Aramintai

From what's been datamined - only Aloth's stays as an option. Yes but you have to make sure you tell him to stop trying to reform/destroy the Leaden Key otherwise he goes off and does that. Which knowing Aloth will probably end up with him getting killed Either way, staying with the Watcher or continuing his "Leaden Key" endeavors is a good hook for him to be in the sequel.

No.

No, I'm pretty sure this is it as I've browsed through the game files.

Btw, I'm very disappointed how they did Vela. You can't talk to her, which is very weird, she only has banter with companions. And you can gather from that banter that the Watcher almost mistreats her like a servant or something and not teaching her anything useful. It's interesting to see once but I don't think I'll run my canon playthrough with Vela, just not worth it.

You'll get one as a sidekick soon. I'm not torn at all. I want the same protagonist in POE3 - there's no reason for new protag other than level 1 again (but I'm sure devs can come up with another delevel story) and the Watcher needs a definitive ending, whatever it is. Like BG2:TOB definitive - become new god, give up the powers and/or go live your life how you want without any world heavy burdens, etc. Yea, Mirke is coming, too bad she's a sidekick. Rowdy drunkard orlan girl companion would have been hilarious to have around.

Just realized that if you get Eder, Aloth and Pallegina dead in POE1 you'd only play with Xoti, Serafen, Tekehu and Maia (and sidekicks). That would have been...way less interesting, personally.

Which is, I suspect, why Eder cannot be romanced. I see that as laying the groundwork for a return more than anything else. Perhaps, but what about Bearn ending? He'll just leave again like with the Night Market and Dyrford? Aloth's endings all ok for him to appear again (except for the one where you don't do his quest and he dies, but it's just like in POE1). Pallegina kinda can in some, not sure about the others (and she too can die if you really screw things for her).

I wonder, if there is POE3, how will devs treat POE2 romances? I'm kinda starting to think that none of the old characters will make a return and even those whom you romanced will just have some letter cameo or something, too much hassle for devs otherwise. Because it looks like it was too much hassle for them to even write romances and make save import system. It'd be sad though, especially about old POE1 buddies.

From what's been datamined - there is no option for him to stay with the Watcher.

From what's been datamined - only Aloth's stays as an option.

I don't know about the rest of the questions but this one is answered in the game for the current situation (if the gods are to be believed) - kith have few generations at most, then the consequences will start to show.

There's also an option to take him as a pet after the fight.

Is there a romance though? I mean, aside from that one convo, where Iselmyr is pranking them both, and a banter, where Eder hopes it's not going to cause a rift between them, there is no follow-up. It's not, it's just a cruel prank at Aloth's expense. To people who are having trouble advancing Aloth's reputation - it's a bug, or more specifically a number of bugs. First, Aloth has two conflicting dispositions that make it difficult to raise rep with him. Second, companions relationship system is bugged atm, some companions gain rep too fast, some dialogues are firing too quickly and some not at all, etc.

What about her? Personally, I freed her by disintegrating her soul. But she can stay imprisoned or wander among the ghosts of the Burial Isle as an option.

Oh thank goodness because that really was a wtf. Well, at least he admitted that explanations in the game were half-assed. I hope they'll have a time to revise those sketchy dialogues with the gods or add some extra explanations in DLCs.

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Except that if you don't complete Maia's quest those two npcs will have other ending slides. So yea, her missives were definitely assassination orders or ground work for assassinations. And Maia is not only a spy but an assassin as well, so her going to assassinate somebody is just another order from the brass, nothing new to her.

In that case Durance had as at least as much reason to return as Eder, after suffering faith crisis and learning that the god he blowed up is alive and kicking. Uh, I don't think many people would be willing to suffer Durance again. But he sure had an unfinished business as well, maybe he will cameo in a DLC?

Devs didn't choose returning companions for their iconic status but by who had the most sense to be in Deadfire. Eder because of Eothas, Aloth because of his unfinished business with the Leaden Key, Pallegina because of VRC.

Pretty much. It's not BW game with unlimited resources for romances.

Huana are ignorant of the other kith way of life and most of them hold outsiders in contempt. So what, shoot all of them? Huana leader told her daughter to go out and learn more about the Vailians but the girl didn't learn anything from that fight & robbery until you explain it to her. Also, that guy whom she beat was a **** too. And btw, it's not that leader who got killed, it was Tikawara's leader. Vailian will just be replaced with somebody else. So Rauataians didn't accomplish anything good with their blunt tactics. And they did it not because those people where bad, but because they were affiliated with their rival - VRC. It all comes down to fight for territory, except that Rautaians can't trade for ****, only shoot people. But what would you expect from militaristic tin heads who wish to assimilate the region by force?

Not very, for me they most closely resemble the real world East Indian Company.

You get pirates ending slides even by siding with other factions.

I think there's a chance he still dies if you give the priestess the notes from Poko Kohara.

Your devil perhaps, certainly not my Watcher's. Vailian Republics ftw! I mean outside of the game and role playing.. I'm the only one who see the Valiant and how much they are like the Czerka Corp ? I dunno what that Corp is but Vailians are your typical capitalist business men. They're for progress too, which is a plus to them.