@Lemernis Huh? No, no. Pure Mage. But in the beginning, he's more useful than Edwin that has only his crappy Quarterstaff. Xzar contributes at range even if he misses, at level 1. That's better than nothing and better than Edwin that just stands back until he gets Sling proficiency.
@Oxford_Guy Indeed. Giving DEX gauntlets to Edwin is a waste when he doesn't have any ranged weapons, until much much later. I prefer giving them to my main. (18/xx STR, 10 DEX, 18 CON, 10 WIS, 10 INT, 18 CHA).
@Lemernis Huh? No, no. Pure Mage. But in the beginning, he's more useful than Edwin that has only his crappy Quarterstuff. Xzar contributes at range even if he misses. That's better than nothing and better than Edwin that just stands back until he gets Sling proficiency.
I still give Edwin non-magic darts to use before he gets his second proficiency - they're cheap to use and light, and with 3 APR he will still get the odd critical hit. Throwing Daggers are *okay*, but only really come into their own with high-strength (16+) characters, also there are no magic ones in BGEE, unlike darts.
Still, Xzar has better DEX and he is proficient at it. Edwin would need DEX gloves and being proficient at it to not completely waste them.
In the end, you can do both. Have Xzar with Throwing Daggers and Edwin with Darts, at least they're doing something, instead of standing back, doing nothing.
Well, a mage's THACO is pretty poor, so regardless of what they're hurling they don't hit too well or do a lot of damage. It's more effective to have a mage casting spells whenever possible, imho. (I realize that early on spells get used up quick and then it's missiles of some sort--just spellcast whenever possible is my rule of thumb.) But that said, getting enjoyment from the game isn't always strictly about maximum effectiveness. It's also about exploring the game's many nuances. I enjoy Xzar's dagger tossing too.
Well, a mage's THACO is pretty poor, so regardless of what they're hurling they don't hit too well or do a lot of damage. It's more effective to have a mage casting spells whenever possible, imho. (I realize that early on spells get used up quick and then it's missiles of some sort--just spellcast whenever possible is my rule of thumb.) But that said, getting enjoyment from the game isn't always strictly about maximum effectiveness. It's also about exploring the game's many nuances. I enjoy Xzar's dagger tossing too.
Indeed, as for Edwin, if you give him the Ring of Wizardry, by mid-game he gets an insane amount of level 1 spells, so can just churn out Magic Missile instead of using weapons, for all but the most menial encounters.
@Lemernis For the first levels you want to have 1 Mage Armor memorized and the rest Chromatic Orbs or Sleep. You don't want to waste spells for damage, except if it's for bosses and even then, Chromatic Orb is more effective.
At first level, a Chromatic Orb can blind. Let melees and archers do the damage until you get the big guns and multiple Magic Missiles.
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Huh? No, no. Pure Mage. But in the beginning, he's more useful than Edwin that has only his crappy Quarterstaff.
Xzar contributes at range even if he misses, at level 1. That's better than nothing and better than Edwin that just stands back until he gets Sling proficiency.
Indeed. Giving DEX gauntlets to Edwin is a waste when he doesn't have any ranged weapons, until much much later.
I prefer giving them to my main. (18/xx STR, 10 DEX, 18 CON, 10 WIS, 10 INT, 18 CHA).
Still, Xzar has better DEX and he is proficient at it. Edwin would need DEX gloves and being proficient at it to not completely waste them.
In the end, you can do both. Have Xzar with Throwing Daggers and Edwin with Darts, at least they're doing something, instead of standing back, doing nothing.
For the first levels you want to have 1 Mage Armor memorized and the rest Chromatic Orbs or Sleep. You don't want to waste spells for damage, except if it's for bosses and even then, Chromatic Orb is more effective.
At first level, a Chromatic Orb can blind. Let melees and archers do the damage until you get the big guns and multiple Magic Missiles.