Strongest "weakest" char - Lowest stats possible?

Skatan

Hello all,

I've seen numerous threads about what is the strongest char(s) but fewer about weakest. I've read threads talking about weakest party, both with NPC's and 6-man parties in IWD, but I haven't found a thread about this:

If going through the saga, what would be the lowest possible stat points you can make it with but still be pretty damn kick-ass? EEedits are ALLOWED.
-> Follow-up question is ofc, what race and class would you use (considering class restrictions etc).

This is for shits and giggles mostly. As we all know, you can complete the game with good NPC's and a puppy for charname, but my question is really to try to figure out what class can be the STRONGEST while still being the weakest possible. Meaning, which class and race combo make due with the least dependence on stat's.

Btw, lets exclude sorc from this discussion.

I'm thinking perhaps an archer, they get great THAC0 even w/o dex bonus, a bounty hunter exploiting traps cheese or maybe some kind of char relying on shapeshifting can still be good even with sub-par stats.

(My apologies if this has been discussed before. I did a forum search and browsed through some pages w/o seeing its like. )

Discuss!

Edit: Changed from "roll" to stat points since I don't necessary mean for it the be legal stats. It could be all 3's if you can argue for it!

SionIV

In BGee and IWDee you can't roll under 75, you could do this in the original games.

Stats aren't as important as the class you pick, anything with arcane magic will be powerful even with low stats, same for divine magic and both of them can be used to boost your stats.

When i read "what would be the lowest possible roll you can make it with but still be pretty damn kick-ass?" The thing that springs to mind is a bard with low rolls. They do have arcane magic but it's few spells and you won't get the highest level spells either. At least 15 of those stats will go to charisma as well.

Vanilla bard with low stats would be my bet if you want a 'weak' character that can still be pretty damn kick ass if you pick the correct spells, one hold person can shut down 3 powerful fighters at once in BG1. You'll get a great lore score to identify items with and even if it's only vanilla bard song, it can be very neat for fights and remove things like fear from your party.

Skatan

I edited my post above, I mean lowest possible stat, not necessary from a legal row. So disregard the 75 minimum.

Mm, I like your reasoning behind the bard! This is exactly the kind of things I want to read! Keep it coming!

Skatan

What about jester? I don't have much experience playing those, but I've read about the jester song + invis, confusing mobs into fighting eachother.

SionIV

Skatan said:

What about jester? I don't have much experience playing those, but I've read about the jester song + invis, confusing mobs into fighting eachother.

Jester would be an awesome pick too, but pick either vanilla bard or jester as Skald and Blade are very powerful. The bard can also use clever tactics like polymorph self to turn into other dangerous creatures, this will also change his stats so will make it more interesting. Buff yourself up, polymorph to sword spider and then go kill people.

FinneousPJ

Similar to the sorcerer, a mage could own the game with a roll of 3-3-3-18-3-3 (3-3-3-3-3-3 on easy difficulty; otherwise learning spells is a problem!).

Other than that, your thought about the archer is good. I would add other classes with level-scaling bonuses, like swashie and kensai. Also, blackguard and assassin poison is really powerful and independent of stats. The barbarian's rage can boost a low roll to usable levels, as can clerical buffs.

Skatan

SionIV said:

Jester would be an awesome pick too, but pick either vanilla bard or jester as Skald and Blade are very powerful. The bard can also use clever tactics like polymorph self to turn into other dangerous creatures, this will also change his stats so will make it more interesting. Buff yourself up, polymorph to sword spider and then go kill people.

What do You mean when You say, pick a bard or jester cause skald or blade is too strong? My original question is about which class is strongest w/o taking stats into account.

Skatan

Is all three's and a nine in INT, relying on wands, enough to get by?

SionIV

Both the Blade and Skald are ridiculously strong, right up there with the mage. There is absolutely no challenge in picking a low stat skald or blade, but if you go with Jester or Bard it will prove to be a challenge.

DreadKhan

Since a Skald should usually be singing or slinging spells/wands, low stats are pretty irrelevant to them.

In BG1, there are more than a few Potions of Fortitude, which can cover even a very low cons completely, and LOTS of potions of strength, especially ones of the 18 str generic variety that nobody uses really, that would make a fighter much more viable than first glance. Toss in the added boost of the Dex gauntlets early, you can get by with minimum physical stats on a fighter-type. Barbarian rage will be a perk for sure, using those 18 str potions to go Hulk on enemies, but usually you would want ranged combat I expect. If you get the belt of big fists, thats 19 str, or tons for a Berserker to clean house while still wearing the dex gauntlets. Low HP will hurt, but for any hard fight you can have 18 cons.

Another trick worth remember in BG1 is the Cloak of the Wolf... it isn't exactly superb, but it boosts some stats for you. A bit hard to get for a weak charname, but you will be in good shape with that for any 'easy' fights that go to melee. Probably use a sling or darts for ranged, darts being a great choice IMO for this. @Quartz did some trial running of a low stat fighter back in the day, worked okay, but was tedious, like soloing a monk.

JuliusBorisov

Don't forget to check @meagloth 's http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/32385/rebooted-the-tale-of-loser-meagloths-24-roll-no-reload-run-complete#latest. It was hilarious!

Skatan

Thanks for the link @bengoshi! Read it all in one go (while sitting at work, pretending to work office ninja style)