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Best mage (single or multi) across the series

dockaboomskidockaboomski Member Posts: 440
Nothing more than the question. Who is the best? Who is your favorite? If you can only bring one with you forever, who is it?
  1. Best mage (single or multi) across the series79 votes
    1. Dynaheir (invoker)
        1.27%
    2. Edwin (conjurer)
      31.65%
    3. Imoen (thief/mage)
        8.86%
    4. Quayle (cleric/illusionist)
        2.53%
    5. Xan (enchanter)
        8.86%
    6. Xzar (necromancer)
        5.06%
    7. Aerie (cleric/mage)
      24.05%
    8. Jan (illusionist/thief)
      13.92%
    9. Nalia (thief/mage)
        1.27%
    10. Other (dual-class of player's decision; Safana, Sarevok)
        2.53%
JuliusBorisov
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Comments

  • dockaboomskidockaboomski Member Posts: 440
    Personally, I love Xan and just about everything about him. Jan, Quayle, and Xzar run close, but nothing is more fun than crowd control with a depressed mage.
    sarevok57JuliusBorisovAnduin
  • JumboWheat01JumboWheat01 Member Posts: 1,028
    I vote Imoen because unlike most other mages, she has absolutely no downside. No upside either, but no downside. Sure, only one mage's disadvantage do I really hate (Dyna's lack of Enchantment spells,) but still...
    dockaboomskiJuliusBorisov
  • PK2748PK2748 Member Posts: 381
    I wish there was an available enchanter to go through the entire series and I wish it was Xan. I love using mages to shut down enemies rather than kill them outright and I love Xan's personality.
    dockaboomskiJuliusBorisov
  • Balrog99Balrog99 Member Posts: 7,366
    I love the arrogance and Edwin has some pretty funny moments in SOA. Plus bonus spells and 18 intelligence, what's not too like?
    dockaboomskiJuliusBorisovsemiticgoddessCARV3R
  • KamigoroshiKamigoroshi Member Posts: 5,870
    "Oh, I'm never quite so comfortable as when I'm at least 6 feet under."

    So very fitting for a necro. No doubt he will come back in Baldur's Gate III as an joinable, romanceable undead NPC.
    SkatanJuliusBorisovdockaboomskiGod
  • lroumenlroumen Member Posts: 2,508
    If only there was a transmuter npc
    Kamigoroshidockaboomski
  • FlashburnFlashburn Member Posts: 1,847
    Versatility, thy name is Aerie.
    JuliusBorisovThacoBellgorgonzolasemiticgoddess
  • SkatanSkatan Member, Moderator Posts: 5,352
    Edwin is the best mage, no doubt about it. I don't use him that much though, as all mages are good enough so I can just as well pick Xzar or any other mage. The only mage I very, very rarely use is Nalia actually.

    Modding Xan into a F/M and having him being all bad-ass with that downer attitude is actually quite hilarious. It's such a paradox.
    JuliusBorisovAasimgorgonzolaCARV3R
  • JuliusBorisovJuliusBorisov Member, Administrator, Moderator, Developer Posts: 22,714
    Nobody else has a magical device designed to peel 100 turnips per minute.
    dockaboomskigorgonzolasemiticgoddessGod
  • IglosnofIglosnof Member Posts: 119
    For me Xan definitely. I like playing my mages as controllers and he's the best of the lot. Also very realistic personality and outlook.
    JuliusBorisovdockaboomskigorgonzola
  • PK2748PK2748 Member Posts: 381
    I'm curious why anyone ever votes for Aerie (somehow winning the pill) over Quayle. Shorty saves and bonus spells. Also Quayle never once complains about his wings
    JuliusBorisovdockaboomski
  • batoorbatoor Member Posts: 676
    edited September 2016
    Iglosnof said:

    For me Xan definitely. I like playing my mages as controllers and he's the best of the lot. Also very realistic personality and outlook.

    I like Xan as well, but hes not exactly the best motivational speaker...=P
    JuliusBorisovdockaboomski
  • JumboWheat01JumboWheat01 Member Posts: 1,028
    lroumen said:

    If only there was a transmuter npc

    Nice to see a fellow Transmutation fan. Though why must all the games give them Abjuration as a forbidden school? Are they afraid of the power of combining buffing and denial magic? Polymorphing and banishing?
    JuliusBorisovdockaboomski
  • lefreutlefreut Member Posts: 1,462
    edited November 2019
    ***
    Post edited by lefreut on
    dockaboomskigorgonzola
  • JumboWheat01JumboWheat01 Member Posts: 1,028
    Wild Magic would be more fun if it would stop summoning a demon on me. At lower levels that's not good.
    dockaboomskigorgonzola
  • ThacoBellThacoBell Member Posts: 12,235
    Imoen for lyfe!
    dockaboomskiArdul
  • OtherguyOtherguy Member Posts: 157
    edited September 2016
    From low/mid levels to late game Edwin reigns supreme. End game is a battle between Aerie and Jan imho.
    dockaboomski
  • lroumenlroumen Member Posts: 2,508

    lroumen said:

    If only there was a transmuter npc

    Nice to see a fellow Transmutation fan. Though why must all the games give them Abjuration as a forbidden school? Are they afraid of the power of combining buffing and denial magic? Polymorphing and banishing?
    To be honest I don't miss the abjuration spells at all. I am actually happy that it is not invocation that they are banned from.
    dockaboomski
  •  TheArtisan TheArtisan Member Posts: 3,277
    PK2748 said:

    I'm curious why anyone ever votes for Aerie (somehow winning the pill) over Quayle. Shorty saves and bonus spells. Also Quayle never once complains about his wings

    Horrid Wilting. Also Quayle's constitution isn't high enough to get save bonuses.
    dockaboomski
  • GenderNihilismGirdleGenderNihilismGirdle Member Posts: 1,353
    As someone who likes spamming magic missiles, I gotta go with someone who is almost always in my good parties in BG1 along with her lovable bodyguard Boo (and that meathead who carries him around, Minsc).
    dockaboomskiJuliusBorisov
  • PK2748PK2748 Member Posts: 381

    PK2748 said:

    I'm curious why anyone ever votes for Aerie (somehow winning the pill) over Quayle. Shorty saves and bonus spells. Also Quayle never once complains about his wings

    Horrid Wilting. Also Quayle's constitution isn't high enough to get save bonuses.
    All Gnomes get save bonuses of at least +2
    semiticgoddesselminsterdockaboomskiJuliusBorisov
  • gorgonzolagorgonzola Member Posts: 3,864
    Skatan said:



    Modding Xan into a F/M and having him being all bad-ass with that downer attitude is actually quite hilarious. It's such a paradox.

    If we are talking of modding mage NPCs I am running an interesting experiment. I joined Nalia only after a couple of quests, the circus one, soloed, and the planar prison, with Aerie. I also played the initial dungeon only with Imoen, "finding" Jah and Minsk only at the last moment, when all the dungeon was cleared.
    So I was quite high in level for that point of the game and Nalia had a lot of XP.
    Then I modded her into a kensai lev 1, minmaxing a little her stats without altering the total and I gave her back her XP using cluaconsole. then at lev9 I dualed her into mage.
    And I had her completing the dual just with the remaining XP, no down time at all.
    The minmaxing was only to give her stats that let her do so, without dumping char or doing other PG things.
    Guys, she rooks!

    dockaboomski
  • semiticgoddesssemiticgoddess Member Posts: 14,903
    This is such an incredibly difficult choice.

    I've used Edwin, Jan, and Aerie many times and all of them are marvelous at their jobs. Jan is just so versatile. Edwin is just so strong. Aerie is just so hard to kill. A toolkit, a missile, and a tank. In the end, as a no-reloader, I have to place foremost importance on Death Ward and Chaotic Commands.

    I favor Aerie over Quayle because Quayle is obnoxious. Even in a no-reload game, +2 to saving throws is not worth hearing his voice.

    In vanilla BG2, of course, the spider gnome trick made Jan by far the most overpowered NPC in the saga, capable of stun-locking practically anything, from Kangaxx to Melissan. But EE closed that exploit. Jan still has the greatest late-game potential thanks to blind Improved Alacrity traps, but that takes 6 million XP, and I've done nearly 100% completion in a party of 6 without breaking 5 million XP.
    GenderNihilismGirdledockaboomskigorgonzolaJuliusBorisov
  • dockaboomskidockaboomski Member Posts: 440
    @semiticgod You know that you've convinced me to give Aerie a chance, now. Not to be to flattering but honestly you're the best I know at what you do; the spider run was phenomenal and will always be one of my favorite things.
    semiticgoddessJuliusBorisovGrumMacHurto
  • RaduzielRaduziel Member Posts: 4,714
    Am I the only one that turn Xan into a Blade?

    Or, when using Songs and Silence, into a Dirgesinger.
    dockaboomskiJuliusBorisov
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