Skie

[Guest Guest_Ipsy_*]

I don't really think that XP is a valid way of determining a character's experience, though. Khalid and Jaheira should be, power-wise, on par with Gorion, but since they're early in the game, most people meet them at level 1. Xan, Kivan, and Yeslick are, based on their backstories, fairly experienced, but all can be encountered at fairly low levels. Skie's high level was probably intended to make her a relatively attractive character for so late in the game. Also, she always seemed really young to me, perhaps as young as 16.

 

Besides, the alternative--making her a lower-level thief with differently-assigned proficiencies, perhaps emphasizing Detect Illusion (taught to pay attention, maybe?), Hide in Shadows, and Move Silently (for sneaking)--is not pretty. When I played Classic Adventures a couple months ago, I reloaded at least four times in Palace of the Silver Princess because Shadow's lockpicking and trap detecting skills sucked, even for a level 1 character.

 

Re: a custom bard kit for Skie...maybe a boost to magical ability would fit, sort of like Sebastian Luxley's Playwright kit. Given her education, it doesn't seem totally unreasonable. Also, it would provide an alternative XP source, as characters do gain XP from spells scribed.

[Jaxsbudgie]

I'm still finding Skie as a bard difficult to believe. That's like changing Minsc into a fighter, or Imoen into a pure mage, or Jaheira into a ranger. They all sound as if they could make sense, but in terms of consistency, just don't. She needs to stay a thief, just because she's intelligent and well versed in history doesn't mean she's automatically more suited as a bard, she's simply a well educated thief.

 

When I first played with her (my last run through actually), I thought she fitted the thief class well. I think she did the job just fine, like they say, if it isn't broken, don't fix it, meaning if Skie is a competent enough thief, no need to make her a bard.

 

The adventurer kit would probably suit Skie a lot better than a vanilla thief would, I can't really imagine Skie backstabbing. But I for one don't find the prospect of taking a single classed adventurer thief very appealing. Your quote of the swashbuckler kit is strange and not what I really envisioned a swashbuckler being, but I think could work better than any bard kit could. Maybe in her BG2 biography there could be an emphasis on why she is a swashbuckler, more background on her youth, sword training mayhap?

 

Haha, imagine if a Skie mod came about from this.

[Ipsy]

Re: Skie as a bard: Fair enough, I suppose. I'm just tossing ideas out. I don't agree with altering a canon character's background, though. Skie says she learned ballet, history, and languages. Not swordplay. Besides, I don't think Skie is exactly a debonair dual-wielder. She's not really charming, per se, nor does a fighting background really fit. Yes, Grand Duke Entar Silvershield decided that fighting would complement his daughter's excellent education. In a perfect world, her "damage" line would be: "I broke a nail!"

 

What about a custom thief kit, something like this:

 

SCOUT:

Scouts are thieves dedicated to finding information. They are often charming and personable, comfortable in cities and in their dealings with people. Yet there is another side to them. They are skilled in hiding and sneaking, and their sharp eyes can easily spot traps and illusions. Due to their focus on these abilities, however, their other skills may suffer. They cannot backstab, and are not as skilled in setting traps and picking locks or pockets.

 

ADVANTAGES:

- +1 to charisma

- Can use ability Cat's Grace/Grace 1x per day (gives -2 to AC for 5 rounds)

- +5 to Move Silently and Hide in Shadows

- Bonus to Lore

 

DISADVANTAGES:

- Cannot backstab

- Receives -10 to Set Traps, Pick Pockets, and Open Locks

 

Ignoring the crap description, how does something like this sound? And as I said, I do know several people who love Skie. Who knows - maybe one of them would be interested in writing her in BG2.

 

Though for her to even be in Amn... Perhaps she headed south intending to find Eldoth. When the party meets her, she'd be in the Mithrest Inn, having spent most of the coin she brought with her.

[berelinde]

No Cat's Grace in BG2. It's a 3E spell.

[Jaxsbudgie]

I like the bonus to lore part, and maybe the cat's grace spells (or something else equivalent to that, maybe a special ability?).

 

But lore and special abilities can be added to her character profile and not her kit. Which means we wouldn't have to make a new thief kit especially for Skie. Custom kits for NPC mods distress me a little, they make the fact that they're an NPC mod stand out a lot more. I like my NPC mods to run alongside the original NPCs seamlessly. Obviously people could give her a kit at their discression.

 

As for her transition from BG1 to BG2, there are a lot of options. Like you said, she could have gone to find Eldoth after his plan to hold Skie hostage fizzled after the events of the PC leaving Baldur's Gate. Her father could have an estate in the Government District, or out in the wilderness somewhere. She could have been sent to Athkatla as punishment for running away with Eldoth back in Baldur's Gate. Maybe we could run with what the BG1 NPC Project did, Skie's step-mother, can't remember her name, said she would inherit the estate the moment Skie left. She could have moved to Athkatla after the events at Baldur's Gate and how she was hounded out of the city by mercenaries hired by her step-mother.

 

Pffffff, feel like i'm drawing at straws now ...

[Miloch]

I don't really think that XP is a valid way of determining a character's experience, though. Khalid and Jaheira should be, power-wise, on par with Gorion, but since they're early in the game, most people meet them at level 1. Xan, Kivan, and Yeslick are, based on their backstories, fairly experienced, but all can be encountered at fairly low levels.

One can explain lack of experience a lot easier than non-lack. Perhaps the campaigns those supposedly "experienced" characters participated in didn't actually involve a whole lot of killing, or when it did, it involved large parties doing it (splitting the XP) or low-level creatures getting killed. Perhaps a lame explanation, but try coming up with one for how Skie got 20k or even 5k XP. She got all that from scribing scrolls? Rofl.

Also, she always seemed really young to me, perhaps as young as 16.

I rather doubt she's that young. Just because someone's naïve doesn't mean she's young. The last thing a party needs is a child joining up with them, and such a one wouldn't've survived long in the seedier parts of the city. Doesn't match her portrait either. No, I'd say she's at least in her early 20s. The actress who voiced her would've been in her mid-20s probably at the time (she also voiced Viconia and Nalia).

Your quote of the swashbuckler kit is strange and not what I really envisioned a swashbuckler being, but I think could work better than any bard kit could. Maybe in her BG2 biography there could be an emphasis on why she is a swashbuckler, more background on her youth, sword training mayhap?

I think fencing would be a usual part of most noble children's education - so much so that it's not even mentioned. As it is today, in the middle ages and even more so in a fantasy-type setting. A scout is a "guide, spy, saboteur for hire..." or even a poacher, according to the 2e kit description. Not really what I'd imagine for Skie.

Custom kits for NPC mods distress me a little, they make the fact that they're an NPC mod stand out a lot more. I like my NPC mods to run alongside the original NPCs seamlessly. Obviously people could give her a kit at their discression.

I'd agree, and that's I've been suggesting. Don't write anything specific about her "kit" or even class. It's not like her existing dialogue screams "thief" at you - so why not keep it that way. Then folks can use L1NPCs to kit/class her as they please.

Pffffff, feel like i'm drawing at straws now ...

But having a wide open territory (i.e. Skie in BG2) is a good thing. That way you needn't be constrained and can write whatever you please, within reason.

[berelinde]

I think the important thing here is not to obsess about her kit/class to the extent that it hampers your creativity. Write up the character the way you envision her, maybe following Miloch's advice to avoid reference to a specific class. That way, you don't spend all of your energy fretting over the little things. In the end, someone is bound to disagree with whatever class you pick. Leave it to L1NPC to sort it out.

[Jaxsbudgie]

One can explain lack of experience a lot easier than non-lack. Perhaps the campaigns those supposedly "experienced" characters participated in didn't actually involve a whole lot of killing, or when it did, it involved large parties doing it (splitting the XP) or low-level creatures getting killed. Perhaps a lame explanation, but try coming up with one for how Skie got 20k or even 5k XP. She got all that from scribing scrolls? Rofl.

She errr .... pick a lot of locks? Archery and fencing training? Errr .....

But having a wide open territory (i.e. Skie in BG2) is a good thing. That way you needn't be constrained and can write whatever you please, within reason.

Skie is actually Jon Irenicus?

 

But in all seriousness, she seems like she would be a relatively easy character to write in. Does anyone want Eldoth back in the game? Speaking of which, the two NPCs I'd like to see return the most are Coran and Safana. I thought Safana's cameo in BG2 was very out of character, did anyone else think so too? Because of that I made her a bounty hunter in my current tutu game. I'd much rather attempt to mod those two into the game than Skie actually. I actually followed that NPC modding guide for noobs and tried to mod in Skie, sort of went a bit wrong though and she wouldn't stop spawning, there were loads of Skie's following me around the CC, quite hilarious actually.

[berelinde]

Probably just forgot to close a variable.

[Domi]

Eldoth was started and abandoned, which is a huge pity. Skie has re-surgences of interest, but with Nalia being in already. Coran was half-heartedly done in Tortured Souls, but surely would benefit from a full version. The problem with Coran and Safana is that they come as a 'pair' and both are thieves. I started with making Safana for BG2, and ended up with Salomeya for IWD2.

 

EDIT: corrected "Solameya"'s name. When you start forgetting your own characters' names, it's a bad sign.

[Ipsy]

Personally, I find Skie and Nalia different enough that Skie in BG2 would be great. Both are spoiled noble girls, but a) Skie's father was a grand duke, whereas Nalia's was a noble merchant

b) Nalia at least thinks that she is doing something good

c) Nalia despises Isaea Roenall and her betrothal; Skie's relationship with Eldoth was probably not approved by her father

 

They could have some interesting banters, too - about how Nalia thinks she's using her station to help people, for instance; also, if memory serves, both their mothers are deceased.

 

There is actually an Eldoth minimod, and of course his appearance in Romantic Encounters. Neither does him justice, really. BG2 needs more evil characters anyway

 

Safana doesn't strike me as enough of an airhead to get herself killed by wolfweres, at the least. If she was modded into BG2, I think it would be more interesting if she appeared early on.

 

As for Coran... He could be an interesting character nonetheless, but I think it would need some sort of conclusion to either of the BG1 NPC romances. It wouldn't seem complete, somehow.

 

Though ideally, I'd love to see both Skie and Eldoth return. Perhaps Eldoth realized that, with Entar's death, Skie was no longer a worthwhile asset, so he left her and traveled south; Skie, having learned a great deal in the PC's company, decided to follow him. The party would encounter Skie first, in the Mithrest Inn, running out of gold and pondering her next move. Eldoth would later be found in the company of...some noblewoman or other. Er, I'd probably be better off if I thought about this more...

[berelinde]

Personally, I find Skie and Nalia different enough that Skie in BG2 would be great. Both are spoiled noble girls, but a) Skie's father was a grand duke, whereas Nalia's was a noble merchant

b) Nalia at least thinks that she is doing something good

c) Nalia despises Isaea Roenall and her betrothal; Skie's relationship with Eldoth was probably not approved by her father

 

They could have some interesting banters, too - about how Nalia thinks she's using her station to help people, for instance; also, if memory serves, both their mothers are deceased.

 

There is actually an Eldoth minimod, and of course his appearance in Romantic Encounters. Neither does him justice, really. BG2 needs more evil characters anyway

 

Safana doesn't strike me as enough of an airhead to get herself killed by wolfweres, at the least. If she was modded into BG2, I think it would be more interesting if she appeared early on.

 

As for Coran... He could be an interesting character nonetheless, but I think it would need some sort of conclusion to either of the BG1 NPC romances. It wouldn't seem complete, somehow.

 

Though ideally, I'd love to see both Skie and Eldoth return. Perhaps Eldoth realized that, with Entar's death, Skie was no longer a worthwhile asset, so he left her and traveled south; Skie, having learned a great deal in the PC's company, decided to follow him. The party would encounter Skie first, in the Mithrest Inn, running out of gold and pondering her next move. Eldoth would later be found in the company of...some noblewoman or other. Er, I'd probably be better off if I thought about this more...

Actually, I was really enjoying your post. You've got a lot of good ideas.

[Domi]

I believe, Nalia is Duchesse D'Arnise. There are differencces between the two, with Skie having little of the noble cause pursuer, more selfish, etc, but there will be a lot of similar things either. Eldoth, on the other hand, doesn't have a BG2 counterpart, he is a great character to ressurect. I wish that abandoned mod was never abandoned.

[Jaxsbudgie]

Actually, I was really enjoying your post. You've got a lot of good ideas.

 

As was I. That was what I was suggesting, how after the PC left Baldur's Gate, Skie's father died (who was later resurrected according to a source I read online) meaning Eldoth had no one to blackmail (Skie's step-mother wouldn't give two shits if Skie was being held ransom). So Eldoth could have ditched her, and isn't Athkatla meant to be the city of gold or something along those lines? So it would be only natural for him to gravitate towards there. I think some interesting encounters could occur with Skie in the team bumping into Eldoth wooing some noble lady in the Government District. Hell, maybe Eldoth's 'outcome' of the encounter could have a sway over Skie's alignment, she is afterall True Neutral. Maybe Nalia could have a history with Eldoth .... but that somehow doesn't seem right.

 

During that werewolf bit, Coran dies if he takes around 16 damage, how awful is that? Two thieves would be fine! And we could raise Safana's intelligence by 1 so she could be yet another thief/mage dual. I think she'd be great as a Swashbuckler or Bounty Hunter though. They would make a pretty good pair I reckon. Obviously they'd have to be moved into chapter 2, maybe the appearance they make later on in the game could still work ... with the option of Safana still betraying the party (poison in everyone's rations maybe?).

 

How would we raise Skie's attributes? In BG they were STR 11 DEX 18 CON 15 INT 15 WIS 8 CHA 13

Maybe raise them to STR 11 DEX 18 CON 16 INT 15 WIS 11 CHA 14?

 

There's just the issue with her voice set. I think most people would choose to have her or not based solely on her voice set, it's harrowing to say the least.

[berelinde]

I'm generally against raising stats for NPCs between BG1 and BG2. I know that BioWare did it, but that doesn't mean I like it. A life-altering self-discovery might raise her wisdom one point, but I can't see it raising her wisdom by 3.

 

Also, her low wisdom score is part of who she is. She is impulsive and does not possess great stores of either willpower or common sense. That's part of what makes her endearing. A low attribute score is an opportunity for cool banter and roleplaying possibilities, not a handicap. Besides, she is a thief. Her wisdom won't hurt her class skills. Her stat total is 80. That's better than Minsc's 73.

 

So I'd say leave her stats alone, but that's just me. Ultimately, if you're the one that will be writing the mod, it's your decision.