I've been thinking for a long time now about making a Let's Play of something. I finally picked Baldur's Gate for one simple reason: I haven't actually played it, even though I own the game. Sooo, would anyone be interested in reading a Let's Play? It'd be a screenshot/text one.

Duh. Like I'd say anything but 'meh, why not'

What is Baldur's Gate?

BG is a 1998 cRPG made by BioWare and released by Black Isle (which automatically makes it one of the best in the genre) set in the Forgotten Realms setting - a high fantasy one, which is also known for the ridiculously cliched character Drizzt Do'Urden.

The game was made to use the standard Forgotten Realms ruleset, meaning it has rules from Advanced Dungeons and Dragons 2nd Edition, meaning that the rules are already over twenty years old. The game doesn't show the dice rolls, however, so it isn't really important. I guess if one would want to optimize the character, it is possible to use the book for it.

BG was made on Bioware's Infinity Engine. The same engine was used in a few other games, like Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale 1 and 2, and, of course, the sequel to Baldur's Gate.

BG got an expansion, Tales of the Sword Coast, which adds about 20-30 hours of gameplay. I have no idea how long the base game is, but seeing as the expansion is longer than a full game today, this LP might take a while.

Please note that I'm going to play using EasyTutu, which is in fact a total conversion for Baldur's Gate 2 allowing you to play BG1 on the sequel's (lightly) enhanced engine, adding some spells and (as far as I know) classes. Additionally, I have a widescreen mod, allowing me to play in glorious 1440x900. Also, this is my first time playing the game, so there might be some guesswork and usage of guides.

Character Creation

Gender
Female.

Portrait



Alright, this one looks okay. She has a nice evil smirk, and looks suitably backstabby.

Race

Human – since they're actually pretty good. I think they get some neat bonuses each level, and are a jack of all trades, while not necessarily being a master of none.

Class



I'll pick a thief, since I bet there'll be a bunch of locked chests and such stuff, and there probably won't be another thief anytime soon, while I can probably count on getting the other classes. After picking the thief option, we get another choice, of the kit.



The thief is the basic thief – robbing people blind, that sort of thing.
The assassin is a stabby person, who doesn't get a lot of points to add to lockpicking etc, but can coat her dagger with poison (dealing damage over time), has a better chance of hitting stuff, and does more damage from backstabs.
The bounty hunter lays traps. I'd say that this isn't a very good incentive for me to get less sneaky-stealy stuff.
The swashbuckler is a funny class, specializing in acrobatic combat and getting suitable bonuses for it, but losing the ability to do backstabs completely.

I'll pick the vanilla thief, because I want to steal stuff and be able to do more damage from sneak attacks.

Alignment

Chaotic Neutral, of course, since I want to do whatever I want to! The alignment chosen in the beginning doesn't really matter, though, it just changes your beginning reputation (or so I read).

Ability scores.

I'll use an old trick I've done playing other games based on the d20 mechanic – rerolling until I get lots of free ability points.



It took some time, but I have 60 points. Yay.

Since I don't remember what skills the abilities affected in ADnD, and lack a manual, I'm just going to assign them as I think they would fit.



I think this'll work.

Proficiencies

There's quite a bit of them, and a few additional thief skills. Vanilla thieves get 40 skill points, which is, like, twice the bounty hunter's points and many more than the assassin has.

I picked proficiency in daggers ( 1 point, thieves can't have more. Fighters can go up to 4! ), and in the single weapon style. Since I want to stab peoples in the back. Without a shield.

I can't see how this can go wrong.

I put the skill points into pickpocketing, bumping it up to 30, open locks – 35, find traps – 20, move silently – 25, and hide in shadows – 25 as well. This makes my character pretty good at opening locks, but not so good at everything else.

Appearance



As much as I find the idea of a pink-clothed thief amusing, I'll go with the standard ninja color scheme! (It's not like it's gonna be visible when I put on some armor anyway-- or is it?)

Name
Hmm.
Blueberry.
I like blueberries. Especially in pie.

And there we go, character done.

PROLOGUE





Did I do something while I was drunk or something, that I have to run away?



Annnd, that's me. Or, rather, Blueberry. The green person in the top right is one of the tutorial monks, which I will now proceed to talk to.

Time to save.

After trying to pickpocket the tutor, I discovered that he has absolutely nothing. I guess that makes sense, him being a monk.

Okay... Tell me what you know, tutor.
Space bar pauses. Okay, I knew that.

I'll skip the rest of the tutors, because the things they say are pretty obvious...

Imperative: Talk to everyone.



Phlydia- Oh, hello! Hey, have you seen my copy of „The History of Halruaa” anywhere? You know how I can't stand the constant shuffling of arthritic feet up in the library... So I thought I'd get a bit of fresh air just east of here and... Oh, I hate being so absent-minded! Please, if you find it, I really do need it back.

Blueberry- Might as well get the free experience points. Not that I can refuse.

I tried pickpocketing Phlydia, but she apparently doesn't have anything.



The journal was updated with the info about the quest. Since it says that she lost the last books in the hay, she must have dropped the new books there too, right?



Unfortunately, the cows have nothing to say on that matter.



A few steps east, a tutor told me how to enter buildings. So I did. Say hi to Shank. With a name like that, he couldn't possibly be an assassin, right?



Wrong.

A few hits with Blue's staff later, she got her first dagger! Also, one of the boxes had a warhammer. It has it no longer.



Parda- Blueberry, you cut yourself above the brow, there. What is wrong, child? Something in your eyes tells me that something is very wrong indeed.

Blueberry- It's... it's nothing Parda. One of the cats didn't like me petting it. I'm alright, really... Disregard the dead body lying by the door... It's just an illusion...

Parda- Mm, yes, well... Get what you need from the Inn, then, for Gorion is desperate for you to be off.

Parda then enters the building, but when I checked, he wasn't inside.

Blueberry- Ninjas. It's always ninjas.



Dreppin- Oh hey, if you finish that fetch quest, I can give you another fetch quest, isn't that great.

Blue- Experience pointsssss...

Phlydia gave me a gem for getting her the book, and said that I might want to sell it. Duh, as if I could do anything else with a gem.

Back to Dreppin, because I need my fetch quest fix.

Dreppin- Hey, my cow's sick. I heard Hull has an antidote, but my legs are made of wood and I cannot get it from him myself. Help?

Blue- Sure. Yeah. I like experience.



But first, I'll pay a visit to the inn. And talk to Firebead Elvenhair, the poor man with the silliest name in Faerun. He wants a scroll back from Tethoril, who is in the inner grounds. Another fetch quest? Great.

The innkeeper is quite the joker.



Winthrop- Well hello there, young one! Come to visit your old pal Winthrop, have ye? Well, don't forget the 5,000 gold piece book entrance fee, as per Candlekeep custom, doncha know.

Blue- You always were the big kidder, Winthrop. That gets funnier very nearly every time I hear it. Well, perhaps not so often. Actually, it never does. Your jokes suck.

Winthrop- Haw! Just having a bit o' fun with ye, my friend. Them monks may be walking about with poles in their nethers, but you know you are always welcome here in my sight. Gorion did well by you, he did. So, is there anything I can do for ya. Some drinks, a room to sleep, or anything to buy?

Let's sell the stuff we gathered, which is a... war hammer and a gem. 8gp. Not a lot of cash, but I don't think I'll be needing a lot of it anyway.
There's also a steal window, in case you want to rob a shop, but I'm not skilled enough to succeed yet.

In the other room, there's a pair of nobles, which 'would like some time alone'. After looting the bookshelf, I granted their wish. Arn't I great.



Upstairs, there's more containers to loot. One, two, three, noble...

Nobleman- Yes? Might I help you?



Blue- I was just wondering who else was sharing the inn with me tonight. Who might you be. Totally wasn't going to rob you.

Nobleman- I MIGHT very well be anyone, but I AM Christian of Waterdeep. Likely you would not know my family name or history, and this suits me well and good. These trips to Candlekeep are a bit of extravagance on my part, and while I use no illicit substances or neither consort with „hired” company, I spend quite enough here that I should not like it common knowledge. To this end, I should appreciate it if you would forgo your odd little attempt at introductions and leave me to my thoughts.

Blue- Oh. Okay. Sure. Bye.

The next room has another noble, but he isn't very interesting.

Well, let's get rid of the loot. A dagger, a necklace, and a... potion of clarity? Oooh. I have no idea what it does, but oooh.

I'll get some studded leather armor, so that Blue doesn't die from a random stab.



Lookin' good!

Blue- You're the fighting teacher?
Jondalar- Yup.
Blue- ...fine. But do I have to have your buddy shoot arrows at my back as well?
Jondalar- Yup.
Blue- Ugh.

One beating later.

Jondalar- You did good kid, especially after Erik started firing those arrows at ya. I'm sure your father would be proud. You should go talk to the Gatewarden if you want some experience in fighting with a group of people. You can find him just south of here. Out there it can be pretty important to know how to fight with allies at your side.



Oh hey, a dwarf, let's talk to him.

Reevor- I thought I asked you to clean the rats out of this building yesterday, already. Hop to it! Get in there!
Blue- SIR, YES SIR!



Stabbing rats. It's terrible how often Blue misses the rats. Fortunately, they don't do too well themselves, either.

Reevor- Ah yes, kill them like the rats they are! A glorious battle unlike any this world has ever seen... Here's 5 gp, don't spend it all in one place.
Blue- 5gp.
Reevor- Yeah.
Blue- Right.



Further south, I met Hull, who told me to bring his sword from the barracks, and also that the antidote for the cow is there too.



I checked what's in the gate here, and this person started chasing me!

Oh, it's Imoen. Whoever that is.



Imoen- I'm surprised that stuffy ol' Gorion let you away from your studies and chores. That ol' fiddle faddle. I snuck off too. Old Puffguts Winthrop was looking for me, but I've got all day to do his chores. You have time for a story today? No, I can tell you don't. What have ya been up to?
Blueberry- I'm afraid I cannot chat today, little one. My foster father wishes me to prepare for a journey, but will not say to where.
Imoen- Little one? I'm not much younger than you, though you sure got tall fast. Relatively, anyway. A journey, eh? I never get to travel. Wish I could go with ya. Yep, I really wish I could. Yessir. Really do. Seriously. Come on. Take me.
Blue- All right, all right. I get the message. I'll ask if you can go with us. It's obvious you'll join me anyway, since you have a portrait. Just stop talking.
Imoen- Oh don't be silly, Gorion would never even let you finish the sentence. Especially after what that letter of his said... er... did I say that? No, of course I didn't. Never saw no letter. Nope. I'll just get back to work now. You had better go. Gorion is waiting.
Blue- Sure. Note to self: ask about letter.

A few steps further, I met the Gatewarden, who offered to let me train group combat with a bunch of other losers.



A few gibberlings and a few steps west later.



Bunkhouse? Bunkhouse = building = loot!



Blue- Oh hey, another person! I'm sure he doesn't want to kill me!



A few stabs and a picked up dagger later. (The building didn't actually have any loot, though. I feel cheated.)



Karan- I heard shouting, Blueberry! Are you alright?
Blueberry- He's... He's dead, whoever he was. He lunged at me with a knife. Oh Karan, what is happening to this place? I mean, isn't there a horde of guards around at all times? How do you let shady guys with daggers in?
Karan- It's not this place, child... It's you they'reafter. Gorion is waiting on the steps to the central library and wants you to go to him as soon as you have bought what you need at the inn. Oh, Blueberry, I have been your tutor for so many years and only in this moment have I come to doubt that my teachings have not been enough. Go to Gorion, child. It is safe for you here no longer... As in, go before another random passerby tries to stab you.
Blue- Sure, after I finish looting the keep.

The barracks are a bit to the north, and Fuller is inside. I guess he's the captain of the guard.



Blue- Hey, you got any fetch quests for me?
Fuller- Sure, here ya go.

He wants me to get him a bunch of crossbow bolts. I tried stealing from the chests in there, but they're all locked and lockpicking is dangerous when you aren't able to hide ( I tried ). So I take the antidote and sword from the only unlocked chest and walk over to the inn to get the bolts. Before that, though, I got the scroll for Firebead from Tethtoril. Elvenhair cast Protection From Evil on me for giving him the scroll. I wonder if it'll be of any use.

Got the bolt, gave them to Fuller, got called a money-grubber. Walked over to Dreppin, gave him the antidote. Walked over to Hull, gave him his sword.

Hull- Took your sweet time, didn't you? Gorion's a fool for trying to bring you up right and you can tell him I said so, too. If I didn't know any better, I'd say this whole iron crisis is the result of twerps like you wandering off with people's swords. Here's 10 gp. Now get out of here, I'm on duty.
Blue- A-hole.

Yes, Hull is an a-hole.

Time for the inner keep, where there's a bunch of chanters, each singing something different. It's pretty terrible to listen to.



Blue- AUGH MAKE THE NOISE STOP.



And there's Gorion, on the steps.

Gorion- This is very unnerving, I know, but you must trust me. It is very important that you pack your posessions so that we may leave Candlekeep immediately. Hurry, for there is no time to tarry! The keep is well protected, but not invulnerable.
Blue- Please, father, tell me where we will be going. I hope there's at least some pockets to pick there.
Gorion- Alas, I cannot, for I have not truly decided yet. All that is certain is that we will be far safer on the move. Perhaps the woods might offer some secluded security, or perhaps the city of Baldur's Gate(tm) would offer cover amidst its teaming throngs of people. I do not know where we shall end up, but I have a few friends here and there. Hmm... I will think on this...
Blue- What could possibly harm us here? This place is a fortress, and guarded beyond measure. Actually, nevermind, the guards are either stupid or bastards. Let's just go.
Gorion- I agree. If we ever get separated, go to the Friendly Arm Inn. There you will meet Khaled and Jaheira. They are my friends. Wait, ambush!

Armored Figure- Oh, you're perceptive. Give me your kid and nobody gets hurt.
Gorion- You're a fool if you believe I would trust your benevolence. Step aside and you and your lackeys will be unhurt.
Armored Dude- I'm sorry that you feel that way, old man.
Gorion- Get out of here! BLARG *dead*



Later...

CHAPTER ONE





And Imoen shows up from nowhere.



Imoen- Sorry I followed ya, but I never get out of Candlekeep and those monks are such a bore. Never any decent coin in their pockets either. I... I saw Gorion, and I am SO sorry! Kinda figured something bad might happen to you out here.
Blue- How could you have known? Gorion did not even tell me. Oh wait, letter.
Imoen- I... accidentally... read a letter on his desk the other day. Can't remember exactly what it said, but he might still have... it might be on his... his body. Anyway, i'm not gonna let you wander around out here all alone. Never let a friend down, no sir! Stick with you until you say otherwise, I will! And I won't even pick your pockets!
Blue- Sigh. Fantastic.

Imoen is a thief, what I did not expect. Oh well, at least she uses a bow and I stab people. Also, the Protection From Evil turned out to be useless. Whaddya know.

To Be Continued...?!
(probably after Christmas)

Whoa. Long post.

I don't know why, but I loled

Chapter One, continued.

As Imoen mentioned, Gorion might have the letter on his body. The map shows that we're actually like a hundred feet from where we got attacked. I don't think this speaks well of our assailants - they failed to find an unconscious person lying on the road a bit south. But first things first.

Going north, we meet a bunch of diseased gibberlings. Even though both my characters' Hide in Shadows skill seems to be out of order (probably due to the fact that they have only 20-25 points in that; I'll have to correct that later), they murderize all of the enemies without taking a single point of damage.

Blue- The Random Number God loves me today.
Imoen- Who?
Blue- Uh... Tymora, I guess?

We reach our destination, and loot everyone in sight, recovering... a ring, letter, two clubs, and some cash.
The ring doesn't actually do anything, but we might get a few coins from selling it.

Blue- Jackpot.
Imoen- Didn't you just loot your father?
Blue- Yeah, so?
Imoen- *sigh* Just... read the letter already.

"My friend Gorion..."



"...I'm getting too old for this.
E"

Blue- There isn't anything here that I didn't know yet. Oh well, time to walk around and look for fights in which we can die horribly!
Imoen- Yay!

And so, Blueberry died mauled by a bear, and couldn't save the world (or whatever is the objective of this game).

Load game.
Get mauled by the same bears again.
Load game.
Avoid bears.

Blue- How about we go... East instead of West, huh?
Imoen- Aw, but I liked seeing you get mauled by a bear.
Blue- Don't push your luck.

Blue- Jesus Christ it's a wolf, get in the car!

I don't think I've ever had such a hard time with forest animals. Using up two healing potions, the dream team manage to kill the wolf.
I'll save now, in case there's a rabbit a few feet east or something.

Instead of a rabbit, we meet Binkos, who is too busy to talk.
A bit south, there's a milestone and two... people.


Xzar- Hold, Montaron, this young wayfarer is in need. Someone has set about thee, stranger, and you have barely escaped with your life. Indeed. I can offer you healing potions, if you wish, as a token of good will.

Blue- Give 'em here. We might need them if we meet some bears. They're around, you know. Watching. Waiting for us to make a bad move.

Xzar- Perhaps as payment you would go with us to Nashkel. It is a troubled area and we mean to investigate some disturbing rumors surrounding the local mine. Some acquaintances are very concerned about the iron shortage. Specifically, where to lay the blame in the matter. You would be useful, though I'll not hold you to it. We are to meet the mayor of the town, a man named Berrun Ghastkill, I believe.

Montaron- Your conscience be your guide.

Blue- Sounds great, guys, but first I need to pick up some more people for my personal army-- I mean, group of adventurers.

Montaron- Aye, we'll go wit ye. Ye owe us fer our time though.

Montaron is a fighter/thief, and Xzar is a necromancer(!). Perhaps now we can fight evenly with those bears! Let's try.
No, we can't. Well, at least Montaron didn't die from the first hit. The second killed him.
Load game.

Let's... continue east.

The world map doesn't have too many places, but I'm pretty sure that'll change. We can't go to the inn or south before we visit the patch of woods in the middle, so let's go there.

...where there's a Gandalf lookalike waiting for us already.

Old Man- Ho there, wanderer. Stay thy course a moment to indulge an old man. It's been nigh unto a tenday since I've seen a soul walking this road, and I've been without decent conversation since. Traveling nowadays appears to be the domain of either the desperate or the deranged. If thou wouldst pardon my intrusion, might I inquire which pertains to thee?
Blue- Not to imply anything, but how do you measure up to your own standards? Pestering strangers about their mental state doesn't seem all that well-adjusted to me. Actually, allow me to correct myself. I'm totally implying you're crazy.
Old Man- Point well taken, and thou hast answered my query most adequately. I shall think of thee as determined instead. I shall trouble thee no more, as thou art more than capable of the task at hand. North is the Friendly Arm Inn, where I am certain thou shall find trustworthy friends awaiting. I have said too much and taken too much time from thee. Fare thee well.
Imoen- ...well, that was odd.
Blue- Somehow, though, I don't think that's the last we've seen of him.
Xzar- Why?
Blue- Don't ask.

Well, time to look around and hope there's no bears around, or just continue to our current target - the inn.

Blue- There's always bears.

A weird yell can be heard, and we are under attack!

Blue- Is it bears?! Oh, wait, it's not bears. Let's get rid of them.

It's four xvarts, which are... blue gnomes or something. In any case, they're openly hostile, so let's get to work.

They're dead, and Blue almost died as well. I think her build is bad. I can only hope to fix her later, when she gains a few levels.

They had some loot. A few gold pieces, shortswords, and a sleep scroll, which I let Xzar transcribe into his spellbook.
One of them escaped, though, and then we got attacked by some gibberlings.
Blue- Oh for the love of- Healing potion!

They had nothing on them, and we went north. On the way, we met another person. Awful traffic tonight.

Aoln is a hunter, and he has pretty much nothing interesting to say. He mentioned seeing an ogre mage once, and disappeared suddenly. I hope this doesn't mean we have to fight an ogre mage, because that would be pretty much suicide.

Fortunately, a few steps north is the world map transit, and we're out of there. There was no ogre mage. Off to the inn!

After a terrible CG cutscene of a drawbridge lowering, we're in. Time to find Jaheira and the other guy.
But first, let's look around this dump.

Tarnesh is the first named NPC we encounter here.

Tarnesh- Hi friend. I've not seen you here before today. What brings you to the Friendly Arm?
Blue- Not much. I'm here to meet some friends, hang out a while... You know.
Tarnesh- I see, I see. Pardon my being too forward, but you've the bearing of someone I've been looking for. About your height, they were. Same style of dress, or thereabouts. I daresay, you seem to be the spitting image of them. Might you have traveled from Candlekeep, by any chance?
Blue- Candlekeep? Never heard of it.
Tarnesh- Really? I would beg to differ. You fit the description, so I think it would be safe to assume you are the one I seek. Don't move. I have something for you.
Blue- Le stab.


Tarnesh had some pretty nice loot - a staff, three scrolls - armor, magic missile and burning hands, and fifty-something gold pieces. Oh, and he also had a bounty notice.
Blue- Only two hundred gold? I'm offended.

The party wandered inside a house, where there was a locked chest (locked no longer, also, now devoid of jewellry), and another container, with a sword.

The pickpocket attempt on the person here failed, and he tried to run away. So Montaron hit him so hard, he exploded. No joke.
Imoen- Was this worth 8 gp?
Montaron, Xzar, Blue- Totally.


The other building beside the inn is a temple, where I guess you can resurrect your fallen team members and get healing and stuff. It has absolutely nothing interesting inside.

Time to loot the inn. The Friendly Arm is the most epic inn I have ever seen. It's pretty much a fortress.

Inside, a guy named Jopi starts talking to us for no reason.
Jopi- I can't stan'd the way the roads are cut off these days! Me uncle's in Baldur's Gate an' I can't get there to see 'im.
Montaron- How come the roads are cut off?
Jopi- Where you been these past few months? The roads are crawling with brigands and bandits after every scrap o' iron you got on ye. Surely you must have fled some on your trip here... lest you came by the west road, that is.
Montaron- Well, for your sake and mine, I hope the roads clear up soon. I'll see you around.

Nessie is the barmaid in this fine establishment.
Nessie- Welcome to the Friendly Arm Inn. Looks like you had a rough journey.
Blue- This place is a fortress! Why all the security?
Nessie- Bentley wanted the inn to be a safe haven for all sorts of travelers. Anyone can stay here, but we don't tolerate any troublemaking within these walls.
Blue- Did Bentley build this place? It looks like it's been here forever!
Nessie- Oh no, Bentley and Gellana didn't build the Inn! They found it... They were part of an adventuring party, not unlike your own. In the first few years following the Time of Troubles, when all the gods were walking the surface of our world, the inn was actually the hold of a powerful, undead priest of Bhaal, god of murder. With the evil cleric weakened by the death of his god, Bentley and Gellana were able to destroy him once and for all, thus laying claim to his troubled fortress.
Blue- There's more to this place than I would've guessed, but I don't really want to listen to more stories.
Nessie- The present is always a thin veneer over the past. Look closely at any building in the Sword Coast region and you can be sure that its stones are held in place by history's mortar.
Blue- History's... mortar? Uh... Nevermind.

Blue- Thief sense... tingling!


Money and a potion.

Let's sell our junk - +65 gold - and talk to Khalid and Jaheira.

Khalid- Something about you is f-familiar, child. Your manner reminds me of a sage I know, b-by the name of Gorion.
Jaheira- It is almost a slight on him, but I see it too.
Blue- Gee, thanks.
Khalid- Jaheira! M-mind your m-m-manners! This must be the child that Gorion wrote of so often.
Jaheira- We are old friends of your adopted father. He is not with you? I must assume the worst, he would not permit his only child to wander without his accompaniment.
Khalid- If... if he has passed, we share your loss.
Blue- ...are you guys psychic or something?
Jaheira- Gorion often said that he worried for your safety, even at the expense of his own. He also wished that Khalid and I would become your guardians, if he should ever meet an untimely end. However, you are much older now, and the choice of your companions should be your own.
Khalid- We could t-travel with you until you get settled, help you find your l-lot in life.
Jaheira- It would be a fitting last service to Gorion, though we should first go to Nashkel. Khalid and I... look into local concerns, and there are rumors of strange things happening at the mine. No doubt you have heard of the iron shortage? You would do well to help us. It affects everyone, including you. We are to meet the mayor of the town, Berrun Ghastkill.
Blue- I'm already going to Nashkel. These guys are going there as well.
Xzar- Hi.
Montaron- 'Ullo.
Jaheira- Indeed? Interesting. In that case I think we should definitely travel as one. You can never be too careful about the dangers of the open road. Wherever they may spring from.

And with that, our party now has six members.
Jaheira is a fighter/druid, and Khalid is a fighter. Who dual wields {static} swords (silly profanity filter, it's a b a s t a r d sword). Respect.

And this is where we'll finish for today.

To be continued soon-ish.
I'll be changing the resolution to one that allows you to actually see the text, while allowing the pictures to be smaller.