Abduction is bull****

[Guest]

I get that this is Josh' anti-tank-and-spank strategy, but the whole point of party-based combat is that you're supposed to specialize. Certain classes aren't going to hold up well to being teleported to another part of the map, dazed, hit with a paralyze attack, then spammed with frost damage until they are dead.

 

Oh, and the encounters where you have a bunch of ghosts circle your party and spam them with 16-second duration paralyze attacks? Those really suck too.

[Boeroer]

They are indeed annoying, but it's doable.  

[Guest]

I don't recall saying it wasn't. I do recall saying it was bull****. 

[Boeroer]

Ok, maybe you should define bullsh!t then.

[Guest]

Not sure how that would have helped with your propensity for conjecture. 

 

At least you didn't respond with a summary of my post this time. Perhaps we can call this progress.

[Boeroer]

Yeah whatever you say - stay happy man!

[Raven Darkholme]

I can feel the love.

 

@Achilles

Would you rather have fights vs. weak human mobs?

[Heijoushin]

Pretty much agree with both of your points.

 

In the battery, they start teleporting your people all over the place. Sometimes you don't even realize what's happened until you try to give the character an order and release he's on the other side of the map. Really annoying stuff.

 

And the ghost wail that paralyses your whole party is really punishing depending on your build and level.

[Teioh_White]

Wait, what mobs teleport your team around? I've been through the battery tons of times, and I can't recall every having my guys dorked away somewhere.

 

Granted, I always save the Battery for the 3rd to last thing to do in the game, so everything is in curb stomp mode by then, so maybe whatever does it just literally doesn't get a chance.

[Doppelschwert]

Wait, what mobs teleport your team around? I've been through the battery tons of times, and I can't recall every having my guys dorked away somewhere.

 

Granted, I always save the Battery for the 3rd to last thing to do in the game, so everything is in curb stomp mode by then, so maybe whatever does it just literally doesn't get a chance.

 

Yeah, I would be happy to know this, too. I played through the white march at release with patch 2.0 at the lowest level i could, but I never registered something like this. What's abduction doing exactly and which enemies are able of casting it?

[AndreaColombo]

It's one of the spirits that can do that; not sure which one exactly as they always appear in bulk and I've never bothered to check the log for that particular ability. Maybe the Battery Siren (or however it is called)?

 

I got it 100% of the times and thought it was actually good encounter design. It would be annoying if every encounter with spirits had that, but it's good to have it spice things up in a couple encounters.

 

The long-duration Stun is rather annoying though. I'm all for enemies using afflictions against you, but there has to be a way out for you.

[Guest]

The long-duration Stun is rather annoying though. I'm all for enemies using afflictions against you, but there has to be a way out for you.

This.

[gkathellar]

I get that this is Josh' anti-tank-and-spank strategy

 

Yeah, exactly. Attempting to solve problems by creating new problems is the PoE team's whole M.O. It shouldn't be surprising at this point.

[Raven Darkholme]

 

I get that this is Josh' anti-tank-and-spank strategy

 

Yeah, exactly. Attempting to solve problems by creating new problems is the PoE team's whole M.O. It shouldn't be surprising at this point.

 

That's a good point.

But I rather have difficult fights even tho poorly designed, than the enmy A.I. killing itself all the time.

[Doppelschwert]

It's one of the spirits that can do that; not sure which one exactly as they always appear in bulk and I've never bothered to check the log for that particular ability. Maybe the Battery Siren (or however it is called)?

 

I got it 100% of the times and thought it was actually good encounter design. It would be annoying if every encounter with spirits had that, but it's good to have it spice things up in a couple encounters.

 

The long-duration Stun is rather annoying though. I'm all for enemies using afflictions against you, but there has to be a way out for you.

 

Thanks, but I'm still not sure what it does exactly?

It teleports you to the caster and then stuns you..? Does the teleport admit a defense or is it instant hit..?

I'm not able to check ingame currently.

[PrimeJunta]

Wraiths.

 

I thought it was a pretty cool twist actually.

[Torm51]

Ya its Wraiths.  If they snatch one of my tanks its actually a good thing.  The last time I was in the Battery I was about level 12 and they obducted me once and Pallegina the next time (both tanking/support Paladins) and worked out very well as most of the mobs in the rear tried to crush me/Pallegina and well they couldn't touch us and my tank personally downed 2 of them before the entire team on the other side got to me.  If they abduct a squishy with no escape its an auto KO most of the time.  They did abduct Zahua once but man did they pay for it.  He literally smoked like 6 ore more (I always play PoTD) before he got knocked out.  Once I got close enough I gave him a Reviving Exhortation and the pain continued.  He never got abducted again.  Pain retains!

 

I guess It depends on party make up.  Ever since 2.0 I play a very heavy Melee party that doesn't really have  a squishy other then the priest and wizard/Cipher/Druid.  Usually I have a heavy front line of 2x Paladin, Monk, Fighter/Rogue (I have this new thing where I spec them pretty defensively and they have very good survival with damn good damage output).

Edited December 9, 2015 by Torm51

[mosspit]

Interesting ability but I don't recall it gotten any of my party unconscious before. I too play melee heavy parties for 3 playthroughs now where most of the characters have decent defences. In fact my current all-melee playthrough has no real squishies. Even my priest wearing robes has a shield and the W&S talent.

[Blades of Vanatar]

What defence are the wraiths attacking to cause a knockout?

[SamHam]

Oh God I remember those a$shats... Thankfuly Itumak was always pleased taking 4 paralyzing wails and being abducted by wraiths all over the place, before the rest of the party joined the party and opened a can of whoopass.

[globalCooldown]

I like tricky shenanigans like this, tbh. I can also see how it could be bull****.

In general, the easiest solution is to come out swinging with CCs and keep the enemy from tearing into the abducted party member too much.

[Guest]

It's usually an opening move, so it's typically over before you have time to do anything about it. 

 

In and of itself, I'm actually not that put off by it. On the foundry level, where they drop your peep on a trap and then spam everyone else with daze/paralyze attacks? That party is super frustrating. Can't imagine how anyone gets through it on higher difficulties.

[Boeroer]

Maybe I was lucky - I didn't experience this at all.

[Blades of Vanatar]

Possibly AI only tries this on chatacters with a particular low defense type?

[Torm51]

It's usually an opening move, so it's typically over before you have time to do anything about it. 

 

In and of itself, I'm actually not that put off by it. On the foundry level, where they drop your peep on a trap and then spam everyone else with daze/paralyze attacks? That party is super frustrating. Can't imagine how anyone gets through it on higher difficulties.

Did it on PotD.  High save tanks like Paladins save the day in those encounters.  They stay active and don't get CCed  (or for very little of the time) and are able to engage the spirits in order to buy the fully CCed party members time.  My PC Paladin and Pallegina were invaluable there on my PotD/ToI run.