Opheleus

While I would welcome both Durance and Zahua with open arms, I think having new characters would be the best thing for a potential third game. Carrying Eder over would make sense and I wouldn't mind that, but none of the other Deadfire companions were interesting enough to bring back. I'm also of the opinion that none of the sidekicks were particularly captivating, and so I have no real interest to see them return - as fully fleshed-out companions, or otherwise.

Xoti makes me wish the Blood Pool was a thing in Deadfire.

Deadfire had by far my least favorite story and companion roster of any cRPG I've played, which is a shame - as the first game ranks highly in both. I appreciate the improved mechanics that came with it, but I can forgive a subpar system if the RPG aspect of a game is well-done (Planescape: Torment being a good example of this). So more than anything, I'd like a return to the writing, themes, and personalities found in the first game. The more general stuff aside, I'm also hoping that they do away with the gods - not necessarily as a whole, but dancing to their strings for the third time would be a bit tiresome, for me at least. However, even that would be tolerable if the aforementioned disappointing elements were remedied.

It's just flavor. That's just his way of reminding you to do the quest. I left it alone until way later in the game and didn't suffer any timed consequences.

Tyranny > PoE1 > Deadfire

I think that's the point. They're *not* all-powerful, they're *not* omnipotent, they're not really any better than Kith. They're not *actually* gods. They call themselves gods and they have immense power, but all they actually are is sentient complex constructs built around philosophical ideals--and they were built by Kith hands around Kith philosophies, so they are in the end every bit as ****ty and flawed as Kith. That's self-evident, but it doesn't change the fact that Obsidian transformed them into one-dimensional caricatures of what they were in the original game and what they could have been. Instead of a rich, layered reflection of the ideals of an advanced ancient civilization, we get a bunch of petulant teenagers. Whoever was in charge of Deadfire's overall narrative design can't be the same person who worked on the original Pillars (and they're most likely anime aficionados). Yep. A thousand and one souls produced... Teenagers? Mmm, tastes like advanced civilization to me.

I got this ending by never using Tekehu - he spent the entire game on the ship - and choosing the "Teheku might find this interesting" option during the Ukaizo weather orb fiasco. I also released the dragon under the Watershaper Guild.

Meh. Both "sweetness and light" and "darkness and death" would be too cliche. I hope he's just an ordinary guy, going about his day, looking for a really good cup of coffee. Good coffee is hard to find, man. I never saw Dorn as "darkness and death" - nor as a cliche. In fact, I think he's one of the few interesting and well-written evil NPCS companions in any RPG. All of the godlike in Pillars feel too "ordinary" to me. Pallegina? An anti-god gal with feathers. Teheku? A blue bloke with tons of pride. I'd like to see a godlike that exhibits some of the qualities of their godly parent, and Rymrgand's views, ideals, and personality are unique in the relative bland pool that is the other gods.

I don't find any of the sidekick previews we got particularly interesting, at least not enough to warrant a promotion to a companion (granted, PoE2 companions aren't fantastic either), but Rekke could be a useful lore-dump, and his background is the most unique. He could give us a sneak peek into what else is out there, and hint at a potential future setting (assuming PoE3 ever happens).

Assuming he's a companion, here's hoping he's more Dorn Il-Khan and less "Yeah, I'm a Rymrgand godlike, but I wanna spread peace and happiness."

I thought Wael and Magran were among the most interesting gods in PoE1, but after Deadfire - the only one that I liked was Rymrgand. He's the only one that felt like a true all-powerful being, and he's one of the only two gods that actually kills you if you piss 'em off. The gods in Deadfire suffer from overexposure, and honestly - after the mystique and great wrath they exhibited in the previous game - I think they were poorly written in the sequel. The constant bickering, whining, and flying off the handle is very reminiscent of a popular high schooler, and not very god-like. I guess they were going for a more Greco-Roman style of deity, but even if that were the case, the Pillars gods fall short; the Olympians plotted, warred, and manipulated one another constantly, but they were never subservient to the whims of mortals, and they never lost their composure during one of their get-togethers. PoE1 gods were closer, in that regard.

You're doin' God's Magran's work.

My first playthrough I did 0 ship combat, all resolved via forced-boarding and regular combat. Everyone had 10+ days of injury time, eating hardtack and drinking water, and had nothing to boost their morale. Two crewmembers confronted me and threatened to rebel, so I used my Cipher mind-tricks on 'em, and while it got them to stand down it also made everyone else concerned. Nothing happened until right before I sailed to Ukaizo - two started to clamor for mutiny, and when I tried to Jedi mind-trick them again, one of the formerly neutral crewmembers yelled "He's trying it again. Kill them!" and the entire ship rebelled. They chose poorly.

I judge games based on how entertaining/engaging they are, and how well they compare to other, similar games in their genre. I wouldn't pit this game up against Skyrim, no sooner than I would against The Witcher 3; too many variables that don't match up. That's why, when it comes to CRPGs, I compare them with one of my all-time favorites: Dragon Age: Origins. Since we're just talking about the main story here (and by extent, the side quests) I won't mention the companions and combat - both of which are important but not as relevant here. In DA:O your character has great incentive to pursue the main quest line: not only is your life and the lives of everyone in Ferelden on the line, but your character is one of the few who can actually stop the Archdemon. PoE1 also has good incentive, as your character is directly tied with the antagonist and is running out of time. Deadfire forces you to follow Eothas for no real reason, since your actions and desires have little effect in the end. The whole "get your soul back" is a really lazy way of turning you into a bloodhound, and I'm still unsure as to why Eothas even cares as much as he does about the Watcher and their opinions. Surely there were greater Watchers before ours, and it's just weird that a deity of that magnitude (he's clearly superior to the other gods) puts so much stock in a single mortal. In regards to the side-stuff, DA:O's side-quests fit perfectly into the main plot; you're basically recruiting different factions to help you in the final fight, while solving their particular issues in the process. There's visible change in the factions, and your actions not only shape their future but also change how they aid you. PoE1 worked here as well. Most of the (major) side-quests revolve around animancy, and since animancy is at the root of all issues - especially in the main plot - it makes sense that your actions shift different people's/factions' opinions on it, one way or the other. More importantly, since one of the Watcher's main goals is to stop their descent into madness while learning about themselves and their situation, interacting with and aiding these other factions gives the Watcher a chance at gaining more information. Obviously this changes on a second playthrough - as dealing with Thaos would solve everything right off the bat, but there's no way of knowing that at the start, and the Watcher's actions are logical. Deadfire's factions are great; they're full of interesting NPCs and each faction feels uniquely different from the rest - even their goals don't fully overlap. The problem stems from the fact that, despite the Watcher's best efforts, every faction ends on exactly the same note as it began. Sure, you might be able to pick from 2 different leaders for a few of the factions, but you never get to install any real changes. You're just another tool in their grand plans, and the worst part is - you don't even really need their help. Since you can get to Ukaizo alone, helping out the different factions serves only to hasten your monetary gain. If you make a character that has a background with one of the factions - or really agrees with their goals and ideals - then sure, you might feel more loyalty to 'em. For every other kind of Watcher - there's no reason to go against your morals and side with any of the unwavering powers. The ending also felt rushed and unfulfilling. Origins ends with the death of the Archdemon, the halt of the Blight, and the Warden a hero - whether alive or dead. PoE1 concludes with a huge revelation, the permanent end to a once-immortal and powerful foe (unless you send him back to the Wheel, I guess), and the improvement or demise of many lives in Dyrwood and the surrounding area - dependent on the Watcher's choices. Deadfire ends with the death of some ancient robot that likes to talk, a chat with a god that lets you slightly alter his original plan (for some reason), and largely unchanged factions - aside from some becoming stronger while others take a back seat or retreat. Oh, and for some reason, the leader of the most powerful faction meets you on Ukaizo, and despite being on relatively good terms with them throughout the game, having vital information about what happened with Eothas and what's to come, and posing no real threat to them (assuming you simply sailed off alone) - they resort to suicide; 'cause, let's be honest, after surviving a god and an ancient robo-dragon, instigating a fight against the Watcher is the most blatanty suicidal and nonsensical decision one could make - especially when it's done by a formely competant and intelligent leader. That being said, I enjoyed Deadfire, and because of that I can overlook some of its glaring issues and shortcomings when compared to other games in its playground. It's the same reason I enjoyed Skyrim, despite the fact that it was Oblivion's lesser in many regards - main story included. However, none of that excludes the game from criticism. Plus, I haven't even seen any extreme cases of people bashing the game or its main plot. You don't have to agree with someone's opinions to understand 'em, just like you don't have to read and engage with posts that claim PoE is sexist; chuckle, and move on.

Huh, I figured they'd stay on the ship. If that's the case, then yeah - some warning would be nice. Never fun to get Solas'd.