I write down the differences between NWN1 and NWN2.
I play both games and sometimes its really confusing.
Please post it if you find more of this.

-In NWN1 you can have up to 3 different classes, in NWN2 up to 4.

-Epic character progression.
In NWN2 the BAB (base attac bonus), attacs per round and saving throws increase from level 1 to 30 dependant on the class(es) you choose. You can only have up to 10 levels in a prestige class. Some prestige classes are limited to 5 levels. Epic character means only that you can select epic feats above character level 20.

In NWN1 it is more complicated.
+You BAB and saving throws will go up by 1 every second level above 20 with every class.
+You do NOT gain additional attacs above level 20, no matter what your BAB my be.
+in all prestige classes that have 10 levels, you can get more than 10 levels if your character level is above 20.

-weapon profiencies change:
Good news for kukri and scythe users in NWN2. Those were exotic in NWN1 but they are martial in NWN2.
NWN1 had double weapons but NWN2 does not.

-In NWN2 you can control and equip your group members in the same way as your main character.

In NWN1 you can give general commands to your henchman but you cannot control them directly.
In the OC you cannot use the inventory of your henchman but in the expansions you can.

Bad news for Kukri and Scythe: the "keen" weapon property no longer stacks with the "improved critical" feat, so their best combo is gone in NWN2.


Here's some other ones off the top of my head:


Ability bonuses no longer stack in NWN2. Stat-boosting items do not stack with each other, nor do they stack with stat-boosting spells or class abilities like the barbarian's rage. The only thing that they stack with is the Red Dragon Disciple's ability boosts (which are permanent increases to your base scores). Same goes for saving throw bonuses, which also stacked in NWN1 but do not in NWN2. The only thing that didn't stack in NWN1 were AC bonuses; each category (except dodge) only applied the best bonus. Penalties still stack normally, however.


In NWN1, humans can use both their starting feats on 1st-level exclusives like "Luck of Heroes". In NWN2 they get to pick one and only one.


Haste in NWN1 vastly increases the speed at which you can cast spells. In NWN2 it does not affect spellcasting speed (thank goodness...)


NWN1 has the discipline skill for resisting things like called shots or knockdown. In NWN2 this has been removed and a standardized system put in place.

Hope it's alright that I revive this thread. It has proven useful to me.

I want to enjoy NWN2, but it was feeling really complex. I'm far into the main campaign on my bard, but I see I should have multil-classed long ago.

Gonna try a ranger out to see if things are simpler. Any suggestions on what to multi-class with him?

I know this is an old post I'm quoting here, but:

I'm not sure how accurate this is. Even if it does mean your spellcasting speed is enhanced, Haste still doesn't allow you to cast more than one spell per round in NWN1.

You don't have to multiclass your Bard, although I tend to give mine 4 levels of Fighter by level 20. One level early on to get the proficiencies in armor and weapons as well as the extra feat, then 3 more levels later on to get the full attack routine (this may not be as much of an issue in NWN2 since your BAB progression still keeps going in epic levels) and extra feats.

If you think you need to multiclass your Bard, you can still do so at any time. What level is he/she and what were you thinking of multiclassing into?

As for the Ranger, you don't need to multi him either if you don't want to. Although I played one through the original campaign and right to the end of MotB and took a single level of Fighter (for the extra feat), Cleric (totally a cheese move for the domain feats), and Rogue (again a cheese move to get access to the skill set as class skills). I added Able Learner so the Rogue skills wouldn't cost double and I was all set. Dual wielded with weapons I made during the campaigns. This character was a whirlwind mix-master on crack.

Single-class Bard works just fine; my first playthrough of NWN2 OC was with a Drow Bard. The Curse Song feat is where it's at. Invisible Blade prestige class comes to mind.

Yes it does; try it out if you don't believe me. It's like having automatic quicken on all your spells.

Thanks - as a confused noob I find your Priest build very cool and want to give it a try. I like the idea of casting in heavy armor. I appreciate the post as an aid to beginners.

Not sure if background choice matters?

Click Customize... Sun will make him a better 'turn' but a Doomguide doesn't need it... Air and water = stronger spells (would be better picks IMO). Not realy no.

Most of them are relatively small bonuses, and will have a very minor effect on some of the NPC's at the start of the OC (for instance, picking "Wizard's Apprentice" will allow you to pursue more dialog options with the Wizard NPC in West Harbor, and he'll also give you some free stuff). However, some are decidedly more potent than the others and a few are starkly detrimental.

Bully, Devout, and Veteran stand out from the rest of the list for giving you a saving throw bonus. Devout is probably the best of these three since it applies to the will saving throw (which is usually the most important one). The problem is, all three invoke a penalty to diplomacy which many characters will want to avoid. If that doesn't matter to you (or you're willing to suck it up) then these are no-brainers.

Natural Leader is perhaps the only nuanced tradeoff on any of these traits. Its downside is pretty steep (a -1 penalty to all saves), but it grants a combat bonus to the entire party. For characters with very high saves (Paladins, and maybe Cleric or Druid) this can be a nice selection. For most characters, though, a saving throw penalty is pretty harsh and it's best to avoid it.

Appraiser, Flirt/Ladies Man, and Tale-Teller can also be quite nice since they give good skill bonuses but their penalties may not affect you. For instance, Tale-Teller gives a concentration penalty, but only spellcasters use concentration. If you're playing a Rogue, there's literally no downside.

On the flip side, avoid Savvy, Survivor, Talented, Wizard's Apprentice, Troublemaker, and Militia. Their benefits are simply not worth the penalty to saving throws they incur. Militia deserves special mention for having both the worst penalty (-2 will save, tied with troublemaker) and the worst benefit, providing bonuses to nearly-useless skills.