Gromnir

like it or not http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/11/09/behind-trumps-victory-divisions-by-race-gender-education/ but yeah, even trump voters didn't necessarily like him so much as they hated hillary clinton. as to the Court, possible the only positive we see from trump's election is we are more likely to see replacement Justices who favor judicial restraint. HA! Good Fun!

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/protests-erupt-u-s-airports-refugees-detained/ also good timing. am not sure who is authoring these executive orders for trump, but they are gonna be problematic. already linked above, but worth another looksee http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/reality-check-many-of-trump%E2%80%99s-early-vows-will-never-actually-happen/ar-AAmiJF4?li=AA5a8k&ocid=spartanntp also, http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/%e2%80%98up-is-down%e2%80%99-trump%e2%80%99s-unreality-show-echoes-his-business-past/ar-AAmlWUm?ocid=spartanntp tracking trump lies and alternative facts is becoming almost comical. HA! Good Fun!

no, but the reason is our first potd run were with an orlan priest o' eothas. HA! Good Fun!

am doubting the subclasses will present a large problem. obsidian described subclasses as being akin to ad&d or 2e d&d kits, yes? am suspecting bg2 were not the best example o' what josh and obsidian likely has in mind. iwd2 were gonna have kits and we saw their offerings. if you are familiar with old pnp d&d, don't expect bladesinger or priest of mystra. the subclasses will be different than the core class, but not clear better. HA! Good Fun!

the deus ex statuary is not a big deal to Gromnir. honest, most scifi and fantasy places great demands 'pon us to suspend disbelief. this is not a serious issue from our pov. even so, am not seeing why it were a necessary hurdle to need overcome. if obsidian wanted to start us at level 1, then give us a new level 1 protagonist. could keep much the same if developers genuine wished to do so. make watcher unavailable, but have the new protagonist get caught up in the misfortune at cad nua. same starting point at least. HA! Good Fun!

is not genuine unique. we have had Presidents who, particular early in their terms, who don't fully realize or accept the limitations o' the office. if an executive is popular enough, they can generate the Congressional and bureaucratic support they need, and may even be able to work 'round the Court a bit. trump is not genuine a new phenomenon, but we ain't seen his like in a long time. and as for alternative facts, am largely unconcerned. trump's unpopular populist movement needs a discernable villain. clinton lost the election even if she won the popular vote. she ain't a viable villain. illegal aliens is a possible villain, but not enough. the rate o' illegal border crossings from mexico has been steadily decreasing for years. the uneducated country mouse voters who got trump elected is not the only folks who is afraid o' terrorists. terrorists has always been a fantastic villain as they can be anyone and anywhere. unfortunately, the Constitution is gonna make singling out folks based on religion and national origin more difficult than trump realizes. is not a new thing 'mongst executives, but am seeing trump increasing wanna use the media as his villain dujour. what is perhaps new is a populist wannabee executive is fighting 'gainst the media. has almost always been opposite. the alternative facts nonsense is, we suspect, a way to paint the media as The Adversary. dunno. is gonna be interesting if ugly. the only way trump becomes anything other than a punchline is if Congress simple rolls over for him and rubber stamps most o' his ill considered, and arguable illegal, actions. numerous powerful republicans has already begun lining up to oppose trump, but if it seems like trump has a mandate from the electorate, things could change. one thing am almost certain of is trump will be disappointed with his Court nominee, whoever it is. none o' his top three choices is obvious political creatures. all o' them is Judges first and foremost. whether they seem to favor 2nd amendment freedoms or a more restrictive view o' probable cause will all be pointless if they sees unconstitutional excess from an executive. loyalty is important to trump, but is often lost on a Justice, and so-called conservative Justices is more likely to take a jaundiced view o' the kinda stuff we has seen thus far from trump. HA! Good Fun!

am actual agreeing with rheingold's criticism. oh sure, we also prefer a level 1 reboot, but am believing the depowering o' the watcher is contrived and ill considered. perhaps the motivation for doing so is to make possible the recycle o' three companions who will likewise be depowered? to make the depowering work from a story pov requires some kinda deus ex machina event. almost literal in the present case. a new protagonist woulda' been far more plausible and and would less likely to run up 'gainst proprietary instincts o' returning players. start at level 1 would necessarily bother a few folks, but take away hard earned *chuckle* 16 levels were gonna predictable offend. regardless, am not seeing a good reason for depowering the watcher save for it makes recycle o' three poe companions possible. coulda' started with a new protagonist at level one and had less baggage. also, in spite o' being a bit off-topic, am gonna observe how we would prefer six party members. am only mentioning here as it is being argued in this thread. regardless, a sixth party member is not something we "worry about," but is rather an opportunity to add an additional joinable or hierling. the sixth member is, for Gromnir, providing considerable flexibility to our party dynamic. have multiple priests or no priests is easier with an extra character. an off-tank became a constant in our parties particular after a few o' the initial tank nerfs in early patches and when recognizing improved expansion mob ai. given how one o' our tanks were gonna be quasi-dps or quasi-support, we would then have room for four additional characters; lotta opportunities. only have three additional party members behind tanks would be much limiting. oh, and again, we didn't actual need an off-tank during beta or at release. nevertheless, have the extra slot made us able to adjust w/o much pain. try and predict post release changes is impossible, but extra slot allows for more player flexibility in any event. oh, and more party members means we get to have more joinables in our party at one time, which is a big selling point for Gromnir, particular during our first playthrough. but again, am much pleased with restarting as a level one protagonist. even so, am recognizing the inherent awkwardness o' deus ex. the curious depowering doesn't bother us much, but a new protagonist woulda' been far easier to explain and less likely to enrage folks emotional invested in their poe1 protagonist. HA! Good Fun!

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/reality-check-many-of-trump%E2%80%99s-early-vows-will-never-actually-happen/ar-AAmiJF4?li=AA5a8k&ocid=spartanntp looking more and more as if Gromnir were prophetic http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/88086-us-election-2016-part-iii/?p=1828131 HA! Good Fun!

for perspective, here is an oldie Gromnir post dealing with the iwd2 kit issue. http://forums.obsidian.net/topic/54409-dragon-age-discussion/?p=1039586 HA! Good Fun!

Well, if changing the ranger pet from an animal to to a spirit that is only a short duration summon in combat is the only feature of that kit then I'd be pretty disappointed if I played a ranger. For now I'll try to be cautiously optimistic since I'm sure it'll be a long while until we get more info on all the kits am thinking folks need to reign in their expectations if they do not wish to be disappointed. HA! Good Fun!

most folks here will have no memory o' iwd2 development. josh/black isle kit suggestions before the switch to 3e were not well received. resulted in a kinda comical conflict 'tween forumites and developers. am curious to see how the poe fanbase reacts if josh and co has created poe kits along similar lines as the iwd2 kits. HA! Good Fun!

no tartar sauce after all. HA! Good Fun!

impossible but optimal: an optional turn-based minigame while traveling by ship. have ship-to-ship combats take place on a extreme simple hex-based grid. rewards and punishments depending 'pon outcome o' encounters. as character increase in power, so does size o' their mini-fleet such that we would have multi-ship engagements later in game. HA! Good Fun! ps this option would make for an ideal gold sink as one could invest vast sums o' gold upgrading their ship/fleet. make sure rewards is largely cosmetic or minor faction rep boosts or whatnot.

added replay value is one o' the reasons we like faction-based prestige classes. am agreeing there would need be ~4 factions to make this a viable option, but am recollecting how much the factions added to a game such as ps:t. give similar kinda attention to poe factions as we saw in ps:t, and make faction-based prestige classes available would be resulting in a game we would no doubt play a few extra times. with faction prestiges we would also get a more easily balanced character development option than multi-class which would also appeal to dedicated spellcasters who tend to lose by multiclassing. even so, our suggestion is only viable if factions is more numerous than 2 and more fully developed than in poe. HA! Good Fun!

Every class needs a sub-class based around sailing the high seas, imho. Honestly, I love you're idea, except that I hope for more than 2 factions. from http://www.pcgamesn.com/pillars-of-eternity-2/pillars-of-eternity-2-release-date-story-setting "Naasitaq, made up mostly of Boreal Dwarves and Aumaua, is the largest and most stable nation in the Deadfire islands. But a number of empires are at loggerheads over the archipelago, presenting Obsidian with plenty of opportunities to ask the player to take sides. "As for what form those faction decisions will take, the dev team are looking toward the example set by last year’s Tyranny. "“In Pillars 1, we dropped the factions at the end of Act 2, and so [players] didn't really feel like their choices were super significant,” admits Sawyer. “Something that I think Tyranny did much better, and something that we want to do for Pillars II, is really establish the factions much more clearly - give the player clearer choices, and let them know when they’re approaching consequences for the choices they made.”" implication is factions will be more integral and reactive. HA! Good Fun!

more alternative facts, eh? HA! Good Fun!

as mentioned elsewhere, we got concerns 'bout multiclassing. that being said, campaign-specific prestige classes actual sounds like a decent notion. no arch mages or assassins or whatnot. however, is gonna be numerous factions, yes? have prestige classes available to those who align with a particular faction would be appealing. so faction-based prestige classes would be our desire for a stretch goal. HA! Good Fun!

fundamental misconceptions 'bout economics. the US is a Service economy. trade deficit o' goods is expected and ordinary. lack o' us savings, on the other hand, is a problem and makes issue o' trade deficit more salient. and owe money to china is an oft raised hobgoblin which is also revealing a basic misunderstanding. treasury bills is the US debt china holds. great. fantastic. china is buying US T-Bills precisely 'cause they is such a safe and lucrative long term investment. china's t-bill love affair is only troublesome if it stops. also, american citizens hold far more US debt in the form o' t-bills than does china. is why trump's suggestion o' simple defaulting on debt were universal mocked. HA! Good Fun!

am thinking the developers is gonna be less concerned 'bout learning curve issue for new players than is enoch. make game a bit easier at start? default builds? will be less an issue with respec available. if folks get into game and realize they chose poorly, they can respec outta a bad build. our concern/belief is there will be motivation for developers to grant at least 4 more levels than has been available previous. 7th level spells and abilities were the ceiling in poe. the sequel mentality has us almost expecting level 9 options, though level 8 at the very least. HA! Good Fun!

slippery slope even the best flintlocks had rather high chance o' misfire. slight too little powder and you get breach. wet conditions, particular rain, would make for unlikely successful discharge and almost impossible reload. etc. HA! Good Fun!

well, double-barrel flintlocks would get you a couple extra shots before reload, but such a weapon doesn't actual address leferd's reload concern. am suspecting If we get dual wield pistols, the reload question will simple be ignored. HA! Good Fun!

never let plausibility preclude a game mechanic. is a slippery slope. am suspecting we would simple get the single gun reload animation. HA! Good Fun! ps is no question such dual wielding is ridiculous, but so too is so many other aspects o' poe combat.

so, is this a thing now? based on the blue orlan with the paired flintlocks in the concept art, am seeing a possibility o' a two-gun jake, yes? HA! Good Fun!

considering all the time we spent playing poe, we never genuine considered a wishlist for poe2. mostly we got trust in obsidian save for specific story aspects 'bout which we know we will be ignored. gonna skip obvious stuff such as stronghold improvements or the meaningless o' the watcher's trial resolution. beat to death stuff the developers already know don't need repetition. also, minutiae regarding technical stuff and/or interface is the least o' our personal concerns. the interface stuff may be very important to folks, we simple can't get worked up 'bout it. don't mean such stuff ain't important, but am not the person to champion. nevertheless: 1) do not once again turn the companions into exposition heavy lore dumps 2) work on making combat numbers more transparent 3) more reactivity to watcher's character generation choices 4) abandon class-specific skill bonuses 4a) in the alternative, revamp skills altogether 5) do not forget to make the player care have mentioned before every obsidian or bio game since 1999, but we needs repeat our position regarding the value o' joinable characters. poe took a halting step forward by using all companions to advance core theme. each poe companion had a kinda crisis o' faith if you will. unfortunate, much o' the companion dialogue were wasted on lore dump. what a waste. joinables, unlike the protagonist, is largely static characters. far more o' obsidian's storytelling should take place by means o' joinable companions. have players constant digging through and repeating lore exposition in hopes o' advancing the companion influence minigame is not good gameplay and hurts storytelling. use the companions. don't waste companions on excessive lore exposition. is a recent thread in technical support for poe which illustrates how traps is broken. we could see a difference 'tween traps in white march v. traps in the core game, 'but w/o somebody actual doing hard comparisons and number crunchings, the problem o' traps remained largely gut level for Gromnir... and we were wrong to boot. turns out traps made available in white march work correct. regardless, the point is even after years, we still got questions 'bout what exact is going on behind the scenes with poe combat. shouldn't be such an issue. please fix reactivity increase shouldn't need much explanation. a few classes and races received deviant reactivity, but priests, for example, received negligible amount. *chuckle* as a priest o' wael there were a couple additional lines o' dialogue available, but only if you had increased your honest disposition? okie dokie. pivotal quest resolutions as well as character generation choices should result in different dialogues and opportunities. am not seeing a point to inherent skill bonuses for classes. such bonuses do not further enhance the unique nature o' classes. mechanics is arguable the only skill for which a person might alter their choice o' classes based 'pon level 1 bonus. waste. oh, and skills shouldn't need comment as is kinda similar to need fro stronghold improving, but yeah, skills in poe were disappointing. many skills were improved with white march, but such changes only illuminated the shortcoming o' the skills as a whole. were maybe four different skill spreads we utilized for characters in the game. sameness is bad. fix. make skills as important as talent choices. lore and mechanics tinkering is swell and all, but it is all for naught if the developers fail to give the player a reason to care 'bout what is happening. am knowing at least a few (one) of the obsidians is kinda preoccupied with lore and details. we got no doubt the factions o' poe2 will be having deep and comprehensive histories and Gromnir will have many chances to explore historical details. *groan* those details matter more to the writer/developer than to the reader/player. it's the writer who most needs know why an npc hates slavery and yet continues to work for a business concern involved in slave trade. the player can go almost the entire story w/o knowing motivations, and even when providing explanations, an involved historical treatise will not improve. personal, Gromnir is not a big fan o' tolkien, but most o' you folks is. think back and consider all the characters in lotr for whom you had little to no historical background and only the foggiest notion 'bout the details o' their motivations. give the player long-winded history o' factions for purpose o' Explanation is bad writing. if you need read the silmarillion to appreciate lotr, then you got bad writing. show, don't tell. use events and encounters to show faction behaviors, but is far more important to get players to care than to understand historical minutiae. if the player cares 'bout a character, then they is gonna wanna know more 'bout the character. don't work bassackwards and try to get players to care 'cause you, the developer, has provided (what you believe to be) compelling history. ... 'nuff. for now, this will be 'nuff. HA! Good Fun!

It's not really a simple question. Is the economic benefit of these pipelines worth the potential environmental risk? We already have a ton of lines crisscrossing the nation, do we need more? Is oil even worth the investment at this point as the future of energy is concerned? It seems like everyone wants to turn this into a big political fight, when really it should be left up to the economists and environmentalists to decide whether the risk/reward is worth it. well, the oil is gonna move, regardless. as long as folks can make a profit, there will be folks in the oil business. would be a bit myopic to think people would give up on oil anytime soon if even the recent drop in prices failed to do so. the spice must flow! sorry. the oil must flow, and it will. the only question is how. is our understanding that railcars and trucks is even more likely to result in spills than is pipelines. look at bottomline o' cost v. benefit, even if only looking at environmental cost v. benefit, and pipeline is gonna seem to be clear winner. but again, the pipeline problems is the ones more likely to result in catastrophic environmental disasters. this is a situation where numbers can lie. on average, total amount o' leakage from rail and truck transport will exceed pipeline. pipeline wins. the problem is the pipelines is more likely to result in unseen and catastrophic leaks, and dozens or even hundreds o' smaller truck accident leaks is almost complete negligible compared to a single large pipeline leak which manages to get into groundwater or rivers. HA! Good Fun!