Hunting season Quest... really?

[DarthStef]

This quest really irks me. I thought it was common practice to give a good ending option in most quests; this one doesn't seem to. 

 

I have a choice between slaughtering the druids defending their island from ones who would destroy nature to reach their ambitions or between slaughtering all of the Royal Deadfire Company - a faction that has given me a companion and that probably has lots more quests ahead. 

 

I don't have an issue with choosing between factions but giving me no option but to kill one or the other... meh. This quest sucks. I've decided to skip the quest but that really irks the completionist in me. I like hard decisions but these are just bad options. I don't want to have to choose between my principles and my ability to fully enjoy the game. 

 

P.S. I have used the Unity Console Mod to see if any of the speech checks I wasn't passing would have made a difference but no, there is no peaceful solution.

 

/rant over

 

[E.RedMark]

I'm with you there . I mean , if that idiot from deadfire won't back off . Fine...she die . But the issue , is that it turn everyone hostile !

 

Then you have the druid , who rather stay there then move ! even if you try to say 'Leave today , fight another day..pretty plz ? come on guys! Help me a little!' 

 

But instead..they go all weird on you 

 

I'm all for mother nature , but that quest suck . 

[giftmefood]

With every decision comes the consequence. I actually thought it was great because the game emphasizes the grey nature of things and it forces you to think how you should handle it. Not everything should be black and white

[Ildun]

Although I didn't try it myself, I suspected you can hire assassin from Delver's Row to kill her.

 

By the way I think those druid are just a bunch of bloodlust Galawain fanatic, so if I left them be they might slaughter everyone including those Roparu.

[Tamyn]

I don't have a quest for it, but if they are the druids I think they are, they attacked me just for walking near them. I used a diplomacy option but they wanted me dead. I don't feel guilty.

[drmonkey]

Although I didn't try it myself, I suspected you can hire assassin from Delver's Row to kill her.

 

By the way I think those druid are just a bunch of bloodlust Galawain fanatic, so if I left them be they might slaughter everyone including those Roparu.

Given that they sent overtures to the RDC before using force and they and the Roparu were both living on Sayuka for, I would assume, years before the RDC arrived, I doubt they're that overtly bloodthirsty.

[DarthStef]

I guess half the decisions you make in the game depend on how you can justify them and you guys have mentioned some good justifications. 

 

@giftmefood: my criticism is that there are only 2 options, not that there are gray areas. As I said previously, I like difficult decisions. This decision was the first time in the game I was genuinely upset about quest design. 

[Ildun]

Anyway, in my case I pretend to side with the druid first because they will give me a bow blessed by Galawain to aid my assassination. Then I return my favor as a fellow druid by casting Great Maelstorm

I wonder will Galawain upset or not

[VincentNZ]

At first it struck me as odd as well, but since I thought more about I came to this conclusion: We are accustomed to solutions that suits us best, which is always the option where everyone just gets along with each other, but that is never realistic. Why would any of the two factions back down? The Fleetmaster has an entire fleet behind him, they will not leave the island and the druids have no place to go, and are also fanatics. There is no room for a solution that benefits both sides, it is just that the player wants them to have a loghter conscience, or the best reward possible.

 

That is what hard decisions are about.

[Hybridsalmon]

I didn't mind that there were only 2 options. Would've preferred a peaceful option too but the Druids couldn't be reasoned with. Think roleplay-wise you just arrived at a point of no-return. 

[Yria]

Do you need to pass some skill check for the druids to even ask you to kill the rauataians? I had one single option to try to talk this through, but when I picked it the druids responded with "Meh, think we'll just kill you since you are with them" and attacked.

[Ildun]

At first it struck me as odd as well, but since I thought more about I came to this conclusion: We are accustomed to solutions that suits us best, which is always the option where everyone just gets along with each other, but that is never realistic. Why would any of the two factions back down? The Fleetmaster has an entire fleet behind him, they will not leave the island and the druids have no place to go, and are also fanatics. There is no room for a solution that benefits both sides, it is just that the player wants them to have a loghter conscience, or the best reward possible.

 

That is what hard decisions are about.

You have a point, but one of the reason I like RPG or video game is because I can do something which is not possible, not practical or not realistic as you said in real world. Why would I replay "real life" again in game?

[giftmefood]

I feel bad for the people who think not having a peaceful option is a bad design. Well said, Vincent! 

[E.RedMark]

I feel bad for the people who think not having a peaceful option is a bad design. Well said, Vincent! 

why? we put points in diplomacy for a reason . Just like we got point in Bluff and intimidate . If you can't use those skills , then it's pointless and a waste . 

 

Not every quest has to have a peaceful ending . But that quest sucked for the simple reason that both side were idiots . 

 

If you don't write a peaceful way in there , at least write a 'Skip it all together' since realisticly , you should be able to say 'Nah! the druids are your problem . How about you give me the next job instead ?' . 

[omgFIREBALLS]

why? we put points in diplomacy for a reason . Just like we got point in Bluff and intimidate . If you can't use those skills , then it's pointless and a waste .

Diplomacy is more or less tied with Insight for the most used skill checks: https://wiki.fireundubh.com/deadfire/dialogue-options#skills

 

Do you need to pass some skill check for the druids to even ask you to kill the rauataians? I had one single option to try to talk this through, but when I picked it the druids responded with "Meh, think we'll just kill you since you are with them" and attacked.

Seems you need to pass a 13 Diplomacy check, or maybe be a druid or ranger. Those are all red for me, but I'll check back when I've gotten 1 more dip.

 

Edit: Okay, it seems it's like this. If you have 13 Diplomacy, I think you can leave without a fight. However, if you use that option and you've been blessed, they will consider you an ally of nature and ask you to instead kill the Rautaians. For agreeing to do so, they will give you a blessing from Galawain, which sounds very ceremonial when they perform it but I didn't see any new buffs showing up, however they handed me the https://pillarsofeternity.gamepedia.com/Saint_Omaku%27s_Mercy bow.

 

Presumably 13 Diplomacy and the blessing aren't required for cooperation if you're a treehugger class. Shrug.

Edited May 17, 2018 by omgFIREBALLS

[Zeitzbach]

Just did the quest but as ranger with 13 diplomacy skill check with Galawain worship background. Turns out this kind of quest not having a peaceful ending is normal. After all, these people are all "You're either with me or against me" fanatics. It's way more unnatural to have a peaceful ending with them.

 

Remember that this quest does start with them releasing a bunch of animals to kill the civilians in Sayuka.

[Yria]

Seems you need to pass a 13 Diplomacy check, or maybe be a druid or ranger. 

 

13? Yikes. Mine is somewhere around 9. 

 

I had druid Tekehu with me, but when I asked him if he could do anything about the situation he just noped out of it saying that the druids are right to oppose Rauatai. I must say I didn't really expect that. 

[omgFIREBALLS]

 

Seems you need to pass a 13 Diplomacy check, or maybe be a druid or ranger. 

 

13? Yikes. Mine is somewhere around 9. 

 

I had druid Tekehu with me, but when I asked him if he could do anything about the situation he just noped out of it saying that the druids are right to oppose Rauatai. I must say I didn't really expect that. 

 

Mine isn't 13 either, but with Party Assist it is

 

Just did the quest but as ranger with 13 diplomacy skill check with Galawain worship background. Turns out this kind of quest not having a peaceful ending is normal. After all, these people are all "You're either with me or against me" fanatics. It's way more unnatural to have a peaceful ending with them.

 

Remember that this quest does start with them releasing a bunch of animals to kill the civilians in Sayuka.

Did you notice getting some form of stat buff? Twice they make it sound like I'm getting one, but the first time the ritual ends with them giving me a bow and the second time with them giving me drugs.

 

Quests like this are quite pleasant BTW, for people who wanna play "**** ALL the factions and give the Deadfire back to nature".

[Parasol_Syndicate]

I have to say, as a Deadfire-born mercenary who got told by the first druid he talked to "Get off my lawn, and go back where you smell like", the chance to get paid to kill some more druids was oddly cathartic. 

 

Maybe not a happy ending for all watchers, but it was for mine. 

Edited May 18, 2018 by Parasol_Syndicate

[Voss]

As far as I could tell they were hostile for no apparent reason.  The animals are giant, the druids are attacking, well, we killed some idiots crouching in a bog, quest... over, I guess?

'Great' design.

 

It reminded me of the 'Druid Attacks' in BG2.  The person in charge was doing it for the lulz.  No reason, just quest XP.

[Guest Psychovampiric Shield]

Well, I can:

1) not talk to them at all

2) talk to them and be attacked

3) ramp up diplomacy beforehand, talk to them and leave; effectively 1)

4) ramp up diplomacy beforehand, talk to them and be attacked; effectively 2)

I am totally okay with absence of peaceful resolution, but apparently unless the watcher is druid/ranger, this is not even tough call quest, it is no call at all quest.

[Tick]

Oh yeah, that was a weird one. I could only get them to agree to not fight if I went and killed everyone in Sakuya. I said no so they attacked.

 

This was one of the ones I felt more conflicted about. It sounds like they had been living there and the Rauatai forcibly took over and messed stuff up, but I'm not really okay with murdering a town of civilians..

[omgFIREBALLS]

I am totally okay with absence of peaceful resolution, but apparently unless the watcher is druid/ranger, this is not even tough call quest, it is no call at all quest.

As I mentioned in my previous post, you can side with them regardless of class if you've been blessed by the Green Lady.

[Verde]

Lazily designed BG2 throwback. Should have had more layers. And isn't the reward the same regardless?

[Grimo88]

Are you actually complaining that you didn't pass a skill check?

 

The premise is simple: they're fantatics. So unless you adhere to their philosophies or have really high diplomacy, you won't get through to them.

 

You're also leaving out the fact that they can offer you a quest to assassinate the Fleet Master. That's not a nothing choice. If you are not a druid or ranger but you have the soulbound nature rifle from Motari O Koiki they will also talk to you then.

 

This quest is completely appropriately designed. You're just ****ty it didn't accomodate your personally desired outcome. The devs responsibility is to let you roleplay in within the confines of the world, not to change the rules of the world just because you come in swinging your Watcher ****.

Edited July 12, 2018 by Grimo88