Dungeons: Maybe Not the Best Vacation Spot

Feminina O'Ladybrain

Apr 5

Spoilers for side quests in Baldur's Gate

Butch:

Man, game got me twice last night.

Went through the secret door. There was an ogre mage, but, then, you knew that. That said, I whupped the ogre mage! Like, WHUPPED the ogre mage! I whupped the ogre mage so hard that I went into the settings to make sure I didn't have it set on "easy" by mistake (only to find I somehow set it to hard by mistake. Seriously. Fixed that).

I was feeling GOOD man! "I'm gonna kill everything in here and loot like mad!" thought I. "I killed the boss, everything else gonna be EASY!"

Took a step out of the room and heard casting and died.

And died.

Ogre mage might have been the boss, but man, ogre mage's little friend and all of his kobolds were IMPOSSIBLE! Game, what are you doing following up a boss fight with something IMPOSSIBLE? Supposed to be the other way around!

I eventually gave up. After many, many tries, I gave up. I got the ogre mage's loot. Keep whatever you have down there, everyone else. Fuck off. I finished the quest.

Anyway, dejected, decided to go do Neera's thing to cheer myself up and because I was close to it. Went over the firewine bridge, (hey, was that ogre mage the dungeon we heard about? Or is there another dungeon?), got to the place where Neera wanted to find the guy.

Did some stuff, got to the main, named, boss dude, big fight, won it! Won it rather handily! Felt good you see where this is going.

Next room, IMPOSSIBLE!

Game. Seriously. Game. This is not the way it works, game.

Got so mad I hit save. I'll deal with IMPOSSIBLE later.

Feminina:

Dungeons can be brutal in this game. I well remember that room after the ogre mage. That guy WAS tough! I forget what we eventually did. I think at one point we just all aimed at him at once and got lucky and managed to disrupt his casting for long enough to kill him before he could do anything. Maybe that's where I got the wand of lightning.

Me, I went back to the Ulcaster School, went into the dungeon, like you said. The vampiric wolf wasn't even really the problem for us, the problem was that wraith Icthyar or whomever, up above ground. That guy killed the heck out of us a few times, until--in a beautiful scene--I got the timing right and used a wand of summon monster to produce SIX monsters, all of whom mobbed him before he could reach us while the rest of the party stood back and used ranged attacks. It was truly magnificent to see this dude half-buried in a pile of gnolls and hobgoblins while I hit him with magic missile.

He was STILL damn tough, and took a lot of killing by my summoned monsters, but the rest of us escaped unscathed that time. This is my new favorite wand. I got it from the assassins I hit with the wand of lightning in the last fierce battle! It's a wonderful cycle.

I didn't even meet the ghost who wanted the book until after we'd already emerged from the dungeon, but it was still satisfying to hand it over. One of those instantly completed quests.

"If only I had a book!"

"What, like this one?"

As for your question, Firewine Bridge is the dungeon we heard about -- I don't think we heard anything about a dungeon under a basement in Gullykin. Although maybe we would have if we had talked to whoever it was who could have told us about the kobold problem they were apparently having.

Butch:

Oh there's a dungeon in the bridge? I just went over the bridge cuz I wanted to find Neera's dude. There's something there?

That damn wraith was a BASTARD. He killed the fuck out of us as well. I, eventually, did something similar, though less cool (I want a wand of summoning monsters!) which was use entangle, which is pretty great on anything that can't cast spells or shoot arrows (as you can still cast spells and shoot arrows entangled. He was right at the edge, too, so Neera could go up and burning hand him all "can't get me!"

On wands.....

You likely now have a wand of fire, as I found mine by the vampiric wolf you just killed. According to the description, this does two things: casts fireball (which is fine) or "cone of flame" or something. Something something scorcher. Last night, I wanted the second one, but it kept just being "fireball," which I did not want. I couldn't figure out how to toggle between my options. You got any ideas on that?

Feminina:

I did pick up that wand! Love me some wands. I haven't used it yet, though, so I'm afraid I have no ideas about how it works. I'll give it a try and let you know if anything occurs to me.

Yes, there's a dungeon under the bridge. Or...I guess more under the ground on the other side of the bridge. The door is kind of in the side of a hill there. Poke around once you finish up with whatever you're doing, which I don't know anything about since I haven't been there with Neera and when I crossed the bridge I didn't see anyone other than a weird poet. Certainly didn't fight anyone with a name.

Butch:

I think where I am is specific to Neera. It popped up after a conversation with Neera. She said "I want to find [this guy]" and where I am is "[this guy]'s sanctuary," which is pretty specific.

I totally missed the dungeon under the bridge.

I did find that poet. Gave him ten gold. Arts patron, me.

Feminina:

That really is quite specific. I did not see that guy. I'll pick up Neera next time I'm back at the Friendly Arm.

Though maybe the guy's sanctuary is IN the dungeon? Was it a door you could see shortly after you left the bridge proper, near where the poet was standing?

Butch:

No no, this is a whole other place, like a region on the world map you have to travel to and everything, like "gnoll stronghold" and shit. It didn't appear until Neera said what she said.

New place. Story happens. Well, Neera's does.

Feminina:

Ah, OK. I'll have to go get her. I'll dump Kagain in the Friendly Arm while I'm there. And make sure to take any healing potions he may be carrying.

He can hang onto some random plus-1 loot items no one is using, that I keep not selling in case I meet someone who needs them. I don't have a home base with storage chests, but I can make occasional party members be my storage!

Butch:

HA! That's really what all the random dudes are good for. Pretty soon, that inn will be packed. PACKED man! You've made that innkeeper's life! Him all "What, is it some holiday?" and everyone all "Nah, we're just waiting for that weirdo to come back in case she needs all these magic short swords. In the meantime, another round!"

Feminina:

Yes! I knew they were all good for something. Once I found out you could put necklaces and rings in the gem bag, I don't need them to wear my jewelry anymore, but they can still hold my loot.

Montaron and Xzar all excited to see me coming, "ooh, she wants us in the party again!"

Only to have me hand them a bunch of magic weapons, say "be a dear and hang onto these for me, will you? Don't worry, it's nothing illegal hahahahaha! Thanks!" and run off again.

I mean, I'm not lying, it's apparently not illegal to murder strangers you meet in the wilderness and take their stuff. As long as they try to murder you first!

Butch:

Nor does it seem to be illegal that I'm helping myself to the contents of every box I find, even if someone is sleeping in the room. You can do that and still be "heroic."

Feminina:

Yes! I appreciate that I can have my companion pick locks to get into the boxes, take anything inside, and creep away, and my heroic nature remains unquestioned. Even Khalid and Jaheira, who are happy to tell me if they think I'm doing something Gorion wouldn't like, don't object, so I can only assume Gorion would be fine with it.

And since he raised me and established my moral compass, I see no further reason to be concerned about it.

Witcher tax!

Or precursor-Witcher tax.

Bethesda got a lot more sophisticated and yet also nonsensical with this, with all the carefully marking stolen goods so no honest person would touch them, and having the entire town come after you with drawn weapons if you accidentally pocketed a mug from a bar.

Butch:

Oh Bethesda. Oh, silly, silly Bethesda.

If anyone ever does come after me for this, I'm throwing Imoen under the bus. She cares not. She is gone.

Feminina:

Hey, she knows nothing more, so leave her to go! She said it!

At least she doesn't misuse 'thy.'

Though I could do without her regular requests for stories about trollops and plug tails, whatever those might be. Not in the middle of a fight, Imoen! Come on, practice your timing!

Butch:

I'm glad there's no dialog choice with that one.

"Once upon a time there was a plug tail, and...um...it did stuff. The end."

Feminina:

Ha!

I would totally choose that option, especially if it meant she wouldn't bring it up again.

Butch:

And one of these days I'm going to say "Yes, Jaheira, I DO need my pantaloons pressed!"

Feminina:

"Thank you for offering! They're so wrinkled, I really can't take it anymore!"

Butch:

I'm still carrying around some golden pantaloons I tricked some dude into giving me. I identified them, and got a hilarious description, but they do little else. I'm keeping them anyway, just to taunt Jaheira.

Feminina:

Ha! Nice. I missed that.

Comment