limaxophobiacq

I just want to play a character that plays something like a Fighter/mage or fighter/cleric in the IE games, with decent survivability and damage plus some active abilities. I'd also like a balanced stat-line with every stat in the 10-16 range. From everything I've seen most builds seem to favour really extreme stats and a very specific focus on either tanking or doing damage (aoe or single target) and very extreme stats to be the most effective and I kind of hate that kind of play so I'd really like some way to play near-optimaly without having to do that. Ideally I'd want to play and never have to think in terms of 'tanks' 'dps' etc. ever again. Originally I was thinking Chanter but they seem to only be 'balanced' in that they kind of suck at everything.

Yeah, I originally wanted to make a Chanter, because they seem really cool conceptually, but for weapons if I try to go 2 handed I have no survivabilty, and if I go sword + shield I dont drop but do completely negligible damage against any oppenent that actually matters and in either case my chants are barely noticable (esp. compared to how awesome the flaming weapons chant was in beta) and invocations aren't ready untill battle is over. Wanted to try a ranged Chanter but that doesnt seem all that viable either. My second choice was paladin but I really dont want to just tank but that seems like all paladin are really good for now. I've stopped playing after 15 hours played because I can't find any kind of build thats appeals to me that's in any way effective. The way the game is based around having incredibly specialized tank/control/healbot/dps characters with extreme stats and balanced characters with all stats in the 10-15 range and a balance of damage, status effects, and surivability seem so sub-optimal doesn't appeal to me at all. I just want to play something well-rounded and effective like IE F/M, F/C, F/D, or F/M/T but it seems basically impossble. Cipher with some armor I guess is the closest to F/M but the lore (fantasy psions) and restrictions (no self effects etc.) turns me off them completely. Edit: I feel like even within something like 'surviving attacks' you have to min/max, if you try to go for a balance with decent deflection and decent endurance you get left behind by those who max one and dump the other. So if you're playing a class with low deflection you should forget about trying to get it up to a decent level completely, and if you are playing a class with good deflection you should stack more bonuses on it and min-max attributes (bumping resolve and perception and ignoring constitution) untill it's incredible, at least that is my impression of the system and from seeing what people who seem to know are doing.

The real problem is that the way the attributes were set up was meant to make all attributes equally usefull for all character but its failed completely to do so, this kind of situation should just not have been possible no matter how attribute points were allocated. I'm honestly really dissapointed in finding how incredibly restricted you are if you want to make character that's decently effective in this game.

Just rolled a paladin, it says paladins have a base deflection of 25 so with 15 perception (+5 deflection), 10 Resolve (+0 deflection), Faith and Conviction (+5 deflection) and no shield (+0 deflection) I should have 35 deflection but it says in character sheet I only have 30, my reflex/will/fort also seems unaffected compared to the starting fighter companions.

Bleak Walker/Goldpact Knight Paladin with Intense Flames + Remember Rakhan Field/Enduring Flames + Two-Handed Style can do pretty good damage damage with their Flames of Devotion. Only two hits per combat though.

I want to sing and shoot people, is this competetive and if so how should I allocate attributes? Chants seem nerfed a lot from when I last played beta with the fire damage phrase being moved from 1st to 3rd level. I was thinking Wood Elf Might 13, Con 11, Dex 13, Per 13, Int 18, Res 10 (i dont like to have too extreme high/low scores), and taking the reload-speeding phrase and on 2nd and the movement increasing phrase and focusing on kiting. Edit: Also does the same phrase from multiple chanters stack? Could I get a party of 6 chanters with movement-boost and faster reload to all move and reload super-fast?

I stopped reading the thread at where it degenerated, but I very much agree with the OP and Sensukis first reply. I've been gone from here for a while since the launch of the beta, but comming back after playing through IWD:EE combat in the current version of PoE just seems a too-fast chaotic mess. If anything it reminds me of Lionheart combat.

Is it Perception, as in the range the effect has from the Chanter or Paladin, or Intellect as in the size of the area of effect around the character? Or does neither attribute affect it?

I voted in both because actually reading questions before answering is lame. Paladin/Cipher because modal buffs & debuff auras are really cool. Edit: I to don't even use the Chanter summons.

Do they come back after combat?

I have a similar issue and was just about to post about it, here's a short clipp I just recorded that kind of shows how some of my sounds have cut out after a minute or so of playing: Is this what you experienced? I appear to of hear some sound when the source of the sound like the characters for footsteps or the inn is in a specific area on the screen and then it abruptly cuts out when I move the camera. (Stealth mode at start is just from pressing Alt+F9 to start shadowplay).

It's seems I'm somewhat alone in thinking Interrupt & Concentration should both be put into Resolve, but that's never stopped me before. Here's what I'd do based on this thread and this old poll that showed most people (76.32%) would like the effect of attributes magnified. Might: +3% Damage & Healing Constitution: +3% Health & Stamina Dexterity: +3% Action Speed Perception: +1 Accuracy & Deflection (you're aware of where to strike and of incomming attacks) Intelligence: +7.5% AoE & Duration Resolve: +5% Interrupt & Concentration To me this seems tidy, fairly balanced, thematic, and would as far as is possible make all attributes usefull to all characters. Maybe only +4% on resolve. +2 Deflection on Resolve and +2 Accuracy on Perception would be balanced as well as nice and symmetrical but it seems a lot less justified thematically. I don't like having both +Y Accuracy/Deflection & +X% Interrupt/Concentration on Perception/Resolve, to me it's messy (combining flat numeric modifier and % modifier on one attribute) and again not very thematic. Combined with making Attribute 10 give the base effect with a 0% modifier, this would also just about but not quite double the magnitude of attritube bonuses compared to now with STR 10 to STR 20 going from a 140%/120% = 1.167 or 16.7% increase in damage to a straight 30% increase.

If +1 Accuracy is too good compared to +2% damage and +2 isn't good enough it'd be better to bump Might/Con/Dex up to +3% (I like that all physical attributes now have the same modifier, be it +2% or more, is neat), Int to +7% or +8% AoE/Duration (if we hate fractions), and Per/Res to +2 Accuracy/Deflection and get rid of interrupt/concentration from attributes entirely. Seems tidier. While cluttered, +1 Acc and +x% interrupt on Perception/+1 Def and +x% Concentration on Resolve at least has a symmetry +1 Acc on Per/+1 Def & +5% AoE on Int/+x% Duration & Concentration on Res lacks. Being harder to hit due to Resolve still doesn't make too much sense though, I guess every one in PoE has Divine Shield?

As long as the pass/fail effect is going to be in the game, which it is, I don't see why having an attribute affecting it would be wrong. If you're so sure of never being hit, Con to would be useless. Int with Deflection & AoE is also kind of useless for the gun or bow-slinging ranger or Rogue who is sure of not getting hit. Edit: Edited my original post to remove the 'IMO' because after thinking about it some more I know I'm right.

Muscle Wizards throws spell in full-plate, which means they only hit once per 9 seconds. I don't see them interrupting that many peope unless they manage to hit a large group of enemies with an AoE without hitting themselves or their buddies while at the front of the battle in which case well done and even then only every 9 seconds so hardly stunlocking anyone. Fast attack range builds would benefit a lot, slow attack range builds will benefit if hit by enemy ranged attacks or if someone makes it up to them. I'd probably keep it at +3% to both Interrupt & Concentration, Per and Res were both weak attributes before except in edge case interrupt-based builds and combing both the interrupt and the concentration bonus under one attribute rather than giving both of them a larger bonus like +6% has much less potential for creating lame OP stunlock builds.

Strength & Constition: Definitely keep as-is, both works mechanically and makes sense thematically, also looks clean (+2% to damage & healing/+2% to health and stamina). Dexterity & Perception: Changing these to Speed & Accuracy is perfect, like Str & Con this works mechanically and thematically, also looks clean (+2% Speed/+1 accuracy) Intelligence & Resolve: Having modifiers to 4 traits (durations, AoE, deflection, and concentration) on 2 attributes is inelegant and they're all completely unrelated and have different values and deflection will be a number which get paired with a % modifier to some other trait. F.ex. for the proposed AoE and Deflection on Int and Duration + Concentration on Resolve it'd be: Str: +2% damage & healing Con: +2% Health & Stamina Dex: +2% speed Per: +1 Accuracy Int: +1 Deflection & +5% area of effect Resolve: +3% Concentration & +5% Duration The last 2 just look a lot less elegant than the first 4. It might be balanced mechanically but it's doesn't make all that much sense thematically and it doesn't look very clean at all. They're clearly cobbled together from whatever was left over.* First I thought about throwing both concentration & deflection out of attributes leaving only AoE and Duration but that's problematic because certain classes have no need for AoEs while pretty much all have duration based effects so this is less than ideal. Deflection though, is the one that I think needs to go, because it doesn't make too much sense thematically on either and it looks really bad to combine it with a % modifier to another trait. So here's what I think now: Put back Interrupt into attributes but put it together with Concentration under Resolve, with the same % modifier. This makes sense thematically; when attacking someone else you're intense and scary, which makes them easily interrupted, and you're very determined to keep attacking despite enemy distraction. It is also balanced mechanically; slow attacks and abilities that are vulnerable to being interrupted are generally ones that are bad at causing interrupts, and vice versa for fast ones, so high resolve is about equally good for everyone. Finally, it looks very clean. Keep Int as-is. *Edit: Also it makes Int a lot less usefull to priests (and other casters) who in their description are described as thoughfull and intellectual/philosophical (especially compared to paladins) which I though was just kind of neat and works well with what Int affects now.

Thinking more about it I think thematically AoE might make a bit more sense on Resolve as it's kind of the 'force of personality'/charisma* attribute. If the AoE of Paladin auras and Chanter chants was affected (which I dont think they are now by Int), that would be pretty cool and thematic. Duration could stay on Int but maybe reduced to less than 5% per level if Int is also going to increase deflection (assuming the % effects of all attributes are staying in the range they are now). *the description talks about drive, emotional intensity, and being good for intimidation, leadership and performances

Personally I'd prefer to keep Int as is but this is very biased from liking to make characters who arent dum-dums and wanting to play a Chanter. Would take Int from being really good for chanters for the increased duration of Phrases and summons to not that important at all. Resolve being important for chanters abilities makes sense though given that it's described as being important for convincing performances. Splitting duration and AoE would at least make Int not be the one and only stat for Priests (it might actually make it not that important at all since some of the best priest spells have huge AoEs as a base and dont really need the Int bonus), but it would make it even less vital for wizards which doesn't feel very appropriate. Actually Deflection + AoE would probably make Int more important for Barbarians than for Wizards, which is pretty crazy (barbarians want both, wizards only really need the later).

Seems like it would make Constitution pretty weak though if it only affected health even if you increased it to 4% health per point. While then you probably don't want to drop it too low I don't think there'd be much point in having health significantly higher than Endurance so high Con mid/low resolve would be kind of pointless.

The game runs ok for me in 2560x1440, though on SLI 780s it damn well should. 90-120 walking around the village dropping down to 60-80 in fights. Should try deactivating SLI and see if there's any difference.

Would this include changing the base effects (areas, duration, damage) to be what they currently are att straight 10s in all attributes and then modifying that by a plus minus X%, or would everything in the maths stay same as it is now and you'd only change the description? F.ex. if you right now have an effect with a 10 second base duration it'll last for 11.5 seconds at 3 Int, 15 seconds at Int 10, and 20 seconds at Int 20; would either A) this still be the case (only the description is changed) or B) will the standard duration be set to 15 seconds at Int 10 and last (-35%) 9,75 seconds at 3 Int, (+0%) 15 seconds on Int 10, and (+50%) 22.5 seconds at Int 20? Granted that this and other changes might well mean you change the exact % value for 1 point off Int to something other than 5%.

Wow. Good work. Though I have to admit I winced a little when you call it a mathematical proof (it's certainly rigorous as far as arguments over RPG mechanics go but it's not that rigorous).

It's supposed to give increased fatigue recovery from ancient memory but I made 2 identical characters except for one having Beloved Spirits and the other Weapon Focus and their Ancient Memory abilities gave the same fatigue recovery in combat (0.26/sec). Edit: Screenshots at 2560x1440 end up at about 1.3 to 1.5 mb so maybe slightly increase the max attached file size?

I can pretty much newer hear any FX or character sounds, only ambient. Sometime my character will occasionally say one word (not a whole line) when selected and then I can hear it cut out.

Yeah I also still have it.