Hi :)

It seems Bioware did something right, as I'm still playing this *** after 15 years :)

In the last 5-6 years, I've tried to play Baldur's Gate 1 using several mods, such as EasyTuTu & BGT, sometimes extended with other mods (BG1NPC, 1Pixel Production Graphics....), sometimes without anything else. The one thing I experienced was random crashes and game-stopping bugs. I've never been able to finish a game after 2006. My last attempt, documented here on the forums, was in 2013, which also failed due to crashing in and after Cloackwood.

I *did* finish a 6CD + official patches + Baldurdash (then latest version, in 2004) install without problems in 2005.

Now, I'd like to try an (almost) Vanilla game, only with better resolution. The game and mods I'm thinking to use are:

BG1 from GOG.com
Baldurdash
BG1 Unfinished Business 13.1
Widescreen 3.06 (finally released after about three years as beta, fixing some crash bugs in BG1 and PS:T)
TWM GUI 0.994

However, I'm in doubt about the Baldurdash fixpack. (I won't even mention Dudley's, as I've had huge problems with it, even using it as the only fixpack after the last original patch, on the CD version of the game.)

The readme of BG1 Unfinished Business version 1 (from 2006, http://forums.pocketplane.net/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=22056.0;attach=454) specifically recommends to install Baldurdash. The latest version, 13,1, only mentions Baldurdash in passing, saying that the "Rufie Reward" is handled differently as it is in Baldurdash. It neither recommends nor warns against installing Baldurdash.

So, what should I do?

- Install Baldurdash, the last version? (Seems to be the same as the version I installed in 2004. Install before BG1UB, as this version overwrites files, and is not WeiDU.)

--- scrap ---
- Install Baldurdash WEIDU 1.68 2010 version (http://dh.blackwyrmlair.net/mods_download.php?mod=359)
--- scrap ---

- Omit Baldurdash completely, install only BG1UB (some people say the GOG.com version has it built in already)

EDIT: Scratch the WEIDU Version. It is Baldurdash for BG2.[/url]

Basically, I just want Vanilla BG1 with the latest bugfixes, running in 800x600. It can be played in 640x480 on my old 1280x960 monitor, as it scales exactly 2x, but on 1920x1200, it's too bad even for me. 800x600 scales well on that monitor.

Thanks in advance :)

The readme of the unfinished business patch does say to "preferably" install Baldurdash, so I'd go with that.

Yes, the Readme of Version 1 indeed says that.
The Readme of Version 13.1 doesn't; it only mentions Baldurdash as stating that it handles "Rufie Reward" differently than Unfinished Business. (I assume that, if you first install Baldurdash and then UB on top, you'll end up with the UB version of the "Rufie Reward".)

The same confusion is true for the BG2 version of Unfinished Business, v25: It actually says "We strongly recommend to install the Baldurdash Fixpack", but this fixpack has long been superseded by the Gibberlings3 BG2 Fixpack. This fixpack specifically states that it includes everything from Baldurdash, and you should NOT install Baldurdash itself.

(The BG2 fixpack updated to version 10, in 2013, after not being updated for three years. The 'Beta fixes' component is still huge... it contains some tens of fixes still to be finalized on top of the hundreds/thousands that are done.)

BG1
BG1 Fixpack + hotfix
BG1 Unfinished Business
Widescreen
TWM GUI

Thanks. I already found this fixpack. It seems to be taking fixes from both Baldurdash and Dudley, and combining them into a WEIDU installer. This fixpack is still in beta, and I can't really find if it is still being worked on.

I'll keep an eye on this, but if nothing else is going to be reported, I'm going to stick with the latest version of Baldurdash plus full BG1 Unfinished Business.

I would definitely recommend Baldurdash. It's the most comprehensive and stable fix pack available. I've used it in all my play-throughs since the earliest days.

The BG1 Tweak Pack and Unfinished Business are optional, but also work quite well together and with Baldurdash. Out of the two, Unfinished Business fits best in the spirit of a "vanilla" game since it mostly restores content that was already in the data files but incomplete and/or ties up loose ends or inconsistencies with existing content.

Slap the wide screen mod on top of those and you should be ready to rock with a very stable and complete game.

Thanks, I thought as much. Baldurdash for BG1 actually is quite small; only 20 fixes on top of the official patch. As Unfinished Business doesn't specifically state that Baldurdash can't be installed, and at one time even recommended it, I assume it can still be used.

Then, I wonder, why does BG2 have a *gargantuan* fixpack, fixing hundreds (thousands?) of problems, with hundreds more in the beta core fixes? Was BG2 so much more buggy because of its scope, or is it just because it received a lot more attention?

To be honest, when playing BG1 using only Baldurdash, I've never had problems.

I now have this installed:

BG1 The Original Saga
Baldurdash
Unfinished Business (complete)
Widescreen Mod 3.06
TWMGUI

It seems to work fine, up until the Friendly Arm Inn at least.

The one thing that always throws me off a bit is that, when I think a mod is stable (so it won't change ever again), it doesn't seem to be the case. Sometimes a mod, stalls for years, and then it gets a huge update or fixes a critical bug. For example, BG2 Fixpack, stalled in 2010, huge update in 2013. EasyTuTu, stalled in 2009, then fixed the Beregost bug in 2012, Widescreen stalled in 2011, then fixed some crash problems in BG1/TotSC and PS:T in 2014.

The above is the main reason I don't like to use mods; one can't know if there is some sort of critical game-stopping bug that still may be present. To be honest, I'm even hesitant to use fixpacks and unfinished business, but I'll try one more time.

Then I'll do the same for BG2; installing the BG2 fixpack and Unfinished Business. As this game already supports 800x600, I don't even need the Widescreen mod or other GUI's.

Last time I have played with widescreen and TWM GUI there was a glitch in Nashkel manor house. I don't know if it was specific to a resolution or it has been fixed meantime.