What would be good AC in BGI?

[JrKASperov]

I know you could maximally get to -11, but that's extreme.

I want to talk about what a good tank would have in this game, for AC. Khalid has -4 at the moment, and that is with the bracers of Dex given to Minsc. So he could be having -6. Now with some basic items as a helm +1 AC and the cloak of Balduran, that would be -8, which sééms like a good number, but what do you guys think? Is it so necessary to have that low an AC in BGI?

[Lord]

For a 'simple' tank:

Helmet: Helm of Balduran: +1 AC bonus
Amulet: I like Necklace of Missiles. You can get 1 early on, and it's nice to give critters a little blast before you reach them: No AC bonus.
Armor: Full Plate Mail: AC 1
Cloak:
Guantlets: Anyone except guantlets of Ogre Power (that is, if your generic character is going to be your tank).
Boots: Boots of Speed
Girdle: Golden Girdle works well.
Ring 1: Ring of Protection +2: +2 AC bonus
Ring 2: Ring of Energy is also nice for a little blast, but if you have a weaker character that stays in ranged combat, this ring is better for them.
Shield: Large Shield +1, +4 vs. Missile Weapons: +2 AC bonus

With out the dexterity bonus, this takes you to -4. If you gave your generic character 18 dexterity at the start, now you've got -8 AC. Use the Tome of Quickness of Action that you can get (highlight to read its location) * in the barrel behind Black Lily in the Shadow Thieve's guildhall.* That won't give you any more AC bonus, but it will increase your chance of hitting with a ranged weapon (not really related with your AC though ).
So that's -8, which is fine for a fighter. Use Draw Upon Holy Might (innate ability) at level 6 and now you've got 21 dexterity for the next 10 rounds, temporarily giving you -9 AC. You can get in the minus double digits. I can check what my fighter is wearing for his AC if you want.

[JrKASperov]

My generic char is a thief. So a no-go there. My main fighter is Khalid, and he has a moderate Dex of 16, so he would get -6. Exactly what you propose. So I guess that's good enough.

[RoSs_bg2_rox]

-8 is quite a good AC for bg1, as long as you have all your characters (except maybe mages) in to the minus (-) range then your doing fine.

[Lord]

Here is one of my fighter's equipment. He's got -11 AC:

Helmet: Helm of Balduran
Armor: Full Plate Mail
Gauntlets: Gauntlets of Dexterity
Amulet: Necklace of Missiles
Sword: Scimitar +5, Defender (gives +2 AC bonus)
Ring 1: Ring of Fire Resistance
Ring 2: Ring of Protection +2
Cloak: Cloak of Balduran
Boots: Boots of Speed
Shield: Shield +1, +4 vs Missiles
Girdle: Girdle of Bluntness

[Sir Degrader]

And I complained when my Paladin in Baldur's Gate 2 only had -12...

[mad=dog]

I think my Ranger had:

Helmet: Helm of Balduran (-1 AC)
Armor: Full Plate Mail (Base: AC 1)
Sword: Scimitar +5, Defender (-2 AC)
Shield: Large Shield +2 (-3 AC) - From TotSC
Ring 1: Claw of Kazgaroth (-1 AC)
Ring 2: Ring of Protection +2 (-2 AC)
Cloak: Cloak of Balduran (-1 AC)
Dex 19 = -4 AC
Total: 1-1-2-3-1-2-1-4 = -13 AC

On the other hand one must admit that some BG1 gear was _slightly_ overpowered.

[Lord]

Originally posted by Sir Degrader: And I complained when my Paladin in Baldur's Gate 2 only had -12...

Yeah, but in BG2, lower AC is much more important since it's easier to get hit. Either that or get some good spell protections up.

[Arledrian]

I think as a tank you're fine with -4 or lower in BG I. There isn't much that'll get through that without a critical hit. I find combat becomes a non-issue after about level 4 or 5 anyway - you can pretty much kick anything's ass from there on in.

[ 05-04-2004, 11:00 PM: Message edited by: Arledrian ]

[Blood_Golem]

Arghh! I got my main character got to minus 5 and I thought that was good. I didn't realise I should be trying to get it that low.