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What class should I choose to complete my party?

ZeroxSP7ZeroxSP7 Member Posts: 55
in Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition
Full saga run. Stuck between Fighter or Paladin. Kits included. Mainly Inquisitor to tell mages to shut up. I will for sure be a Longsword user. Here’s the companions I have in mind to take.

BG1

1. Imoen. Good thief. Will dual her once I get to Cloakwood.
2. Minsc. 2h user. Will invest points in 2h style.
3. Dynaheir. I don’t like breaking pairs. She’ll also be the backup mage Imoen levels up.
4. Branwen. Cleric for the party. Good protection spells and such. Can contribute to fights too with Chaos of Battle and such. Probably will be replaced by Yeslick. Maybe.

5. 5th companion. Not sure who will be here before Cloakwood. But once I get to Cloakwood, I’m taking Coran as my main thief and archer while Imoen levels up.

SOD

1. Corwin. Main archer
2. Minsc. Main 2h user
3. Dynaheir. Mage for the party
4. Glint. Gotta have Cleric spells
5. Could be anyone really. Safana probably

BG2. This gets harder to decide

Pre Spellhold
1. Nalia. Primary mage
2. Jan or Yoshimo for thief purposes
3. Minsc or Keldorn for 2h swords. Forgot if Minsc’s points carry over from previous games or not.
4. Anomen. Gotta have a good Fighter/Cleric, even if he’s a dual class
5. Could be anyone. Probably Mazzy or Jaheira

Post spellhold

Only thing I’d change would be swapping Nalia out for Imoen. Slots 2 and 5 are still open to whoever. I can’t find a reason to take Valygar besides Katanas.

Comments

  • YigorYigor Member Posts: 803
    A pure druid or shaman could be a cool addition imho. 😎 An Avenger is a great spellcaster and even melee fighter, when shapeshifted into a sword spider. A Totemic Druid can summon Spirit Animal starting from level 1. ⬅️
  • ZeroxSP7ZeroxSP7 Member Posts: 55
    I’m only considering Fighter or Paladin, kits included
  • DhariusDharius Member Posts: 665
    Yes a warrior is probably best here. Of the fighters I'd recommend any of them, but might want to avoid kensai as they're unarmoured so I find them harder to manage. I like barbarians because of their increased movement rate.

    Of the paladins any are fine, but Cavalier is my favourite just because there are few drawbacks. You could even play a Blackguard for an additional alignment related challenge...

    A multi fighter-druid could be interesting too.

    In SOD I really appreciate Viconia with the helm of alignment change/opposite alignment...this also works wonders for SharTeel in BGEE.
  • ZeroxSP7ZeroxSP7 Member Posts: 55
    Would a paladin or fighter fit the party better? Kits included
  • SixOfSpadesSixOfSpades Member Posts: 44
    ZeroxSP7 wrote: »
    Would a paladin or fighter fit the party better? Kits included
    Either one would be perfectly fine. You make no mention of race, or romances, so I'll say that a Dwarven or Halfling Fighter (Berserker, or Dwarven Defender if you want to get that overpowered) would work best with Keldorn & Jaheira in BG2. Meanwhile, a Paladin (Cavalier or Inquisitor) pairs well with Minsc & Mazzy.
  • ZeroxSP7ZeroxSP7 Member Posts: 55
    I actually should’ve mention race. My bad.

    Because I don’t like short races, I’m going with Human. Also in AD&D short races can’t wield a Longsword with a shield and, although that’s a mechanic obviously absent in this game, it just pairs well with my preference with non short races. Just not my style. I could choose Elf or Half Elf, yes, but I don’t wanna lose that Constitution at the start of the game. And then between Human and Half Elf isn’t much of a difference. I don’t wanna multi class so Human is just my natural preference.

    Also I don’t believe Half Orcs have romance options. So they’re out. If I plan to romance anybody it would be Jaheira or Aerie. Although I don’t see a reason to take Aerie since I have the Mage and Cleric stuff covered. Those last 2 spots on the BG2 party are open to whoever though, so maybe she could fit in the party with who I currently have in it.
  • gorgonzolagorgonzola Member Posts: 3,864
    ZeroxSP7 wrote: »
    Full saga run. Stuck between Fighter or Paladin. Kits included. Mainly Inquisitor to tell mages to shut up.
    .................
    BG2. This gets harder to decide

    Pre Spellhold
    1. Nalia. Primary mage
    2. Jan or Yoshimo for thief purposes
    3. Minsc or Keldorn for 2h swords. Forgot if Minsc’s points carry over from previous games or not.
    4. Anomen. Gotta have a good Fighter/Cleric, even if he’s a dual class
    5. Could be anyone. Probably Mazzy or Jaheira

    Post spellhold

    Only thing I’d change would be swapping Nalia out for Imoen. Slots 2 and 5 are still open to whoever. I can’t find a reason to take Valygar besides Katanas.
    1. I see reasons to swap Imoen for Nalia if RP matters or maybe if is the only thief in the party, even if I had no problem at all with Nalia as doors opener and traps finder. But as you plan a real thief in the party depending on when you reach Spellhood Nalia can have a lot of xp more, at least it is usually so for me, and her ring is also very powerful, a +2 protection ring with 50% fire protection that stacks with other protection items like cloak and neckless.
    2. Jan with his special equipment is almost as good as a pure class thief and is a specialist mage that can be really useful.
    3. if you pick Keldorn maybe 2 Inquisitors are too much, so probably a Fighter Charname is the better choice. If you pick Minsc The Inquisitor Charname can be your anti mage tool all the saga, so what you will choose for your Charname will set which NPC you will pick up.
    4. Anomen is a dual class and misses lev 13 fighter, but can reach GM and is as good as a pure class cleric. DW with GM he has 3.5 apr, sadly there are no +1 apr weapons a Cleric can use, and he will not get Fighter's HLA, but with the correct buffs a Cleric can go mlee with 25 STR (Without STR items), the Thac0 of a fighter of the same level of his cleric one and maxed damage rolls. With Armour of Faith and the Defender in the OH he is also quite tanky, even in ToB where AC is less important then damage reduction. The Cleric is probably the class that suffers less the early dual from Fighter.
    5. do you really need him/her? An option can be to leave that spot empty so you can rotate the NPCs in the quests they are related, picking Mazzy in the temple ruins, Cernd in Trademeet, Valigar for the sphere, it leaves also a spot to save Imoen without loosing the xp of Nalia. Your party is complete anyway, you have 3 that can go to mlee, a Mage or 2, a thief and a Cleric. And you will have a free spot for mr ToB. Still Jaheira is a solid pick, specially if you don't have an Inquisitor, with her insect spells and can tank with the Iron Skins, summon greater elementals, that can coexist with the Planetar/Deva gated by your M or C. Mazzy is good if your tactics benefit of a competent ranged damage dealer, but she is not an archer, she don't get more damage levelling up and in BG2 and specially in ToB the arrows, that don't get STR bonus, are a weaker choice compared to the mlee weapons. A FC using GWW can get more then 300 dmg/round with the correct buffs, sling and bullets, she can reach 10 apr with Improved Haste, but her damage/round will be way less, still if you really need a ranged damage dealer is a solid choice.

  • DhariusDharius Member Posts: 665
    edited August 2023
    You asked which was best out of the fighter and paladin kits, but this depends on how you play the game, because paladins can become fallen if their rep goes too low.

    Also cavaliers and berserkers are limited in the missile weapons they can use, so if you like longbows a straight fighter may be better.

    But if the above factors are not an issue, of the lot I would definitely say Cavalier, for the reasons I gave earlier.

    Recently I played an LN Half Orc fighter working towards grand mastery in longbow, and with maxed out Str and Con he was a beast in BGEE.
    Post edited by Dharius on
  • DhariusDharius Member Posts: 665
    edited September 2023
    Also I agree about Nalia vs Imoen in BG2EE - if RP matters then Imoen is worthwhile, but otherwise I'd go with Nalia - the reason for this is that I only go for Spellhold after doing nearly all available quests in the game, including Watcher's Keep, so it stands to reason that Nalia will be more powerful than Imoen at that point, if she's been in the party all that time.

    So personally in your case I'd choose a party of: Nalia OR Imoen, Jan, Minsc, Anomen (either promoted to Sir or not, depending on how you play his quest) and Jaheira (she or Anomen could also be romanced if your gender and race permit).

    In fact this is the party I generally end up choosing for BG2EE, regardless of the main character's class/gender/race.
    Post edited by Dharius on
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