Okay, so I'm starting a new game of BG1:EE. Right now, I rolled a ranger with the following stats:

STR: 15
DEX: 16
CON: 15
INT: 17
WIS: 14
CHA: 12

Total: 91

I'm thinking though, that I'd like to re-arrange the stats so that I can Dual as a Ranger/Cleric. However, here's where I'm a little stuck. Should I start off as a Cleric or a Ranger, and at what level should I Dual? I was planning to take the canon Good party (Imoen, Jaheira, Khalid, Dynaheir and Minsc). I know if I start as a Ranger and Dual to Cleric, I need to put the 17 in INT, but what stat should I have at 17 if I start as a Cleric and Dual to Ranger? Or would it just be easier to re-roll as a Half-Elf and go multi-class?

I'm not planning to use any of the Ranger or Cleric kits, just the defaults. Thanks. =)

Flynn

Neither a Cleric nor a Ranger needs a high INT stat. You want high WIS. That's the only prime requisite for a cleric. I think a Ranger needs high WIS, STR, and DEX.

In BG1 you will not reach anywhere near the levels that will give you benefits from both classes when dual classed, so the smart thing is to go multi-class.

Yeah, I know that. I don't know why I put it in INT other than getting my rule sets mixed up. I play so many different RPGs that it sometimes gets jumbled, heh.

Flynn Yeah, that is what came to mind while typing the initial question, so I tacked that on in the end. I'm not wed to the idea of playing a Human, so I don't mind an Elf or Half Elf multi. My initial character was a Half-Elf Fighter/Mage, but I gimped her magic right off the bat by forgetting you can't cast magic while in armor, so her Sleep spell was pretty much useless.

Flynn

Note that stats in BG are a bit unintuitive. Unlike 3rd edition D&D, there's no benefit to having moderately high physical stats, nor any penalties to having moderately low stats. Only -really- high (or low) ones help (or hinder.)

For strength, in particular, having a score of 18 makes a huge difference. This is because as a warrior (which you are, as a ranger) you get a STR score in the range of 18/01 to 18/100 (displayed as 18-00) which will give you -much- bigger bonuses to hit and damage.

To illustrate: your STR of 16 only gives you +1 damage. If you invest 2 more points in STR and get lucky and roll 18/00, you get +3 to hit and +6 damage!

In addition, you can't even use the good bows in the game without a strength of 18. Edit: though as a cleric-ranger, you can't use bows anyway.

You don't -need- super-high stats to play the game, of course, but I'd recommend it anyway to save frustration. Raising DEX will boost your armour class and hit-chance with bows very significantly, CON will give you more hitpoints which reduce reloading quite a bit, and STR I described above.

To expand on what Jason_the_Iguana said, here are some specifics on what you gain/lose with some stat adjustment.

Bonuses for going from 16 to 18:
Str gives AT LEAST (for str 18/01):
+1 to-hit, +2 damage (melee)
+70 lbs carry capacity
+9% bash chance

Dex gives:
-2 bonus to AC
+1 to-hit (ranged)
+1 Reaction Adjustment (moving/acting sooner in a round during combat)
Some small bonuses to thief skills (I don't recall which ones a ranger gets, probably just sneak)

Con gives:
+1 hp per ranger level
I've read that you get half the normal value when rolling hp for each class that levels up if you multiclass with two classes. Normally, a single class ranger would get +4hp/lvl for 18 con, and +2hp/lvl for 16 con. So a dual class ranger would get +2hp/lvl for 18 con vs +1hp/lvl for 16 con.

Wis:
Keep the 18 for the bonus spells.

Maluses:
Int:
Ranger/Cleric sees no difference between Int 10 and Int 14. Getting the Tome of Int, and thus Int 15, gives +5 lore (not sure if this is per level, or just straight). You could safely go to Int 9 (-10 lore) and let the tome take you to Int 10 (no penalty).
Your lore will never be great (Imoen and Dynaheir will both pretty much always out class you), so it seems Int 8 is the minimum (Int 9 required to use scrolls/wands, and tome can take you there).

Cha:
Suffers a minus to NPC reactions for going below 10. Solved by having someone else actually talk to people (and possibly have someone else be party leader).
Imoen will have the best Cha in your party, just be careful when moving around that she doesn't end up leading the charge against monsters, even though she's party leader. Jaheira will suffice as well, being 1 point behind Imoen. Jaheira has fighter levels, so she should be okay even if she does end up on the front line.


WIth that in mind, I'd suggest the following array for 90 total stat points:
Str 18/xx (higher xx is better, and 00 is highest (equals 100))
Dex 18
Con 18
Int 9
Wis 18
Cha 9

You can get Imoen, Jaheira, Khalid, and Minsc very early, and you might be able to manage Dynaheir early as well (just take lots and lots of arrows). Naturally, if you want to see what some of the other NPCs say in your party, then hold off on Minsc and Dynaheir (as the harder to get members) until you've seen what you want to see.

Of course, if you want to play a more realistic character rather than min/maxing every stat (which is not necessary to win these games unless you want to solo them), the character you've currently rolled is pretty good, particularly if you want to rely on your Cleric spells to buff your physical prowess. If you were to make just one change, it should be swapping a couple of INT for a couple of STR. Keep in mind that if you carry this character into BG2, you'll want 11 INT or better to fight Mind Flayers.

Yeah, I wasn't planning to min/max, though I do like your suggestion of swapping INT points for STR (and I do plan to carry over to BG2). Anything about 79 - 80 comes up pretty rare, so I don't want to re-roll forever, heh.

I used to min/max the SSI Gold Box games (and they practically begged you to with the in-built character editor). It made them too easy. =)

Flynn

I haven't been anywhere past Nashkil yet (haven't been into the mines), so I'm not sure where to pick up Minsc. As I'm playing EE, the last time I played, I picked up Monterain and Xzar to get me to Friendly Arms, then picked up Jaheira and Khalid. From there I traveled to Beregost. Manterain and Xzar turned on me shortly after leaving Friendly Arms as I was too "insufferably charitable!" according to Xzar. So I was forced to put them down.

Upon reaching Beregost I assisted Neera and then picked up a bard (Garrick) to once again have a full party. From there we worked our way down to Nashkil where misfortune (in the form of an accidentally deleted save) ended the adventure prematurely.

Flynn

You should be able to find Minsc in Nashkel (the town area). Be aware that he joins on a timed quest; he wants you to help him rescue Dynaheir. I've read that too much delay causes problems, so you might consider waiting until your party is around level 2 or 3. Minsc and Dynaheir are a package deal (like Jaheira and Khalid, or Xzar and Montaron), so plan party member slots accordingly.

Yeah, I'm planning to drop Garrick for Minsc and then Neera for Dynaheir upon rescue. The plan would be to rescue her ASAP, though since I haven't been in the area yet - I know she's in the Gnoll Stronghold, for example, but not certain where it is yet and please don't tell me, heh.

Beyond the rescue, I really have no plans ahead as I'm trying hard not to read ahead for spoilers as this is still something of a first playthrough (beyond the opening areas obviously). I have the official guide for BG and a walkthrough tailored for the EE (though it is so thorough that I've pretty much ignored it beyond Candlekeep - it has way too many spoilers and locations of hidden items).

So based on this, I'll ignore Minsc as much as possible until we finish the Nashkel Mines, then grab Minsc and head as quickly as I can to the Gnoll Stronghold (depending on how long I take to find it of course).

Flynn

You probably wouldn't want to try finding that one on your own with a time limit. I believe it gets marked on your map when you accept Minsc's quest, though.

Good to know. Makes finding it easier, heh.

I remember one playthrough I picked up the Dwarven shop owner Khagan? He was looking for a caravan. The moment I left Beregost with him, he complained about not wanting to look for it anymore. So, I'm guessing I somehow failed the time limit. The weird thing is, I had picked him up, left town immediately to the north and failed the mission.

Flynn

When Kagain tells you he doesn't want to look any more you've succeeded in pleasing him.
You can keep on looking for the caravan this area and find something, but's not necessary. But since you've already spent travelling time into that area you might as well explore it fully for a little loot and XP.