Deadfire Q&A Twitch Stream - July 12th!

[Mikey Dowling]

Hey, everyone!

 

On July 12th at 4:00PM PST/1:00AM CEST we'll be doing another live Q&A Stream from our offices and answer questions from you here in the community! Do you have questions for Deadfire Game Director, Josh Sawyer, or Lead Character Artist, Dimitri Berman? If so, let us know below and we'll make sure that they get answered during the stream.

 

 

But Mikey, what if I'm not able to get my question in in time and the stream has already started?

 

If you don't have a chance to ask a question before the stream airs, we'll have time near the end to take questions from Twitch chat.

 

What if I miss the stream entirely, when will I be able to answer my next question?

 

We'll hopefully be able to do these once every two months or so, so sometime after PAX West, we'll have our next Q&A stream.

 

I'm going to miss the stream live, will it go up on YouTube so I can watch later?

 

Yes it will! Barring any technical difficulties/random zombie attack, the Q&A stream should be posted on our YouTube channel within 48 hours after the stream ends.

 

Have a great rest of the week, everyone!

[smjjames]

Will you guys also be providing a transcript of what is said?

[DexGames]

@Devs :

 

• Was Aloth/Iselmyr duality inspired by Adam/Andy Brennecke's double personality ? Did he choose to embrace "Andy" after revealing his secret at E3 ? Are they insulting each other at the Office, yelling programming stuff throughout the whole building, scaring people ? Thanks.
• Dimitri : Are you done modeling the Godlike options for the Player ? It's been said that you had a lot of fun working on these races, but we all know it's because you depise modeling Hair Styles. #HairCurls
• Dimitri : The new 3D character display in the Inventory looks amazing, did you have to start all of it from scratch, or did you used Base Models from the 1st Game ?
• Josh : Can you elaborate a bit on the dedicated "Shapeshifting" Druid Sub-Class ? Since the location has changed for a more "Aquatic/Desertic" Location, did you add new transformations reflecting the Deadfire Archipelago, like, as if Druids had to adapt their Spiritshift Forms to the Environment they live in ? (Aquatic, Desert, Aerian, Terrestrial forms, etc). Or will it still be Bear/Boar/Stag/Wolf/Cat ?
• Any chances you'd show us some of those Ship Types you've been working on in the near future ? Even Concept Arts ! (Shape/Size/Design/Etc)
• For the Backer Beta, will we get to play the "Vertical Slice" you've been showing us so far or something completely different ? Oh.... & when ? 

Can't wait to see what you've prepared for Level 9 & 10 Spellcasting Classes. 

 

EDIT :

• If Pillars Of Eternity I, was : "Main Content / Side Content" = 50/50%. What's would be your guess for Deadfire ? 40/60% - 30/70% ? We know Players love Side Content a lot, specialy Hidden Side Content. 

Edited June 29, 2017 by DexGames

[Karkarov]

So...... How easy is it to mod that UI again?  Inquiring minds (or mind) wants to know.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

1.With spells and abilities being per encounter, will there be an adjustment to Chanters, Ciphers, and Monks resource building?

2.Will there be new types of weapons?

3.Do you intend for Expansions/DLC to raise the level cap beyond 20?

4.Will Accuracy, Deflection, and Stamina be influenced by class like PoE or will all classes have the same base values?

5.Will we get to fight a Leviathan?

[Messier-31]

Will you guys also be providing a transcript of what is said?

 

I'm sure that Fereed will deliver.

[FlintlockJazz]

Apologies if these have already been asked or answered elsewhere.

 

1.  With the skill system being changed, will the mechanical effects of Backgrounds also be changed?  As in, do they still provide skill bonuses or will they now give other bonuses instead (and perhaps penalties as well)?

2.  If the main character is using a custom portrait, how will the new watercolour portraits work with them?  Do you pick a watercolour portrait from a list or will the game attempt to create a watercolour version automatically?

[smjjames]

In the E3 vid, what was the stealth skill of the character that was showing off the sneak and pickpocket features? If you guys remember what it was anyway.

[AndreaColombo]

Dimitri:

 

- What is it that you like modeling the best and why?

- What is the model you are the most proud of in Pillars I and, if you are at liberty of discussing it, in Deadfire?

- Beside Xoti's hair, what's the most challenging thing to model and why?

- Speaking of hair, IIRC you were looking into making long hair show when wearing helmets (as opposed to a character's suddenly balding up when wearing one in Pillars); did you succeed? What is the main challenge in this process?

- What's your favorite gear in Pillars I looks-wise? Will there be unique armors in the style of the Sanguine Plate in Deadfire?

 

Josh:

- Will we get to craft armor from the scales of the dragons we kill in Deadfire (possibly ticking off all other dragons for wearing their brethren)?

- Can you share who's writing which companion? I know you're writing Pallegina and Eric F. is back for Edér; I'd imagine Carrie's writing Aloth but what about the others?

- Will Tekehu have a unique spiritshift form? If yes, did Dimitri curse you upon learning that he'd have to model it? :D

[.Sabbo]

In Deadfire will we be able to pretend to side with a faction and sabotage them from within? Also how would multiclassing a chanter affect their songs?

[the_dog_days]

Dimitri: Josh says you're a satan worshiper. Is this true and can you elaborate? :D

Edited July 3, 2017 by the_dog_days

[Baltic]

Will Deadfire's optional level scaling also scale skill checks, such as for disabling traps and the like?

[Quillon]

How will dialogue skills combine with dispositions?

Will we assign dialogue skills for all characters or just the PC? Or will they be learn-by-use?

Will companions' skills always matter in dialogue/scripted interactions? Or only when it makes sense?

Will solo characters be able to make highest skill checks if he/she has devoted in that particular skill? If so how will you prevent a full party making most, if not all skills checks?

 

Does NPC scheduling extend to world map where ships have routes & move as player does? So we can encounter with a ship in different parts of the map along its usual route?

 

Have you ever considered/experimented with ultra-slow time over pause? Or NWN2/DAO like follow toggle as optional/gimmicky features?

 

Can we equip pistols in the new trinket slot i.e. 1 per encounter pistol shot? Or unique armors with special pistol slots to bolster the pirate-y feel?

 

Will we be able to change our characters' eye color if its not a godlike? 

 

edit: How will class calls for multi-class characters work? f.i. Will the game consider 1 level Cipher in a 1/19 combo, enough Cipher for all Cipher class calls or will it check power source levels of classes?

 

Also thanks for the instagram tease of death godlike models you'll be filming after the stream.

Edited July 10, 2017 by Quillon

[smjjames]

Does NPC scheduling extend to world map where ships have routes & move as player does? So we can encounter with a ship in different parts of the map along its usual route?

 

This would be cool.

[Lamppost in Winter]

How do the companion bonuses to skill checks in dialogue work - e.g., does every companion contribute, or just the highest score?

[AndreaColombo]

Will there be more variety in clothing/commoner outfits compared to Pillars 1?

 

Will there be more hair and beard styles? Are we finally getting the King Leonidas and Seneca Crane beards? ;D

[Night Stalker]

Given the presence of Berath’s Blessing (and many players desire to endlessly experiment with builds), will the introduction of PoE 2 be shorter than PoE 1 (Encampment + Cilant Lis)? Perhaps one of the possible blessings of Berath will be to skip the introduction segment of the game?

[Quillon]

Given the presence of Berath’s Blessing (and many players desire to endlessly experiment with builds), will the introduction of PoE 2 be shorter than PoE 1 (Encampment + Cilant Lis)? Perhaps one of the possible blessings of Berath will be to skip the introduction segment of the game?

 

Andy Brennecke confirmed skippable content via Berath's Blessing, tho he didn't say which part but I think its safe to assume that its prologue.

[smjjames]

 

Given the presence of Berath’s Blessing (and many players desire to endlessly experiment with builds), will the introduction of PoE 2 be shorter than PoE 1 (Encampment + Cilant Lis)? Perhaps one of the possible blessings of Berath will be to skip the introduction segment of the game?

 

Andy Brennecke confirmed skippable content via Berath's Blessing, tho he didn't say which part but I think its safe to assume that its prologue.

 

 

If we do get the ability to skip the prologue, we should be able to still set the characters background, like we would for the prologue in PoE1.

[hilfazer]

Speed enchant is considered by Pillars 1 equally good for all weapons while being much less powerful for weapons with reload animations. Is Deadfire going to address this issue?

[MaxQuest]

- Will there be more clothing and armor models in Deadfire?

- Will there be a possibility to change appearance of one armor/outfit to that of another one of the same armor category (light, medium, heavy)? Because even if you are a min-maxer, chances are you want your characters to look stylish

 

 

- How will Full Attack abilities work with dual-wielded firearms?

- It was mentioned that pistol proficiency will add a modal that can turn them into clubs. If these pistol-clubs are better than other clubs, then the latter become obsolete. And if they are worse, then it's better to just carry a usual club in the second weapon slot instead. How do you think is the best way to balance this situation? Also will these pistol-clubs work with carnage and torment reach?

- It was mentioned that abilities damage will scale with power source. But how will it affect crowd-control spells? If it affects duration won't it make cc-spells weak in early game, and too strong later?

- What Skills will we have in Deadfire?

 

- Will reward talents like Mental Prowess, Gift from the Machine, Scale Breaker and so on, be carried to Deadfire on character import?

- In PoE1 we had problem where: you want to side with one faction (let's say Crucible Knights), but get the talent reward from another faction (Doemenel). Will this also be the case in Deadfire? Or we'll be given some flexibility / ability to choose the right reward ourselves?

Edited July 11, 2017 by MaxQuest

[smjjames]

When will we see Serafen and Takehu (that's the right name?) in videos or Josh's teaser clips? We've only seen the three returning companions plus Xloti and Maia so far.

 

Regarding the Engwithan Titan shown in the E3 vid, will it have the death effects as described in the concept art in Fig update 12? To be honest, the near death effect didn't show up and the death animation seemed, well... unspectactular compared to the way it was shown in the concept art. Unless it wasn't truly dead and we'd face it again. I'd understand if it was still a work in progress or not implemented at the time.

 

How does/do Takehu's 'hair'/organic dreadlocks/head tentacles work, as in how will it look ingame? In Fig update 13, they appear pretty self motile.

 

Maybe one of the forumers can confirm this for me as I'm not 100% sure about it and it may have been answered already, is it accurate that most spell uses wil be per-encounter rather than rest in Deadfire? I've read that spell boosts (forget the word used, inspiration or something) will be per rest, which makes sense in balance terms.

Edited July 4, 2017 by smjjames

[MaxQuest]

Maybe one of the forumers can confirm this for me as I'm not 100% sure about it and it may have been answered already, is it accurate that most spell uses wil be per-encounter rather than rest in Deadfire? I've read that spell boosts (forget the word used, inspiration or something) will be per rest, which makes sense in balance terms.

All per-rest spells and abilities from PoE1 will be per-encounter in Deadfire.

There will also be an "Empower" ability. It will have few per-rest charges, but you will be able to use it no more than once per-encounter. Selecting Empower before using a spell or ability, will result in casting a stronger version of that spell or ability.

 

P.S. Amount of Empower per-rest charges may increase with character or power level.

Edited July 4, 2017 by MaxQuest

[smjjames]

 

Maybe one of the forumers can confirm this for me as I'm not 100% sure about it and it may have been answered already, is it accurate that most spell uses wil be per-encounter rather than rest in Deadfire? I've read that spell boosts (forget the word used, inspiration or something) will be per rest, which makes sense in balance terms.

All per-rest spells and abilities from PoE1 will be per-encounter in Deadfire.

There will also be an "Empower" ability. It will have few per-rest charges, but you will be able to use it no more than once per-encounter. Selecting Empower before using a spell or ability, will result in casting a stronger version of that spell or ability.

 

P.S. Amount of Empower per-rest charges may increase with character or power level.

 

I see, so, the only thing that will be per-rest will be the Empower stuff.

[smjjames]

Doubleposting so that it's a separate post from the previous (and bouncing off of MaxQuests speculation in another thread):

 

Will Empower greatly increase accuracy of cc abilities, or condense or substantially increase damage coefficient of DoT spells? Basically, how and what will Empower do to boost spells and abilities which aren't single target or consist of multiple projectiles.