Holy Avenger does make a case for the Paladin, plus the different bonuses yu can get from the sub-classes makes up partially for the loss in specialization. That +7 LS wasn't only for a Paladin in IWD, so that wouldn't be much of a draw. I do like that dispel magic skill with the Inquisitor (?) - cast in 1 segment, double the level of the pally. That means an 18th level pally could cast that spell as a lvl 36 char, and do it 4 times a day!!!! I could have REALLY used that. Usually when I used dispel magic, my level was too low against the caster and my success was about 30%. That skill alone may make the Pally useful.
Ranger I'm still searching... Since Aragorn was a Ranger, we all want to be a Ranger... And I found one compelling reason to be a mid-level ranger - you start off with 2 FREE skill points in Dual-wield. Well, this char could be a great addition to the party as the "jack of all trades" weapons expert. In a game, you never know what you will find as a weapon (+4 Halbard, etc), and to have a char that can use many different weapons is great in the beginning and middle of the game. The charm animal ability also comes in handy in a lot of places, I also used it when my cleric summoned animals and the bad guys turned them on me. Those extra two SPs the ranger gets in dual-wield are really great in the beginning of the game. Especially if you want to dual class right away to cleric.
BTW - you can't be a Ranger/Thief - it is not a valid combo. You can only dual to classes available to multi-class - so look at the half-elf or elf. Neither can be a Ranger/Thief. I thought that would be cool also - or a Ranger/Mage. No dice, I tried...
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