De Gods! What a learning curve! Options

[GreyArea]

After playing the mod for about a week and a bit, possibly more, I have come to the conclusion that this mod is the hardest I have ever played and really making me think. This is a very good thing as I enjoy a challenge, but some of the fights I just cannot win (mainly Druid Grove currently but I expect more to come like WH with Fiircragg and others like the Suni party at first when I go back to Ath.

This isn't party compo related for the toughness for me, it's me getting back into the game again after such a long time and not remembering what such and such spell does or the true uses of other spells that i sometimes see as 'poxy' or 'crap' were in reality they may be the best things since sliced bread.

So pretty much I am asking this:

Should I consider playing through on the un-modded game for a little bit to get my head around some tactics and such or just set the difficulty down to normal (I always run on Core Rules as it's the neutral middle ground difficulty IMHO) and see how I go? I really want to get the enjoyment out of this seemingly stable and exciting mod (yes, getting my ass handed to me for the Nth time in a row is fun, I learn from the enemies tactics and my mistakes). I also enjoy the idea of the new critters to bash my head against so that will also be fun to see coin golems and gem golems amongst others.

In the un-modded game I did have some trouble with certain locations, though that may of been due to low level party for the location, and I expect to get bogged down in them when I get to the enhanced versions. I am just going to hope tat i can get to a high enough level to be able to take what they dish out at me and manage to get the gear needed to beat them down.

Ok that got off topic a bit.

This pretty much boils down to thus:

Returning to BG@/ToB after a longish hiatus is it recommended to start up with the normal un-modded game and go from there and get the skills back up? Or possibly a less intense mod to warm up with before plunging into IA?

OR

Dive into IA and learn everything on the fly? (not everything, but advanced tactics for starters and proper party compo/spell usage etc....)

Thanks for your time reading these musing

[Sikret]

It's hard to say which set of rules is closer to the vanilla game. Each of the two mods makes radical changes to the vanilla game's rules and atmosphere. But it's also worth noting that being closer to the vanilla game's rules is not a merit by itself. Each of us (modders) have applied the type of changes we preferred and thought of them as "improvements" to the vanilla game. It's upto the player to see which set of rules and which type of atmosphere he prefers.

Examples of IA's radical changes to the vanilla game's rules and atmosphere: Not allowing multiple spell immunties to stack with each other, replacing some of the game's spells with entirely new ones. Adding entirely new monsters to the game.

Examples of SCS2's radical changes to the vanilla game's rules and atmosphere: allowing Breach to affect liches and rakshasas, allowing Spell Turning to block Breach and changing Ruby Ray and similar spells to target and affect an area (rather than an individual) and consequently allowing them to affect invisible targets.

[rbeverjr]

Examples of SCS2's radical changes to the vanilla game's rules and atmosphere: allowing Breach to affect liches and rakshasas, allowing Spell Turning to block Breach and changing Ruby Ray and similar spells to target and affect an area (rather than an individual) and consequently allowing them to affect invisible targets.

Are you sure that SCS2 allows area of effect Ruby Ray? I think it is the G3 tweak pack that allows Spell Strike to affect a small area - if you choose that option. I don't recall any mod doing the same with Ruby Ray (which may be due to my ignorance or faulty memory). If some mod I used did offer that option, I know that I didn't choose it. With SCS2, you can choose which options that you want to install. If you are interested in that mod, I suggest that you read the SCS2 mod's readme and make your own decision.

I do agree with Sikret that the best practice for Improved Anvil is playing Improved Anvil. If you are satisfied with your success (e.g. are having fun) with the game difficulty at normal or even easy, then that is the best way for you to improve yourself as an IA player. Conversely, if you still find that frustrating, then other tactical mods can help bring you up to speed somewhat by just forcing you to stay mentally focused, learn the spells, and learn some tactics (which sometimes may even work in IA).

Personally, I applaud both the SCS2 mod and particularly Improved Anvil. Hurrah, for programmers that give us such good products.