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The Adventures of Shandyr! But wait... what kind of rogue should I be?

booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
Been seeing a lot of these these days, and decided to get in on the action.

So far I know these things:
1. My character will be a rogue, since I have... *gasp* never played one
2. My dude is gonna be named Shandyr after our own buddy @Shandyr because a. he is an awesome, funny and friendly dude and b. I love the name and it sounds pretty roguish.
3. He will be Chaotic Good with a fun party of characters using the incredible BG1 NPC Project mod
4. Also using Rogue Rebalancing mod
5. He will be an Elf or a gnome (normally don't play elves, and well... gnomes rule)

However, I do not want to use a pure rogue, and I have come up with some choices as to what I wish to play. Since I cannot decide between them I give you, the audience, the power to decide Shandyr's fate!

Choose wisely... the fate of the entire Sword Coast (and Amn) depends on it!

Polls close April 24


PS: I have decided that Shandyr's vote counts triple
  1. The Adventures of Shandyr! But wait... what kind of rogue should I be?37 votes
    1. Multi-class Shadowdancer/Fighter
      29.73%
    2. Multi-class Bounty Hunter/Mage
      13.51%
    3. Pure Swashbuckling Badass (this one would be an Elf)
      37.84%
    4. Multi-class Wild Mage/Thief (gnome fo sho)
      18.92%
Post edited by booinyoureyes on
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Comments

  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    edited April 2014
    er... this is embarrassing. I forgot to add my usual (just show me the results button) which I was going to use myself. I had to vote in my own poll to see results.

    Awkward


    Couple notes on why I picked these choices:

    1. Shadowdancer/Fighter: I really like the hide in plain sight ability. It will let me backstab more, since I am usually too lazy to micromanage these things. The fighter bit will add the right bonuses to make the most out of the backstabbing. I also like the idea of a shadowdancer from a role-playing perspective.

    2. Bounty Hunter/Mage: Cool roleplaying choice. In the first game my dude is gonna be hunting bandits for Officer Jenny Vai. So the bounty hunter part really fits. I imagine the mage part being due to his tutelage from Gorion, and see him using spells in ways that match a bounty hunter's objective: Grease, Sleep, Web, etc. Basically gonna own Greywolf. May use the old invisibility backstab or milsead backstab tricks as well.

    3. Errol Flynn: I like charismatic Swashbucklers. The character is fun to play and I like the diversity. I may even consider dualing him to a mage, but most likely will just keep him as a pure swashbuckler. I am gonna cheat and give him offensive spin 1x/day at level 5 then 2x/day at level 10 to make him more like your traditional Zorro-type swordsman/rogue. He will use mostly bladed weapons, like Katanas and Scimitars, along with throwing daggers and darts.

    4. Wild Mage/Thief: This guy could just be a ton of fun. It seems very much like your traditional forrest gnome from old children's stories. I also kinda wanna do some more wild magic after using Neera and really learn how to properly take advantage of their abilities. I feel like I have not realized the full potential of Nahal's Reckless Dwoemer.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    Haven't you played a Bard? Bards are rogues!
    If you are playing with RR go for the BH/M, MMM with that Hold-on-hit Innate BH get sounds like Poison Weapon with MMM but... well, different, it's a disable-on-hit while the other one is pure damage. Seems better if you are going to use a party.
    An Elven swashie without multi-class is probably going to be boring, but if you are going to dual-class a human Swashbuckler to a Mage it's truly good and wonderful, it is like a F/M/T with -F, ~T and +M.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    Thanks Crevs!!!!
    To be honest when I was considering playing a mage/thief of some sort the first person I thought of to come to for advice was @CrevsDaak‌ because he is such a pro with these builds.

    Also note: My guy will not really be a "steal stuff" kind of thief, but more of an adventurer Coran-type rogue. I am gonna have Imoen be my lock picker (only in the first game until I get more points) and pick-pocket (with some help from Garrick) so my guy can do the more adventurish rogue jobs.

    Hes gonna 'disarm traps' (which in my mind really means do backflips and stuff to avoid them then disarm them on the other side... like Catwoman or something) and hide in shadows like a ninja. I also want to get full scores in detect illusions for him (particularly if I play a gnome!). I will wait until SoA to catch up on open locks and stuff, since I will also be taking Yoshimo and then Imoen (I cannot live without these two NPCs).


    In terms of party?

    I only have three NPCs in BG1 that I am taking for sure, leaving two spots open:
    1. Imoen: I just feel she is integral to the story and need to have her at all times. She will most likely be multi-class character in the first game then normal in the second game except that instead of a pure mage I might make her a Wild Mage (pink hair!)
    2. Garrick: Personal favorite
    3. Quayle: I think he's funny and I like his class. He always makes me laugh and he is a cool gnome.
  • CrevsDaakCrevsDaak Member Posts: 7,155
    In my first run I used a M/T with all of his points in Find & Disarm Traps, Set Traps, Hide in Shadow and Move Silently, a really good build, but you'll need another thief :/ sometimes.
    In BG2 I did the same, but I also used Jan Jansen, mostly as a support (casting Haste, Resist Fear, Prot. from Acid/Electricity, Open Locks, Pick Pockets and Detect Illusions (which I also like for my PC, but I didn't knew that it was useful back then, and Jan already had points invested there), Summon (Dark) Planetar and Breach and the other de-buffing spells), and my PC as Backstabber/Destroyer of Worlds, really, 3x Skull Traps on a Chain Contingency to Hit after casting Prot. from Magical Damage, using backstab to kill one of them and letting the others fell at my powerful magic (for the greater good of course, I was a CG Elven M/T).
    I don't know if you prefer the Robe of Vecna or Elven Chain Mails, I used Elven CM with my PC because Jan had the RoV. I also had Haer'Dalis with me, so I was using Aslyferund CM+5 while my PC had the Melodic CM after getting UAI.
    For proficiencies do what you want. You are going to get a shitload of them by mid-game SoA. You should use Two-weapon Style, but start investing there at the end of BG1/start of BG2.
    Detect Illusions is good if you want to save up a lvl6 spell-slot instead of memorizing True Sight, but watch out for Priests because (very (at least in vanilla scripts) rarely) they cast Sanctuary, which Detect Illusions does not dispel, but True Sight does dispel it.
    Backstabbing with Mislead is BAWSS, cast Invisibility over the Misleading Clone and send him *away* (more than 70' away). Then you have unlimited backstabs unless the clone dies or the duration runs out.
    Also have in mind that you can use Arrows of Biting + Tuigan Bow + Belt of STR + Improved Haste on a Time Stop: This is one of the finest cheese of all Faerun, because Arrows of Biting add STR damage (bugs everywhere!), so you deal lots of damage in very little time, plus, Poison, and you can also add the Gauntlets of Extra Specialization (those that give half APR more) and get 7 APR, which is insane for this combo.
    If you don't want to cheese, try using fast-buffs, you are going to be very squishy, so use Stoneskin a lot (it has 9 hours duration so cast it and then got to sleep) and always memorize a Prot from Magical Weapons (if you play good you'll be immune to +1 and lower in ToB).
    Also, if you put WIS 15, you can use the three tomes to bring it to 18 for the best Wish/Limited Wish options, instead of 18 WIS and ending with 23 WIS (which is useless unless you want that because of RP like I do, Elves ARE wise).
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    I voted Wild Mage/Thief, and I hope you pick a female gnome. Female gnome because as you said gnomes rock and the female sprites especially for thieves look cool. Besides you'd already have Quayle and possibly Jan Jansen in BG2 asmale gnomish companions.
    The Wild Mage/Thief should be fun and exciting to play (and I'd be interested to read about him/her, especially the Wild Mage part). You'll have a very diverse character, and powerful enough as the game develops.

    The merriness theme is awesome. (I have been thinking about an all-rogues run myself, which would also be about a band of fun lovers. All party members would have to be rogues and happy at it: Alora, Immy, Coran, Garrick, Safana and maybe Quayle as an Illusionist/Thief could be possible party members).

    The Swashbuckler is one of my favourite classes to roleplay, so I could have voted that, but you could kit for example Safana into one.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    edited April 2014
    @CrevsDaak‌ Thanks for the advice! I'll probably keep the Robe of Vecna for a pure Mage (Imoen) or Aerie (instant cleric spells!!!). I also don't really wanna take advantage of any bugs, so i'll probably avoid that arrows of biting thing with the mage/thief if that is what gets decided.

    @Blackraven‌ I will be playing a male character since Shandyr is a male and I want to do the Aerie romance with a gnome. However, your all-rogue run sounds very very very interesting. I would make Safana a swashbuckler and Immoen a dual illusionist/thief. Maybe even make Coran a shadowdaning fighter if that is not the option picked for my PC. I'd probably keep Quayle as a Cleric/Mage though.
    Post edited by booinyoureyes on
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    I don't Shandyr very well, but I understand your decision. A male gnome is cool too. If you end up playing one of the thief/mage multis I'd try to use the thief sprite.
    Imoen dualled into Illusionist sounds perfect. ('Now you see me, now you don't). In that case you have indeed no reason to edit Quayle.
    I you could manage to keep him on board, Xzar would be awesome as well. He's kind, respectful, relatively cheerful and funny (especially with BG1 NPC pack). He almost seems CN rather than CE to me. I wonder what would happen if you edit him into CN, whether he'd still leave the party at 19+ rep.
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    edited April 2014
    Deleted double post
    Post edited by Blackraven on
  • twillighttwillight Member Posts: 65
    multi wild-thief.

    Reasons:
    - you like gnomes
    - wild mage is funky
    - in the end only the trapping skill will be really determining (from thief), and by time the hiding goes out of fashion.
  • LemernisLemernis Member, Moderator Posts: 4,318
    It's a toss-up for me between the Bounty Hunter/Mage and the Wild Mage/Thief. But the WM/T is something I would never have thought of, so I'd be particularly curious to see how it works out!
  • TwaniTwani Member Posts: 640
    As a thought, for CG, Dyna and Branwen are both available for romance with the BG1 project, and both romances are written well (though I think Branwen would suit more- Dyna always seems best fit for a bard). I know they'll both romance elves; I think they'll both romance gnomes, if CHARNAME meets the stat requirements.
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    Twani said:

    As a thought, for CG, Dyna and Branwen are both available for romance with the BG1 project, and both romances are written well (though I think Branwen would suit more- Dyna always seems best fit for a bard). I know they'll both romance elves; I think they'll both romance gnomes, if CHARNAME meets the stat requirements.

    I hope you're right re: gnomes, but I'm afraid you aren't. According to this link only Shar-Teel romances male gnomes. And she requieres low reputation for the romance to evolve.

    @booinyoureyes Maybe you could install BG2 Tweaks after the BG NPC pack, and remove racial requirements for romances but I think that only applies to vanilla romances (in BG2).
  • TwaniTwani Member Posts: 640
    Ah, then they won't. The racial requirements in BG2 Tweaks won't work on BG1 romances: it'll only work on the four originals in BGII.

    You can pretty easily set Dyna or Branwen's romance to start, though, if you want them to, via globals. Dialog may occasionally refer to kissing them or the like, in which you'll have to imagine your gnome carries around a stepstool (or the ladies get on their knees a lot... no, not like that!), but otherwise it works.
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    Not like that... :D
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    boooooooo
    I actually was planning on doing one of the romances
    Now I may have to make him an elf. Or I could just give him the gnome avatar and make-believe. The real Shandyr does remind me more of an elf though, for some reason, lol.
  • WanderonWanderon Member Posts: 1,418
    You want to play a rogue so leave the mage types for another day or the mage aspect will dominate the playthrough - with the two options left I chose the SD/F because you don't want to play your first rogue without the chance to backstab - the same might be said for snares (which the SD cant use) but I'm not a fan of traps (seem too cheesy to me) so I'm OK with that.

    Have fun!
  • AurorusAurorus Member Posts: 201
    Why not the shadowdancer-fighter? Highlights one of the new kits available in EE and would be a swashbuckling type of rogue with real panache- melting away all the time and and then quickly reappearing behind the enemy.
  • twillighttwillight Member Posts: 65
    if you want to backstab, play Icewind Dale, not BG.
  • WolkWolk Member Posts: 279
    Bounty hunter/mage is a class that requires a lot of preparation for each fight. What spells to prepare and where to place the traps. It doesn't really fit the personality of a CG thief going on an adventure.

    A Shadowdancer/Fighter fits more that role. You enter a room without knowing if enemies are in there. You see a bunch of enemies and just hide and play with them. It would be more in character to do that.
  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    SHANDYR @Shandyr‌


    I made you a swashbuckler but i haven't started the game yet (busy these days). Considering you are still standing outside of Winthrop's Inn with your smexy elf self (rhyme-spittin' for justice) I actually change the rules.

    Your vote counts for seven. You can choose whichever of the top three choices you want.

    What do you feel most like in your heart of hearts?
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  • booinyoureyesbooinyoureyes Member Posts: 6,164
    @Shandyr‌ that was the plan :)
    Probably wont have time until next week though
  • BlackravenBlackraven Member Posts: 3,486
    That pic is awesome, very swashbuckly :)
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