Completed Let's solo Baldur's Gate 2 on Insane (feat. The Codex)

[Crooked Bee]

Yay necro!

 

[Azira]

Moar!

 

[Johannes]

Purchase some potions of master thievery and then acquire better equipment and scrolls.

 

[tindrli]

yeah.. and find some pussy in a meantime :D

 

[MicoSelva]

Update #6: A walk around the town

Spoiler

It was another one of these rainy days. I was sipping a drink at the Copper Coronet, contemplating all my life failures. And gods know this was bound to take a lot of time.

I was drinking on a credit. Well deserved one too. Just finished a job for Hendak, the owner of this joint. Human trafficking. Men, women, even children. Terrible stuff.

We fixed it good, huh boss?

Lila was right. By the time we finished, gutters were colored red in a mile wide radius.

It was an enriching experience, but I knew I still had much to learn.

A working fella like me needs many talents to survive. And all of them have to be kept sharp.

There are a lot of ways to die in this world, after all.

Sometimes you just can't avoid confrontation. Especially when you're not very good at trying to avoid it in the first place.

Good thing I had been born naturally gifted. Would be many times dead if not for that. Fourteen, if my memory served me right.

My body count was already pretty high, but I knew it will inevitably go even higher. Much higher.

One look at my stuffed backpack made me want to drown in a bottle. I had a natural tendency to collect junk. Springtime cleaning was always a pain in the arse.

This at least should be useful on rainy days like today.

In my opinion leather was best seen in small amounts on otherwise naked women, but most of this city's underground thought differently.

There were too many sharp bastards in this town already. I knew I had to get rid of this one. The sooner, the better.

Bernard's twisted sense of humor kicked in when I've shown him the sword. He offered me one gold piece for it. I politely declined. He was a bit more reasonable when it came to buying some other stuff.

I remembered I had never really checked the upper level of this place. This was as good a time as any.

As predicted, it was mostly inhabited by small time crooks and other lowlife. Lila was with me, so they mostly did not mind me searching their rooms.

Typical for such a hotel: some booze, a bible, acid-soaked paper... And what are these gloves?

The hotel patron predictably swore he never saw these before, so I've decided to confiscate them.

I believe you, kid. We all have ghosts haunting us.

The emerald was suspiciously similar to the one reported missing by a local noblewoman yesterday. Nobody objected to me safekeeping it.

There was nothing else to do in this wretched hive of scum and villainy.

It stopped raining outside, so it wasn't a bad idea to go for a walk.

No matter how many times I told locals to invest in better locks, they never listened.

This was a dangerous thing to just leave lying around on a table.

I doubted the owner had a proper license for the wepon, so I confiscated it, just in case.

I knew this symbol. The Riddler was here. He should have known I won't be intimidated that easily.

It's hard to remain religious when you'd seen what I had. Still, old habits die hard.

Don't mind me, padre. No need to waste your time for a sermon I won't listen to.

There. I hope you'll put this gold piece to a better use than I would have.

Ah, I was wondering when this'll happen. This was too dangerous a town to walk alone.

You're not alone, boss.

I know, Lila. I can always count on you.

Did I expect any of the bystanders to help me? No. Why would they?

Get away from the boss!

You tell them Lila.

You saw what I just did, scumbags? In a moment, you'll end up just like him!

Good job, Lila. You scared them away.

Always a pleasure, boss!

There's no shortage of nutjobs on the streets. Rough times.

You think you have it bad, sister? Try fishing out your own teeth from the gutter after a misunderstanding over a bottle of booze with an ogre.

Alright. I can take a hint. I'll take a look at this sphere of yours.

Well, it looks like someone took my lock advice to heart.

This is a very dangerous town indeed.

It is very easy to die while trying to make an honest living by mugging people.

Another unlocked house. I should give the owner a piece of my mind about that.

Unlocked AND empty. These people have only themselves to blame for their misery.

You can always find some interesting things when searching through other people's drawers.

It was no longer than one day since I had taken care of the human trafficking ring and there's already a new guard in front of their door. This city makes me sick sometimes.

He was worried about my health. Kind of touching, but unnecessary.

It was his health he should be concerned about.

Be a lad and try not to bleed on the boss, willya?

Meeting Lila usually was more hazardous than even forty smokes a day. And much more immediate.

The rest of the place was empty. Not for long, no doubt. I should probably go back there the next day. Maybe I would.

My keen eyes led me to a necklace stashed in a crack in the wall. I was willing to bet it had quite story.

The local fence and weapons dealer was always glad to see me.

I knew old Bernard was trying to scam me, but wasn't really aware of the scale. 1200 was a nice sum.

There was a spark of recognition in the dealer's eyes when his sight rested on the hammer. I was pretty sure he was the one who sold it in the first place. Now he was getting it back for a fraction of the price. No doubt, the weapon would end up in some other unsuspecting citizen's house by next sunset.

Usually the business oriented ladies only appear on the street after sunset. That's why the gray-clad lass immediately got my attention.

Grave district, huh? Should I bring my own shovel as well? No promises.

Asking the boy if I was being followed was like asking him if Bernard pisses into the wine at the Copper Coronet. I would not like the honest answer, even if I was already pretty sure what it was.

Gaelan Bale, the prince of local underworld, wanted to see me again. It was surely better to hear this from his little nephew than from the gang of thugs which usually delivered this kind of messages. It seemed I was suddenly in the center of interest of some powerful people. I wasn't sure if that was bad or rather very bad.

The Jansens were an old mob family that went legit a couple of years ago. Supposedly. I had reasons to think otherwise.

Their house was mostly empty during the day, which enforced my doubts.

The violet bottle was something you don't see every day.

I wouldn't want to be the poor bastard who decided to drink this 'antidote' to save himself.

There were a lot of bottles scattered around the hose. Very interesting.

Could the fact that Jansens were smuggling booze in their days have something to do with it? I've decided to leave this question unanswered. For now.

I was in need of some coastal air. A walk over the bridge should do the trick.

The best you could ever hope for from local law enforcement was they wouldn't bother you. I was never one of the lucky people in this regard.

For a moment there I thought he was talking about me. I was on a rather bloody string lately... But no. He apparently meant some OTHER killings.

This was interesting. Dead people on the streets were nothing new in the city, but killing for the sake of killing was rather unusual.

I could honestly promise that I won't go looking for trouble. Never had to. They were perfectly able to find me without me needing to bother.

I knew that the cops weren't going to solve this case by themselves. Lieutenant Aegis knew this too. He was visibly relieved when I offered to help. He even bought the story about me needing money to help a friend without a flinch.

With my mind set firmly on the new case, I was distracted enough to get jumped by some muggers a moment later. The increased presence of the cops in the district did not seem to discourage local entrepreneurs.

Fuck off, twat!

Good thing Lila always knew what to say in awkward situations like this.

Oi, what'ya doin', boys?

Although not everyone got his message immediately.

It had to repeated a few times.

Old Rampah was so eager in claiming he wasn't the killer, that I even started to suspect him for a moment.

I wasn't going to give him a hundred gold. Even ignoring the fact that I usually prefer keeping my money to giving it away, handing a sum like that to a beggar was like signing a death sentence for him.

The mostly lost art of bargaining for price was always in full force on the streets.

We finally settled on five gold, which was the perfect amount to keep both of us happy. He could buy some booze and I was spared having to send Lila to negotiate, which was bound to give me nightmares later.

This was certainly an interesting find, but my hide expertise wasn't up to the task. I knew I had to get some help with this.

Bel Dalemark was the guy to talk to in such cases. If it was ever sold or bought, Bel knew it.

Elephants were not a common sight in the city, to the point I expected to live through my whole life without encountering one.

Such an unusual find should become an important clue to solving this mystery.

I was pretty sure that the circus had nothing to do with the killings, but no trail was to be discarded in advance.

Just my luck. Can't make three steps in one direction without bumping into a gang war. At least they seemed so preoccupied with tearing each other's throats that I was not of interest to them.

I almost laughed to her face. Oh, how I wish I could forget some of the things I've seen. But it wasn't to be. Not in this life anyway.

I was well used to paying women for their time. Rose really valued herself at twenty gold, but my good manners did not allow me to haggle on such occasions.

Claiming you saw nothing was the most sensible thing to do if someone asked you about... well, anything actually. I wasn't going to accept such an answer.

Now we were getting somewhere.

Even without her advice I knew I had to talk to Bel. Hell, this guy would have probably solved the case by himself if only he was willing to move his lazy fat arse around.

He was simply amazing.

If guards ever got to know about Bel, they might even start catching criminals in this city. Maybe.

Was there anything else?, he asked me in the end. No, Bel. I suppose this will suffice. After all, I should do something in this investigation too.

I had two types of berries and a piece of an oak bark. It was time to return to Rose, and give her the opportunity to clear my remaining doubts about the identity of the killer.

She wasn't going to make me pay for her time again. Either she liked me or she knew that Lila's sense of humor was already pretty strained today.

I wondered if the guards would be laughing if their ineptitude caused them to find another dead body tomorrow... But quickly realized that of course they would.

This girl had one hell of a nose, I had to admit that.

With all my suspicions confirmed, I went straight to Rejiek Hidesman's place. I briefly considered talking to lieutenant Aegis, and finally getting some well deserved rest, but that would just probably cause me to later find his body stashed somewhere in the killer's house. No, this was better dealt in person.

Confronted with the evidence, Rejiek did not even try to talk his way out of this.

It was clear I was not going to get any answers, unless I made Lila rip them out of Rejiek's throat.

My tiredness made me pay the toll. Rejiek disappeared downstairs so quickly I had no chance of catching him.

My sixth sense, and the sight of all the dead bodies, warned me that running straight after him to the next flight of stairs might not be the best of ideas.

As always, my gut was right.

Very right.

Very, very right.

It seemed I was going to get paid for this job even if guards decided to withhold the promised reward.

This was bound to be a bad idea, but once I started digging, no stone was to be left unturned.

Even if some things found at the bottom were really ugly.

I've seen some bad stuff in my life, but this was pretty sick, even for my standards.

This place was a real gold mine when it comes to evidence.

I was beginning to suspect that I will not avoid a trip to Umar Hills sometime in the near future.

This case suddenly seemed to be much bigger than it looked not a half an hour ago. Not a good sign. Rejiek was prepared to being discovered like this. What should I expect to find if I descended even further after him.

Oh, well. Only one way to find out.

Right.

This situation had a lot of potential to end up really badly. Taking the right course of action was crucial. There was no place for mistakes.

For example, if I tried taking them all head-on...

...I might even achieve some minor success...

...for a moment.

Death count: 15

But maybe if I tried to invoke the hidden depths of my birthright power...

...would that change anything?

Probably not.

Death count: 16

I could also disappear right in front of their eyes and give one of the rune assassins a taste of his own backstabbing medicine.

But these guys were too fast for something like that.

So the outcome would be rather predictable.

Death count: 17

In the end, I decided to sneak by everyone and assume a better defensive position.

One ghast followed. Or tried to, at least.

I lured the other one too.

Ok, this was the easy part. What now?

I had to stay invisilble, that was certain.

But fighting the rune assassins in the current setup was probably too much.

This was bound to fail.

Death count: 18

I had not gotten any sleep the previous night, but I still had some magic from the day before.

Maybe if I tried using that...?

Nah, bad idea.

Death count: 19

I remembered I had a spare armor in the wolfskin bag. Really useful thing, that bag.

Not so easy to stab me now, huh?

Lila, meet Rune Assassin. Rune Assassin, meet death.

A pleasure.

Now, since most of them were dead already, and I was wearing a better armor, would a more direct approach be viable?

I would have the advantage of first strike and could weaken the rune assassin with some carefully placed arrows to the forehead.

But with their numerical advantage, it would still be too easy for them to corner me.

And that meant death.

Death count: 20

On the other hand, if I sneaked behind the back of the remaining assasin...

...he would probably go invisible anyway.

Which would not end well.

Death count: 21

Unleashing a barrage of arrows at him should prevent him from going invisible...

...unless I miss completely.

Too risky.

Death count: 22

So, I healed myself instead.

Sneaked up on him.

Tried to intimidate him. It didn't work.

But making him a close acquaintance of Lila did.

When you arrive in hell, tell them I sent you. You'll get a group discount.

These rune assassins must had been getting some serious funding. This equipment was not too shabby. Of course they wouldn't be needing it anymore.

Even one of the dead ghasts was lying on a precious looking piece of paper.

It was always nice to find something interesting to read during a break at work.

And freelancing has the advantage of being able to decide for yourself when the breaks happen.

Although there was the small matter of the bone golem still being rampant and hating my guts. Maybe I could try...

Well, quick thinking was clearly a priority here.

Death count: 23.

The golem shrugged off normal arrows, but magical ones seemed to get its attention.

By the time we entered melee, it was already in pretty bad shape.

This allowed me and Lila to gain advantage, and use it.

Well said, Lila. Well said.

There were still things to be found here.

Some more vile than others.

There are times in life when you feel like You've met a friend long unseen. This was one of them.

And as they say, two friends are better than one. What, nobody says that? Well, they should.

No end to the surprises, and it wasn't even my birthday.

Rejiek's old elephant hide armor was only interesting because it was probably the only one of its kind in a five hundred mile radius, if not more.

But this shaft looked promising like a courtesan's look.

It looked like Rejiek himself got away. For the moment. I had a feeling we would meet again soon.

That is why I like you so much, Lila. Never change.

Lieutenant Aegis had some detailed inquiries into my investigation. No doubt he wanted to take the crdit for himself in front of his superiors. I didn't mind.

I was fully expecting to be let go with a 'thank you', but he decided to pay me after all. There's always a first, I guess.

Five hundred gold was nice, but the good word on the streets was my real payment here. Harder to grasp, but much more precious.

Even though I failed to actually catch Rejiek, I knew the experiences of the day were going to pay off in the future.

I had a feeling I could work my magic even better from now on. It was a good feeling.

The sun had already set over the bridge district, but all my tiredness had gone away. I knew I wouldn't be able to fall asleep without help, and did not want to drink myself to bed again.

Have any good sleeping potions, Mrs. Cragmoon?

Nothing like shopping at midnight...

----------
Next time: We'll undertake some criminal activites in a casual get-rich-quick scheme.

Remember than You can vote for future quests The Codex should undertake. The list of available ones can be found in the first post of the thread.

 

[Lottie]

I dont think Indy talks like a 1920s detective.
The first update was funnier.
Now do the Hidden-Rune-Mage-Hideout, considering how often you died to some thieves and ghasts, it will be a pleasure watching.

 

[MicoSelva]

I would do the Twisted Rune already, but I don't have a roguestone yet. It is one of the priorities, though.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Just do whatever you feel like next.

 

[TOME]

Maybe spoiler tags to updates?

 

[Wise Emperor]

Who you will work for? Bodhi or Amn Thieves?

Taking out Twisted Rune solo a this level? I think I will pass another 3 updates :D

 

[MicoSelva]

Maybe spoiler tags to updates?

Ok... why?

Who you will work for? Bodhi or Amn Thieves?

I haven't decided yet. Joining thieves gives that nice amulet, but joining Bodhi will let me do a lot of Twilight jokes. Hard choice.

Taking out Twisted Rune solo a this level?

No, not yet. As I said, I don't have a roguestone and I don't remember where to find one (and no, I won't be checking any faqs or guides), so The Codex will probably level up a little more before we go for the staff of the magi.

 

[Wise Emperor]

If I recall correctly Shadow Thieves quest line will net you more xp and some help later. Without cleric with Protection from Negative Energy, that amulet is no brainer.
But Twilight jokes... tempting

There is at least one location in Atkhatla with RS, but I won't spoil the fun.

btw Awesome LP

Fake edit
A mage can also use Protection from Magic Weapons to prevent negative energy damage. The attack of an undead is considered a magical weapon, so if they can't hit you then they therefore can't drain you.

 

[Azira]

That's cheesy as fuck.

 

[ironyuri]

I'm all for shadow thieves. Fuck vampires mang. Twilight vamps are as bad as druids. Fuck them. With your sword. Not your dick.

 

[TOME]

Maybe spoiler tags to updates?

Ok... why?

Downloading those images makes this thread very slow to open. But if the images are inside spoiler tags we don't have to download them every time we wish reply or read someone else's reply. I read the updates on this page once, and yet I have had to download those images three times. But nevertheless, good LP!

As for the rogue stone, there are atleast two in the city.

Spoiler

Both of them in Mae'vars(?) guildhall in the dock disctrict

 

[Serious_Business]

I'm all for shadow thieves. Fuck vampires mang. Twilight vamps are as bad as druids. Fuck them. With your sword. Not your dick.

My dick is my sword, fool

 

[MicoSelva]

Downloading those images makes this thread very slow to open. But if the images are inside spoiler tags we don't have to download them every time we wish reply or read someone else's reply. I read the updates on this page once, and yet I have had to download those images three times.

Ah, I never thought of that. Good idea. I'll do it sometime today.
This should also remove the need for bumping the thread every second update.

 

[ironyuri]

Downloading those images makes this thread very slow to open. But if the images are inside spoiler tags we don't have to download them every time we wish reply or read someone else's reply. I read the updates on this page once, and yet I have had to download those images three times.

Ah, I never thought of that. Good idea. I'll do it sometime today.
This should also remove the need for bumping the thread every second update.

bumping for nostalgia

 

[MicoSelva]

I think I spoiler-tagged all updates. Let me know if I missed something.

 

[procrastinator]

This should also remove the need for bumping the thread every second update.

Might as well do it anyway.

 

[Erebus]

Getting Celestial Fury right now would be nice, but I suspect it would require way too many reloads. Let's just go to de'Arnise Keep like normal people. The loot is pretty nice.

 

[MicoSelva]

The Codex has no katana proficiency anyway.

 

[Lottie]

Downloading those images makes this thread very slow to open. But if the images are inside spoiler tags we don't have to download them every time we wish reply or read someone else's reply.

Actually, sadly, the spoiler tag does not prevent the browser from loading the pictures. So, if you delete your cache and reload, the browser will re-dl them all.
With the tags the scrolling becomes less annoying though.

 

[Wise Emperor]

BUMP!

 

[MicoSelva]

I'm working on an update. For some reason I'm getting more and more screenshots for each one (over 200 for #7), so give me some time.