AC in ToB

[jimmybackman1]

Is it just me or does it not matter how high AC you have in the expansion? Everything hits you no matter if you are in a full plate +9999 and a tower shield + 800? :P I know its the end of the game but still feel like at least the non boss mobs should have a bit harder time to hit a full plate + shield wearing char. :)

[meaninglys]

i recall reading somewhere that ac is capped. but yeah, a gibberling would probably still hit you if you just stood there =D

[Flozem]

Yeah funny thing is that suddenly even lowly mercenaries are epic and carrying +3 or higher gear.

[jimmybackman1]

Just feels a bit silly tho when your badass fighter with tons of AC gets hit by a granny basicly. xD

[kaffekoppen]

Sadly, yes, AC matters much less in ToB. It's one of the reasons I really like the kensai. You're going to get hit no matter what, might as well do some proper damage yourself.

[jimmybackman1]

Ye doing Kensai/thief myself and the properly armored ppl gets hit just as much lol

[Silvaren]

Remember, any critical hit (when dice roll on hit = 20, or even 19 if someone use single-weapon style) cause succesfull hit no matter how high AC has target.

[TheWyrdBird]

Maybe all the enemies took Improved Critical, I dunno. But yeah, it is pretty frustrating at times.

[Silvaren]

Big picture - look at your THAC0. This number says how much you should roll on dice 20 to hit someone with armor class 0. For example, if you have THAC0 5, you hit someone with AC 0 if result of your roll is 5 or more on dice 20. All result below 5 cause your character to miss.

I'm sure that in Throne of Bhaal your THAC0 is 0 or better (below 0). So you hit someone with AC 0 in every attack (unless you roll 1). If someone has AC below 0 then it's harder to hit but your THAC0 is getting better too. So for another example, if someone has AC -10 and you have THAC0 -10, you hit every time (unless you roll critical miss which is 1 on dice you roll).

It's very hard to have better AC than -13 (ofcourse when you full buffed etc it is possible to have even - 20), but remember that THAC0 of your enemies is high too (or even equal to your characters). So if you have -13 AC and enemies have -10 THAC0, they hit you when they roll 3-20 on dice roll, which is ~ 85% chance to hit (just another example). Remember that enemies have classes too and gain the same bonus to hit as your fighters/paladins/rangers.

[kaffekoppen]

Yeah, it's a matter of AC scaling poorly compared to THAC0.

[jimmybackman1]

yeah does not translate too good, takes away the idea of a sturdy char that maybe does not dish out that much but is hard to hit and survives long, in NVN1 and 2 you could get nice tanky chars but that was with newer rules so. :)

[Silvaren]

Even in D&D 3.0 and 3.5 like NWN 1 i NWN 2 base attack bonuses with any additional bonuses from weapons enchantment, strength, buffs exceed decent AC easily. But in AD&D and D&D 3.0 and 3.5 it's imbalance only on epic levels and I'm think it should be like this. D&D is balanced well at 8-10 characters levels. After level 20 (in AD&D probably 17+) most characters is powerfull like demigods. Try duels in p&p D&D on epic levels. Usually wins who has better initiative roll.
/sorry for my english

[Myrmuz [IRL]]

Resistances matter in ToB. AC is irrelevant.

[sick duck]

get hardiness, use improved invisibility, haste, and those epic heal potions. You can destroy trash mobs so quickly that they'll be lucky to live past 10 seconds if you've got Korgan, Minsc and the spoiler NPC hitting them.

[Silvaren]

Yeah, spoiler NPC and his deathbringer assault makes him the greatest fighter in Bhaalspawn saga. But I'm sure he was the greatest before. And this is why I will took Dorn only once or twice with my party.

Or maybe I'm wrong and there is another new spoiler NPC like some sorcerer in first BG:EE?

[ÄmJii]

AC's usefulness diminishes greatly once you hit ToB, unless you're going for uber-high AC character (Swashbuckler or Blade kit) you can pretty much ignore your AC rating.

That said, stuff like Stoneskin, Mirror Image, Prot. from Magic Weapons and summon spells will be your best bets when it comes to avoiding damage (tip: Mordenkainen's Swords can only be killed by pure Magic damage or Death spell). Or you could go for character who soaks all the hits with high Damage Resistance (Defender of Easthaven + Hardiness + Armor of Faith =85% DR).
Remember those pesky Adamantine Golems that'll take forever to kill? You can do the same.