[Cerek the Barbaric]

SixOfSpades - I fully respect your opinion and I felt you gave the most objective comparison of the various NPC's - giving legitimate consideration to the strengths and weaknesses each of them have.

As for the bard, I was actually stunned that I was able to beat Improved Illyich with a Solo Skald. I chose the Skald over the Bladesinger because I felt like +1 on ANY weapon ALL the time was a bigger advantage than the bonuses gained from an Offensive Spin. True, in a single battle, the O.S. beats the +1 of the Skald - but the O.S. has a very limited duration AND only a very few uses per day; the Skald is +1 all the time, 24/7.

Having played through Chateau, I can definitely say that a F/M would be MUCH better than any Bard. As you pointed out, having the attack ability of a thief is a HUGE DIS-advantage in close up fights. I created a F/M to compare to the Skald and the bard actually had more spells - at least initially. The ONLY advantage the bard has is the Lore ability. It is nice to be able to Identify any item on sight and not have to burn a spell on it before using it.

In my battle against Illyich, I did have to ReLoad several times - mainly because my strategy centered around using Dire Charm on Illyich and Kazamov (it never worked well on any of the others). So I had to reload until they failed their saves. I also had to rest once to regain my Dire Charm to use on Kazamov.

Now that I've reached the "real world" in the game, the disadvantages of the bard are becoming more and more apparant. I managed to kill of the Slaver guards in Copper Coronet without any problems (with help from the moose and nymphs) but the two things I need most are Potions of Healing and Speed. I admit that I "cheated" in the Coronet AND the Circus both. After defeating the guards in the Coronet, I went back to the main room and allowed Anomen to join my party - just so he could cast Healing spells on me and prevent me from using up my Healing Potions. I did the same thing in the circus. After clearing the second level (with the werewolves and shadows), I was out of spells and almost dead. I had also drank all of my healing potions. So I went back downstairs first to recruit Aerie for some healing spells. After regaining my health and my spells, I went straight up to the 3rd level to find Kalah. I cast Improved Invisibility and just ignored the werewolves pathetic attempts to hit me while I blasted Kalah with Magic Missiles and a Skull Trap.

The bottom line is that I am beginning to serious doubt I can solo all the way through BGII with my Skald. I just don't have enough experience with all the encounters and I'm in constant need of healing. The potion of speed would help his melee and missile attacks tremendously, but it is only temporary.

Oh well, it was just an experiment anyway. I'm currently trying to kill Mencar and his buddies in the 7 Vales Inn. I've only had time to try a couple of times and I've died both times. So it looks like I will eventually have to accept some help if I want to continue playing him through BG2.