GameBanshee Forums

My 6 person party has 5 members who can cast arcane spells (one has Monk levels, so I'm not worried about armoring him up). That's still 4 people who need to be wearing something, making me think this feat might be worth it.

The most notable character I'm considering for this feat has most of his levels in Fighter or Wizard (both get bonus feats, so this shouldn't be a problem). I'm wondering: should I use this feat on him, and if so, what about the characters who don't get bonus feats (Pal/Sorc, Bard/Druid and Rogue/Wiz)? If not AA, then I plan on shooting for those elemental feats, as they both provide added punch and good defense. If I can, maybe I'll shoot for both sets of feats!

I would go for AA, as it's always nice to be able to wear some armor and still be able to cast spells without failing.

Especially your Fighter/Wizard should have AA, since I believe taht you are going to use it more or less in close-combat situations also? In that case protection is must, and thus AA is also must.

[QUOTE=krunchyfrogg]My 6 person party has 5 members who can cast arcane spells (one has Monk levels, so I'm not worried about armoring him up). That's still 4 people who need to be wearing something, making me think this feat might be worth it.

The most notable character I'm considering for this feat has most of his levels in Fighter or Wizard (both get bonus feats, so this shouldn't be a problem). I'm wondering: should I use this feat on him, and if so, what about the characters who don't get bonus feats (Pal/Sorc, Bard/Druid and Rogue/Wiz)? If not AA, then I plan on shooting for those elemental feats, as they both provide added punch and good defense. If I can, maybe I'll shoot for both sets of feats! [/QUOTE]


I would decide this in-game - as this feat shouldn't be one of the first you choose I would wait which armor you have and if you really need it.

SPOILER:

you will find a special spell-sword armor (chain of draccas - draccas fury/HOF) late in the game and this is by far the best armor you can get!
-> No DEX cap - 0% arcana failure - AC7 or AC8? and the HOF version is even better!

END SPOILER

[QUOTE=silverdragon72]I would decide this in-game - as this feat shouldn't be one of the first you choose I would wait which armor you have and if you really need it.

SPOILER:

you will find a special spell-sword armor (chain of draccas - draccas fury/HOF) late in the game and this is by far the best armor you can get!
-> No DEX cap - 0% arcana failure - AC7 or AC8? and the HOF version is even better!

END SPOILER[/QUOTE]
Yes, but then again you must first be able to survive till that
I would go at least one rank in AA, so that your character can wear somekind of armor at the beginning.

If you have mirror image you won't need as much armor class. So it won't hurt too bad to go without.

It also depends how much casting they are going to do. If they have only 3 wiz level for mirror image then maybe you can accept a 10-15% failure. But if you are flinging out high level spells you want them to hit home.

It also depends how rich in feats they are. If they have wiz/fight extra feats seemingly in abundance think what feets you want to pick next. Is armor the top priority or do you want to help the DC or damage of spells? If they have only wiz 3 for MI then you don't need focus -necro, -evoc, and spirit of flame. But if they are in the party to hurl spells then the top priority should be to smoke the enemy with the spells and run/MI when confronted melee. I think if they seem to have extra feets you can try some AA, why not? After playing the game tons of times you will learn what feats are "best". Then you will change your mind, read guides, and change your mind yet again.

myrophine

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I'm not quite sure at what point you find which armor in the early game...


...but an unarmored high DEX build with mage armor (or one of the higher spells) & shield...

...should have possibly a better AC then most Fighters with armor!


...it's quite annoying that in IWD2 most of the armor & shields you can find give a worse AC then most unarmored builds can achieve!


...from this point of view - and most arcane casters having 18 or 20 DEX - I wouldn't take AA and go for a spell-based AC for these builds!

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But there is a %chance that a spell will fail when holding a shield as well. AA helps with that (or I guess you could just switch to a different weapon without a shield to cast).

[QUOTE=krunchyfrogg]But there is a %chance that a spell will fail when holding a shield as well. AA helps with that (or I guess you could just switch to a different weapon without a shield to cast).[/QUOTE]


...same like armor and as annoying:

...there is quite a unbalenced shield selection in IWD2!

better use an off-hand weapon giving an AC bonus (with no arcane failure %) or just ignore shields for arcane casters and go for dual or one handed weapons...


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Nay

Armored arcana is a weak and poor feat. If it was 10% on the spell failure alright, but 5% is just not worth it for just a few spells you might fail if you wear a magic leather armor.

i sometimes take one level in it as there is a shield i like that only has 5% arcane spell failure and this negates that and the shield bonus to ac is cumulative with some of the protective spells that mages get. it depends on how i am using my character though so i usually just take it later on in the game if i feel it will be useful. i never take more than one level in it though as the spells shield or mage armour mean there is no point giving a mage armour to wear really.

[QUOTE=krunchyfrogg]My 6 person party has 5 members who can cast arcane spells (one has Monk levels, so I'm not worried about armoring him up). That's still 4 people who need to be wearing something, making me think this feat might be worth it.

The most notable character I'm considering for this feat has most of his levels in Fighter or Wizard (both get bonus feats, so this shouldn't be a problem). I'm wondering: should I use this feat on him, and if so, what about the characters who don't get bonus feats (Pal/Sorc, Bard/Druid and Rogue/Wiz)? If not AA, then I plan on shooting for those elemental feats, as they both provide added punch and good defense. If I can, maybe I'll shoot for both sets of feats! [/QUOTE]

armoured arcana is sub optimal - it will provide very little benefit for what can be a fairly high cost. from time to time some of my bard builds will use aa but they tend to be more specialized and spend more time fighting and cast when required.

if you already have the feats you want on other builds, go for it.

though imho your arcane casters shouldn't be the center of attention all at the same time. if you end up in a bad spot - go mirror image, geddee's loop, invisible, ect. and use pre battle buffs - esp ones like armour that last a good long while. while using the rest of your team to take care of the problem.