Companions and Romance

[Aridea]

 

Frankly Takehu hitting on my male orlan Watcher, feels... how would that work exactly? I am molested by my own companions.

 

Takehu is the kind of person who'd hit on anyone though

 

As for how it'd work ask Serafan. He probably knows by first hand experience.

 

(That said why the hell is everyone so quick to get approval but Aloth? Aloth please. I just want your quest!)

 

 

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

[arober]

 

 

Frankly Takehu hitting on my male orlan Watcher, feels... how would that work exactly? I am molested by my own companions.

 

Takehu is the kind of person who'd hit on anyone though

 

As for how it'd work ask Serafan. He probably knows by first hand experience.

 

(That said why the hell is everyone so quick to get approval but Aloth? Aloth please. I just want your quest!)

 

 

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

 

It's the same for me, I have Aloth at +1 and Eder is still sitting pretty at 0.

 

I should probably crack a joke, but then I'd lose allegiance with Aloth... Darn.

[Ryz009]

 

 

Frankly Takehu hitting on my male orlan Watcher, feels... how would that work exactly? I am molested by my own companions.

 

Takehu is the kind of person who'd hit on anyone though

 

As for how it'd work ask Serafan. He probably knows by first hand experience.

 

(That said why the hell is everyone so quick to get approval but Aloth? Aloth please. I just want your quest!)

 

 

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

 

 

Maybe it's because I have Leaden Key Aloth. He approves of pretty much nothing D:

[Aridea]

 

 

Maybe it's because I have Leaden Key Aloth. He approves of pretty much nothing D:

 

 

So do I...  

He approves of a lot of things in my game, like being diplomatic with the two families in Neketaka, agreeing to help them etc. 

His conversation with 1 approval triggered in Fort Deadfire (i go there straight from Port Maje) after conversation with Serafen about Remaro, when you find his chest. I basically chose not to pry into Serafen's personal affairs and respect his privacy. Same with Aloth, didn't push him with the Insight options. 

I don't know if it matters or not.

 

 

 

 

 

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

 

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

 

It's the same for me, I have Aloth at +1 and Eder is still sitting pretty at 0.

 

I should probably crack a joke, but then I'd lose allegiance with Aloth... Darn.

 

 

 

The joys of metagaming     Doesn't he disapprove more of chaotic/irresponsible behavior than jokes? 

Edited May 13, 2018 by Aridea

[arober]

The joys of metagaming     Doesn't he disapprove more of chaotic/irresponsible behavior than jokes? 

It's not metagaming, I RP a fairly stoic, responsible Watcher, and Aloth seems to approve of that.

 

And I think he views jokes as irresponsible. We would not be friends in real life.

[Yenkaz]

 

The joys of metagaming     Doesn't he disapprove more of chaotic/irresponsible behavior than jokes?

 

It's not metagaming, I RP a fairly stoic, responsible Watcher, and Aloth seems to approve of that.

 

And I think he views jokes as irresponsible. We would not be friends in real life.

I suppose, but it just seems a bit excessive to be angry about every joke. Edér doesn't *mind* if you're serious and you can still have good relations with him if you're mostly stoic.

[arober]

Oh, I am not saying it isn't excessive, it's ridiculous. This whole relationship systems seems to be bugged to hel, it's just that this one time the bugs are working in my favor. 

[Zeitzbach]

Aloth is the odd one out of the group who just disapprove of what you do to make all the other people approve.

 

I find it sad he's at -2 or -1 on half of the squad. I just want to be a sulky sassy watcher.

[butteredherb]

I am in mourning regarding Eder. Definitely was not expecting this. Glad I checked before going into the game with the wrong idea. 

[Yria]

Aloth is the odd one out of the group who just disapprove of what you do to make all the other people approve.

 

Pretty much. A lot of my conversations with Aloth in the group went as

Watcher: *makes a harmless joke*

Maia: lol approve.

Xoti: haha nice.

Tekehu: good one approve.

Aloth: I HATE YOU STUPID WATCHER STOP BEING IRRESPONSIBLE (also I hate you too Tekehu just because).

 

At some point I just gave up and stopped taking him along. He seems to be bugged since he wouldn't lose or gain affection with me, but seing him massage his temples all the time started to get on my nerves. And this is my mostly rational, diplomatic Watcher who was suppoused to get along with Aloth pretty well. I dread the day when I start the game with my truly irresponsible sassy Watcher. Aloth will probably throw himself overboard and swim back to Aedyr. 

[Zeitzbach]

I finally figured out why Serafen has no full romance now.

 

Because Serafen is a Serafriend and Sera in Franch means Will be.

 

So the name Serafen actually means Will be Friend.

 

CURSE YOU OBSIDIAN.

 

At least I'm not NTR'd else I would so uninstall.

 

 

Aloth is the odd one out of the group who just disapprove of what you do to make all the other people approve.

 

Pretty much. A lot of my conversations with Aloth in the group went as

Watcher: *makes a harmless joke*

Maia: lol approve.

Xoti: haha nice.

Tekehu: good one approve.

Aloth: I HATE YOU STUPID WATCHER STOP BEING IRRESPONSIBLE (also I hate you too Tekehu just because).

 

At some point I just gave up and stopped taking him along. He seems to be bugged since he wouldn't lose or gain affection with me, but seing him massage his temples all the time started to get on my nerves. And this is my mostly rational, diplomatic Watcher who was suppoused to get along with Aloth pretty well. I dread the day when I start the game with my truly irresponsible sassy Watcher. Aloth will probably throw himself overboard and swim back to Aedyr. 

 

 

I already plan on having him around minimal for the next playthrough just to avoid his reputation issues. Xoti is probably the only one he likes because of "MUH MISSION!!!" annoyance.

[Aramintai]

 

Maybe it's because I have Leaden Key Aloth. He approves of pretty much nothing D:

If it helps, I have him as anti-Leaden Key and he's doing the same buggy ****.

[Madrigaelle]

I am in mourning regarding Eder. Definitely was not expecting this. Glad I checked before going into the game with the wrong idea. 

So do I. I backed PoE2 just after relationship announcement. I'm not upset but disapointed. It leave me a bitter-sweet taste as I was expecting it.

I'll play the game anyway but I'm not enjoying it as I should for the moment.

 

(sorry for bad english )

[Vyrulisse]

Sad to read that it sounds like romances were, for lack of a better term, really lazy in this game. If you're going to do it, then do it right or not at all is my feeling. I haven't read any data mined stuff so maybe it's just bugs making them feel lacking but I dunno. What I've seen so far in my own game isn't hopeful. What I mean by "do it right" is to have it extensive and more than a few conversations I dunno. 

 

Kissy face and sexual stuff isn't the goal, it's communication throughout many things and feeling like your characters grow closer over time not one or two conversations then suddenly nothing else. I figured if anyone could have pulled it off it would be Obsidian but I'm not too hopeful perusing this thread.

Edited May 13, 2018 by Vyrulisse

[Tamyn]

I wouldn't call them "lazy", it's just what they thought was appropriate for the characters I suppose. Of course, I always want more content. I hope for more content in the DLC. It's a step up from the first game at least, haha.

Edited May 13, 2018 by Tamyn

[CaptainBiscuit]

Regarding new companion relationship system in general I think it would be better to have more tiers to their reputation (with more conversations upon reaching each tier) than just 2. It could even be the same amount of reputation required, just divided into smaller tiers for better tracking. 

[Tamyn]

Regarding new companion relationship system in general I think it would be better to have more tiers to their reputation (with more conversations upon reaching each tier) than just 2. It could even be the same amount of reputation required, just divided into smaller tiers for better tracking. 

 

Agreed. I still don't know if I've blown my only chance for romance with Aloth or not. I am finished with his personal quest and I haven't seen any prompts. I will have to wait until I beat the game to find out I guess. :/

[Wormerine]

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

I wish we could click on each individual companion and see what exactly influenced their opinion and by how much. It seems like individual choices have stronger or weaker influence on companion’s opinion - which is fair, but I feel it’s comunicated poorly.

 

I did one think Eder disliked and it immediately moved him into -1 territory. Then I did bunch of things he liked, but it took a long long time before he came around. Sadly, the little notifications we get during the conversation don’t communicate that gap.

 

The result is that it is enough to have one interaction with someone and they throw a tantrum, fall in love with you. I feel like extreme conflicts should come into play until the bigger like/dislike is achieved (+/-2 or more opinion). Some hard coded limitations might improve the system as well - like companions won’t initiate romance until they traveled a certain time with you, and express they approval over something once or twice (if such things are in the game). That would eliminate “love/hate from first”. As Josh said a while back, the role of the system is to make interactions more natural but right now the effect is completely opposite. Characters seem to lack any logic or believable progression. And shame because individual “events” are well written.

 

I find myself struggling to care about any of the new companions. maybe except Serafim. I know stuff about him. The rest gave me a vague elevator pitch on who they are, and thing they reveal is that they wanna bed my PC. Maybe more will be revealed later on, if that’s a case I feel like certain interaction should be gated, until later in the store (or individual character’s arc progression).

 

I also feel like max level of relationship (and reputations) are too easy to reach. I reached max level with Xoti within first hour of the game, while playing as rather cynical and godless character.

[Yenkaz]

 

Really? Aloth is quicker than Eder for me, even though I am being as nice to everyone as I could. I have them both as well as Serafen and Xoti, and they are all at 1.

I still don't fully understand how the approval system works. It feels like aside from the obvious "Aloth rolls his eyes at Tekehu's every word" there are some hidden approvals and/or triggers in the conversations. That is when its an alignment-free response.

I wish we could click on each individual companion and see what exactly influenced their opinion and by how much. It seems like individual choices have stronger or weaker influence on companion’s opinion - which is fair, but I feel it’s comunicated poorly.

I did one think Eder disliked and it immediately moved him into -1 territory. Then I did bunch of things he liked, but it took a long long time before he came around. Sadly, the little notifications we get during the conversation don’t communicate that gap.

The result is that it is enough to have one interaction with someone and they throw a tantrum, fall in love with you. I feel like extreme conflicts should come into play until the bigger like/dislike is achieved (+/-2 or more opinion). Some hard coded limitations might improve the system as well - like companions won’t initiate romance until they traveled a certain time with you, and express they approval over something once or twice (if such things are in the game). That would eliminate “love/hate from first”. As Josh said a while back, the role of the system is to make interactions more natural but right now the effect is completely opposite. Characters seem to lack any logic or believable progression. And shame because individual “events” are well written.

I find myself struggling to care about any of the new companions. maybe except Serafim. I know stuff about him. The rest gave me a vague elevator pitch on who they are, and thing they reveal is that they wanna bed my PC. Maybe more will be revealed later on, if that’s a case I feel like certain interaction should be gated, until later in the store (or individual character’s arc progression).

I also feel like max level of relationship (and reputations) are too easy to reach. I reached max level with Xoti within first hour of the game, while playing as rather cynical and godless character.

How'd you reach +4 disposition that fast?!

 

Anyway, I agree that romance maybe should be slowed down to +2/3. The Xoti/Pallegina fight also happened to me before they'd even had a conversation and they referred one I had not heard (which could be Wad)

Edited May 13, 2018 by Yenkaz

[Zeitzbach]

Character needs to flirt more often. The major reason I like Serafen romance the most (beside Sera being Sera) is because he keeps flirting back with you if you flirt with him. The rest just want to jump on you because you make them laugh.

[Wormerine]

 

 

How'd you reach +4 disposition that fast?!

 

Anyway, I agree that romance maybe should be slowed down to +2/3. The Xoti/Pallegina fight also happened to me before they'd even had a conversation and they referred one I had not heard (which could be Wad)

You ask regarding max Xoti? Maybe something is bugged as it didn't. She stopped at around 2.5 and got achievement for maximizing positive relationship with an ally. I was a while back and got some more positive point and didn't see it go higher.

[CENIC]

I have -1 approval with Aloth right now because I like to pick the Clever dialogue options...

 

Everyone else is at +1.

 

I actually triggered a conversation with Aloth where he told me he feels like I don't take my responsibility seriously enough. I told him he misunderstood me, and he acknowledged my Clever disposition and admitted that maybe he should know better than to take everything I say seriously.

[Androoh]

Edér not being a romance option for a female watcher seems like a missed opportunity.

Pallegina too. Could have explored thing of her not being able to have children, her identity as a godlike and the relationship interfering with her duties etc.

The foundation to explore a relationship with either character and it make sense / not seem out of the blue was there by virtue of you having adventured with them in the first game.

[Aramintai]

Edér not being a romance option for a female watcher seems like a missed opportunity.

 

Pallegina too. Could have explored thing of her not being able to have children, her identity as a godlike and the relationship interfering with her duties etc.

Not sure why they decided to blueball people with Eder but I understood why Pallegina's not interested. The Republics are her everything (children, spouse, you name it), so she's already taken, so to speak, and she really hates being a godlike so that's why she hates Hylea and other gods for being responsible for that. 

Btw, in one of the dialogues with the gods they were contemplating about inhabiting their respective godlikes if **** really hits the fan, allegedly destroying personalities (souls?) that inhabit them now. Just more firewood for Pallegina's hate pyre, I suppose 

Edited May 13, 2018 by Aramintai

[Zack Fair]

Am I understanding it right that every companion besides Eder and Pallegina is bisexual? Great, I knew Obsidian still knows how to write well defined characters.