Coop Duo SCS Run - Suggestions?

EnderA

I'm thinking of doing a 2-player (1-character each) Sword Coast Stratagems run through all of BG2EE, and was interested to hear suggestions for a good pair of characters that will synergize and keep both players active without stepping on each other's toes. SCS Difficulty would probably be Tactical. While it wouldn't be a speedrun per se, the focus would be on efficiently overcoming (real) tactical challenges rather than roleplaying.

Right now I'm considering Gnome Fighter/Illus & some Thief dual or multi. One upside to Fighter + Thief multi/duals is getting huge MR buffs from UAI + Carsomyr/Purifier. In order to be proficient you need to be a fighter, in order to have UAI you have to be a Thief. I'm guessing that F/M/T, M/T, or T->M would be the strongest options, so I'm curious if F|T or C|T multi/duals have specific strengths for this kind of playthrough, but am open to any suggestion!

gorgonzola

gnome F-illusionist and FMT are a very strong duo, not a complete one as you lack completely of divine magic. i would probably go for the dual route for charname, starting as berseker, loosing the shorty bonuses and spell/level, FMT will not get high level spells, so to have a charname that in end game gets many of them (see planetar (the party divine caster that you lack of), spell strike, CC, improved alacrity to name few of the more useful ones). and he would not be restricted as magic schools.
but also the multi gnome option is very good.

also 2 gnomes, FI and CT, are an interesting synergy, a more complete and versatile party, but with less apr, the CT from a certain point on can reliably DW, but sticks to 1 base apr. but his backstab (that rolls always for maximum damage, his 25 str at will (while charname will probably have it from the hammer) and his traps are a fair trade of for the less apr.

FMT + gnome CM or FMC are also options, with 2 triple class you will never have lev 9 spells, but they have apr on top of the thief and cleric capability, so, even if with a different style, they have the power to win every battle. with the CM you will have up to 3 lev 9 spells, at the cost of apr, not of thac0 as a CM with buffs has better thac0 then most fighter types.

for my duos and trios i always try to cover as much as possible all the departments, mlee, ranged, both magics and thieving. i find that it make the battles a little slower to win, as i have to sacrifice some apr in the process, but it gives to the party more survival capability, more tactical options and mainly i find it more enjoyable to play. instead of focusing only on the equation damage done>damage taken i can plan for each battle a specific tactic, making the versatility shine.
but it depends on the player style, others find it boring and prefer to go for the raw mlee power route.
and if well played every style work, usually the one that a player knows better and prefers is the one that works better for him.

EnderA

Great, thank you for the input! We'll probably do the Berserker-Mage + F/M/T (partly so we both get to experience SCS), although covering for the lack of divine casting will certainly be an interesting challenge.

monico

The problem of Berserker-Mage + FMT is that you will have very similar gameplay.

FMC + FMT is nice to cover your every needs, so is a combination of:
- F/T + C/M ( the frontline fighter+disarmer/backstabber and his magical companion)
- F/M + C/T (both can launch magic, both can go invisible, both can fight in melee). If neither of you have ever played one, I really recommand the cleric/thief, it's a very interesting yet uncommon class.
- F/C + M/T (the brute and the rogue, basically, not my favourite option of the three, since the F/C has a very straightforward-bulldozer playstyle while the T/M is more about subtility and may feel less powerful especially at low levels)

My preference would be F/M & C/T, more subtility, great synergy between both without stepping on anyone's toes, and each covers the other one's weakness.

F/T + C/M has the advantage that both will be powerhouse in their own name, and individually, a F/T has great synergy between his two classes, and so does the C/M (sequencers with cleric spells are awesome).

On the contrary, the F/C will want to rage through encounters with brute force and self/party buffs, while the M/T will want to stealth through encounters with arcane & wits.


EDIT: oh and, definitely, use gnomes ^^

EnderA

Good points. What's the primary advantage of F/T over F/M/T?

gorgonzola

faster leveling and slightly better hp pool.
faster leveling means more skill points earlier, better stab multiplier earlier, better thac0 earlier, lev 13 fighter (+1/2 apr) earlier, but not hla sooner as all the multi start to get them at 3M xp.

i personally am happy to trade this with the ability to cast up to lev 8 spells, triple classes never reach lev 9 ones. and in a duo also a triple class level up fast, each class only a little slower of a single class in a 6 people party (being few you gain more from kills xp, but not from quest rewards).
it depends on the playstyle, each one has his preferences, both are very powerful if used in the proper way.

Lord_Tansheron

It depends on what you want to do, really. FMT certainly has some funky options available to them, like using Mislead and storing the clone in a remote space to spam backstabs like there's no tomorrow.

Plus, you know, MAGE. They can do basically anything, even without lvl 9 spells.

monico

EnderA wrote: »

Good points. What's the primary advantage of F/T over F/M/T?

Sure, there's the faster leveling of the F/T over the F/M/T, but to be frank, that's not the main thing.

To me they're just two different classes.
The M in the FMT changes the playstyle so drastically that it doesn't feel like a F/T "with something more".

And since the point of your build was to get two different characters, covering each other and not stepping on anyone's toes, a F/M/T doesn't allow much exclusivity to the other character

Plus, a F/M/T is so versatile and powerful that you would overshadow any companion (unless your friend plays F/M/C which is just as powerful but just a bit less versatile), and that might make the game less interesting as you progress.

That's just me, but nowadays, I find that OP characters are not the most interesting. Struggling with what you have is interesting.