I've played original BG1&2 before

Lelo

I usually play a fighter or a paladin but I'd like to try something new. Any suggestions?

moody_mage

What takes your fancy? You could try one of the other classes you haven't played, one of the many multi-class/dual-class options or give one of the new kits a whirl.

How about a Dwarven Defender?

Lelo

I'd kind of like to play a mage but I'm afraid a mage wouldn't stand much of a chance in BG.

moody_mage

Multi-class then. A fighter/mage is fearsome once you get a few levels behind you. Likewise a thief/mage can fill a number of useful roles.

Whilst mages are a bit squishy picking the right party members can alleviate this.

kcwise

You might also consider a cleric. They combine divine magic with the ability to wear armor and wield blunt weapons, offering you the chance to dabble in some spellcasting while still being able to thump an enemy when needed.

Wilbur

My most fun BG playthrough was with a thief/mage. It's a little more versatile than a pure mage and being able to backstab comes in handy in many situations (not so much in BG2 though).

Lelo

I usually play mages in most games but in BG1 mages usually get killed very easily. I'll probably stand a better chance at multi-classing.

LadyRhian

Yes, straight mage is hard. You are squishy, and it does well to recruit the less squishy ASAP. Warriors are a good bet for that. I'd have to second cleric as a good choice.

Wilbur

If I was to play a pure arcane spellcaster I'd be a sorcerer.

Genryu

I quite like some of the new classes, I'm a Dwarf addict, and Dwarven Defender was always my favourite class, so it was great that they added that! But if your heart is set on a mage then go for it, you would be surprised how effective they can be in BG1.

Mages can be a tough sell during the early levels, having the survivability of a paper doll, but as others have stated, this can be alleviated with a decent balanced party. It doesn't take to long for them to quickly grow in power however, and if your undaunted by the prospect of lots of micromanagement, then with the right buffs they can become some of the most hard to kill characters in the game.

I'm also a big fan of sorcerers, they are a lot more versatile than standard mages, having access to the entirety of their spell book at all times (Rather than being limited to what you have memorized at that moment). I know some people don't like how sorcerers have a smaller overall spell palette than traditional mages, however this has never really bothered me, most of those extra spells you will probably never end up using anyway, that or they will become ineffective at higher level. They also earn their spells at level up, rather than by scroll, meaning not only are they cheap, but you will also gain access to some spells that were never attainable by the player in the original BG1!

Also, if you want to try somthign different, have you considered wildmage? Personally I always avoided them in the original game, put off by their random nature, however I recently fell in love with the class after playing through with the game with the new NPC Neera in my party. They certainly add a unique flavour to your game, and can potentially become very powerful (Nahal's Reckless Dweomer can be devastating if used properly). I could talk about wild mage forever, but honestly its a class you just have to experience for yourself, it is the marmite of the BG universe, you either love it or hate it.

thelovebat

I would suggest either trying one of the new Paladin kits (all are pretty much better than the base Paladin class and have nice passive immunities), or I'd go ahead and try a dual class. Fighter dual classed into Mage can be really good, and it also means early in the game you won't have such a squishy character. By the time you dual class the rest of your party members should be leveled up enough and set to protect you from getting killed until you can get your old Fighter abilities back.

Swashbuckler dual classed into Fighter could serve you well too, only leveling up the essential thieving skills before dual classing into a Fighter who gets some great little bonuses of the Swashbuckler when you get your old abilities back. Dual classing at level 6 or 7 is generally the route you want to go depending on the class combo, if you want to get your first class abilities back in the first game.

Both of those dual classing combinations would allow you some utility and make sure you're not exactly a squishy character either. Also dual classing allows you to start off as a class kit then dual class into something else, whereas multiclassing doesn't allow you to do so with a kit so that's another thing to think about.

kristaok

I like playing rangers and mages.