Boeroer

Ah, good to know. Funny how I forget those things even when I played this part of the game for like a thousand times.

Good advice. I also wouldn't master Tanglefoot or Binding Web. It's just funny to move through the ranks of stuck enemies with a stag helmet and hitting here and there. For a wizard I would always recommend mastering Eldritch Aim as lvl 1 spell. Your afflictions will hit even harder. If you crit your CC spells will last a lot longer. But for lvl 2 Curse of Blackened Sight is indeed a nice option. It targets will and it lasts a really long time. Only downside is it's small AoE, but for a rogue this shouldn't matter. Slicken is too short for my taste, same with Fetid Caress. I find them both a bit underwhelming. Concelhaut's Corrosive Siphon and Combusting Wounds are my no.1 lvl 2 spells - but they will do nothing for your rogue I'm afraid. Another way to cause afflictions with a wizard without spells is to use Blast and combine it with an implement that causes stun or prone on crit. It will work in an AoE - but the durations are quite short. Still not a bad option. Sunbeam is a nice spell, I agree. The druid's other great options for causing afflictions that last some time are Returning and Relentless Storm of course, but also Spreading Plague (weakens and hobbles for a fairly long time) as well. It will trigger Deathblows by itself with its two afflictions. The best one is possibly Venombloom. It's foe only (which I like a lot), deals a lot of raw damage and weakens for a long time and has a huge AoE. If you later want the rogue to use spells and scrolls with Deathblows (like Fireballs, Twin Stones and so on) and you need big AoE afflictions for that, then Tanglefoot, Chillfog, Binding Web and all those spells which cover a large area for a rel. long time are good. And Phantom Foes of course - still a good spell if you decide to go for cipher. I seldomly use priests to cause afflictions. They are not too good at that and are busy with buffing most of the time. Devotions + Inspiring Radiance makes your CC guys like wiz and druid and cioher a lot better - so I leave thst to them. But Painful Interdiction is a nice exception and a good advice if you are willing to spend two talent points. It has a huge AoE and can be cast quickly. It doesn't last too long but you can cast Crowns for the Faithful or Minor Avatar before using it which will give you much longer durations with the following spells. Just note that Empowered Interdiction doesn't raise the ACC for the weakening part, only for the dazing roll.

That's the problem. One reason why I suggested afflictions. But maybe that's not very playable, no idea. Or receiving a crit would enrage you? Then the girdle of mortal protection would be the no. 1 item for barbs.

I think you only need 1. Combat log shows that the difficulty oft the traps is 1 if I'm not mistaken.

Models of different categories can be active at the same time. For example Vulnerable Attack can be active while Savage Attack is also active. To know the different categories one must look into the code. Loren Tyr did this but I think he's not active in the forums right now. Another candidate is MaxQuest I guess. Some modals are obviously placed in different categories - for example Savage Attack and Swift Aim. With others it's hard to tell (like my first example).

Not the last time I tested it with the Sorcerer's Apprentice build. But that was some time ago. But dual Bittercuts with 4 Vile Thorns per rest on a rogue are already great. Vile Thorns not only works with Deathblows but also with Deep Wounds if I remember correctly (pierce damage?). And with Bittercut's Vile Thorns you don't have any recovery - they are like instant casts. Don't ask me why. So even if Infestation of Maggots doesn't work with Deathblows the rogue might still be a good choice because of what I said above and because of his high ACC and his hit/crit conversion.

Then it's like focus. I mean the part where you get rage by doing damage. You could also make it so that with missing endurance you gain rage. Like with Blooded. Doesn't have to be too granular. But I like the idea of afflictions making the barb really angry.

I stole it from the Hulk.

For AoE damage I would say wizard. He not only has a higher number of spells from which you can pick your preferred damaging spells - he also can get two rings of wizardry for more spells per rest and he can have blast which is an AoE attack itself. Works like a charm with Kalakoth's Minor Blights if you want to spare spells in trash encounters. Add Combusting Wounds to that and melt even tough mobs with only two spells. You can even deal really high AoE damage in melee with Citzal's Spirit Lance. It's only one spell and you can whipe whole groups with it quickly. I recently played a solo Lance wizard on PoTD, it's very effective. Druid has nice spells, too. Most of his damaging AoE spells also cause powerful afflictions, which is great. But he hasn't the spell variety of a wizard and he can't use "spell saving tactics" to cause AoE damage like the wizard can. Shapeshifting is very powerful, but it's not AoE. To be honest, I would bring both. And a priest. Stronghold turns happen when you advance in a quest. Doesn't matter which one.

Ouch! Great news. Thanks for testing. This calls for a maggot loving necromancer build.

If you have a stag helmet or the wyrwood ring then a wizard with binding web is a nice way. Rogue puts on the stag helmet and is immune to stuck, wizard casts binding web and a whole area is afflicted with stuck. It's a powerful debuff with a low level spell. Chillfog is a great way to cause blind for a long time - but I wouldn't run into it to attack in melee. But with a bow it's nice. Phantom Foes is also very nice. With Phantom Foes you can also trigger the bonus damage against flanked targets that you can get from items and survival. A druid would be another source of afflictions. And don't forget that the fighter has knockdown. A great way to trigger deathblows, as I mentioned in another thread, is a monk with Force of Anguish and Enervating Blows. Preferably with an accurate weapon. He will often trigger deathblows for your rogue with one crit.

Nope. But it works great with beams and Pain Link. If you have a barb in the party then don't throw it away: one of the best items with HoF.

Yeah, but I also play during the night, so it does count.

It would have been cool if barbs had a unique (but simple) resource system like monks (wounds), chanters (phrases) or ciphers (focus) have. One that influences some of their most prominent abilitites, like Carnage and Frenzy and maybe also the Yell. Something named rage or so, where rage would increase Carnage and Yell area and would fuel Frenzy (influences bonus or prolongs duration or so). Then there would be no discussion about INT on a barb. Rage could grow if the barb gets affected by an affliction and would get dampened when he gets healed.

You can play with INT 3 and you will most of the time hit 3 foes at once if you don't flank but stand in the midst and enemies surround you. And you can also have +INT items which also will help a bit. But a lot of the barb's abilities are influenced by INT, for example Frenzy, Bloodlust, Savage & Stalwart Defiance, the yells and shouts and so on. Since most of those already have quite short durations dumping INT has a very noticeable effect and makes those ability less attractive. Longer durations are a big plus if you have a barb - that's one reason why Spelltongue on a barb is so nice. So it is true (for me) that INT is one of the most precious stats for a barb - and it feels weird sometimes. Not because all barbs should be dumb, but they don't have the reputation of being extraordinarily smart either. But I still like PoE's stats system. I have the same "problem" with fighters and monks by the way: can't make them without high INT.

You might consider Basketball. When I was 20, I got injured during a game and couldn't walk without crutches for nearly 3 months. Until today I can't bend my knee completely. Big success!

The best racial feat in my opinion. And if you have 1 talent to spare and wear the Bartender's Ring, you can take Beast Slayer and enchant your weapons with kith-slaying. Then you have a char who either has higher ACC or higher damage against every creature there is.

3k+

Forest Lurkers at lvl 3 are tough. Huge endurance pool, rel. high DR and good defenses and acc. And they hit hard and cause stuck on hit.

Then I guess it only works when you pick Wildstrike - because with my druid (who has Wildstrike + Greater Wildstrike) it works just fine.

The AoE indicator for Mind Wave got messed up in one of the later patches, maybe 3.something. Before that is was centered on the enemy you picked as your target. Don't know why it broke. Maybe because there's this secret design philosophy of OBS that, when they introduce some new features with a patch, they also have to introduce some new bugs as well. It's called balancing...

Yes, you can. Concelhaut, too.

That is indeed one of the most inexplicable decisions the designers/devs made. Durance's staff would be the best quarterstaff in the game if the devs would finally change crush/burn into burn/crush.

Yes, you can always leave and come back later.

Luckily for Durance, the Binding Rope only works with melee hits. But it would have been realistic to get stuck when you shoot yourself in the foot.