[Ranged character build]

Many characters can use ranged effectively. There was a recent post from a new user that had a very similar topic. I believe its called "Teach me to gun pillarites". I would read there. Also might want to read Boeroer's build The Mad Hornet. Off the top of my head Rangers are the best consistent ranged dps. Paladins are more of a 1-2 BIG hits, but they bring a lot of other nice stuff to the party. Ciphers are not what I would call, a ranged dps character. Many Ciphers are built for ranged and can do solid damage, but typically many of your actions are casting their abilitites. Some of these do damage, but a lot of the best ones are crowd control and buffs/debuffs. If that sounds good though, than by all means Cipher may be a very fun ranged character for you.

[What's the current state of the classes?]

An important point too is that a lot of how good a class performs is based on a players general playstyle and likes/dislikes. When I've played rogues/rangers on PotD as primary dmg dealers, they tend to get their head kicked in. Doesn't mean they aren't effect just means I prefer fighters because I don't suck so much with them lol.

[Weak Companions]

I still think the best thing would be to allow for companions stats to be respecced. If a player wanted to leave the stats alone so that the character fits with the particular design of the devs then that is fine, but those wishing to min-max the companions a bit have that option. There are only a couple companions that I see as totally off for what you would want. Lately I've been feeling like Pallegina has some of the worst stats. Her Might is so poor that I find it difficult to give her any sort of offensive abilities which makes keeping agro a bitch. Most companions will do ok though, especially if you play to their strengths.

[What's the current state of the classes?]

Raven, that is certainly one way to play a Fighter, and quite effective tbh, but they can be very versatile. I personally love fighters. Right now I'm working on the beginning of a playthrough based on Boerer's Engineer build. It'll have multiple weapons to use, a few nice abilities, and the ability to tank. All depends on what you build them for.

[Aventurer lvls]

BTW this Is done imo to balance out how much more powerful created hirelings will be than the normal NPCs.

[PotD soloable?]

 

 

Could anyone recommend a good place to look at a walkthrough for getting going on a solo playthrough as far as which quests, etc to do. I'm thinking of going my first solo attempt on a wiz soon.

[Giving this another try - some questions]

The spectres are some of the more challenging enemies you will face. Try debuffing them. Curse of Blackened Sight works particularly good at this point of the game.

[Tell me about rangers!]

Thanks for the input folks, I'm glad to see that the type of character I had in mind looks to be strong and fun. I'm going to have to try that Persistence and Predator's sense combo, especially since you can get it pretty early.

 

I think my Party will be Zahua and Kana in melee (with my wolf), than my ranger, Durance, Mother (maybe toss her the Stormcaller instead of a gun, if I fall in love with persistence), and I guess Aloth pew pewing stuff. I don't totally love aloth but I can't imagine playing without wizard spells in the party. Or maybe I'll drop Kana for Hiravias or Pallegina.

I would caution you that there is probably not enough front line combatants in this setup. Kana will not hold agro until possibly very late in the game. I would seriously consider swapping him out to a tank that can do some dps to keep mobs attention.

[Giving this another try - some questions]

It sounds like your looking for a challenge. In my opinion PotD only becomes quite easy with a fully optimized party around the half way point. Once you start getting to a certain level and finding very good gear a lot of fights will become easier but on PotD I feel that if you slack off for a fight it can suddenly sneak up on you and really take a toll. There are also going to be some high level boss encounters that are extremely difficult. With the increased level cap they provide options to scale up the difficulty for certain areas to keep the end game content challenging.

[Tell me about rangers!]

Rangers can do a ton of damage in either melee or ranged, but remember that your pet is a dps addition NOT a tank. I would always focus on talents that increase pet dps but there should be some balance. I think its a pretty well balanced class, but it does take some micro-management imo. You need to make sure you know where your pet is and what its up to always, and you also want to keep an eye on status effects on the pets target. You should have a DoT and some sort of status effect going in order to maximize dps.

[Favorite NPC moments]

 

Reminded me why I don't like Eder much. Comes off as a simpleton hick. lol.

I don't know, he never seemed stupid to me, just someone who likes to live carelessly and likes some self-depreciative humor once in a while.

 

That quote of yours gives me the impression he is being silly, not thick.

 

And this is what makes it great. The NPCs have enough depth to be perceived in different manners.

 

 

There are a couple I just cannot manage to get into though. Grieving Mother comes to mind first....I still haven't managed to keep her around for a long time. Anyone think she would really be worth a whole playthrough? I also haven't play with Devil at all; the power-gamer in me just dies at the stats. I've seen some decent ideas on making her viable but, ugh...we'll see.

[So, what do you think of the new companions? (SPOILERS)]

I'm kinda disappointed with the Devil. I like her personality, but her stats are so awful I can't play with her.

Ditto. Character flavor is great but there are a couple companions that make my jaw drop they are so bad.

[Favorite NPC moments]

My new favorite banter I think is Eder and Hiravas.

 

 

Eder - "Now that we are friend's again can I pet you"

 

Hiravas - " Eder is your family tree just one big looping square"

 

This one was right up there was Minsc and Viconia for me.

 

 

Reminded me why I don't like Eder much. Comes off as a simpleton hick. lol.

[No love for Druids?]

I agree with other posters about spirirtshift. It shouldn't be the only weapon in your arsenal but I love the option for those fights that blowing your spell load is a bit extreme. Cast 1-2 nice spells and then tear into stuff. I remember from my last full playthrough with Hiravas that he became a BEAST. I focus on shock dmg to have nice synergy with the storm spells and stormcaller users. He really tore things to shreds.

[[Party Challenge] Team Alpha Strike]

Sounds like a fun concept. I think maybe 3 paladins so you can use all 3 auras. With that many options you could have all of the paladin goodies and still have them all hit really hard. Plus later on in the game Scared Immo will make the remaining mobs a lot easier. Also could use coordinated attacks to buff the rogues alpha strikes. Hmmm I wonder if any caster could be built for an alpha strike and offer some CC/buffing after the initial wave.

[Am I the minority?]

Well people think the beginning is hard because they stick to those worthless casters lol. It was a breeze on PotD when I just subbed Rangers in

Well considering most people think all 4 casters are extremely powerful, I think the title of being in the minority is extremely accurate. Again....try to learn what everything does.

 

I believe it was PrimeJunta(could be wrong) who talked about his 6 caster party being one of  the easier playthrough he had done.

[Am I the minority?]

I think you just don't have good command of all the different spells and how useful they can be. You did recognize wizards at least; I would say some of the best spells in the entire game can be found at wizard levels 1 and 3. That said all casters can be amazing. Ciphers off a ton of CC even from level 1 with Mind Wave. Priests have amazing spells from the get go.....+6 ACC or +4 DR....both great at low levels. A seal that knocks down enemies for a very long time... Consecrated Ground for continuous healing.... and that's only if your using your priest strictly for support. Druids have a crap ton of AoE damage and DoTs, can inflict an enormous amount of debuffs....and for those trashy fights, shapeshift and kick some ass.

 

 

Like ANY class....casters can be very effect right from the start with the right skills and more importantly tactics. Remember that most people consider the beginning of the game by far the hardest on PotD.

 

Besides all that I do still dislike the beginning of the game but that is only because I have played it so darn much and get bored. It has nothing to do with classes power curve.

[How important is Resolve for me, really?]

I would take a close look at Kdubya's Juggernaut monk. It's my go to for the class and works very well as a front-liner. I believe he leaves Res at 10.

[Teach Me How to Gun My Fellow Pillarites]

Since it sounds like you are leaning towards Paladin here is a simple build that might work well for you.

 

 

Paladin - Bleakwalker

Island Aumaua

 

M - 18

C - 10

D - 10

P - 14

I - 18

R - 8

 

Remember that Faith and Conviction will help your defenses a ton. I simply cannot go lower on might or int for a paladin designed around hard hits. 14 Perc should be more than enough between FoD accuracy and all the other buffs you can get to ACC from your own auras, weapon enchantments, and Priest buffs. I don't really like low dex chars but since this guy is designed around hard-hitting, slower attacks I think its fine. I tend to either go with 10ish dex, or really pump it to 16+. Lots of personal preference in stats though.

 

* = personal preferences

 

Talents

Weapon Focus Soldier

Intense Flames

Remember Rahkan Field

Scion of Flame

Two-Handed Style* (helps melee dmg)

Quick Switch* (faster open blasts)

Apprentice Sneak Attack* (nice dmg add)

Penetrating Shot* (make those two shots hurt more, although imho if your already hitting for 100, whats another 5)

 

Abilities

I feel like paladins are a lot about personal preference. I'd say Flames of Devotion and Sacred Immolation are the only must haves. Probably start with Zealous Focus at level 3 and change it later in the game if you want to respec once you can get a lot more ACC buffs. I also never have a pally without Lay on Hands, but that's me. You need to decide what you want to be able to do for your teammates. Make their attacks faster/more accurate, help them stay alive or revive them, make yourself beefier? That choice will tell you what other abilities to take. I think coordinated attacks would be nice for this guy, so that when he switches to melee he is buffing other team mates.

 

Some general tactical advice. You can probably one shot enemy casters(or get close). Debuff very tough single enemies before you use up your gun shots(want to make em count).

 

[Scope and quality - feedback for PoE 2]

Jeez get out of my head!

 

Some very good points there. My biggest problem with PoE, and to be honest, many RPGs lately, is that the main quest line seems very short, while there are a zillion side quests to just make the game "big." In most of these games, and PoE especially, either the protagonist or even the world is in grave danger....but wait, lets go kill an ogre to help some farmer that lost his pig. There is no way to rationalize it. Almost all parts of PoE were enjoyable for me, but none of them felt very story driven. You reference BGII a lot, and I think many people would agree it is the best game of this genre, so of course that's a lot to live up to. But the story telling was simply superb, and the main questlines took up a very large portion of your play time. It's kinda funny how PoE has made me want to play BGII again after many years.

 

I do feel that PoE actually did an excellent job on character balance. Most classes can be extremely competitive, and there is a lot of room for personalization within each class, and sometimes entirely different play styles that are powerful. The combat and tactics are fun, and offer enough challenge at least at some points.

 

I do agree about The Endless Paths as well. The first time through them all they were not too bad. Certainly there is some variety, but O M G its a slog now. The Endless paths are probably tied as my least favorite part of the game. Tied with everything up until you have completed Caed Nua and can move on to defiance bay and some options.

 

I think SkySlam made a good point about variety in side quests though. Some quick bounties are fun, as well as longer side quests that take a couple hours and tell a nice story. I.E. White march is very enjoyable for me, even if I can't think of a reason my character would travel way to hell up there to help a tiny town while the Hollowborn epidemic is underway.

[Teach Me How to Gun My Fellow Pillarites]

Hello and welcome to PoE and the forums.

 

I recommend looking at two builds in particular. The Dull Runner by Boeroer and the Darcozzi Commendatore by PrimeJunta. Prime's build focuses on using pistols as a paladin and buffing up your fellow party members. Boeroer's build uses Arquebuses as a paladin.

 

If you are open to at least some melee I would go for a Paladin that uses Arquebuses and greatswords. You can have 2-3 extremely high damage powerful shots to start the fight, taking out the most dangerous enemies and then switch to a greatsword to mop up. Both of these weapons are in the Soldier class and there are numerous powerful greatswords(can tell you more about gear if you don't mind the minor spoilers). Some of the Talents and skills I would recommend for this build would be, in no particular order, Weapon Focus Solider, Flames of Devotion, Intense Flames, Scion of Flame, Zealous Focus, Sacred Immolation, Penetrating Shot, Vulnerable Attack(only if you want the added melee capabilities), Lay on Hands and whatever other nice paladin skills you like the looks of. Sworn Enemy can be good for those opening shots. I would also use an Island Aumaua and take Quick Switch and possibly even Arms Bearer if you wanted to be able to have 3 guns to shoot before switching to melee. Any paladin order you pick would be fine but I think Bleakwalker or Goldpact have talents that would enhance the power shots the most. Pump Might, Intel, and Perception. Con and Resolve can be dropped a lot if you don't want to be able to tank/melee much at all, but for versatility I would probably keep them at at least 8. With this build your focusing a few powerful hits, so dex doesn't need to be pumped to high and you really don't have the points for it anyways.

 

If you'd like I wouldn't mind posting a more in-depth build as I've been planning on doing a run through with this type of character soon.

[[CLASS BUILD] The Engineer (shocking dps fighter artillery tank)]

The min-maxer in me says go Island Aumaua, but to me dwarves just fit the concept of a craftsman using his craftiness(da-da-dun) to be effective. Fitting in Arms Bearer and Quick Switch might be very tough though. I think that that second shot with Lead Spitter would be insane dmg tho.

[[CLASS BUILD] The Engineer (shocking dps fighter artillery tank)]

As always man a very interesting and well thought out build. I'm very interested to try this out. I love the idea of a fighter that takes more thought and control then simply buff, click, let attack. I think I will probably go more for a variant that uses Quick Switch and two blunderbusses. Aumaua would be the best for this but dwarf definitely fits the build better. I might try to fit in the talents to make this idea work as a dwarf. I was also considering getting Disciplined barrage in there to really make the Blunderbuss shots give it their all.

 

-Do you think int could be lowered a bit without serious repercussions to the build working?

 

-Any particular builds that you used with this guy, that you thought worked extremely well?

[The Darcozzi Forward Observer. Could use some input!]

Prime, maybe you already are, but by the time you get Stormcaller I'd respect Hiravas for Wildstrike Shock. Not only is there synergy with Stormcaller but it synergizes great with all of the amazing Shock druid spells.

[Appropriate level for Cragholdt Bluff / White March ?]

I typically Start exploring White March content around lvl 7-8, although I wouldn't expect to finish everything at that level. Some areas get tougher. Cragholdt is one of the absolute last things to do imo. Typically I would wrap up a play through with a couple Dragon hunts and Cragholt.