Pillars of Eternity Thread [Pre-Expansion]

[Athelas]

Well, I found a way to make the combat fun. Currently tackling the Skaen Temple with most of my party members one hit away from perma-dying and everyone fatigued and with most of their spells depleted.

 

[Gurkog]

My fragmented thoughts on Pillars:

Expected the game to be on par with BG1, at least, and it delivered. I replayed BG1 recently, and found PoE combat more enjoyable and varied. People forget that BG1 had very few spells, enemies were rarely functionally different, and the story was bare bones. PoE is definitely better in variety and complexity.
I think people here have their heads stuck up their asses and expected it to be as comprehensive as BG2. For the first episode in a completely new universe and franchise such expectations are for autists or idiots.

I beat the main story campaign after 49 hours, on normal difficulty. Was level 10 at the final encounter.

Party consisted of the first 5 story companions encountered + my barbarian. Companion dialogue was great at the start, but by the end of the game devolved into pure ego-stroking bullshit. They ceased to be participants in the story and became part of your 6 character circle-jerk, especially when completing their side quests and after. Next time they make a cast of companions, obsidian should refrain from going full retard.

Did not complete all of the side quests and never attempted any of the mega-dungeon. Also did not do any bounties. The side quests I did do in the later chapters seemed clunky, as in my party did not enter into them or complete them in a way the designers anticipated. This lead to awkward dialogue options, and results not fitting my actions.

Did a bunch of the keep building shit. Never had a dungeon though. The keep was completely unnecessary fluff that should have been cut in the initial design phase. It acts and feels like a companion mobile/facebook app, and if that was the intention, should have made it so. Waste of resources for this game.

Combat was good. Once my party was full, potions and shit were rarely needed. Before that, I used a lot. Any tougher would be too frustrating for people new to the sub-genre and idiots. Will try the game again later, with a full custom party and max difficulty. I am sure it will devolve into the typical munchkin wankery that includes cheesing the game, and whining about cheesing the game, because dumbfuck.

Main storyline was shit. I think they dug themselves into a hole with the premise of the protagonist/antagonist relationship. Halfway through they game it added a character I didn't care or know anything about, and by the end I still didn't care. They tried too hard to force me into feeling anything for the main story characters, and failed horribly. They didn't need the convoluted connection with the antagonist, and I hope they learn not to do that shit in sequels. Honestly, they should have known better.

Final thoughts: Game was good as expected, but rough around the edges. Expecting them to improve with the expansion/sequel.

 

[Blaine]

Ultimately, Caed Nua ends up being a bunch of shops you mostly don't need (the Curio Shop is nice, but largely unnecessary), a shitty inn useful only for Od Nua since Caed Nua is fuckteen hours away from connecting areas for some reason, and some free ingredients—which you'll have 20+ extra of each anyway by the end of the game, unless you really spam potions and scrolls constantly. You'll get a few nice pieces of loot and some money and reputation from adventure events and visitors. In exchange for that, you'll pretty much have to travel back to the keep whenever it's attacked, unless you want to risk multiple thousands' worth of improvements being destroyed.

The total value of the money you'll receive from taxes and adventures, combined with the value of plants and creature parts you automatically get from the Gardens and Curio Shop, MIGHT yield a modest net return on the total cost of fully upgrading Caed Nua as well as paying hirelings.

If you're a LARPfag, though, at least knowing your character owns a castle will probably be satisfying.

 

[Blaine]

Well, I've finally run into a fight I haven't been able to easily figure out, on the last floor of Caed Nua. I'm almost done with the game anyway, and I've been saving it. At least it's not too easy, although I expect dubious braggarts to tell me how easy it is in short order.

As if you don't know what's on the last floor already

The breath attack that covers half the screen is a real doozey. Without the minion spam it'd be manageable, but with three hundred minions also running around fucking with you, it's obnoxious. Can't even realistically heal through the damage in this game, at least not for long, because you'll run out of Health sooner than later. I'm going to try using as many stuns, debuffs, and so on as I can on it, but I think it's extremely resistant to those. I can get the rest of the party away from the dragon's breath cone, but the tank seems to die quickly no matter what. Pretty sure I've seen him lose 3/4 of his health in one regular attack crit from that thing.

It's cute that they make you jump down a ledge first so that you're trapped in the dinner bucket.

When I'm feeling less lazy, I'll figure out how to cheese my way through it.

 

[Pope Amole II]

although I expect dubious braggarts to tell me how easy it is in short order.

Won't agree with the dubious part, though.

 

[Blaine]

Yes, well, I have a library of Scrolls of Paralysis at this point, none of which I've actually used, to my knowledge. Valor, too. I just buy them whenever I see them, and have crafted a bunch also. I think I have seven or eight Maelstroms saved up as well. Also, when I've fought it, I didn't make friends fiirst and then position everyone before ambushing it.

I haven't gotten that odiously cheesy just yet, but since it's become clear that a straight fight employing tactics with absolutely no cheese topping on Hard is an exceptionally difficult proposition at best, I'm going to haul out the cheese grater and sprinkle a bit on pretty soon.

 

[ZagorTeNej]

Well, I've finally run into a fight I haven't been able to easily figure out, on the last floor of Caed Nua. I'm almost done with the game anyway, and I've been saving it. At least it's not too easy, although I expect dubious braggarts to tell me how easy it is in short order.

When I'm feeling less lazy, I'll figure out how to cheese my way through it.

There are several ways to cheese it though it can be done traditionally as well (buff and attack, use potions and summons). That said, I personally found it to be a very lazily designed, cheap fight and as such it was disappointing and didn't really improve my opinion on the game's encounter design.

 

[Blaine]

There are several ways to cheese it though it can be done traditionally as well (buff and attack). That said, I personally found it to be a very lazily designed, cheap fight and as such it was disappointing and didn't really improve my opinion on the game's encounter design.

If you know of a straight counter to a 25m-long, 210-degree cone breath attack, let me know. I haven't had to stunlock anything for prolonged periods, so maybe I don't know enough about that, other than scroll spam. Moving everyone else away hasn't worked, because the tank then dies sooner rather than later. I might next try loading the tank up with Endurance potions before moving on to the real cheese.

 

[ZagorTeNej]

If you know of a straight counter to a 25m-long, 210-degree cone breath attack, let me know.

But it's BG2 that is cheap, this is what smart encounter design looks like.

I haven't had to stunlock anything for prolonged periods, so maybe I don't know enough about that, other than scroll spam. Moving everyone else away hasn't worked, because the tank then dies sooner rather than later. I might next try loading the tank up with Endurance potions before moving on to the real cheese.

-Send a tank alone to initiate conversation while the rest of the party is at a safe distance (use trial and error to determine what that is).

-Buff the rest of the party while tank engages her, use +accuracy potions if you have them (war paint is good IIRC)

-When she uses her breath on the tank (put an armor that has second chance if he can't survive by other means), join in with the rest of the group and attack her with everything you got, try to Blind her and/or knock her prone (If you have a Cipher, Amplified Wave is useful there).

-Hope you can kill her before she uses stomp/breath again.

 

[Blaine]

Yeah, I tried something like that, but then I tried to handle the minions also and so it didn't go very well. With that strategy you'll be mostly ignoring them.

 

[Delterius]

I'm starting all over again and I just realized that, per description, stat increments past 18 are useless. Is that true?

 

[ZagorTeNej]

Yeah, I tried something like that, but then I tried to handle the minions also and so it didn't go very well. With that strategy you'll be mostly ignoring them.

With a little luck, Amplified Wave knockdowns some of them as well. If you have an additional tank you can send him/her to engage Adragans, or use summons to do the same (items that summon creatures once per rest are fairly common in PoE).

 

[Lhynn]

I'm starting all over again and I just realized that, per description, stat increments past 18 are useless. Is that true?

Not true. both in interactions and in game stats over 18 are used.

 

[Roguey]

Adragon is the Aec'lectec/Greater Wolfwere of Eternity.

Silly Absurdian you're supposed to save these stupidly difficult fights for the expansion.

 

[Lhynn]

Adragon is the Aec'lectec/Greater Wolfwere of Eternity.

Silly Absurdian you're supposed to save these stupidly difficult fights for the expansion.

Not really, they are supposed to shove them down their ass and give us quality encounter design, regardless of difficulty. This shit reminds my of some of the encounters my 13 yo neighbor would come up for his nwn first modules.

 

[Blaine]

I ended up just sending Eder in to tank with some healing potions, buffing the party a fair bit for five or six seconds with Priest spells (only used one Face Paint on the Rogue), and tossed a couple Paralyze scrolls in during the battle for good measure, ignoring the minions almost entirely.

It went pretty effortlessly, all things considered. I don't use a Cipher, by the way. I may use Grieving Ellipsis at some point, but at this juncture, why bother? I did add an NPC Monk to my party as a replacement for Kana. Unsurprisingly, fights got a bit easier after that. They're almost like Rogues in practice, except somewhat less damage (but no need for flanks/debuffs), significantly more durable, and limited ranged options, but more of a focus on mobility and movement. I like it a lot. Created it at level 11, so no idea what they're like early on.

So, two scales? I expected three. Yes, a creature the size of a small building, and you get two scales, with which you can create two Superb enchantments, which you don't need anyway by that point since I'm assuming that was the hardest fight in the game.

Oh, I'd forgotten this: Since you can see enchantment ingredients from the beginning of the game, the Adra Dragon's existence is p. much spoiled from the beginning. I shouldn't have bothered with spoilers. Hide that fucking ingredient, you dolts.

My characters are actually barely missing any health, Obshitian are you even trying?

Spoiler

 

[A horse of course]

I really don't see the distinction between using Eye of Drog and/or Paralysis spells vs. doing it the "non-cheese" way and using spells like blind or using tanks with second chance, or walls of force/fire/summons for the minions.

 

[Hatred]

Every fight requires the use of abilities.

 

[Ninjerk]

The abilities of "Select All" and "Attack Command"

 

[Athelas]

Well, I found a way to make the combat fun. Currently tackling the Skaen Temple with most of my party members one hit away from perma-dying and everyone fatigued and with most of their spells depleted.

Hmm, I might have to take this back. Since some of the enemies turned out to have inflated defense scores that made them unhittable:

Hard counters! I still managed in the end by targeting different defenses, but that was tricky because I had barely any spells left.

 

[Ninjerk]

wtf is that will roll???

 

[Tigranes]

Monks are freaking killing machines.

My ToI/Hard Druid got to Level 7 before falling, of all things, to some Heritage Hill zombies in a moment of madness. Queue a Moon Godlike Monk, and.... it took me one hour to clear every Act 1 zone except Caed Nua, including the Raedric fight (Level 4 with the Animat Horn).

I love the very clear tradeoffs you can manipulate and immediately see the difference. Unarmed and Unarmoured with Dual Wield talent and a decent Per actually lets you do an interrupt build - against single enemies you can often stunlock them not allowing, say, the Xaurip Skirmisher to get its paralysis off. Once you start getting hit, even better, Torment's Reach + dual wield and you might be doing 60 damage every half second at level 3. Of course, sometimes they kill you just too fast and that's when you don armour, or even switch to the life leech flail.

 

[ZagorTeNej]

So, two scales? I expected three.

And I expected to be able to take the scales to Dunstan so that he can make a unique Adra Armor that looks cool and gives great protection against corrosion.

Just kidding

 

[Roguey]

Every fight requires the use of abilities.

In DA:O, yes. You'll get nowhere if you only use standard attacks.

Not really, they are supposed to shove them down their ass and give us quality encounter design, regardless of difficulty. This shit reminds my of some of the encounters my 13 yo neighbor would come up for his nwn first modules.

Optional stupidly difficult encounters that can only be defeated with metaknowledge/post-defeat reloading are a D&D tradition, whether it's the two I mentioned, Kangaxx, the balor from ToEE, the Tarrasque, etc.

 

[Hatred]

In DA:O, yes. You'll get nowhere if you only use standard attacks.

It was specifically DA:O I was referring to. Up to Lothering the game wasn't so bad. Then you get an option of several places to visit. The first one would be Ok. Since they don't actually scale or change or react to your taking more time to get to them there is a problem though. You quickly outlevel all of the other area's. IIRC which I very well may not I think there were 5 areas.
In any event once you clear out one area the game becomes drastically easier. A lot like PilloE once you hit defiance bay. It's possible that ages after release they changed the game dramatically but I doubt it. I heard they actually went and tuned easy to be even easier so I am doubting it.
I'm not sure what you were doing when you played DA or how old you were or what kind of mental space you were in but I would suggest that if you doubt me just whack the game on easy and go through lothering and the mages place/guild/tower or w/e it was called. Then whack the game on nightmare and go visit any other area. You will quickly find that auto attack (plus modals) will do the job from there on out. I live with someone who played DA:O as their first ever CRPG without any help and they got sick of right clicking through the game.