Tiax Cannot be recruited

[Guest Isk]

If Tiax is initially rejected he cannot be recruited later. Talking to him does not initiate convo. Charming him and then initiating convo bricks the game.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/rjinymo8slmqxur/BALDUR.SAV?dl=0

[CamDawg]

The charm one is easy at least: the dialogue should just exit, but there's a player reply with no text that can't be selected, so you can't exit the dialogue. That's an easy and straightforward fix and goes all the way back to oBG.

The other issue also goes back to oBG and is a product of being a different engine. Tiax has essentially two dialogue trees: one if you've never talked to him, and one where he's charmed. So if you speak and reject his help, he no longer has valid dialogue tree (except if charmed). In this situation, in oBG, he'd at least play one of his common voice lines when clicked, whereas in BGEE (and Tutu and BGT for that matter) he does absolutely nothing.

So it's a bug where there are multiple, but suboptimal, ways to fix it:

1. Add one or more of his common soundset lines as a one-and-done dialogue option to fill this gap.
2. Allow the original dialogue tree to be recycled for subsequent visits.
3. As #1, but have it lead back to one of his original dialogue trees to allow recruitment.
4. Have Tiax leave if you reject his help.
5. Write new lines of dialogue to fill this gap.

I've ordered these options in the rough order of what I think would be least worst to worst worst.

[Awachi]

Personally I think it's bad design to prevent further recruitment. Edwin does this too. A newb's just going to reload rather than miss out, otherwise the player's using meta knowledge to avoid the initial talk until he's ready for that npc to join. 

I think a combo of 1-3;  recycle just enough lines to recruit. 

[DavidW]

It's a design flaw of oBG that you only get one chance to recruit NPCs, and I wish BD had addressed it, but I can't really interpret it as a bug.

I vote 1. By all means code up 3 as a tweak.

[CamDawg]

Tiax is still a unique case though.

• Alora - You can recruit her the second time you talk with her. You can defer, and get a second chance, after which she leaves permanently.
• Dynaheir will leave forever is not recruited initially (with or without an intervening Edwin fight)
• Edwin - Demands your help, leaves permanently if rejected.
• Garrick - Offers to join after Silke is dead (if you didn't kill the merchants) and leaves forever if rejected.
• Minsc will stick around after an initial dialogue, but won't have anything to say unless you return with Dynaheir or she's dead.
• Shar-Teel will leave forever if rejected after losing the duel; will also leave forever if you decline the duel to begin with.
• Skie will either join or call the guards.
• Viconia will leave forever if you don't help her in the first dialogue. If you help, though, you can reject her offer to join the party and she'll stick around for re-recruitment.
• Xan will leave forever if rejected on the first dialogue.

Tiax doesn't give you a second chance even though he's sticking around and he's under no duress to leave. I suppose one more alternative to the above would be to make a new tree based on one of his post- lines ("As was foretold at the beginning of all, so the wayward brainless children have returned to the bosom of their intended celestial nanny. I, Tiax, welcome you back to your eternal glorious servitude."), as maybe a #1.5 option.

Found two other bugs while looking through this: Minsc should have something to say in the gap between his first talk and Dynaheir's fate; if Eldoth is in the party but Skie cannot detect him, she won't call the guards and ends the dialogue. She will then have nothing to say in subsequent dialogues.

[DavidW]

Fair enough, but still: is there any evidence you’re supposed to be able to rerecruit him?
 

I’d almost be inclined to think getting him to EscapeArea() is the more minimal fix.

[CamDawg]

Honestly, no idea. This is one of those frustrating but incredibly common oBG things where there are all sorts of holes with the slightest deviation in the expected chain of events. I can't tell you how many quests needed touchups... especially the journal entries (oh god, the journal entries).

Re-using bits of the main or post dialogue to give him a re-recruitment chance wouldn't be out of scope of what BD might do here, but I'd rather err on the conservative side.