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Need tips for keeping a Kensai alive

Discussion in 'BG2: Throne of Bhaal (Classic)' started by supafamous, Jul 19, 2004.

  1. supafamous Gems: 2/31
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    I am only in chapter two, but I spend so much time micro-managing my kensai to keep him up and swinging. I need some ideas for getting his armor class down.
     
  2. Aldeth the Foppish Idiot

    Aldeth the Foppish Idiot Armed with My Mallet O' Thinking Veteran

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    There's not a heck of a lot you can do - that's the kensai's weakness - improved damage paid for by lack of armor.

    What I generally do with a kensai is make sure he isn't the first person to engage in the melee - usually done by keeping him in the second row of the party. The guys with the heaviest armor are in the front row, and they engage the enemy a few seconds before the kensai gets there. As the enemy usually starts swinging at the first thing it sees, and doesn't stop unless the character runs away, this usually proves to be quite the effective strategy. The guys with the heaviest armor are the ones taking the damage, while the kensai is chopping up your foes into little chunck sized foe-bits.
     
  3. Blog Gems: 23/31
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    If you've got a party, let someone else engage the enemy first. (Ideally it should be a tank like Minsc, but mages with Stoneskin could also work.) Then you can send your kensai in to flank the foes and cut them up. This way your kensai isn't surrounded and targetted. Just make sure the tank doesn't die, or else we're back to square one.

    Other than that, just try to improve your AC like you said. Cloaks, rings, necklaces, 18 dexterity. Potions also keep you alive - extra healing, and invulnerability (IIRC sets base AC to 0).
     
  4. Truper Gems: 8/31
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    Couple things you can do. Have your cleric cast barkskin on your Kensai before a big fight. Helps alot.

    One thing I like to do with Kensais that really makes sense from a role-playing if not power-gaming standpoint is to have them specialize in single weapon style. Gets you another 2 AC that a Kensai desperately needs. And after all, a Kensai is one with his sword, not swords, however tempting having him dual-wield might be :)
     
  5. Shrikant

    Shrikant Swords! Not words! Veteran

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    Go do the Planer Sphere quest. You will get a cloak there which will get you AC below 0. If your Kensai is in a party use the single line grouping and place him at the end. This ensures he is the last to join in the fray.
    Try getting Celestial Fury if you have someone who can use Katanas. No monsters which hunt in a group can resist its stun ability. Thus there is a lesser chance of someone wailing on him.
     
  6. Earl Grey

    Earl Grey Mmm... hot tea! Veteran

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    Have a mage cast Spirit Armor on him.
     
  7. Evil Dad Gems: 15/31
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    Cloak of Shield helps a lot. Plus, get improved invis cast on him.
     
  8. david w Gems: 19/31
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    I'm confused. I've always heard how Kensai are the most powerful class in the game and yet from what people have said above they seem more like the worse. Is it only later in the game that their abilities begin to shine through?
     
  9. NonSequitur Gems: 19/31
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    In lieu of a better analogy, Kensai are the kamikazes of BG2. Sure, they do hideous damage, but they crash and burn easily. After about level 9, with the increasing Kensai bonuses, they start to get better, but it's really only mid-game (level 12 or so) that a Kensai becomes a truly fearsome combatant.

    The usual assortment of rings and cloaks work well in this regard, and when you can get it, the Ring of Gaxx is a must for a Kensai (-2 AC, immune to poison/disease, regeneration). If you don't have the mod where the Cloak of the Shield gives you a base AC of 2, the Amulet of the Shield that you get in De'Arnise Keep is excellent - 40-odd charges, sets base AC to about 4 for a few turns. This is easily enough time to hack anything in Chapter 2 into tiny pieces. It will see you through enough difficult combats, and if it runs low you can always sell it and buy it back recharged (for a fair price, if you're not evil). Barkskin, Improved Invisibility and Defensive Harmony help as well, so does Haste (if it's dead, it can't hurt you).
     
  10. Earl Grey

    Earl Grey Mmm... hot tea! Veteran

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    NonSequitur wrote
    If your kensai is suicidal, you're using him the wrong way.
    A better analogy would be that a kensai is like air support for ground troops. Your ground troops engage the enemy and call on air support to break the enemy resistance.

    Not necessarily. IMHO it's better to really boost the AC of your best tank as much as possible to make him close to untouchable. It depends on which characters you have though.

    Unless you're soloing that's not very good.
    Use Spirit Armor, as I stated in my earlier post. Spirit Armor gives you a base AC of 1, last a long time and also gives a save bonus.

    Barkskin. Duration is so short you usually need to cast it in battle, which is a waste of a good action. If you can prep with Barkskin before battle it's ok.
    Impr Invisibility is great, as is Mass Invisibility later on.
    Defensive Harmony is ok, but 6 rounds duration make it difficult to use. I really don't like casting these kind of defensive spells while in battle, but again, if you can prep before battle with it it's good.
    Haste. This fits perfectly with how I think a kensai should be used - like a fire brigade. The first Boots of Speed should go to the kensai.
     
  11. Benan Gems: 20/31
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    I'm just about done with my Kensai in ToB, I never really had any problem with him getting injured in combat. But now for a Kensai I swear by the Rings and cloaks of Protection. Also get him a set of Boots of Speed and a Belt of Any Giant Sterngth. If you hit them fast enough and hard enough then they should be long dead before you begin to show the injuries. If you have the Deck of Many Things, pray that you get Ring of Protection+3. It helps alot.
     
  12. supafamous Gems: 2/31
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    Thanks for all the tips, as this is my first time through the game, I guess I shouldn'y have counted on him as being one of my main fighters. The party consists os a paladin (the leader), Kensai, Archer, Cleric and Conjurer. The other slot is open for NPC's. I'll try casting shield spells on him.
     
  13. NonSequitur Gems: 19/31
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    Hey, just suggesting what worked for my Kensai. Of course, I did mine the usual one-PC way. If you've got a whole party and the Kensai is human with high enough DEX or INT, you may want to consider dual-classing the Kensai at level 9 or 12 to either a thief or a mage. Both are quite powerful and since you don't seem to have a thief or back-up spellcaster, dual-classing the Kensai or grabbing Imoen/Jan/Nalia would be ways to provide these skills. A Kensai/Thief makes an awesome mage-killer, especially in ToB with the high-level abilities of the thief class, and with (Improved) Haste + Assassinate, a kensai/thief is a deadly opponent in open melee as well as when backstabbing.

    A better analogy, yes - at least until ToB, when everything hits you anyway, so AC is less important than resistances/immunities/HP. I was assuming that the "round the corner buffing" was being done, in which case those spells will last long enough, and Defensive Harmony has a casting time of virtually nothing, so a cleric can easily whip it out in combat. But yours is better advice than mine, though - I didn't even know you COULD cast Spirit Armour on another character... I still have much to learn.
     
  14. Klorox

    Klorox Baruk Khazad! Khazad ai-mĂȘnu! Veteran

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    I don't think Kensai's are the best class in the world, although I thought that way when I began playing (since they deal out so much damage!).

    Kensai's are awesome if you dual class them, but otherwise I'd prefer a Berserker.

    I've always found thatthe Shield Amulet (DeArnise Keep) is very useful in keeping him alive, along with as high as possible DEX and CON scores.
     
  15. Scythesong Immortal Gems: 19/31
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    A comment on the idea that AC doesn't matter in ToB.
    AC does matter a lot in ToB. With the right items some NPC's can have their AC's lowered to the point that only "boss-characters" can get a decent hit at them. Besides, there's a difference between getting hit, and not getting hit as much - especially when we're talking about 30+ average damage, a standard in ToB.
    Not wearing armor also seems to affect how much damage you take. I'll need this verified (Rastor's presence would be very much appreciated right about now), but I've noticed this enough to be 80% sure. (I've experimented some, and this especially is apparent with piercing damage types).
     
  16. Earl Grey

    Earl Grey Mmm... hot tea! Veteran

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    This is why I recommend getting the best possible AC on one of your tanks. It makes that character very difficult to hit, even in ToB. Then accept that your kensai will get hit if enemies attack him, but use him to hit and run already engaged enemies whenever possible.
     
  17. Aldeth the Foppish Idiot

    Aldeth the Foppish Idiot Armed with My Mallet O' Thinking Veteran

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    So what's the problem? Use the party configuration that allows for three rows of two characters (even though you only have 5 characters - I'm assuming you're leaving the 6th spot open to pick up various NPCs). First row put the paladin and cleric to soak up damage, as they definitely have the best AC in the grouup. 2nd row would be the kensai and the conjuror, and the last row would be the archer and the NPC flavor of the day. Generally speaking you want the people with the lowest (and by that I mean worst) AC to be in the middle, in case someone circles around from behind. Sure, the archer won't have great AC, but the fact that he'll be wearing magical studded leather armor will mean it's better than the mage or kensai.
     
  18. supafamous Gems: 2/31
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    I never thought of the cleric as being a meat shield, interesting
     
  19. Aldeth the Foppish Idiot

    Aldeth the Foppish Idiot Armed with My Mallet O' Thinking Veteran

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    Obviously, the fighter classes (which includes ranger, paladin, and barbarian) are the ideal choices, but clerics do work. A cleric has all the advantages of the best armor that a fighter can use, and can use a shield. The only downside with a cleric is he will have slightly fewer hp than a fighter.

    Assuming 18 Con for all classes aqnd lets say, level 20 for instance, your max hp look like:

    Barbarian - 177
    Ranger, Paladin, Fighter - 159
    Cleric - 112

    So you do have less hp, but not so much less that you can't take a hit and keep going.
     
  20. chevalier

    chevalier Knight of Everfull Chalice ★ SPS Account Holder Veteran

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    The kensai are most often used for dual-classing, I suppose. Works like charm for fighter/mages, for example.

    You will need buffs to your DEX and lots of protective magic. From spells or from items. Defensive harmony is short. Barkskin lasts longer, though isn't so spectacular. You can use items that cast spells on the wielder. Some of those hold defensive spells. Improved invisibility is one of the best combat spells ever and you should definitely have it on your kensai.

    What are your stats? Perhaps you could dual to something, if you're human.
     
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