GameBanshee Forums

The kensai or sword saint.

what is actually so good about it?
when i tried it i got my butt kicked by that carrion.

butt when i was a fighter i just spept that carrion away like it was a common housefly.

is a kensai a good investment or not please tell me so i can make op my mind

Kensais aren't very strong in the beginning because they lack AC, but later they become quite powerful, especially when dual-classed to mage or thief (or even cleric)

Kensai's are a great class to try and are one of the strongest pure classes in the game.

They are purely an offensive class since they get a +1 to hit and +1 to damage for every three levels that they gain, and thats not even including the type of weapon you have equipped. The speed factor means that they always make a hit and when you throw in the Kai ability which ensures maximum damage for the next couple of hits and you'll be almost unstoppable.

But its the combination of speed and extra damage bonuses that makes the Kensai a great fighter. They do suck at the start but later on you'll be destroying enemies before they even get a chance to attack.

Keep the Kensai pure, you wont be disappointed!!

For me Kensai/Thief is one of the best combinations. He is quite weak in the beginning but later on he becomes so powerful that he can nearly handle all enemies by himself. Just consider all the possibilities when you reach a high enough level to pick the Use Any Item ability: your Kensai would be also able to wear armour and cast spells from scrolls. Very nice!!

Originally posted by Bruce Lee
Keep the Kensai pure, you wont be disappointed!!

I say, dual him!

Ah, the taste of old fashioned, profound debates !

Bruce, Aubrey, long time

You can even use spells like Ghost Armor on him to improve his AC a bit. The Amulet of Shielding could also work quite well.

That is shoring up your deficiencies though: Focussing on your offence is easy and could work quite well: Kill them before they kill you.

Yeah it has been some time now. Good to see you are still around Littiz, defending the honour of the Kensai/mage hehe.

Originally posted by Littiz
I say, dual him!

I am of the same opinion. Dual him, or make him a Half-Elf to multi-class him.

Ah, the taste of old fashioned, profound debates !

Bruce, Aubrey, long time

Yes, it has been a long time. And I was wondering where is the great defender of Kensai. But you did show up.

It's only that my gaming is on a continuated hold !
But I'm planning another run through the saga with a customized.. uh, guess !
The fun part is, I'm sure it's possible to emulate the kensai class in BG1, using NearInfinity...
Anyway, I'm for a quick review of Kensai's possibilities..

Straight Kensai: Immense attack, attack speed, coolness factor

Kensai/Thief: One of the cheesiest classes. First it's used for the incredible backstabs, but the Kensai shouldn't use them, being an honourable fighter. Then UAI overrides all the equipment restrictions..
If you enjoy cheese, quite a formidable character

Kensai/Mage: Coolness factor, high flexibility, can achieve a great attack strenght, and, literally, insuperable defenses

Kensai/Cleric: ?

What about Kensai/Druid ?

At least he could use scimitars !

Kensai/mages are so powerful that they're overpowered in BG2, IMO. Their ACs are ungodly without armor, and the amount of damage one can do has gained it the affectionate nickname of Wrecking Crane on my computer.

Kensai/Druids could benefit quite nicely from Ironskins I'd think. Belm could give an extra attack for disgustingness. And the fact that you have the insect spells makes the difficulty of defeating mages with just the kensai insignificant. Could work quite well, though levelling would be a pain

I actually have never used Kensai kit. I prefer using both ranged and non-ranged weapons. Fighter/Thief multi class (elven or Dwarven), or Berserker dual is my favourite.

Originally posted by Minerva
I actually have never used Kensai kit. I prefer using both ranged and non-ranged weapons. Fighter/Thief multi class (elven or Dwarven), or Berserker dual is my favourite.

Just use throwing axes. They are seen as melee weapons regardless of whether you throw them or not. You can even get grand mastery in them. (hmmmm. Dwarven kensai with Axes...)

I think I'll try the Kensai/Druid, dual wielding Spectral Brand + some other weapon... perhaps the Dagger of the Stars +5 or the Club of Detonation +5
Hmm, kind of limited weapon choices... does anyone know what "weapon classes" the fists of the Earth/Fire Elemental forms that a druid get as HLAs are ?

Get the Item Upgrade mod. It includes an excellent Scimitar & Club, as well as some good throwing spears.

Originally posted by fable
Kensai/mages are so powerful that they're overpowered in BG2, IMO. Their ACs are ungodly without armor, and the amount of damage one can do has gained it the affectionate nickname of Wrecking Crane on my computer.

Well AC is not so godly, a swashbuckler goes a lot lower...
And a sorc can probably inflict more damage in average.

I say you're right, but the reason is flexibility, imho.
And this remains true for all kinds of figther/mages.
Berserker/Mages are even more powerful, no equipment restrictions + immunities...

Swash/mage, now that is a good/god character.
Off topic. Littiz.
I know you used to play with the grandmastery patch installed, which one was it? I installed one from teambg and would like to remove it without having to install the game again, cant remember exactly how it worked, it was a couple of files extracted into the override dir I believe. Do you know how to remove it?
Thanks