• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Pillars of Eternity |OT| You must gather your party before venturing forth.

Played for about 2 hours.. got the mage and the blonde fighter in my team. I am a ranger with a wolf companion (up to level 3 now). Disappointed with the combat in this though.. your teammates really aren't very smart. My ranger should be hanging back more and he kind of rushes in more often than not. It's not uncommon for only part of my party (one person for instance) to go and attack as well. I'm sure I'll get the hang of it, but there's room for improvement to be sure.

There's no real AI beyond auto attacking. It's a shame because some sort of programmable tactics setting would be great to have for less difficult fights.

There were AI mods (scripts) for older cRPG like BG2.
I hope we'll see them on PoE as well.
 

Burt

Member
Do Paladins get interesting later? I'm level 4 and all I can do is swing the fire sword spell and do a lay on hands. Even the tank companion is more interesting than this.

I'm pretty underwhelmed by the Paladin companion at level 11, so yeah, might want to duck out of that one while you can.

Game is still not letting me pick locks when I'm 1 level below their skill and have enough lockpicks.
 

JC Sera

Member
I'm pretty underwhelmed by the Paladin companion at level 11, so yeah, might want to duck out of that one while you can.

Game is still not letting me pick locks when I'm 1 level below their skill and have enough lockpicks.
The lockpicks have to be in your inventory
took me while to work that one out
 

Burt

Member
The lockpicks have to be in your inventory
took me while to work that one out

Ah thanks. I had had this problem with a chest previously and I thought I had tried that and it didn't work, but I guess I must've counted the picks wrong or something.
 

TheFatMan

Member
I feel like my PC is a waste of space playing as a Paladin. I mostly just try to stand in the way of stuff so it doesn't attack the people doing all the real work haha.

I was going to play as a Barbarian too and changed my mind at the last minute. Don't feel like rerolling at 10 hours though so I'll have to deal!
 

Zeliard

Member
I've always borne a rational hatred towards Paladins in fantasy RPGs so I'm glad to see they're apparently dull and useless here, as is fitting. :>
 
Yeah, Paladins aren't great. The revival ability they have is occasionally useful, but not enough to justify having them in the party.

I feel like my PC is a waste of space playing as a Paladin. I mostly just try to stand in the way of stuff so it doesn't attack the people doing all the real work haha.

I was going to play as a Barbarian too and changed my mind at the last minute. Don't feel like rerolling at 10 hours though so I'll have to deal!

Isn't that just tanking? That's not useless, that's an important strategy.
 
I've always borne a rational hatred towards Paladins in fantasy RPGs so I'm glad to see they're apparently dull and useless here, as is fitting. :>

I think what they've done with them, lore wise, is absolutely brilliant. In previous DnD games, Paladins were disappointingly one dimensional.

Rather than being a purely Holy / generic background, they actually belong to various "orders" you select from the start at character creation. The orders range from your traditional holy / virtuous paladins, to mercenaries, as well as a sadistic cult. Your choice of order has bearing in conversations too, which is nice.

But mechanically, they're pretty subpar. Nice defenses but they can't tank (Multiple enemies) or melee DPS better than a Fighter. I do have my eye on a Moon godlike boss tanking / support Paladin however, for a future playthrough.
 

JC Sera

Member
I feel like my PC is a waste of space playing as a Paladin. I mostly just try to stand in the way of stuff so it doesn't attack the people doing all the real work haha.

I was going to play as a Barbarian too and changed my mind at the last minute. Don't feel like rerolling at 10 hours though so I'll have to deal!
I got
Pallegina
on my team and she is really great. Really fun to put her smite on a blunderbuss.
You could say I'm having a blast with her...
Also her lay on hands being per encounter is really useful.
And her raise a fainted ally ability. However I think I did get her at a relatively high level (5).
Maybe thats it?
 

Instro

Member
I ended up going with a Nature Godlike Druid for my PC. I'm only level 3, but being a Druid seems to have a lot of options inn combat which is quite enjoyable. I had some hours to sink into the game today, and I'm loving it so far.
 

EviLore

Expansive Ellipses
Staff Member
Do Paladins get interesting later? I'm level 4 and all I can do is swing the fire sword spell and do a lay on hands. Even the tank companion is more interesting than this.

Nope, they don't. Paladin definitely seems like the most boring class, and possibly the least useful, too. The auras are pretty weak, lay on hands is almost useless (one-shot relatively weak heal? okay will keep consecrating with my priest for 10x full regen in an aoe), no great tanking or dps abilities. The auras need to be much stronger. As it stands you have to specialize with an aura and drop one or more talent points into one for it to even matter.

Why not have a chanter instead, who can still front line fight but can keep extremely powerful buffs up that are much stronger than auras, and summon creatures and do aoe stuns and so forth? Or a rogue who can dps like a madman? Or a fighter who can tank a ton of enemies simultaneously? Or a priest who can offtank and still keep the whole party fully healed and buffed? etc. etc. etc.
 

Zeliard

Member
I think what they've done with them, lore wise, is absolutely brilliant.

Rather than being a purely Holy / generic background, they're actually belong to various "orders" you select from the start at character creation. The orders range from your traditional holy / virtuous paladins, to mercenaries as well as a sadistic cult.

But mechanically, they're pretty subpar. Nice defenses but they can't tank (Multiple enemies) or melee DPS better than a Fighter. I do have my eye on a Moon godlike boss tanking / support Paladin however, for a future playthrough.

I'm quite glad to hear that actually, re: lore that is. My dislike of Paladins generally comes from my dislike of the intolerable Lawful Good alignment, but if Paladins in this game are generally just incredibly devoted to <insert random cause>, that makes them potentially more interesting and unpredictable.
 

Dsyndrome

Member
Surprised at how well the "get enemies attention and ambush them as they get close" method works in Hard, I probably would have pushed further in Baldur's Gate had I not been stupid and done this. Allowed me to systematically take out the first floor of the Temple pretty handily.
 

AegisScott

Neo Member
Finally got more than 5 companions and it's so hard to figure out who to bring along. They manage to make all of them really interesting and there's great specific party banter.
 

Nordicus

Member
Opening up a fight with Tenuous Grasp (confusion&frighten) Cypher power from outside the detection radius is fun. Tends to group enemies up even before they notice you since everyone beelines to attack the confused individual
 

RVinP

Unconfirmed Member
After trying out all the classes in the starting area on hard, I found Monk to be very good (at-least in the starting areas). Then got carried away playing a Fire godlike Monk (for a considerable amount of time), but I think I should have chosen either a Nature or a Moon Godlike for Min/Max.

Anyone leaning good on Moon Godlike monk? is the +xx Endurance AOE (at every 25% mark) worth it after the first 5 hours of the game?
 

Pilgrimzero

Member
I gotta admit, I miss this type of game being in a d&d world. I know the Forgotten Realms lore pretty well. This game, I have no idea what they are talking about most of the time.

As for Palys, d&d palys haven't been LG only stick in the muds for a long time now. Now they are just "holy warriors" for whichever god.

I just acquired the paly companion and look forward to trying her out. Her and the companion fighter will be my first line of defense to the more squishier teammates.
 
I'm quite glad to hear that actually, re: lore that is. My dislike of Paladins generally comes from my dislike of the intolerable Lawful Good alignment, but if Paladins in this game are generally just incredibly devoted to <insert random cause>, that makes them potentially more interesting and unpredictable.

The hate of Lawful Good comes from people that only interpret that alignment as a Boy Scout. You can still be interesting and Lawful Good at the same time. Getting shitfaced drunk and starting a barfight with assholes ruining a scene isn't necessarily illegal.
 

Pancakes

hot, steaming, as melted butter slips into the cracks, drizzled with sticky sweet syrup OH GOD
I think a Paladin strictly for a RP run on normal difficulty would be great, especially with the different orders.

But trying to play one on hard was maddening for me.

How so? My main dude is a paladin and the game has been a breeze so far on hard mode. It's kinda boring on hard so I'm actually going to move it up to PoTD to make things interesting. The only hard part of the game (for me) was trying to do the first temple with only 2 people.

I'm quite glad to hear that actually, re: lore that is. My dislike of Paladins generally comes from my dislike of the intolerable Lawful Good alignment, but if Paladins in this game are generally just incredibly devoted to <insert random cause>, that makes them potentially more interesting and unpredictable.

Playing a bleak walker Paladin outside of combat is hilarious fun. My paladin does not put up with people's shit.
 
Finally got a good chunk of time to play and maaaaaaaaan. I mean I've been putting in a couple hours a night since release but today I've been able to put in longer (off and on throughout the day because.. you know.. responsibilities) and maaaaaaan.

So, so, good. So many quests and tasks available. So many options for how to build a good party and push forward. Right now my party consists of two fighters, a chanter, wizard/mage, rogue, and priest and we're rocking the socks off nearly everything we've encountered. Even when I have one of those "OH SHIIET!" moments where you stumble upon something stronger than expected or pull a group way bigger than you were expecting/prepared for. My squad soldiers up and puts in work!

Having a dual Fighter setup really is key for me but I also work with slow mode on combat, gear them to tank hard, and I embrace the attrition. Embrace the grind of the fight. Had party members go down plenty of times but since forming my full party I've pulled out victories from the edge of defeat more often than not.

I got a lot of good tips from the thread too though. Pre-positioning before encounters, strategically pulling to fight in environments that favor your group, and slow mode on combat are just a few of the invaluable tips I've gained from the thread, so appreciate that fellow GAF.
 

pahamrick

Member
How so? My main dude is a paladin and the game has been a breeze so far on hard mode. It's kinda boring on hard so I'm actually going to move it up to PoTD to make things interesting. The only hard part of the game (for me) was trying to do the first temple with only 2 people.



Playing a bleak walker Paladin outside of combat is hilarious fun. My paladin does not put up with people's shit.

I just couldn't click with him in combat, which was making combat seem like a chore and very much not fun once I got past a certain point.He was great out of combat in conversations (Death Godlike Bleakwalker).
 

RedFury

Member
Bought this at launch and dying to play. Don't get my new monitor in till the 5th (asus vg248qe). For those that have already had the chance to enjoy the game do you have to fight everything? Or can you avoid combat and say manipulate an enemy and completly change outcome, etc a la Baldur's Gate? Also does everything you do somehow affect everything around you like those games aswell?
 

Kvik

Member
Anyone hoarding potions? I crafted a few of them just before the
Raedric Keep
fight and didn't end up using them :-\

Now I have 10 Iron Skin potions for Eder. Which he didn't even really need. :p
 
Couldn't wait any longer, too excited, booted it up despite requirements issues

Playing on Hard + Expert, Basra my rogue; made it past the intro area/rest camp at Powerpoint-level FPS during the fights

The soul-wind thing sucked the soul out of my laptop

Can't continue

18uiny995pi7ojpg.jpg
 

Skeletron

Member
Couldn't wait any longer, too excited, booted it up despite requirements issues

Playing on Hard + Expert, Basra my rogue; made it past the intro area/rest camp at Powerpoint-level FPS during the fights

The soul-wind thing sucked the soul out of my laptop
Set it on the lowest resolution. Also, turn off anti aliasing: open console by hitting `, hit enter, type "msaa 0", hit enter.
 

Skeletron

Member
What's up with "you cannot venture forth while in combat"? I tried to run away from that asshole bear but it wouldn't let me leave the cave. I remember doing that all the time in Baldur's Gate and enemies would follow you outside.
 

DTKT

Member
Playing a Paladin in any video game is playing all of your party members because you actual PC is boring.

(Totally me, Paladin Lawful Good Benevolent Honest Passionate)
 

rakhir

Member
Well, I've only played melee classes in BG2 and other IE games, so my main Paladin is actually more engaging in PoE than before. I've got him a 2h Estoc and so far he is both a good off-tank and is doing a fair dmg.

But yes, in my second playthgough i would like to try someone more complicated, but still build him into a frontline melee character. Would a tanky, full-plated Chanter or Cipher work?

Playing a Paladin in any video game is playing all of your party members because you actual PC is boring.

(Totally me, Paladin Lawful Good Benevolent Honest Passionate)
Yep, that's exactly my playthrough so far.
 

Palmer_v1

Member
I'm screwed on a ranger companion bug that has halted all progress. Have to wait for a patch or reset and lose 10+ hours. Really annoying.
 

GDJustin

stuck my tongue deep inside Atlus' cookies
Everyone skipping the gold-named NPCs with the soul backgrounds - keep in mind you only get to play Pillars of Eternity for the first time once in your life. Savor it!

Why would you skip them? They're extremely well-written, and for at least two thirds of them, if they would have kept going I would have kept reading. That's how intriguing and compelling they often are. They're almost like great writing prompts, or super short stories (micro-stories).
 

Lingitiz

Member
Everyone skipping the gold-named NPCs with the soul backgrounds - keep in mind you only get to play Pillars of Eternity for the first time once in your life. Savor it!

Why would you skip them? They're extremely well-written, and for at least two thirds of them, if they would have kept going I would have kept reading. That's how intriguing and compelling they often are. They're almost like great writing prompts, or super short stories (micro-stories).

They're great, I just can't read all of them because there's so many and I get burned out quickly if I try to do all the ones I see.
 

water_wendi

Water is not wet!
Everyone skipping the gold-named NPCs with the soul backgrounds - keep in mind you only get to play Pillars of Eternity for the first time once in your life. Savor it!

Why would you skip them? They're extremely well-written, and for at least two thirds of them, if they would have kept going I would have kept reading. That's how intriguing and compelling they often are. They're almost like great writing prompts, or super short stories (micro-stories).

Someone earlier mentioned that they are basically Sensorium stones from Torment. i love them i just wish there was some interactivity. Something for the sequel perhaps?
 

Zeliard

Member
Someone earlier mentioned that they are basically Sensorium stones from Torment. i love them i just wish there was some interactivity. Something for the sequel perhaps?

They're very much like the Sensoriums in Torment, being vivid and hallucinatory depictions of various distinct memories. I thought of that instantly when I read them.
 

DTKT

Member
They do feel a bit like a content "dump". I would be more interested in them if they were slightly longer and actually had an impact on my game.
 

Blizzard

Banned
I'm screwed on a ranger companion bug that has halted all progress. Have to wait for a patch or reset and lose 10+ hours. Really annoying.
Do you have any details to help other players avoid the bug?


On another note, I haven't used any consumables yet and just learned the hard way (dying in Path of Iron) that you can't use consumables unless you put them in quick slots before battle, apparently. Oops.
 

pahamrick

Member
Do you have any details to help other players avoid the bug?


On another note, I haven't used any consumables yet and just learned the hard way (dying in Path of Iron) that you can't use consumables unless you put them in quick slots before battle, apparently. Oops.

Ouch. How far in were you?
 

Madouu

Member
So seeing as my MC is a godlike,
I can't really put on Woedica's hood can I?

Everyone skipping the gold-named NPCs with the soul backgrounds - keep in mind you only get to play Pillars of Eternity for the first time once in your life. Savor it!

Why would you skip them? They're extremely well-written, and for at least two thirds of them, if they would have kept going I would have kept reading. That's how intriguing and compelling they often are. They're almost like great writing prompts, or super short stories (micro-stories).

I don't think they are very enjoyable but I've already shared my thoughts on the matter so I won't linger on it, I'm glad it adds to some people's experience though!

You just need to keep it in your character's inventory.

Thank you, I almost did that too haha.
 

Annubis

Member
Can anyone tell me where the "Gloves of Manipulation" are?
I need the extra mechanic for a door and I'm way too far away from leveling up...
 
Top Bottom