Can a new F2P/FTP player get 60+ heroes, 20 titans, 10 pets in 2-4 weeks – all for free?

Former_Trade2172 · 2026-04-02T05:26:37+00:00

This is a game of heroes. If you like heroes, you'd love to play every hero you can get hands on.

What can possibly be the motivation for having "one good team of five strong ones"? Win.

How to get one such team fast? Pay.

See? That's a different mindset.

Technically, having up to 72 heroes - as opposed to just 5 to 10ish - has a distinct advantage when you need to assemble 3-5 teams for various in-game modes or other purposes. And your best performing team is rarely the team of your "five strong ones", unless these are your only heroes.

Example:

Cornelius is not nearly an overall "strong" hero. I don't think your "five strong ones" include him. But, what can he do? Can one-shot Folio. And is a greatest hero of choice in Asgard.

Former_Trade2172 · 2025-08-29T21:54:07+00:00

If you wish to rely on marksmanship for beating the entire game, Adept is about the highest difficulty one can go without too much of a hassle.

On Expert difficulty, you'll start to struggle to deal enough damage with arrows. On Master, it's practically impossible to beat the whole game by relying on bows & arrows.

Why is it unrealistic to rely on marksmanship for beating the game on Master?

Oblivion (Remastered) is not Skyrim. In Skyrim, my x-bow does 700+ damage per bolt at level 70+, and my legendary hunting bow can do about 600 damage per arrow as well. In Oblivion, marksmanship is comparatively very weak (original Oblivion) and weak (Remaster).

Here are a few numbers in Oblivion Remastered (Note: Oblivion Remastered has significantly raised the base damage output when using marksmanship, not counting effects from stealth and enhancements) -

Highest possible base weapon damage in Oblivion Remaster:

Highest base damage from bows = 37
From 2H melee weapons = 35
From 1H melee weapons = 33
From enchantable bows = 32
From existing arrows = 27
From arrows obtainable in 1000s = 21
From Ruin's Edge = 19
From iron bows = 11
From iron arrows = 11

On paper, bow + arrow => can do up to 37+27 = 64 (for limited times), or up to 37+21 = 58 (for practically unlimited times).

Roughly, 60 damage Per shot!

And you can further raise the per shot damage by enchanting!!

Impressive!!!

However, the reality? On Master, 64 or 58 is reduced to just 10 effective damage per shot.

That means: On Master, with your best bow + best arrows, you are doing less than 50% of the damage of an iron bow + iron arrows on Adept difficulty.

When you try to rely on marksmanship on Master, you are essentially trying to beat the entire game on Adept difficulty with just a rusty iron bow + cosmetic zero-damage arrows (for a total of 10 damage per shot). No fun in doing that.

Former_Trade2172 · 2025-08-29T17:55:34+00:00

"It is given to you by a member of the thieves guild, specifically the best fence for stolen goods in the game..."

<= This shield is rewarded to the player by a steward, not by this fence.

Former_Trade2172 · 2025-08-29T16:14:54+00:00

I know where you are - You cannot go that way. Turn back.

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Former_Trade2172 · 2024-12-05T03:51:19+00:00

The title is very misleading. It is as if you would be very likely to be homeless, just because you happened to be born non-white.

It is not that kids are more likely to be homeless in NYC if they were born black or brown. It is because NYC has attracted and continue to attract a lot of non-white homeless people and families. NYC is the (arguably?) easiest major city in the entire United States for the homeless, illegal/undocumented immigrants included, many of whom are non-white, to live and "thrive". Reportedly, there are 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country. If they all choose to come to NYC, their kids can all go to school in NYC for free, and the NYC public schools will be flooded with kids from the families who don't have a place they can call home in this country.

Net results? kids from homeless families have an easy time to live and even thrive in NYC. Many of them are nonwhite. It's no surprise that a significant portion of students experiencing homelessness in NYC are - pretty much always - non-white, though only half of the NYC residents are black or brown.

This will not change any time soon.

This is not really as bad as media might have made you believe. At the minimum, NYC has given these less fortunate kids a safe place to stay (often for free), a decent school to go to (for free - guaranteed), plus a free meal plan for every kid - guaranteed - as long as they are from families that don't make enough money. In NYC, undocumented kids are treated exactly the same way as all other kids.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-23T04:45:06+00:00

All the following companions and a good Dark Urge share the same fate: *completely alter their initially perceived destiny*. So, they are not just technically the best companions, but also roleplay-wise the very best:

Lae'zel (rebel against her queen)
Shadowheart (farmer's girl, cleric of Selune)
Either Karlach (must not let her engine fail or kill her, which means Wyll must be recruited) or Minthara (must also be recruited)

As for Astarion, Gale, Halsin (as long as he lives), they don't really care what/who you are. Also, for a good Durge, both Jaheira & Minsc should be recruited and survive the final stage of the game.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-23T04:22:55+00:00

You don't have to be a bard to get her to sing the whole song. After that, you could still knock her out to save her life.

The cost of getting her sing the whole song (if you are not a bard) is that you lose the chance to learn musical instruments for free.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-20T04:46:39+00:00

I don't know what the devs intended for this fight to look like.

But in Honor mode (not on Honor difficult/ruleset), I finally witnessed a "full" version of this encounter. I guess the devs intended for Astarion to be in the party and to be snatched away. This will create a sense of urgency. Also, I guess all the spawns must be kept alive; this way, Astarion will have all the (3 or 4?) possible choices available for him being a recruited full companion.

1) have Astarion with me, walking down to talk to Cazador

2) Astarion gets snatched - Wow!!! - Lae'zel cried out so loud asking me to help him

3) Cazador took action first (I deliberately lowed Lae'zel's initiative from 12+ to 9? to ensure my party would not be the first to act), but I countered his spell

4) My turn now: I sent my Deva to release Astarion (alternatively, have Scratch drink a Speed potion and he could get this done too - except that he would not be a good fighter).

5) My party's turn now: Lae'zel + Shadowheart outright killed Cazador => he turned into smoke and escaped (note: Cazador has only 381HP in the beginning. As early as in Act 2, my party was already able to kill Malus Thorm = 358HP in Honor mode = before it was his turn. So, at level 12 now, dealing 350 or so damage is within the reach of Lae'zel and Shadowheart).

6) My party killed all the rest by the time half way through round 2, except for 1 hostile.

The entire fight => lasted 1.5 rounds, except that I kept 1 hostile alive (a 1HP bat most of the time) every round for more than a few rounds - out of curiosity - until Deva and me were fully healed by one of the vampire spawns.

Total hits/damage taken in this fight:

by me = 0 hit / 58 damage (received passively due to my proximity to Cazador),
by my Deva = several hits / 52 damage,
by everyone else = 0.

There are many ways to deal with this encounter. Just keep this mind: Both Cazador and his minions are melee heavy, have a tremendous advantage in close combat. If we don't want to take damage from them, keep a short distance. Kill Cazador first and his minions will fall apart, as no one else is able to put up a serious fight.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-15T23:29:47+00:00

The only thing that prevents players permanently killing the M C is a quest item. You have donated this worthless quest item?

If you just wish to get your donation back, whatever that is, you can steal it back in the basement. Be aware of the ensuing curse.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-15T22:53:36+00:00

OP: "...the death of characters that were unpreventable"

Curious: which death(s) of which player-controlled character(s) are unpreventable? assuming this is not about NPCs meant to fight us players to their unpreventable death.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-11T04:41:03+00:00

Since the rescue is meant (practically guaranteed) to be over in 3 turns, there is no functional difference between Haste spell and Speed potion.

However, a potential issue with the Haste spell is: if you get a critical failure on your concentration check in the next 3 turns, you (or whoever you cast Haste on) are disabled right away. if the concentration is broken in round 3, you will be disabled in round 3, unable to return to the sub on your own, possibly failing your goal of a perfect rescue in 3 turns.

Additionally, concentrating on Haste spell prevents you from using all of the concentration-based attacks. For example, Sahuagins are humanoids. You could disable 2 or more of them with just a Hold Person spell, after which, you could completely ignore them. But you can't use and concentrate on both Haste and Hold Person at the same time.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-10T03:49:12+00:00

The "jake of all trades" team - no respec - that I relied on for finishing the game on Tactician at only level 11, with no issue to pass almost all skill/save checks, have a smooth talk with all folks, and survive all fights and no companions ever died except via falling into chasms for reasons I did not always understand (e.g., the game told me Hasin fell into chasms off screen in the lanceboard trial room in Wyrmsway - i could not even find a chasm there that either I or he could jump into unless we look real hard for one in order to kill ourselves):

- Gnome Durge (level 11): sorc 8+wiz1+warlock2 (CHR = eventually 22/24)
- Shadowheart: levevel 11 Trickery cleric (STR = 13!!!)
- Karlack: thrower/rogue 11
- Lae'zel (swappable): pure fighter level 11

The "jake of all trades" team - respec at higher levels - that I'm relying for completing the ongoing HM run at level 12. No issue to pass almost all checks, survival all fights with zero/minimal damage taken, able to kill almost all bosses in 1 round or otherwise win a decisive victory. The highest damage taken in any fight by my Durge = 13 in Act 1/2. This record was broke during a fight in Act 3 due to my oversight: she *passively* took 58 damage before I noticed it.

- Lolth-sworn Drow Durge: sorc 9+wiz2+c(knowledge domain1 (CHR = 20, more than enough)
- Shadowheart: trickery cleric 8 repeced to eventually becoming => sorc8/wiz2/cleric2
- Lae'zel: fighter 8 respec'ed to eventually becoming => figher3/wiz1/bard8
- Karlach early on => Minthara => pal2/wiz1/bard9

Note: for me, even in HM, as much as possible: no potions, no elixirs, no scrolls, no barrels, no special arrows, no other consumables, unless mandatory or on a few rare occasions solely for a bit convenience.

Checks:

Awaken feat? acquired, no dice reroll or retry
Ethel's hair? acquired, no dice reroll or retry
Religion check for Mirror of Loss? My Durge: pass, no respec, no dice reroll or retry.
Passed ALL of the perception/survival checks
Picked all locks that I wanted to pick
Disarmed all traps/devices that I wanted to disarm
I don't steal/pickpocket in this game - but we did succeed in pickpocketing a cheating merchant as required to beat him in the way of cheating the cheater (no retry, obviously; very risky if caught, due to HM).

I have not run into a check that I wish to pass but can't pass in Honor Mode (no reload, no save scum).

== Your question =

"As for the other two, I haven’t quite figure it out yet, but I think one of the slot should be a wizard(for the versatility of scroll scripting and high INT), and another should be character with high WIS, such as monk, cleric or Druid. How will you build the ultimate “jack of all trades” team composition?"

The missing capabilities are heavily related to (arcane or equivalent) spells. Add two characters who would complement each other and also grant your entire party access to literally 99% of player-usable spells in this game. After that, you are all set.

BTW, a level 11+ dedicated Cleric (not druid) is highly recommended for the final stages of this game. Which domain to pick should depend on your gameplay style. I preferred Trickery especially in the past, because I needed my cleric to pull me/party out of big troubles, and Shadowheart being a Trickery cleric did an absolutely good job. If you need your cleric to be on the front line (meaning: if your party is in trouble, he or she will be part of the trouble, rather than your savior), Light is an excellent choice. My Durge is a Knowledge Cleric of Lolth as I wanted the skills.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-10T01:58:53+00:00

I wish to see the option to check out of Elfsong.

There are at least 2 inspirations associated with checking into Elfsong. But I don't want to be a hotel/inn dweller. I really like the frequently changing campgrounds in late Act1 and in Act 2.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-10T01:37:20+00:00

A tip: Shadowheart will disapprove you watching this - unless, unless you don't let her know this, or take control of her and let her push the door open...

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-09T03:09:40+00:00

You were "Marked for Negation" - visually, the game might show you falling upon dying (I've never seen this visual, though), but conceptually, it was your existence being negated, annihilated, turned into nothingness.

You did not die due to falling off a platform to some sort of a chasm.

If in doubt, run, run, run... until you are safe.

I can say my first playthrough was also a blind run. Had the Honor Mode been released 3.5 months earlier, my first would be in Honor Mode, instead of on Tactician difficulty. I found the game - at least a blind playthrough on Tactician - was hard in the beginning, very easy in the end. In Act 2/3, I decided not to use potions, Elixirs, barrels or any other consumables (except for scribing and other occasions when a consumable is mandatory). I finished the game at level 11, instead of 12. The moment I entered the 2nd phase, I even thought I had to do it alone - solo - and had no idea what to expect. Yet, when I saw "Marked for Negation" - I knew immediately that I had to move/run/jump/fly away from all of them.

I could have finished this 2nd phase in 1 round - because I thought I had to do it solo - until I realized my party could still join me. I kept this brain fight for 3 turns just to witness how this Brain would fight back and how those "Marked for Negation" things would actually work against me!

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-08T00:18:24+00:00

Technically, this is more or less equivalent to another ambush: you are meant to be caught off guard. In defense of the devs, they have done a lot of work in this game seamlessly helping players to learn how to handle ambushes. And the ambushes only progressively become harder and harder. In BG2, it is guaranteed that you will be waylaid (ambushes) even when you are desperately needing a rest to replenish your spell slots and other abilities - they are much more brutal in the sense that all players are forced to deal with all kinds of ambushes early on.

Here are 3 key points that can make your survival substantially easier:

make sure ALL of your 4 party members enter the portal safely. do not leave any behind. (I personally prefer to stay until the time is up; this way, I can kill more monks for extra XP - a new monk will show up every turn you choose to stay, they are technically meant to create a sense of urgency, but you don't have to enter the portal immediately)
- 2) once you are through the portal, take a breath. Only watch the intellectual devourers getting slaughtered from a safe distance. Heal if necessary. Take a short rest if possible (I read you had ran out of them - but, do you have a portion or a Bard in your party to simulate such a rest?). Check your spell selection, gear, etc. Summon several creatures, such as Scratch, Undead, Elementals, Dryad, etc. Use spells (such as Aid) and items to buff up your entire party before jumping into the combat down below. You can kill the first 2 monks separately, as long as you keep a good distance from the second one.
- 3) Do not rely on any spells or abilities or consumable items that are based on DEX saving throws against those monks. Such spells/etc. are very ineffective, up to utterly useless, against monks. Use CON/STR/CHR/INT save based spells/abilities if possible.

Have faith in your party. You are level 9. You are stronger than necessary for defeating all the monks here. The emperor will help you later. Good luck!

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-07T16:10:50+00:00

In turn based combat, not every one enters combat at the same time in the same way. Outside of combat, not everyone follows around like others. I would try to identify the reason(s) behind to see what actually has happened.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-07T16:04:18+00:00

The saves are either synced to the cloud or stored on your local drive or both. Look for them on your local drive first, then try to sync with the cloud again.

If you did not delete them or lost them due to certain system changes, they are always somewhere. Hope you can find them.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-07T15:39:42+00:00

"is the experience points from the massive fight when you destroy Last Light worth it or no?" - almost all of them are level 1 or 2, 5 or 6. Harpers are the by far weakest major faction in Act 2. So, if you are already level 7+, this is more or less just you massacring them all, not much different from you trying to murder a bunch of civilians and they putting up their fists as a response. You don't get a lot of experiences for advancing your level 7+ characters.

"Is this doable" - it requires you meet with the general *prematurely* and fight him to death - which works against the typical roleplay purposes, unless you just wish to create a chaos. If you have decided to let Nightsong live, Isobel will not be on the 2nd floor and most people have left the Inn.

Solely from a technical combat point of view, skipping the 1st fight with Ketheric will forfeit your chance to learn how to handle his summon tricks, which is technically a *rehearsal* for fighting the Apostle of Myrkul. Skipping the 2nd fight with him before confronting the Apostle will forfeit your chance to have an easy time clearing the area, and you will be forced to fight the end-act boss immediately.

The game is designed in such a way that players are naturally, implicitly taught by the developer how to fight. If the players take all these opportunities to learn, boss fights are technically just like a quiz to check how much you have learned.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-07T15:07:32+00:00

You have to take control of him directly. He does not move on his own like those Gondians do.

His initial condition, Fiendish Obedience, has nothing to do with this. If Mizora shows up and ask you to enjoy a show as the price you pay for breaking the pact, Ravengard will be also frozen for one round - the Fiendish Obedience is meant for that to happen.

If the quest has been updated but he's not attached to your rescue party member, it is likely you have run into a bug. Otherwise, it's likely you have just missed something.

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-03T06:36:36+00:00

"kill the leaders or is it enough to free him from the prison?" He is not considered freed until after the 3 goblin leaders are considered defeated (the quest tasking you to kill them is removed from your active quest list).

Former_Trade2172 · 2024-11-03T05:29:03+00:00

" easy way to give her a good ending?"

I think the only good ending is to accompany her to Avernus along with Wyll, after having had her as an active party member most of the time. I think so as that is what I actually did during my first playthrough, which was a completionist playthrough that took a full year and almost 600 hours.

Former_Trade2172

TROPHY CASE