Character for BG -> BG2

VinceWhirlwind · Post by **VinceWhirlwind** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 6:28 am

I'm planning on taking a character through BG then to BG2 and I had a couple of queries:

I want to develop a fighter with strong bow skills, take him through to BG2, then dual-class him at around lvl10 to a mage.

Obviously there will then be a fair period before I get my Fighter skills back.

While I am a lower-level mage, my Grand Master level of Bow skills will be unavailable - when I finally reach Mage lvl10, will I regain the full use of all 5 stars I put into Bow skills?

If I have 2 stars in, say, blunt weapons, prior to dual-classing, then while a lower-level mage I select 1 star in blunt weapons, will I end up with 3 stars in total, once I regain my fighter abilities?

As a dual fighter-mage, I won't be able to use armour or helmets, but will I be able to use a longbow and two-handed sword?

Stilgar · Post by **Stilgar** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 6:37 am

Originally posted by VinceWhirlwind
While I am a lower-level mage, my Grand Master level of Bow skills will be unavailable - when I finally reach Mage lvl10, will I regain the full use of all 5 stars I put into Bow skills?

Yes you will

Originally posted by VinceWhirlwind
If I have 2 stars in, say, blunt weapons, prior to dual-classing, then while a lower-level mage I select 1 star in blunt weapons, will I end up with 3 stars in total, once I regain my fighter abilities?

No you will have 2stars, and you wasted one.
They do not stack

Originally posted by VinceWhirlwind
As a dual fighter-mage, I won't be able to use armour or helmets, but will I be able to use a longbow and two-handed sword?

After your mage level becomes hihger then your fighter level, you can use helmets, bows and two-handed swords. You can even wear armor, but you wont be able to cast spells while wearing it.

I recommand keeping every scroll you find, and when you dual, gain some experience (you could kick everyone out of your party so you'll be the only one to get experience) by writing these scrolls. Good luck, and welcome to the forum!

Thrain · Post by **Thrain** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 6:45 am

or you could wear elven chainmail

Sir Redweed · Post by **Sir Redweed** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 6:58 am

Remember that if you kick out one of the ladies to memorize scolls you will kill off the romance senarios.

Xandax · Post by **Xandax** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 7:52 am

Originally posted by VinceWhirlwind
<snip>
I want to develop a fighter with strong bow skills, take him through to BG2, then dual-class him at around lvl10 to a mage.

Obviously there will then be a fair period before I get my Fighter skills back.

While I am a lower-level mage, my Grand Master level of Bow skills will be unavailable - when I finally reach Mage lvl10, will I regain the full use of all 5 stars I put into Bow skills?
<snip>

Actually - if you dual a level 10 figther, you need to reach level 11 in the new class before you regain your figther abilities, and not level 10.

VinceWhirlwind · Post by **VinceWhirlwind** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 9:00 am

Thanks for those hints - very useful.

I am planning to acquire as many Tomes as possible - already found 1 in the Gnoll stronghold, and I gather there will be quite a few more around.

I will also try to gather a good selection of items/weapons to carry into BG2 with me (eg Ring of Wizardry) - the advice about the scrolls makes sense - I can see you get experience for reading them - so I will plan to carry a potion of INT + as many high level spells as I can carry - this should help me gain some quick EXP to start things off.

Is there Elven Chainmail in BG2, or should I be looking for some in BG1 to bring with me?
Can I use Ankheg armour in BG2, as a mage?
Anything else not available in BG2 I should be putting aside?

What is the highest LVL I can get my fighter to before BG2 (I have this ToTSC disk add-on)?

Is lvl10 sensible, or is it too high?

nephtu · Post by **nephtu** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 9:18 am

Well...

Unless you cheat, you won't keep any gear from BG in BG2, sorry. But don't worry, there's much nicer gear to be had. Your weapons proficiencies will be remapped, as the choices are somewhat different (more detailed) in BG2.

I would pick level 9 to dual at - or 12/13 if you have ToB. You get an extra weapon star every 3 levels, and at 13 an extra 1/2 attack, but off course it takes longer to come back.

Have you considered multi-classing? I would strongly recommend it, especially if you have ToB, as you will be able to gain High Level Abilities from both pools. Fwiw, I played Inziladun - a fighter/cleric multi all the way through and had a great time.

Thrain · Post by **Thrain** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 10:15 am

actually, you do keep some stuff.

kazgeroth's (sp?) claw and something else take the place of (spoiler, highlight to read): helm of balduran

elven chainmail can be aqquired relatively early in SoA, but i shall not do with the spoilage.

VonDondu · Post by **VonDondu** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 2:49 pm

Generally speaking, I don't think it's a good idea to import a character from BG1 into BG2 if you're trying to get the most out of him in both games. For example, if you want to play a Fighter dualled to a Mage, it would be best to dual to a Mage at 5th Level or 7th Level in BG1 (depending on how many characters are in your party and whether you have removed the experience cap), while it would be best to dual a Fighter to a Mage at 9th Level or 13th Level in BG2--OR, as nephtu suggested, it might be best to play a multiclass Fighter/Mage in BG2. The point is, what's best for one game is not best for the other game. They are two different games. If you want to play a Fighter/Mage and wish that you could dual to a Mage while you're playing BG1, then just do it and don't worry about the level at which you should dual when you play BG2.

Don't get me wrong. I like the idea of playing the same character in both games, and I'm all in favor of continuity. For example, if I gave tomes to the NPCs in BG1, I edit their stats accordingly in BG2. If Imoen dualled to a Conjurer at 9th Level in BG1 in a two-member party, that's what I make her in BG2. I value continuity.

But at the same time, I think it's okay to allow for a reasonable amount of discontinuity when it comes to leveling and proficiencies and kits and so forth. For example, bows are great for a Fighter in BG1, but I don't think they're optimal for a Fighter/Mage in BG2, so maybe you should put proficiency points in Bows when you play BG1 but put your proficiency points somewhere else when you play BG2.

In my opinion, a better way to preserve continuity when moving from BG1 to BG2 is to start with a new character and then do whatever editing is necessary. That way, you can dual to another class whenever you want to in BG2, while preserving the essence of your character. For example, you can edit stats to reflect the use of Tomes, you can raise your character's experience above the cap that the importation process imposes if your character had more experience in BG1, and you can even bring items with you from BG1 if you want to. It's your game, and you should be happy when you play both games.

Patrick · Post by **Patrick** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 5:42 pm

Golden pantiloons

Hey I hear you all saying you can not get items from BG1 to BG2 in the import? Please tell me about this? I hear that in BG2 you need the Golden Pantiloons for something? Do these transfer over? Of course I mean a game with out cheats and such, thanks
BG Fan

Eryndel · Post by **Eryndel** » Fri Jun 04, 2004 8:31 pm

Okay, about items transferring, there are a few select items that will transfer and be found somewhere in Irenicus' Dungeon. In addition, there are a few items floating around that are identical to the ones in BG1. I remember seeing that cool warhammer Basillus had on some enemy in the game (at a time when I had cooler items.)

There is a way to keep all your items that doesn't require hacking or Shadowkeeper. It is an interface exploit so it lies somewhere between cheat and cheese. I won't say it here unless the original poster asks, but the method can be found here and elsewhere.

I would make one comment, I found out that the ring of wisardry you get in BG1 doesn't work in BG2. Most (if not all) of the spell enhancement items in BG2 only add one slot, so BG2 doesn't deal well with doubling wizard slots from BG1. So the BG1 ring just doesn't work (it probably doesn't access the correct .itm file). Perhaps it could be sold, I didn't try.

[Edit: Yes, the Golden Pantaloons do transfer over]

VinceWhirlwind · Post by **VinceWhirlwind** » Mon Jun 07, 2004 2:07 am

I'm happy playing a Fighter in BG1.

I recently acquired BG1, ToTSC, BG2 + ToB, so I want to play the whole thing from being a Level1 Fighter through to whatever the ultimate conclusion is.

Obviously, for BG2, with higher-level characters, playing a non-spellcaster would be missing out on a lot, so that's why I would like to take a fighter and dual-class him in BG2.

I am now Lvl6 Fighter, THAC0 6 & 2.5 attacks per round with a bow (Bracers of Accuracy, Composite Longbow +1, DEX18, 4 stars in Bows) - absolutely flays them, especially with a nice arrow of biting/piercing/etc...
Why is a bow not so good in BG2?

I take your point about multi-classing, but I seem to remember that non-humans have experience level caps in D&D...perhaps this restriction doesn't exist in this game?

I'm now wondering if I should have gone with an non-human Cleric/Mage instead....(although I've always liked Druids, too...).

I think I made a mistake in choosing STR, DEX, & INT as my highest stats - there are items to be acquired that give you maximum STR & DEX, so I should have used those points elsewhere.

On another point, can I carry over gold to BG2?
I have spent about 15k on some cool items, but I have about 35k saved up so far.

nephtu · Post by **nephtu** » Mon Jun 07, 2004 9:01 am

Without cheating, you won't keep any cash. You can find the Golden Pantaloons in Chateau Irenicus, but further progress with them requires some non-intuitive behavior

There are no racial level caps, just the game ones, which go up to 8 million with ToB. probably STR, DEX, CON are the best stats for a pure fighter, but you will need INT if you want to become a mage. I can't really speak to bows, I just prefer close-up brutality and spell casting so I've never really made the best use of them.

I'm mostly curious about why would you be missing out on a lot playing a non-spellcaster? FIghters get spell-like High Level Abilities, and can use the magic effects on a variety of items, and you can pick up some very competent spellcasters amongst the NPCs. That being said, cleric/mage multi is certainly an interesting class combo, too, though, so play what you like, of course. It's not like you can't go through again.

Coot · Post by **Coot** » Mon Jun 07, 2004 9:19 am

I'm not sure what you would miss out on if you'd play 'just' a fighter. I mean, unless you plan to solo (not something I'd recommend if you go through SoA and ToB for the first time) you'll have other npc's in your party. Mages, thieves etc.