
Cyrus_Blackfeather
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Hello! So, in trying to make a character for each of the four factions, it's usually pretty obvious which culture fits best in terms of the reaction you get from that respective faction's "handlers." Obviously any character of any culture can join any faction, but there's definitely going to be a different tone (or at least there should be) if a Vallian wants to work with Rauatai, or someone from Rauatai wants to work with the VTC. This comes from a perspective of creating a character that would already have pre-established loyalties to one of the factions, even if it's not reflected in-game. RDC - Rauatai VTC - Old Vallia Huana - Deadfire Principi - ??? There really isn't a good cultural 'fit' for the Principi, or at least there are multiple choices that each fit just as well. Old Vallia gels well with Furrante and his crew, who are all about the old ways and essentially establishing the old Empire in the Deadfire. Meanwhile, Aeldys seems like she'd accept just about anyone who followed her ideals - including people from far-flung places like the Living Lands or Ixamitl. For my Principi Watcher, I opted for someone who was essentially born and raised in Dunnage, making him a native of the Deadfire. I did this specifically for the Raider background option, and because I felt like it made a lot of sense. The Principi have been there long enough that many of them would have probably started to "go native," and they're the faction that I feel kind of gels the most with the Deadfire outside of the Huana.
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That's cool! I actually plan to play a character who was born in the Deadfire (Leaning toward Newblood Principi since I like Aeldys a lot) so there's a few cool interactions you can get there, including knowing the Huana language. You can know the huana language because of the background? :D That's awesome. And yeah, Deadfire background is an excellent choice for reactivity and integration into the setting. It's also an interesting but less expected fit for the Principi which is great. I mean, it makes sense for a more integrated Principi to be more at home in the Deadfire than with Old Vallia. And yes! You get a few opportunities to try speaking it. Though I feel it might lean you more towards Huana when it comes to what faction is quicker to trust you. Yes, the lack of portraits are terrible - especially the ones that have facial hair... that you can't use. Yes, Aumaua have more unique dialogue, but I want to know what that dialogue mostly consists of. If it's just a bunch of occasional "You're an aumaua!" dialogue or if there's ways to solve quests/avoid combat - like how Death Godlikes can more easily bypass the Naga encounter in Hasongo.
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Decided to go with the Blood variant, since I couldn't really think of anything else that'd be worth taking. Hopefully the fixed damage is worth it with 20 Might (From Frenzy) and the PL bonus. Plus I like the idea of, as you said, killing things quickly to free up more Rage. Pretty much set on things at the moment. Skills shouldn't be a problem anymore since I can respec more freely (Thanks to them finally fixing that bug). I might want to see how much I can get away with dropping Con, and maybe Dexterity, to bump Might up. Maybe take Con down to 12 (10 with the Durance buff and the ring) because that's still 386 HP. (Which translates to Bloodied at 193 compared to 230). ... Okay, that might be a better investment.
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Haha, thanks! A lot of typing, and I forget sometimes. So, would you suggest I swap out Spirit Frenzy/Spirit Tornado for Blood Frenzy/Blood Storm, or just not get a Frenzy upgrade? If the bleed on crit stacks with Deep Wounds, that'd be pretty cool. As far as Perception resistant/immune enemies/engagement immune enemies go, I can't imagine there are going to be too many of those, and that's what Crippling Strike/Perishing Strike/Confounding Blind are for.
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Hey guys, So, I'm curious about race specific dialogue options in this game, and whether or not they're ever really relevant to solving quests or if it's just additional bits of background information/NPCs maybe referring to you in a different way? I ask because Aumaua, obviously, receive lots of unique dialogue, at least on paper, because the game essentially takes place in their homeland, but I really don't like their customization, or their racial passives. So is there any vital/important dialogue you get with them or is it just people commenting on your race/you knowing various bits of cultural information you might know with the Deadfire culture?
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Hey guys, So, I'm working on a Principi character for my Beast of Winter playthrough, and I intend to finish most sidequests in the game with this character and use him in the other DLC as well (Basically, do what I did for White March and finish everything, then load up the save when the next DLC launches). I had a few questions before I got started. Now, bear in mind I know that Beast of Winter isn't out yet, so my second question (Should I play a Pale Elf) is a little more subjective, but I'd be interested to hear opinions regardless. A. Would a Principi character/Could a Principi character fit with the Archmage DLC/Berkana's Folly quest? I really love the Archmages, just because I like a lot of their internal squabbles and the ways they try to go about immortalizing their legacies (Llengrath/Concelhaut), but I'm worried that my piratical Barbarian/Rogue probably wouldn't get as much out of them as a Wizard character would. Does there seem to be a prejudice towards smarter, more cultured characters when dealing with Arkemyr and the Council? I know Wizards can ask to join and are basically told "No." I suppose a Principi character could work from a perspective of "If I help them, I might get to steal some cool stuff," but that's something of a flimsy motivation. Not that plunder ISN'T a good motivator, especially for a pirate, but I'm looking for something with more staying power. I know this is a bit of a weird question, but think of it this way. 1. Vallians/Wizardly characters have reason to work with the Archmages because they're all about the pursuit of knowledge. 2. RDC has reason to work with them because they want to pacify the Deadfire. 3. Huana have reason to work with them because of the prestige they bring, and because they can help uncover secrets and ancient knowledge. 4. Aside from profit, what reason do Principi/martially focused brawler characters have to be interested in the squabbles of mages? B: Is it worth playing a Pale Elf for Beast of Winter since I won't be able to change race for the other two DLC? I'm wondering if playing them would provide a richer experience, or if I'd get the same by just bringing Ydwin along (since she has special dialogue, apparently).
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Hey guys! Sorry for the double post, but I accidentally left this in the lore forums, so... Yeah! That's my bad. Hey hey, After getting a bunch of feedback on my Marauder build, I wanted to post a more complete version! This character can work with any faction, but is most thematically in line with the Principi. Pirate stuff! Yeah! Now, I know Barbarian/Rogue definitely isn't the class combo to pick if you want a heavy roleplay experience based on your class, but I'm hoping that the culture/background selection I decided to go with will be able to make up for that. Also, "Lord-Reaper" is a title that I stole borrowed from ASoIaF. It doesn't reflect on how the character plays, since aside from Xoti's Sickle, which we can't make terribly good use of, there aren't really scythes in the game. Blessings: Bonus attributes/skills, special item merchant, 5000 starting gold. Race: Human for character customization options and another Bloodied bonus. I've considered Fire Godlike for more special dialogue choices (It's got the most after some variant of Aumaua) but I don't like losing out on the helm slot, and the lack of available head types versus styles of portraits annoys me. Orlan could also work for extra hit to crit conversion, but I'm not a fan of them either. I seem to recall Hearth Orlan being a lot more gnome-like and less... furry. Class: Berserker/Streetfighter Culture: Deadfire Archipelago. Has far and away the most dialogue choices, and fits for the Principi, since they're sort of the Huana's rowdy next-door neighbors, I suppose you could say. Background: Slave. Many of the Newblood Principi are freed slaves. Athletics, Survival, and Streetwise. Skill Focus: Alchemy (For poisons) and Mechanics as Active skills, with a splash in Athletics for skill checks and Second Wind (Set AI to use it on <25% health since the AI can still see your HP while Frenzied). For passives, Insight and then pick your poison of the conversational skills. For the type of character we're wanting to play, Intimidate makes the most sense, then Streetwise/Bluff. Also, consider putting a few points in Metaphysics for certain checks.* *The skills are the part of this build where I'm still kind of indecisive, because I don't want to spread skills too thin on my MC, but I also don't want to miss certain crucial details that might affect my decision-making. I think the best thing I can do is focus on the skills that would best help this sort of character resolve the business he'd commonly find himself dealing with. Do the more esoteric skills like Metaphysics really give you much in terms of advancing the story, or is it just "You know a little more about this particular thing"? Attributes: Might: 20 (15 Base +1 Human +1 GotM +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Permanent Stat Boost) Con: 12 (8 Base +1 Effigy's Resentment (Durance) +1 Chameleon's Touch +2 Berath's Blessing) Dexterity: 13 (9 Base +1 Deadfire +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Chameleon's Touch) Perception: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Intellect: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Resolve: 10 (7 Base +1 Human +2 Berath's Blessing) Dexterity is kept low-ish because eventually, stacking Action Speed starts to result in diminishing returns. The difference between 13 and 18 Dexterity with this build is a matter of a few tenths of a second of action time. Intellect and Perception are both kept high because, hey, hitting things is good. Resolve is kept at 10 mostly because I don't like having it much lower, and I don't really feel like it needs to be. With Tough, and the bonuses from both sacrificing Durance and GotM, 12 Constitution gives 386 HP at level 20. That means it takes longer to hit Bloodied, but it also means that I can stay Bloodied longer without having to worry about being murdered. Abilities: Level 1 - Frenzy/Crippling Strike Level 2 - Blooded Level 3 - Escape Level 4 - Barbaric Blow/Two Weapon Style Level 5 - Dirty Fighting Level 6 - Blinding Strike Level 7 - Confounding Blind/One Stands Alone Level 8 - Bloodlust Level 9 - Thick Skinned Level 10 - Blood Frenzy/Persistent Distraction Level 11 - Withering Strike Level 12 - Wild Sprint Level 13 - Barbaric Smash/Deep Wounds Level 14 - Tough Level 15 - Interrupting Blows Level 16 - Perishing Strike/Brute Force Level 17 - Lion's Sprint Level 18 - Slippery Mind Level 19 - Deathblows/Blood Thirst Level 20 - Blood Storm Wild Sprint > Lion's Sprint is taken for the engagement immunity (Always nice to have another ability that does that) and the Accuracy boost (Which will probably be adjusted to actually work like it's supposed to, but I still feel like it's a good pick). The abilities are more or less set in stone, but if there's anything that obviously seems like a bad choice, be sure to point it out. Some things that obviously come to mind... Spirit VS Blood. I know Staggered takes foes out of engagement, and thus Flanked, but it's also an Affliction that can proc Sneak Attack and Deathblows. Blood Storm's bleed on crit does sound appealing though. Gear: Pet - Abraham: He's a good boy! Recovery reduction for armor, plus a heal on kill. It's a good way to try to maintain a healthy Bloodied state and not get overwhelmed and murdered. Weapons: There's a lot of really good options. Some sets I've considered... Stalker's Patience and Rust's Poignard Modwyr and Duskfall (Dual swords are always super badass) Grave Calling Any cool new weapons from the DLC. Pun intended, probably. Armor: DoC Breastplate. Even though it requires making a slightly gamey decision, it still gives +4 class resource to dual martial classes, which is easily among the best buffs in the game. That's not even getting into the immunity to Intellect afflictions it grants, and the armor bonuses aren't half bad either. Kind of a tricky steal though, but manageable with Serafen, who I'll have by that point. Helm: Death's Maw for extra damage reduction each time I kill something. Things should be dying a lot. Ergo, it should be pretty useful. Belt: Upright Captain's Belt means your Explosives experts/casters can throw around Pull of Eora and drag all of the enemies in on you for extra smashy funtime. Cloak: Cloak of Greater Protection (+10 all Defenses except Deflection) and then upgrade to Nemnok's Cloak (Which can apparently be stolen as early as level 7 or 8 with some practice. Gloves: Bracers of Greater Deflection: +7 Deflection more or less negates the -10 from Frenzy on its own. Rings: Chameleon's Touch (For +1 to two attributes and two skills) and Voidward (To reduce the Raw damage taken by Frenzy as it gains PL). Boots: Boots of the Stone, for resistance to Might afflictions as well as a little extra Dexterity and Resolve, upgrade to Rakhan Field Boots later on. Amulet: Amulet of Health most likely until I can get Precognition (Reduces crit damage taken, increases crit damage done). Interested to hear your thoughts on this! It's more or less complete, bar anything I've missed, and making a more final decision on skill focus. If Alchemy isn't a must-take for the Watcher anymore, I might just go Stealth/Mechanics and Insight/Intimidate with a dash of Streetwise.
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Hey hey, After getting a bunch of feedback on my Marauder build, I wanted to post a more complete version! This character can work with any faction, but is most thematically in line with the Principi. Pirate stuff! Yeah! Now, I know Barbarian/Rogue definitely isn't the class combo to pick if you want a heavy roleplay experience based on your class, but I'm hoping that the culture/background selection I decided to go with will be able to make up for that. Also, "Lord-Reaper" is a title that I stole borrowed from ASoIaF. It doesn't reflect on how the character plays, since aside from Xoti's Sickle, which we can't make terribly good use of, there aren't really scythes in the game. Blessings: Bonus attributes/skills, special item merchant, 5000 starting gold. Race: Human for character customization options and another Bloodied bonus. I've considered Fire Godlike for more special dialogue choices (It's got the most after some variant of Aumaua) but I don't like losing out on the helm slot, and the lack of available head types versus styles of portraits annoys me. Orlan could also work for extra hit to crit conversion, but I'm not a fan of them either. I seem to recall Hearth Orlan being a lot more gnome-like and less... furry. Class: Berserker/Streetfighter Culture: Deadfire Archipelago. Has far and away the most dialogue choices, and fits for the Principi, since they're sort of the Huana's rowdy next-door neighbors, I suppose you could say. Background: Raider. We're here for the plunder and booty, boys! Athletics, Stealth, and Streetwise. Skill Focus: Alchemy (For poisons) and Mechanics as Active skills, with a splash in Athletics for skill checks and Second Wind (Set AI to use it on <25% health since the AI can still see your HP while Frenzied). For passives, Insight and then pick your poison of the conversational skills. For the type of character we're wanting to play, Intimidate makes the most sense, then Streetwise/Bluff. Also, consider putting a few points in Metaphysics for certain checks.* *The skills are the part of this build where I'm still kind of indecisive, because I don't want to spread skills too thin on my MC, but I also don't want to miss certain crucial details that might affect my decision-making. I think the best thing I can do is focus on the skills that would best help this sort of character resolve the business he'd commonly find himself dealing with. Do the more esoteric skills like Metaphysics really give you much in terms of advancing the story, or is it just "You know a little more about this particular thing"? Attributes: Might: 15 (10 Base +1 Human +1 GotM +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Permanent Stat Boost) Con: 17 (13 Base +1 Effigy's Resentment (Durance) +1 Chameleon's Touch +2 Berath's Blessing) Dexterity: 13 (9 Base +1 Deadfire +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Chameleon's Touch) Perception: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Intellect: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Resolve: 10 (7 Base +1 Human +2 Berath's Blessing) Might is kept at 10 because a high Might really isn't needed for a Streetfighter, with all of the damage bonuses you're going to be getting, especially after Deathblows. Dexterity is kept low-ish because eventually, stacking Action Speed starts to result in diminishing returns. The difference between 13 and 18 Dexterity with this build is a matter of a few tenths of a second of action time. Intellect and Perception are both kept high because, hey, hitting things is good. Resolve is kept at 10 mostly because I don't like having it much lower, and I don't really feel like it needs to be. With Tough, and the bonuses from both sacrificing Durance and GotM, 17 Constitution gives 460 HP at level 20. That means it takes longer to hit Bloodied, but that Abilities: Level 1 - Frenzy/Crippling Strike Level 2 - Blooded Level 3 - Escape Level 4 - Barbaric Blow/Two Weapon Style Level 5 - Dirty Fighting Level 6 - Blinding Strike Level 7 - Confounding Blind/One Stands Alone Level 8 - Bloodlust Level 9 - Thick Skinned Level 10 - Spirit Frenzy/Persistent Distraction Level 11 - Withering Strike Level 12 - Wild Sprint Level 13 - Barbaric Smash/Deep Wounds Level 14 - Tough Level 15 - Interrupting Blows Level 16 - Perishing Strike/Brute Force Level 17 - Lion's Sprint Level 18 - Slippery Mind Level 19 - Deathblows/Blood Thirst Level 20 - Spirit Tornado Wild Sprint > Lion's Sprint is taken for the engagement immunity (Always nice to have another ability that does that) and the Accuracy boost (Which will probably be adjusted to actually work like it's supposed to, but I still feel like it's a good pick). The abilities are more or less set in stone, but if there's anything that obviously seems like a bad choice, be sure to point it out. Some things that obviously come to mind... Spirit VS Blood. I know Staggered takes foes out of engagement, and thus Flanked, but it's also an Affliction that can proc Sneak Attack and Deathblows. Blood Storm's bleed on crit does sound appealing though. Gear: Pet - Abraham: He's a good boy! Recovery reduction for armor, plus a heal on kill. It's a good way to try to maintain a healthy Bloodied state and not get overwhelmed and murdered. Weapons: There's a lot of really good options. Some sets I've considered... Stalker's Patience and Rust's Poignard Modwyr and Duskfall (Dual swords are always super badass) Grave Calling Any cool new weapons from the DLC. Pun intended, probably. Armor: DoC Breastplate. Even though it requires making a slightly gamey decision, it still gives +4 class resource to dual martial classes, which is easily among the best buffs in the game. That's not even getting into the immunity to Intellect afflictions it grants, and the armor bonuses aren't half bad either. Kind of a tricky steal though, but manageable with Serafen, who I'll have by that point. Helm: Death's Maw for extra damage reduction each time I kill something. Things should be dying a lot. Ergo, it should be pretty useful. Belt: Upright Captain's Belt means your Explosives experts/casters can throw around Pull of Eora and drag all of the enemies in on you for extra smashy funtime. Cloak: Cloak of Greater Protection (+10 all Defenses except Deflection) and then upgrade to Nemnok's Cloak (Which can apparently be stolen as early as level 7 or 8 with some practice. Gloves: Bracers of Greater Deflection: +7 Deflection more or less negates the -10 from Frenzy on its own. Rings: Chameleon's Touch (For +1 to two attributes and two skills) and Voidward (To reduce the Raw damage taken by Frenzy as it gains PL). Boots: Boots of the Stone, for resistance to Might afflictions as well as a little extra Dexterity and Resolve, upgrade to Rakhan Field Boots later on. Amulet: Amulet of Health most likely until I can get Precognition (Reduces crit damage taken, increases crit damage done). Interested to hear your thoughts on this! It's more or less complete, bar anything I've missed, and making a more final decision on skill focus. If Alchemy isn't a must-take for the Watcher anymore, I might just go Stealth/Mechanics and Insight/Intimidate with a dash of Streetwise.
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Hey guys, Wanted to share my idea for a pro-Principi gamestate - basically, choices that make sense for a character allied with that particular faction. Unfortunately, this more or less turned into a "Criminal Watcher" gamestate because there really aren't any Principi specific choices (Are they even mentioned in the first game?). So, I tried to make a Watcher who would logically side with them. Here's what I have for each choice. Warning, it's a bit of reading! 1. Hollowborn Crisis - This one was one of the hardest, because I tend to play characters in these games as very "Critical Path light", that is to say that they're not defined by the actions they take on the critical path so much as sidequests. -- Distributed the soul essence/Pledged to Galawain: This was a difficult one. I was tempted to go with Skaen's choice at first because a lot of the Principi seem devoted to him but A: The Woedica reward was dummied out and B: I prefer Galawain as a god a lot more. Skaen's choice also doesn't make a lot of sense from a narrative perspective. He's... wanting to empower the former Queen of the gods so that he has someone to rebel against? -- Destroyed Thaos's soul: This is more of a personal vendetta type choice. All of the other options for dealing with him seem to be easily reversible by Woedica in the long-term if she wants her puppet back. -- Absorbed Maerwald's soul -- Supported animancy: There's really no reason not to support animancy if you don't care about the ethical consequences of it. -- Supported the Doemenels: Seems like a logical choice for the criminal, ne'er do well types. 2. Companions: Most of these choices are incidental/no-brainers and refer to companions who aren't going to appear in the game anyway. Here's the ones I think will have the most impact on the plot. -- Sacrificed Durance: Since his main writer is gone, I very much doubt we'll see him in an upcoming expansion. I ultimately did this for the stat boost, but in context my Watcher would probably see it as a way to get rid of a potential rallying point were Rauatai ever to attempt to annex the Dyrwood. Flimsy, yes, but ultimately the reasoning is "Stat boost and he most likely isn't going to show up again." -- Eder: Skeptic -- Aloth: Anti-Leaden Key, accepted Iselmyr -- Pallegina: Disobeyed her orders. -- Devil of Caroc: Spared Harmke. This is ENTIRELY for the Breastplate. The justification in-game is basically "Yes, this one guy wronged you, but I'd rather not kill him AND his group of buddies. We can come back later." And then he ran away. 3. White March -- Kept the souls bound to the White Forge -- Eyeless went to work restoring Abydon -- Adaryc lived -- Concelhaut and most of his apprentices died, but Uariki survived. -- Shared knowledge with Llengrath: My character would have no need for Concelhaut's phylactery, his goal isn't to live forever. And besides, having an ally of sorts on the Circle of Archmagi couldn't hurt, certainly. That said, since I'm playing a big tough pirate Barbarian/Rogue, it might make sense to kill her for the challenge of it. 4. Gilded Vale: - Accepted coin from Wirtan for his silence - Killed Raedric. This has less to do with my character's criminal background, more to do with the fact that, despite being a criminal, he has a certain line he's not about to cross. Killing your wife for the 'crime' of bearing a Hollowborn child crosses that line. Serafen says it best - the Principi are pirates, but making a habit out of killing is what gets people to fight to the death rather than surrender. - Gave Aufra the potion, said it would help. 5. Od Nua - Reforged the Blade - Killed the Master Below, didn't learn Scale-Breaker: This is another one of those "Personal decision" type quest decisions, like destroying Thaos's soul. The Master Below isn't willing to negotiate with you like an equal, which would infuriate this character. So, she dies. Plus it gets you a nice bit of extra dialogue when you talk to Llengrath. 6. Defiance Bay: - Verzanno died, Danna Doemenel lived - Lilith lived - Caedman Azo died - Gave the Theorems to Nedyn - Absorbed the souls - Convinced Fyrga that she was unfit for Magran's trials: I mean, she is, objectively. She can't do it herself so she makes you do it. - Infiltrated the Leaden Key: Probably through deception and non-violence. It makes a certain degree of sense for a Barbarian/Rogue to at least have SOME chill. - Killed Lord Harond: With the implication that Aelys is now living happily ever after somewhere, I guess. I wish there was more context behind this decision, because I'm pretty sure it's possible to free her, wipe her mind, THEN go back and kill the incestuous jerkoff. That's what my character would do. - Killed Nyrid, but Purnisc is still dealing svef. His wife might not be happy about it but, hey, I get a nice deal on some drugs. Can't beat that. Plus, it'd probably make them more money in the long run than... whatever it is he was doing. - Hid the Parable of Wael 7. Twin Elms: - Took Vela and killed Simoc: I'm not letting a man turn a baby into magical Viagra. - Killed Rehstin and convinced Erona to kill herself - Let the pale elves pass through the breach - Allowed the Sky Dragon to stay and convinced Hylea to let her stay. This is, again, something of a choice based on personality, rather than profession. As a follower of Galawain, my character would argue that the Sky Dragon effectively earned her right to that nesting ground, and that calling on outside help when you can't deal with the problem yourself is a sign that you've effectively already lost. Plus, a bit of a soft spot for families with children. So, what do you think? Again, I'm just trying to make sure these choices are somewhat internally consistent. I don't like playing characters that have reputations that are all over the place.
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Hey guys, So, Nemnok's Cloak is really good for my Marauder build, but the Nemnok area is super late-game. I was wondering if it would be possible to get the cloak fairly early on, and then just come back and resolve the quest in whichever way I choose later on. That is, would taking the cloak, leaving, and then coming back when I'm higher level flip a hostility flag and make it so I can't trigger the conversation with Nemnok? Also, how would I go about getting it? I'm assuming just use a high Stealth character, but on another thread discussing this I saw mention of Smoke Cloud as a Rogue - so I guess I'd grab Ydwin or Mirke or something.
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Alright! I forgot to put a pet slot in, so that's a good catch. Do you think I ought to dump Resolve for Con then? That 80 extra HP is pretty nice. I'll definitely pick up Wild Sprint and upgrade it to Lion's Sprint. No harm in having extra movement abilities. I had planned to activate Heating Up primarily through being bloodied, simply because I think it's easier to manage than being Flanked, and lets me pick things like Spirit Frenzy and One Stands Alone without worrying about knocking myself out of Flanked. So I'll probably drop Unyielding for something else, then... Plus I kind of need to be Bloodied for Slippery Mind to work. That said, would it be safer to focus on activating it through Flanked? Also, does Abraham also give the Recovery reduction based on armor type that Cutthroat Cosmo does? I looked at the pet listing, and it seems like that's his ability, plus the "Life on kill" one. Edit: Like I said, I'm not 100% on any particular weapons, I just know I'll be dual-wielding. The Stalker spear and Rust's Poignard would be a pretty good combination, especially with Deep Wounds, but there's also Modwyr, several really good sabres, Duskfall, and whatever comes out of Beast of Winter - I'm hoping for a lot of really good weapons.
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Hey guys, Working on slowly putting together a Marauder build for my pro-Principi character to coincide with Beast of Winter content in a few days. I wanted to share what I had so far to get your feedback on things. This is a heavy WIP, with pretty much every aspect open to change. Please, break this build apart at the subatomic level and tell me what works and what doesn't. This is a character intended for heavy Principi roleplay - he's a pirate, who's all about adventure, plunder, and sailing the biggest and most well-outfitted ship he can get his hands on. He's got a heavy leaning toward the Newbloods for their more chaotic freewheeling philosophy, but that might change depending on what I learn in game. Blessings: Bonus skills/attributes, 5000 starting gold (I'm the hecking Watcher of Caed Nua!), then either the special item merchant in Port Maje or Fine equipment to start. Race: Human (For the extra Bloodied bonus), though I've also considered Pale Elf (In case there's extra dialogue for them in the next expansion) for the extra armor. Fire or Death Godlike are also good choices, but losing out on the helm slot kind of sucks. Class: Marauder (Berserker/Streetfighter) Culture: Deadfire (Or Old Vallia) - Deadfire's picked for dialogue choices mostly. Old Vallia is a bit more lore-appropriate. Background: Aristocrat (For more dialogue choices as well as a point in every talky skill) or Raider (If Deadfire, for flavor) Skills: Alchemy (For potions, poisons, and drugs) and either Mechanics (For lockpicking/traps) or Stealth (For tricky theft) for actives/Insight and Intimidate as passives. Both to 10 and then party assist, invest in Streetwise as well. ... Probably going to go with Mechanics so Serafen will shut up about his fingers. Attributes: Might: 15 (10 Base +1 Human +1 GotM +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Permanent Stat Boost) Con: 12 (8 Base +1 Effigy's Resentment (Durance) +1 Chameleon's Touch +2 Berath's Blessing) Dexterity: 13 (9 Base +1 Deadfire +2 Berath's Blessing +1 Chameleon's Touch) Perception: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Intellect: 20 (18 Base +2 Berath's Blessing) Resolve: 15 (12 Base +1 Human +2 Berath's Blessing) Using the Deadfire Speed Calculator reveals that, with Streetfighter bonus and FFrenzy both up, the difference between 12 Dexterity and 18 Dexterity when dual wielding melee weapons is 0.3 seconds. 15 Resolve is picked because, well... from a roleplay perspective I feel like a pirate character should have somewhat of a strong will. They should also be strong physically, of course, but 15 Might already IS pretty strong. Biggest question: How bad are the penalties for failing the "Mental intrusion" style Resolve checks? I've always played with either tanky, high Resolve characters, or Cipher multis who had some protection through their dialogue options. I know the Spindle Man tries to steal a secret from you, but then you have the opportunity to resist (Unsure if this is a Resolve check) and give him one of your choice. Basically, 5 Resolve or lower is classified as "Timid," and I wanted to know how close the game adheres to that, or if I'll be allowed to shape my character in my own way. Alternatively, I've considered taking the points out of Resolve, dropping it down to 7 (So that it'll at least be neutral) and putting them into Constitution. This gives much more of an HP buffer, and means I stay in Bloodied longer without risking getting knocked out nearly as much. HP with current CON and Tough: 386 at level 20 HP with 5 extra Con and Tough: 460 at level 20 ... Yeah, I think almost 80 extra HP is worth lower Deflection, especially since I'll have pretty high armor rating anyway... Keep in mind, this is calculated with the extra 10% from GotM and Durance's Effigy's Resentment boon. Abilities: Level 1 - Frenzy/Crippling Strike Level 2 - Blooded Level 3 - Escape Level 4 - Barbaric Blow/Two Weapon Style Level 5 - Dirty Fighting Level 6 - Blinding Strike Level 7 - Confounding Blind/One Stands Alone Level 8 - Bloodlust Level 9 - Thick Skinned Level 10 - Spirit Frenzy/Persistent Distraction Level 11 - Withering Strike Level 12 - Unflinching Level 13 - Barbaric Smash/Deep Wounds Level 14 - Tough Level 15 - Uncanny Luck Level 16 - Toxic Strike/Brute Force Level 17 - Interrupting Blows Level 18 - Slippery Mind Level 19 - Deathblows/Blood Thirst Level 20 - Spirit Tornado These are all subject to change. Spirit Frenzy/Spirit Tornado are taken with the assumption that I'll be relying on Heating Up moreso than On the Edge, so ensuring Bloodied is more important than ensuring Flanked AND Bloodied. This way I can debuff enemies around me as well, ensuring more chances to land Deathblows. If I were to change anything, I'd want to find a way to put Debilitating Strike into the build, though I'm not sure if that's necessary as Persistent Distraction more or less does the same thing to the enemy I'm focused on. Gear: Weapons: Magran's Favor and Rust's Poignard for mid-late game. Extra fire explosions, with raw damage against Flanked targets (And with Persistent Distraction, they'll always be flanked). Really, I'm not set on any particular set of weapons, and don't mind experimenting with a bunch of them to see what sticks. Armor: DoC Breastplate. Even though it requires making a slightly gamey decision, it still gives +4 class resource to dual martial classes, which is easily among the best buffs in the game. That's not even getting into the immunity to Intellect afflictions it grants, and the armor bonuses aren't half bad either. Kind of a tricky steal though, but manageable with Serafen, who I'll have by that point. Helm: Death's Maw for extra damage reduction each time I kill something. Things should be dying a lot. Ergo, it should be pretty useful. Belt: Nature's Embrace for the extra armor and the Woodskin effect on being crit, or the Upright Captain's Belt for immunity to push/pull effects and free Concentration (I'm not sure how much Concentration helps melee characters though) Cloak: Cloak of Greater Protection (+10 all Defenses except Deflection) and then either keep it or upgrade to Nemnok's Cloak once that's available. Gloves: Bracers of Greater Deflection: +7 Deflection more or less negates the -10 from Frenzy on its own. Unless that scales with PL too, for some reason. Rings: Chameleon's Touch (For +1 to two attributes and two skills) and Ring of Greater Regeneration (To help offset the health loss from Frenzy somewhat). Voidward might also be a good choice to reduce the Raw damage a bit. Boots: Boots of the Stone, for resistance to Might afflictions as well as a little extra Dexterity and Resolve, upgrade to Rakhan Field Boots later on. Amulet: The Protective Eothasian Charm isn't bad early on, but can't really keep up at later levels. I'm not sure what else I could use. Precognition seems like an alright choice. And that about sums it up! Keep in mind, this is very rough and subject to change, and I've included a few adjustments I'm considering already. Please look it over, and feel free to share your experiences with similar builds. I'm definitely going to have plenty of tanky party members, and a dedicated healer, to support this.
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Oh, I figure. Though I do like actually playing the game and not letting the AI do everything. True, but chaining the commands for the encounter-ending Barbaric Smash killing streak would be extremely tedious. But when I think about it, I had the AI customized so far that I could let it play out most encounters. It's just too good at self buffing, especially for a Brute - you can set the AI to cast Tactical Barrage-> Refreshing Defense -> Frenzy (+Upgrades) to get unconfused berserker frenzy and won't even see the symbol for refreshing defense displayed, because the first two are instant casts. To do this manually every 30 seconds would be freakingly annoying. Hmm, I suppose. Though I'm still trying to decide WHICH Barbarian I want to play.
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That is the most inapplicable statement I read in this forum for a long time. For example: against single targets Barbaric Retaliation is great. Againt mobs Heart of Fury is great. Instrument of Boundless Rage is powerful and adds a nice ranged alternative... and so on. A single class Barbarian will reach very powerful abilities a lot earlier than a multiclass one. E.g. Blood Thirst. He will also deal more damage with his Barbaric Blow because he will have a higher Power Level which adds base damage to its attack. Combined with MIG, Superb or even Legendary, Obe Stands Alone, maybe Blooded the difference is noticable. I personally find multiclass Barbs more interesting (I'm also playing a Warlock atm and it's great), but a single class one surely is powerful because of his great high level abilites, his faster progression and his higher PL. On the othr hand an advantage of a multiclass (besides the obvious reasons like synbergy effects) like Barb/Fighter, -/Rogue, -/Paladin, -/Monk or -/Ranger is that they can get +4 resource points from the Devil of Caroc Breastplate (Fighters even +2 additional from bracers) and +2 attribute points and skill points from the Chamaeleon Ring - while a single class Barb "only" gets +2/+1. If you don't plan to use those items it doesn't matter at all of course. See, that's the problem - it's like with my ranged Cipher character, there's so many good choices that I could make, it's hard to pick one. I've narrowed it down somewhat though... 1. Barbarian (Pure): No multi, for higher PL and earlier access to really good abilities. Less powerful, but I get stuff like Heart of Fury and Instrument of Boundless Rage (Which just has a really fun name, honestly). Plus loads more hit points. 2. Brute (Barbarian/Fighter): Lots of really good passive abilities, and some excellent active abilities as well (Tactical Barrage to remove Confusion, Unbending, etc). 3. Marauder (Barbarian/Rogue): Crazy fast, lots of bonus damage from the Streetfighter. 4. Warlock: Lots of really good defensive spells, and some excellent offensive buffs too (Like Merciless Gaze). How fun are things like Heart of Rage and Instrument of Boundless Rage to use? Also, how significant is the Barbaric Blow/Smash bonus damage per PL? That will at least allow me to disqualify pure Barbarian. As it stands, I'm leaning toward Marauder, followed by Brute, followed by Warlock.
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Hey guys, I made a similar thread about this for the RDC, but now that I'm working on my pro-Principi character, I wanted to get some feedback as to PoE1 choices that would best "fit" that kind of character. This is sort of tough for me for a few reasons. 1. The Principi as an organization is a lot more fluid, with fewer race restrictions on membership, fewer cultural borders, and few political interests. So, it's entirely possible that your Watcher, while of a criminal bent, might have never even heard of them before sailing to the Deadfire, and definitely wouldn't have the kind of nationalistic reasons behind his decisions that a pro-Vallian or RDC Watcher would. 2. Where would a Principi Watcher "come from"? Well, that depends on whether I decide to go Old Guard or Newbloods. The safest bet, for the sake of immersion, would probably be Old Vallia, but then after that there's a number of different choices regarding background that could factor in to who my character is. The two options I'm considering are Old Vallia Aristocrat for the sort of exile noble archetype, but who COULD fit in with the Newbloods Old Vallia Slave for someone who fits in more with the Newbloods 3. Which choices are most important? For my RDC version of this thread, the only choices that really seemed important were regarding Kana and Pallegina, with other choices being more a matter of my Watcher's personality. Right now, I'm thinking my best bet would be to go for more of a "Criminal" type Watcher, since there obviously aren't any pro-Principi choices in PoE1, and then go from there. What are your thoughts on this?
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