draego

If you are worried about companions autoleveling there is an option to turn that off under the difficulty options. So you can level them the way you want when you find them. If that is what you mean. Since this is your first playthrough i wouldnt meta game to much about story stuff. You will get a chance to find all of them. Also if you are having a hard time early on you can hire mercenaries at the inns to round out your party until you find companions you need.

For me it depends on if this is your first playthough or what kind of playthrough you are doing. I do that more now if i am trying to build a particular party because i have gone through the game several times but if you havent played the game before i wouldnt be in a rush because you may want to take some time with each character to see if you like them. Also there are actually 11 characters not 8 if you have White March expansions.

I know this is not quite the same thing but i am not so sure POE2 will be better than POE1 in this regard. At least in POE1 you could make a few of your weapons/armors go to the highest level before the endgame to make up for not having millions of magic items drop. In POE2 they are taking that away too. So it really will be wait to end game to get best weapons.

Ye i can understand that. My last few ranger builds are all melee. I enjoyed the positioning game to get the most out of my animals sneak attack and my survival skill. I want to play that way now in POE2. My first play through was a war bow ranger which was fun for me the first time but now i like the ambush flanking role i am using my ranger pet combo for. I think multi classing can add lots of active abilities. I am sure i will play my first ranger as pure class. Hopefully the Stalker class Josh mentioned turns out interesting. He gave no details just the name. i guess they get that from BG but curious what POE version will be.

Ye i agree wolf hit like a truck after you add all the talents and abilities. I also think they need to track the damage the animal does. I think it would surprise people how powerful they are. They were definitely not weak. I hope at least one of the subs has even more potential with the animal. I really dont like the idea of the ghost ranger but i like that there are different subclasses for different play styles.

Allright, cool - didn't come up all that much for me, I always assumed it would cancel everything. Cheers mate! Ye i noticed it when i would cheat to try out stuff and give myself 16 levels or later on when i tried re roll at an in. So its not normal

Hope I'm not mistaken, but I think you can't take only one level-up of several. If you've earned two or more, you need to do them all. No you can just take one. What happens is you click level up then do skills and abilities then it will bring you to the next level up but you can click cancel and stay with what you have already done.

This is a quote from Josh in answer to "if you had to guess; what % of spells and talents are porting straight over vs new/significant reworks?" So there is some rework of afflictions

Yes every buff you can stack counts.

You, or someone, did argue against the fact that Aloth being the main dps in a party doesn't make him a good dps. Don't try to pretend this didn't happen, we can go back to quote those old posts if you want, they're still here. Shame on you, at least have the integrity to stand by your words or admit your mistake. I said i used him primarily as a dps wizard and he turned out to be good at it (not the best, not as good as a min maxer pc, not better than if he had 18 might). As in he was first or second in damage in that game i roled with him, thats it. That was my metric of why i think the stats are not as important as some posters keep saying they are.I was using this as an example that you dont have to setup the stats in an optimal manner to have that character fulfill that role of dps (especially for a wizard or druid for that matter). The aoe and single target spells are really powerful whether you get a 18% damage bust from 6 might between 12 and 18. Now i understand lots of people have a problem with the stats being devalued as compared to the spells, gear, and abilities. That is fine and great and subjective. You kept posting stuff to make the point below: And i was using aloth as an example that it wasnt true. even though he is better suited for cc you could just use him to cast dps spells primarily and he would be good at it. As in not suck, as in the stats wouldn't stop you from doing that. You keep making stuff up to move the goal post or metrics of why i couldn't do this. But i did do this in one of my playthroughs for the whole game which shows it possible. I could even build aloth as a frontline off tank and he would be good at that. I am being a little unfair here because wizard are so powerful and versatile but it still proves my point I dont know why it bothers you so much that someone has the nerve to not min max in the way you feel they should have or that they didn't follow your arbitrary rules as to what makes a good tank or dps character. My playthroughs are proof the stats allow what i am saying. If you were correct then i shouldn't be able to damage enemies alot with aloth but i did or palligina wouldnt be able soak up damage and engage first mutiple enemies without dying alot but she did. And the rest of my post was just trying to show you that your conception of what stats i have to use to play certain roles in this game is wrong because i was able to do the opposite of what you keep saying. I am just trying to expand you mind to what builds are possible to play the game. You have a very restricted view of what stats you 'must' take to be a tank, or dps, or ranged, or whatever. I know we are just going to have to disagree. i have obviously failed to prove to you that you dont have to take certain stats for certain roles (tanks, dps, ranged, etc) in your party. that is life. oh well you cant win them all.

Perhaps you should go back to school so you can learn to use terms like "high probability" in a proper context. A wizard with 18 might and 18 perception does better damage than wizard with 12/12. I really don't appreciate your dishonest arguments. No one every was arguing this but you. So i dont why you keep saying this stuff. Once again you made up something i never posted about aloth. And once again i a sorry you misunderstood my post.

And i respect that. I may have been more combative than i was really trying to be. And you are right I am sure there some changes in POE2 that would improve the game that i never even thought of since i am not a dev or have not played role playing games outside video games. i did enjoy the role play value of POE stats. I am glad they are adding more non combat skills to help flesh out your characters build to improve ability to role play. Anything that helps you flesh out your character role would be welcome.

which is objectively not true its hard to take you seriously. And i suspect like i mentioned you cant imagine you could have a role in a party without having the most optimally perfect stats because you are married to systems where stats are the end all be all of builds, but that is the fun thing about POE you can build like you like and play almost any role. stats are for roleplaying in many ways just as much as mechanics so if you wanted to be a 10 might wizard damager you could be and still be good at it. And to be honest i thought making might the single source of damage was a nice change to past DnD systems from BG to NWN. I'll qualify that as "Aloth can never be a damage Wizard compared to a custom Wizard designed for the role." Basically, a Wizard with low Might and high Intelligence is designed to be a control Wizard, not a damage Wizard. Yes, you can use them as a damage Wizard, but they will be sub-par at that role because of their inefficient stat distribution. I actually agree. I have never said giving a wizard more might would not result in more damage. I know his stats are better suited for cc. all i am saying is that the stats aren't as ridged as some of the post are making them out to be. And the fact that i have seen aloth do lots of dps because mage spells are just powerful shows that stats are not ridged and are not the only determinate of what role you play in the party. So yes most of my runs i have aloth as a cc wizard but even for that his stats are not as optimal as custom build cc mc wizard but he can still do that role of dps because the stat dont have as big a impact as dnd games. I mean i could use aloth as an off tank and that would be fine and his stats dont stop me from doing any of those roles. I am not trying to compare what build does more damage or what build would be best for tanks (well not really. I got off on a tagent there I was just trying to point out that palligina can be a good tank despite the non optimal stats.). I am combating the idea that stats are just as ridged as dnd game and that the dev didnt accomplish their goal of making stats more flexible so min maxing was not required or that you should only pick certain stats for certain classes or builds or else you couldn't play the game right (whatever that means) and the companions are a perfect example of that. And that its false to say their start distribution means you can only build them for one role in the party and no other role just because, which applies to your mc also The dev wanted you to be able to role play with the stats and not be boxed in as compared to some of the old dnd games. They did that. I get some may prefer dnd systems that is subjective and fine but you cant say you dont like the system because min max in POE is a required feature or that npc can only play one role in the party because they have bad stats just isnt true or that to build a mc for a certain role you had to pick these perfect stats

So you want proof that a wizard with 12 perception and 12 might deals less damage than a wizard with 18 in both? You need proof that a character that can engage two enemies and has lower deflection (Pallegina) cannot tank as effectively as a charcter that can engage 4 enemies and has higher deflection (Eder)? Or that either of those could even hold a candle to a properly min-maxed fighter tank build? I mean seriously? I never stated the part about aloth in the way your are representing here. I said i used him for mostly dps in one of my runs not he was optimally built and he was still good at it. Nice that you keep moving the goal post. I am sorry if you misunderstood. i tried to explain my position several times. And no having higher deflection is not the ultimate gage of who makes the best tank. traditional Tanks have been devalued in this game because now enemies are willing to break engagement or flat out just by pass your tank. So now tanks that can do other thing besides being a meat shield seem to be better thank jsut a meat shield. ie. paladins with great aoe damamge and support and chanters with aoe damage and support while still being built like a tank. And this is not to say you cant build a good tank fighter. like i keep saying your lack of imagination for what is possible with both the stats and builds and roles does not prove the stat system sucks. And the proof is all over the old POE build forums and even this one. You will see poeple make comments like 'Do i have to min max the stats the way you show for this build?' or 'What about aloth or zahua can who dont have those stats can i still build them like this build' and the answer is usually yes you can still play the build with companion or mc without min max stats. All i have ever contented is that min max stats are not required in the same way the old dnd game were and many classes can play many roles you find in the party including tanks, dps, support, ranged even if their stats are not min maxed and this proves the stat system does what the dev say they do

Ye it would be nice if the dev put out a wiki instead of a manual for the next game

Probably a caster class focuses on cc but to be honest you could make almost any class work with those stats. Moon godlike is nice for tanks or builds that get hit alot. Also cipher is nice because they dont need lots of might to do melee\ranged damage with focus. Tanky paladin would be fine and still get Sacred Immolation to do some decent dps. If you go with non caster you will just want to focus on active abilities to get more use out of INT or even focus on scrolls.

I dont understand the gymnastics. I play the game they way i wanted without min maxing using for instance using aloth as mostly a dps and won the game, and i have used him in other runs as cc but so what. That proves your statements are wrong. I dont have to go into anything specific about the stats to prove this point. The dev claimed you could role play the stats and play the game in they way you wanted and i did that and it worked. There is no complicated arguments here just an example to prove the devs meet the goal they stated for the stats. I am giving you a data point, a provable fact not my belief. And i am not claiming that aloth or any one has the perfert dps or tanking stats but the goal for POE wasnt you can win and play only if you have the perfect stats.

The game being ridiculously easy and the stats having ridiculously low overall impact do not make Pallegina into a good tank. Eder will out tank her 100% of the time. You can solo the entire game on PotD with any class, so being able to do something isn't a valid argument. Then what are we talking about. Builds are not done in a vacuum. The point of the build is the play the game and the point of the stats are to help build your character to play the game, not some imaginary on paper setup. So yes if you can tank with palligina which you can easily then her stats are proof that the stat system works for POE in the way the devs said it could work. And yes paladin and chanters, like palligina, are better tanks thank fighters in this game but that is the beauty of the game. if you think a fighter is better than you can use that and i have used both palligina and Kana Rua as my tanks and won the game. It seems like your are making up imaginary goal post in your mind for what makes good builds but they dont mean anything outside the context of playing a beating the game. The goal of the stats was to allow diversity of builds and roles even within a classes and the stats met that goal. Just because you can't imagine how someone else could do that doesn't make what you are saying true. if for a playthrough Aloth was my one of my main dps guys by using his martial and mostly dps spells instead of cc and i won the game, then it true that aloth can play that role of dps damager no matter what you say. The argument that i didn't do it right is stupid. i am not playing a mmo or competing with you on who does the most damage or what build has the highest damage potential. I am playing the game to win the game, that is it. So if my builds did it without min maxing or choosing the 'right' stats in your eyes, the what your are saying isn't true. I am giving you an example that proves you dont need min max or certain stats to win. I dont get what so hard to understand. I actually dont care that you dont like the system and would rather another. I think that is fine. I am not trying to get you to like the stats. I am just pointing out that some of your reasons for not liking the stats aren't true and i gave you example of why they aren't true. If you don't believe me that is fine its doesn't make what i did any less invalid or untrue.

Actually my dumbass wizard probably never studied a single book; he's a steroid-pumped gym-monster through and though, and is probably too stupid to even tell different letters apart, let alone read or write. I really don't see a problem with this. *shrug* Also, I seriously doubt that assertion that if Aloth is the main DPS character, the rest must suck, would hold up to actual scrutiny. Ye it was more a comment about wizard having great martial and spell dps abilities. I dont get get what so hard to understand for some that the stats are secondary to abilities and gear and in wizards case spell selection. This is the problem with all the arguments about how the attribute system is bad. Its fine if you dont like the system but dont start off your arguments saying things that aren't true. So comments like aloth must be a cc wizard or to build a character to do this they must have these stats and you must dump these other stats. None of this is true. or the below comment. Again if you think this is the only way to make a front line tank in POE then you dont understand the system very well. Sure you can build front line characters this way but its in no way necessary especially if you go build tank wizard or priest but even for others especially companions like palligina who makes a good tank without the perfect stat setup. I can empathize that you dont like the system but it did meet the goals of allowing you to role play the stats in the way you wanted and still play the combat role you saw fit. There was no min max requirement for any build ever. The game allows you to min max if you wanted but it wasn't ever necessary. To me that is an improvement on any system that had stats that you dumped no matter what and stats the were required no matter what you thought of your character. POE wasn't perfect and sure some stats worked better for some classes than other but working better isn't the same thing as REQUIRED. it just isn't and i know some of you wont agree but thats ok, your agreement is not required when you can beat the game with unoptimized companions and mc. That is a fact whether you like the system or not (which is subjective feeling which are valid but just don't say things that are not true to back up your feelings).

Ye it just a RP thing Boeroer. I know monks they are super powerful. Maybe its is just a role thing for me. Since my last few runs have been as melee ranger dps i am jealous and dont want some companion to do a better job than me at my role. Which i know monks can do.

To be honest this is why i liked rangers more then the other martial classes. Admittedly i didnt really like monks so i didnt use them including Zahua. Yes there were not lots of active abilities, but you could with gear and abilities give them plenty in my view if you wanted to, but i enjoyed the micro from positioning your ranger an pet in melee and trying to pull off back line rushes without getting killed.

When you say stuff like: which is objectively not true its hard to take you seriously. And i suspect like i mentioned you cant imagine you could have a role in a party without having the most optimally perfect stats because you are married to systems where stats are the end all be all of builds, but that is the fun thing about POE you can build like you like and play almost any role. stats are for roleplaying in many ways just as much as mechanics so if you wanted to be a 10 might wizard damager you could be and still be good at it. And to be honest i thought making might the single source of damage was a nice change to past DnD systems from BG to NWN.

Well like the april fools joke from obsidian there is always the option to role 5 rangers/druids and run with 10 characters. 10 > 6 right?

Then you lack imagination. I have had runs where aloth was one of if not the top dps damager. Because in this game wizards dont need INT but in BG at least, i am not familiar with pnp pathfinder, Wizards had to have int or else you couldn't play them. That is a huge difference. Also priest, druid had to have wisdom for same reason but in this game they dont. And dont give me the companion stats sucks. That is the beauty of this game stats are not as important as you are making them out to be. Hiravias with the right build could spirit shift and do more dps damage than any melee character and he has 14 might. The stats are secondary to ability, talents, and gear. If you cannot see what is different about the two systems then like i said you lack imagination for builds that are possible in this game as oppose to a game where Strength determines you damage and hit. Where int, wisdom were only really useful for casters. Where there were dump stats for every build because some stats were utterly meaningless. That is the description of an inferior system. I know some of that exist in POE but not to the extent of past games. Also the arguments about realistic stats are pretty ironic considering we are talking about a fantasy game.

Right, but how is this different from Pillars? Even without min-maxing there are stats that are obviously superior to others for specific classes. Not only that, but the stats themselves don't make any sense. How is the wizard with 18 Might strong enough to kick down a wall when the fighter with 14 Might isn't, even though the Fighter has trained with arms and armor their whole life while the wizard mostly just studies books? How does increasing Intelligence increase the duration of a fighter's Knock Down or the AOE of a barbarian's yells? Shouldn't Resolve be the stat that affects the barbarian's yells, since that's the stat that's tied to having a strong personality or presence (intimidation)? Like I said, the stats feel very MMO-ified compared to traditional D&D stats. Pillars is probably the least RP-friendly old-school RPG I've ever played, and the stat system and anemic feat/talent system has a lot to do with it. Its vastly different. Saying a stat is superior for a class (like in POE which is arguable for lots of classes) vs necessary for the class to even function (like in the BG games) is totally different. I really liked what the stats tried to accomplish. It makes build diversity within classes viable and more fun in POE. Hope they go this route even more in POE2. Just polish it.