I have been going back to do solo runs of all of these old rpgs (Baldurs gate, IWD, ect). I have become very picky on which weapon is better, unlike my 6 person groups where the amount of people made it not matter as much. When i first blew through these games with a full group, I never understood exactly how weapons work. Going through baldurs gate 2 solo with a kensai taught me that the +damage factored into what I could actually hit. But that is about all I learned.. everything aside from that seemed similiar. Now going through IWD Solo as a fighter/mage/thief multiclass, I really want to use the best weapons possible.
Currently I am having trouble deciding between these bows...
-Composite Longbow of the Hand
-Daisy
-Messenger of Sseth
-Heavy Crossbow of Speed
-Kaylessa's Bow
-The Black Bow
What defines a good bow? Which of these is the best out of the choices? And Which is second best?
Currently I am using Messenger of Sseth for the speed and sometimes the Heavy crossbow of speed.
What exactly does THACO do?
Does the Higher speed Factor make weapons faster? Or does higher=slower? I cannot tell a difference.
Sorry about the slur of questions. I start to feel pathetic after so many years of playing these games and not understanding the DnD ruleset in the least ^^. Its time to learn!
Which bow is better?
:speech:
Wow. Playing DnD CRPG's and not understanding Thac0, etc. Wow.
Asking which bow or xbow is a thoroughly fair question.
On the simplest level, the higher the damage and/or Thac0 (i.e. to hit) bonus, the better. That said, there are often other secondary benefits that weapons will have that may be of more value than the simple raw attack and damage bonuses.
For example, Sseth's Bow has +1 attack per round, which is a nice benefit for what is otherwise a fairly low level weapon. And it has a very good speed rating, which allows it to get in the first shot before meny other weapons or spellcastings. Which, in turn, makes it good for trying to disrupt enemy spellcasters. A slower, but harder hitting ranged weapon may not be as preferable as a quick-firing weapon, if your goal is spellcasting disrupting.
I am not fully familiar with all of your listed bows from memory, but they're all probably good bows/xbows.
Something else to consider is that I wouldn't mix and match bows and xbows. Obviously, they use different ammo and carrying around both types just uses up more inventory slots. Pick one type and just stick with it.
Personally, I prefer Bows over Xbows, but both have their uses and in a full party, I'll have both. But for a solo, I'd just pick one.
Wow. Playing DnD CRPG's and not understanding Thac0, etc. Wow.
Asking which bow or xbow is a thoroughly fair question.
On the simplest level, the higher the damage and/or Thac0 (i.e. to hit) bonus, the better. That said, there are often other secondary benefits that weapons will have that may be of more value than the simple raw attack and damage bonuses.
For example, Sseth's Bow has +1 attack per round, which is a nice benefit for what is otherwise a fairly low level weapon. And it has a very good speed rating, which allows it to get in the first shot before meny other weapons or spellcastings. Which, in turn, makes it good for trying to disrupt enemy spellcasters. A slower, but harder hitting ranged weapon may not be as preferable as a quick-firing weapon, if your goal is spellcasting disrupting.
I am not fully familiar with all of your listed bows from memory, but they're all probably good bows/xbows.
Something else to consider is that I wouldn't mix and match bows and xbows. Obviously, they use different ammo and carrying around both types just uses up more inventory slots. Pick one type and just stick with it.
Personally, I prefer Bows over Xbows, but both have their uses and in a full party, I'll have both. But for a solo, I'd just pick one.
For a solo game, bows are the only way to go since you'll easily get ammo without buying. +1 and +2 arrows aren't difficult to come by. The 'best' bow would be Kaylessa's if you get lucky enough to receive it(it's a random item). If you don't get the bow, you could always fully explore the Severed Hand tower. There are several good bows besides the Kaylessa that provide a +2 bonus.
If you don't care about ammo, then the crossbows of speed would be my second choice. Both opportunities to get the weapon are random, so you may not get lucky for such a speciality weapon. Bows are by far the safest choice for a solo run.
If you don't care about ammo, then the crossbows of speed would be my second choice. Both opportunities to get the weapon are random, so you may not get lucky for such a speciality weapon. Bows are by far the safest choice for a solo run.
I'd rather be part bull than a complete sheep.
http://www.sorcerers.net/Games2/DaveO/ - Might and Magic 6-9 patches
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Best Bow
Icyex
Great advice from DaveO and Crucis. Although there are usually "qualifiers" when determining "best" of whatever, and therefore subject to personal tastes and play style, in terms of "best all-round" I concur with DaveO 100% in nominating Kaylessa's bow. I have gotten it in the "Hand" 3 out of the 5 times I have played so it would "seem" that the odds are good or I am just very lucky. If you don't get it, any of the bows you listed would be good. There is also another "Defender" type of bow besides Kaylessa's (also a random item) but I cannot remember where I got it as that was in my first game a couple of years ago. If you go solo gaining a plus to your AC while using a bow is a nice secondary benefit.
I too would opt for picking one or the other and "my" choice would be bow over crossbow. The crossbow of speed is hard to pass up though.
Icyex
Great advice from DaveO and Crucis. Although there are usually "qualifiers" when determining "best" of whatever, and therefore subject to personal tastes and play style, in terms of "best all-round" I concur with DaveO 100% in nominating Kaylessa's bow. I have gotten it in the "Hand" 3 out of the 5 times I have played so it would "seem" that the odds are good or I am just very lucky. If you don't get it, any of the bows you listed would be good. There is also another "Defender" type of bow besides Kaylessa's (also a random item) but I cannot remember where I got it as that was in my first game a couple of years ago. If you go solo gaining a plus to your AC while using a bow is a nice secondary benefit.
I too would opt for picking one or the other and "my" choice would be bow over crossbow. The crossbow of speed is hard to pass up though.
UNCOMMON VALOR WAS A COMMON VIRTUE