Best Bug fix collections + Intended gameplay unlocking

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I forgot to note some points:

Either fixpack (Dorner's Baldurdash and GTU, in one of its incarnations) or G3 Fixpack, which incorporates Dorner's work from Baldurdash, goes first on the install, acting as a "final patch", and setting you up for a stable playing base. There are a few mods which indicate use of either G3 or Baldurdash, but for the most part mods will work on either base. It is always good to read the readme of whatever mods you want to use and choose stuff that works with them (there are very few which require either) but for a straight unmodded playthrough, you are fine with either.

The original game, as Cal Jones stated above, works pretty darned well on its own, with some minor oddities. A quick check of folk's WeiDU.logs on PPG will give you a good sense of what people like to add to their installs, and there is a review section here at SPP that can tell you some details; otherwise, Google is your friend

If you are interested in fixpacking, I think you might be very happy with several additional mods added to your install - the question is, do you like talking NPCs in your game, or do you want just quests? There are several good options out there that do not overpower/fundamentally change the game or introduce Monty-Haul style items/rewards. Most NPC mods add talking to the game, which might be your cup of tea. Ninde (SHS) is fresh, Angelo (G3) got a great review here at SPP, and there are dozens of cool things out there. If you don't want to add Party-Joinable NPCs, the Banterpacks and Flirtpacks at PPG, SHS's Added banter project just got an update and release, and if you like having Viconia in your party you will realy want to get K'aeloree's Viconia Friendship expansion at SHS (also just released). And (if you like risque material) Romantic Encounters at G3 will provide content that adds to the BG2 game without altering quests or storylines. On the "less talk more action" front, igi's iiItem mod is one of my favorite independent mods. Both aAvenger's Rogue Rebalancing and DavidW's Sword Coast Stratagems II do great things without adding party-joinable NPCs. I would look for the home site of each mod to download them, as I have found that *all* current mirrors are struggling to keep pace with the changes, often providing older versions of the same mod (it takes time for the information to get out, the permissions to be given, and the sites to be updated.)

There's plenty more to digest, and several active modding communities that have been releasing new content over the past few months. If I think of more stuff, I'll drop back by, but really a quick search here at SPP will give you player reactions and recommendations - a google search will expand that considerably, but since SPP is for players by players, here sounds like a good place to search first.

Good luck, and don't let discussions confuse you or distract you from playing. The cool thing is you can play multiple games, modded differently, with ease. Folks even successfully complete "Mega Installs", with tons of mods added on (like Morrowind or Oblivion Plugin-intensive massive installs) discussed in detail at SHS. Don't get run off by the Wall of Text(tm) - see it as one of the really cool things about BG1 and BG2. What other game out there engenders this kind of debate for years after it has been retired by the company, and has enough of a modder and player base that people are willing to spend years fixing, creating new content, and even having philosophical discussions on design philosophy? It is a testament to the coolness of the game that it retains dedicated players and modders so long after its inception.