Doubt with in game difficulty scaling (increase or standard) in POTD

[davoker]

In the game, sometimes it asks if you want to increase the difficulty or leave it standard, for example, if you pass to act 3 with level 11 it asks you if you want to increase the difficulty.

My question is, if I'm already in POTD, what exactly does it increase? (in numbers, X increase in stats, enemy level, etc etc) how does it affect the enemies? level and stats increase? only one of the 2 things? exactly how does the difficulty scale if you choose to increase difficulty?

I assume that this is an optional measure to balance the difficulty if you go with more level than recommended in that area, and that's why it offers this option.

Edited May 24, 2021 by davoker

[Boeroer]

It was done after the DLCs got introduced. Some areas which were designed with character level x in mind became too easy if you did some other content first and then arrived there with level x+5 or so. 

It doesn't change the difficulty setting from Veteran to PotD for example. It doesn't add type and number of enemies iirc. Afaik it raises some stats - I guess it just levels enemies up a bit (so to speak). 

[davoker]

17 hours ago, Boeroer said:

It was done after the DLCs got introduced. Some areas which were designed with character level x in mind became too easy if you did some other content first and then arrived there with level x+5 or so. 

It doesn't change the difficulty setting from Veteran to PotD for example. It doesn't add type and number of enemies iirc. Afaik it raises some stats - I guess it just levels enemies up a bit (so to speak). 

I understand, then I will choose to increase when it asks me, because of the way I play, sometimes I go to areas with more level than I should, and that's why it asks me, knowing that, I will increase the difficulty when it gives me the option.

Thank you!

[Boeroer]

Yes, if you don't like to roflstomp certain areas it's best to pick the upsacling option.

[davoker]

I just killed the Alpine Dragon, I had never killed it (until now I had never finished the game, I used to play on hard difficulty and in group, now I'm soloing on POTD with wizard).

He killed me... I don't know, 8 or 10 times xD there is a problem, there are few decent fire magics to fight this dragon, however you have very strong ice magics, a bit unbalanced.

I managed to petrify it a couple of times and it helped a lot to lower its life, being petrified it eats everything you put in it hehe the truth is that this dragon has been a challenge even at level 16, it's also true that as I didn't know it I didn't know how to act with it, I needed several attempts.

This time I'm going to finish the game, I've played with it about 1000 hours, but I've never finished it, I like to try builds in search of maximum efficiency, it's my drug hahaha 

[davoker]

Eyeless hammers -> 

The ambush with 3 of these was complicated, if it was in a group it wouldn't be so much of a problem, but only with Wizard it cost me a lot, ok they only killed me once, I was able to dispel 1 and I fought with 2, for the last one I barely had any magic left, I had to use Concelhault's summon and he used a hammer while I threw some fire rays at him, he is supposed to be immune to fire, but he did "a little" damage.

These enemies are really brutal to play solo, tips? surely there will be more of these enemies later xD

[Boeroer]

It's been quite some time and I didn't do this fight often solo (and never with a Wizard) but I'd say buff up with defensive stuff + Alacrity and then use Persistence (hunting bow), Drawn in Spring (Dagger) or Tidefall (Great Swords). Since the raw DoT of those gets calculated before DR it can reach good heights even if the primary DMG gets eaten up by DR a lot. Drawn in Spring with Little Savior + Blaidh Golan (or some other Preservation item) would be my first approach because iirc those guess can knock you down a lot. Better be untouchable if that happens. Also with a durganized Little Savior + Drawn in Spring + Alacrity you will be quite fast hitting. If that didn't work I would try kiting with Alacrity + Persistence. 

Arcane Assault is not doing that much, but it's raw dmg and targets their weakest defense.

I know their fortitude is enormous, but Ninagauth's Death Ray? 

Wall of Many Colors might be helpful...?

 

Edited June 8, 2021 by Boeroer

[davoker]

On 6/6/2021 at 10:18 AM, Boeroer said:

It's been quite some time and I didn't do this fight often solo (and never with a Wizard) but I'd say buff up with defensive stuff + Alacrity and then use Persistence (hunting bow), Drawn in Spring (Dagger) or Tidefall (Great Swords). Since the raw DoT of both get calculated before DR it can reach good heights even if the primary DMG gets eaten up by DR a lot. Drawn in Spring with Little Savior + Blaidh Golan (or some other Preservation item) would be my first approach because iirc those guess can knock you down a lot. Better be untouchable if that happens. Also with a durganized Little Savior + Drawn in Spring + Alacrity you will be quite fast hitting. If that didn't work I would try kiting with Alacrity + Persistence. 

Arcane Assault is not doing that much, but it's raw dmg and targets their weakest defense.

I know their fortitude is enormous, but Ninagauth's Death Ray? 

Wall of Many Colors might be helpful...?

 

| It's a lot of text for a very basic English, I hope you understand what I mean hehe |

In the end what I did was to separate the 3, with the 3 at the same time was impossible, I managed to separate 1 of the group, and I did the battle with 2, "wall of color" helped, as it does all types of damage in the time it lasts, I threw everything I had, when I had one left I had very few magics to use and a summoning, I won the fight by very little, without using magics and just died the last one hehe

The problem is that it has given me one of my rare points, that is, at that point, with level 16 already, I did not have much left to finish the game, I've played with him about 1000 hours and I still have not finished, just when I was so advanced, I have entered a lot of desire to play with Chanter, I could not help it, the wizards just boring me, but I expected to finish the game with him, in the end no xD

I got really into Chanter, I thought he would bore me, that you just have to stand there and hold on while you kill passively, but Chanter is terribly fun, the fact of seeing how the enemies around you die is quite funny to me, and a character that I enjoy is a safe bet to finish the game 

The wizard is very very good, very strong, I have little experience with SOLOs in POTD (I've been doing them for a short time, I always played in group and on hard difficulty), but I've had some hard fights evidently, especially because I choose upscaling in the difficulty when it gives me the option, I tried several builds first to see which one I liked (invest hours to test builds) and I was very happy with the result of my final build.

But I felt like changing, I have never tried a chanter as a main character, and honestly, I have had no problems, I kill everything that comes my way, there are a couple of monsters (trolls, the big brown ones) that I have left for later because they are too hard, but apart from those, I have killed everything, a chanter tanke saves everything, I love it.

I feel very comfortable with him, so this will be the character with which I will finish the game, I have no doubt, besides now I know almost all the game in POTD, so I won't have the previous problems, at least, I will have less problems 

[davoker]

I like the chanter a lot more than the wizard, ok, the chanter depends a bit on potions and scrolls, the advantage of the wizard is that it has magics that you can only get through consumables, so the chanter is dependent on those consumables, but you don't need to abuse it either.

There is a potion that I have used especially a lot, the vital essential, thanks to that potion I have used very few breaks so far in the game, I'm close to finish the DLC2 and I'm missing the last act of the base game, I have died very few times, with overconfidence or some mistake of mine, but very few times, with the wizard, I died many more xD

The alpine dragon fell very fast (with the wizard I couldn't kill it, it would have fallen after more attempts, that's for sure xD), Concelhaut was very very easy, that combat didn't last me more than 1 minute, and I only used 1 Scroll of Maelstrom and 1 moonwell scroll, nothing else, I'm very surprised with the chanter, it's my new favorite class in POE hahaha

[davoker]

Ok, game finished, at last, after... about 1000 hours playing this game, I finished it in SOLO and POTD, who was going to tell me xD it was a real challenge, I chose Declamator at the end, and it's my new favorite class, in case I didn't say it hehe.

My ending I think it's been pretty good, there have been a couple of things that I think have ended "half right" due to a couple of decisions I made, in the texts of the end, of what happens in the cities, but in general I liked how it all ended.

A masterpiece this game, one of the best purchases I've made hehe now, I have 2 games in the recamara, POE2 or Pathfinder Kingmaker, this last one looks at me and gives me eyes 

I appreciate the help that some of you have given me, I'm a bit heavy, and I have a pretty bad English, so thanks for your patience too 

Sorry for the triple post, I hope the occasion will forgive me hehe 

PS: One question, is it necessary to have POE1 installed for POE2 to use your saved game? or is it enough to have the save files where it leaves them by default?

Edited June 13, 2021 by davoker

[Boeroer]

Should be enough to have the save files, but I would just install Deadfire, make a character (with the PoE1 savegame stuff) and uninstall PoE1 after that - just to be sure. 

Should you lose your savegames: you can also always manually recreate the decisions you made in your PoE1 run when starting PoE2. There's an option where you walk through several questions regarding your PoE1 playthrough and how you decided. So even if savegames/import doesn't work you can still play the character you did in PoE1 (sort of) by recreating the decisions you made. 

[davoker]

12 hours ago, Boeroer said:

Should be enough to have the save files, but I would just install Deadfire, make a character (with the PoE1 savegame stuff) and uninstall PoE1 after that - just to be sure. 

Should you lose your savegames: you can also always manually recreate the decisions you made in your PoE1 run when starting PoE2. There's an option where you walk through several questions regarding your PoE1 playthrough and how you decided. So even if savegames/import doesn't work you can still play the character you did in PoE1 (sort of) by recreating the decisions you made. 

Perfect, i have doubts whether to start with POE2 directly, or to get into Pathfinder Kingmaker, but well, that's my decision to make hehe

Thanks!

[Boeroer]

Iirc it's 5 in-game years between PoE1 and Deadfire - so I guess doing something else between both games is totally okay.