riddleofsteel: Okay, thanks. I'm down to deciding between a human paladin (no kit) for bg1 or a half-orc cleric (also pure class). Is it a coin toss or is one better than the other for ease of use and playability? If I go paladin, I'd probably choose long sword and bow for weapon skills, or else some form of ranged weapon. What do you think: short bow? Long bow? Sling maybe? If there's yet another class build I should be looking at, please let me know.
Both of those classes should work just fine! I'll always recommend taking two-handed swords on a paladin just because of the Carsomyr + 5 that you can get fairly early in the game. It's usable by paladins only and every time you hit something, you dispel all magic effects on it. Not to mention it's also a +5 sword!
I don't think either class would be particularly hard to play as. A paladin would be more simple and you'd have more health and survivability. You'd have more utility as a cleric, however.