High Resolve Character?

[BLAM-O!]

Hey everyone. I made it about halfway through Pillars back when it released, but had to stop due to my video card dying. I'm finally getting back into it, and I decided that I'd rather reroll instead of trying to pick up where I left off. I'd like some advice on what classes/builds can work with a high Resolve character. I remember liking Resolve quite a bit for the additional dialog options it provided on my first character, who was a Chanter. I really enjoyed my Chanter, but I'd like to try something different this time just for the sake of variety. I'm particularly interested in a Cipher, Rogue, or Ranger, but could be talked into anything. Thank you for any and all advice!

[PugPug]

I'm a super noob myself, but Chanter, Fighter, Monk and Paladin all start at "very high" deflection, so I would think they would synergize well with high Resolve. Maybe not Monk because getting wounded powers their abilities? I don't know.

 

A lot of people seem to say Paladins make the best talky characters because they benefit from Resolve, Intellect and Perception.

[Vorad]

Any kind of character that needs high deflection really, you could try a full defensive paladin.

[BLAM-O!]

I'd like to avoid playing a Paladin because of that class ability that requires you to respond to things in a certain way, but I can see how they would be a good fit otherwise.

 

Does the Will bonus from Resolve make it easier to hit an enemy's Will defense? I forget how all the combat math works.

[AndreaColombo]

Does the Will bonus from Resolve make it easier to hit an enemy's Will defense?

 

Not quite. It makes it harder for enemies to hit you with attacks that target the Will defense.

 

To overcome enemies' defenses (regardless of which one) you need Accuracy, which you can get a bonus for from Perception.

[Kaylon]

High resolve is required for tanks - ie paladin or fighter. Shieldbearers paladins are the easiest to play because they're not penalized unlesss they're agressive/cruel which is easy to avoid.

[Raven Darkholme]

High resolve is required for tanks - ie paladin or fighter. Shieldbearers paladins are the easiest to play because they're not penalized unlesss they're agressive/cruel which is easy to avoid.

Mostly very true.

Metawise cruel is a good thing to go for, cause of Skaen temple and Gift of the machine.

[jsaving]

The best high-resolve character is one where you either don't care about your damage/accuracy or don't care how quickly you attack/cast.  I would question whether it makes sense post-2.0 to put either type of character into your party, but on the other hand, you do not need anywhere close to an optimized party to finish PoE.  So if you want a high-resolve character, then you should use one.

[Raven Darkholme]

The best high-resolve character is one where you either don't care about your damage/accuracy or don't care how quickly you attack/cast.  I would question whether it makes sense post-2.0 to put either type of character into your party, but on the other hand, you do not need anywhere close to an optimized party to finish PoE.  So if you want a high-resolve character, then you should use one.

That's dumb, a tank fits into every party, not only because you "don't need an optimized party" but because a character who doesn't die is a very good insurance.

The best (here I mean most safe) solo builds have high resolve and tank well.

[Parasol_Syndicate]

Darcozzi Paladini are a joy to play for anyone who's ever wanted to be Don Quixote. 

[Oralaina]

Darcozzi Paladini are a joy to play for anyone who's ever wanted to be Don Quixote. 

 

Um.  I have to say I've never once in nearly 70 years been interested in being Don Quixote.

 

But on topic.... I have found that for my particular playstyle, PC with high resolve is a necessity - backed up with 5 created group members to fill out the other slots.  I don't ever use the dev-created extras.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Oralaina

[aweigh0101]

my last PotD game, on 2.01, i had everyone wear'ing +2 resolve on their Armors, EVERYONE, mandatory! AND i made everyone pick on lvl. 4 cautious atk for that sweet +8 deflection and then on lvl. 6 everyone picked superior deflection for an extra +5. by the time i was mopping up ice trolls in TWM even Grieving Mother had 80+ deflection at level 11 with warhammer and shield :)

believe me, high resolve (and also high CON too, i like my big endurance pools for potd) benefits EVERY SINGLE CLASS. the trick is that, as with most of the things in the game you have to really SPECIALIZE in a specific direction. just making a party in the Inn of 6 chars all with 18 resolve doesn't meet the requirements of a High Deflection Character. you need to also take at the very least sup. deflection talent, and i would do my best to convince you to also take cautious attack. why take only one of the two? +13 deflection... for two talents? when we're usually picking at random by the time we hit level 11 cos we already picked all the good stuff? yeah, +13 def, i.e. 13 extra resolve, is VERY significant. for example, a rogue has a base def of 15, and a chanter has a base def of 25. only 10pts of difference. or... only 1 cautious attack's worth of difference. that's the way to see it. the ONLY class i absolutely do not recommend stocking up on resolve/deflection talents is wizards. their base 10 def is beyond saving. plus they have veil anyway.

in that potd run i mentioned i remember when i was doing the tier 4 bounties around level 12-13 everyone had excess of 90 deflection at minimum. even my squishies could go toe to toe for a little while with enemy enforcers. it's really satisfying not having to micro-manage them all the time in those situations.

the class that can achieve highest total deflection is paladin, if i remember my stuff correctly. 13 def from faith and conviction + deep faith, 8 def from caut. atk., 5 def from sup. deflection, assuming 18 in resolve, ring of deflection +9, and either +2 resolve on the armor or the +3 res ring from TWM (but i don't like it, there are much better rings for those two slots), it's a ridiculous amount. on patch 2.02 would end up 5-10 def higher than fighter doing same stuff/gear, now they end up mostly the same in def. except pallies' huge def also includes saving throws.

a good potd rule of thumb is to never ever dump either con or res. it is honestly better to dump DEX or might before con or res, because fights in PotD take a LONG time. it is the complete opposite of the quick resolutions in normal and hard. potd fights take time, and you need to be able to take a lot of hits, every class, regardless of role, cos there are simply too many enemy mobs, and your line WILL break and you will get swarmed. i absolutely do not like glass cannon builds for potd. my potd rogues are sabre/shield/caut. atk/sup. deflection/body control/mental fortress/gallants focus (+4 acc!)/weapon focus and obv. their rogue crit picks.

i refuse to spend an entire melee babysitting a dumbass rogue who does mad dmg and can't take a hit.

[Wolken3156]

I'd like to avoid playing a Paladin because of that class ability that requires you to respond to things in a certain way, but I can see how they would be a good fit otherwise.

You don't have to make the main character a Paladin, its just optimal. A non-main character Paladin can perform just as well in PotD, I do it myself since I don't like having my main be a Paladin for RP reasons.

 

believe me, high resolve (and also high CON too, i like my big endurance pools for potd) benefits EVERY SINGLE CLASS.

Play styles differ from person to person. I personally think Res is a complete waste on most ranged classes. Wizards certainly don't need it since Arcane Veil and some of their buffs gives them all the Deflection they'll need plus Spirit Shield will give them a Concentration bonus. Rangers don't usually need it either since their pet should be drawing attention away from the ranger, and the pet itself is a fantastic off-tank with the right talents. Druids can shapeshift if forced to melee and really lay waste to them, or use the wolf form's mobility bonus to play keep away with the enemies.

 

Priests though, benefit from Res to an extent, since a lot of their spells require them to very close to melee. Weapon and Shield style, Cautious Attack, Superior Deflection, and casting Shields for the Faithful is usually more than enough though, even with low Res. Ciphers are generally in the same area as Priests as well, though a lot of their powers stun, charm or confuse enemies which allows them to break engagement.

 

Alternatively, what I normally do, is have characters cover each other. If my Cipher is looking pretty swarmed, I'll have my Wizard cast Call to Slumber on the enemies around her. If my Chanter defenses don't seem up to par, I can have my Paladin use Reinforcing Exhortation.

 

Con though, is somewhat useful. The big ranged killer is the cold attack from Shades (Which is almost always aimed at ranged characters), having a decent Con makes dealing with those much less of a headache, especially in early game. Other ranged attackers generally tend to focus on your ranged as well, but they're usually much easier to deal with than Shades. In my case, sic the Ranger's Wolf on them and watch them panic.

 

a good potd rule of thumb is to never ever dump either con or res. it is honestly better to dump DEX or might before con or res, because fights in PotD take a LONG time.

Fights end pretty quick on my end (Especially during late game), but I tend to have my Wizard nova everything in sight. I'm so reckless.

[PugPug]

But what dialogue options does Resolve really get you? I have read the description, I'd just like some more detail, please. And does it ever really unlock a more satisfying outcome?

[Parasol_Syndicate]

It seems to be THE persuasion stat. Every time you want someone else to do something they'd rather not, it'll be a RES check. 

The choice often comes down to having good RES, or being unpersuasive, since there is no social 'skill'.

[Heijoushin]

Resolve = tank, combat wise. I've never been a fan of making my main character a tank though (since I feel the leader should kill stuff, not be a meat shield) but cool if that works for you.

 

But if you want more dialogue options, you also need per and int, right? Why not play a back-row caster and specialize in these things? 

[Dastion]

To me Chanter seems like a good option.  You can go high resolve, int, perception, and con with little drawback since they can still provide plenty of benefit without high damage or accuracy.

 

The only real bad part is that Chanters really don't scale well with the game.  Unless you're playing PoE then you'll rarely get to use their bigger powers.  But it's a decent alternative if you don't want to play a Paladin.