__________________________________________ ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ AD&D Rules FAQ for every CRPG based on the 2nd Edition AD&D ruleset: Baldur's Gate Gateway to the Savage Frontier Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn Hillsfar Champions of Krynn Icewind Dale Curse of the Azure Bonds Menzoberranzen Dark Queen of Krynn Planescape: Torment Death Knights of Krynn Pool of Radiance Descent to Undermountain Pools of Darkness Dungeon Hack Secret of the Silver Blades Eye of the Beholder Treasures of the Savage Frontier Eye of the Beholder 2 Warriors of the Eternal Sun (Genesis) Eye of the Beholder 3 ____________________________________________________________________________ ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ January 17, 2005 Version 4.41 Written by: Dan Simpson Email: dsimpson.faqs@gmail.com Notes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You will find the most up to date version of this FAQ at: http://www.gamefaqs.com/ http://www.gamewinners.com/ Having written a number of FAQs for AD&D games (Baldur's Gate, Baldur's Gate II Icewind Dale, and Planescape: Torment), I often get questions on the basics of the ruleset. What is THAC0? What is AC? How does magic work? Since I've done so many different AD&D games, I didn't want to duplicate information in each one, and so I have created this file. So the purpose of this document is to explain these concepts to people who aren't familiar with the AD&D ruleset. 3rd Edition Note: This document works mostly for the 2nd Edition ruleset. There are several upcoming 3rd Edition rules games -- namely Neverwinter Nights and Pool of Radiance II: Ruins of Myth Drannor. These are not covered in this FAQ. And in case you are curious, as of the 3rd Edition the "Advanced" in AD&D is being dropped. Why? The "basic" D&D is out of print, so there was nothing for AD&D to be "advanced" from. I also have a 3rd Edition D&D FAQ at GameFAQs. This document is divided up into a series of Articles, such as the first which is "Thac0 and Armor Class (AC)". ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ___________________ What's New in 4.41: ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ Changed email addresses. Small changes to the format. A complete version history can be found in the Final Words... section at the end of the FAQ. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Articles Ĝ. Basic Concepts 1. THAC0 and Armor Class (AC) 2. Magic 3. Levels 4. Multiclassing and Dual Classing Frequently Asked Questions Final Words... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article Ĝ: Basic Concepts ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dice = Everyone knows what dice are. The most recognized form of dice is the "D6" or the six sided die. If you find a weapon that deals out 3d6 worth of Damage, then that means the weapon uses 3 six sided dice for a Damage Range of 3 to 18. +,- = Throughout AD&D there are modifiers in both the positive and negative directions. Any + modifier improves a stat, any - modifier degrades a stat. Why is this distinction important? Some stats are improved by decreasing their number, THAC0 for instance. If you find a +2 Sword, it improves your THAC0 by 2, which is actually a decrease in the overall THAC0 number. If you had started with 20 you would get 18. Encumberance = The weight that your character is currently holding. Depending on how strong she is, she will be able to carry more things. In AD&D when you carry close to your limit, you will move slower, and if you go over your limit, you won't be able to move at all. In Baldur's Gate, you get the message "Encumbered - Cannnot move." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article 1: THAC0 and Armor Class (AC) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THAC0 = "To Hit Armor Class 0", of a 20 sided dice the number needed to hit an enemy with an AC of 0. For example, if the THAC0 is 19, a roll of 19 or higher is needed to hit an enemy with an AC of 0. A roll of 1 is always a miss, and a roll of 20 is always a hit, called CRITICAL MISS and CRITICAL HIT respectively. AC = Armor Class, roughly how difficult a figure is to hit. AC starts with a base score of 10 and is improved by lowering the number. Therefore a 0 AC is better than a 10, and a -10 is better still. These two things are what determines when a hit (that scores damage) is made. THAC0 is the offensive end of the roll, and AC is the defensive end of the roll. A successful hit is decided when the random roll is greater than the attacker's THAC0 - enemy AC. If a 15 THAC0 Fighter attacks a 0 AC goblin then you must roll 15 or greater. (The game itself usually does the rolling for you, but it still follows these mechanics) Remember that a roll of 20 will always hit. So, even if the goblin's AC was -400, if you roll a 20 you will still hit it. If the goblin has 10 AC then you need only roll a 5 or better, etc. (THAC0 - EnemyAC = 15 - 10 = 5) Note: Just because you hit, that doesn't mean you'll deal damage. There is the concept in second edition D&D of weapon immunities. Some monsters require a certain type of weapon to be hit. Also, wizards can cast spells such as "Protection from Magic Weapons" which makes them temporarily immune to magic weapons. Baldur's Gate represents this by having characters say "my weapon is useless" or something similar. THAC0 Explained: ---------------- THAC0 defaults at 20 and is gradually lowered when levels are gained. Depending on the class (i.e. Fighter, Cleric, Mage) of the person involved the THAC0 will decrease at different rates. For a Fighter (or Ranger, or Paladin) THAC0 decreases by a score of 1 per level. A level 1 Fighter starts at 20 THAC0, but by level 10 he is at 11. (He has gained 9 levels, and so loses 9 THAC0) The lower the THAC0 the better, and there is no limit to how low it can go. THAC0 Progression by Level & Class Chart: Level Group 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 ----- -------------------------------------------------------------- Warrior 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 Wizard 20 20 20 19 19 19 18 18 18 17 17 17 16 16 16 15 Priest 20 20 20 18 18 18 16 16 16 14 14 14 12 12 12 10 Rogue 20 20 19 19 18 18 17 17 16 16 15 15 14 14 13 13 Patterns -------- Warrior 1 every level Wizard 1 every 3 levels Priest 2 every 3 levels Rogue 1 every 2 levels At this point we're still just referring to RAW THAC0, there are still several things that modify it before it is used. There are, in fact, four main things that modify THAC0 from here: Strength, Weapon, Special Effects, and Proficiency. A super low strength score will raise your THAC0 (which is bad), while super high Strengths will lower your THAC0 (which is good). STRENGTH as a THAC0 modifier STR THAC0 Adj. STR THAC0 Adj. 3 -3 17 +1 4 -2 18 +1 5 -2 18/01-50 +1 6 -1 18/51-75 +2 7 -1 18/76-90 +2 8 0 18/91-99 +2 9 0 18/00 +3 10 0 19 +3 11 0 20 +3 12 0 21 +4 13 0 22 +4 14 0 23 +5 15 0 24 +6 16 0 25 +7 Notice how any improvement in THAC0 is denoted by a +3 or a +4, while in fact these numbers are how much your THAC0 is DECREASED. A level 1 Fighter has 20 THAC0, but if he has 18/00 STR, his THAC0 is decreased to 17. The weapon used also has an effect on THAC0, both by the weapon itself and also through Proficiency (although Proficiency is an optional rule, and of the games listed at the top, only Baldur's Gate, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale, and Baldur's Gate II follow this rule). Generally speaking, the amount the THAC0 is changed is the number after the +. A Long Sword +1 would improve THAC0 by 1 point. There are exceptions to this, some weapons won't have a + but improve THAC0 anyway, and some will say +1, but will in fact improve THAC0 more than 1 point. In these cases, checking that items information will reveal how it modifies THAC0 (only available in some games). Note: To check the item information in BG1, BG2 and IWD, right click the item in the inventory screen. Also note that magical items are very often "NOT IDENTIFIED." Meaning that you won't know what they do until they are IDENTIFIED. See the FAQ below. Special Effects can be either a spell that improves THAC0 (Bless, for instance), or an Item that improves THAC0, but isn't a weapon, such as an Amulet of Thac0 +1. Proficiency was introduced to show what your character is skilled in, or not skilled in. It has only really been used since Baldur's Gate in 1998. Since proficiency represents your character's knowledge of the weapon being used, using a weapon that you don't have proficiency in will result in a penalty to THAC0 and to Damage. PROFICIENCY as a THAC0 Modifier: (Baldur's Gate I & II, Icewind Dale, Planescape: Torment only) Level of Proficiency Points Spent Bonus to Hit Non-Proficient 0 -2 (Warrior) -5 (Wizard) -3 (Priest or Rogue) Proficient 1 0 (but there is no penalty) Specialized 2 +1 Master 3 +3 High Master 4 +3 Grand Master 5 +3 As you can see, a Wizard using a weapon that he isn't proficient in will result in a steep penalty, so he could have 20 THAC0, but because he is using the wrong weapon his THAC0 leaps up to 25. Dexterity Note: Dexterity has one small effect on THAC0, but only towards the use of MISSILE WEAPONS (bows, crossbows, etc.). At a DEX of 16 you get a +1 to hit, 17 & 18 +2, and 19 +3. Armor Class Explained: ---------------------- Armor Class isn't really about armor. It is the composite of Armor and Dexterity that determines how hard it is for a damaging hit to be made. The base Armor Class (AC) is 10. Anything lower is better and makes your character harder to hit. It does NOT reduce the amount of damage taken. The first facet of Armor Class is your Dexterity Score. The higher the Dexterity, the lower (better) your Armor Class. This reflects your character's ability to dodge attacks. So, here, negative numbers are better. DEXTERITY as an Armor Class Modifier DEX AC Adj. DEX AC Adj. 3 +4 14 0 4 +3 15 -1 5 +2 16 -2 6 +1 17 -3 7 0 18 -4 8 0 19 -4 9 0 20 -4 10 0 21 -5 11 0 22 -5 12 0 23 -5 13 0 24 -6 25 -6 Whether you are on level 1 or level 20 your AC is still determined by the same two factors, DEX and Armor. So, a level 1 Fighter with a Dex of 18 would have an AC of 6 (before putting any armor on, BASE AC(10) + DEX ADJ.(-4) = AC). A level 20 fighter who has no armor would have the same AC with the same DEX. Which brings us to the BULK of where AC is made up, Armor. We will divide armor into two categories, actual Armor (such as Plate Mail Armor) and support Items (such as Ring of Protection +1). Armor usually lists what your AC will be based from the Base AC itself. So Leather Armor will list its AC as AC 8. What this means is that if you had the base AC of 10, wearing Leather Armor will decrease your AC to 8. If you do NOT have the Base AC (and who does), it still decreases your AC by 2 points. If we wanted to determine the AC of our 18 DEX Fighter wearing Leather Armor we would need to take the Leather Armor AC(8) + Dexterity Bonus(-4) to get 4. In this way you can think of your Armor's AC as REPLACING your Base AC. So instead of starting at 10, with Leather Armor you would start at 8. Armor as an AC modifier (not all armors are in all games) Armor AC Leather Armor 8 Studded Leather 7 Hide Armor 6 Scale Mail 6 Brigandine Armor 6 Chain Mail 5 Ring Mail 5 Elven Chainmail 5 Drow Chainmail 4 Banded/Splint Mail 4 Plate Mail 3 Field Plate 2 Full Plate 1 If an armor is said to be +1, or +2 that means that the armor has an extra special bonus attached that further lowers AC by that number. So a Chain Mail +4 would have an AC score of 1 rather than 5. In addition to your Armor, AC is also determined by special items being worn by the character. The most common special item is the common shield which improves AC by one point (our 4 AC, 18 DEX Leather Armor Fighter would then drop to 3 AC with a Shield). There are various varieties of shields, but they all do the same job. Other items would be Rings of Protection or Cloaks of Protection. These all improve the AC of the wearer. Note: Some games (Baldur's Gate, for example) allow only ONE extra protective item (not counting shields) to be worn at a time. This includes Magic Armors. So, if you wore a Chainmail +1, you couldn't wear a Ring of Protection +1. Or, if you had that Ring of Protection +1 you couldn't wear the Cloak of Protection +1. Magic can also function as armor, however, it usually acts in place of armor rather than as a bonus to it. Take the spell "Armor" or "Shield" for example. They set your AC to 6 and 4, respectively, but if you're wearing armor better than either, you get no extra benefit. There are some spells that provide a simple bonus, such as Defensive Harmony (BG1, BG2, IWD), so check spell descriptions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article 2: Magic ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Magic System used in AD&D is different from almost every other magic system out there. For one thing, there is no "Mana" system, or anything similar that most games run on. So, how does Magic work in the AD&D games? First, magic is divided into two main categories, MAGIC-USER and PRIEST. This is an important distinction as there are some subtle and some not-so-subtle differences between the two. Who Casts Which Magic Magic User Priest ---------- ------- Mage Cleric Bard Paladin (at experience level 9) Sorcerer Ranger (at experience level 8) Druid Separate from your EXPERIENCE LEVEL is your spellcaster's SPELL LEVEL. This is an important distinction that a lot of novices miss. A level 6 mage CANNOT cast level 6 spells. In fact, a mage can't cast level 6 spells until he has reached EXPERIENCE LEVEL 12. There are 9 Wizard SPELL LEVELS but only 7 Priest SPELL LEVELS. However, when a spell says that it becomes more powerful "for every 3 levels of the caster" it is referring to EXPERIENCE LEVELS rather than SPELL LEVELS. It's easiest to remember that you gain a SPELL LEVEL at every other EXPERIENCE LEVEL. So a mage starts at level 1, and can cast level 1 spells, at level 2, still just level 1 spells, but level 3, he gains abilities in the 2nd level spells. How powerful a spellcaster you are depends on the class of the magic-user or priest and on the stats as well. The Mage, Druid and Cleric are the only classes who can learn all spell levels. Druids and Clerics can only cast the 6th and 7th level spells if they have wisdoms of at least 17 or 18 respectively. (7th level is as far as Priest spells go) Spell Level Limit Mage * Depends on Intelligence, see Intelligence Chart below * Bard 6 Ranger 3 Paladin 4 This way a Bard can learn up to 6th level wizard spells, and a Ranger can learn up to 3rd, but no farther. You won't find Bards casting level 7 spells as it can't happen. Now that we understand who can do what, let's talk about how magic works more specifically. There are three steps towards casting a spell (depending on the game). 1. Add a spell to spellbook. Priests do this automatically and know every spell for their spell level. Mages need to find a spell scroll and scribe that spell into their spell book. Since Mages have to actually find a scroll and scribe it in, there is a chance that they might fail, which is based on their intelligence. (Clerics already know all spells so they can't fail) There is an intelligence chart later in this article. Mages are further limited by the number of spells they can learn per spell level, again this relates to intelligence. 2. Memorize the spell. Once the spell is in your spellbook, you need to decide which spells you want to "memorize". Only spells that you have memorized can be cast, and they can only be cast once per memorization. So if you memorize one Magic Missile, then you can cast one Magic Missile. The number of spells that you can memorize per spell level are listed below. The memorization process usually involves Resting for a set amount of time. Baldur's Gate does this through the spellbook (w) and the priest scroll (p) interfaces. Empty boxes represent spell slots that are available on the left, with known spells on the right. 3. And then you can actually cast the spell. Again, you only get to cast a memorized spell once before needing Rest to rememorize it. If you memorized a spell more than once (and you can memorize one spell as many times as you have free slots), you can cast it as many times as it was memorized. Spell Progression Charts by Class CLERIC / DRUID Spell Levels ----> 1 2 3 4 5 6* 7** Exp. Level 1 1 - - - - - - 2 2 - - - - - - 3 2 1 - - - - - 4 3 2 - - - - - 5 3 3 1 - - - - 6 3 3 2 - - - - 7 3 3 2 1 - - - 8 3 3 3 2 - - - 9 4 4 3 2 1 - - 10 4 4 3 2 2 - - 11 5 4 4 3 2 1 - 12 6 5 5 3 2 2 - 13 6 6 6 4 2 2 - 14 6 6 6 5 3 2 1 15 6 6 6 6 4 2 1 16 7 7 7 6 4 3 1 17 7 7 7 7 5 3 2 18 8 8 8 8 6 4 2 19 9 9 8 8 6 4 2 20 9 9 9 8 7 5 2 * Use of 6th level spells requires a WIS of 17 or greater ** Use of 7th level spells requires a WIS of 18 or greater PALADIN Spell Levels ----> 1 2 3 4 Exp. Level Casting Level* 9 1 1 - - - 10 2 2 - - - 11 3 2 1 - - 12 4 2 2 - - 13 5 2 2 1 - 14 6 3 2 1 - 15 7 3 2 1 1 16 8 3 3 2 1 17 9 3 3 3 1 18 9 3 3 3 1 19 9 3 3 3 2 20 9 3 3 3 3 * Casting Level is the effective EXPERIENCE LEVEL the Paladin is for purposes of spellcasting. If a spell is more powerful for higher EXP LEVELS, this is the level they're referring to, not his actual EXP LEVEL. Because of this, Paladins make poor spellcasters. RANGER Spell Levels ----> 1 2 3 Exp. Level Casting Level* 9 1 1 - - 10 2 2 - - 11 3 2 1 - 12 4 2 2 - 13 5 2 2 1 14 6 3 2 1 15 7 3 2 2 16 8 3 3 3 * Casting Level is the effective EXPERIENCE LEVEL the Ranger is for purposes of spellcasting. If a spell is more powerful for higher EXP LEVELS, this is the level they're referring to, not his actual EXP LEVEL. MAGE Spell Levels ----> 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Exp. Level 1 1 - - - - - - - - 2 2 - - - - - - - - 3 2 1 - - - - - - - 4 3 2 - - - - - - - 5 4 2 1 - - - - - - 6 4 2 2 - - - - - - 7 4 3 2 1 - - - - - 8 4 3 3 2 - - - - - 9 4 3 3 2 1 - - - - 10 4 4 3 2 2 - - - - 11 4 4 4 3 3 - - - - 12 4 4 4 4 4 1 - - - 13 5 5 5 4 4 2 - - - 14 5 5 5 4 4 2 1 - - 15 5 5 5 5 5 2 1 - - 16 5 5 5 5 5 3 2 1 - 17 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 2 - 18 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 2 1 19 5 5 5 5 5 3 3 3 1 20 5 5 5 5 5 4 3 3 2 BARD Spell Levels ----> 1 2 3 4 5 6 Exp. Level 1 - - - - - - 2 1 - - - - - 3 2 - - - - - 4 2 1 - - - - 5 3 1 - - - - 6 3 2 - - - - 7 3 2 1 - - - 8 3 3 1 - - - 9 3 3 2 - - - 10 3 3 2 1 - - 11 3 3 3 1 - - 12 3 3 3 2 - - 13 3 3 3 2 1 - 14 3 3 3 3 1 - 15 3 3 3 3 2 - 16 4 3 3 3 2 1 17 4 4 3 3 3 1 18 4 4 4 3 3 2 19 4 4 4 4 3 2 20 4 4 4 4 4 3 The final concept that we'll deal with here are the Stat bonuses as they relate to spellcasting. The two stats in question are, of course, WISDOM and INTELLIGENCE. Only Priests gain extra casting spells per level (the number of spells which can be memorized and cast), however Mages are very dependent upon Intelligence for other things, such as % to scribe a spell into their spellbook and how many spells they can know per spell level. A lot of games don't deal with some of these stats. Intelligence as it relates to Mages Intelligence Max Spell Level % to Learn Spell # Spells / Level ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ 8 -- can't cast magic at these levels -- 9 4th 35% 6 10 5th 40 7 11 5th 45 7 12 6th 50 7 13 6th 55 9 14 7th 60 9 15 7th 65 11 16 8th 70 11 17 8th 75 14 18 9th 85 18 19 9th 95 All 20 9th 96 All 21 9th 97 All 22 9th 98 All 23 9th 99 All 24 9th 100 All 25 9th 100 All So a Mage with only 17 INT can't learn 9th level spells, has a 75% chance to copy a scroll into his spellbook, and can only learn 14 spells per level anyway. Thus we see why having an 18 INT mage is important. Wisdom as it relates to Priests Wisdom Bonus Spells % Spell Failure ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ 8 -- can't cast spells at this level -- 9 0 20 10 0 15 11 0 10 12 0 5 13 +1 1st level 0 14 +1 1st level 0 15 +1 2nd level 0 16 +1 2nd level 0 17 +1 3rd level 0 18 +1 4th level 0 19 +1 1st & +1 4th 0 20 +1 2nd & +1 4th 0 21 +1 3rd & +1 5th 0 22 +1 4th & +1 5th 0 23 +2 5th 0 24 +2 6th 0 25 +1 6th & +1 7th Note: Bonus spells are cumulative, so an 18 WIS cleric would get +2 1st level, +2 2nd level, +1 3rd level and +1 4th level spells. While a 13 WIS cleric would get only +1 1st level. Also Note: Paladins and Rangers don't get Bonus Spells. Final Note: If you, or any spellcaster, is hit while casting their spell, the spell is interrupted and won't be cast. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article 3: Levels ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- With the proliferation of less "realistic" RPG levelling systems, I am often asked why your stats never improve when you gain levels, and what levels do gain you; which is what this article is all about. (of course, it didn't help that Torment DID give you stat increases) Basically, there are three things that levels improve: Hit Points, THAC0, and Saving Throws. (There are other "secondary" effects of higher levels, such as more powerful magics, but that isn't necessary to understand the basics here) Hit Points gained per level: level Fighters Priests Rogues Wizards ----------------------------------------------- 1 to 9 10 8 6 4 10+ 3 2 2 1 You gain most of your character's HP during the first 9 levels. A Fighter with average Constitution will gain 10 HP a level, and so could be a level 9 fighter with 90 HP (assuming that you got max HP each level). The number of HP you get is usually random. Meaning you can get anywhere from 1 to your classes max (in the Fighters case, he would gain between 1 - 10 HP a level). Also for the first 9 levels you will also gain a Constitution bonus to your HP. Constitution HP Bonuses: CON HP Adj. CON HP Adj. 3 -1 15 +1 4 -1 16 +2 5 -1 17 +2 (+3) 6 0 18 +2 (+4) 7 0 19 +2 (+5) 8 0 20 +2 (+5) 9 0 21 +2 (+6) 10 0 22 +2 (+6) 11 0 23 +2 (+6) 12 0 24 +2 (+7) 13 0 25 +2 (+7) 14 0 Only Fighters/Paladins/Rangers gain the CON bonus in the parenthesis. Because of this, only these classes need a CON score above 16. So, a Fighter with 18 CON (the best a Human can get) COULD gain 14 HP a level. (the range would be 5-14) Finally there are Saving Throws. Saving Throws represent your character's ability to avoid various effects, such as a Death Spell. If he has good enough Saving Throws (and makes the random roll) then he can survive the spell. These also improve as you go up in level, with the lower scores being better (just like golf). Saving Throws per Level: Para/Pois/ Petrification/ Breath Class Level Death Wand Polymorph Weapon Spell --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Priest 1 to 3 10 14 13 16 15 4-6 9 13 12 15 14 7-9 7 11 10 13 12 10-12 6 10 9 12 11 13-15 5 9 8 11 10 16-18 4 8 7 10 9 19+ 2 6 5 8 7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rogues 1-4 13 14 12 16 15 5-8 12 12 11 15 13 9-12 11 10 10 14 11 13-16 10 8 9 13 9 17-20 9 6 8 12 7 21+ 8 4 7 11 5 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Warriors 1-2 14 16 15 17 17 3-4 13 15 14 16 16 5-6 11 13 12 13 14 7-8 10 12 11 12 13 9-10 8 10 9 9 11 11-12 7 9 8 8 10 13-14 5 7 6 5 8 15-16 4 6 5 4 7 17+ 3 5 4 4 6 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Wizards 1-5 14 11 13 15 12 6-10 13 9 11 13 10 11-15 11 7 9 11 8 16-20 10 5 7 9 6 21+ 8 3 5 7 4 Items can also improve Saving Throws. A Ring of Protection +1 adds both a +1 to AC and Saves. At higher levels, saving throws become much more important than AC as monsters will use many spells and supernatural abilities against you. Note: Saving throws are better when they're lower, and can even go into the negatives. However, the random roll is still 1 to 20. Thus, someone with a -2 Save vs. Death should always make that save, although some spells will state that all saves against that spell are made at a penalty. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Article 4: Multiclassing and Dual Classing ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Normally the 2nd Edition AD&D rules allows for 8 character classes: Paladin* Bard* Fighter Ranger Druid Cleric Mage Thief * Cannot be multi/dual classed Not all of these classes will be in all games. There are also combinations of these classes called, Multiclasses, where one person can be two or three classes at once. Humans cannot multiclass, they can only Dual class. Which multiclass you can be depends on the race of your character. Races and Multiclasses: ----------------------- Dwarf Halfling ----- -------- Fighter/Thief Fighter/Thief Fighter/Cleric Half-Elf Elf -------- --- Fighter/Cleric Fighter/Mage Fighter/Thief Fighter/Thief Fighter/Druid** Mage/Thief Fighter/Mage Fighter/Mage/Thief Cleric/Ranger Cleric/Mage Gnome Thief/Mage ----- Fighter/Mage/Cleric Fighter/Cleric Fighter/Mage/Thief Fighter/Illusionist* Fighter/Thief Cleric/Illusionist* Cleric/Thief Illusionist/Thief* *Illusionists are not in all games, this could be considered "mage" **Druids are not in all games As you can see, Half-Elves are the most versatile of all races when it comes to multiclassing. Experience for the multiclassed character is divided evenly among his various classes. If a Fighter/Thief gains 1000 experience from killing an evil Halfling of Doom, then his Fighter half gains 500 experience and his Thief half gains 500 experience. Thusly, the multiclassed character usually levels up at half the speed of "plain" characters. This does not mean that this multi- character will be half the levels, he usually is only a couple levels behind. Hitpoints are handled similarly. When the Fighter/Thief gains a Fighter level, he gains 1/2 the normal Fighter HP. Fighters normally get 10 HP per level, and the Fighter/Thief would gain 5 HP max for a Fighter level and 3 for the Thief level. Constitution bonuses are handled in one of two ways: 1) You get the bonus once per number level. So, our Fighter/Thief would get the CON bonus when his Thief level goes up as that levels up faster. 2) The CON bonus is divided by your number of classes and you get one part per each class' level. If you were a Fighter/Thief you would still get the extra CON for warriors. Dual classing is the Human answer to Multiclassing. At level 2 or higher, the human can decide to switch to a new class. Then for a time he will be JUST that class until his new class exceeds the level of his old class. At that point your old classes' abilities return and you become similar to a Multiclass... except that you are only levelling one class now, rather than dividing your exp amongst classes. Note: As far as I know, only the Baldur's Gate/Infinity Engine games have implemented Dual Classing. Bryan A. Keith mentions that some of the later Gold Box games implemented Dual Classing (Curse and beyond). There are several conditions to Dual Classing: 1) You MUST be Human. 2) You MUST be at least level 2. 3) You MUST start from a Class that can dual. Paladins/Bards cannot Dual to anything, nor can you dual anyone to a Bard/Paladin. 4) The combination MUST be a valid "Multiclass." If you can't find it on the list above (ignore the race restrictions), then you can't dual it. An example of an ILLEGAL class would be a Fighter/Ranger. Not a valid Multiclass, so you can't Dual it either. 5) You need to have sufficient Stats. You need at least 15 in the Prime Stats of your current class (i.e. 15 STR for a Fighter) and at least 17 in the Prime Stats of your desired class (i.e. 17 INT for a Mage). Note: Specialist Mages have an extra "Prime Stat" beyond just INT. 6) Finally there is also an Alignment Requirement. Thieves cannot be Lawful, so a Lawful Good Fighter cannot Dual to a Thief. Also Druids must be True Neutral. So, a level 2, Neutral Good Fighter with 15 STR and 17 DEX can dual to a Thief. While a level 2, Neutral Good Thief with 15 STR and 17 DEX can't dual to fighter. (he would need 17 STR and 15 DEX) When the first hypothetical character gained level 3 as a Thief, he would become a true Fighter/Thief, however he would only gain Thief levels. Note: It doesn't matter which order you go from. You can start out as a Thief and dual to a Fighter, or a Fighter to a Thief. It amounts to the same thing. Which way you do it only affects which class will continue to gain experience. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Frequently Asked Questions ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Q: What is a CRPG? A: Computer Role Playing Game. Q: Aren't there other AD&D games that you didn't mention in your list? What about the Dragonlance games? A: I am completely unfamiliar with those games to be able to say how they implemented the rules. They might not even be based on the AD&D ruleset for all I know. Q: Why don't my stats improve when I get a level? A: Stats such as Strength and Dexterity are considered "set" when you start your adventure. Other stats such as HP and THAC0 improve as you go up in level. This is a more realistic (though I use that term loosely) system than most of the others out there in which your stats improve upon every level up. Killing monsters doesn't make you stronger, smarter, or faster, it merely gives the experience allowing you to kill monsters easier. Q: I have a magic item, but I don't know what it does? How can I get it IDENTIFIED? A: Three ways: 1.) Lore. (At least in BG1, IWD1, BG2 and PST) All characters have a certain Lore skill that is based on class/levels and int/wis. Bards get the most while fighters get the least. Every item has a lore value. (which you don't know) If your character's Lore is equal to the item's Lore, the item is identified for free. (usually done with a right-click in the inventory screen) 2.) The Identify spell. In Baldur's Gate, right click the item, click Identify, and by Scroll (if you have one) or by Spell (if you have it memorized). Only done by wizards. 3.) At stores. The most common way in all games, all stores will IDENTIFY items for you for a fee. Q: I'm stuck in [game], where is the [whatever]? A: Of the games listed, I have made only 5 walkthroughs, Dungeon Hack, Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, Baldur's Gate II and Planescape: Torment. If your question isn't about one of those games, and has nothing to do with the general rules system, don't ask. Q: In [game] the rules are different than you say here. What gives? A: Not every game has all the rules, and often they change them to fit within the confines of their game better. These are the 2nd Edition AD&D Rules. Whether the game makers adhered to these rules is another matter. Q: Where can I get any of these old games, like Dungeon Hack or Pool of Radiance? A: Try the Interplay Forgotten Realms Archives Silver Edition. I can't find any place online to buy this, but it might pop up on eBay or another auction site. Just don't expect Baldur's Gate style action, these games are quite primitive. I do not know where you could get any of the other games. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Final Words... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This FAQ was written entirely using the GWD Text Editor: (shareware) http://www.gwdsoft.com/ _________________________ Special Thanks: (Credits) ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ Poromenos who pointed out that I said Paladin when I should say Ranger Jopezu for pointing out a THAC0/AC error Leo Wang for some pointers Edward Lacey for pointing out Dexterity as a THAC0 modifier CJayC for posting this FAQ Anyone who emails me with nice things to say, you are appreciated! _________________________ Shameless Self Promotion: ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ I am Dan Simpson (dsimpson.faqs@gmail.com) and have also written FAQs for: NES: Disney Adventures in the Magic Kingdom Final Fantasy -- Magic FAQ The Legend of Zelda SNES: Aerobiz Aerobiz Supersonic Utopia: Creation of a Nation Genesis: StarFlight PSX: Thousand Arms -- Walkthrough -- Forging/Dating FAQ PS2: Madden NFL 2001 XBOX: Star Wars: KotOR II: The Sith Lords -- FAQ/Walkthrough -- Influence Guide PC: AD&D Rules FAQ, 2nd and 3rd Editions Baldur's Gate & Tales of the Sword Coast -- FAQ/Walkthrough NPC List Creature List Baldur's Gate II & Throne of Bhaal -- FAQ/Walkthrough -- Items List -- Class FAQ -- Creature List Civilization III (incomplete) Colonization -- the Single Colony Strategy Guide -- the Cheat Guide Drakan: Order of the Flame Dungeon Hack Icewind Dale & Heart of Winter -- FAQ/Walkthrough Items List Kresselack's Tomb Map (JPG) Burial Isle Map (JPG) Shattered Hand Map (JPG) Icewind Dale II -- Items List Master of Magic (revision) Messiah Pharaoh (currently being edited by Red Phoenix) Planescape: Torment -- FAQ/Walkthrough Items Listing Rollercoaster Tycoon Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri The Sims Ultima 4: Quest of the Avatar Ultima 7: The Black Gate Ultima 7 Part 2: Serpent Isle Ultima Underworld -- Keyboard Commands Ultima Underworld II -- Keyboard Commands -- Spell List All of my FAQs can be found at: http://www.gamefaqs.com/features/recognition/2203.html ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ ________________ Version History: ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ Version 1.0 August 15, 2000 19k Version 2.0 August 17, 2000 33k Added the Magic Article. Version 2.1 August 20, 2000 34k Added a Dexterity Note to the Article on THAC0, and some other small changes. Version 3.0 October 26, 2000 39k Filled in the Levels article. Other small updates. Version 4.0 November 26, 2000 44k Filled in the Multi/Dual Classing article. So, barring questions, this guide is finished. Version 4.1 May 31, 2001 45k Corrected a small mistake in the THAC0/AC section. (thanks to Jopezu) Version 4.2 June 18, 2001 45k Corrected a mistake (with thanks to Poromenos). Version 4.3 Septebmer 11, 2002 45k Tiny changes. Version 4.4 December 22, 2004 49k Clarified a few things. Version 4.41 January 17, 2005 49k Changed email addresses. Small changes to the format. _______________________________________________________________________________ ŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻŻ This Document is Copyright 2000-2005 by Dan Simpson and is intended SOLELY to help people with little or no AD&D experience get by in oft confusing CRPGs. DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, ADVANCED DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, AD&D, and all related marks are Trademarks, Registered Trademarks, or Copyrights owned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc. All rights reserved. This FAQ may be posted on any site so long as NOTHING IS CHANGED and you EMAIL ME telling me that you are posting it. You may not charge for, or in any way profit from this FAQ.