I've started each of the two following characters. I'm not very far into the OC. I wonder what you experts think about each of them. Can't decide which one to play! I like both, but only have time to do 1 of them. Thanks for any opinions.


1) Drizzt - http://nwn2db.com/build/?130461

2) Paladin - from Game FAQs Don Jarlaxles guide - single Class Paladin example

Race: Aasimar

Starting Stats:

STR 16
DEX 10
CON 12
INT 10
WIS 14
CHA 18

Skills: Concentration, Diplomacy, Spellcraft (dip 4 ranks for Practiced
Spellcaster, cross-class skill)

Background: Devout

Level progression (all Paladin):

1) Luck of Heroes
2)
3) Blind-Fight
4) STR +1 (17)
5)
6) Power Attack
7)
8) STR +1 (18)
9) Practiced Spellcaster
10)
11)
12) Divine Might, STR +1 (19)
13)
14)
15) (Dealer's choice here. I'd recommend either Extend Spell, Divine Shield
or Improved Critical: Longsword.)
16) STR +1 (20)
17)
18) (Dealer's choice here as well. Same recommendations as at 15.)
19)
20) STR +1 (21)
21) Great Charisma (CHA 19)
22)
23) Great Charisma x2 (regular + bonus) (CHA 20, 21)
24) CHA +1 (22)
25) Epic Divine Might
26) Epic Prowess (bonus)
27) Toughness
28) STR +1 (22)
29) Epic Toughness, Epic Resilience (bonus)
30)

Final stats (no gear/buffs):

STR 22
DEX 10
CON 12
INT 10
WIS 14
CHA 22

Saves (no gear/buffs): F 25, R 17, W 20

AB (w/ non-enchanted longsword, no buffs): 37/32/27/22/17/12

HP (no gear/buffs): 390

Drizzt looks decent, although he'd be better with Kukri's than Scimitars. If you're okay with style over substance though, he'll be fine. For the Paladin, my only concern is that you get divine might too late. With a charisma that high, you want to get it as soon as possible. Don't bother with blind fight until later in the campaign; invisible or incorporeal enemies just aren't that common.

I'd go with the Paladin, personally, but both should be enjoyable.

Yeah, I guess I am looking for an interactive, fun build. Thanks for the advice

I'm no expert and I'm also on my first run through of the OC using the Mystran Dragon Knight build from the same Paladin FAQ you are using. The MDK build gets Epic Divine Might at level 21 (to Darvin's point).

The Drizzt build looks fun and since it is a build with 30 levels, you could take it through MoTB as well. My understanding is that you can use any build for the OC, just play a build that you think would be fun. The choices are completely overwhelming, but that's what makes it fun. :)

Darvin,
might you suggest how to improve the Pally? Like should I swtich blind fight with something else until later, or how to get divine might (or do you mean epic divine might) sooner?

I'd like to keep with the "Pure Holy Man Ass Kicker" theme rather than mix a bunch of classes that to me, from a role playing view, don't match that theme.
Thanks

A Paladin can have divine might as early as 6th level. It's a kick-ass feat so you want it as soon as it becomes available. You just need to grab power attack at the 3rd level and you'll qualify at the 6th. You can take blind fight later if you want.

For epic divine might, you could grab it at level 24 (just swap your feat selections at level 24/25), but to get it earlier than this would be significantly more difficult. While avoiding your "mix of random classes" your only real option is to use the Divine Champion prestige class. This class holds to the "holy man ass-kicker" theme quite well, and will give you bonus feats that can be spent on boosting your charisma.

Thanks - it sure gets confusing though

Some points to consider,
Feats;
knock down… this is a str based feat that puts targets on their backside and dramatically reduces the damage that your party takes… it is available on some weapons as a bonus but is worth considering for the OC as this build is all about strength.

Blind fighting… you will be about level 13 before you get any value from this feat… I'm not a fan of it for a Pally but if you do take it then perhaps a little later on would be better.

Practiced Spell caster… makes no sense at all for a pure Pally build & even a multiclass has much better options as Pally spells are all buff types they don't really have any need for a high DC.

Divine might is your bread and butter for this build so take it as fast as you can.

Races;
Aasimar is a bad choice for a pure blood Pally… the only thing they have going for them is that they count Pally as their favourite class but you didn't multiclass so that has no effect at all. Playing the OC from level one with this guy will be much harder because (in this campaign) your NPC don't gain experience of their own and will only level up as you do so playing a -1 character means that the entire party will always be behind the bad guys… that's ok for someone looking for a challenge but single class makes all normal races usable.

Spoiler… the best (one hand) weapon and armour in the game is for a Dwarf.

Stats;
Personally I'd take 2 more intel (parry skill) and drop two dex because 8 dex is enough to win the shooting challenge and lets face it, you are going to spend like two minutes out of full-plate armour or using bows so just buy a +4 dex items or cast a buff for those times.

1 point less of str will give you two more con and + str items| spells practically grow on trees so you won't miss it until you need to take Epic Divine Might in about 24 levels from now where as the extra hit points will be valuable now… it's your game!

Weapons;
Long-sword is ok for an Elf bow fighter as a back up weapon but IMO is waisted for a str based Pally because two handed weapons give better synergy with Divine might builds.

halberd is my pick for offensive,
Base Damage: 1d10
Base Critical Threat: x3
Base Damage Type: Piercing and Slashing

But Warmace has slightly better synergy with Bard, Cleric, or Wizard / Sorcerer because "Weapon of Impact" makes it Keen… the one that gives immunity to knock down is a nice weapon.
Base Damage: 1d12
Base Critical Threat: x2
Base Damage Type: Bludgeoning

Morning star is the better one hand and shield combo for tanking with its two damage types, keen synergy and ease to collect… there are two very nice ones in act 1 that give extra fire and parry bonus but a dwarf will probably want the ironfist hammer later anyway.
Base Damage: 1d8
Base Critical Threat: x2
Base Damage Type: Bludgeoning and Piercing

Parry is useless. Never invest a single point in it except to meet prerequisite for other unrelated things. There are some other nice skills you might be interested in, but parry is not one of them. The dexterity suggestion is an interesting one. Having 8 dexterity will be very painful until you can magically increase it, but past that point it'll be nothing more than having one magic item slot reserved for this effect. Longsword isn't bad for divine might, since a big chunk of your damage is coming from charisma rather than strength. You'll still see a noticable damage increase by going with a two-handed weapon, but it's not nearly as dramatic an improvement as it is for a fighter-type.

Fair enough, Bluff can help you out on some of the plot twists without spending too many points but that assumes that a Paladin of truth and justice is ok with telling someone porkies in order to trick information out of them.

Another skill worth considering is Use Magic Device as he or she could ask the mage to pop something like Mage armour or Weapon of Impact into a wand for those times when a solo approach works best... each to their own I guess.

About drizzt:
Do not play a drow (ELC+2) in the OC unless you want to torture yourself.
Maybe you don´t even get to lv. 30.
This http://nwn2db.com/build/?113470 is much better for OC/MotB.

If you want to stay closer to Drizzt, take fighter12 instead of DC2 because greater/epic weapon specialization is better than epic toughness. Weapon Master sounds cool (I had one in my first playthrough too) but most enemies in the late OC and all MotB are crit immun. Take a wood elf because than you have ranger as favoured class. You have full freedom in level order and getting greater 2 weapon fighting before level 28 would be great. As mentioned before, take kukri instead of scimitar, but it takes some time until you get good ones in the OC.

About the Paladin:
I still believe that a pure paladin is a poor choice.
Some time ago I made this http://nwn2db.com/build/?163388.
Its an Aasimar holy knight with epic devine might.
Unlike the Paladin, it has all cleric buffs up to level 9, extended, persistand and quickened. And you get damage resistance, higher saves, weapon specialisation and a haste spell too.
Take diplomacy skill instead of spot.

spoiler: I think a long sword is a good thing for a paladin in the OC. I have heard that you can get a quest for a holy weapon, but I have not played a paladin myself yet.

Sure, plenty of other skills might be helpful, just not parry. UMD is invaluable for a solo character, but the player here isn't solo'ing. Seeing as it's cross-class for Paladin, I'd avoid it. Maybe put one point into it so it's trained, but that's about it.

I know, right? When you first start out, you pick a class and run with it, but slowly the sheer number of options dawns on you and it's staggering. I've been playing this game (and others like it) for long enough Paladin with Divine Might is your best bet if you want to go sword and shield. Raising your damage is key to being an effective melee fighter, and Divine Might is the most reliable way to do this if you're fighting with a single one-handed weapon.

Yes, it's fully-possible to beat the OC and MotB even if your main character is weak. The game gives you party members to help you out, so your character can be carried by them. Khelgar/.Elanee/Neeshka could probably clear the game without anyone's help; they're a balanced party all of their own. Of course, a stronger character will make things easier.

No it isn't. I play NWN (1 & 2) without knowing 'what the hell I am doing', and that's the way I like it. The advice you have been given -- great as it may be -- appears to be from a power gaming standpoint. I prefer to 'not know what the hell I am doing' in that sense, otherwise I would spend too much time making calculations and not enough just enjoying the game. Basics is all that you really need to enjoy the game. If it's causing you grief, don't think about it and go with your gut.