<font color="gold">Well, I just came home from the PC-shop I always use, this time with a copy of BG in my hand.
However, the guy who runs the store didn't have any copies of TotSC left, and said that he didn't think they are beeing produced anymore.
So, I am asking you, should I just start playing BG right away, without TotSC? Or should I continue searching for TotSC and buy it before I start playing?
Thanks on forehand. [img]smile.gif[/img] </font>

I really would try and find TOTSC before you play BG properly, <s>Bernard</s> Jonas ;) It's a lot more fun and adds great new places to the BG world. I certainly would wait because bear in mind that TOTSC changes quite a few things in the actual game itself; if you're halfway through a regular BG game, you can't install TOTSC over it, you have to install them both at one time. Good luck with finding a copy of it [img]smile.gif[/img]

This on-line store still has Tales of the Sword Coast listed for sale.
http://www.dealdealdeal.com

The guy in the store is right they now only produce them as a unit I believe in other words it is going to be hard to get a copy of BG without TotSC. But that isn't so bad.

I had TotSC the first time I played but I skipped one area almost all together because it was so long and annoying, I mean I really wanted to complete the game, not wander through this vast difficult tower. I played it a second time though and that time I took my time and did all the quest. So there is no harm in playing, if you really like the game you will find yourself playing again and again. So I guess TotSC can wait, and if you don't enjoy the game than you probaly don't really want TotSC although it does ad quite a bit to the game.

[ 10-22-2002, 02:28 PM: Message edited by: pritchke ]

You don't HAVE to have TotSC to play BG. All what it adds are really only some areas, which are not bad at all, but still, not too many areas. It does raise the "official" level cap some, but it's still pretty low, rather use some XP cap remover. Baldurdash had some nice one..

It adds some new gear and such too, but in the end it wont matter that much. I've played through BG few times already, before TotSC was released. My "BG1-experience" sure was not reduced because of that. I liked the TotSC as add-on, it explains a bit of lore (about Balduran) and so on.. But no, you do not HAVE to have it to enjoy BG1.

What I suggest to do - play BG1 as it is now, play it all the way until you have to go to Baldur's Gate city. Meanwhile at the same time search for the expansion. When you get it, install it and done. Do the TotSC areas before you move to the final stages of BG1.

One bit of advice though - IF you have BG1 without TotSC and patch it, and later add TotSC and patch it too - your game will not run. It will give some error and that's it. ONLY thing what helps here is to:

1) Backup your savegames in some other folder;
2) Uninstall patched BG1;
3) Install BG1 again, NO PATCHING!
4) Copy savegames back;
5) Install TotSC;
6) Download and install TotSC PATCH;
7) Well, add also Baldurdash fixes, I always do;

This will ensure that your BG1 + TotSC will work in the end, it also will ensure that your savegames are converted for TotSC and will also work.

And other then that, have fun. I myself at times install BG1 + TotSC, create a char and then play with it all the way to ToB end :D

what do you mean you cant install sword coast halfway through a game? of course you can? you just convert chars when it asks and its fine, thats what i did and never had any problems.

also apparently it makes sarevok harder so more of a challenge if you add it.

but sword coast isnt essential at all, play bg through then come back and instal sword coast, definately adds alot to it and is well worth buying if you can but baldurs gate on its own is superb

BG in itself has enough travelling for one person.. it´s not too short or easy without TotSC, especially when you play it for the first time. Somehow I never bothered to get TotSC.

I have played it both ways and personally I think that with TOSC added it is a completely different game...plain BG is a cool game that you can get into but I feel that once you add TOSC then you would have to say that it is a cool WORLD that you can get into.

I said that you CAN add TotSC in middle of the game. What you have to pay attention to is that if you patch your BG1 (and you should, to fix the bugs), then if you install TotSC later and patch it as well, the game will NOT start. You will get some error and when you go to the BG1 site and read about it, it will say the same as I did. Shortly, you need to install BG1, then TotSC, then patch TotSC and then you're done. Backing up savegames never hurts, even if the uninstall will not touch these - as they say, just in case.

hmmmmm i havent bothered patching any of it at all, what does the patch do? can anyone list the major updates/bug fixes the patch makes?