Does the whole "Dual a ranger into a cleric and get ALL Priest spells" work in BGI?

I'm thinking about building a Ranger to level 2, and then dualling him into a Cleric. I'm pretty sure, with TotSC, it won't have any effect on my max Cleric level, and the bonuses are definitely (even through ToB) worth it. I'd have a few extra Hit Points, slightly better Saving Throws (early-on only), the ability to specialize in weapons, and, most importantly, access to both Druid and Cleric spells.

Well, your choice of weapons will be severely limited, and I don't think you'll get *all* of the druid spells. I could be wrong, but I'm not sure. Rangers can only cast up to level 3 spells ever, right? So the druidlike spells would probably stop once you get to level 3. It's like being a cleric/fighter/quasidruid...

Ranger/Clerics are a bug exploitation in all Bioware D&D games. They get access to all Druid spells, as well as the Cleric spells.

I'm just wondering if it works with such a low level dual class (I don't see why it won't).

A level 2 ranger will not have any spells to cast at all. So once you dual to a cleric, you'll only get priest spells, not druid spells.

I don't know if that argument is correct.

I've played a Ranger/Cleric dual class in BGII, and switched right away (Ranger level 7). When the character hit Cleric level 8, he had access to both Cleric and Druid spells.

Ranger doesn't get his first spell till level 8

Ranger doesn't get his first spell till level 8 </font>[/QUOTE]And that is the point... if dualling from level 7 gives druid spells, shouldnt dualling from level 2 also do so?

[ 03-14-2004, 04:42 PM: Message edited by: ZFR ]

I don't see why it should. Maybe you dualed at level 8 and not level 7? I don't see how you can continue getting spells from ranger if you're inactive in it.

I'm POSITIVE I dualled at level 7. It was right after Imoen let me out of my cell.

Thanks for helping me explain, ZFR. My character is currently Ranger 2/Cleric 2. When I hit Cleric 3, I'll update and let ya know if I got any Druid spells.

Ok, just reached 3rd level as a cleric.

I also got to choose some interesting 2nd level Druid spells, such as barkskin and goodberries, in addition to the usual cleric spells, like aid and draw upon holy might.

Sweet!

Yes, I can also confirm that you get both types of spells, regardless of when you dual from ranger to cleric (even one level of ranger is enough). If you start as a ranger, go to the priest spell screen. You'll notice that the screen is not greyed out like it is for fighters, thieves, etc. That is because they already have access to all of the druid spells; they are just not high enough level to get slots yet (thus the reason no spells show up). However, the moment you get the cleric spell slots, you now have slots for the level, so once your ranger class reactivates, you get the access to all the druid spells again. Good to dual early if you want to play a cleric with both druid and cleric spells (i.e. not worried about fighting ability). Personally, I play through the entire series a lot of times, so I usually multiclass.

So wait. Right now, I've got a level 2 ranger. You're saying that I can dual him to a cleric, and then once I become a level 3 cleric, I can continue to learn Druid and Cleric spells?

The fact that the character is a Ranger (no matter just how much/little Ranger there is) means the character has access to the Druid half of the Priest scroll.

The fact that the character is a Cleric means that the character's spellslots are exactly the same as a Cleric of the same level.

So, yes, a Ranger->Cleric will continue to learn high-level Druid spells in addition to his Cleric spells, even if his Ranger half is below Level 8.

Exactly, just like Six stated. Your ranger level doesn't matter; you just have to have at least one level. That's why I stated if you want to play a character that is a priest with the ability to use both cleric and druid spells (i.e. you could care less about fighting ability), then just start as a ranger, dual at first opportunity, and once you get to one level above as a cleric you are all set. If you are concerned about your fighting ability, then I would multiclass; you'll go up slower in levels, but you won't sacrifice fighting ability.

Guess who just got his copy of ToTSC? :D

Anyway, I've currently got a level 2 ranger that is going to go through all the way through ToB. I want to dual to a cleric, but I want to dual at a level where it's 'safe' enough to get back my spells, but not too early for me to reach the 8 million xp cap. I'll be running through the whole thing with a party this time, though, so that will make a big difference. And seeing how I've never played ToTSC before, I don't know how much XP is available there. So when's a good time to dual?

Levels 7 and 13 are where you get your extra 1/2 an attack, so dualing at level 13 is usually the better choice. The xp cap for ToTSC is 161,000xp, which is only level 8 ranger. Thus, you will just be a ranger during BG1, and will finally dual over to cleric in BG2 (at 1.5 million xp). This leaves 6.5 million xp as a cleric (max xp in ToB is 8 million), enough to reach level 36 as a cleric (you only lose one level 7 spell slot over a single classed cleric, but get the extra fighting ability and the ability to use druid spells...a good trade IMHO).

Of course, if all you want is one helluva divine sellcaster, dual at Ranger level 2. You character will be better at casting any Druid spell or Cleric spell than any NPC in the game.

Levels 7 and 13 are where you get your extra 1/2 an attack, so dualing at level 13 is usually the better choice. The xp cap for ToTSC is 161,000xp, which is only level 8 ranger. Thus, you will just be a ranger during BG1, and will finally dual over to cleric in BG2 (at 1.5 million xp). This leaves 6.5 million xp as a cleric (max xp in ToB is 8 million), enough to reach level 36 as a cleric (you only lose one level 7 spell slot over a single classed cleric, but get the extra fighting ability and the ability to use druid spells...a good trade IMHO). </font>[/QUOTE]I think that's the path I want to take. BTW, I'll get farther than level 8 in BG1 because I've got the level 50 mod or something installed, and in BG2, I've got the level 40 mod installed, so levels won't be a problem. I'm quit sure of this because I've currently got a level 39 assassin dualed to fighter (currently at like, level 30 or so) in ToB with no problems. Thanks for the help.

It wasn't until I read this that I realised that my current multi-class Ranger/Cleric has the Druid spell to chose from. It's just that the unique Druid spells in BG1 are a pretty poor bunch at low levels, so I was ignoring them. But now I know how the spell allocation works I will be looking out for a chance to take advantage of this feature. Thanks everyone.

I'm wondering about something else. Rangers can only learn up to level 3 druid spells. So once I dual to a cleric and gain back my ranger abilities, will I only have druid spells up to level 3, or can I learn them all the way to level 7?

You will have access to all druid spells, not just through level 3. Like I stated earlier, first it determines which lists you have access to (and technically, you have access to the entire list; you just don't have any spell slots assigned yet), then determines which spell slots you have based upon your classes. Thus, to make a long story short, you will have access to all druid and all cleric spells as soon as the ranger class reactivates, and then the game determines which spell slots you have based upon your level. So you will have full access to both druid and cleric spells of any level.

Just one more question: what about the number of spells you can cast per day? For example a level 12 ranger can cast 2 level1 spells 2 level2 spells and 1 level3 spell. Do these get added to your cleric spells once you regain your ranger levels?

Also is cleric dualled to ranger possible? And in that case will he get both clerical and druid spells? and how many spells per day can he cast then?

Your # of spells per day are determined by your cleric class (plus wisdom modifiers, if any).