Sorcerer build with spoliers
Wilko
Member Posts: 19
Hi all. So I've rolled a 95 for a sorcerer which I want to use solo throughout the saga and in group. I went with 12 str ( some guys go 18 star but I can get by on 12 with gauntlets), 18 Dec, 16 con. For rp reasons only (makes sense to me to have a smart bhaalspawn)17 int, 16 wisdom which will increase (need 18 for wish) and rp reasons 16 char. Now I know opinion varies on this but for starting level one spells I chose chromatic orb and shield (ofcourse, in time I will get more, e.g I may choose mm, spook etc). My logic is 1 starting offensive spell and 1 defence spell again partly because it makes sense rp wise I.e if I could only learn two spells initially I'd want some form of protection as well as the ability to do some damage. Chromatic orb can disrupt spellcasters, do small damage and from experience is useful at higher levels in tob. I am though, aware of the mm vs co argument but imo both are useful and ill likely end up getting mm anyway. Shield over armour due to multiple daily castings (won't necessarily need the duration of armour with a sorcerer but if I was a mage I'd choose this instead ). So question is does this seem good enough to start with initially ? Also, are there any spells that as a general rule are must haves?
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The key to level up early when solo'ing seems to be to pick fights that are doable with the help of wands, scrolls, potions ... save'n'reload to get better tohit/damage rolls, ... and with cheesy tactics, such as pointing a Wand of Fire near unexplored places where you know a group of enemies is lurking. And once a wand has few charges left, people don't make up their own "rules" and use it up, they sell the wand and buy it recharged ... argueing with other people about whether this is cheating. Develop a plan with regard to that before you start. Similarly for potions and when to use them. Save them for really important fights? Or use them when available? An unwritten rule: take what you use most often, take what you know you will use often in BG2EE, too.
If you read too many guides, howtos, discussions and try to follow them, it may not match your playing style. For example, in BGEE, Agannazar’s Scorcher is a real life-saver, also when dealing with multiple enemies and when moving your character the "right" way. Else it can be a waste. Your own experience is what counts. Unless you follow a very detailed step-by-step guide, you need very good knowledge of what to find where ... not limited to items but also traps, enemies, XP numbers. Don't be fooled by guides/videos where you don't know how the game has been modified.
Also don't forget, the XP cap only makes it possible to become a level 9 Sorcerer. Not many spells, and not many spell levels either. Protection spells? Forget it.
My own impression from solo'ing BGEE as a Mage/Thief after a quite long discussion has been most disappointing. Baldur's Gate bridge has been reached at levels 6/7. Whether to continue? I don't see the point. Perhaps only if one wants to continue through BG2EE with all the increased attributes from BGEE. But frankly, all the running and hiding and using wands, it has been very boring. Level 7/8 is the most that can be reached, and that means: not enough spell power in lots of situations. Certainly no match for Sarevok and his group, unless I run away and try my luck with wands and a large collection of scrolls and potions. Being such a coward is not motivating me. Building a party is much more fun, and that's also how BGEE is meant to be played.
Of course others will be useful regardless of party status. Avoid spells that are nice to have, but can be duplicated with items, invisibility, sleep, etc.
There are a lot of different strategies for sorcerers and therefore the spells that you select should reflect your overall plan.
Here are some thoughts for you from my experience, ymmv.
Level 1
Blindness, Spook, MM
Also consider* Grease, CO, Shield, Identify (I never take it, but others do)
Level 2
Mirror Image, Resist Fear, Web
*Blur, Melf's Acid Arrow, Glitterdust, Knock (if soloing)
Level 3
MMM, Skull Trap, Slow
*Haste (for summons), Dispel/Remove Magic (I never take them but some people do), Flame Arrow
Level 4
Stoneskin, Secret Word, Improved Invisibility
*Spider Spawn (great with web if soloing), Greater Malison (I always take it, but never cast it), Farsight (if soloing can be helpful to direct summons outside FoW), Polymorph Self
Level 5
Breach, Spell Immunity, Animate Dead
*Lower Resistance, Cloudkill
Level 6
Improved Haste (party), True Sight (if soloing, cleric version is cheaper if not), Death Spell
*PfMW, Mislead, Contingency (I rarely use these, but loots of people like them)
Level 7
Project Image, Mass Invisibility (if you skipped II earlier, great group buff), Mordenkainen's Sword, Ruby Ray of Reversal
Level 8
ADHW, Power Word: Blind, Maze, Pierce Shield (if you skipped RRR)
Level 9
Time Stop, Shapechange, Wish, Chain Contingency, Spell Strike
Invisibility changes everything: with it you can grab the wand of fire and wand of paralysis. More importantly you can SCOUT. Scouting + Web + wands = win.
As for spell picks, the list given by Jlee is really good. I would just add:
Level 1:
shield is great is some early fights thanks to MM immunity
Sleep is great if you solo
Level 2
invisibility is great when soloing. It gives you complete control over the game
Level 5
Chaos is quite good, especially with great malison
Level 6
protection from magical weapon is godlike.
Level 8 :
spell sequencer for some really nasty combos
over the game i use mostly the following tactics:
level 1-3: sleep + darts
level 4-13: invisibility + web + wands/MMM/spiders
level 14: mordy sword + haste
level 15 : mordy sword + haste or animate dead + haste (depending on enemy)
level 16-17 : ADHW
level 18 : timestop, shapechange, summon planetar,.... They are all too powerful for the game.
Shield is a life-saver indeed in a few situations, such as when facing Silke.
You only start with two level 1 spells, however, so if you learn Sleep, you still need to decide between Shield, Blindness (great for disabling single enemies for quite a long time), Chromatic Orb (similarly but with damage, too) early on.
The good thing about taking MM/CO is that in some situations you can cast some offensive spells without having to rely on wands ... unless you plan to get them recharged ... "My Hero!"
Once you're a level 5 Sorcerer, you only know two level 2 spells to choose from. If you've chosen Invisibility already, you need to decide between Web and Knock next ... or how else will you open chests and some doors? Don't hope for your strength being enough. The only way to bypass those limits is to ignore chests and takinh other ways around locked doors (prison cells!) which isn't too exciting.
Same for traps. If a Sorcerer/Mage had ways to detect them or to levitate, that would be good. Else you either need to take the damage or know what trap it is to protect yourself against some types of damage. It's really embarrasing to see somebody move around an invisible trap, knowing that there are 1-2 pixels on the screen where the trap is not triggered.
So, if you also take Web ... with no Spiders to summon for a long time (level 8 Sorcerer!) ... you're stuck with wands for doing damage. Plus, you can only learn a second level 4 spell next to Spider Spawn. Severely limited! Probably Stoneskin or Greater Malison (when facing groups!) ... perhaps Fireshield since you know you will be hit. Forget about Secret Word then ... even more need to run away and either wait for protections to time out or to abuse wands.
You need to level up quickly, and you have to be very careful in choosing your spells.
I usually avoid every spell I can get from somewhere else (I'm one of those abuser of recharging wands), so I'd never pick sleep or shield (or fear, or fireball), since you can buy a wand of sleep and a necklace of shield early on.
Usually I sell every valuable item (including the ring of wizardry, but I buy it back when I'm rich) to afford those items.
You can early find/buy wands of sleep, wand of fear, necklace of shield, wand of summoning and wand of fire (potions of invisibility are your friends).
Next step is to buy some "protection from pietrification" scrolls to farm some basilisks for easy level up, and you'll be ready for the rest of the game.
http://www.forgottenwars.com/oogi/index.htm
EDIT: Also, Play It Hardcore mentions some low level sorcerer spells. It mostly overlaps with Oogi's.
http://playithardcore.com/pihwiki/index.php/Baldur's_Gate:_Classes_and_Kits#Recommended_Spells_to_know_per_level
Shield is useless against Silke who cast lightnig bolt. It is very useful however against Tarnesh and Nimbul.
why would you need to recharge wands? You get a 12 charges wand of fire in the ankheg nest and a 18 charges one on the first floor of sorcerous sunderous. That's 30 fireball and 30 buffed up scorcher! more than enough to blow the whole game up. I usually end up with remaining charges in the 12 charges one!
Why would you need knock? There is 2 doors with interesting locked content in the whole game.
You can find 2 scrolls of knock (cloakwood mines, candlekeep) and buy 2 more (sorcerous sudnries).
You can also start your sorc with 18 str and buff it with DUHM if you really want to open everything
Why would you be stuck with wands for doing damage in combo with web ? You can (and should) use MMM, skull trap, MM or even elemental darts.
I never felt the need for secret word in BGEE (vanilla) and i never run away from any fight: mages don't use many protection. And even when they do, they are still vulnerable to MMM (which means that they die VERY quickly).
I grant you that traps are the biggest (and only) problem for a solo sorc. But so are they for any non-thief solo character.
@Pibaro
the basilisks and item farming path is the easiest and fastest one but you can always play the game the "normal" way with no issue at all. once again the key is to get to level 4 to grab invisibility. Once you get there, you can grab wands of paralysation and wand of fire and you are set for the rest of the game (once again, no need to recharge...)
To get to level 4 you need 10kxp. You can get these easily with little to no risk just by doing the early quests and focusing on enemies that can be put to sleep.
And high strenght helps a lot here, but the OP gave only 13 in strenght.
I always take Larlochs minor drain before magic missile or chromatic orb. It casts faster and does similar damage. And I prefer orb before magic missile due to the extra effects.
Armor scrolls drop so often and is less ac so I'd rather have shield. But if solo I prefer to actually postpone armor spells until spirit of ghost armor... It really depends on you play style.
One thing i never do though is grind xp for levels. Super boring... It does not feel right
When I talk to Garrick, I want to get rid of Silke without wasting any scrolls or potions. That's why she hit me with surprise several times because CO does not do enough damage to kill her with one hit, and she isn't a slow caster. And you can buy one with 20 charges from Erdane outside Durlag's Tower. How much you use wands depends on which areas and enemies you visit in which order before you can learn Skull Trap. Sure, a Solo Sorcerer can hit the XP cap even before Baldur's Gate bridge. And if you use the A.Scorcher charges efficiently, those can do heavy damage. Very helpful for Hentold's "friend" and undead like Ghasts. There are lots of potions in chests, gold, gems, extra scrolls, wands of fear. If you know that you don't need to open anything, you can skip Knock, sure. I'm not such a Pro.
Some people advise against learning Invisibility, but you cannot find potions of invisibility anywhere on the streets. You can start with one such potion from Khalid, but other than that you don't find enough such potions to do scouting.
Don't tell me you don't run away when you meet a winter wolf, a bear or an ogre berserker. Even a group of kobold archers can be deadly. Retreating is also running away. Leaving the area is "fleeing"!
With just MM or CO and darts or a sling you need to hit enough such types of enemies several times. That's only possible with hit'n'run tactics. CO versus MM doesn't always makes it easy either. Extra effects with just one orb versus more damage because of multiple missiles.
Availability of Knock is very convenient. There's a Wand of Magic Missiles with 30 charges locked up in Seven Suns cellar.
Level 1 - Sleep is your powerhouse spell.
Level 2 - Invisibility + Web = death.
Truly, the only downside is you won't have knock as early as you might like. The upside is that there isn't a ton of equipment you will need as a sorcerer. Armor is irrelevant until later in the game when you can buy a truly expensive set of robes; weapons are relatively cheap (darts are best for a solo mage, IMO, and then slings); and you get your pick of spells. If you miss out on some chests that is not a big deal, IMO. Throwing multiple webs onto a group of enemies and then following with darts and anything else that can do ranged damage can even let you take down the amazons and some other much more powerful enemies very early on.
If you follow his suggestion about the the protection from petrification spell and farm basilisks then you should have enough spells and levels to pretty much run the rest of the game.
The good thing is that you don't get anything useful from locked chests before chapter 6.
Don't get me wrong, knock is an OK pick (i take it for convenience as my 4rth level 2 pick, after invis, web and mirror image) but it is completely optionnal and a lot less useful than the deadly invis+web combo than will carry you solo sorc for 8-10 levels in BG1 and BG2