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Actually, that's very apropos, because this past summer... I'm funny about musicals: either they're they're great and wonderful...or they're the worst thing I've ever seen in my whole life. I do like my musicals to be more on the diegetic side broadly speaking, and Cabaret is one of the very few 100% diegetic musical movies that I know of, which makes its musical numbers quite lovely (albeit completely insane) to me. Combine that with the lead being loosely based off of Louise Brooks and it's difficult not to automatically like it. It's unfortunate that I don't have any of the two or three quotes from her book as a signature that I had for years right now... I might have to bring them back for the occasion. I've seen Louise Brooks' "A Girl in Every Port", "Beggars of Life", "Diary of a Lost Girl", "God's Gift to Women", "It's the Old Army Game", "Miss Europe", "Now We're in the Air", "Pandora's Box", "The Canary Murder Case", "The Show Off", and "Windy Riley Goes Hollywood", and despite the fact that most of them are somewhere between bad and terrible (with the major exceptions of the German Pandora's Box and Diary of a Lost Girl, and to a much lesser extent the American Beggars of Life and French Miss Europe which are alright and at least kind of interesting), they are not terrible because of Louise Brooks and I would love to uncover more of her lost, forgotten, and probably awful movies. I know there are more out there, but they can unfortunately be quite difficult to get a hold of by way of either legal or illegal means. Not that I'm like...some kind of Louise Brooks turbonerd or superfan or anything... It's always a toss-up whether I want to zoom out and get proper framing of the face with the drawback of being too small...or to just get memey with it. I chose memey this time, but I might change my mind later.

good news: scary tibetan death mask bartimaeus is finally gone bad news: back on that louise brooks crap again tangent: i hate circle avatars, they're so much harder to get right compared to square avatars, LC's avatar accurately captures how I feel trying to make circle avatars

Playing BG3 in small spurts. Exploring the first map and getting ready to go to the goblin fort. The game hasn't grabbed me so far, but the combat is not tedious in TB.

My favourite class in Pillars of Eternity is Cipher. This build felt to me quite powerful and fun throughout the playthrough. Ciphers have single target damage, AoE damage, buffs and debuffs. They don't need to rest to refresh their spells. They instead gain focus from a portion of their weapon damage during combat and use it to cast spells. Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Cipher -------------------------------------------------------------- Game Version: 3.0+ -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Wood Elf -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Old Vailia - Colonist -------------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Survival 12 (base 10, +2 Colonist), Lore 10 (base 6, +1 Cipher, +3 Viettro's Formal Footwear), Athletics 4 Might 13 Constitution 10 Dexterity 15 (14 + 1 Elf) Perception 15 (14 + 1 Elf) Intellect 15 (14 + 1 Old Vailia) Resolve 10 --- Ciphers get to select two new spells every odd level. One new spell and one new talent every even level. Level 1: Whisper of Treason, Eyestrike Level 2: Soul Shock, Bitting Whip Level 3: Mental Binding, Phantom Foes Level 4: Recall Agony, Weapon Focus Adventurer Level 5: Ectopsychic Echo, Secret Horrors Level 6: Puppet Master, Draining Whip Level 7: Silent Scream, Pain Block Level 8: Going Between, Marksman Level 9: Tactical Meld, Borrowed Instinct Level 10: Ringleader, Apprentice's Sneak Attack Level 11: Amplified Wave, Disintegration Level 12: Mind Plague, Penetrating Shot Level 13: Time Parasite, Stasis Shell Level 14: Mind Lance, Bear's Fortitude OR Bull's Will Level 15: Defensive Mindweb, Reaping Knives Level 16: Wild Leech, Bear's Fortitude OR Bull's Will --- Whisper of Treason can be useful in the early game. Afterwards I stop using it. Mental Binding is great for majority of the game. It costs 20 Focus only. Phantom Foes is one of your main spells. It activates a lot of extra damage to your auto-attacks. Ectopsychic Echo can be pretty good. Especially against enemies immune to piercing damage. When enemies are immune to Paralyze, then Silent Scream might stun them. Also nice raw damage on top in AoE. Pain Block and Going Between will significantly help your tank. Tactical Meld and Borrowed Instinct mainly for accuracy. I rate Tactical Meld higher. It will always hit and has fast cast. Use Ringleader when you get angry at the game and want to solve a difficult fight. Amplified Wave feels unfair for time to time. Only a little though. Bang this spell on Edér, Pallegina, Itumaak or anyone in good position. It's game over when you get Time Parasite. You will reach 0 recovery every fight thanks to this spell. Cast Stasis Shell on annoying enemies to get them out of the fight. But, to be honest, I rarely use this. If you have too much focus and don't know what to do with it, you can cast Reaping Knives and keep not knowing what to do with all that focus. Defensive Mindweb is nice but I feel like I rarely need it. You can also take Outlander's Frenzy and later respec when you get Time Parasite. Or instead just drink Potions of Deleterious Alacrity of Motion and use Angio's Gambeson. --- Weapon Set 1: Cloudpiercer, later Rain of Goddath Field Weapon Set 2: Estoc or something that is not Piercing damage Edér starts with a War Bow in his 2nd weapon set. Take it. Cloudpiercer is a reward for siding with the Dozens. Alternatively you can buy Borresaine and side with the Doemenels for The Merciless Hand talent (+0.3 Crit damage multiplier). But I think that Cloudpiercer is the better bow and Mob Justice talent (+5 Accuracy when attacking same target as an ally) from the Dozens is not bad either. Rain of Goddath Field is the best option because of the speed enchant and the fact it's already superb quality. Head: White Crest's Helm Armor: Angio's Gambeson, later Vengiatta Rugia Neck: Mantle of the Excavator Hands: Gauntlets of Swift Action Boots: Glanfathan Stalking Boots, afterwards Viettro's Formal Footwear Belt: Girdle of Eoten Constitution Rings: Gathbin Family Signet, Pensiavi mes Rèi, Ring of Protection, Ring of Thorns (before you get Viettro's Formal Footwear) Essentials are Glanfathan Stalking Boots or Vengiatta Rugia and Gauntlets of Swift Action. The rest is up to you. Most important stats are Int, Per, Dex. Durganize Rain of Goddath Field and Vengiatta Rugia. --- I think that Grieving Mother can use this build. I have never tried playing her with this build myself though. Her only downside is low Perception. Phantom Foes (applies Flanked) + Apprentice's Sneak Attack + Glanfathan Stalking Boots or Vengiatta Rugia + Survival 12 = +45% Damage Get addicted to Potion of Deleterious Alacrity of Motion - crafted from Skaenbone, Opal, Primal Wind. Angio's Gambeson has Deleterious Alacrity of Motion once per rest. There is also a PoE1 speed calculator. Just look online. Start your fights by casting Phantom Foes (if you have enough starting focus). Auto-attack to get focus. Spend focus. Repeat. If you don't have Time Parasite yet, drink Potion of Deleterious Alacrity of Motion. If you get engaged in melee, you should have something up your sleeve to deal with it. Ciphers have access to Charm, Dominate, Paralyze, Stun, Prone and more. If you want another option, there are cloaks enchanted with the Escape ability. Also this is not a solo build. You are playing with a party. So use them to help you. Have fun!

The only Battletech author who could write a novel worth reading was Blaine Lee Pardoe, quiaff?

Finished the Jade Falcon trilogy, was much better than the Blood of Kerensky books and Aidan is written better than Phelan, actually seems to have an arc. The sex stuff in the first book was a bit funny with how much the author mentioned it, heh., considering the issues with it.

The circle cutoff takes the picture to another level.

the harder your cutting surface, the quicker your knives will become dull. am not aware o' a common cutting board material which will dull your blades faster than titanium. metal cutting boards o' any type are annoyingly loud and the surface also tends to be slick to the point o' being dangerous. regardless, the biggest drawback to titanium is the speed with which they will dull your knives. a thick ( at least 1.5 ") wood board (teak, maple and walnut are all excellent materials... am personal a fan o' teak,) is probable the best all round option, but if you do not like wood, that narrows the field considerable. composite and bamboo or other grass boards is not great in our opinion, but japanese rubber boards are an interesting alternative as they do not suffer from the microplastic issue and will not warp when exposed to the heat of a dishwasher the way some plastic boards do... not that am ever personal using the dishwasher to clean a cutting board. rubber boards is also thinner and lighter than wood boards, although they tend to be a smidge thicker than plastic boards as they are manufactured with a rigid wood or composite core. it is worth noting that japanese boards are better suited for japanese knives as 'posed to western a chef knife style which relies on rocking as much as slicing, but they are a nice compromise if you absolute refuse to go with a wood board. our recollection is that japanese rubber boards tend to be more expensive than wood boards o' the same size, but as an alternative to plastic, they are worth considering. @Bartimaeus louise brooks were a tragic enough figure that am thinking the tibetan death mask is less disconcerting by comparison. curious, whenever we think o' louise brooks, am first recollecting sally bowles from fosse's cabaret am knowing bartimaeus is not a fan o' musicals, but louise brooks were the inspiration for sally bowles. HA! Good Fun!

Its an interesting one, there is a view that arts and sports should be apolitical but people tend to be inconsistent around this type of activism For example in South Africa there is a famous musician called Black Coffee who had a concert in Israel a few years ago and he was heavily criticized by the anti-Israeli groups But those same activists will be fine if he plays in an African country that is a failed stated or autocracy where citizens are repressed I think its up to the artist or sports person and there own moral decision because you cant really separate the optics of politics from the arts and sports and you will get criticised whatever decision you make

New Year’s Eve Concerts at Kennedy Center Are Canceled Richard Grenell, the Kennedy Center’s chairman, said in a statement on Monday night that the artists canceling shows were “far-left political activists” and that they had been booked by previous leadership. “Boycotting the arts to show you support the arts is a form of derangement syndrome,” he said. After Mr. Redd canceled the Christmas Eve concert, Mr. Grenell called it “classic intolerance” and threatened a $1 million lawsuit. HA! Good Fun!

#####-Kennedy Center says it plans to sue jazz musician who canceled Christmas performance over ##### name change Yeah, because we all know how much a legal threat encourages the arts. Perhaps Mr. Redd could follow Marshawn Lynch's example, "I'm just here so I don't get fined."

Just a tongue in cheek joke that the rebels didn't count.

https://www.gog.com/blog/gog-is-getting-acquired-by-its-original-co-founder-what-it-means-for-you/ Might not be all that indicative of anything, though.

history is difficult. in the south, the united daughters of the confederacy were successful in their efforts to promote the lost cause narrative which established that the civil war weren't about slavery so much as state's rights. https://time.com/5013943/john-kelly-civil-war-textbooks/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/costs-confederacy-special-report-180970731/ even so, in high school, Gromnir were taught that slavery were a profound evil and that it were shameful it persisted so long after the founding o' the republic. that so many generations o' enslaved had needed to suffer and that the pernicious practice were entrenched in our culture to such a degree that a bloody civil war were needed to end it were a source o' national shame and regret... which in part is why the maga folks is so torqued 'bout woke education. later, at university, we discovered that most o' the founders were educated men who viewed slavery as morally repugnant but they nevertheless went along with the 3/5ths compromise 'cause the economic and political costs o' ending slavery were seen as too high. most founders believed slavery were already on its proverbial last legs in any event, but they lacked the courage to drive a stake into slavery's putrefying heart. educated men, who no doubt saw themselves as just and moral, nevertheless knowing made a deal to prolong a practice they viewed as vile, which is maybe not so surprising as more than a couple o' those educated founders were personal relying on slave labor to maintain their expansive farms. contrary to what we were taught in high school, the founders weren't simple men o' their time, ignorant o' slavery's evil. they knew what they were doing. they knew it were wrong. they did it anyways. 'course eli whitney's cotton gin fundamental changed the economics o' southern agriculture almost overnight, which not surprising changed the politics o' slavery as well. as an aside, even today most is taught that the US civil war were an insular fight 'tween northern and southern states... is right there in the name, no? civil war. the thing is, the confederacy's goals for slavery were a bit more grand as they envisioned an agricultural slave empire which included further conquest in latin america. even less well known is how some forms o' chattel slavery and debt peonage persisted in the US long after the 13th Amendment was ratified... heck, long after juneteenth. https://www.pbs.org/video/slavery-another-name-slavery-video/ btw, even though debt peonage were finally ended as the US entered ww2, the final debt slave were not emancipated until 1963. furthermore, as difficult as it might be to believe, we ain't genuine ended slavery in the US. we mentioned the 13th Amendment, yes? section 1. neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction. section 2. congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation. kinda a big exception, no? oh, and our recollection is that brazil were literal the last nation in the western hemisphere to abolish slavery, so... as we said, history is difficult. HA! Good Fun!

Playing outer worlds 2 and tainted grail. Switching between the two hoping one will pull me in. So far id say tainted grail is closer to pulling me in. I like the grim setting a lot more than the goofy and kinda dumb outer worlds. Tainted grail feels a lot like how I remember oblivion. It even feels 20 years old like oblivion. There have been some quests that were interesting. Characters and dialogue don't annoy me. It's not bad, but it also doesn't do anything special. Pretty standard fantasy open world RPG. Outer worlds is just so souless. I'm almost done with the first planet and I'd have to think hard about any mission that sticks out. Or a characters name even. I'm roleplaying as a brilliant dumb guy... not sure how that works but I chose brilliant and witty then chose dumb as a negative perk. If this was a game I was invested in, the combo of dumb and brilliant would ruin my immersion, but it actually fits the goofy setting.

This build was created for a collaboration with @Aestus who runs the Youtube channel Aestus_RPG. This is build 1 of 3 from that collaboration. You can find a link to that video down below. ----------------------------------------- This build is mainly meant for inspiration. You don't need to follow it in detail to have fun. If you understand the key features - the basic idea what makes this build special - you can usually deviate from non-core attribute-, skill-, gear- and ability selection and form the build to your own likings and ideas. ----------------------------------------- aldar G'Angreen was born amidst the wild and unpredictable landscapes of the Living Lands. Kaldar's clan, skilled hunters, had been living on some icy peaks of the Living Lands. From an early age, Kaldar was drawn to the quiet, mystical side of the world. His family, though tough and pragmatic, were also devoted followers of Berath, the god of death and the cycles of life. His mother, a revered herbalist and healer, had taught him the ways of plants, potions and scrolls. She also instilled in him a respect for the natural cycles of death and rebirth. Kaldar was always intrigued by the balance that Berath governed—how life, death, and the passing of seasons were all intertwined in the endless flow of time. In his youth, Kaldar began to serve as an acolyte in his clan’s small shrine to Berath. But while others focused on the priestly aspects of service, Kaldar felt a deep calling to combine his spirituality with the physical world. He spent time meditating on the inevitability of death and the necessity of killing for survival. While others saw death as a tragic end, Kaldar recognized that it was as much a part of nature as the birth of new life. For him, Berath was not a distant, abstract force, but an ever-present reminder of the cycles that governed his world. One fateful day, Kaldar’s life took a tragic turn when his clan's valley was struck by a massive avalanche caused by the eruption of a nearby volcano. It surged through the valley, sweeping away homes and lives. Kaldar’s family was torn apart in the disaster, and though Kaldar survived, he lost many loved ones, including his parents. In the aftermath of the disaster, he found himself standing on the edge of the ruined valley, staring into the snow that had claimed so much. His grief was immense, yet it was here that Berath’s voice first spoke clearly to him. Berath's words were not of comfort, but of purpose: "The cycle is not undone by mourning, but by accepting it." It was in this moment that Kaldar fully embraced his role as both priest and warrior. He vowed to honor the goddess by ensuring that the natural cycle of life and death continued, even in the face of chaos and destruction. His grief gave way to a profound understanding of the delicate balance of life, death, and rebirth, and he dedicated himself to both protecting his people and serving as a guide for those whose souls crossed into the afterlife. Kaldar took up his greatsword, a weapon forged by his ancestors and passed down to him on the day he took his vows. While his spiritual power could heal the dying, offer prayers and ease suffering, he knew that Berath’s will could sometimes only be carried out through action. His greatsword, capable of cleaving through the toughest of creatures, became a symbol of his devotion to the god of cycles. The sword now struck when Kaldar’s spells had done their work. After offering his prayers, he would pick up the weapon, his greatsword carving a path through enemies and ensuring that Berath’s will was done. Soon he was known as St. Gangrene. Now, Kaldar travels beyond his homeland, drawn to the Dyrwood by rumors of imbalances in the cycle of life and death. He has heard whispers of unnatural occurrences - a plague that refuses to end, souls that do not pass to the newborn and deaths that seem wrong, as if they were taken before their time. Kaldar believes that Berath is calling him to right these wrongs, and he knows that his strength and his divine connection will be crucial to restoring balance. His true purpose lies in bringing death when necessary, but also ensuring that life flourishes where it is meant to. But mostly bringing death when necessary... =================================== St. Gangrene =================================== Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Priest -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Dwarf (optional) -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: The Living Lands - Colonist -------------------------------------------------------------- Stats: MIG: 21 (+1 Living Lands) CON: 10 DEX: 15 PER: 14 INT: 15 RES: 03 -------------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Survival 8, Lore 10, Athletics 8 -------------------------------------------------------------- Talents (a=auto, r=recommended, !=important) 2: Inspiring Radiance® 4: The Pallid Hand® 6: Weapon Focus Soldier® 8: Aggrandizing Radiance® 10: Runner’s Wounding Shot 12: Two Handed Style 14: Apprentice's Sneak Attack 16: Savage Attack Abilities 9: Spell Mastery: Blessing 11: Spell Mastery: Holy Power® 13: Spell Mastery: Dire Blessing 15: Spell Mastery: Devotions for the Faithful® Story Talents: - The Merciless Hand - Dungeon Delver - Song of the Heavens - Galawain's Boon (+1 MIG) --------------------------------------------------------------- Items (!=important, r=recommended): Weapon Set 1: Tidefall (!) (for hitting foes, legendary, Corrosive Lash) Weapon Set 2: Abydon’s Hammer® (more Might for casting spells) Boots: Shod in Faith® Head: Maegfolc Skull Armor: Angio’s Gambeson, Vengiatta Rugia Neck: Cloak of Comfort Belt: Girdle of the Driving Wave® Rings: Seal of Faith, Ring of Protection Hands: Gauntlets of Puissant Melee, Celebrant's Gloves --------------------------------------------------------------- Hi! Another late build for PoE - I was invited for a second interview by @Aestus again, this time for PoE: And since I talked about some PoE build ideas in the forum but never posted them, we thought this was a good opportunity to do so. St. Gangrene is a Priest of Berath who wants to hit enemies with a great sword - once all the casting is done. To do that we combine very high Might and combine it with the unique great sword Tidefall - and of course high Might is great for healing as well as damaging spells... and Holy Radiance's damage gainst vessels, too (it actually scales extremely well with MIGH in combination with tha Priest's favored dispositions, one-shotting most vessels at some point)! Later we can even use Abydon's Hammer for some extra Might when we are casting damaging or healing spells. The reason why high Might works very well with Tidefall: its wounding enchantment is a 25% raw lash, but unlike other lashes it scales with Might. More Might means higher lash damage. Higher Might also means higher weapon damage, which in turn raises the lash damage as well: win-win. You can then add some melee dmg bonuses with Savage Attack, Two-Handed Style ad Apprentice's Sneak Attack, which raises the damage further. In order to achieve ridiculos Might we maxize it during character creation (Dwarf or Aumaua, Human also works, Living Lands) and then always use the best +MIG item we can find until we get the Maegfolc Skull (+4). If combined with Holy Power, later Champion's Boon or Minor Avatar (+8 to everything) and Aggrandizing Radiance (+2 to everything, stacks) the Might score slowly grows towards 40 points. Use the Blighthollow Resting in Caed Nua for +3 extra Might, it lasts for 3 rests in the wilderness. ~40 Might means +90% damage and healing - and it turns the 25% wounding lash into a 48% lash - so to speak. Combine with a 25% elemental lash and the melee damage is pretty impressive - outright outrageous for a Priest. The healing bonus even works for healing that affects health: Wound Binding for example (you might consider taking it, it can prevent frequent resting because of los health) but also potions of Infuse with Vital Essence. If you drink such a potion before the combat ends it can restore quite some health for you. All that Might is also benefical for the second nice enchantment the weapon has: draining. With draining you'll add a portion of the damage you deal to your endurance, healing you. Lots of great sword damage = lots of healing. A Priest of Berath (starting ACC of 20 only) can use the talent "the Pallid Hand" to get +10 accuracy with great swords, which lifts him on the level of Fighters (30 base ACC). Add Weapon Focus Soldier and the usual accuracy buffs a Priest has (Blessing, Devotions, Minor Avatar etc.) and you can see that hitting enemies will not be a problem at all. It's still a Priest so the main focus is on the spells - but often, once you are finished with your spells or want to spare spells for later, you want to do something mundane with your Priest. This one can. It's also great to be able to whack some sense into backline rushers who think they can just annoy your casters. To make the melee combat more fun and interesting I added Runner's Wounding Shot (the 80% DoT stacks with Wounding) and the Girdle of the Driving Wave (which gives you Knockdown 1/encounter which can be super useful against rushers) - so you will have two special melee attacks per encounter at least. If you want to get even more you can pick up Envenomed Strikes instead of Savage Attack or Apprentice's Sneak Attack. It's 3/rest - but very strong if you take it early - and its damage scales well with Might, too. Remember: you can always retrain... Also Gatecrasher Gloves can be fun: Clear Out with high MIG and good INT is no joke. Cheers and have fun!

please make pillars of eternity 3 start kickstarter maybe? -Anıl Erdem Sarak

*coughs* *whispers* Neverwinter Nights 3, please. Look, Obsidian, I know Wizards of the Coast like to hurt the people they work with, but after returning to the embrace of the mother ship, I'm sure you'd learn to love the bite of their tentacle spines...

Hi everyone. After several years I returned to Pillars of Eternity and noticed that this forum is missing a little bit more detailed companion builds. So I thought I would try to change that. I also think that maybe because of Avowed there will be more people going back to Pillars of Eternity. I hope that I am not blind and that other people have not already posted the same companion builds. I will start with Kana. --- Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Chanter -------------------------------------------------------------- Game Version: 3.0+ -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Island Aumaua -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Rauatai - Scholar -------------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Lore 12 (base 8, +2 Chanter, + 2 Scholar), Survival 6, Athletics the rest --- Kana can be found standing outside of Caed Nua. At character creation, Chanters select two Phrases and one Invocation. Kana at level 1 automatically chooses (you can't change that): phrases - Blessed Was Wengridh, Quickest of His Tribe and At the Sight of their Comrades, their Hearts Grew Bold invocation - If their Bones Still Slept Under that Hill, None Can Say So you start leveling Kana from level 2 onwards. Phrases at lvl 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15. Invocations and Talents at lvl 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, 16. Level 1: Automatic Level 2: The Thunder Rolled Like Waves on Black Seas, Ancient Memory Level 3: Dull the Edge Level 4: White Worms, Weapon Focus Soldier Level 5: Sure-Handed Ila Level 6: At the Sound of His Voice, Gunner Level 7: One Dozen Stood Level 8: The Lover Cried out to the Beloved, Runner's Wounding Shot Level 9: Aefyllath Ues Mith Fyr Level 10: The Bride Caught their Ruse, Marksman Level 11: Rime and Frost Followed Level 12: Oh But Knock Not, Envenomed Strike Level 13: They Shielded Their Eyes Level 14: So Singt thy Biting Winds, Apprentice's Sneak Attack Level 15: With All Your Strength Level 16: Called to His Bidding, Beast Slayer OR Secrets of Rime --- White Worms Writhed in the Bellies of the Dead is an AMAZING early game Invocation. It's basically corpse explosion Just take advatage of chokepoints with your tank and as bodies pile up you can cast White Worms and deal a lot of damage. You can even lure enemies to places where you already have some bodies prepared. Just be aware that if you reload, bodies will dissapear. You can even deal nicely with the Raedric fight thanks to White Worms Writhed in the Bellies of the Dead. Before you start the fight with Raedric, pull the group of enemeis behind the door to the left of the throne room and lure them to the bedroom door on the right. Chanter can turn on Blessed Was Wengridh for Move Speed. Watch out for the Web spell. Priest at level 5 has Prayer Against Restraint or send someone who can be knocked out for the duration of the fight. Afterwards pull Raedric to the same spot and spam White Worms. I picked Sure-Handed Ila Nocked Her Arrows with Speed because my main character was ranged Cipher. Feel free to pick whatever you want instead or keep it. At the Sound of His Voice, the Killers Froze Stiff paralyzes in AoE and foes only. You will use it majority of the game. One Dozen Stood Against the Power of the Saint is pretty good against Dragons, Lions or anyone with Frightened/Terrified attacks. Rime and Frost Followed is for the burning house interaction in Stalwart and Cayron's Scar ending interaction They Shielded Their Eyes 'Gainst the Fampyr's Gaze is "surprisingly" good against Fampyrs or anyone who is trying to Confuse, Charm, Dominate your party. With All Your Strength Slay the Beast for Dragons mostly. --- Prepare these Chants: Chant 1 - Sure-Handed Ila + Aefyllath Ues Mith Fyr. I have this on most of the time. Chant 2 - One dozen Stood + Sure Handed Ila. Chant 3 - They Shielded Their Eyes + Sure Handed Ila. Chant 4 - With All Your Strength + Sure Handed Ila. Before you get Sure-Handed Ila + Aefyllath Ues Mith Fyr use Dull the Edge + At the Sight. --- Weapon Set 1: Hold-Wall, later switch to Aedrin's Wrecker Weapon Set 2: Great Sword or Pike or War Hammer and Shield You can buy Hold-Wall in Black Hammer Smithy in Gilded Vale. Aedrin's Wrecker can be found on Level 10 of the Endless Paths of Od Nua. Head: Anything with Intellect Armor: Angio's Gambeson or any light armor Neck: Finreah's Grace Hands: Spiderfingers Boots: Glanfathan Stalking Boots Belt: whatever you want Rings: Ring of Protection, Ring of Overseeing, Ring of Searing Flames or whatever you want None of these equipment choices are set in stone to be honest. You just want nice Dexterity and Intellect boost and some Perception. --- I find Kana to be quite good from start to finish. With arbalest he will knock down enemies, buff and protect your party with chants, CC your enemies and summon help. You should also give him enough Lore skill so Kana can use some handy scrolls. I like scroll of Valor, scroll of Defense, scroll of Protection (amazing against Ogre Druids, Delemgan, Pŵgra, Adragan, Mênpŵgra), scroll of Revival, scroll of Prayer against Imprisonment, scroll of Prayer against Treachery.

Edér likes animals and charging to the frontlines. Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Fighter -------------------------------------------------------------- Game Version: 3.0+ -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Meadow Folk -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: The Dyrwood - Farmer -------------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Athletics 9 (base 7, +1 Fighter, +1 Farmer) , Survival 12 (base 10, +1 Fighter, +1 Farmer), some Lore if you want --- Edér is smoking his pipe next to the the gallows tree in Gilded Vale. You need to do Visions and Whispers quest before you can recruit him. Level 1: Knock Down Level 2: Two Weapon Style Level 3: Confident Aim Level 4: Weapon Focus Soldier Level 5: Weapon Specialization Soldier Level 6: Bear's Fortitude Level 7: Armored Grace Level 8: Weapon Mastery Level 9: Disciplined Barrage Level 10: Apprentice's Sneak Attack Level 11: Critical Defense OR Vigorous Defense Level 12: Superior Deflection Level 13: Charge Level 14: Savage Attack Level 15: Triggered Immunity Level 16: Rapid Recovery --- I don't think Edér needs Sword and Shield to be your main tank. Even on PotD. Abilities like Disciplined Barrage and Vigorous Defense are great but they don't last very long because of Edér's Intellect. I tend to choose Criticial Defense over Vigorous Defense because of that. I still pick Disciplined Barrage though. Don't always mindlessly spam Knock Down and try to interrupt enemies with it instead. --- Weapon Set 1: Shatterstar + Godansthunyr or Strike Hard Weapon Set 2: Any ranged weapon from your Weapon Focus I hate how Godansthunyr looks. So I often pick Strike Hard instead but Godansthunyr is the better weapon. Another option is to go Weapon Focus: Knight. There is plenty of good Swords and Battle Axes. Head: Garodh's Chorus Armor: Plate Armor, He Carries Many Scars Neck: Shroud of Mourning Hands: Pilferer's Grip Boots: Boots of Stability Belt: Girdle of Eoten Constitution Rings: Ring of Protection, Ring of Deflection You are looking for Resolve, Constitution, Might. Enchant your armor with Perception. --- It's crucial, especially in the early game, to know how to use chokepoints in the area you are in. Well placed Edér is going to block a whole group of enemies even on PotD. Look for doors, narrow corridors, ... If you feel like you need Edér to tank with a shield, then pick Weapon and Shield Style instead of Two Weapon style and respec later when you are more comfortable without a shield. Later in the game, most of the time, you can just send Edér forward to tank and deal damage. With Charge Edér becomes a lot more fun to play but that is all the way at level 13. Have Potions of Llengrath's Displaced Image ready in your quick slots for more difficult fights. If you want Edér to tank dragons, give him Ilfan Byrngar's Solace. The shield has Preservation: +50 Defenses while Stunned; +50 Defenses while Prone. That's great against dragons. Alternatively you can choose any other piece of gear with the same enchantment. But Ilfan Byrngar's Solace can be obtained more easily and relatively early in the game. Other options are Ring of Thorns, Malina's Boots, Garodh's Chorus, ...

Continuing the companion builds. This time Durance. Difficulty: PotD -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Priest -------------------------------------------------------------- Game Version: 3.0+ -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Meadow folk -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Dyrwood - Clergyman -------------------------------------------------------------- Skills: Mechanics 12, Lore 6 (base 2, +2 Priest, + 2 Clergyman), Athletics 2 (base 1, +1 Priest) , Survival 1 --- Durance can be found in Magran's Fork standing near a statue of Magran. You start leveling Durance from level 2 onwards. Priests gain new spells every odd level. You don't have to select which spells to learn. You learn automatically all the available spells at the appropriate level. Level 1: Priest Spells Level 2: Interdiction Level 3: Priest Spells Level 4: Inspired Flame Level 5: Priest Spells Level 6: Gunner Level 7: Priest Spells Level 8: Insipring Radiance OR Painful Interdiction Level 9: Priest Spells and Mastery - Blessing OR Armor of Faith Level 10: Weapon Focus: Soldier OR Scion oF Flame Level 11: Priest Spells and Mastery - Iconinc Projection OR Holy Power OR Divine Mark OR Consecrated Ground Level 12: Scion oF Flame OR Weapon Focus: Soldier Level 13: Priest Spells and Mastery - Dire Blessing Level 14: Heart of the Storm Level 15: Priest Spells and Mastery - Devotions for the Faithful Level 16: Apprentice's Sneak Attack OR Bear's Fortitude --- Inspired Flame gives Durance +10 Accuracy with Arquebus and Sword. Withdraw can be used to save your party members or to block a chockepoint. Watch out for dots, they don't get removed by Withdraw and continue to deal damage. Priests can simplify many dangerous or annoying encounters thanks to Prayers and Litanies. Prayer Against Fear, Prayer Against Bewilderment, Prayer Against Imprisonment, Prayer Against Treachery. Priests have important buffs to Accuracy and damage output. Blessing, Dire Blessing, Devotions for the Faithful. Don't forget that Minor Intercession lowers the duration of active hostile effects by 5 sec. Spark the Souls of the Righteous is so good that I think Heart of the Storm is worth it. If you get surrounded by enemies, later in the game, Spark the Souls of the Righteous can be very helpful. --- Weapon Set 1: Use the best Arquebus you can find, later Pliambo per Casitàs Weapon Set 2: Durance's Staff or Weapon and Shield In the early game take Kana's Arquebus. Head: Hermit's Head Armor: Durance' Robe, later Raiment of Wael's Eyes Neck: Cloack of Protection Hands: Fulvano's Gloves Boots: whatever you like Belt: Girdle of Maegfolc Might Rings: Ring of Overseeing, ... You are mostly looking for Intellect, Dexterity and Might. --- Durance should hangout in the back of your party, fling spells and shoot his arquebus. If you want to buy an Exceptional Arquebus, you can go to Bricanta Doemenel. She is in the Doemenel Manor on the second floor. It's not cheap though. Durance's personal quest is very long, several acts long, and you have to rest with Durance in the party multiple times.

Or maybe a mod that turns Avowed into a CRPG?