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The Equalizer? What's so great about it?

AttalusAttalus Member Posts: 156
in Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Edition
I have made The Equalizer several times in the past and found it a disappointment, just another +3 long sword. Then I noticed somebody posted that they were dualing something powerful (Foebane?) with it. Am I missing something?
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Comments

  • bob_vengbob_veng Member Posts: 2,308
    edited June 2017
    it's good in the off-hand if the +6 bonus damage to certain alignments extends to the main hand. i know that people have been mentioning this a long time ago but i never tried that and it certainly shouldn't work like that
  • luskanluskan Member Posts: 269
    bob_veng said:

    it's good in the off-hand if the +6 bonus damage to certain alignments extends to the main hand. i know that people have been mentioning this a long time ago but i never tried that and it certainly shouldn't work like that

    My understanding was that "feature" was fixed in BG2:EE. So check the date of the posts to see if they were talking about pre or post EE.
  • Lord_TansheronLord_Tansheron Member Posts: 4,212
    It used to apply its alignment bonus damage on every hit regardless of which weapon made it, but I do believe that's fixed.
  • AttalusAttalus Member Posts: 156
    Yes, the immunity to Confusion would be very helpful, I can say. Not sure that it justifies the expense and trouble, but nice.
  • PaulaMigratePaulaMigrate Member Posts: 1,201
    Equalizer and also Gensen's bow should be considered more as quests than as weapons, in the way that what you finally get may not fully justify the procedure to gain them. Their story may mislead you to expect more. It is not that those are the best weapons in the game just because you need all this effort for them.
    They are not useless, but the emphasis is on getting them assembled, the plot is more important than the goal.
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    Considering that very few enemies in the BG series are neutral, its extra damage procs on almost everything. It always ends up being my charnames mainhand weapon until I can get upgraded Purifier and Angurdavel (sp?).
  • AttalusAttalus Member Posts: 156
    @Thacobell: But I get Purifier very early in Chapter 2. It's pretty easy for a level 10 or so party to get through the second level of Watcher's Keep and then go snag the Purifier and then leave the rest of WK until TOB. I get Foebane even earlier. My Level 9 Pally is carrying it now.
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    Attalus said:

    @Thacobell: But I get Purifier very early in Chapter 2. It's pretty easy for a level 10 or so party to get through the second level of Watcher's Keep and then go snag the Purifier and then leave the rest of WK until TOB. I get Foebane even earlier. My Level 9 Pally is carrying it now.

    Equalizer wasn't balanced for ToB, so if you go to WK early, then yeah, pretty much any SoA weapon won't really compare.
  • lamaroslamaros Member Posts: 139
    Take out WK and the 'bonus' Merchants and half the gear in BG2 is drastically better.
  • RaduzielRaduziel Member Posts: 4,714
    Does the Equalizer hits Kangaxx?
  • jsavingjsaving Member Posts: 1,083
    Offhand weapons only attack once per round so it makes sense to put weapons with static bonuses, like the Equalizer or the Hammer of Thunderbolts, there. Then you put weapons with on-hit effects, like the Flail of the Ages, in your main hand.
  • Grond0Grond0 Member Posts: 7,459
    jsaving said:

    Offhand weapons only attack once per round so it makes sense to put weapons with static bonuses, like the Equalizer or the Hammer of Thunderbolts, there. Then you put weapons with on-hit effects, like the Flail of the Ages, in your main hand.

    But in the EE the Equalizer doesn't get any static bonuses ...
  • WatchForWolvesWatchForWolves Member Posts: 183
    PaulaMigrate said:

    Equalizer and also Gensen's bow should be considered more as quests than as weapons, in the way that what you finally get may not fully justify the procedure to gain them. Their story may mislead you to expect more. It is not that those are the best weapons in the game just because you need all this effort for them.

    Gesen's at least has the advantage of being the only bow in the game capable of hitting every enemy, as the default arrows inherit the +4 enchantment, so it's unique in that way.

    But the Equalizer is just sad. It should at least strike as a +5, or even +6.
  • Lord_TansheronLord_Tansheron Member Posts: 4,212
    edited June 2017
    Grond0 said:

    But in the EE the Equalizer doesn't get any static bonuses ...

    That's the thing, it used to. It effectively had a static bonus of + damage on each hit, whether from the Equalizer itself or another weapon. Depending on setup, this could be fairly powerful.
  • fatelessfateless Member Posts: 330
    As somebody mentioned. the equalizer was never made with ToB in mind when it was implemented in SoA. I don't know why they didn't put an upgrade to it though to fix that.
  • GallowglassGallowglass Member Posts: 3,356
    Grond0 said:

    But in the EE the Equalizer doesn't get any static bonuses ...

    Yes it does. It no longer gives a static THAC0 bonus (which was surely a bug), but the immunity to Charm and Confusion is a static bonus. Thus it's still situationally useful (especially as an offhand option).
  • AttalusAttalus Member Posts: 156
    lunar said:

    Raduziel said:

    Does the Equalizer hits Kangaxx?

    It can not. It hits as a +3 weapon no matter what bonuses to hit and damage it receives vs alignment. Truly a shame. If it hit as +4 or +5 at least it would be useful.

    As is, the + damage bonus to alignments are hardly worth it IMHO. Charm/confusion protection is nice but can be subbed by other means.

    In pnp it has the ability to outright disintegrate extremist alignments per hit. Now THAT would have been a cool weapon!
    Boy, is that right. It would be worth a quest to get that!

  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    ThacoBell said:

    I have no idea why people try to compare it to ToB level equipment. It was balanced for SoA and it is one of the better swords in SoA.

    Well you can only get the Equalizer in Chapter 6, which tends to be rather late in SoA, unless you postpone several of the Chapter 2 quests till Chapter 6 (but it's my impression that few people do that). So I don't think it's that surprising that people compare the Equalizer to ToB weapons.
    Having said that I do agree with you and others that it's still a good long sword for either the main hand or the off hand, despite the nerfing in EE, for SoA and early ToB.
  • Mantis37Mantis37 Member Posts: 1,177
    Charm & Confusion immunity has saved many a no-reloader...I usually have trouble finding all the bits with item randomiser enabled though!
  • AttalusAttalus Member Posts: 156
    ThacoBell said:

    You don't need higher than +3 to hit anything in SoA outside of what, Kangaxx? I have no idea why people try to compare it to ToB level equipment. It was balanced for SoA and it is one of the better swords in SoA.

    With all due respect, you could say the same thing about Gesen's Bow, Crom Fayer, and Carsomyr, the latter two of which you can get in Chapter 2.

  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    Attalus said:

    ThacoBell said:

    You don't need higher than +3 to hit anything in SoA outside of what, Kangaxx? I have no idea why people try to compare it to ToB level equipment. It was balanced for SoA and it is one of the better swords in SoA.

    With all due respect, you could say the same thing about Gesen's Bow, Crom Fayer, and Carsomyr, the latter two of which you can get in Chapter 2.

    One of which is only usable by one class and gets an upgrade in ToB to bring it to par with the super weapons, and the other is arguably the best bow in the game already anyway. It doesn't take anything away from my argument.
  • GallowglassGallowglass Member Posts: 3,356
    Agreed, @elminster, except that
    elminster said:

    ... Similar to the Wave frankly ...

    I find the Wave pretty useful - situationally excellent against Salamanders!
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    Gallowglass said:

    Agreed, @elminster, except that

    elminster said:

    ... Similar to the Wave frankly ...

    I find the Wave pretty useful - situationally excellent against Salamanders!
    I also use it against the Fire Elementals and Burning Men in Yaga-Shura's area. Landing an instant kill against Imix is pretty funny too.
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