What is the latest I can start the expansions?

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I'd like to do HoW and TotL without exporting and importing my characters. At what points can I start HoW and TotL without screwing up my game?

TIA

 

If you can handle the extra difficulty in Burial Island, you can go there after Dragon's Eye. I usually go after the Frost Giants cave, right before entering Lower Dorn's Deep. But I don't pick that path, since I want Blade of Aihonen upgraded.
TotL can be started just before heading towards Sea of Moving Ice. That's the point of no return in HoW.

 

Due to the Aihonen upgrade (as well as a few references in HoW) the sort-of-canonical time to start HoW would be after completely finishing the regular IWD campaign, and that's what I recommend doing. If you absolutely do not want to import characters though then latest you can start HoW from within IWD is after you got the 6 badges and just before your first meeting with Poquelin.

 

Yes, but in that case, I would suggest for him to leave the badges behind, perhaps in the house next to Root Cellar Tavern.

 

HoW is geared for a party of 9th level characters. I found it quite enjoyable to do after completing Severed Hand. IIRC, HoW does not check for level of the players and so does not scale up for higher level parties.

Playing HoW after completing IWD should make it ridiculously easy -- unless you seriously bump up the difficulty.

 

I've been playing HoF mode from the very start. I was under the impression that I should be as prepared as possible before going into HoW.

 

I'd rather bother about the original game getting too easy if you play parts of HoW before.

 

In that case you could go right after the Vale of Shadows, but it is doubtful you'll be able to survive on the Burial Island. You also need a lot of gold to buy Three White Dove mace to make things easier.

 

Correction - the minimum level required to enter the HoW portion is 9. It's by no means aimed for that - it's quite hard if you go into it as soon as it's available. That's the only "level check" HoW does though (I think).

I could say the same about all of IWD after you come back from HoW. With the items you gain from HoW as well, Dorn's Deep and everything after it, including the finale, is laughably easy after HoW.