Hebruixe

Good review. 8/10 seems fair. I couldn't stop laughing at him and Other Joe doing their parody of the pathfinding AI.

I would love to get a sneak peak at the distant future of Eora, when technology is as sophisticated as magic. Arcanum (for all its faults) is one of my favorite old rpgs. The clash between magic culture and tech culture is so much fun to explore. I fondly remember being discriminated against as a wizard seeking passage on the train...they made me sit in the back so my magic auras didn't inadvertently sabotage with the steam engine. Lol so awesome

2 of the 3 death godlike heads are great but I take it you only want the racial?

I agree with all your suggestions except the "rest anywhere" feature. While it is a hassle to wade through 2 loading screens, this issue should be resolved by eliminating that 10-second wait per loading screen. Someone said this could be easily fixed by hiding the Brighthollow interiors on an invisible part of the Caed Nua exterior map. In other words, going to the stronghold loads all of the artwork at once, but conceals Brighthollow levels 1 and 2 somewhere off to the east so they can't be seen from the map. Entering Brighthollow then simply teleports you to those concealed locations. 10-second wait eliminated. I definitely agree that the Stronghold needs to be fleshed out with increased interactivity and long-term benefit. It would be awesome if I could give some of my redundant gear to my hirelings to improve their combat effectiveness. I wish the stronghold invasions were much more elaborate...with siege weapons and armies trying to break through the entrances... When I first saw the warning message "Raedric's undead horde is marching toward your stronghold! They will arrive any moment!" I freaked out, thinking it was going to be an actual war. That would have been awesome. I hope they consider patching in features like this. Also, defending the stronghold should at the very least permit you to loot the dead bodies. Even better, it should reward you with unique spoils of war.

If you don't mind outdated graphics, totally start with Baldur's Gate 1 (preferably the enhanced edition). Play through the trilogy and then move on to PoE. If you do start with BG1, I recommend creating a spellcaster such as druid or mage, as they end up with the most interesting abilities (and most rewarding level ups) later in the game. If you really want a powerful melee character, I recommend an inquisitor paladin with skill points in 2-handed weapons and 2-handed style. There is an amazing sword waiting for paladin players in BG2.

I love character creation. I've spent most of my copper fortune on new companions...I had a full party of godlikes for a while, then replaced them with orlan and aumaua...designing and redesigning toons keeps me entertained for hours. The premade companions are fine in my opinion. I just have more fun inventing and roleplaying characters of my own.

I wondered about that too. Wanted to kill it so bad. lol

Every time I run into a loading screen I alt-tab to the forums. It helps alleviate the frustration.

Ah. I too misunderstood the question. Upon closer examination I admit I don't know the answer but agree it seems like a bug.

They don't stack. It only counts your highest deflection (or whatever else) bonus

pearls before swine /sigh

I figured xaurips were basically kobolds?

Emptiness wins the debate.

I'm also a big fan of the stronghold. The whole "endless paths" legend really lured me the dungeons below. Probably the best dungeon crawl I've ever experienced. I don't think the NPCs as bland as a certain sourpuss indicated. But it did take a while for them to grow on me. I admit to being a bit spoiled by the likes of Edwin and Minsc.

I was a little put off by the no-risk "rest anywhere, any time!" system. Though I approved of the new camping supplies restriction.

It happened to me with another NPC. I was actually standing in hte prison when he "broke out"... though the NPC remained in place until I killed him. I don't think it can be prevented. But maybe the torture options affect it somehow?

Agreed, New Vegas is amazing. I sort of wish there was a similar optional "hardcore mode" for Pillars, gauging characters' hunger and thirst levels. It really brought F:NV to life for me.

I hear you. My party is about level 8 in PotD and things are starting to get easier. But it's been a real challenge up to this point (and very entertaining). Hopefully the upcoming expansions will add serious new challenges to tackle. Personally I don't want to see any of the classes nerfed. I want to see bigger, badder, scarier battles. For example in Jagged Alliance 2 (v1.13) you can create a party of insanely OP soldiers, but the game throws you into such big and dangerous battles that you can't win... like, your 6-10 man party versus 80-100 enemy soldiers with the same level and gear. You have to decide how long you dare to stay and fight before retreating. It's a system that lets you choose your own difficulty (in a way).

Try PotD

If they're planning to make a sequel on par with Baldur's Gate 2, I'll gladly wait a few extra years for it. As far as the expansions go, I hope they implement some kind of long-term replayable mechanics...something to keep us engrossed in the game world while we wait for the distant sequel. For example. I would love to see "max level content," like special raid-like encounters that require extensive preparation and strategy. I have not managed to kill The Master Below yet, so that's kind of what I'm picturing...an extremely hard fight that you know you will someday win, when you're stronger and better equipped. Goals like that can add huge replay value. I would like to see the 8-man limit on custom characters raised. Leveling up alts within the same game world adds replay value. Random encounters (with experience and loot rewards) would make this fairly easy to implement. I'm definitely not asking for a diablo-ization of this game. But a little bit of sandbox could expand its lifetime. Jagged Alliance 2 (v1.13) comes to mind...

Obviously the reviewers didn't get a big enough bribe this time. lol

You have to complete quests to encourage adventures to pop up. It's somehow connected to experience gained. Game time does not make events happen at the stronghold. Time played IRL does not affect it either. Fastest way to speed it up is to work through the bounty hunt missions. (Although those run out eventually.)

I think I read that Torment: Tides of Numera is using the same engine (or a modified version of it). That's the next big title I'll be following. Though any news about PoE's expansions will exciting too.

Add taunts? No thanks. If I want to play WoW I'll go throw some money at Blizzard. Enemies that obey taunting are the definition of bad AI. If your squishier guys are in danger, cast the level 1 priest spell Withdraw on them. It's basically an invincible bubble that heals you.

I always go to my stronghold to assist manually with the defense against invaders. It seems like every time I do this, my stupid NPCs guards get pissed off about something and turn hostile. I realize that it's somehow my own doing...misplaced aoe's or some form of accidental friendly fire. But they're so pissy. All I have to is burp in the wrong direction and all 8 guards become traitors. Any chance of raising the damage threshold for NPC treachery?