Myrtillo

I disagree. It also means that you can heal more, cc more, interrupt more, reposition more, use more consumables, overall have a better chance to be able to use that critical ability at the critical moment, and these are the things that actually make the game too easy. People only thinking in terms of damage output (or to some extent raw individual defense) is what in my opinion causes most of the comments that I read here. But Pillars of Eternity is not a Hack n Slash where one character has to do everything, and just kills ennemies. It lets you control a 5 members party and offers a tactical layer to the battles. In my opinion the nerfs are oriented towards forcing you to engage with that combat system. All I see are players complaining that their watcher will not solo steamroll PotD anymore. Fighter is a good example. They were an entirely self sufficient class, able to bring both very high survivability and very high damage output to the table without having to really think about how they play. The way I see it, now fighters can still be very resilient, and still do decent damage, but in a more tuned manner. And because their pure damage output will probably now not be sufficient enough to be satisfactory, you need to engage with other mechanics, such as interrupts, mobility, disruption, etc. It makes it much more fun to play in my opinion. When a class is summed up to numbers, then game design is a failure. What matters is what you feel when you play it.

Funny how you dismiss criticism as "all they want is to complain." Patch 1.1 over-nerfed a lot of things and applied awkward, patchwork fixes to others. Many things that really didn't need fine-tuning were tuned. Preventing Swift Flurry from proccing itself was a good change; nerfing its speed bonus from 20% to 15% was completely pointless and uncalled for. Just to make one of many, many possible examples. On which basis do you consider that the nerf to 15% was uncalled for ? Basically every effect in the game that gave better recovery was nerfed by -5% or -10%. The rationale behind it is probably that our chars were acting too much compared to the opponents and it was easy to: -Hard CC everyone; -Heal through most of the damage; -Nuke before retaliation; I found myself using in priority recov items/effects over other effects, so I do understand that it was too potent. If an option is a no-brainer, then you have to either nerf it or buff all others, depending of the global state of the challenge offered by the game. And since game is considered too easy, then nerfing is the way to go. This is clearly a global balance adjustement, why would Swift Flurry not follow the same road with a similar effect ?

Probably so, but the weapon aspect kind of ruins the flavour anyway. With a mindstalker, you can fall back on the illusion spells when your points run out, which helps minimise melee/range attacks. However I wonder is their a way you can build a cypher, so that their starting points are so high that you very rarely have to attack? I might see if I can do this. Perhaps with the right stats, subclass and talents you can get that starting figure high enough. The maximum starting focus you can get at lvl 20 is 75. Using an empower point gets you to 190. I tested a pure beguiler a bit, and the combination of beguiler+complete self was enough to decently sustain him in focus. Soul echo+empty soul, with a maxed perception give a lot of crits to restore focus. Obviously, you will not do much damage but you will debuff and cc like there is no tommorow without having to use a weapon. Useful abilities: Eyestrike Mental binding Secret Horrors Ring leader Mind Plague Time parasite (although it will not proc beguiler, it will proc the complete self, is completely op, and there are no really good deception spells past pl6) Haunting chains for fluff if you have the focus to cast it. Silent scream if you want a damaging spell. It will not proc beguiler, but will proc Complete Self Passives: Greater focus, Keen Mind, Complete Self, Soul's Echo, Empty Soul, and the rest of the good stuff (iron will+psychic backlash, shared nightmare, lingering echoes, rapid casting etc.) If this is the playstyle that appeals to you, you should go for it, it will work.

So far I am pleased with all the nerfs I see. Especially on the items that were brokenly strong and that i can now use. However I am surprised by some comments saying that Cipher were in a meh spot. I just finished a PotD playthrough with a pure cipher (no-subclass), and it was way stronger than a lot of ther chars I tried. Ring Leader is busted (and will be even more busted if there are more ennemies per encounter) Time parasite was op to te point of being ridiculous. I am glad they nerfed it. Pain block was too strong. For body attunement I have my doubts. But I think it followed a certain logic. clearly in release Deadfire, recovery and action speed were the absolute kings. We can see that they nerf a lot of -recov items (for the better, as those items were mandatory, making the others somewhat irrelevant, which is bad balance). Then they nerf a lot of ways to get +armor. This is also, in a way, an indirect recovery nerf, as now if you want good armor you need to wear heavier armor. In addition, they want to make PotD ennemies more resilient, and a fast debuff of -5 armor was a huge hit to their survivability. All in all, very excited to see those nerfs arrive, and PotD being adjusted. I'll start a new playthrough then!

I think that the problem with breast plates, in particular, is that they're kind of gated in an annoying way. For example, the Casita BP can't be obtained if you try to go for a non-violent solution to the Bardatto/Valera dispute (unless, I suppose, you go back later on and kill its wearer after completing the mission non-violently). Ditto for the Furrante BP. Having gated unique items is OK, but maybe it's a bit much to have all of the unique breastplates all gated in this way. Not everyone wants to go around the Deadfire slaughtering every single character in the search for unique items. That kind of defeats the purpose of role-playing. At the same time, I know that I didn't get all of the unique items in my first playthrough for this reason. And if and when I do my next play through, I'll definitely try to take a different "path", so that I can see things play out a little differently. It might be a tad tricky, because I invariably play good and benevolent main characters. But I'll try to find a way to play a nice-ish guy Watcher who simply walks a different path than my first PC. Fair point. I did not dig too deep into armors, because the three watchers that I played so far all wore miscreant leathers for that captain looks, and I always leave the companions in their starting apparel. Suggestions: - Add the valera breastplate via console and throw away the weapon they give you when solving the quest. RP as if their reward was the armor. - Take Pallegina's breastplate - Wear a regular legendary breastplate. lacking bonuses on one piece of equipement is not too dramatic.

I am not certain that is a useful ressource without knowing which abilities we are talking about, but nonetheless, from the class I tested in depth, I think you are missing: Rogue: 8, Gambit is busted on dual wielders Cipher: 8, Time parasite is ridiculously OP Priest: potentially 9, depending of your deity; Summon Incarnate is garbage for Wael, meh for Magran, potent for Skaen, good for Berath, and broken for Eothas.

There is no difference. Modwyr binds to the Watcher only and has the same stats regardless of the class. Once you find the owner and complete the quest, she becomes a regular unique item, not soulbound.

Breastplate is the category that offers the most uniques (4), on par with leather. Which makes sense in the setting. Obviously, more choice is always better, but I think the numbers are decent.

Could be this one. No one is supposed to know you did it, but you resolve a quest going against VTC/Port maje law system.

I am not sure as I never picked that option, but could this be from expert mode ?

There are no weapon based regular cipher spells. There is a decent selection of cipher spells with short casting time (0.5s) though, but they will have a standard recovery (4s most of the time). ------------------ About non min-maxed stats, I would suggest something like: 10 Might 8 Con 14 Dex 18 Per 14 Intelligence 10 Resolve You will be squishy, but use CC from cipher and evasion/invisibility from rogue to stay alive.

I think so, yeah. Every damage tick that can be attributed to your character breaks invisibility.

Not really, you still get the +2 without being spiritshifted. Spiritshift gives a extra bonus followed by a malus, so it is situationnal. If he does not intend to summon creatures, then lifegiver is fine. If he wants summons, then of course animist is an option.

Isn't it related to the choices you make in main story dialogues? I am fairly sure I got pity for the lost (healing) if I tried to reach for the lost souls in the first contact with Eothas, and No Mercy For The Lost if I choose to ignore their soul and reach for mine.

Thnks for answer , so soulbound a weapon doesn't give any benefit except the quest? A soulbound weapon increases gradually in power when you complete certain conditions, gaining various effects that may vary depending on the class you bind it too. Modwyr is a specific case because she has a quest tied to her progression, and after the quest is resolved she turns into a non-soulbound weapon (a normal unique if you wish, but that sounds silly ).

Still hoping. Anyone can test it ?

how would you get that one ? Power lvl 9 Berath Priest spell (Summon Incarnate). You summon both aspects of Berath, the Pallid Knight and the Usher. Unfortunately I have a bug and my usher is invisible, but the Pallid knight looks fantastic. One is a fighter, the other a priest with Berath Spells (Which are really good).

Unless I missed something, Aspect of Galawain is just a bigger bear that does nothing special. I was expecting at least a special beast (like this cool sabertooth from the artwork), special features etc. I mean, most of the top tier summons are cool/epic, and decently strong The Dragon from chanter, most of the incarnates (Berath being the absolute coolest, Eothas is really strong)... The top tier druid summon lacks both coolness and usefulness.

Yup it is the old soulbound description from PoE 1. Modwyr is a soulbound sword, and becomes a unique sword once you complete her quest. She will always get the malus from devoted if you are not devoted to swords..

If you are not looking for powerbuilding, and given the flavor you seem to look for, a case could be made for ranger (ghost heart) - It will not be as good as applying stacks, lacking some aoe melee (Unfortunately being multiclassed you don't have access to whirling strikes), but it will be really good when you want to proc the crit reliably. (lots of accuracy bonuses+Accurate wounding shot). - Evasive roll is a very good mobility skill: Cheap, no recovery and gives you quick inspiration. - As you are wearing a two hander and not dual wielding, primary attacks are good for you, so you can find a use for concussive tranquilizer, and Taste of the Hunt from druid. - Your pet brings some control with takedown or furious call, adding to the versatility. I think that would make a great character, original and fun to play wth a lot of options, not op but still efficient (and ranger and druid have almost zero risk of getting nerfed since it seemed like a concern). Use a couple of druid defensive buffs/rejuvenation, jump in the melee or to the backline with evasive roll, start applying stacks while doing serious damage with taste of the hunt, and concussive tranquilizer if the ennemies have buffs, while your ghost pet distracts and cc them. Then get an almost guaranteed crit with accurate wounding shot to proc the stacks. Feel free to cast your lightning/rejuvenation spells in between as needed.

Ranger is not bad tier. It's just that some other classes are clearly overturned. Pure ranger in a party can take on any challenge thrown at you by the game without issue. A lot of powerbuild options for ranged are multiclasses, which can be complicated for a beginner not used to cRPG. You can also go fighter (devoted) for insane extra survivability that will help a lot if you make positioning mistakes, or rogue (no subclass) for extra damage. But ranger is perfectly fine too if you like having a pet. If you are looking for optimized multiclasses, I will let other players suggest them to you. Micro spoiler: There is a companion in the game that comes as a arquebus specialist.

You can read my pure streetfighter build to give you an idea of what is possible. I roleplayed it as a duelist, but it would work great with DP. Just wear two sabers instead of Rapier/Dagger, it might be even more efficient anyways. https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/99676-class-build-the-duelling-corsair/

Tell that to Tekehu. Kinky fishboy would do whoever has two legs or whatever has fins or tentacles. Bonus if it's all three.

I would go for Fighter/Streetfigher Swap dual pistols/dual sabres. Black jacket would be cool for swapping, but it removes the recovery, so it is a big no. Streetfighter because you will always be bloodied in the middle of the fight. Pick all the regen abilities, barrage and charge from fighter, some full attacks from rogue. Get persistent distraction as it is both super efficient and fitting. Wear all the regen items (rings, belt etc). Damage will ramp up with sneak attack+deathblows+passives from fighter+rogue full attacks and you will have a lot of defenses and regen. Should be fun and efficient! Oh and always pick the "Clever" dialogue option- Always.

The merchants chests in Neketaka have a lvl 14 lock, I think they could do with a lvl 16 instead. The open crate in Crookspur is ridiculous and needs the same locking treatment. The rest is fine. Sure you can get some stuff early, but it requires to know exactly what you are looking for and how. The game has to be balanced for the first playthrough, not for the players that know everything about it. Modwyr is a good example. Sure, you can sneak there, but why would you sneak there if you don't have the knowledge of Modwyr being there ? And even if you are blindly sneaking into overlevelled areas, then that's some time consuming playstyle that deserves reward.