[PeeWee]

There is gonna be a time when ya know what ya need to do. There should be enough side quests here and there where you can muscle your way up in levels. I haven't gone along with the story line yet but I bet a plain melee person without the added goodies is gonna have some tough battles ahead of em.

The reasons why mages can pull alot more off is because they can basically have wands and cast melee fodder(not to mention their spells and equipment like the Staff of the Magi). One cloudkill( and I hate to bring this up) can take care of a horde of monsters where your fighter may be having problems.

Fighters have great ac but not too much in the saves department. This is what I consider important when I know I don't have the proper resist gear on. I'm sure there will be easy wins when it comes to melee combat. Then when you face the casting npcs, what next? There is no other option but to pass that up IF you can.

If I played thru this game a few times, then I would know if ya could pull it off...but right now it's a naye. What I'm also trying to say is that if others tell you it's possible, it's because some of them may have gone thru it a few times. If you have, then you know what is ahead.

IF you haven't, then don't expect it to be easy because you don't know exactly what the next guy had to do to finish. There could simply be a pattern or certain things one must need to do to melee his way to win. If that's your mission and you don't mind coming back here when you find you are stuck, then kudos for the effort.

Recently I saw a post where one guy said berserkers can solo quite well. That's the thing... I believe any single class can solo to a DEGREE. The next day I saw the guy asking questions relating to his area. So much for the soloing ....

Do I "think" it can be done? Sure. I have to add however, it may take some frustrating moments to get there. I've tried playing a mage going through the first chapter... can be done but too slow for my taste. After the proper equipment however, then things start to look good. The key is also in knowing how to pick your battles.

Oh btw, I haven't heard of any GREAT short sword out there that would call for using 5 slots on. You will definitely be seeing alot of other nice items. I'd put a point into katana, longsword, sling, short bow, short sword, and whatever else is available. Also, get any wand you can use if that's possible. Look for summoning items too. Those are key. I think there are three items I've heard about that lets you summon creatures to your aid. I tried using the horn of blasting on my bounty hunter when I was soloing some and stunned myself, doh.

I bet ya probably have seen more than I so I'ma stop here. Good luck.