Any reason to play a single class cleric over a R/C?

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If I understand ranger/clerics correctly, then ANY variant of a ranger/cleric gets all druid and cleric spells. Can anyone offer a non rping reason for playing as a pure cleric rather than a ranger dual-classed at lvl 1 to a cleric? With this class, you're only sacrificing a few thousand exp to get some amazing spells (ironskins anyone?) while also getting to specialize in a weapon or two, and getting 2 free points in dual wielding.

I know you can't do this character legally, but it's a simple matter to create the lvl 2 ranger/lvlx cleric, and it should be a valid char option, as you're char is assumed to have gone from lvl 1 up to 7 or 8 in the original bg.

 

What you are saying is true. A Ranger dualled to a cleric gets all the druid spells. Since you start SoA with (I think) 89,000 XP, that should be a level 7 ranger. At that point you could dual to cleric. In addition to getting access to druid spells, you'll also get access to be able to put two proficiency points into any weapon a cleric can use (once you hit level 8 that is) and three in two weapon style. This will give you added to hit and damage bonuses, as well as give your character an extra half attack per round with the main weapon. If you're smart, you put the points in cleric weapons at the start of the game, so as soon as you hit level 8, you are all set.

The only problem with this theory is you will have to get very high stats from the start of the game. So unless you use the ctrl+8 cheat, you're going to be rolling forever.

Dual-classing requires at least 15 in all primary attributes of your initial class, and 17 in the class you're going to switch into.

That said, you're kind of stating the obvious. Any class you dual-class into is more versatile than just being a single class. A druid is more useful if he/she starts as a fighter. A mage is more useful if he/she starts as a thief, etc.

 

Well, I suppose this may belong more on the BG1 board now, based on what I'm going to say, but it seems like a character brought through BG1 would have a much easier time getting those stats, thanks to the tomes.

But the real point of my post was to find out if there is some advantage which a straight cleric would have over a cleric dualed to ranger. Assume you either play through BG1, and dual from ranger to cleric to level 2, or you use sk to edit your character into a lvl 2 ranger, then dual class over to cleric. Is there any advantage for the straight cleric over this character, which outweighs the benefits derived? It seems to me like there's no reason to play a straight cleric, when you can so easily expand the spellbook.

 

Its stupid to ask whether there are any advantages of playing a straight cleric over a ranger/cleric when all your doing is starting up a ranger and dualling over to a cleric at lvl. 2.

You are in effect playing a straight cleric who would be about 2 levels behind a normal cleric with the added advantages a ranger/cleric would get. What's the point of asking when you KNOW your character has much more than a straight cleric can have?

 

Well, I've never played a ranger/cleric, and I don't know if there are any odd quirks in the engine related to using them, or something. The reason I asked is that I recently found out about the r/c getting all druid spells (I just came back to BG2 after 4 years, and I'm completely new to the internet communtiy built aroudn thae game. . .), and I've noticed people saying they use straight clerics as their characters. So I simply want to know why they do it.

 

Well...if that's what you wanted, I would say go with the Ranger/Cleric multiclass. There's no point wasting two levels on a character which is effectively a single classed cleric.

With a multi-classed ranger/cleric, you are GUARANTEED high stats as they have the highest minimum requirements for the stats there are. Also, you get all the advantages of a ranger/ cleric and with a multiclass, when you get to TOB, you get all the Cleric HLAs along with all the Fighter HLAs...

So, around mid-TOB, you can expect a guy with 23 STR,DEX,CON (Draw upon Holy Might), MAX damage on all hits (Righteous Magic),Free Action, Chaotic Commands, Iron Skins, Globe of Blades, Aura of Flaming Death who can dual-weild Flail of the Ages +5 with Crom Faeyr (that would make it 25 STR!!) hitting 10 times in a round (Greater Whirlwind).....phew!

Thats a lot of stuff mate...you could melee your way through half of Faerun with a character like that!

 

Yes, there's no point in dualling once you hit level 2, because the ONLY thing you're getting is the extra spells. Rangers get more hit points than clerics, get proficiency points more frequently than clerics, and reduce their THAC0 by 1 upon every level up. Part of the fun of getting the ranger up a few levels is that when you reactivate the old class, he actually has better abilities than a normal cleric of that level. To answer your orignal question though, one disadvantage of doing a character this way is at the beginning of SoA, you basically turn into a single classed, level 1 cleric. Not good. Yes, you will level quickly, but it will take until you get out of Irenicus's dungeon and a quest or two before you get your ranger abilities back.

One other thing to note. Remember where you put your proficiency points as a ranger! When you dual to a cleric, they will disappear, but reappear after to reactivate the ranger class. The proficiencies don't stack while your cleric is building up to the rangers level. For example, say you put two points into flail as a ranger. When you dual class, those points will disappear. Now, if you place another proficiency point into flails while you are a cleric before exceeding the rangers level, when you do get your ranger abilities back, you'll only have 2, not three proficiencies in flails. So remember! There's nothing worse than wasting proficiency points, as you don't get that many...

 

You get more races to choose from if you play a pure cleric. The kits aren't bad either: Seeking sword in particular is amazing when combined with, say the crom in your offhand. And, as with all spellcasters, gaining levels is especially important, so it helps not to have to divide your experience.

The main things you miss out on as a pure cleric are the HP and the extra attacks per round. As for druid spells... meh, the only one I miss is summon nymph.

 

That's only true of a multi-class. If you dual-class, it's not a big thing. Once you get to 20-something level as a cleric, the 90,000 or so you invested into the ranger class is such a small percentage of your total experience that it becomes insignificant.