NPC Guide for BGEE (and SoD)

I want to start off by emphasising that while this guide is very detailed you should be generally able to read through individual NPC's in it and still get fairly detailed information. With that in mind here is my NPC Guide to BGEE.

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Over my years of playing Baldur's Gate, Baldur's Gate 2, and now Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition I've seen my fair share of truly attrocious NPC guides. Most of which want to downplay the value of playing with any character for powergaming reasons, without any interest in trying to help players interested in getting the most out of a character they are using for roleplaying or other reasons.

With the release of BGEE the game has changed in a number of fundamental ways from when Throne of Bhaal was released in 2001. For simplicities sake this is going to be a guide largely specific to patch 1.3 of BGEE, though the SoD portions will be covering NPC's in the latest version of SoD.

In this guide I'm including stats for individual NPCs, maybe some relevant things about their starting items (if they are unique in any way) and just thoughts and strategies for each one. I'll do my best to include party conflicts between certain NPC's from what I have found (both through personal experience and digging through game files), however for a more detailed analysis I would recommend Morteus's NPC Interactions Guide.

The one thing I have tried to do in this guide is to not give away the location of too many items. Yes, I've done it at times. I like to think though that I have only told you very some specific locations for items that are useful for certain characters or classes because I do not want to discourage you from trying out difference NPCs (even some of the "weaker" ones). There are a lot of very versatile potential party members in this game and through this guide I was hoping to show just how this is the case.

I'd also like the emphasise that exploration is a big part of Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition. So don't take any strategy or spell recommendation found in this guide as being the only way you can play certain characters. You have to realise that the original Baldur's Gate (pre-expansion) had a much lower experience cap than this game, far fewer spells, a more powerful final boss, and no kits. Despite this it was still a very beatable game. So while the learning curve may be steep it is much easier than it used to be.

Addtional Guide Information

Please note the following:

- An * used on a title in the guide indicates one of the four new NPC's introduced in BGEE.

- Any weapon proficiencies or spell book you see listed (for instance)


Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

 *Flail   *Sling 

is showing what that character has if you pick them up when they are at that particular level. They are not a shortened recommendation from me on what to use.

Manuals

At this point the manuals have been superceded by the Adventurer's Guide. I would highly recommend you use it as a source of reference (even over websites frankly). It is valid for BGEE, SoD, and BG2EE.

https://www.siegeofdragonspear.com/files/AdventurersGuide.pdf

BG2EE NPC Guide

Update: I've since released my NPC Guide to BG2EE. So if you do purchase BG2EE and are interested in help for some of BG2EE's NPC's then you can find it in the Guide section in the BG2EE hub.

Spells and Abilities Guide to BGEE

Additionally I wrote a Spells and Abilities Guide to BGEE that you can find on Steam (as a separate guide under the Guides section). It covers my opinion on different spells and abilities and also fleshes out some hidden facts (not reported in the spell description) about different spells and abilities.

Changes Made by Patch 2.0 to BGEE

Patch 2.0 changes how NPC's are treated when it comes to their initial level. Now you have a chance to level them up yourself. I'll leave the existing information about NPC levels up for people who are interested in keeping their characters traditional(ish).

Changes made in patch 1.2 to Baldur's Gate: Enhanced Edition

I'm just going to briefly describe some of the important changes made that relate to NPC's and player characters in BGEE particularly given this new update. The purpose of this is just to clarify changes to basic mechanics.

Pick Pockets

Below are the values you'll need in Pick Pockets to have a chance at pick pocketing items. Like other thieving skills these are minimal scores that are based on the items location on an NPC. You can't pickpocket shields, helmets, boots, or armor (if they are equipped).

General Inventory: 10
Quick Items: 50
Ammunition: 50
Rings: 60
Amulet, Cloak, Gauntlet, Belt: 80
Weapons: 95

So if you were looking at taking someone's weapons (provided they aren't currently being used) you'll need a 95 in Pick Pockets to even stand a chance at being successful. Likewise a certain cloak obtained in Beregost will require a 50 (its technically counted as being one of his quick items).


Scribing Scrolls

Patch 1.2 has fixed an old file within the game so that one of its tables now is actually used in-game. As a result your level of Intelligence now determines whether or not you can scribe scrolls from certain levels at all. Under these new changes if your intelligence is too low you won't be able to learn spells from certain spell levels.

This won't affect NPC's in BGEE (because their intelligence is high enough to know up to level 5 spells) but it is important to note for anyone looking at importing a mage character (sorcerors aren't affected by these changes) into BG2EE. Without 18 intelligence you won't be able to write level 9 scrolls into your spellbook. You can however use Potions of Genius and Potions of Mind Focussing to raise your intelligence to learn spells as needed.

Here is a summary of what Intelligence level you need in order to learn spells. To give you an example this chart means that the highest level of spell you can learn scrolls from if you have 9 intelligence is level 4 (so spells like Greater Malison).

INT            Max Spell Level
0-8          	:0
9	        :4
10           	:5
11           	:5
12	        :6
13           	:6
14           	:7
15	        :7
16	        :8
17	        :8
18-25           :9

Significant changes made by Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition compared to BG1 (concerning NPC's)

Besides the fact that a number of Baldur's Gate 2 spells were added there are a few NPC related changes that I felt should be noted. Every NPC was probably changed in one way or another, but this is just a sampling of some of the more significant changes.

Rangers

Any Ranger in the game (Minsc and Kivan) will now start with two points in Two-Weapon Style (on top of at least 4 other points distributed elsewhere).

Reputation

Reputation has been changed in BGEE compared to how it worked in the original game. Neutral characters now will not complain (in their voice sets) if your reputation is too high. They are actually quite happy about having a higher reputation.

Alora

Alora's has a Rabbit's Foot that she wears as a ring. It used to not do much of anything since it was broken, but that's no longer the case in Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition.

Her rabbit foot now grants the following bonuses (all of which are good); Armor Class +2, Saving Throws +2, Find Traps +10%, Pick Pockets + 10%, Move Silently +10%, Hide in Shadows +10%, Detect Illusion +10%, Set Traps +10%, Luck +2.

Luck +2 means she gets a +2 bonus to all of her dice rolls. This includes (but is not limited to) her hit rolls, her damage rolls (it won't go over her weapons maximum damage), additional bonuses to her saving throws, her thieving skills, etc. Its a huge bonus frankly.

Montaron

The Missile Weapon specialisation he used to have has been replaced with Sling specialisation.

Shar-Teel

Instead of initially having 2 points in Long Sword and 2 points in Short Swords she now has 2 points in Two-Weapon Style, 1 point in Long Swords and 1 point in Daggers.

Quayle

I mention this in his section but Quayle now has 16 dexterity instead of 15. This gives him an extra AC bonus and a ranged attack bonus. He used to have a flail along with Spiked Weapon proficiency, now he has a club and club proficiency.

Yeslick

If you talk to him and reject him from your party he will now reappear in the back of Jopalin's Tavern in the Docks (southern) area of the City of Baldur's Gate. You can then add him to your party.

Worth Noting (and relevant to NPC's)

Specialist Mages

Though its not mentioned in most of the manuals specialist mages get a 15% bonus to learn spells of their school and a 15% penalty at learning spells outside of their school. So for instance a conjurer would have a 30% better chance at learning a conjuration spell compared to say trying to learn an illusion spell (because there is a 30% difference because of this bonus/penalty). This was actually the case in the original games, but it was something that is often not reported (or assumed to be not true).

Also similarly specialist mages get a +2 bonus towards their saving throws when trying to save against a spell of their specialisation. They get no penalty towards trying to save against spells outside of their chosen school however.

Enemies trying to save against spells from their school also get a -2 penalty to do so.

Due to a bug, Wild Mages get a 15% penalty towards either their chance to learn spells. They don't get any saving throw penalties/bonuses for their spells.

Credit to Dee here (a member of the BGEE development team) for pointing this out on the Baldursgate.com forum and on Facebook

Ajantis

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Paladin (no kit)
Alignment: Lawful Good

Str : 17
Dex : 13
Con : 16
Int : 12
Wis : 13
Cha : 17

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2)

 
** B-astard Sword  * Two-Handed Sword    * Longbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4)

 
** B-astard Sword   ** Two-Handed Sword   * Longbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6)

 
** B-astard Sword   ** Two-Handed Sword     * Longbow   * Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Location: On road within the farm area north of the Friendly Arm Inn map (AR1400).

Ajantis's personality is very much a straightforward Paladin. He's been sent by his superior to deal with the bandits plaguing the Sword Coast. As you might expect Ajantis detests evil party members and will probably try fight at least one of them to the death. Other than having someone else with high charisma as your leader there really isn't much of a way to get around this. Also if you try to add Dorn to the party while Ajantis is in it Ajantis will leave your party. You can however get Dorn and then add Ajantis to your party however Ajantis may still attack Dorn in this circumstance.

On the surface Ajantis might not first seem like much to look at. His strength is only 17 and his dexterity is only 13 (16 is actually decent from a constitution standpoint). However, given time he becomes a great party leader and capable fighter. Eventually you can pick up Gauntlets of Dexterity (sets Dexterity at 18) and he is a good candidate for them.

One big benefit of him is that you can pick him up very early into the game as he is on the southern part of the area just north of the Friendly Arm Inn. This lets you get him early enough to quickly take on the role of party leader (if you lack a main character with high charisma).

His 17 charisma is particularly useful if you are in need of a fighter for the top slot. The +2 to saving throws that all Paladins get is also very handy as well as his innate ability to cast Protection From Evil and Lay on Hands. Detect Evil can also be useful in some circumstances, especially for new players who are unfamiliar with the intentions of the playable (and non-playable) NPC's you come across.

One downside with him is perhaps is proficiency point distribution. Magical b-astard swords aren't very common in the game and in fact the best magic b-astard sword you can come across you get during Dorn's quest line (you can get other b-astard swords but against most enemies they only count as +1 swords). If you are looking for a magic b-astard sword early in the game there are two in Beregost.

You only get two additional proficiency points to distribute with him in the game so you should choose wisely. There isn't much point in getting more than a single point in Two-Handed Weapon Style (speed factor generally has only a small impact on combat effectiveness), so one option with him is to give him specialization (**) in Two-Handed Swords and proficiency (*) in Two-Handed Weapon Style (not to be confused with Two Weapon Style). Alternatively you could go with a more traditional sword and shield approach, which could include putting towards Sword & Shield style (or not). If you don't put towards Sword and Shield Style you can still use a shield with a weapon. In this case some ideas for specialization for another weapon are warhammer, maces, and long swords (these include some of the more easily found magical weapons).

Overall he is a capable fighter. However, weapons for him can be difficult to come by if you don't know where to look. Hopefully I've given you enough clues to find at least one for him.

Alora

Gender: Female
Race: Halfling
Class: Thief (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Good

Str: 8
Dex: 19
Con: 12
Int: 14
Wis: 7
Chr: 10

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 4 and 6):

 * Dagger    * Short Bow   * Two Weapon Style 

Location: Within Hall of Wonder's, Baldur's Gate (West). Only shows up between hour 20 and hour 2 (at night).

Joining Conditions: To get her to join make sure you talk to her a second time.

Unique Item: Rabbit's Foot.

Thieving Skills (level 4)

Open Locks: 95
Find Traps: 30
Pick Pockets: 100
Move Silently: 45
Hide in Shadows: 45
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 20

Thieving Skills (Level 6)

Open Locks: 100
Find Traps: 50
Pick Pockets: 110
Move Silently: 45
Hide in Shadows: 45
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 35

Personality wise Alora is incredibly cheerful. In fact if you aren't cheerful enough watch out! She will make you happy! In all seriousness though she won't get into any physical confrontations with any other NPC, but she will banter particularly with evil NPCs.

Her strength and constitution are lacking but they can be made up for in other ways. Also while 12 constitution is low as a halfling it still grants her an additional +3 to spell/wand/death saving throws (not counting her Rabbit's Foot). She did however (bg Baldur's Gate standards) get truly attrocious health die rolls before you get her. Her level 4 version for instance only has 14 health. You can make up for this gradually by levelling but if you happen to get her level 6 version this will be less effective.

Strictly from the perspective of thieving skills Alora is the best thief in the game bar none. Thanks to her rabbit foot, whose power was actually upped in Baldur's Gate Enhanced Edition, she is an even better thief than previously.

Her rabbit foot grants the following bonuses (all of which are good); Armor Class +2, Saving Throws +2, Find Traps +10%, Pick Pockets + 10%, Move Silently +10%, Hide in Shadows +10%, Detect Illusion +10%, Set Traps +10%, Luck +2.

Luck +2 means she gets a +2 bonus to her hit rolls, her damage rolls, etc.That actually also includes her thieving skills and saving throws as well. So its ridiculously powerful.

As a halfling she already has the benefits they are given towards their thieving skills, but her 19 dexterity takes this one step further. Her find traps is low however, but thieves can get up to level 10 in the game so you have plenty of levels to improve that.

Her intelligence is high enough that she can use a number of the wands in the game. But you may want to have her using a bow. Her dexterity makes her great with it and her rabbits foot helps out tremendously. You can also try getting her proficiency with a sling, as halfings do get a slight bonus with them. I would favour using her with the bow over melee initially (at least until her Thac0 improves).

An alternative (oddly enough) to having her use a bow is her is dual wielding. Remember when I brought up the rabbits foot? well with the luck it gives she gets +2 to her hit rolls. Sure her strength sucks, but because of her rabbits foot and existing proficiency in two-weapon style she basically doesn't lose out much on using two weapons over one (at least compared to another thief). Effectively she gets a -4 thac0 penalty to using her off-handed weapon. Its a big penalty but a managable one with the right items and ultimately its an attack no other thief would get.

If you can find a way to get her strength up a level of exceptional strength (18/50+) she can be a mediocre fighter (despite being a thief) at lower levels and a capable fighter as she progresses in level. Her Thac0 and health still can be a problem, but with the right equipment and spells cast on her she can be used fairly effectively for up close fighting (just don't expect her to be able to hold the line). If you are dual wielding with her you get the chance look into perhaps picking another weapon other than daggers. There isn't anything wrong with daggers but there are other weapons that she can be using that are more effective for up-close fighting.

In any case the biggest problem with Alora isn't her stats, its her location. You don't get her until Chapter 5, which means a considerable amount of time to wait to pick her up. Her stealth skills are also a bit lacking but past that however she is easily one of the best thieves in the game.

Overall she is a great choice for an NPC and is certainly worth the wait.

Baeloth *

Gender: Male
Race: Drow
Class: Sorcerer (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Str: 12
Dex: 14
Con: 16
Int: 19
Wis: 12
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies:

 
*Quarterstaff       *Dart

Magic Resistance: 55 (50 innate magic resistance and 5 from his Robe of Evil Alignment)

Location: Southern part of Larswood near a stone tower (only available when main character is level 5 or higher)

Joining Conditions: -2 to reputation

Special Item: Robe of Evil Alignment, Slave Ring

Level at encounter: level 6


Spells available:

Level 1: Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Identify, Larloch's Minor Drain, Magic Missile, Shield, Spook (6 spells that can be cast)

Level 2: Invisibility Purge, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image, Ray of Enfeeblement, Web (5 spells that can be cast)

Level 3: Dire Charm, Dispel Magic, Fireball, Haste. (3 spells that can be cast)


Personality wise Baeloth is a pretty fun guy. He is an easter egg NPC added in post-release, but even so he brings a lot of character to a party. Mark Meer (of Mass Effect fame) voices both this character and the monk Rasaad. He will liven up any party but he really doesn't do a lot of interactions with others. Instead its mostly just commenting on surroundings. As a result he is great for an evil party playthrough. Ajantis will take issue with him and may attack him at some point. Despite him being a drow Kivan doesn't seem to take any issue with him however.

Baeloth is arguably the best raw spellcaster in this game. That honour used to be I would say a tie between Edwin and Quayle (maybe Xzar if you give him a book of wisdom and dual class him), but no more.

First of all he has 55% magic resistance. He gets this from a 50% innate magic resistance that he and Viconia (because they are both Drow) share as well as a bonus of 5% from his Robes of Evil Alignment. The magic resistance is fantastic as it means any spells that do happen to be cast at him (or near him) may have a substancially reduced impact (or perhaps no impact) on him. This combined with shield and mirror images should provide an effective defence for the character, however you can gain additional spells to improve upon his defense (if you feel it is needed). In this regard he does already benefit from his Robe of Evil Alignment as unlike most robes it provides an AC boost for him.

With the exception of his dexterity, which is a bit low, his stats are all you really need for a sorcerer. Like all non-warriors Sorcerers don't gain any additional health from having a constitution greater than 16. They also don't need intelligence or charisma to determine what or how many spells they can learn and cast. The only other benefit high intelligence and wisdom provide in BGEE concerns lore, which in Baeloth's case is irrelevant because initially he can cast "identify" up to 6 times/day (more with a certain item). 12 strength also gives Baeloth a carrying limit of 90 pounds, which is more than adequate.

But on to his spell casting. He has a great selection of spells already and he is actually currently getting an illegal number of spell castings. With just the items he starts with he can cast 7 level 1 spells, 7 level 2 spells, 7 level 3 spells, and 5 level 4 spells at level 9.

His ring states he gets extra spells with it, but mechanically it doesn't actually do this. You could go into the game files and remove it and it would make no difference. What it does do is give him a special ability to use each day that potentially can give him a sellable gem. Presumably its just there for roleplaying reasons because it has no other purpose and just takes up a valuable slot.

The spells that he initially has that are most noteworthy are

Magic Missile/ Spook (great for stopping enemy casters)
Identify (very useful since he doesn't have to memorize it whenever its needed)
Shield/ Mirror image (useful for defense)
Web (very useful to hold your opponents to later fling spells at them)
Fireball (very powerful damage spell thats useful when combined with web)
Haste (very beneficial particularly in combat since it gives bonuses to your party members speed and their attacks per round).

As Baeloth gains additional levels (he maxes out at level 9) you will have the opportunity to pick an additional level 1 spell and 2 additional level 2 and 3 spells. You will also be able to pick 2 level 4 spells.

Concerning the additional spells he gets during your journey might I suggest choosing...

-The level 1 spell "Blindness" is a good choice. Protection from Evil or Charm Person also are good options
-The level 2 spell "Glitterdust" (this allows to you potentially blind a number of enemies at once, which can be great if you want to attack them from a distance).
-Invisibility is a good choice here. If you don't have a thief in your party or have one who is no where near 100 in lock picking the spell "Knock" could prove handy. Likewise if your party lacks a cleric "Resist Fear" is an alternative.
-Melf's Minute Meteors, Slow, and Skull Trap are all good choices for level 3 spells. Ghost Armor" is another good choice for defensive reasons. Also if you want to be able to re-arrange your party before a big fight, without your enemy knowing about it, Invisibility 10' radius is a good choice.
-Greater Malison and Emotion:Hopelessness work well together. Alternatively two useful level 4 defensive spells are Improved Invisibility and Stoneskin.

Overall he has some great dialogue and is really a fantastic character to take along with you.

Branwen

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Cleric (no kit)
Alignment: True Neutral

Str: 13
Dex: 16
Con: 15
Int: 9
Wis: 16
Chr: 13

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

 * Warhammer   * Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 5):

 * Warhammer   *Flail   *Sling 

Location: Nashkel Carnival (you need to use a Stone to Flesh scroll on her to get her in your party)

Joining Conditions: Killing Tranzig is a good idea but its not actually required to keep her.

Unique Ability: Cast Spiritual Hammer once/day

Personality wise I would describe Branwen as being a war priest, which makes sense given that she is a priest of Tempus (the Forgotten Realms god of war). She likes battles and she gets along with most people in the party. She may insult Quayle, Edwin, and Xzar and she might fight to the death against Tiax (variables surrounding NPC banters and conflicts are a bit convoluted to get into though).

With the inclusion of BG2 spells in BGEE Brawen gained a lot of usability. She won't benefit from any APR (attacks per round) bonus that a fighter would get through specialisation, but between Holy Power and Draw Upon Holy Might she is now a much more capable melee combatant. If you happened to have killed Bassilus before you get Brawen and you have nobody else to use the Ashideena (Warhammer +2, +1 electrical damage) she is a good candidate as any to use it (at least for now).

Most of her negatives can be made up for through spells. While its true she only has 9 intelligence that is actually the bear minimum that is required to use wands. So thankfully she can use those to suplement her casting (including wands of the heavens).

As a neutral cleric she gains access to both holy smite and unholy blight (level 3 cleric spells). While it has a powerful effect the latter is really only rarely useful because most of the enemies you come across are either neutral or evil. In the case of Holy Smite however even though it does low damage (in BGEE) it can still be very useful. It has a relatively short casting time and it won't affect party members provided they are good or neutral. It also has the potential of blinding enemies for one round.

In terms of her different spell levels I think for her initial level look at having the following level 1 spells: Armor of Faith, maybe a couple of "Command"'s, and a Bless. Add in a few "Cure Light Wounds" when you can at a higher level.

When she becomes a cleric level 3 you will want to have at least one Draw Upon Holy Might (spell level 2) memorized. Slow Poison (Level 2) is a necessity particularly in Cloakwood Forest. Chant and Silence are also two strong choices (make sure to not cast silence too close to your own party casters).

At spell level 3 Animate Dead, Dispel Magic, Holy Smite, and Cure Medium Wounds are a few strong choices. Healing spells like Cure Medium Wounds are generally not practical to use in the midst of battle (they have long casting times) but they are good to have for outside of battle.

Finally for level 4 cleric spells Holy Power, Protection From Evil 10'Radius, Mental Domination, and Defensive Harmony.

She is the first NPC I'll be discussing that you can actually dual class as a result of giving them a tome. In her case if you give her the manual of quickness of action (dexterity +1) you can dual class her into a thief. Unlike in the original game however provided you have access to level 4 spells she will eventually become a pretty capable thief. Holy Power for instance will set her strength to 18/00 and this can then be boosted to 20 with Draw Upon Holy Might. While its true strength damage bonuses aren't applied before the backstab multiplier what spells like this do do is improve her Thac0 (more than the +4 she gets from attacking from stealth). Which basically just means she will have a better chance of successfully backstabbing an opponent. Still, you have to actually get to level 7 as a cleric before its even worth it to dual class with her. Even then in this scenario you will be stuck waiting for her to get up to level 8 as a thief (before which she can't use spells). Keep in mind though that even when she gets her cleric skills back she also won't be able to backstab with anything but a club and quarterstaff (which isn't necessarily bad).

There is only one Manual of Quickness of Action in the game and you are generally going to be better off using it on your main character. To be frank its going to be easier to stick as a pure cleric with her.

Regardless of how you play her Branwen is a very capable companion who will do well in almost any group.

Coran

Gender: Male
Race: Elf
Class: Fighter/Thief (multi-class)
Alignment: Chaotic Good

Str: 14
Dex: 20
Con: 12
Int: 14
Wis: 9
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies: (Levels 3/3 and level 5/5):

  ** Long Sword       *** Longbow 

Location: Cloakwood Forest on bridge in the first area of Cloakwood. North-western corner of the map.

Joining Conditions: Kill the Wyverns in the Wyvern cave in the fourth area of Cloakwood Forest (you can then bring a Wyvern head to the temple in Beregost for a nice reward). You have 10 days to kill a Wyvern or he leaves you (though there isn't any time limit for bringing the head).

Thieving skills (Levels 3/3):

Open Locks: 70
Find Traps: 20
Pick Pockets: 40
Move Silently: 83
Hide in Shadows: 33
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 15

Thieving Skills (5/5):

Open Locks: 100
Find Traps: 24
Pick Pockets: 40
Move Silently: 95
Hide in Shadows: 33
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 19

Personality wise Coran will pretty much flirt with any female that moves. Safana in particular. So having those two in your party is a pretty safe bet. In terms of party conflicts its really just the evil characters that will insult him and none of them will fight him to the death (which is always good!). His presence adds some depth to one of the quests within the City of Baldur's Gate (I won't spoil anything) so he is a good choice if you reach Cloakwood without a full party.

In terms of stats his strength and constitution are lacking. His intelligence is good in that it will allow him to use any wand a thief or fighter can use. As an elf however he has a natural 90% resistance to charm and sleep spells which is a very beneficial particularly against any Sirines and mages you come across.

To be honest the fact that his strength and constitution are lacking isn't all that important. It means he can't use a composite longbow, but even without it Coran is a fantastic archer. The fact that he is an Elf also gives a bonus to his Thac0 when using a bow, as does his (incredibly high) 20 dexterity. His dexterity has left some of his thieving skills kind of funky (odd numbers for different abilities) and his thieving points could have been used more effectively. Due to this getting him at the lower level (fighter level 3, thief level 3) is ideal, purely to better arrange his thieving stats, but its by no means required.

He should be kept back for ranged attacks or occasionally used to backstab if you use some variation of a potion of strength. Being an Elf also makes him more adept at using long swords, which is helpful to compensate for his low strength. However, he is at his best when using a longbow. For the additional proficiency point he gets I would recommend putting it towards Single Weapon Style. This will allow him to get critical hits more often when including when backstabbing. Overall he is a very capable character and is well worth the wait.

Dorn *

Gender: Male
Race: Half-Orc
Class: Paladin
Kit: Blackguard (pronounced "blaggard")
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str: 19
Dex: 16
Con: 14
Int: 10
Wis: 15
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

 ** Two-Handed Swords    ** Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

  ** Two-Handed Swords   * Crossbow  ** Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 ** Two-Handed Swords   **Crossbow   ** Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Location (first meet): Friendly Arm Inn, floor 1
Location (first joins): Area between Nashkel and Nashkel Mines.

Joining Conditions: You must meet him first at the Friendly Arm Inn before he will be available to join your party. When joining he causes a reputation loss of -2. He also has his own quest line (not mandatory).

Unique Item: Rancor +1 (Two-Handed Sword)

Dorn is one of the new NPC's introduced in BGEE and is pretty straightforward personality wise. He respects power and strength. He is also a potential romance option for female and male player characters. Ajantis does not like him in the slightest (hardly surprising) and if you attempt to add Dorn to your party while either Ajantis or Yeslick is in it they will leave your party. If you have Dorn in your party before you add either of them you should be fine. Dorn may fight Shar-Teel. Whether or not this happens is random (though it will only occur if the protagonist and Shar-Teel is higher than level 4).

Dorn is a powerhouse. Not only does he have 19 strength, which is phenomenal, but he also eventually will get 3 useful innate abilities. Aura of Despair (which makes enemies in the area of effect slightly easier to hit and less likely to hit you), Poison Weapon (always good for doing a bit extra damage), and Absorb Health (ranged spell that can damage an opponent and you gain life). His 19 strength though will make him a formidable fighter and I would highly recommend him for any evil group.

His dexterity is alright and his biggest weakness is his constitution. Even with a low constitution for a fighter however he still will have a respectable amount of health. He is also immune to fear and his morale break is 0 (extremely low), two things that will come in handy particularly during mage fights and particularly brutal fights.

In terms of proficiencies I would say (because of the critical hit bonus that two-handed fighting style gives him) your best bet with him would be to stick either pick another two handed weapon or go with a ranged weapon. A bow or crossbow would be good. Slings are also an alternative I suppose. They fire slower but unlike crossbows and bows their bullets gain damage benefits from strength. To be honest between his existing proficiencies and his +1 Two-Handed Sword (becomes +2 for a time after he kills) he is pretty set at least concerning his proficiencies. There really isn't much to say other than that he is a melee DPS (damage per second) kind of character. Keeping him as a melee fighter is probably the best approach with him.

That said he does have one thing going for him when it comes to using bows (not crossbows). His Poison Weapon ability can be combined with the area of effect damage that Arrows of Detonation do. So you can heavily damage and poison a number of enemies over a wide area.

Dynaheir

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Alignment: Lawful Good
Kit: Invoker

Str: 11
Dex: 13
Con: 16
Int: 17
Wis: 15
Chr: 12

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2 and level 4):

 *Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Quarterstaff     *Sling 

Location: Gnoll Fortress (inside one of the pits)

Joining Conditions: Minsc is on a mission to rescue her from the Gnoll Stronghold. You can either take Minsc in your party when you go to rescue her or you can first rescue her and bring her to Minsc (he is in Nashkel).

Unique Ability: Slow Poison once/day

When both Dynaheir and Minsc are in your party removing either of Minsc or Dynaheir from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building that you don't intend to return to (put them in the building by themselves) and then remove them from the group.


Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Magic Missile. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Magic Missile. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Stinking Cloud. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Magic Missile. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Blur, Stinking Cloud. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Fireball. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.


Personality wise there isn't much to say about Dynaheir. She is tied into the character Minsc (without getting into too many details she is his "witch" and he is her protectorate). She doesn't have a personality that stands out, however one thing that is important to note about her is if you have her in the same party as Edwin and Minsc there is a chance that she and Edwin will fight to the death. She will insult and compliment other people but nothing comes of it. One interesting thing to note about her is that she is voiced by Jennifer Hale (she did this voice work almost a decade before she was Commander Sheppard in Mass Effect).

Dynaheir is a capable spellcaster. If you don't get her at level 6 her spells are lacking (and even at level 6 her saving grace is access to fireball). In all likelihood you will pick her up at a level lower than level 6 even if you are a fast levelling character (like a thief).

Her 13 dexterity is a weakness to be sure, but finding an armor or shield scroll to memorize in order to mitigate the risk for her shouldn't be too difficult (go to High Hedge for them). Her 17 intelligence will let you memorize a large number of spells at any given level and if you want you can always buy potions of genius from temples. She also has Slow Poison as an innate ability, which is probably going to prove handy particularly when you are facing poisoning enemies like Wyverns, Ettercaps, and Spiders. As an Invoker she gets a 15% improved chance to learn evocation spells and a 15% penalty to learn any other mage spells. She also gets +2 to her saving throws against evocation spells and enemies get a -2 penalty to their saving throws when she is casting evocation spells. The bonus to her chance to learn spells is handy in her case because it means she has a very good chance at learning Fireball and Cloudkill, two of the better damage spells in the game. Especially in the case of Cloudkill since it only has a handful of scrolls that you can learn it from. The bigger bonus as far as I'm concerned is the -2 penalty to saving throws that enemies take when she is casting a Fireball or Cloudkill at them.

One interesting fact about Dynaheir is that if you are willing you can use two wisdom tomes on her then she can then dual class into a cleric. For most people this isn't worth the trade off, but it does at least provide a broader set of options for the character. Unless your main character is a cleric, druid, a multiclass of either of those, or a sorcerer/mage, there really isn't too much benefit from having a higher wisdom (beyond a small lore boost) so it is always an option. Even in the case of mages/wizards, the benefit of having higher wisdom is something you will see more in the case of BG2EE. I would dual her at level 5. You could dual class her at level 6 but frankly I don't see enough of a benefit from getting an extra 3rd level spell given the extra amount of experience involved.

In terms of spells you can look for to improve her keep in mind she can't use enchantment spells. Glitterdust (buy at feldpost inn) is a good level 2 spell she can use. Skull trap, Resist Fear, Mirror Image, Blindness, and Spook are a few spells you can buy at High Hedge that would greatly benefit her spellcasting. Spook and Blindness are useful in particular at causing particular opponents (spellcasters namely) to lose focus on whatever they were doing (or be unable to complete their spellcasting).

Unfortunately she can't learn the spell Sleep. Its a downside as sleep is a good spell up until chapter 5 or so (especially against lower level enemy swarms). You can give her a sleep wand, but it gives enemies +3 saving throws against it (compared to the spell sleep).

Glitterdust is effective the whole game because of its ability to blind multiple opponents. I would high recommend you have her with between 1-2 of these memorized at any one time. It may not always work but one of the good things about it is that it only affects enemies.

For level 3 spells Skull trap, Fireball, Ghost Armor, Remove Magic, Haste, and Slow are all good choices.

She loses out on some great 4th level enchantment spells; Greater Malison and Emotion: Hopelessness. For 4th level spells Stoneskin and Improved Invisibility are two good choices. You should be able to get both in chapter 5 (Stoneskin can be found in the Sorcerous Sundries in Baldur's Gate and Improved Invisibility can be found with the innkeepers stock in Ulgoth's Beard). Minor Sequencer is a good choice too.

You won't get a lot of fifth level spells (either to cast or to use) but you can buy Sunfire from the Sorcerous Sundries. There is also the chance that you could pick up a scroll of Cloudkill at some point in the game. Combined with the prior use of Web its an amazing spell.

Edwin

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Kit: Conjurer

Str: 9
Dex: 10
Con: 16
Int: 18
Wis: 9
Chr: 10

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2 and level 4):

  *Quarterstaff 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Quarterstaff  *Dagger 

Joining Conditions: If added prior to rescuing Dynaheir you are to kill Dynaheir. Otherwise he has no conditions.

Location: Nashkel (southern part of the town near the bridge)

Unique Item: Edwin's Amulet (extra spell castable for each spell level)


Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Larloch's Minor Drain. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow. 4 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Larloch's Minor Drain. 6 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow. 4 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Haste, Monster Summoning I. 4 casts of level 3 spells per day.

Edwin has quite a personality (these simpletons have no idea what how diabolical he truly is). I guess he is kind of a narcisist, but not really. He certainly thinks very highly of himself and very little of others. In any case he is a real character to have around. Of course if you have Minsc and Dynaheir in the same group as him there is a possibility (and probably a fairly strong one) of it ending in a fight to the death. Otherwise the only other character he may fight to the death with is Ajantis. Also if you have Edwin in your group when you first meet Neera you will be forced to choose between the two of them (though you can get around this and have both in your party). So I guess just keep this in mind when you are choosing your group.

He is a phenominal mage. 18 intelligence by itself is great. It means that he can learn tons of spells. However, Edwin's real greatness comes from the fact that Conjurer's don't lose out on many worthwhile spells (arguably none in BGEE). That means he gets to be a specialist mage, which includes an extra spell per level, without really any consequence besides not being able to cast identify, Invisibility detection spells, and Clairvoyance (there are only a handful of potentially invisible enemies in BGEE). Secondly, Edwin has an amulet that gives him an additional spell per level. This puts him right up there with Quayle (or possibly a dual classed Xzar) in terms of spellcasting opportunities.

His dexterity and strength are low. However his strength is high enough that he should be able to carry all the equipment he needs. As for his dexterity it can be made up for through defensive spells (like the Armor spell he starts out with as well as Mirror Image, Stoneskin, and Improved Invisibility). Dagger proficiency probably isn't the best way to go with him because he won't benefit from a strength bonus, but darts are a proficiency option you should consider. A wisdom of 9 means he gets -10 to his lore, so he won't be very useful at identifying items without using an "Identify" spell. In any case its best to keep him far back from the front lines and away from enemies.

As a specialist mage Edwin gains a 15% better chance to learn conjuration spells and a 15% worse chance to learn other spells. He also gains a +2 bonus against opponent conjuration spells (this will never be useful) and conjuration spells cast by him give a -2 penalty to enemies trying to save against them. This is especially useful for Edwin because it makes his casting of Glitterdust more likely to work than any other NPC.

For level 1 spells Magic Missiles and Sleep (since it only effects enemies and they get -3 to save vs. death rolls to prevent it its better in combat than Color Spray as Color Spray gets no bonus and can hit allies). Two other options are Shield and Spook (you may find I get somewhat repetitive when it comes to mage spell choices).

For level 2 spells get anything you really want. You can get up to 18 spells for any one level. As previously mentioned Glitterdust is a good idea, as is Mirror Image. Agannazar's Scorcher is a useful spell but you have to be strategic with where you move around while its active. You can also get the strength spell in case you need to turn Edwin (or anyone) into a pack mule.

For level 3 spells Skull Trap is good. Slow is an option. Ghost Armor is highly recommended given your dexterity.

For level 4 I would again (like I did with Baeloth) recommend the "Greater Malison" spell and the "Emotion: Hopelessness" spell. There isn't a lot of 4th level spells to choose from but these two are solid spells. Otherwise a minor sequencer and Stoneskin are good ideas.

Finally for level 5 spells Cloudkill is the best to go with here if you can get your hands on it. Otherwise you could go with Chaos, Sunfire, or (if you can find a scroll for it) Cone of Cold. Personally I'm not much of a fan of Chaos but an enemy that is attacking its allies and not you is fine so long as you make sure to get all the kills.

Anyways, Edwin is a very good mage and one of the better spellcasters in the game. You can't go wrong by choosing him.

Eldoth

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Bard (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str: 16
Dex: 12
Con: 15
Int: 13
Wis: 10
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies (level 3):
*Scimitar *Longbow

Weapon Proficiencies (level 5):
*Scimitar *Longbow *Spear

Location: Cloakwood Forest 3rd area (AR1600)

Joining Conditions: "Kidnap" Skie (see Skie page)

Unique Ability: Create Poisoned Arrows (good for disrupting spellcasters)


Spellbook (level 3):

Spell level 1: Magic Missile. Larloch's Minor Drain. 2 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spellbook (level 5):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Magic Missile. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Horror. 1 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Personality wise Eldoth is a scoundrel. No seriously he makes his rather illegal intentions known to you from the start. Not only that but he probably is one of the more active NPC's when it comes to throwing insults around. Shar-Teel and him may fight to the death (the banter that leads up to this is quite amusing). Since he is evil naturally Ajantis may fight him as well. Overall he is a fun character to have, even if his stats leave much to be desired. if you are going to take him into your party I recommend taking Dorn as well (you can get an item in Dorn's questline that will help Eldoth substantially).

With regard to his usability where to begin? Well for one thing he is a bard. There isn't anything wrong with bards, but unless they are kitted they tend to be jack of all trades but master of none. The problem with Eldoth is he took the notion of "master of none" a little bit too seriously.

He has 16 strength. This is not enough to provide anything more than a +1 bonus to melee damage. His 12 dexterity doesn't benefit his ranged attacks at all and the only thing he has thats beneficial for his ranged attack is his poisoned arrow creation ability. Basically he needs additional equipment to be an effective archer. His constitution is acceptable but it doesn't do him much good from an offensive standpoint. HIs intelligence being low is actually less of a problem than it sounds. He won't need to learn many spells to begin with and you can buy Potions of Genius and Potions of Mind Focussing for learning the spells you want (you could also just reduce the game difficulty to "normal" temporarily). He has the same morale break as Garrick. If active his bard song acts as a Remove Fear spell.

His class is what saves him here. Properly equipped Eldoth can cast a fair number of spells on his own as well as use wands and his bow to sublement that casting. I would say he is best used as a caster first and an archer second.

Particularly with the higher spell levels he doesn't have a lot of slots to use so in terms of his spell casting I am going to recommend two difference approaches.


Damage Approach

The first is a spell damage approach. In this approach to Eldoth I am basically going to recommend damaging spells that take advantage of the fact that Eldoth can get up to casting level of 10.

Magic Missile is a good example of this. By level 9 you will be doing 5d4 (5-20) damage with it. Its not an absolute amazing amount of damage but it will remove enemy mirror images and disrupt spellcasting. It also has a short casting time.

I'm going to recommend against Chromatic Orb. Enemies get a +6 save against it and if they make their save even at level 10 it only does between 1-12 (1d12) damage. Additionally as a level 10 bard it will actually petrify the target if the enemy fails their save, which is the last thing you want particularly if you wanted to preserve your enemies valuable items.

I'll also recommend against Burning Hands. It has the potential to do a lot of damage for a level 1 spell but if the enemy saves its not much better than a Chromatic Orb. Also it requires you to be fairly up close to the target and thats the last place you want to be with Eldoth.

One damage option at level 2 is Melf's Acid Arrow. It is an option because while 2d4 damage isn't a lot there is no save against it and the arrows acid effect stacks if repeatedly cast on someone. The duration of the acid damage increases with level, up to a potential of 8-32 damage over the course of four rounds (24 seconds). It won't average out to be as much damage as Agannazar's Scorcher but you won't have to worry about having your allies avoid Agannazar's flame.

In terms of level 3 spells you only get to have 2 memorized at any one time, so your choices are limited. The three spells you should consider here are Skull Trap, Fireball, and Melf's MInute Meteors. If you are looking at dealing damage all of these are good options.

For level 4 spells I'm going to recommend Greater Malison. With the exception of the Wand of Magic Missiles most wands require a saving throw even if the spells they are casting normally don't.

As for wands the Wand of Fire is very useful. It actually has two sets of charges. One for its Agannazar's Scorcher and another for its Fireball. So if you run out of one you still have the other. You can use Wands of Frost but keep in mind that you will lose any items an enemy has on them if they are frozen. Also keep in mind that the lightning from a Wand of Lightning will bounce off walls and could rebound into you! In any case using the Fireball from a Wand of Fire is probably going to be your safest bet.


Controlling Approach

Basically with the controlling approach you want to use Eldoth mostly for spells that debuff (reduce the power of) enemies.

For level 1 "Blindness" is an option. The enemy may make their save, which is problematic, but especially for casters its a useful spell to have. It also (among other things) lowers an enemies AC by 4, which lets you then have a much better chance of attacking with your bow. Being blind also reduces a casters sight range to next to nothing. This is why its useful against casters (they can't cast at what they can't see).

I would recommend against the spells Sleep and Grease. The problem with them is that you don't get Eldoth until you are well on your way through Cloakwood Forest. By that stage the usefullness of these spells is quickly declining. Instead I'd recommend the spell "Spook". Enemies will have a much harder time saving against it than Blindness and it will cause a specific enemy to run around in panic. Its good for anyone but like Blindness its short casting time makes it a good response to casters.

For level 2 Glitterdust is a good option. If successful it will blind your enemies (and potentially a group of enemies) and its a good way to make your ranged attacks hit more often while crippling your enemy (like with the spell Blindness if its successful among other things it gives a +4 penalty to enemies armor class).

Web is also a great control spell. Its better than Stinking Cloud because with Web everyone (including party members) gets -2 save vs spells against it. With Stinking Cloud everyone gets a +2 bonus vs poison. Basically web is more effective.

I wouldn't recommend Deafness and Ray of Enfeeblement. Basically even if they have selective uses Eldoth just doesn't have enough spell slots to justify using them.

Like with the damage approach you will only get two level 3 spells to cast with Eldoth, so its important that you pick wisely. I would recommend getting the spell "Slow" as it will slow the movement and attack rate of a group of enemies. Remove Magic or Monster Summoning 1 are two other decent other choices here.

For fourth level go with Greater Malison.

Wands of Paralyzation are also extremely useful.

In either approach if you are looking to do damage with your archery Arrows of Detonation, Arrows of Dispelling, and Arrows of Piercing are great. You may find a hybrid approach works better for you.

Faldorn

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Druid (no kit)
Alignment: True Neutral

Str : 12
Dex : 15
Con : 11
Int : 10
Wis : 16
Cha : 15

Weapon Proficiencies (level 3):

 
* Club           *Dart 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 5):

 
* Club           *Spear           *Dart 

Location: Fourth area of Cloakwood Forest (in a stone circle on the north-west side of the map)

Unique Ability: Summon Dread Wolf

Faldorn is the only pure druid in BGEE. From a personality standpoint she is a druid that is much more in favour of aggressive action against civilization in order to protect nature. To say that she and Jaheira don't get along would be a bit of an understatement. Thankfully however they will just bicker at each other on occasion and they won't fight to the death.

As a pure druid she is the only divine caster in the game that can get level 5 divine spells. Its really one of her saving graces, but she won't get them until late into the game so its benefit is not as great as it could be. Her strength and constitution are pretty poor. Her dexterity provides a slight AC benefit but no ranged attack benefit. She able to use Wand of the Heavens, which are actually very helpful for her indoors if you can get your hands on a few.

She also gets a Dread Wolf that she can someone once each day. Its actually a pretty useful innate ability.

With Faldorn your best bet is to stay back and throw darts. Darts of Stunning and Wounding are a good choice. If you have to go up close with her your best bet is either her Brown Bear or Black Bear forms. Normally I wouldn't recommend the druid's shapeshifting abilities but if you have her dual wield clubs (or dual wielding another one handed weapon) before you make the shape change she will actually get 4 attacks per round with these bears. Her offhand weapon and her Main hand weapon will also share the same Thac0. You can also give her Single Weapon Style proficiency if you are looking at improving these forms further. It will increase the odds of you getting a critical hit. Ideally she shouldn't be near the frontlines of a battle but if for whatever reason she has to be this is probably going to be the best strategy for her.

In terms of spell casting for level 1 I recommend Bless, Doom, Armor of Faith and Cure Light Wounds. Entangle was nerfed between BG1 and BG2 (in the original BG1 it only affected enemies) so while you can use it keep in mind it now will affect allies. Also by the time you get Faldorn you probably will find yourself without much of a use for it, though it can serve as a weaker replacement to the mage spell Web.

For level 2 having Barkskin on hand isn't a bad idea. If nothing else it will improve her poor Armor Class. Keep in mind though that it has a fairly short duration. Slow Poison is a good choice for second level, as is Charm Person or Mammal. Avoid Goodberry (its unbelievably attrocious as a spell) and Flaming Blade (I've given you frankly a better strategy for melee battles). The rest of the spells here are not crucial really at all. Resist Fire and Cold might come in handy and Know Alignment is useful if you aren't familiar with the intentions of other NPC's. Find Traps can be useful but only if you either lack a party thief or they have their points distributed into something other than finding traps (like for instance you plan on having Skie or Alora in your party).

For level 3 spells Call of Lightning is highly recommended for battles in outdoor settings. Apart from the fact that it can't be used indoors its other problem however is it has a long casting time. Still, it is very useful for precision taking out of enemies. Dispel Magic, Rigid Thinking, and Medium Cure Wounds should be considered. Strength of One can be useful in the right circumstances.

Otherwise Summon Insects is a decent spell for taking out individual mages. They get a -4 chance to save against it (save vs. breath) but if they don't make the save it partly cripples their spellcasting (50% failure rate) and will slowly deal damage to them. Like Call Lightning though it has a long casting time. This is a definite downside but feel free to try it out anyways.

In Faldorn's case there is little point in fact in taking Miscast Magic over Summon Insects. While its true it is more effective at stopping spell casting, has a longer duration, and it has a shorter casting time its also true that Summon Insects requires a Save vs. Breath at -4, versus Miscast Magic requiring a save vs. spells at -2. Mages consistently have better saving throws versus spells (by about 3) compared to breath. Basically Summon Insects will work more frequently and do 21 damage to the mage (over the course of the spells 7 rounds). The 7 rounds the Summon Insects lasts should be more than enough time to kill the mage or cleric you are using it on.

For level 4 spells Call Woodland Beings is highly recommended. They have their own mind when it comes to spell casting but their hold monster spell is extremely useful (if they cast it in the right place). Otherwise Animal Summoning I, Cure Serious Wounds, Neutralize Poison (cures disease and blindness as well as poison), and Defensive Harmony are all good choices at this level.

Level 5 has some great spells in it. Unfortunately Faldorn will only ever get to memorize 2 at a time. Insect Plague is a fantastic spell. Its great against casters but also great against groups of regular enemies too. The constant attacks will make it difficult for enemies to move around, which you can use to your advantage. Iron Skins is a strong spell too. Unless you are using melee with Faldorn (including using the bear method I mentioned above) or you are having a problem with ranged attacks from enemies (archers for instance) its probably not going to be worth it to memorize. Basically with the exception of True Sight and Magic Resistance you will find any spell at this level useful in one way or another. Summon Animals II in particular is actually pretty good because of its ability to frequently summon multiple bears. They hit as though they have normal weapons but by summoning standards they pack a punch.

Ultimately Faldorn is a capable companion. You get her pretty late into the game though so it is unlikely you will even need her when you come across her. However, if you have some patience she can provide an interesting alternative to some of the more widely used NPC's.

Garrick

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Bard (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Str: 14
Dex: 16
Con: 9
Int: 13
Wis: 14
Chr: 15

Weapon Proficiencies (level 1 and level 2):

 
*Short Sword             *Crossbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4 and 6):

 
*Short Sword             *Crossbow               * Shortbow 

Location: Beregost (outside of the Burning Wizard Inn roughly in the centre of the map)


Spellbook (level 1): NONE

Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Magic Missile. 1 cast of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Magic Missile. 2 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Mirror Image. 1 cast of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Magic Missile. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Mirror Image. 2 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Personality wise Garrick is a coward. No seriously he has a moral break of 6, which basically means that at least half of the time he has a morale check (1d10 roll) he will fail it and run away. His chaotic neutral alignment never really seemed quite like it fit him frankly, but in any case he has his own fair share of dialogue with other NPC's. The good news is he also won't fight to the death with anyone! In addition having Dorn in your party with him will (if you complete Dorn's quest line) eventually lead to you getting an item that is very beneficial for someone like Garrick. He doesn't get along with Eldoth and reacts very emotionally if Skie dies while in your group.

With regard to his usability he plays out frankly a lot like Eldoth. He is a bard after all. The biggest difference between the two isn't so much their stats (though there is a difference) as it is their weapon proficiencies. Garrick starts out with crossbow and short sword proficiency, neither of which he is particularly useful with at least initially. The Crossbow of Speed is an item that at some point you may want to purchase for him (from the smithy in Beregost).

In terms of his stats he starts off at level 1 with only 5 health. His strength is poor, his dexterity is decent and at least provides him with a +1 Thac0 bonus to his ranged attacks and -2 to his AC. His constitution is bad but thankfully its not low enough that it will give you any penalties. Given his constitution his hit dice rolls are pretty average actually but it still will mean he has low health compared to your parties fighters and clerics. The rest of his stats aren't anything to brag about either, though thankfully if you need him to memorize spells you can always buy potions of Mind Focussing and Potions of Genius for that (or reduce the difficulty setting until you can find them). In situations where you have other party members who have been hit by a panic spell like Horror you can use Garrick's bard song to cure them. He can't however attack or cast spells while it is active.

His class is what actually saves him here. Properly equipped Garrick can cast a fair number of spells on his own as well as use wands and his crossbow (later perhaps a bow) to sublement that casting. The problem of course is getting Garrick to the point where he can cast a decent number of spells on his own. As soon as he can memorize spells (level 2) I recommend he learn Sleep (you should be able to get this from High Hedge), Shield, and/or Armor (if he doesn't already know it). Its up to you which one you want to have him actually cast but keep in mind he generally can't wear armor while casting. So if you are going to have him cast Sleep make sure to keep him well away from any potential attacks. If you are feeling particularly comfortable about yourself financially you can buy him a Wand of Sleep to use from High Hedge. Its not as effective as the spell Sleep but it will free up that spell slot for him for a defensive spell.

In later points in the game I would say he is best used as a caster first and an crossbow user/archer second.

Particularly with the higher spell levels he doesn't have a lot of slots to use so in terms of his spell casting I am going to recommend two difference approaches. You might want to consider eventually focussing him on either damaging spells or controlling spells. You can read more about some strategies in this respect closer to the bottom of Eldoth's page. Basically a sound strategy with Garrick involves using wands a lot, keeping him out of any kind of fight, and learning spells that benefit from his higher caster levels.

Garrick has the potential to be a capable companion but between his low health and lack of spells he can be a difficult choice to pick. If you are going to pick him keep in mind that thanks largely to his ability to use wands he will get better with levels.

Imoen

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Thief (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str : 9
Dex : 18
Con : 16
Int : 17
Wis : 11
Cha : 16

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 1 and 2):

 * Short Sword   * Shortbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4 and 6):

 
* Short Sword        *Quarterstaff            * Shortbow 

Location: Southern road in area where Gorion is attacked (since she approaches you she is difficult to miss).

Special Item: Wand of Magic Missiles


Thieving Skills (level 1)

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 35
Pick Pockets: 25
Move Silently: 35
Hide in Shadows: 15
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (Level 2)

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 48
Pick Pockets: 25
Move Silently: 47
Hide in Shadows: 15
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (level 4)

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 75
Pick Pockets: 25
Move Silently: 70
Hide in Shadows: 15
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (Level 6)

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 100
Pick Pockets: 25
Move Silently: 95
Hide in Shadows: 15
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Imoen has a generally very happy personality. In truth she was actually a late edition during development of the original game so she doesn't have anything to say in the way of character interations. She probably interacts through text with the new NPC's (particularly Dorn, Rasaad, and Neera) but I'm not 100% sure about that.

Regardless of her personality she is a phenominal thief. Her only real downside is her lack of strength, but you get her immediately after the games prologue and she remains a viable character throughout the game.

When it comes to Imoen I'm going to propose two strategies towards her use. Either keep her at a pure thief, which is fine, or dual class her into a mage.

If you keep her as a pure thief there isn't really much to say. She's a thief, she has great thieving skills and a very high dexterity. She is the second best pure thief in the game (Alora beats her). Keep her with her short bow and some decent arrows and she will do fine in the party. There are also a few items you can find in and around Beregost that will help boost her stealth skills. So keep an eye out for them (particularly if you want to backstab with her or use her to scout). Overall for her strategy as a thief I would say to do something similar to what I suggested with Safana. Whether you dual class her or not you will probably want to get her Pick Locks and Find Traps skills up to at least 80 each. Potions of Perception and Potions of Master Thievery can make up the difference.

I recommend you dual class her either at level 5 or level 6. You could go up to level 7 but you wouldn't get to level 9 as a mage (also it would delay when you get your thieving skills back). Level 5 will mean that you get her thieving skills back sooner but level 6 will give you enough time to have Pick Locks and Find Traps raise to close to 75 (pick locks) and 73 (find traps). Potions of Master Thievery and Potions of Perception can make up any difference, so you are better off probably dualing at level 6 (dualing at level 6 will also let her get up to level 9 as a mage).

In terms of her mage levels you probably want to avoid using magic missile for the first few levels. It just won't do a lot of damage. You can try Sleep. Relatively speaking it only takes 10,000 XP to get Imoen to level 5 and 20,000 XP to get her to level 6, so Sleep should still be at least somewhat effective against enemies you are facing. If not try using Blindness at least until she gets up to level 3 as a mage.

I've stated it before but Glitterdust is a good choice for any mage (if you haven't already by that point a copy can be bought from the innkeeper in Feldpost Inn in Beregost). Mirror Images and Melf's Acid Arrow are good. Web is always a safe bet. Invisibility is a good spell to have on hand for when she regains her thieving skills (you can use it to replace stealth). Stinking Cloud is a weaker alternative to Web but it is good for some circumstances.

Basically just play her as you would any mage. Keep her in the back, away from the fighting, and have her first focus on spells that try to debuff or control the enemy.

For level 3 spells Haste, Slow, Fireball and Skull Trap are good choices.

For level 4 spells you are probably just best going with Greater Malison, Emotion: Hopelessness, Spider Spawn, Improved Invisibility and/or Stoneskin. You could also try Teleport Field. It only works against enemies but it may help keep them away from Imoen long enough for her to shoot them with an arrow or two. Normally I wouldn't recommend it but because of the limited number of 4th and 5th levels scrolls depending on how many mages you have in your party it could at least provide some use. Cloudkill of course (depending upon how many scrolls you can find and the number of mages you have) is a good choice for a 5th level spell.

Overall Imoen is an excellent character whether you dual class her or not. She is one of the better thieves in the game and she is the first party member you can pick up.

Jaheira

Gender: Female
Race: Half-Elf
Class: Fighter/Druid (no kit)
Alignment: True Neutral

Str : 15
Dex : 14
Con : 17
Int : 10
Wis : 14
Cha : 15



Weapon Proficiencies (level 1/1 and 2/2):

 ** Club     * Quarterstaff   * Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4/4 and 5/6):

 * Scimitar   ** Club   * Quarterstaff   * Sling 

Location: Inside the Friendly Arm Inn (next to her husband Khalid)

Joining Conditions: : Travel to Nashkel (she and Khalid will leave the party if you fail to do this promptly)

Note: Khalid and Jaheira are a team. If one leaves they both leave. There are only two ways around this. Either kill one then remove that person from the party or leave the one you want to get rid of in a random building or cave somewhere and then remove them from the party. As long as you don't talk to the character you removed their counterpart won't leave the party.

Jaheira is an interesting character. She is strong willed and opinionated. She doesn't really have any problems with Montaron, but bewarned that having her in the same group as Xzar could mean they fight (to the death of course!). Otherwise she is a fairly reasonable person to have in the party.

Her strength isn't good for a fighter but thankfully the farther you get into the game the easier it is to boost fighter strength stats (potions in particular). Likewise her dexterity isn't good though thankfully her constitution is very good. One negative (and underreported) aspect of Jaheira is that her morale break is reasonably high. Not as high as Khalid's or Garricks, but it still is a 5. In BG1 she used to get Remove Fear, which could counter these effects, but that was removed from her in Baldur's Gate 2 and subsequently BGEE. Bless however does somewhat improve your morale so its good to have that active immediately prior to and during any battles.

You could give her the Gauntlets of Dexterity when you get them but I would hold off on that unless you have no other good candidates. She can wear up to full platemail eventually and she can even use medium shields depending upon what weapon she is using, so its not as if she is going to be totally lacking in AC. Also as a half-elf she has a natural 30% resistance to charm and sleep spells which is handy.

When it comes to proficiencies Jaheira is in a tough position here. She only potentially can get 2 more proficiency points by the end of the game but two of her points have been given to clubs.

For her weapon proficiencies I'm going to therefore recommend 4 difference approaches (all for the price of 0!).

Go with Quarterstaves. This allows you to specialize in Quarterstaves and later get two-handed weapon style. From a damage perspective generally scimitar's make more sense than Quarterstaff's, but due to a lack of proficiency points available you won't have enough to get both the double critical bonus (single weapon style) and the APR bonus (specialization) with scimitars.

Go with Scimitars: This allows you to specialize in scimitars. Potentially you can get a +3 scimitar in the game so this is a viable option. Thankfully BGEE added a number of +1 scimitars to the game. There are a few +2 scimitars she can use. There is also a +3 scimitar that Jaheira can use, though getting it may prove to be difficult. You can still have a shield as well while wielding the scimitar.

Stick with Clubs: This allows you to put up to 2 points in one of three things. Either go with single weapon proficiency style, sword and shield style, or (and this one is a bit more risky) go two-weapon style. It is possible to find +1 and +2 clubs in the game, though they are tough to find. I won't tell you where they are specifically but keep an eye out for them especially in the maps that border the Gnoll Fortress map. There are also a few in the Cloakwood Forest.

In terms of spells at level 1 Armor of Faith is recommended for when she is a higher level fighter/druid. Before that its bonus is not very effective. Bless is a must. Cure light wounds, Doom, and maybe entangle are some options as well that you should consider depending upon how many spells she can cast. Shillelagh is a worthless spell. Don't even bother with it.

For level 2 go with Slow Poison and Charm Person and Mammal. Flame Blade is a decent spell if you are lacking an alternative. Unless you have a mage that has particularly bad AC I wouldn't bother with Barkskin (at lower levels its duration is very limiting).

Level 3: For this level I would strongly recommend Strength of One if you haven't already found a way to permanently boost her strength. As long as you don't cast it near any other fighters that have strength scores higher than 18/75 it will be beneficial. Besides that Summon Insects, Call Lightning (outdoors only), Cure Medium Wounds, and Rigid Thinking can be good choices. Dispel Magic is another choice (though her slower level progression may hamper its effectiveness).

For level 4 Call Woodland Beings is also a good spell to use. Otherwise Defensive Harmony is decent. If you are planning on using web with one of your mages having a few "Free Action" spells available could be handy for use on your parties fighters (including Jaheira).

Overall Jaheira starts off as a mediocre fighter. With the right spells and equipment though she can become both a good fighter and a decent party healer.

Kagain

Gender: Male
Race: Dwarf
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Lawful Evil

Str : 16
Dex : 12
Con : 20
Int : 15
Wis : 11
Cha : 8

Weapon Proficiencies (level 1 and 2):

  ** Axe   * Flail   * Crossbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

  *** Axe   * Flail   * Crossbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

  **** Axe   * Flail   * Crossbow 

Location: In Beregost. He has a shop located just north of the Feldpost Inn.

Joining Condition: Travel to the crossroads area north of Beregost. Kagain will give up on his quest to find the lost caravan and agree to travel with you permanently.


Personality wise Kagain is pretty straight forward. He is an evil dwarf who likes money and power. He isn't well liked by Yeslick at all and the two may fight to the death. Also since he is evil Ajantis may also fight him.

Kagain doesn't have much in the way of dexterity and his strength is only decent. His three main benefits are that he has an huge amount of health because of his 20 constitution, that he gets +5 to his saving throws (death, spell, and wand) because of that constitution, and that as a pure fighter he can get high mastery in axes. His strength means that he only gets a bonus to his damage and not to his hit die and thankfully while his dexterity is low for a fighter it isn't low enough to give any penalties. His high constitution provides a few decent benefits. Having 20 constitution gives him a slight regeneration of 1 health point per real-time minute (1 turn). Its only really useful if you are moving between areas or if you are resting without a healer in your party. Its also very useful if you want to sample the local brews of your favourite pub in-game, though I generally don't recommend doing this before battle. That said make sure you pick him up at level 1 or 2. His level 4 and level 6 forms get a fairly low amount of health given his constitution.

One lesser mentioned fact is that he has the same morale break as Khalid, Eldoth, and Garrick, though if you have a party leader with good charisma (17 or 18) this may be less of a problem. If he does fail his morale break there is also a chance (like Minsc) that he will attack your own party members.

When it comes to equiping him you can buy magical axes in the game (including a few in Beregost) so they shouldn't be too hard to find. Give him an axe, some solid plate armor, maybe something to boost his dexterity and strength, and a big shield and he's set for the game.

Khalid

Gender: Male
Race: Half-elf
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str : 15
Dex : 16
Con : 17
Int : 15
Wis : 10
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (level 1 and 2):

  ** Long Sword       * Axe     *Longbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

  *** Long Sword       * Axe     *Longbow 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

  *** Long Sword       * Axe     **Longbow 

Location: In the Friendly Arm Inn (next to his wife Jaheira)

Joining Conditions:
Travel to Nashkel (he and Jaheira will leave the party if you fail to do this promptly)

Note: Once he has joined removing either of Khalid or Jaheira from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building that you don't intend to return to (put them in the building by themselves) and then remove them from the group.

Personality wise Khalid like Garrick is a coward. He doesn't stand up to Jaheira much, he stutters when he talks, and like Garrick he pretty well will run away from a battle at the first sign of trouble (he shares a moral break of 6 with Garrick). Whether you have Jaheira in your party or not he may actually get into a fight to the death against Xzar and Montaron.

His only real downside is his strength. He is actually a pretty capable fighter, at least in his own way, but at least at first having 15 strength is a big negative. For the time being he's not going to compare damage wise with the melee damage dealers like Minsc, Dorn, and Shar-Teel. As a half-elf however he has a natural 30% resistance to charm and sleep spells which is a positive.

For reasons of simplicity I'll suggest two strategies for levelling Khalid. Use him as a melee fighter, in which case you may want to focus your proficiency points on getting his Long Sword to high mastery (****). This will give him +2 to hit rolls and + 1 to damage over what he would have with specialisation. If you do this you could also give him a big shield. You could instead put your proficiency points into other weapons or into styles, but I think Long Swords are the safest bet. Putting aside his morale failure he is quite capable with the proper equipment.

Alternatively there are a couple of bracers/gauntlets in the game that you can use to make him into a decent archer provided you use those proficiences to give him mastery in Longbows.

Overall Khalid starts out as appearing fairly weak as a fighter but as the game progresses he offers a fair bit of choice in how you want to approach developing him. He and Jaheira are both good choices particularly for players looking to experiment with fairly sturdy characters.

Kivan

Gender: Male
Race: Elf
Class: Ranger (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Racial enemy: Ogre

Str : 18/12
Dex : 17
Con : 14
Int : 10
Wis : 14
Cha : 8

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

  ** Halberd   ** Longbow   ** Two-Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

  ** Halberd   * Long Sword  ** Longbow   ** Two-Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 ** Halberd   ** Long Sword  **Longbow   ** Two-Weapon Style 

Location: High Hedge Map (just north of the High Hedge's north-eastern towers)

Joining Conditions: Kivan will leave if you don't clear the bandit camp (i.e. reach Chaper 4) within a certain time. You have 20 days if you recruit him in Chapter 1, 14 days if you recruit him in Chapter 2, and 7 days if you recruit him in Chapter 3.

Personality wise Kivan is rather gruff. He has a very clear vendetta though. Unfortunately he doesn't actually respond when you meet up with his target (I'm not going to touch on the mods that deal with this). In any case picture an elven Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry) and thats basically Kivan. Kivan will actively dislike Viconia and may fight her, but otherwise he should get along with other party members.

He is one of only a few fighter NPC's with any exceptional strength (even if 18/12 doesn't provide much bonus over 18 strength it is still better). His dexterity is solid though his constitution is low. He still benefits from fighter HP per level, so this isn't that big of a deal.

From a tactical standpoint BGEE has broadened the usability of Kivan. You could just use him as an archer and he is actually quite good in this role. As an elf he gets a Thac0 bonus to using bows. Alternatively however you could have him using magical halberds or fighting with another two handed weapon. Finally you could also have him dual wielding a particular set of weapons. Long swords are probably your best choice. As an elf he gets a small thac0 bonus for using long swords and magic long swords are fairly easy to acquire. Having ** in two-weapon style means that the only negative he will get is to his off-hand weapon, but mechanically speaking your off-hand weapon only gets 1 attack per round regardless of the situation.

Eventually you will get a single casting of a level 1 priest spell when you reach level 8. I would strongly recommend you pick Armor of Faith. If you are going for a ranged character Entangle would also be a good choice.

Overall he is a very versatile fighter in a good or neutral group. When it comes to combat adjust him as your party needs.

Minsc

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Ranger (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Good
Racial enemy: Gnoll

Str : 18/93
Dex : 15
Con : 15
Int : 8
Wis : 6
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (level 1 and 2):

 ** Two Handed Swords  * Mace  * Longbow 
** Two-Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

 ** Two Handed Swords  * Mace  ** Longbow  
** Two-Weapon Style 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 ** Two Handed Swords  ** Mace  ** Longbow  
** Two-Weapon Style 

Location: Nashkel (Standing along the roadway close to the Garrison building)

Joining Condition: Rescue Dynaheir from the Gnolls in the Gnoll Fortress (you should do this as soon as you can since after 10 days he will leave if you haven't done it)

Unique Ability: Berserk (see below)

Unique Item (and sidekick): Boo

Note: When both Dynaheir and Minsc are in your party removing either of Minsc or Dynaheir from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building that you don't intend to return to (put them in the building by themselves) and then remove them from the group.


Minsc is probably the most beloved character in the series. He is a lovable but deranged ranger who speaks to his pet hamster (err "miniature giant space hamster"). You'll need to rescue Dynaheir from the gnolls (and have her join your party) if you want to keep him. In terms of party conflicts he really only has a conflict with Edwin (which may involve them fighting to the death) but I think that is only going to happen if Dynaheir is in the party. Even with a party leader with a high charisma its a fight that has a strong chance of happening (not necessarily right away either).

Like Kivan BGEE has made Minsc a much more versatile character. He is as he always has been however, someone who is best as an up-close ranger. He even has a berserk ability for it. His Berserk ability does a number of things. For the two turns (2 minutes in real-time) that it lasts it increases his strength and dexterity by 2 and increases his total health by 15. It also provides immunity to charm, panic, sleep, confusion, maze, level drain, hold, and feeblemind. However, in combat situations you will lose control of him so its best used with caution. Also the 15 health that he gains will be removed when the effect ends, so make sure to not have less than 15 health with him while he is going berserk.

Your best bet with him is to either use two-handed swords and put at least a proficiency point in two-handed style, or to go with two-weapon style.

If you choose the latter then Maces are a good option. You can get a few solid magical maces in Beregost, one of which (hint: its in a chest in one of the inns) is extremely powerful. You'll want to get specialization with maces before you consider improving your two-weapon style to ***.

Eventually you will get a single casting of level 1 priest spells at level 8. I would strongly recommend you pick Armor of Faith.

Overall Minsc is an extremely capable fighter who has one of the highest strength values you will see in a character (he is only surpassed by Dorn in this regard). He and Dynaheir are both strong additions to any party.

Montaron

Gender: Male
Race: Halfling
Class: Fighter/Thief (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str : 16
Dex : 17
Con : 15
Int : 12
Wis : 13
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 1/1 and 1/2):

  ** Short Sword  **Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 3/4 and 5/6):

  ** Short Sword  * Axe  **Sling 

Location: Along the road on the east side of the map where Gorion is killed (he is standing with Xzar)

Thieving Skills (levels 1/1):

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 10
Pick Pockets: 35
Move Silently: 45
Hide in Shadows: 35
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Thieving Skills (levels 1/2):

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 10
Pick Pockets: 45
Move Silently: 55
Hide in Shadows: 40
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Thieving Skills (levels 3/4):

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 10
Pick Pockets: 65
Move Silently: 75
Hide in Shadows: 50
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Thieving Skills (levels 5/6):

Open Locks: 25
Find Traps: 10
Pick Pockets: 85
Move Silently: 95
Hide in Shadows: 60
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Note: Once he has joined removing either of Montaron or Xzar from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building that you don't intend to return to (put them in the building by themselves) and then remove them from the group.

Personality wise Montaron is lovably rude, particularly to Xzar. Its clear that the two don't really get along and in fact neither of them mind one bit if the other one dies. In terms of party conflicts Ajantis may fight Montaron and if you also have Xzar, Khalid, and Jaheira in your party it could start a fight at some point. Having a party leader with a high charisma should help prevent this but its not a guarantee.

From a tactical standpoint Montaron provides some great opportunity for new players to try their hands at backstabbing. Granted for a fighter his strength and constitution are low, but given time and the right equipment Montaron becomes a great fighter, a great scout, and useful for backstabbing specific targets.

For Montaron BGEE basically just changed his proficiency points so that he gets specialisation in slings (rather than BG1's generic "Missile Weapons"). It makes sense from a racial perspective as halflings do get a Thac0 bonus from using slings. From a combat perspective it probably doesn't mean much. Due to the relatively few decent up-close fighters as early into the game as Montaron you really should be using Montaron up close. One of the better things about Montaron as well is that as a halfling he gets +4 to his saves vs spells/death/ and wands, which makes him less susceptable to problems fighters may face like mages casting Horror at them or Sirines casting Dire Charm.

In terms of his thieving skills you may want to look into having a second thief in your party if you have Montaron along. Its not required its only a suggestion. Montaron will take twice as long as a single class thief to gain thieving levels and you will have limited points to spend even if you include items that boost your stealth abilities. From level 1/1 to max level you will gain 175 points to spend, most of which should be first put towards open locks and find traps (you should get these up to around 80 each if not more). If you put nothing towards your stealth skills (Hide in Shadows/Move Silently) and only use the special armor available to boost them you'll end up with stealth skills of 65 and 75, which given that he is best at backstabbing is pretty low. You'll want to get both of those up to at least 100 (including item effects). In general going over 100 is not useful for any skill. Stealth skills and pick pocket skills are the only exception to that. If you plan on entering stealth in daylight (and don't want to fail trying to do that) it might be worth it but given the fact that you are fairly limited in terms of your overall thieving points (assuming Montaron is your only thief) I would recommend against doing so.

In terms of his fighting skills if you start with him at either level 1/1 or level 1/2 Montaron will get an additional 2 proficiency points as he reaches levels 3 and 6 as a fighter. Backstabbing with a short sword is acceptable, however you may want to look into specialising in either long swords, scimitars, katana's (very rare), or quarterstaves instead. Keep in mind that items that a single class thief can't use can't be used to backstab (axes, warhammers, maces, flails, morningstars, etc) however that doesn't mean you can't still use them for regular combat. Alternatively you could put up to two points towards Single weapon class proficiency. The first point will double his chance of doing critical damage on an attack (including backstabs) and provide him with an improved armor class. The second will slightly boost his armor class again. As I stated his existing points in short swords is already acceptable so this distribution will work well too.

Montaron may not seem at first like he is a particularly good fighter, especially next to someone like Dorn, but given time he becomes quite capable particularly as a backstabber.

Neera *

Gender: Female
Race: Half-elf
Class: Mage
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Kit: Wild Mage

Str: 11
Dex: 17
Con: 14
Int: 17
Wis: 10
Chr: 11

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 1, 2 and 4):

  *Quarterstaff 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Quarterstaff   *Sling 

Location: Beregost (north north-west of the Red Sheaf Inn)

Joining Conditions: She has his own quest line but its not mandatory.

Unique Items: Neera's Staff +1, Gem Bag

Spellbook (level 1):

Spell level 1: Armor, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Color Spray, Identify, Magic Missile, Nahal's Reckless Dweomer, Sleep. 2 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Chaos Shield


Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Armor, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Color Spray, Identify, Magic Missile, Nahal's Reckless Dweomer, Sleep. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Chaos Shield


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Armor, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Color Spray, Identify, Magic Missile, Nahal's Reckless Dweomer, Sleep. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Agannazar's Scorcher, Chaos Shield, Invisibility, Mirror Images, and Stinking Cloud. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Armor, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Color Spray, Identify, Magic Missile, Nahal's Reckless Dweomer, Sleep. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Agannazar's Scorcher, Chaos Shield, Invisibility, Mirror Images, and Stinking Cloud. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Dispel Magic, Fireball, Hold Person, Melf's Minute Meteors, Protection from Fire. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.


Neera's personality is interesting to say the least. I know certainly some people have complained that she sounds too contemporary, but I don't mind her voice set at all. Chaotic neutral seems an appropriate choice. She leans towards doing good things and seems to have some regret over what caused her exile, but she also doesn't seem like she would go out of her way to do good. Due to his status as a red wizard you can't have both Neera and Edwin in your party at the same time, but otherwise she doesn't conflict with anyone. She's also a potential romance for a male main character.

She has decent stats for a mage. Her intelligence is average, her constitution is pretty good by mage standards. Her dexterity is good and her strength is adequate. There are a few things that make Neera unique. For one thing she starts off wearing a travellers robe (which gives her a small bonus namely against missile weapon attacks). She also gets a unique staff (its nothing to brag about but its still an enchanted weapon) as well as a gem bag. In a game where you are going to come across a lot of rings, amulets, and gems this gem bag will come in handy (you can use it to store rings, amulets, and gems and not take up as much inventory space by doing so).

Neera experiences one important change in BGEE version 1.2. During her initial battle (after which you can recruit her) it is possible for her to die. This is probably going to be more noticable on higher difficulty settings, but I felt it was an important change to mention. In previous version she would survive until the end of this battle regardless of the amount of damage she took.

Her spellbook is phenominal regardless of what level she starts out on. Having Sleep and Armor in a spellbook at first is great just by themselves. Having 6 additional spells to this is just icing on the cake. I would recommend against using Nahal's Reckless Dweomer at first however. Concentrate on memorizing Sleep spells and maybe an Armor spell. The dweomer can be a great spell but at low levels you are very likely to have wild surges backfire on you. The dweomer guarantees a wild surge will happen, as opposed to a 5% chance of them happening otherwise. I won't explain the specifics of wild magic here but suffice to say that sticking with regular spellcasting (and avoiding the Dweomer) is a good idea.

The other thing about wild mages that you should note is that anytime they cast a spell their caster level either increases or decreases by up to 5. If you are level 3 and you cast magic missiles (and you caster level decreases by 2) instead of firing two missiles you will only fire one missile. The reverse is true of course (you'd fire 3 missiles if it increased by 2). This is another good reason to use the Sleep spell early on. You can't have a caster level of less than 1 and the only thing that can be reduced by a lower caster level with Sleep is duration (you'll get 5 rounds out of the spell regardless).

Another tip I will give is that if you don't want to reload if you get one of the more negative surges I would suggest not having a large amount of money on you at any one time (this will become more apparent if you make it a habit of using the dweomer). Spend money you can on things you need and keep particularly valuable items that you may not need but that you can sell (for when you want to buy things). You can also use any random chest or barrel you please to store items in the game (don't leave items on the ground). Just remember which chest/barrel you use though!

As for her other spells Neera can use the spells of any standard mage. As a specialist she gets an extra spell per level but as a wild mage she has no opposite school so she can learn any spell in the game. Mirror Image, Melf's Acid Arrow, Chaos Shield (You can also have Chaos Shield active when you aren't using the dweomer and it will stll add 15 to whatever you roll on the wild surge table if you get a wild surge), Glitterdust, and Web are all good spells. Agannazar's Scorcher is good because unlike Melf's Acid Arrow it won't vary in its damage with level (you just have to be more careful where you cast it).

For third level spells Slow, Fireball, and Skull Trap are a few good spells. I would recommend not having Neera cast Haste (or any other buff spell besides Chaos Shield) unless you have Chaos Shield activated. Generally speaking with her its probably better that your opponents are the target of her spells.

Greater Malison and Summon Monster II will suffice for level 4 spells. You can also get a Stoneskin scroll during Neera's questline. Feel free to add more level 4 and 5 spells of course. As I've mentioned earlier the problem with 4th and 5th level spells in BGEE is a limited number of scroll options. The good thing about Neera though is that her dweomer can be used to cast any spell she has learned, regardless of its level or whether or not she has it memorized. So she could cast a slew of dwoemers (and pick say Fireball) off at the enemy hoping one of them succeeds. In doing so she would only use up a level 1 spell casting. This however is a risky one.

Overall she is a great character to have in a party. She's also great at introducing new players to the strengths (and pitfalls) of the wild mage and mage spells in general.

Quayle

Gender: Male
Race: Gnome
Class: Cleric/Illusionist
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Str: 8
Dex: 16
Con: 11
Int: 17
Wis: 10
Chr: 6



Weapon Proficiencies (level 2/2):

 * Club   * Sling  

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 4/3 and 6/5):

  * Club   * Sling    * Sword and Shield Style 

Location: Outside of gate to Baldur's Gate (standing on the road)


Mage Spellbook (level 2/2):

Spell level 1: Magic Missile, Spook. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Mage Spellbook (level 4/3):

Spell level 1: Magic Missile, Spook. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Horror, Mirror Image. 2 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Mage Spellbook (level 6/5):

Spell level 1: Magic Missile, Spook, Larloch's Minor Drain. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Monster Summoning I, Wraithform. 2 casts of level 3 spells per day.


Quayle is quite a character. He is pretty overconfident about himself ("feel my amazing brain", "there's none better"). On the surface he would appear to be mistaken about his abilities but he is actually one of the best spell casters in the game. Concerning party interactions the only character you should be worried about having in your party with him is Tiax. They don't get along and there is good chance that they will fight to the death.

Ok so lets just get some of the bad stuff out of the way shall we? Quayle's strength sucks, his constitution sucks, his health sucks, his dexterity (improved in BGEE compared to BG1) is decent, his intelligence is average (for a mage), his wisdom is terrible, and he's about as charismatic as a leather shoe. You also can only first get him in chapter 5 (in all likelihood though you will run into either his 4/3 or 6/5 version in the game and not his 2/2 version). Also his morale break is 6 (which is high) though he can protect himself with this by using a level 1 priest spell called Remove Fear or the level 2 mage spell Resist Fear. As an Illusionist he also misses out on necromancy spells (like Skull Trap). Its also true that as an Illusionist he does get a 15% improved chance to learn illusion spells and a 15% penalty to learn any other mage spells. Many illusion spells (Invisibility, Mirror Images, etc) share similarities with lower/higher level spells, so unfortunately in this case its more of a negative than a bonus because you are more likely (when looking at offensive spells) to have him learn mage spells that aren't illusion spells. He also gets an additional +2 to his saving throws against illusion spells (which really is only useful against Blindness and Deafness, neither of which you will ever encounter). So he has his share of negative traits.

Now the positives. The first positive I'll point out is that as an Illusionist enemies trying to save against his illusion spells do take a -2 penalty to their saving throws, so can be very effective if you are having him cast Illusion spells like Spook, Blindness, or Deafness (which bypasses magic resistance).

In addition to that he is a gnome. Even with only 11 constitution that still means he gets +3 to all his save vs. spells and save vs wands. He can also get mage spells 1-4 and cleric spells 1-4 and benefits from an extra mage spell per day because he is an Illusionist. Granted he won't gain wisdom spell bonuses because of his wisdom but since the game doesn't have any spell failure for low wisdom implemented he won't experience any spell failures from that low wisdom either. Also, at the stage in the game you get Quayle level 1 and 2 priest spells probably won't be as useful as level 1 and 2 mage spells anyways. He is also very versatile in the items he can accept to boost his various spells.

What makes Quayle great is that his sheer number of spells and spell combinations allow him a significant amount of versatility. Admittedly he is a better mage than he is a cleric, but even as a cleric he can still get a fourth level spell (and perhaps more if you find a certain item).

For cleric spells you should (particularly if his spellcasting is boosted with items) be able to get most if not all of the major party buffs in the game from him. Bless, Remove Fear, Chant, Protecton from Evil 10' radius, and Defensive Harmony. You can also use Draw Upon Holy Might if you want to improve his dexterity.

Of course you can also go for the sheer damaging spells. Holy Smite is probably the best spell a cleric is going to provide for this. Its not going to do more damage than Fireball but what it can do is potentially blind your opponents for a round. This makes them much easier to hit and much less likely to hit you. It also will only hit evil creatures (including any evil party members you have) so you can basically cast it while your party members are fighting an enemy up close without fear of it hurting them (unlike Fireball). However it can be complemented well by mage spells Web, Fireball, and Greater Malison.

Alternatively you could look at using his cleric spells in more of an debuff/control role. Doom, Hold Person (cleric spell), Silence, Holy Smite (causes blindness), Rigid Thinking, and Mental Domination come to mind. This could be complemented by mage spells like Hold Person (slightly better than the cleric version), Dire Charm, Greater Malison, Web, Glitterdust, Slow etc.

Between his ability to cast sanctuary (only a level 1 cleric spell) and his innate special ability to cast Invisibility Quayle can alternatively serve as a useful scout. Cleric spells like "Find Traps" as well as mage defensive spells like Shield and Mirror Image help him in this role.

Basically Quayle is just an extremely versatile spellcaster. He is found very close to the two best shops for higher level mage spells in the game and he makes a decent cleric, a good mage, and a fantastic overall spellcaster.

Rasaad *

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Monk
Kit: Sun Soul Monk (as of version 1.2)
Alignment: Lawful Good

Str : 16
Dex : 16
Con : 14
Int : 11
Wis : 14
Cha : 14

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 1 and 2):

 * Katana   * Scimitar 

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 4 and 6):

 * Katana   * Scimitar   * Sling 

Location: Northern part of Nashkel outside the Nashkel Inn

Joining Conditions: He has a quest line but it isn't mandatory.

Unique Item: Moonlight Walkers (boots that give an AC bonus of 2)

Thieving Skills (level 1):

Find Traps: 5
Move Silently: 10
Hide in Shadows: 5

Thieving Skills (level 2):

Find Traps: 10
Move Silently: 10
Hide in Shadows: 10

Thieving Skills (level 4):

Find Traps: 15
Move Silently: 20
Hide in Shadows: 15

Thieving Skills (level 6):

Find Traps: 25
Move Silently: 25
Hide in Shadows: 20


Personality wise Rasaad is a fairly pious monk. I don't think he gets into any fights with anyone, though if he were to do so I'd expect that to be Dorn. He may take issue with you having Viconia in your party and will banter with her but I haven't seen any fights result from it. He's also a romance option for good aligned, female main characters.

In terms of his combat abilities well...he's a monk. Monks are terrible at low level. Even if he had 18 strength/Dexterity/Constitution he would still not be very good. As it stands now (and not surprisingly) he needs a lot of help to be useful.

Thankfully however version 1.2 had the decency to make him into a Sun Soul Monk kit. It means his attacks can potentially do a bit of extra fire damage with his fist for one round and he gets actually some decent abilities. He keeps his boots too (they give him an AC bonus of 2).

Sun Soulray (available at level 2) lets you deal up to 4d8 damage (1d8 for every 2 monk levels) against an enemy. It does an additional 6 damage against undead. Its not the most amazing ability ever but it is a ranged spell/ability. Its not suppose to hit party members or frankly hit more than one target but currently it is (this is a known bug). By the end level you should have two casts of these available so if you want to switch Rasaad over to a ranged character (or even just use them instead of throwing a few punches) they should be beneficial.

Flaming Fists (available at 5th level) lets you do an additional 2d6 (2-12) fire damage for every hit during a round. The problem with this is it doesn't give any Thac0 boost. Rasaad's problem in melee isn't the damage he does so much as it is his ability to hit anything. Even with the items you give him to improve his reliability on top of the 2 attacks per round that he will eventually get you will probably need to find other ways to boost his Thac0 temporarily if you want to see this ability become reliable.

Finally, Greater Sun is also a decent ability. It gives him 50% fire resistance and makes it so that any enemy that hits Rasaad suffers 1d8+2 fire damage. Unfortunately you don't get it until 8th level (his last level).

All in all the new abilities version 1.2 provides Rasaad are generally beneficial. Unfortunately however they didn't address some of the problems Rasaad faces in the early game, like the fact that he has no ranged proficiencies. You are left to either use a sling or darts without proficiency or to fight up close with him.

I would suggest that darts are probably the best ranged weapon for him. They get a high number of attacks per round and with his high Thac0 you'll need the extra attacks over a sling. You can pick up decent darts for him at High Hedge. A lot of the enchanted darts will at least mean that your dart Thac0 is on the same level as your fists, at least until you get proficiency in darts.

Fighting up close with him at level 1 isn't necessarily a bad thing. He can be used as a very mediocre secondary or tertiary up close melee character. Basically with him you want to keep enemies more interested in your other fighters/melee party members and to use him in more of a supporting role. His increased walking speed though can be a hassle, a curse, and a benefit. Its a hassle and a curse because he will be inclined to be ahead of your group when you are walking anywhere (he could walk into a situation he can't handle), but it also is good (if he is well equiped) for quickly getting at enemy archers that are shooting at you (while your main fighters are engaging melee opponents).

One strategy you can use with him when fighting up close is to have him turn into a wolf using Cloak of the Wolf: Relair's Mistake. The wolf's paws hit as though they are magical weapons, up until level 5 you do the same damage that you normally would from a fist damage standpoint, and you can eventually get as high as 3 APR using it. You can also continue to use Rasaad's special abilities while transformed into a wolf.* The only downside to this strategy is that it sets Rasaad's strength at 18, so if you have an item that is giving him either exceptional strength or 19 strength that item will be ignored. Still, you can always use one of the more powerful strength potions (like a Potion of Hill Giant Strength) to make up for this.

One of the problems he also will have is his frequency at getting hit. One solution to this is to keep enemies distracted with another character when you are using Rasaad up close. If you aren't in need of it for another character you can find a useful item for him by searching amongst the tents in the Nashkel Carnival. You should find a merchant there that will sell you the shield amulet. When worn by Rasaad (or another character) you can use the amulet to cast a mage spell called Shield on Rasaad that will make him more difficult to hit. As with any magical item with limited charges if you find yourself having only one or two charges left with it you can always sell it to a merchant and buy it back (at a much higher price). There are also potions and bracers you can either find or buy that can improve his AC or ranged attack (the Gauntlet's of Dexterity are one example of this). Rasaad can use any potion a fighter can use, including advanced strength potions, so you may want to keep a few potions that boost his strength, thac0, or AC on hand for when he really needs them.

Once he hits level 5 and can get Flaming Fists he's a bit more capable in this secondary fighting role. In general though I would also recommend moving through Rasaad's quest line as quickly as possible (unfortunately it won't be available until chapter 5). You should get some items during it that will help Rasaad.

There really isn't much in the way of a saving grace for him. Compared to other fighters he will probably involve more micromanagement. One final thing that will improve his usability (particularly as a ranged character) is to stack him full of whatever wands he can use. In his case that is the Wand of the Heavens, Wand of Sleep, and Wand of Magic Missile. If you are going to pick up Rasaad I would strongly recommend equiping him at first with a Wand of Sleep (you can buy one at High Hedge) regardless of whether you are considering a more ranged or melee approach. The Wand of the Heavens (Hint: The Inn in Ulgoth's Beard) is another wand that is exceptionally useful for a class like his.

I wouldn't recommend Rasaad for a first time run. However for someone doing a second or third playthrough he is at least worth taking to check out his quest line.

*Credit to Tresset on forum.baldursgate.com for this strategy

Safana

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Thief (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Str : 13
Dex : 17
Con : 10
Int : 16
Wis : 9
Cha : 17

Weapon Proficiencies (Level 2):

 * Scimitar     * Darts   

Weapon Proficiencies (Levels 4 and 6):

  * Scimitar     * Darts        * Single Weapon Style 

Joining Conditions: You need to go into the cave north-west of where you first run into her and take all that you can from inside it. You have 10 days (after picking her up) to do this. She will also not join your party unless you have a male party member.

Location: Lighthouse area

Unique Ability: Charm Person 1x/day (+2 bonus for enemies, lasts 100 seconds)

Thieving skills (Level 2):

Open Locks: 50
Find Traps: 25
Pick Pockets: 20
Move Silently: 25
Hide in Shadows: 15
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Thieving Skills (level 4):

Open Locks: 70
Find Traps: 45
Pick Pockets: 20
Move Silently: 30
Hide in Shadows: 20
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Thieving Skills (level 6):

Open Locks: 90
Find Traps: 65
Pick Pockets: 20
Move Silently: 35
Hide in Shadows: 25
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

From a strategy standpoint Safana presents a rather glaring problem. Apart from an obvious alignment difference and a far more sultry voice what makes her much difference than Imoen?

In truth the differences are noticeable. Imoen gets better thieving stats because of her higher dexterity (combining all the skill points its 30 points), much higher health because of her constitution bonuses, and can dual class without the need of a manual of intelligence. They share different strength values but from a Thac0 or damage perspective this makes no difference. Likewise their differing wisdom and charisma scores aren't all that important. Safana does get what is now a Charm Person special ability (it used to be Charm Animal in BG1) but it provides a +2 save. Its better than the spell Charm Person but it is a very situational ability.

One difference for Safana is her proficiencies. She is proficient in Scimitars. Potentially these can do more damage than short swords, but that really comes down to what magical weapons you end up finding.

However, she is also proficient in darts. No, these aren't dartboard darts (I imagine battles involving heavy armor would be very short if they were) but rather they are larger combat darts. Odd as it may seem this is what you may find her most useful with, particularly at the beginning of the game.

The great thing about darts is that they allow you to make 3 attacks per round. For a non-fighter character this can be very helpful particularly in the beginning of the game when your thac0 isn't very good.

If you are looking for darts I would recommend you visit the mage Thalantyr in High Hedge. In BGEE his dart selection has been improved over what it was in the original game. These darts are also fairly affordable. Depending on your reputation and charisma 50 of these magic darts would cost you around 500. Later into the game you can also buy Darts of Stunning and Darts of Wounding when you reach the City of Baldur's Gate (you may find a few before that point). Both of these are good.

When she reaches level 4 and level 8 she will have to pick additional proficiencies. Since you already have a strong choice for a melee weapon proficiency (scimitars) as well as proficiency in darts what you decide to put towards is totally up to you. Shortbows are a solid choice if you are looking at having her be more of a ranged character. Single Weapon Style is a good choice particularly if you want to use her to backstab (with a single weapon like a scimitar). Quarterstaves followed by Two-Handed Weapon Style is also another alternative (there is a particularly potent quarterstaff that can be used for backstabbing).

If you are just looking for a thief whose thieving abilities are focussed towards less combat oriented tasks (more concerned with Pick Locks, Pick Pockets, and Find Traps than anything else) then it should be fairly straightforward to level her up. She does after all start with 50 in Pick Locks. If you take this approach with her at level 10 you should be able to get two of the three up to 100 in skill and the last up to 95. Alternatively if you plan on dual classing her to a mage (more on that later) you might want to focus only on 2 skills (Pick Locks and Find Traps). That is only because most likely dual-classing will leave you with anywhere between 75 and 100 less skill points than you would have gotten as a level 10 thief.

Its worth also noting that Pick Locks, Pick Pockets, and Find Traps can also all be temporarily raised by 20 points each by using Potions of Perception (3 of which can be purchased early on from High Hedge). Potions of Master Thievery will also improve Pick Locks and Pick Pocket scores by 40 temporarily.

If you are looking for a more stealth oriented thief Safana is adequate in this role. Her skills in this respect do start out very low however. There are a few items in and around Beregost that she (or any thief) can wear that will increase her stealth skills, so keep an eye out for them. By level 7 with the right items you should be able to have over 100 in Move Silently and Hide in Shadows. With that amount you should be able to hide in darkness or in shadows easily enough. Its only out in sunlight that you may fail. You can spend the remaining points however you like, including Pick Locks and Find Traps or towards more stealth skills if you find failing in sunlight to be a problem.

Traps are also an interesting option for Safana (or any thief). You'll only get 2 a day by level 6 (each do 2d8 +5 missile damage but won't harm party members) and there really isn't any point in having more than 100 skill in it. You can also only set them up when there are no enemies in your line of sight and you aren't in combat (you'll have to bring enemies to them). The good thing about them however is that there are only a few enemies with any missile damage resistance (Skeletons, Battle Horrors, Greater Basilisks to name a few) and there is no saving throw. The downside is that it will cost you half of the thieving skill points she has available in game just to get it to 100.

Finally, when you get yourself to the city of Baldur's Gate you may come across a Tome of Clear Thought. It will permanently raise the intelligence of the person who uses it (the tome will be used up in the process though). If you use it on Safana instead of yourself you can then dual class her into a mage. For Safana this opens up a lot of strategic options for the character. Spells can be used to suplement abilities that you have neglected (like Knock used for opening locks and Invisibility used instead of stealth).

In terms of her mage levels you probably want to avoid using magic missile for the first few levels. It just won't do a lot of damage. You can try Sleep. Relatively speaking it only takes 20,000 XP to get Safana to level 6, so Sleep should have some use against enemies you are facing (just not the more powerful ones though). If not try using Blindness at least until she gets up to level 3 as a mage.

I've stated it before but Glitterdust is a good choice for any mage. Mirror Images and Melf's Acid Arrow are good. Web is always a safe bet.

Basically just play her as you would any mage. Keep her in the back, away from the fighting, and have her first focus on spells that try to debuff or control the enemy.

For level 3 spells Haste, Slow, Fireball and Skull Trap are good choices.

For level 4 spells Greater Malison works, Spider Spawn is a good summoning spell. Improved Invisibility and Stoneskin are good defensive spells. If you can't get your hands on a Cloudkill scroll then Sunfire (available in the Sorcerous Sundries in the City of Baldur's Gate) will do.

Shar-Teel

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Str : 18/58
Dex : 17
Con : 9
Int : 14
Wis : 7
Cha : 11

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

  * Long Sword   *Dagger   ** Two-Weapon Style  

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4):

  * Long Sword   *Dagger   * Crossbow   ** Two-Weapon Style  

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

   ** Long Sword   *Dagger   * Crossbow   ** Two-Weapon Style  

Location: The area east of the "Temple" map. Hug the western border of the map travelling northward and you should run into her.

Joining Conditions: A male member of your party will have to fight her in order for her to join.

Shar-Teel is an interesting character to say the least. To say she doesn't like men would be an understatement. To say she really doesn't like Eldoth would be an even bigger understatement! Still, it makes for some fun banter (and a possible fight to the death). Ajantis may of course want to kill her as well. Dorn may fight Shar-Teel. Whether or not this happens is random (though it will only occur if the protagonist and Shar-Teel is higher than level 4).

When it comes to stats she has phenomenal strength and great dexterity. Her constitution on the other hand is low and for a fighter her health is low. Her morale break is 4, which is a reasonable amount. Along with Dorn you'll probably want her to be doing the melee damage in your party, so the fact that she has lower health than say Kagain is not that big of a deal. Give her solid armour and she should be fine against most enemies.

In terms of strategy BGEE has made her a more interesting (if perhaps initially weaker) character compared to BG1. At a lower level she has specialisation (**) in two-weapon Style, * in Dagger's and * in Long Sword's. I would strongly recommend taking advantage of the ** she starts out in two-weapon Style and use two weapons with her. They could be long swords, daggers, or even something else entirely. If you pick her up at level 2 you'll get 2 proficiency points to spend throughout the game. More if you dual class. With ** in two-weapon Style your main hand weapon won't suffer any penalties from attacking while using two weapons so from a damage perspective its worth it to use two weapons. Its still a good idea to get *** in two-weapon Style at some point however its probably a good idea to get specialisation in a weapon of your choice before doing that.

However, don't let me entirely dissuade you from using her as an archer. If you feel an archer is needed in your party then she can make an capable archer particularly in an evil group.

Whether or not to dual class her is also an important choice to make with Shar-Teel. If you are going to dual class what level you do so is likewise important.

If you are looking for a great amount of functionality (for both her classes) the best time to dual class her would be at level 3. Sure she will lose out on health, some saving throws and Thac0 but you'll end up with the same number of proficiency points as a level 6 thief. Thieves gain levels very quickly and the wait at this level to gain back your fighter abilities is relatively short.

If you are looking at having the best backstabber its best to dual her at level 6. This way you will eventually get access to the 4x backstab modifier. As a level 6 fighter you will also get your second proficiency point, on top of a number of them as a thief (do not add proficiency points to any weapon you picked as a fighter unless your thief level is above your fighter level).

If you are looking for more of a fighter with added thieving abilities level 7 is the way to go. This option will considerably delay when you retain your thieving skills. In fact a level 6 Shar-Teel dual classed to a thief will be 3/4 of the way to re-acquiring her fighter skills by the time you would have reached level 7 as a fighter. However, the main benefits of a level 7 fighter in this case is that she will have an additional 1/2 attack per round (APR) over a level 6 fighter and slightly better health.

Regardless of whether you dual class or not Shar-Teel is an excellent fighter who is highly adaptable. She is a worthy addition in any evil group.

Skie

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Thief (no kit)
Alignment: True Neutral

Str : 11
Dex : 18
Con : 15
Int : 15
Wis : 8
Cha : 13

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 4 and 6):

 *Short Sword   *Shortbow   *Dart 

Location; On the 2nd floor of the Silvershield Estate in the northwest map of Baldur's Gate. The estate is in the north-west corner of the map (its hard to miss).

Joining Condition: Have Eldoth in the party when you first approach her. Also if you remove Eldoth from the party she will leave (the reverse is true).

Thieving Skills (level 4):

Open Locks: 45
Find Traps: 30
Pick Pockets: 50
Move Silently: 45
Hide In Shadows: 40
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (level 6):

Open Locks: 55
Find Traps: 40
Pick Pockets: 60
Move Silently: 55
Hide In Shadows: 50
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 5

Skie is a naive and spoiled brat who complains a lot. Whether its about breaking a nail, messing up her hair, or having a headache. You'd think given all this that she wouldn't be suited for the adventuring life. However, she actually is a capable companion. She also doesn't have any real conflicts with any NPC's (which is great news). Taking Eldoth, her, and Garrick in the same party results in a number of unique banters. As a character she also suffers from the same problem that Quayle, Tiax, and Alora suffer from (not being able to get them until Chapter 5).

Another issue in Skie's case is that other than her alignment and the ability to keep Eldoth in your party she doesn't offer anything that Alora can't offer. You can pick up Alora at basically the same point in the game and, with the exception of starting health and carrying capacity, Alora has better stats across the board.

Stats wise Skie's strength is low, even for a thief, which makes successfully backstabbing more difficult. However her dexterity and constitution are both very good. Her thieving skills are very spread out. At this stage in the game it is generally a bad thing only because she may very well be the only thief in your party. Potions of Perception and Potions of Master Thievery can make up for this to a degree but they are limited in the game. Whether you get her at level 4 or 6 you may want to focus your effort getting her Pick Locks up to closer to 100. Same with her Find Traps frankly. You may still need to keep either of those two potions on hand just in case (if she is level 6) you aren't able to get 100 in each.

She will get another proficiency at level 8. I would recommend single-weapon proficiency because it will double the likelihood of you getting a critical hit. This is good for backstabbing. Otherwise consider quarterstaff proficiency or getting proficiency in either long swords, scimitars, or katanas.

Overall she is a capable companion but you need to make sure you focus her thieving skills towards whatever specific need you have of her. Particularly if you pick her up at level 6 she doesn't have a lot of skill points left to mess around with.

Tiax

Gender: Male
Race: Gnome
Class: Cleric/Thief
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Str : 9
Dex : 16
Con : 16
Int : 10
Wis : 13
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2/2):

  * Quarterstaff       *Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4/4 and 5/6):

  * Quarterstaff       *Sling       *Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Location: South West area of Baldur's Gate in front of the Flaming Fist Headquarters.

Special Ability: Summon Ghast once/day

Thieving Skills (2/2):

Open Locks: 35
Find Traps: 30
Pick Pockets: 25
Move Silently: 25
Hise in Shadows: 25
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (4/4):

Open Locks: 45
Find Traps: 40
Pick Pockets: 35
Move Silently: 35
Hise in Shadows: 35
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 5

Thieving Skills (5/6):

Open Locks: 55
Find Traps: 50
Pick Pockets: 45
Move Silently: 45
Hise in Shadows: 45
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 5

Tiax is insane. No seriously the man is totally off his rocker. He is a priest of Cyric (an evil god that among other things likes to cause strife everywhere) who honestly believes he is destined for godhood. He is a pretty fun character to have around, however Ajantis, Quayle, or Branwen individually will probably all try to fight him (especially Quayle).

Despite his wisdom and strength being abysmal he's actually one of the better divine spellcasters in the game. The reason is the fact that he is both a thief and a cleric. He can do tremendous amounts of damage backstabbing (staffs are your best bet here) and he can disarm traps while under the effects of the spell sanctuary. As a gnome with 16 constitution he also gets +4 saves vs. spells.

His problems really are two fold. Firstly, you don't get him until the City of Baldur's Gate. Like Alora, Quayle, and Skie this presents a problem because by this point you likely already have a full party and you are especially likely to already have a thief. Secondly, as far as his individual classes go he is a mediocre thief (especially if you pick up his 5/6 version). His thieving skills are very spread out and he can only get to level 8 as a thief (this doesn't provide you with a lot of time to focus his skills). The good news is that the cleric spell Draw Upon Holy Might can boost his dexterity up to 18, so he can get some thief skill boosts out of that.

He is also a mediocre cleric. Not having 16 wisdom means he loses out on two level 1 and two level 2 priest spells. Those aren't particularly crucial levels as far as cleric spells go but the lower the level Tiax is the more noticeable this loss will be. That is unless of course you come across items that boost the number of spells Clerics and Druids can cast (and these do exist in-game).

Tiax does however gets a Summon Ghast ability that he can use once each day. Its actually a pretty useful innate ability. Ghasts can paralyze a target and they are also immune to becoming petrified.

Some good spells for Tiax include Holy Power (4th level spell), Draw Upon Holy Might (its 2nd level but remember to use it after Holy Power), Sanctuary (1st), Animate Dead (3rd), Protection From Evil 10' Radius (4th), and Defensive Harmony (4th).

Basically give him a good quarterstaff, maybe eventually some strength buffs, and let him become your party backstabber. In the meantime as a cleric he is good at buffing your party. As I already mentioned if you are going to use him as a utility thief (pickpocketing, open locks, find traps) remember that using Draw Upon Holy Might can raise his dexterity by as much as 2. That effectively will increase each of his thieving stats by 10. Otherwise you should be able to find a fair number of potions to make up for his lack of thieving skills. Also remember that you can use the spell Sanctuary and disarm traps at the same time. This is actually a very useful feature of this spell. Just remember however that you can't use the spell Sanctuary for going invisible for a backstab.

Overall Tiax is an extremely capable character. He may not strictly be the best cleric in the game or the best thief, but his class combination allows for a variety of approaches with him and is an advantage over single class characters.

Viconia

Gender: Female
Race: Drow
Class: Cleric (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str : 10
Dex : 19
Con : 8
Int : 16
Wis : 15
Cha : 14

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2):

 * Mace   * Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 4 and 6)

 * Warhammer   * Mace   *Sling  

Location: North-western part of Peldvale.

Joining Conditions: Defend her from the Flaming Fist. Lose 2 reputation.

Viconia is a rather cold hearted Drow (race of elves that lives underground in a place called the Underdark) you come across in the game. Her reasons for leaving the Underdark are eventually explained, but suffice it to say she has had a rough time on the surface. She is an interesting character to have in your group and a fairly capable spellcaster. She may fight to the death with Kivan or Ajantis depending upon who is in your party. Low-reputation parties looking to recruit her should have a character with a good amount of charisma talk to her. If your reaction is too low you won't be able to recruit her.

In terms of her stats her strength and constitution are terrible. Technically she can't use any kind of plate armor because of her strength being so low. There are ways around this though. The easiest is to buy all three Potions of Strength from High Hedge and use them to equip the armor on her (if you do this don't unequip that armor unless you have another way of raising her strength either permanently or temporarily). However, this work around will only allow you to wear it until she levels up (at which point it will be removed). It will at least give you a good armor class until level 4.

She is the best pure cleric in the game; mostly because of her magic resistance. One thing that is different from BG1 is that her 50% magic resistance won't stop spells cast on her from working. It will however prevent a lot of enemy spells from working on her. She also has a phenominal dexterity of 19, which is great for defense and ranged attacks.

With the inclusion of BG2 spells in BGEE Viconia has gained a lot more usability (and she already had plenty of it to begin with). She won't benefit from any APR (attacks per round) bonus that a fighter would get through specialisation, but between Holy Power and Draw Upon Holy Might she is now a much more capable melee combatant. Look to give her warhammer proficiency when you can.

Depending upon your party makeup keeping her in the back might also be a good idea. She is only going to get one attack per round regardless of what weapon you use with her and slings will also benefit from strength bonuses when calculating damage.

Most of her few negatives can be made up for through spells. Naturally of course she can use wands. So thankfully she can use those to suplement her casting (including Wands of the Heavens).

Spell wise she if you pick her up at level 2 she starts off with a couple of "Command" and a couple of "Cure Light Wounds" spells. Ditch a Cure Light Wounds in favour of a Bless and you are good to go. Command is a useful spell in the beginning when enemies tend to be a lower level. It only causes unconciousness for a round but that time allows for you to swarm the affected person. It also has no saving throw when used on enemies who are less than level 6. The next level 1 spell you'll probably want to pick up is Remove Fear followed probably by healing spells or more Command spells.

When she becomes a cleric level 3 Slow Poison (Level 2) is a necessity particularly in Cloakwood Forest. Chant and Silence are also two strong choices (make sure to not cast silence too close to your own party casters). You could also go with Draw Upon Holy Might but it probably won't do you much good. At least not before you have a means of reliably increasing your strength or you reach level 6 (since it would provide at that point a +2 dexterity boost).

As an evil cleric she gains access only to Unholy Blight and not Holy Smite (level 3 cleric spell). This is unfortunate as while it sounds powerful it will really only rarely be useful because most of the enemies you come across are either neutral or evil. Even Flaming Fists tend to be Lawful Neutral!

At spell level 3 Animate Dead, Dispel Magic, and Cure Medium Wounds are a few strong choices. Healing spells like Cure Medium Wounds are generally not practical to use in the midst of battle (they have long casting times) but they are good to have for outside of battle. Finally for level 4 cleric spells Holy Power, Protection From Evil 10'Radius, Defensive Harmony, and (to a lessor degree) Cloak of Fear are few good choices.

Overall Viconia was already a strong character in BG1. The inclusion of additional spells and items in BGEE has only broadened her options.

Xan

Gender: Male
Race: Elf
Class: Mage
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Kit: Enchanter

Str: 13
Dex: 16
Con: 7
Int: 17
Wis: 14
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2 and level 4):

 *Dagger  

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Dagger                *Sling  

Location: Nashkel Mines (just outside of Mulahey's Room)

Unique Item: Moonblade +3 (you find it in a chest near him)


Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Charm Person, Color Spray. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Charm Person Color Spray. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Luck, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Charm Person Color Spray. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Luck, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Dire Charm. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.


Xan is a depressed Elf that you can take along with you. His personality is rather unique. He has some great banters particularly with Eldoth but also Ajantis. Nothing will come of them though so he is a safe character to take in any party.

In terms of his stats they are a bit of a mess. His strength is decent, his dexterity is average, but his constitution is below average. His dexterity is high enough that he gets some benefit out of it and thankfully the only constitution penalty he gets relates to how easily he fatigues and doesn't provide a negative to his health rolls. He has decent intelligence and doesn't incure any wisdom bonuses or penalties to his lore. While his charisma is high it isn't all that important. One good thing is that he is an Elf, so he gets 90% resistance to Sleep and Charm spells. As an enchanter he also gets +2 to his saves against enchantment spells, which includes sleep and charm spells, so practically speaking he has significant protections innately against charm and sleep magic. As an enchanter he also gets a 15% bonus to learning enchantment spells, and a 15% penalty towards trying to learn spells from other schools. This is both good and bad, since some of the most useful spells in the game (Greater Malison, Sleep, and Emotion) are enchantment spells.

He also gets to use a cool item called a Moonblade that only he can use. You find it in a chest near where you pick him up. It gives him a +1 AC bonus and 50% fire resistance. Despite the fact that it is a +3 dagger you shouldn't be using Xan as an up close fighter with it. Unless of course using him in this role is out of desperation.

Apart from his low health and high AC Xan's biggest weakness is that as an Enchanter he can't use Evocation spells. That means no Magic Missile, Shield, Chromatic Orb, Agannazar's Scorcher, Stinking Cloud, Web, Fireball, Lightning Bolt, Melf's Minute Meteors, Minor Sequencer, Ice Storm, Cloudkill, Cone of Cold, or Sunfire. Ironically this is kind of a downer. Most of these are the best damaging spells in the game, though thankfully he still has Skull Trap!

Your best bet with Xan then is to focus on defensive spells for him as well as controlling spells. For defensive spells Mirror Image is a must. Armor and Blur are also two good spells to pick up. Later on Ghost Armor can be substituted for Armor if you are looking for extra protection. Finally if you still are having an issue you can always try either Stoneskin or Improved Invisibility.

Otherwise Sleep, Blindness, Spook, Glitterdust, Dire Charm (I wouldn't bother with Charm Person), Slow, and Haste are good spells to go with. Up close damage spells like Ghoul Touch should generally be avoided because of his poor strength, health and dexterity, although the fairly up close spell Burning Hands should have enough range with it to cast it while behind party members. The spell "Strength" can be useful for boosting specific party members and Melf's Acid Arrow can be good as a precision damage spell. Hold Person is good and Skull Trap can serve as your main damage spell. Flame Arrow is also an option for him if you are looking for a damage spell that targets a specific enemy. Emotion: Hopelessness is great particularly when cast after a Greater Malison. If you can find it Hold Monster is also a fantastic spell to have on a mage looking to control enemies. If not you can always use Chaos instead.

Like Xzar, Xan starts out with very little health. Keeping some supply of defensive spells available as well as focussing largely on controlling spells is probably the best strategy for him. You should run into a few extra Armor spell scrolls that you can always keep on him instead for difficult fights. Also remember that he can use any wand a mage can use, including Wands of Fire. You will likely find with the default AI that he will be attempting to charge into battle with his Moonblade. At some point this will only lead to his unfortunate death, so try to keep him out of the front lines and keep him instead casting spells and using wands.

In any case he is probably one of the more under appreciated NPC's because of the fact that he has low health and can't cast evocation spells. However, he's got some great banters and is a very capable mage if you are cautious with him.

Xzar

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Kit: Necromancer

Str: 14
Dex: 16
Con: 10
Int: 17
Wis: 16
Chr: 10

Weapon Proficiencies (levels 1, 2, and 4):

 * Dagger 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 * Dagger * Dart 

Location: Along the road on the east side of the map where Gorion is killed (he is standing with Montaron)


Spellbook (level 1):

Spell level 1: Larloch's Minor Drain, Chill Touch. 2 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 2):

Spell level 1: Larloch's Minor Drain, Chill Touch. 3 casts of level 1 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 4):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Larloch's Minor Drain, Chill Touch. 4 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Ghoul Touch, Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.


Spellbook (level 6):

Spell level 1: Burning Hands, Larloch's Minor Drain, Chill Touch. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Ghoul Touch, Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow. 3 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Skull Trap, Vampiric Touch. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.

Note: Once he has joined removing either of Xzar or Montaron from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building that you don't intend to return to (put them in the building by themselves) and then remove them from the group.

Xzar is pretty crazy. Its obvious he doesn't want to be around Montaron and only suffers his company out of requirement for his employer. If you charm him before you first talk to him you'll get a little bit more information about who that is. Its not required but it does flesh out his character a bit more. Xzar may be involved in a fight to the death with Khalid and Jaheira. Also being evil naturally Ajantis may at some point want to kill him.

From a strategy standpoint Xzar is an interesting character. Like Xan his health sucks, but unlike Xan he is more limited in what he can do about this (as a mage anyways). He actually has a good amount of strength and a good amount of dexterity for a mage. His intelligence is adequate. His wisdom is high (at least by party member standards) and his charisma (which doesn't matter) is acceptable. As a specialist mage (and specifically a necromancer) he gets a +2 bonus to his saves against necromancy spells. He also has a 15% improved chance of learning necromancy spells and a 15% penalty at learning spells from schools other than necromancy. Its largely a negative in his case since the few solid necromancy spells (like Skull Trap) that you do get are acquired later (and typically from stores that have multiple scrolls in stock in the event you fail to read them).

Armor and Shield are two good spells that you can use if you are looking for a few basic spells to boost his defense. Getting him to not use Larloch's Minor Drain in favour of a more useful spell like Blindness or even Magic Missile is a good start. Sleep of course is a fantastic spell for much of the game.

I'm not generally a fan of the spell Horror (I like to keep my enemies in control and not running around) but if you happen to pick him up and he has it its a decent enough spell. Otherwise for second level spells you'll probably want to go for something like Melf's Acid Arrow, Web, Resist Fear, Glitterdust, or Stinking Cloud. The "Strength" spell could also be useful for you (on basically anyone except Dorn). It will change the strength of the character you are casting on to 18/50. If that person already had exceptional strength then it will actually increase the second number by 50%. So if the character you use it on has 18/63 strength initially then he/she will be given 18/00 strength as a result of the spell. Ultimately it will benefit evil fighters like Montaron, Kagain, and Shar-Teel.

Skull Trap is of course an appropriate spell for Xzar, but don't feel like its the only spell that will work at this level for him. Ghost Armor is a good defensive spell for him. Haste is good at providing support for your party members and Slow is good at debuffing your enemies. Hold Person is a good spell. Fireball (like Skull Trap) is powerful. Melf's Minute Meters (if you can get your hands on it) is a good spell. You could try Vampiric Touch. Its certainly a kit appropriate spell. The downside with it though is that you have to be up close to cast it against someone. For a mage with limited defensive options this might not be a good idea.

For level 4 spells Stoneskin (if you can get your hands on it) is highly recommended. Otherwise Spider Spawn and Minor sequencer are a few good spells. For a mage with low health like Xzar Polymorph Self might be a good spell to use in dire circumstances. The spell allows you to shapeshift into number of different creatures, including a Mustard Jelly that is resistant to a wide range of attacks (including 100% magic resistance). If you can get your hands on a Cloudkill scroll then that is always a fantastic spell to use when combined with Web.

Xzar also presents some interesting options from a dual classing perspective. You don't have to dual class him of course but he can be dual classed into a thief or a cleric by either using a Manual of Quickness of Action (dexterity booster) on him to dual class into a thief or using a Manual of Understanding (wisdom booster) on him to dual class into a cleric.

Dual classing into a thief probably won't provide you with much more in the way of benefits than you are already getting by having Montaron. Also as a necromancer you can't get spells like Invisibility that compliment thieves.

However, if you really want to do it the absolute last level you should do it at is level 7 as a mage. This will give you at least access to level 4 spells, as well as level 8 as a thief. To be honest if you are going to do it I think its better to do it at level 6. You'll lose out on level 4 spells but you still have a good number of spells from spell levels 1-3. If you put a proficiency towards bows I imagine Xzar firing off arrows of detonation would be an oddly appropriate sight to see.

Otherwise your other option for Xzar is to dual class him into a cleric. The presents some interesting opportunities. As a cleric he gets some spells that would compliment his mage spells. He would also be able to use all the wands in the game (like Wand of the Heavens).

The usual level 1 cleric spells like Bless, Cure Light Wounds, Doom, and Remove Fear would be good to have.

For level 2 Chant, Draw Upon Holy Might, Hold Person, Silence, and Slow Poison are good spells.

Animate Dead is a very appropriate level 3 spell that is also quite powerful. Cure Medium Wounds, Dispel Magic, Rigid Thinking, Strength of One, and Zone of Sweet Air may be useful.

Finally for level 4 spells Animal Summoning, Cure Serious Wounds, Protection From Evil '10 Radius, Defensive Harmony, Mental Domination are all good choices.

Overall Xzar dualled to a cleric has a phenominal number of spells at his disposal. However you want to play him is up to you. As a character his defensive spell access isn't as strong as other mages but he can be easily adapted to suit the future needs parties looking for a thief or cleric.

Yeslick

Gender: Male
Race: Dwarf
Class: Fighter/Cleric (no kit)
Alignment: Lawful Good

Str : 15
Dex : 12
Con : 17
Int : 7
Wis : 16
Cha : 10

Weapon Proficiencies (level 2/3):

 ** Warhammer   ** Sling 

Weapon Proficiencies (level 4/5):

 ** Warhammer   * Mace   ** Sling 

Location (first location for recruiting): 2nd Floor of Cloakwood Mines

Location (otherwise): If you talked to him before flooding the mines but he didn't join your party he should be in the back of Jopalin's Tavern in the Docks (southern) area of the City of Baldur's Gate. (this was added in BGEE)

Joining Conditions: Yeslick will leave if you recruit Dorn into your group (there shouldn't be a problem with already having Dorn in your group however)

Unique Ability: Cast Dispel Magic once/day

Yeslick isn't the brightest dwarf out there but thankfully he doesn't need to be. He is one of the best fighters in the game. While 15 strength and 12 dexterity are extremely low for a fighter his cleric spells in particular can make up for this. If you have come across additional equipment that can boost these stats they can be (depending on your party composition) a good idea as well. I would recommend having some equipment for him before you pick him up because he starts with absolutely nothing. He does however have a good amount of constitution, which as a dwarf is especially great because it means he gets a +4 bonus to his saving vs spells/wands/death.

Your best bet with him is to have him with a warhammer and a shield. You could try dual-wielding if you get to him for his level 2/3 character, but otherwise its not worth it (because if his fighter level is higher than 3 he will only be able to get * in dual-wielding). He's pretty forgiving with where you spend his proficiency points frankly. Keep in mind that the weapon style "Sword and Shield Style" only improves your armor class versus missiles, not against melee. So you might want to consider alternative weapons to the warhammer instead (like the mace).

Armor of Faith is a good spell to have with him, particularly once his cleric hits level 6. Bless, Cure Light Wounds, Doom, Sanctuary, and Remove Fear are all good first level spells.

Draw Upon Holy Might even initially is helpful as at the very least it will increase his health. Chant, Hold Person, and Silence are good second level spells to choose from.

Animate Dead, Cure Medium Wounds, Holy Smite, Rigid Thinking, Strength of One, and Zone of Sweet Air (particularly if you have a mage using either Cloudkill or Stinking Cloud) are all good spells. Yeslick has Dispel Magic as an innate ability, so there probably really isn't much of a need to learn it as a spell.

For fourth level Holy Power is highly recommended. If you can still cast another spell other than Holy Power then go with either Protection from Evil 10' Radius or Defensive Harmony.

Overall Yeslick is a pretty straightfoward character to play. Consider giving him a strength item to boost his strength. If you can't find one you can buy around 15 various strength boosting potions at the Sorcerous Sundries. For more difficult battles those should come in handy. Otherwise he is a pretty solid NPC.

Siege of Dragonspear

Below this you will find information on the joinable NPC's available in Siege of Dragonspear. There is one that is a secret NPC. I've blanked their name out on the page, but if you want to avoid spoilers be sure to not check it out.

Another thing to keep in mind about this section of the guide is that BGEE 2.0 uses a more dynamic levelling system than what the games previously had. So it is possible that mage and bard NPC's may start with more spells in their spellbook than what is shown here.

That said, in the event anyone is planning on reading these sections bare in mind that they are a work in progress as of December 30, 2016.

Baeloth (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Drow
Class: Sorcerer (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Str: 12
Dex: 14
Con: 16
Int: 19
Wis: 12
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies:

 
*Quarterstaff       *Dart 

Magic Resistance: 55 (50 innate magic resistance and 5 from his Robe of Evil Alignment)

Location: Safehouse (for players that start with an evil character)
Coast Way Crossing (for picking him up after the prologue)

Joining Conditions: -2 to reputation

Special Item: Robe of Evil Alignment, Barrityl's Burden

Level at encounter: level 7


Spells available:

Level 1: Burning Hands, Blindness, Chromatic Orb, Identify, Magic Missile, Shield, Spook (6 spells that can be cast)

Level 2: Detect Invisibility, Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image, Ray of Enfeeblement, Web (6 spells that can be cast)

Level 3: Dire Charm, Dispel Magic, Fireball, Haste, Slow (4 spells that can be cast)



Like every sorcerer Baeloth is still extremely powerful in this expansion. He has no permanent conflicts with any party members so he also happens to be a pretty safe choice.

Strengths

He’s got the ability to cast a lot of different spells. He can also cast a lot of different spells at each level each day. He also has an excellent amount of constitution and access to useful defensive spells like Mirror Image and Shield. So provided he is kept back health (by mage standards) shouldn’t be a problem with him.

Weaknesses

Don’t be fooled by the number of weaknesses I’m pointing out here – these are minor in comparison to how useful he is.

The only major downsides for him regard his access to certain spells. If you don’t import at the start he doesn’t start out with Glitterdust and Skull Trap. Glitterdust isn’t that big of a deal, since you have access to Web anyways. When he hits level 9 you can also have him learn it. It’s mostly just a useful spell because it is party friendly and enemies are very unlikely to be immune to blindness.

In the case of Skull Trap it’s better to have for when you fight enemies that are resistant against fire. On that note you definitely should consider getting him to know Skull Trap by the end of the game. Especially if you are playing the game on a difficult setting above normal.
He also doesn’t have access to 5th level spells until he hits level 10. So (depending on what amount of experience he started with) it may be awhile before he has access to some of the more powerful level 5 spells like Cloudkill.
Basically, any mage you have in your group may have a few initial advantages over him. That said, he’s got most of the best spells covered from the get go so these deficiencies shouldn’t be too noticeable.

Strategy

Web, Slow, Haste, Fireball, Magic Missile, Chromatic Orb, Mirror Image, Dispel Magic, Horror. Baeloth has almost every debuff and damage spell you will want for this game.
Unfortunately for him, if you are playing a purely evil party, or anything close to one, then you will start off with only Viconia (and perhaps yourself and whatever summons you can muster) to act as front-line warriors. In other words, crowd control is going to be essential for your survival. Especially on any difficulty setting above normal. So make sure to take advantage of the fact that you start with great spells like Slow and Web. If you get the chance as you level up consider picking up any (or some) of these spells.
Level 2: Glitterdust
Level 3: Skull Trap
Level 4 Greater Malison
Level 5 Cloudkill, Breach

Remember also that as a sorcerer it is best not to give him spells that you are only maybe need occasionally (like for instance Invisibility 10’ Radius). Focus on the spells that you want the ability to cast multiple times. Leave the other spells for Edwin, Neera, or any other mage you happen to have in your group.

Caelar (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Aasimar
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Lawful Good

Str: 18/81
Dex: 17
Con: 16*
Int: 12
Wis: 12
Chr: 18

* 17 with her shield

Weapon Proficiencies:

***** Long Sword       ** B-astard Sword       
** Sword and Shield Style

Caelar is the best fighter (and probably one of the better warriors) in the expansion. Not only does she just have great health and great Thac0, but she also has some fantastic equipment.

Her armor makes her immune to poison and disease and gives Protection from Evil. Her shield gives a +4 armor class bonus, a constitution bonus, and 40% fire resistance and her long sword is a +3 weapon that gives her +30% magic resistance (and does bonus damage against fiends). On top of all this, her helmet provides Immunity to fear, charm, and paralysis.

Unfortunately, all of these items are restricted to be only usable by her. She also starts with a Potion of Magic Protection - which is pretty useful to have during the final battle.

Furthermore, you only have the chance to add her to your group under very limited circumstances that occur near the end of the expansion.

Other notable benefits she brings include 3 castings per day of an instant casting Cure Critical Wounds special ability and her Shining Bolt ability (which does 10d6 damage against a demonic creature - damage that bypasses any magic resistance they might have)

Strategy: She's a melee character first and foremost. You can definitely get some use out of her instant casting Cure Critical Wound spell, and one use out her Shining Bolt ability. Given her +3 weapon and immunity to fear she's an excellent character to use against Belhefit.

If you happen to have a bow on you during the fight she could also use that (her level gives her a very good base Thac0 that should make up for the +2 penalty she gets for wielding a weapon she isn't proficient in). This may be a better option on difficulties above normal difficulty, particularly if you are looking to keep companions initially out of the fray.

Corwin (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Ranger
Kit: Archer
Alignment: Lawful Good


Str: 18/05
Dex: 15*
Con: 14
Int: 12
Wis: 14
Chr: 14

* With her starting bow equipped this is 16

Weapon Proficiencies:

* Halberd       **** Longbow       * Two-Handed Weapon Style       ** Two-Weapon Style

Corwin has no party conflicts and is a possible romance option for the player (of either sex).

Corwin is the best archer in Siege of Dragonspear. Mind you, there are only a few characters that are trained in using bows in SoD so she basically wins by default.

Even still, she actually has actually a really excellent bow. With it she has 16 dexterity. This is low for her role, but if you have the gloves of dexterity from BGEE they will help here. Her bonuses for being of the Archer kit also help to boost her Thac0 and damage when using ranged weapons too.

Strengths

She’s good at disrupting enemy mages if you give her some elemental arrows. Without them she still can deal out a good amount of damage though – especially if you give her a fifth point in longbow grandmastery. At this point in the series magical arrows also still keep their damage bonus, so they don’t lose out to the same degree that they do in BG2.

Weaknesses

As warriors go she is not very versatile. She’s really only good at using a bow. She can use melee weapons, but compared to other warriors she lacks weapon specialization. Her access to armor is also not as good as any of the games other warriors (and her unique armor isn’t anywhere near as effective against enemy weapons as the plate armors that other warriors can – and should- be wearing at this point).

Strategy

Melee: If you are going to use her in melee then she’d probably be better off actually using two different weapons. Technically she has two proficiency points in two-weapon style due to her being a ranger. You are less likely to hit with each weapon than compared with using a halberd, but she still gets that extra attack and the penalty for not being proficient for a weapon is still only +2 for her.

In any case, she’s really not much of a melee character and you are better off prioritizing any proficiency points she does get on giving her grandmastery in longbows.

Ranged: Keep her in the back shooting arrows. Use her to disrupt spellcasting when possible. Get grandmastery in longbows as soon as possible.

Dorn (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Half-Orc
Class: Paladin
Kit: Blackguard (pronounced "blaggard")
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str: 19
Dex: 16
Con: 14
Int: 10
Wis: 15
Chr: 16

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

 ** Two-Handed Sword   **Crossbow   ** Two-Handed Weapon Style 

Location (first joins): Safehouse (if starting a new game with an evil party)
Location (after prologue): Bridgefort (you need to free him from his cell)

Joining Conditions: When joining he causes a reputation loss of -2.

Unique Item: Rancor +1 (Two-Handed Sword)

Dorn is a potential romance option for female and male player characters.

Like with the original campaign Dorn still is a powerhouse. For all evil parties he is also the only warrior you are going to get in the expansion, so he is worth picking up!

He's also a romance option for male and female characters. So if a half-orc romance is your kind of thing then that is an option.


Strengths

19 strength means he gets a strength advantage over any of your other warrior NPC's (unless you kept a strength boosting belt on hand from the first game), though characters with at least mastery in a weapon proficiency will make that up compared to him.

He is also immune to fear and his morale break is 0 (extremely low), two things that will come in handy particularly during mage fights and particularly brutal fights.

He also still gets 3 useful innate abilities. Aura of Despair (which makes enemies in the area of effect slightly easier to hit and less likely to hit you), Poison Weapon (always good for doing a bit extra damage), and Absorb Health (ranged spell that can damage an opponent and you gain life).


Weaknesses

His dexterity is alright and his biggest weakness is his constitution. Even with a low constitution for a fighter however he still will have an alright amount of health. For tougher battles you may want to find a fortitude potion to temporarily boost it though.


Strategy

His main use should be melee. By the time you pick him up you should be pretty well stacked with summon spells to take on this role anyways, but it's still his best place to be during a fight. His Aura of Despair and Poison Weapon ability are both two things to keep in mind during though fights (though bare in mind that undead and demonic creatures are immune to poison damage).

If you've got any Arrows of Detonation (from the original BG1 campaign) and a bow on hand they can be combined with his Poison Weapon ability. Poison Weapon unfortunately was changed in patch 2.0 for BGEE/BG2EE, but even still you can do a lot of damage over a wide area with this combination. So its something to keep in mind for those fights where you aren't fighting undead or demons (many fights against crusaders I suppose).

Dynaheir (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Alignment: Lawful Good
Kit: Invoker

Str: 11
Dex: 13
Con: 16
Int: 17
Wis: 15
Chr: 12

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Quarterstaff     *Sling 

Location: Baldur's Gate (3rd floor of Three Old Kegs in the prologue
Camp (in chapter 8 and later)

Joining Conditions: You can't have her in the same group with Edwin.

Unique Ability: Slow Poison once/day

Unique Items: Ring of Wizardry, Shield Amulet

Note: Once she has joined removing either of Minsc or Dynaheir from the party will remove both of them. You can get around this by killing the party member you want to get rid of then removing them from the group. Alternatively you can place the character you want to get rid of in a random building (by themselves) that you don't intend to return to and then remove them from the group.


Spellbook (level 7):

Spell level 1: Armor, Blindness, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Identify, Magic Missile, Shield. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day (this is doubled to 10 by her Ring of Wizardry).

Spell level 2: Agannazar's Scorcher, Blur, Glitterdust, Horror, Knock, Mirror Image, Resist Fear, Stinking Cloud, Web. 4 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Dispel Magic, Fireball, Haste, Monster Summoning I, Protection From Normal Weapons, Slow. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.

Spell level 4: Fireshield (Red), Improved Invisibility, Minor Globe of Invulnerability, Monster Summoning II, Stoneskin. 2 casts of level 4 spells per day.

Spell level 5: Cloudkill, Sunfire. 0 casts per day.


Jennifer Hale returns to voice Dynaheir in the expansion. If you want her in your group then you are likely going to have to take Minsc as well (though she will join your group if Minsc had an "accident" in the first dungeon).

Strengths

Dynaheir is a far more capable spellcaster than what she starts out as in the start of the original campaign. As an Invoker her specialization really involves doing raw damage - so bare in mind that she only has access to a limited number of control spells. As an Invoker enemies will actually get a -2 penalty to their saving throws against one of her Evocation spells (she also has a better chance to learn Evocation spells and gets a +2 bonus in saving against them). So compared to any other mage her Web, Fireball and Cloudkill spells are more effective (though without another mage to cast Greater Malison other mages will have her at a disadvantage here).

She also starts with Cloudkill in her spellbook. While she won't be able to use this until she hits level 9 this is a phenomenal spell to have on hand.


Weaknesses

Her main weakness is really her lack of access to Enchantment spells. Spells like Greater Malison, Enchanted Weapon, and (to a lesser degree) Emotion: Hopelessness can be extremely valuable. Enchanted Weapon may seem like an odd choice for a spell to be missed here, but the spell has been recently changed to make it so that it will enchant any wielded weapon to be treated as a +3 weapon (as far as determining what it will hit). This is something that could prove useful for players playing above normal difficulty that are having trouble during the final battle (in above normal difficulty the final boss requires a +3 weapon or greater to be hit).

As an Invoker she also gets a 15% penalty to learn any non-invocation mage spells. This isn't something that is relevant for anyone willing to reload, but for someone playing a no-reload challenge it is something to consider.

Her 13 dexterity also continues to be a weakness (though as before it can be somewhat addressed through spells).


Strategy:

Have her take advantage of spells like Web, Glitterdust, and Slow when it comes to crowd control. Later on you may find the combination of these with Cloudkill to be extremely effective. Fireball also is an option - particularly when fighting trolls, dread wolves, or weaker enemies. On that note it is probably not a bad idea to have a few Burning Hands spells memorized - just for dealing with downed trolls and dread wolves. Dynaheir starts with twice as many first level spells as she normally would - so she isn't losing out on much if you dedicated 2-3 first level spells at especially for that. At least for chapters 8 and 9 anyways.

Edwin (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Mage
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Kit: Conjurer

Str: 9
Dex: 10
Con: 16
Int: 18
Wis: 9
Chr: 10

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

 *Quarterstaff  *Dagger 

Joining Conditions: You can't have Dynaheir and Minsc in your party if you want to have Edwin in it.

Location: On the road in the Coast Way Crossing, later found in the camp after chapter 8.

Unique Item: Edwin's Amulet (extra spell castable for each spell level)


Spellbook (level 7):

Spell level 1: Armor, Color Spray, Grease, Larloch's Minor Drain, Magic Missile. 6 casts of level 1 spells per day.

Spell level 2: Glitterdust, Horror, Melf's Acid Arrow, Mirror Image, Power Word: Sleep. 5 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Fireball, Flame Arrow, Haste, Monster Summoning I. 4 casts of level 3 spells per day.

Spell level 4: Minor Globe of Invulnerability, Monster Summoning II, Stoneskin I. 3 casts of level 4 spells per day.


Like with some of the other characters Jim Meskimen returns to voice Edwin in the expansion.

As far as group conflicts go if you want Edwin in your group you are going to have to forget taking Dynaheir or Minsc. Also Neera will take issue with Edwin being in your group - but you can talk her out of it.


Strengths

Edwin (and this applies to Dynaheir and Neera as well) really benefit early on from their access to 5th level spells (especially Cloudkill).

What really makes Edwin unique compared to those other two is that he only loses out on Divination spells. Since you can't get access to level 6 spells anyways this means he only really loses out on spells like Wizards Eye, Farsight, Identify, Detect Illusion, and Detect Invisibility. Of these (particularly given that Baeloth can handle all your identifying needs), Wizard's Eye is probably the most useful.

Unlike Dynaheir he gets access to enchantment spells. So him casting Greater Malison is a possibility.

As a conjurer his Glitterdust spell actually is somewhat better than other mages in the game (because Glitterdust is a conjuration spell enemies trying to save against a casting of it by Edwin will take a +2 penalty to their saving throws).

He also has a higher amount of intelligence than the other mages in the game. So he can learn more spells. On that note, his 16 constitution means that he has excellent health (by mage standards).


Weaknesses

Edwin doesn't have much in the way of weaknesses. His main weakness is the fact that (at least if you start a game in SoD) he doesn't start with Spook, Web, Slow, or Skull Trap. But you can pick these up relatively quickly.

As an conjurer he also gets a 15% penalty to learn any non-conjuration mage spells. This isn't something that is relevant for anyone willing to reload, but for someone playing a no-reload challenge it is something to consider.

His wisdom is also low enough that he takes a -10 hit to his lore. So other mages will be slightly better when it comes to identifying objects.

The only other notable weakness is really his dexterity. At 10 it doesn't provide any kind of bonus. Thankfully however with access to Mirror Image and Stoneskin this shouldn't be much of a problem.



Strategy:

Have him take advantage of spells like Web, Glitterdust, and Slow when it comes to crowd control. Later on you may find the combination of these with Cloudkill to be extremely effective. Fireball also is an option - particularly when fighting trolls, dread wolves, or weaker enemies. On that note it is probably not a bad idea to have a few Burning Hands spells memorized - just for dealing with downed trolls and dread wolves. Edwin has an amulet that grants him some additional spells each level. So it may be worthwhile to dedicated a few first level spells at especially for that. At least for chapters 8 and 9 anyways.

Glint (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Gnome
Class: Cleric/Thief
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str: 13
Dex: 17
Con: 16
Int: 14
Wis: 16
Chr: 13


Weapon Proficiencies (level 6/6):

  * Flail       *Sling       *Sword and Shield Style

Location: Flaming Fist Camp (chapter 8)

Thieving Skills (6/6):

Open Locks:105
Find Traps: 100
Pick Pockets:30
Move Silently: 30
Hise in Shadows: 25
Detect Illusion: 10
Set Traps: 5

Strengths

Glint is a pretty solid thief and a decent cleric. He has enough in Open Locks and Find Traps for him to be useful in any dungeon in the game, and by casting Sanctuary he should be able to walk through dungeons with ease disarming any traps that he encounters. As a cleric/thief with 16 constitution he also gets the most health bonuses he can get from his constitution. As a gnome with 16 constitution he also gets +4 saves vs. spells. He also has a pretty high dexerity, which is mostly useful because it helps his ranged attacks.


Weaknesses

His strength is poor and his wisdom is only decent. His main weakness though is his lack of any points towards Move Silently or Hide in Shadows - as well as his lack of any proficiency in good backstabbing weapons. This limits the role he is really good for to ranged weapons. He also only starts the game with around 53 health (this will change when he levels up, but its still much lower than it needs to be for any frontliner).


Strategy

In combat it is probably best to keep him to a sling. You can use spells like Holy Power (level 4) and Draw Upon Holy Might (level 2) in order to boost his damage output in that respect.

As a good aligned cleric he also gets access to Holy Smite (level 3). This is a really useful crowd control spell against evil enemies (mainly creatures like undead and demons). Alternatively, you can have him learn Animate Dead (level 3). That will allow him to summon some pretty effective creatures.

Jaheira (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Half-Elf
Class: Fighter/Druid (no kit)
Alignment: True Neutral

Str : 15
Dex : 14
Con : 17
Int : 10
Wis : 14
Cha : 15

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6/6):

  ** Club       * Quarterstaff       * Scimitar       *Sling       *Sword and Shield Style

Location: North of the Flaming Fist Camp (chapter 9)

Jaheira has no voice actor in the expansion. She originally did but it was tough to match her previous voice actors work (who had since retired from the industry) and rather than use what Beamdog had recorded for her the decision was made to drop her voice over lines.

Like in the first game she comes in a pair with Khalid. Once you have her and Khalid in your party if you kick her out it will kick him out as well. However, they are seperated when you first encounter them.

Strengths

She's a very versatile character. One her druid level gets access to Iron Skins (5th level spell) she becomes a lot better on the front lines. Her Call Woodland Beings spell can also be very good for healing party members and controlling enemies.

Call Lightning (3rd level) actually also is a useful spell to use in SoD. It has a long casting time but it can be used to kill or severly injure a strong enemy pretty effectively. Also a lot of battles in SoD are outdoors, so it avoids this limitation (which unfortunately made the spell a lot less useful in BG2).

Weaknesses

As a druid her weapon options are a bit limited and her lower level spells leave a lot to be desired. You also can only pick her up in Chapter 9.


Strategy

She can use a sling but I think (assuming the original weapon proficiencies) that a club or a scimitar with a shield would be best. If you have it the +2 staff mace also is an option (since it's treated as a staff).

I probably would use her in a similar way as Khalid. Keep her in the front of your party (she makes a decent party leader if you don't have anyone with higher charisma) and use her in fights as a front line fighter. Once you get Insect Plague you can use that to shut down enemy spellcasting. Until then she does a decent job with a club and shield.


Recommended Spells

In terms of spells at level 1 Armor of Faith is recommended. Bless is also a good spell to choose. Cure light wounds is probably the next best spell to have on hand - if only to make it require less restings in order to fully heal your group (and therefore to prevent ambushes).

For level 2 I would go with Resist Fire/Cold and Slow Poison. Flame Blade is a decent spell if you are lacking a means of killing Dread Wolves or Trolls, but by this stage you should have a mage that can cast fire or acid magic. Unless you have a mage that has particularly bad AC I wouldn't bother with Barkskin (it has a very short duration and by this stage they have a few more effective ways of protecting themselves).

Level 3: For this level you have a few options. Strength of One is a good way to boost the strength of your summons and companions. If you don't cast it near any other fighters that have strength scores higher than 18/75 it will be beneficial. Besides that Summon Insects, Call Lightning (outdoors only), Cure Medium Wounds, and Rigid Thinking can be good choices. Dispel Magic is another choice (though it runs the risk of hitting your own party members).

For level 4 Call Woodland Beings is also a good spell to use. Otherwise Defensive Harmony is decent. If you are planning on using web with one of your mages having a few "Free Action" spells available could be handy for use on your party's fighters (including Jaheira).

Jaheira finally gains access to level 5 spells in SoD. Among these Iron Skins and Insect Plague are by far the best choices. Insect Plague is especially useful against caster enemies, and Iron Skins will make her very difficult to hurt through non-magic means.

Khalid (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Half-elf
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str : 15
Dex : 16
Con : 17
Int : 15
Wis : 10
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

 *** Long Sword   **Longbow   * Axe 

Location (first joins): Safehouse (if you start a new game with a good party)
Location (after prologue): Interior of Bridgefort (chapter 9)

Kha...kha...khalid returns in Siege of Dragonspear. He's actually a pretty versatile character by fighter standards. If you didn't have him in your party at the end of BGEE then he will start with *** in long swords and ** in longbows (as well as a * in axes).


Strengths

Since he has high constitution and good dexterity (assuming you are sticking to his default proficiencies) he actually works pretty well as either a short-range fighter or as a ranged character.
With the changes made to allow players to equip shields with a bow, he's a really straightforward character to play. Give a good shield, long sword, longbow, and arrows and he's set.

He's also a half-elf, so he gets 30% resistance to charm and sleep spells.


Weaknesses

You can't even pick him up until chapter 9. He also has a high morale failure rate. So if things really get bad for your party (and your party members are dying) there is a much higher chance that he will panic compared to others in your party.


Strategy

Overall he's a staple character for any good or neutral party. With arrows that do elemental damage he might be able to prevent mages from spellcasting. However, he also has the versatility to be in the front lines to protect some of your other characters. Use him in whatever role you feel you need to fill.

Minsc (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Ranger (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str : 18/93
Dex : 15
Con : 15
Int : 8
Wis : 6
Cha : 9

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

 ** Two-Handed Sword ** Mace  **Longbow   ** Two-Weapon Style 

Location: Baldur's Gate (3rd floor of Three Old Kegs in the prologue,
Camp (in chapter 8 and later)


Strengths

Minsc is really best suited for upfront combat. He has a very high amount of strength and can do a lot of damage with the right weapon. He also can dual wield maces and has longbow specialization. This makes him a pretty effective character for damage dealing.

He has specialisation in a blunt weapon (maces), a slashing weapon (two-handed swords), and a piercing weapon (long bow).

If you get his level high enough he can also cast Armor of Faith. This prevents some of the damage being done to him.


Weakness

He's not as effective with a bow as other characters and this makes him less useful as a ranged character. Also his intelligence is too low to use any wands.


Strategy

While he has specialisation in long bow I think he's best sticking to either wielding two maces or a two-handed sword. He's likely to get hit more often than Khalid (and has less health to take the damage), so it's best that he not be the first character in your party to run into a fight.

M'Khiin (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Goblin
Class: Shaman (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral

Str : 10
Dex : 16
Con : 15
Int : 14
Wis : 17
Cha : 12

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

 * Axe * Quarterstaff  * Shortbow 

Location: North-west of the camp in chapter 8. Same area as Baeloth.


Strengths

Late into SoD she's a better spellcaster than Jaheira because of her ability to cast more spells, but it will take some time for her to catch up.

There are a few spells she gets access to that also help her usability. This includes Call Lightning, Call Woodland Beings, and (as mentioned earlier) Insect Plague. The shaman's unique spells are generally not that useful, but she does also get access to a special ability to quickly summon some goblin defenders. These can be useful in a fight if you just need some blockers in combat. But they aren't much use as summons generally.

She can also use a shortbow. Bows in general tend to be better than other ranged weapons, so this really sets shamans apart from druids.


Weaknesses

She only has a limited number of weapons she can use. Her ability to dance to summon creatures is fine, but a bit unreliable. She still largely only has access to the druid spell list, which (especially at the lower levels) is pretty mediocre.


Strategy

M'Khiin is very much a support character. Use her for spells like Defensive Harmony, Bless, Call Woodland Beings (for their hold and healing spells) and Insect plague. If you are very patient you can also use her dancing ability, but it does require a lot of micromanagement for it to work.

She's not going to be a heavy damage dealer for the party. So stick to any role you can find for her that provides support for the party.

Neera (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Half-Elf
Class: Mage
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Kit: Wild Mage

Str: 11
Dex: 17
Con: 14
Int: 17
Wis: 10
Chr: 11

Weapon Proficiencies (level 6):

 *Quarterstaff     *Sling 

Location: Bridgefort (Chapter 9)

Joining Conditions: You can't have her in the same group with Edwin.



Spellbook (level 7):

Spell level 1: Armor, Burning Hands, Chromatic Orb, Color Spray, Identify, Magic Missile, Nahal's Reckless Dweomer, Shield, and Spook. 5 casts of level 1 spells per day (this is doubled to 10 by her Ring of Wizardry).

Spell level 2: Abizigal's Scorcher, Blur, Chaos Shield, Invisibility, Mirror Image, and Stinking Cloud. 4 casts of level 2 spells per day.

Spell level 3: Dispel Magic, Fireball, Hold Person, Melf's Minute Meteor, and Protection From Fire. 3 casts of level 3 spells per day.

Spell level 4: Confusion, Stoneskin. 2 casts of level 4 spells per day.

Spell level 5: Shadow Door, Hold Monster. 0 casts per day.

Spell level 7: Improved Chaos Shield. 0 casts per day.


Strengths

As a wild mage Neera benefits from having as many spells available as most specialist mages without having to miss out on any spells. She also has access to a number of really solid spells, including Fireball, Confusion, and Hold Monster.

She also has a very good amount of dexterity for a mage.


Weaknesses

Her starting spells rely too much on fire damage. Many of the enemies in the game (especially in the later chapters) will be immune to fire. So you want to make sure to give her Skull Trap and other spells to compensate for this.

You also have to deal with the occasional wild surge when she casts. This can come at inopportune times.


Strategy:

She has some good default spells that actually will prove useful. This includes Spook, Mirror Image, Hold Person, and Stoneskin. If you can get access to them, have her take advantage of spells like Web, Glitterdust, and Slow when it comes to crowd control. Later on you may find the combination of these with Cloudkill to be extremely effective. Fireball also is an option - particularly when fighting trolls, dread wolves, or weaker enemies. But you should look to transition from it into Skull Trap (which you can buy) - as enemies are much less likely to be able to resist it.

As a wild mage she also has her Reckless Dweomer. Since there are no level 6 spells available for players, the main advantage this gives is instant casting of spells. She can throw down a lot of spells very quickly. But this comes at significant risk so it really should only be used as a last resort. You are generally better off avoiding wild surges - even with either of the Chaos Shield spells active (it is worth noting that you can use the Dweomer to cast Improve Chaos Shield).

Rasaad (SoD)

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Monk
Kit: Sun Soul Monk (as of version 1.2)
Alignment: Lawful Good

Str : 16
Dex : 16
Con : 14
Int : 11
Wis : 14
Cha : 14

Weapon Proficiencies:

 * Katana   * Scimitar   * Sling 

Location (first joins): You can find him in the Coast Way Forest in chapter 8.


Strengths

Monks really start to come into their own around the levels that Siege of Dragonspear covers. Rasaad was frankly a weak character in BGEE, but he'll start to get a lot better in SoD. One thing that can really help him (especially if you come into the game from BGEE) is potions. He can use any of the strength boosting ones. This will help him a lot.


Weaknesses

Every monk suffers from poor ranged attacks and Rasaad is not much different. He has some abilities that can help here but realistically monks are foremost a melee attacker. If he's not attacking up close he's not really being used at his best.

Monks also move faster than other party members. This can make him a bit annoying to handle at times.


Strategy

The strategies I laid out with him in his BGEE section are still very applicable for him here. He makes a decent scout and melee fighter. One challenge for him though is the handful of enemies that require either +2 or +3 (on core difficulty) weapons to hit. In these cases you'll want to give him a weapon he can hit with.

Safana (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Thief (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Str : 13
Dex : 17
Con : 10
Int : 16
Wis : 9
Cha : 17

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

  * Scimitar     * Darts        * Shortbow 

Thieving Skills (level 7):

Open Locks: 95
Find Traps: 90
Pick Pockets: 30
Move Silently: 45
Hide in Shadows: 35
Detect Illusion: 0
Set Traps: 0

Joining location: Second floor of Elfsong Tavern

Strengths

She's good at opening locks and finding traps. She also can adequately throw darts and shoot a shortbow.

Weaknesses

She has no points towards setting traps (if you use the version found in SoD instead of importing her). She's not going to be a reliable hitter of enemies even with the best weapons she can find.

Strategy

If you are picking her up in SoD I feel for you. You won't have access to the Tome of Clear Thought, unless you happen to have one on you, and even if you did it's going to take you a long time to get to level 8 as a mage in order to get your thief abilities back (after dual classing). So your options here are very limited.

I would honestly just keep her in the back and have her attack with either her shortbow or darts. Search for traps with her while you are in dungeons and use her to pick locks. She's probably not going to hit very often but at least it's something. Single class thieves sadly are really punished in these games and she definitely will feel that in SoD.

Viconia (SoD)

Gender: Female
Race: Drow
Class: Cleric (no kit)
Alignment: Neutral Evil

Str : 10
Dex : 19
Con : 8
Int : 16
Wis : 15
Cha : 14
Weapon Proficiencies (level 7)

 * Warhammer   * Mace   *Sling  

Location: Outside the Ducal Palace


Strengths

She's great for summoning undead. She's also pretty good for party buffing as well. Her magic resistance also makes spells much less likely to work on her. She'll also eventually gain the ability to cast Raise Dead. Though reloading was always an option for preventing death.

Weaknesses

Her strength is pretty bad and her overall health isn't great.

Strategy

She's best kept at a distance (unless you plan to buff the heck out of her).

I would take a gander over at what I wrote for her for BGEE. Most of that is applicable here. It's at this point in the game that she is really coming into her own. If you buff the heck out of her before fights, especially with Holy Power and Draw Upon Holy Might, she'll do alright in melee.

Voghiln (SOD)

Gender: Male
Race: Human
Class: Bard (Skald)
Alignment: Neutral Good

Str : 18
Dex : 16
Con : 16
Int : 14
Wis : 10
Cha : 15

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

   * B-astard Sword   * Axe   * Two-Weapon Style  ** Sword and Shield Style  

Starting Location: Northeast part of Troll Claw Woods

Strengths

He's got a bit of spellcasting, can get access to some higher level spells, and has a great song ability that can help boost allies. Honestly, his stat distribution is really good. He's got some pretty solid starting spells at his disposal like Slow, Haste, and Stoneskin. If you can get your hands on Spider Spawn (sold by Belegarm) it is particularly good with him because he can cast it and eventually even get sword spiders (since he can make it to level 12).

Weaknesses

He has somewhat low intelligence. His lack of intelligence can be handled by potions easily enough though.

Strategy

Give him a good buckler, a solid b-astard sword, and whatever items you can find for him. Honestly, whatever I wrote for Eldath and Garrick, at least when it comes to spells, is going to apply to him. He's in much better shape stats wise then either of them. He won't get more than level 4 spells with the level cap. But even with that he'll have the opportunity to take spells, like Improved Invisibility or Greater Malison, that will really help either him or the group in combat.

With 15 charisma he also serves as a pretty good party talker.

Shar-Teel (SoD Mod)

Gender: Female
Race: Human
Class: Fighter (no kit)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil

Str : 18/58
Dex : 17
Con : 9
Int : 14
Wis : 7
Cha : 11

Weapon Proficiencies (level 7):

   ** Long Sword   *Dagger   * Crossbow   ** Two-Weapon Style  

Location: She can be found in the Flaming Fist headquarters on the east side.


I made a mod that allows people to have Shar-Teel in their party in Siege of Dragonspear. For anyone interested you can download the mod here.

http://www.shsforums.net/files/file/1164-sharteel-npc-mod-for-sod/

In order to get her into your group you are going to need to convince one of the guards near her cell to let her out. There are a few ways you can go about doing this.


- Have a high amount of strength and threaten the guard.
- Have a high amount of charisma and convince the guard to let her free.
- Charm the guard and ask that she be freed.
- Get a forged letter from Narlen in the same area as the sorcerous sundries. You'll need to get a blank letter from the palace to do so. You then show the guard this letter to get her out.

The good thing about Shar-Teel is that she is an evil character who can serve as both a fighter and (if dual classed) a thief. Evil parties in SoD otherwise don't have access to an evil warrior until you get Dorn in Chapter 9 (and they don't ever get access to any evil thief). So this provides a character that can handle herself in battle (or potentially become your party's thief).

At the moment she only has a limited amount of dialogue with other party members. I aim to add more over time, but at least people will have access to another option in the meantime.

Background

The Flaming Fist were not expecting her to be let free and sold off her equipment. To be blunt she's a criminal and (as far as they are concerned) a possible associate of Sarevok. They weren't particularly concerned with her wellbeing, and as an organization the Flaming Fist are not in favour of your wish to take her into your party. So don't expect any cash from them here either.

Strategy

Since she doesn't start with any equipment it may be initially a challenge to give her good gear. Hopefully you picked up something she can use temporarily when you went through the Safehouse (tomb), but if not you are going to have to make due until you can buy something for her from Belegarm in chapter 8 (unless you manage to defeat the thugs outside the Three Old Kegs, since they have equipment she can use).

Once you've provided her with equipment keep in mind that she will get one more proficiency point as a fighter. Whether you put that towards Long Swords or something else is your choice. Personally, I would recommend you put it towards Long Swords.

If you dual class her into a thief you'll get the opportunity to put more points into other areas. Single Weapon Style would be a good one in this case. The short bow would be another good choice.

Additional Information

If you are looking at far more detailed information on NPC's interactions in the original Baldur's Gate 1 campaign check out Morteus's guide on the baldursgate.com forum.

http://forum.baldursgate.com/discussion/12045/npc-interaction-and-banter-guide-ok-finished/p1

Special Thanks

Special thanks to the following for pointing out my screwups hehe (or general suggestions and ideas)

On the Baldur's Gate forum

Quartz   Mackos
Kaigan   element
Rellin   Nano
PugPug Dee
Bengoshi Tresset

Steam

 Brain   ShadyMofo86  Spyder Sethmage 

Comments and Questions

I've disabled comments. Many years after making this guide I was getting them and unfortunately the notifications got annoying. If there was a way to allow comments without getting notifications I would permit it.

Creating your own NPC mods

Be sure to check out my youtube tutorials that explain how you can create your own quest and NPC mods. I've posted a guide here that has all of them.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2268092669