Is this a well balanced party?

Shrimpboy107

Hi all! I've been getting into a BG kick and I restarted BG:EE as a Cleric/Ranger multi because it sounded like a very fun build. I'm loving it right now, enough to consider buying BG2:EE. However, I'm one of those people that likes to plan their party and everything beforehand, even in PnP I've planned more characters from level one to cap than I've actually ever played, just because I enjoy doing it. Considering I've only beaten BG:EE once and played it a few other times a little bit, and only played BG2 a little bit once when I was younger, I'd like it if you guys would look over my party for SoA and ToB!

My planned good alignedparty is as follows:
Charname: Ranger/Cleric dual wielding FoA and either Defender of Easthaven or Crom Faeyr
Neera: Romantic interest, unpredictable wild surges, then broken later levels when Nahal's can be used consistently
Imoen: Thieving and supporting mage, probably buffs for the party because it will be safer than letting Neera do it
Minsc: BUTT KICKING FOR GOODNESS! Super flavorful character, wield a big f'n sword
Keldorn: Mage bane. Carsomyr. Arguably one of the best NPCs in the game
Valygar: Backstabber, scout, dual wield Celestial Fury and Belm, probably Spectral Brand if I make him stay for ToB.

What I'm looking for is a well balanced good aligned party that has a lot of fun and flavorful dialogue. However, I'm not sure if my Ranger/Cleric multi alone can fulfill the divine spellcasting needs of the party. Is Valygar's scouting a backstabbing important/useful in BG2? Should I search for a modded F/T multi for better skills and utility (set traps and detect illusions, etc.) or a modded Cleric/Anomen instead for more divine spellcasting?

Thanks for your help!

Oh since I'm here, I'll ask this question for ToB. *SPOILERS!*

Who should I remove for Sarevok in ToB while keeping the party balanced and having fun dialogue? I know Minsc would be the best choice mechanically, but does he have worthwhile banter and interactions in ToB? I plan on keeping Sarevok a fighter for Ravager +6 GM if that influences who to remove.

JLee

Functionally, that party is very well balanced and could certainly take you all the way through ToB. However, if you place a premium on dialog, you could find other characters to be more enjoyable. I think you will have fun with the proposed party, so I hesitate to recommend any changes.

Sometime play with Yoshimo, Jan, Korgan, Mazzy, oh lord this could be a long list...

I also used to plan everything out well in advance, but I've found that a more spontaneous mindset has dividends as well. It's fun and interesting to let circumstances dictate your decisions. I guess I'm trying to say that your party will be strong, but don't feel locked in if things don't go according to plan.

I love Valygar, but he is a dour fellow. His scouting and backstabbing are useful throughout, although perhaps less so late game. It depends on your playstyle. I happen to like playing the backstabbing scout style, so Valygar suits my games. He has banters with most people, but they tend to be serious in nature. He and Keldorn have some interesting discussions, but he does best with Mazzy.

With Keldorn, you won't need to detect illusions with a thief. His instacast True Sight is amazing.

You have enough divine casting, imo. It depends on how you like to play. Some people prefer more than a /cleric, but you can beat the game for sure.

And I agree with your impulse on your spoiler question.

Oh and welcome to the forums!

biffyclanger

Seems good to me! You really don't need Crom Faeyr for you R/C. By the time you get it made you will have plenty of ways to make your own str 25. Better give it to someone who cannot get it easily.

lunar

Very nice party. Your char is versatile to be a blocker/blitzer fighter or healer. With iron skins (if you get that spell in your setup) and armor of faith+defender of eah+hardiness you can tank amazingly. With crom+foa improved haste dual wielding you can kill stuff fast. Healing spells from a cleric are absolutely unnecesarry in ToB, where you have superiour potions+rods of res and planetar summons galore, regeneration items and a safe pocket plane to rest. Use cleric spells for buffing (death ward, chaotic commands, pro from fire/lightning etc) summoning (animate dead, aerial servants, elementals if you can get them) and blasting (storm of vengeance, fire storm, energy blades when you need a ranged attack)

You have two very good mages, which are essential in bg2, really. Plus Imoen is enough for all the thieving needs, even in ToB.

Minsc is a good fighter, but arguably Sarevok would be even better in ToB. Minsc does not have too many interactions in tob, as far as I know. So you can swap him for Sarevok for more power.

Valygar can be an excellent flanker/backstabber. You can, however, swap Valygar with Sarevok instead. Scouting and backstabbing has limited usefulness in ToB. Raw damage potential is more important, and Sarevok excels at that. If Valygar does not use backstabs or equip a str enhancing item he will do middling damage in melee. While Sarevok will own.

Keldorn is AMAZING with Carsomyr and his special abilities, absolute mage killer.

ifupauline

It seems good but I have never been a fan of 2 mages in a single party, maybe you could replace Imoen to give more versatile gameplay.

gorgonzola

Good and balanced party imo.
I see a problem with Neera, as get the right feeling for BG2 arcane magic is not so easy, it take time and experimentation. And wild mages are Tricky to use if you don't want to risk a lot of reloads. Maybe for the first run is too much.
I don't want to spoil you more about the party NPCs and possible alternatives or tips on how to use them at their best, is your first run and also if I understand your need to plan everything in advance remember that you can also do it the second run, the first is special, comes once in the life. The less you spoil it the better it will be....

The unmodded game can be played with every party, your party is good and balanced, so don't worry, Minsc & C. will kick enemies butts without problems.

Shrimpboy107

Thank you all for your comments and remarks! This community is so nice and helpful. It's refreshing. I'm excited to get to the game and to see who I end up choosing to dump in ToB.

brunardo

good team, Had a simlar playthrough but didnt have valygar and would say you can dump him at TOB, even in BG2 dont need two rangers and his dialogue is weak (unless you have mazzy)

Bubbles

An overpowered team ^^.
It makes the run like a stroll in the park ^^.
Just my 2 cents opinion, since the party is heading down the powergaming lane, you might wanna consider Mazzy for the range attacks and a thief or a multi-thief.