baldur's gate non-insane solo poverty playthrough - prologue, act 1, act 2.

I don't expect to finish the game with this, and the guy who made this up (while assembling the "one character guide" on gamefaqs.com, what worth shit) only reached Act2 with this concept, and I have nothing better to do still, I give it a go.

What's is "solo insane poverty"?
Well it is played on insane difficulty. I won't apply this, as the only difference between this and core rules is the damage the enemy do to the main character, what is one way ridiculous, and the other way too.
Solo means you won't have a party, only the protagonist. It is absolutly doable with most classes.
poverty means not using ANY equipment appart quest items for their quest purposes (gold incuded).
Oh, and BG1 is NOT played, but the effect of statbooks ARE taken over. BG1 can NOT be done in poverty-mode (unless you use some exp-cap remover and combine all three games with some mod. I myself use vanilla game).

Easier requirement:
of course the requirements are not a bit harsh for "poverty". If you wish to try yourself with more "sane" approach, try to do the game with never going into shops, and only using reward-equipment (those that end up in your backpack, instead of the loot what you find in containers and laying on the gorund).

So, class:
the only viability is sorcerer. For fighter, paladin, barbarian, ranger you'd have to use a weapon. For a thief or bard (collectively called rogue) I THINK it could win any fight with its traps or a lot of strougle, but no idea what they do at the first part of Melissan when they can not prepare for the battle. Monk can do the game with his fist being +4, and not allowed to use armor anyway (although BMU helps him a tonn, as with ca. -20 AC even in ToB most things appart the exact main bosses can't hit you), but they still need better than natural THAC0, and at places like the eyes at Abazigal's lairthey'd have SERIOUS trouble, so I don't think they could do it. No, unlocking doors is not an issue with a wellbuilt (maxSTR) character (and there is always Slayer Form when you mess up).

Race:
Elf. Sorcerer already has the requirement of 9 CHA just like an elf (not 8 as some never-played-the-game walkthroughwriters says), and the +1 DEX can be useful. The -1 CHA won't be an issue.

Alignment:
At the beggining it determines your special abilities and your familiar. During the game you will be offered some nice shortcuts from difficult battles if you are one of the evil aligments, so be evil. The familiars in SoA are pathetic, but in ToB two worth a view: neutral evil familiars get stoneskin (physical invulnerability), chaotic evils gain elemental invulnerability. The previous is more useful, especially if (WHEN) you'll choose evil reward at Baal's Tears, where you can probably avoid bugs with alignment vs. familiar conflict. So be neutral evil.
The bad side of being evil is the lack of Draw Upon Holy Might, what'd allow you to regenerate while sleeping. No, you may not sleep in taverns, nor be healed in temples.

Stats:
STR: 18. It helps with THAC0 (think on Melf's minute meteor, or Energy Blades) as well as carrying weight and bashing locks.
DEX: 19 for AC. If there'd not be the 9 CHA req. 18 would go here as the race would be half-elf (sorcerers can only be human/elf/half elf, the later two having advantage of infravision), as it is much easier to roll cool stats when CHA is absoutely dump stat.
CON: 16 is minimum for HP when the character is rolled. If you manage to have higher (17 is max. at start for elf), you'll be able to afford some familiars being killed. Just in case.
INT: 9. Dump sat for sorcerer with bas requirement.
WIS: 18. Any sane person requires Wish when solo with the hope of defeating Melissan.
CHA: 9. Dump stat, especially with the Ring of Human Influence around.

The Spellbook:
lvl1: magic missile (THE lvl1 spell), find familiar (to have one), protection from petrification (it is required in the Planar Sphere once, and I hate to rely on lucky statrolls if no must, especially as your saving throws will be badd without all the equipments, like Ring of Protection +3), protection from evil (against summoned demons during the beggining), spook (really no good choice in lvl 1 spells, and it has a -6 for saves)
lvl2: blur (extra AC practicly), resist fear (against dragons and such), melf's acidic arrow (the only lvl2 offensive power), ****, ****
lvl3: skull trap (absolutly best offensive power despite the short range, but can be used as traps), melf's minute meteor (hits everything AND it is fire damage against trolls - it is like tonns of flame arrow on you), fireball (makes the first half of the game much easier), lightning bolt (against the Chromatic Demon), non detection (to repleace the Cloak of NonDetection)
lvl4: stone skin, greater malison, improved invisibility (for extra AC and to repleace the Staff of Magi), spider spawn (more on this a little later), minor sequencer (you can have at the same time a minor sequencer, a spell sequencer, a spell trigger and a chain contignency. Contignency + Chain Contignency don't work together.)
lvl5: spell immunity (think on Kangaxx), sunfire (absolutely best solo damage battle spell), breach, ****, ****
lvl6: prot. from magic weapons (absolut must), death spell (to kill umberhulks, and be able to do the first Ust Natha quest), chain lightning (good damage spell), pierce magic (lowers magic resistance, and there is no immunity to it), true sight (against backstabbers and things like Draconis)
lvl7: finger of death (raw damage spell), mordekainen's sword (for its invulnerability), prismatic spray (area damage. can be changed if you find something else good), spell sequencer, ****
lvl8: incindenary cloud (it. is. cool.), abi dhalzim's horrid wilting (for its raw power), spell trigger, pierce shield (again magic resistance lowerer), simularcum
lvl9: chain contignency, shapeshift, time stop, wish, power word kill

About Spider Spawn: they are waaay better then any of the animal summoning spells. They have ok HP and good offensive ability. They are also nonenchanted damagedealers (thinnk on magic golems), and they work against Clay Golems (think on Irenicus's Dungeon). At the very late parts they become useless, but until then you won't need other summons.


The Playthrough:
I imediatelly slept and summoned the familiar. Not put it into pocket to have something absorbing some minor damage from mephits and such (it has waay better AC and such). At the lightning machine I levelled up, chose Spider Spawn as lvl 4 spell.

I killed the kobold hordes with fireball (it has large enough radius, and can be casted out of their view), and with summoned spiders anyting big (like the cambion, or the two nonhostile clay golem - you don't want them activated as supposed when you enter the bedroom). Against the mephits I sent forward my own mephit, and supported from the back. Oh, the Dust Mephit as familiar has an undocummented ability, what is save vs. breath weapon is not made "irritates" the target. Funny.

In Irenicus' bedroom there are traps. Have our familiar set off the trap on the ground before the traped chest containing the Portal Key. The Dust Mephit regeerates its damages back, so no worry. Another use can be, if no target remained, you can cast your offensive healings on it to heal yourself.

Don't bother with the vampire room, you can't kill the creature. Otherwise kill what you can.

You reach outside. You should be lvl 9, and be able to cast stone skin. It is important to be able to cast stoneskin if you follow me as I want to kill Mencar Peeblecrusher's band before leaving the Promenade for exp (how sad you can't gain unlimited exp at once as a mage!), and to not worry about the between-area encounters (what are five: first is the group with the short sword that can hast the wearer, second is the poisoned harpis, third is a group made entirely of orogs, and two random slaver group with the same formation of 3 fighter + 1 mage + 1 priest - the last three group has scrolls of minor spell turning or deflection).

So go in the in. Cast stoneskin. Along the northern wall go facing the enterance of Mencar's room. Cast Skull Trap (bigger damage) targeted the bed before you. Cast another skull trap - and when the autopause happens RUN to the northeastern corner, then the southeastern corner. The mencars should gather on theeastern corner of the room's enterance. Summon 4+ spiders. Go until you again face the room's door. Cast skull trap (you should be able to cast twice). They come out - make the spiders do short work on them. Hold your magic missles on the moment the thief tries to run away.
If any of the group becomes afraid and runs out, you'll be able to find them outside.
the sound what sounds like reputationdrop is NOT reputationdrop, but signes that the barbarian grabs his sword of berserkering (technically he should massacre his own group, but that won't happen unfortunately).
One task done.

Next is the Circus. For honor. For glory. For experience.
You are allowed to sleep withing the circus without disturbance. the problem of the circus is, that the "werewolves" inside though always supposed to be illusions, sometimes they are not handled properly, and able to harm you from the start. So as this place is just too crowded for a starting mageling, run through the first floor, and on the second floor concentrate on the illusionist himself. One vampiric touch may do the trick.

Onto the Slums. We want to side with Bodhi, because that makes things easier, so don't cheat in some heluva lot of gold.
Onto the Copper Coronet. Release the familiar, and start a fight with Amalas. The familiar is a creepy thing. Although not shown on the map, but unlike a summoned creature it clears the fog of war, and is teleported with you into the ring.

With 9 CHA you don't have to pay for Lehtinan to enter the back. Watch out with area-damage spells not to kill the slaves in the cells. You shall have power to kill the guards at the start and the winter wolf in the pit. Sleep. To dispose the Beastmaster cast two skull traps at the front of the second animal-cell doors, then start a fireball and run back. Cast a fireball to the first doors to kill the panther and the mutated gibberling. Have stoneskin on yourself. Start summoning spiders. Finish the fight. (You could do the alternative method and ask the key from Lehtinan if you find this fight too tricky.)
The fight against the Copper Coronet Guards should be easy, especiall as you are now lvl 11.
You can do while here the Lilarcor quest too. Give yourself 2000 gold to have fun on the kobolds and their staff (it is boring to kill kobolds, but I make a sidenote here: there ARE randomly re-generated monsters in the game, for example right when you go down to the sewers in the temple district. So if all else fails you MAY give yourself the exp to the exp-limit, although this solution would seem pathetic).

Sadly we are not allowed to cast spells outside to bash the two morons, and the slaver guild would be too much yet, so head to the Government District. Pay the magic licence, and make Jan arrested. Close to Viconia, and summon no less then two spiders. The priest is immun to Melf's acid arrow's spellcasting-disruption, just to let you know, and if you start the battle before releasing Viconia, the crowd will turn hostile and not gone. Also the two archers don't care for Viconia, so have a stoneskin up running. To make things easiest start to cast a Melf's arrow while paused AND while paused click on the pole the final time to start the battle, so the priest will only suffer damage when he is supposed to.
Free Jan from the prison as sson as you can, not forgeting to bargain with the guard for 2K more exp.

Now SAVE at every occasion you plan to leave an area in case you get a special encounter, especially the second one.
Go to the Graveyard, as the Mourning Paladin is free exp, and you might even be able to dispose Uncle Lester.
There are also two nighttime-related quests not involving fights: Wellyn's teddybear and the first task of MaeWaer's guild. For the later: don't forget you can do nothing in the Temple District until you are trusted with the Unseeing Eye qzest, and the second reason is, that if you side with Bodhi (easier as I said, but if you play using reward items used siding the Shadow Thieves is the way better solution for the Amulet of Power). those quests are not avaiable in Act 3.

There is the Sir Sarles quest what is daytime-related because of the ore-merchant in the Promenade. It involves a fight though during with you'd be leveldrianed, so will need Protection from magical weapons firt, but you can gain the bigger expreward as don't need the real illithium (wouldn't any way - a sidenote: magelings are the only classes that can't use the pantaloons neither, so the poverty-requirement won't hurt them here too). Worth to start things rolling as soon as possible.

With some spells at hand we can manage Edwin's first task, killing that - on this level - pretty powerful mage. For the first level outside the building summon 2-3 spider and Melf's meteors on yourself. Go in, cast IMEDIATELLY magic missle on the nearest fire mephit, then kill it with some meteors, RIGHT THEN run out. Some mephits will follow you, but they'll stuck on the spiders. You can lead out all but the magma mephits. When only they remain release your familiar and go in. Wait until you the magamas releas their first bolt, then IMEDIATELLY start summoning spider. One will be more then enough, it finishes both magam.
To prepare the second floor cast stoneskin, have the familiar released, and have meteors at hand. Go up, IMEDIATELLY start summoning spider. One must do, it is only meatshield. Run to the corner of the room, and start killing the golems. When you need more distraction have the remaining one chase the familiar - do not let it hit it, as that can mean imediate death of it.
On the third floor is the mage. Hope you still have at least one-two meteor (not cast, just in your hand). Cast Improved Invisibility and go up. IMEDIATELLY throw your meteor on him - he only has one true sight. now he will be harmless, and Sunfire is notcounteredbyhisstoneskin, neitherhisprotection from magical weapons. Back to Edwin.
MaeVaer's further tasks should notpresent a challenge, although I'd be prepared before trying to eliminate his guildhouse. It'll require a lot of stoneskin and sunfire. MaeVaer himself can be disposed more easily with skull trap + fireball combo.
When he is done, we are done with the last quest of the Shadow Thieves, and thus can add ourself some gold and start Act 3 - and the next post of mine as I'll try to avoid this growing too large.

Besides: you have enough strenght to defeat the Piratesof the Sea Bounties. First make the captain go after you to the bar where an amnish soldier will do most of the damage. But thekilling blow should be made by you, as he - as his comrades - worth some thousands of exp! Handle as few as possible at one time.

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