mph

This is an old tiny bug I've seen mentioned here and there, but I couldn't find it properly reported. So, after the rematch fight with Raedric, the fampyr servant who brings you to him offers to work at your Stronghold, and as far as I can tell nothing happens if you accept - she's not among hirelings, and I couldn't find her anywhere. I don't have a save right after it happened, but by Googling this seems to be a common issue (it happened to me in 2.01).

If you're really patient you can still kill them with abilities that never miss, such as various thorn-like effects, and Priest's tier VI lightning aura thingie. They also take damage from the kamikaze constructs, so you can use a character with boots of speed to lure them in... yeah, better wait for a fix

The vision you get says that the right bell comes first and last, and the note you find says that the ... middle bell, IIRC? ... comes second. So the hints are all there. But damned if they're not really easy to miss. That, I definitely agree with. There's also a poem/story about some dude talking with 3 divine beings, and other hints allow you to figure out which being is which bell, and the beings speak 4 times in the story, and the order in which they speak is the correct order for the bells.

4 out of 10 companions in the game (including 2 early ones) are female, so pretty close to 50-50. Also, without spoiling too much, one of the male ones can count as about 0.7 male and 0.3 female, or something like that. I'm not sure, it's complicated

While I was digging through Iovara's dialogue files, I've discovered what seems to be lines from a different version of the story. I figured I'll share them: Lines by player: "The gods have given me the souls of their Forgiven. If you repent, you could join with them. Help me strike the final blow against Thaos." (This first line IS still in the game, but it does next to nothing. She barely replies to it. What follows is what could've been.) "You used to fight for your beliefs. Now all you do is whimper in protest. This DOES mean nothing. Defeating Thaos, that means something." "You began your cause because you wanted to bring people hope without sacrificing truth. Thaos remains the greatest enemy to those things, more than any god." "Your vision of a world that knows the truth may happen one day, but it will never come about while Thaos lives." "All the souls of the Forgiven are bound to me - from every god. If you repent now, you are not asking for the gods' forgiveness, you are asking for mine." (That last one is VERY Torment, right?) "I would rather keep the souls." [Extract Iovara's soul from the adra.] You extend beyond the reaches of your body, plunging some part of yourself into the cold adra as though diving into a twilit ocean for some drowning swimmer. You can feel Iovara's presence, a faint warmth that guides you through the darkness, and at last you are able to gather her up and raise her from the depths. She is bound to you now, like some extension of yourself, out of sight, but never far away. Lines by Iovara: "If I were to help you, though, I would do it on one condition. The souls you carry, I would see them freed. Their souls for mine. "The way to Sun in Shadow is cloaked in unnatural darkness. Only its adra lanterns can light the way. It will cost you some of the souls you carry." "Release all of them there, and they will find their way back into the cycle. It is the freedom they were promised but never granted. I promise you, against Thaos, I am more than their equal." "We have an agreement." Iovara nods, her disappointment undisguised. "So be it. I hope you will find it in your heart to set them free once they have done all they can for you. You of all people should be able to appreciate their need for rest." ---- There's also a short, unused file called "14_cv_iovara_end" which seems to contain a short dialogue with Iovara after you beat Thaos. No grand revelations there, however, aside from a "May we meet again one day" line. Apparently, in this version of endgame we were supposed to use the Forgiven souls not as a parachute/cushion, but to have a chance in a fight against Thaos, and to light the way (those few weird scenes make a lot more sense now). There was also an option to trade them for Iovara's help, too, and the first step of that path still lingers in the game. I kind of see why they've decided to change it (for one thing, this is all very similar to a scene from Diablo 3), but still, I like some bits of this ending, esp. giving Iovara a chance to get back at Thaos directly. Would also explain how exactly is the Watcher beating up someone who's supposed to be level 50 or something

You need higher security to keep him in. Invest into some hirelings if you can. He escaped from my prison, I did a quickload, hired some goons, and he never tried anything again.

I went through the dialogue files, and found some interesting quotes. First, the funny one: Iovara: "That the gods aren't real." Player: [background: Nihilist] "I KNEW IT!" ^I'm now tempted to play again with a new character, just to pick that one line Some more on-topic lines from Iovara: "I often wonder that myself. If things had gone differently, if the world had taken my faith instead of the Engwithans' faith, would it truly be what I had envisioned?" "I never thought of it as a faith, but I think you are right to call it that. "Let the world see. Let them decide what to do. That was my faith." "I could tell you what I believe, but again, it would be no proof. I have only what I have seen, and what others have told me about it. There is only one man who can tell you now, who knows it to a certainty, and you shall face him soon enough. "I will leave you to see it for yourself, make your own judgments. Better for your soul that way, I think." "I had been assigned to join a few of them at a temple. I found the door to their chambers closed, but the room was stone and the door thin. Their voices carried. I heard... enough. I investigated the things they spoke of, and everything was there, just as they said it'd be." (for that last one, I'm guessing there were either some secret records or it was about all the machines used to create gods) Lines which can be said by your companions, depending on various things: "Even so, faith in the gods has shaped lives and civilizations for ages. Does that not make the gods real in their own way?" "Just think of this whole conversation we're having... whether or not the gods are real, simply asking the question forces us to look closely at what we know. Even if we can't answer with certainty if they are real or not, the exploration is what makes us grow." "All that has come since... If the gods were not real then, perhaps they are now. Real enough to inspire." And one line from Thaos: "I lied to no one. Not to you. Not to anyone. The gods are real. They are everything we need them to be, and the world is better for it." So yeah, that POV can show up in the ending. You can kind-of voice it by siding with the gods, and agreeing that the secret of their origin needs to stay hidden. I guess it's something which will be explored more in the sequel, here the ending was more about finding the truth and your first reaction to it.

One thing to remember is that PoE is the first game in a series, so things like this can - and, I hope, will - come back if you carry over your save. Perhaps that NPC will one day return and give you something better. Or help with a quest. Or betray you for some really interesting reasons.

You need a sabre called Resolution, I think it's on the next floor or so. I don't think it's a quest, just a mini-secret.

I think Resolve 20 was on floor 14 of the mega-dungeon (and I recall a couple Resolve 18-19 checks here and there), and Int 19 was in Twin Elms. Perception 19 was used to see some details in a vision somewhere. Keep in mind you'll probably export your character into sequels and expansions, and those will likely have more. You can gain +2 from items (I don't recall any +3 Int item, but maybe there is one), and foods only work in combat. You can get it to 19+ with inn or Salty Mast bonuses, or with a certain ability (but for the last one you'd need to reload right before the conversation, 'cos the buff doesn't last long).

I've seen Resolve 20, Intelligence 19 and Perception 19. I don't recall seeing any above 20.

That's correct. And I have a strong suspicion that Gilded Vale folks give the Watcher heads up should he choose to revisit. (E.g. to rest at an inn while after some bounties.) I have played Act 1 and 2 two times for that reason, but it seems like animancy can't really be saved. Does one have to pass a certain amount of checks during the hearing to achieve this ending? Or are there other requisites for it? I wish I knew. The images are taken from the wiki, wiki itself having no definitive answer yet. Vehemently defending animancy during the hearing didn't help in my case. Being sent as a Dozens representative I lied that they supported my investigation. End result: animancy survives as an underground endeavor. I've got the linked ending. I sided with the Knights, did all quests in a pro-animancy way, and was a playing a dialogue character (Int, Per, Res all at 20 or higher, high lore, also high honesty) and used that to my advantage when supporting the animancers.

That's kind of a part of the problem then--- If you just happen to never get that quest, then the game is just kicking you in the face for no reason whatsoever. I actually liked the way it occured, the dude in the inn has an NPC description of "Frightened villager" and do appear to be sort of afraid in the dialogue from all that occured and not overaly earer to talk with you. And was kinda nice to simply find out about it in manner, no big waving alarm flags or forced dialogues, just a frightened dude in an inn. Made me feel more immersed in the game world. I've read somewhere that the Throne Lady in your stronghold can also inform you of this quest, but I haven't verified this.

And this would've worked for the other ending. It'd be a bit boring and cliche, but at least not out of the blue. But we got a sudden "the suits worked OK, and the Knights got drunk with power" instead.

You can think of them as superhuman Artificial Intelligences rulling the world. Also, since they aren't immortal creators of the world, it brings their wisdom into question, I suppose. Also, imagine that one of the real world gods turns out to be real... but it also turns out it were aliens in disguise. I think quite a few people would be upset about this

As you've guessed, most of this can be prevented: 2) During Act 3 certain characters can inform you of this, and you can go back, kill him again, and save the city for good. Siding with him in the first place also doesn't end all that badly. 3) If you make a very good case, some animancers get saved (by a member of the Dozens, no less), and they get to rebuild in the ending. 4) Those agents are crafty, and only need a brief moment with the control console. But you did save 100s of souls, and made an ally in the undead science lady, something which may come back in the sequel/expansion. (But blowing up the souls would allow the district to rebuild.) 5) Agreed here, this ending does come a bit out of the blue. Even weirder, the other ending for the Knights is actually a good one, not a "not strong enough without the suits" one. 6) As mentioned, you can affect the fate of the animancers during the riots and in the ending. 7) If you use the souls to strengthen people of Dyrwood, they are able to compete competently, and a powerful trading system is created, and the paladin is pardoned. Also, she does complain about her Godlike status, esp. if you let her talk with the sky goddess. 8 ) You need to fully explore Durance's dialogue tree (and he only allows you a couple of questions per rest), and have him around when talking with his goddess, and then convince him that she betrayed him. Apparently one stage of his quest also sometimes fails to trigger due to a bug.

I think the Master Below may return (Raedric-style) in a sequel if you betrayed her, as a shadow or fampyr adra dragon... I hope we'll get a higher level cap

If you don't get it there, it shows up later... in Adra Dragon's cave. The joke works better there, I think I suppose the orlan baby ending is kind-of a secret, too. Perhaps kidnapping babies is the pantaloons of PoE... So, baby armor in PoE 3?

I was somewhat disappointed that Berath can't be convinced/tricked like the other three. I hoped that I could convince him that the two druids, when combined, personify his "Life in death, death in life" line quite well (one protects life, one sacrifices it), and stabilize the cycle or something. Also, one thought on topic: what if you learn how to gain a power-up from the tower machine in Act 2? Does this trick come back with the final device? I'm guessing no, but it would make sense, and would work well for "I want power!" characters.

You can side with Wael, that's probably the closest it gets to not siding with anyone - that's his sales pitch, in fact. With enough Intelligence you can point out that by siding with no one you'll still be siding with him, to which he chuckles, and agrees but notes that you have to do something. You can also survive the fall without promising yourself to any of the gods, but you still do need to do their quests. Also, you can do 3 of the appeasement quests in a flippant way, and still end on top, so there's that.

"Rightful rulership" is in her godly portfolio and she does believe herself to be the rightful ruler of gods, so she's may be just doing what she was made to do. Also, it's quite possible that she's right, that she was originally designed to be the ruler of other gods. If so, then that'd explain why Thaos is going with her - he either wants to restore the whole system to how it "should be," or his being the priest of the greatest god was part of the plan, and he's stuck with it.

I was thinking... what if the ending is about artificial intelligence? Imagine scientists, who after some early failures (early psychiatry and early AI research have a lot in common with animancy) manage to unlock all secrets of the mind, and use that to create super-minds, superhuman AIs, with the goal of improving the world. Are those AIs gods? The AIs can even be specialized in different portfolios to cover all bases, and make sure - through a balance of power - they don't go too far in any direction. And what if then civilization failed, maybe even for random reasons, but the AIs managed to keep most of their infrastructure and technology? Now they can use "future" tech to grant effective miracles to people. Are they gods now? Not sure if the above interpretation was intended by Obsidian, but it is fitting, right? Anyhow, while the ending does use atheistic arguments, I think the conclusions its going for are more along the lines of "What is a god, anyway? What is worth being called one, and what isn't?" and "think for yourself, question" than anything else. I'm guessing they're going to explore it further in a sequel - we'll likely have to decide whether the gods from the machine are worth it or not. All this being said, I agree that Act III should have been meatier. It feels more like a 3rd village, than a 2nd big city - in Defiance Bay we get so many well developed quests, and fall right in the middle of a subtle many-way power struggle (and often end up stuck with the first side we meet, but that's somewhat realistic, I guess ). Twin Elms has some hints of various conflicts, but those are never explored. Not enough budget to make everything perfect, I suppose - and if so, then focusing the money early was the smarter choice, esp. if you think about reviewers and such. I hope they make a killing on PoE, and use it to go all-out in PoE 2 :D

Yes. You can lie about having misplaced your mask at first, and when you approach the door you'll get a "put on the mask" option, which works for Godlike - it'll comment that it almost doesn't fit, and that you're getting some weird looks inside. I'm not sure how this works for Fire Godlike, however. Perhaps their flames are cold most of the time, and just look hot.

I agree that, Wheel or not, the soul ecosystem almost certainly predates the gods. I was just thinking that the gods made some changes in it (I thought it was the Wheel part, 'cos it brought a water wheel to my mind, but I'll need to replay the endgame carefully, and see what exactly is being said about it there) to turn it into a power source. I think the Collector's Book mentioned a hypothesis of new souls being birthed deep within the adra formations, so perhaps the god-makers had a surplus of souls, failed to predict a population boom, and figured it won't hurt if their gods use that surplus as a power source - maybe even the surplus itself was causing some problems, so it seemed like a "two birds, one stone" solution. @Katarack21: I think I've missed that bit of some souls returning stronger, but either way, I doubt one soul could fatten up enough to attain godhood. Thaos's memory suggests you need about 1000 or more souls to make a god, and those were ancient souls, much stronger than modern ones. Perhaps the Adra Dragon was trying to do something along those lines, but failed either due to not having the technology needed for fine soul manipulation, or due to its main soul not being strong enough to pull this off.

My understanding was that the ancients didn't prove the impossible to prove "there are no gods in the universe, period" statement, but a weaker one: "we've investigated all divine claims we could find, and found no hard evidence to support any of them," or "there don't seem to be any gods currently active in our world." At this point it didn't really matter to them if they were right - they'd convinced themselves that if the world had some undeniably true gods, it'd unite the nations and such. Perhaps it was even a double ploy: if there were some hidden real gods, they'd step out, reveal themselves, and take out the impostors. I agree that it could have been delivered in a more subtle way, but the bluntness is somewhat softened by the bit about simply thinking about it, asking your own questions, and doing your own investigation. Also, regarding the above, what if Wael is a true god who infiltrated the synthetic ones? He seems to be different from the others, and his "mysteries for everyone!" gig would explain why they couldn't prove his existence - he made sure to hide himself well. I think it'd be an interesting twist-within-a-twist if it turned out that one of the fake gods wasn't a fake after all.