Heijoushin

lol, username checks out. Since the ranger always has send his animal companion into violent situations, I think was should avoid cute and domesticated animals

You just have to talk to him. It's hidden in his dialogue tree somewhere. Try going through all the conversations again.

Starcraft 2 unique mission types is (I assume) those missions where you just get a single hero with a bunch of abilities (usually including cloak) and have to work your way through an area. But it would be difficult to balance this type of mission for a party of 6 characters that could be any class. Of course, I think a bit of stealth and sneaking should be a valid option at least occasionally. That was the whole point of de-linking killing monsters and experience. It's supposed to allow for more creative problem solving.

Yup, it's one of my favorite series. There are another 3 or so out already. All worth reading.

Correct. They've remade it with modern graphics. But after playing both Zero and Kiwami, I realized how similar the stories were. You know how Star Wars Eps 7 is basically the same story as 4? It's like that. But Zero has two protagonists to play with (Kiwami only has Kiryuu) and the overall writing is a lot better. There are a lot of laughs and original ideas, whereas the original game's sidequests (and thus Kiwami's) are really straightforward and dull. Well, that's my impression anyway. Now the question is: to try Yakuza 6 or not to try Yakuza 6? I almost want to buy it just to see Beat Takeshi in-game....

*Sigh* Pillars is the type of game where I would really enjoy a super thick manual (like in the good old days) including lore, a map, and detailed descriptions of each class etc. I suppose wikis fill that role these days, but the Pillars wiki isn't actually that detailed at the moment.

As cheesy as it sounds, lately I've been reading LitRPGs (books about people stuck in MMORPGs... yeah, there's an actual genre for that). Awakens Online is pretty good example. Don't get me wrong, it sure isn't Shakespeare, but it captures the joy of playing an RPG. Also, the protagonist plays a Chaotic Evil character, which I enjoy.

Yeah, this basically. The earlier levels are quick, but then it slows down.

Yup, initially this was the easiest way to do it. But they added loads of immunities for dragons in a later patch. The dragon fights can be frustrating. I personally hate the huge "trash mob" that they come with. (Because a big bad dragon couldn't possibly fight by his ownsome lonesome...) Maybe watch some youtube videos of it? It really feels like the Alpine dragon is impossible until you see someone actually doing it

Yeah, I would definitely sign up for a fiery beard. It would be nice to have enough parts that each custom character feels unique. Pretty sure that the nature godlike is for Galawain. Each of the deities have multiple associations. Galawain is carnivores, the hunt, nature etc.

I wasn't a great fan of Godlikes in Pillars 1. Firstly because of the visuals and secondly because they seemed very "tacked on" to the story. However, having seen the new fire Godlike artwork (which looks super badass), I'm a bit more keen. And more options is always good. I think they stated somewhere that they were originally going to make more in Pillars 1 (perhaps for every God?) but it was cut down to the present types due to limited development time. I'd personally like to see a Rymrgand Ice Godlike or a Abydon Metal Godlike.

Trying the early release of Divinity: Original Sin 2. Honestly, despite my love of RPGs and despite how much people praise this game, I'm struggling to get into it. It just tries so goddamn hard to be funny. Give me soulless babies in Pillars any day.

Maybe one dragon fight would be nice, but I hope they don't overdo it. Dragons are supposed to be rare and all that.

You finished it within a day? Is the game that short?

Excellent point. Just inviting 5 friends over doesn't make it a party. You need food, drinks and babes. Which tells me that it's not the number that's important, it's the entertainment.

Don't you know? Obsidian put a gun to his head and told him how to role his opening party Look, I do sympathize with the guys who just want to roll MOAR characters, but look on the bright-side: replay value!

Played this in Japanese already. Honestly, everything that it does, Yakuza Zero does better. There's no reason to buy both unless you're a major fan of the series. RTS against other players is a pressure cooker, but I enjoy the campaigns etc. against the computer. There's more time to relax, play with units etc. I wish there was a new RTS with an awesome campaign a la Warcraft 2 or Starcraft 1 (You know, when the writing was still good).

The thing is, when you have a usage based system, then every skill must become something that you can do/practice from the beginning (run, jump, slash, cast). But how to you learn something misc. or completely new? Let's say you have a monk. As he levels up, he might learn: Dragon Fist lvl 5, Mantis Claw lvl 8, Tiger Stance lvl 10. But what about a usage based game? It just ends up being: Punch --> brawl skill improves, punch --> brawl skill improves, punch --> brawl skill improves... etc. With level based systems, the sky is the limit with regard to what abilities you can create. With usage based systems, you've got to kind of keep things basic (or strictly separate them into categories) so that player can "practice" them. It's for this reason that I find skill sets in usage based games to be not very interesting. Of course, a usage based system is great for an open world game, where you might join the warriors, thieves, mages, and assassins guilds in the same playthrough. But it works less well for a focused, story-based RPG like Pillars.

Completed Yakuza Kiwami the other day. It was very disappointing. The two games overlap a lot, and Zero is superior in most ways. Am now holding out for the Starcraft Remake and the new Life is Strange next month.

Another member that talks like Yoda. Give Gromnir a run for his money you can I personally think it was a silly choice by Obsidian to reuse the same main character, since it opens up this can of worms. But anyways... its obvious that we can't have end-of-game gear in the beginning, so Obsidian will make a cheesy excuse involving a large statue, spirit energy, and amnesia, and we will agree not to think too deeply about it.

Thank you Captain! That's just the passage I was looking for!

Well... it's an odd way of phrasing it, but the subject of the sentence is "unions" not "children". Unions = the sex, right? And we don't meet a single half- anything character in the entire game. I think Obsidian probably wanted to move away from this due to the half-orc/ogre issue. EDIT: Getting back to your original question, I would guess that menopausal women are safe (provided they had children before they hit menopause), but I'm thinking that sterile women, unics, and other unfortunate individuals would be shunned by society. I don't think we have enough info to be sure at this point though. We'll have to wait for a PoE set in the Valian Republics.

Actually, I don't think men and elves can have children in the PoE universal. That's why there are no playable half- races. No, I distinctly remember Aloth talking about it. Probably spurned on by either Durance or the little perverted orlan druid who's name I keep forgetting. EDIT: No, actually he mentions it when you ask him about his parents and Aedyr. http://imgur.com/a/2OEuq He says "elf and folk unions are sterile", which I take to mean "no kids", not "the kids are born sterile".

Actually, I don't think men and elves can have children in the PoE universal. That's why there are no playable half- races.

You know that any member of the party can major in mechanics/traps, right? A good leader delegates.