Character Creation

This section of the guide is meant to help you choose a successful party. There are no right and wrong parties ¿ any party combination can be successful, but the difficulty of the game will reflect on your choices. The easiest way through the game is to have a balanced party. Having a balanced party is a necessary thing to ensure survival, especially for beginners. That way you will have all the needed abilities at your disposal, and will be thankful for having them later.

A balanced party consists of front line tanks, a rogue, and magical support. Basically, I suggest having a pair of fighter characters (not as in the fighter class, but just melee characters), a rogue (or bard, if you are feeling adventurous), a cleric (or druid, if one of your fighters is a paladin), and a wizard (sorcerers just don't compare at later levels). The last character can be of any class, so have fun with this one. I usually opt for a second spellcaster, but once again, it is up to you.

Before going into the individual character classes, I want to lay down my notes on multi-classing in the game. Since there are no prestige classes in the game, I suggest to never multi-class a character, unless you are after specific bonuses (such as all the free feats that a fighter gets) for getting the levels of another class. Remember that there is a penalty for having too many classes, especially if you are levelling them at different speeds. The manual explain the experience penalty system very well, so refer to it there.

The truth is that there is no real benefit to multi-classing in this game. The only really thing you¿ll accomplish by doing it is gimping your character at the later levels. Now it is true that the top level is thirty and not twenty, so it is possible to get two classes really high. The problem is that if you have a lot of levels in one class, and only a few in another, some of your skills will be quite useless, especially at higher levels. For example, a level four fighter wishes to cast spells, so he takes a level of wizard. When he first gets the spells, he is already not that effective when using them. On top of that, his fighting capacities are lower and he can¿t tank as efficiently as he used to. If he ever chooses to not continue as a wizard, he will always have that wasted level haunting him.

On top of lowering the potential power of characters, multi-classing makes it very hard to organize your party. What is the general role each character? What should they do in a given situation? In the above example, imagine the fighter deciding to case a Burning Hands spell at a goblin. The trade off is that the fighter has removed himself from melee, making his party very vulnerable in a bad situation.

If you find that you do want to create a multi-class character, do yourself a favour and plan out the level progression before hand to make sure that you don't get any experience penalties. Remember that your multi-class character may be more versatile than single-classed characters, but they also lose access to some of the more advanced powers and skills that regular characters can use. Keep to the level progression and you should be fine. Also remember to factor in your race¿s favoured class when determining how you want to multi-class.

A party full of multi-classed characters will make the game very hard, as you will end up with many low level skills, and few higher ones. At the start of the game this is not a problem, but as you progress you will see a dramatic fall in what your party can accomplish. At higher levels, taking a second class is a good idea, but only once you have maxed out the powers of a character in a specific class.

In second edition games, choosing a race for your character was a pretty easy choice. Not having to worry about level limits makes it a much harder choice. All the races in the game have both advantages and disadvantages to play them, usually in the form of ability bonuses or penalties, or skill bonuses. Some even offer free feats or choices of feats that can be bought. These are all listed in the game and the manual, so I won't go over them here.

I am not going to go over any of the races here ¿ I am just going to say a couple general things that you have to look at. Each race has a favoured class ¿ a favoured class does not count when determining whether the character deserves an experience penalty for multi-classing. Each race has attribute modifications that make them attractive to certain classes, or not. While any class can be taken by any of the races (I think ¿ I really should try a drow paladin!), not all have the capabilities to be as good at them all. These are but a few elements that are commonly seen across all the races.

Some races may seem to be much more powerful than other. These are given one is called a level adjustment. They start off their careers as a significantly more powerful character than someone else of the same class; they also progress much more slowly. For the level adjustment is added to the character¿s level to determining how much experience is needed to gain a level. A level one aasimar fighter will need 1000 experience points to rise to level two, but will need 3000 to hit level three, whereas a human would be already level three after 2000 more experience points. It also means that the aasimar fighter has a lower maximum level that he can reach, due to the hard experience cap.

When creating a party, it is always a good idea to think ahead. I wouldn't suggest creating an entire party of characters that are of these powerful races ¿ all that will happen is that your party will progress in level too slowly, and will be missing helpful skills and spells when they are needed. Taking one or two of the powerful races is not a bad idea, as long as you are willing to accept the slower level progression ¿ for the entire length of the game. Also, I would suggest against handicapping your cleric in this way (even though I did!), as their spells will be needed at the maximum possible level.

The game has the same character classes as did Neverwinter Nights, but they changed a few things around. With the addition and removal of some skills and feats, the classes had to be changed a little. Some of these changes are a little strange to look at, but don't have much effect on how a character is made.

Unlike in Neverwinter Nights, here you will be partying by necessity. You don't have to have a character that has to handle everything on their own. You will have six people, so don't be too worried, if each character only has one skill. What I will detailing here are the basic skills and feats that each class will need to be helpful. I will be leaving out basic information that is available in the manual, as well as what is found in the character creation information boxes. At the end I will detail my hopes for the party that I selected.

The Barbarian
The barbarian is a savage fighter, a merciless killer of his foes. Able to go into a mindless rage, they are easily the equal of the disciplined fighter. A high Strength, Dexterity and Constitution help a barbarian immensely. They are not proficient with heavy armour, so the Dexterity bonus will keep them alive for a bit longer. Barbarians have no real need for skills, so just pick anything. Give them combat feats as you get them - giving them Power Attack and Cleave at the start of the game will be great for fighting goblins and other weak foes.

Personally, I will take a fighter over a barbarian on my first trip through a game. With the higher protection, they have a higher survival rate.

The Bard
The bard is a versatile character that puts magic into his songs. With skill at healing, arcane spells, rogue skills and the class-only battle songs, they make a nice addition to any party. Expect bards to specialize in skills like Armoured Arcana to offset the spell failure of wearing armour, and give them basic caster feats, such as Subvocal Casting, Combat Casting or Spell Penetration. Combat feats are nice too, but it really depends on what you plan on your bard using. A bard should put some skill points into Spellcraft, Open Locks and Disable Device. The rest depends on your play style. Bards need a high Charisma and Dexterity.

Bards have many skills. They never do get that powerful in any one area, so taking a straight spellcaster or rogue might suit your party better, as it did to mine.

The Cleric
There are nine different cleric classes in the game. Each class is devoted to a god and gets special abilities and domain spells. Clerics are primary healers and givers of protective spells, but they also have great combat potential, both at melee and offensive spells. Give a cleric some Concentration and spellcasting feats. Some combat feats are nice to have at the start of the game when they run out of spells too fast. Clerics need high Wisdom and Charisma, and a mediocre Strength.

Clerics are the best divine spellcasters. I make a note to take one over a druid at any point in time, because their high end spells are quite necessary, in my opinion. Their ability to turn undead is just a plus!

The Druid
The druid is a natural spellcaster that can also change shapes at higher levels. They heal at a slightly lower level than clerics and cannot turn undead. They do have more combat-oriented spells, mostly of an elemental nature. They have some control over nature and can even speak with it. As a druid gains experience, their bodies grow resistant to the effects of nature. Druids need spellcasting feats, as well as their own shapechanging feats. Add in some Concentration and they should be fine. Druids need a high Wisdom.

As I said, I always prefer to have a cleric on hand then a druid. The druid's Wilderness Lore skill is an interesting skill to have. With it you can spy on an area and get hints before even beginning!

The Fighter
The fighter is a disciplined warrior. They are versed in the use of all weapons and armour, but the bastard sword (they can get training in it though). They are valuable tacticians and incredibly stalwart companions. With the addition of the feats, they make for incredibly resourceful characters. Give them Power Attack and Cleave to raise their usefulness at the start of the game, then have them specialize in the bastard sword. You cannot go wrong with that combination! Fighters need a high Strength and Constitution. Dexterity does little for them, since they will be wearing plate mail anyway.

The fighter is my favourite heavy melee class in the game.

The Monk
Whereas the fighter is a heavy melee unit, the monk is a light melee unit. At high levels a monk has a powerful unarmed attack, as well as many special defences. A monk is almost certain to be weaker at the start of the game, since they are penalized for using weapons and armour of any kind, and start off rather weak. Give them a combat feats and skills, and they will be fine. A monk's life is hard - they need Strength, Dexterity, Wisdom and Constitution to be effective. They don't need any Charisma or Intelligence though!

MONKS AND PALADINS CANNOT FREELY MULTI-CLASS LIKE OTHER CLASSES! Instead you have to pick an order for them to belong to, and you can only multi-class to the class that the order allows - any other class will get you removed from the order - in other words you won't be able to advance in that class anymore!

I love the monk abilities, as well as the concept behind them. I chose to take a monk along for my first run-through of the game!

The Paladin
The paladin is a holy warrior trained in the use of most weapons and armour. They trade a lot of their combat feats for special powers, such as turn undead, spells, protection from evil and the ability to smite undead. Paladins don't require any feats or skills and should have high Strength, Constitution, Wisdom and Charisma.

MONKS AND PALADINS CANNOT FREELY MULTI-CLASS LIKE OTHER CLASSES! Instead you have to pick an order for them to belong to, and you can only multi-class to the class that the order allows - any other class will get you removed from the order - in other words you won't be able to advance in that class anymore!

Paladins are more versatile than fighters, but don't pack as strong a punch. If you get a holy avenger sword, just give a fighter a level of Helm paladin and then they can use it!

The Ranger
The ranger is a protector of the wild. They get many special abilities that the fighter doesn't, including the use of some spells later in their careers. As long as they wear light or no armour, they get the Ambidexterity and Two-Weapon Fighting feats for free. A ranger needs a high Strength and Dexterity, as well as a medium Wisdom (14). Wilderness Lore is their only required skill.

My thoughts on the ranger are mixed. They are a little more interesting to play than a fighter, but they lack the front-line-tank demeanour that will get them killed, if they are thrust into the role. Only take a ranger, if they are a supplemental tank, and not the only one in your party.

The Rogue
The rogue is the master thief and a valuable asset to every party! Not only do they excel at doing thieving things, but they also get the wonderful sneak attack! The sneak attack is not as powerful as in Neverwinter Nights, but is still very useful if you can micromanage your party well. Rogues need to advance seven different skills to be successful - Pick Pocket, Move Silently, Open Locks, Use Magic Device, Search, Disable Device and Hide. That means that you will need to give them an Intelligence of 16, as well as a high Dexterity and medium Strength. Rogues don't need any feats, except those that are listed as needing rogue levels to get (Improved Evasion rocks!).

Every party should have a rogue. It is as simple as that!

The Sorcerer and Wizard
I grouped these two classes under one heading for a reason. These two caster classes are in many ways the same, but they do it differently. Wizards study hard to use magic, while sorcerers are born with talent. Both of these classes are played completely different while in the game.

The sorcerer advances in power much slower than the wizard. They get less spells per level, but can cast far more per day! Their limited selection of different spells makes them inferior to the wizard when chosen for single caster parties. Their many uses of the spells that they get makes them very useful, on the other hand. The trick is to learn how to balance your sorcerer. Sorcerers make the best use out of spells that must be cast very often. Any attack spells, or defence spells (like Improved Invisibility or Stoneskin) are good to take, but spells that you will rarely cast should not be included. The one exception to the rule is called when you already have the 'good' spells for a level - add in other spells only after you get the core attack spells. Good spells for a sorcerer include Magic Missile, Identify, Sleep, Melf's Acid Arrow, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Improved Invisibility, etc. Other spells are meant for wizards. Sorcerers need a maxed out Dexterity and Charisma and the Concentration skill. I will talk about feats later.

The wizard advances in power every second level. They can learn as many spells as you can give them, with the only restriction being specialization. Wizards can choose to specialize in a single school of magic - doing so gives them bonuses when using spells from that school, but disallows the use of spells from certain spheres (as decided at creation). Wizards are very flexible - they can modify their spell selections at any time by preparing new spells. A wizard's arsenal evolves with time, allowing them to use the 'lesser' spells that sorcerers can't waste slots on. Single use spells like Knock, Gate and self-only protection spells are usually used only by wizards. The wizard needs a high Intelligence and Dexterity. Give them a lot of points in Knowledge: Arcana, Alchemy, Concentration and Spellcraft.

Sorcerers and wizards benefit from the same feats, but wizards will get more. Subvocal Casting and Spell Penetration are a must to have, as well as Spell Focus: Evocation, and possibly the others too. Don't bother with Armoured Arcanaa (not worth it - the other feats are much better), and place your points into the various Spell Focus, 'Spirit' (the ones that give you elemental resistance) and generic caster feats. Weapon Focus in ranged weapons and staves is nice to have too.

So, the question remains - which is better to have? The answer is not simple, but is based on the situation! If you want two casters, take one of each, which is what I did. Wizards are good all-purpose casters, while sorcerers can keep pumping out high damage spells. If you put together nice spell lists, you can actually take a duo of such characters through the game without any other help! I would strongly suggest against taking two wizards through the game, as you will not get enough scrolls to build two spell lists.

My Party
My party is very simply planned out. I will introduce my characters to you now.

Dharielle is a high elf wizard with no other aspirations but improving her skills and aiding those in need. Originally the name was taken from one of R.A. Salvatore's characters, but I later took the name for my theurgist in Dark Age of Camelot (online RPG, best game EVER). She is the cornerstone of my party, as well as the main damage dealer.

Tzigone is an aasimar sorceress. She leads the party into the unknown, as both main spokesperson and fireballer! Her name was taken from Elaine Cunningham's Council and Kings series, and I originally took her name for an infiltrator in the same game.

Corleen is an aasimar cleric of Lathander. She is the main healer in the party and primary summoner. She was named after my first DAoC character, a Midgardian healer.

Fheir is a half-orc fighter. He leads the party in battle, taking the responsibility of their safety into his own hands. A dependable fighter, he is named after a good friend of mine's main character in a lot of other games. He wishes to use a bastard sword, but can never seem to find one that is better than the Moonblade of Selune!

Raiksha is a stoutheart halfling rogue. Her main responsibility is to prepare the road that the party walks on. She is a master of the bow, and all things sneaky. She is named after my Neverwinter Nights main character.

Rane is a human monk of the Old Order. Her primary responsibility is to deliver major damage, while dodging everything in turn. She is the pure unarmoured, light tank. She is named after my original Baldur's Gate main character, even though she has changed class twice since them! Originally a fighter/mage, then an archer, she is finally a monk!

On to Walkthrough...

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