Returning after a long time: current PotD SOLO strongest builds?

[Raven Darkholme]

1 hour ago, Boeroer said:

Yeah... this all makes determining "strongest" a bit difficult.

If you ask for that you need to somehow narrow it down under what specific circumstances. Like solo, PotD, with Berath Blessing x,y or z, RTwP or TB, with cheese or without - and if with cheese: which sorts of cheese are okay and so on.

Bit muddy all that.

To OP (who is gone) I would say: Without any further specifics (everything allowed) I think SC Assassin with SoF  is a really strong contender for the crown.

I already forgot: can you prolong WotW's invisibility with SoF? Because iirc it also doesn't break like Vanishing Strokes - and I consider SC Monk to be stronger than SC Assassin if both could stay invisible for unlimited amounts of time. Mostly due to Resonant Touch. Or not?

 

Someone else revived this thread asking about wizard solo.

About Monk:

Wounds disappear out of combat, you can't use abilities using Wound sout of combat, so SOF doesn't work on it and if you extend it in a fight with a party using a priest it would still disappear after combat ends.

 

[freddfranca]

One noob question here. 
Do you have to avoid fights all the game, or after the digsite becomes better?

I am running a swashbuckler build I found on YouTube, and I don’t like to keep stealthing all the game.

[Boeroer]

It's only the Digsite. After that the difficulty drops noticably.

[Raven Darkholme]

1 hour ago, freddfranca said:

One noob question here. 
Do you have to avoid fights all the game, or after the digsite becomes better?

I am running a swashbuckler build I found on YouTube, and I don’t like to keep stealthing all the game.

Depends on whether you play on TOI or not.

Some classes can even do digsite with relative ease but I'd not try it on TOI.

After dig site without TOI most classes can do all easier fights but ofc it is much smarter to get some xp via non combat first.

[Abuachumi]

I finally got around to playing with the monk for real, looking at the skills.... It also covers going with hands, doesn't it?

https://pillarsofeternity.fandom.com/wiki/Heartbeat_Drumming

[Boeroer]

If you mean the Monk's fists then yes.

[freddfranca]

Finished the digsite. Now what is the best way to go?Straight to Neketaka, or Deadlight Fort?

Edited April 13, 2021 by freddfranca

[Haplok]

Fort Deadlight, I'd say.

 

EDIT: SOLO... well, no idea then.

Edited April 13, 2021 by Haplok

[Raven Darkholme]

I usually go Sandswept Ruins - Deadlight - Dunnage.

(Just be sure not to do any dangerous fighting unless you're 100% sure you can handle it, Deadlight can be resolved 100% without fighting and on Dunnage only one quest needs to be skipped).

After that you have free reign of the map, but ofc Neketaka would be fastest xp, rushing Hasongo before Neketaka would be early access to strand of favour and all the cheese connected to it.

[Boeroer]

@freddfrancais not playing solo PotD as far as I know but party based on Veteran. 

I usually sail to Neketaka, grab some quests/bounties and then make a tour to Fort Deadlight, then Dunnage (but beware of Eamund the Fox, he will ambush you if you give Harker money for the dancer - that encounter can be brutal if you are underleveled) and back to Neketaka. On the way to Fort Deadlight I will do the Meryl the Mad bounty (quite easy) and on the way back Oathbinder's Sanctum (not that easy but doable because you'll have gained a level during your tour - most likely).

But since the game world is open you can go wherever you like. Just beware overleveled encounters (shown with skulls). One skull if often very manageable, but above that it's öfter too hard for new players. 

Edited April 13, 2021 by Boeroer

[freddfranca]

@Boeroeractually, I am doing two runs

One solo swashbuckler, and the another I am still figuring out what I want .

While I can’t decide, I am trying the solo.

[cohlin]

On 4/9/2021 at 4:43 PM, Kaylon said:

That statement was made before any buffing abuse exploits, not just Strand of Favor. 

At best there can be a discussion about playing the game without using any exploits (no buffs abuse, no hiding out of sight while doing damage, no unlimited Draining Touch, no charged items stacking, no Bounding Boots or pause stealing, etc...). Bashing one exploit, while advertising the others doesn't look very serious. 

was curious about item stacking, is there any charged item worth stacking?

[Raven Darkholme]

1 hour ago, cohlin said:

was curious about item stacking, is there any charged item worth stacking?

Stone of Power is pretty decent for that free +1 PL, but losing amulet slot isn't the best imo.

Missile Gloves are pretty decent since you can get 2 of them quite early.

Necklace of fireballs is also really early it's just not the most powerful spell, but good dmg decent aoe...

[Boeroer]

Ring of Reset is very good if you have two. You'd have to export/import it though since there is no way to get two during a normal playthrough. 

Obviously figurines, too.

The ones (with per-rest or charged uses) you can get multiple times during a normal playthrough are (afair):

Missile Gloves, Necklace of Fireballs, Stone of Power, Bounding Boots and Dragon Pendant.   

I think Stone of Power and Dragon Pendant are decent as amulets. The first also gives +1 INT and the latter has +slash AR and a summon. 

[cohlin]

7 hours ago, Raven Darkholme said:

Stone of Power is pretty decent for that free +1 PL, but losing amulet slot isn't the best imo.

Missile Gloves are pretty decent since you can get 2 of them quite early.

Necklace of fireballs is also really early it's just not the most powerful spell, but good dmg decent aoe...

Thanks :3 ya fireball necklace would be good

 

7 hours ago, Boeroer said:

Ring of Reset is very good if you have two. You'd have to export/import it though since there is no way to get two during a normal playthrough. 

Obviously figurines, too.

The ones (with per-rest or charged uses) you can get multiple times during a normal playthrough are (afair):

Missile Gloves, Necklace of Fireballs, Stone of Power, Bounding Boots and Dragon Pendant.   

I think Stone of Power and Dragon Pendant are decent as amulets. The first also gives +1 INT and the latter has +slash AR and a summon. 

Exactly the first thing comes into my mind was Ring of Reset lol, what does export/import do? cuz i never tried any of them lol, u mean if you do that all the item the character carries will be duplicated?

[freddfranca]

15 hours ago, Raven Darkholme said:

I usually go Sandswept Ruins - Deadlight - Dunnage.

(Just be sure not to do any dangerous fighting unless you're 100% sure you can handle it, Deadlight can be resolved 100% without fighting and on Dunnage only one quest needs to be skipped).

After that you have free reign of the map, but ofc Neketaka would be fastest xp, rushing Hasongo before Neketaka would be early access to strand of favour and all the cheese connected to it.

I went to Sandswept, but it’s three red skulls there. What am I supposed to do there? I can’t disable the traps BTW

[Kaylon]

4 hours ago, freddfranca said:

I went to Sandswept, but it’s three red skulls there. What am I supposed to do there? I can’t disable the traps BTW

You should go there with your mechanics skill as high as possible in order to disarm as many traps as you can for easy xp gains. Now it's probably better to go to Dunnage, respec and invest everything in mechanics, get Elias Zelen's Training, Irwena's Mature Experience bonus and then return to Sandswept Ruins. You should also have a Thief's Putty unguent from Vilario's Rest if you need to increase your mechanics even further.

[Boeroer]

6 hours ago, cohlin said:

Thanks :3 ya fireball necklace would be good

 

Exactly the first thing comes into my mind was Ring of Reset lol, what does export/import do? cuz i never tried any of them lol, u mean if you do that all the item the character carries will be duplicated?

If you export characters with items you can later (in another playthrough) decide at which level you want to import those characters and also if they should come with items or without. It becomes (a lot) more expensive then. So basically it's like buying that item from a shop - only that the shop is a hireling.

And yes - that way you will have duplicated those items. You will still be able to get the original one in the current game. I sometimes use this method to get some items earlier for a special kind of build I want to play - which otherwise would only be possible to experience very late in the game. Usually there is not that much power difference between early and late game items except the quality (fine/exceptional/superb and so on). So it's not breaking the game. For example I like to have Ngati's Tusk earlier than normal. But since its best enchantment (-x to enemies' defenses except deflection) scales with survival it's not that OP at earlier levels.

With charged / per rest items it's a bit different obviously. Those can break the game balance, especially figurines. Calling forth some powerful summons without any resources multiple times per encounter is very powerful. 

I used two Rings of Reset for a quirky Barbarian suicide build with Vengeful Defeat and gear that triggers on knockout (Effort Great Sword, Effigy's Husk and so on). Fun but weird. Works well with party members who profit from friends' knockouts (Crown of Woedica, Divine Retribution and so on).

 

Edited April 14, 2021 by Boeroer

[Raven Darkholme]

You can't export in solo games tho.

And some items are straight up cheesy to export like least unstable coil or the weyc items.

 

  

2 hours ago, Kaylon said:

You should go there with your mechanics skill as high as possible in order to disarm as many traps as you can for easy xp gains. Now it's probably better to go to Dunnage, respec and invest everything in mechanics, get Elias Zelen's Training, Irwena's Mature Experience bonus and then return to Sandswept Ruins. You should also have a Thief's Putty unguent from Vilario's Rest if you need to increase your mechanics even further.

There is no point in going to Dunnage first, in fact on the Ultimate it would be a massive time waste.

All you need is respec on Maje for mechanics, and either a Thief's Putty or Adra potions + Hylea.

You won't be able to disarm the super high level traps, but you stop getting xp before that anyway, but you can make a path to the traps in the back which will give you xp, if you follow exactly the traps you can disarm.

Edited April 14, 2021 by Raven Darkholme

[abot]

I'm not sure it's worth going to  Sandswept Ruins if you play with Eothas challenge on, you get a lot of XP anyway in solo and it's better to aim for a faster sailing speed ASAP (you can hire a navigator a get better sails before leaving port maje). Also no need to rush Hasongo for the strand of favor, you can steal the cabalist gambeson in Neketaka

[Raven Darkholme]

9 hours ago, abot said:

I'm not sure it's worth going to  Sandswept Ruins if you play with Eothas challenge on, you get a lot of XP anyway in solo and it's better to aim for a faster sailing speed ASAP (you can hire a navigator a get better sails before leaving port maje). Also no need to rush Hasongo for the strand of favor, you can steal the cabalist gambeson in Neketaka

Depends on the class.

In my Ultimate run I went to Fire Dragon after Hasongo and reached level 16 in Neketaka without doing any fighting.

If you play a class that can cheese the fire dragon that's by far the fastest route with least ingame days spent.

That being said the question wasn't even about Eothas challenge here.

 

[abot]

On 4/14/2021 at 11:05 AM, Raven Darkholme said:

There is no point in going to Dunnage first, in fact on the Ultimate it would be a massive time waste.

I was mostly expressing my opinion about this point,  I think it (going to dunnage first) is not a time waste, on the contrary, going there (I mean in the dorudugan island) at the start with a still slow boat is the time waste in the full run economy, better to visit the island once with a fast ship when you are ready for dorudugan
 

Edited April 19, 2021 by abot

[Raven Darkholme]

5 minutes ago, abot said:

I was mostly expressing my opinion about this point,  I think it (going to dunnage first) is not a time waste, on the contrary, going there (I mean in the dorudugan island) at the start with a still slow boat is the time waste in the full run economy, better to visit the island once with a fast ship when you are ready for dorudugan
 

I'm not sure if you read the post I replied too.

It wa ssuggested to go to Dunnage first and go back to Sandswept.

[abot]

Hmm ok so do we agree that going to sandsweep/dorudugan island (I mean, you don't need sandsweep at all when you are ready for dorudugan, even more time spared) is better done only when you have a fast ship (regardless if you try port maje->sandsweep or port maje->dunnage->sandwseep, both are not optimal in the long run with eothas challenge/ultimate challenge, first one being better than second one but still not optimal)?

Edited April 19, 2021 by abot

[Waski]

4 hours ago, abot said:

Hmm ok so do we agree that going to sandsweep/dorudugan island (I mean, you don't need sandsweep at all when you are ready for dorudugan, even more time spared) is better done only when you have a fast ship (regardless if you try port maje->sandsweep or port maje->dunnage->sandwseep, both are not optimal in the long run with eothas challenge/ultimate challenge, first one being better than second one but still not optimal)?

 

11 hours ago, Raven Darkholme said:

In my Ultimate run I went to Fire Dragon after Hasongo and reached level 16 in Neketaka without doing any fighting.

If you play a class that can cheese the fire dragon that's by far the fastest route with least ingame days spent.

it's off topic but it looks like grabbing easy xp (smth like 5k, thats what i did) in sandswept straight out of Maje is beneficial in long run on eothas challenge 

i've did a quick check on vods (bm/skaen for me) and

Vic reacheas Ashen Maw on 1st Late Spring (lv 9)

abot on 5th ( he is lv 16 which he gets around 1st Late Spring from what i can gather and giant grub is dead)

mine bm/skaen on 2nd (lv 16 maybe day earlier and already killed Concelhaut)

but i suspect Vic path has more potential for improvment (didn't see it all yet)