Scrolls&Wands, Simple question Options

[Salk]

Hello!

I am at the moment unable to verify directly but I wonder if I remember well.

Is it true that both in Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate 2 a magic user (both divine and arcane) can use wands or read scrolls with spells that are of much higher level than he/she could actually master ?

In short, is it true that I can, example, read and start the effects of a Lightning Bolt scroll having a second level Mage read it ?

If this is true, I think it would be definitely something that I'd like to see corrected. I don't know what the AD&D 2ed. says about this but I'd think it shouldn't be at all allowed.

If instead I am just misremembering then sorry for the stupid question!

[Salk]

I fail to see any kind of logic and/or consistency in allowing a mind to unleash the power of what is beyond comprehension.

The fact that such power is not memorized or directly granted by God but written in a scroll doesn't help and I have a really hard time accepting such a rule.

A spell requirements shouldn't be any different depending on what the source is. We reach a paradoxical situation where a first level Cleric might be able to cast a difficult spell like Resurrection, just because it's written on a scroll.

It's a little less "bad" when it comes about wands or other items which trigger en enchantment which is not directly bound to the caster's mind. The caster in this case becomes much more a "user" and perhaps it should be allowed - at certain conditions - this advantage.

It would be a big minus if however we could not modify this for Baldur's Gate 1 which is the game I am most interested in.

Thanks however Baronius and Rabain for your insight!