Help a newbie out? Party Creation.
Re4XN
Member Posts: 4
Long story short, I grew tired of modern games and decided to ask my uncle for his old Baldur's Gate saga. I completed the first game (definitely not 100%, and will definitely play it again sometime) after attempting to start playing it 5 times (old school rules almost killed it for me, but then I got the hang of it and actually started enjoying it). I completed the first game as a pure class thief, not the best, but I wasn't very fond of attempting to multi-class on my first playthrough.
I don't want to immediately jump into Baldur's Gate II, so I recently got Icewind Dale and to my surprise, I had to create an entire party. While I am happy for such a level of customization, I have limited knowledge since I have been playing this kind of game for little more than 2 months.
My current party looks like this:
- Elven Fighter/Thief --> Rolled an 18/93 in Strength with 86 AS overall, I'd say it turned out quite nicely. My original idea was to go with an archer (and still is), but do you suggest I turn him into the tank with these stats?
- Half-Elf Wild Mage --> My favourite mage class, I like how unpredictable they are and they get extra spells.
- Human Archer --> Turned out quite good too. I enjoyed having two archers in my party in BG1, not sure if it still good in IWD, what do you think?
- Human Cavalier --> Seemed like an interesting addition to the party, not to mention his resistances.
- Half-Elf Fighter/Cleric --> Wanted someone who could tank some damage but provide a bit of utility to the party, seemed like a decent enough choice.
- ??? I am not sure about this one here. Half the people I ask tell me to go Bard, the other half claims Bards suck and go another Fighter or Mage. I ended up going Bard, but I feel like I have -1 person in my party, since he can't attack (though the songs seem useful later on in the game). Personally, I was considering Fighter/Druid.
How well will this party perform in IWD? Any particular thing you'd change? Any tips for a new player? I heard there'd be a lot of undead, so I guess some sort of Cleric is a must. I haven't started any quests yet, because I still feel like I can get a better party (both in terms of RP and mechanically).
Also, how hard is it to multi-class? It's my first time attempting at it, but it doesn't seem too complex (definitely not as much as dual-classing). Thanks in advance.
I don't want to immediately jump into Baldur's Gate II, so I recently got Icewind Dale and to my surprise, I had to create an entire party. While I am happy for such a level of customization, I have limited knowledge since I have been playing this kind of game for little more than 2 months.
My current party looks like this:
- Elven Fighter/Thief --> Rolled an 18/93 in Strength with 86 AS overall, I'd say it turned out quite nicely. My original idea was to go with an archer (and still is), but do you suggest I turn him into the tank with these stats?
- Half-Elf Wild Mage --> My favourite mage class, I like how unpredictable they are and they get extra spells.
- Human Archer --> Turned out quite good too. I enjoyed having two archers in my party in BG1, not sure if it still good in IWD, what do you think?
- Human Cavalier --> Seemed like an interesting addition to the party, not to mention his resistances.
- Half-Elf Fighter/Cleric --> Wanted someone who could tank some damage but provide a bit of utility to the party, seemed like a decent enough choice.
- ??? I am not sure about this one here. Half the people I ask tell me to go Bard, the other half claims Bards suck and go another Fighter or Mage. I ended up going Bard, but I feel like I have -1 person in my party, since he can't attack (though the songs seem useful later on in the game). Personally, I was considering Fighter/Druid.
How well will this party perform in IWD? Any particular thing you'd change? Any tips for a new player? I heard there'd be a lot of undead, so I guess some sort of Cleric is a must. I haven't started any quests yet, because I still feel like I can get a better party (both in terms of RP and mechanically).
Also, how hard is it to multi-class? It's my first time attempting at it, but it doesn't seem too complex (definitely not as much as dual-classing). Thanks in advance.
2
Comments
You can't go wrong with vanilla bard or skald. Their songs are great, they are useful secondary spellcasters and you can ignore your thief's pickpocket skill since bards can do that.
I personally prefer jester, but that kit is an acquired taste.
Since you already have an archer for ranged attacks and two tanks (pally and f/c), I would replace fighter/thief with cleric/thief or mage/thief.
Also, the two archers is just personal preference, but I can change that if it has a big impact (though I think it doesn't, but then again, it's my first time playing IWD).
Also, regarding multi/dual-classing, how hard is it to pull off? Multi doesn't seem too hard, except you'll probably be a level behind the rest of the party, but dual classing confuses me, especially when to switch. Any advice?
Also, I am interested in the Stalker. Although I think Archer is better, Stalker seems more fun to play, considering they can dual wield. What do you think?
My final party is as follows:
- Azur, Chaotic Good Elven Fighter/Thief;
- Sybil, Chaotic Neutral Half-Elven Wild Mage (love this class);
- Gawayn, Lawful Good Human Cavalier;
- Behlen, Lawful Good Dwarven Fighter/Cleric;
- Ysolda, Neutral Good Human Archer;
- Grimm, True Neutral Skald.
I have been playing for a couple of hours and it seems to be working great. I have negative AC on both my Fighters (Thief and Cleric) and a THAC0 of 11 on my archers (with Skald's Song + Bless), which seems absolutely game-breaking, but I am probably going to eat my words soon :P
Multiclassed characters do level up quite slow, but I am expecting to sow the seeds during mid game, hopefully. My Bard is level 3, while my Fighter/Thief is still level 1 (almost 2, TBH). Nothing too serious I hope. Wish me luck ^^
Nice to hear that you are having fun.
That is the beauty of IE games, there is no such thing as a bad party. All party builds are viable, some are just more challenging to play than others and it is up to the player to adjust his playstyle accordingly.
Bard's main role is to buff by singing but he is an okay spellcaster. Wether you want to you use him for buffs, debuffs or aoe spells is up to the you and your overall combat strategy. In any case, it will be easier for your wild mage to focus on the spells you most frequently use. Give/dump the rest to bard.
Or you can try simultaneous skull trap casting
Stalker is a good class for scouting, backstabbing and it can hold more than well in both ranged & melee. Only downside is the armor restriction so it takes some micromanagement to use this class for tanking.
Though I'd put the paladin in the front, simply to get some more dialog options...
(I'm also a big fan of the Wild Mage class btw., and I recommend installing the "New Wild Magic Spells" component from the Wild Mage Additions mod, which makes the class even more fun. It can be safely installed even after you've already started a game. Skip the other components of the mod though.)