Baldur's Gate : The Sword Coast Chronicles : NWN2 Persistent World

I'm brand new to BGTSCC and to NWN2 in general. In NWN, I played a RP server that feels somewhat similar to this one. I got pretty good at building for NWN, but NWN2 is a totally different animal. I've downloaded JEGs and would like to start trying out some builds with all these new classes, but I have a few questions.

1. What is the enchantment ceiling on this server? On my old server, +5 equipment was expensive and rare, but it was definitely doable to get a full set of it. Is the same setup here?

2. What kind of ability scores can you generally expect to find on this server? Ex: I could get 1-2 full +12's on the last server (if I was using maximised spells and gear in tandem). +12 to one ability score was pretty achievable.

3. Is there a crafting system that allows you to modify gear? Ex: Could I add +4 armor to some chainmail that I found that has some neat existing stats?

4. What are some of the epic feats to build towards? In NWN1 it was all about Dev Crit, Epic Dodge, Epic Spells, etc. Is there anything new with NWN2 that people tend to go for?

First off:

The biggest difference is that things DO NOT stack. Assume this to be true always. Exceptions:

• Dodge based armour class bonuses
• Attack bonuses from different sources (Enchantment Bonus, Morale Bonus, Luck bonus, divine bonus, Inspiration bonus etc. Point: Not the same source. Attack bonus and Enchantment bonus as found on the item do NOT stack, as they are the same essentially. The cap is 20
• Damage bonuses DO stack, but can be tricky. Generally, Enchantment bonus is only the highest that applies, elemental damage and other energies always stack, same for the rest
• Skill bonuses ALWAYS stack. The cap is 50
• Essentially the same deal with Armour Class as with attack bonus, except there is no cap that I know of.
• Ability score bonuses do NOT stack, unless from different bonuses and even then it's tricky. Do not rely on it

On items
+3 equipment is common and easily achievable by anyone given enough time
+4 equipment is rare, but possible
+4 is the highest, but other mechanics can make an item more valuable, making it epic.
Mithral Full Plate, Mithral Breastplate and Mithral chainshirt are worth a lot even without any magic on them. Literal million for fullplates.

On crafting
No, but there is one in the works - trademark reserved for Baldur's Gate staff

You can sort of use Survival and Craft Alchemy for the upcoming Master Alchemist class and the many small usables on the server to craft a minor potion/grenade

Epic Feats
Epic Dodge is one big thing.
Expose Weakness, or as its nickname goes, Expose Cheesiness takes the cake though. -3 AC stacking on each landed hit with it, bleeding damage for your dex, autohit (it's a bug, will get fixed. Autohit doesn't apply the debuff). Lasts 5 rounds, for total of -15 AC.
Bane of Enemies if Ranger
Epic Spells aren't as powerful here, except maybe the Vampiric Feast, but it's evil.
We have Regeneration feats for sustained healing for con builds.

Nexus Crux wrote:1. What is the enchantment ceiling on this server? On my old server, +5 equipment was expensive and rare, but it was definitely doable to get a full set of it. Is the same setup here?

+4 is the max, weapons and armor with +4 are rare, +3 with extras are also pretty rare, truly epic (+4 with bonus damage or immunities, skill bonuses, ability enhancements, etc.) will take you a year or more to acquire unless you are very lucky.

Nexus Crux wrote:2. What kind of ability scores can you generally expect to find on this server? Ex: I could get 1-2 full +12's on the last server (if I was using maximised spells and gear in tandem). +12 to one ability score was pretty achievable.

Again +4 max, but even more rare than epic weapons and armor as in building on the assumption of even one item with +4 to a stat is an exercise in futility. +3 stat items aren't all that rare, though I'd you're looking for items with +3 stat and other stuff that a bit more difficult. Above +4 is only possible for certain classes via spells such as owls insight for druid or attacking strength spells for paladin.

Nexus Crux wrote:3. Is there a crafting system that allows you to modify gear? Ex: Could I add +4 armor to some chainmail that I found that has some neat existing stats?

A magic crafting system is in the works, but will not be useable to modify existing equipment. Enchanting will remove the existing magic from the item.

Nexus Crux wrote:4. What are some of the epic feats to build towards? In NWN1 it was all about Dev Crit, Epic Dodge, Epic Spells, etc. Is there anything new with NWN2 that people tend to go for?

Depends on your build... DC casters want nearly all stat increases. Builds with evasion want expose weakness (though changes we'll probably come in the future that may change this), bards want hymn of Requiem... I recommend using nwn2db to put together an idea of what you're looking for and post it here, then folks can give you ideas for improving upon the base you come up with.

Biggest building differences?

• Abilities do not stack like in NWN. You use the highest value from any source.
• You can have 4 classes now, not 3.
• You can only save a maximum of 5 skillpoints between level ups in NWN2.
• You don't get epic BAB in NWN2. You progress BAB like the class did pre-epic levels even at epic levels in NWN2. Despite this, melee is better in NWN2 than NWN, mostly because DC feats have lower bonuses and the spells aren't as destructive

1 and 2.) On this server, the maximum is +4 Enchantment, +4 AC and +4 Ability (+4 on skills as well, but there are a few named items that break this rule). Out of these, +4 Enchantment is really easy to aquire. The trick is finding +4 Enchantment with worthwhile bonuses for the popular weapons. +4 AC is relatively common, so that most people will eventually get one or a complete set of them. +4 Ability items are super rare. I wouldn't bother building for those, build for +3 ability items instead. You should also note that there are no blanket immunity items on the server. You can find immunities vs a specific spell (the weak ones only), but no immunities towards knockdown, mind-affecting etc. (although, getting an item that casts a long lasting protection from alignment is not that difficult).

3.) No crafting system worth noting. You can gather some ingredients like beetle shells etc., put them on a crafting bench and use a crafting wand on the bench to make things. However, the only thing you can make is like low-level potions. The Crafting skills are useless.

4.) Epic Divine Might and Expose Weakness for melee builds and Epic Spell: Vampiric Feast for spellcasters. Those are the three heavy hitters. There are some feats exclusive to a class that are always taken by those classes, but that's because without them these classes tend to fall behind. For example, Eldritch Master, Bane of Enemies or Natural Spell.

Also note that the server have some rules worth noting:

• 3b20 rule. This rules means that you need 3 levels in each class your character is going to have before they hit epic levels. So you can't pick a new class at epic levels, and all classes need a minimum of 3 levels in them.
• Clerics have to pick domains according to their deity

Oh, interesting about building AB even in epics. Also good to know about ability stacking. They dont stack from different sources, either? (Spell + item).

Is there any sort of power struggle for non-casting melee types? I'd imagine not having +5 enhancement weapons would make it difficult to hit through spells with damage reduction. Does this empower builds with Greater Magic Weapon capability?

Yep, casters are king...favored souls and gish builds proliferate... However, melee builds can do just fine on this server. Casters are certainly more powerful

Nexus Crux wrote:Oh, interesting about building AB even in epics. Also good to know about ability stacking. They dont stack from different sources, either? (Spell + item).

Is there any sort of power struggle for non-casting melee types? I'd imagine not having +5 enhancement weapons would make it difficult to hit through spells with damage reduction. Does this empower builds with Greater Magic Weapon capability?

As I wrote earlier, no matter the source. You use the highest, be that an item or spell.

Right, that kind of damage reduction (/+5) isn't really existing in NWN2. Spells usually provide /adamantine or /magic. Magic is penetrated by wielding a +1 weapon (for low-level spells like ghostly visage) while the /adamantine is penetrated only by adamantine weapons or level 16 monk fists (all the high level protection spells have /adamantine). Since adamantine weapons are extinct, there are only like 5 on the entire server, protection spells are indeed really good to have.

Greater Magic Weapon users are empowered, yes. Mostly because not every non-caster fighter type can find a good epic weapon (+4EB, D4 dmg etc.). It's far easier to find a +2 EB, D4 dmg weapon since these are generally sold in shops, so GMW users get a better epic weapon out of their spell. This is even more so considering vampiric regeneration, which is the most powerful ability in NWN2. In NWN, as you recall, it was a poor man's regeneration. If you hit at least once per round, you regenerated X amount of HP. In NWN2, you regenerate X amount of HP for every hit. So if you've +3 vampiric regeneration, in NWN you could maximum get +3 HP per round. In NWN2, most people have like 7 attacks, and if they all hit it's +21 HP regenerated per round.

Double this with NWN2 making the melee cleric even better, or the improved version called a favored soul, and you can see why many melee builds opt to be able to cast GMW. Especially so since one of the most powerful feats in the game, Epic Divine Might, is really well suited to these kind of characters (and this server have low rest limitations).

Non-casting melee types are as such much more reliant on expensive equipment than any other build. Great stealth equipment is one of the most expensive types on the server, and epic weapons tend to be expensive too. It's a little odd, sure, because builds like these don't end up with nearly the same power as a lesser equipped GMW casting melee user, but many really want to play these kinds of characters. Stealth gear is more valuable because most that want to use it actually are spellcasters too, and if you can provide your own AC etc. on top of great stealth equipment, well, you get the idea. Plus, equipment that every GMW caster or other powerful spellcaster wants tend to be really expensive as well (like mithral fullplate for melee or defensive builds).

That said, non-GMW melee builds aren't completely shut down. Monsters throw out a fair amount of dispels in some areas, and dwarven defenders, berzerkers or crossbow/archer builds tend to do decently well for themselves.

Shapeshifting Druids are probably the least equipment-needing character type, and easy to play