First NPC Build

[NOS4A2]

First time playthrough, running a pure Tank Paladin(Lvl3), I've got the Wizard(Lvl3) from outside the Inn with me. Just cleared the Temple of Ethos and wondering if I should grab a custom NPC and if so what class/etc. I've got just enough to hire the lvl2, and have 100p left. Any/All advice is appreciated, thanks.

 

 

PS Why does the Wizard seem to suck in this game? Whats up with that? Not that I am mourning over their loss of dominance! lol P

[Torm51]

-You could go Cipher or Rogue as they have per encounter abilities.  The Cipher has awesome CC and can do good dps.  The rogue built correctly is a ball of absolute hate.  he can really dish out pain.  I would recommend both eventually as a Cipher with mental binding and rogue with penetrating shot can absolutely murder things.  The hardest boss in the game (I wont say anything as I don't want to spoil it) I turned into swiss cheese thanks to mental binding and a rogue with a 4 blunderbusses.

 

Wizard sucks early cause ALL of his spells are per rest (just like the druid). at level 9 though first 2 level spells are PER ENCOUNTER and are still very powerful.  Slicken, Eldritch Aim, Fan of Flames, the Dazzling lights debuff, even the missiles can hit super hard.  You also get a super long per encounter blind (Curse of Blackness) and Miasma of Dullness to ware down defenses of enemies.  The rest of their per rest high level spells can make some fights VERY trivial.  But this is late game.  I agree early game they just turn auto attackers who have to wait for the big fight to be useful (same as the Druid).  Also Aloth is built very questionably as his might is terrible so his dps suffers but if you use him as a debuffer hes useful as he can caster pretty quick and has a large AOE thanks to his high Int.  This also makes his debuffs last a long time.

 

Also if you are not playing double tanks Eder can made into a good consistent damage dealer with ok survivability.  Let your tank Paladin(my favorite class) face tank the big bad guys.

Edited June 19, 2015 by Torm51

[Raven Darkholme]

Wizard is arguably the strongest class in this game. Since the difficulty is low, you don't need the strongest class and he is very rest heavy. Aloth's stats are not optimal, thats why he is slightly less useful, especially if you have autolevel on.

You can grab more companions, so not sure which mercenary would be good for you, there is no thief or monk companion in this game for example.

[NOS4A2]

Thanks guys, I appreciate it. I was pretty much stuck between rogue or cipher.

[MadDemiurg]

Wizards are very strong, but they are not a novice class. Tbh they can even dish out very respectable per encounter ranged damage with arcane assault and blast without even using any spells. Aloth is a poorly built wizard though.

 

Overall classes with per rest abilities are good at handling difficulty spikes, of you want to do some high level content or bounties early they are very helpul. If you play with full party, by the end of the game you'll be able to beat most encounters by just autoattacking, then again you'll have per encounter spells and it's mostly a matter of preference how to kill your enemies.

 

As for whom to hire: tbh it depends on the rest of the party you want to run. if you have only pally and wizard I'd add another melee like monk next. However you can grab a fighter NPC in the first town, so if you do it, I'd hire a cipher next. Cipher overall is a stronger class than rogue, but playing it requires you to have enough game knowledge to pick good powers, plus rouge is a better mechanics bot, as he starts with 1 more point in this skill.

Edited June 20, 2015 by MadDemiurg

[NOS4A2]

At the moment I'm loving the wizard now that I've got a cipher to handle per encounter CCing and my Wiz can hold back for the biggies.

[PrimeJunta]

Yeh wizards don't suck. The trick is to pick the right spell to attack the enemy's weakest defence, or hit them with one-two punches.

 

Gishing is also fun. Summon a weapon, self-buff with some defences, and mow your way through the opposition. Just be sure to bail out before the buffs run out.