Pallegina crusader or herald

[Steampunkgears]

Hey everyone,

I am currently running a assassin/Blood mage on POTD with AI up scaled.

 

I wanted to use Pallegina and originally planned to use https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1400804034 as her build. although this looks like a solid build, I can not help but think I should go with her as a herald mainly because I read that she would be putting out great passive hp healing and was not sure if that would mesh better with my class. I will provide the rest of my party comp.

 

I just picked up Pallegina so only lvl 7 currently and this is the farthest I have been in poe2 as I was burnt out at launch after playing 120hrs on hard in poe1

 

Current Party comp

*MC -assassin/Blood mage -I use blood sacrifice "A LOT" to control what spells I wish to continue to use. I also use concelhaut's corrosive siphon as a form of gaining health alot as well when im having issues either with running low on hp pots or xoti is running low on healing casts.

 

*Eder -swashbuckler - and pretty much tank atm..... using lost sinners build as well as it looked solid https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1398100119

 

*Xoti - Priest - currently only party heals and support. I am also not sure I want to keep her if another "better" healer comes up.

 

*Aloth - Wizard - also using lost sinners build for aloth https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1406080663

 

I mainly wanted advice on Pallegina but I am also looking on input on my other companions and what might mesh well with what I got pre planned here for my party.

 

Thanks for the help.

 

Updated: I have received alot of pointers toward using her as a herald. Any builds for her would be appreciated.

Also the recommendation to get Tekehu and swap him out with aloth and go with Pallegina as a crusader is up for debate.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Steampunkgears

[Exanos]

Pallegina as an herald is a great tank/support. She won't kill fast but she will be hard to kill while providing great buff/debuff. The crusader version is more about dealing damage quickly while remaining sturdy (less than the herald tough).

 

For your team, i would swap Aloth for Tekehu (depend of the RP you want, you already have a mage). You can multiclass him chanter/druid or keep him pure druid and you will have a great CC/damage/heal companion. Then i would pick pallegina as a crusader for the flavor. You will have :

- great melee (damage and tanking) with Eder and Pallegina

- great  magic damage with your MC and Tekehu

- great support/heal with Xoti and Tekehu

- great CC with all.

 

Quite a balanced team.

[Steampunkgears]

Pallegina as an herald is a great tank/support. She won't kill fast but she will be hard to kill while providing great buff/debuff. The crusader version is more about dealing damage quickly while remaining sturdy (less than the herald tough).

 

For your team, i would swap Aloth for Tekehu (depend of the RP you want, you already have a mage). You can multiclass him chanter/druid or keep him pure druid and you will have a great CC/damage/heal companion. Then i would pick pallegina as a crusader for the flavor. You will have :

- great melee (damage and tanking) with Eder and Pallegina

- great  magic damage with your MC and Tekehu

- great support/heal with Xoti and Tekehu

- great CC with all.

 

Quite a balanced team.

 Once I meet Tekehu I will look into him, however I am quite fond of Aloth so thats a hard choice for me. good news is I can always swap them out if im not happy later I just want to make sure that i make the right multi class choices for my companions as I cant re roll the class later.

[Exanos]

 Once I meet Tekehu I will look into him, however I am quite fond of Aloth so thats a hard choice for me. good news is I can always swap them out if im not happy later I just want to make sure that i make the right multi class choices for my companions as I cant re roll the class later.

 

 

I wouldn't worry too much about great or bad choice, this game have great replayability and is very forgiving (i found) so you can experiment freely.

I usually ask myself : "how did i see this companion ? " ex for pallegina : 

- As a swordmaster living by her blade : crusader (offtank)

- As an anchor in battle for my party leading the way with her strong voice : herald (main tank)

 

For me a good RP build >>>> an overpowered min/max build. This game is not that difficult when you are used to rpg.

Edited March 11, 2019 by Exanos

[Steampunkgears]

You have a point, however depending on how long the game is I'm only playing one night a week for my community as I do not have alot of time right now. Plus 100% on potd is probably going to be awhile so right now I'm enjoying it. Plus I'm a disabled veteran with memory issues so I'll probably forget my companions builds by the next time I play lol. Just wanted to get a comfy set up. I'm also working the companion ai to hopefully help me with not having to micro managing everything.

[Exanos]

If you hesitate, go herald, it's very solid from start to end and not too micro intensive with basic ai. If you keep aloth it will also complete your team better than crusader.

[Steampunkgears]

I have not looked at any builds for the herald, pulled this off the forums here https://forums.obsidian.net/topic/102541-companion-build-tuono-e-fulmine/

 

I'm looking for potentially passive hp gain, any insight into a build would be great.

[Ophiuchus]

I would go Herald since it offers a lot of support. Swashbuckler Eder has plenty of defense and self-sustainability - adding another X/Fighter to your composition might make it too defensive and devalue the use of a dedicated healer.

[Steampunkgears]

I would go Herald since it offers a lot of support. Swashbuckler Eder has plenty of defense and self-sustainability - adding another X/Fighter to your composition might make it too defensive and devalue the use of a dedicated healer.

With that in mind should I look at dropping xoti potentially?

[Ophiuchus]

 

I would go Herald since it offers a lot of support. Swashbuckler Eder has plenty of defense and self-sustainability - adding another X/Fighter to your composition might make it too defensive and devalue the use of a dedicated healer.

With that in mind should I look at dropping xoti potentially?

 

I'm bouncing between various stuff atm but here's some general thoughts:

 

Xoti's Priest subclass is a bit borked (imho, it's one reason why Priests get a bad rep in this game) with few traditional/general purpose spells compared to other kits. The class (in general) starts to shine around PL4 with Shining Beacon, Devotions for the Faithful, and Triumph of The Crusaders - Crusaders grants +5 MIG and 80hp base on kill, which is pretty spicy. At PL8 you'll gain access to Hand of Weal and Woe, which offers superb healing (25hp base per second for 10 seconds). All things considered, I would use a Priest in tandem with a supplementary healer - like Herald - since you'll want some breathing room for buffs (Dire Blessing, Minor Avatar) and solid damage spells (Storm of Holy Fire, Spark the Souls of the Righteous).

 

Pallegina's kit is more offensive-oriented than other Paladin subclasses, which puts her at a slight disadvantage as a tank compared to a hireling or MC. Even then, her variant of Sworn Rival takes forever and a day to cast, and its damage isn't anything to write home about. Unfortunately she's also a base Chanter, which is objectively worse than a Troubadour. This isn't to say she won't work as a tank - her racial ability grants Resistance to PER and INT afflictions, which can be useful.

 

All in all, I think your party setup would work well with Herald Pallegina and SC Priest Xoti.

 

If you're not against modding, I'd recommend checking out the Pillars 2 Nexus for mods that add subclasses to companions. They're super useful if you want better optimization and party banter/RP at the same time.

 

Edited March 11, 2019 by Ophiuchus

[Woopee]

 

 

I would go Herald since it offers a lot of support. Swashbuckler Eder has plenty of defense and self-sustainability - adding another X/Fighter to your composition might make it too defensive and devalue the use of a dedicated healer.

With that in mind should I look at dropping xoti potentially?

 

Xoti's Priest subclass is a bit borked (imho, it's one reason why Priests get a bad rep in this game) with few traditional/general purpose spells compared to other kits. The class (in general) starts to shine around PL4 with Shining Beacon, Devotions for the Faithful, and Triumph of The Crusaders - Crusaders grants +5 MIG and 80hp base on kill, which is pretty spicy. At PL8 you'll gain access to Hand of Weal and Woe, which offers superb healing (25hp base per second for 10 seconds). All things considered, I would use a Priest in tandem with a supplementary healer - like Herald - since you'll want some breathing room for buffs (Dire Blessing, Minor Avatar) and solid damage spells (Storm of Holy Fire, Spark the Souls of the Righteous).

 

I dunno, the level one execute spell and Symbol of Eothas at AL8 are both pretty awesome. I had never even cast Symbol of Eothas until my most recent playthrough but it does massive foe-only AoE damage on top of +15 defenses for your party. I gave Xoti some fire-buffing items and she could dish out a lot of damage while also bringing those great buffs you mentioned. 

[Steampunkgears]

@ Ophiuchus good to know, at the current time I need to be carful of might buffs as it directly damges my mc more when I use blood sacrifice. But that being said later lvls and a higher health pool might not be a issue then. My current MC actually has a nice holiday pool but that can move up and down really fast depending on the situation.

 

Any herald builds would be nice I anyone has any. If none are presented I will assume one of the builds in the pinned forum posts is fine. Also what are some recommend skills/spells/chants like must haves for herald?

Edited March 12, 2019 by Steampunkgears

[Steampunkgears]

On a new note I am highly considering grabbing tekehu and dropping xoti and making Pallegina a crusader. This is a hard debate.

[Boeroer]

A crusader can be build into a better tank (more engagement, better disengagement punishing and thus more sticky, usually way higher defenses). The combo of engagement and sturdyness of a crusader is pretty outstanding. However, I terms of support (be it offensive or defensive or healing) the Herald obviously wins. He buys that with being a bit less effective tank (in terms of binding lots of attackers).

 

So it depends what you need. For example I was trying a party with four gunners the other day and a crusader as a tank was way better than a herald just because he prevented rushing more reliably.

 

If you don't need such a supersticky tank but somebody who can bind 2-3 enemies while not dying and doing good support maybe a Herald is better.

 

Also it doesn't have to be healing or defensive support only. Shared Flames + Mith Fyr gives everybody in range a +30% lash which is pretty crazy when it comes to dmg support.

[Steampunkgears]

A crusader can be build into a better tank (more engagement, better disengagement punishing and thus more sticky, usually way higher defenses). The combo of engagement and sturdyness of a crusader is pretty outstanding. However, I terms of support (be it offensive or defensive or healing) the Herald obviously wins. He buys that with being a bit less effective tank (in terms of binding lots of attackers).

So it depends what you need. For example I was trying a party with four gunners the other day and a crusader as a tank was way better than a herald just because he prevented rushing more reliably.

If you don't need such a supersticky tank but somebody who can bind 2-3 enemies while not dying and doing good support maybe a Herald is better.

Also it doesn't have to be healing or defensive support only. Shared Flames + Mith Fyr gives everybody in range a +30% lash which is pretty crazy when it comes to dmg support.

At the moment it's a hard choice for me. I don't know how great tekehu is bit he looks like a nice support/healer and if I used him in place of xoti or Aloth I would probably have Pallegina as a crusader for the double tank with eder.

 

On the other hand having her as a herald is good all around as everyone says. The problem is a solid build for her that works in the current patch. I got a build for the crusader already.

 

You got any build recommendations for herald in the build forum post of yours?

Edited March 12, 2019 by Steampunkgears

[Steampunkgears]

So I realized that the build I'm doing on Aloth kind of relies on either a ranged heavy group and or a priest to help buff his perception......if this is the case I'm keeping xoti as of level 7 she starts getting some nice spells such as Devotions for the Faithful & Shining Beacon. So I'm dropping aloth for tekehu and probably going to crusade Pallegina. So currently party comp is

 

Mc - spellblade assassin/blood mage

eder as swashbuckler

Pallegina -Main role: Striker, Tanker Sub role: Support Auras

Xoti - stiker/support

Tekehu - Main role: Disabler, Healer Sub role: Striker, Summoner

 

Looks solid to me but still open for opinions.

[Ophiuchus]

So I realized that the build I'm doing on Aloth kind of relies on either a ranged heavy group and or a priest to help buff his perception......if this is the case I'm keeping xoti as of level 7 she starts getting some nice spells such as Devotions for the Faithful & Shining Beacon. So I'm dropping aloth for tekehu and probably going to crusade Pallegina. So currently party comp is

 

Mc - spellblade assassin/blood mage

eder as swashbuckler

Pallegina -Main role: Striker, Tanker Sub role: Support Auras

Xoti - stiker/support

Tekehu - Main role: Disabler, Healer Sub role: Striker, Summoner

 

Looks solid to me but still open for opinions.

With that comp, you'll cover most of the bases. I'm a bit concerned about PEN since you're playing on PoTD: you'll probably want to spec Tekehu as a Druid/Chanter for the Hel Hyraf's Invocation (-2 AR) and give Xoti Champion's Boon (+5 MIG, +2 PEN). Later on, when money and resources aren't a big deal, you can also eat Hot Razor Skewers or Crusted Swordfish for PEN bonuses to physical attacks and spells, respectively.

 

On that note, you might get better mileage as an Assassin/Evoker for the +2 PL bonus to Evocation spells. Blood Mages generally have low MIG (for less sacrifice damage) and focus on CC and Afflictions.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Ophiuchus

[thelee]

 

So I realized that the build I'm doing on Aloth kind of relies on either a ranged heavy group and or a priest to help buff his perception......if this is the case I'm keeping xoti as of level 7 she starts getting some nice spells such as Devotions for the Faithful & Shining Beacon. So I'm dropping aloth for tekehu and probably going to crusade Pallegina. So currently party comp is

 

Mc - spellblade assassin/blood mage

eder as swashbuckler

Pallegina -Main role: Striker, Tanker Sub role: Support Auras

Xoti - stiker/support

Tekehu - Main role: Disabler, Healer Sub role: Striker, Summoner

 

Looks solid to me but still open for opinions.

With that comp, you'll cover most of the bases. I'm a bit concerned about PEN since you're playing on PoTD: you'll probably want to spec Tekehu as a Druid/Chanter for the Hel Hyraf's Invocation (-2 AR) and give Xoti Champion's Boon (+5 MIG, +2 PEN). Later on, when money and resources aren't a big deal, you can also eat Hot Razor Skewers or Crusted Swordfish for PEN bonuses to physical attacks and spells, respectively.

 

On that note, you might get better mileage as an Assassin/Evoker for the +2 PL bonus to Evocation spells. Blood Mages generally have low MIG (for less sacrifice damage) and focus on CC and Afflictions.

 

an assassin/blood mage can learn expose vulnerabilities for -2 AR or any perception affliction for -1 AR. Not quite as good as Hel-Hyraf's upgrade (The Shield Breaks basically has no expiration in any decent fight), but does mean that they don't *need* it enough to roll a theurge. (also a blood mage can keep spamming expose vulnerabilities until it connects)

 

remember that a blood mage with blood sacrifice will almost constnatly have a +1 PL bonus, which is half way to a subclass bonus, except you also have no excluded schools or recovery time penalties. (no echo chance, but i'll take spell regen at-will over random evocation echo)

Edited March 12, 2019 by thelee

[Ophiuchus]

 

 

So I realized that the build I'm doing on Aloth kind of relies on either a ranged heavy group and or a priest to help buff his perception......if this is the case I'm keeping xoti as of level 7 she starts getting some nice spells such as Devotions for the Faithful & Shining Beacon. So I'm dropping aloth for tekehu and probably going to crusade Pallegina. So currently party comp is

 

Mc - spellblade assassin/blood mage

eder as swashbuckler

Pallegina -Main role: Striker, Tanker Sub role: Support Auras

Xoti - stiker/support

Tekehu - Main role: Disabler, Healer Sub role: Striker, Summoner

 

Looks solid to me but still open for opinions.

With that comp, you'll cover most of the bases. I'm a bit concerned about PEN since you're playing on PoTD: you'll probably want to spec Tekehu as a Druid/Chanter for the Hel Hyraf's Invocation (-2 AR) and give Xoti Champion's Boon (+5 MIG, +2 PEN). Later on, when money and resources aren't a big deal, you can also eat Hot Razor Skewers or Crusted Swordfish for PEN bonuses to physical attacks and spells, respectively.

 

On that note, you might get better mileage as an Assassin/Evoker for the +2 PL bonus to Evocation spells. Blood Mages generally have low MIG (for less sacrifice damage) and focus on CC and Afflictions.

 

an assassin/blood mage can learn expose vulnerabilities for -2 AR or any perception affliction for -1 AR. Not quite as good as Hel-Hyraf's upgrade (The Shield Breaks basically has no expiration in any decent fight), but does mean that they don't *need* it enough to roll a theurge. (also a blood mage can keep spamming expose vulnerabilities until it connects)

 

remember that a blood mage with blood sacrifice will almost constnatly have a +1 PL bonus, which is half way to a subclass bonus, except you also have no excluded schools or recovery time penalties. (no echo chance, but i'll take spell regen over random evocation echo)

 

True. I'm curious how OP is running his Spellblade: figured it would be damage-oriented so they might not have the action economy to juggle invisibility, damage, and support stuff.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Ophiuchus

[Steampunkgears]

@ Theurgist at the moment I took build advice from thelee.

 

Party is lvl 7 so I'm starting to see some fruits come from spells and skills. Most fights I pretty much start off with chill fog or slicken depending on foes. Tekehu also has chill fog thx to his background traits. I'm using Pallegina with the endless paths greatsword and she's doing pretty well besides eder. My mc bounces back and forth between Eldritch aim, blood sacrifice, chill frost or slicken, and cancolhaults corrosive siphion. Noxious burst as well. Once things are as best as I can cc them with my main I start using Eldritch aim and then escape to get behind someone my tanks are engaged with and try to get a stab or 2 in. If they start to agrro me I escape to safety and start siphion again or actually heal.

 

I am wondering if I should pop smoke veil the use escape to get behind a engaged enemy to get a sneak attack in. That's basically what I have been doing with the mc. My companions have custom behavior set for some of their off the rip skills and I try to micro manage anything that needs to be done in fighting.

 

There is alot I'm still learning but since I added tekehu and Pallegina to the group I have been able to take on more enemies. I am have a tad bit of trouble with the The Cornett's Call in the ancient city where my fights are really close usually one or 2 enemies are at a quarter health when I'm out of everything. Need to prep more potions or scrolls. I'm not using consumables as much as I should.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Steampunkgears

[Ophiuchus]

@ Theurgist at the moment I took build advice from thelee.

 

Party is lvl 7 so I'm starting to see some fruits come from spells and skills. Most fights I pretty much start off with chill fog or slicken depending on foes. Tekehu also has chill fog thx to his background traits. I'm using Pallegina with the endless paths greatsword and she's doing pretty well besides eder. My mc bounces back and forth between Eldritch aim, blood sacrifice, chill frost or slicken, and cancolhaults corrosive siphion. Noxious burst as well. Once things are as best as I can cc them with my main I start using Eldritch aim and then escape to get behind someone my tanks are engaged with and try to get a stab or 2 in. If they start to agrro me I escape to safety and start siphion again or actually heal.

 

I am wondering if I should pop smoke veil the use escape to get behind a engaged enemy to get a sneak attack in. That's basically what I have been doing with the mc. My companions have custom behavior set for some of their off the rip skills and I try to micro manage anything that needs to be done in fighting.

 

There is alot I'm still learning but since I added tekehu and Pallegina to the group I have been able to take on more enemies. I am have a tad bit of trouble with the The Cornett's Call in the ancient city where my fights are really close usually one or 2 enemies are at a quarter health when I'm out of everything. Need to prep more potions or scrolls. I'm not using consumables as much as I should.

Interesting setup on your MC. Keep in mind that pulsing spells (Chill Fog, Slicken) will break your invisibility.

[Steampunkgears]

Right but if I'm correct that still counts as a sneak attack. I have only used stealth in the beginning to proc the engagement and I'm considering using it to get sneak attacks on enemies that my tanks are engaging. I am also dual wielding a mace and a stiletto both fine quality for the 10pen. I plan to get the other stealth's like shadowing beyond later on as they are probably infinitely better than smoke fail.

 

Edit: lol voice to text doesn't like smoke veil and says fail.

Edited March 12, 2019 by Steampunkgears

[Ophiuchus]

Right but if I'm correct that still counts as a sneak attack. I have only used stealth in the beginning to proc the engagement and I'm considering using it to get sneak attacks on enemies that my tanks are engaging. I am also dual wielding a mace and a stiletto both fine quality for the 10pen. I plan to get the other stealth's like shadowing beyond later on as they are probably infinitely better than smoke fail.

 

Edit: lol voice to text doesn't like smoke veil and says fail.

Only the first pulse will benefit from the Assassinate bonus (Sneak Attack only works with weapons). Shadowing Beyond is more costly but it's significantly smoother than Smoke Veil since it doesn't have recovery.

[Steampunkgears]

Once I get access to higher lvls I plan to get high-impact aoe spells that you can cast from invisibility to take advantage of the bonus PEN, crit damage, and accuracy. fireball or noxious burst for example.

[Ophiuchus]

Once I get access to higher lvls I plan to get high-impact aoe spells that you can cast from invisibility to take advantage of the bonus PEN, crit damage, and accuracy. fireball or noxious burst for example.

Cool. That's one reason why I suggested giving another character an AR reducing ability. Using an ability from Stealth (but not Invisibility) shaves 85 percent of the recovery: so you can load up on buffs, have Tekehu use The Shield Cracks, and follow it up with a Fireball boosted by Assassinate, then quickly lead into your next action.