User:CompleCCity/Walkthrough: The Black Pits

Basics, point of view, terminology

 * Walkthroughs, as per their very nature, contain spoilers. Hence this article will reveal significant plot details about The Black Pits.
 * Currently, this walkthrough only covers the single player mode of the game.
 * It is written from a neutral point of view, regarding party size, party composition (i.e. choice of races, class(es) and abilities) and game difficulty settings.
 * In general, the term "party" is used for any number of player characters; in some cases "party leader" is chosen if they are addressed specifically. To clarify certain situations, "each party member" or similar may also be used; the depicted circumstances will, however, in the same way apply to a single-member-party.
 * The game uses the terms "Tier" and "battle" in a numbered form to structure its progress. This walkthrough adopts these for e.g. chapter names.

Party creation

 * Any imported character will loose all their gold and items.
 * Mages and beast masters cannot have a familiar, spell and ability will be removed from their character record if imported.
 * It's not possible to steal from characters and merchants in The Black Pits. Spending skill points in Pick Pockets is only useful if the character is intended to be exported into another game or for role-playing reasons.
 * At the beginning and throughout Tier 1, there are no throwing daggers available. Mages and sorcerers should choose their first single weapon proficiency accordingly. (Slings and darts can be acquired.)

Starting equipment

 * Each party member will get no armor and one simple weapon at the start. The given weapon depends on the character's class, including all respective kits, and their Strength ability score, and is then chosen randomly from a specific list. See the table to the right for details. The ability score is not checked for mages. All other characters with a Strength below five will get a sling with forty bullets. Weapons and ammunition will be equipped automatically.
 * This is only important for the freshly created party during the initial fight, just after starting the game. When the very first battle against three tasloi has been won, all basic weapons and a range of armor and other items are available for purchase.

"Create Party"
After choosing to start the Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition's side adventure The Black Pits, the player first needs to create their party. A selection of pregenerated characters is offered, but can in parts or completely be deleted to make place for the generation or import of up to six custom party members.

Who is chosen, how many, with which races, classes and abilities – all this is the player's own decision, based upon their personal preferences, play style, desired difficulty of the battles, and probably further thoughts.

Once at least a party leader has been generated and the Play button been pressed, the difficulty has to be selected, then the player may Venture Forth.

A fighting pit
They will find themselves looking into a circular arena, with four stone pillars in the centre and several iron gates in the surrounding masonry walls, all overlooked by hidden stands beyond canopies.

Three bodies lie in the arena sands, while the player witnesses a tavern patron, a tavern bully and a tavern bouncer entering through dimension doors.

An irritated conversation between them begins about where they might be and how they have come here, until they notice the three other evidently dead bullies and a spontaneous materialization of three tasloi. They don't need much time to realize that they are in a serious situation, and start to defend themselves against the attacking monsters.

At this moment the player's party enters the stage, also through dimension doors, but at the opposite side of the pit and several feet away from the ongoing fight.

While the tasloi don't have much trouble with their opponents, the party has to struggle with the same disorientation as those three before them, and they need a while to equip themselves with some basic weaponry from their poor inventory, each being also suprised by that ring on one of their right fingers. What each party member will get as weapon mainly depends on their class.

Slaves and deaths
That odd ring on each party member's right hand turns out to be irremovable, but there's not much time to examine this further now, as the tasloi have made short work of their victims – who cannot be saved from their fate – and bay for more blood, approaching the still surprised newcomers.

Only a few feet in front of the party leader, a quarterstaff lies in the sands, and along the walls and behind the stone pillars more weapons have been dropped by the latest and earlier victims in this fighting pit. Maybe these suit the party's abilities better than what they found holding in their hands, and they might be worth collecting … In particular, there's the quarterstaff just ahead, two daggers – one at the northeastern wall, one from the tavern patron behind the pillars –, a club from the tavern bully behind the northern pillar, a short sword from the tavern bouncer behind the western pillar and a shortbow with twenty arrows at the western wall.

The tasloi, however, might get into the way of party members running around in the pit and hinder them from reaching those weapons, attacking with a short and weak variant of a usual spear. They also appear to be less healthy than what the party may know about tasloi in general, so they seem to not be too much trouble.

No deaths and a judge
Being forced to survive this sudden battle at an unknown place somewhere on the planes, in a fighting pit where obviously not much mercy can be expected, the party finally manages to stay alive and defeat the monsters which they were attacked by.

Just after the last of them has been killed, in the center of the arena, amidst the stone pillars, another dimension door opens and a djinni appears. He shortly examines the scene around him and declares:"You have qualified." Then he teleports again, taking the entire party with him.