What do you recommend if I only do one BG/BGII playthrough. (Spoilers?)

icthy

It's been several years since I played BGI and BGII, but I recently bought BGI for iPad and plan on getting BGII for Mac. I have to admit, I'm finding BGI a little tedious and gave up a while ago. I think I'm going to start again, but will probably not play through BGI again. If you only had one type of character to play all the way through, what would you use, and what proficiencies would you pick? Right now I'm leaning towards a Ranger/Cleric, because I vaguely remember this being a powerful combination, but I don't recall why.

FinneousPJ

I would choose a Fighter/Mage, but R/C is great as well.

icthy

Thanks FinneousPJ; any thoughts on weapon proficiencies or when to dual class?

FinneousPJ

I recommend multiclass.

Longswords and bows are great to start with. Don't ruin the experience by overthinking it.

BelegCuthalion

choose the character that attracts your imagination most (maybe, just maybe not cleric/thief, that's quite an odd one as a starter). the game is doable with defacto any class in standard difficulty and with a party of 6 to distribute competences.
Those recommendations for powerful combinations are legitimate when doing solo runs or mods on difficulty / AI, but can spoil a standard playthrough by focusing too much on efficiency over flair.

GreenWarlock

If I were playing through only once, I would make an effort to play with as many of the NPCs at various times as possible, as they bring a lot of the fun into the game, and in BG2 many will bring their own additional quests as well. So that leaves me thinking about which class the PC can bring to the mix that is not covered by any of the NPCs.

The only single-class character that is not covered all the way through is a sorcerer, and apparently they are quite the powerhouse at high levels - they could be a little trick at first unless you are sure what you are doing, and there is a 'bonus' NPC sorcerer about half-way through the first game.

Going to the other extreme, there is no NPC offering either of the two triple-class combos, Fighter/Mage/Thief or Fighter/Mage/Cleric. These PC classes are quite slow to get started, and at their peak around the end of BG1 and early BG2. As levels start costing a fixed amount rather than doubling xp each time in BG2, you will fall further and further behind, but they retain their special charm, and can still be played effectively.

But that brings me to what I would recommend - of the various 2-class options, the only one not offered by the game is the Fighter/Mage (although there is no Cleric/Thief in BG2, and the one offered by BG1 is found quite late.) Taking the dual-class approach, Kensai -> Mage is one of the recognized powerhouses of the game, and Beserker -> Mage works quite well too, both dualing early in BG2 if seeking the optimal build. Alternatively, a gnomish Fighter/Illusionist will grant you bonus mage spells while retaining most of the fighter benefits (no grand mastery), and an Elven Figher/Mage will bring you bonus with bow and longsword.

As Beleg suggests, the best answer may be to simply takes the character that most appeals, as pretty much any character can beat the game in the end. I had a lot of fun with a halfling dart master (straight fighter) although I expect he will peter out once he reaches the Throne of Bhaal areas due to a lack of potent darts. I hear similar concerns for archers. If you play a single class though, you could dip into the class kits, very few of which are used by any of the NPCs.

dreamrider

This choice, under the conditions & personal reactions that you state, is really all about whether you intend to play the same CHARNAME into and through BG2. If you DO intend to play through, base your BG1 choice on what you want to play for a powerful/fun experience in that first playthrough of BG2.

Some popular powerful choices for the sequel are:

Fighter/Mage

Ranger/Cleric

Sorcerer (Dragon Disciple?)

Monk, if you are willing to take great care with him/her in BG1, for the sake of great power above lvl 10-12 in BG2.

I love Archers, but I am told that they are not as strong a finishing char type for ToB as some others.

Felspawn

Blade or Stalker or Swashbuckler. Fun playstyles while not being brokenly overpowered. No silly Dual spec "spend 3/4 of the game trying to regain old levels" or Multiclass super slow leveling. Nice consistent power level throughout the game.

FinneousPJ

@Felspawn‌ Multiclasses are hardly super slow leveling, being usually only 1-2 levels behind single class (until very high levels).

Felspawn

maybe to you but as a subjective thing, i've always disliked how slow they are relative to the single classes

RAM021

HElf Ranger/Cleric multiclass
Specialize in Mace & Morningstar/Flail
Max STR/DEX/CON/WIS
Dump CHA, Remainder INT

JuliusBorisov

I strongly don't recommend to do only one BGI/BGII playthrough.

There're so many different options. Try at least several of them

Felspawn

my Favorite character is a Half Elf Blade
starts with proficient in Longswords and 1 pip in 2weapon style. dropping a 2nd and 3rd pip at 4th and 8th level respectively. One of the nice things about the Blade too is they roll natuarlly high stats. my Bard in particular rolled a 97 (O.O) a Score like that is a lot harder to find on a fighter/mage without resorting to EEkeeper. (which i always feel is kind of cheating)

so hes a

Str18
Dex 18
Con 16
Int 18
Wis 10
Chr 17

i wanted to roll with Imoen, Viconia, Neera, Adjantis and Dorn (yeah i know odd couple but i really wanted that suit of Elven Chain) however Adjantis put a stop to that pretty quick. Needless to say he got benched in favor of the blackguard