debate: dual class vs multi class

[Amergin]

having just realized that there are NO level limits for nonhumans, let's get a debate going on the advantages of either combination. i'll start

taking into consideration that this is the bg2 board, let's skip any factors that would primarily apply to newbie characters. assume more than 500k xp.

one way to think of it is to imagine you are creating a new character but with 10,000,000 xp to dole out. what would you make and why?

[jabidas]

Well Id make a Sorcerer even if there are more practical things.

How about a Cleric\mage just remember higher stats than Aerie and you have the biggest array of spells going.

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[floyd]

Most of the multi-class/dual-class mage combinations suck, IMO, cause you can't wear armor while casting. The kensai/mage is an exception. Seems to me with the new ToB exp cap, pure classes are the best bet. By level 40 I would think any pure class would be godlike (Imagine a lvl 40 monk!)

But back on-topic, I prefer dual-class, as multi just levels up waaay too slow for my liking. The downside of dualling, the weakness as you start your second class, is a moot point most of the time, as usually the rest of the party can pick up the slack temporarily.

[ScottG]

The real bonuses for a dual char. arise from selecting a fight type class 1st.

xtra hitpoints
xtra attacks
much lower thac0
xtra prof. points (wepons)
ability to wear armor (even if you can't cast magic while wearing it if your mage class instead of cleric or druid)
greater diversity of wepons to use

and all w/ relativly few points (half-a-mil is usually enough), which gives you the opertunity to really shine on your next class (usually magical if you want a well rounded player)

Multi-class just takes to long.

[trux]

Dualing (from fighter) is good because of all those benefits mentioned above; which is usually what I do when doing a dual class.

Someone said multi-class just takes too long, which is true, but dual-class takes equally as long, as you have to wait to gain back your fighting abilities until you attain the same level in your next class. It can be kind of dangerous to dual class a fighter to a mage at level 12 for instance, and have to adventure ONLY as a very useless low level mage for a while.



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trux

[Northraven]

Due to all the above-mentioned arguments I would have to say that a pure-class character is probably the best in terms of raw power in a specific field. However because of the lack of useful NPC's in certain professions. (Thief springs immediatly to mind here). Multi/dual classing is a way many people go to compensate for this and still have some other abilities besides those of the thief. Given the choice between multi/dual I would have to go with multi-classing. It has slower advancement but allows use of both skill sets at once. My favorite multi has to be an elven mage/thief.

[Amergin]

my favorite combo, both dual and multi, is fighter/thief. when dual, which class i start with depends on my long term goals with the character. for bg2 i started with fighter then switched over once the hp's dropped off (at some point, i think 9 or 10 for most classes, you stop rolling dice for new hp's and just get a fixed amount + CON bonus) and i've gotten well-trained with my weapons of choice whether it's grand mastery in one or specialized in several. a thief levels up faster than any other class so it's not too much of a burden on the rest of the party while he catches up. i've also started as a thief and focused mostly on stealth, switching over to fighter once the x4 backstab kicks in at 9th level. this is much more limited, though, because the hp's are barely better than a mage, i can't roll for exceptional STR, and he won't be much good as a thief besides the dual role of scout and first-strike attacker. otoh, his THAC0 will eventually be much better than the former's as well as gaining more attacks, which sort of evens things out over a longer period of time.

for a character that is going to ToB, however, i plan on making him multi. the reason? besides the benefits of both classes at once with no "that's-as-far-as-i-got" limits, he won't be too far behind level-wise any other single or dual class character. at about the same time that hp's stop getting rolled for, so too do the xp for the next level stop doubling and it just becomes a fixed amount. for thieves this is 220k at 11th and beyond; fighters, 250k at 9th. what this means (i haven't seen the xp tables beyond 20 or so) is when a dual fighter/thief is at 25/13 (4980k xp), my multi f/t will be at 18/21... hmmm. it doesn't seem so nice now that i've worked it out. i'm not sure if there's a cap on how low a THAC0 can be, but if not there's a +7 advantage for the dual, who, i assume, has access to more fighter "special" abilities while the multi is just scratching the surface of his, albeit for two classes.

anyway, my other combination is the thief dualed to mage, basically for two reasons: stealth and the ability to use a bow.

[This message has been edited by Amergin (edited 07-18-2001).]

[dimon37]

Multiclass characters star getting special abililties earlier then single or dualclassed ones level wise. Judging from what was quoted on gamebanshee, you start getting special abilities when your total xp excedes SoA level cap, so for example for Aerie it would be like level 15 or so....Plus you always get a choice of both your classes. In other words, fighter/thief would get both the souped-up traps and wirlwinds etc.

[ScottG]

OOOOOhhhhh my, if dimon37 is correct - just imagine assasination coupled w/ critical strike (straight kill every time).

[DJG]

DUAL-CLASS

In Multi-Class Fighter/Whatever you only get an extra point proficiency. Like

MULTI CLASS EXAMPLE
TWO HANDED SWORD ++
LONG BOW ++
SINGLE WEAPON STYLE ++

But with Dual-Class, once you get your fighter abilities back, you can still take a +5 not a +2 as with Multi-Class.

DUAL CLASS EXAMPLE
TWO HANDED SWORD +++++
LONG BOW +++++
SINGLE WEAPON STYLE +++++

I hope my point has been made!

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Do you understand?
Do you realise your potential?

Dan
Sorceror of the OHF
Regulator Admiral Shadow Master of the N.I.A.