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Your thoughts on having Xzar and Monty in the party

DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
in General Discussion (Spoiler Warning!)
Hey ya!

Folks, I'm planning on starting a new game with a human Blade whom I had started before and done a couple of chapters but wasn't really happy with my party. Now I'm thinking of another party and would appreciate some thoughts . First of all I'm taking imoen, khalid and jaheira.

Now here's the dilemma , as a true neutral blade I thought that xzar and monty would fit in, even though my protagonist ain't really evil. Personally I like them because they look like a pair of underdogs , and RPwise I would consider that both harpers and Zenths are fighting against a common enemy. But I do wonder if they're still fun to have around for long, with their delusions and life threats. Also, I've got NPC project installed and would like to know if they've got lots of banters and comments during the game (I know that certain npc's, such as viconia, participate very little).

Thanks in advance!

Comments

  • WarChiefZekeWarChiefZeke Member Posts: 2,651
    Oh yeah, they talk with the NPC project quite a bit. Credit to whoever had to write so much Xzar dialogue- I had a hard time writing for that character when I had to make my own banters. I remember Viconia having numerous and rather long conversations with Kivan, so I think it's just a matter of who you take with you.
  • StormvesselStormvessel Member Posts: 654
    edited January 2017
    I like them in vanilla. I have a fighter/cleric in vanilla and am using Kagain, Monte as a backstabber/thief, Edwin and Xzar as the casters, and Faldorn. Solid party.

    In the Enhanced Edition, however, I recommend dualing Shar-teel to thief and going with Edwin and Baeloth. I might take Monte over Shar-teel for convenience purposes but Xzar becomes a big liability because Baeloth is just so much better.
  • deltagodeltago Member Posts: 7,811
    Ya... i think you might enjoy Xzar and Monty when travelling with Khalid and Jaheira.

    It can get ... entertaining, even in vanilla mod free. Just make sure they are close together so they can banter with each other.
  • JumboWheat01JumboWheat01 Member Posts: 1,028
    Xzar has more Wisdom than most of (if not all, I'm not sure,) the divine casters, and can make a decent necromancer/cleric if you want to go down that route.
  • tbone1tbone1 Member Posts: 1,985
    edited January 2017
    deltago said:

    Ya... i think you might enjoy Xzar and Monty when travelling with Khalid and Jaheira.

    It can get ... entertaining, even in vanilla mod free. Just make sure they are close together so they can banter with each other.

    I'm playing a party with Khalid, Jaheira, and Monty with no problems. Xzar seems to be the one who makes Jaheira shout "Triggered!"

    Mind you, dealing with someone like Xzar would do that to me as well, so ...
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    Thanks a lot , guys .
    @WarChiefZeke , I remember having both vicky and kivan in my party once, but even then she wouldn't talk much . She had some good banters with imoen and jaheira, though.

    @Stormvessel I thought of taking other characters but I usually think of which one fits best according to my character's personality, and since I haven't installed the hardest scs fights it normally doesn't make much of a difference if I pick a weaker npc.

    @deltago and @tbone1 thank you for your comments, I've decided to bring them along fpr good :)

    @JumboWheat01 I would dual him but since he's my only mage I would rather have him in all his arcane glory. Thanks for the suggestion!
  • StormvesselStormvessel Member Posts: 654
    edited January 2017
    @DJKajuru

    And that's totally understandable. But hey - good news is that Xzar's not really weak ;). Sure, Baeloth is better (because he's a freaking sorcerer with even more spells) and Edwin is STILL the best caster in the game (even better than a charname mage :neutral: ), but Xzar is perfectly viable and Monteron makes an excellent fighter/thief and backstabber.

    Here's a tip for you...you can give Xzar one of the the Tomes of Wisdom and dual him to cleric! You can dual him at level 6 and have no problem reaching max level Cleric in BGEE. It really fleshes him out from a roleplaying perspective and causes him to feel much more like a necromancer with the cleric's undead abilities and summons.

  • VasculioVasculio Member Posts: 469
    I ALWAYS have Xzar and Montaron in my party. >:)
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    So far it's been quite cool to have them around, I suppose I'll just dump them after defeating Sarevok because I don't see why they would stay with me (they do need to report stuff to the Zentharim, don't they?) . Nevertheless, I do recommend them!
  • WinterisleWinterisle Member Posts: 111
    I've been through the game with them once. Montaron is awesome with ranged weapons, but he's a very good front-linner too. Xzar is a very good caster, only bested by Edwin. And they're both out of their bloody mind, complete psychopaths who run around creating chaos.

    I strongly recommend them.
  • GallowglassGallowglass Member Posts: 3,356
    Sure, for an Evil run, Xzar & Montaron are splendid fun and pretty competent. Not quite as strong as (say) taking Kagain and Edwin instead, but nevertheless strong enough to do the job perfectly well ... and (IMO) more fun.
  • OlvynChuruOlvynChuru Member Posts: 3,075
    One thing that Xzar can do and Edwin can't is identify things. Edwin has extremely low Wisdom and cannot learn the spell Identify, whereas Xzar has good Wisdom and can learn Identify.

    Of course, Edwin is still much better than Xzar. However, you could always use both of them for double the mages.
  • ButtercheeseButtercheese Member Posts: 3,766
    Xzar and Monty are a ton of fun in the NPC project, can absolutely recommend them!
    I do also believe Xzar gets his own quest in this one, on the upper level of the Sorcerous Sundries, I believe?
  • DJKajuruDJKajuru Member Posts: 3,300
    Buttercheese said:

    Xzar and Monty are a ton of fun in the NPC project, can absolutely recommend them!
    I do also believe Xzar gets his own quest in this one, on the upper level of the Sorcerous Sundries, I believe?

    Actually that's more of an unpleasant encounter than a quest. Xzar's own quest is the which involves mithral rings and dead dryads ...
  • PokotaPokota Member Posts: 858
    [Y]ou can give Xzar one of the the Tomes of Wisdom and dual him to cleric!

    If I plan on doing this, which tome is the fastest one to get?
  • ButtercheeseButtercheese Member Posts: 3,766
    @Pokota There are three Tomes of understanding to be found:
    - Pick pocket from one of the priests in the Lady's House in BG west
    - Durlag's Tower (one of the upper levels, don't ask me which)
    - Candlekeep Catercobs

    I guess your best bet would to go raiding Durlag's Tower.
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