when can i cast level 6 &7 spells as mage?

[swordfish]

Level 11 and 17 Intl... and still cant do leavel & 7 spells?

[wendigo211]

You get your first level 6 spell at Mage level 12 and your first level 7 spell at Mage level 14. 2nd Ed. doesn't quite follow the nice regular progression of the later editions.

[GrandMajora]

You learn spells at certain level conditions. It's not based on your attributes. Although your attributes do have an effect on how powerful those spells will be, as well as how many you can learn in total.

For example, you can cast 3rd level spells at level 6, if I remember correctly.

[Taoelvenmage]

Wendigo211 is correct. The Baldur's Gate series follows 2nd Ed AD&D rules. My personal favorite Ed. Old school.

[Icedfate]

although in 2e tabletop, your intelligence Does determine the maximum spell level you can cast. with 17 INT, you can never cast level 9 spells, no matter how high you get.
INT also determines the maximum number of spells you can have copied into your spellbook, so if you are playing a mage, you want 18 INT, minimum.

I'm not sure about the maximum spell level but with 18 INT, I have hit my limit for spells in the spellbook and was unable to copy any more, however, if you can raise it to 19, you can learn all the spells with no limitations.

[Caethyril]

To my knowledge, the only way intelligence limits high-level spellcasting in BG2:EE is in the ability to scribe higher level spells (source[forums.beamdog.com], confirmed in my current playthrough).

You still get the slots, but can only scribe, for instance, 9th level spells with 18+ int. Potions of Genius or Mind Focusing are great for this, particularly in the case of NPC wizards.

[GrandMajora]

Speaking of which, can somebody tell me if Sorcerers use Charisma or Intelligence in this edition? I'm accustomed to them using Charisma, so that's what I've tended to spec points into.

[Caethyril]

I don't believe a Sorcerer's spellcasting benefits from any stat in the BG series. Something of an oversight, but there you go.

A relevant discussion on beamdog forums: https://forums.beamdog.com/discussion/4897/sorcerers-and-stats

[Icedfate]

charisma seems to have no effect, although, the dragon disciple must have 15 CHa minimum at creation, you can't reduce it lower than that.

[wendigo211]

Yeah, none of the mental stats are of any use to a Sorcerer. Might as well go for that 18 Strength, 18 Dex, 16 Con instead so you can carry stuff, have a good AC and get an extra 2 HP per level. I suppose for a short Sorcerer a higher Con would be beneficial for the save bonus.