Elric Galad

I have just realized Balance Nerfs are great with this community patch because specific changes can be removed as described in the Community Patch description. Feel free to nerf everything then

After your Community Patch, there are only a couple of subclasses that I still feel unbalanced or unattractive (and that are considered as such by the community, as far as I know). Once again, you've done a great job. I would like to submit a proposal of changes about them. I don't want to be "that guy" who comes after all the job has been done and says "hey, I have some ideas" but... Well, I'm a bit him actually, so sorry for that I) Subclasses requiring a buff/change : 1) Transmuter : I think Specialist wizard are mostly OK now. Even if they are not as great as Evoker, there PL bonus is good enough to build around and their bonus abilities are usually at least nice. Except Form of the Fearsome Brute, and its infamous amor with +100% recovery time. I am not sure how much its stats should be modded, but I suppose something close to Spirit**** (without Wilstrikes) should be OK. 2) Corpse Eater : The penalty for Corpse Eater is HUGE and his ability... well not very convenient. There is another thing I don't like with Corpse Eater : he is strictly Worse than Standard Barbarian when not facing Kiths, Wilder or Beasts, or against small group of foes. My proposal would be to buff Corpse Eater special food (which is already quite good, but arguably not as good as best food such as Captain Banquet). I think Forbidden Pie should be better than top food by a small but significant margin so Corpse Eaters under its effect would have a systematic edge over Barbarian with best food. Forbidden Pie might provide +5/+6 Corpse eater PL and minor effects (so that other classes won't benefit much for it). +5PL sounds huge but I don't think that Barbarian abilities benefit that much from PL. It sounds powerful with Heart of Fury, but not that much for Frenzy (which 2 Rage for Corpse Eater). It is also good with Carnage though. It also has to be compared with what top tier food provides (PR, Action Speed, Immunities). However, Forbidden Pie is rather cheap, so maybe the best solution would be to create a new supreme receipe for Corpse Eaters ? Other Corpse Eater consumables should also be scaled accordingly. 3) Mage Slayer : IMHO, Mage Slayer has major 2 flaws : - Strictly worse than Barbarian against non-spellcasters - Unreliable for emergency healing due to Potion Ban AND Beneficial Spell resistance. When Mage Slayer is on the brink of death, only Lay on Hands and Athletic can save it reliably. I feel this is too harsh and I don't like the randomness of it (and I don't think I am the only one). My proposal would be to : - remove Spell Resistance entirely - Add a passive -25% Beneficial/Hostile effects duration instead. That would fix the 2 issues above without changing too much the theme of the subclass. 4) Sharpshooter : I've always found him a bit bland. The penalty is severe and the advantages minimal. Still +1 PR or Hit to Crit can be convenient so the subclass is not entirely bad, but I can't prevent myself from thinking he is a bit meh. I think that a +20% Range with ranged weapons (similar to Gunhawk trait for guns) would be very nice. It would fit the theme of the class and provide a tangible benefit without making the subclass much stronger. II) Subclasses that may require a nerf : I don't know how you feel about nerfs, but I can't prevent myself from thinking that the game would feel a bit more "Polished" with it. 1) Troubadour : It has been said for long that Troubadour is better at everything than base chanter, and arguably better than other subclasses at their specialty. Increasing the Troubadour penalty to +2 Phrases per invocation would make them a bit less OP IMHO. A Troubadour using Brisk Recitation would still be able to cast even 3 base Phrases Invocation faster (3+2 x 3 = 15s vs 3 x 6 = 18s), but the gap would be thiner. 2) Trickster : Trickster suffers a very minor Penalty and get 7-9 abilities for free, which makes base Rogue obsolete. I would simply revert its Sneak Attack to what is used to be. Trickster has now much more options than what it had in v1.0 and its ability costs have also been reduced. -20% penalty to sneak attack isn't that huge when the versatility that this sublclass brings is considered. 3) Streetfighter : Streetfighter is not OP by itself, but we all know how stupid he is with blunderbuss modal. Yes, it is fun, but it kind of betrays the original spirit of the subclass and turns it into pure powergaming. I think the Blunderbuss modal should be changed to -10 Accuracy/-10 Deflection/-10 Deflection. There would be other ways to activate Streefighter, but that would require a bit more work that simply actvating a modal.

Seer is the class with the most accuracy of the game vs single target, as it combine the stacking bonus from ranger with Borrowed instinct. It helps landing the powerful single target crowd control and damages effect of the Cipher such as whispers of treason, puppet master, and disintegrate. Takedown Combo and driving flight will help generate more focus. Ghost heart helps summoning your pet behind ennemy lines, which is quite fun with Ectopsychic Echo (and Echo powers in general). I think it's a multiclass with a lot of potential.

Ok, I think I can agree with this. Also I can see the purpose of trinkets for some situational spells such as antidote. I also agree with your previous comment that a trinket with a bonus needs a malus too (such as +1 Inspiration/-1 Punishment). In a nutshell : Wiz Pro : better trinket swapping (but with a lesser margin than before), wider spell selection. Druid/Priest pro : more HP, holy radiance/spiritshift Sounds good ! Still I think it would be good if other classes could put an item in their trinket slot other than endgame items.

Some questions and comments : 1) What do you mean by 1s prone ? I thought prone was 3s animation in parallel with recovery Time from interrupt (source : Thelee Gamefaq). Prone is basically 1s additional Time from interrupt. Is it that duration that you set to 1,5s, for a total 3,5 animation ? 2) While I agree that grimoires are strong, I am not sure Priest and Druid as a whole need a specific buff. First because they have roughly 20% more HP than wiz which is not major but still significant. In addition, even if they have less spells, they have party buff and/or heals. IMHO, they are arguably more versatile spellcasters than wiz even with less spells (self buffs being less significant). So yup, trinkets feel a bit powercreeping. I like the idea if +2 ressources trinkets for everyclasses (martial single class would like it) but I have some doubts about where all this would end... 3) I get you are thinking about nerfing Scordeo's Edge and Brillant. Still it feels a bit like killing the fun and may make the mod less popular. 12s spell restoration with Brillant might be enough to prevent the full synergy with SoT. Without SoT/Brillant, Scordeo's would still be great but not that easy to maintain. Brillant sources might even get a bit more duration to compensate (would be slightly better for martial classes as a result). HOWEVER Brillant + SoT is one of the tool to win the War of Attrition against Megabosses. So be careful before removing it (as you removed resonant touch trick), which leads to comment #4. 4) Megabosses encounter design is an issue in my opinion, especially Dorudugan. Dorudugan basically denies the player most of his abilities AND removes the interest of ALL NON RENEWABLE RESSOURCES due to his HP pool. This leads to a situation where builds have to be balanced not only for 99,9% of the game AND against a single ennemy which favors totally different setup (invalidating 8 classes ressources out of 11 does not feel like a good design). I thing altering Megabosses might make overall balance easier to reach. Sorry for editing my post several times but I am writing on a smartphone I was afraid to loose my text with a misclick.

Thank you very much for all the work ! This is wonderful ! In the current list, there is not a single change that I don't agree with (only a couple are neutral to me). I especially like Arcane Archer PR correction and godlike buff cause it makes basically all classes and races viable (SC Arcane Archer being the safest pick for SC Ranger powerbuild). SC Fighter and Rogue are better too, Psion feels good enough (good for Cipher/caster MC) and shattered pillar comes back from the dead. This is the true Power of consensus ! (Which also makes playing with the patch feeling legit, not like all these powercreep Mods )

Someone has tested Stalker's Patience ? Does it work the same as deep wounds ?

From what I remember, Neriscyrlas uses Safeguard also in the first encounter un Harbringer Rest. So how it is a surprise that she uses it also in the end of BoW ??

Wait... what... I am not... Crazy... Am I ? Ok, Fextralife wiki still shows Pierce only

The wiki states that Aamina's Legacy only does Pierce Damages instead of dual types like other hunting bows. It seems strange. Is it true ? (Sorry for asking this from a place from which I can't launch the game.)

I have trouble to justify Savage/Stalwart Defiance. It's very expensive. Even with the cost reduction from upgrade, it's still meh for 2 ability points. It also stacks poorly with Frenzy CON inspiration. Only upside is instant cast, but Barbs have good Rage point instant sink if needed (Spirit Tornado). I can see some people may want it for their build, I suppose it can save a couple of lives, but it is better to leave Healing to the pros (aka priest, druid, chanter and pal... even Cipher) IMHO.

I think MIG isn't very good for barbs. PER is similar as a DPS stat. MIG helps healing, but Barbs isn't great at it. PER helps Debuff which is far more useful for a Barb. For Berzeker, MIG is even detrimental due to self damages. CON is good for barbs cause it provides a (nearly) bottomless pool of HP. I would say PER then INT/CON then DEX/MIG and then dump RES. For Single Class Barbs, I think Spirit upgrades are superior for Frenzy. Spirit Tornado really does a fair amount of damages with high PL given it has 0.8s cast time and 0 recovery. It's crazy DPS when you think about it. Terrify effect is neat too. I'm playing Serafen as SC barbs and I'm basically only using Driving Roar, Spirit Tornado and a few Panther Leaps when needed. Other abilities are not that great IMHO, but these 3 are enough to make him awesome.

In the latest version of PoE1, Rangers were a powerful class because : - Pet was quite strong - Twin Arrows bascially doubled their DPS with bows - Driving Flight added a bit of AoE as a damage multiplicator - Stunning Shots provided recursive CC. Stormcaller was incredibly convenient (acquired relatively early, not requiring rare components for upgrade), but was arguably not even the best weapon for Ranger (Pesistence for example was the best for pure DPS).

Ok, so let's recap what could be a Themed Party : Same Race : but that doesn't play a big role in gameplay. Maybe godlikes ? Same Class, with possibly different multiclass Similarly themed class : the most interesting option : - A cult of the bear could mix either Bear Ranger or Bear Druid - Sneaky party could have Rogues, Beguilers, Priest of Skaen - God themed party : Woedica cult can have Priest of Woedica, Steel garrote Pally Themed with different roles but united by a common patern : - 5 men party based on Magic the Gathering 5 colors ? - 5 men party based on 4 elements +... shadow ?

Also PL II has no great spell, which may lead to the feeling that priest are weak in the early to mid game, especially if multiclassing.

I hoped there could be an additional patch, to fix minor bugs such as Arcane Archer spell penetration scaling.

Yup, I think playing with Companions worths it for first playthrough I think. Be aware that some of them have conflict with some factions. If you don't have a specific wish for your Main Character, I guess it's better to choose companions first and adjust your own build after. Death Knight sounds like Fighter/Paladin/Chanter. But there are a LOTS of possible Martial or Martial/Spellcaster hybrids builds...

Interesting, maybe because one is Speed Bonus and the other is Recovery Bonus. I guess it should work with similar effects (such as pistol modal and DAoM).

Berzeker / Ghostheart would be the easiest choice. Ghostheart seems nice with the spirit-connected PoE barbs. Slayer's Claw + Berzeker rage = Energized. Then Interrupt on Crit + High Accuracy for the win Add Concussive Shot for the dispell, maybe Modwyr for the Stun per encounter and Confusion immune and you'll have a nice Mageslayer Magehunter build.

Not according to thelee's guide, which is one of the best source of information about PoE2 : https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/pc/227477-pillars-of-eternity-ii-deadfire/faqs/76599/rogue

Be aware that SoT doesn't work on Vanishing Strike since you're untargetable while the invisbility is active. The closest to this should be : Brillant on the Rogue from some source (Cipher or Robes of the Weyc). Max INT and Ooblit for vanishing Strike duration around 13s (to be checked). Vanishing Strike every 18s from Brillant Cast Brillant and/or SoT during the the few seconds when the rogue is not invisible. It seems more tedious than Scordeo's Edge + BDD + SoT even if you don't rely on a 5% proc.

Brillant + SoT, especially AoE Brillant from Robes of the Weyc sounds like an antidote against the wall of hit points that are Megabosses IMHO. I doubt it is that useful for like 99% of battles.

Yes, I've seen the big numbers on the second shot. What seemed strange is that even if I had crits on the secondary target of the mortars, I only got 4 Guile back if the main target received a crit on the mortar shot. Or at least, 2+ crits doesn't translate to 4 Guile. It depends on which shot got the crit.

I couldn't find answers on the Internet to some of my own questions, so I made some tests. I wanted to share my results. I hope some of them could be useful. 1) Enfeeble is applied to itself Enfeeble extends the duration of hostile effects. And enfeeble is an hostile effect iself. Enfeeble does extend its own duration. That means, for example, that Heart Seeker applies 30s of Enfeeble on non-resistant foes (without taking into account INT and PL). Additional tip : that also applies to Weakening abilities targeting vulnerable foes, which makes Toxic Strike extremely potent against them (since its damages increase with duration). 2) Stoic Steel can charge up before battle So if you start battle after 18s of immobility, you start with +3AR. I've never been aware of it before today. This makes Stealth interesting for Paladins ^^ Additional tip : some of the "teleporting" abilities such as escape don't cancel Stoic Steel. I haven't test all of them. 3) Gambit refund only works on first hit/main target Even if you use a multi-shot (classic blunderbuss) or AoE weapon (mortars), you'll get the refund only if 1st roll on main target. So to get the complete refund, you'll need to dual wield and score 2 crits with the 2 "main" attacks. It is still good to get some AoE crits, but don't except a refund. I haven't test it with WotEP. 4) Heart Seeker doesn't apply Bounce or AoE. I have tested it with Watershaper focus, and only foes in the ability line can be hit. There is no double hits due to Bounce or rod's AoE. 5) Whirling Strikes does apply Bounce. You need to equip a melee weapon to perform whirling strike. However, if you hold a ranged weapon in your other hand, you'll attack with it too, and it will even trigger Bounce with Driving Flight. This makes Melee & Ranged dual wield somewhat attrative for ranged, especially with Scordeo's Trophy. 6) "Thunder Rolled..." upgrade "...its crash could not be denied" apply a +15 Accuracy bonus, which is fine IMHO. The description does not specify it but you can read it by picking the ability and checking its accuracy before or during battle. 7) Unbending not triggered by Take the Hit Self damages from Take the Hit does not proc Unbending regeneration. It could have been a nice combo, but nay... 8 ) Garrote complete description The description is vague, so here is how it actually works : 6s paralysis (modified by INT / PL) as described. During paralysis, the target takes about 4 raw damages per tick (1s tick !), modified by MIG / PL. After paralysis, the target is prone (so the 3s Prone are added to Paralysis duration for the total duration of incapacitation) After paralysis, the target also received 20 raw damages, modified by MIG / PL. Overall, it sounds nice and scales quite well. On a Single Class Paladin with max MIG and INT, it does around 120 raw damages total. It might be nice with an Helwalker or a SC class Paladin (since DoT gets double benefit from PL and SC Paladin might get a lot of zeal to spend from Divine Retribution and downed summons).

I think Draining Whip would still be handy for Boss fights. You can't always count on crowd.