[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

OP a lot of people are having this problem myself included. They tried to reinvent the wheel and failed miserably. The result is you need to create gimmick builds to survive. It's nothing like D&D. It's a deeply flawed and poorly designed CRPG system and game on so many levels. It's a shame because the art and writing are nice otherwise.

 

Oh I really wouldn't go that far . . . I mean, everyone is entitled to their opinion, but despite my struggles I'd hardly call this an inherent flaw in the game.  It's more that I figured since I had so much experience with previous IE games that I could go into this one with a pre-established veteran status . . . and that just wasn't true.  I had to take a few minutes and realize that I'm playing a completely different game.  And as soon as I did that, plus taking my time to talk to a character that I'd walked past several times in my haste and adding him to my party, now things are going swimingly!  I'm not looking for an easy time of it, so I don't doubt difficulties lie ahead, but the frustration came from not understanding WHY it was so difficult.  Now I do and the game is actually quite balanced in my opinion since I've recalibrated my thinking.

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

As a quick update I now have a proper fighter and he makes all the difference in the world.  Combining that with a fresh take on how combat works and a little more patience while the game is paused and I'm doing much better.  I went back to one of the maps leading to Caed Nua and took out a couple forest trolls fairly handily (a single forest troll almost did me in on my first run to Caed Nua).  I also dispatched a couple forest lurkers, although the lurkers were a tough match and my fighter almost died outright.  All that was with the basic gear that characters came with so now we're back at the inn and I'm going to focus on upgrading whatever equipment I can and checking out the crafting / recipe system.

 

So my encouragement to folks struggling like me?  Keep at it, be patient, don't assume everything works just like BG I/II because it doesn't!  But this is one awesome game and its worth the time investment to learn how to play it right!

 

I think I can honestly say that after 5 hours of play time I am enjoying this more than I ever remember enjoying BG, which is saying A LOT!

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

Very good points, all. My excitement is rejuvenated! I'll be going in with fresh eyes next time I play. Though it is pretty hilarious from a role playing aspect... My last save was just after finishing one of those near party wipe scenarios to take a few steps forward and walking into more of the same. After about 10 seconds of fighting I tucked tail, turned my entire party around and fled. So the story continues from that point with suffering huge loss to pride. I can only imagine my character walking alongside his lion on his way backed to town, looking down at his lion and quietly whispering so his other companions won't hear, "I think we need to reevaluate our decision-making process, old friend!"

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

With companions:.

Thank you! I missed one of those and I think having that character will help me a bunch! And I think I'll slow down and smell the roses, maybe pick a few, and spend nore time exploring. Thank you all for your help!

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

If you played BG1 and BG2 you must know that you can easily in both games run into areas that are too tough for your current level and you need to level up somewhere else (or get better loot) and come back later.

 

This is no different.

In all fairness, though, I never ran into this problem just following the main quest line. Sure, if you head straight north after visiting the Friendly Arm Inn for the first time and come across a couple Ankhegs you're gonna be in a world of hurt, but there were plenty of times I went into the Nashkel Mines as fresh level 2s and while it was tough, it wasn't constant party wipes.

 

I'm not trying to be defensive, I'm just pointing out that im going to the places the game naturally points me to go.

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

Thank you both for speedy replies!  Very helpful but as so often happens, more questions follow!

 

Level 3? That's kinda low. Are you in Readric's Hold now? You can move through it with almost no fighting, but if you go against Readric in the end, that battle is really hard for less than a full party. It's one of those places where it may be wiser to come back later when you're stronger. You could also hire an adventurer from the inn in Gilded Vale and custom-build him into whatever role you want filled the most.

I agree the game doesn't require mix/maxing, you just need to take your time to get used to different mechanics.

 

I'm getting party-wiped in Caed Nua on my way to see the guy who apparently can tell me about myself.  I haven't gone to Readric's Hold at all.  I don't know how to do a spoiler tag or else I'd tell you exactly what I've done and where I've been.  Basically I was trying to follow the main quest line as organically as possible.  A couple minor side quests I did because they seemed like they would further my immediate goals but I didn't follow any sidequest plotpoints that I felt would take me too far off the trail of figuring out what was happening to me.

 

About hiring adventures . . . maybe I'm coming in with the wrong paradigm.  In BG I often made my own party because I felt the NPCs were too weak (I hate multiclassed characters, so happy they don't exist in Pillars).  But I always felt a little ashamed of that so I wanted to go through this game with just the characters the game itself presents.  (as a consequence, I don't really have a frontline fighter type as of yet . . . except my lion . . . not the best, I'm sure . . .)  Obviously its an in-game mechanic, but am I EXPECTED to make up my own characters to fill holes?  I'd hate to do that and water down my XP gain when I ditch that guy in favor of an NPC that actually has a story and dialogue and all.

 

I think my overall problem might be lack of the right perspective on what this game actually is.  Its certainly a spiritual successor to BG but it is clearly NOT BG . . . perhaps its the same problem I had when I transitioned from WH40k to WarmaHordes . . . I'm just not thinking right about it or something.

 

All I know is I've loved this game so far.  The choicesa and interactions and minor scenarios I've seen so far give me great hope for the value of the rest of the game, I just don't want that awesomeness to be punctuated by extreme frustration during combat, ha!

[Whats up with this game? Or is it me? Probably me . . .]

I stumbled across Pillars only a few days before it's release and I was so excited!  I supremely enjoyed BG 1 and 2 though I never got into Icewind Dale as much because I felt it lacked the same depth of story.  Anyway, I leapt at the chance to play Pillars and I was especially elated that many of the reviews talked about not being limited to traditional character classes and it not necessarily requiring min/maxing . . .

 

So I start (and I won't give spoilers, though all this is early game stuff) and I was so excited that I could play rather organically rather than "meta-gaming" the game.  After the first major cutscene / event I was fatigued and so headed straight for the first town available.  While gathering information I stumbled over a couple of quests that I felt I could take while maintaining the "hey, i've gotta figure out whats going on here" idea . . . so I did them.  So it's not like I'm just straightlining the main quest.  But I'm also not going out of my way to 100% explore the few maps I've been in.

 

But then I get my information, head to the next major plotpoint, pick up a couple interesting characters along the way (so I have 4 in total plus a lion) and I find myself in the courtyard of my destination getting party wiped over and over.  Now, I'm on the standard difficulty and I'm used to playing BG on standard difficulty and never did I have this much trouble so early in either of those games.  I've played for like 2 hours of actual gameplay (not counting a lot of reading, ha!) and I'm kind of flumoxed.  Granted, I might just be horrible at this game and granted again, I don't have much experience with the new characters I've picked up.  My PC is a ranger with a lion that I made a "well rounded" character, but with an emphasis on dexterity and might.

 

So am I doing something fundamentally wrong?  Is this a game that requires min / maxing regardless of what others say?  Do I need to explore each map fully to grind XP before going to the next?  I believe my 4 characters are all level 3 as I get party wiped . . . Also, I was really hoping to avoid the "just dump all your points into one attribute / skill at every opportunity" method of play.

 

Can anyone offer constructive (emphasis on "constructive") criticism, advice or insight?  I thank you greatly if you can and do!