Stalkers, two-weapon-fighting and backstab question
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fire tooth
If I was in your shoes I would edit my char to get the pip in the right place.
Though there are some good clubs in BG2 I think that clubs are one of the more disappointing weapon options in BG2. None of them really stand out when compared to other weapons. Also there are no +4 clubs and only one +5 club that you can't get until ToB. You will be clubbing with +3 at best for most of the game. Come to think of it, most one handed weapons are +3 at best for most of the game...
In BG1 on a ranger I'd go for Stupifier (mace) first and then probably scimitars (grab a level 6 Garrick, Alora or Montaron and dose with thievery pot to steal drizzts scimitars).
Perhaps a little more important to note is, especially in BG:EE, slashing is the worst when you fight armored enemies. Nearly all armors have negative modifiers to slashing weapon. For example, a platemail has something like -2 or -3 to slashing, so you'll suffer that penalty to hit if you use a sword against an enemy clad in plate. Crushing weapons do not get that penalty and thus have an easier time to hit reliably. And chainmails even give +2 to hit to crushing damage! (the chains press into your flesh and hurt you more) Also, piercing damage is the best against bandits, hobgoblins and those pesky elite hobgoblins. They all have the regular leather armor, which gives +2 to hit to piercing weapons. (in effect, they offer absolutely no protection against daggers/shortswords and missile weapons, so abuse it when you can!)
In ToB, flail of the ages is one of the best weapons in the game, no doubt about that. Can be upgraded to +5, does brutal elemental damage, hits through stoneskins, slows annoying and dangerous enemies without a save, and is the best damage type:crushing. Greater whirlwinding with FoA+5 can deal with any enemy, unless the enemy is protected from magical weapons.
Clubs are somewhat weak, especially when compared to quarterstaves. Staves are two handed, but that's actually a boon, with two-handed weapon style, a good, magical quarterstaff can be used with speed factor zero, and since it has a reach too, you can hit ANY melee enemy reliably before he can touch you, run away, then swing again. You'll have the speed, reach, and critical hit frequency superiority. You can beat a 1000 hp enemy with you having only 1 hp this way, with some careful work.
There are a few new magical clubs in BG:EE, so Jaheira can employ them. Blackblood+3 is a very good weapon in BG2 and can be acquired early, it deals acid damage which goes through stoneskins and perma-kills trolls, of which there are many in BG2. Sadly, it can not touch enemies that require +4 weapons, but there are only a few of them in the game.
So, if you plan to use this ability by a stalker, it’s better to be at least proficient (one pip) in one of those weapons.
The second thing to consider is Armor AC adjustments.
Armor Base Armor Slashing Piercing & Missile Crushing
Leather 8 0 +2 0
Studded Leather 7 -2 -1 0
Hide 6 0 +2 0
Chain mail 5 -2 0 +2
Split mail 4 0 -1 -2
Plate mail 3 -3 0 0
Full Plate mail 1 -4 -3 0
So, this table shows that different types of weapons are effective against different types of armors.
I like to use Valygar (a stalker NPC) in BG2 so I usually try to give him proficiencies in different types of weapons.
I advise to be proficient at least in one crushing weapon and in one slashing weapon. In order to backstab, both these weapons should be able to use by thieves.
A quarterstaff is out of the equation because you plan to dual-wield.
So, a club is a must. And there’re good clubs both in BG:EE and BG2 (one of them is especially useful because of acid damage – a real helper against mages). It can be great to backstab skeletons, jellies, golems.
But sometimes a sword has a damage bigger than a club so I’d choose a sword type you like the most. A wakazashi/ ninjatõ /scimitar is a good choice – for one proficiency you lose penalties in many weapons – some of them have slashing damage, some have piercing damage. And there're Drizzt's scimitars - if you're a good ranger (from RP perspective), you can still pickpocket them.
A flail cannot be used as a backstab weapon but it’s a very good choice for an open fight – it has crushing damage and in BG2 there’s a flail that is one of the best weapons in the game. A flail in BG:EE is also a not bad pick for an open fight due to its damage.
About long swords I can say that yes, there're many of them in both games and probably more than there're scimitars but the number and quality of the latter are enough. It's hard to define what sword is better - a Drizzt's scimitar or the Varscona long sword. It's a matter of taste, really, although you can take into consideration that a scimitar proficiency gives you pluses not only in slashing weapons but also piercing ones while long swords can only have slashing damage. And I like to wield eastern swords:-)