Fardragon

I was assuming the OP was talking about upcoming abilities, not hacks. It would presumably possible to create a spellbound item in by editing game files, and it may be that "per day" versions of most spells and abilities already exist somewhere in the code.

I don't know why people keep going on about HK-47 as an example of how much of a cliche constructs are. He is a droid in a Star Wars game, that's about as surprising as an elf in Genericfantasyland! The "initial hook" thing was more important in ye olden days when there was much less text and VO for each NPC. That's why most of the memorable NPCs in BG1 are as mad as a box of frogs.

On the contrary, you already can give any spell to any class, via "spellbinding" items. The Cypher spell "Whispers of Treason" is already confirmed. It will simply be per day usage, rather than using focus.

It's the usual thing: PoE classes don't function quite the same as classes with the same name in other games, and people are thrown.

Devil sounds a lot less like 'random serial killer' and more about vengeance in that description. Given the established style of Obsidian writing, I'm surprised that comes as a surprise.

I think the thing about Eder is he is a really well written nice ordinary guy character. But life would quickly get dull if every companion was a nice ordinary guy.

There are only a very few "cross-class" abilities getting added. Probably no more than one per class. Don't count on getting sneak attack. If you get a spell like ability it will automatically be added to your hot bar, just as it is for items that grant spells at the moment. It isn't.

1. I expect soulbound weapons will be very limited in number, and therefore weapon type. The soulbound greatsword isn't any use for a ranged specialist or a shield user, and I doubt there will be enough soulbound weapons for every party member to have one. My guess is there will be four or five: one ranged weapon, one two handed weapon, one reach weapon, one one handed weapon, and one fast/offhand weapon. 2. It says that what you have to do to improve the weapon is it's the description. By implication it will be completing a quest of some kind. I would guess something like "kill a dragon" and that kind of thing. 3. I suspect simply having the soulbound weapon in your inventory will be sufficient to improve it, but I doubt there will be enough that you will want to give more than one to any character (unless soloing). 5. I'm pretty sure you would have to do the quest after acquiring the weapon. I'm also pretty sure they will try to make it so it's very difficult to put yourself in the position where it is impossible to complete the quest. 6. I suspect it will be fine for any party member to "kill a dragon". It's easier to script that way than to check to see if the weapon was actually used for the killing blow.

A kobold (or in the case of Pillars, a Xaurip) wizard would actually be rather cool... A Xaurip monk, with a mutation that causes them to be completely covered in hair, because any hint of hairlessness on a monk is obviously a cliche. Eder is very much a trope breaker, on the grounds that he ISN'T the true heir or chosen one...

Everyone has there own definitions of cliche and "far out". So, a character that might score a 50 for YOU may be a 1 or 100 for someone else. I would say GM is pretty extreme, with her caul and all, just as gimmicky as a construct*, and Durence manages to be both extreme AND a stereotype. I liked Sagini, but I know an awful lot of other people thought she was boring. And as far as I can see, the monk has a receding hairline, like myself and a great many other men over the age of 30, not the shaven head associated with monks. (which I don't see as a problem anyway, a vast number of real life monastic orders from different cultures shaved their heads). We had a gimmicky monk in NWN2, and he was AWFUL**! The bottom line is it doesn't matter in an NPC is archetypical or far out, so long as they are well written. Personally I like to see a wide range. *Given that constructs, animancy, and soul transference feature so prominently in the main plot, it seems a perfectly reasonable theme to examine in greater depth. **Of course, all the NPCs in the NWN2 OC where awful, so I guess he fit.

gah

Witcher 3 is certainly "commercial", but it aint "greatest" or an "RPG".

The only "old school" feature I want is the ability to escape combat, loot in combat, and move between areas in combat.

Durance doesn't have an alignment.

Frenzy makes sense, in that it's not as potentially OP as Carnage, but gives barbarian-flavour for someone who wants it. I'm a bit dubious about skeleton summoning. If it's a daily power, it would presumably be possible for a non-chanter to summon long before the actual chanter can, making it OP at low level, but it scales badly, making it useless at high levels. It's also doesn't really feel definitively chanterish.

Yay! An evil character. given what we saw from the poe companions as a whole, we suspect you will be disappointed. anticipate moral ambiguity. HA! Good Fun! Quite. No moral absolutism in Obsidian games. Only the Sith* deal in absolutes. *AKA Bioware

If time doesn't flow at a realistic rate, I don't see how it adds to "versimilitude". If you want to create a world simulator, like a Bethesda game, or some MMOs, I can see why you might want to wait around twiddling your thumbs, or go hunting for some NPC in the marketplace, but in a game that's about telling a story, I don't see why it should have anything that wouldn't be included in a novel or a movie.

I'm inclined to agree with you in regards to the Raedric's Hold quest. The game has a couple of other "boss fights" where there is a big jump in difficulty too, especially if you have been playing on less than "Hard". The lack of a "flee" option is noticeable! Maybe you could pretend to agree to side with Raedric when you speak to him, then come back and kill him later?

It doesn't do much to increase "immersion" if someone gets up, has breakfast, goes to work, goes to the inn, comes home, and goes to bed, all in the space of ten minutes. If you aren't going to have them go about their business in real time, I see no reason why they shouldn't always be encountered propping up the bar in an inn.

Could take the "Dangerous Implements" ability and shoot someone with your rod.

In a PnP RPG, you can say "you wait for six hours until Bertram arrives home". I'm not particularly keen on a CRPG that requires me to wait six hours real time... If I want a real Life simulator, I can go to work...

I'm a teacher, so I encounter a lot of daft stubbornness...

[Flashback] Thorin sits down and sings of gold. [/Flashback] It's not a new idea to try and get NPCs in computer games to be more "realistic" by moving around according to a schedule or some form of rudimentary AI. But what are you trying to do, create an Everyday-life-in-fantasyland-simulator, or tell a story? I know in real life people I need to talk to are never where I expect them to be, and I waste ages running around looking for them. In stories, the characters who advance the story are always encountered exactly where they need to be in order to advance the plot.

The fight at Raedric's hold is difficult. It's doable at level 5 if your tactics are good, but I would leave it till later. Raedric's Hold, like Caed Nua, is an optional sidequest, you can do it at any point, or not at all. The main storyline goes to Defiance Bay, where you will find easier XP and more companions.