The Pillars of Eternity No Reload Challenge

[Serg BlackStrider]

The attentive ones among you will have noticed that we have a new party member, Sagani. I usually don't use Sagani, but since we have a couple of runs active featuring rangers, I thought I'd take the opportunity to learn the class. I'll be relying heavily on Serg and Enhual for tips on building her. Tell me what level 4 Sagani should look like and we'll go from there

 

 

Here is 'my' Sagani:

https://imgur.com/a/P4dSVjo

 

At early levels I'm mostly concentrate on Itumaak - Resilient Companion (you'll don't like Bonded Grief 'debuffs'), Faithful Companion (for your tough companion not turn on you on the slightest opportunity), Wounding Shot and Stalkers' Link. Then I further strengthen Itumaak - Vicious/Merciless Companion and I'm pretty much set. 

[Boeroer]

If you like Animal Companion's damage you should use Persistence (best single target dps ranged weapon anyway) and pair it with Predator's Sense, Vicious and Merciless Companion and also Brutal Takedown. Brutal Takedown is very nice because its damage is fixed and thus only has to overcome 1/4 of enemies' DR. Don't ask me why - it's the same with all fixed dmg abilites (look at Iconic Projection). Also Brutal Takedown provides two Knockdowns. Brutal Takedown's dmg does NOT profit from Predator's Sense and stuff though. Look at it als a fixed bonus that bypasses 3/4 of enemies DR and you will not be disappointed. Usually I can two-shot casters until the later game (Wounding Shot + Fox's Brutal Takedown => *pouf*).

 

Add Stalker's Link, Marksman and so on for Sagani. You don't need PEN shot because Wouding from Persistence (raw DoT) takes care of high DR since it's lash damage is calculated PRE DR. It also profits from MIG (25% raw lash becomes a 32.5% raw lash with 20 MIG for example). 

 

Persistence provides constant DoT effect (Wounding) even when not using Woundig Shot which means that the Animal Companion will always get the +50% dmg boost from Predator's Sense as long as you two attack the same target. The base dmg of Animal Companions scale with level. So even if they start out a little bit on the wet-noodle side they scale extremely well with level and any dmg bonuses you can provide them with. They don't attack very fast, but will bite through heavy armor easily aftr some levels. The fox is the same as the wolf - which means their base dmg is even higher.

 

Persistence, although being one of the strongest dps weapons in PoE, can be obtained very early in the Endlass Paths on lvl 4 (south-west of the map).

 

I usually skip Faithful Companion because I run out of points (and there are other options to deal with Mind Control in a party). Also because higher defenses on the Animal Companion most of the time only lead to grazes (if the do anything) - but a grazed Mind COntrol ist still a full Mind COntrol - just shorter. I rely on Priest or Paladin to deal with such things without the need to boost defenses which usually means a lot of investment for little outcome compared to immunites or suppression like Priests/Paladins can provide.

 

But Resilient Companion is also on my list most of the time. IN the early game it's very useful. Later on it doesn't matter that much - you can keep it or retrain.

 

You can also retrain Sagani once you get Twinned Arrows. At that point there's no need for Swift Aim anymore (they are mutually exclusive). SO if you took Swift Aim or Vicious Aim you can retrain, skip it and go straight for Twinned Arrows. Spares you a point that you can put to better use in the late game. 

Edited November 3, 2018 by Boeroer

[Jaheiras Witness]

As far as defences go, deflection is only the most important in the first third of the game. It is still important after that in the sense of you don’t want to get swarmed/flanked/interrupted to death but generally once you are level 6/7 and have decent END, equipment and supplies, you can take a few weapon hits without too much bother. So the other defences become more important.

 

Fortitude is the most important defence by some distance. Simple reason: the effects that attack fortitude are the ones that get you killed: stun/prone/petrify etc. You might think that you can ride out a few seconds of stun but it ain’t that easy. You can get ripped apart in those few seconds and you also have to remember that if an opponent can stun you once, theyvan probably do it again, so you are risking a chainlock of stun if the first one gets you.

 

Will is quite important in party play but can be virtually ignored for solo. It’s not fun having your tank charmed: not only does he/she turn on you, but all the enemies that were attacking your tank are now attacking the rest of your party.

 

Reflex is possibly least important of the defences though you still want to boost it as much as you can. Generally effects that target reflex are either damage effects or some non-disabling status effects, so they can be ridden out.

 

Because of the way defences improve over levels and a lot of equipment boosts all/multiple defences, the main variation in defences comes from stats or spells. So if you want to boost Fortitude, you generally do it by improving MIG and CON (resting bonus/boons/food/drugs etc).

 

Another way of indirectly boosting all your defences is to use a scroll of protection or potions of recovery (yellow potions). These have to be used proactively (before status effects hit you, so at the start of fights) and they then halve or otherwise shorten how long afflictions apply for. The scroll on particular is great as it is AoE, good duration and can protect whole party.

[Enuhal]

My typical ranger build looks a bit like this:

1 Wounding Shot

2 Resilient Companion

3 Predator's Sense

4 Vicious Companion

5 Stalker's Link

6 Merciless Companion

7 Driving Flight

8 Marksman

9 Marked Prey

10 Weapon Focus Peasant

11 Stunning Shots

12 Apprentice's Sneak Attack

13 Twinned Arrows

14 Heart of the Storm (in case I get storm caller, which I usually do - otherwise, when sticking with Persistence, this would be accurate wounding shot here and beast hunter at 16)

15 Vengeful Grief

16 Accurate Wounding Shot

 

This is not a fixed build - often times, I change around the order of things and skip one or two damage abilities/talents to get some defensive options early on. Like Serg BlackStrider, early on I focus on my companion, and by the midgame I make sure to increase the actual ranger's damage. Twinned Arrows is, of course, the most important thing when it comes to damage, and I would never leave the house without the utility of stunning shots and driving flight.

 

Regarding the non-deflection defenses @semiticgod, they work just like deflection - accuracy vs. reflex is rolled if an attack targets reflex etc. - if you look at special abilities and spells, there are quite a few of them that don't target deflection, so especially once you start facing spellcasters or foes that have other ways of applying disables, you have two choices - have very high additional defenses or try to gain total immunity to specific disables via priest prayers (which, depending on your level, is not always an option). Those who are likely to get hit by such abilities and can't afford to get disabled (such as tanks, because getting disabled tends to ruin their deflection) should have very high additional defenses. Luckily, paladins are very good at this by nature.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Enuhal

[Boeroer]

If you want to survive fort-based CC you should look for effects that shorten/suppress the affliction or make you immune or nigh invulnerable when suffering from a certain affliction.

 

Examples:

 

Wear an item with Preservation (e.g. Blaidh Golan) and Ilfan Byrngar's Solace in the second weapon slot. Once you get proned or stunned switch to that weapon slot with the shield. You'll get +100(!) to all defenses as long as the affliction lasts - because Preservations from items and shield stack. You will be untouchable. Little Savior does the same.

 

Wear Fenwalkers. They not only provide +20 defense against certain mean afflictions but also reduce their duration by 3 secs. That usually means you only get grazed (half duration) and then that reduced duration even gets reduced further by 3 secs. Supergood item if you don't want to put too many points into your defenses.

 

And all in all for a no reload run I would say a priest is mandatory simplky because of Prayers and Litanies against X which make the game a ton easier: no need for defenses if you are immune. Fights with Adragans which can be a major pain in the slapreceiver turn into cakewalks if you can't get petrified.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Boeroer

[Alesia_BH]

Ashoka: Pale Elf, Kind Wayfarer- Entry 7: Heritage Hill

 

Do you know what time it is, boys and girls? That's right: It's zombie apocalypse time! Yay!

 

Ashoka and friends just completed the Heritage Hill quest. This was fun. It was easy enough that we were never in danger, but challenging enough to make things interesting. It was a lovely little vacation- despite the fact that we were surrounded by dead people and all.

 

In the opening fight by the gate we let Team B fight an air war with the undead ranged fighters while Team A ground through the melee foes. Here we see Team A breaking through, closing for the finish. No real damage here, aside from a pair of opening necrotic lances.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/xr/ygqu5vxwqzyu.jpg

 

Moving through the graveyard, we used our now standard bulldozer tactic: we let Ashoka's defenses, and our support priests' spells, keep Ashoka on her feet, while Ashoka's Strange Mercies, in turn, heal everyone else. It's kind of hard to stop.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/n9/jwfyg9mzig5m.jpg

 

Things did get a little interesting when we accidentally pulled two crews at once.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/t6/uvjnadm9zybw.jpg

 

Things got more interesting when I neglected to lasso Aloth, leaving him endangered. Fortunately, the solution was simple. Since there were so many low powered enemies on the field, we got everyone into Strange Mercy range and let Ashoka mow the ninnies down, tossing healing to everyone. Concecrated Ground kept Ashoka well. A Witdraw kept Aloth safe.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/jo/wb7042m182cr.jpg

 

No significant damage, by the end.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/rf/oukwgaf0yzir.jpg

 

The limit to the bulldozer method is Ashoka's health, as opposed to her endurance. We ran up against that boundary in the quest's central battle: the brawl at the base of the tower. The issue was that I underestimated the health damage dealing capacity of these blokes. 

 

Here we see the early stages of the fight. All is seemingly well, but, in truth, I've erred by ignoring the ranged casters.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/nn/t2bg3zujnhuq.jpg

 

Eventually, we were forced to toss Ashoka a Withdraw. And once Ashoka was out of the action, damage began to accumulate on the others. 

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/2b/5ema9q5hezd6.jpg

 

This could have been avoided had we chosen to be freer with our spells. Lesson learned: Against enemies that damage health, skimping on spells can end up being false economy. Whether you spend your spells, or take health damage, you'll have to rest. Might as well cast.

 

Into the tower. On level one, we let Ashoka, Eder, and Cassia engage in melee while Ogrnd and Sagani provided ranged support. Aloth and Itumaak circled around and took out the mage.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/pb/1iyzfyixldvp.jpg

 

Straight bulldozer on level 2.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/8u/zb2ezby4aw84.jpg

 

After chatting with Incantha, destroying the machine, and rescuing Saeda, we claimed the quest's grandest reward: the spider figurine. Admittedly, Eder found the process of claiming said reward something other than rewarding. This was the only knockout of the quest and the only knockout that any current member of the crew has sustained.

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/4n/71qsgoa0lw08.jpg

 

The party is currently celebrating at the Goose and Fox. Eder is drinking for free tonight: he earned it.

 

Best,

 

A.

[Alesia_BH]

Gratzi, Boeroer, Enhual, and Serg!

 

Our Sagani thanks you. And I think our Itumaak may even let you pet him!

 

Best,

A.

[semiticgod]

I think I see the issue. In Baldur's Gate, disablers needed to be long-lasting to make an impact because you could only use so many of them. In PoE, disablers are short-lasting, but they can be used much more often. I've noticed that stun effects tend to turn the tide of battle, so I can see why Fortitude matters so much. It looks hard to maximize Fortitude, though--I don't see as many options to increase it as there are to increase Deflection, and both appear to be percentile rolls. If you're rolling a d100 in both cases, a +10 bonus to Fortitude isn't as meaningful as a +25 bonus to Deflection.

 

It also means that disablers are less prone to good or bad luck in PoE. In Baldur's Gate, relying on a small number of high-powered disablers to win a fight was a losing strategy in no-reload runs, because you might have, say, a 10% chance of landing no disablers, and if you were counting on them to win, that amounted to a 10% chance of death. In PoE, having unreliable options isn't as dangerous because you get so many more chances for them to work.

 

That might not seem like an important detail to you PoE players, but for a BG player coming to PoE, that's a huge difference in no-reload strategy. Investing in offensive status effects in BG1 was only good for no-reload runs if you could stack saving throw penalties, which took a lot of work. It's much more viable in PoE!

 

I noticed some Xaurip Champions a while back using an area-effect disabler suppression ability that seemed incredibly strong, effectively negating all forms of status effects for many seconds, party-wide. I assumed those Xaurips were paladins, which gave me the impression that paladins could block most disablers for a fairly long time. Sounds like paladins are a very good choice for no-reload runs.

 

@Alesia_BH: I remember having trouble against those Skeletal Wizards, too, since their high accuracy and range let them get past my tanks with magic missiles and whatnot. I had the same problem with enemy druids more recently; their damage output reached past my tanks. I also remember Xaurip Priests doing a lot to help their buddies survive. Bringing down enemy spellcasters seems very important, but they're not that much more fragile than enemy fighters, and while we can slow down their spells by interrupting them, we don't seem to be able to stop them entirely. Shutting down spellcasters doesn't seem feasible unless you're flat-out killing them.

 

That also poses a positioning problem. Spellcasters linger at the back, but if you send your tanks out to get them, the disengagement will let the enemy's tanks get extra hits, and it also runs the risk of letting enemy fighters switch targets to apply pressure on your own spellcasters. And with PoE's low mobility, you tend to get stuck with a bad position; you can't wiggle your way out of it.

 

Positioning and buffs make a huge difference in combat, and both of them are decided at the beginning of combat. Sounds like the first few seconds of combat really set the stage for success or failure; you need to establish an advantage early in PoE.

[Hulk'O'Saurus]

Always keep Scrolls of Protections and Defence ready to go. 

 

Petrification should always be at the back of your head, and you should always have means to deal with it. 

[summatsupeer]

@alesia_bH thanks, I think i'll just enjoy reading and seeing how other people do things whilst I finish my current save. I'm into WM2 + Act3, might join in after but don't think i'd last long without reloading!

 

@enuhal I need to remember to enchant more often I think.

 

@Serg BlackStrider I tend to give them shield+melee incase they get jumped... maybe I need to improve my positioning and CC then I can keep them dishing damage out using rod/scepter/wand!

[Jaheiras Witness]

Your health problems are easily fixable with Infuse with Vital Essence potions. You should have plenty of ingredients to craft those now.

[Alesia_BH]

Your health problems are easily fixable with Infuse with Vital Essence potions. You should have plenty of ingredients to craft those now.

 

 

Noted. I just looked up the potion and, yes, that helps. We'll definitely keep those on hand going forward!

 

Thanks!

 

A.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[Alesia_BH]

Always keep Scrolls of Protections and Defence ready to go. 

 

Petrification should always be at the back of your head, and you should always have means to deal with it. 

 

 

If you want to survive fort-based CC you should look for effects that shorten/suppress the affliction or make you immune or nigh invulnerable when suffering from a certain affliction.

 

 

Good stuff! Knowledge of immunities and resistances is highly valued in NR play. I'm sure I'm not the only one who appreciated this.

 

In the BG world we had a wonderful reference: the Immunities page from XYX's Spell Guide. It listed every status effect in the game and every item, spell, or potion that could foil said effect (in the BG world, that's a very long list). It wasn't 100% complete, post SCS, but memorizing that list was an excellent starting point to locking down your defense. Do you have something similar in PoE Land?

 

Best,

 

A. 

 

NW: I'd link the page to illustrate, but, sadly, it's no longer active. Someone really should have archived YYZ's site. 

Edited November 4, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[Hulk'O'Saurus]

In PoE, I think some of the more influential developers have come to the conclusion that a lot of the statuses in BG are superfluous. To an extent I agree, but not so much as to end up with too few(for I think we have too few statuses). While that it would be a big discussion in itself, if one ever started, I agree that mechanically a lot of the CC effects in BG are interchangeable and function similarly. That leaves you with fewer statuses and spells that inflict them, but they can be just as meaningful. One thing you won't find, other than Petrification, is one button wins combat. 

 

What you can do is check the in game encyclopedia or online wiki and write all of them down, together with their effects. All of them have several effects, but the stronger ones override the weaker if you're stacking them. Various prayers--available on scrolls, and the respective Priest abilities will deal with some of the nastiest. Other than that, you could stack so many defenses on some characters that they may become nigh untouchable in this regard. 

 

You should always dread Petrification. In Deadfire it's a pale shadow of it's old self.   

[Alesia_BH]

Group project! We should compose an immunities and resistances database, for NR player reference, and for broader community use as well.

 

How shall we divy up the labor?

 

Best,

 

A.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[Alesia_BH]

Quick Note on Ashoka's Game:

 

Leaden Key Agents are approaching the stronghold. Should we fight them off or let them sack the place? 

 

For reference, we're at Level 5 (with the exception of Cassia and Ogrnd). We just fought off the first assassin ambush with no knockdowns or significant injuries.

 

Best,

 

A.

Edited November 3, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[Enuhal]

The leaden key agent attackers are quite weak, you should be able to take them down, especially if you quickly take out the spellcasters.

[Alesia_BH]

Thanks, Enuhal!

 

(And, yes, you were right: they were pushovers- no worries there at all)

 

Best,

 

A.

[Alesia_BH]

Quick Note on Ashoka's Game: Ashoka at 5

 

Hi, all! I'd like to take a moment to share Ashoka's current build and load out, in the interest of soliciting commentary and proposals for future growth directions.

 

So far, Ashoka has been built as a walking fortress capable of mass healing. Her defenses are very strong relative to the challenges that she's currently facing. And while her comparative offense is starting to lag, I'm comfortable with that at this stage of my development as a player. As those who have followed my BG runs know, my tendency is to think defense first and offense second. As a BG SCS/Ascension solo no reloader, that is almost invariably the right call, in my opinion. I'll acknowledge that it is less obviously the right call in PoE, but I'm inclined to explore that angle, at least for the time being.

 

Ashoka's current character record and equipped items appear below.

 

Character Record pg 1

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/x4/mjnulle08zli.jpg

 

Character Record pg 2

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/ua/biqkkazy3hlg.jpg

 

 

Character Record pg 3

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/bd/lcsxexiqrhea.jpg

 

Current Inventory

 

https://us.v-cdn.net/5019558/uploads/editor/gq/zobas15mxjx9.jpg

 

 

Our objectives at this point are to: 1) build a comprehensive defensive toolkit of scrolls, potions, and swappable immunity items; 2) use a minimalist approach to uping offensive output (while simultaneously increasing elemental resistance) by pairing Forgemaster's Gloves with Scion of Flames + Intense Flames + Potions of Eldritch Aim; 3) upgrade her go-to weapon: the main-hand used alongside the Outworn Buckler.

 

I'd be particularly interested in hearing comments on: 1) her go-to weapons for use with the Outworn; 2) the comparative advantages and disadvantage of the approach I'm taking with her, specifically from a NR perspective.

 

Thanks in advance for any and all comments!

 

Best,

 

A. 

Edited November 4, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[semiticgod]

I see so many items I don't recognize, and I didn't even realize there were many weapons and shields that could grant immunities. There's a lot of technical know-how I still don't have. It's good to see that @Alesia_BH is still spotting some aura-independent defensive options despite PoE locking up equipment shuffling and banning most pre-buffs!

 

I just got out of the cutscene at the Ducal Palace and I'm starting to get more into the plot. I barely knew what the story was even about until after I got to Defiance Bay, and now things are getting really interesting. I don't suppose there's a way to get through Defiance Bay without starting a civil war? Because now I feel kinda bad. Pillars of Eternity can get pretty dark.

 

It's nice to be inexperienced again, and not really knowing how things work. I got really burned out on no-reloading BG (my solo LoB run basically destroyed the game for me). Now there are things to learn again, and I know that I'm going to fail off and on for a long time into the future. It really takes a lot of the pressure off to know that dying, rather than victory, is going to be the new norm.

 

You've always said that humility is important in no-reload runs, @Alesia_BH. I think I have a shot at getting mine back!

[Alesia_BH]

I see so many items I don't recognize

 

 

That's how I felt when I saw Serg's inventory. I recognized about 1/10th of the items!

 

There's a lot of technical know-how I still don't have.

 

Same. While I have completed an NR, we finished at L8, using a forgiving party composition. I still only know about 5% of what I'd like to.

 

It's good to see that @Alesia_BH is still spotting some aura-independent defensive options despite PoE locking up equipment shuffling and banning most pre-buffs!

 

Like Gurney Halleck said in Dune: "Slow on attack, fast on defense." That's always been my approach. We'll see how far that gets me in PoE.

 

(One of the things I like about that approach is that very few people take it. Consequently, you can find novel comparative advantages with relative ease. It also mitigates implementation error risk)

 

 

I just got out of the cutscene at the Ducal Palace and I'm starting to get more into the plot. I barely knew what the story was even about until after I got to Defiance Bay, and now things are getting really interesting. I don't suppose there's a way to get through Defiance Bay without starting a civil war? Because now I feel kinda bad. Pillars of Eternity can get pretty dark.

 

 

The story is excellent. The prose is on the purple side, to my ears, but the narrative itself is great.

 

Your actions do have consequences and some will be unexpected. When you read the epilogue after finishing the game, you'll probably be like: "Damn! Did I do that? I feel awful now..."

 

 

 

It's nice to be inexperienced again, and not really knowing how things work. I got really burned out on no-reloading BG (my solo LoB run basically destroyed the game for me). Now there are things to learn again, and I know that I'm going to fail off and on for a long time into the future. 

 

With you 100%. Do you remember the passage from Twain's essay "Two Ways of Seeing a River," which I once shared in the Adventurer's Lounge. That's where I am with respect to Baldur's Gate:

 

Now when I had mastered the language of this water and had come to know every trifling feature that bordered the great river as familiarly as I knew the letters of the alphabet, I had made a valuable acquisition. But I had lost something, too. I had lost something which could never be restored to me while I lived. All the grace, the beauty, the poetry had gone out of the majestic river! I still keep in mind a certain wonderful sunset which I witnessed when steamboating was new to me. A broad expanse of the river was turned to blood; in the middle distance the red hue brightened into gold, through which a solitary log came floating, black and conspicuous; in one place a long, slanting mark lay sparkling upon the water; in another the surface was broken by boiling, tumbling rings, that were as many-tinted as an opal; where the ruddy flush was faintest, was a smooth spot that was covered with graceful circles and radiating lines, ever so delicately traced; the shore on our left was densely wooded, and the sombre shadow that fell from this forest was broken in one place by a long, ruffled trail that shone like silver; and high above the forest wall a clean-stemmed dead tree waved a single leafy bough that glowed like a flame in the unobstructed splendor that was flowing from the sun.

 

There were graceful curves, reflected images, woody heights, soft distances; and over the whole scene, far and near, the dissolving lights drifted steadily, enriching it, every passing moment, with new marvels of coloring.

 

I stood like one bewitched. I drank it in, in a speechless rapture. The world was new to me, and I had never seen anything like this at home. But as I have said, a day came when I began to cease from noting the glories and the charms which the moon and the sun and the twilight wrought upon the river's face; another day came when I ceased altogether to note them. Then, if that sunset scene had been repeated, I should have looked upon it without rapture, and should have commented upon it, inwardly, in this fashion: "This sun means that we are going to have wind to-morrow; that floating log means that the river is rising, small thanks to it; that slanting mark on the water refers to a bluff reef which is going to kill somebody's steamboat one of these nights, if it keeps on stretching out like that; those tumbling 'boils' show a dissolving bar and a changing channel there; the lines and circles in the slick water over yonder are a warning that that troublesome place is shoaling up dangerously; that silver streak in the shadow of the forest is the 'break' from a new snag, and he has located himself in the very best place he could have found to fish for steamboats; that tall dead tree, with a single living branch, is not going to last long, and then how is a body ever going to get through this blind place at night without the friendly old landmark?"

 

No, the romance and the beauty were all gone from the river. All the value any feature of it had for me now was the amount of usefulness it could furnish toward compassing the safe piloting of a steamboat. Since those days, I have pitied doctors from my heart. What does the lovely flush in a beauty's cheek mean to a doctor but a "break" that ripples above some deadly disease? Are not all her visible charms sown thick with what are to him the signs and symbols of hidden decay? Does he ever see her beauty at all, or doesn't he simply view her professionally, and comment upon her unwholesome condition all to himself? And doesn't he sometimes wonder whether he has gained most or lost most by learning his trade?

 

When it came time to choose between making the transition to LoB -and breaking BG further- or exploring PoE, I chose PoE. I think that was the right call, at least for now.

 

 

 It really takes a lot of the pressure off to know that dying, rather than victory, is going to be the new norm.

 

 

I know, right? Sucking is fun!

 

 

 

You've always said that humility is important in no-reload runs, @Alesia_BH. I think I have a shot at getting mine back!

 

 

Yuppers. I've found it interesting to see us learn a new game in parallel. It provides insight into how we got where we are in BG-Land. I hording ideas, in part by creating a pleasurable social context to facilitate the exchange of information. You, getting to work on hacking the mechanics, the mad scientist, off in isolation, preparing to reveal his discoveries to the public. As I said, it's interesting. I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

 

Best,

 

A.

 

NW: I changed the color of the copied Twain text because I noticed it wasn't viewable on the white backgrounded mobile interface.

Edited November 5, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[semiticgod]

I actually dipped into non-D&D territory in my other no-reloads after BG lost some of its magic for me. I did no-reload runs for Morrowind, Oblivion with OOO (including a max difficulty run), Skyrim with SkyRe (including a max difficulty run), and even a low-grinding Dragon Warrior Monsters run. Morrowind was simple to break, while Oblivion required some art, Skyrim required grinding, and DWM involved number crunching and spreadsheets. Fun stuff, but gameplay wasn't as complex as it is with BG and PoE, so that only lasted so long.

 

Some of the Oblivion runs were particularly hilarious. It required some work, but I implemented a trick of my own devising called Fatigue boosting, which involved artificially decreasing my base fatigue so that Fortify Fatigue effects multiplied arrow damage dramatically. My Breton was dealing hundreds of damage per shot with a crummy little shortbow. Imagine a tiny little British girl running around dressed in rags, one-shotting huge enemies with arrows that literally threw the enemies off their feet.

[Alesia_BH]

What are Gloomy Face and Liresh up to, Serg and Enuhal?

 

Best,

 

A.

[Alesia_BH]

 

@alesia_bH thanks, I think i'll just enjoy reading and seeing how other people do things whilst I finish my current save. I'm into WM2 + Act3, might join in after but don't think i'd last long without reloading!

 

 

Noted. And I understand. It's hard at first. No Reloading forces you to take a more considered, defensive minded approach to the game. Once you get used to it -and once you get in the habit of studying other no reloaders- it becomes much easier. Even so, every experienced no reloader has lost a character. There's no shame in falling: It happens to us all. We'd love to have you join us.

 

In any case, thanks for your interest! I hope you're enjoying the thread! And best of luck with your current game!

 

Best,

 

A.

Edited November 4, 2018 by Alesia_BH

[Alesia_BH]

 

 

I noticed some Xaurip Champions a while back using an area-effect disabler suppression ability that seemed incredibly strong, effectively negating all forms of status effects for many seconds, party-wide. I assumed those Xaurips were paladins, which gave me the impression that paladins could block most disablers for a fairly long time. Sounds like paladins are a very good choice for no-reload runs.

 

 

Liberating Exhortation. And, yes: Paladins seem to be a very good choice- especially for novices. 

 

Bringing down enemy spellcasters seems very important, but they're not that much more fragile than enemy fighters, and while we can slow down their spells by interrupting them, we don't seem to be able to stop them entirely. Shutting down spellcasters doesn't seem feasible unless you're flat-out killing them.

 

Yeah. I definitely need to get better at eliminating casters early. The old opening AoE trick is probably an effective approach, but I've always been unfond of that, even in BG, on style/balance grounds. Enuhal seems to use that method in PoE. Hopefully he'll comment.

 

Positioning and buffs make a huge difference in combat, and both of them are decided at the beginning of combat. Sounds like the first few seconds of combat really set the stage for success or failure; you need to establish an advantage early in PoE.

 

 

Agreed. 

 

One of the things I like about my party is that our tanks are so tanky that they can break engagement without meaningful damage. With deflections around 70 and DRs in the 20s, at level 5, the disengagement attacks are barely noticeable. That's allowed me to get things wrong and still recover. It's also allowed me to experiment without consequences.

 

(I'd definitely like to get better at positioning and movement. That's probably my biggest weakness now.)

 

Best,

 

A. 

Edited November 4, 2018 by Alesia_BH