[Pirengle]

Wild mages are hard to get off the ground in the beginning. Through Chateau Irenicus, expect to surge every third spell or so, and the surges won't be great. (Don't bother memorizing Chaos Shield--it's not much of a help in the dungeon because your level is so low.) You'll hit your stride around level 15--you'll still surge on a regular basis, but you'll be better equipped to handle a bad surge. But once you leave Athkatla, you won't surge as often. Even though there's always a chance you'll surge, that chance decreases after level 25 or so unless you're using Nahal's Reckless Dweomer.

There's a near-game-breaking perk to being a wild mage, and it's found in Irenicus' dungeon. There's a place in the dungeon, and I think it's the mephit room, where there's a random scroll in a box. (It might be earlier in the game, not sure.) Most of the time, this random scroll is a piddly level 1 scroll. But sometimes it's a high level scroll, and I've only found it when soloing or with one other NPC, usually Yoshimo. (Just tell Immy off and go pick up Minsc and Jaheira later if you wish.) I've found everything from Improved Mantle to Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting in that box. Here's where being a wild mage comes into play: NRD lets you cast any spell you know as long as it's in your spellbook, no memorization necessary! Imagine being able to cast ADHW straight out of Chateau Irenicus. :evil: Granted, it'll force a wild surge, which could summon a demon or turn you into a purple sparkley woman or something, but for the chance to cast ADHW without error or even with benefits on the Beastmaster or the Trademeet druids, it's totally worth it to play a wild mage.