Wizard or Sorcerer??Any Suggestions?

Maximuz · Post by **Maximuz** » Mon Mar 10, 2003 9:19 am

I´m a little new to NWN and want to try a Spellcaster....

Which is better Wizard or Sorcerer?

Would be grateful for any suggestions....

garazdawi · Post by **garazdawi** » Mon Mar 10, 2003 10:08 am

Well i'm running through the game with a wizard atm...... and It's great fun... you can use all the spells you want to..... it is especially good the first time as you can then familirize yourself with all the spells that NWN has to offer....

lonely wolf · Post by **lonely wolf** » Mon Mar 10, 2003 10:38 am

take the one that you think is the best.
i think wizard is good because you can change every spell you want (and don't want) to cast and have it right there! (don't worry about the rest you need to spend on the wizard, in NWN you can rest alot.
the wizard also can wright spellscrolls into his spellbook and have that spell prepared.
hoping i'm right....

lonely wolf

Maximuz · Post by **Maximuz** » Tue Mar 11, 2003 1:09 am

Ok.

Thanks, i will go for the Wizard....

My friend says that Sorcerer is the way to go, but then again he is a bit of i-know-best-and-anyone-who-doesn´t-follow-my-exampel-is-wrong type of guy....

Much obliged for the tips guys!

Rav · Post by **Rav** » Tue Mar 11, 2003 2:23 pm

The greatest advantage of sorcerers is more spells per day (between rests). Since you can rest pretty much everywhere you want, that is pretty useless. Wizards then get higher level spells earlier and get a better spell selection to boot.

In Pen and paper, Wizards are vulnerable, because their spellbooks can be taken away etc. This is not a problem in the game for Wizards.

Wizards are absolutely superior in NwN singleplayer.

Rav

lonely wolf · Post by **lonely wolf** » Wed Mar 12, 2003 10:29 am

rav is right.
if i had to choose from the 3 arcane spellcasters to be my char in P&P (now i'm a cleric in P&P), i would take a sorc because of the reasons rav mentioned.
but in the game, the best thing is the wizard

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Wed Mar 12, 2003 11:04 am

I agree entirely. In Shadows of Amn, the sorc is far more powerful, but not in NWN where resting is easy and wiz spell selection is so much better. I actually think that in NWN I would much rather choose a bard than a sorc because they also have innate spells and they have the bard song which becomes very effective.

garazdawi · Post by **garazdawi** » Wed Mar 12, 2003 12:52 pm

Originally posted by dragon wench
I agree entirely. In Shadows of Amn, the sorc is far more powerful, but not in NWN where resting is easy and wiz spell selection is so much better.

as if it wasn't easy to sleep in SOA...... but I ahev to agree that the amount of "you have been attacked by monsters while resting" is astoundingly low...... you can practically sleep on the evil guys foot step and get away with it......in NWN that is....

lonely wolf · Post by **lonely wolf** » Thu Mar 13, 2003 10:55 am

actually, i will not choose the bard, because he is expert in nothing.
because of that he is

(weak)

dragon wench · Post by **dragon wench** » Thu Mar 13, 2003 11:37 am

Originally posted by lonely wolf
actually, i will not choose the bard, because he is expert in nothing.
because of that he is (weak)

That has often been my opinion, but in the last NWN game I started I decided to try a character I had never played before, so I gave the bard a chance. I have to say that those motley assortment of skills make the bard unexpectedly powerful, and the variety of tactics available can make it a fun class to play. I ended up being pleasantly surprised.

I do understand what you are saying though; on the surface of it the bard does not strike one as the most exciting class to play. I have usually had a preference for thieves/rogues, monks or rangers

And in SoA... the kensai/sorcerer was a lot of fun. I really wish Bioware had included the kensai in their selection of NWN kits, *sigh*

EvilEdwin · Post by **EvilEdwin** » Fri Mar 14, 2003 7:13 am

As far as I know there is no Kensai prestige class in 3rd edition.

lonely wolf · Post by **lonely wolf** » Sat Mar 15, 2003 12:16 pm

but in P&P, i don't think the bard is good...

Firinflablaze · Post by **Firinflablaze** » Fri Mar 21, 2003 10:00 pm

I like the sorceror because he's always prepared for a situation: since I usually as a wizard just end up memorizing all fireballs anyway, being able to cast on demand a flame arrow or a haste does get useful.

Since I'm not one to usually prepare before hand (and I don't like resting all the time) sorceror's always been my favorite. Plus, in the OC, you get so much money and scrolls, that if you can't cast it, like some of the weird spells, you can get a scroll for the one time you'll have to cast it anyway.

I guess it all depends on your play style.

Rav · Post by **Rav** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 5:20 am

Originally posted by Firinflablaze
I like the sorceror because he's always prepared for a situation: since I usually as a wizard just end up memorizing all fireballs anyway, being able to cast on demand a flame arrow or a haste does get useful.

Since I'm not one to usually prepare before hand (and I don't like resting all the time) sorceror's always been my favorite. Plus, in the OC, you get so much money and scrolls, that if you can't cast it, like some of the weird spells, you can get a scroll for the one time you'll have to cast it anyway.

I guess it all depends on your play style.

You preparing all fireballs isn't really a problem with the Wizard class now though is it?

And the scroll argument holds true for Wizards too - if you need extra spells between resting periods, you can just buy them easily...

mikeo · Post by **mikeo** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 9:56 pm

I go for sorcerers personally, i agree that wizards are somewhat closer is power to sorcerers in NWN over BG but for the raw ability to defend yourself or unleash a spell at will, sorcerers work better for me. The biggest advantage being on defence...with spells like improved invisibily, stoneskin, shadow shield and others that high level wizards would worry about filling up valuable high level spell slots with, a sorcerer and have them ready to go along with a couple wham bam damage spells of same level. Overall i think with a well prepared wizard you can do just as well as a sorcerer but on surprise situations an unprepared wizard is toast while a sorcerer will likely have a necessary spell ready to defend himself....usually...

Firinflablaze · Post by **Firinflablaze** » Sat Mar 22, 2003 11:54 pm

True, preparing fireballs isn't a problem, but I can cast more if I'm a sorceror between rests. As well, I can cast stuff other than fireballs without prior preparation, instead of just filling my slots with fireballs whether I'm up against frost giants or a red dragon.

Of course, I can see that if you KNOW you're going to be fighting a red dragon, being a wizard can be helpful, though in that case, a sorceror in the OC could just recall back to town and pick up the correct scroll in any case. This helps negate their disadvantage (can cast fewer spells) because all the weird ones can be used via scrolls if you ever need them, while keeping the useful ones handy.

Rav · Post by **Rav** » Sun Mar 23, 2003 12:01 pm

Originally posted by Firinflablaze
True, preparing fireballs isn't a problem, but I can cast more if I'm a sorceror between rests. As well, I can cast stuff other than fireballs without prior preparation, instead of just filling my slots with fireballs whether I'm up against frost giants or a red dragon.

Of course, I can see that if you KNOW you're going to be fighting a red dragon, being a wizard can be helpful, though in that case, a sorceror in the OC could just recall back to town and pick up the correct scroll in any case. This helps negate their disadvantage (can cast fewer spells) because all the weird ones can be used via scrolls if you ever need them, while keeping the useful ones handy.

And again I say that that argument is not valid because wizards can use scrolls just as easily. If you truly need one more Defensive spell X than you had prepared, you can cast it from scroll... and I must add that in NWN you 9 out of 10 times know exactly what you are up against anyway.

I am sorry, but saying that sorcerers are more versatile than wizards is like saying wizards can cast more spells between rests. It just isn't true - you just play your wizards as artillery platforms. The versatility is not the problem with the wizard class, it is a problem with memorizing one spell over and over again; of course you aren't going to be versatile. Of course, you lose a lot of power if only half your spells are of an offensive nature... but that is solved through the following tactic: One encounter - rest. One encounter - rest. One encounter - rest. I don't agree with this from a roleplaying perspective any more than you do probably, but that playstyle is why wizards are superior in NwN. They lose no offensive capability, gain versatility, and gain higher level spells more quickly. That last ability is also very important.

Rav

Firinflablaze · Post by **Firinflablaze** » Sun Mar 23, 2003 9:15 pm

Okay, I admit it: if you rest after every encounter, a wizard will be better. Since I don't: I rest when I run out of spells or am badly wounded, I prefer a sorceror. It fits my play style a lot better (I get annoyed waiting for my guy to rest).

Sorcerors are not more versatile than wizards, but they can make up for the versatility of wizards through scrolls, or at least in my play style: I usually never need more than 3 spells a level anyway. If you use a variety, I can see the definite advantage of wizards. Yes wizards can use scrolls, but they're already versatile: what's the advantage of using a scroll compared to just memorizing and casting as a wizard? As a sorc, it might be the only way you'll cast the Tenser's you'll need against the spell resistant enemy.

In my play style, gaining spells later is an acceptable trade-off to being able to cast spells more often: I prefer an extra 2 (or 3 depending whether you're a specialist wizard or not) magic missles to a melf's. Sure chain lightning's nice, but 2 extra cone of cold's can deal about the same amount of damage. The only real advantage I see is at level 17, when wizards get timestop, which beats any number of spells before it. Otherwise, if you don't rest a whole lot, more spells beats sooner spells.

They're both quite balanced, and if you're not a frequent rester, sorceror can be a lot better for your play style.

mikeo · Post by **mikeo** » Mon Mar 24, 2003 2:49 am

Ultimately it comes down to roleplay...does it really make sense from a realistic roleplay perspective to sleep/rest after every fight or resting with enemies around the corner of that dungeon hall...not really, most likely when you set foot into a dungeon crawling with undead and other nasty creatures you would have prepared necessay spells to last you long enough to create a safe area to heal up and rest for further battles, wizards don't do this really well...less individual spells...spells and all that...and roleplaying a sorcerer just feels better because you can do this easier without the cheesy fight/rest/fight/rest crap, a sorcerer would certainly feel better with 9 fireballs to unleash into a vast hall full of undead as opposed to a wizard with 3 fireballs, 3 fire arrows, and 3 minor globes of inv memorized eh?

lonely wolf · Post by **lonely wolf** » Mon Mar 24, 2003 10:36 am

Originally posted by mikeo
Ultimately it comes down to roleplay...does it really make sense from a realistic roleplay perspective to sleep/rest after every fight or resting with enemies around the corner of that dungeon hall...not really, most likely when you set foot into a dungeon crawling with undead and other nasty creatures you would have prepared necessay spells to last you long enough to create a safe area to heal up and rest for further battles, wizards don't do this really well...less individual spells...spells and all that...and roleplaying a sorcerer just feels better because you can do this easier without the cheesy fight/rest/fight/rest crap, a sorcerer would certainly feel better with 9 fireballs to unleash into a vast hall full of undead as opposed to a wizard with 3 fireballs, 3 fire arrows, and 3 minor globes of inv memorized eh?

I guess that if you rest after every little battle, it will not be roleplaying, but a big battle is more exhausting, so often after big battles, roleplayers rest...