Dev Stream on Thursday 7/12/18 at 11 AM PDT with Alex Scokel!

[Aarik D]

Tune in this Thursday for another Deadfire Dev Stream! I am joined by Narrative Designer, Alex Scokel, to discuss the writing and lore of Deadfire. We also have a very special treat for you all, so be sure to tune in!

 

We're also doing a Q&A so be sure to post your questions related to Lore and Narrative Design! 

twitch.tv/obsidian
 

[Guest]

Question related to Lore and Narrative Design: after the game was released, many questions sprung up regarding the nature of the Wheel. Josh publicly responded that some exposition was cut for feel, and while none of the internal testers missed it, many of the players felt that it left a gap. Is there a plan to reintroduce some of what was cut via DLC or in a sequel? If not, could someone fill us in?

 

Thanks in advance!

[Novem]

I'm guessing this stream will have spoilers? I'm restarting the game due to the Vela import bug and replaying the first game to make a new save to import, so I haven't finished the game yet, but I'd still love to watch. Gotta avoid those spoilers though.

[AndreaColombo]

Lore question:

 

When we reach Ukaizo we see 11 alcoves which supposedly contain the gods’ physical bodies. 3 are missing and we assume Abydon’s one of them since we saw his skeleton in White March. Who are the other two missing bodies?

 

 

Other question: How many chances for a Modwyr banter pack free DLC? It would be great for the sword to banter with companions and perhaps interject in some conversations like companions do.

[Mislas]

My two lore questions (hope it's not too greedy))):

1. Is it lore ok - to change race or birthplace between games if you transfer your saves. Can it be explained somehow by some mysterious divine miracle?

 

2. You gave us the opportunity to romance some characters from first game, but not all. That means, that our relations can really transform and go further. Will we be able to develop our relations with other old charaters in future (may be in POE 3))?

[AndreaColombo]

While we're at, and I really hope you could answer this: Is Eric Fenstermaker going to write Edér for the DLCs too? If not, who's writing him?

 

Will there be more Pillars of Eternity short stories in the future?

 

Alex, who is your favorite companion in Deadfire (excluding those you wrote) and why? What about the first Pillars?

[WHW]

Are there any druids (both individuals and groups) that defy the traditional approach of "druid = nature gets special treatment/nature should be worshipped"? What about druids that study natural energies as a form of "science", hoping to understand it and exploit it for the needs of Kith?

Edited July 10, 2018 by WHW

[aksrasjel]

If I may chime in:

With Beast of Winter DLC quicky approaching, would You be able to give a few tidbits about the culture and society of Pale Elves? How technologically/scientifically advanced are they? I always found it interesting that you can play as a Noble from White that Wends and wonder how that works lore-wise. Do Pale Elves have organized society - something like gerontocratic oligarches, monarchies or are they scattered societies of clans/families?

 

And to get the obligatory question out the way: Sidekicks becoming full companions in a potential DLC - will they/won't they?

Edited July 10, 2018 by aksrasjel

[Nanawatzin]

Okay, I have a few questions:

 

1. Do all deities have their special descendants (godlikes from their domains)? Mainly interested in Wael's and Abydon's.

2. If you were planning to do a third game, then would the relationships with possibly returning companions be continued in it?

3. Will all the new story dlcs provide us with new companions and increase of the level cap?

4. Is there a possibility that a (possible) new companion from story dlc will have a spot for a deeper (romantic) relationship with our Watcher?

Edited July 10, 2018 by Nanawatzin

[omgFIREBALLS]

 

Will Nemnok be recognized as a legitimate deity?

 

[misterjimmy]

three question for companion and main quest

 

1. Will DLC expand and improve main quest and ending choice(just like Tyranny Bastard's Wound)?

 

2.  Will there more active dialogue and personal quest for non-dlc companion in DLC ? For example,I can continue search the answer about why Woden(Eder's brother) join St. Waidwen, since there is many readceran in Deadfire, so maybe there is someone know about him.

 

3. I wonder if my companion have their own "unique" trinket slots ?

Edited July 11, 2018 by misterjimmy

[juanval]

- Have you planned to release short stories?

[no1fanboy]

three question for companion and main quest

 

1. Will DLC expand and improve main quest and ending choice(just like Tyranny Bastard's Wound)?  no

 

2.  Will there more active dialogue and personal quest for non-dlc companion in DLC ? For example,I can continue search the answer about why Woden(Eder's brother) join St. Waidwen, since there is many readceran in Deadfire, so maybe there is someone know about him. no

 

3. I wonder if my companion have their own "unique" trinket slots ? no

and NO

[AndreaColombo]

^ and you know all that from...?

[Daled]

Well, he is the no1fanboy afterall...

[OEI_Alex]

I'm guessing this stream will have spoilers? I'm restarting the game due to the Vela import bug and replaying the first game to make a new save to import, so I haven't finished the game yet, but I'd still love to watch. Gotta avoid those spoilers though.

 

People's tolerance for spoilers varies pretty widely. I don't intend to talk about major plot points of either Deadfire or Beast of Winter, but we'll definitely be showing off some areas from the latter and answering some questions related to base game. 

 

I may spoil the ending of Empire Strikes Back, though, so if you haven't seen it, you should probably go ahead and do so.

 

 

Will Nemnok be recognized as a legitimate deity?

 

 

He isn't already? He's certainly got my prayers and sacrifices.

[Tick]

While we're at, and I really hope you could answer this: Is Eric Fenstermaker going to write Edér for the DLCs too? If not, who's writing him?

 

Will there be more Pillars of Eternity short stories in the future?

 

Alex, who is your favorite companion in Deadfire (excluding those you wrote) and why? What about the first Pillars?

I'm so sorry this is off topic, but why wouldn't Eric write Eder? Edited July 11, 2018 by Tick

[Guest]

 

While we're at, and I really hope you could answer this: Is Eric Fenstermaker going to write Edér for the DLCs too? If not, who's writing him?

 

Will there be more Pillars of Eternity short stories in the future?

 

Alex, who is your favorite companion in Deadfire (excluding those you wrote) and why? What about the first Pillars?

I'm so sorry this is off topic, but why wouldn't Eric write Eder?

He came back for contract work. It’s possible that the contract didn’t include DLC.

[handsomenat]

Ok, I have a bunch of lore questions:

 

Does a ranga nui inherit their throne or are they elected?

 

There are five hazanuis in RDC, is Karu the one calling the shots or is she just the only one we deal with?

 

Will we ever see an in-game representation of a map of Eora? (For example, one made by Vailians or something, with all its inaccuracies). Also could you confirm if the map seen on a hazatoha table represents Eora or a smaller region?

 

In what regions other than Dyrwood, Vailian Republics and Deadfire is animancy legal/openly practiced?

 

Would a godlike born to the Roparu caste still have a special place in their tribe?

 

Can members of different castes have children together? If so, then to which caste do their children belong to?

 

Also how much Rauatai and Huana lore was already created before working on Deadfire started?

[Sailor Magran]

just five questions

 

1. What does the general pipeline for Obsidian's narrative design team look like - How are areas stories first conceived of, sketched out, populated and kept tonally consistent between many different writers?

 

2. Anything that ended up on the cutting room floor that you really liked?

 

3. Any interesting lore that you contributed to the setting?

 

4. Is there any difference in writing for the DLCs vs. the main game?

 

5. Which country in Eora do you find most interesting?

[AndreaColombo]

• Is the Vailian process of refining luminous adra effectively destroying the souls therein? If not, is it preventing those souls from ever passing through the Beyond and be reincarnated? In that case, I'd expect the gods to be outraged (the Vailians are preventing them from feeding off countless of souls) and the Leaden Key to be out to prevent it (while it is true that we vanquished Thaos in PoE, Aloth himself says the Leaden Key is very fractured and with poor internal communication; chances are LK cells are unaware of what went on in the Dyrwood and are still fully operational.) Also, no public outrage from any protesters about their harvesting soul-loaded material?

Is Falanroed supposed to physically show up in the Principi's Consuaglio if we didn't kill her in PoE? Presently she doesn't, and I wouldn't have minded asking her how she went from dragon-slayer in the Dyrwood to pirate in the Deadfire.

Deadfire doesn't offer much in the way of reactivity to the Watcher's choice to empower Woedica at the end of PoE. Was this a deliberate choice, or merely lack of time? If the latter, is it being addressed in the DLCs?

Josh mentioned the Priest of Woedica and Steel Garrote Paladin classes were not made available to the player—despite being mechanically complete or almost complete—mostly owing to lack of time to implement proper in-game reactivity. Is this being addressed in the DLCs?

Edited July 11, 2018 by AndreaColombo

[Sotnik]

What is the origin of the sentient races in PoE? Did they emerge independently or are they some kind of mutations of a previously unique species?

Edited July 11, 2018 by Sotnik

[OEI_Alex]

Ok, I have a bunch of lore questions:

 

Does a ranga nui inherit their throne or are they elected?

 

...

 

Would a godlike born to the Roparu caste still have a special place in their tribe?

 

Can members of different castes have children together? If so, then to which caste do their children belong to?

 

Also how much Rauatai and Huana lore was already created before working on Deadfire started?

 

I don't believe we've explored your first question yet in-game.

 

I believe we state in Deadfire that Huana caste is determined at birth by the presiding priest. There's a tendency to assign people to the caste of their parents, but that's not a hard rule. I suspect a godlike would generally get "preferential" (assuming you believe being assigned to a higher caste preferential) treatment.

 

As for your last question, by the time Deadfire hit production, I believe a lot of the lore had been developed, especially for the Huana. That stuff can change over the development of a game, but there's a solid base to start from. 

 

(I'm saving most of y'all's questions for the stream, by the by, not ignoring them.)

[Madscientist]

- In PoE1 I did not empower Woedeca at the end and in PoE1 you can never meet her.

I imported this save in PoE2 and now she is present when the gods discuss what to do with Eothas.

How did she return after losing her power, why do the other gods accept her as one of them after kicking her out and why is she not angry at me that I killed Thaos, her best agent?

 

- The discussions between the gods seemed very strange to me:

  + Why do the gods need a mortal to talk with Eothas?

  + Why do the gods allow a mortal to watch and listen to their discussions?

  + What is so special about me? I was only half dead and not fully dead after Eothas stepped on me. But is there anything beyond that.

  + Why does Berath think that Eothas will listen only to me and to one one else, including other gods?

 

- Why do the factions not really care that a giant statue is walking around, killing everything along the way?

They are fighting each other and they try to find Ukaizo. The fact that both Eothas and the factions want to get to Ukaizo seems to be the only connection between them.

So it looks a bit like the main quest is a bit disconnected from the rest of the game.

 

- Any information about how the incanation of souls worked before the creation of the gods/wheel and what happens when Eothas destroys it?

Before the end of the game I did not expect the wheel to be a physical machine that can be smashed with your fist ( if you are a giant statue)

[no1fanboy]

- In PoE1 I did not empower Woedeca at the end and in PoE1 you can never meet her.

I imported this save in PoE2 and now she is present when the gods discuss what to do with Eothas.

How did she return after losing her power, why do the other gods accept her as one of them after kicking her out and why is she not angry at me that I killed Thaos, her best agent?

 

- The discussions between the gods seemed very strange to me:

  + Why do the gods need a mortal to talk with Eothas?

  + Why do the gods allow a mortal to watch and listen to their discussions?

  + What is so special about me? I was only half dead and not fully dead after Eothas stepped on me. But is there anything beyond that.

  + Why does Berath think that Eothas will listen only to me and to one one else, including other gods?

 

- Why do the factions not really care that a giant statue is walking around, killing everything along the way?

They are fighting each other and they try to find Ukaizo. The fact that both Eothas and the factions want to get to Ukaizo seems to be the only connection between them.

So it looks a bit like the main quest is a bit disconnected from the rest of the game.

 

- Any information about how the incanation of souls worked before the creation of the gods/wheel and what happens when Eothas destroys it?

Before the end of the game I did not expect the wheel to be a physical machine that can be smashed with your fist ( if you are a giant statue)

You forgot the most important question of all:

 

Why on earth am i chasing around a giant statue that i couldn't care less about. ? I can still cast spells and use abilities no problem. Chasing a stupid statue is the last thing on my mind when i can go treasure hunting and collect bounties

 

Its the complete opposite of an immersive story. The main narrative is just a nuisance that distracts away from all the fun