Why do mages need Dexterity?
I thought that was just for melee type charecters? Mages, i thoght, needed max intel and then Con, Wisdom (or not, as prefered for Lore/Luck), Str, Char in that order?
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And avoiding arrows and swords when casting is also a nice bonus.
But on a more serious note, from memory, I believe you just needed high dex for an illusionist, which is what 2nd edition uses.
In BG:EE Your prefered stats should be: (In this order)
Dexterity 18: For AC bonuses.
Con 16: For the HP per level bonuses.
Int 18: For scribing spells and how many spells you can hold in your book.
Str: For carry wieght.
Cha: For morale and party related arguments
Wis: For lore (Lore is terrible)
Mind you, even in BG, 9 intelligence grants you access to up to 4th lvl spells (enough for all of BG 1 pre-TotSC, with only 10 intelligence being required for a pure mage in TotSC, 16 in SoA, and 18 in ToB, and as you know, any wisdom will do for cleric spells)
9, 4th lvl
10, 5th lvl
12, 6th lvl
14, 7th lvl
16, 8th lvl
18, 9th lvl
That being said, I get your point. To make an effective mage, extra con will help the most, and then it's a tossup, like you said between wisdom (great for the wish spells, and makes sense in an rp sense) and dex (marginal AC increase). I typically choose dex, but the gloves of dexterity set it at 18, so wisdom is probably your best bet. Charisma can be set to 18 by the ring (20 with the ring and cloak), and strength can be set to 20, 21, or 22 depending on the belt you use. Meaning your prime stats are intelligence, constitution, and wisdom.
The only stats mages need are set out perfectly by ST4TICStriker (dex 18, con 16, int 10 (18 for going into BG2), and high intelligence can be convenient.
Incidentally with the wish spell, it's possible to speak with someone other than the caster if you're fairly quick.
I also think people saying that it doesn't give signficant advantages are missing the point of mages as opposed to sorcerers. Their lifeblood is preparation, therefore the more spells you know per level the better your mage is. Being able to know 18 spells per level with 18 Intelligence is super important if you ask me. I disagree with this assessment.
Wisdom affects Lore and Wish. That's it. Lore is stupid because unless you're a bard, any item you want ID'd you'll cast Identification on. Planning a character just to use one spell that honestly isn't nearly as great as most people make it out to be I also think is pretty silly because you can just quaff a Potion of Insight before you cast it assuming you really need to anyway.
Mages do not want to engage in melee, so maxing dexterity is important. Their base Thac0 is horrible so if you want them to ever land an attack with a sling/dart/throwing dagger, you'll really want a high dexterity. Also -4 AC when you don't have many options to lower your AC otherwise is a huge deal. Relying on the Gauntlets of Dexterity should be left to NPCs who really need it because a Mage will really want Bracers of AC in his/her glove slots instead. Plus, they are really hard to get in BG2 without planning ahead of time because getting stuck in a pit full of angry Beholders before you're ready to really fight them is a bad idea.
So prime stats are Intelligence, Constitution, Dexterity. I find it's pretty easy to max all of that and still keep everything else at 10, at the least.
Level 1 spell "Friends" straight up gives 6 charisma. So if you have 14 on your mage, you can just pop that spell and get the max shop discount.
Alternatively, just bring a bard. They can't have less than 15 charisma anyway and can do the same thing.
You guys are a great community, i wouldnt know what to do without ya!
Different strokes for different folks.
Isnt Wisdom also needed for Priests ?? For their Spells ?
As for dexterity, I'm not saying it's useless, just saying it's not required, nor is constitution, or even a very high intelligence. It's really a question of how overpowered you want to make your character, since you have the option of going up to 18 in all stats, and can easily roll a character with three or more 16s and 18s.
Also, while I like wisdom for limited wish and wish, they are mostly gimmicks, and I use them for kicks, especially considering wish especially is so overpowered if you get some decent options. It can mix things up a bit though, which can be fun, like casting Improved Haste on all enemies, or casting Horrid Wilting on everyone in the area, although you can also get Improved Haste on the party, have your spells fully restored, or get a double length Timestop with Improved Alacrity. I assume you already know, I'm just saying for others. They are fun spells, but I could easily do without them, or HLAs for that matter (too cheesy imo).