Hello to all the Baldur's Gate fans out there. I'm starting to replay Baldur's Gate 2 after two years of downtime and I had a question about Kensai/mages. I want to play a character class that can fight as well as cast powerful spells (hence the kensai/mage) but I also want my character not to be overly powerful so as to ruin my enjoyment of the game. I tend to wait till I get a stat roll of a least 93 before I make my characters and I also sometimes like to make my own weapons (which are no more powerful than the original BG2 magic weapons). My question is twofold.

1.) Can I still enjoy BG2 and TOB using a kensai/mage? I'm a good player. I always play 'insane' difficulty and i've downloaded all the mods that increase the difficulty of battles. (I have heard that playing kensai/mage is boring because they become too powerful over time. Should I pick a different character or not?)

2.) If kensai/mage is too easy, can you guys suggest some other character builds that are really enjoyable? I like characters that are complex to master and perferably ones that can fight + cast spells (but any enjoyable character will do).

Thanks you guys, I appreciate your help.

1)Yes

Any mage or mage combo becomes incredibly powerful, not just the kensai/mage. It doesn't matter if your character or an NPC wizard gets the cheese.

It doesn't make a big difference what class your main character is, since it will only change one of your party members.
If you have a smaller party, the faster XP gain will make the game even easier.

The mods will increase the difficulty, you probably won't be able to manage them without using cheesy tactics aka bug exploiting.

A strong character will allow you to beat the game using less cheese.

2)Every class is easy if you use enough cheese.

i would go F/M for more balance

i would go F/M for more balance A multiclass F/M can be stronger than a kensai/mage.

Hey guys, thanks for your great replies. Sorry for not replying sooner. I am currently studying for a math test that is tomorrow. Of course I use the term 'studying' loosely . For anybody that's not my parents or teacher, when I say 'studying' what I really mean is i'm talking to people on the internet (at least for the moment ). I've asked the same question on several forums and the results have come in mixed. Some people say you can have more than enough challenge w/ insane "difficulty" + all the mods. Others say, kensai/mage is too powerful in all cases. Overall I've heard that (mostly), depending on how you play (by that I mean how much cheese you use ) you can always find challenge no matter what class you use. Using a more powerful character class, just makes it easier to not have to use cheese to win (that's the basic arguement anyway).

From what i've heard it seems like i'll have more than enough cheese...er I mean challenge...to have fun with the game. Thanks for your input guys, I appreciate it.

P.S. If somebody feels like they want to reply to what i've said here, feel free, I'm afraid I won't be able to reply back for two days though...good gaming!