Not just because my name is Joe, but I think my next playthrough (or I may even sideline this playthrough) I think I am going to try a build or even a party that is all 10s and depend entirely on equipment and spells. Maybe once through on Normal, but eventually PotD.

 

The experiment is to create a control group to see how important attributes really are. I mean, we go through a lot to ditch some attributes to push others up, crunch the numbers to maximize different build characteristics, etc. Has anyone actually tried doing the opposite to see what the _effective_ difference really is? I've seen the math, but what is the actual, in game effect? Is it _that_ unplayable? And if it is demonstrably possible to solo PotD, how unplayable can average stats be?

 

Joe

Isn't the average attribute score higher than 10 ?

 

Anyway, obviously an all 10 group would still be stronger than a solo character, so this shouldn't be that much of a handicap.

 

Individually, some characters are more dependants on stats than others. For a melee rogue for instance, attributes are whatever to some extent ; but a fighter will have trouble doing any damage against a high DR enemy without might. A spell like confusion will be much weaker without the AoE and duration bonus, especially on PoTD where there are much more enemies.

 

In normal mode it shouldn't be an issue ; in PoTD it could be a fun challenge, plus the -1 level from custom characters...

I was considering 10 as average since that is the point of equilibrium for POE where there are no bonuses or penalties for the score.

 

Joe

You get 78 points and can spend it on 6 attributes. So Average Joe's average attribute score is 13.

 

Totally doable and viable, also on PoTD.