BG2 romanceable males, split from Sand Romance

[Deedlit]

I like the idea of having a romance that goes throughout all the games;what can I say,being chaotic doesn't mean you don't like steady companions *laughs*

 

So from reading here and there,the most promising ones seem to be Xan's and Gavin's,since they start from BGI and go all over BGII;there is Kivan that seems interesting and sweet as well,although,if I got it right,the romanceable bit is only BGII,but nothing wrong with a romance that doesn't start right away.

And Edwin....well,it depends;I still don't like what I remember of him,and his portrait used to gave me goosebumps,but I'm willing to try him out,if he turns out to be Sandish *laughs*

 

The only thing that worries me a bit is all the talk about how it's easy to break romances,and that much stuff is timed...I'm notoriously an idiot,so the hit-the-wrong-button and say-the-wrong-thing are normal routine for me,not to mention I have very bad reflexes and timing (should I quit gaming maybe? *heartily laugh*)

 

And,should I consider the crossmod banter pack too,or will all the mods conflict,by any chance?Just wondering...

 

Of course,these is yet again mere pondering-in-the-wait,since I should see how the actual characters play out,and how much chemistry there will be with my PC;I'm not even sure on what class to do right now....but she will prolly be chaotic good as usual anyway my usual picks are rogues,clerics or an arcane caster like sorcerer or bard,but I really don't know how they play out in BG.

 

I would love to hear others' thoughts on the matter,if you like to oblige

[berelinde]

I don't remember whether it's easy to kill Xan's romance or not, but Gavin has a safeguard against wrong-button clicking: if you accidentally break up with him, all you have to do is apologize and he takes you back. But I'm still working on Gavin's ToB content, so you might want to try Xan's first.

[Ipsy]

Ajantis is romanceable from BG1 to BG2 too.

 

Ye gods, Edwin is worth taking along just for his BG2 quest. I nearly fell out of my chair laughing. Especially when everyone started commenting I never knew Anomen had a sense of humor - pity it doesn't surface much. Eddie is technically Lawful Evil, but in the romance, you can eventually change him to True Neutral.

 

Being the twitchy sort I am, I figured out that it's possible to save the instant before a lovetalk starts. The NPC will turn towards your character slightly before they speak - if you're quick, you can pause and save. You can also enable the in-game console to determine if your romance is still progressing. But some romances are easier to break than others. I recall it being possible to talk your way out of a bad comment with Kivan.

 

Crossmod Banter Pack is good if you intend to play with more than 1 mod character.

 

BG has thieves, bards, mages, and sorcerers. Thieves and mages can multiclass - at character creation, you'd select "Multiclass" then thief/mage, fighter/thief, cleric/thief, fighter/mage/thief, or any of the other multiclass options. IMO sorcerers can be very powerful as main spellcasters, since they are able to cast their available spells many times per day, instead of memorizing them like regular mages. Class selection is based on race - humans can select any class, but cannot multi-class. No non-humans can be paladins or monks, elves can't be druids or bards, gnome mages can only be illusionists...gah, I forget the rest. Every race can select Fighter, Thief, and Cleric, though.

 

If you like playing rogue classes, you might like the Rogue Rebalancing mod. I would warn against the Shadow Thief Improvements, though.

 

There's also some fun kits in BG, kinda like prestige classes, except you can only pick one, and it's the main class - you don't take levels in classes. For instance, the Swashbuckler thief is able to put 2 points into any weapons thieves can use, and can put maximum points into dual-wielding, so they're fun to dual-class to a fighter. Depends on your playing style.

 

Xan's romance is not really easy to kill, except at certain points. I can't really say that much without spoiling stuff. As a neutral character, Xan isn't really easy to offend with strongly good/evil responses, and tolerates (kind of) teasing. The one thing you really have to do is play an elf.

 

Edit: It's also possible for a female PC (or a male one, for that matter) to have a romance of sorts with Sebastian Luxley - a chaotic neutral human bard.

[berelinde]

Ajantis is romanceable across all games, but she's allergic to paladins and likes to play rogues. That rules out Ajantis. I don't claim to understand the prejudice, but I do try to respect it when making recommendtions. Which is why I recommended only straight male romances, despite the fact that Sarah is entertaining and well written. If the player doesn't like that kind of romance, there's little point in recommending it.

 

Seriously, though, paladins get a bad rep, but there's nothing I can do about that. So many people say that they dislike paladins or would never romance one, but the truth is, some of them make great romances. You just have to remember not to brag about stealing the silver...

[Vaalyah]

Deedlit, first, sorry for delay, I was not on the computer, lately. Well, about your thought on Casavir, thank you for your interpretation, since I don't "feel" very much Casavir, other people's opinion are extremely useful. But just few things.

First, from the description of Casavir, her is not in his 40s but in his 30s. I remember correctly this because I compared the age with Bishop's who is "late in his 20s". So, I suppose Bishop about 28-29 and Casavir about 33-34.

Second, if Casavir is so longing to protect the PC... why he considers the PC as his chief? As the one to FOLLOW in a battle? When Bishop joins the party, Casavir expresses his own disagreement and Bishop answers "Stop speaking in place of your chief, just because she's a woman!". This means that Casavir knows he is FOLLOWING and not LEADING the party... Why following someone if this someone is less capable than you or needs your protection? This is a difficult point for me, in understanding his ways...

Am I the only one who think Katriona was actually in love with Casavir? So in this sense I am double time confused, because I thought Katriona, who actually shares Casavir's way to see life, was the best pale for him... you know, same principles, same objectives, same combat ground... plus a lot of time spent together!

 

The point is, he never swore to protect me, he swore to protect Neverwinter, not me!

 

-_-' don't touch my beloved Bishop! I LOVE the Bishop/Casavir cutscene when the ranger says to him "Stop defending her honour, she can do it herself!" That's what I've always thought!!!

 

 

No, Anomem is not a paladin, he is a cleric (as my character!). However, I supposed I've fallen in love of the dubber's voice... The problem was that the portrait remember me of a person I actually knew... maybe that was the reason I have then fallen in love for that guy :-D

 

I surely second your opinion about game build over a male perspective. In everything. Having more romance options thanks to wonderful modders doesn't mean the game, on itself, had it. And by the way... are there any romancable options for female in BG1 vanilla? I didn't noticed any one of those! However, after checking the images... not that my PC would have been able to romance any of them, they're so ugly :-P

 

 

The link you were asking! http://vick330.deviantart.com/art/Neverwin...-page-128302412 at the bottom of each pic, you can see the link to the following strip! ;-)

And... running to the other thread :-D

 

Ok, yesterday I've installed HotU... and the graphic is so... terrible! :-D by the way, any mod useful for that expansion?

 

@ Berelinde: I have no problem at all in romancing a paladin... IF the paladin is interesting... Actually, Bishop's personality is more interesting, to me, than Casavir's and this is the only reason why my PC is falling in love with the former.

[berelinde]

Wait, this isn't in the "What game should I play?" thread, is it? I was actually making recommendations for Deedlit here, who is the reverse of you. She liked Casavir, but she doesn't like paladins. She also likes playing rogues, which rules out Ajantis. Personally, I think she should give him a try for a bit since mods are free, but that's her call.

[Vaalyah]

Oh no, that wasn't the point... since you said that there are many people that don't want to romance a paladin, I was saying "maybe it's true, I don't know, but in my case, the reason is ...". I didn't want to spoil your talking, sorry if my previous post seemed like that!

[Deedlit]

First of all,thanks for all the recommendations and your patience with me

 

Now,I would like to address several things here and there(too bad I don't know how to quote several stuff,so bear with me!):

 

-First of all,the talk about paladins: I never said I would cut my veins before playing a romance with a paladin or anything,I just said that,in my experience,the "classical" view and interpretation of paladin is usually the preaching,rigid sort,and that doesn't suit well with my choice of characters,expecially when speaking about romances,because they are usually either versed in the shadowy ways,or free spirited,or open minded even in matters of love (which doesn't mean my chars go seducing everything that moves if they are committed to someone already),or all of those things most of the time,traits that generally clash with the "classical paladin" code,and being told every 5 minutes that I'm a wretched spawn of evil but,fear not,I'll be saved and finally bathe in sacred light,it's not exactly one of my turn ons *laughs*;that doesn't mean that ALL paladins are like that,luckily,and Casavir is a shiny example of that,so I have no problem with paladins per se,if they have brain and soul....plus,I always like to try out all options and see for myself,I never judge something without trying it,I just said paladin is not my first thought for said reasons,but it's just a matter of preferences,not a rule

That being said,I will probably give Ajantis a try,it's just that elves get my attention first usually,in the same fashion one likes chocolate instead of french fries,and some other die for marmelade while hating peanut butter (and still someone will scream blasphemy!);so by all means,keep giving me advices so I can get a general idea,thank you kindly in advance

 

-About Casavir:technically,YOU ARE,in a way,his chief.At first you are just partners in pursuing the same goal,i.e. disbanding the orcs;during that time,Casavir sees you just as a young girl,BUT he has soon chance to see you in action,as well,plus you already have several companions who,if not loyal,follow your lead without much questioning anyway,which is another sign of your charisma,something a man as observant as Casavir (expecially on the battelfield)wouldn't fail to notice,and would surely take into consideration (this,of course is my personal interpretation).He is an outcast,though,so he considers himself as having no rank,while you,on the other hand,soon become a squire,and then even a knight captain,i.e.,nobility and this is something that pertains to his old world and burned deeply inside him,the knightly code,the ranks,so willing or unwilling he feels that;on the other hand,he still has a certain nature,so he naturally feels compelled to protect you,seeing you as a gentle flower in the midst of a war you didn't choose.You may see the discussion he has with Bishop in this light: he's protecting you from HIM,in that moment,since we all know what he thinks of our ranger

And he really says he wants to protect the PEOPLE of neverwinter,not neverwinter itself;in fact,it's an hot topic for him and he generally heats up a lot when talking about that

As for his age,mine was of course a guess;but seeing as how he has some white in his hair,I usually see him more toward the 40s than in the middle of his 30s,anyway it's just interpretation

Regarding Katriona,you're not the only one thinking she has a crush on Casavir,which is in fact the same idea the romance pack follows,as far as I've seen;I wouldn't say Katriona shares his SAME ideals though,because as Casavir himself says,Katriona and her group are just people who want to defend the people who live around old owl well,and they are not pursuing "greater good" or "greater justice" like him.

 

-Returning IT with the talk on romances: honestly Edwin's romance is arousing my interest,expecially the idea that I can influence him so much that he'd shift alignment;plus,I have a thing for witty,snarky,men in skirts....errrmm,I mean,casters! (poor berelinde knows that well,since I'm obsessing her non-stop with the Sand project )

On the other hand,Kivan situation (at least from the bits I read) reminds me a lot of Daeghun (<--- one track mind,I know),so I'm naturally drawn to him,for now;the other one that interests me in the same fashion is Gavin,but since berelinde says she's completing ToB content,I don't mind waiting to play all together,and meanwhile I can get more esperienced with the gameplay of BG,as well.

Then there's Xan:he makes me wonder why he's so depressed all the time (again,from what I read),and I can definitively see a certain kind of PC going to pester him;my only restraint on his regard is the race restrictions,which I usually don't like much,but it all depends on how it's played out.

Then again,I'll just have to wait and see who my PC will have more chemistry with anyway;maybe I'll end up with Ajantis *giggles*

 

As much as it goes for class choice and gamestyle,well,easily said: for now I'm gathering the idea I should try either a sorcerer or a bard,for charisma reasons,seeing as how many romances require a minimum of charisma;not to mention that would help building up conversational skills,since I usually go for non-violent resolutions,but I'm not sure how much they are implemented in BG.

On the other hand,choosing an healing class like cleric would give me the advantage of being able to arrange the party to my leisure,without having to worry about the healer;rogue remains my favorite for roleplay reasons,but I honestly don't know how is BG in terms of trapping and locked doors (like: impossible to go without a rogue,or manageable without?).

As for races,I don't mind playing elves,although my fav races are half-elf or aasimar usually(which I don't think it's implemented in BG,right?);I do loathe a bit the raceVSclass restrictions,but if it makes sense in BG world,then so be it,I'll adapt

And multiclassing is generally a no-no for me,for the sole reason that I'm an idiot *laughs*,so I generally end screwing up things;doing pure classes I still screw up,but less.

 

Are there things I will totally miss out cause of race and/or class in BG?

 

Again,thanks everyone for your advices and patience *bows*

[Ipsy]

- Sorcerer ability is based off of intelligence, not charisma. Druids (and paladins) also require high charisma. Bards and druids have 15+ charisma, and paladins have 17+, with a max of 18 at character creation.

 

- Race rarely matters, unless you play one of the "short folk" - a halfling, gnome, dwarf - or a half-orc. BG does not have subraces - no drow, tieflings, aasimar, and the like. Almost all romances are only for humans, elves, and half-elves. Gavin and Edwin are two of the rare exceptions to this. Xan is also an exception in that he will only romance elves and (in BG1) half-elves.

 

- Multiclassing is very simple in BG2 - it just means that you have two or three classes at once That's all. A Fighter/cleric, for instance, gets a fighter's fighting ability and a cleric's spellcasting, but experience points are split equally between their two classes.

 

- Traps and locks abound in the BG series. There are dungeons all over the place, some optional, some not. There's quite a few NPC thieves, though - Skie, Imoen, Safana, Coran, and Montaron in BG1, and Imoen, Nalia, and Yoshimo in BG2. Going without a rogue is probably doable if you can cast Find Traps and Knock, but...insane. Not a good idea, really.

 

- There's also several cleric and druid NPCs. Jaheira (fighter/druid) and Viconia (cleric) are in BG1 and BG2. BG1 also has Branwen (cleric), Yeslick (fighter/cleric), Faldorn (druid), Quayle (cleric/illusionist), and Tiax (cleric/thief), while BG2 has Aerie (cleric/mage), Anomen (fighter/cleric) and Cernd (druid). Rangers also eventually gain divine spells, but not until level 8, and they can only cast up to level 3 spells.

 

There's enough NPCs that you can have a tank, flank attacker, mage, healer, and rogue, so you can pick pretty much whatever class you want. But IMHO, an archer is an extremely useful character. If you want to play a bard, you could always play a Spellshafter, a bard specializing in ranged combat.

 

BG2 has class-specific quests for each class. Some mods have class- and race-specific options for the PC, but that's about it.

 

Unfortunately, talking your way out of combat generally isn't an option. There are a couple quests where you need high charisma, though. In BG1, higher charisma will also sometimes result in better quest rewards.

 

-Returning IT with the talk on romances: honestly Edwin's romance is arousing my interest,expecially the idea that I can influence him so much that he'd shift alignment;plus,I have a thing for witty,snarky,men in skirts....errrmm,I mean,casters! (poor berelinde knows that well,since I'm obsessing her non-stop with the Sand project )

On the other hand,Kivan situation (at least from the bits I read) reminds me a lot of Daeghun (<--- one track mind,I know),so I'm naturally drawn to him,for now;the other one that interests me in the same fashion is Gavin,but since berelinde says she's completing ToB content,I don't mind waiting to play all together,and meanwhile I can get more experienced with the gameplay of BG,as well.

Then there's Xan:he makes me wonder why he's so depressed all the time (again,from what I read),and I can definitively see a certain kind of PC going to pester him;my only restraint on his regard is the race restrictions,which I usually don't like much,but it all depends on how it's played out.

Then again,I'll just have to wait and see who my PC will have more chemistry with anyway;maybe I'll end up with Ajantis *giggles*

Xan is without a doubt the most depressed character in the BG series. Honestly depressed, that is, rather than simply being emo. As for the race restriction...IMO, it does make sense, but saying too much would be spoiling it. And maybe this is just me, but I liked Kivan more as my PC's friend than love interest. Very well-written either way, though. Edwin requires high intelligence (14+) to romance, but that's the only requirement.

[Deedlit]

You know,my memory of character creation in Bg is totally lost;I am honestly a bit confused now,because I thought BG was based on D&D system,but multiclassing and classes seem really different from NwN and the likes to which I am used by now,judging from what you say...

 

I thought I could go with sorcerer,but if they are based on intelligence and not charisma,it may be a problem;unless I can go through romances with the minimum requirement (which is usually 10 or 12 charisma...not sure how many statpoints you can juggle).Or maybe,I should just go for bard

 

And yes,sadly I remembered I couldn't talk my way out of stuff much;something you confirmed,but at least I can prepare in advance

 

I have no problem with rogue npcs;my problem is with mostly of the divine spellcasters,Jaheira,Aerie and Viconia on top of the list,so that's why I was considering cleric (although this may be a good occasion to finally make use of Anomen *laughs*).

 

But how many people you can have in party exactly?I remembered 4 or 5.....so not sure.

And are melee generally favored,like in NwN and the likes,or casters can do their share of work without being killed every 5 seconds or not being able to rest for ages?

 

I will take what you said about Xan (and the others!) into consideration;although I ask myself,will he ever cheer up,or it's dead-end situation?

And why can half elves romance him in BGI,but not BGII? That would've solved my problems

 

Thanks for all the advices,at least I'm getting an idea of what to expect

[Deedlit]

Sorry to disturb once again,but I would like to have some clarifications and confirmations on the romance modules;I saw bg1 npc project(with Xan's and Ajantis' first part of the romance),Gavin and Kivan mods on these forums,but alas I couldn't find Xan for BGII,Ajantis for BGII and Edwin in here (probably because I'm dumb,as always).

 

I DID find them on the link Ipsy kindly provided (the one with all the infinity mods),but since I saw doubles and whatnot,I would love confirmation that the links I got are indeed the modules you pointed out (I am mostly sure they are from what I read in the descriptions,but just to be sure...):

 

-Edwin's romance (does this mean he is only romanceable in BGII?)

 

-Xan for BGII

 

-Ajantis for BGII (thirdish post)

 

 

Thanks anyway and have a good day

[Ipsy]

BG is based more on 2nd edition D&D, whereas NWN is 3E. Different ruleset Most romances don't have a charisma requirement. I know Coran does, but I think that's it.

 

You get 5 NPCs in the party, maximum.

 

As for melee, depends. Casters can become incredibly powerful, but at levels 1-4, they're pretty wimpy. Can be useful with a sling (if they have decent dexterity). If they're a fighter multiclass, they can function as flank or ranged attackers, especially since they have access to buff spells like Stoneskin and Armor. Melee characters can be exceptionally useful in some situations - taking down a weakened mage, for instance - but it really does depend on the battle. Generally, it's not hard to find a spot to rest. BG1 and BG2 have inns, and it's safe to rest in most of the outdoor areas.

 

Xan doesn't really cheer up much. He does develop a sense of humor, though, and he's not quite so depressed in Throne of Bhaal.

 

Edit: yep, those links are what I meant. Edwin is indeed romanceable in BG2 only. Also, EasyTutu is here.

[Deedlit]

Thanks a lot for the clarifications,I feel much more relieved now

 

I'm still unsure of what kind of PC to do,class and race wise,since I have to take into consideration many things (which romance to pursue,gameplay,raceVS class restrictions mostly.... ),but I'm generally propending for a caster presently,just unsure if divine or arcane (although,if I do an elf,I can't be a bard *cries* and rogue still has its appeal,but since I have alternatives...);I tried to consult some information website for BG,and I noticed they don't even have sorcerer as a class listed...maybe I should consult BGII ruleset,since,if I got it right,after installing EasyTuTu it will be converted to that system?Or is it just the engine and gameplay concerning npc banters,journal and such that will be updated?

 

Also,will I need to install both easytutu and weidu to install and play the modules?

 

Ahhh so much to try out...who has time for the vanilla playthrough? *laughs*

 

Thank you a lot for all the explanations,mighty kind of you

[berelinde]

As a player, you don't have to install weidu. It comes with every mod already. If you use EasyTutu, you will need to play in English, but BGT has foreign-language support. I tried to install Tutu v4 once, but found that I lacked the technical aptitude to do so successfully.

 

To install a mod, just download the mod and run the installer. It will be called setup-(modname).exe. G3 mods and PPG mods come with some kind of self-extracting achive, so all you have to do is doubleclick on Mod.exe and the installer does everything else for you. Most mods from other communities do not use self-extracting archives, but the installation process is still relatively painless.

 

Just do yourself a favor. When you download mods, download them to your game directory. When you decide to install them, make sure your game is not running. Never attempt to begin installing a second mod until the first mod's installation is complete.

 

You will probably find that bards in BG2 are not what they are in NWN and NWN2. I find them incredibly useful in NWN2, but far less so in BG2. Your mileage may vary.

[Deedlit]

Really thank you for the patience in explaining stuff to me everytime,I know I'm being annoying :9

 

As for playing in english,I have no problems,since I always play games in english anyway;although my understanding of the language may not be perfect,it's still decent,and I hate the sloppy work they usually do with translations (and even when they do a good one,a lot gets inevitably lost in the process of translating from one language to another,so I love to avoid that if I can!).

 

And I usually do one thing at a time,so no problems there as well;I do tend to mess up manual installation,but as long as there's readmes,I should be fine

 

Regarding bards,they just seemed a good idea in matters of charisma and roleplay,since Ipsy pointed out that a couple of quests require high charisma; if it's nothing earth shattering though,I'll just do my average cleric or spellcaster,so I can choose either race,according to which romance I will decide to pursue in my first playtrhough....I'd wager a chaotic good,elven sorcerer(wizard?) or cleric should adapt to pretty much all situations (too bad Xan is not into half-elves by the end of BG for reasons I still ignore ),so I can explore things with calm and quiet,both roleplay and npc wise.

 

I'm open to advices in that regard as well,since all I can do for now is read,inform and wait...it's a long way from the UK to here