About returning companions.

[Larkson]

I've seen a comment here and there that Aloth, Eder, and Pellagina don't really serve much of a purpose or add anything interesting except to serve as fanbait.

 

So, which of the previous game's characters do you think would have the most relevance to Deadfire?

 

For me it'd be Durance, especially if you convinced him it'd be a great idea to take down the other gods. Seems like he'd have all kinds of interesting things to do and say about Eothas returning once again despite use of the Godhammer.  

 

With his help and knowledge, he could have even provided a way to actually stop (or help) Eothas' plans.

Edited June 6, 2018 by Larkson

[spardeous]

I posted this in another thread. It's really strange to me that the writers chose to overlook him since he is so much more integrally connected to the Eothas story than any other companion.

When Durance found out at the end of PoE that the gods

were basically just immortal Engwithans

, his natural response - given his spiteful nature and as someone who had sacrificed a great deal in the name of Magran as well as him hinting at the possibility that killing Eothas was a mistake - should have been to eradicate the gods.

If I were Durance, my first impulse upon hearing that Eothas had rose up out of the ground would be to track down the watcher(especially since it came from Caed Nua).

Edited June 6, 2018 by spardeous

[CrazyL3opold]

The simple answer is: The writer of Durance/GM left Obsidian and so his Person would probanly develop into the wrong direction or whatever. Even though I loved Durance, I don‘t need him in Deadfire... just like Aloth, but nvm there is the option of the bloodpool ^^. Pallegina is part of the VTC so she is a good representative. Edér is simply the favorite of most of the players and he simply is funny and in my opinion kind of a symbol for pillars. I do miss Kana as his sister is the kind of companion I would never recruit again (except on cruel/stoic Charakters). All The others are fine to be not there anymore, but at least a small comeback like Manehas would have been great!

[Slotharingia]

In retrospect I'd have preferred none of the old companions returned. The vibe I get is that the writers were done with them and would have preferred to create new characters, so I'd rather have seen Rekke, Ydwin & Fassina as proper new companions. Also I don't think we needed the Watcher to be the main character.

For making sense though, Durance does seem the obvious choice.

[Wormerine]

It’s not, that I would prefer to see different companions, I just wish I had more reunion moments with old companions. Especially that, except for Pallegina, returning companions don’t join you because of their duty. Not being able to talk to them really bothered me.

[Sceptenar]

Seeing Durance again would have been great, but only if Chris Avellone had returned to write him.

[Slotharingia]

How does everyone always know who wrote the characters? Who wrote Aloth & Zahua?

[wRAR]

How does everyone always know who wrote the characters? Who wrote Aloth & Zahua?

https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/74557-companions-who-wrote-what/?do=findComment&comment=1622138

[Slotharingia]

 

How does everyone always know who wrote the characters? Who wrote Aloth & Zahua?

https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/74557-companions-who-wrote-what/?do=findComment&comment=1622138

 

 

Thanks! What about Zahua?

[wRAR]

The wiki doesn't list that.

[Taevyr]

Pallegina and Eder fit in the story: She's perfect to serve as a connection to the VTC, and Eder's both fan favorite and the most connected to Eothas of the PoE1 companions. Aloth, however, had an unconnected character arc written in specifically so he had a reason to appear, which bothered me a bit. Durance would've fit if he didn't die in the playthrough, but I don't see anyone but Avellone writing him properly since he's such an Avellone character. None of the others have a real reason to appear as part of the main story either.

 

I'd say dragon age does it better: one companion carries over between each game, always a different one, and the others are mentioned or make minor appearances in the series. Maneha appearing in Dunnage and Devil returning as a macabre set of armor show that Obs knows how to do that properly, and I wouldn't have minded if Aloth had simply gotten a similar mention/appearance in favor of more development for Ydwin/Rekke.

[aksrasjel]

 

 

How does everyone always know who wrote the characters? Who wrote Aloth & Zahua?

https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/74557-companions-who-wrote-what/?do=findComment&comment=1622138

 

 

Thanks! What about Zahua?

 

 

Wasn't Zahua Fenstermaker? I am also quite sure that both Devil and Maneha were Carrie Patel.

[Skazz]

Zahua was written by Eric Fenstermaker, yes.

[aksrasjel]

I too would have liked to see new faces instead of bringing back the old guard. Call me a loon but I almost feel that Obsidian went with the returning companions idea (and by proxy the Watcher as the protagonist), just beacuse Baldur's Gate 2 did it. The thing with returning companions is that they are usually universal fan favourites. If you look at BG2: Jaheira, Minsc, Edwin, Viconia and Imoen - all of those characters were really popular back in the day - even Imoen (hell, *especially* Imoen). The same goes for Mass Effect (Garrus, Tali) and KoTOR (HK-47 and Canderous/Mandalore).

In PoE franchise, the closest thing to a universal fan-favourite is... Eder. I guess a lot of people remembered Durance, but he was definately a hard sell for many. Avellone's departure didn't help things.

Pallegina was popular in some circles, but she most definately wasn't a breakout character, with majority accusing her of being bland and unlikeable. Her coming to Deadfire has narrative sense, sure, but in whole honesty, Obsidian could've created another VTC faction representative from scratch and not much would've changed - at least for me. Deadfire Pallegina is a much different beast to the Pallegina we knew from PoE 1, anyway.

Aloth was always "along for the ride" for me - I liked him, but he kinda lacked presence in PoE 1. Yes, I know that's the point of his character, but still. Embarassingly enough - and a lot of people will probably want to kill me for that - I kinda kept forgetting he was supposed to be in Deadfire. Imagine my surprise on the dig site. Anyway - unlike Eder's or even Pallegina's, his story arc was done and wrapped up by the end of PoE 1. He succesfully dealt with both Iselmyr and his allegiance to Leaden Key and there was nothing more to tell. Why insistance of bringing him back? Was he really that iconic? 

But to be honest, aside from maybe Eder I was never particularly invested emotionally in any of the returning companions, so I kind of felt that we are wasting a companion slot that could've been used more efficiently. But that's probably a problem with me.

And lastly, real talk: Obsidian - don't be afraid to create more quirky and unique companions in the future. I don't think that constantly coming up with those down-to-earth, world-weary characters makes this franchise truly stand out.

[Camonge]

Aloth was a bit far fetched, but beliavable. Leaden key has a global presence, afterall.

 

Sagani and Kana Rua (specially Kana) would fit in Deadfire, but Kana is the worst character in the series, and Sagani earned her retirement. Maneha can be anywhere but is too bland to be remembered.

 

Durance has 2 problems: 1. Avellone left the boat  2. Durance dying was a common ending, so it would be a great deal of work for someone who might not appear in many playtroughs

 

In the end, I think Edér and Pallegina make of obvious choices, and Aloth was the easy third option (fan favorite, fits in the game). And please bring Hiravias in PoE3!

[Kohwalter]

Maneha actually appears in the Deadfire in one of the taverns

[Skazz]

Maneha actually appears in the Deadfire in one of the taverns

 

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

 

 

So does Kana, but only in a vignette.

 

[daven]

Aloth seems like a completely different character to me.

 

Eder seems fine to be there. I kind of wish some of the crew members were party members, give them a bit more dialogue and allow them to follow in the party.

[Aridea]

I posted this in another thread. It's really strange to me that the writers chose to overlook him since he is so much more integrally connected to the Eothas story than any other companion.

 

When Durance found out at the end of PoE that the gods

were basically just immortal Engwithans

, his natural response - given his spiteful nature and as someone who had sacrificed a great deal in the name of Magran as well as him hinting at the possibility that killing Eothas was a mistake - should have been to eradicate the gods.

 

If I were Durance, my first impulse upon hearing that Eothas had rose up out of the ground would be to track down the watcher(especially since it came from Caed Nua).

 

Except at that point I feel that Durance only cares about his vengeance on Magran. He doesn't give a damn about Eothas, since he is so obsessed with what Magran did to him.

I would have loved to see old coot, but I feel like he has even LESS reason to appear.

 

Aloth for me had the weakest reason. Pallegina was alright since there was a big thing in Deadfire and she was called by the Republics, Eder is affected directly because it was his own god that rose from the dead, so its natural for him to follow with you.

[Celan]

I like the continuing development of previous characters, though in this game I feel the disposition system turned them into figureheads for their points of view rather than full individuals.

[ShakotanSolari]

I just want to journey across all of Eora with my favourite drugged up grandpa Zahua, everyone else can rot.

[Crucis]

I think that Sagani would be the most relevant to the Deadfire, given that her homeland is part of the Deadfire, IIRC.  OTOH, as Camonge put it, she earned her retirement, though I suppose that it might have been possible that after so long on the road, she might have been considered as a potentially useful ambassador for her people and might have been in the Deadfire at the time of this story, perhaps even at the Nekataka palace.  But as a companion and with her skill set, she seems to duplicate what Maia brings to the mix.

[spardeous]

 

I posted this in another thread. It's really strange to me that the writers chose to overlook him since he is so much more integrally connected to the Eothas story than any other companion.

 

When Durance found out at the end of PoE that the gods

were basically just immortal Engwithans

, his natural response - given his spiteful nature and as someone who had sacrificed a great deal in the name of Magran as well as him hinting at the possibility that killing Eothas was a mistake - should have been to eradicate the gods.

 

If I were Durance, my first impulse upon hearing that Eothas had rose up out of the ground would be to track down the watcher(especially since it came from Caed Nua).

 

Except at that point I feel that Durance only cares about his vengeance on Magran. He doesn't give a damn about Eothas, since he is so obsessed with what Magran did to him.

I would have loved to see old coot, but I feel like he has even LESS reason to appear.

 

Aloth for me had the weakest reason. Pallegina was alright since there was a big thing in Deadfire and she was called by the Republics, Eder is affected directly because it was his own god that rose from the dead, so its natural for him to follow with you.

 

You seem to hold an overly-simplistic view of Durance's motives. My impression of him was that he truly believed that, by doing the bidding of the gods, they were looking out for humanity, therefore, he was helping humanity by following Magran's orders. He was acting as a soldier does, not questioning his orders, not questioning his beliefs, doing what he is told. His incredulity at Magran's seeming betrayal of him was such that, if you convince him to not give up his faith,

he kills himself.

Vengeance is definitely in there as a motivator, but I believe that, through certain dialogue choices(such as his reaction to you sacrificing companions to the blood pool, and his words about killing the wrong god) he hints at the idea that he really did feel morally responsible for what he did.

 

The major problem with the interpretation that Durance just "wanted vengeance for being used" is that, if he truly believed in Magran's leadership, he would not have felt like he had been used. If he had truly enjoyed what he had done, there would have been no crisis of faith, because he would have felt satisfied. The fact that he had a crisis is proof of that concept in motion. Waidwen's legacy and Magran's silence was proof that the gods were not looking out for humanity, thus the crisis of faith.

 

Coming to find out that the world was being run by what amounted to a clique of mean-girls-esque gods surely drove him over the edge about the gods. Remember, Eothas was the embodiment of what Durance wanted from Magran - the boy came down to end the wars and lead the Dyrwood to salvation.

 

Juxtapose Durance's anger at Magran for cutting him off with the fact that he was used to kill the god who truly represented the ideal of what he thought a god should be, and it's obvious why Durance would choose to pursue nu-Eothas.

 

I mention the weight of Durance's incredulity to point out how much he truly believed in what Magran had told him - his belief in Magran wasn't predicated on that it sanctioned him to act carelessly and without restraint. He was a deep believer in the most profound sense of the word. He's the one character whose faith is of central importance to his world-view. It goes to show the brilliance of Avellone's writing, and it's a hell of a shame that he never got to implement his "fix" quest on Grieving Mother and Durance.

Edited June 11, 2018 by spardeous