I am thinking of getting NWN 2. I am wondering about the possibilities of a small group as I am not crazy about micromanaging a large group, and I just like a smaller group as I feel it is more personal. I am not a power gamer. I like to usually play these types of games as a Paladin. What size party would be realistic, and who do I absolutely need to bring along? Thanks

These games are not that party-oriented, as Baldur's Gate might be. I think you can solo the game without much trouble.

I was thinking like 3 people max
I had also considered making a Drizzt character - that would be cool

It's different than BG in the way companions are handled. You can pretty much leave them to do their thing (though you can also issue commands). Also, all companions level up with you, whether in party or not, so they all get their share of XP anyway and you don't win or lose taking them along. Just like KotOR.

In the beginning of NWN2 OC, you get 1 companion and that goes up to.. don't remember, maybe a party of 5 or 6 in the end. Mask of the Betrayer is you and 2 followers.

There are some missions where you have to take one of the companions along and that's always stated in no uncertain terms. Not always the same one, some you have to do with the ranger dude, some need the paladin or priest.

I dont know how GOG installs them, but in any case it's best to install everything at once.
The expansions bring along new character classes you can use in the main campaing, also I think but I'm not sure that Mask brought along a some sort of graphics update.

They're still launched individually.

As big a fan as I am of GOG, Gamersgate has NWN 2 complete for $4.99 right now so I couldn't pass it up. They show 4 different downloads as the base game and then the 3 expansions. I will download them all then, and launch them individually as Jarmo recommended - thanks.

Dog, just to clear up one aspect: The first expansion (Mask of the Betrayer) is intended to be a direct sequel to the first game. You can choose to import your character from the first game or start another.

The others are stand-alone adventures. Storm of Zehir is a different set-up where you should probably consider taking a party of three at a minimum. Due to the way the overland map is designed, you'll want to be able to put points in a lot of different skills, something that can only realistically be accomplished with more than one character.

NWN2 OC
Gives you relatively few choices for party size. The amount of XP you earn is unaffected by the size of your party, so you can't play solo to become over-leveled. This means that there is no benefit to taking fewer than the maximum number of party members, which is usually 3-4 NPC's. Most chapters have at least one "mandatory" NPC who must travel with you.

There are a few cases where you'll have far more party members than that, with the end-boss fight having as many as 9 NPC's under your control.


NWN2 MotB
You have a maximum of 3 NPC party members at any time, and this campaign is entirely possible to solo.


NWN2 SoZ
You have a maximum of 5 NPC party members at any time, but you will gain more XP with a smaller party. This campaign is entirely possible to solo.


There are other customer NWN2 campaigns that have small parties. Harp and Chrysanthemum, Dark Waters, and Subtlety of Thay all come to mind for keeping it to under 3 NPC's.

The 1st game is one character with npcs that you can't do much with from level 1-20... the end can get a bit messy with lots of things going on in a small place.

The second game is the same character on his or her next adventure from level 20-30 and is all about making epic builds... there is a story to it but many people (including me) just turned it off because it got in the way of having fun.

Storm of Zehir is what I'd recommend for you as a standalone (set after the first and about the same time as the second but in a different area). You make 1 main character with up to 3 pals and can follow the story or just ran around finding caves and such like the old pen and paper days... this is the first time that making a party with different skills gets to work i.e. the Pally has diplomacy and the Bard has buff so pick which guy to do the talking this time. Level 4-15ish.

Thanks for all the help!