Jump to content

Should I install mods for IWD: EE first walktrought on hardcore settings?


Recommended Posts

I know people disagree about this, but I highly recommend against using HoF mode on a first playthrough. It turns enemies into damage sponges, which of course makes them harder; but it also gives you tons of extra XP, which makes everything easier. If you want a fun challenge I would play on hard/insane difficulty, and turn difficulty-based XP bonuses off. So you advance at a normal rate, but you have to face lots more enemies, who hit harder. 

Link to comment

@InKal

Goblins has a far more than 2D4 Hit Dice so they is completely unaffected by Sleep. Do you think the creature with near hundred of HP (common goblin) has 2D4 Hit Dice? Goblins seems to has a quite of bonus against crushing damages, so it's particularly useless against them. Only weakness — piercing damage, such as arrows and daggers. Swords somehow slashing only... The Two-handed Weapon Style is an insanity, no any bonus to AC. I have already party, I will not change it.

By the way, I have managed to get trough my party that cursed goblin's ambush, relaying only on Dweomer and the hell of luck. It's took a long time, the battle on small space against Goblin Marshals ho-ho-ho...

@Isewein, @subtledoctor

Hmm... Mhm... I don't know, thinking about that. Tomorrow.

Edited by frostysh
Link to comment

oh, but goblins are totally completely affected by Sleep. as I said I played HoF from scratch and them little buggers slept like babys. Two handed weapons are the best for one simple reason - highiest damage. you dont need shields and ac coz your fighters gonna get hit anyway, with THW you killing them enemies quicker than they are killing you and thats the way to go. if you cast proper combat buffs on your fighters they dont need any friggin shields, if they are hasted they are killing machines. of course there are exceptions. some one handed weapons have extra elemental damage and/or very good bonuses and extra attack or extra damage against certain type of enemy. only in this cases you could consider swtching to one hand and shield but this is situational, in most cases two handed is always better.

 

 I would never use premade characters. I love making my own party, that is a huge part of enjoynment in IDW. Now, I say goodbye to HoF mode so I build only my protagonist (like in BG!!!) usually Burial Defender unwashed and all sweaty lady named Hefty Plump heheheh and I pick all Lava wonderful NPC Oak Maw is my fav what a masterpiece that guy is. and thats the way you should play Icewind Dale (a ryhme o lol) in these times and age.

Edited by InKal
Link to comment
9 hours ago, subtledoctor said:

I know people disagree about this, but I highly recommend against using HoF mode on a first playthrough. It turns enemies into damage sponges, which of course makes them harder; but it also gives you tons of extra XP, which makes everything easier. If you want a fun challenge I would play on hard/insane difficulty, and turn difficulty-based XP bonuses off. So you advance at a normal rate, but you have to face lots more enemies, who hit harder. 

I agree.  Moreover I don't recommed HoF not only on first playthrough, I don't recommend it at all. Only play HoF if you like to chop wood with your bare hands.

Link to comment
7 hours ago, Jarno Mikkola said:

And play with the rule, "I can only rest 1 time per worldmap area". It's self imposed, so no, there's a mod for that.

It's poor idea. I for myself completed some games such as "The Witcher 2: Assassins Of The Kings" on the maximum possible difficulty settings with option where single death of MC — the game start from the beginning and I must to say such things totally improper for IWD, BG series. In the game where half your win/lose battle relaying on Dice Roll rather than a microcontrol or strategy/build, and 150+ hours of gameplay (every side quest etc), you probably don't want to apply rules when your party trapped into situation where without second rest on location impossible to move farther. This rules, on my opinion, just not fit Icewind Dale.

6 hours ago, InKal said:

oh, but goblins are totally completely affected by Sleep. as I said I played HoF from scratch and them little buggers slept like babys. Two handed weapons are the best for one simple reason - highiest damage. you dont need shields and ac coz your fighters gonna get hit anyway, with THW you killing them enemies quicker than they are killing you and thats the way to go. if you cast proper combat buffs on your fighters they dont need any friggin shields, if they are hasted they are killing machines. of course there are exceptions. some one handed weapons have extra elemental damage and/or very good bonuses and extra attack or extra damage against certain type of enemy. only in this cases you could consider swtching to one hand and shield but this is situational, in most cases two handed is always better.

 I would never use premade characters.

Nonsense. Or we played into different versions of the game. I have tried 10+ times the Sleep spell on Goblins — zero success. It's simply useless and no workin in HoF, probably will work on some Squirrel but no on one hundred HP Goblen... Fighters gonna hit, but it is a very different how many times per turn, it's difference is so big that means defeat or victory. On HoF anything that has no AC bonus for frontline fighters is an insanity. For example Undead Hunter with Large Shield and Sword And Shield Weapon Style, with a lot of luck in Dice Rolls can whistand a rain of arrows from Goblin Marshals for ah, lets say 3 — 5 rounds, before he need to retreat, healing to require and kite like crazy. And this time is enough for a spellcaster to discharge all containing deadly spell arsenal properly because the archers are standing in the thick group hitting a single char and they are voulnerable to any AoE magic. If I made equip Undead Hunter with Two-handed weapon, he will not stand even a single round... It's a very big difference. Why not play with pre-made characters, they are cool and with some backstory.

The guys from Beamdog forum suggested "Improved Heart Of Fury" mod, but I think it's too strong changing the core game, or it is okay?

Edited by frostysh
Link to comment
18 minutes ago, frostysh said:

you probably don't want to apply rules when your party trapped into situation where without second rest on location impossible to move farther. This rules, on my opinion, just not fit Icewind Dale.

Trapped into a situation ? You do know that forcing rules on yourself is a voluntary occupation. If you feel it's impossible, then it might be... but you will want to not "cheat yourself from the experience" by resting at every turn and after every fight.

And yes, in a regular rules(not HoF mode acconting) even a mage can take a orge hit and be fine with it, not on level 1, but on the levels they should meat them. But it only takes a few to take them down and their AC is so bad that it takes only a few seconds to get dead. And in EE games you have this handy option to get all the hit points from the hit dice.

Link to comment
3 hours ago, Jarno Mikkola said:

You do know that forcing rules on yourself is a voluntary occupation. If you feel it's impossible, then it might be... but you will want to not "cheat yourself from the experience" by resting at every turn and after every fight.

I am not understand, the rules exist or the rules does not exist. I can say about things that I have tried in IWD with the party mentioned above, and an every fight even with a couple Goblins evaporating almost full arsenal of few casters, the party will not survive the next fight without rest, it's impossible. And I think spell Animate Dead a little bit overpowered in HoF... It's rolled on level up for Baern (Cleric/Ranger), and with this you can use army of undead like tanks, Goblins and Orcs has no any blunt weapon so they are useless against skeletons, only zombies falling.

If Ogre dealing damage to the magicians in party, this is mean a strategy fail and usually game over. That because I don't like a 'core' difficulties, too small HP enemies, no interesting battles. For an example SCS for BG making enemies much more tougher, combined with Insane difficulties and so on, they has a lot of HP and lot of protections, they good in selecting targets. Actually vanila IWD: EE the monsters no so bad at targeting too, for an example beetles that attacked the Goblin's cave, never target summoned units, and if monster firstly targeted party member, it's will be very hard to make him attack skeleton, but still far more worst than SCS. I am thinking about "Improved Heart Of Fury" mod...

Edited by frostysh
Link to comment

Rest-spam s no different from turning the difficulty down to easy. Or, might as welljust cheat in a Ring of Regeneration for every party member and let the clock run for five minutes before moving another 30’ into the map. Of course,

2 hours ago, frostysh said:

the party will not survive the next fight without rest, it's impossible [in HoF mode].

Right, HoF increases “challenge” but forces you to do things to make it easier, which reduces the challenge, so you've twisted the game rules into something barely recognizable for the sake of... what? Better to increase the challenge in ways that hew to normal gameplay (higher difficulty but no silly freebie bonus XP). 

I don’t play IWDEE because stupid Beamdog prevented 2.5 from being modded on iOS. But my preferred method was: 1) higher difficulty level; 2) no bonus XP; 3) further, a mod to reduce XP by half; 4) have to get through each map without any resting. And for extra fun, 5) use themed parties instead of a well-rounded group. 

But, as always, to each his/her own!

Link to comment
33 minutes ago, subtledoctor said:

Rest-spam s no different from turning the difficulty down to easy.

Of course not. You see, in Icewind Dale many of enemy groups attacking only together. It's the same like with improved AI with SCS in BG. This is means, for an example, that right after some events leading by story and leaving Easthaven, the party of heroes will encounter Goblin's ambush on the crossroads... There is no way back, and no way forward (there is a lot of raiders). No matter how many times make party rest before, single raider see our party and the full scale assault begins! After battle is started the party cannot rest until the last Goble standing. This moment took me few hours to win because only Dweomer was from attacking spells (no count useless Sleep in mage Ilauna's spellbook).

Spoiler

8C6EE4FF250E0FAA3A737FDFD8461B03465A9E24

Only the one significant minus (as for hardcore gamer like me) in HoF that I have found — the "Animate Dead" spell is overpowered, unfortunately it's spawning undeads with already enlarged by HoF settings stats, such as an basin of HP... 😑 After I have realised this fact I have only one question: to install or not to install "Improved Heart Of Fury" mode?

P. S. How to reduce size of screenshots in Steam?

Edited by frostysh
Link to comment
3 minutes ago, frostysh said:

P. S. How to reduce size of screenshots in Steam?

You take a picture with Prnt Sc -button... and then you edit it with mspaint. Or open the program and paste(ctrl+V), depending on the OS and it's version/functionality etc. etc.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...