bringingyouthefuture

I watched this video about the old SSI Gold Box games on some bloggers site ... the first D&D crpg games really limited weapons heavily. I think Thieves couldn't use longswords, Mages couldn't use short swords, Priests couldn't use bladed weapons. Everyday I have gratitude that these games have come so far I am definitely more a Gandalf with a cool flaming sword, than Elminster with just a staff.

Affliction immunities are never useless. I will say that I'm not so sure about having a disengagement immunity (or was it just a very high disengagement defense bonus?) on heavy armor doesn't strike me as the most valuable thing going. Not that there's anything wrong with disengagement buffs. It just seems to me that a disengagement buff would be more valuable for someone wearing light or perhaps medium armor, rather than heavy armor. I have some problems with the loot/booty in a very different way. I have to admit that I kind of like the old school paradigms or tropes when it comes to fantasy stories and games. And that carries over into items in the game for me. I wish that there were more items that seemed aimed at different types of characters. Not exactly specific classes, but did play to the tropes. Such as staffs that feel like they're wizard staffs. Or robes that felt like robes for, well, mostly wizards. I suppose that one could argue that the Chromatic Staff is sorta-kinda a wizardly staff, but to me, not enough. If it was a true wizardly staff, it should probably have the skill that buffs up certain staff abilities be Arcana rather than Metaphysics. Also, a number of the proc'd special abilities seem to be a bit too corner cased and difficult to use. Like the "True Love's Kiss" dagger which has its special proc'ing on stealth attacks, which basically means you can only use it once per encounter, and only if you have exceptional Stealth. I think that it would have been better if the special was more like other specials where the size of the buff increased with the value of the skill. At least this way, you don't end up with an exceptionally narrow set of circumstances where the ability can proc. And honestly, I don't really like all the item upgrades. I wish that the devs had spent that time and effort on creating additional unique weapons, armor, and shields, particularly weapons in types that are rather short in numbers. I could be wrong too but the Lover's Kiss is kind of built for a Roque so not sure I agree totally with your post... playing an assassin there is numerous ways to go back into stealth and backstab and potentially get the added bonuses from the dagger ... unless I am totally wrong what it means by stealth, and haven't tested but it could also stack with raw damage you are already doing as a Rogue with Deep Wounds Here is where I think the upgrades really shine ... it allows you to adapt the item to your playstyle, and character. I think the difference between POE and say old school D&D fantasy tropes, is that POE is even more nuanced for certain builds and characters - its actually the exact opposite of not having unique items for characters, they are just not as general. As for why I like stripped down weapons and stat buffs ... it makes you not rely on weapons and stat buffs - plus I think I dig crafting weapons, which I am just realizing now. Dude, this dagger may be great for Assassin builds, but that's only a tiny percentage of all possible builds in this game. And when there are only 2 unique daggers plus one soul-bound dagger (with limited class options), to me, this absolutely SCREAMS bad. It's really stupid in my opinion to have such narrow usage weapons when there are so few to choose from in that specific type of weapon (in this case, daggers). As for upgrades, I don't care about them because I would VASTLY prefer to have more unique weapons (and all items) in the game, rather than a smaller number with upgrades. To me, the upgrades only served to require time, money, and other resources that could have been (IMO) better spent on creating additional items, particularly in those item types that are currently low in number. hmm, but there are tons of cool Stilettos - and if you are looking for a fast weapons that does damage I really like the club ... But I guess I understand - if you want to play a fighter with a dagger ... wait a minute!? But that would be stepping outside of the tropes wouldn't it? I disagree too about only fitting some builds, as you can multi-class a rogue with any build ... but honest what would a wizard get out of stabbing someone from stealth ... especially with a dagger ... unless said wizard is suicidal I could see a monk using the dagger, but still not from stealth, unless the monk went Rogue than there you go. I just don't agree with the argument about how the weapons only work etc ... and as I stated before its fine to have the cool weapons, but its better to have somewhat cool weapons and awesome character choices to go along. Plus you can mod any weapon you want 1. There are only TWO unique stilettos. And one of them can seem impossible to get, i.e. Rust's stiletto. If you're not as strong as him, he'll massacre you. And if your part is strong, he just teleports out and runs away. So, in reality, there's really only one. 2. As for the usefulness of daggers, sometimes someone might just want to use daggers for the role-playing feel. But when one of the daggers is a soulbound one with limited class options, and another is one whose only ability is an extremely narrow corner case, this makes using daggers rather difficult unless you're willing to use generic ones. About the best option one has is perhaps a dagger/stiletto dual wield. But it's really lame to have so few dagger and stiletto options. 3. We're not going to agree. I think that you're wrong across the board. You probably feel the same about me. Lol I take that back about tons, I maybe spoke too soon It's fine to disagree I think, maybe POE2 itemization is good personally because when I think of stiletto, dagger, club, flail - I look at the utility, you need a fast weapon for a skeleton - you don't want a dagger. Honest, I have to change up my weapons so much due to PEN that I couldn't imagine trying to play the game with one weapon, or if I did pick a Devoted it might be like a War Hammer that does two types of damage. I think because of that I have multiple types of weapons, and never feel that there isn't enough - and as stated in my previous post it doesn't interfere with my role playing style at all. I do miss being able to enchant my ordinary gear with various types of benefits like fire, etc from POE1 - I would be happy if they brought that back, but it would depress me if they made a bunch of magic weapons and armor and added them like they did with the White March. It really killed combat for me - except if it was story specific like Abydon's Hammer, that was pretty cool. Honest in your defense I have said this before and I definitely am in the minority I think. I just like to put it out there that there is some of us that prefer the game with the powerful cool equipment that is available, and prefer it to the way other games treat magic weapons.

Affliction immunities are never useless. I will say that I'm not so sure about having a disengagement immunity (or was it just a very high disengagement defense bonus?) on heavy armor doesn't strike me as the most valuable thing going. Not that there's anything wrong with disengagement buffs. It just seems to me that a disengagement buff would be more valuable for someone wearing light or perhaps medium armor, rather than heavy armor. I have some problems with the loot/booty in a very different way. I have to admit that I kind of like the old school paradigms or tropes when it comes to fantasy stories and games. And that carries over into items in the game for me. I wish that there were more items that seemed aimed at different types of characters. Not exactly specific classes, but did play to the tropes. Such as staffs that feel like they're wizard staffs. Or robes that felt like robes for, well, mostly wizards. I suppose that one could argue that the Chromatic Staff is sorta-kinda a wizardly staff, but to me, not enough. If it was a true wizardly staff, it should probably have the skill that buffs up certain staff abilities be Arcana rather than Metaphysics. Also, a number of the proc'd special abilities seem to be a bit too corner cased and difficult to use. Like the "True Love's Kiss" dagger which has its special proc'ing on stealth attacks, which basically means you can only use it once per encounter, and only if you have exceptional Stealth. I think that it would have been better if the special was more like other specials where the size of the buff increased with the value of the skill. At least this way, you don't end up with an exceptionally narrow set of circumstances where the ability can proc. And honestly, I don't really like all the item upgrades. I wish that the devs had spent that time and effort on creating additional unique weapons, armor, and shields, particularly weapons in types that are rather short in numbers. I could be wrong too but the Lover's Kiss is kind of built for a Roque so not sure I agree totally with your post... playing an assassin there is numerous ways to go back into stealth and backstab and potentially get the added bonuses from the dagger ... unless I am totally wrong what it means by stealth, and haven't tested but it could also stack with raw damage you are already doing as a Rogue with Deep Wounds Here is where I think the upgrades really shine ... it allows you to adapt the item to your playstyle, and character. I think the difference between POE and say old school D&D fantasy tropes, is that POE is even more nuanced for certain builds and characters - its actually the exact opposite of not having unique items for characters, they are just not as general. As for why I like stripped down weapons and stat buffs ... it makes you not rely on weapons and stat buffs - plus I think I dig crafting weapons, which I am just realizing now. Dude, this dagger may be great for Assassin builds, but that's only a tiny percentage of all possible builds in this game. And when there are only 2 unique daggers plus one soul-bound dagger (with limited class options), to me, this absolutely SCREAMS bad. It's really stupid in my opinion to have such narrow usage weapons when there are so few to choose from in that specific type of weapon (in this case, daggers). As for upgrades, I don't care about them because I would VASTLY prefer to have more unique weapons (and all items) in the game, rather than a smaller number with upgrades. To me, the upgrades only served to require time, money, and other resources that could have been (IMO) better spent on creating additional items, particularly in those item types that are currently low in number. hmm, but there are tons of cool Stilettos - and if you are looking for a fast weapons that does damage I really like the club ... But I guess I understand - if you want to play a fighter with a dagger ... wait a minute!? But that would be stepping outside of the tropes wouldn't it? I disagree too about only fitting some builds, as you can multi-class a rogue with any build ... but honest what would a wizard get out of stabbing someone from stealth ... especially with a dagger ... unless said wizard is suicidal I could see a monk using the dagger, but still not from stealth, unless the monk went Rogue than there you go. I just don't agree with the argument about how the weapons only work etc ... and as I stated before its fine to have the cool weapons, but its better to have somewhat cool weapons and awesome character choices to go along. Plus you can mod any weapon you want

I am not sure where people get the unbalanced for this game either ... there is numerous options to up difficulty and lower experience, there is a ton of extra challenges built into the game, and I do think if you can't find away to make the game more difficult for yourself (Im not talking about playing without armor or swords) than you aren't trying to find ways to challenge yourself. I like the push mechanic - it is awesome when a giant pushes his way through his companions to kill you, it makes my heart feel like all is correct in the world. Also, with a little care I have found you rarely need to worry about your character pushing you out of the way for disengagement ... but I kind of dig chaos on the battle field like that, makes it more realistic ... whoops I accidentally swung my sword and killed Timmy!!!

Affliction immunities are never useless. I will say that I'm not so sure about having a disengagement immunity (or was it just a very high disengagement defense bonus?) on heavy armor doesn't strike me as the most valuable thing going. Not that there's anything wrong with disengagement buffs. It just seems to me that a disengagement buff would be more valuable for someone wearing light or perhaps medium armor, rather than heavy armor. I have some problems with the loot/booty in a very different way. I have to admit that I kind of like the old school paradigms or tropes when it comes to fantasy stories and games. And that carries over into items in the game for me. I wish that there were more items that seemed aimed at different types of characters. Not exactly specific classes, but did play to the tropes. Such as staffs that feel like they're wizard staffs. Or robes that felt like robes for, well, mostly wizards. I suppose that one could argue that the Chromatic Staff is sorta-kinda a wizardly staff, but to me, not enough. If it was a true wizardly staff, it should probably have the skill that buffs up certain staff abilities be Arcana rather than Metaphysics. Also, a number of the proc'd special abilities seem to be a bit too corner cased and difficult to use. Like the "True Love's Kiss" dagger which has its special proc'ing on stealth attacks, which basically means you can only use it once per encounter, and only if you have exceptional Stealth. I think that it would have been better if the special was more like other specials where the size of the buff increased with the value of the skill. At least this way, you don't end up with an exceptionally narrow set of circumstances where the ability can proc. And honestly, I don't really like all the item upgrades. I wish that the devs had spent that time and effort on creating additional unique weapons, armor, and shields, particularly weapons in types that are rather short in numbers. I could be wrong too but the Lover's Kiss is kind of built for a Roque so not sure I agree totally with your post... playing an assassin there is numerous ways to go back into stealth and backstab and potentially get the added bonuses from the dagger ... unless I am totally wrong what it means by stealth, and haven't tested but it could also stack with raw damage you are already doing as a Rogue with Deep Wounds Here is where I think the upgrades really shine ... it allows you to adapt the item to your playstyle, and character. I think the difference between POE and say old school D&D fantasy tropes, is that POE is even more nuanced for certain builds and characters - its actually the exact opposite of not having unique items for characters, they are just not as general. As for why I like stripped down weapons and stat buffs ... it makes you not rely on weapons and stat buffs - plus I think I dig crafting weapons, which I am just realizing now. Edit: Someone beat me to the punch ...

Except that annoying guy on the bottom floor of the RDC headquarters Atsura ... he was a sly bastard who kept playing my character. There should have been a quest to assassinate him ... (please tell me there is near the end of the game).

Reckless Brigandine - Gaurdian's Plate - any and all Hide Armor. Patinated Plate. They all look crazy!!! Persoanl preferences - I am bad at power gaming so can't really add a lot to the discussion

Can we talk about how ugly some of the best armor is? Honestly I can't even equip some stuff because it makes my characters look bad ...

I am just gonna throw this out there to give another perspective. I hate games with a lot of super magic booty (or if you prefer magic items considered loot) . I prefer having a game like Pillars where not all magic items make you a super hero, and the really good ones that work for your build or play style are minimal, where you sacrifice some stuff for other benefits. I was depressed when they introduced all the soul bound magic items in POE1 - I preferred the slight upgrades you could give to your weapons, and the limitations you could upgrade. I mean one of my favorite parts of the game is upgrading my favorite weapons that work for my character. So! in all honesty I hope Obsidian regresses and moves away from all the super cool and powerful booty, and goes back to the stripped down loot in POE1 pre-DLC. Just a counter point to the need for powerful items. Perhaps, POE doesn't want to rely on inflated states for late game encounters. I mean how boring to be get +8 stat weapons for the win that just requires you to equip it ... different strokes for different folks though ...

With respect please call it booty in this game ...

What about Pillars of Eternity with trains? Kind of further jump into the future ... I guess it would be considered steampunk then ...

Hmm, what I find interesting and not sure any of these stories ever really capture this though they might, is that all of these personal adventures happen in a state of war ... if we are talking about adults changing, I think immense change is inevitable with the situations they are put in, how could they not change ... and the change could be drastic. For instance, I love my Devil of Caroc breastplate ... sorry bad joke. But honest I am surprised that they didn't have a Durance goes insane ending, with all he did and went through in that past and dealing with the present, that man had to be on the edge. Edit: I take that back Durance did have insane endings, I just Googled it ... I forgot. My point being that many of these endings often never capture the horrible things they go through ...

So honest question, where is Magran's teeth?? Away from the White that Wends. Also known as the windy white.

TY - so in your opinion where is Neketaka? about at the height of Readceras?

I was curious about the Aldori-Surtova conflict. Does anyone know if there is actually a story there? Maybe if you take a different counselor?

Is there a full map of Eora? I can't find one - so where the heck is the Deadfire Archipelago located in relation to the Free Palatinate of Dyrwood, and The Vallian Republic?

Seriously - what boss fights? When Tyranny came along and actually had technical aspects boss fights (e.g. the enemy is signaling that they're about to use some big ability, run away!) it blew my mind since I had gotten so used to the IWD-style combat of PoE1 where "big encounters" are just normal encounters with more stats. Maybe the dragons, but once you've fought one dragon, you've fought them all essentially. Even Thaos the only thing "special" about him is the ability to spam cleansing flame and crowns for the faithful, and if you've fought broodmothers that isn't that special anyway. if anything i wish there were more big fights in Deadfire like in Tyranny or like the small sample we got in the BB with engwithan saints and titan (having to deal with grabs, heavy kicks [titan] or the positional aspects of fighting saints (their frost aoe, seals of pain)); honestly was a bit disappointed that the fights/dungeon of Poko Kohara was the exception, not the norm. I was thinking about the Dragon's mostly ... each one had its particular debuff if I am remembering correctly. Thaos was interesting too because there was a few spells that made the fight so much easier If you had the right combo of spells and melee attacks in POE1, you could pretty much breeze through them, but it took some testing. Plus the Concelhaut in POE1 was a challenge, and even some of the first battles with say Raederic were pretty tactics heavy for me. It's as people say buffing and debuffing meant a lot more in POE. One of the things that bugs me most about the bosses in POE2 is they are always in the center of the game board and they just spin around (I haven't played Seeker, Slayer, Survivor yet), BoW the bosses were more interesting but I used the same tactics on the Dragon as I did the Beast of Winter to win ... which is cool but not as cool as the Kraken in POE1, or those giant faceless things There was something satisfying about killing those things with one shot from a hammer ... And don't get me wrong I still find the average combat in POE2 way better, but honest I think that main fights in POE1 had a lot more going for them. EDIT: And I agree about the fights in POE2, but I would consider all the fights you mentioned as normal fights. not boss fights - except maybe the Titan, that was a good one

Why not? Sex sells. But it's more about romance. It takes a major emotional element out of the game. I could go for Romance maybe ... I think the best romances in video games I have played have been set encounters - I enjoy a good romantic story for sure!! I like when it is embedded in the narrative though as part of the main plot. Open ended Romances options seem always so superficial.

One thing now that I think about it some more, the boss fights in POE1 were much better and more interesting, requiring various tactics - but in general, most encounters in POE1 in my second play through were pretty easy. I've played parts of POE2 over and over again, and the fights remain challenging. I never felt like either game had many useless battles, but I enjoy the combat - if I'm not frustrated than I'm not having fun lol. I would argue too that D&D combat works better in its original form, turn-based. I never really liked D&D combat with RtWP. You really lose out in being able to maximize your feats, spells, etc. I am glad POE1/2 evolved it somewhat to work with RtWP better - one of the things that makes combat great in POE games. PK perfect example - I never use combat feats in that game because they are so bugged, and positioning with those huge characters is terrible. Your better off just maximizing your AC and taking the passives for boosts. If it was turn-based though I could see building a character around certain feats. That could just be my play style though.

So the idea for better sales is to add sex? that's not gonna work ....

I agree, I think I like the story in POE1 more. Other than that POE2 is better in most every way, haven't tried the turn-based but excited to give it a go. I really like the Berath Challenges and the way you can use Berath's blessings - they turned out to be such great features. I have had a lot of moments in Deadfire that brought a huge smile to my face, it has a lot of humor which wasn't present in POE1. Deadfire has been a little more challenging in terms of combat encounter overall which I enjoy. POE1 will always be one of my favorite games, but just finished Beasts of Winter and it is those stories along with so many others that really make POE2 shine

That's an impressive mod!! I hope they do more of them. I know how you feel, I am about to start Chptr 6, waiting for 7th Bald Hilltop and I am like, do I really want to go another 2 weeks in a slug fest ... taking a break, back to POE2 General question, I haven't searched the Owlcat forums ... I am pretty sure that Greater Bull Rush isn't working properly - "Whenever you Bull Rush an opponent, his movement provokes attacks of opportunity from all of your allies" is in the Greater Bull Rush description but I have yet to get any attacks of opportunity, need to test more ... kind of feeling like the combat abilities are somewhat difficult to use in combat, what are everyone's favorites that they get a lot of mileage - not talking about the passives, just the actives.

I like your reasoning, I dislike your "gods are amoral" bias though Whosoever decides what is moral and what is not ? Whosoever is so self-important they think themselves judge ? The "gods" saw an opportunity for evolution, to become something more, and they took it. Did this opportunity come at a cost ? Possibly. Was that cost worth it ? Possibly. Was it done in service to the greater good ? Possibly (the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few ; in some cultural or political constructs). Is murdering an innocent in cold blood to save millions worth it ? Possibly (see the whole Terminator/Skynet uprising timeline for more on that) Is it moral however ? Again, possibly; that depends what values your morality system is based on. I see nothing amoral or amiss here, all the more so when morality is an abstract and subjective concept It is amoral, and blessedly punishable by death, to cross or otherwise displease our Overlord Kyros. I refer you to : https://goo.gl/images/82Q8ut See we need all these questions answered in POE3!!!!

Can we change this to "Needs More TLC"? I would love for the Heart Chime to work properly

I'm just looking at these statistics, I am just 2 percent of people who have maximized a negative relationship with a companion ... lol but I can't help teasing Aloth ... he always is like "What now!?" all unhappy ... Hehe, maybe the obvious answer is just staring us right in the face ... old CRPG nostalgia wore off this past year. Pathfinder being the fluke, well because it rounded up all the Pathfinder fans.