A lot of technical issues, build discussions and module recommendations take place in this sub-forum, but surprisingly few story discussion threads are created. So, here's one. ;)

I've just finished MotB - needless to say, it was a splendid campaign. I can't help but compare it to HotU - both have a somwhat Planescape'ish feel to them, both are regarded as the best campaigns of their respective games and both take characters into epic levels.

And since HotU is considered canon at least from the MotB point of view (it's a sequel to NWN2's original campaign, in which Deekin appears), I think it's an interesting question to ask, which protagonist became more powerful.

I think that for the sake of this discussion we should assume the MotB hero didn't devour Akachi, because this ending makes him so ridiculously overpowered that he can take on several gods at the same time and win.

To me it seems that the HotU character takes it. He took down Mephistopheles. That may not be a god, but defeating an archdevil is damn impressive nevertheless and I don't think anything the MotB protagonist did (or could do) could compare. Devouring Myrkul does not exactly count, given that Myrkul was dead and was basically a remnant of his conciousness at that point.

Thoughts?

If you complete the evil ending in MotB, then definitely the character in MotB. We're literally talking about a character who can absorb your very soul just by looking at you. Absorbing Myrkul isn't so much an achievement as a stepping stone towards this terrifying power. This is a character so overwhelmingly powerful that Mephistopheles wouldn't be stupid enough to fight him under any circumstances.

Otherwise, the two are about on the same level. While "I defeated an Archduke of Hell" has a much better ring to it, Akachi is every bit as daunting a foe as Mephistopheles. The Wall of the Faithless is its own special kind of hell, and Akachi has become the very embodiment of its perverse power. I would definitely regard him as an equal in power to Mephistopheles, although his lack of mental faculties makes him more of a force of nature than a villain with any agency of his own.

Indeed, I actually commented on how it would be unfair to compare the characters if we assume the evil ending happened. Given that the MotB protagonist was capable of killing several gods while fighting all of them at the same time, it really does seem that the only being capable of taking him down would be Ao. In fact, that would be an interesting story - Ao normally doesn't interfere in mortal affairs, but we're talking about a mortal who is killing off the universe's pantheon. I'm pretty sure Ao would not stay out of this given how far things went.

The thing about Akachi, though, is that defeating him was more of a will feat rather than actual power. While the final fight in the campaign against Akachi seemed like regular combat from the gameplay point of view, story-wise it was all happening in the hero's soul. I don't think defeating Akachi could thus count as a display of power. Willpower, yes, but not the "I'll kick your ass" kind of power. There is no doubt the MotB protagonist has absolutely astounding power of will and that is certainly helpful in controlling his hunger and defeating Akachi, but I don't think it means that he could physically defeat the HotU protagonist.