The Dwarf with the Boar

[Slack83er]

A'ight so... I come from the 1st chapter, bought this a lot of time ago but until now I didn't manage to install it and give it a try. So now I'd like to begin a playthrough, and I'd like a (ranger?) character as described in title. I'd like to know if it's viable and whether it should be MCed or not.. Anyone got experience with a build like this? Crossbow is something I'd really love.

Thanks for your time m8s.

[Not So Clever Hound]

I'm assuming for Party play (not Solo)?

Ranger SC can be a lot of fun and pretty powerful ranged, though at PL8 there is one ability called Whirling Strike that requires at least one melee weapon and that is devastating. You can use this ability with 2 melee weapons or say, with a melee weapon and a gun, and that is a lot of fun. Twin shots is also great together with Driving Flight with a 2H ranged weapon. Anyway you can always carry two sets of weapons and adapt.

As far as multiclassing, it is arguably more powerful and there are tons of great builds involving Monk, Wizard, Rogue, Fighter... but SC is very viable if you want to focus on a specific class for your first playthrough (which I personally like to do - but that's just me).

As far as your weapon choice, be advised that Crossbows are a bit lackluster in PoE2... BUT, there is one unique Arbalest (a big crossbow basically) that is very easily obtainable early and that synergies very well with one of the Ranger subclasses, i.e. Arcane Archer.

I won't say much more if you don't want to be spoiled of anything but all in all, an SC Arcane Archer could be a sweet choice for you.

 

[thelee]

Flavor-wise, dwarf with a boar may really want this hunting bow, which grants special bonuses for a dwarf wielder. A ranger can get stupid amounts of accuracy, so once you get stalker's link and marked for prey you could leave the hunting bow modal on (-50% recovery time, but -15 accuracy) without hurting your acc relative to the enemies and wreck house.

Only problem with that suggestion is that hunting bows have low PEN, which is a major problem on higher difficulties. I would recommend Sharpshooter ranger SC (who can get close for bonus PEN), or an MC with a devoted fighter (+2 PEN with hunting bow, but you go all in on it).

Just a suggestion since you specifically called out dwarf.

 

much of the ranger's big wins can be easily had with multiclass as well (the stupid high accuracy), but there are a couple of good end-game abilities. I have enjoyed heart seeker in my current run, which is a bit skill-intensive to use versus other abilities, but is really really good in the right setup.

[Slack83er]

Ok thanks first and foremost to both of you! I forgot to mention that I usually play at easy levels, I don't do PotD, I don't solo. Playing PoE has always been like reading a good ol' book, I let the game tell me a story in which I take part and relax at the same time. My only doubts are: Is a ranger "in theme" with the water-y atmosphere of the game? I wouldn't want to feel "out of place"... And second question is: what is PL8?

[thelee]

7 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

My only doubts are: Is a ranger "in theme" with the water-y atmosphere of the game?

there's a whole heck of a lot of ways that rangers fit in-universe to deadfire, so i wouldn't worry. here are some minimal-spoilery examples of how a ranger can fit into the world, some thematic hyptotheticals, some in-game examples:

• pirate, pirate sharpshooters.
• bounty hunters and trackers
• large military presence in the archipelago (Maia, a story character ranger, is a sharpshooter/scout for the royal deadfire company)
• a contingent of boreal dwarfs who have settled an island
• some islands are bigger and have dense foliage and need trackers/rangers

 

7 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

And second question is: what is PL8?

one of several ways to refer to the eighth "level" of abilities that (single-class, and only single-class) characters can get (multi-class stop at the seventh). PL is short for "power-level." I've personally taken to start referring to it by other means (I say "tier") because it's a pretty jargon-y acronym that is also confusingly the same as a only-kind-of-related "power level" mechanic that scales your ability power.

Edited July 29, 2021 by thelee

[Slack83er]

Well thanks a lot, really. I'm at work now and can't check directly but.. How does the eventual MC end subclass work exactly? You can do it at specific levels? Or you choose right at the start? (subclass only ofc) Sorry for my noob-y questions

Iirc, dwarves were good with bows in PoE setting, so I think I chose the right game to bring my ranger to life. In fact, I wanted to to that character BEFORE coming to PoE2... I even thought of doing it in D&D

[thelee]

6 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

Well thanks a lot, really. I'm at work now and can't check directly but.. How does the eventual MC end subclass work exactly? You can do it at specific levels? Or you choose right at the start? (subclass only ofc) Sorry for my noob-y questions

you choose right at the start. right after you pick gender and race, you choose single/multiclass, and then you can pick subclasses as part of that process.

you can respec later in the game, but you can never change the decisions you make at level 1 (which means your class/subclass or single/multiclass picks are permanent).

 

single-class you advance up the "levels" of abilities every odd level at first, and then slow down starting at 13 to every three levels (13, 16, 19). multi-class you advance up the "levels" of abilities every three levels the entire time (1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19). normally you gain two ability points every time you unlock a new tier, and one ability point otherwise (multi-class has to spend their two ability points for a new tier, one on each class)

[Slack83er]

Ok, understood. I figure there must be a lot of abilities between various classes that complement each other in good ways... Being I completely non-competent in this kind of "matching work", I believe I should start my first playthrough with a SC character...? Oh and... does the class(es) impose some "bond" with weapons? Such as having abilities that only work with a specific weapon? Or will I be free to change -say- from bow to arbalest from time to time?

[Not So Clever Hound]

20 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

Oh and... does the class(es) impose some "bond" with weapons? Such as having abilities that only work with a specific weapon?

Only a specific Fighter subclass called "Devoted" has this quirk (as in you devote yourself to a particular weapon type). Otherwise any class can equip (and become proficient with) any weapon. Each weapon type has a specific weapon modal that can be activated or not if you are proficient with it. Those modals feature an advantage e.g. more accuracy but at a cost e.g. less speed.

Now there are also a few unique "soulbound" weapons which you link to particular character and that have power thresholds that you unlock by doing certain things with the weapon. Those links can be severed/reset at any point. Just as in PoE1.

24 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

I believe I should start my first playthrough with a SC character...?

I personally second that but there is not a good or a bad way or whatever. What appeals to me about SC (particularly on a first playthrough) is to have a chance to "fully" discover a class and all its abilities, advantages and limitations, before considering hybridation. Others just only ever play multiclasses because they offer such variety of playstyles. You can't go wrong either way .

[thelee]

1 minute ago, Not So Clever Hound said:

I personally second that but there is not a good or a bad way or whatever. What appeals to me about SC (particularly on a first playthrough) is to have a chance to "fully" discover a class and all its abilities, advantages and limitations, before considering hybridation. Others just only ever play multiclasses because they offer such variety of playstyles. You can't go wrong either way .

yeah, MC can be overwhelming with choices esp if it's your first time. also, there's more room for error. while it shouldn't be too much of a problem on lower difficulties, unlike poe (which tried to make all sorts of gameplay viable), there are definitely more character pitfalls in poe2, if only due to just the insane amount of customization options.

[Slack83er]

Any interesting soulbound weapons you can advice? Don't worry for spoilers, I'd look 'em up anyway lol

[Not So Clever Hound]

2 minutes ago, Slack83er said:

Any interesting soulbound weapons you can advice? Don't worry for spoilers, I'd look 'em up anyway lol

Well then...  

https://pillarsofeternity.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_soulbound_items_(Deadfire)

They're not necessarily the best items in the game, especially compared to other uniques enchanted to Mythic-grade. But there are lots of synergies with those uniques for specific character builds.

The major ones that come to mind: Modwyr great for Berserker to autoclear Confused, Lord Darryn's Voulge awesome for a Brute or a SC Fury for respectively Static Thunder and Storm Power Level, Slayer's Claw awesome for anything Barbarian for Tenacious/Energized, Seeker's Fang for Ciphers for the Raw DoT, Blightheart for casters for the multiplicative Corrode lash, Marux Amanth for Ciphers to kill Hauani o Whe in its first form, The Weyc's Wand in combination with Sasha's Singing Scimitar on anything Chanter for Empower bonanza.

[Slack83er]

Are they so few?? No Bows or Crossbows or Arbalests? Oh well, I'll focus on uniques then... Come to think of it... even in PoE1 there wasn't a large choice...

[thelee]

tbf, compared to poe1, soulbound gear are not necessarily as such tent-pole items here. i remember going out of my way to get all soulbound gear in poe1, here i only bother if it's particularly necessary for a build.

 

edit: it's been a while, but i don't remember many *interesting* unique items in poe1 (many of them were normal magic weapons with a fancy name). there are tons in poe2, which you can enchant with special enchantments. that fills in a lot of the gaps that soulbound items fulfilled in poe1.

Edited July 29, 2021 by thelee

[Slack83er]

That's better imho. It adds that "crafting" flavour that PoE1 lacked. Better this way. I know soulbound "grow" with u, but maybe I don't even feel like growin' them tbh

[Boeroer]

If you like crossbows and Ranger I can really recommend Spearcaster. You can get it early, it has superhigh accuracy with enough Arcana and the additional enchantments are great, too. 

The best thing about arbalests is the modal imo. It causes a knockdown on hit but lets you shoot more slowly. No big deal if you have a lot of reloading/recovery bonuses though. My current Arcane Archer/Troubadour reloads quickly enough with the modal on that enemies I focus on canot get anything done, they are effectively prone-locked (the get back on their feet but cannot finish anything before they get send down again).

Single Class Ranger can be fun for different reasons (mostly special item-ability synergies) - but with an arbalest I prefer multiclassing for more shorter reloading/recovery time and/or more accuracy. Good arbalest rangers multiclasses I played:

• Arcane Archer/Bleak Walker: very high accuracy, good damage, quite sturdy, also good party support via healing and aura etc.
• Arcane Archer/Troubadour: very short reloading time (Sure Handed Ila applies its effect twice to realoading weapons), good damage bc of the lash from Mith Fyr, very versatile due to invocations
• Arcane Archer/Helwalker: short reloading time, very high accuracy, good dmg. This one is also very good with AoE weapons like Frostseeker or Watershaper's Focus.

Yeah, I like Arcane Archers.

Another good combination (that I didn't play) would be Ghost Heart/Cipher. Anything but Soulblade and Psion would be good. Damage would be nice, accuracy would be great and lots of versatility bc of cipher spells. This combination is especially good with the War Bow "Frostseeker" because the accuracy can be so high that crits are very common. 

Of course Ranger/Rogue is always an option if you are looking for a lot of dmg per hit. 

Ranger/Devoted also works very well - although I find it a bit sad that the only figher attack ability that works with ranged (two handed) weapons is Penetrating Strike.

One thing though: you need a good backup weapon for enemies who are resistant or even immune to pierce damage. Any bow would do for example. 

 

[Ranndar]

@Boeroertalking about AA, do you think the Geomancer with AA could be good to solo, or should I keep the stalker?

Edit: about the GH, for me he works good with beguiler. One cast of phantom foes and you are full of focus, and also the increased range for deception spells is really good in this combination

Edited July 29, 2021 by Ranndar

[Slack83er]

I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to try all those combinations, but for now... I understand 1/4th of what you say I just want to focus on "role playing" my dwarf and boar, min/maxing and optimizing builds will be next step. As far as I'm having fun and the character reflects what I thought he would be...I'm fine. I think that, while I play easy difficulties, I should have little to no issues in going on with the main quest... Confirm?

[Boeroer]

11 hours ago, Ranndar said:

@Boeroertalking about AA, do you think the Geomancer with AA could be good to solo, or should I keep the stalker?

For solo I prefer Stalker.

[Boeroer]

11 hours ago, Slack83er said:

I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to try all those combinations, but for now... I understand 1/4th of what you say I just want to focus on "role playing" my dwarf and boar, min/maxing and optimizing builds will be next step. As far as I'm having fun and the character reflects what I thought he would be...I'm fine. I think that, while I play easy difficulties, I should have little to no issues in going on with the main quest... Confirm?

Confirm.

Yeah well, you can just take away from what I said that a Ranger with arbalest can be great. And the class combos I listed work very well. The subclasses don't matter that much. So if one of those combos speaks to you roleplaying-wise (like... are you comfortable with the idea of a Ranger/Chanter multiclass or does a Ranger/Paladin make sense to you etc.) then you can pick those and at least from a "powergamer's perspective"  you will not be frustrated I guess.

Just try the one that sounds most interesting to you. 

 

 

Edited July 30, 2021 by Boeroer

[Faraleth]

this comment will come from someone who also likes to RP, and not min-max, and also fan of dwarves, so I would go with a multiclass that has lots of passives. I think the biggest problem of Ranger is that not many insane abilities are there to choose from, so its one of the easier picks to multiclass. as first char I would go with:

1) Scout (Ranger+Rogue, more passives from rogue side, and a few escape like spell), scout still fits the ranger RP theme, if you like to use stealth, then Assassin would be great for this. if not, then go no subclass rogue

2) Hunter (Ranger+fighter, also there are a few passives thats good, as a fighter you can wear heavier armor - RP wise I think dwarf ranger is not like an elf archer, you can be an archer in mail/chainmail/breastplate, and fighter passive helps in this case. subclass should be Devoted, but check the comments above if you want the Hunting Bow or one of the Crossbow weapons)

maybe you can consider these 2 as well:

3) Wildrhymer (Ranger+Chanter, you can roleplay this like you are the bard of your dwarf clan, whose traveling with this animal companion to sing those stories he heard during travels in the mead halls. I would not recommend it for first as Chanter has TOO MANY good abilities, and at first it can be confusing)

4) Wanderer (Ranger+Monk, you are a travling ascetic type of ranger, monks also have great passives, and Helwalker is especially good with a ranger, as it increases your damage taken risk, but since you are far away from mobs, it shouldnt be a problem, but I still dont recommend this combination at first, it can feel like a glass cannon. maybe a Ghost Hearth+Helwalker could be a great RP choice, your animal died, so you've taken the road for a more spiritualistic lonely life)

 

Edit: maybe just one additional thing, 2 handed guns are also insane in this game, and if you played dwarf hunter in Wow, guns also fits it. https://pillarsofeternity.fandom.com/wiki/The_Red_Hand this particular gun is basically a shotgun, lower dmg, but shoots 2 bullets at the same time ^^

Edited July 30, 2021 by Faraleth

[Faraleth]

oh and boar is the cutest "pet" of rangers, my personal favourite.

he likes to roll in dirt and rub his back

Edited July 30, 2021 by Faraleth

[Slack83er]

You know.. You gave me an interesting idea.. A dwarf with rifle.. Seems fitting.. Maybe better than crossbow or arbalest. Still undecided between sc and mc.. Being noob-y, I tend to think at sc, but the little voice in my head keeps telling me "try mc!"

[Faraleth]

sometimes I feel like ranged is the most underpowered and underused class in Deadfire, the best ranger is Maia, and you cant even get close to her unfortunately (due to her unique subclass), and for me its actually harder to build a SC ranger than a MC. I think both Scout and Hunter MC's are easier and stronger. just choose mostly the passives you feel great, and it will be great, as 80% of them are that
 

Edited July 30, 2021 by Faraleth

[Slack83er]

Damned job... I still haven't had the opportunity to try what you advised to me.. I promise I will look into it asap.