I just restarted Baldur's Gate II: SoA!

[Zoë Sumra]

Get six party members rather than trying to muddle through with any fewer, even if you wind up dropping some/all of them later. Use the party members to their best advantage - clerics can buff and heal your tanks and mages can do a good amount of damage on their own. Don't be afraid to go away, reset your spells, sleep and come back, or do whatever else you need to get a tactical edge in the encounter.

[Zelgrath]

Use haste (lvl 5 wizard spell I think). It really increases the strength of your guys.

[HP Loveshaft]

Okay. What the hell am I doing wrong. I finished the first section, getting out of the dungeon. I did the circus bit in the Promenade, I met some guy that for 20,000 is going to hook me up with some people that know where Imoen is. I freed a gladiator from that dodgy tavern thing.

But now I'm stuck. I can't beat any of the enemies I've since found, which means something is totally wrong with how I am playing this game. There's some guys on the second floor of a building next to the Inn in the Promenade, they kill me. There's the slavers, they kill me. There are some other missions that walkthroughs make me think are even more difficult than these simple tasks.

Basic info/tactic advice?

That fight in the inn on the 2nd floor of the promenade is pretty tough. You're facing a full party and they can easily wreck you. If you think you can take them on, just save downstairs and get your full party all ready. So cast any buffs you might need (eg Stoneskin), make sure you have your fragile characters at the back, and go after any mages or healers first. That is actually one of my favorite fights in the game, I used to head over there all the time for a challenge.

If you need to get tricky, try dropping traps around them (I think you have to talk to make them fight you, but I forget). You can also do something like Cloudkill and then run around the corner, one of my favorite cheap BG2 techniques.

[sologdin]

the only real challenge in that fight is killing the thief before he goes invisible and runs away. just cast all male enhancement spells prior to picking the fight, drink down your levitras and extenzes, focus fire on strongest enemies first, use area effects (hold person, fireball, etc), and you'll knock their blocks off.

after you get out of the dungeon, do the circus tent, then do the second floor guys, then do the slavers (be sure to focus fire, drink your levitras, etc., as before). by that point, you should be able to get yourself a free castle from nalia's dumb ass.

[Demonblade]

Using quicksave often helps, as well as pausing after each turn (particularly with your mages) so you can get them to do exactly what you want when you want them to do it. I used to just try and fight without pausing, but that was too difficult, especially if you have more than one mage to use firepower with.

[Lightning Lord]

What do you mean "turn"? This game has turn based-mode as well? That will help immensely. I didn't know how to be casting spells while still trying to attack with the tanks. (I haven't been hugely dedicated to figuring this out. World Cup has been occupying more of my free time)

[Demonblade]

What do you mean "turn"? This game has turn based-mode as well? That will help immensely. I didn't know how to be casting spells while still trying to attack with the tanks. (I haven't been hugely dedicated to figuring this out. World Cup has been occupying more of my free time)

Well try to think of it like a turn-based style of game, as in paying attention to the dialog box at the bottom. Once you see your mages and clerics hit their spells, press pause and make their next moves, so that you don't have to feel so rushed. That way you don't have to miss opportunities and there'll be less chaos. Once you get the hang of things, you can probably ease up on doing that but if you're a noob, use the pause button and any advantage you can.

[Jon AS]

What do you mean "turn"? This game has turn based-mode as well? That will help immensely. I didn't know how to be casting spells while still trying to attack with the tanks. (I haven't been hugely dedicated to figuring this out. World Cup has been occupying more of my free time)

The game uses the old AD&D 2nd edition rules. 1 turn=6 seconds. To pause the game hit space (it also has an "autopause" feature where you can specify conditions when the game should pause on its own IIRC; I never used that, though). If you look at your fighters' stats for example you see a "Number of attacks" stat, which tells you how often per turn your fighter will attack with his weapon(s). A mage or priest can also only cast one spell per turn, but you can tell them what to cast next right after they've finished casting the last one.

If you're getting your ass kicked by the slavers you're really doing something wrong, btw. Have you played the tutorial?

[Lightning Lord]

The game uses the old AD&D 2nd edition rules. 1 turn=6 seconds. To pause the game hit space (it also has an "autopause" feature where you can specify conditions when the game should pause on its own IIRC; I never used that, though). If you look at your fighters' stats for example you see a "Number of attacks" stat, which tells you how often per turn your fighter will attack with his weapon(s). A mage or priest can also only cast one spell per turn, but you can tell them what to cast next right after they've finished casting the last one.

If you're getting your ass kicked by the slavers you're really doing something wrong, btw. Have you played the tutorial?

I have not played the tutorial. I don't think I've actually cast a spell yet. Last time I played, I was still figuring out how to set them up to do that.

I don't know that I have the patience for this. Seems like a really long game. I learned Might and Magic style RPGs pretty fast, this one is tricky by comparison.

ETA: Btw, I should be whipping the slavers at level 7, 8?

[Jon AS]

I have not played the tutorial. I don't think I've actually cast a spell yet. Last time I played, I was still figuring out how to set them up to do that.

I don't know that I have the patience for this. Seems like a really long game. I learned Might and Magic style RPGs pretty fast, this one is tricky by comparison.

I'd suggest playing the tutorial. It doesn't take long and it will teach you the basics.

And yes, it is a long game. First time through you can probably count on it taking 80+ hours even if you know how combat works.

ETA: Btw, I should be whipping the slavers at level 7, 8?

Yes.

[Durckad]

I have not played the tutorial. I don't think I've actually cast a spell yet. Last time I played, I was still figuring out how to set them up to do that.

I don't know that I have the patience for this. Seems like a really long game. I learned Might and Magic style RPGs pretty fast, this one is tricky by comparison.

It's an awesome game, one of the best RPG's ever made. I'd suggest sticking with it for a bit, but it can be hard. Incredibly hard at points.

ETA: Btw, I should be whipping the slavers at level 7, 8?

Personally, it's one of the first sidequests I do right after leaving Irenicus's dungeon. It can be a bit tough, but it's certainly doable.

[sologdin]

the only real fights on the slaver quest are when you first bust in the door, and then a room in the back with a pack of hostile mages. focused fire (all six of your guys target the same enemy until same is dead) is the key. when you get the hang of it, you'll know when to break the focused fire rule and split your guys off into their own duels.

[GuybrushThreepwood]

Also be aware that there are lots traps in the slaver's hideout (and, really, every dungeon). Have Yoshimo detect them, if he is in your party.

And, if you come in through the sewer entrance, then you can pick up a +3 two handed sword on the way. This sword is the only hilarious weapon in the game, so there's that, too.

[Zelgrath]

Watch out for trolls. I think there are a couple at the end of that quest or another one like it in the city. When you kill them they fall on the ground and regenerate. The only way to permanently finish one it to hit it with acid or fire when it's down.

[litechick]

I wish I could play this again but ever since I got Windows Vista it doesn't seem to work. Often when I try to play the RPG's my action is all stuttery and I don't know what setting I'm supposed to change to improve that--frame rate?

Also, I'm surprised to hear that traps are so powerful. For some reason I could never figure out how to use them.

I'm a big fan of skull trap and cloudkill. :) I like having a thief because I like to keep my mage loaded with lots of quick casting magic missles. I can never resist Keldorn because he gets a +5 sword.

[Daeric]

Watch out for trolls. I think there are a couple at the end of that quest or another one like it in the city. When you kill them they fall on the ground and regenerate. The only way to permanently finish one it to hit it with acid or fire when it's down.

AS far as my brain remembers theres no trolls in the main city, plenty in the surronding areas through.

Never be afraid if your on full hitpoints to chuck an aoe spell onto grouped up casters using yourself as a range finder.

[Jon AS]

AS far as my brain remembers theres no trolls in the main city, plenty in the surronding areas through.

Never be afraid if your on full hitpoints to chuck an aoe spell onto grouped up casters using yourself as a range finder.

No, there are several trolls in the slaver hideout, and in some other areas in Athkatla. Of course there are even more in other places.

[Alaerien]

Basic info/tactic advice?

A few more tips to add:

A devastating tactic against enemy mages is poison. The poison keeps hurting them every turn, disrupting any spell they're casting, long after you actually hit them. Once they can't cast spells and their hit points are going down, they're easy to finish off. You can grab arrows of biting or darts of wounding from the Adventurer's Mart in the Promenade.

If I remember rightly, once you have a spellcaster (such as Aerie who you can find in a tent in the Promenade) spells work like this.

1. Each character only has the spells that are listed in their spellbook. To add spells to the spellbook, you need to buy them, right-click on them in the inventory and learn them. (There is a chance of failing to learn them, which I think destroys the spell, so save beforehand.)

Most low-level spells are sold in the Promenade. Others you'll encounter throughout the game. You need not only damage spells like Magic Missile, but spells like Breach (which removes protections from a protected enemy), Lower Resistance (which lowers an enemy's magic resistance) and buffs like Haste (which make all your characters move faster in battle).

2. Out of the spells in a character's spellbook, the character can only cast the spells they've memorised. Click on a spell in the spellbook and it will fill one of the slots on the left-hand page. Make sure to fill all the slots. When you sleep tonight, the spells will be memorised.

Choosing which spells to memorise is a major part of tactics. When you're about to fight enemies who are weak against fire, for example, you might want to memorise Fireball. Or if they're grouped together tightly, you might want to memorise area of effect spells such as Cloudkill and/or Chaos. If you're sending a scout ahead to do recon, you might want to buff him with Haste and Improved Invisibility.

3. You can use the memorised spells by clicking on the magic button in the bottom menu. All your available spells will be listed there. Click on one and then click on the intended victim to cast the spell. Bear in mind that if the caster is hit the spell will be disrupted and will no longer be available to cast - so don't cast while the spellcaster is being barraged with arrows, for example.

Don't be afraid to spend money on good equipment - pretty soon you'll have more than you know what to do with.

Equip helmets for everyone. They protect against critical hits, which is the one lucky hit that causes massive damage.

Give everyone a ranged weapon.

[Jon AS]

There is a chance of failing to learn them, which I think destroys the spell, so save beforehand.

Well if you're going to do that save yourself some time and just lower the difficulty to a level where learning spells has no chance of failure, then set it back to your desired level afterwards.

[Gunnlaugr ormstunga]

I wish I could play this again but ever since I got Windows Vista it doesn't seem to work.

You can now get the Baldur's Gate series and Planescape Torment on Vista/Windows 7-friendly DVDs.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Baldurs-Gate-4-Compilation-DVD/dp/B002TOKQH2/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=videogames&qid=1277547197&sr=8-2