30 june 2018
Baldur's Gate! BEGIN!
So, this game apparently came out in 1998. Even though it is 20 years old, I haven't a clue about the content of the game. It comes highly recommended, though, so I should be in for a real treat.
Spoiler Warning! There will be spoilers! Perhaps someone else out there has never played or read about the game, and may not want to read further if so.
OPENING CUTSCENE
Alright, we have a ... Paladin? ... fleeing from something ... a Death Knight? ... Death Knight tells the Paladin he's going to be first. Palading begs for his life ... get's thrown off the tower. That's ... actually pretty dark. Seems like I'm in for some STORY. Can't wait.
CHARACTER CREATION
Oh, hey, this feels like a mish-mash of D&D rules. I should be able to make something of this ... here we go ... Human, Male, Wizard, Transmuter. Play with the stats ... I'm sure 4 HP to start is plenty, right? (Spoiler: It's not really enough if you're as careless as I am.)
Spells ... Well, let's take Burning Hands first ... Mage Armor ... and Identify. That's a nice set to start with.
Name ... name ... I'm no good at this ... Blundarr! That'll do.
And now to play ...
PROLOGUE
Oh, hey, a lot of these guys are labeled "Tutor". I guess this is the in-game tutorial section. Let's see what this non-Tutor person says ... oh, he lent an Identify Scroll to someone? My first fetch quest! How quaint!
There seem to be a lot of these fetch quests here. I can also purchase stuff from the innkeeper.
My only complaint so far: dear god it takes forever to walk across the map!
Anyways, I won't try to recall each and every step here. I completed all the little side-quests I could find, then returned to my "father". Apparently I have a childhood friend, Imoen. She'll obviously be a party member later (or she'll die; we'll see which).
Gorion and I are leaving. And, of course "IT'S A TRAP!" Is that the Death Knight again? Looks like it. Gorion puts up a great fight, but I was pretty sure he was gonna die.
CHAPTER ONE
Look it's Imoen! Yup, I can get her to join my party. She mentions a letter that Gorion received. Now, where did that fight happen? Let's walk around a bit ... it's odd that Imoen isn't following me ... is that a Wolf over there? Wait ... oh no ...
YOU ARE DEAD!
Well, where's the last save? Oh, in the Prologue. Well that'll teach me to save more often. Guess I have to watch my father die again.
(a few minutes later)
Alright, now, how do I move both characters ... wait, here's a button to select the whole party! Awesome!
Wandering forth, I meet with Montaron and Xzar ... they seem ... slightly less than sane, but I add them to my party anyways. Oh, look, Xzar has a Wand of Magic Missile! YOINK! That'll come in handy for my main character.
I'm supposed to meet friends at the Friendly Arms, so let's head north.
It's pretty dark when I get there. Someone is telling me that I'm the peron they've been waiting for ... ok ... let's play along ... yup: "IT'S A TRAP!"
Another fight to prove just how fragile my character is: YOU ARE DEAD!
Luckily, I saved just a bit before. Montaron seems to be a brawler, he and Imoen can handle this while Blundarr hides. With that taken care of, let's find my actual friends. Khalid and Jaheira seem like a good couple of brawlers, which I think I'm going to need. The story is pushing me towards Nashkel and this "Iron Crisis". I guess I'll head south.
BEREGOST
Well, here's a quaint little town. Let's explore. A few places to rest and drink. Wait, why is this little guy picking my pocket? Let's talk to him again ... and he's taken more gold! Damn you! smash I'll take that gold back, thanks ... wait! What's that about my Journal? Oh ... I was supposed to retrieve his boots. Well damn ... quick load ... sorry about that, hold on to my gold pieces for a moment, I'll be back.
Another interesting little interaction: I am hired as "protection" for someone named Silke. She tells me not to even talk to the people coming to "attack" her. This seems like another trap ... yup. I won't be party to your evil schemes! smash ... oh! A Quarterstalff +1 from Silke's body! Blundarr will use that.
FOREST SOUTH OF BEREGOST
I'd love to say this area was uneventful, but I died several times because I am simply made of glass. That said, I've gotten more used to pausing, assigning orders, and using formations to make use of each character's strengths. I've used up the Wand of Magic Missile already, though, so Blundarr is a bit more useless in a fight.
Jaheira has reached the next level! Seems like a good place to stop for now. Hopefully, I'll die a bit less in my next play session, and maybe I can reach Nashkel soon!
Hope anyone who reached the end of this enjoyed the journey!