Baldur's Gate 1

Strategy

Weapon choices

Slashing weapons (e.g. swords) tend to do the most damage per hit, and two-handed weapons do more damage than single-handed (but come at the cost of not allowing you to use a shield). However, some enemies in the game have high resistance to slashing damage and therefore it is a good idea to have crushing weapons to switch to occasionally. For example, attacking skeletons with slashing or piercing weapons will typically do a small amount of damage - usually 1-3 per hit. Some types of armour also give more protection against slashing and piercing damage than crushing damage.

Ranged weapons - particularly bows - are overpowered in the first game. Not only are they excellent for interrupting spellcasters - as you can deal out damage from afar without the delay of closing for melee combat (which can be enough for a spell to be cast) - but your THAC0 can be brought down further with high dexterity (similar to high strength for melee weapons, however with ranged weapons there is no bonus to damage). An elven fighter equipped with a long bow and proficiency points in that weapon can quickly get to 2-3 attacks per round with a THAC0 of 10 or lower and 5-10 damage per hit. An elven archer (ranger class kit) is deadly to creatures without resistance to piercing damage.