When you switch from your base class to a mage, what can you do to level up? Most of the easy stuff is done already. Do you camp out at the keep for a couple years, build a huge fortune and then buy out all the scrolls in the city limits? I have done Torgal, Skinners, Nymphs and in the process of doing the chapter 3 beginning. I started Firkraag but that was pretty tough solo. Oh yea I guess I need to mention this is a solo effort.

One thing i miss from BG 1 is the ability to just go and wander in the wilderness, and find some monsters to kill and occasional find a NPC that need help. But BG 2, you are restricted more to the map that the story follows, there is not as many wilderness maps, shame, i enjoyed that aspect of BG 1.
Anyway.
Try investigating the copper cronet and their entertainment they have there...
Unseeing eye quest may be a good option its in the temple district, and pretty easy to find, although possible spoiler
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
'
Im not sure if you can pass this mission being a low level mage, i think you need a special spell to beat one of the monsters, but it might be good to do as much as you can just for exp reasons.

I think that the idea is generally to rack up quest experience points before dualling over, so you can rocket from Level 1 to about Level 6 or 7, but it shouldn't be too hard to get to a reasonable level from where you are - especially if you've got some scrolls to burn and a couple of charged wands.

Spoiler in blank area for a few more ideas ... Ctrl-A or click-and-drag-over to reveal;

<font color=#3d2f1b>Finding a guardian for the orphan Risa, putting the ghost Wellyn to rest, the 'buried alive' investigation are all easy enough quests stemming from the Graveyard. Madulf makes a deal with the village, and 'There's what in the chicken?' are a couple in the Umar Hills, while dealing with Faldorn is easy enough if you use invisibility to sneak through the Druid Grove to Cernd having had an earlier discussion with a helpful druid at the entrance point of the Grove.</font>

yes he is soloing. it says so near the end of his post.

[ 11-18-2005, 04:04 PM: Message edited by: timothy trotter ]

complete quests (but don't do the final dialog to net the quest exp until after the dual), scribing spells is good (if you have ToB you can erase them and rescribe for a quick burst of exp on common scrolls), and there are several areas where RP is far more profitable than combat (as noted above). Also, wandering through the wilderness can help.

There's this neat guy called Crypt King in the Graveyard district. If you go into his crypt he yells, "Death, to the disbeliever!" and chases you. If you go outside he will duplicate himself outside and then if you go back inside the duplicate will follow you. The original will still be there, but now there will be two.

Some call this a cheat but I say, Hey! It's fighting! I'm just making more guys to fight with.

What is cheating is going inside with say, a Ring of Invisibility, a Ring of the Ram, a Ring of Regeneration and a Gem Bag. I hit the guy with the ROTR, run and then use the ROI. When I'm invisible, I go outside and quicksave the game, cycle the ROTR and the ROI through the Gem Bag, recharging them, then go back inside and repeat the process. When I go through this a few times I will eventually go inside and give him the death blow. I just restart my last quicksave game and then go inside to let him chase me outside, making the duplicate, back inside and then I can kill one for 15,000 XP with one charge from the ROTR, go back outside and make another, recycle the ring, go back inside, kill one, repeat ad infinitum. Go invisible when I get hit or wish to save my progress. As long as I don't kill the last one, I have a source of unlimited XP with a huge side benefit. Even if he doesn't have anything else on him (and they will all have the same plunder) I get one Namarra longsword for each one I kill, and that's 3000 GP per on a first time sale. I sell 16 for 48,000 Gp. All you have to do is sleep with them.