Boeroer

I played a Corpse Eater as spell-only Warlock. The PL bonus from kith meat food is great, but the rest is not. Flesh Communion's effect is good but takes too long (run there, 3 sec cast time) and it's fiddly to use (have to really hit a tiny spot with the mouse and there's no highlighting - run around enemies and catch disengagements). The +1 Rage cost is too bad for the most part of the game. The nice cheap stuff like Frenzy, Lion's Sprint and Roars costs double (!). I would always prefer a Berserker with Caroc's Breastplate/Modwyr/Svef/Infuse with Vital Essence With Boundless Rage the +1 isn't such a big deal. And single class Nature Godlike Corpse Eater with Stone of Power, Prestige and kith meat food would have a per-encounter PL bonus of +5(!), but you have to get there...

FoD is good with anything that has decent dmg bonuses. Like Rogue or Helwalker for example. If you can stack some more lashes those will multiply your dmg bonuses big time. For example: Dragon's Dowry (30% burning lash) + Bleak Walker's FoD (+40 ACC with ring and modal, +2 PEN from Scion of Flame and Spirit of Decay) + Sneak Attack + Deathblows + Assassinate + Two Weapon Style + decent MIG pulverize most enemies.

Don't forget Instrument of Boundless Rage.

Correct - Carnage is not nearly as powerful as in PoE and thus it's not a big loss if you don't use it. Frenzy, Bloodlust and Blood Thirst are pretty great with a ranged weapon - although Blood Thirst only works with recovery, not reload - so only pick it when using bows and implements. Barbaric Blow works with ranged weapons. Heart of Fury also does (which is pretty weird but nice with Hand Mortar + Fire in the Hole or Waterschaper's Focus for example). Some "minor" passives like Threatening Presence are also not bad for ranged characters.

Yes. Berserker is pretty good for Warlock. The self damage hurts at higher levels, but Savage Defiance and Concelhaut's Siphon do help.

Stats as usual for casting: high MIG, PER and DEX. If you want to use Alacrity that's also fine, but Frenzy lets you use more Fireballs and/or Bounding Missiles. Fireballs are pretty good at high levels with lots of PL bonuses (from Magran's Favor and Sun & Moon: +4 PL). I also use a large shield in the second weapon slot (and weapon and shield style) so that I can stand in my own Wall of Flame without harm (until I get Rekvu's Scorched Cloak). Wall of Flame + Combusting Wounds is crazy good but takes long time to cast - that's why Frenzy + Bloodlust is nice for example (and Fast Casting as passive later on). I even use this guy naked at higher levels. No good for tanking but can hold his own well enough with the usual defense buffs from wizard and Savage Defiance. For boss fights I use Casita Samelia's Legacy (I maxed Intimidate anyway). I'm sure there are more powerful combos with wizard - but it is fun and finally you can achieve cast times that don't make you yawn.

Yes, I agreed...?

Actually priests have freeze spells: Iconic Projection. They lack lightning based spells? Check again! Edit: Ach let me help you. - Warding Seal - Spark the Souls of the Righteous (ok here Heart of the Storm will only benefit the priest's own shocking aura, not that of allies) It's not much but it's there. They should simply allow all elemetnal PEN talents for priest. I mean there is a freeze spell every priest can take, so...

It's always considered ranged - no matter how close you get. So abilites that are restricted to melee will never work with a ranged weapon. An exception is Backstab. There you have to get <= 2 meters with a ranged weapon.

Because of doulbe inversion it's actually much higher than 75%. Look at grazes "official" -50% or at Full Attacks' "official" -35%. Switching to Engolio is very smart when using SI and as soon as enemies start to die. You will heal instantly and deal good additional AoE damage while the switching doesn't slow down the damage output of SI at all. The lesser PLs do, but that gets balanced out by Ghost Blades.

For example. Or you just stick to it because you're not playing PotD and don't need to micro everything into the ground. The sabre is good enough as is and it has some nice mechanics for chanters who like to cast some empowered invocation, get 3 phrases and then stack some more phrases for the shocking lash + attack speed. Can't see a lot of gimpage here for a non PotD run.

Warlock comes online on lvl 13 right, once he gets access to Citzal and can focus on phys dps? And before that is played like jack of all trades offtank/offdps/off-cc? Erm not really. Frenzy + Bloodlust makes you cast much faster, the +5 MIG helps and especially Lion's Sprint (ok that comes rather late) helps to land critical spells (like landing Combusting Wounds on a boss or so). Spirit Frenzy's staggering works with spells. Berserker's Tenacious, too. I don't even bother with weapon attacks or weapon abilites. Lvl 19 is the peak with Blood Thirst of course, but it works well right from lvl 1.

50 times each over 6000 hours of my life! You watched The Simpsons that often? Phew...

You should really try a Warlock.

There are two shields that count as offhand weapon. You get the bonus from dual wiedling, Two Weapon Style, Weapon & Shield Style and Full Attacks. More of those would be fun. But I don't think we need a general change of the mechanics - because those two exist.

Why? I was agreeing, wasn't I?

In Deadfire or PoE? In PoE it didn't.

You obviously never casted an empowered Eld Nary with lots of general PL bonus, +1 PEN and +10 ACC once every encounter - without the need for resting. My pick would be a single class Troubadour by the way - but I guess the Skald is set.

Yep. DoTs are logged properly in Deadfire. Just killed some dummies with DoTs only and the counter went up.

I didn't check to be honest, let me do a quick test (have a high level Animist with Plague oI in the party atm). Be right back... By the way: Sacred Immolation is no DoT and thus was properly counted/logged in PoE. Like Chillfog and Storm of Holy Fire and Wicked Briars and stuff it pulses periodically and does a hit roll every time. But it has no "ticks" where the initial attack does a hit roll and the ticks always apply.

I'm sure it's only women who use that word in the wrong way. Because we all know that only men are the masters of linguistics, right. I'm still in shock that women now have voting rights when they still can't speak properly, jeez... What's next? Employment laws for child labor? Pfff!

One nice trick is to cast spells from stealth. Stealth gives you a 85% recovery bonus - which lets you cast two spells at the start of battle very quickly. Or even three if you use seal spells. So for example you can cast a Searing Seal (spell uses refreshes), then a Holy Storm from stealth, followed by Devotions. Storm's pulses will profit from the later ACC boost and enemies run into your seal and get blinded while getting hit by the storm. All that in short encounter time. I know why I like my weakest class.

Which restriction? That hirelings are one level below yours? I strongly guess to make the official companions more attractive who can't be min/maxed like hired adventurers can. Nice idea with the Berath's Blessing though. Once you did a playthrough with the (kind of 1-level-pimped) official companions you could then embrace the full potential of hirelings.

Sawyer won't do that because he's not in charge of PoE/Deadfire anymore in the first place.

I know that you know. We are kind of Illuminati you know? We got "Barring Dullness' Door" + "Really Endless Salvation of Time" cast opon us.