Pillars of Eternity

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I came across this digital solid waste: http://www.tentonhammer.com/guides/...eternity-character-creation-no-nonsense-guide

"No nonsense guide" for character creation. Is this really how some people play cRPG's? No wonder we have to fucking crowdfund these games nowadays. This guy describes the "benefits" of playing with one or another class purely from a combat standpoint, and to make matters worse, treats it like an MMO.

Obviously he is suggesting a meta-game, min-max approach. The trick here is: I don't think this even works in Pillars! While some attributes (such as Might) are very ambiguous, I kinda like it that they forced spell casters to need a certain amount of Might and the more physical classes to require mental attributes such as Resolve. Playing with a high Int and Dex and moderate Per character has allowed me to choose certain specific options, but often I wished I had more Might, Resolve or whatever. This means that I would like to replay with, for instance, a high Per and Res character to see how the game reacts to me. And this is why, I think, Pillars of Eternity succeeds as a cRPG.

The whole "no nonsense" argument is offensive to the game. There simply isn't a best class or attribute distribution because, apart from combat, the REAL game relies on many factors. This "killing machine" approach to cRPG's should be eradicated.
 
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I agree with you, which is why I have a 10 Might 18 Int Barbarian ;D
(In fact, Intellect is actually quite useful for barbarians, since it increases their AoE Melee damage and Frenzy duration.)
 
EDIT 2: For F's sake! I figured it out. Turns out I'm not the only one who had this problem. But I can't believe It took me three weeks to finally start enjoying this game again :rant:


ORIGINAL POST: Well I'm in a bit of an embarrassing situation. I can't figure out how to enter Caed Nua for the quest "The Old Watcher." I'm pretty pissed about it to be honest. I've had this game for three weeks. I was really enjoying it at first (okay-- for the fist few days), but then I couldn't enter Caed Nua. So I said "Okay, whatever. I'll do sidequests and figure it out later." Well, I exhausted all the sidequests for my level in Gilded Vale. Then I bought grappeling hooks and what not thinking there was some special way to get in, but I didn't find anything. I've walked all over the area several times using [TAB] and stealthing to check for hidden things. Finally I consulted the wiki (something I didn't want to do) and all it said was "Enter the keep to northeast." I'm not sure whether or not my game is glitched. I google searched this problem and nothing came up. So, finally at my wits end I am posting here for help. I seriously could've beaten the game by now if I hadn't gotten stuck.

EDIT: Added screenshots for reference.
 

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Uh... ok?

I'm sadly a bit annoyed at Pillars at the moment. Wrapping things up in Twin Elms before I visit uh... those areas up north, and most remaining quests involve killing, killing and more senseless killing. Or insanely high attribute checks, in the order of 19. Sigh. Guess I'll just go around exploring and if necessary, go and clear a few levels beneath Caed Nua.

I'm actually interested in the story, but as usual I want to wrap things up first.

Edit:

Holy shit! After getting slaughtered endlessly by err

Nalrend the Wise

I suddenly wiped him and his entourage in one fell swoop, relying mostly on the level IV confusion spell.

Also, did anyone notice that the level V spell Wall of Force kind of damages party members, even though it says it doesn't?

Edit 2:

Decided to take a break from Twin Elms and go back to do more bounties. They're kind of fun for some reason. Now guess what? I hadn't even touched Northweald and I reached the maximum level with my entire party. I have also not touched the dungeons beneath Caed Nua.

I can recommend everyone to introduce the confusion/mind-control type spells into your tactics. Both wizards and ciphers have them, and I believe clerics, druids and chanters may have versions of them. They become (at least in my current play style) essential when confronting large, over powered mobs: they let you focus on a few individuals at a time while the rest either stand there quietly or help you fight. There's also a cleric spell to reduce the duration of state altering spells, of which druids seem to have plenty, some of which deal raw damage and obliterate your party quickly. Examples of these are the ogre mobs with two or more ogre druids.
 
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Uh... ok?

I'm sadly a bit annoyed at Pillars at the moment. Wrapping things up in Twin Elms before I visit uh... those areas up north, and most remaining quests involve killing, killing and more senseless killing. Or insanely high attribute checks, in the order of 19. Sigh. Guess I'll just go around exploring and if necessary, go and clear a few levels beneath Caed Nua.

I'm actually interested in the story, but as usual I want to wrap things up first.

Edit:

Holy shit! After getting slaughtered endlessly by err

Nalrend the Wise

I suddenly wiped him and his entourage in one fell swoop, relying mostly on the level IV confusion spell.

Also, did anyone notice that the level V spell Wall of Force kind of damages party members, even though it says it doesn't?

Edit 2:

Decided to take a break from Twin Elms and go back to do more bounties. They're kind of fun for some reason. Now guess what? I hadn't even touched Northweald and I reached the maximum level with my entire party. I have also not touched the dungeons beneath Caed Nua.

I can recommend everyone to introduce the confusion/mind-control type spells into your tactics. Both wizards and ciphers have them, and I believe clerics, druids and chanters may have versions of them. They become (at least in my current play style) essential when confronting large, over powered mobs: they let you focus on a few individuals at a time while the rest either stand there quietly or help you fight. There's also a cleric spell to reduce the duration of state altering spells, of which druids seem to have plenty, some of which deal raw damage and obliterate your party quickly. Examples of these are the ogre mobs with two or more ogre druids.
I even did the second wave of bounties before really taking on Twin Elms and yes, also my party is level 12 already. (But I also cleared the endless paths down to level 12, because they are fun). The progression will from now on be through items, only my front line fighters have superb weapons right now, some of my party members are even wearing only 'fine' armor, duh (mostly uniques, so they don't suck completely, but still... ;) ).
One thing regarding the insanely high attribute/skill checks: I disabled the dialogue options which I don't fulfill, because it's a bit spoilery for possible future runs and breaks the fourth wall.
Mind control spells are borderline cheating as of now, you easily control even your most powerful enemies just like that - for me that's quite immersion-breaking. But of course I use them nevertheless, because I'm not hardcore enough to resist ;)
 
I agree, confusion and similar spells do feel like cheating, but they're also so satisfying ;)

Like you said, my next goal is to equip my characters with the best possible gear. And maybe go clear that dungeon.

By the way, dragons...

The dragon at the temple of Hylea was way too easy, even on hard. What the fuck?
 
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How useful are spells like Rolling Flame for example? I find it highly unreliable, since it creates a ball of fire which starts rolling in random directions, hitting your companions as well.
 
I like AoE spells that I can control, and those that affect mental attributes or are restricted to enemies. Others I might use in case of emergencies but I try to keep my party all in one piece. I specially like AoE spells that deal damage over time, since they play well with my usual tactics.

Cleric spells are also very useful but work in different ways. Some of them are actually quite powerful and deal lots of damage.
 
The whole "no nonsense" argument is offensive to the game. There simply isn't a best class or attribute distribution because, apart from combat, the REAL game relies on many factors. This "killing machine" approach to cRPG's should be eradicated.

The guide is purely designed for combat and it works.
 
I specially like AoE spells that deal damage over time, since they play well with my usual tactics.

What are your common tactics?

So far I have 4 people in the group - a druid, two in-game companions from Gilded Vale (mage and fighter), and a rogue (created companion).

Right now I'm clearing out the temple of Eothas. What I figured out, that's it's not a good idea to just run into a small room crowded with some nasty shadows with your whole party. I usually send a character with highest stealth ability to scout the area and lure them out of the small room into a bigger corridor where there is more room for maneuvering. Then I try to attract them to fighter and druid for engaging in melee, while mage and rogue are placed for ranged attacks (spells and bow). The hard part is to place characters in a way that mage's spells wouldn't hurt companions - that's always tricky.

Though with shadows it's kind of random, since those spooks like to teleport.

---------- Updated at 08:09 PM ----------

Do you know if wearing a torch reduces stealth?
 
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Do you know if wearing a torch reduces stealth?

I strongly doubt that, given how rudimentary the stealth system is.

Btw: the stronghold needs some adjustments.
For one, I hate the TWO loading screens I have to pass to be able to rest in Brighthollow - please just give us a resting button in the Hold's UI;
and two: the resting bonuses achieved by rebuilding the stronghold are simply not worth it. Let them stack! That would be at least somewhat rewarding for all the time and money it takes to rebuild everything, and there are quite a few resting bonuses available in many Inns which STILL would be more powerful (like a +4 Int bonus or +2Int/Res/Per - at only 200cp per rest. A +1 to everything bonus for several 10k cp doesn't seem too much to ask in comparison).
 
I came across this digital solid waste: http://www.tentonhammer.com/guides/...eternity-character-creation-no-nonsense-guide

"No nonsense guide" for character creation. Is this really how some people play cRPG's? No wonder we have to fucking crowdfund these games nowadays. This guy describes the "benefits" of playing with one or another class purely from a combat standpoint, and to make matters worse, treats it like an MMO.

Obviously he is suggesting a meta-game, min-max approach. The trick here is: I don't think this even works in Pillars! While some attributes (such as Might) are very ambiguous, I kinda like it that they forced spell casters to need a certain amount of Might and the more physical classes to require mental attributes such as Resolve. Playing with a high Int and Dex and moderate Per character has allowed me to choose certain specific options, but often I wished I had more Might, Resolve or whatever. This means that I would like to replay with, for instance, a high Per and Res character to see how the game reacts to me. And this is why, I think, Pillars of Eternity succeeds as a cRPG.

The whole "no nonsense" argument is offensive to the game. There simply isn't a best class or attribute distribution because, apart from combat, the REAL game relies on many factors. This "killing machine" approach to cRPG's should be eradicated.
Just another approach to the game, as despicable it may be to people like you, me or anyone who doesn't need the perfect build to enjoy a primarily story-driven cRPG. Or complete it the fastest way possible.

Is it offensive? Yes, kind of.
But neither do I nor does Obsidian (I think) really take offense from something like this. If some people just want to min-max while blissfully ignoring 'the meat and potatoes' the game has to offer then let them min-max. I'll just ignore them in return. Or pity the fools that make that mistake.

Complete and utter eradication of this 'insta-win' mentality where there's no place for failures or imperfections would be nice, but any games with any kind of progression will always have guides demonstrating how to complete it in the absolutely most effective or fastest way possible.

Btw: the stronghold needs some adjustments.
For one, I hate the TWO loading screens I have to pass to be able to rest in Brighthollow - please just give us a resting button in the Hold's UI;
and two: the resting bonuses achieved by rebuilding the stronghold are simply not worth it. Let them stack! That would be at least somewhat rewarding for all the time and money it takes to rebuild everything, and there are quite a few resting bonuses available in many Inns which STILL would be more powerful (like a +4 Int bonus or +2Int/Res/Per - at only 200cp per rest. A +1 to everything bonus for several 10k cp doesn't seem too much to ask in comparison).
Seems like something Obsidian could look into for the expansion, like adding optional extensions or upgrades to the upgrades that boost the resting bonuses when purchased. Would also provide another goldsink.
Just +1 (or more) to everything is a little bit too easy, as far as I'm concerned.

But then I don't stay at the stronghold too often. If I have to rest I primarily stop by inns or just make camp in the open. Once you get the resting bonuses they last like forever anyway.


What really needs to be addressed, either officially or through mods still is:

I really like how spellbooks are managed in PoE - you can have many of them (with different spell sets for every occasion), you can loot them, you can learn spells from them.
Being able to just pay a few hundred copper pands for the spell transcription isn't exactly the ideal way to go about it though.
Would have been better if it's checked against stats like intellect or/and lore if the Wizard actually is capable of transcribing a spell of a certain level into her/his grimoire, maybe even requiring special items like a quill or ink that are consumed in the process as well.
 
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What really needs to be addressed, either officially or through mods still is:
Yes, this 'copy spells for monies' business doesn't feel right. It's the same as if they just let the ingredients for crafting out, and you'd simply have to pay a certain amount for effect x or y. Right now the crafting and enchanting is not very deep, but the ingredients needed for enchanting make sense, mostly (like spirit residue for spirit slaying weapons, stuff like that). So it would definitely be an improvement to implement something similar for learning new spells.
I think it might also be viable to let it take some time to 'learn' the spells - so you simply take a found grimoire, click 'learn spell' and then it takes some rounds (stronghold rounds, just as with the completion of assignments, so you can't spam-rest to let the time pass) until the spell becomes usable. Increasing time for increasing spell difficulty. Maybe minus or divided by the INT bonus or something like that.
 
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How useful are spells like Rolling Flame for example? I find it highly unreliable, since it creates a ball of fire which starts rolling in random directions, hitting your companions as well.
As for AOE spells there is one important thing (which I noticed only in the halfway of the game :) ) - there are two ranges, closer to the point of the origin of the spell damaging everyone, and further (marked as more transparent red) damaging only foes. This way you can f.e. use cones being behind your tank etc.
 
As for AOE spells there is one important thing (which I noticed only in the halfway of the game :) ) - there are two ranges, closer to the point of the origin of the spell damaging everyone, and further (marked as more transparent red) damaging only foes. This way you can f.e. use cones being behind your tank etc.

The outer zone is yellow, it's determined by your INT multiplier. The more INT, the larger the area which damages only foes - VERY important for AoE spells.
 
You know the double target area for AoE spells is explained even in the loading screens, right? ;)

Also, you guys don't get it. You need metal such as copper or gold to channel the magical energy that lets you concentrate and transcribe spells between grimoires. The only readily available source of conductive metal simply happens to be, also, our currency.


:p


On a different note, cleared the first five levels of the endless paths in one sitting. Now starting lever 9. Not a challenge yet, but I'm already max level.

Not quite what I expected (Watchers Keep remains unsurpassed) but somewhat fun. I like the tidbits of story and lore in there, like

That fampyr sitting on the statue's hand

Haven't played anything else since it came out. Must be OK I guess...

---------- Updated at 10:30 AM ----------

The guide is purely designed for combat and it works.

For some reason I didn't see this before. The minmax approach may actually work in, for instance, D&D inspired video games since some attributes do not benefit the combat abilities of certain classes, such as strength for mages and intelligence for fighters. They would be handicapped for everything else, but yeah it works. In pillars mages need might and everyone needs perception and resolve, etc. It's not perfect but much more balanced. This is why, apart from creating functional characters that can do more than killing, I think this approach doesn't exactly apply in Pillars. In terms of pure damage output, clever combinations yield better results: attack damage reduction or will, cause interrupts, prone or paralyzed plus sneak and critical, etc.
 
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What is the key combination for splitting a stack of items in inventory? For example I have two food items stacked, and want to give them to separate characters in their quickslots. But it didn't figure out how to separate them.
 
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