I intend to play through BG2 plus Improved Anvil (4.3?)and all the megamods eventually - I will be playing a BG2-Tactics version for now , as I want to try out some new megamods like ROT etc., and a Big Picture-BG2 version on the 2nd time round, so that I can properly compare all 3, afterwards(I'm a bit of a veteran, already with Tactics).

I just have a few questions:-

1) I heard that IA involves mainly, some very tough melee-fighting, with wizards/spells being relatively ineffective in battles versus opponents, since most/many are highly magic-resistant such as golems. Is this correct?

2) I read a Bioware forum post in which someone suggested that the ultimate (ie hardest) game was a combination of Tactics/Improved Anvil and Spell50, as well as DotQuestPack etc. However I thought that Improved Anvil wasn't supposed to be compatible with them, according to the Improved Anvil readme. Would it work if I installed all those mods or just , perhaps, just the relevant compatible parts of those mods.

3) Lastly, I rather like some of the Improved Anvil tweaks/fixes but don't like others. Would it be possible, in future, to select which specific tweaks we can get - or are there just too manyof those around for this to be practical?

4) What if I decided to install Improved Anvil but didn't like the altered spells but then installed all the spell-altering mods I actually wanted(such as ADPack/SpellPack/WildMagicspells etc.) - would this work or would this break the game(or make opponents too easy/too difficult etc.)?


5) The IA readme states that one should download Bg2Fixpack 1.12 - however, the latest version is now BG2Fixpack version 4. Do I ignore the readme and install version, regardless, or do I have to search online for the 1.12 version in order to avoid inevitable bugs occurring in my game?

Thanks in advance,

Geoff

Hi, Geoff!



I actually dispute this fact; I think that, if used correctly, wizards and magic generally can still be VERY powerful in IA (even against opponents with high resistances). The difference between IA and other mods is that in IA it requires more thought about how to use magic effectively.

Having said that, many other IA players would agree with your statement; I guess it comes down to what sort of game you like to play and how much you are prepared to experiment with magic to get it to work. When starting out it's probably best to ensure you have plenty of powerful melee fighters in the party.



Be careful when just lumping hard mods together to create the hardest game. Let me explain what I mean. Many 'difficulty increasing' mods actually make the game easier, not harder. This is because the increased challenge is not proportionate to the increase in experience/magic item rewards. Take the 'Acid Kensai' component of Tactics, for instance. Now, yes, the battle itself is difficult, but once you win the magical katana you get as a reward is so broken the rest of the game is made far easier.

Until you have tried IA, I wouldn't worry about trying to create the 'hardest' mod. You may find IA 'alone' is hard enough .

Regarding mod incompatibilities, there are many, many threads people have started on this forum in the past about this. I suggest you have a look at those. I have to say (and I know others do differently) that I prefer to play with IA alone (and the recommended mods in the readme), or with one or two NPC mods. I never think it's worth the risk installing many different, large mods - the chances for some unforeseen problem is just too high for my liking.

Hello Geoff! And welcome!

No, IA is not divided into separate components during installation.
IA should be the last mod you install. Don't install any other mods after installing it.

It's Baldurdash TOB Fixpack v1.12 (not BG2Fixpack)

The most difficult game possible would probably be IA on insane, plus some tactics components that don't interfere with IA and don't give overpowered items, copuled with DEFJam set to 10%

Personally, I'm opposed to XP-reducing mod-components and the "Insane" settings. I rather like the extra spells that "Insane" gives to opponents, but I'm against the "200%-damage" concept, so I'm thinking of using the biggtweakpack which removes the extra damage but allows the other effects of the "Insane" setting - I would rather have a far better AI or realistic damage-reduction values for certain suitable hostile monsters(eg:- golems/dragons etc.). And I rather like the idea of reaching higher levels as a reward, but without using ueber-powerful items.

Anyway, thanks for the info - I was a bit confused about this mention of the fixpack, so I'm glad I've sorted that out. Hopefully, by th e time I get around to playing Improved Anvil properly , in the next couple of months, it'll be up to version 5, by then.