So most of us have probably heard of "solo insane poverty sorcerer play-throughs". But my question is, can it be done with a monk, and what steps would be required for it to work? Soloing BG2 as a monk is definitely possible, albeit challenging. But on a poverty run? Also, one of the biggest challenges for the hero would be BG1. Does BG1 REQUIRE magical combat to succeed, or can you flee from enemies requiring magical equipment?
For those of you who aren't aware, a "poverty" run-through is where you pick up absolutely no items or gold. Of course this doesn't apply to quest items, since those are required, but it does apply to every piece of non-quest equipment. Previously, the only class that "could" do this was the sorcerer, due to his offensive and defensive power coming straight from his spells, which are gained naturally. The monk's only true weapons are his fists, however, and they do gain an enchantment bonus naturally, up to +4, which is, to my knowledge, enough to kill anything in the game. The monk also gains a great deal of sheer combat potential, what with his eventual magic resistance of 78%, and his excellent offensive and defensive abilities. Now, are these enough? What about traps, or locks, or any number of things that might interfere?
Below I've laid out a few basic options to increase the monk's chances of success.
1. 108 total ability roll.
This would mean that the monk has an 18 in all stats. This isn't absolutely necessary, as some of his stats really don't gain any use from being that high. However, for the sake of the character, I decided on this anyway. So, this would mean that he has...
18 STR: The highest possible damage and THAC0 modifier available. This can't be increased to the (very handy) 19 in BG1 due to the nature of a poverty run-through, but it could be increased in Watcher's Keep, or the hell trials. Up to either 19 or (assuming the character chooses a path of evil) 21.
18 DEX: This would give the monk the best possible AC, which would be very handy, considering he'll be lacking armor. This could be increased to 20 if the character chooses to be evil, but the bonus wouldn't change much, since the monk won't be using ranged equipment.
18 CON: This would give the monk the largest possible health bonus. On the other hand, the monk does not NEED anything higher than a 16, and only if the monk becomes evil would he attain the 20+ required for regeneration.
18 INT: The biggest use of this is simply allowing the monk to survive against illithids for longer. Not much to say beyond that.
18 WIS: Completely pointless. The monk won't be identifying anything, so why would he need the lore bonus, which is all he would get from it.
18 CHA: Since the monk won't be bartering, this really won't do much, other than occasionally allow for better quest rewards and opportunities.
2. Easy difficulty.
This might not be the "uber hard challenge" that many people want, but it would greatly increase his chances of success.
3. Exceptions.
Maybe he needs a certain item to survive, or maybe he needs a weapon to succeed in BG1, who knows. Point is, what exceptions might need to be made, or are there even any?
4. Level Un-cappers.
This would mainly solve the lack of magical fists in BG1, as it would allow the monk to level past level 8 and gain +1 fists at level 9.
Any ideas? Any tips? Any memories from personal attempts? Share and discuss.
For those of you who aren't aware, a "poverty" run-through is where you pick up absolutely no items or gold. Of course this doesn't apply to quest items, since those are required, but it does apply to every piece of non-quest equipment. Previously, the only class that "could" do this was the sorcerer, due to his offensive and defensive power coming straight from his spells, which are gained naturally. The monk's only true weapons are his fists, however, and they do gain an enchantment bonus naturally, up to +4, which is, to my knowledge, enough to kill anything in the game. The monk also gains a great deal of sheer combat potential, what with his eventual magic resistance of 78%, and his excellent offensive and defensive abilities. Now, are these enough? What about traps, or locks, or any number of things that might interfere?
Below I've laid out a few basic options to increase the monk's chances of success.
1. 108 total ability roll.
This would mean that the monk has an 18 in all stats. This isn't absolutely necessary, as some of his stats really don't gain any use from being that high. However, for the sake of the character, I decided on this anyway. So, this would mean that he has...
18 STR: The highest possible damage and THAC0 modifier available. This can't be increased to the (very handy) 19 in BG1 due to the nature of a poverty run-through, but it could be increased in Watcher's Keep, or the hell trials. Up to either 19 or (assuming the character chooses a path of evil) 21.
18 DEX: This would give the monk the best possible AC, which would be very handy, considering he'll be lacking armor. This could be increased to 20 if the character chooses to be evil, but the bonus wouldn't change much, since the monk won't be using ranged equipment.
18 CON: This would give the monk the largest possible health bonus. On the other hand, the monk does not NEED anything higher than a 16, and only if the monk becomes evil would he attain the 20+ required for regeneration.
18 INT: The biggest use of this is simply allowing the monk to survive against illithids for longer. Not much to say beyond that.
18 WIS: Completely pointless. The monk won't be identifying anything, so why would he need the lore bonus, which is all he would get from it.
18 CHA: Since the monk won't be bartering, this really won't do much, other than occasionally allow for better quest rewards and opportunities.
2. Easy difficulty.
This might not be the "uber hard challenge" that many people want, but it would greatly increase his chances of success.
3. Exceptions.
Maybe he needs a certain item to survive, or maybe he needs a weapon to succeed in BG1, who knows. Point is, what exceptions might need to be made, or are there even any?
4. Level Un-cappers.
This would mainly solve the lack of magical fists in BG1, as it would allow the monk to level past level 8 and gain +1 fists at level 9.
Any ideas? Any tips? Any memories from personal attempts? Share and discuss.