Hello! First of all, sorry if this was discussed before. I tried to search, but i wasn't able to get a proper answer to my doubts. I'm not that good speaking english, nor finding key words to do a search. Sorry about that.
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I'm looking forward to beat the whole saga with an archer character, with melee backup. The main goal is have fun, so i don't care if it's an über killing machine or not (as long it's playeable hehe).
I was thinking in an half-elf Long Bow weilder. Fighter class dualed with... with... don't know Y_Y
Maybe as fighter in BG1 and dual to [insert class here] in BG2?
Well, in the first BG, for an archer character, if you must dual class, I'd suggest a fighter/mage, for extra defenses as well as the extra attack speed, offensive spells and the ability to summon melee fighters in form of monsters.
In BG2 however, I don't think you can go any better than the Archer class (which can't dual class).
If you've made up your mind about not dual classing until BGII, and if you're soloing, in terms of raw power, I'd suggest the Kensai/Thief combo, dualed in the early twenties.
For fun however, I'd choose a Swashbuckler/Mage. dualed at about the same time, though keep in mind that both classes WILL have a downtime where you will play as a mage or as a thief only. It requires a bit of micromanagement due to buffing and casting, but this combination can get more powerful than the former.
Also, another idea, consider instead making a Thief/Mage multiclass and then using Shadowkeeper to change him or her to a Swashbuckler/Mage.
“The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially.”
I thought the Archer could dual class into a Cleric. I thought the drawback was that you can only take ** in Sling.
If you're not set on the Archer kit in BGII, an Elf Fighter with a 19 DEX. You say dual class, but then say "Half-Elf" which implies multiclassing. An Elf Fighter/Mage or Fighter/Mage/Thief or Fighter/Thief with a 19 DEX would be a great archer type character as well.
You want Elf because they can get a higher DEX than most races (Halfling can get 19 as well) and because an Elf gets +1 to hit with bows.
Again, undoubtedly, the most destructive character with a bow in BGI (no mods) would be an Elf Fighter, with a 19 DEX, and with an eventual **** in Bows. A character like this would DOMINATE BGI.
"A life is not important, except in the impact it has on other lives."
-- Jackie Robinson
The Archers (and Stalkers) can only dual class to Clerics without ToB installed and they would make a good combination at that.
Oh, also, while you said you liked longbows, I personally would take shortbows in SoA as in terms of damage, they're better, not to mention more interesting in terms of abilities.
For an archer type, when in SoA and ToB, the multiclass characters can't compare with the dual class ones as the latter (depending on classes) you gain bonus to hit and damage points, which add a significant amount of damage and THAC0, on top of everything else you have going.
“The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially.”
But the question was asking not just about power but how fun the character is. Now, this varies from person to person, but I can't stand playing full combat "click and point" characters, so I think that a few mage levels would REALLY be worth your while, both in terms of the fun aspect AND power. However, you could only get three stars in bows then, which in my opinion, for BG, is enough.
“The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially.”
I recommend taking a fighter/thief or if you don't mind spellcasting a fighter/mage/thief multiclass, he will be extremely powerful from the beginning until the end. You're very flexible since this character can handle most things himself and still do a lot of ranged and melee damage.
When you say "beat the whole saga" I guess you're gonna be importing them into BG2.
So with this in mind I would download the mod Baldur's Gate Tutu and then you can chose the BG2 kits to play through BG. In which case the only choice for you would be the Ranger kit Archer. Preferably a Elf with 19 dex. specialising in short bows (more choice). Would be a killing machine in BG where range weapons rule. I don't even like to think about once you've up'ed your dex with a certain tome.
If you don't download tutu I think you still gotta pick a ranger so when you import into BG2 you can pick the archer kit then. Just make sure you don't specialise in a melee weapon then you may not be able to pick an archer as they are only allowed to be proficient in melee weapons (not sure if this is the case as have never checked).
Crenshinibon wrote:But the question was asking not just about power but how fun the character is. Now, this varies from person to person, but I can't stand playing full combat "click and point" characters, so I think that a few mage levels would REALLY be worth your while, both in terms of the fun aspect AND power. However, you could only get three stars in bows then, which in my opinion, for BG, is enough.
I thought multi-classed characters were limited to **
"A life is not important, except in the impact it has on other lives."
-- Jackie Robinson
