A new player to BG
HauntingSiren
Member Posts: 12
As a child I used to watch my Dad play BG day in day out. He was good at the game. I used to give it a go when I was young but found it difficult. With the game coming out for the iPad and with it flooding back so many memories of BG, I've decided I have to get it and give the game a damn good go.
My questions are :
- You create 1 PC instead of a full party (like IWD), is that correct?
- As a newbie what would be a good class to play first off? (I believe a Thief is useful is it not?)
My questions are :
- You create 1 PC instead of a full party (like IWD), is that correct?
- As a newbie what would be a good class to play first off? (I believe a Thief is useful is it not?)
1
Comments
I think it's easier to try one of the most basic classes (fighter, mage, thief, cleric). These are all needed in an average playthrough.
2. As a newbie you can't really go wrong with a Fighter. Fighters are great at low levels as they pack a big punch and can take a licking. Of course your main PC is of super importance because when he/she dies it's game over. So having a tough and resilient PC is always useful.
Thief is useful, but there are loads of good thieves in the game, one of which (Imoen) is available essentially from the very start of the game.
People talk all the time about powerful classes and powerbuilds yada yada yada. A lot of that stuff is really complicated and far from recommended for a newbie as it requires knowing 2e D&D rules like the back of your hand.
Playing a Fighter is always pretty easy to understand and you will likely have to worry a whole lot less about dying. There are, however, some good fighters to find to join your party as well, although it is not as represented a class as thieves by NPCs. Clerics are essential to any team, and while a lot of the clerics in BG1 are decent, none of them exceed decent.
I would actually *highly* recommend you go with a Fighter/Cleric your first go, or either of those two if a multi-class sounds kind of daunting to you. But seriously, you can't go wrong with that class. At no point are you weak, at all, ever. The only thing tough about a multi-class like that is getting a good roll. Don't be afraid to spend a lot of time getting a good roll. For Fighter/Cleric we are talking like an 18 Strength, 18 Constitution, 18 Dexterity, [who cares] Intelligence, 18 Wisdom, [who cares] Charisma. That might take a while though, and while I say "who cares" I wouldn't advise taking Charisma below 8 or 9. Some dialogues might be rather ... unfavorable.
I too had a very difficult time with this game for a looong time. When I went Fighter/Cleric, I kicked its ass. Enough said. From then on of course I've branched out, done other things to see how it goes. But for a first playthrough, I totally understand it can be pretty hard and you will likely have to powergame a little bit. (e.g. Purposefully pick up certain NPCs because they have better stats, with less regard to how much/how little you enjoy their personality) NPCs I would recommend that you can't go wrong with are: Imoen (Excellent Thief), Edwin (Mage who, while weak, wields a grotesque number of spells, he WILL satisfy your need for magery), Kivan (Awesome archer who can actually still do great in melee combat), Coran (Incredible archer, good fighter/thief). You simply cannot go wrong with those folks, and there are plenty of other good NPCs besides them of course.
That said, tactics I would advise, without getting too far into detail: Emphasize ranged combat, especially when you are low level. If enemies can't get to you to bash what little Hit Points you have, then there's a whole lot less to worry about. The moment you get a mage to Level 3, memorize Web and/or Stinking Cloud. Use that shiznit on crowds of really mean opponents. Rain arrows and bullets on them as they are stuck and you can't miss.
Also for your first run it can be quite advantageous to leave no stone unturned. Explore the hell out of open areas, you'll find all sorts of stuff and earn plenty of EXP. I'm also saying this so you won't accidentally pass up Kivan, hahaha!
So as a multiclass fighter/cleric I'm guessing it's almost a battlecleric (I am very familiar with the 3.5e rules as I play Pen and Paper with my Dad and a few of his friends. I know the rules like the back of my hand) 2e rules baffle me, but I have the general jist of how Thac0 works to be honest.
As I was saying, Fighter/Cleric is that a Cleric with low amount of spells in favor of better fighting? A human as a guess would be best for this class too for the extra points?
You wouldn't end up with a low amount of spells, thankfully. You would have plenty. The reason Fighter/Cleric is so badass is because unlike other multi-classes, you don't really have to make exceptions. What I mean is, say look at a Fighter/Mage. That's cool and all, but you can't cast spells while wearing armor, which is a big deal. You can't really quite fulfill a real fighter role if you lack a good Armor Class.
With a Fighter/Cleric, you don't have to worry about having any disadvantages whatsoever, outside of being restricted to clerical weapons. That is literally all you are missing out on. So you make a good fighter who uses morning stars, hammers, slings and the like rather than swords and bows, basically. The good side of this is, you will obviously be equipping a shield, which is always helpful.
Anyway to directly answer your question, I believe you would be missing out on a mere two spells per day at level cap, as compared to a pure Cleric. 'Cause you would cap at level 7 Cleric, whereas a pure Cleric would cap out at level 8. They would have one more 3rd level spell and one more 4th level spell, I believe.
I realize people often make multi-classes to fill in a sort of blank spot they have whereas other pure classes take over the main responsibilities. But with Fighter/Cleric your clerical side is likely entirely fulfilled. Still advise getting another Fighter or two, of course.
Personally a Dwarven Fighter/Cleric is ideal for me, especially if BGEE does implement the Wisdom based saves that has been requested. That said Half-Orcs would also make amazing Fighter/Cleric as they can get a natural strength and constitution of 19 (meaning they can get to 20 with the available tomes).
What would the Ideal stats be in BG for a Horc Fighter/Cleric? Im guessing, a good strength, good constitution, good wisdom, average charisma, Int is not too important. Is Dex required when using Plate Mail?
Dex all the way, this isn't like 3rd Ed which limits Dex bonuses to armour type. If you have 18 Dex you get -4 AC regardless of what armour you wear. So full plate and full Dex is a winning combo.
As you may know there are tomes which raise your attributes in game. It is possible to get your Horc to naturally regenerate by getting to 20 Con.
Horcs aren't known for being super intelligent (by games standards) anyway :P
I imagine it will be somewhat similar to the PC guide below though... hopefully.
With regards to the Half Orc Fighter/Cleric. What level progression should I go? Low level cleric then work up fighter? or Visa versa? Maybe keep the levels within 1 of each other. IE, 1 fighter, 1fight/1cleric, 2 fight/1 cleric then 2 fight/2 cleric? Please give me or message me a small indepth guide? I'd like to have a simple to understand guide to making a fairly good character. Then once I've done a playthrough I'll understand what is needed from a character in BG:EE. Thank you if you can help me
Human = dual class, cannot multiclass
Everyone else = preset multiclasses, cannot dual class
With multiclass the xp is spread evenly between your 2/3 classes so you level up at a slower rate i.e. you earn 1000 xp for killing a rat then your fighter half gets 500xp and your cleric half gets 500xp.
If you dual class then you would be a pure fighter up until a stage (getting a full 1000xp for that rat) but at some later stage you completely change to a cleric and cannot progress any higher with your fighter. you also don't get to use your previous class abilities until you reach a higher level with your new class.
Confusing I know for a new player so my advice would be to stick with multi-classing
Dual-classing is confusing and worse yet, risky.
I've always found that fighter/thief has great utility. I spam the dice till I have around 18/+75 or more strength, 19 dex(elf), 14 intelligence, 12 constitution.