Random thief skills?

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I have read on a few posts that thieves' skills appear to be random when you pick an NPC for the first time? Is that so?

If it is really the case, is it the same thing in BGII? (sorry, I know it would be more appropriate in the BGII forum, but it is the logical suite of my original question!)

Thank you for your inputs.

 

AFIK in BG, yes it is. At least I know I didn't have the thief skills when I picked up Coran that some others have mentioned. Now as far as BG2 is concerned, well, I don't know. Perhaps you should post a seperate question in the BG2 forum just so the mods won't have rack their brains trying to figure out which forum this question goes in (these are the kinda questions that will slowly drive BTA insane BTW).

 

It's not true. Thief NPC's do have different skillpoints in the thief-skills, but is is not random. Every NPC has always that you pick him up the same stats, also with Skillpoints. But some thiefs have good stealth and pickpocketing, another thief has good stealth and lockpicking, another thief has all skills on average...

 

I think one thing that should be taken in to account is the lvl you get the npc at. If you get one of them later on, their skills are chosen for themselves, the amount depending on their lvl. If you get them earlier, then you would get to pick the skills in whatever way you felt was neccesary. So that might be one reason you would have different stats then another person, depending on what lvl their pc was when they picked up that particular npc (I've noticed that the npcs come generally at whatever lvl your at. I don't know if this is common knowledge, just trying to point it out.)

 

I'm not sure if NPC's always have the same level or if that depends on the level of your character but I don't think so.

 

The NPC usually has somewhat less experience than you have when you find him. The stats are always the same though. Minsc will always have 18/92 strength .

The distribution of thief skills is constant, but of course increasing with the level of the character. I remembered last week when I needed a thief for my party, and I did not want Imoen. I suggested Safana in the channel, and peeps there said she was bad because of her low stealth. I picked her up anyway, and she had 25% stealth and 70% lockpicking.

 

The NPC-thiefs have always some good stats and bad, that's basic and never changes. The thief-skills they have are dependent on your level but for example Coran will always have good stealth and bad detect traps, where Safana always has bad stealth.... That is not random.

 

I've found that there are some characters that often seems to have more experience than you. Kivan, for example, is if I remember correctly, lvl 2 if you pick him up at lvl 1, and lvl 6 if you pick him up at lvl 5...

 

I think the level of Kivan is always at least level 2. He already had some adventures so also some experience with fighting, and you are just looking around the corner in the adventurer's world. It also depends on at what level you go to High Hedge, I go to there when I'm l;evel 3 but some go earlier.