1) I am thinking of playing either one of these characters but i am tending towards Barb currently, cos i played Kensai before, Kensai->Thief to be exact..... Was just wondering if a high-level Kensai can survive Tactics or if a Barb will have an easier time. I will do some simplistic arguments which you guys can add on too or detract or other points i have missed.

Ac: Barb is way better, Kensais can get hit by goblins.......Of course, Barb cant wear plate or full plate but then there are other gd armours that compensate. Kensai cant wear bracers either. Bad bad bad.

Hp: Barb wins hands-down.

Combat: Kensai has grandmastery, Barb only specialization. Kensai gets amazing damage, thaco and speed bonuses. Barb has some speed bonuses.

Specials: Kai vs Berserk. Kai is scary no doubt, while Berserk has many interesting uses esp wif protection against spells and other effects.

ToB abilities: I dont really know this, help me out? Will Barbs have amazing special abilities..... Will hardiness add 50% or will it just be set to 50%? 70% physical resistance will be quite cool. Kensai will have the usual fighter ones of course, and Barbs should have most of them i assume.

Others: Sure ye can think of something.......

2) Next problem(which most pple wont be answering because they will be too focused on the barb vs kensai question) is regarding Immys romance. I have gotten out of the underdark and went through the campfire scene but no more progress after that for like 5,6 real hours which is pretty bad. Is something drastic supposed to happen in that scene? I didnt push my advances overboard. Should I? I left that game at a standstill..... I need advice from those who have completed successfully.

I don't know anything about the Imoen romance, but if it's (single-classed) Barbarian vs. Kensai, I'd vote Barbarian.

I would also vote for Barb. The immunities to Mind spells would be more useful than the damage from the Kensai. Once you get high enough level, the grand mastery won't make that much of a difference.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and vote for the kensai.

Yes, a Kensai can survive tactics. I've personally soloed a kensai right through the game+tob with all the improved bosses and tactics installed. You're right about the Barbarian having an easier time though.

A kensai can achieve a very respectable AC. Sure his permanant AC is going to suck hard (around -4 to -6 at best), but with the right equipment a solo kensai can walk around with an AC of -16 in nothing but his underpants.

The shield amulet will be your best friend if you play a kensai. You can find it in chapter 2, and you get 50 charges of AC4 which lasts 5 turns. Nice, and this stops the inferior enemies from constantly hitting you.

The speed bonuses of the kensai and barbarian do differ. The kensai's role is simple - to hit hard, and to hit fast. The speed bonuses that a kensai receives applies to the weapon in his hands, rather that to his movement rate. If you're playing with tactics, the speed factor bonuses of the kensai are an absolute godsend in the early stages of the game. Hit and run in melee combat can be put to great use here with the correct weapons.

KAI probably won't get used that much, especially in the latter stages. The kensai will eventually hit so hard that there's no need to waste time activating the KAI ability for all but the toughest foes. The barbarian rage is handy though, but this won't bolster the offensive capabilities of the bariarian enough to match those of the kensai. The spell immunities are nice though, but these come at a price that makes the barbarian more vulnerable to magical and physical attacks. Either warrior can use protection scrolls and potions when dealing with more powerful magic casting foes anyway, which makes rage look less useful, other than providing a damage/to hit and HP bonus through increased STR and CON.

Barbarians absolutey rule when it comes to defence. Their AC may be far from the best, but they will have excellent permanant damage resistance using the correct equipment and hardiness will add the additional 40% resistance rather than setting it making them almost invincible in melee. The kensai and the barbarian both take abilities from the warrior pool in ToB.

You need to make the choice. Do you want to play as a Barbarian and be one tough son of a bitch, or do you want to play as a Kensai which will be trickier at first but lead to the death of even the toughest enemies in just 2-3 hits. This is defence vs offense at its extremes.

There are ways that a kensai can flank in the game using summons from various items to take the damage, allowing the kensai to deal maximum punishment to his victims untouched, and the AC is buffable. Combining this with unrivalled melee strength is what makes them one of my favourite characters to play.

[ 10-26-2004, 10:06 AM: Message edited by: Jim ]

Fighters get good enough with the kensai bonuses.

It is only worth playing a kensai if you plan on dual classing that character (druid, mage, or thief are best)