Insect swarms!

[crutchy]

Hi there,

 

I am very new to RPG's having been mainly a WoW player. I am also a Fighter/Pally/Barb by past experience rather than Wizards or Priests. Therefore my knowledge of handling spells is rather restrictive.

So I would appreciate some guidance. I have Aloth and Durance (lvl 5)in my party and I am coping reasonably well. I have three questions at this point. 

 

1. I am overwhelmed by the number of spells available to me and I spend most of my time trying to understand what they do!  For the two companions mentioned above are there any "must use" spells. I appreciate that this will depend on circumstance but there must be half a dozen that are always used in any encounter.

2. Related to the above is there anyway you can "remove" the spell icons i.e remove the ones you hardly, if ever, use, from the bottom left of the screen? I find there is too much clutter.

3. I am struggling with the insect swarm that comes with three ogres in Od Nua lvl 3. Is there any spell that can damage/destroy these nasties? I tried burning them but appeared to damage my team more than them.

 

I have to say it is a great game and I have to ration myself so I do not complete it too quickly!!

 

many thanks

[anameforobsidian]

Rather than tell you the gamebreaking combos (that's fun to find on your own), I'll give you a place to start.  Slicken is a great spell for wizards.  It gives lots of crowd control.  Blessing and seals really help your party out from the priest.  The game especially likes stacking debuffs on enemies.

 

I will say that the Ogre's are particularly hard, and you may want to come back or skip them altogether (you can get further down another way).

[Karkarov]

There really is no "must use" spell.  Some are more situational than others, some are always useful all the time but never great, and some are downright gamebreaking but only in the right set up.  I agree about the spell clutter, unfortunately there is nothing you can really do about it.  It will probably terrify you to know there are people during the development who thought Obsidian's UI was too minimalist and wanted even more buttons and bars for some ungodly reason.

 

That said you can make some quick cast macro's by binding spells you use a lot to certain buttons.  I am sure there is a tutorial on it in youtube or something somewhere.

Edited January 9, 2016 by Karkarov

[Lychnidos]

Edit: Posted in the wrong thread  .

Edited January 9, 2016 by Lychnidos

[scottii]

suppose the best way to understand spells/skills is to look at the stats.  does damage/support to target, aoe, or for a certain amount of time - usually in seconds.

 

also consider the accuracy of the target as the spell will mention vs. fortification, will, etc.

[AndreaColombo]

I'll add to what has been said that what spells to use largely depends on your play style and personal preference. I know this is the kind of answer I'd hate to receive, but it is especially true for a game—like Pillars of Eternity—in which most spells are actually good (and low-level spells tend to remain viable at higher levels.)

 

With that said, and for the sake of providing a starting point to help you orient yourself in the maelstrom of available spells, here's a list of Priest spells that I tend to use a lot:

 

1st level:

Armor of Faith, Blessing, Prayer Against Fear

 

2nd level:

Suppress Affliction, Prayer Against Infirmity

 

3rd level:

Dire Blessing, Prayer Against Restraint

 

4th level:

Devotions For The Faithful, Prayer Against Bewilderment

 

5th level:

Champion's Boon, Prayer Against Imprisonment

 

6th level:

Crowns For The Faithful, Prayer Against Treachery

 

7th level:

None

 

 

All the "Prayer Against [...]" spells are, by their very nature, situational and I only use them when fighting enemies that can cause the respective afflictions. I rarely need healing spells but of course I use them if the need arises; same with reviving spells.

 

Most people around here are probably going to be horrified at the notion that I do not, in fact, make use of "Iconic Projection" or any of the Seal spells.

[Boeroer]

Seriously AndreaColombo, what's wrong with you? No Iconic Projection and no Repulsing Seal? You're doing it wrong!

 

Lol

 

 

Rogues are best class by the way lol op godmode lol

[Eliteseraph]

On a related note:  Is there a way to hotkey certain spells? I've just been clicking, and it's getting annoying.

[Fenixp]

On a related note:  Is there a way to hotkey certain spells? I've just been clicking, and it's getting annoying.

Hover over a spell and press a key on your keyboard. Most number keys and letters seem to work, aside from those limited to in-game functions. The spell will get hotkeyed and displayed in your 'favorites' (you'll soon find what that means after you start hotkeying)