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These are the more detailed information from PHB.

Advantages:
* One extra spell slot per level
* +1 vs. spells saving throws, from speclialized school, against spells
* -1 vs. spells saving throws, from specialized school, when casting spells
* +15% to learning from specialized school
* Automatically gains one new spell to spellbook, from specialized school, when gains new spell level

Disadvantages:
* Ability score requirements
* -15% penalty to learning from other than specilialized schools
* Cannot learn or cast spells form the opposition school
* Cannot be multi-class

Now, what I'm asking, are these really in the game (BG1 & BG2)? Haven't seen any information these, besides the extra spell and cannot learn spells from opposition school.

Would some nice person to make a WEIDU mod to change the specialized mages' description something like this, if these are really accurate or tell me how to do it.

I am positive that all of the drawbacks are present for a specialist mage. There are certain stats requirements for the different specialization schools (for instance, the Invoker requires 16 Con or higher). I am not sure about the spell learning penalty though, but it is irrelevant due to Potions of Genius and Mind focusing.

The bonus, however, is limited to +1 spell slot per level.

I am quite positive that the saving throw bonus/penalty was not implemented, nor do you gain a 'free' spell per new spell level.

However, I am fairly sure that the penalty/bonus when scribing spells was implemented. I have not checked the codes, but base this on experience.

Lastly, the rule that 1 spell per level memorized must be from your specialist school (the 'extra spell per level') is not implemented either.

Yes, I know specialist mage get: extra spell slot per level, has ability score requirements, cannot multiclass or cast/write spells from opposite school.

But, how about +1/-1 saves vs. spells factor? And how about that learning? I've always thinked, that even with 18 INT, it fails quite often to write down a spell, if you are specialist mage.

There is lot of things, that aren't in the manual, like 20 or more constitution gives regeneration(!), atleast in Baldur's Gate 1 (Kagain & Con book). And 19 or more gives +saving throws vs. poison. And up to that, Dwarves get racial saving throw bonuses.

Well, I'm going to do some testing and then post a message about results.

There is no penalty to learning spells that aren't from the chosen school.

You can have a specialist mage dual class and you can have a multiclass specialist mage as well, but only as an Illusionist (with the gnome race).

The ability score requirements are actually an advantage in BG2 since you get better rolls because of them.

Yeah, because the engine "cheats" and sets the score automatically high enough.

It would require huge amount of spellcast to test, since interface doesn't show the rolls. But are you absolutely 100% positivite that there is no learning bonus/penalty and no saving throw bonus/penalty?

Crenshinibon wrote:There is no penalty to learning spells that aren't from the chosen school.

You can have a specialist mage dual class and you can have a multiclass specialist mage as well, but only as an Illusionist (with the gnome race).

Really? I had no idea. Interesting. Say, I'm behind a backup pc that can't play BG2. Could you perhaps run the game and check out for me to which classes the gnome illusionist can be multiclassed? It sure sounds like a bag of laughs.

You can change the options to view the to hit rolls, which would also display the saving throws.

Tricky:

Fighter/Illusionist
Illusionist/Thief
Cleric/Illusionist

Thanks. Cleric/Illusionist sounds like an interesting roleplay adventure.

In fact, a human Conjurer(or Invoker) lvl 22 dualled to Cleric lvl 23 will get more wizard spell slots than an Illusionist/Cleric at xp cap. But if you want a powerful Gnome, make yourself a Fighter/Illusionist. There is no other fighter with such access to many warrior HLAs plus enough high-level wizard spells(compared to a normal fighter/mage multi).

Saros wrote:In fact, a human Conjurer(or Invoker) lvl 22 dualled to Cleric lvl 23 will get more wizard spell slots than an Illusionist/Cleric at xp cap. But if you want a powerful Gnome, make yourself a Fighter/Illusionist. There is no other fighter with such access to many warrior HLAs plus enough high-level wizard spells(compared to a normal fighter/mage multi).

Too bad you'd lose the ability to cast Wizard spells for half of the game.

BTW, I also believe the Gnome Fighter/Illusionist may just be the most powerful character in the game.