gives more hitpoints Intelligence - for Mages Wisdown - for Clerics Charisma - high Charisma on your lead character apparently gives different NPC reactions I personally would not start without 3 stats at maximum, the bonuses are just too good. As for class, that is all up to you. From what I read, every class (combination) is good enough to finish the game with a solo character, so it comes down to personal taste. If you want to have an easy time at your first playthrough, but don't want a Fighter, go with a Cleric - or any Cleric multiclass. Mages are quite fragile, so I expect you will die alot in the beginning if you choose to start with a Mage. Fighter/Mage (or some other combination) should raise your chances to survive a good bit. Or start as human Fighter and immediately dualclass into a Mage (Kensai might be best for this, as they cannot wear armor anyways; don't know if you can dualclass from Monk into Mage). Classes & Kits: If you are unsure about a kit, I'd choose the standard class. Paladin is a good choice, but keep in mind that you have to be good and do good deeds. This is important, as NPCs come in all alignment flavors, and the evil guys might not like it when you help old ladies across the street and such. Same goes the other way around of course. An NPC Paladin most likely won't be pleased when you as "Evil Overlord(TM)" burn down villages for barbecue. Spells: In the beginning you won't have many available, so better rely on something else for damage, and treat spells as bonus at the start. Sleep is good to knock out pesty enemies, Identify does exactly that and saves you from paying for it, clerical healing spells are also handy. Weapons: Again comes down to personal choice. I prefer melee over ranged combat, but especially at the start being good with ranged weapons is a big boon. Also take a look at what the different specialisations do, and pick one you like (e.g. Sword&Shield if you want to be defensive, Twohanded if you prefer waving around the big irons).
