BG3 Theory Crafting | Intelligence?/Project Iyon

So, as the story goes: I'm inspired. Generally, I'm getting inspired about all sorts of things. Not just videogames. And - from my point of view - argument has it that when it comes to games my inspiration ... kind of sucks. Kind of. I mean, on the one hand it would seem a little bit ... insulting perhaps; Where for as long as I still have work to do ... yea, it's a bit overindulgent perhaps. But on the other ... it's not like games are this great evil that people try to make it out to be. On and off.

It is of course a matter of opportunity. And if we wanted to pick one singular game that we could be all right with, or a handful, to maintain a modest selection and discard the rest, there isn't really much of a principled point to that. At first at least. I mean, we COULD find one to then justify which games go where - and I think the people really keen on this would go with "Videogames that consume a lot of time" first. Because ... responsibility and laziness stuff. Which, to me, aren't really good reason. It's patronizing. And God knows - I'm sure - that on and off we need a little bit more of a break than playing a few rounds of some Board Game. Even if it's settlers of Catan. At least some do.
So, underneath this is this conservative knack for ... basically belittling other people's choices; Which is ... by the way, extremely judgmental. From that we also get homophobia and all that. Which, sure, they'll say comes from this and that - but as a German YouTuber by the name of Rezo once said: What you do with the Bible is your choice! There are rules you'll dismiss over others - and so, once you're stuck saying that it is so "because it's in the Bible" - you're a hypocrite.
So it's more just ... for some other reason. Whatever. Right now ... that's neither here nor there.

And, in as far as opportunity is concerned, it's generally something that isn't normal. I mean, there's the normal way of things - and then there are opportunities. And some of them show up more often than others. That's also one of the good things about downtime.
Now there's the opportunity to spice out the whole of 'my stuff' with a little bit more fun-stuff. To some folks, especially in poor countries, this may appear to be overly indulgent. Debaucherous even. But that's ... probably true for any fun to be had in "my" parts of the world. Another opportunity right now is to dig a bit deeper into the matter of intelligence. What is it? How does it work? Who can tell? What's like some Big Brained advice I could give? Given that it's within the scope of my general curiosity?
I'm sure I have something to say about that at some point, but right now it only settles the theme for what I'm on about. So, I'm currently wondering about what to do with Gale.


Or, I was. To set the scene: I'm currently Level 5, I just cleared the Goblin camp and am about to continue my Journey. And given that the Leveling and Character progression is a huge part of the fun for me - I want to now set my Team up for what composition I want to play. I have a few ideas floating around my head; And they all seem to somewhat contradict. I also tried to get an overview over what items there are - as now I'm not only thinking of one Character build, but four. So I was a bit ... overwhelmed and confused, but then I was inspired - to at first concentrate on Gale.

The thing is, that this didn't really help. And at this point in the story, this "dispelling of the magic" is somewhat crucial because ever so often things aren't as easy as they might seem. I mean, when it comes to movies, being smart is like a Superpower. And I do believe that Kids do kind of have it. If you let them. I mean, I know that I had it - which was, like, an intuitive understanding of Technology. Logically I don't know how I might have had it. But understanding also isn't knowledge. Understanding may lead to false conclusions. And that in turn is a matter of knowledge.
So, scrolling down you may find what build I ultimately came up with. Anything that I don't have access to with my current team hasn't been tested; And there may yet be room for improvement. And with that being said, we can go on a bit of a journey.

So, starting with a concern for what the best possible build or team composition would be - or how to fit the various items together in the best possible way - that is at first a matter of knowledge and its own kind of rigorous study. The latter can also be considered to be a kind of play - where on the one side the held knowledge is internalized and on the other, time is spent learning of different possibilities. One may learn, for instance, that Sorcerers get the ability to 'quicken' spells; That is to cast a spell that would take a normal action as a bonus action - thus being able to possibly cast a spell two or even three times a round. So the idea is near, to get a few Sorcerer Levels into whatever Class you're building. So then you might assemble a rough idea, but while doing so you realize that you need to have at least 3 Sorcerer Levels for it, and that by that point you also only have 3 Sorcery Points. And a Quickened Spell is like ... 3 Sorcery Points. And so the question is, whether or not it's worth it.

But, eventually you might find some mathematical optimum - which most likely requires a very specific set of Characters. And that's where this concept of perfection turns into a real life issue or problem. So, for us to achieve certain things, some things would have to be given. And if the thing were maximum profit for someone on top, that might or would be a willingness to work too much for too little. As a very simple example.
At it is from that angle, that these kinds of ... suggestions ... just rub me the wrong way. I have a distaste for them, to put it lightly. I mean, I had to jump over that shadow once or twice in my life - like in World of Warcraft, because that isn't as much a game that favors individual expression - at least at the time I played it the margin for that was very slim - but an extensive knowledge of what's like ... "best in slot". In Baldur's Gate 3 ... there are a few items that are some kind of "Best in Slot", when however put together, but that may conflict with some other things. And ... it are these conflicts that then again allow for individual expression.
But then, so, World of Warcraft was more fun when playing it optimally. But it has also become some kind of bad habit of the industry, by which I mean that "hunt for the best gear" kind of games are, basically, strictly not for me.

What's written between the lines there, is a piece of understanding or knowledge concerning what we may call "the human condition". Sure, some might totally into "best in slotting" all day long. For a virtual Character/Avatar that's also perfectly fine. And for some instances in real life also something one has to deal with. But that kind of argumentation may then lead to a default position that effectively negates the individual experience; A position from which expectations are generated that then contradict with that aforementioned 'human condition'. And here it's like - I don't care how smart "you" think it would be (for you) if I effectively worked my ass off "for you" while you gave me nothing in return. I don't happen to think that it would be particularly smart 'for me'. Sure, I guess ... if my life depended on it you might have a point - but I'd still try hard to not give you that point.


So, the situation there is again one of knowledge and understanding; And here intelligence is a tool to make the best of it - in the context of what is considered 'best'. And when it comes to matters of altruism, or perhaps just simple compassion, there's that "anything someone else has, is something that I might want to have instead" type of thinking. It's like ... me caring about what's good for you, is me not caring about what's best for me. Although that's ... also not entirely true. It ignores this whole matter of common wealth - where the good of the collective does in deed also serve the individual. Maybe though not as much.
And so there's also the matter of intent. Which would happen to be the crux of the thing here. Intent is here not only a matter of sheer will. Like ... well, I mean, it sure is part of the human condition. Sometimes a very tiring one. So, think maybe, that you really really wanted to be somewhere. But getting there would be risky. You'd most likely carry away some injury that would then also beat the whole point of being there in the first place. So the best option were to just stay at home, but you might yet try to convince yourself around some possibly delusional risk:reward calculation.

But maybe the best example to really hammer this point home is to make it about God. So, having a tight relationship with the creator and prime authority of THE Universe should come with some advantages. Maybe most of them would apply to the afterlife, but by then ... that's squarely an item of long term benefits. As many believers would point out: clearly the smarter option. But to really get the good stuff, you'd also have to know how God operates. For instance: Many believers would argue that God isn't a juke-box. Or a Jeanie. And I'd agree - but still, God isn't entirely opposed to fulfilling wishes. It though depends on the kinds of wishes. At first, again, this might seem silly. So, if I wished for what God wanted, then of course He'd fulfill those wishes - but ... that's not really what we mean. Right? But the thing is that once our wishes are selfish or just ignorant of negative consequences, God would almost certainly not fulfill those. Except maybe once that selfishness or the negative consequences are within your scope of (God given) privileges.
Anyway ... so, the thing is that someone who doesn't believe in God, would tend to dismiss any and all of it. They'd focus on the material reality and how it works - and if they're good-hearted also do so with compassion and all that - and God might even sympathize with them enough to grant them a thing or two - somewhat negating the argument, but ... those people would yet exist in ignorance of what we might call 'the finer nuances of life'.

Which is where we again hit that bedrock of "what's smart". And here I think it doesn't matter in how many ways I might try to or be able to make that point; But as I understand the scriptures, I haven't be sent to yield to that. I'm practically here to destroy. We might sort that into "the finer nuances of life". And so, if we start with the intention to do no harm - then learning of what 'does' harm will have an impact on our reasoning. And sure, eventually it's a bit more complicated because everything does potentially harm - and so, yea, "big picture" and "in a million years" and bla bla ... all the many ways of how reason might be employed to 'bend' someone's intentions.


So, the key term for understanding my build here - for what it is - is 'background'. Sure, it is a bit odd to put it that way, given that I did (or am going to) respec those Characters. But that is still in line with 'my' background. Where sticking (too tightly) to their given background is again a restriction upon me. But still, they maintain their individual origin classes. Sort of. Anyway, for this one 'my' idea matters. And so, following up on my previous Character build, I wanted a corresponding team composition.
And so, that is THE background that matters here. The conflict just mentioned is the very thing that has been discussed so far. I could take it as a challenge to make a team that doesn't require me to respec. That would certainly be on point for this part of the story here. But the matter of the build is not. That part of the story is about me doing my thing.

Anyway. Background in this sense IS in deed a very real thing. I mean, at least those of us that are a bit older now; Say ... late 30s+ perhaps. Here, the background amounts to what we've done so far and equates to some kind of proficiency or expertise. And that also implies a degree to which we can bend in various circumstances. And yea, I happen to think - in part due to experience - that the same applies to children. Except here the matter is a lot more raw and uninformed.


But, back on the matter of intelligence - the thing is that on the one hand side there's knowledge and time ... so: Resources - and on the other is intention. The intention then imposes its own set of restrictions. And yea, intention can start out really raw and primitive - and has to grow, for once by consuming resources.
So, for background: This whole story started some time ago where I first thought of building a DnD Character. Now, some of the spells I had wanted aren't in this game; And also (some of) the Subclasses I had wanted aren't in it. So I went with the next best things - and then came to experience some of the issues with that design. Issues I had foreseen - but also while playing the game as subjected to those conditions gives me a lot more time to think about them. But I didn't find a solution I enjoyed, but had some ideas for other Characters; Fiddling around with Monk, Thief and Warlock/Paladin. Then, after having finished the game, I started anew and that time around had a different idea at heart. I wanted to focus on the Ranger (Hunter) class; And at some point something just clicked. I mean, for once had I not really realized that Hand Crossbows can be dual wielded. Upon realizing that and playing around with it - I fancied a Kai'Sa build. That ... League of Legends Character. Which worked really well with the thing I had for ... Sorcerer/Fighter builds. Which is also, kind of, the Character build shared previously. You'd basically take my Iyon build, pick Tempest Cleric instead, scratch that Crossbow Expert, and leave Fighter at 5 to get an extra Level in Cleric. And make sure you have Shatter as a Sorcerer Spell.
So, then I checked for what items would work with that build - and I think ... eventually it kind of depends. You could go with items that grand weapon damage boni; Regarding which there are like 4 gloves that would do that. You could also focus on Radiant Orbs instead of Reverberation. And/Or whatever.

So, in my case - eventually things just came together. "Fits like a Glove".






Or so the idea. Also, that this is at the end of what might have been a series of somewhat stupid ideas. And that because the idea itself - the understanding that generated it - wouldn't easily translate into a given framework.


Maybe there's more that can be said. Right now - that would be that ... if there's room for improvement, I haven't gotten around figuring that out just yet. I mean, I could for instance try to get some extra thunder damage in somehow. But the whole set of Lightning stacks items aren't a thing I even considered. And I also think that this build doesn't have much room for that, if any. There might be ways to somehow do more radiant orb triggers, but that's something I haven't really looked into. And if it's about having some better build overall - well, go read the whole thing again.


And yea, if intelligence is a matter of somehow magically arriving at a really good optimum - like I'd say I've done here - well, certainly ... God is the answer.

You may now clap! XD

So yea. Is it about intelligence? Well, that topic at least isn't fully closed just yet. This is merely ... a little adventure into the substance. Whether or not it gets to "the" point or not ... whatever that may be - doesn't really matter.

Maybe this is cope - to me, firstly, it's more a thing of fun. Like so, I might next get Wyll and Astarion into the party - because I haven't had them much on the team at the same time.

Anyway - also I'm not a mathematician and statistics is to me ... more a thing about feelings. To say that data is an abstract with some room for interpretation.

By the way, Iyon has the other female voice. In case you ... care to know such things.


And that's that.
I mean, if there's something worth highlighting as it'd come up in the future, it's the relationship between Knowledge and Intention - and how those in turn are in a relationship with Understanding.