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I really want to play a ranger again (because I want an animal companion ), but I got a few questions first; 1. Best ranger build in your opinion? 2. Best abilities? 3. Armour type? 4. Do I..... (get mentally prepared for this question...seriously....) Do I......have to be....ranged? With a...ranger...? ((XD) If by any chance , I don't have to.....make sure the build you mention etc reflects that. )) But hey, I can do ranged if it's the only way to have an animal companion lol. Info: Probably gonna play on normal or on hard (hard more likely) in this playthrough. Finished one ranger playthrough on normal a year back or so.... Kinda getting tired of story mod re-plays. xD Not so fun anymore, I want to dive more into combat. )

Hi there! I'm new to PoE and looking for some advice/answers to questions regarding the rogue and party play, without getting spoilers on skills/spells/story. I started playing yesterday (on normal for now) and chose the rogue as my main character. I want a character for high single target DPS with the ability to pick locks, sneak, disarm traps and strike from the shadows. Classical RPG-rogue. I read through some explanations regarding stats and attributes and I think I understand most of it already. My questions though are: - Is sneaking to enemies and striking them from the back with bonus damage a thing later on? I managed to do it in the intro, when that fighter girl from the caravan engaged first and I wonder if it's that doable later on as well - Might or Dex as main attribute for a dagger using stealth melee rogue? Seems like Dex with extreme high attack speed could be super powerful against casters with all the interrupts I'm planing on playing with a party, as it's my first playthrough. I know there will be some companions to recruit, but I also know that I can "create" my own mercenary guy. Is it possible to set up a group with all self made characters instead of using the predefined people you meet? If so, I would love to have following party setup and would like to know if it's possible/viable: Paladin with 2H as an off tank/supporter to bind 1-2 enemies and help the party. Fighter with 1h+shield as Main Tank with lots of defense and the ability to bind as many enemies as possible. Classical "Mage" with lots of offensive power and AoE, maybe a summon as well? "Support Caster" (not sure what class, pls recommend something): Should have some CC, some buffs, some debuffs, maybe summon? Offense/defense doesn't matter. Priest as Healer/Buffer/Debuffer My char (Rogue) as pure single target DPS. - Do I need to focus on all defensive stats or is reflex enough to not get hit by AoE frequently with my rogue as the two tanks should ideally tank everything? - If my rogue uses daggers, should I focus on axe/mace for my tanks to have more ways to get around enemies DR? - Is the religion thing on Paladins/Priests important for their skillset or is it more a flavor thing? Thank's in advance and cheers!

Hiho! I'm Jahz and I'm new to this forum and PoE. I have to start with - "Sorry for my english", couse it can suck at times. Okay, now before I post my question I need to give you guys some background: I haven't played a lot of old-style cRPG games. Only a few quite a long time ago already and tbh I never was a smart man, more of a straighforward one so I need some help from you guys. By not being smart I mean - I suck at micromanagement of my characters and figuring out good tacticks to use, so I'm probably going for normal difficulty and I'm not realy looking for MIN/MAXing my character, I prefer a little more balanced one. Mainly I have problem with deciding which class to start playing with, which race would be best for it and some build examples or tips for building my beloved avatar. Let's start with my playstyle: I love playing a melee characters, with some mix of magic added to them and optional ranged in some situations. As for weapons I go mostly for 2handed swords and scythes (which are not included in this game if I'm right ). I also have an affinity for animals and nature. As for the last part I prefer being a DPS class with some light/medium armor options. Mostly light one probably. So now we can easily limit our class choices to: - cipher - becouse it would be best fit for melee/magic style I think - ranger - has a combat pet, duuuh~ xD - druid - with this one I would be leaning more towards some kind of shapeshifter focused build. - if there is a class I missed out by accident then please add it in your post too! And now - could you guys tell me, which one would be best for a beginner and my playstyle? How to build my character up? Which skills to take, talents, attributes etc? Should I micromanage my NPC companions too? Or is their auto level system pretty good? Which race would be a best pick for those classes (I was mostly looking at the Orlan, Godlike or Elf race)? I hope you all can push me in the right direction to make that first run of mine a great experience!

Hello Forumites, I discovered this great game just recently and am loving it to death. However, suffering from chronic altitis, I've not made it beyond Act II yet. On the plus side, I've had plenty of opportunity to test game mechanics (unless they unexpectedly change mid-game..). To put my build plan into context, here's what I've found so far (playing on hard): - It seems possible to run 2 tanks + ranged DPS if you keep the DPS stealthed at the beginning of combat (of course, doors make things way easier) - to have good dialogue options, it seems helpful to have at least two of high PER / high INT / high RES - at least at low levels, the party should function without mandatory per-rest abilities, since only a few camping supplies can be carried - hiring at least some custom hirelings is beneficial Now on to building an appropriate tank PC, for which I'm asking your advice: Priorities: Defenses > Utitlty > DPS Class: Paladin (DPS classes are already good on CC, but having a few strong per-encounter heals/buffs seems really helpful. Plus, high defenses.) Race: Since I want to maximize saving throws, I think Wild Orlan, because their racial seems to amount to a free +10 will whenever will is targeted. Please don't lough about a Wild Orlan Paladin, Mini-Wookies can be proud and honorable, too. Stats & SAVES (not including paladin bonuses): - 13 MIG, 18 CON, 3 DEX, 17 PER, 7 INT, 20 RES - Fortitude: +22 from stats - Reflex: +0 from stats, +22 from Weapon and Shield Style - Will: +14 from stats, +10 from racial ability Questions: - Is it feasible to go Shieldbearers with this low INT? Personally, I prefer them over Kind Wayfarers because their dispositions feel more disciplined, so this is mostly about RP. - Are the opportunities to push dispositions halfway evenly distributed throughout the story? I've got the subjective impression that "benevolent" seems overly present, but I might be wrong... - Does this build seem overall feasible? Any advice?

Paladin {me} Godlike: Moon -> Darcozzi Paladin -> Orlan: Wild -> Slave Culture: Old Valia Stats: high RES, high INT, high MIG, normal PER, low DEX, normal CON Abilities: Lay on Hands, Zealous Endurance, Liberating Exhortation, Inspired Liberation, Reviving Exhortation, Greater Lay on Hands, Talents: Weapon & Shield, Superior Deflection, Hold the Line, Cautious Attack, Deep Faith, Sacred Immolation, Scion of Flame Weapon: Shatterstar, Larder Door Fighter ~ Godlike: Fire -> -> Slave Culture: Living Lands Stats: high MIG, highCON, normDEX, normPER, lowINT, highRES Abilities: Disciplined Barrage, Armored Grace, Confident Aim, Critical Defense, Vulnerable Attack, Unbroken, Savage Attack, Take the Hit, Talents: Two-Handed Style, Apprentice's Sneak Attack, Weapon Focus & Mastery: Adventurer, Bull's Will, Scion of Flame Weapon: Spectacular Spetum/ Grey Sleeper Rogue ~ Moon Godlike -> Dwarf: Boreal -> Laborer Culture: The White That Wends Stats: highMIG, normCON, highDEX, highPER, lowINT, normRES Abilities: Crippling Strike, Reckless Assault, Deflecting Assault, Dirty Fighting, Vicious Fighting, Deep Wounds, Finishing Blow, Adept Evasion, Death Blows, Vulnerable Attack, Finishing Blow, Lethal Blow Talents: Weapon & Shield, Superior Deflection, Weapon Focus: Knight Weapons: Battle Axe {We Toki} Ranger ~ Moon Godlike -> Orlean: Hearth -> Slave Culture: Living Lands Stats: highMIG, normCON, highDEX, highPERS, lowINT, normRES Abilities: {Pet: Bear} Wounding Shot, Resilient Companion, Vicious Aim, Stalker's Link, Arrow Sense, Defensive Bond, {lvl 11 retrain: Antelope} Resilient Companion, Strengthened Bond, Stunning Shots, Twinned Arrows Talents: Gunner, Penetrating Shot, Apprentice's Sneak Attack, Weapon Focus: Ruffian {lvl 11 retrain} Marksman,Weapon Focus: Adventurer, Apprentice's Sneak Attack, Bull's Will, Mental Fortress Weapons: Blunderbuss/Pistol until lvl 11. Chanter ~ Moon Godlike -> Elf: Wood -> Slave Culture: Old Valia Stats: highMIG, normCON, highDEX, normPER, highINT, lowRES Abilities: At the Sight of their Comrades, their Hearts Grew Bold; White Worms Writhed in the Bellies of the Dead; Dull the Edge, Blunt the Point; The Thunder Rolled Like Waves on Black Seas; Sure-Handed Ha Nocked Her Arrows with Speed; At the Sound of His Voice, the Killers Froze Stiff; Rime and Frost Followed the Footfalls of Karth, Shatter their Shackles; Cast off their Chains, Aefyllath Ues Myth Fyr; Oh, But Knock Not on the Door of Urdel and Gurdel; The Dragon Thrashed, The Dragon Wailed; Seven Nights She Waited While the White Winds Wept; Seven Nights She Waited While the White Winds Wept; They Shielded Their Eyes 'Gainst the Fampyr's Gaze; Their Champion Braved The Horde Alone; Talents: Fast Runner, Shot on the Run, Marksman, Weapon Focus: Adventurer, Scion of Flame, Secrets of Rime, Apprentice's Sneak Attack Weapons: Ranged {Cgadob's Hazel} Priest ~ Fire Godlike -> Elf: Pale -> Slave Culture: OId Vailia Stats: highMIG, normCON, lowDEX, highPER, highINT, normRES {About 6ish will be retraining: highMIG, normCON, highDEX, normPER, highINT, lowRES } Abilities: Deity: Eothas, Inspired Radiance, The Hope Eternal, Bonus 2nd lvl Spell, Heart of the Storm, Bonus 3d lvl Spell, Bonus 4th lvl Spell Talents: Weapon & Shield Style, Scion of Flame, Superior Deflection, Weapons: Ranged Grateful for you sharing your time and Gravity. May you ask the Goddess to eternally alight your path. Please feel free to criticize my planned party. According to many Fighters are better tanks simply for the engagements. However being a Paladin, and the non-rogue dps to be ranged, is of want by me. Other than that everything is changeable.

Hi guys, thanks for checking out my topic. I'm a new player and I just picked up PoE last week. I've gotten to the first town and messed around a bit but I'm having a bit of restartitis since there's a lot in this game to consider. I'm a very "Plan my play through" type of person so I want to know what build, items, party members, etc that I'll be going for. I play like this because the worst feeling for me in a game is regretting that I didn't make a different choice. Here's an example: I start playing a fire based Paladin only to find out that Paladin's main abilities are blue fire, which doesn't mesh with the aesthetic I want (true story). So I'd like to take some advice from you veteran's if you're willing to give it, so that I can actually get into this game in earnest. The first challenge is the party members. I'm very partial to story companions in games like this, so I do not want custom companions. This is a challenge because I prefer my groups to be diverse (race, gender, class) and to make sense in terms of gameplay (Even mix or range/melee, tank, healer, etc). The companions I am interested in are Eder, Aloth, Hiravias, Sagani, Pallegina, Durance, and maybe Grieving Mother. I really like Eder's personality, and I enjoy those with unique aspects (Pallegina, Hiravias, Sagani). Aloth, GM, and Durance are all being considered more because I've been told that they are important to the story than for any other reason, although I do think it necessary to have wizard and healer type characters in my party. Note that if I leave out Durance or Aloth it will most likely be due to me replacing them as I'll get to in a moment. So I ask you guys, what do you think a reasonable party is for me? Are Aloth/Durance/GM important enough to keep around? Or can I leave them in my stronghold and occasionally talk to them to get the same value? The next challenge is my class, which I've been having a ton of trouble with. Paladins are my bread and butter, I play them in every game where they are an option, and the next closest option if they aren't. This is my first experience with a game that messed up paladins so badly for me that I'm being forced to go elsewhere. Blue fire when every other bit of fire is orange? All of their best gear is bright green? No spells? It seems like their only role is to be a tank support, but if they are up front tanking then the only person receiving support is the fighter, and if they are in back supporting the ranged then their tankiness is somewhat wasted. Paladins in this game just feel like a drunken thematic rainbow that has no solid direction. /rant With that in mind, you know that I want to play the closest thing to feeling like a paladin from other games as I can get. I've narrowed it down to Barbarian, Wizard or Priest. Note that I like spells, and I especially like Firebrand, so that will be a staple of my character. The ideas are as follows: Barbarian: Off-tank using Flames of Fair Rhian and Dragon's Maw, switching to Firebrand to deliver the pain when needed. Interested in the ring of combusting wounds and other spellbound items/armors since Barbarians lack spells entirely. I really like the orange ability effects of the barbarian and their AoE nature. However, as a paladin "main" I find I have a great distaste for being known as a barbarian, and I find it hard to shake that feeling. I see their icon of crude weapons crossing a blood red skull and I throw up in my mouth just a little. Wizard: Self-buffer melee build with nice spells and Firebrand, probably a scepter or something before I get in melee. I'm very mixed on Wizard because most of their spells I have no interest in using, but the ones I like give me vast amounts of pleasure. Citzals Martial Power in particular looks amazing. However, their reliance on "blue" buffs like DAoM, arcane shield, etc turn me off greatly. The more I look at this the more I think Aloth could pull off a blue ice themed build with the spirit lance much better (though his starter spells are rubbish). Priest: Not entirely sure, but something like Abydon's hammer for spells into Firebrand when I need to conserve spells or when I run out. Priest seems like the logical alternative to Paladin, but I have similar or perhaps even greater issues with them as the wizard. I don't like having a bunch of spells that I have no interest in casting. I suppose the benefit of priest is that most of their spells fit a single theme (unlike wizards with frost/fire/arcane/corrosive/etc) but still. I'm not really sure how good priests are at buffing themselves vs supporting the party, but I think it would be nice to play one so long as I'm not just a buff bot for everyone else. So what do you guys think? As a barbarian all the party members I'm interested can be used, and as a wizard/priest obviously Aloth/Durance are no good. What class do you think will sate my paladin lust best? Which party members do you think will work best both for that character and story wise? Thanks very much for any help. If you have questions for me I will do my best to answer. Edit: I'm playing on Hard by the way, I tried POTD but it was a little too much. Also, Mobile was unkind to me when I typed this, there might be auto correct errors.

@moderator: Not sure if this should go in the builds section or here, so, if needed, you can move it. Hey, I'm newish to this type of game (at least the DnD style of character building), but certainly not new to RPGs in general. I also play Tyranny, but the build system is less complex there. I understand the various stats, so, it's not an issue of understanding them, but knowing how to build them well, and also difficulty deciding how best to build them or something. So, my question is, what builds are recommended for the story companions (as opposed to the hireable build-from-scratch companions)? I'm trying to figure out how best to build (or at least re-spec) them as I've read that they aren't built very optimally, though Aloths stats are pretty good and would be fine with pretty much anything. I'm currently playing on easy and I have the White March 1 and 2 DLC, running v3.05. My current character is a rogue. Also, I've looked at the build compilation thread in the build section and found some that might work. I've also looked at this steam guide, however, I was told that that one is overrated, and I've noticed that it's out of date. Oh, and another thing, I've seen in that guide that the guns suck now, but I see a few gun based builds in the build compilation thread. My thoughts on what I'd like to use, or fits best or something or would work best. Hearth Orlan Rogue (my character): 'don juan rogue'. This is similar to the Caleb build in the steam guide that I linked. Aloth: witted wizard (Fits his high int stats) Durance: 'fire priest', well, he IS a priest of the fire goddess. Though I kind of want a dedicated healer/buffer rather than a damage dealer (potshots are okay though). Eder: Can't decide on one. Hiravias: Don't know what build to use. Sagani: storm and plague caller maybe, not sure. Kana: chillfog? I think he's more of a support/buff role? Not sure. Grieving Mother: Controller type? Not sure how her class should be used or what build. Pallegina: Don't know what build. OR, should I stop worrying too much and just wing it? editwhiletyping: Dang preview post keeps eating the links.

I would like a balanced and damage oriented Ranger with the ability to (off)tank need should arise. So, for sure I need Might to deal damage, Dex to DPS, Per to crit and reflexes, Int for skills and Res for melee survive-ability. You see where I'm going... Might and Dex or Per should be maxed (18ish), but then I only have a bunch of points for Dex or Per, Int and Res. And no, dumping Con it's a baaad idea IMO. Now, I could forget to increase Res (and probably regret it first time I enter in melee) but still, Dex/Per and Int aren't gonna be as effective. I tried with a: Migh 18 Con 10 Dex 14 Per 18 Int 10 Res 10 Melee hurts bad and my skills are not as effective as I would dream. So I am asking the opinion of some of our RPG experts. 1. Which stats are easier to keep up by other means than char-gen? 2. What is most important to achieve the results I am aiming for? 3. In the aforementioned build, should I keep Dex at 10 and put those 4 points in Int? 4. Wood elf is good at ranged but I would go Human for more balance, is that ok? 5. What advice you have for me? Thank you! ^^

Hi again all, I finally got quite curious about Ciphers, and I would like to play one as MC for my next run (should be in hard mode, temptatively 4 people party but to be seen). The idea is that I want to play a ranged Cipher without too much micro management, and with a specific roleplay / background. Race would be pale elf, with the concept of a lonely "cursed" hunter having to leave home weapons : arquebuse (or BB but Arquebuse preferred regarding background / roleplay), bow, pike (2h sword as an alternative) I was wondering which stats and talents would be appropriate ? Do you think this could result in a gimp MC with all my specific background (especially on hard mode with a small party) ? I don't know Cipher skills at all so difficult to choose without risk. I know this must have been said many times, but I can't find a build close to this one on the forum. Again many thanks for your great insights. Aginorh

New to PoE and I'm having a hard time figuring out which attributes are important for a barbarian. It seems like there is a lot of conflicting information about stats on the forums because they all support different builds and play-styles. Back in the day I would have just restarted a thousand times to try out all kinds of creations but I don't have the time or patience for that anymore. So if you don't mind, a little help to get me started would be much appreciated. This looks like a great game and I can't wait to dive in. So far I think I'm set on a pale-elf two-handed offtank barbarian on hard difficulty. Good damage but not as squishy as a rogue or cipher and his AoE will help with the extra number of enemies. I get that INT is important, but how much is too much? I mean, I don't think putting another 1 or 2 points into INT is worth it just to catch that one extra enemy in carnage, right? But where is the cut-off point? What is better for survivability, CON or RES? I've seen builds that dump CON in favor of RES but that just doesn't make sense. Why go through all that trouble to negate the barbarian's weak deflection when you can just play to their strength and go more CON for a larger health and endurance pool? But maybe I'm wrong. MIG, DEX, or PER? I've seen builds that will dump two and max one of these but they never say what play-style they are going for to support their logic. Seems like MIG is the obvious answer but maybe landing hits with PER or hitting more with DEX is more advantageous. I'm not really one for min/maxing, but which attribute can safely be lowered a bit?

As the title says. I'm playing pathfinder with friends but do only have a few months of experience with Dungeons and Dragons. So far I have played as a dragonborn sorcerer and a halfling warlock in two different campaigns. Sadly enough, the dragonborn sorcerer campaign seems dying out (we don't get together as much) and apparently the chance that my halfling warlock dies in the next session is really high. Thus I'm looking at a new character. I am looking to create a necromancer cleric/gunslinger build. I want my character to be able to shoot guns from a distance and raise the dead. I believe because of this I will not be able to heal though (positive energy/negative energy). Within this multiclass I want more focus on the necromancer side of this multiclass build. I need someone who can give me a start, a place to look. Domains, spells, grit, guns, race, how can I best combine these two classes? I am not aiming to create a power play build. Thank you so much!

Hello, I am currently on my first playthrough and have a few questions I could not find any answers to. I decided to play a paladin as main character and also play with the companions you meet throughout the game to enjoy the stories. So I don't want to min-max but still be effective. I have chosen hard difficulty for now. I watched a few paladin videos and liked this one very much: Pillars of Eternity: White March 2 - Tanky Paladin Build It is basically a Fire Godlike paladin that focuses on tanking and providing buffs and heals for his allies. The first problem I have is that I don't want to go below 10 with any attribute. Yet there are 4 attributes useful for it. For now I thought I focus go a little higher with Resolve because to increase my defenses and also because it is used in dialogues. I tried to even out the rest. This is what I came up with now: Might: 14 Constitution: 14 Dexterity: 10 Perception: 10 Intellect: 14 Resolve: 16 I took might for better healing. Many older guides state that Constitution is worthless even for tanks but it seems that it got buffed and +20% Endurance and Health seem to be pretty good. Then I took Intellect for a greater AoE range and buff duration and Resolve for Deflection. What do you think about this distribution? Whether it is good surely depends on the talents I have chosen, so this is what I will go for from level 1 to 14. I am not sure yet what to take for 15 and 16 and on some abilities on the way. 1: Lay on Hands (heal) 2: Shielding Touch (buff) 3: Zealous Endurance (AoE buff) 4: Weapon and Shield Style 5: Flames of Devotion 6: Shielding Flames (AoE buff) 7: Reviving Exhortation 8: Cautious Attack 9: Reinforcing Exhortation (buff) 10: Greater Lay on Hands 11: Hastening Exhortation 12: Superior Deflection 13: Sacred Immolation (AoE heal and damage) 14: Scion of Flame What do you guys think about it? I am not sure about Hastening Exhortation. Is the speed buff a good damage increase for a melee in case I want to nuke a target quickly? If not, what could I get instead? Scion of Flame seems to be nice as it increases the damage of Battle-Forged, Flames of Devotion and Sacred Immolation. What should I pick for level 15 and 16? There is a lot of stuff that sounds good. Aegis of Loyality: I did read that with that talent Sacred Immolation removes Charmed, Confused and Dominated effects from your allies as well. Are those debuffs often applied? Is this working as intended? Depive the Unworthy sounds pretty powerful against bosses. Abjuration seems just as situational. But Righteous Soul and Deep Faith look nice as well to further increase my defenses. How useful is Behold the Martyr? Usually when a party member dies I guess it is better to just revive him or her. As my paladin is pretty tough I and I should be able to do that with Reviving Exhortation. The last thing are the skills. Athletics, Lore and Survival sound interesting for my paladin. Are the Survival bonuses worth it? And how much should I put into Athletics? It seems to be useful for dialog options. And the heal I get might be useful for when I use Sacred Immolation because it does a little damage to me as well. But is it potent enough or just a waste? Lore seems nice to get a little more options because I am able to use some scrolls as well. How would you guys distribute the skill points? And one of my party members needs mechanics to spot and disarm traps and to open locks. As I only can discover traps and hidden things when in scouting mode should the party member that has Mechanics skilled also have a high Perception? I thought of skilling it either with Aloth or Edér as I get those two companions first and I will most likely keep them in my party. How high should mechanics be? Thanks for helping me out

Char. Name: Lini Level: 37 Specialization: Wild Warden Skill Feat: +3 Wisdom, +1 Str Power Feat: 5 Hand Size, Light Armor and Weapon Proficiency, Superior Animal Trick Card Feat: +1 Ally, +1 Spell Weapons: None Item: Greater Luck Stone, Kohl of Uncanny Discernment Spells: 2 Holy Light,1 Find Trap, 4 Aids (currently at 3 Improved and 1 Greater Aid) Armors: None Allies: Giant Badger, Monkey, Sabertooth Tiger, Lizard Blessings: 4 Blessings of Shelyn This is hybrid Lini in which she is a decent Boon-Hunter, non-Blessing Supporter and all-around Non-Combat closer. Wild Warden to maximize Animal Trickery Wisdom can be just +2, but early levels of Animal Trick is not enough to close out Wisdom Location, Blessing Boons or recharge the spells Str is to give her some combat consistency and better + on melee boons. 5 Handsize is good enough for her, minimizing risk on the occasional bad henchmen/boss pull Could go on without Light Armor proficiency but as I said its early game survival. Weapon proficiency so you don't have to discard that weapon you just rolled for and be not Holy Light dependant on the occasional Ambushes or bad pull. Badger for better Stride-like effects Monkey for the Boons Tiger can be replaced. Lizard for dual closeout (Stealth/Survival..although Animal Trick is enough most of the time) Blessings are for Wisdom Assists or General dice boost for other members. Explore is a last option and only when you're short on time Holy Lights are for those combat closeouts and undead ambushes. Do not discard if you have 1 in hand so you can aggressively explore if short on time. Aids are rechargeable blessings using Animal Trick. Find Traps are there for Locks and Barriers. Do not discard them. Gameplay is positioning Lini on low-monster locations and slow exploring them. Put her Midturn so you can plan if you want to go aggresive on her turn and on the first set of turn she can fully assist everyone if needed as she will be resetting her hand for the slower characters. Gaining a weapon should be easy if no initial Holy Light is drawn. Extra explores are on blessings and allies pulled who should be easy enough to acquire via Animal Trick/Aid. Its ok to empty your hand on your other members turn, specially those who go first..empty hand means no discard if you ever pull a monster and lost. Slow play her so the others can be aggressive on their explore because they know your Aids will be there if they're in a predicament. If you close initial location early, look at your available allies or items and choose which location she can close easily..if its a far location, its no problem as she can be an extra explore on those locations she has to pass.

Any idea for a good Cipher Melee build. I'd prefer something in between glass cannon and uber-health. I want medium survivability, solid damage, and prefer to use Estocs. Suggestions?

I have played the Druid in so many other RPG´s that it was quite obvious for me that i will give it a try in Pillars of Eternity too. And i must admit: It´s a lot of fun! My aim for the solo druid was to push the power of his spellcasting while still being tanky enough to survive the difficulty settings of PotD. Lets take a closer look! Which Race should i pick? Moon Godlike is one of the best choices. Thanks to the healing waves you can tank and outlast your opponents much better. Wood Elf is a good choice for the better ranged accuracy. Also gives you a little defence against ranged enemies. Boreal Dwarf +15 Bonus vs. Beasts and Primordals can be very helpful Pale Elf +10 resistance to fire and cold is not to be taken lightly. Adjusting your Stats There is no „best build“ in my opinion so you have a little bit of freedom to choose one build that fits your playstyle most. Some examples: Precision Druid----------Swift Druid----------Defender Druid Might 15--------------------Might 15--------------Might 15 Con 10----------------------Con 10----------------Con 10 Dex 10----------------------Dex 15-----------------Dex 10 Per 15-----------------------Per 10-----------------Per 10 Int 18------------------------Int 18------------------Int 18 Res 10----------------------Res 10-----------------Res 15 High Might and Int are nearly essential. You will not only hit harder but your spell area will increase significantly. If you remember how many AoE-spells the druid has this one is a real nobrainer. Dex, Per and Res are more about taste. Do you want to cast faster, hit more often or get tankier? Your choice! Con at 10 is all it needs especially if you are playing Moon Godlike. Personally i prefer the Precision Druid. The reason is quite simple: Unlike Wizards the druid has no spell to boost his accuracy. Missing spells too often can hurt you a lot. The Beast within: Spirit Form Choice I think anything will work. Personally i prefer the Catform for its high attack speed so i can clean up badly wounded enemies really quickly. If you want more tankiness choose the Bear. Fun note: The Spirit Form works great against some tougher opponents. Do you remember the infamous Shadows in the beginning? The Catform will kill them easily with a few swift strikes. Choose your Talents Weapon + Shield Style / Cautious Attack / Superior Deflection: If you are building tanky like this your deflection will jump over 100 around level 11. Thats not too bad and will save your day more than one time. Bull's Will /Snake's Reflexes / Bear's Fortitude: These too can be lifesavers. Just take a look which defenses are in need of an upgrade most. The numbers will also jump over 100 around level 11. Sounds good. Heart of the Storm /Scion of Flames /Secrets of Rime: Giving your elemental spells a better punch (+20%) always looks good. But after the nerfs to some of the druid spells its a good question wether they are worth the point. Personally i still like the talents a lot. Oh, and dont forget the +5 elemental damage reduction bonus. Bonus Spells: Bonus spells can be quite useful in longer fights where you will need any extra portion of power. Just remember that high Dex Druids will get a little bit more benefit as they can cast their extra spells faster. Wildstrike / Weapon Focus Peasant / Two Weapon Style: You want to play a bit more like a Shapeshifter? In this case you should take a closer look at these talents as they give nice bonuses to your wild form. Thinking about Skills Mechanics should be your primary focus. Opening chests and disarming traps is just too good to pass on. Everything else is quite optional – your choice. Its all about Equpiment As a primary weapon i mainly use Hatchet (+5 deflection) + Small Shield (no accuracy penalty). A Hunting Bow like Lenas Er can be quite handy too. If you have to tank a lot you should definetly use any kind of Plate Armour. If your summons are able to tank all night long than Clothes are the better choice: Faster casts = More Damage. Just be careful. With regards to all your Accessories. Do not think about them too much. Just make sure to find any stuff that buffs your primary attributes Might and Int. And always take a closer look at items like Ring of Deflection or Ring of Protection to boost your defensive power. Shod-in-Faith-Boots can later on be a lifesaver in tougher battles. Boots of Speed are quite funny if you want to play hit and run (works great against Thaos too). The power of summons Thanks to the new immunities your summons are now quite powerful. If you use them smartly they will tank like gods giving you an easy time casting your damage spells. Lets take a look: Earth Blight: Slashing + Corrode Flame Blight: Piercing + Fire Rain Blight: Piercing + Shock Wind Blight: Crushing + Frost As you can cast them only in combat its best to start the battle with a heavy CC like Overwhelming Wave. This gives you time to reposition and summon your Blight. Fun note: Have you ever watched big bad Thaos trying to burn down a Flame Blight? Try it on your own - and laugh! Nerf incoming? Fun Note II: Looking for some easy xp? Just kill your own blights! You will get experience as if killing hostile ones. Which Spells are useful? LEVEL 1 Tanglefoot: Nice engagement tool that can give you time for better positioning and summoning. Worth to remember: If you run away far enough some of the hobbled enemies will cancel their engagement so you can minmize their numbers. Natures Mark: Fine debuff with -1 Deflection, -10 Reflexes in a large area. Cast it first and watch them suffering! Sunbeam: Great debuff and burn damage. Blinded enemies will not only miss you more often but they are even easier targets for your own spells. Charm Beast: A gamechanger. Cast it on beasts and watch them fighting each other! Remember the infamous bear cave at the beginning? Thanks to this spell you can clear it at level 2. Talons Reach: Deals quite okay AoE Slash Damage and - the best - its fast cast. Winterwind: A large cone that will deal frost damage (damn nerf). Works great in corridors with lots of enemies. Fun note: The knockback effect will completly immobilize Blights and Will o Wisps so you can easily kill them. Natures Vigor: Okay healing over time. This spell will also increase your maximum endurance by 15 %. Can work nicely in longer fights as long as your enemies do not have burst damage. LEVEL 2 Autumn´s Decay: Great cone spell that will deal corrode damage over time. As corrode damage isnt resisted that often it will hurt most enemies quite a bit. Blizzard: Large AoE that will deal frost damage and reduce attack speed by 20 %. Works best against large and fast attacking enemy groups. Burst of Summer Flame: This spell will deal AoE burn damage. Works nice for finishing enemy groups thanks to its fast casting speed. Conjure Lesser Blight: Great spell – for more info take a look at the „Summons“ section. Hold Beasts: You are surrounded by a pack of beasts and thinking its over? Dont worry! Cast this spell and watch them freezing. Now you have time to turn the fight around and hurt them badly. Works against dragons too – great! Insect Swarm: Fine AoE spell that will deal piercing damage over time. Works nicely in combination with Autumn´s Decay. The -10 concentration will make it easier to interrupt your enemies. Woodskin: Gives you +6 DR against Piercing, Shock and Burn for 15 seconds. Rarely used but quite okay self buff. LEVEL 3 Beetle Shell: If your summons are desperately in need of a shield this might save them. Absorbs 100 points of damage and gives you time for other healing spells. Infestation of Maggots: A tricky spell. Will deal 10 Damage by percentage of health lost over time. This means the more wounded your enemies are the more damage they take. Works great against groups that are already suffering from spells like Autum´s Decay and Insect Swarm. Natures Balm: The healing over time isnt that great but may help you through longer fights. Rarely used. Returning Storm: Great spell that will deal shock damage and stun. As the lightning will continously strike you may be able to stunlock your opponent. Spreading Plague: This spell leaves the primary target Hobbled and Weakened before jumping to 5 other enemies max. Nice debuff that will make it easier to hit your following spells. Twin Stones: The two boulders will deal Crush Damage to any enemy within their path and explode to deal Pierce Damage to all nearby enemies. Quite okay spell against large enemy groups. LEVEL 4 Boiling Spray: Large Cone that will deal burn damage. Works best against large enemy groups. The knockback will immobilze Blights and Will o Wisps. Calling the World’s Maw: Great CC spell that will deal Pierce Damage to enemies and will knock them down. Just remember that there are several opponents that cannot be knocked down. Conjure Blight: For more info take a look at the „Summons“ section. Hail Storm: This icy storm will deal Crush Damage and 25 % Freeze Damage. The huge (!) radius of this spell can hurt dozens of enemies. Moonwell: Nice healing over time and +10 to all defenses. Will help greatly in tougher battles – if you get the time casting it. Overwhelming Wave: Very powerful engagement tool that will not only deal Crush Damage but will stun enemies in its path. Use this time to start your pain train! LEVEL 5 Embrace the Earth-Talon: Powerful spell that will not only deal Pierce Damage but also petrify enemies. Only downside: The duration isnt that long so you will barely be able to hit your enemies more than one time while being petrified. Relentless Storm: Hands down this is one of the best spells in the game. An AoE stun that will continuously strike your enemies? Cast this at the start of an engagement and use the stuns to follow up with damage spells. Works best against dangerous groups of spellcasters like Adragans so they will never get the chance to petrify you. Plague of Insects: This spell is also great as the insects will deal Raw Damage, reduce Concentration and Sicken enemies. Nice followup after Relentless Storm. Firebug: Deals good amount of burn damage and jumps up to 8 times. Feels weaker than the other spells on this level but is quite okay as a finishing move. LEVEL 6: Conjure Greater Blight: For more info take a look at the „Summons“ section. Garden of Life: The healing is only useful when there are plenty of corpses around. Rarely used. Rot Skull: Will change your weapon and let you throw skulls that will deal crushing and AoE corrode damage. Sounds cool but i rarely used it. Sunlance: Good single target piercing + burn damage that works best against tougher opponents in 1vs1 situations. Venom Bloom: The Weakened and Frightened Debuff is great. Only downside: Its duration is very short. Remember, Remember Do not try to burn down a Flame Blight like Thaos! Always take a look at the resistances of your enemies. Positioning is key. Using bottlenecks like doors can save you from many harm! Debuff your enemies to make sure you will land your spells more often! Use your summons for distraction so you get time for your damage spells! Inns will become your best friends as you will run out of spells quite often! The more you eat, the more you get. Or: The power of food buffs. Why i am not using all those traps i have collected?

Looking to make an Officer inspired Priest of Magran build. Mostly an RP for Normal or possibly Hard difficulty with companions from the game. Almost like Cadegund from the companions that were dropped before release. Think heavy plate, arquebus, sword and shield. Anyone got any tips for stats, talents, gear to look out for (and what quests to do to get that gear)? Would appreciate any tips and hints at all. I know I want to play Human (Meadow Folk), and that I want to be a Priest of Magran and Mercenary background. But other than that I am flexible. Thanks alot!

Hello everyone, At release, it was viable to have a Cipher dual wielding stilletos or sabres. In fact, if you look at the Zealot Fenix build in http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=416939844 , it shows a build I had in mind. However, 3.0 is now released and there have been many changes across the board. Has anyone created a viable dual-wielding build for the Cipher class? If so, can you please share? Thank you in advance!

I got this game right after it came out. Despite being the two classes I was looking forward to most, the ranger and druid classes were a huge let-down. Ranger: Despite being marketed as one of the main damaging classes, the ranger's DPS was nothing to write home about. Neither was the animal companion. (But I kept playing anyway, because I love animals.) The Druid was an even bigger let-down. Despite all the pre-release updates gushing about the spiritshifting abilities, it turned out to be very weak. It was only mildly effective during the first few levels of the game, but then it failed to scale up with the character. That, combined with the complete lack of special abilities to boost it the way you got tons of abilities to boost your spellcasting, meant you quickly had to abandon it and stick to spellcasting exclusively. (I know I sound greedy and ungrateful since the druid was one of the best spellcasters at the time, but it was the spiritshifting ability I really wanted. I would have gladly taken the option to focus on spiritshifting over spellcrafting, and sacrificed being able to become a first-rate spellcaster to become a second-rate warrior if only it meant spiritshifting didn't get me killed every battle.) There was some talk about the devs eventually balancing them better, but I quickly finished my first playthrough then moved onto other games and projects while I waited. Now I'm back, and I'd like to know if anything has changed since I've been away? Or should I aim to finish my cipher or chanter instead?

Hey everyone, new to both the forums and the game (so no spoilers if you would). I'm really enjoying the game but running into an age-old problem of mine for rpg's. I'm a player who likes finding mechanical builds that fit narratives for characters I create and so wind up finding around in the character creator quite a bit only to find the class combination I'm come up with isn't quite what I'm looking for. I recently learned about firearms in the game and am now rather fixated on building a gun user, so here I am looking for advice on classes, talents to take, etc. I'm not particularly keyed in on making The Most Min/Maxed Perfectest Gunner Ever, but I like efficiency and feel bad when I realize I've de-railed a character build horribly so I certainly don't mind someone who loves that sort of thing sharing their wisdom which I can tweak accordingly. I'm already planning on working with a few limitations such as Human for race. My main goal is to do the best I can within the narrative limits for the character. I've already poked around the threads a bit and seen some discussion here and there but not much of it seems organized in a central place so I wouldn't mind this thread becoming a general catch-all for various gun combinations after some initial narrowing down of what I'm after. What I know so far: I am looking for the character to be using firearms from the get-go (I know there are a couple to be found early on) but I'm also ok with having an Arbelast as well if needed (or a crossbow, I'd like to stay away from melee and traditional bows if I can as well as magic but I'm not entirely inflexible in that regard). Blunderbusses in general are also not really what I'm aiming for either but again after some initial advice I have no issue with the thread becoming a general Post Your Gun Build Here. I know switching between multiple firearms seems useful as well. I eagerly await your advice oh community! I appreciate the time you take out of your day to help this little scrub.

Hi everyone Looking for some comments and suggestions. Aiming for a heavy-hitting, 2-H Paladin, that also has the accuracy to actually land-hits, and the resolve for dialogue. Might: 18 Con: 8 Dex: 12 Perc: 16 Int: 8 Res: 16 Ocean Folk, White Wends, Laborer Thoughts? My only thought was that perception may be too high, and would be better used bumping Dex or Con. Thanks for your help!

I've just completed my TCS Speedrun (2:18h, No Glitches), so I thought I would share the build I have used. It's reliable, but not without risks. If you want to reproduce the run, I would suggest studying my video. There is also quite a bit of additional information on my strategies in the video description: Pillars of Eternity - TCS Speedrun (2:18h, No Glitches, Solo, Highest Difficulty, Triple Crown) https://youtu.be/ZtGppK4gWkE (I've just realized that I got the Relative Pacifism achievement for the run, so fewer than 175 NPCs and Creatures are killed!) Concept Push for max. Stealth and compensate Mechanics with the Gloves of Manipulation. The Stealth allows for early completion of Heritage Hill and Cliaban Rilag, opening up high XP Quests in Twin Elms. The final char level is 10, and while Deathblows at level 11 would make the final battle so much easier, its just taking too much time to reach. If you want to make sure the final battle goes right 99% of the time, you can ditch the "Speedrun" part of the build, and just do a few more side-quests before facing Thaos. Build - Moon Godlike, Rogue, Old Vailia, Dissident - Stat distribution: 18 3 18 3 17 18 Abilities - Crippling Strike, Reckless Assault, Blinding Strike, Finishing Blow, Dirty Fighting Talents - Two-Weapon-Style, Shadowing Beyond, Quick Item Slots, Weapon Focus: Soldier, Savage Attack Talent Rewards - The Merciless Hand (+0.3 Crit Multiplier) - Dungeon Delver (+0.1 Crit Multiplier) - Blooded Hunter (+1 Stealth) Skills - Stealth 10, Mechanics 4, Lore 2, Survival 4 Endgame Items - Godansthunyr (Stun on Crit, +Exceptional, +Vessel) - We Toki (Prone on Crit, Exceptional, +Burning Lash, +Vessel) - Aru-Brekr (Movement Speed Increase, +Exceptional, +Might 2, +Crush Proof) - Shod in Faith (Endurance Healing Aura on getting critted) - Rotfinger Gloves (AoE DoT's and Spells to enable Sneak Attacks) - Blunting Belt (More Protection!) - Amulet of Health (More Endurance!!) - Ring of Searing Flames (Good damage buff in the early game, also useful for final battle) - Ring of Unshackling (To negate debuffs in the final battle) Feel free to ask questions or to leave suggestions for improvements.

Hi everyone, I was considering making my character a witch hunter since I was a fan of it in D&D, however I'm not too sure on how to start off, like what starting class to pick. Any advice would be great, thank you.

Hello all, I would like to get some help on how to properly level up Durance. I would also like to get an idea of what his items should revolve around. I am new to the game and played till level 5 but then restarted. My party is currently: Main = Chanter focused on off-tanking and chants. 3 Might, 4 Dex. Party face role. All other ability scores maxed. Working very well so far. Tank = Eder. Used the respec option with IE mod to get him focused on what I wanted out of him. Working very well so far. Melee DPS = Paladin. Custom made to be a last hit buffer with auras who's all about damage with reach, two handed weapons. Working very well so far. Ranged DPS = Cipher. Arbalest user and damage dealer extraordinaire. Broken strong so far. Caster = Aloth. Respec option used here as well. Working on getting him all the spells for utility. and finally my 6th slot is going to Durance for now. He's used because Holy Radiance can be used outside of combat to buff pre combat and it can also grant a bonus to accuracy. Priest buffs are also incredibly useful. However that being said, I need help to figure out where to go with him. Currently just hit level 4 so a talent is available. Now for some questions: 1. Is upgrading his staff worth it? What weapons should I use with him to keep him useful? 2. What talents should I grab as a priority at this point? Thanks to all who post. Noc

might 18 dex 15 Con 10 int 17 per and res is 9. Will this stats let you stand a chance during combat? So question is weapon choice? Should go for 2h or dual wield? Because of per and res, deflection is not that good. So comes the armor issue. Cloth or medium armor? comments, ideas, other build suggestions are welcome.

Hi! I've a simple question; well, maybe not so simple to answer. I want to play a Paladin, for RP reasons, but I want him to have high scores (min of 16) in the more "talky" stats: INT, PE and RE. I know that with 2.0 PE, being mainly offensive, doesn't synergize very well with the other two, that are oriented towards a tank-buffer character. So my question is: what kind of viable (not broken) build can I make with this limitations? I'm not a powergamer, and I don't want to play with him in PotD or something like that, but I want something that 'works' and feels rewarding to play I'm open to any kind of combat role: tank, off-tank, ranged damage... Thank you!