Talk:Kensai/@comment-45026531-20200217155039/@comment-8506165-20200218021048

It's slightly down to preference, I admit, but if you play no/minimal-reload the ability to just no-sell most of the more dangerous status ailments in the game is incredibly valuable. Sure, you're not immune to literally everything, but most of the other stuff as gets thrown at you otherwise is rare, easily avoidable through other means, or just impossible to become immune to; there's no way in vanilla for PCs to become immune to Time Stop, for instance.

Personally I've never had THAC0 problems with a Zerkage. It's 4 different from a Kensage, assuming the dual-class happened at 13, narrowing to 3 with +THAC0 gauntlets and 1 with Enrage active. Sure, if Enrage runs out it increases to 5 difference, but I find most fights are over or decided by the time Enrage expires. And between all the +5/6 weaponry, Strength-boost items and temporary buffs available your THAC0 should still be plenty good anyway; even Demogorgon "only" boasts -16 AC so an easily achievable -6 THAC0 is good enough to hit even him half the time.

All that said, Kensage isn't bad, I just think it's overrated. For a long time large portions of the BG playerbase seemed determined that it was the ultimate OP class combo that nothing else came even vaguely close to.