The Keep and Endless Paths of Od Nua

[Monte Carlo]

So, sure I've been critical of some key aspects of the game.

 

As I learn more I'm hating those less. I don't think I'll ever love those parts, but I'll live with them.

 

But it's important to acknowledge the stuff that's great. And for me, the keep mini-game and the mega-dungeon are awesome.

 

1. The keep minigame might jar for some people but I think it's a really fun distraction; this is a plot-heavy game with lots going on. Having this stuff going on in the background is like having a break from the critical path and just doing something fun for the sake of it. I like that a lot

2. The keep and dungeon have a classic back-story that segues with the lore and plot

3. Tunnels. Frickin' levels and levels of tunnels. With fighting

4. Because entering the first level is part of a quest I didn't even know I'd entered the old paths at all. I loved that. It felt completely natural and flowed extremely well

5. Owning a castle is awesome

6. I love that your major domo is a talking statue

 

So bravo keep-and-dungeon designers. Am really, really loving this part of PoE.

Edited April 3, 2015 by Monte Carlo

[CaptainMace]

Liked the endless paths because it reminded me of IWD dungeons, where you'd go deeper and deeper and discover some quests, some dudes, environments would evolve as you'd go deeper.
Only problem I have with it is its design as a increasing-difficulty dungeon. So you either complete levels from time to time or you do all at once at the end and stomp over the 2/3 first levels. As I did a bit of it from time to time, I find it hard to see the dungeon as a whole and appreciate the general design as I did for IWD.

[termokanden]

I agree with all of that, but I still think the tax and hirelings system needs a major overhaul. It just doesn't make sense at the moment and is far too punishing.

 

For example, you pay your hirelings per day but only collect taxes per turn. Complete quests quickly: get a lot out of your hirelings. Travel and rest a lot: Lose serious amounts of money on your hirelings. I also don't understand why increasing my security doesn't seem to help against bandits. The biggest problem with the tax system though is that the amount you can earn if you even earn anything is negligible.

 

It's because I love the stronghold that I hope something is done about this, particularly the hirelings. Either they should be paid per turn, or taxes should be collected per day as well.

Edited April 3, 2015 by termokanden

[Starwars]

I like how the keep is setup also. I just wish that A) more things happened there really. Maybe I had bad luck on my playthrough but very little of note actually happened. A visitor or two. I only got the item merchant once. It feels a bit bare to me. I also wish it had been setup a bit differently area-wise. It's a bit of a pain that you have to go upstairs (two loading screens) to rest and then back down again.

 

The Endless Paths is an interesting experiment. I think I had built up something more awesome in my mind but I still enjoyed it. I think it dragged for a few levels in the middle where it really felt like it was just clearing out room after room. I also think it could've been paced better story-wise. Still, I think it's a supremely cool idea and I'm glad they were able to pull it off.

Edited April 3, 2015 by Starwars

[Fhoenix]

Yeah, the tax/hireling system is broken. And the stronghold is so lifeless. I thought there would be workers doing repairs, people coming to your court, somebody living inside. Instead you have several shopkeepers that are more like vending machines, guards who are like patrol robots and a statue that never says anything new. Oh and the achievement for rebuilding it is broken too. I dunno, it does not seem that spending all that money gives you any in-game advantage, and it does not feel like you own an actual castle since nobody lives there. To me it is the weakest part of the game. Most of everything else is pretty solid, but I do not think they had time to work on the stronghold, since everything in it beside the map itself feels unfinished.

[NickAragua]

I like the stronghold and the underlying dungeon. Nothing like a classic dungeon crawl beating up nasties and picking up loot.

 

Here's a list of things that I don't want living underneath my castle (in no particular order)

 

- Little reptilian guys

- Ogres

- Trolls

- Sentient mold of any kind

- Baby dragons

- Ghosts

- Giant vermin (spiders, beetles, etc)

- Whatever else I find down there

 

So, I've been plugging away at that dungeon and it's definitely a tactical challenge. Needs more exits to the ground floor though.

 

The castle itself could definitely use a little bit of "ease of use" feature, like a guy standing in the front yard that can let you access all the stronghold features without having to go through three loading screens. Maybe make it so you have to visit the relevant areas at least once before they show up on the guy's conversation screen. Well, maybe somebody will make a mod for it.