HawkSoft

NO!

I'll expand on my (slightly snarky) previous post. OBS wanted PoE to have a *classic*, hand drawn, isometric look and, presumably after evaluating the options, chose an implementation technology that involves explicit loads rather than (say) mysterious pauses during gameplay. I'm cool with that, they have much more experience of modern game development than I do. Actual load times are going to depend on our hardware, EG solid state storage is going to be much faster than local disc which should be much faster than networked disc so an unqualified 15s is of little value. What I am less happy about is that exploring a small 2 story dwelling requires a load screen between each floor which breaks the flow of the game. Compare this with exploring some of the large buildings in First Fires where OBS manipulated the layout to have multiple levels on one map. I think that they aught to have designed most buildings to require a single area transition even if they ended up looking a bit *Escher*: optical illusion Escher's

Is it? Divinity: Original Sin may not have loading screens but its turn based combat takes an age to resolve in any but the most trivial of encounters Area transitions are not quick. BTW my loading screen is about 27" across the diagonal and goes away much quicker than it did with v1. I'm very satisfied with the look of PoE, if loading screens (with autosave) are part of the implementation package then I'm OK with that

I think this relates to the old story of the *navvies* pick; 7 new handles and 5 new heads but it's still the same pick! Likewise out cheap sword upgraded to superb has probably had its blade reforged twice, a new pommel and hand guard plus the handle has been rebound 3 times. But it's still *our* sword. In lore terms the *soul* (fragment?) of the sword has been preserved/enhanced. I like the system better it you could only enchant/craft in suitable locations EG forges and laboratories.

My monk led party (level 7) has just met up with Grieving Mother and swapped her for Sagani. Grieving Mother came equipped with a fine crossbow, is this a change? So far she has held her own in a few fights at Dyrford Crossing against mostly low DR stuff. Updated cipher AI is impressive and seems to eek out her focus quite well. She seems to be multi-tasking by reloading the crossbow whilst *casting* the slower spells, can anyone confirm or refute this? Eyestrike is now Foe AOE EDIT: The party is now encountering clumps of animats in the ruins: after her initial barrage of spells Grieving Mother is left with a handful of focus and a concerned expression.

No No I like the current system except for the fact that you can enchant anywhere and anytime. I've not had a surplus of the key enchanting suppliers and some (EG dragon scales) are dangerous to obtain.

The Stronghold log records when construction is completed, please could it also record when construction is started. This change will make it easier to check that you are currently construction something rather than having to scan down the upgrades list.

In game terms most of our characters fight more like historical *barbarians* (as individuals) rather than as *regulars* (fighting in ranks) as the combats we are dealing with are too small for the formations that characterise regular troops to be effective. I see very little real difference between the skills required of a fantasy fighter regardless of their background and think the *barbarian* trope to be as synthetic as the dwarf with a Scottish (or possibly Scotch) accent. I could see more (role playing) value in a true berserker class that fought without any thought of self preservation, not sure many would make it to the level cap though Possibly a variation on monk or druid?

Please, when you manually resolve a Stronghold attack can it started paused? These would also be more fun if you had the opportunity to stalk the attackers around Caed Nua and set up an ambush. This could dependi on the time remaining on the attack counter.

Hi Aarik, As a reminder to myself I keep all found grimoires in Aloth's inventory until he has learnt all the spells from them, after that they go in the stash. First opening, no icons: Second opening, icons:

I think I'd prefer the ability to be called *Spell Fluency* rather than Mastery as it does not imply any increased facility with the spell, only the ability to cast it (fairly) freely: fluency |ˈflo͞oənsē|noun the quality or condition of being fluent, in particular: • the ability to speak or write a foreign language easily and accurately: fluency in Spanish is essential. • the ability to express oneself easily and articulately. • gracefulness and ease of movement or style: the horse was jumping with breathtaking fluency. ORIGIN early 17th cent.: from Latin fluentia, from fluere ‘to flow.’

Sorry, I may not have been clear in my original post. The description of the paladin's Aggresive script says that Sworn Enemy will ONLY be used if per rest is enabled. However as Sworn Enemy is now a per encounter ability this qualification is misleading and, by implication, the script itself may be incorrect. As a minimum the description need to be updated and the script should be reviewed.

OK, thanks, I'm OK with it, health loss usually forced a camp before travelling fatigue set in anyway. This is probably worth a *hint* on the loading/transition screen as it's a significant change from what BG veterans might expect. Could be explained that travel times allow for minor pauses/comfort breaks so the party is travelling at its best sustainable speed.

Pellegina gets a unique talent to boost her FOD in the 3.0 beta (a party speed buff). As a character I much prefer Pellegina, Durance normally gets to escort unpleasant visitors to the Stronghold (that'l teach them!).

My party travelled from Gilded Vale to Durance Bay, did a bunch of quests and returned to Caed Nua all without resting or becoming fatigued. Measured by a pending attack on the Stronghold this was almost 3 days in-game time. Is this what should be expected? EDIT: It was just over 3 days in total but I did camp out on Heritage Hill so not a continuous 3 day stint However before I camped the party had been going for nearly 2 days with several small fights and in v2 I would have expected (at least) the less athletic party members to have become fatigued.

The Cloak of Comfort (another new Stronghold quest item) also has missing Characters and Itemmod.

Now I understand things better the combat log is mostly showing what I expect. There has been one occasion when my monk had a wound but there was no burn damage, if this happens again is there anyway to grab a copy of the combat log please?

After some more experimentation it seems that the icons don't show up the first time you open a grimoire put do on subsequent attempts.

Sounds about right? If there's no burn damage to increase, 20% of 0 is 0 Drat! I had presumed that Scion of Flames (etc.) working like the Whip enchantments, thanks for the correction.

Just checked in a minor fight, monk got no wounds so no Turning Wheel effect (as expected) but no Scion of Flame damage either Based on the then the burn damage I saw being inflicted in the Sanatorium fight was probably correct for Turning Wheel.

My feeling is that the world of PoE IS systematic, the world of BG1-2 is not. EG in PoE even souls are something that can be studied and systematised in public facilities (this is a major theme in-game). PoE is not a clone of AD&A, in my view it does not need (EG) A *Deck of Many Things*. I like that the crafting system allows items to be useful throughout the game, there is much less of the arms race you got in BG1-2: *Only +3? rubbish! sell it…* In POE it's more a case of: *How does this synergise with the party's skills?*

Mainly because I've got better things to do with the money but also because I find the re-spec things breaks immersion. I'm happy to wait until OBS fix the chanter AI. In the mean time Kana is doing great work bringing home artefacts from the updated Stronghold quests

Thanks for the hint Aarik. Zu San is doing burn damage as well as crush damage but I'm not sure it's sufficient for both Turning Wheel and Scion of Flame. I will check at each opportunity.

My v2 party usually stop by at Cragholdt on their way to/from the North March and try to pick off a straggler or two for the loot, it doesn't always work

OBS have confirmed that the *wandering* behaviour is an old bug that has regressed back into the beta build.