Multiclassing Conundrum?

Aozgolo108

Hypothetical: I want a party that has a mage, a cleric, and a thief in it, but I only have two slots, so the simple solution is make one a multiclass, and the other a pure class or kit.

So I can choose from Mage/Thief, Cleric/Mage, or Cleric/Thief. So two questions raised:

1: Which multiclass is probably the best to use together? (assuming no other party members will have these classes)

2: Which of these classes are best to use a kit over the vanilla standard?

*EDIT: This is assuming a level 1 party

GamingFreak

Cleric/Mage gets the most amount of spells available to them in the entire game. It's a pretty nuts class set-up. On top of the massive amount of spells, they get even more diverse spell combos and contingencies that only they can cook up.

On top of that if you make the Cleric/Mage a Gnome, you get a Cleric/Illusionist instead, which means that you not only get the same benefits, but also you get a specialized mage class with bonus spells per level.

So yeah, out of that list, Cleric/Mage. Of course a Cleric/Thief is completely viable as well. In fact it can serve either support or a buffed up backstabber; and with 3E Sneak attack rules available you could probably get away with doing Sanctuary > circle around opponent strategies for your sneak attack to sub for the backstab.

Mage/Thief isn't bad either, since you get the full support of thieving abilities and a weapon option like shortbows on top of spells, or alternatively, sneak attack/backstab options using Invisibility or mislead as a cover.

lunar

Cleric/thief is the weakest IMHO, the two classes do not mix as well as other mc options. Cleric and mage complement each other well, and mage/thief can be a powerhouse with all the invisibility/mislead shenenigans.

GamingFreak

I'd say cleric/thieves are just fine, especially since one of your options is the tanky half-orc. Give him a quarterstaff and a sling and he'd be able to buff up and take on the world. The only weakness being his APR. With a starting 19 strength he could easily use Draw Upon Holy Might and Holy Power and basically be equal to a fighter of his level, and of course Righteous Magic is like the Kensai's Kai but with an HP buff. On top of Defensive Harmony, Armor of Faith, and sanctuary to keep enemies off his toes, I can't recommend it enough if you want a unique option.

elminster

I'd go mage/thief and cleric. You can always pick one of the more melee combat friendly kits for clerics (Priest of Tempus, Priest of Lathander, Priest of Tyr or Priest of Helm) or even a Priest of Talos if that is what you are instead looking for. I'm assuming this is for IWDEE and not BGEE (as obviously a few of the kits I mentioned aren't available by default in BGEE).

TheArtisan

I'm going to go the other way and say roll with cleric/thief and mage. Out of these three classes, the mage is the one that wants to level up the fastest. With thieves, unless you want to invest in every skill (a bad idea) you have enough points in the ones that you need even if behind a couple levels. Clerics want levels too, but they also level up faster and get their top level spells at an earlier level.

Kits - I think a specialist mage (conjurer, with the cleric to use True Sight) is the best option, followed by Thieves (Swashbuckler since the other kits give thieving penalties). Cleric kits are okay but not as good.

pixie359

Depending on the makeup of the rest of the party, you may want to go cleric/mage as the mutli, allowing greater flexibility of kit for the thief. For example If you are light up front, try a swashie. If you like backstabbing, try an assassin or shadow dancer. If you are a fan of traps, take a bounty hunter.

This setup may not be the most powerful, but gives you more choice on how to make your team.

Hudzy

Sounds like a great excuse to run FMC and FMT to me.

karnor00

Artemius_I said:

I'm going to go the other way and say roll with cleric/thief and mage. Out of these three classes, the mage is the one that wants to level up the fastest. With thieves, unless you want to invest in every skill (a bad idea) you have enough points in the ones that you need even if behind a couple levels. Clerics want levels too, but they also level up faster and get their top level spells at an earlier level.

Kits - I think a specialist mage (conjurer, with the cleric to use True Sight) is the best option, followed by Thieves (Swashbuckler since the other kits give thieving penalties). Cleric kits are okay but not as good.

I'd have to agree with this. While I think cleric/thief is the weakest of the three multiclass options (although it's still fairly decent), mage is by far the best character to have as a single class. Faster levelling up is really important to get those top spells, and there are some great mage kits (or you could even use a sorcerer).

FinneousPJ

2 person party
FMT
CR