Baldur's Gate + Tales of the Sword Coast first run.

[SweatyGremlins]

Hey, i'm playing Planescape: Torment at the moment and am no where near finishing it yet but would like to start setting up Baldur's Gate now, if i wait until i am finished with PS:T i will just rush and mess it up. I was lucky enough to find a guide with some good suggestions on how to play PS:T on a first run here Magic Hamsters, the guide suggested the Widescreen mod but i found it just made everything miniature and there was an ugly flicker on the fog of war as i scrolled about so i just stuck to the 640x480.

 

At the moment i have ready to install

 

BG1Fixpack11.exe (i think this is the Baldurdash thing i see mentioned)

BG1TOSCGameTextUpdate11.exe

G3 bg1tweaks-v2.exe

 

I also have Fields of the Dead but i think i will hold off and maybe give it a try on a second run through, i feel the above is probably all i need but i am not familiar with what mods are out there, if there is an Unfinished Business or NPC type thing you would recommend please mention it. I know there is a mod to run BG1 through the BG2 engine but i don't really feel i need it, unless it drastically improves A.I. or does something other than update the graphics.

 

Thanks for any ideas.

[erik]

BG1Fixpack11.exe (i think this is the Baldurdash thing i see mentioned)

BG1TOSCGameTextUpdate11.exe

I'd recommend this most recent fixpack instead of ancient baldurdash. It includes most of baldurdash's fixes and replaces both files above.

[SweatyGremlins]

Thanks, i wasn't sure about what was the latest, that site looks pretty good too i'l poke around it a bit see what i can find.

[Mike1072]

I know there is a mod to run BG1 through the BG2 engine but i don't really feel i need it, unless it drastically improves A.I. or does something other than update the graphics.

By themselves, the conversions that let you play through BG1 in the BG2 engine (BGT, Tutu) don't do anything outside that scope, but with the BG2 engine comes access to features that didn't exist in the original (dual wielding, character kits) and extended capabilities that mods can take advantage of. Sword Coast Stratagems (an AI mod) and the BG1 NPC Project (a party interaction mod) are two examples of mods compatible only with BGT and Tutu.

[Dakk]

And, most importantly of all, tab-highlighting (i.e. press Tab to have containers, doors etc. outlined) which is extremely convenient and sanity saving is not present in BG1.

Disregard if you are fond of pixel-hunting

[SweatyGremlins]

By themselves, the conversions that let you play through BG1 in the BG2 engine (BGT, Tutu) don't do anything outside that scope, but with the BG2 engine comes access to features that didn't exist in the original (dual wielding, character kits) and extended capabilities that mods can take advantage of. Sword Coast Stratagems (an AI mod) and the BG1 NPC Project (a party interaction mod) are two examples of mods compatible only with BGT and Tutu.

 

And, most importantly of all, tab-highlighting (i.e. press Tab to have containers, doors etc. outlined) which is extremely convenient and sanity saving is not present in BG1.

Disregard if you are fond of pixel-hunting

 

It sounds tempting, i like A.I. mods and the extra kits and NPC do sound nice. I noticed there are a couple of versions of the mod, BG Tutu and Easy Tutu which is the right one? Also is it stable or does it crash a lot?

[Dakk]

BGT is the way to go IMO. Perfectly stable, as long as you don't make a ginormous mega mod. But just adding AI, NPC's, npc's and what not will not be a problem.

[SweatyGremlins]

Ok thanks, i'm really only interested in the A.I\NPC\Kit type mods for the moment so hopefully it should be stable.

 

/edit

For anyone else that brought the DVD collection of Baldur's Gate, you might get an error saying that the game won't work outside Canada\U.S.A. just download the latest international patch and it fixes it, also the Planescape: Torment DVD version needs to be updated with the latest patch.

[Miloch]

There's nothing wrong with doing your first run through BG1 relatively unmodded. You can always do a BG2-engine conversion and more mods on your second run and make up your own mind which you like better.

 

Most of the BG1 mods should also be on the Tutu mod list (link in my signature).

[Guest!]

By themselves, the conversions that let you play through BG1 in the BG2 engine (BGT, Tutu) don't do anything outside that scope, but with the BG2 engine comes access to features that didn't exist in the original (dual wielding, character kits) and extended capabilities that mods can take advantage of. Sword Coast Stratagems (an AI mod) and the BG1 NPC Project (a party interaction mod) are two examples of mods compatible only with BGT and Tutu.

 

And, most importantly of all, tab-highlighting (i.e. press Tab to have containers, doors etc. outlined) which is extremely convenient and sanity saving is not present in BG1.

Disregard if you are fond of pixel-hunting

 

It sounds tempting, i like A.I. mods and the extra kits and NPC do sound nice. I noticed there are a couple of versions of the mod, BG Tutu and Easy Tutu which is the right one? Also is it stable or does it crash a lot?

EasyTutu. It's also perfectly stable, never had a crash in more than a dozen heavily modded runs. Personally, after using Tutu I find the original BG1 eye-hurting.

[SweatyGremlins]

I think i might just play through it as normal for nostalgia's sake (i'll use the bugfix pack though), then replay it later on with all the goodies i collected from you guys. I really like the sound of Sword Coast Stratagems and some of the other work people have made, it's pretty impressive what people have been able to make.