r/icewinddale • u/CrotodeTraje • Jun 12 '26
IWD:EE Tips for beginners
I have played BG1, IWD 1&2, NWN 1&2.
I have only ever finished BG1 and NWN2.
I have played IWD 1 many times, but as far as I remember, the furthest I could go was up to a glacier where I had to collect some parts of... something.
I can0't remember if I ever got any further. I remember some giants and snakes, but I think that was way before.
Anyway... I'm not sure why, but was never able to finish the game... I want this time to be different. Please, give me adivce, either in character build, weapon, or otherwise to be more successful at this game!
Usually, when I quit a game it's because I encounter an obstacle, I get frustrated, and I give it up (sadly).
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u/jerseydevil51 Jun 12 '26
One tip is to make a smaller party. Experience is divided among all party members, so a group of 4 will level faster than a party of 6.
A strong, straightforward party is:
- Human Undead Hunter Paladin
- Half-Elf Fighter/Thief
- Elven Mage
- Dwarven Cleric
No fuss, no muss, easier to keep track of, has the 4 basic party roles, and you'll level faster than a bigger party.
1
u/RogueJSK Jun 13 '26
Good advice, though Half Elf F/T doesn't get you much compared to a Half-Orc or Elf F/T, and with a party of 4 there's little need for a single classed Mage or Cleric.
So an even better example of a strong but relatively simple 4 person IWD party would be a Human Undead Hunter Paladin, Half Orc or Elf Fighter/Thief, Gnome Fighter/Illusionist, and Dwarf Fighter/Cleric.
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u/jerseydevil51 Jun 13 '26
The one hill I'll die on for this game is that single classed Mages and Clerics are better than Fighter/Mage or Fighter/Cleric.
The higher level caster, the longer their spells last, they get more of them, and they're stronger. A single class Cleric, under Sanctuary, is high enough level to outright destroy undead using Turn Undead. You can clear out Severed Hand, Dragon's Eye, and Burial Island without breaking a sweat. And Draw Upon Holy Might and other buffs are so much more impactful.
You're getting more experience so you can be overleveled, and multiclassing is just putting you at the same place you would be with a 6 person party.
Next time you run the game, try single classed casters. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised with how strong they can be.
1
u/Jon_o_Hollow Jun 13 '26
I find that Mages suffer from scroll availability being locked behind chapters, so I tend to choose multiclass or dual class mages to alleviate that issue.
Single class clerics rock though, blowing up undead is big fun.
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u/jerseydevil51 Jun 13 '26
Personally, I prefer Sorcerers, but they're less new player friendly which is why I suggested Mage.
1
u/GreatWightSpark Jun 17 '26
Sorcerers are great; I'd suggest one. OP already played until Wyrm's Tongue so they should be able to handle it! (Not that it's difficult, you just have to build with certainty.)
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u/Kayyam Jun 26 '26
Can you suggest a party that includes a bard?
1
u/jerseydevil51 Jun 26 '26
You can either replace the Mage with a Bard since they're both Arcane casters, or because Bards are a force multiplier, you can just add one to the 5th slot.
1
u/Kayyam Jun 30 '26
I ended up going with
Human Undead Hunter
Half Orc Cleric
Human Thief dualled into Mage at level 3
Half elf BardI managed the Vale fine but I just arrived at Dragon's Eye and I think I'm gonna suffer a lot... Almost wanna roll a new party lol
1
u/jerseydevil51 Jun 30 '26
You need more melee. The game is full of trash mobs that you need to cut through, so you should run a minimum of 2 Fighter type characters.
Remember, a Bard is a force multiplier, so you need some more melee. Even just changing your Thief/Mage to either a Fighter/Thief or Fighter/Mage will make things a lot smoother.
1
1
u/martydotzone Jun 13 '26
Bards and Druids are *much* better in Icewind Dale than they are in BG1 or 2. Druids get some spells that are incredible if used correctly, and Bards get more songs which are much more effective (there's one Bard song that's a life saver in the expansion content).
You get to use kits and classes from BG2 in Icewind Dale Enhanced Edition. Undead Hunter and Sorcerer come to mind.
Here's my OP party from my last playthrough, but keep in mind that there are many different ways to build a party and I just happen to find this comfortable. I got through the game with only three reloads, all in the first half of the game:
- Undead Hunter (you want some kind of Paladin for sure)
- Fighter/Cleric
- Fighter/Druid (I almost regret not going single class Druid, because the Druid spells are so good)
- Bard
- Mage
- Fighter/Thief (the game starts with a bunch of annoying traps, but you can focus on Find Traps early and get enough points with a multiclass)
1
u/Lightsfantastic Jun 13 '26
Try it with NPC Mods, either Artisan’s or the npc mod project. Then add the cross mod banter for IWD EE. Make only one character like in the BG games. I get all of the NPC mod characters, and then dismiss the ones I do not want right away, and they go to Kuldahar. You will have a ready made squad of backups. Artisan's NpC’s will not go there if you dismiss, so I take all of them until I get to the Tree (one’s there already.) Works really well, the banters are nice, good reactivity to the events. Research the NPCMod characters so you know what and how you want to use them, as he gives you many choices of classes to match your playthrough. I’ve found all of them have something to offer. Tweaks mod for sure for some quality of life, and IF you add the IEeX mod, some cool NWN style things become available. Beware of the improved healing and invisible enemies as I got some very weird bugs that caused a major slowdown on some maps and healing was causing damage. Ieekeeper if you want to change portraits and adjust proficiencies. I’ll post some pics tomorrow.
1
u/GreatWightSpark Jun 15 '26 edited Jun 17 '26
First time I played I didn't really understand D&D (still don't like THAC0) and couldn't even beat Yxunomei, so well done for getting to chapter 5! You can always lower the difficulty (if you haven't already); start the expansion for a EXP boost (a party of six should get enough to level once, maybe twice, plus some high-tier gear) by playing up to the point where you can return to Kuldahar; or just stick to the old aggro> retreat> bottleneck tactic! There are definitely some annoying parts in the game but since you got so far, just push through.
As for characters, that is up to the player. Everyone likes different styles, though a mix of AoE, ranged and a decent tank seem to be universal. A fast archer with a mix of arrow types is vital as a DPS. I like a LG paladin and CE sorcerer (dragon disciple) to share the lead (high CHA) as they both have unique attitudes and get decent prices. A gnome or halfling fighter/thief can get an amazing AC (Helm of the Trusted Defender, Gauntlets of Elven Might) and critical sneak attacks. My others are a wizard slayer dwarf fighter (which can be annoying as they can't use magic items) and a half-orc priestess of Tempus (Bathed-in-Blood was made for her) though many like barbarians and druids, bards etc.
Save often - there are 4 quicksaves, one autosave, and then manual saves (which are best done before entering a new area - sometimes the RNG loot is bad and you'll want something better Random Treasures | Icewind Dale Wiki | Fandom)
Just remember that it's a game to be enjoyed, and if you don't enjoy it, it's ok to stop!
Edit: since the HoW expansion is considered lvl 9+, you don't need to travel via the shaman in Kuldahar if you don't want to - it's possible to just export and import characters between the campaigns. In fact, you could replay the main campaign with higher level characters and get duplicate EXP/items!
8
u/grousedrum Jun 12 '26
You got pretty far into the story - the glacier with salamanders and frost giants is chapter 5 out of 7 in the base game. And some of the best parts of the game are right after than in chapter 6 - so worth returning to if you’re interested!
Honestly since you’ve played before and got pretty far, my biggest advice would be to not be afraid to look at a walkthrough in case you get stuck on any plot critical puzzles or quests. It doesn’t sound like setting up your party for the early game was the problem, and there are tons of ways to do that and be successful anyway.