spanyam

I'm afraid the machine has nothing to do with that particular issue. Abazigal; well, I don't find fighting 5+ Dragons fun. With no rest in between. (I think the number of dragons in this damn game is too high!)
It's doable, some would say easy, but imo requires quite a bit of metagame knowledge - similar to Kangaxx or such stuff. I don't really like that.
There's also the  point that Abazigal is one of the last battles in game usually. When I get there, I usually just "want to get it over with". Hence, I skipped that component.
Oh, and another mod (you can use this to improve Flayers and such) - Polytweak. Goes after SCS, so you can easilly install it as last, just before biffing.  Reccomended. 

Okay, I'll skip mind flayers in SCS. Polytweak creature improvements look great! I will try it out for sure.

Yeah. In my selection, I didn't (I hope!) select a few components - example Imp. Mind Flayers since they cause extreme lag for at least two people  (myself and Polytope), I didn't include "harder Abazigal lair" since it's way harder (imo) than most of other components, and similar. You may and probably will witness some bugs, but nothing "omg what do I do now". SCSv28 has a huge advantage over SCS21 due to new functions it brings (kit enforcement being imo the prime example, since it made AI oponnents benefit from any kit changes). So a few bugs here and there can be forgiven I'd guess...

Okay that makes the choice much more clear, thank you. Regarding the lag, is there a risk if I am running it on a moderately fast machine (sandy bridge i5 with 8gb ram on an ssd)? And is the Abazigal lair difficult to the point of unfairness (winnable heavily based on luck) or super challenging but doable with practice and preparation? The former is frustrating and not rewarding, whereas the latter could actually be fun.

Yeah, you can include it. I didn't put it in the selection for a number of reasons, but nothing really serious.

Okay thanks.

http://forum.baldurs...-she-wont-die 
http://forums.gibber...showtopic=26198
http://forums.gibber...showtopic=26063
 
Don't use "better calls for help" if it bugs you, or just play a "I kill everything" game and you won't notice the glitch.
 
I really can't understand why people constantly "advise" to use BP-Ascension....especially if they never played through it with SCS. Use the old version and SCS on top of it with the fixes above (you don't need Lich Breach fix with SR).

So in your opinion, it's okay to go through with SCS v28 if these fixes are applied?

http://forum.baldurs...-she-wont-die 
http://forums.gibber...showtopic=26198
http://forums.gibber...showtopic=26063
 
Don't use "better calls for help" if it bugs you, or just play a "I kill everything" game and you won't notice the glitch.
 
I really can't understand why people constantly "advise" to use BP-Ascension....especially if they never played through it with SCS. Use the old version and SCS on top of it with the fixes above (you don't need Lich Breach fix with SR).
BP version; just like the mod, suffers from very bad bugs; and until it's updated and fixed I wouldn't reccomend any part of it.
 
As per your mods, read here (it's slightly outdated but still..)
Note, new versions of IR and SR are very likely to be released before the end of this month, read here. 
I'm also in the process of doing a slight revision to Megamod "reccomended" install options (call it "k's 500 ways NOT to ruin your game ) , I have the mods and install file ready to upload ; but have to write several pages of notes of whys and how-tos about them (I wanted to wait for SCS upgrade but...); that is on my to-do list as soon as IR/SR are out of testing phase and out in the open. 

 

Anyway, since I can't give any promises on SR/IR, here's my selection, being fairly close to vanilla game, with mods I'd reccomend to play through at least once since they're of decent enough quality and content. This does not include IR/SR/Kit Revisons due to beta stages, so if you're inpatient go ahead and use this. 
What I can promise you with this selection is:
a) no gamebreaking bugs  (use SCS fixes above)
b) no AI stupidity
c) no imbalanced equipment/spells/kits
d) no crappy NPCs 
e) not straying too far from original game
f) no nonsense mods
g) a crapload of fun 
h) tested out (you might run into minor bugs tho)
 
Download the file, copy it to your Big World folder, and under "options" select "import selection from file"; "k'selection". 
Or, be patient for a week or so and have a go with new IR/SR mods. They're a blast . (selection will be updated as well, as well as sort of a "readme" for whys and why nots).

 
Thanks so much, Kreso. After reading through both of your posts, I think I will indeed wait for SR/IR to be released. I've read through the proposed changes on both, and they look fantastic! I will post over in the respective forums and help to test them in the meantime. I am no expert, but as a software developer, I have seen that sometimes having a total novice use the system can generate good feedback.
 

Oh, and the selection above does NOT include Generalizd Biffing. So, after you use it, re-run Level1NPCs (DO NOT RE-INSTALL ANYTHING), make them into what you want them, run Generalized Biffing and you're good to go.

 

Okay, thanks. I don't intend to majorly bork any of the game's NPCs, so I will only use it to make minor adjustments that can be done via level up. I will simply use the "Joinable NPCs more closely match the player character's experience" component and leave it at that. If that's the case, can Generalized Biffing be included in the main selection itself?

Updated OP. Leaning more towards SCS(I/II) v21, due to more and more bugs I found reported in the SCS forum, e.g. http://forums.gibber...showtopic=26559

 

I would appreciate feedback on my first two questions from anyone who has experience on this subject. Thanks!