Help with 4 people party
knight1337
Member Posts: 32
I want to play the game with a 4 people neutral/good party (3 NPCs + charname).
Maybe i'll bring Neera and Rasaad(I read that monks are powerful in a small party).
My main will be a tank (don't know which class is best). I need a thief and a Cleric.
I'm taking suggestions
Maybe i'll bring Neera and Rasaad(I read that monks are powerful in a small party).
My main will be a tank (don't know which class is best). I need a thief and a Cleric.
I'm taking suggestions
0
Comments
That plus Rasaad on the front lines, with Neera and Imoen in the rear, could be solid.
BG 2 NPCs have loads of character, and most of their own questlines, so if it's ur first game, I'd recommend a full party to experience as much of it as possible.
Arcane magic is critical in BG 2, so u can't go wrong with Neera, Imoen would be a very useful 2nd mage, and also satisfies thief requirements.
I agree with Madhax regarding your own class if u insist on a party of 4. In a full party u can be a bit more flexible, but with just 4, ur charname needs to satisfy the divine magic role.
"Multiclassed clerics don't progress much slower than full-blown clerics, especially in a 4-person party."
@Madhax I gotta disagree with this though. Anomen is lv29 in my ToB game, Aerie is lv17, even though I've substituted Anomen quite a lot for some quests, whereas Aerie's always been around cos she's charname's romance.
Main berserker fighter
aerie or anomen for cleric. If you play male (not dwarf or half orc) you can romance aerie, if female you can romance anomen
Imoen or jan jansen for thief/mage (i think jan is very funny)
Last slot whatever you want. If you are a first timer keldorn is simple and powerful
Fighter/Mages are incredibly easy to play once you get mirror image and stoneskin. Even if you just use those two spells, slap on a suit of plate and wade into melee you're good for 90% of the game. Mix in Improved Haste and Protection from Magical Weapons and they're damn near invincible.
For a beginner that wants easy and power i recommend berserker.
For powergaming with knowledge dual with berserker/ cleric and many many more combos.
C/T charname
Keldorn
Rasaad
Neera
F/T charname
Jaheira/Anomen
Rasaad
Neera
R/C or F/C charname
Yoshimo/Jan
Rasaad
Neera
Of course if you don't need both Neera and Rasaad, it opens up considerably.
Cleric/Ranger
Yoshimo-Imoen
Rasaad
Neera
Theif dualed to Fighter
Jaheira
Rasaad
Neera
I think i'll drop Rasaad and bring another tank, like Keldorn, I don't think Rasaad can stand in frontline witout dying in 5 seconds
So
Cleric/Ranger
Keldorn
Yoshimo-Imoen
Neera
Fighter/Thief
Jaheria/Anomen
Rasaad
Neera
Gives you a thief, mage, healer, melee power and the ability to use any weapon in the game.
Let's look at what the neutral/good NPC can bring :
fighters : Anyone with a girdle of strength and gauntlets of dex i good. Keldorn is the best because of his kits. Jaheira can also be very strong. Anomen can help for the early game (not so much at the end). Therefore having your main as a pure tank does not seem the best choice IMO.
As for rasaad, monks are quite good at very high level but keldorn is in my opinion much stronger an flexible.
Cleric : Jaheira is not bad but far from anomen/aerie for healing magic (no greater restoration)
Mage : neera is the only specialist. Imoen, and Jan are Ok. Imoen is far superior to Nalia.
Thief : imoen covers the bare minimum while jan gives you everything you would ever need.
Based on that, i see 2 main options (while keeping a fighter component for your main):
Option 1:
- fighter/thief
- Keldorn
- Anomen
- Neera
Melee : very strong (2 powerhouses, 1 backup)
Magic : Strong (1 divine, 1 arcane specialist)
Thieving : very strong (huge backstab of fighterthief, enough skill point to do everything you need and more)
This party is easy to play and characters develop quickly (single class)
Using jaheira on anomen is even stronger for melee but weaker for divine casting (multi class)
Option 2 :
- ranger/cleric
- keldorn
- Neera
- Jan Jansen
Melee : strong (2 powerhouses)
Magic : very strong (1 divine (access to all cleric and druid spells), 1 arcane specialist, 1 secondary mage)
Thieving : strong (enough skill point to do everything you need and more)
You can replace Jan Jansen by imoen, for less theiving but easier access to arcane spells
Anyway, any combination of charname and NPC can work. You can just pick the ones which appeal you the most.
I like JLee and boo's parties. Especially the C/T party, it's very tactical.
Cleric/Ranger is a great tank so that fits well.
I presume Imoen is for sentimental reasons? Otherwise Jan might be better choice for some thief HLAs.
The other three will be:
Neera
Rasaad (Can hold his own quickly even in SOA if you have a small party)
Jan/Nalia/Imoen
For the hard stuff just drink thief skill potions, Jan does get UAI though which is very nice for a mage. Carsomyr and Tenser Transformation!
By the way, Viconia gets along with Neera and Rasaad so you can use her and go Fighter/Thief too.
Having only 1 arcane caster can be a big issue if you play with SCS though.
Imoen is amazing! Her stats are nearly perfect for a Thief => Mage and she's got all her points assigned ideally to cover the requirements for a party thief (Find Traps and Open Locks), without sacrificing much arcane firepower. She even has good hp for a mage!
Her stealth could be better, but she's a mage, so she can easily cast invisibility spells, and I stopped bothering with actual stealth somewhere in Chapter 4. Later on in the game u also end up finding so many invisibility potions that u can pretty drink them whenever u wanna go scouting with Immy. @nano
Yes, in fact it's arguable that Nalia is better for the very fact that she's around quite a bit (or maybe a lot) longer.
In Tord's Lilly Black LP for BG 2, his Nalia was way stronger than Imoen cos he spent ages in Chapter 2 before going to save Imoen.
When I got Nalia in ToB, I was amazed to see that her Find Traps was actually pretty good. Whatever Imoen can do, she can do as well, maybe with a little help with Potion of Perception/Master Thievery for the odd tough case, but otherwise she's just as capable.
But I'm not sure how you're hoping to have a 4-man party with two tanks anyway, assuming you want a mage, thief, and cleric along.
Fighter/Cleric or Beserker duelled to cleric, you can even do this straight away in the first dungeon at 7th level (waiting to level 9 is slightly better, any higher and you'll be waiting to resume fighter skills and not necessary unless powergaming). Just remember to pick all cleric proficiencies when creating the character and don't pick them when a cleric until you resume fighter.
Joshimo - thief
Nalia - Mage
Any of Jaheira, Minsc, Valygar or Keldorn (plus you) can tank. Jaheira and Keldorn probably offer most potential. Valygar not absolute typical front line but effective and Minsc is, well, Minsc.
Can replace any of these later if necessary
Mazzy is a better fighter than anyone but Korgan if your playing good. Jaheira is the best tank though because of AOF and Iron Skins.
I don't use Yoshimo except to bring him to spellhold for his heart, I actually kick him out once I'm on the docks so he doesn't take my Brynnlaw exp
As a another NPC i would go with Valygar. He's a good scout and scouting is very benificial when you play with only 4 chars.
Of course Imoen will be in this party aswell! She will be your 2nd mage and thief. At the start take Yoshimo.
You should be a Fighter type dualed to mage e.g. Kensai/Mage, Berserker/Mage, Fighter/Mage
This is possible:
3 melee (jaheira, valygar, PC),
3 ranged(valygar, imoen, PC)
2 mage (imoen, PC),
1 thief (imoen),
1 healer (jaheira),
1 utility (valygar)
I think this is a pretty solid group.