I don't have any difficulty-enhancing mods, but I've always wondered about the kensai = glass cannon mantra that goes around here. There are loads of items in this game that help with defense. Just the shield amulet will set your AC to 4, which is -2 with DEX and kensai bonuses.
EDIT: This is essentially from level 1.
True enough (although it requires spamming those limited-use amulets), and they do have fighter HP as well. They may not be true glass cannons but they aren't good tanks either.
For my two kensai playthroughs so far, I've had a dedicated tank to take the heat. My kensai runs in just after and starts chunking things.
The only thing that annoys me somewhat with kensais is their inability to gain one half attack more through those neat gauntlets. There's no class in the game that could do more damage with a bit of extra APR than a kensai.
True enough, a dedicated tank virtually removes the "problem".
I don't think the lack of +5 for archers is as big a problem as it sounds. There aren't many enemies that require one. There's the mantle series of spells but in my experience it's not used often and most of the time you're dealing with PfMW. Archers have an advantage against that one because they can still deal elemental damage with normal missiles.
I think the reason they feel weaker later on is they don't do that much damage. A fighter will have 20+ strength and be hitting with a weapon like FoA that does tons of base damage and elemental damage and has a special effect on top of that. But bows and crossbows don't get a strength bonus, slings lack in APR and none of them compare to the awesome melee weapons you have. Between boots of speed and haste a fighter can hit any target on the screen in half a second and can snipe a target as well as any archer. So archers lose a lot of their offensive advantages.
Still, there are plenty of enemies that are less scary at range. Not just hard hitters; imprisonment and maze are touch range, fire shields hurt, and being at a distance lets you dodge or counter spells while they're flying through the air. It doesn't really matter if your archer is safe if the rest of your party is dying though, so to make good use of this you need keep the rest of your party out of melee as well.
I am likely just over-thinking it, 2nd Edition rules are kinda quirky (I am more used to 3rd edition truth be told).
As for the number of enemies that need the high level of enchant, probably don't make up more than a small fraction of encounters. Also on the same note with the more annoying protection magic so long as you have your own magic users with the relevant removal spells it becomes less of a threat.
Not that it helps against Kangaxx and such (though you could just be extra cheesey and use Yoshimo for a few spike traps ^^). Still so long as the archer can contribute in a meaningful way to any encounter then I really don't mind lacking in damage behind the melee.
Actually ranged is my preferred method against Kangaxx. I believe Firetooth +4 can hit him, and if not then at least the +5 sling can.
I just put a mage up close to him with death ward and keep up protection from abjuration while someone attacks Kangaxx from range. It's very easy but very, very boring that way.
High level archer is really strong in BG2, and for mobs that required enchanted ammo, you have the +5 sling from joluv in the copper coronet, you still get the archer missile bonuses and you add your strenght bonus to it. Add greater whirlwind and it's better than a bow!
A kensai will hit harder because he has better damage because of strenght and weapon enhancements, however an archer is ranged, youll kill things before they reach you, youre able to switch targets instantly, with no traveling to your target, and the things you cant hit because of weapon enchantements are pretty rare.
I just put a mage up close to him with death ward and keep up protection from abjuration while someone attacks Kangaxx from range. It's very easy but very, very boring that way.
That's Kangaxx for you, he's either easy or you're dead. There's not much room for excitement when all he does is imprisonment and the howl. Though I think he bit me once :O
That's Kangaxx for you, he's either easy or you're dead. There's not much room for excitement when all he does is imprisonment and the howl. Though I think he bit me once :O
My last fight against him with my solo sorceress was quite exciting since I had only one scroll of spell immunity and it was a race against time with her and her simulacrum Melfing it while not knowng how much longer the scroll will last... made it with about 2 rounds to spare. Of course when putting on Gaxx I remembered that I had the ring of the ram in my pack just for this fight!
That's Kangaxx for you, he's either easy or you're dead. There's not much room for excitement when all he does is imprisonment and the howl. Though I think he bit me once :O
Kangaxx is the floating, evil basilisk of Baldur's Gate 2.
That's Kangaxx for you, he's either easy or you're dead. There's not much room for excitement when all he does is imprisonment and the howl. Though I think he bit me once :O
Kangaxx is the floating, evil basilisk of Baldur's Gate 2.
It's very easy to mod the quiver of plenty to be able to hit +5. I have yet to make an archer use it into ToB though. I get bored being an archer pretty quick. I guess I prefer melee.
If you two are interested I can upload a simple item edit that allows the quiver of plenty +2 to hit up to +5 creatures when I get home from work. That way you can use any bow you want without the extreme tedium of arrow management.
If you two are interested I can upload a simple item edit that allows the quiver of plenty +2 to hit up to +5 creatures when I get home from work. That way you can use any bow you want without the extreme tedium of arrow management.
Here you go. This simply changes "enchanted to hit" of the quiver of plenty +2 to +5. It doesn't add any additional thac0 or damage (that's what grandmastery and the archers innate bonuses are for
Extract the file and put it into C:\Users\Home\Documents\Baldur's Gate II - Enhanced Edition\override
If the override folder isn't there, create it
Note: I have the Beamdog version, I'm not sure where the override file for the Steam version is
No prob! I've never uploaded a file like that with Zip Genius so let me know if you have a problem.
I used winbiff to extract it, and infinity engine editor to edit it. I think Near Infinity can do the same thing easier but I don't have any experience using it.
@ReadingRambo Thanks for the mod! I'm planning to play an archer for my next game (once BG1 NPC Project and BG1 Unfinished Business are finished), so I'll definitely make use of it.
Archers have an easier time than Kensai in BG1 because missle weapons are just so damn good in BG1 for various reasons (mostly for safe keep-away, but also abusing the fact that some enemies are just really damn slow), whereas Kensai has a few points where they kick ass but otherwise struggle against capable fighters who can hit him quite easily (Sarevok being notorious in this).
In BG2 the Archer starts to dwindle down as missle weapons become less special whereas the Kensai is getting more attacks per round and even more ridiculous THAC0 and damage buffs, on top of the large THAC0 making use of his Kai ability.
Overall I'd say it's Kensai that wins out, because the Kensai has a whole lot more options in the series than an Archer can get; it's almost no contest.... not to say Archer doesn't have its moments, but the fact that late-BG2 enemies require certain enchanted arrows to hit them (and these enchanted arrows become rarer or less frequent late in the game) it becomes hard to actually defend Archer as a more viable class.
While I mostly agree, you're going a bit too far here. Archer stays viable because they can still use melee weapons. Sure they can only have one pip, but they're a fighter class, so by the time you are far enough in the game to warrant bringing out these weapons, you will have a base 2 APR with a melee weapon. Not bad.
I definitely found that my Archer was declining in his usefulness by mid-game BGII. But he still kicked ass with a two-hander. Sure he wasn't a Kensai, but he did just fine.
Also, kensais will have only one more APR than an archer IF they dual wield. My archer was hitting a lot of things properly late game, only thing you won't hit are demi-liches and frankly, those are cheesy and you wont need your archer for them. Plus, theres always the +5 sling from copper coronet.
Archers have the massive advantage that they are ranged, if something is in range, youre hitting it, unlike a kensai, you can switch targets really fast, and unlike a kensai, you arent putting yourself at a huge risk of taking damage because of low AC since youre usually out of harm's way, and won't have to back out a lot either.
Honestly, ive played both, even with the downsides, i really prefer an archer over a kensai.
BG1 - Archer. BG2 (especially ToB) - Kensai. Both Games - Kensai.
For me, it's not a power thing. It's all about the fun. And for me, the fun of an Archer drops off a cliff, due to a couple things:
1. Ammo. In BG1, the different ammos are tons of fun. Biting, piercing, fire, ice, +1, +2, slaying, dispelling, DETONATING, etc... There are enough of them that drop to make things really interesting, and if you don't buy any additional special arrows at the store, management of the ones you have can be fun. I really enjoy putting away my regular arrows in favor of arrows of biting when I want to shut down a mage's spellcasting, pulling out the piercing arrows against a tank, or doing my best imitation of a wizard with the arrows of detonation. That's fun in a way you just don't get with a Kensai. The bow itself is pretty boring, but the ammunition for it is way more exciting than just about any weapon in BG1.
But then in BG2, that's just not the case. In BG2, the "use X against Y" is always a question of one melee weapon vs. another. The ammo doesn't excite me, and even the once interesting stuff is frequently useless by the time you get to ToB.
BG2 weapons give you all sorts of nifty effects. What do BG2 bows do? Not a lot, comparatively.
Give BG2 some bows that do things like treating your ammo as if it were +X enchanted (instead of being +X enchanted only when you DON'T use ammo), or an arrow that gets treated as a blunt weapon, or arrows that are especially good against ______, and suddenly ranged combat becomes a lot more interesting again.
2. Speed. I derive a lot of fun out of choosing who to attack when, and that's all about positioning and prioritizing. As an Archer, that's easy. As a Kensai, it's not as easy. But then you get boots of speed, and you can race around the map. That one item gives you all the mobility you need to race around anywhere on the battlefield, and suddenly THAT'S very fun. I said my preference wasn't about power, but in this case, having the power to almost instantly throw a Kensai in the face of whatever target I choose and/or quickly retreat past tanks to peel off aggressors is lots of fun.
Then you add on the versatility and relative effectiveness of melee combat vs. ranged combat in BG2, and that makes the Archer even LESS fun in the tactics of a battle than the Kensai.
Cleric/Archer is more OP then Kensage imho...Its ridiculous, however you do need to have Ashes of Embers mod (realistic weapon ethos), or just edit it yourself so you can be a "cleric/ranger" and use bows.
Well the Pocket Plane Group's webpage download mirrors have been down for months.. only place I know where to get Ashes of Embers, most unfortunately. I'm dying to get a hold of that mod again. If anyone knows where to find it, please please please let me know!!
Comments
I think the reason they feel weaker later on is they don't do that much damage. A fighter will have 20+ strength and be hitting with a weapon like FoA that does tons of base damage and elemental damage and has a special effect on top of that. But bows and crossbows don't get a strength bonus, slings lack in APR and none of them compare to the awesome melee weapons you have. Between boots of speed and haste a fighter can hit any target on the screen in half a second and can snipe a target as well as any archer. So archers lose a lot of their offensive advantages.
Still, there are plenty of enemies that are less scary at range. Not just hard hitters; imprisonment and maze are touch range, fire shields hurt, and being at a distance lets you dodge or counter spells while they're flying through the air. It doesn't really matter if your archer is safe if the rest of your party is dying though, so to make good use of this you need keep the rest of your party out of melee as well.
As for the number of enemies that need the high level of enchant, probably don't make up more than a small fraction of encounters. Also on the same note with the more annoying protection magic so long as you have your own magic users with the relevant removal spells it becomes less of a threat.
Not that it helps against Kangaxx and such (though you could just be extra cheesey and use Yoshimo for a few spike traps ^^). Still so long as the archer can contribute in a meaningful way to any encounter then I really don't mind lacking in damage behind the melee.
I just put a mage up close to him with death ward and keep up protection from abjuration while someone attacks Kangaxx from range. It's very easy but very, very boring that way.
A kensai will hit harder because he has better damage because of strenght and weapon enhancements, however an archer is ranged, youll kill things before they reach you, youre able to switch targets instantly, with no traveling to your target, and the things you cant hit because of weapon enchantements are pretty rare.
If you two are interested I can upload a simple item edit that allows the quiver of plenty +2 to hit up to +5 creatures when I get home from work. That way you can use any bow you want without the extreme tedium of arrow management.
Extract the file and put it into C:\Users\Home\Documents\Baldur's Gate II - Enhanced Edition\override
If the override folder isn't there, create it
Note: I have the Beamdog version, I'm not sure where the override file for the Steam version is
I used winbiff to extract it, and infinity engine editor to edit it. I think Near Infinity can do the same thing easier but I don't have any experience using it.
I definitely found that my Archer was declining in his usefulness by mid-game BGII. But he still kicked ass with a two-hander. Sure he wasn't a Kensai, but he did just fine.
Archers have the massive advantage that they are ranged, if something is in range, youre hitting it, unlike a kensai, you can switch targets really fast, and unlike a kensai, you arent putting yourself at a huge risk of taking damage because of low AC since youre usually out of harm's way, and won't have to back out a lot either.
Honestly, ive played both, even with the downsides, i really prefer an archer over a kensai.
BG2 (especially ToB) - Kensai.
Both Games - Kensai.
For me, it's not a power thing. It's all about the fun. And for me, the fun of an Archer drops off a cliff, due to a couple things:
1. Ammo. In BG1, the different ammos are tons of fun. Biting, piercing, fire, ice, +1, +2, slaying, dispelling, DETONATING, etc... There are enough of them that drop to make things really interesting, and if you don't buy any additional special arrows at the store, management of the ones you have can be fun. I really enjoy putting away my regular arrows in favor of arrows of biting when I want to shut down a mage's spellcasting, pulling out the piercing arrows against a tank, or doing my best imitation of a wizard with the arrows of detonation. That's fun in a way you just don't get with a Kensai. The bow itself is pretty boring, but the ammunition for it is way more exciting than just about any weapon in BG1.
But then in BG2, that's just not the case. In BG2, the "use X against Y" is always a question of one melee weapon vs. another. The ammo doesn't excite me, and even the once interesting stuff is frequently useless by the time you get to ToB.
BG2 weapons give you all sorts of nifty effects. What do BG2 bows do? Not a lot, comparatively.
Give BG2 some bows that do things like treating your ammo as if it were +X enchanted (instead of being +X enchanted only when you DON'T use ammo), or an arrow that gets treated as a blunt weapon, or arrows that are especially good against ______, and suddenly ranged combat becomes a lot more interesting again.
2. Speed. I derive a lot of fun out of choosing who to attack when, and that's all about positioning and prioritizing. As an Archer, that's easy. As a Kensai, it's not as easy. But then you get boots of speed, and you can race around the map. That one item gives you all the mobility you need to race around anywhere on the battlefield, and suddenly THAT'S very fun. I said my preference wasn't about power, but in this case, having the power to almost instantly throw a Kensai in the face of whatever target I choose and/or quickly retreat past tanks to peel off aggressors is lots of fun.
Then you add on the versatility and relative effectiveness of melee combat vs. ranged combat in BG2, and that makes the Archer even LESS fun in the tactics of a battle than the Kensai.