| “ | You know, this reminds me of that time... way back... | ” |
Jan Jansen is a chaotic neutral gnome multi-class illusionist / thief and a potential companion in 
Baldur's Gate II
Classic & Enhanced
This icon indicates content from all games of the 2nd Baldur's Gate instalment – all editions and expansions. This may include The Black Pits II.
Background[]
His home, the Jansen Stead building, can be found in the Athkatla Slums.
Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn & Throne of Bhaal[]
Recruitment[]
Shadows of Amn[]
Jan Jansen is available to recruit from Chapter 2. He can be found in Athkatla Government District (2730.1750) where he is selling products without permission. Depending on dialog choices, recruitment can be an adventure in itself, giving the player some options.
If your party is full and you don't want another companion just now, you can either say you don't have the time (allowing you to return here later to find Jan), or "bite" on his sales pitch. The latter triggers the encounter with Trax, after which you still have the option to have Jan join now or later. This allows you to play through the Trax encounter even with a full party. Naturally, with a full party, having Jan join still means dropping a companion for now.
- If at any time the player allows Jan to join, the party splits an 11,500 XP Recruitment Award.
- At anytime after the encounter with Trax you tell Jan that you don't want him to join right now, he will say he is returning home to the slums, where you can find him later. This adds the entry to your Journal, "Jan Jansen returns to his home in the slums." In this case, you do not receive the Recruitment Award, unless you recruit Jan at his home.
Trax the Taxman
If you agree to see what Jan is selling, Trax and a guard will arrive to arrest Jan "in the name of the Amnian Revenue and Taxation Board" for illegal sales and tax evasion. After the two talk, Trax asks just "who might you be?" which gives you 2 basic options (the third leading back to his original question):
- Cooperate by answering "I am CHARNAME, an adventurer." This leads to Trax's next question on whether Jan was trying "to sell you illegal merchandise?" Again, you can answer belligerently (option #3) which may lead to hostilities, or choose a more peaceful route:
- If you say you "were simply talking about the weather," Trax is furious but lacks the proof he needs, thereby releasing Jan. The party receives 8,500 XP for covering for Jan, who then thanks you, asking if you want him in your party.
- Allow him to join now and the party receives the Recruitment Award.
- Say another time, and he returns home.
- Or you can tell Trax "Yes, sir. He tried to sell me a flasher." You miss out on the 8,500 XP for covering for Jan, who is arrested. Trax's reward is 100
which you can either Accept or Refuse. Both options update your Journal with a Quest entry called "Free Jan Jansen from prison."
- Accept the gold and Trax gives it to you, while Jan pleads with you to break him out of prison.
- Tell Trax you won't accept it, because the Jan doesn't deserve this. Trax will say Jan's fine is 800
, and to follow him to The Prison (marked on the player's map) to pay it. - In either case, talking to the Prison Keeper gives you three basic choices
- Don't pay the fine, and Jan remains in prison.
- Pay the full 800 and Jan is released, and offers to join you.
- Say you don't have that much gold. The Prison Keeper gives you a humorous reply, and will even offer to loan you 200 towards the fine to get the gnome out of his jail. If you take this route, then pay him back, you earn 2,000 XP.
- If you say you "were simply talking about the weather," Trax is furious but lacks the proof he needs, thereby releasing Jan. The party receives 8,500 XP for covering for Jan, who then thanks you, asking if you want him in your party.
- Tell Trax it's "none of your business." If you continue to answer rudely, and refuse to answer any of his questions, Trax will eventually ask if you "wish to be executed for not cooperating?" You may either answer him peacefully or he shall summon reinforcements to kill you, which might include Cowled Enforcers, Amnian Centurions, Amnian Legionaries, and/or others. Before the battle starts, you suffer an immediate -4 Reputation loss for not cooperating with the Amnian Authorities. After the battle, Jan will talk to you again, giving you another opportunity to recruit him, and earn the Recruitment Award, but you miss the 8,500 XP for covering for him.
Throne of Bhaal[]
As other companions, he can be summoned to the Pocket Plane.
Quests[]
- Jan Jansen Summoned Home (Don't delay too long in this quest if you want to keep him in party)
Gameplay[]
He can be acquired as a level 7/8 Illusionist/Thief with weapon proficiencies in: Short Sword, Dagger, Quarter Staff, and Crossbow.
As Jan has an Illusionist specialist mage kit automatically assigned (which is a game rule for the Gnome race), Jan may not learn Necromancy school of magic spells.
Jan, Yoshimo and Hexxat 
Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition – Shadows of Amn (2013)
This icon indicates content from the Shadows of Amn campaign of the Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition. 
Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition – Throne of Bhaal (2013)
This icon indicates content from the Throne of Bhaal campaign of the Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition. are the only thieves which can keep improving their thieving skills, though as a multi-class character, Jan gains experience only half as quickly as a pure-class thief. To compensate for this, Jan's starting equipment carries bonuses to various thieving skills, with the Jansen Techno-Gloves improving both Open Locks and Pick Pockets by 20 points, and the Jansen Spectroscopes improving Find Traps by 25 points and Detect Illusion by 20 points.
When he joins the party, he has the following items which can only be used by him: Flasher Launcher, 10x Flasher Master Bruiser Mates, Jansen AdventureWear, Jansen Techno-Gloves, and Jansen Spectroscopes. He also has 20x Bolts which are not restricted only to him.
Biography[]
| “ | When asked about his past, JAN stops tinkering with his gadgets and states that, despite all claims to the contrary, turnip beer has wondrous medicinal properties in addition to its fine taste. | ” |
Quotes[]
- Main article: Jan Jansen/Quotes
| Discretion! Not valor! Discretion! Discretion! | Morale failure | |
|---|---|---|
| I haven't been this pleased with a group of folks since the Cormyrians sent the price of turnips through the roof during the Onion Famine. | Happy | |
| Hmph. Being around this group too long is sort of like having the... Calimshite itch, isn't it? Except for the uncomfortable burning sensation. And the rash! But still... | Unhappy-annoyed | |
| I don't think I like your attitude much. You have all the makings of a nasty griffon... which reminds me, you need a bath. | Unhappy-serious | |
| That's it! Time to move on, places to go and all that. The way you're going, you're just going to end up like Golodon the Unmanned! And I didn't want to see that the first time. | Unhappy-break | |
| Well now, this is a fine turn of events. I haven't led a party since... well, since Uncle Scratchy turned sick with the pox and put me in charge. He just didn't trust the dwarf, you see. Hmm... hopefully, this time works out better than the last... | Leader | |
| *yawn* It's long past time for turnip tea. A little rest will shake the stew from our eyes and ache from our legs. | Tired | |
| Ho hum, ho hum! Oh, look, did the grass just grow another half-inch? Wonders! | Bored | |
| Beware, your knees are mine! | Battlecry1 | |
| Prepare to meet your DOOOOM! Heh... |
Battlecry2 | |
| This isn't boring, I'll give it that! |
Battlecry3 | |
| Damage | ||
| Er... don't mean to startle you or anything, but all this blood spurting about is actually mine! | Hurt | |
| Don't forget to raise me... ah... | Dying | |
| Ah, home sweet home... Wait, I don't live here... | Forest | |
| ...hmm... I'd wager the turnip market's making a killing today... | City | |
| Ahhh, this reminds me of the turnip cellars... except Uncle Gerhardt isn't passed out by the turnip still in the corner... | Dungeon | |
| You know, I'd like the daytime a lot better if it didn't mean a griffon has a clear sighting from five miles away! | Day | |
| Ah... I've had this little problem ever since I was a wee gnome. When it gets dark, everybody glows red. Frightens a child something fierce! | Night | |
| Don't yell! I can hear you just fine. | Select1 | |
| Jan Jansen, at yer service! | Select2 | |
| Pardon. Turnip reflex. | Select3 | |
| You need my skills, I see. | Select4 | |
| You sound like Golodon. | Select5 | |
| What? Is there a griffon about? | Select6 | |
| Yes, yes, a standard tactic, that. | Action1 | |
| Oh, I can do *that*. | Action2 | |
| Got it. | Action3 | |
| It shall be done with skill and care... if not brevity. | Action4 | |
| At once, Your Worship. | Action5 | |
| I'll do it... for a turnip. | Action6 | |
| You know, this reminds me of that time... way back... | Action7 | |
| I can't. I'm allergic! Well, all right, I'm not that allergic... | Select rare1 | |
| I think we make a fine partnership! Like Drizzt and Wulfgar! Elminster and Volo! Ha! We should go into the mobile vegetable-peddling business together! |
Select rare2 | |
| Take that, turnip-hatin' scum! | Critical hit | |
| By Uncle Spanky's thumb! | Critical miss | |
| Not even a dent? | Target immune | |
| I'd carry the world if I could, but you'll have to package it smaller. I'm out of room. | Inventory full | |
| I've nicked a bit from our friend here. | Picked pocket | |
| NONE will see me now! | Hidden in shadows | |
| Lost my frazzel! Apologies. | Spell disrupted | |
| I've set a trap for the feet of the unwary. | Set a trap |
Achievements[]
- Main article: Achievements
Homecoming[]
Help Jan's loved ones.
Personality[]
Jan is one of the most eccentric and chatty companions in Baldur's Gate. He is renowned for his variety of interests, which include turnip farming, gadgetry and tinkering, turnip selling, bootlegging, vegetable peddling, playing practical jokes on others, turnips (naturally), angering griffins and coming up with hyperbolic stories about imaginary acquaintances, among other things*.
He loves to chat, but his stories are rarely coherent and make little logical sense. His stories usually revolve around made-up relatives that he makes up just for the given case and serve the sole purpose of amusing himself and/or his companions - or annoying a righteous Anomen. Thus, he avoids giving out any information about his true beliefs and goals (if there are any).
*Such as turnips
Trivia[]
- Jan Jansen is also an inventor, which explains the many odd items he has.
- It is strongly implied in a story told by Sarevok that Jan, under the pseudonym Count Turnipsome, once swindled Rieltar Anchev by selling him what seemed like a very lucrative piece of land, but actually turned out to be a monster-filled swampland.
- Jan claims that he was once a deity, and complains that Helm knocked on his door early in the morning, much to his frustration.
Gallery[]
External links[]
- Jan Jansen on the Forgotten Realms Wiki, a wiki for the Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting Forgotten Realms.