sapientNode

what is with this issue with crafting exactly? You can add fine superb and exceptional as well as a bane and a lash (only elemental). How does that even compare to an exceptional crit multiplying non elemental lash with extended reach? (Example from in game) If anything the crafting system should be a supplement to the current system. So instead of allowing crafting of just the base properties it instead enhances the properties already on a weapon. Together this keeps the system of finding and then enhancing both parallel and not in competition. In addition the method of crafting should not be stand click button throw copper coins in and a Xaurip tongue and walla magick item enhanced. We should have work benches and a much more refined drop rate of enchant ingredients.

I am playing PoTD and my Rogue is only in a Unique padded armor and she is ridonculous in the damage department. Most damage done = Rogue Hardest enemy defeated = Rogue Most crits = Rogue Most damage done = Rogue She is only duel wielding daggers right now. Well I think specifically 2 stilletos. She is the character I move around the most though. And yes she sits idle for a moment before going in and pretty much destroying things. Even with that idle her dps is higher than my main 2 tanky types. If they turn on her its a problem but we have 2 invis and she also gets a swap ability to teleport out of danger I have only used her ranged if she cant get in there and I never send her into a mass of enemies. She usually sits side by side my tank. Or I will run around the outer perimeter of battle and run in and backstab some of the loose enemies running around. I have her pumped with high perception for extremely high accuracy and interrupts as well.

I would of just left the overdone and overused caster argument out of this... The point about enchant costs as well as materials needed for them is well taken. I have absolutely no idea why the cost is just double for 2 handed. Its not 1/3 more or 50% more it is just double. It seems ridiculously arbitrary. I honestly do not get the cost ration on enchants anyway since the amount of materials (excluding some high end stuff) ends up being absurdly out of proportion. And even though money is not ultra scarce it is not so abundant that it even closely resembles the mat drops. It seems in order to not waste and have a proper plan for enchants you have to have played the game and know where the drops are and then go to those spots asap and then enchant only that gear. With the costs as they are there is no room for experimentation. Not to mention you cant overwrite chants.

I agree that it changes the dynamic of fights for traditional casters. I like your suggestion of tying number of spells to intelligence (or resolve or constitution, which has the bonus of giving casters a reason to boost constitution). I think this is the crux of the disagreement: "The only thing they do is eliminate the need to either camp your group or run back to town and rest at an inn. What else is the real difference?" For some players, that is all the per rest restrictions do. For those players, there is no downside to lower level spells becoming per encounter. For other players, per rest restrictions are an important element of strategic gameplay that is otherwise missing in PoE. I would never consider resting after every fight. If I wanted to do that, I'd console code "god" (which can be fun for a short time IMO but would take the fun out of most of the game) and, if you need to, the command that gives you unlimited spells. (I've never used godmode in PoE so I'm not sure what it gives you.) For players who like the strategic element of per-rest spells, there is a significant downside to those spells becoming per encounter. There is also the class balance issue, which is an important consideration for some players (but not others). For me that's the big sticking point. The time you spend walking back to the inn once you run out of supplies is boring, and I don't have as much time as I used to for playing games to being with. The cost for recharging my spells in that scenario isn't really paid by in-game currency, it's paid in my free time. I CAN spend time going back to the inn, but that's an unattractive option to me so I'd rather just plow through until I absolutely need to stop, which means I get the added fun of resource management to the game (weird way to have fun I know, but there you go). I like having the option to replenish my spells at any point as a fallback at the cost of my free time, but with low-level spells being so effective having them regenerate after every encounter almost feels like I have cheat codes on. It almost completely destroys the need to worry about conserving your spells since you can rely solely on per-encounter spells in 80% of fights. That isn't to say people that enjoy powering through things with their per-encounter spells are wrong for liking them. If I didn't enjoy the dilemma of whether using a spell was a cost-effective trade I'd probably agree with them, but that's my feelings on the subject. I think this is a good summary. The time cost of resting will also vary by player. For players who rarely rest, it's a small benefit (and if they like the strategic element of per rest, a fairly high cost). For players who rest more often, it's a bigger consideration. For the players who struggled on easy (with 6 camping supplies) and had to trudge back to an inn, this would be a big factor. But how many fights do you rest for? I think the answer to that question may have a lot to do with how you feel about per rest/per encounter. Because if you rest frequently, you probably are not losing that much on the strategic management side and you probably are gaining quite a bit on the convenience side. If you rarely rest, you are probably losing quite a bit on the strategic side and not gaining much on the convenience side. For me, having per encounters significantly changed the game. It was fun at first to only use per encounters and nothing else but, for me, that got old quickly. I missed having to manage my spells. It also greatly affected class balance, which is important to me in a single player game, especially if I'm using a party. I want each party member to shine at what s/he does. I want my fighter or paladin tank to out-tank my tank chanter, shape-shifted druid, or buffed wizard. I want my chanter summoner to out-summon my level 11 druid who can spam lesser blights. If I'm going to play a party, I want to have to think about which members I take to specific areas, not just automatically take 5 casters. I guess some utilize the camping as a integral limit that also counts as strategy. I have been playing so many games over the years with numerous variance in how they handle what we are dealing with per encounter spells and I have gotten to a point where cool downs are what I find the best design. Per encounter is a quasi method of CDs to me. The recent game I played that I felt had the best method of dealing with spell casting was Larian's Divinity: Original Sin. Wherein the spells were on CD basically with the CD decreasing based on your casters stat (INT) Which could very well lend itself to the design here where per encounter spells not only increased based on a stat or some form of talent/ability but they could also all share a global CD. This of course enters somewhat into the mmo style but it works quite well and could very easily be augmented with different attribute boosts and other talents/abilities. Overall we need to evolve. I mean early on we rarely ever left the dungeons until the end because such a mimimal amount of items dropped it was unnecessary to go back and sell and camping was outright free to do as long as enemies were not in range or you were too close to some other hostile situation. In PoE we at least have the design set up to limit the freebie camping constantly. Never the less it is inevitable we slowly eliminate the added tedium of certain things that once were balanced for what games were. Now since we have so many games with teleportation and incredible amounts of content and of course a much greater time sink in certain aspects we need to shave stuff away. In my opinion anyway. At a certain point in time I remember being upset by teleports being introduced into games. Now I think seriously I have to run across this forest where there is going to be nothing new to look at or any other chance of an enemy battle. And I still semi role play my parties in these games. I think 2 separate issues got raised here. One was that casters are OP. Which essentially is the longest standing issue of having games with casters. I would never opt for a fully party of casters though because the micro managing to not get stomped and the boring routine of casting CCs and the same AoE damage spells would grate on me. Its a bit of a conundrum to me when people literally get upset about a caster which is in their party and helps them kill an enemy and overcome an obstacle i thought to be too OP. I love my casters for what they do and my Paladin and my Monk and my awesome Rogue. Just because it says in my stat sheet that my Rogue has hit more cirtted more and done the most damage as well as having defeated the most powerful enemy we encountered I would not tell her she is OP and needs to tone it down. I am like right on Orlan you are frakin awesome! That said the entire per encounter spell issue could be solved by adding an option to disable it for those who wish to. As it was added to the iemod before it was added to the core of PoE perhaps they could create a method in which it could be disabled. In addition the OPness of certain spells could easily be resolved if someone wanted to go into their respective unity files and tweak them. I for one found the difficulty of PoTD and per encounters starting at level 6 9 12 perfect for me. I only moderately spam slicken and chill fog. And I still only have 5 of them. The only battles I have run into problems with were lengthy stamina fights which by the end my slicken and chill fog are gone anyway. It is not as if per encounter spells equates to infinite casts of some spell. That spell is still in existence regardless of per encounter system. I admit I will use a per encounter spell more graciously than a per rest spell and that is even when I know I can simply just go rest or drop down at some random spot and click sleep. The main thing for me is that I do not want the immersion broken so per encounters allows me to stay in the dungeon longer and not run back to a town. It would be of course fantastic if we had battles that got randomly spawned in areas we had to run back through or if there was a chance to be awakened by roaming monsters as in the old school days of this genre. But then of course people would complain about being able to sit around camp and power level. Overall I think to solve these types of problems they just need to add more variables in the settings to disable/enable them. Then we all can be smiley!

This also happens to me and it would seem it happens after a certain amount of time. Because initially it is fine and then after some loads and travels the buttons no longer get focus and are hidden by the background layer. Luckily their edges do peak out of the background so I know where to hit for accept/decline

I agree since we are likely not going to see the total removal of the craft/enchant system we should at least have some tweaks to it so it was more functional with more options. And absolutely with the ability to overwrite an enchantment. It is obviously a doable feature since it works with the fine/superb/exceptional line. And an accurate2 will overwrite a damage2. Does anyone know what file these things are in or is it all hard coded? Search as I might I can not find any type of variable/config files. We could be fixing or modding the enchanting system right now if it is possible??

I would definitely like an overwrite feature if only that. But I would really like to see a more refined robust system be put back in game.

Yes there is no awesome mode sneak that makes them never see you like some other games. Sneak in combat is good for playing traps and I suppose if you want to try your luck getting that initial backstab in. But thats risky given all of the mobs will now target you and if any of them cast your going to get hit even if you are off screen. So you essentially end up running back to the party and face smashing the mobs with your tank and wait for them to stop looking at your mage which is especially problematic if they are mages or archers.

Currently the enchanting/crafting system should be revamped to a great degree. As far as the comments about crafting taking away from the game. Argggggggggg!!! It never makes any sense to me when people complain about something when all they have to do is not use it. I know more is not always better but if designed well both systems of finding treasure and crafting awesomeness can work very well together. I myself would still use something unique even if it perhaps it was less in some areas and more in others. Potentially because my character likes a sword rather than a blunt weapon. As it is it appears crafting was extremely gutted and it was then not balanced after being gutted. With all the materials we get it would appear we are to experiment. However with the random and absurdly high amount of coin I guess we pay the crafting fairies I end up with close to 100 of some materials with nothing to do with them but sell them off. A huge stash box of junk basically. I would absolutely love to see a mod for crafting where all the crafting options were accessible and the design impediment was not gold. I mean seriously what am I doing smelting the gold into the item? I cant even realistically (until late game) craft/enchant many items even though I am sitting on an absurd amount of components because it costs me 1200cp just to put fine on a staff. My monies are going into the keep mainly now and some other equipment along the way. I can agree that as it is the crafting/enchant system makes no sense. Its far too expensive to experiment or to add minor tweaks which would be helpful early on and the amount of Unique items that drop all over the place or show up in shops pretty much discourages spending much thought or time crafting/enchanting. There is just too much of too much of too much with out any real refinement. It will not take anything away if the crafting system was more robust with a more intricate design. You could have distilling process for components and a need for a proper workspace. In addition the enchants could be bonuses added to the already Unique gear. As in amplifying certain aspects of the already set bonuses. Rather than the generic add fine superb exceptional and hope you pick the right proof bane or elemental damage modifier. I mean we can not even overwrite elemental damage or bane effects or attribute bonuses. As it is its really only a half system if it is even that. My understanding is that is because early stage enchants allowed for all properties to be added and that made certain choices super OP. So instead of sitting down and working out a remedy it would appear they added some arbitrary blocks removed a ton of the properties we could add but left in the obscene amount of component drops. Again for those who say omg you cant put in more crafting it will destroy the game or it already does.... meh There are always additional options for resolution that can be implemented that doesn't involve one option being destroyed or not chosen. I like crafting and the more deep the crafting system for me the better. D:OS had a fairly robust crafting system with making lockpicks and other such items as well as adding some bonuses to the gear itself. It was also limited in the properties you could add however. It would be great to have crafting stations and workspaces in the keep where we could tinker away and create amazing things or enhance already amazing things. I mean what exactly am I doing along with paying the gold enchant fairy when I slap a component on a weapon? Am I just randomly standing in a dungeon and throwing gold in the air and then the weapon gleams so then I throw a gem a plant and beast material at it and poof its enchanted. Ultimately drops need to be tweaked especially for PoTD and Hard runs so the rarity of components stays consistent. Then we need workspaces where we can take time and focus on our crafting and enchanting. Then we need different variations and properties to be included in what we can enchant. The magick pay the gold fairy needs to be replaced with another method of creating a proper payment/reward system. I think the best we can hope for is a Mod for this stuff but it appears much more difficult to mod this game because we dont even have a few simple overrides for enchant properties. We need access to the tables which hold the formula for gold pricing. We need access to the variables for drop rates. We need access to tables for what properties are allowed in the enchanting process. I am hoping for at the very least a more refined craft/enchant system. I really like crafting in games myself.

If she is like other companions you can respec her into something else using iemod http://www.nexusmods.com/pillarsofeternity/mods/1/?tab=1&navtag=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nexusmods.com%2Fpillarsofeternity%2Fajax%2Fmoddescription%2F%3Fid%3D1%26preview%3D&pUp=1 This way you can add or detract skills/abilities and redo attributes scores. You can also turn her into another class. To account for the loss of armor you could add offensive/defensive abilities with the console. When I do get her I will be doing this so I can experience her story but also so she is another class because my custom made Rogue is so awesome.

As the topic states... Is there any known method to adjust the camp supplies back to 4 on Hard and PoTD difficulty? Having less supplies for me does not add difficulty. It simply adds more time to my game

Like someone posted in this thread I wish more devs would spend a good amount more time setting up modding capability to we could tinker with whatever we choose and share it.

Have you found anything interesting that we could do to decrease them or even to figure out why they are so sporadic? Because right now my only solution is flipping around the priority until it seems to take precedence. It also seemed to help to actually alt tab and start other programs. Perhaps its a hyper thread issue. The times when it takes an absurd amount of time to load it generally apphangB1s then goes active and then apphangs again. Then when it gets through its apphang the second time it will likely load. When it loads fast the time between these things is insignificant and I even get a flash to desktop at times during the first and second apphang. The difference between the faster load time and the one in which it seems to just freeze up can range from 1 to 2 minutes. If I factor in the time it takes to actually get to the load screen from the Obsidian intro that time is increased. This is one of the most bizarre problems I have encountered with loading a game and I can not replicate it consistently.

On an unrelated note, maybe that discussion should go the spoiled section of the forum, no? Ok awesome. You were more thorough than I. This adds a layer to Helig's character as well. Thanks

Per encounter spells are fantastic. The only thing they do is eliminate the need to either camp your group or run back to town and rest at an inn. What else is the real difference? I for one do not need my 27 intelligence Mage unable to remember how to cast spells. I used iemod and activated this function even before they put it in game because resting simply takes time. Potentially if they added encounters to rest or some other variables they could be something more than a clicky regen button. Perhaps spells per encounter could be based on the Int stat since then it would make sense that a magic user could hold more inside their cranium or within themselves to be readily able to recall them. As they are though I find it a refreshing design to the old mundus of fight a big party go find random spot in forest click button watch animation and poof your full health with spells. Its like the evolution of having to completely delete a spell book of certain spells then rescribe them with ones you want and resting again for them to be committed to the spell book. That was how it once was and this is simply yet another evolution. It could be perhaps tweaked but it does not make anything OP because you essentially have the exact same thing as after each encounter resting which could cost around 80cp or 25-180cp if you go to an inn. And time of course. Bottom line for me is that the per encounter spell use/ability use was a very refreshing addition to the genre. I like the fact I can utilize my skills more than 3 to 7 times per rest which made it so most of the time I just sat there and auto attacked. Now I can use more of my arsenal of attained skills/spells.

Those are some of the thoughts I had as well. However it was not clearly explained even after I allowed certain events to unfold.

I also agree with the limit of enemies. However my main problem is in the fact that they are all perma linked. Trying to split the masses up in the upper difficulties is arduous and mostly not possible. And in addition once the bestiary is filled they also give 0 experience. So they lack a reward for the time spent.

First off people are going to reload if they are going to reload. And the more RNG the game is the more incentive there is to save scum. It is after all a game. The point is to win and become powerful. Role Players or those who stick to the guide rails are also going to usually continue to stick to the guide rails or Role Playing. Pick pocketing doesn't necessarily have to even be dealing with high end loot except for perhaps a few bits here and there. The main thing is pocketing coins for me so earlier game I can buy more loot. As it is even having mechanics creates greater power because even if you do not steal from the chest unlocking it nets some pretty worthwhile exp during the early game. Lock picking and trap removal has been a long standing mechanic. So too has pick pocketing been so. I think the greatest issue is that no one has ever really worked out interesting consequences beyond the everyone becomes hostile scenario and you have to reload or kill the tavern. Rep damage and diplomatic speech could be helpful in alleviating some of the save scumming. Since we are dealing with a lot of RNG compared to the predecessors save scumming is happening regardless. I recall an actual description of the Rogue itself speaking about sleight of hand but there is none. I have not even found a conversation or scripted event that did a check on such a thing. I know its difficult with Rogues and has been forever in RPG land because they are massively useful in utility and they pretty much own on the damage front. I miss being able to run around the rich parts of town though and pick pocket people for their coins and jewels though.

This is just plain untrue. Wearing armour doesn't require any special strength - any ordinary man can do it - and it certainly doesn't require any special skill as in some games. Armour is designed to be easily worn. Yes, it's certainly more tiring to spend a day in armour instead of your ordinary clothes, but any "adventurer" would be fit enough that they can easily function and move about in one. There are two main reasons why mages generally don't wear armour in games: Tradition. Mages are generally balanced by making them glass cannons. Breaking away from silly traditions is only refreshing. The second reason is not a problem if making mages more tanky also makes them less cannon, as it does in PoE. In fact, unless the lore specifically states that using magic in armour is particularly difficult, they should be wearing even more armour than fighters. Why? Because they don't need to move as much. They don't need to dodge attacks, wave their swords and shields around and step back and forth, trying to balance between defending themselves and finding an opening to attack. Mages can just stand behind the front line and call down fire from the sky, so why shouldn't they be protected while doing it? It really sounds to me like you're not taking advantage of all the options the game already provides. There are many, many ways to protect the more vulnerable party members. There are numerous caster-protection spells and stasis shield spells and items and abilities that help movement and disengagement. There are defensive and melee-oriented skills and items. There are lots and lots of CC spells and abilities. There are alternate weapon sets and Spiritshift. There are countless ways you can position your party. You can lump your casters together or keep them apart and bring some characters in only after the combat begins. You can have a secondary tank start combat in the back row with a ranged weapon. You can have a frontline character ready to disengage and move back to protect others. And so on. There really are dozens of ways to deal with these problems, and they're all more tactical/stretegic than having your tank announce to the enemies that their mothers were hamsters and their fathers smelt of elderberries. Come on man wearing Armor doesn't require any special strength? Aloth with that little thin frame in huge plate mail. Sure its a game but seriously go put on some platemail. I could see Durance wearing some because the dude has built himself up over time but Aloth or Kana or Sagani ... not so much. As for the multiple strategies. Yes there are indeed some caster buffs that seem to be placed just to stand ground while the tank comes running over and smacks the enemy. Druid CC is of course top notch. Storm is indeed ridiculous for mobs in open space. The problem remains the stamina fights where spells are completely depleted and you have enemies running to the back line with no more knock downs or yanks from the main tank. At this point you run over and force the enemy AI to shimmy a bit so it decides that pathing to the squishy will be an issue. This is ultimately the same thing as having a taunt but its more a hack of the AI because we know how pathfinding works. There is no reason why additional direct methods of forcing engagements can exist alongside what is already in place. it will just add more diversity and will not remove any of the existing strats. Suppose I could just mod the yank for the fighter myself and bumps its use and make it per encounter. The problem with the yank is LOS is not always easy to get and it often fails due to LOS issues even when it would appear I am fully capable of seeing the enemy. However the spot next to me is occupied so there is nowhere to yank the enemy too. Similar to the issue of summons in spaces that become occupied. Aggro generation seems quite viable in this game given the amount of enemies that are linked in combat and especially in the upper difficulties. Also it would lessen the constant pausing to micro manage and allow for us with slow down on to bounce around and pick spells and abilities without pause pause pause again... pause pause. Aggro generation would be the same as having pause but reduce the amount of time micro managing. And I am not saying a guaranteed hate on the tank like MMOs have. Just more options to pull in enemies focus. The whole calling your enemies mother a name would actually work often with the human types anyway. As for the different variations of enemies who have no minds or are spirit form we are dealing with conditions that could easily be manipulated by the force of will in a fighter. Especially a Paladin with incredibly high resolve. The mechanic could be based on will and its saves would be will. So of course we would end up having enemies totally immune. It would also be AoE wide.

One of my favorite characters to play is the Rogue. I always liked the pick pocketing aspect of the Rogue class. Was there a reason this mechanic was never implemented in PoE?

I understand the whole MMO thing where you can yell and force enemies to attack the tank. Of course in that scenario if there were no taunts we might as well forget any raids with any length because bosses would have to have significantly less hp and have ways to kill them one shot because they would likely go after people at random. I also hear this argument that they should just have better AI. Well with better AI as in real world AI. Here is how it would go likely. The battle would consist of killing the mage/priest then rogue. Then you split between ranged and melee and we would be done. The enemies would calculate resistances and defense based on visibility and make decisions appropriately based on these calculations. What this would entail unless you use choke hold yawn fests is that every character would be armored and have to be taking tanking/defensive melee skills. I don't know about you but a full party in plate armor ends up being pretty boring. Not to mention a rogue in plate or a mage in plate makes no sense. Neither have the might/strength to put this **** on and even move in it properly. As stated the only real strat as of now is choke points where you can force enemies to dance in the back trying to get to you as you pick them off one by one. So realistic there right... When we get to a place where enemies scale walls and we are not relying on HP and things can literally be one shot like real life we still need a method to hold down enemies. If a constant aggro generation in not preferable then perhaps a per rest aggro that yanks or stuns for those times that the AI has decided to chase a character across the map which ends up being better anyway because then when he finally comes back or they do even if they downed your guy they are faced with my main force. it is just annoying because of the time element and that I have to pan around more. Real AI is very far off and so is more realistic combat scenarios aside from FPS. Real world AI would run away and do random things. It also would seriously make bad choices and mistakes and totally screw up. I am annoyed I have to rely on an even cheesier mechanic as in standing in a doorway to take on enemies one by one as my chanter just sings away and my mage has a dance party. Taunts allow for more open combat and add a method in which we can somewhat defend our squishies and mitigate the random AI mechanic. Nothing is perfect but something like what is already incorporated with the fighters pull skill could be opened up to all classes and also made per rest and bumped up in use per encounter.

It is standard today that certain characters have the ability to taunt. Even old school games like BG and IWD had certain abilities that increased aggro on certain characters or at least kept the enemies attention. Engagement is only a system that deals with entering and leaving combat not locking down opponents. As it is taunts pretty much consist of face slamming groups so the AI gets confused or has too many paths to find the character they are chasing. I have literally ran 5 enemies in circles because they suddenly decided my priest was a very noteworthy guy. Running him off into the distance then panning back to combat is a bit too much. I know fighter has the yank command but that is limited and per rest. I suggest AoE shouts that draw aggro and allow them to be open like the additional skills/feats/talents we get now that are quasi dual class. Certain skills like regens/wounds and procs rely on characters being hit. If the AI is running randomly all over the place it is hard to have strategic fights and they turn random. It is not too difficult to face smash enemies and force them to pick the closest target to attack. But with pathfinding often my guy will go run laps around enemies just to run in and target and while running laps the enemies decide to randomly go after other targets. Seems right now AI is simply every turn cycle it will occasionally choose another random target if not directly engaged. And for whatever reason they all but ignore Kana even though he can straight shoot them in the face for 40 damage in one hit and is shooting off AoE damage and buffs. They seem to love my squishy rogue and my priest. A taunt feature/system would be fantastic and would allow for a much more strategic battle. As well as smoother less sporadic micro managing.

I am actually happy to hear other Dragons are difficult. After all they are Dragons. Which are the equivalent of a nuke back in the ye old days... It is interesting that CC even works at all on Dragons. I was seriously disappointed on Hard mode with Sky Dragon. I literally used a knock down on him and wailed on him. Dragon strats are often always the same. You need your casters but before you even go into damage mode you need to over buff yourself. These are thousand year old creatures ya know Even for a fully capped party they should be rather fearsome and OP. If you take them down you should be perhaps a last man standing and absolutely empty on spells and scrolls. I doubt that is the case. When I fought Sky Dragon half of the fight after 2 large Priest buffs was auto attack. And like I said I frakin knocked the bloody thing down. It did not animate him down but he was prone and unable to do anything. I guess I kicked his toenail really hard.

I have done this quest multiple ways now including opening the chest which some people explain doesn't even exist. I would like someone to enlighten me what is Moedred up to exactly aside from the Voice quest. I opened the chest and know what is in it and happens. Can anyone shed some light on this lore/story wise?

Firstly this is a steam issue and a common one. I loathe the Centralized framework our games have taken to. We used to be able to go the Developers website find the patch and the update notes. Now we have to wait for a third party client or system to push a patch live. Steam I suppose has its perks. On the side of Obsidian and I am not all fanboying this at all but having to navigate 3 or more different distribution methods must be ridiculous. And who knows if Steam will push messages through their system if Obsidian asked them to. Obsidian likely has very little control once Steam gains control. And if you have Steam you know you have to manually do a lot to put things in offline mode and to disable automatic patches and updates. I would love to go back to a day where I can just get the bloody patch from the dev website and not have to login to a completely different system just to access the patch. And as you have found information is not that forthcoming. It is hard enough to get direct acknowledgement when their was just one distribution method now there is 3 of them. I do agree that more communication would help but then again it could not help. More focus on things tends to bring out people who just want to yell and scream. Bottom line though Steam is updating your game not Obsidian. Yes Obsidian made deals with Steam to distribute the game but they are not running the servers or the service. Did I mention I pretty much loathe Steam!! Mostly for what it has done to our access and control over our games. Thank goodness there is GoG.