Yet Another Class Recommendation Topic

d00der82

I had recently started a pure mage playthrough and I have been having fun.... however it got me thinking. What about a f/m multiclass. I have no interest on dual classing so let's leave that off the table.

I wanna roll a f/m that is proficient in long bows for the early game, then dual wielding longs words and axes (personal preference) in the late game.

My only concern is my class being weak towards then end of bg2 when I am capped at 13/13 and not able to get much higher in TOB. I am not interested in removing the cap because I like to play the game as intended.

Other question is whether to go elf for bow/sword bonus or gnome for extra spell and shorty saves.

Thoughts?

AHF

Fighter mages are extremely strong. You should have no worries there. Both Elf and Gnome are completely viable options. From a power gaming perspective, I would go with Gnome based on the extra spell, hit points and saving throws but you can't go wrong with this multiclass.

Really, you have a ton of versatility in your options and can play this character a lot of different ways. You will have enough proficiency points to get proficient/specialized in all those weapons so you have broad options there as well. I would mention that axes are very good ranged weapons as well as melee (with magical ranged axes in both BG1 and BG2) so keep that option in mind. If you want to dual wield, however, you will find that changing between melee and ranged weapons is a bit of a pain so just be ready for that (you can't have a ranged weapon with a weapon in your off hand).

semiticgoddess

You won't have any problems with your Fighter/Mage. A multi-class F/M is strong at every stage of the saga.

Gnomes get an extra spell slot per spell level by virtue of their Illusionist kit, which also restricts you from Necromancy spells (it's not that big a loss for ordinary play with a Fighter/Mage). The elf gets better THAC0 in BG1, while the gnome will get better saving throws throughout the saga. I'd go with the gnome, since failed saves are the primary cause of reloads, and having extra castings of Sleep will help a lot with the early game in BG1.

Wowo

Gnome all the way.

Worth mentioning that any ranged weapon will be godlike in BG1 while in BG2 Longbows are rubbish while other ranged weapons are still decent (shortbow, crossbow, dagger etc).

Not sure why you would be capped at level 13/13? Are you playing bg2ee?

Skatan

I agree with gnome. Since a F/M isn't really used for offensive casting, you won't really miss horrid wilting. The extra spell slots is great and the saves are gravy.

I tend to always favour melee over ranged the longer I play, so beginning with ranged I often end up with dual wielding sooner or later and not really ever bothering to switch back (unless I create a F->M with only GM in ranged).

d00der82

Thank you for all of the input. Gnome seems the way to go. Still concerned about mid to late bg2. In theory losing 6 points of thaco on the fighter side seems like a hefty price to pay (maybe not in practice?)

I will have a full parttly to compenate for the multis shortcomings.

Wowo

d00der82 said:

Thank you for all of the input. Gnome seems the way to go. Still concerned about mid to late bg2. In theory losing 6 points of thaco on the fighter side seems like a hefty price to pay (maybe not in practice?)

I will have a full parttly to compenate for the multis shortcomings.

As a Bhaalspawn you will have significantly better stats and thac0 than a mere mortal and it's unlikely that you will notice any short comings at all.