MoxyWoo

Just a heads up folks, this thread has lost its edit option as of 5/14/2015, and by mod request it will be updated via PM to them. Please continue to add here, and I will copy/paste/PM them with the original post format, just it may take a little time to add new items due to turn around and (middle?) management. Thanks for posting, and keep them coming!

I have done multiple wizard parties and find them extremely fun and powerful at the same time. Wizards can go so many different ways it's awesome. And like you noted more arcane assault = multiplication benefits.

Did dex change foe reload animation? I haven't noticed a difference for that part.

If you sell everything before the water skin to the merchant. . Ie get naked should have 1200 cp easily after the tutorial to have all created. Also 1 mechanic for the hidden gun sold there too. I liked going 3/3 though for my ratio. Hired vs npc. That way I can micro 3 characters and the other npc can do little to no micro. Oddly adding so many premades make it too easy. One odd build is to go SaganI as a tank build. Pet has 2 engagement and she can get 3 with item and talents. And if her pet dies... no worries on the loss of dps and accuracy. Offhand since you did all companions.. why not a barbarian, monk and rogue? Those aren't covered.

Yeah I had this weird idea int would help the aura radius.. but it's so small anyway it doesn't matter. For below potd... the int is not needed as inspiring and sworn last long enough. Though I would still keep it at 8+.

For ease of play and reactive/passive heals... I like Moon Godlike. There is so MUCH going on in combat when I first started playing, the last thing I wanted to do was drop a heal in my first playthrough... Moon Godlike made it much simpler to me and thus much more fun... Not to mention for a paladin it felt really like the group support or similar. I found paladin is much easier in the early game, but barbarian brings more to the table at lvl 5+ (because carnage acc is weak and so are weapons until then). The paladin has faith/conviction as a main PC as others have noted, thus less need of a shield, and with Flames of Devotion, they actually produce good numbers for the 2/enc they can use it on, plus.. barbarian needing to "cast" frenzy or similar was always annoying when they had to "catchup" to the other melee due to its use. Also of note, if you go Darcozzi, and Fire Talent at lvl 2, you get a decent retaliate very early vs reflex and cold resistance which is handy versus some of the most annoying monsters in Act 1. And they are a decent candidate for using 'any' weapon if they pick up Zealous Focus and vulnerable attack at 4th > Exhortation > Inspiring Exhortation because all of those prioritize some acc/dmg without pigeonholing you into a weapon focus which is arguably the best and easiest power jump, since Vulnerable helps your Fires talent a lot.

Unlike a typical "class build" the NPC paladin has some specifics that need to be addressed due to their loss of faith and conviction. I'll be using Pallegina as the base race, but any can be fine with work. Race: Avian Godlike, has +deflection vs ranged attacks, and +perception (deflection) and deflection when disengaging below 50%. Undocumented she sometimes gets another +8 deflection not listed or maybe its a bug of the above. Stats: She has scores all over the place, in particular she seems to have some tanking, and some dps stats which makes her a weird amalgam. Unfortunately she lacks the main character benefits of deflection/saves from Faith/Conviction, but can use the paladin exclusive outworn buckler. Build 1: The Fast Running tank. -A form of CC, you basically lure some of the monsters away by eating some possible disengagement attacks by running by them really fast. -Synergy is formed with a cipher in your group using the Ectopsychic power to create the beam line. Talents: Fast Runner, Weapon/shield style, optional Hold the line. Abilities: Lay on Hands, Zealous Charge Notable Gear: Disengagement cloak, Outworn buckler + Hatchet or +engagement weapon, optional Shod in Faith Notes: A more mobile tank with some self healing via lay on hands, the INT is not totally wasted as it helps the duration of the healing from it, and 'running' during the recovery animation time is a good strategy. Can be used with any effects that target allies, but cipher does it best with their beam spells and shock. Build 2: The Gunadin -This build is better with more ranged people as the aura radius is tiny but its easier to lump ranged people together. -Pallegina has such low MIG that she needs to use the heavy hitting guns for best effect, but it has synergy with flames of devotion. Talents: Weapon Focus: Soldier or Ruffian, Marksman, Quickswitch, Intense Flames, Gunner, Penetrating Shot -Lot of talents to take, I wrote them roughly in the order of importance from left to right. I didn't add Critical Focus because I thought the hit to crit conversion rate is tiny next to the above talents, but YMMV. Abilities: Flames of Devotion, Zealous Focus (saves on bless cast and has 1 more accuracy) Gear: Depends on focus. Your big shots with the big guns of the group are best by using Flames of Devotion. Either way with Intense flames + Burning Lash on all of them = chunky numbers. Optionally, using 1 gun and then quickswitching to Tall Grass or Dual sabres for this build is also a good choice. Flames of Devotion will use a "full attack" so sabres deal more damage, while Tall Grass is generally safer. Hireling: Darcozzi is better with the Inspiring Exhortation for +accuracy. Race choice would either be Orlan for the +hit to crit, or Wood elf for the +acc at ranged, or Island Aumua for the 3 slots... 2 guns > Tall Grass. --------- Hope that helps make your hireling paladins decent at something, even with the above though, your paladin is a 2 trick pony at best and the first can be beat out by a monk easily with Long Stride (and has additional benefits of wounds/rooting pain), and the second is basically, a rogue that has 2 "bullets" but those bullets are pretty hard hitting so can be fun to see.

I'd prolly dump PER to the minimum, but that's me not having too much issue with them with a moon godlike having self heals. They also don't have much +interrupt stuff unless you count using a heavier weapon, but even then, YMMV. Defenses are fine with max RES instead which helps vs interrupts which are ANNOYING in melee (ranged characters are okay without RES from my playing them, but even then, they benefit from having some). As paladins dont get much +dmg besides the lash effect from Flames of Devotion, its actually best to have some more MIG with those points. DEX is optional, I just had this weird idea if I did need to dps with my paladin, I'd rather swing faster, but many of their effects are instant cast so the small animation frame speed up is unnecessary. Hope you enjoy!

Yes to both. edit to add: After lvl 5, due to the equipment loss though, its hard to recommend devoting the druid to spiritshift, and after lvl 9... well, there's some coolness that makes them want to do it even less.

Con seems fine, same for most of the other stats. Personal preference is to bump up MIG and DEX, and lower PER a little bit. Paladins have pretty good defenses next to other classes besides fighter, even without using a shield or similar. http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/77712-class-build-dracozzi-paladini-aka-the-pc-paladin/ ^Old thread of what I posted. Pretty effective for all of Act 1, though as others have stated, I found them pretty... lackluster? or maybe the support part was not needed at higher levels when in a group, so ironically, the paladin is best solo.

Personally, I think ranger pets do need a buff, they were roughly "halved" right before the beta ended and should've been more like a "quarter" for their debuff from what I read of the forums on how they did. Really, it shows in the numbers too, they had things like +1.5 DR for example (why not make this 2 or 3?) when leveling, and the stats are pretty sad for gains in the end. Basically, it takes a lot more work for the pet to stay alive. That said, in PotD for the tougher corner gigs, a bear 'offtank' is fine enough as you add in the priest specific buffs and can pile on the meat wall, worst case, its better to have a "withdraw" animal companion versus a "withdraw" PC, as the -dps loss from AC is minimal, where as losing one of your front lines, spending resource to keep the rogue alive, etc, for the tactic is less than optimal.

Wood Elf Max Dex, Mig. 1. Crippling Strike 2. Weapon Focus: Soldier 3. Dirty Fighting 4. Marksman > Penetrating Shot > Rogue specific class talents 5. Finishing blow, use when you see the targets has 2 to 4 bubbles of health left. 6. Marksman > Penetrating Shot > Rogue specific class talents Best race: Wood elf has +5 accuracy and can get +5 from marksman, this helps all categories so is a dps enabler higher than hit to crit the orlan has. Backup weapons: Possibly Pollaxe, but really warbow is enough. Firearms are out of the weapon focus, so taking the -acc is rough on the rogue. Enchantments: +Quality (fine < exceptional < superb) > Lash (fire = corrode > shock > freeze) > Slaying Equipment of note: Borresaine > Cloudpiercer -Personal preference for PotD though for a ranged character is ranger. With good micro and a group, Ranger + pet + vicious aim + stalker's + guns or crossbow > rogue, since PotD its all about the accuracy issues. Rogue performs well enough, but having.. Ranger + (pet) + 2 tanks + 1 priest + 2 dps/cc > Rogue of the same setup. Since the rogue can't be a viable offtank and ranged even with the consecrated ground during a choke or corner pile up, where as the bear can. Practical optimization, the bear needs babysitting, but so does the rogue in PotD, and ranger brings driving flight for a semi aoe feel.

Chanter can use some odd tactics like their Frost chant and run around trailing it behind them for slow down effect. They also get some nice multiplicative benefits by stacking on Come-Come-Swift at the beginning, plus can play second row melee very easily this way, and later on that +Fire dmg chant for all the weapon swinging. Wizard was mentioned, but I love them in any game. Priest is good because of your tight formation usually, mainly you can use consecrated ground to keep everyone up if spells are allowed, I'm sure similarly a druid would also work via Nature's balm, but the Priest gives off another per encounter +5 accuracy/heal too, and melee is already crowded enough. I'd revisit monk, use torment's reach more and moon godlike as one of the more powerful and fun combos, later on, rooting pain around them enables other melee classes to hit better which is awesome. Plus they supposedly have the best in house dps with just fists, so stacking the chanter + faster weapons + dmg modifiers will be cool. So... 1. Cipher + Hatchet/shield for the extra deflection, mainly uses the "beam" spells. (Main theme, doesn't have to be main PC) 2. Rogue + hatchet/shield for the extra deflection, while escape ability is good... it doesn't save you once there if using the above. OR monk + long stride (as turning wheel is bugged and will overwrite unarmed damage in some games, so long stride is a great choice at lvl 3) and they can run hella fast. OR paladin + zealous charge + main pc for the extra defenses + outworn buckler for the entire party. Moon godlike recommended for all of them. -small note, if only engaged with one, you can "circle" an engaged without triggering Opportunity attacks with the above. 3. Chanter tank. Mostly to keep your tight formation for the other 5 in the group not in the "beam" using. This guy uses invocations almost exclusively and so uses Come come swift almost every encounter, or the Dull the point, lvl 1 phrases. 4. Chanter reach weapon. Uses the higher lvl phrases to enable the group, but in earlier levels, plays like the above. 5. Barbarian, cuz they're cool, and aoe is appreciated. 6. whatever. maybe another cipher because double beams seems hilarious to make a plasma melee party. Though with spells in play, Priest is also decent due to the above accuracy stuff and healing ground area.

Yeah, I like versatile classes, or least some classes that can fill the other role as needed. Unfortunately, due to how PoE is somewhat limited to 6 slots, stats unmovable once created, etc, its better to have specialists to bring synergy rather than try to make some good generalists. Paladin and ranger are good examples of this, besides the specific Darcozzi, ranger isn't effective as an offtank/dps like the monk or barbarian can be as they require a lot of micro on a pet that can die quickly or without setup to keep em up. And even Darcozzi just have one trick of good accuracy giving versus the other paladin orders that make it decent to pull around, but even then, I'd say using inspiring radiance is good enough and helps the entire group. From what I read in beta threads, the ranger pet was too "tanky" or something and had 40 dmg per hit, now it can't tank (without setup) and deals like 20 dmg per hit on a slower attack speed (at lvl 1), even upgrade numbers seem off like +1.5 DR (why not 2?). Roughly, it was cut in 50% effectiveness along with Stalker's Link dropping to 10.... so... i should have been more like 25% unlike 50% that Obs had done with most nerfs. That happy middle ground would be easy enough to implement I would think, and give rangers much more viability without pet micro and they still have to worry about other stuff. Other than that, blunderbuss + driving flight bug, and the ranger would feel pretty complete as a class despite kind of being boring or using just wounding shot for melee, because the pet becomes an asset more than a liability and the ranger is still the middle ground between barbarian/rogue then. Or give the pet focused talents more use, etc.

I would like some hints on how to make a black background along with a white background for color formats look good. As I like to read threads on my phone as well as laptop, its hard to find some good colors that fit for both. That said, I re-formatted the class stuff and hope it works for that portion and welcome any other formatting hints.