Ophiuchus

Incredible. Thanks so much for your guide. I spent the better part of the day on my St. Gangrene run: currently at level 7 with Tidefall (absolute game changer, that), and lots of other early game goodies for the party. I especially like the DoT on Tidefall combined with my Persistence Rogue, Combusting Wounds, and Soul Ignition. Question about Cleansing Flames: are there any DoTs it does not extend? I'm assuming it only works on affliction-like DoTs as opposed to AoE pulses (Wounding Shot vs Swarm of Insects). For RP purposes, I made him a Wood Elf/Living Lands Mercenary who's not opposed to making some coin while serving Berath at the same time: exchanges for his services act as a cycle, or so he rationalizes it. When I import him to Deadfire (probably Berath/Devoted), he'll enjoy a resistance to dex afflictions befitting a debt collector for the god of cycles.

I really want my second Watcher in PoE II to be a Cleric of Berath, so I'm intrigued by your St. Gangrene build. I have zero experience with melee Priests, though: any early level tips, lategame equipment considerations, etc. you would mind sharing? I'll probably play him on Hard mode /w upscaling.

I really wanted an option to cleanse the adra pillar, but find some way to prevent the Vailians (or anyone else) from accessing it.

Fresh tweet from jesawyer on PEN and a buff to Focus gain.

After devoting a majority of the weekend to beta3, I've enjoyed: Mage Slayer/Fighter: Good damage, support, and some defense through Rapid Recovery. Since he can't use potions or scrolls I fill his inventory with explosives and noise makers to set up ambushes. Modeled after Torian Kel from Arcanum. Darcozzi Paladin/Priest of Wael: Popular build on these forums for all the right reasons. Spectacular tanking abilities with some extra support on the side. Rogue/Skald: Great at breaking armor and setting up afflictions for sneak attacks. Beckoner/Evoker (or /Priest of Berath, Lifegiver): Summon a hoarde of skeleton minions before the enemy's midline to body block and mess up pathing. Then blast away with Fireball (summoning more skeletons!), cast Berath afflictions, support allies, etc. Hilarious with the Flames of Devotion upgrade that copies the effect on to nearby allies - would the Bleak Walker FoD add its bonus effect? Priest of Eothas/Lifegiver: Solid support all around, though I find the shifting mechanic clunky and Rejuvenation spells have less than perfect range and AoE. Investing in Arcana adds even more versatility. Beguiler/Ghost Heart (Wolf Spirit): How I saw my main character in Pillars 1, and what I'll go with when the game launches. I especially enjoy Charming enemies from stealth, and the wolf spirit can soak a good bit of damage. If Cipher cast/recovery times get reduced, I might go with Beguiler/Sharpshooter instead, but this is my Watcher's best thematic option. Assassin/Sharpshooter: Fun for a while, but it's gimmicky, selfish, and falls apart quickly. Might be okish if Invisibility effects beyond the costly Guile skills are reasonable to come by.

First off, I want to say I really appreciate PoE1 and Deadfire having color blind mode, as it has made my experiences easier to deal with. Having played the beta for some time, though, I've run into a couple issues that have made it a bit frustrating: specifically enemy vision cones and traps on lightly colored flooring: the xaurips outside the dungeon, and the spike traps in the northwest corner of the first level (I also found the trap hitboxes a bit off). Would it be possible to expand color blind options for light red/orange effects in the same way yellow/green can change to blue?

The creature also counts as a spirit with the same bonuses and penalties as that archetype. Without investing in any defensive pet traits, my Ghost Heart's wolf could soak up a fair bit of physical damage before being dispersed.

I also found the micromanagement of ship needs to be offputting, as managing Caed Nua was my least favorite aspect of PoE1 because of the notifications. Playing the Deadfire beta, I often found the loud notification noises irritating, and startling in some cases, especially when exploring the world map or sneaking in a dungeon. I get it's important the player knows when resources are being consumed, but I wish there were an option to disable or subdue the effect.