What's the best melee weapon in BG1?

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I'm doing a little future planning for my solo Bard, and since I'm going solo, and can use any weapon, I'm wondering which one is best...

 

I would suggest you make sure you start off with Bows and Small Blades; you can get a magic dagger in Candlekeep by doing one of the quests, and bows rock in this game (especially since they'll give you 2 attacks per round). You only need, I believe, a 12 or 13 strength to use the best kind of bow available to a bard, so put more points in Dex.

In terms of best melee weapon, I've always been fond of a certain +2 Longsword which occasionally gives you a point of cold damage, though there's also a great +2 warhammer that is very easy for a bard-type to get, provided he saves first and follows the right conversational path.

 

Best melee weapon is Scimitar+5efender

 

Hehe, nice one Undertaker. Well, I'm not going to kill Drizzt, but I did happen to pickpocket his Frostbrand scimitar! I think it will be hard to beat a +3 sword!

 

That it will. I don't think any sword in the game beats a +3. However, you might also look into some of the two-handed blades. Since you can't carry a shield (except a buckler), using Spider's Bane (which gives you a permanent Free Action) is a really good idea.

 

In BG1, it's notorious that the best melee weapons are "long swords", whether 2 handed or single handed.
Don't mess with +3 weapons in BG1, it's overkill. MrNexx is right, your best choice is Spider's Bane, but you will not get it soon.
Anyway, as a bard, you can only have one prof. slot per weapon, so you may choose several.

 

To get the +1 dagger to start with, you need cha=18 and when you give Fuller the crossbow bolts he gives you the +1 dagger.

You can get a +2 shortsword fairly early on (on the Bassilus map) and Varscona (+2 longsword +1 cold dmg) at Nashkell. Also, right at the end of the game is a +3 shortsword and there is the nice Dagger of Venom. So, as long as you have short and largeswords covered you can use any of the best weapons available.

Use bows for the extra attack over crossbows.

 

You could go with the Light Crossbow of Speed for the extra attack, but there are more magical arrows than magical bolts in the game (more kinds as well), so bows are the best pick. You'll get the Long Bow of Marksmanship in the Bandit Camp.

 

Just FYI: I think, if you don't have that 18 CHA, Fuller can be pick pocketed for that dagger.

I agree with Bard's post, though. Good choices. You might also consider blunt, since Bassiluss's Hammer rocks (although it isn't very "bard-like").

I do think the "plus" of the weapon is important, because I doubt a Bard will have a very high STR, and therefore a poor THAC0. But, I think a weapon like the Dagger of Venom, and it's benefits far outweigh an extra +1 (when comparing Frostbrand +3 to the Dagger of Venom +2). You really should hold onto that Spider's Bane sword until you get your hands on a ring of Free Action (which I'd recommend always having on in a solo game).

[ July 16, 2005, 17:49: Message edited by: Klorox ]

 

I personally never got into playing a bard in either PNP or CRPG. I always enjoyed either being a fighter with some magical skills or a all out magic user. I know a bard is a combination Figther/Mage/Thief, but his skills a a little bit of this and that and he doesn't have any true thief skills that would benefit you in the later stages of the game, Find/Remove traps.

If I was looking for a player to compliment a well rounded group I would consider a bard if they had a Str of 17 and armor that they could cast spells without. And that doesn't happen until BG2.

 

I actually abandoned this character. Although I've had a ton of fun with a Bard in P&P D&D, I really enjoy playing a warrior-type (or multiclassed variant) in this game. In P&P, you have the option of being a Fighter/Bard (and Fighter/Blade) and Ranger/Bard (this was implemented with the Complete Bards Handbook). It's too bad you don't have those options in Baldur's Gate. A Fighter/Bard (Blade in BGII) would own this game!

 

It sure would. I'd like to see a game which had the same multi-classing style as Baldur's Gate (where you advance in both classes at the same time, as opposed to Icewind Dale II's where you take levels of one class or another at various times) but with more allowable multi-classes. I think Fighter / Bard, Cleric / Druid, Bard / Sorcerer (or Mage), or Bard / Thief, would all be fun to play.

 

Yeah, but advancing both classes like in BG II by splitting the exp is impossible in the new D&D system, right?
Although to be honest, I preferred it too

 

Think of AD&D (BGI and II) and D&D3e (NWN) as two completely different games. 1e and 2e were TSR products, 3e is Wizards of the Coast.

 

Yeah, so I hear - I sometimes wander into the 3rd Edition D&D section of Wizards of the Coast from the Magic: the Gathering site. But I thought Baldur's Gate II had a Wizards of the Coast logo in its opening sequence.

 

BG2 does have WotC logo.

 

Scimitar +3 Frostbrand (Pickpoket it)
Scimitar +5 Defender (You'll use this for the rest of the game and just Ctrl+Y Drizzt and watch him explode loads of fun there)

Spiders bane is good too. You can fetch the eagles bow cause it's cool. If you have BG1 TOTSC then you can get that Two-Handed Sword +3 from durlags tower.

You can get that sucky but cool Gold Sword (I forget it's name) in that Island in TOTSC.

 

I really enjoyed getting that long sword +2 "varscona" from Greywolf near the mines, as it was early in the game. I thought about using spider's bane for a bit but just kept with Defender (after I killed Drizzt ... YES! Take that you stupid Drow !) as it really helped my character. Too bad evil characters can't use it eh, but I'm sure once you do kill him, Scimitar+5efender will really be your best bet.