Stalker
Fighter-Thief
Thief
Paladin (either wizard slayer or undead hunter is excellent)
Fighter-Mage
Mage
If you can hold out that long, playing a couple human fighters and dual classing them to thief/mage at 9th or 10th level is definitely worth it, but that prevents using them as thieves or mages until BGII unless you mod the game to remove the XP cap (and even if you do, it will take a LONG time to get them to 9th or 10th level in BGI; wasting ankhegs just does not provide enough XP.) Your best bet is probably to just multi-class a couple elves and thank Bioware the AD&D 2nd ed. level limits for demihumans do not apply in BG. A F/M/T is a total badass once he starts getting 9th level wizard spells, but even if you avoid beating ToB that long, your party will be so overpowered the nigh omnipotent F/M/T will be hard to appreciate.
Anyway, the above party easily provides enough hitting power for stand up fights, enough spell casting for heavy artillery, and enough stealth to not only scout but do recon in force. You probably noticed I did not include a cleric; that is because the paladin and relatively plentiful healing/antidote potions should cover all healing needs, or a trip to the nearest temple after a really bad fight (just remember: Elves cannot be resurrected.) Worst case scenario, you are wise to save before all big fights anyway, so you can always restore if stomped too badly.
If you REALLY want the cleric, you can probably replace the straight class thief with one. However, I like the ability to send the top half of my party in hidden, then half each of them backstab a different spell caster as my artillery and dragoon come into sight. Usually half the enemy party goes down at the start, then I double team the rest, and things end pretty quickly. Also, as noted in my response to Legolas, with only one thief you cannot have a character who is really good with ALL thief skills; with two you can have one specialize in picking pockets and the other in picking locks, while maxxing out the hide in shadows, move silently and detect traps on both.
Fighter-Thief
Thief
Paladin (either wizard slayer or undead hunter is excellent)
Fighter-Mage
Mage
If you can hold out that long, playing a couple human fighters and dual classing them to thief/mage at 9th or 10th level is definitely worth it, but that prevents using them as thieves or mages until BGII unless you mod the game to remove the XP cap (and even if you do, it will take a LONG time to get them to 9th or 10th level in BGI; wasting ankhegs just does not provide enough XP.) Your best bet is probably to just multi-class a couple elves and thank Bioware the AD&D 2nd ed. level limits for demihumans do not apply in BG. A F/M/T is a total badass once he starts getting 9th level wizard spells, but even if you avoid beating ToB that long, your party will be so overpowered the nigh omnipotent F/M/T will be hard to appreciate.
Anyway, the above party easily provides enough hitting power for stand up fights, enough spell casting for heavy artillery, and enough stealth to not only scout but do recon in force. You probably noticed I did not include a cleric; that is because the paladin and relatively plentiful healing/antidote potions should cover all healing needs, or a trip to the nearest temple after a really bad fight (just remember: Elves cannot be resurrected.) Worst case scenario, you are wise to save before all big fights anyway, so you can always restore if stomped too badly.
If you REALLY want the cleric, you can probably replace the straight class thief with one. However, I like the ability to send the top half of my party in hidden, then half each of them backstab a different spell caster as my artillery and dragoon come into sight. Usually half the enemy party goes down at the start, then I double team the rest, and things end pretty quickly. Also, as noted in my response to Legolas, with only one thief you cannot have a character who is really good with ALL thief skills; with two you can have one specialize in picking pockets and the other in picking locks, while maxxing out the hide in shadows, move silently and detect traps on both.
Honorbound and honored to be Bonded to Mahtaliel Sedai
Last First in wotmania Chat
Slightly better than chocolate.
Love still can't be coerced.
Please Don't Eat the Newbies!
LoL. Be well, RAFOlk.
Last First in wotmania Chat
Slightly better than chocolate.
Love still can't be coerced.
Please Don't Eat the Newbies!

LoL. Be well, RAFOlk.
Baldurs Gate Enhanced Edition: Edit 2 with added video & launch delay
07/09/2012 09:48:16 PM
- 3231 Views
!!!!!
07/09/2012 10:49:47 PM
- 1733 Views
I played the hell out of BG2, but only played BG1 once
08/09/2012 06:07:15 AM
- 1841 Views
BGI is a lot more fun because a lot more challenging, IMHO.
08/09/2012 02:33:17 PM
- 1697 Views
*revelation*
08/09/2012 05:45:28 PM
- 1684 Views
You need not be behind them to assassinate (the high level thief ability.)
08/09/2012 06:04:31 PM
- 1708 Views
ahh yes i remember, every hit is a backstab for 30 seconds or something.
08/09/2012 07:07:12 PM
- 1771 Views
Right; it is pretty much an instakill, considering the multipliers at the level it becomes available
08/09/2012 09:03:47 PM
- 1681 Views
fireballs are so epic in BG1
08/09/2012 05:41:34 PM
- 1744 Views
I disagree about it being the only good third level spell;lighting bolt and haste are also excellent
08/09/2012 06:26:08 PM
- 1885 Views
Yeah, I loved Lightning Bolt.
08/09/2012 06:44:59 PM
- 1628 Views
it was such a liability
08/09/2012 07:11:36 PM
- 1721 Views
Bouncing is what makes lightning bolts great, because you get to hit people more than once.
08/09/2012 08:59:10 PM
- 1642 Views
There's an unfortunate Wizard in the Firewine Bridge Ruins...
09/09/2012 12:58:18 AM
- 1733 Views
Oops.
09/09/2012 01:43:23 AM
- 1713 Views

that's why BG1 was so awesome. exploration=rewards
09/09/2012 09:09:22 AM
- 1690 Views
For sure; it made additional playthroughs fun even after beating the game.
09/09/2012 04:48:40 PM
- 1773 Views
Also, FB and Skull Trap are also almost interchangeable until 10th level, but ST damage is uncapped.
09/09/2012 02:02:17 AM
- 2207 Views
Multi-player was actually pretty simple if you just used it to create your whole party.
08/09/2012 02:19:35 PM
- 1707 Views
well yeah, because there was no connection to figure out
08/09/2012 06:59:49 PM
- 1771 Views
Right; I was never a big multiplayer fan anyway, but customized parties were nice
08/09/2012 08:53:45 PM
- 1803 Views
Where's the fun in having a customized party and losing all the character interaction, though?
09/09/2012 04:03:10 PM
- 1818 Views
I dislike most of the BG NPCs anyway, so I do not much feel the lack.
09/09/2012 04:45:12 PM
- 1890 Views
Re: I dislike most of the BG NPCs anyway, so I do not much feel the lack.
10/09/2012 01:23:44 PM
- 1710 Views
Suggestion since you're not using the NPCs anyway...
15/09/2012 11:34:28 PM
- 1802 Views
That is a good thought; I never played IWD.
16/09/2012 03:31:01 AM
- 1693 Views
Where did you think I just got it?
16/09/2012 04:39:43 PM
- 1633 Views

How would I know you just got a game released in the late nineties?
17/09/2012 06:57:19 PM
- 1617 Views

Re: How would I know you just got a game released in the late nineties?
17/09/2012 11:08:09 PM
- 1800 Views

I still like GURPS' character points best.
17/09/2012 11:40:12 PM
- 1681 Views
Heh, I'm not surprised.
18/09/2012 01:47:55 AM
- 1683 Views
If you want to avoid hyperspecialization, avoid classes.
18/09/2012 07:36:43 AM
- 1924 Views
I've never played GURPS, so I don't know how its system works.
18/09/2012 03:32:21 PM
- 1755 Views
I recommend it, but it is a bear to run.
19/09/2012 03:37:19 AM
- 2113 Views
Re: I recommend it, but it is a bear to run.
19/09/2012 08:35:24 AM
- 1700 Views
It is the difference between "what if...?" and "whatever...."
19/09/2012 10:58:31 PM
- 1789 Views
Re: It is the difference between "what if...?" and "whatever...."
20/09/2012 12:31:10 AM
- 1684 Views
AD&D cannot avoid one-sided encounters without restricting epic characters to epic encounters.
24/09/2012 05:53:39 AM
- 2005 Views
Re: AD&D cannot avoid one-sided encounters without restricting epic characters to epic encounters.
24/09/2012 07:03:39 AM
- 1678 Views
Things are a little different if you are the GM, yes.
24/09/2012 08:33:23 AM
- 1932 Views
Re: Things are a little different if you are the GM, yes.
24/09/2012 07:24:51 PM
- 1807 Views
My point is no one should be at any level.
25/09/2012 01:23:21 AM
- 1912 Views
Re: My point is no one should be at any level.
25/09/2012 03:41:42 AM
- 1930 Views
I know no more about AD&D 3rd Ed. than I retain from skimming the book a few times in a store.
25/09/2012 05:16:49 AM
- 1717 Views
Re: I know no more about AD&D 3rd Ed. than I retain from skimming the book a few times in a store.
25/09/2012 06:05:39 PM
- 1928 Views
Re: [Insert relevant subject line here.]
26/09/2012 08:12:05 AM
- 1871 Views
Re: [Insert relevant subject line here.]
26/09/2012 05:48:34 PM
- 1719 Views
Re: [Insert relevant subject line here.]
27/09/2012 10:26:16 AM
- 2347 Views
Re: [Insert relevant subject line here.]
27/09/2012 05:23:13 PM
- 1658 Views
I did not realize how awful classes were until liberated from them.
28/09/2012 12:49:14 AM
- 1821 Views
Re: Things are a little different if you are the GM, yes.
24/09/2012 08:45:05 PM
- 1656 Views
I thought Yrrth a perfectly fine game world; obviously anything less generic requires some effort.
25/09/2012 12:14:09 AM
- 1730 Views
GURPS and TV Tropes are a natural fit, so I will throw in a link to their page on it.
19/09/2012 03:50:37 AM
- 1804 Views
I can't speak for IWD I, but II is okay on the story front so far.
18/09/2012 06:36:16 PM
- 1621 Views
I've still only played about 4 hours of BG1
08/09/2012 03:59:49 PM
- 1761 Views
If you have not yet, you should look into the Weidu mods.
08/09/2012 06:12:20 PM
- 1605 Views
But what's the point in playing the game if you don't use the NPCs?
08/09/2012 06:47:38 PM
- 1637 Views
Not having a bunch of potentially useful but AI ruined incompetents constantly fumbling.
08/09/2012 08:55:53 PM
- 1758 Views
Yeah, but optimising the whole group sounds ridiculously easy.
09/09/2012 01:03:51 AM
- 1616 Views
Well, there are always mods for that.
09/09/2012 01:37:42 AM
- 1574 Views
For talking to pretty much anyone, really.
09/09/2012 03:20:29 AM
- 1684 Views
True.
09/09/2012 03:46:24 AM
- 1680 Views
Well, I usually don't have thieves in my party.
09/09/2012 04:56:21 AM
- 1617 Views
there wasn't a good enough thief option in bg2/ToB
09/09/2012 09:15:21 AM
- 1567 Views
I noticed that also; another argument for creating a party via MP even if you move it back to SP.
09/09/2012 11:45:12 PM
- 1684 Views
Just how many thieves do you even need?
10/09/2012 06:22:58 PM
- 1698 Views
You can get by with half a thief, yeah, but it forces you to forego maxing out some thief abilities.
10/09/2012 06:47:48 PM
- 1634 Views
Any suggested parties for beginners? *NM*
10/09/2012 01:13:38 AM
- 865 Views
My own recommendation would be:
10/09/2012 07:36:04 PM
- 1642 Views
I am completely stoked about it.
10/09/2012 07:07:09 PM
- 1792 Views
TotSC made BGI a LOT more fun.
10/09/2012 07:46:03 PM
- 1579 Views
all the kits/races/dual wielding etc will be available in bgee
11/09/2012 09:02:35 AM
- 1607 Views
Ah; nice.
11/09/2012 06:57:14 PM
- 1730 Views
i'm not sure they were even state of the art at the time
12/09/2012 09:26:05 AM
- 1633 Views
Remember, BGI was released only about two years after Doom.
13/09/2012 12:05:11 AM
- 1681 Views
If by "two" you mean "five," then yes. DOOM was released in 1993.
13/09/2012 03:22:58 PM
- 1642 Views
Ah, 1998. The golden year. Ocarina of Time. Starcraft. Half-Life. *NM*
13/09/2012 04:16:21 PM
- 897 Views
That just reminds me of how sad it is that StarCraft died this year
. *NM*
13/09/2012 11:55:28 PM
- 853 Views

Fair enough; I was thinking of Doom in terms of when I started playing it and Doom II (1995.)
14/09/2012 03:56:50 PM
- 1744 Views
I don't mind the graphics in it
12/09/2012 04:38:47 PM
- 1688 Views
Good, me neither, but I have heard others criticize them.
12/09/2012 11:51:16 PM
- 1571 Views
I used the PS3 web browser as my primary browser for about 3 months
13/09/2012 01:13:22 PM
- 1607 Views
*nods* I suspected as much, but had no first hand experience confirming it.
14/09/2012 04:03:15 PM
- 1658 Views
I'm going to ask this here rather than start a new topic as its somewhat related.
10/09/2012 07:42:32 PM
- 1653 Views
And it now has been delayed till Nov
*NM*
15/09/2012 03:52:41 AM
- 843 Views

On another note, shame on all of you for not telling me Jon Irenicus is Ra's Al Ghul
15/09/2012 04:19:21 AM
- 1687 Views