Baldurs Gate 2 - Best item for each proficiency and what chapter its in (no plot spoilers plz)
ojthesimpson
Member Posts: 121
Hello I have never played D and D or BG2. I had a super hard time in BG1 cause you choose a "proficiency" like bastard sword but then there was no good Bastard swords anywhere.
I really want to pick a good proficiency this time cause I couldnt use anything in bg1 and it was annoying.
I know there's a sweet 2h sword but dont u have to be chaotic evil to get it?
again no major spoilers just list the best item for each proficiency u can think of so I know which is best to pick as a new player needing an easier time (I bet all of us together can come up with a helpful list)
p.s. I wanna get this run through done so I can replay bg1 and get my party ready for seige of dragonspear (oh my god right ? where were these games when I was a kid my parents didnt let me use computers or the internet)
I really want to pick a good proficiency this time cause I couldnt use anything in bg1 and it was annoying.
I know there's a sweet 2h sword but dont u have to be chaotic evil to get it?
again no major spoilers just list the best item for each proficiency u can think of so I know which is best to pick as a new player needing an easier time (I bet all of us together can come up with a helpful list)
p.s. I wanna get this run through done so I can replay bg1 and get my party ready for seige of dragonspear (oh my god right ? where were these games when I was a kid my parents didnt let me use computers or the internet)
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Comments
There is a awesome sword for paladins. If you don't play one yourself someone else can wield it. You will meet that someone in BG 2.
I would definitely not put pips in bastard swords in either game. You have already found the lacking of good ones.
In my d&d world dwarfs only carries axes by the way. Yes I am prejudiced against dwarfs with swords. Just doesn't add up in my narrow world.
For your mage choose quarterstaff. Because twisted rune.
Battle axe: Axe of the Unyielding, Watcher's Keep
Club: Club of detonation, Watcher's Keep
Mace: Storm Star, Watcher's Keep
Quarterstaff: Staff of the Ram , watcher's Keep, or Staff of the Magi if playing as a mage, chapter 2 (tough fight)
Warhammer: Crom Faeyr, chapter 6, or Runehammer, chapter 8
Bastard sword: Foebane, Watcher's Keep , Purifier (paladin only)
Long Sword: Angurvadal, Watcher's Keep, Black Razor, chapter 7
Scimitar: Spectral Brand, Watcher's Keep
Two handed sword: Gram the sword of Grief, chapter 9, Silver sword, chapter 6, Carsomyr (paladin only), chapter 2, Unholy Reaver (blackguard only) , Watcher's Keep
Halberd: The Ravager, chapter 8
Spear: Ixil's Spike, Watcher's Keep, The Impaler, Chapter 4
Dagger: Dagger of the Stars, Watcher's Keep
Short Sword: Short Sword of Mask, chapter 2
Flail: Flail of Ages, chapter 2
Longbow: Taralash, Watcher's Keep
Short bow: Short bow of Gesen, chapter 6
Crossbow: Firetooth, chapter 2
Sling: Sling of Everad, chapter 2, Erinne Sling, Watcher's Keep
All of the watcher's keep item are rather hard (Impossible for a casual player, though powergamer might work something out) to get chapter two except foebane which you can get fairly easily (first floor of the watcher's keep)
Furthermore, there's a particularly difficult opponent who is
Therefore I recommend that Bastard Sword is actually a very good proficiency to have in a BG1ee party, but only for one party member and only if you know where to find the right weapon(s). There are lots of good weapons in BG2ee, far more than in BG1ee. You can eventually find a pretty good weapon in almost any category, although some are definitely more plentiful than others.
Good Clubs and good Katanas both exist, but only a couple of good ones in each of those categories, and neither offers a weapon which is still really good when you reach the end-game, so you might want to avoid both of those proficiencies until you know what you're looking for. Any other category, I reckon you'll find a fairly decent weapon quite quickly, and a terrific weapon eventually. (Incidentally, for the avoidance of doubt, that includes Bastard Swords - there are good ones available, and eventually there's a couple of terrific ones.) There are several very good 2H swords in BG2ee, including one which you can find early in Chapter 2. There are none which specifically require Chaotic Evil, but there are a couple which require being Evil (not necessarily Chaotic) ... on the other hand, the best of all is one which requires being a Paladin (and therefore Lawful Good). But there are also other good ones which have no alignment restrictions. You haven't said what class your character is! That makes a great difference to what weapon is most suitable.
In general, however, it's probably fair to say that there's a wider variety of interesting Long Swords than any other category, and several very good Axes as well. Choose either Long Sword or Axe, and you'll never have much trouble finding a fine weapon. However, you will also want someone in your party who is good with blunt weapons, because numerous enemies are resistant (and in some cases outright immune) to sharp weapons. It'll take a while. Be aware that BG2ee is a significantly longer game than BG1ee ... YMMV, but IMO about double the length.
Note that a couple of these (axes in particular) have several roughly equal options. In such cases, I'm listing the easiest ones to find. Also note, however, that a lot of the chapter 2 items are extremely spread out, and you might not find them that early.
Battle axe: Stonefire, chapter 2
Club: Gnasher, chapter 2
Mace: Mace of Disruption (upgraded), chapter 2
Quarterstaff: Staff of Rynn, chapter 2, or Staff of the Magi (mage/sorcerer only), chapter 2
Warhammer: Crom Faeyr, chapter 6
Bastard sword: Jhor the Bleeder, chapter 5
Long Sword: Daystar, chapter 2
Scimitar: Belm, chapter 2
Two handed sword: Silver sword, chapter 6, or Carsomyr (paladin only), chapter 2
Halberd: Dragon's Breath, chapter 5
Spear: The Impaler, chapter 4
Dagger: Pixie Prick, chapter 2
Short Sword: Cutthroat, chapter 6
Flail: Flail of Ages, chapter 2
Longbow: Heartseeker, chapter 2, or Strong Arm (19 strength required), chapter 2
Shortbow: Shortbow of Gesen, chapter 6
Crossbow: Giant Hair Crossbow, chapter 2
Sling: Sling of Everad, chapter 2
In Watcher's Keep/Throne of Bhaal, you can find better weapons of most types.
I would add Soul Reaver +4 (chapter 5) to your 2H Swords list, and 2 scimitars you can get temporarily (or definitively if you installed BG Tweaks to delete the most annoying character in BG2) in chapter 6
Axes are alright but imo unimpressive. Bastard Swords have a very good sword late in the game, but not much until that. Short Swords are not good, neither are Daggers. Scimitars are mediocre, as are Warhammers until you get the uber-hammer later in the game. Slings can be quite good if you use them right.
Katana is an interesting one. There is one extremely good katana early-ish (depending on how good you are) in the game, which will make mincemeat of most of SoA. However in ToB it's not that good anymore for various reasons (though still usable) and there aren't really any other interesting katana.
2h weapons I am not a huge fan of in general, with the noteable exception of the paladin Badassinator. This is a ludicrously OP weapon that skilled players can acquire fairly early. Still, requires a Paladin or a rogue with Use Any Item.
Put a couple pips in flails and go talk to the girl named Nalia in the Copper Coronet. You'll end up with a solid +3 weapon that you will find useful in almost every situation, all the way to the end of Throne of Bhaal. There are other weapons you might like, but you'll never kick yourself for choosing the Flail of Ages.
Anyway, it's absolutely feasible to go to WK quickly for Foebane (I do it regularly). However, players that aren't that well-versed in the game may find even the first level difficult if they go there too early. FoA on the other hand is very easy to get, even for a starting party.
All that being said, you can very well just go for BOTH. You do after all tend to have multiple party members, who can use multiple weapons
Bastard Sword is a perfectly good weapon option. I'd think carefully before having two members of the same party both relying on finding good Bastard Swords, but for one member it's no problem. The only NPCs who come with this proficiency already chosen are Keldorn and Dorn (and not even either of them if you recruit them early, before they hit level 9), so your protagonist can often arrange to have no competition for the use of what Bastard Swords there are.
Truly, the only weapon proficiencies in BG2ee against which I'd warn a new player are Clubs and Katanas. In every other category, you'll soon enough find yourself a good weapon for each phase of the game.
this has opened up the game to me a little more.
I've had a hard time letting a single weapon go unused. Like if i get a better magic weapon from another category I am so worried if I cant use it. Seems like I can relax a little more than I was.
do i have to use 2 daggers to backstab?
Of course, simply going for bastard with the expressed intent of simply rushing to Foebane is a perfectly valid reason. Same goes for katana and Celestial Fury, another category with one stellar weapon and a whole lot of unimpressive meh...
Note: if you want some more balanced weapon variety (and more weapon balance in general) I can greatly recommend the Item Revisions mod. It does a good job at homogenizing weapon choices a bit more so you have a better selection at various points in the game, and it also tones down some of the admittedly ludicrously powerful weapons like FoA and Carsomyr.
Anyway, we better not derail this discussion too far...
No.
Sendai and the Ravager are immune to vorpal hits. So are ToB dragons. But Balors and Ka'rashur are vulnerable.
So are liches and beholders and mind flayers.
And giants and golems and drow.
And demons and mages. And almost everything else.
The critters that a vorpal strike will take down are not just mephits and gibberlings. They also include some of the most ridiculously powerful monsters in the saga.
There aren't any truly bad weapon types. Every weapon type has at least one marvelous pre-ToB option. And most of those weapons can be found as early as Chapter 2.
Well, except longbows.
Longbows really do suck.
"Bad" of course is a relative term. It's not a matter of absolutes, only of relative power values. Lots of contingencies, lots of variables. Not so much "this weapon type is bad" but rather "this other type is better".
Except longbows.
For example, Balthazar's mercenaries are pretty tough and they keep on coming for a long time, you have to kill loads before they give up. They can be quite a serious threat if your AC is even slightly dodgy (who the heck ever said that AC "doesn't matter" in ToB?), but the vorpal axe carves through them pretty efficiently. The vorpal axe is highly effective in most other places mentioned above too, such as Sendai's Enclave. (And unlike the FoA, it doesn't have that terrible Free Action nerf to block IH ... yes, I know there's an exploit to dodge the nerf, but that's cheating in my book.) I'm typically dual-wielding the AotU with CF in the off-hand, which makes the Axe pretty damaging. Yes, 25 STR makes any melee weapon pretty damaging, but there's not much better than the Axe. When I need blunt (or negative plane protection), I'll switch to Runehammer (since I've already got Hammer proficiencies for CF). (Note that since I don't cheat my way around the Free Action on FoA, that'd be a dumb choice for end-game dual-wielding blunt.) Sometimes Foebane can be better, but that depends who we're fighting. And the Axe isn't just vorpal, it's +1 CON and +1 AC and +1 HP/round, all of which add up to a useful bonus to durability in long end-game battles. I reckon you're seriously under-estimating what a good weapon it is.
I suppose the one concession I could make to the Axe is Nightmare Mode. Given the higher HP of everything, the axe could translate into enough added virtual damage via vorpal hits that it would be worth using. I say that with some reservations though, as extra HP on bosses also means that more damage against them is more valuable, too.
Perhaps it all comes down to how difficult you find hordes of trash mobs. Personally I've always just more or less plowed through them semi-afk. The Yaga-Shura camp or Balthazar's mercenaries have never really been a challenge, nor have the trash mobs in places like Sendai's Enclave or Abazigal's Lair. YMMV on that I suppose, and if you find it more difficult to get through that, then the axe would increase in value.
OT: does anyone know of a decent database for all the weapon stats in some easily readable form? I used to have a spreadsheet comparing the average damage values of all available weapons, but now that's tainted by my extensive modding and doesn't really work for most vanilla-based discussions.
Damage bonuses give linear benefits. A 50% increase in the damage you deal is equal to a 50% reduction in the damage you take. But damage bonuses are set as integers rather than percent increases or decreases. You get a +5 to damage, not a +25% to damage, and so stacking damage bonuses gives linear benefits.
It's different in 3E, when resistance is replaced by DR, and the damage you take and deal is modified in a linear fashion, but in 2E at least, defensive bonuses give more benefits than offensive ones. Your character is better off dealing 10 damage per round for 100 rounds (thanks to high resistances) than 20 damage per round for 10 rounds (thanks to high damage bonuses).
But Hardiness doesn't last forever, so the offensive option during Hardiness has less opportunity cost. If you don't have Hardiness active, Defender of Easthaven is probably stronger than Namarra. But if you do have Hardiness active, it's better to hold onto your best offensive option, since maximizing your defenses will only last so long.
Stacking defense higher than 80% is irrelevant indeed considering how low an amount of damage that will allow you to tank.
Anyway, we are drifting off topic here.