Ascaloth

Hmm, didn't really think about it as I figured that what would be "better-optimized" would be up to the player, but sure. Off the top of my head... Yes, the obvious choice would be Nature Godlike, and you can go Old Vailia as the Culture so that you can take 20 INT to keep the demigod mode going as long as possible (doesn't matter so much once you can spam Salvation of Time and Wall of Draining, but you know). Push MIG up as far as you can go too, for the damage. Raise PER as much as you can, it'll help at lower levels even if it stops mattering once you have the upgraded Weyc's Wand. Dump RES, it does nothing for you. And CON too, if you're feeling brave. While forgoing the Mask won't break this build, it does give Concentration. So I hope you have an alternative way to get that at the start of the encounter, because nothing's worse than wasting an Empowered Missile Salvo to an interrupt.

True, sadly. That said, it does still prove its worth in four of the hardest fights in the entire game.

Well, I appreciate it. But I should probably be clearer as to what I meant; when I said I was looking for a good build for Eder, I meant one that was entirely mine, crafted by myself.

I actually switch all the Companions and Sidekicks in and out of the party depending on which encounters I feel they will contribute most in. Part of it is also me testing as many build ideas as I can, in the hope I can eventually manage to come up with one good build for each of then. The build I've posted this year are those I feel I've already perfected with my old Fate Testarossa and Cunning Duelist saves, and I'm going to start a new playthrough to polish up the builds for the rest. Eder is actually one of the tougher ones; guy is Ol' Reliable, but I've yet to figure out something that can actually make him pop. Was testing a Riposte build the last two times, but it's not super exciting even if it works... maybe I'll try something else in the new run

Welp, now I'm going to have to see whether Least Unstable Coil would work with stuff like Chill Fog and Malignant Cloud now. That said, there's another reason why I chose the spell that produces the most hit rolls on a single enemy; as you can see from the images above, that means this interaction also works with the Megabosses. Those are precisely the encounters where Aloth gets the most use out of going demigod.

Yes, I actually got the idea from some other thread I read a few months back, where someone demonstrated the same interaction for Least Unstable Coil with the Chanter's Thrice Was She Wronged/Her Revenge Swept Invocation. That's actually the idea that inspired me to wonder whether I could get the same effect with the Missile Salvo. As for other spell options, the 'pulsing' spells didn't even cross my mind; it's certainly worth testing out. As for the other Minoletta spells... yeah, it's true. That said, the Least Unstable Coil hands out Inspirations randomly, so I figured you want a spell that hits as many times as possible to maximize the chances of getting all six Inspirations; and as far as I know, the Empowered Missile Salvo dishes out more hits than any of its lesser cousins, even if you Empower them.

The truth of the Painted Masks was a revelation that shook Aloth to the core. As he continued on his journey with the Watcher of Caed Nua, he found himself questioning his effectiveness of his work regarding the Leaden Key, and doubting in his own ability to see his cause through. But then the Defiant landed on the Black Isle, and the party arrived at the Halls Obscured. Although the Elf was as shocked as anyone else in the party at the horrors witnessed in the Collections, the seed of a whole new scheme was planted in Aloth's mind when he saw the Archives. And by the time they were done with everything they had come to accomplish and were making to leave, that seed germinated and bore fruit. After all, he may have spent much effort to little avail over the last few years trying to track down each and every cell of the Leaden Key... but if there were ever any records on where in all Eora they could be found, would they not be located somewhere in the Central Stacks? On top of that, the Watcher had just so conveniently disposed of the Oracle, the Halls' erstwhile caretaker. Plus, with the passing of Fyonlecg, there was a gap in the leadership of the Hand Occult, and the accoutrements of the Weyc were right there for his taking... With that in mind, Aloth resolved to seize the opportunity which had presented itself. In the aftermath of their encounter with Eothas at Ukaizo, Aloth claimed what he needed for his next task, bade farewell to the Watcher, and chartered a ship to his next destination. So see nothing of Weyc Engferth, for she watches you still. =================================== The Weyc Engferth, Ultimate Edition =================================== Difficulty: PotD v5.0.0.0040 -------------------------------------------------------------- Class: Wizard -------------------------------------------------------------- Race: Wood Elf -------------------------------------------------------------- Background: Aedyr (Gentry) -------------------------------------------------------------- Stats (char creation, no Berath's Blessings): MIG: 12 CON: 10 DEX: 15 PER: 15 INT: 16 RES: 10 -------------------------------------------------------------- Active Skill: Any Passive Skill: Any -------------------------------------------------------------- Weapon Proficiencies: Rapier (a) Scepter (a) Small Shield ® Wand ® Sword ® Battle Axe Quarterstaff -------------------------------------------------------------- Abilities (a=auto, r=recommended, !=important) PL1 Wizard Minoletta's Minor Missiles (a) (!) Thrust of Tattered Veils (!) PL2 Wizard Mirrored Images ® Infuse with Vital Essence Combusting Wounds (!) PL3 Wizard Deleterious Alacrity of Motion Llengrath's Displaced Image Arcane Dampener (!) PL4 Wizard Minor Arcane Reflection ® Flame Shield Pull of Eora ® PL5 Wizard Blast of Frost Ryngrim's Enervating Terror Llengrath's Safeguard ® PL6 Wizard Minoletta's Precisely Piercing Burst Chain Lightning Common Spell Resistance PL7 Wizard Wall of Draining (!) Tayn's Chaotic Orb Common Penetrating Empower ® Potent Empower ® PL8 Wall of Many Colors ® Kalakoth's Freezing Rake Temporal Cocoon Common Great Soul (!) PL9 Wizard Minoletta's Missile Salvo (!) Petrification Common Prestige (!) --------------------------------------------------------------- Items (*=additional enchantments; !=important, r=recommended): Weapon set 1: The Weyc's Wand (soulbound, Wael's Sight!) (!), The Weyc's Oracular Focus (Strengthened Enlarge Shield, Lasting Channeled Shield ®) Weapon set 2: Magran's Favor (Blazing Core, Enduring Flame), Griffin's Blade (Hound's Courage*®) ® Chest: Robes of the Weyc (soulbound, Mirrored Empower®, Omnipotence!) (!) Helmet: The Mask of the Weyc ® Amulet: The Third Eye ® Grimore/Trinket: Ninagauth's Teachings (!)/Iron-clasped Grimoire (!) Cloak: Shroud of the Phantasm (!) Gloves: Firethrower's Gloves ® Ring: Kuaru's Prize ® Ring: Ring of Boundless Stars Belt: Least Unstable Coil (!) Boots: Vithrack Silk Slippers ® ----------------------------------------------------------------- When I theorycraft in Deadfire, I usually prefer to work on multi-class builds. That's because I enjoy finding synergies between the skills of both classes, and putting together something that works better than the sum of its parts. But Aloth is the only exception to that rule to date, because the Wizard's PL8 and PL9 spells are just that good, and I've yet to figure out any synergies that can match their power in either of his multiclass options. On top of that, Aloth is the only one amongst the Companions and Sidekicks who can be a single-class pure Wizard (Fassina doesn't count). Because of this, I had to search for synergies that work with him through equipment, and I eventually found that the Weyc set from the Forgotten Sanctum DLC offers a truly powerful synergy with Aloth like nothing else I've seen so far. Therefore, while Aloth is always an asset to the party throughout (because Wizard), he becomes practically indispensable after FS, especially for the toughest encounters in the entire game. (Note on “Ultimate Edition” builds: With the release of the Ultimate Edition on PS4 and XBox, there will be many first-time players of Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire who will be searching for builds online, only to find that most available builds were created for earlier versions of the game. While many of those are still viable even in the final version of Deadfire, this would not be apparent to new players; thus, builds such as this will be tagged as “Ultimate Edition” to indicate that they’ve been tested for version 5.0.0 of Deadfire, including all DLCs.) The Wrath of the Weyc And it all stems from a couple of simple interactions; when soulbound to a Wizard like Aloth, The Weyc's Wand offers the Wael's Sight enchantment, which converts 100% of Misses into Grazes on an Empowered attack. Which doesn't sound all that powerful, to be sure. But here's the thing; it applies to every single missile that's produced by the PL9 Wizard spell Minoletta's Missile Salvo. That means it doesn't matter how high an enemy's defenses are, Aloth... Just... Can't... ****ing... ...Miss. Of course, Aloth can only pull this off once per encounter, so even that isn't enough to take out the Megabosses by itself. But while the sheer damage that a laser-guided Missile Salvo can do is spectacular in its own right, the true value lies in its synergy with the Least Unstable Coil; the Empowered Being enchantment that's also activated with the Empowerment of Minoletta's Missile Salvo gives a random Tier 3 Inspiration with every hit scored by a spell. And apparently not only do Grazes count for proccing it, but Empowered Being activates for every single laser-guided missile produced by the Salvo. This means that after the Wael-Empowered Minoletta's Missile Salvo hits, Aloth will achieve demigod mode with all six Tier 3 Inspirations active on his person. And giving Aloth the Robes of the Weyc means his Empowerment of Minoletta's Missile Salvo also activates the Omnipotence enchantment on the armor, which gives the Brilliant Inspiration to all nearby party members as well. So keep a Priest nearby Aloth when he fires it off, and you can spam Salvation of Time to extend Aloth's demigod-hood until the end of the encounter, no matter how long it lasts. At this point, the only question left is; how well can you make use of all that power while it lasts? Final Thoughts Pros: Empowerment gives a single use of Minoletta's Missile Salvo that can bypass all defenses, even that of the Megabosses. It also gives Aloth Energized, Robust, Swift, Intuitive, Brilliant, and Courageous in one go. It even gives nearby allies Brilliant as well, so a Priest can keep all his Inspirations going with Salvation of Time spam. For the cherry on the cake, this build can be replicated by any Watcher or hireling Wizard with better-optimised Races and Attributes. Cons: Cannot be replicated with Wizard multiclasses (no access to PL9 Wizard spells), Conjurors and Transmuters (no access to Evocation), or Blood Mages (no access to Empowerment). Doesn't do anything to help with the stick up Aloth's arse, unfortunately.

The earliest I know it starts is during SSS. Not sure if it can start even earlier than that, though.

Thanks.

Ok, but Grave Calling has the additive bonus plus the stacking Freeze lash that can go up to 20% or 30% depending on which upgrade you take, wouldn't that give it an edge over other 1H weapons in terms of damage/hit? On another note, how does Wintertide Bulwark stack up against Cadhu Scath? Fully upgraded it comes with a Riposte-like effect, and I think it may give more Deflection than the latter. Not sure how to compare both though, and it doesn't come with the damage reduction for one.

Well, Eder isn't a Wizard, so I guess that's out. I know Modwyr had the 20% Burn/Freeze lash, but how does that stack up against the higher base damage + lash of Grave Calling? Good to know, thanks! How does it stack up against Mohora Tanga with the +% melee damage that scales with Survival, that being the Skill I'm likely going to pump on Eder anyway? For that matter, which other 1H weapons have similar damage per hit? Is there somewhere I can read about it?

What's the 1H weapon that does the most damage per hit (not DPS, per hit)? I'm currently thinking it's Grave Calling, because it's a Saber with a Freeze lash. But I don't know where to begin accounting for alternatives that might scale with stacks or Skills... I'm asking because I'm trying to theorycraft an Eder build that focuses on Riposte.

That's the plan. I hope to eventually post Ultimate Edition builds (including updated versions of previous Companion Builds I posted in the past) for every Companion and Sidekick. May take some time though, since some theorycraft builds still need testing, and I'm running low on time these days. I'll need one more play through at least to fully test some builds I have in mind.

Oh yeah, I've got a doozy of a concept for PoE3 here. The story starts about a generation after the events of Deadfire, when the effects of Eothas breaking the Wheel are becoming more apparent i.e. Hollowborn births, proliferation of blights, world out of balance... you know, the works. And your protagonist is not the Watcher of Caed Nua we know (who's long dead by this time) but a brand new character, justifying starting from Level 1 yet again. That said, he/she retreads the story beats of the first PoE by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, and ending up as an Awakened Watcher in his/her own right. But our Watcher's flashbacks revolves around one mysterious figure in particular, and is compelled to travel all over Eora to make sense of these visions and find out who this figure from the past is, for the sake of their own sanity if nothing else. Our protagonist goes globetrotting, and sees how the breaking of the Wheel has affected all the denizens of Eora. They tend to get flashbacks when they arrive at a new land, but where the flashbacks in PoE1 were simply dialogue options, the ones you get in PoE3 actually lets you control the mysterious figure from the past (you even get to decide what the past figure's stats/Classes/race/gender/avatar are), and carry out the actions and decisions that the mysterious figure made back then on their own adventure. When your Watcher returns to the present day, they and their Companions can retrace those steps, and see how the choices of the past have made their mark on the present day. After some adventuring and sleuthing, we arrive at a revelation; turns out our protagonist is, or rather was, the Watcher of Caed Nua. Unlike in PoE1 where we were chasing Thaos, we've been chasing our own past self in this game all along. Our visions have been following the Watcher of Caed Nua immediately after the events of Deadfire, how he/she made their mark on Eora after the breaking of the Wheel, and maybe how and why they eventually had to meet their demise. But since the Wheel is long broken, how did the Watcher of Caed Nua reincarnate... Literal God-dammit, Berath. Now here comes the real kicker; Eora was not a static setting throughout the whole game. All of the things you did as the Watcher of Caed Nua in the flashbacks? Those actually affected various details in the world that your current Watcher has been travelling through. Everything you did in the past had an effect on the present, and had you done things differently as the Watcher of Caed Nua, you would have experienced an entirely different story as the current Watcher altogether. It's like how the choices you made in PoE affected certain things in Deadfire, except this time you're kind of playing through both campaigns concurrently, and seeing the changes happen in (kind-of) real time. I mean, hell. The PoE setting is practically perfect for these kinds of time-warp shenanigans.

For race; Hearth Orlan for the +2 PER and the Minor Threat racial talent, which gives another Hit-to-Crit conversion if another ally is attacking the same target. This actually means that Mirke - since she can also go Fighter/Monk - can do just as well with this build, if not better. That said, I prefer to make the much more interesting choice of Monk/Streetfighter for her, so that leaves Rekke with this build. For stats, max PER for accuracy; high DEX (doesn't matter with Blade Cascade, but your PC should still be useful as a DPS until you can get Scordeo's Edge in late-game), dump RES.