Soloing a non-caster, am I having fun yet?

Coot · Post by **Coot** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 4:57 am

I never really soloed before and I decided to give it a decent chance. The last few times I've played with spellcasters so I thought I'd play a fighter/thief this time.

I find that I'm having no fun at all. The problem is that I can't come up with interesting strategies. Some backstabbing, luring enemies away from the group, switching between melee and missile weapons and that's about it.

The obvious answer would be to pick another class, (I'm thinking cleric/thief) but I'm very curious as to why other people who soloed pc's without spellcasting abilities had a good time with the game. What am I missing?
Of course there have been many threads about soloing either BG1 or 2, but they were always more about technicalities, what class and equipment to pick and so on.

Crenshinibon · Post by **Crenshinibon** » Fri Dec 29, 2006 11:46 am

It's all a matter of one's personality and one's playing style. I enjoyed playing a thief or a fighter dueled to a thief greatly... but I couldn't stand the mage because if you solo, towards the end of the game... the only strategy is "overrun your enemies with mobs of summoned creatures". I actually enjoy backstabbing... although it's harder in BGI than BGII due to the high THAC0 of low level characters.

wise grimwald · Post by **wise grimwald** » Sat Dec 30, 2006 6:06 am

The difficult bit in TOSC when soloing a fighter/thief is the ducal palace, simply because the only magic you have is the wand of sleep. I suppose that one reason why people like fighter/thief is that by using stealth and potions of speed, you can finish the game much quicker. I saw a thread on another forum where the game was completed in 30 minutes!

wise grimwald · Post by **wise grimwald** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 4:17 am

SPOILERS From your thread, it seems that you aren't using pickpocket or stealth much. Pickpocket can be rewarding, particularly against Drizzt a gentleman with a cloak in Beregost, and a mage in Ulgorth's Beard. Beware Drizzt is hard to pickpocket. Good timing is essential as he moves so much. The cloak can be used to play a completely different game to the norm. I used it in a game where I tried and suceeded in not killing anyone myself though I was instrumental in them being killed. You can also pickpocket the boots of stealth instead of fighting. Positioning in pickpocketing and backstabbing is very important and is a skill that you have to learn hte hard way. Pickpocketing can be done virtually risk free when characters are leaving you after a conversation. They will not turn hostile! You may get two or three tries at pickpocketing before they disappear. An exception is a certain Gnoll who will attack you despite being neutral. There may be others.

Coot · Post by **Coot** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 4:52 am

Thanks for the thieving advice, WG. I've played the game - and the entitre series - more than a few times though and I don't think I've ever played without a thief. Thieves (and bards) are the most versatile class in BG IMHO and I'd like to think I know most of their tricks.

What I was looking for in this thread was some passionate defenders of solo pc's that don't use (a lot of) spellcasting.
A mage, cleric or druid who is faced with a difficult situation can try different tactics (depending on the content of their spellbook) to win a battle. A pc that doesn't have access to spells (like a f/t) doesn't have as many options, even a thief.

wise grimwald · Post by **wise grimwald** » Tue Jan 02, 2007 6:05 am

The reason that I like playing Fighter/Thief solo is that it is more difficult not to have magical abilities. The wand of sleep and Algernon's Cloak are almost indispensible for the Ducal palace, but other than that, magic is not really needed at all. Savarok for instance is quite easy. You just have to be prepared to run away and try again in most instances. Durlag's Tower is almost too easy with a solo fighter/thief as you level up so quickly.