Good Characters for SoA
Axenotis9
Member Posts: 15
I am not a pro player but I have finished Bladur's Gate 1. I loved Baldur's Gate, so I started SoA.
I went a half orc Fighter/Thief. It's not the smartest thing to do in a good campaign but on the previous one
I had a problem with traps so I am focusing my thieving skills for finding and disarming traps (and opening locks,
everyone loves looting
).
Strength: 19
Dexterity: 18
Constitution: 19
Intelligence: 9
Widsom : 16
Charisma: 3 (Made it 18 with the ring on the circus).
Because I like to search a little with no spoilers of course, I searched for characters.
But all the "good" characters are evil. Korgan has 100 hp and he's a monster. (Berserker 0_0)
Viconia is a really good character both as a cleric with her 50% magic resistance and her personality.
Edwin with his amulet for extra spell is a really powerful mage.
I probably keep Jaheira and Minsc until I found better characters.
Characters that I currently want to change are, Aerie that seems an okay mage but I strive for someone more powerfull if possible.
Nalia is really bad for my team. She is just a second Imoen. She can't take armor because you want her spells.
Also I want to change Yoshimo because I don't see potential in him. Too squishy for my team.
But as I said in the beginning, I am not a pro that is why I need some recommendations of characters that will form a good team. (My proficiencies are 2 weapon style 3points, and I use Katana and Longsword(<-ForOffHand).
Thanks,
Notis
I went a half orc Fighter/Thief. It's not the smartest thing to do in a good campaign but on the previous one
I had a problem with traps so I am focusing my thieving skills for finding and disarming traps (and opening locks,
everyone loves looting
). Strength: 19
Dexterity: 18
Constitution: 19
Intelligence: 9
Widsom : 16
Charisma: 3 (Made it 18 with the ring on the circus).
Because I like to search a little with no spoilers of course, I searched for characters.
But all the "good" characters are evil. Korgan has 100 hp and he's a monster. (Berserker 0_0)
Viconia is a really good character both as a cleric with her 50% magic resistance and her personality.
Edwin with his amulet for extra spell is a really powerful mage.
I probably keep Jaheira and Minsc until I found better characters.
Characters that I currently want to change are, Aerie that seems an okay mage but I strive for someone more powerfull if possible.
Nalia is really bad for my team. She is just a second Imoen. She can't take armor because you want her spells.
Also I want to change Yoshimo because I don't see potential in him. Too squishy for my team.
But as I said in the beginning, I am not a pro that is why I need some recommendations of characters that will form a good team. (My proficiencies are 2 weapon style 3points, and I use Katana and Longsword(<-ForOffHand).
Thanks,
Notis
3
Comments
Jaheira: Focus on scimitars and clubs. When she gets level 5 spells, perma-cast iron skins on her. She cannot take any damage while her skins are up.
Anomen: Flails and maces. He is the hardest hitting cleric in the game and sounds more like your style, at least as far as I perceive it.
Here's where you have some choices. Here is what I would recommend:
Yoshimo: I won't say why, but Yoshimo is a nice character to have for a first playthrough.
Nalia: She is the best (or at least most reliable) non-evil mage. She becomes super powerful later and is handy with a bow.
*Neera: Instead of Nalia, you could go with Neera. I'm not sure which gender your charname is or even if you are playing EE, but she romances Half-orcs. I have really grown to like her over my last run.
This would leave you with plenty of divine and arcane casters and also some strong melee characters.
There are so many directions you could go though and I'm sure others will have some good suggestions as well. Good luck with your decision!
Jaheira and Minsc are good to keep around. Minsc is the strongest and Jaheira is a beast with the right equipment and spells as time goes on.
Anomen can be useful as a cleric because he usually starts with a ton of experience compared to other characters (at least in my experience). He also has 7 levels of fighter so he's decent in a fight and can eventually become grand master in a weapon.
Arie is a good support character for most of SoA but you probably don't want her as your main mage or cleric unless you're running a three or four person party.
Those are characters you can find right from the start so I don't want to go into too many details on who you'll find or do as the game goes on. You could also beat SoA without too much trouble with those characters I just mentioned.
If you want to keep your current fighter/thief as your main character, I would pump up hide/move silently and have him search for traps ahead of the group. Have him backstab. His 19 strength will rack up some nice damage. You might be able to one shot kill mages soon.
Have Jaheira use iron skins and have her and Minsc up front. Anomen should focus on buffing spells before fights and also help out on the front line. Try to have your character flank the enemy since he won't have great AC in SoA.
Keep Nalia in the back and experiment with what spell combinations work well for you. Mages are extremely powerful in SoA and ToB. In a full party, I usually prefer to have the party's mage focus on disabling spells so my tanks can wipe the floor with enemies.
So if I were you, I'd start of with:
PC
Jaheira
Minsc
Anomen
Nalia
For the sixth spot, you can play around with one of the evil members and replace them later with a good character.
Sorcerer PC
Minsc
Valygar
Anomen
Nalia
Imoen.
Nalia is mainly used as a mage alongside the PC, which I find is very effective, as she's a terrible thief. Valygar with Celestial Fury and his default katana and gauntlets of ogre strength is unstoppable, especially against mages. Viconia has high magic resistance, and Aerie is a mage, but the former has low strength and the latter has pitiful constitution, which is why I use Anomen. Minsc is always reliable, and even though by TOB, Sarevok is better, I like his character and banters.
I take Imoen for story purposes, though you could swap her for Keldorn (Carsomyr and gauntlets of dexterity makes him a beast)/Rasaad (Monks get really powerful throughout SOA)
The characters from the starting dungeon are generally good to keep around. Your main quest for a long time will be all about retrieving Imoen, Jaheira has the longest quest line of bonus content of any PC, so you might consider the hint and keep Yoshimo and Mins around too. In practice, you will have many reasonable options for warriors to replace Minsc, most of whom have more interesting personal content that comes with them.
So let's consider Yoshi - he represents probably the most tricky class to find in BG2 - the thief. In BG1 it seemed every other NPC was a thief, but there are surprisingly few useful thieves in BG2. Your options are:
i) Imoen - not available for a long time, and skills never update after dualling at level 7.
ii) Nalia - a weaker Imoen, dualled even earlier so thief skills are poor, but will probably be the better mage by the time you catch up with Imoen again
iii) Yoshimo - Available from the opening dungeon, useful kit, and progresses all game unless you dual him to Fighter (not recommend without a back-up thief)
iv) Jan - a thief/illusionist multi-class, so will level slowly, but has full potential to advance in both classes
The main problem with Jan is the endless stories - if you don't enjoy the writing of this character he will be the most frustrating thing about the game. The authors clearly did enjoy writing Jan though as he banters more than any other character I am aware of (or maybe I just noticed more, annoying little chap!)
So (i) and (ii) are not great for thieves, and (iii) is available from the start, so I would stick with him for your first game, at least until you have retrieved Imoen. (Of course, as a fighter/thief you may choose to fill this role yourself, but as a single-class, Yoshi will be a better thief, while you play the augmented stealth-warrior).
Next up - let's consider clerics. It is always handy to have the blessings of the gods with your party - at least if you want a little healing
i) Aerie
ii) Anomen
or a druid
iii) Jaheira
iv) Cernd
Of these, only Aerie has a good alignment. She is also a dual Mage/Cleric, which will grow to be quite powerful by the end of the game - although she will likely always be squishy in melee.
Anomen is your more traditional cleric, has an interesting quest line, and having dualled from fighter gets added benefits including a high strength, extra HP if you raise his con, and the ability to continue putting extra pips into weapons up to 5 (Grand Mastery).
Druids don't offer as much in the ways of divine blessing, but are a useful addition to the party. They have a very odd level curve for xp though - expect Jaheira as a multi to reach he maximum druidic potential early in the game - it will be very near the end of SoA before she gets that next level (and things speed up again).
Then there are mages to consider:
i) Imoen
ii) Nalia
iii) Aerie
iv) Neera (EE only)
v) Haer'dalis (Bard)
Imoen is clearly out for a large part of the game until you rescue her. Nalia is Imoen-light, but will probably have more xp, casting higher level spells, when you rescue her. She is probably the fastest leveling (and hence most powerful) mage as a consequence. Aerie, as a multi mage/cleric, will have more spells than any other character, but also advance more slowly as xp is split between two classes. Neera, assuming you are playing the EE editions, is probably the most powerful non-evil mage, getting a bonus spell per spell-level, having no opposed school, but also taking on the risks of a wild mage. Unless you are keen, I would probably defer her to a second play through.
Finally, Haer'dalis is not a mage, but as a bard will get to cast a wide variety of mage spells, and will level much faster than a pure mage. He also gets to bring his barding skills to the table, and is moderately useful in melee - although if your mage is reduced to melee then something has probably gone wrong already.
I would recommend one of Nalia or Aerie at least until Imoen is rescued, when you will be in a better position to consider the balance of your party working out who to keep/drop to accommodate her. My own choice would be to keep Aerie, but I like having lots of spells available (you might also try running both).
Finally, we come to the role of warrior. There is a wide range of choice here:
i) Minsc
ii) Jaheira
iii) Mazzy
iv) Valygar
v) Keldorn
vi) Anomen
vii) Haer'dalis (bard blade)
It is hard to go wrong with any of these, although I think Anomen has a good quest line for the first time you play, and Keldorn is reasonably easy to find, and has quite the potent paladin kit. Likewise, Jaheira has the longest quest line of all, so I strongly recommend her for a first play through, to get the most from the game.
So my recommended party might be:
i/ PC (Half orc fighter/thief)
ii/ Jaheira (fighter/druid) quest line
iii/ Anomen (Cleric, ex fighter) quest line, front line
iv/ Keldorn (Paladin) I like a strong front line, and what is a good party without a paladin?
v/ Yoshimo (bounty hunter) only real thief in the game
vi/ Aerie (Cleric/Mage) spells, lots of spells...
When you retrieve Imoen, the party balance will change, but I think it is worth keeping around a childhood friend as you wrestle with your soul of a god, and it helps to have a straight mage as you head to the higher levels.
Many other combinations will work, but this is my recommendation to get the most out of a first play through of this game, and there is plenty remaining for later play throughs.
As for the idea that all the best characters are evil, that is not quite true, but there is a grain of truth there. The evil characters tend to be more focussed single-class characters, while the goods and neutrals are more versatile multis and duals. So if you want to compare for the out-and-out best character for a single aspect, the evils usually win, but that does not mean that they are necessarily the best on balance. Good parties play well as a team, rather than a collection of individual stars - so don't worry about leaving out the evils, they are always there for a later play through after all!
(Some might note that I did not mention Rasaad in this summary - I'm not sure how best to classify a monk, mostly a warrior but definitely an advanced character to get the most out of, and EE only. Again, I would deliberately defer him to a second or later play through, unless you are really intrigued by the character - there are no wrong choices if you want to take him though.)
Anyways, Axenotis9 if it hasn't already been mentioned keep in mind some NPC's of opposite alignments on the good vs evil axis may fight other NPCs when they are both in your group.
It's true the evil character are more focused (berserker, pure cleric + MR, edwin) but the good ones have the better multis.
The best (mechanically) characters, suitable for a good party are IMO:
- Fighter type : Keldorn. Great kit. Stats are not so good but this is not a big issue with the right items, both quite easy to find. Thanks to his kit, he is clearly superior to all the pure fighters neutral or good aligned.
- Divine caster : Jaheira or Anomen . Anomen is better at early levels but Jaheira ends up being a much better fighter and (this is debatable) a better caster (druids having better spell selections at spell level 5+)
- Thief : jan jansen or imoen. Pure thief is mechanically clearly inferior to multi since you get all the theiving skill you need by level 10-15.
- Arcane caster: Nalia is the best but Jan is overall a better character (covers theiving, gnome saving throw bonus, specialist mage mitigates partially the slower levelling)
Overall, you cannot go wrong if you build your team around Jaheira, Keldorn and Jan. You are free to choose whatever charname you want, since they already cover all your bases.
Mazzy is a pure warrior, specilized in shortbow and short sword with high dex and a descent con. She wont reach the hit points that Korgan will, but she gets pretty high. She's even got a few nifty special abilities that help her out a lot.
As I said earlier you can set her up in many ways. I usually have her as a tank (high ac, high hitpoints) and she actually does good damage with her shortsword (especially with her ability active or a strength belt). There are plenty of good shortswords out there which she can use.
Another way to put her to work is as an archer. With lots of proficiency points in shortbow, she'll actually do quite a bit of damage with them, her high dex and warrior levels make sure she'll hit stuff too.
All in all I think mazzy may be a good fit for your team if you want a powerful character.
MC: Something that hits things, this can be a really wide variety of classes other than plain thief or mage.
Minsc or Valygar (Korgan might be better but I don't like him that much): They hit stuff and uh have some spells but they mostly hit stuff. You can replace them in TOB with Sarevok. Rasaad might be another alternative that is even better at hitting stuff later in the game.
Keldorn: To hit stuff and dispel stuff. Can be replaced with one of the group above if your MC is a Paladin because Carosymir alone does a well enough job at dispelling stuff. I am not sure if Dorn can use Carosymir. If he can he can replace Keldorn if not he can replace one of the above group.
Jaheira: for divine spells and also to hit stuff (might see a pattern here), she is also a great tank because of iron skin
Aerie: While she lacks a bit at the beginning she becomes a monster later on. Can cast divine and arcane spells, tank pretty good with a combination of divine and arcane protections and can even hit stuff when you give her a strength belt or glove. The glove has the advantage that you can give her the constitution belt.
Edwin (if you really don't want him or want some thief use Imoen or Nalia, though Nalia is a crappy thief and needs constant master thief potions): He is just the best spellcaster plain and simple. Neera might work as well if you don't mind or even like to abuse wild magic.
jaheira/anomen and jan really shine. At least with the increased difficulty mods. As do all other good/neutral NPC's except a select few
Your viconia is not any better than anomen or jaheira. Voconia's extremely low health and strenght dont make up for her high wisdom/dex and you'll be reloading often every time she dies (if you have higher difficulty mods)
as for which npc's? Anyone in the above posts. Except valygar and aerie. These guys suck and you'd have to micromanage them way too much to make full use of them.
Aerie is just pretty, and by bg1 standards shes good. But by bg2 standards she sucks because theres no way you can make her useful because one 6th level spell would be like better than her whole spellbook, both mage and cleric.
She is also able to wear the robe of vecna and instantly heal people.
What makes Viconia good in my opinion is not her wisdom, but her 65% innate magic resistance. Besides that, I agree. Fighter/Clerics are much better than pure clerics in BG.
Oh, and you forgot Korgan. Berserker Enrage is a mini godmode.
For that reason, Aerie or Jaheira start slowly but become powerhouses later-on.
On the contrary, the evil NPC are single class characters, often with very powerful kits (conjurer, berserker, blackguard, drow cleric)
That means they are really strong from the start of the game. Later on, the multis will catch up and ultimately surpass them.
PC: Elven F/M multiclass dual wielding katanas
Jaheira: Priest with Heals and Tank if needed
Jan: Ranged weapon / caster
Aerie: Priest/Mage combo - this will be good
Keldorn: Primary tank
Haer'Dalis: Mainly because I like his voice acting and back story
Thoughts on this set up?
Any combination is fine for a vanilla run through BG2! The group you outlined will be strong and covers all your bases. The only notable thing about that squad is that you will be delayed on high level mage spells since you have 3 multi-class mages who will take twice as long to get there and 1 bard (who will never get there). Jan is fantastic for thieving needs and between your PC, Keldorn and Jaheira you have your melee tank role covered (and Haer'Dalis can chip in there as well).
That should be a good squad.
and there are 9 levels to a mage's spellbook...
even if you run a good party, it doesnt mean you cant take Edwin...
I think Bioware intended for players to use differently-aligned NPC's
9th level arcane spells are good, but they are not mandatory. I do agree he might want to switch someone, ideally Haer for a single class arcane, but that is purely a powergamey issue IMHO, not a required to win choice.
Not to mention that he can't wear necklaces, including the Amulet of Power.
The party is actually pretty well balanced. I would also say your MC is a better tank with buffs up. Without them I would say Jaheira. You can give her a shield without sacrificing much if you let her use scimitars or clubs (though I think vanilla BG2 really lacks in clubs and there are only a few good Scimitars but that is ok in that case) and even if you have a mod that corrects the fact that Jaheira should not be able to wear metal armor does not do much since there are quite a few great non metal armors. She will have the best AC by far with that setup and she can cast iron skin to further enhance her defense.