First time player: paladin led party

[Bybyx]

Hello,

This is my first post here.  So I got to this game after a long wait. I played years ago Neverwinter Nights 1 and 2 and the expansions but I played at the lowest difficulty because I really like to experience the story without worrying to much.  I am not by any means a RPG fanatic but I like a good story in a game no matter its genre. I noticed that playing at story mode it more or less a bit of hack and slash and I feel way overpowered so I decided to take on a challenge. What would be choice in difficulty for a player that understands that you can not go headlong into the fray if you're not prepared but also you can not be  frustrated that he would not enjoy the game and the story? Also regarding the party... I am a sucker for paladins and clerics! I want start with a paladin like this: male - human -meadow folk - kind wayfarer - aedyr -colonist. The starting stats that I have in mind are: Mig: 14, Con: 12, Dex: 10, Per: 13, Int: 13, Res: 16. I might drop Dex to 8 and raise Con to 14 or Per and Int to 14 but I read about stats and I must say I am not ok with negative and dumping stats. How can I swing a sword if I have the handling of a rock?  How can I have Per at max but Int at minimum? Or max Mig and minimum Res? Can I be perceptive and retarded at the same time? I know this is a game and not real life but still, it seems ridiculous to me.  Now, to return to my character, I want him to be able to dish a respectable amount of damage but also be able to take some. What would be  a good choice of talents and attributes? Also what gear would be suited best? Should I focus on a 1H or 2H build or you can do both? Regarding the companions I would choose Eder, Aloth, Durance, Grieving Mother and lastly, Kana or Hiravias. Who would be better, Kana or Hiravias? Is the any way to respec companions and how would be better to build them properly?  Can I queue actions and spells the way I did in NWN2? My cleric back then was a demigod walking the earth .  I hope I did not bored you with my rantings!

[draego]

i would definitely start on at least normal you can always change it to hard or easy while you are playing. the beginning can be harder in certain areas for someone that is new.

Check out the build board below. you dont have to do the exact same thing especially with the attributes. so if you want a guide just find something interesting , set the stats the way you want an play. the attributes are not as important mechanically as dnd. but can be nice to role play the way you want. i generally played on hard  and never min maxed stats. 

Also i would recommend to just play without a guide at all. This game was setup for you to role play the way you want and take skills that seems interesting to you and the game will support that. there really are not trap builds or skills. it really open ended for you to try to RP. Paladins are pretty beefy also especially with some early skills so you can build like you if you want to go in with 2H it will be fun or if you want to be even more tanky take 1h + shield and can provide nice party tank. Paladins are good classes and have nice buff and counter debuff / cc skills so they make a nice all around class.

There is no reason to respec Companions their stats are fine. it more about learning the mechanics and strategies around CC/ debuffs and protecting yourself from CC/debuffs. once you learn how to attack the weakness of one of the enemy defenses and learn to protect yourself it will be fine.

On lower levels Hiravias will prob be more fun since you will feel the impact more from druid but if you need more tank or off tank Chanters make nice role for that and if you want less micro Kana is easier to play. I would actually switch characters out periodically to play around with different classes and to complete their quests 

Priest are one of the strongest classes in game. They are the answer for any CC/debuffs the enemy can throw at you while also buffing your party to high heaven. Being new to game it would be easier to play with Priest in party. they are more support in nature but can be build to DPS but being new i would explore their support capability. however they are not necessary to a party. you can basically make up any party composition of classes and win. This games classes are more balanced than dnd so nothing is necessary but their are still tiers where it will be easier or more intuitive than others. 

You should be able to queue actions by holding shift but you can see them in some kinda queue and personally ive never done it. there is some simple AI settings you can set per character for them to do their own actions if you want.

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by draego

[Rickety_Arytenoids]

Companions are personal preference really. I'd take Kana over Hiravius because I like his personality and he interjects with interesting dialogue more than anyone else (at least it feels like he does). But some people find Hiravius hilarious. Likewise, I like Sagani over Grieving Mother, but they can fill the same role more or less. All of the party members can be very effective. 

For your Paladin, go Weapon Focus: Soldier and you can switch between Greatsword, Pike, or Warhammer + Shield as you see fit. I'd be for going full-on two-handed, but there is a great Paladin-exclusive shield in a shop early in the game. 

The best stats for dialogue are Resolve and Perception. Intellect comes up too, but it can often be replaced by Lore. Might is the most important for dialogue if you want to play an "Aggressive" or "Cruel" character. 

Unless you care about achievements, I would start at Normal and switch to Hard when you have a full party of six. 

[Bybyx]

Thanks for the answers! I was thinking to lower Dex to 8 and increase Per and Int to 14 each and go with Mig 14, Con 12, Dex 8, Per 14, Int 14, Res 16. Would it be to much of a penalty to have Dex 8 or it will be compensated by Per 14? He wont be to slow with Dex 8?

[draego]

I dont think 10-8 dex is a huge difference, it is only 6% speed difference. So if you like that i would go for it. I dont think it will hurt that much and you get benefits in other places. There are lots of ways to increase your accuracy throughout the game though. it probably one of the easier stats to increase (not perception but accuracy).

Edited October 22, 2020 by draego

[Boeroer]

If you'll use Flames of Devotion (+20 ACC), Zealous Focus and have a Priest in the Party (always mandatory for me: Inspiring Radiance) then you can easily do with less PER. DEX is the most impactful dps attribute. If you want to deal respectable dps you shouldn't drop DEX too low. 

If you are going for a tanky approach you can use high RES: every point of additional deflection has increasing returns. So if you already have high deflection from shield etc. then every additional point of RES helps even more. If you have mediocre deflection to begin with (e.g. using a two hander or two weapons and not using Deep Faith) then putting a lot of points into RES doesn't do as much. 

If you want to use a shield: There's a shield in the starting village (Gilded Vale) - obtainable at the smith iirc, it's called the Outworn Buckler. It can only be used by paladins. It's a really good shield because its defensive enchantment (covers the party) stacks with everything - even with a similar shield that can be worn by everybody but can only be found a lot later in the game. It's a small shield so it will give you no ACC penalty - which is kind of a good compromise between offense and defense. And because of its enchantment its defensive capability is nearly as good as that of a large shield (and it helps the party, too).

Edited October 23, 2020 by Boeroer

[asnjas]

Jesus, just play lol.

[Boeroer]

...he mockingly urged one month later. 

[asnjas]

He might still be mulling it over.