Rogue Rebalancing Mod & Assassins

cbarchuk

With the RR mod Assassins start at x3 backstab multiplier and achieve x7 by level 17 but at the same time the innate +1 to hit & damage has been removed. So with that being said what would be the best race for an Assassin using this mod?

Raduziel

The best race for any Assassin is always Half-Orc.

TheArtisan

Disagree. You can’t make use of the +1 CON and the +1 STR is only useful up until the strength manual, and even then not overly so. Elf is the best choice between +1 DEX and THAC0 bonus to longswords and bows in my opinion.

Aerakar

Elf or Half-Orc.

Raduziel

Artemius_I said:

Disagree. You can’t make use of the +1 CON and the +1 STR is only useful up until the strength manual, and even then not overly so. Elf is the best choice between +1 DEX and THAC0 bonus to longswords and bows in my opinion.

You can make use of the +1 CON to regenerate with Buckley's Buckler/Tome of Constitution (both very easy to get).

19 STR makes you jump from +1 Hit/+2 Dmg to +3 Hit/+7 Dmg (way better than the +1 Thac0 bonus that an Elf receives). And the higher Bashing reduces the pressure over Open Locks.

Nothing interesting changes from 19 DEX (the maximum a Half-Orc can achieve after the Tome) to 20 DEX (the maximum an Elf can achieve after the Tome).

Thac0 and thieving skills improve with level, stats don't.

Comparison (net values [Half-Orc - Elf])

Elf: +2 Thac0 with bows (+1 elf, +1 DEX), +5% thieving skills.

Half-Orc: +2 Thac0 with any melee (optimal for backstabbing | +1 with longsword or shortsword), +7 Dmg, Regeneration.

Jaheiras_Witness

Best race for anything is nearly always dwarf thanks to saving throw bonuses. +1 to x stats is irrelevant by BG2 but saving throws matter forever.

elminster

I'd probably go with the elf myself. Since your stealth is going to be lower at low levels anyways I think its best to stick with range early on. Having 19 dexterity means that you'll be getting -1 better for ranged weapons (compared to someone with 18 dex) and if you use a bow you'll be getting a further -1 to Thac0 on that.

On top of that you can still have 18 strength, which you can get to 19 when you pick up the tome for it. Being an elf also gives you a bonus to thieving skills (including I think +10 to hide in shadows and move silently). Which is handy since after level 1 you'll only be getting only 15 points/level to distribute.

And of course you also get 90% resistance to sleep and charm spells. That never hurts.

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Chronicler

Jaheiras_Witness said:

Best race for anything is nearly always dwarf thanks to saving throw bonuses. +1 to x stats is irrelevant by BG2 but saving throws matter forever.

Halflings get those same bonuses plus two more Dex though.

Jaheiras_Witness

Halflings get -1 STR, which is way worse than -1 DEX

Chronicler

Strength bonuses don't get the backstab multiplier anyway. Plus Strength is the most easily boosted stat in the game.

TheArtisan

You need the 18->19 spike in THAC0 and damage since thieves can’t get exceptional strength.

Arctodus

Half-orc’s 19 strength is only useful in the first half of BG1. After that, not so much. After you killed Davaeorn, you’ll get a free DUHM, which will give 19+ strength even to halflings (after the strength tome). Then, the elf thac0 bonus / partial immunities and shorty saves become much more useful.

In BG2, there are so many strength boosting items that, again, half-orc advantages become rather unimpressive. It’s really down to shorty saves vs elf’s thac0 bonus / partial immunities.

But it’s all if you have min/maxing in mind. Otherwise, half-orc are perfectly fine too.

RVNS

I would say it depends on your playthrough. I prefer dwarf or halflings myself but I do solo no reload. The extra saves and the dwarven constitution with buckleys buckler is nice and the bonus from saves combined with the Halfling dex and bonus to sling is rather nice for kiting as well.

Overall I think any race can make out nicely though in a party dynamic.

I will say that most stats are pretty easily upgraded through tomes and such and most can be temporarily fixed by the massive amount of potions and magic throughout the game. This simply comes down to whether you prefer to micro manage your characters or not.

Some of these things can also be situational. I may prefer to give my strength boosting items to my frontline like jaheira to make her more viable or Valygar for that matter. In that case I might prefer the higher strength of a half-orc for the extra thaco and damage bonus since I know these items are going elsewhere. Regardless of whether it stacks with backstab, consistent extra damage is always nice since not all enemies can be backstabbed.

This of course is just my thoughts, I tend to plan what equipment and characters I am going to use in a party before the game even starts.

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