Eternity Pillars of Eternity + The White March Expansion Thread

[Lacrymas]

Yeah, I meant wearing armor on melee guys (my priest is melee as well).

 

[Galdred]

Is PotD balanced around having a specific class or something? Some fights (like the 3 broodmothers one, the Gleaming Society etc.) are overwhelmingly difficult, to the point of wondering what am I doing wrong for the odds to feel so skewed in the favor of the mods. They do SO much damage, even through some buffs. I can't even CC them fast enough with the cipher.

I have just played potd a little (I am still level 5) got stronghold, cleared raedric keep and the eothas temple in gilded vale). I have been doing ok with the NPC companions and a cipher. I just respecced everyone.
I am playing with kana(ghost, ila, draining hp song), Durance, pallegina, aloth and the ranger.

 

[Lacrymas]

Lol, DAoM potions are ridiculous, I took down the 3 broodmothers on my first try using them. It turned my cipher into a spell SMG, destroying everything.

 

[Delterius]

You're all welcome for Delterius' Alacrity of Movement.

 

[Iznaliu]

Hope it means triple the wordcount of every text in the game.

What about having Synthsteel Armour available for $1.99?

 

[Jason Liang]

You guys are all sold on PoE2 already?

And calling Rogue the worst martial class is complete bullshit. Of the four martial classes it's Rogue > Monk > Fighter > Ranger. Perhaps Rogue was patched at some point and you guys haven't played with the new Rogue yet? Since it's obvious that *some* of you haven't played Ranger since Ranger got nerffucked.

 

[ilitarist]

You guys are all sold on PoE2 already?

And calling Rogue the worst martial class is complete bullshit. Of the four martial classes it's Rogue > Monk > Fighter > Ranger. Perhaps Rogue was patched at some point and you guys haven't played with the new Rogue yet?

I'm sure it will be a good game. Eventually.

If you give me release version right now I'd be very tempted to complete the first game once more instead. Those bog dragons are still undefeated on POTD. I also very much like them to give Tyranny the same treatment as they gave to PoE 3.0, this game is great but encounter design is atrocious and ruins interesting combat system, spell system, makes hard choices resulting in fighting powerful foes less of a hard choice, thus makes relations less impactful and so on and so on. I didn't kill bog dragons exactly because the fight seemed overwhelming, this is the kind of choice and consequence I like - not just the moral problems but making me feel like a coward running from a hard battle and agreeing on a compromise.

 

[fobia]

3.0x PoE is a good game, learning from it's flaws, I think PoE2 will be a good game as well.
If it's not already a good game on release, at least the team at Obsidian seems to care enough to patch it to a good game.
Was enough to convince me to give to the codex fundraiser. We'll see whether my reasoning will bite me in the ass or not.

Rogues are a cool martial class if you either use the lance you can buy in Dyrford Village and attack from 2nd row, stick to a bow and be fine with having good single target dps, or want to micro A LOT and use duals or Tidefall as a frontliner.
I still think Fighters and Rangers are better and more relaxing to play, since they're not as squishy.
Monk is cool because fists are cool. Period.

 

[Haplo]

PoE combat difficulty is very frontloaded, if you can survive the initial clash it gets easier. Use a DAoM potion on your priests to buff up easier in tougher encounters, it makes all the difference.

Heavy armor on spellcasters isn't worth it imo since it makes casting spells slower and you can't stack modifiers to reduce recovery like on attacks. For melee there is little reason not to use it, except if you want micro somebody heavily.

Healing damage is in my experience futile, only the paladin abilities are potent enough to make a difference - with a priest it's better to buff defense and resurrect if needed.



Wait until you get to the TWM2 optional encounters, you're in for a treat.



I think druids and ciphers are just as good, if not better, for AoE CC, along with specialised Barbs.

Don't disagree about wizards being good, just that there are a lot of other viable options.

Yes, they are viable. But when shit hits the fan, noone can make a difference like a Wizard does. Cipher? I love Ciphers, but during really difficult encounters they tend to run out of juice fast and be forced to fight a bit before casting again. That early period may make all the difference. Okay, DAoM potions are a bit of an equalizer, as DaOM is the Wizard's biggest asset, allowing him to spam-cast spells fast. So a Druid with DAoM would do well also. But the wizard has the most versatile tools to target the approriate save and some large AOEs. And Pull of Eora, Shadowflame and Concelhaut's Crushing Doom.

Barbs are good regular, always-on CC, and I love them, but can't really do the emergency mass large-aoe CC spam.

You guys are all sold on PoE2 already?

And calling Rogue the worst martial class is complete bullshit. Of the four martial classes it's Rogue > Monk > Fighter > Ranger. Perhaps Rogue was patched at some point and you guys haven't played with the new Rogue yet? Since it's obvious that *some* of you haven't played Ranger since Ranger got nerffucked.

Ranger nerfed? LOL, must have missed something. Sagani simply rocked in my recent game. Basically was pulling the weight of 1,5 characters easily.

 

[Iznaliu]

Ranger nerfed? LOL, must have missed something. Sagani simply rocked in my recent game. Basically was pulling the weight of 1,5 characters easily.

Maybe since with the pet, she was basically 1.5 characters.

 

[CptMace]

Even without the pet, give her the Stormcaller and build her with accuracy modal and damage/accuracy talents and abilities. She tops the party damage all the time.
The fox is a plus, but late game he just dies all the time, which makes her top position in the damage dealer category even more disturbing.

But maybe it's because the stormcaller is/was awesome with high attack speed ? How does it work now, would someone bother to check ?

http://pillarsofeternity.gamepedia.com/Stormcaller

Is these stats are still up to date, this bow is savage indeed.

 

[fobia]

But maybe it's because the stormcaller is/was awesome with high attack speed ? How does it work now, would someone bother to check ?

http://pillarsofeternity.gamepedia.com/Stormcaller

Is these stats are still up to date, this bow is savage indeed.

Can't confirm the exact stats now, but it's still savage when used with a ranger built towards it. Even when not built towards it to be honest. Twinned Arrows and Driving Flight do the job.
For ciphers it's not the best choice, since it's procs don't generate focus. But rangers rule the battlefield with it.

 

[Jason Liang]

afaik most of Ranger's abilities only work with ranged now, and they completely changed the huge accuracy bonus from Stalker's Link (which now no longer works with melee like the other abilities).

It doesn't affect Sajani so much since she's played as a ranged dps anyway.

 

[CptMace]

What I meant by specific build is, well back then at least, there was usually a choice to make to build a ranger : Accurate/Fast, High Damage/Fast, High Damage/Accurate.
Which, I guess, was a way to allow the player to specialize in shortbows, warbows or powder weapons ?
Anyway with any build based on high accuracy and attack speed, a ranger equipped with the stormcaller pretty much slaughters anything.

 

[Prime Junta]

Most ranger abilities also work for melee. Try a Tidefall ranger, it's pretty brutal.

 

[Jason Liang]

Most ranger abilities also work for melee. Try a Tidefall ranger, it's pretty brutal.

If you're referring to the build from the Steam guide, it's outdated garbage. That guide refers to Rogue's backstab as a 100% damage modifier when it's now been buffed to 150%. And it treats rogues as if their abilities only work with melee when its only Reckless Assault and Riposte that is melee only, all the other abilities work with both. And it doesn't mention that Rogue abilities work with spells too, which is the whole point.

 

[Parabalus]

Yes, they are viable. But when shit hits the fan, noone can make a difference like a Wizard does. Cipher? I love Ciphers, but during really difficult encounters they tend to run out of juice fast and be forced to fight a bit before casting again. That early period may make all the difference. Okay, DAoM potions are a bit of an equalizer, as DaOM is the Wizard's biggest asset, allowing him to spam-cast spells fast. So a Druid with DAoM would do well also. But the wizard has the most versatile tools to target the approriate save and some large AOEs. And Pull of Eora, Shadowflame and Concelhaut's Crushing Doom.

Barbs are good regular, always-on CC, and I love them, but can't really do the emergency mass large-aoe CC spam.

The Cipher I use usually does one weapon attack (warbow, or with bad attributes blunderbuss [if you can't get 25 focus with one attack]), casts Reaping Knives on Maneha/Zahua and spends the rest of the fight casting non-stop under haste from Time Parasite (Cipher native DaOM which is a huge debuff) or DaOM. One Torment's Reach/Carnage gives you 50-100 focus, Heart of fury gives you instant 190, you never really have time to auto attack. During some fights you can easily chain 20+ Amplified Waves (Llengrath comes to mind) with nothing else in between.

Cipher is also really good (debatable best vs. rogues) for single target lockdown with an on-crit weapon (e.g. Borresaine, Sabra Maria, melee weaps) because you have extra accuracy modifiers which stack with everything else (Wild Leech, Tactical Meld, Borrowed Instinct [might have been fixed, used to stack with priest DotF]).

Druids like you mentioned are very comparable to wizards, except their lvl 7 and lvl 8 spells suck a lot and they lack a native haste. Their best spells are also double checked (Embrace the Earth Talon, Calling the World, Storms).

Mind you, I don't disagree that wizards are powerful, but the picture isn't as bleak as you paint it.

You guys are all sold on PoE2 already?

And calling Rogue the worst martial class is complete bullshit. Of the four martial classes it's Rogue > Monk > Fighter > Ranger. Perhaps Rogue was patched at some point and you guys haven't played with the new Rogue yet? Since it's obvious that *some* of you haven't played Ranger since Ranger got nerffucked.

Rogue is my favorite class, but they really are bottom of the totem pole. I know you are soloing, but I'm referencing a party situation.

Rogue niche is single target damage/lockdown with proc weapons, they lack any form of AoE. They have very low Endurance and low health, which is the same as Wizards, horrible. If you are melee, you have to either give up DPS (armor, attributes) or micro them at all times for a SMALL (single target!) dps improvement compared to monks/fighters/etc.

I like the playstyle and enjoy the class, but I don't think it's incorrect to call them the weakest class overall.

 

[Sizzle]

Rogues are my favorite as well, and I'm glad that they will be beefed up a bit for PoE2, they really are too micro-intensive.

 

[Prime Junta]

If you're referring to the build from the Steam guide, it's outdated garbage. That guide refers to Rogue's backstab as a 100% damage modifier when it's now been buffed to 150%. And it treats rogues as if their abilities only work with melee when its only Reckless Assault and Riposte that is melee only, all the other abilities work with both. And it doesn't mention that Rogue abilities work with spells too, which is the whole point.

What do rogue abilities have to do with a ranger build?

 

[Parabalus]

Rogues are my favorite as well, and I'm glad that they will be beefed up a bit for PoE2, they really are too micro-intensive.

Just putting their health (not even endurance) up to average would go a long way, I'm very surprised they didn't do that. Something like low Endurance and high Health might even make for an interesting combination.

What do rogue abilities have to do with a ranger build?

He probably meant that the ranger build has similar outdated info.

 

[Prime Junta]

He probably meant that the ranger build has similar outdated info.

I tried a Tidefall ranger with the latest build of Pillars, and it was highly effective. I did not pick any abilities or talents that were ranged-only.

 

[Lacrymas]

The Health/Endurance mechanic is gone in PoE2, so it doesn't really matter anymore. It doesn't really do much except force you to rest, so I'm not bothered. I suppose it prevents you from endlessly outlasting and outhealing the mobs, but eh.

 

[Haplo]

Even without the pet, give her the Stormcaller and build her with accuracy modal and damage/accuracy talents and abilities. She tops the party damage all the time.
The fox is a plus, but late game he just dies all the time, which makes her top position in the damage dealer category even more disturbing.

"You're using it wrong." If you start the fight by charging with the pet, of course it will die fast.
But if you keep it in the back, intercept enemy chargers and flank, he's actually quite survivable. Or CC enemies targeting him. In fact the pet and ranger have decent single target CC options themselves as well. Or aoe in case of Stormcaller.

afaik most of Ranger's abilities only work with ranged now, and they completely changed the huge accuracy bonus from Stalker's Link (which now no longer works with melee like the other abilities).

It doesn't affect Sajani so much since she's played as a ranged dps anyway.

"most of Ranger's abilities only work with ranged now" That's new. Why no one is spamming the Obsidian forums about this? What game build were all those mighty Ranger nerfs introduced? So far I have heard only about various buffs and potent new WM abilities.

 

[CptMace]

I guess I could micro-manage the fox yeah. If that was required or if I gave a damn.

 

[Haplo]

Yes, they are viable. But when shit hits the fan, noone can make a difference like a Wizard does. Cipher? I love Ciphers, but during really difficult encounters they tend to run out of juice fast and be forced to fight a bit before casting again. That early period may make all the difference. Okay, DAoM potions are a bit of an equalizer, as DaOM is the Wizard's biggest asset, allowing him to spam-cast spells fast. So a Druid with DAoM would do well also. But the wizard has the most versatile tools to target the approriate save and some large AOEs. And Pull of Eora, Shadowflame and Concelhaut's Crushing Doom.

Barbs are good regular, always-on CC, and I love them, but can't really do the emergency mass large-aoe CC spam.

The Cipher I use usually does one weapon attack (warbow, or with bad attributes blunderbuss [if you can't get 25 focus with one attack]), casts Reaping Knives on Maneha/Zahua and spends the rest of the fight casting non-stop under haste from Time Parasite (Cipher native DaOM which is a huge debuff) or DaOM. One Torment's Reach/Carnage gives you 50-100 focus, Heart of fury gives you instant 190, you never really have time to auto attack. During some fights you can easily chain 20+ Amplified Waves (Llengrath comes to mind) with nothing else in between.

Eh, true enough, I suppose. But with Reaping Knives and Time Parasite that's an end game build. Hardly representative of Focus-reaping capability trough the game. Which isn't bad, mind (provided that your're not targeting an extreme Deflection enemy, like a dragon). But insufficient to spam high-cost spells.

Druids like you mentioned are very comparable to wizards, except their lvl 7 and lvl 8 spells suck a lot and they lack a native haste. Their best spells are also double checked (Embrace the Earth Talon, Calling the World, Storms).

So potent, but not really versatile. And lacking in speed without consumables (which I personally use very sparsely).

Mind you, I don't disagree that wizards are powerful, but the picture isn't as bleak as you paint it.

No, it is most certainly not. No class is necessary to succeed in this game. It is quite nicely balanced and every class is useful.
It's just that the Wizard really shines in those "oh shit" moments. Of course he can also go down real fast if you're not careful.