Wild Mage vs Sorcerer: Which is more powerful?
Stormvessel
Member Posts: 654
There is already a discussion on here asking which of these two are the most fun, so I figured I would ask which of these two are the most powerful, irrespective of how fun they are, and make it a poll.
I don't want to bore you with a rundown, but very quickly:
The Sorcerer can cast one more spell per day/level than the Wild Mage. The Sorcerer is also FAR more versatile in combat, as he/she doesn't have to prepare an X number of particular spells in order to use an X number of particular spells.
The Wild Mage, while not having near the on the fly versatility or number of castings as the Sorcerer, does have far more utility, being able to learn every arcane spell in the game. But as you know, it's actually NRD that sets the Wild Mage apart from all the rest. That, and the fact that the potential for cheese is enough to make Kraft Foods green with envy. I'm pretty sure you know what I'm talking about (CC Improved Chaos Shield x3, IA, unload top spells, Time Stop, NRD>Wish - rinse and repeat).
So. Wild Mage vs Sorcerer - in terms of POWER.
Who's the top caster?
I don't want to bore you with a rundown, but very quickly:
The Sorcerer can cast one more spell per day/level than the Wild Mage. The Sorcerer is also FAR more versatile in combat, as he/she doesn't have to prepare an X number of particular spells in order to use an X number of particular spells.
The Wild Mage, while not having near the on the fly versatility or number of castings as the Sorcerer, does have far more utility, being able to learn every arcane spell in the game. But as you know, it's actually NRD that sets the Wild Mage apart from all the rest. That, and the fact that the potential for cheese is enough to make Kraft Foods green with envy. I'm pretty sure you know what I'm talking about (CC Improved Chaos Shield x3, IA, unload top spells, Time Stop, NRD>Wish - rinse and repeat).
So. Wild Mage vs Sorcerer - in terms of POWER.
Who's the top caster?
- Wild Mage vs Sorcerer: Which is more powerful?105 votes
- Wild Mage31.43%
- Sorcerer49.52%
- Tie7.62%
- Meh, they both suck2.86%
- I really don't care8.57%
2
Comments
If you know what spell to pick, nothing in the entire game can stop a sorcerer.
I see only one downside in sorcerers: sorcerers get boring quickly. I can only power trip with a sorcerer so long before the lack of challenge causes me to simply abandon the playthrough.
In the same time, wild mages keep the game interesting. Wild mages remove an element of control, that keeps every playthrough interesting, no matter how much meta-knowledge I have.
For hardcore runs, or even runs with minimal reloading, there is no doubt that the Sorcerer is more powerful. After all, how can a Wild Mage be powerful if she is dead/petrified?
Then of course we have the gamers that play normally, but try to keep the "cheese" to a minimum. For these gamers, the Sorcerer is hands down the most powerful caster.
However, for gamers (such as myself) that don't mind being "cheesy", there is no contest. The Wild Mage is more powerful. Being able to cast any scribed spell as a level 1 spell - the possibilities are endless. One extremely cheesy tactic is the one where you quickly unload your spell book with Improved Alacrity, and then with Time Stop you Wish (using NRD and ICSx3) until you get the option you want.
Or course the Sorcerer can Wish rest, too. But this happens to be one instance where the Sorcerer's "versatility" is clearly outshone. The key is that the Wild Mage can cast it AS A LEVEL ONE SPELL. That means with Time Stop, Improved Chaos Shield x3, and of course high Wisdom, the Wild Mage gets a whopping 3-4 chances to refresh his entire arsenal (after using 1 or 2 to set a new contingency).
What is the Sorcerer going to do? Not cast any level 9 spells whatsoever to ensure that he lands a Wish Rest? Or course not. It could only be reliably done OUTSIDE of combat using quick save/load (but if you are going to do that you might as well rest).
For me, the Wild Mage wields BY FAR the greatest power. But again, it all comes down to the way you play the game.
In that sense, this poll is more about the player's ideals. Some player's would not consider "cheese" true power.
Also, what's the big deal with wish rest? I've never needed it. I used it once in the final battle of the game, and that was to restore spike trap, not spells. ToB is so easy, I don't understand.
I still prefer the sorcerer though - at least s/he doesn't unleash a Pit Fiend on me in Beregost or lose all my money just when I thought I could afford to return to Gaylan Bayle.
But also for pure convenience when you know that you will always have something useful to throw.
Also, I never have only one caster in my party. If I'm making a Sorcerer, then I'm picking another Mage NPC to cover me.
I can also dump INT for CHA (even though it does nothing) for RP reasons and to be the party face.
Wild mage is the easiest caster to use infinite spellcasting with. And that crazy deowmer, can use a great level spells, without you even being able to cast it yet. And, he is like specialized (extra slots). And, he can learn all spells. Only drawback? Surges. Exploit that out, and there you go.
4 points though.
1 : The Wild Mage has as much spells per day than the Sorcerer, but the latter get them quicker.
(Source : http://playithardcore.com/pihwiki/index.php/Baldur's_Gate:_Progression_Charts)
2 : Chain Contingency doesn't work with 3 X Improved Chaos Shield, it has been fixed in the EE and in the original game with a patch. Anyway it was actually a bad idea to do this, because one of the most important part of the Wild Mage is that when you are high level enough, Wild Surges are nearly always beneficials (No saving throw, insta rest, cast 2x the spell spell, aoe spell, etc ) but if you roll a 100 on the table, you just cast the spell normally.
3 : As @meagloth said, I also don't understand the big deal with the Wish Rest strategy, it is completely unneeded exept maybe for the final fight, and it is totally unreliable (about 10-15% to have it with 18 Wisdom, and 20-25% with 25 Wisdom). Casting 4 or 5 Wish to get back your spells seems like a really bad trade to me.
4 : The real power of both the Sorcerers and the Wild Mages compared to others casters, including multiclasses characters is their ability to refresh Chain Contingency mid-fight.
Contingency and Chain Contingency have NO CAST TIME (you can even cast them during pause) and DON'T COUNT on the limit of 1 spell per round. Which means a Wild Mage can use his Spell Trigger, triggers his Chain Contingency and Contingency, then refresh them instantly in the same round with NRD. When you cast these spells with NRD, they can't trigger a Wild Surge, so he can effectively cast 5 spells per round without Time Stop or Improved Alacrity.
The Sorcerer can do the same, but it will cost him some level 9 spells to do this, but in exchange, he will be able to choose more effectively which spells to put into the Contingencies.
Of course I can't say for certain as I've never completed a Sorcerer run. Every time I play as one I wish I had rolled a mage instead.
Being able to choose spells at a level up is something I like - I find the process of buying scrolls off merchants or finding them tedious (heck I don't even buy spells for any companions, bar the crucial ones like chaos, stoneskin or invisibility. Or stuff like time stop). But it's rewarding to finally pick a favourite spell, and use it as many times as your level permits it. Sorcerors and favoured souls are my favourite classes.
Or one better - have a sorceror *and* a wild mage.
I finally decided to vote and I chose the Wild Mage, too much abuse with NRD in my opinion.
I love you.
And you don't have to buy or find scrolls of those spells that you need.
But when it comes to potential, the Wild Mage will always be more powerful in my eyes. I say this as someone who can understand the appeal of the Sorcerer. There is just way too much to be had from not having to memorize high level spells and instead cast them as level ones. Such versatility comes at the cost of reliability, this is true. But once you make that concession, there is no going back. Once you've tasted the raw power of wild magic, nothing compares.