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Paladin skills

I'm new to d&d and baldur's gate. I'm running a paladin and I don't know what skills to take. Any help would be greatly appreciated

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  • Permidion_StarkPermidion_Stark Member Posts: 4,861
    When I am playing a paladin I generally use two-handed swords so I put two pips in them and then two pips in two pips in two-handed weapon style. If you want to be able to use missile weapons as well as melee weapons then I would suggest keeping two pips in two-handed swords and putting just one-pip in two-handed weapon style and putting the remaining pip in axes. This will enable you to use throwing axes when you want to make missile attacks.

    However, there are no hard and fast rules about this. You could equally use a long sword or bastard sword and shield, or dual-wield with a long sword and a mace or any other combination of weapons. For that matter, so long as you are not a cavalier (they cannot use missile weapons except throwing axes and daggers) you could use a composite longbow.
    monicoThacoBellAerakar
  • monicomonico Member Posts: 571
    If you plan on continuing to BG2 there is a very (very) powerful 2 handed sword for paladins only, often considered as the most powerful weapon in the game.
    There is also a bastard sword, but comes very late and is less powerful.
    ArtonaPermidion_Stark
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    If you picked a standard paladin (no kit) , his abilities are:
    - Fighting skills: Paladins, fighters and rangers have the best fighting skills in the game because they can apply two or more proficiency points in a weapon, have many hit points, their thac0 (chance to hit modifier) gets improved by level and they can use heavy armor and shields .

    -Lay on hands : the lay on hands ability allows a paladin to heal 2 hps per level by touching himself or an ally. It can be used 1x a day.

    -Turn undead : at level 3 a paladin can turn undead just like a cleric , this ability scares off undead creatures that are less powerful than you. It's not very powerful at the begining bit it really helps when you're being cornered by undead. You can use it whenever you want but while using it yoi cannot perform any other action except moving around.

    -Protection from evil: paladins can protect themselves and others from evil. It gives you a slight ac protection from evil creatures is cumulative with other protections, not to mention that 99% of the enemies in the game are evil so it comes in handy.

    -detect evil: it detects evil creatures next to you. It is a more situational skill but it becomes more relevant in BG2.

    -Improved saving throws: paladins gain a permanent +2 bonus to saving throws.

    -Divine spells: at level 9 they can cast divine spells like a level 1 cleric.


    That said, a paladin is an excellent tank amd damage dealer with some extra protections and a good choice for beginners. Remember that you cannot commit evil actions or you lose paladin status.
    ThacoBellmonicoAerakar
  • jsavingjsaving Member Posts: 1,083
    I'd suggest starting with two pips in two-handed sword, one pip in two-handed style, and one pip in longbow. Alternatively you can start with two pips in longsword or bastard sword and two pips in two-weapon fighting.

    If you are new to the game, though, you might consider restarting as a half-elven ranger/cleric which would give you the same general flavor as a paladin without worrying about the paladin's code of conduct. You can cast cleric spells while wearing armor and rangers receive two pips in two-weapon fighting for free, which is a nice benefit in BG1. For that build you'd generally want to put two pips in mace and two in flail or hammer.
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    monico wrote: »
    If you plan on continuing to BG2 there is a very (very) powerful 2 handed sword for paladins only, often considered as the most powerful weapon in the game.
    There is also a bastard sword, but comes very late and is less powerful.

    The one handed sword is technically a bit weaker, but you can also pair it with a shield or another weapon. For this reason, I think the bastard sword is actually better than the two handed one.
    StummvonBordwehrBalrog99
  • TrauerweideTrauerweide Member Posts: 27
    In my mind a Paladin needs to go for sword and board, but his is more rp wise. Two-weapon fighting does not feel right for a Pala. Also some shields are pretty badass!

    Of course two-weapon fighting and two-handed swords do more damage but I do not care for the least bit of damage, both BG games are not too hard and it is fun to develop the character in the way you want him to be... well to rp the game ;) .

    Nonetheless I agree with everything stated here!
    monicoStummvonBordwehrAerakar
  • ilduderinoilduderino Member Posts: 773
    I would go two handed sword and mace, possibly also axe if you want a ranged option.

    Many good reasons have been given for two handed sword and it is the obvious choice for a paladin in BG2. There are also a couple of great options in BG1, although you lose the option to use a shield.

    I like mace because there are good mace options in BG1, in BG2 you will tend to want to go two handed sword with your paladin most of the time but there is a very nice mace that is good against undead that you can swap to when needed and also some enemies are resistant to slashing damage.

    Axes are also a nice choice as there are powerful options in BG2 and there are returning throwing axes in both games, they give you a ranged option, even if you went cavalier.
    Permidion_StarkBalrog99Aerakar
  • Balrog99Balrog99 Member Posts: 7,367
    I usually go with bastard sword & longsword when I play a paladin simply because as a pally, I always take Keldorn and Anomen with me. Between them they have 2-handed sword and mace covered already.
    monicoArvia
  • wadsworthwadsworth Member Posts: 2
    Ok thanks for all the in put it really helps. I took the cavalier kit. So I'm putting 2 pips in 2 hand swords and 1 pip in 2 hand style and 1 in axes. Do you gain more pips or are you tied to those skills for the whole game?
    Permidion_StarkAerakar
  • jmerryjmerry Member Posts: 3,822
    You gain more proficiency options as the game goes on. Warriors (fighters, paladins, rangers) gain one every three levels, priests (clerics, druids, monks, shamans) and rogues (bards, thieves) gain one every four levels, and mages/sorcerors gain one every six levels.

    Since you can't go beyond specialization (two dots) in a weapon as a paladin, you'll have enough to become good at using multiple types of weapons eventually. Try things out and keep an eye on any interesting magic weapons you pick up. Then that information can inform your future characters.
    ThacoBellwadsworthmonico
  • Balrog99Balrog99 Member Posts: 7,367
    After your second pip in axes it would make sense to go full on with other 2-handed weapons with the build you've started. I'd say quarterstaff makes most sense for the crushing damage. After that, spear and halberd are really good if you're going on to BG2 and ToB.
  • ArviaArvia Member Posts: 2,101
    I have almost exclusively played paladin kits for the last months, and I never use two-handed weapons, but that's personal preference.
    I don't like the exposed, vulnerable fighting style with a two-handed sword. I go with longsword and shield in BG1 and dual-wielding in BG2.
    For BG1, it makes sense to put points into a blunt weapon like morningstar or mace in the future. There will eventually be enemies with high resistance to slashing damage, especially if you decide to continue into SoD.

    It's true that the best weapon in BG2 can only be used by paladins and is a two-handed sword, but I've never used it. To me, it simply belongs to Keldorn.
    monicoThacoBellAerakar
  • DanacmDanacm Member Posts: 951
    I always use one handed weapons with shield for paladins. In bg1 my profs usually are long sword 2*, mace 2* or warhammer 2* and crossbow 2* for rp reasons. When i use blackguards, that used axe, halberd, flails, bastard swords, daggers :)
    monicoTrauerweideThacoBellAerakar
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