Beren's Walkthrough of SoD

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Likewise for the Foehammer's Blessing quest in Ch. 10, it's *not* necessary to wear the Crusader Uniform when talking to Deneld.

 

Location 14 in Dragonspear Castle Courtyard - I found the First Stone Fragment on the north side of the fence, in the rockpile opposite Kjarvan and Qing. I can't remember where I found it during previous runs, so either the location is randomised or "14" is simply marked in the wrong place.

 

In Ch. 10, for the Understanding the Crusade quest, if we've already completed the Troll Breakout quest then Sindret will have left and we can't talk to her, but speaking to the other three listed crusaders is sufficient to win the maximum reward for Understanding the Crusade.

 

At location 12 in the Underground River (exterior area), "They won't let you through, so a fight is unavoidable for the sake of making progress." Not necessarily so. If you already have a Seal of Caelar (by picking Malden Col's pocket before exposing him as a traitor, back in the Coalition Camp), then you can persuade the Cyclops to let you pass without fighting. However, why do that? Better to fight them to win the xp and loot!

 

I've just looked again at your explanation of the Prologue, and I reckon it needs some work.

"You start off here with the same party you had when you defeated Sarevok in BG1" except that if Imoen was in your final party in BG1ee, she will now have disbanded and instead become a quest-giver. If losing Imoen leaves you lacking a Thief, then Safana will have been inserted into your party instead (but otherwise, i.e. if you still have a Thief after losing Imoen, then you don't receive a replacement).

"1. ... Your Hero of Baldur's Gate will keep all the items he or she has equipped, while the items in his or her swag inventory will appear in a chest in the Ducal Palace. It's somewhat different for your other party members. Any items that were in their swag inventories will also end up in the chest. BUT any items they have equipped will disappear for good, FOREVER and for the rest of Siege of Dragonspear. The one exception is Dorn, whom you will find later on during Chapter 9 with all his equipment nearby. So the recommendation is that any items that your other party members have equipped and you want to keep should be unequipped and moved into their swag inventories. ..." The latter part of this isn't correct. In earlier versions of SoD, Beamdog had some inconsistencies (probably bugs) in the way that items were or weren't transferred to SoD, but in the current version (2.6.6.0 as I write) it all seems to have been resolved consistently. The current situation (for the PC version, and assuming that we're continuing from the end of BG1ee, i.e. neither starting a new game in SoD nor running standalone SoD on an Android/iOS device) is as follows:-

Protagonist: all equipped items remain equipped after the end of the Prologue; all backpack items are moved to the chest in the Ducal Palace.

Imoen: some default equipment is left in a chest in her room in the Ducal Palace (i.e. not the same chest as is used for everyone else's backpack items), but I'm not sure what happens if she was in your party (and therefore properly equipped) at the end of BG1ee, because I haven't kept her to the end of BG1ee since before the current version was released.

All other characters who were in the party for the Prologue and who are available in the rest of SoD (i.e. any of Dynaheir, Khalid, Misc, Rasaad, Jaheira, Neera, Safana, Baeloth, Dorn, Edwin, Viconia): all equipped items remain equipped and will be on the character [edit: or in Dorn's case stored in a nearby container] when you later find them during SoD; all backpack items are moved to the chest in the Ducal Palace.

All other characters who were in the party for the Prologue and who are not available in the rest of SoD (i.e. any of Ajantis, Alora, Coran, Kivan, Yeslick, Branwen, Faldorn, Garrick, Quayle, Skie, Xan, Eldoth, Kagain, Montaron, Shar-Teel, Tiax, Xzar): all equipped items are permanently lost with the character; all backpack items are moved to the chest in the Ducal Palace.

All characters who were not in the party for the Prologue but who had ever been in the party during BG1ee and who are available in the rest of SoD (i.e. any of Dynaheir, Khalid, Misc, Rasaad, Jaheira, Neera, Safana, Baeloth, Dorn, Edwin, Viconia who was recruited in BG1ee even if only briefly): whatever items were equipped when you left them in BG1ee will still be equipped [edit: or in Dorn's case stored in a nearby container] when you meet them again in SoD and whatever was in their backpack will still be in their backpack [edit: or in Dorn's case stored in the same nearby container].

All characters who had never been in the party during BG1ee and who are available in the rest of SoD (i.e. any of Dynaheir, Khalid, Misc, Rasaad, Jaheira, Neera, Safana, Baeloth, Dorn, Edwin, Viconia who was never recruited at all in BG1ee): will be equipped with some default basic equipment when you meet them in SoD.

All characters who were not in the party for the Prologue and who are not available in the rest of SoD (i.e. any of Ajantis, Alora, Coran, Kivan, Yeslick, Branwen, Faldorn, Garrick, Quayle, Skie, Xan, Eldoth, Kagain, Montaron, Shar-Teel, Tiax, Xzar): all equipment (whether equipped or in backpack) is permanently lost.

If you're running a standalone game of SoD, I guess (although I've never tested this) that all characters are treated like those who were available-but-never-recruited in BG1ee, i.e. will be given some default basic equipment.

I've no idea what happens to equipment worn or carried by non-standard characters added by mods. I guess it's up to the modder.

The key to transferring a pile of spare-but-potentially-valuable equipment into SoD is to note what happens to characters who aren't in your party for the end of BG1ee and Prologue of SoD, but who are nevertheless available later in SoD: you can recruit them in BG1ee, load them up with spare equipment, and then dismiss them, but because they've thereby been in your BG1ee party (even if only very briefly), they'll still have all that stuff when you meet them in SoD. Whatever stuff I don't need for the Final Battle of BG1ee but nevertheless want to have handy in SoD (for either use or sale), I'll give to one of Safana/Minsc/Dynaheir (unless they're coming to the Final Battle with me), because those three are the first we can find after completing the SoD Prologue.

[Edit: but as you advise, for characters in the Prologue who have good items equipped but who won't be available later in SoD, the trick is to unequip those good items and put them into their backpacks immediately before leaving the Prologue (which, for a few useful-but-cursed items, might require a Remove Curse spell, either cast by your own Cleric or Mage or bought from the Flaming Fist Healer).]

 

You guys are really giving me the itch to play this

 

Underground River, location 26, spelling: Kaelet, not Kaelat.

 

So what's stopping you?

 

Procrastination I started a game for a short bit but never from the end of BG. I want to do the complete experience as soon as I get done fucking around and complete it

 

M'Khiin's personal quest: at the end, when we find Kruntur's stash, we get not only the equipment (which you mention) but also 6000 xp (which you omit).

 

Neera's personal quest: at the last step (12), it's not necessary to click on the pit at location 5 (that's an action in Glint's quest, not part of Neera's quest). Neera merely needs to approach the pit to trigger the appearance of Adoy.

 

The walkthrough is missing a quest in Ch. 10: if we make the right dialogue choices in the final conversation with Halatathlaer (which completes the Ghost Dragon Guardian quest), then she'll give us another quest called "Find Daeros" (which is completed by talking to Daeros Dragonspear's ghost at location 16 in the Castle Basement). The description of the Castle Basement does mention the reward for this, but omits to explain that it's a named quest.

 

Ch. 10, Gurgle & Floss quest, correction: if you tell the story of Sarevok ending with a threat, then yes, Gurgle & Floss give you 7500 xp and leave (as you say), but if you tell the story of Caelar (for 1000 xp) or tell the story of Sarevok without a threat (for the Wand of Water Elemental Summoning), then no, Gurgle & Floss don't leave (as the walkthrough currently asserts), instead they agree to let you pass while staying where they are (and remaining neutral).

The Wand you can earn from Gurgle & Floss is unique and I've found it quite useful, so I recommend solving the quest that way.

 

Ch. 10, Strunk's Elementals quest: the playthrough omits that killing Strunk is worth 5000 xp, and that (in addition to the Purification Stone) the Nereid gives us 12000 xp for freeing the elementals.

 

Ch. 10, Castle Basement: the big battle in the basement is more complex than currently described. There's definitely some dependence upon the difficulty setting, so documenting comprehensive details may require considerable replaying on different settings ... which I'll leave to others .

After [edit: or during the process of] driving off Hephernaan at location 13 and disposing of his flunkies Esserin & Olvenaun, the Crusaders at location 9 and the Stone Golems at location 11 turn hostile. On lower difficulty settings, perhaps that's all (I'm not sure). On higher difficulties (I'm testing this on Insane difficulty), additional groups of Crusaders (typically a Crusader Mage, Crusader Archer, and two Crusaders, led by a Crusader Sergeant, and sometimes with a Crusader Cleric) will periodically teleport in (sometimes right next to you, sometimes at the other end of the dungeon, the exact position seems random although within the main hall), usually arriving just before we've finished killing the previous group (so sometimes they're appearing behind us). (I'm not sure whether these spawns are triggered by a kill-counter or a timer or some other mechanism, although I guess we could study the scripts to find out.) After fighting several of these groups of reinforcements (I think it's 5 groups on Insane, I don't know how many on other difficulties), 7 named Crusaders teleport in, but these arrive in fixed positions near to location 2.

These named Crusaders are:-
Raizarn (CN Elf Invoker(10), 2000 xp, 20 Asp's Nest +1, Wand of Frost, Potion of Extra Healing, Quarterstaff);
Therren (TN Gnome Cleric(8)/Illusionist(9), 2000 xp, Bracers of Defense AC7, 20 Bullets +1, Potion of Extra Healing, Sling, Mace);
Akame (CN Human Assassin(5)->Fighter(9), 2000 xp, Potion of Extra Healing, Potion of Invisibility, Katana);
Four Winds (LG Human Sun-Soul-Monk(10), 2000 xp, Potion of Extra Healing);
Dalia (CG Elf Archer(9), 1400 xp, 40 Arrows +2, Potion of Extra Healing, Potion of Explosions, Oil of Speed, Studded Leather, Composite Longbow, Long Sword);
Lynos the Righteous (LG Half-Orc Fighter(9), 1400 xp, Halberd +1, Potion of Extra Healing, Potion of Heroism, Potion of Clarity, Full Plate, Helmet); and
Bengahd Claybelly (NG Dwarf Cleric(10), 2000 xp, Large Shield +1, 40 Bullets +2, Potion of Extra Healing, Plate Mail, Helmet, Sling, War Hammer).

In addition, while we're fighting the named Crusaders near location 2, another group of unnamed Crusaders (this time 4 Crusaders Elite, but without any Sergeant/Mage/Cleric/Archer) may teleport in behind us near location 11 (although I'm unsure whether that always happens - I don't recall what happened at this point in previous runs).

Finally, after all this lot are defeated, the battle is over and no more Crusader reinforcements appear, so we can save the game (and we can even rest safely if we wish!) before descending back into the Warrens for the next battle.

This is one of the longest and toughest battles in the game, and (unlike the Battle of Bridgefort and the final assault on Dragonspear Castle) we don't have the option of letting our allies (Flaming Fist, etc.) do most of the fighting, here we have to do it all ourselves. Therefore this is a time to buff up to the max and to make free use of consumables (potions, wands, summoning-figurines, whatever we have) ... and then it's quite do-able to kill everything that moves, but without letting fly with our hoarded consumables it'd be very difficult.

Also, having defeated all of the Crusaders and their reinforcements, we can now use the Poison of Terror to contaminate the Crusader food and/or water supplies without triggering any renewed combat [edit: except for the Mephit which always materialises when poisoning the water]. If we want to use the poison at all, then I recommend that this is the best time to do it.

 

Thanks, @Beren. Sorry to be generating a heap of work for you!

In the Troll Claw Woods map, locations 5 and 6 are transposed. Also, although Glint was indeed running around the camp at Coast Way Crossing, he seems to me to be standing still in the camp at Troll Claw Woods. (Maybe if we've never yet recruited him, then he remains mobile? I haven't tested that. But I had recruited and dismissed him at Troll Claw Woods, after which he stands still when not in the party.)

 

Okay, I've now resorted to NearInfinity as well. You've now marked Trap_arrow_biting01 (trigger23) and Trap_arrow_biting02 (trigger24) on the map. The third one, still unmarked, is Webtrap (trigger22), bounding vertices at (4653, 1986), (4702, 1992), (4710, 1934), (4665, 1928).

While we're looking at the Boareskyr Bridge map ... in the description of location 9, spelling: Nashkel rather than Nashkell. Also, in the description of location 14, correct that you can't free the Trolls, but you can kill them for the usual xp ... and I suspect that killing them may be what causes Trolls sometimes *not* to appear (later) in the enclosure off the courtyard of Dragonspear Castle (except Ulori, who is always there).