I keep coming back to this and it honestly feels absurd every time I think about it.

6 Chanters all running The Dragon Thrashed, The Dragon Wailed seems like the ultimate action economy cheat code.

- Passive AoE damage stacks
- Damage keeps ticking while moving / summoning / casting
- Heavy armor barely matters but maximizing defense actually increases effectiveness
- Infinite summon wall later on
- Basically impossible to shut down because nobody is carrying the whole build

It feels like the party just turns into a moving death aura and walks through encounters while the game plays itself.

The main knock against it is that it takes time to come online, but honestly you can just respec into it once Dragon Thrashed unlocks and skip the early game entirely downtime. After that the party basically becomes a moving environmental hazard

Are there actually stronger theoretical parties?

Some alternatives I could see:
6 Wizards = absolute nuclear option, encounter deletion via CC + spell spam
4 Chanters + 2 Priests = dragon aura + giga buffs
3 Chanters + 3 Wizards = passive damage + crowd control + nukes
6 Ciphers = focus snowball insanity
6 Paladins = aura stack meme party
Full summon zoo

Has anyone actually run PotD / Trial of Iron with 6 Dragon Thrashed Chanters? I’m curious whether it stays broken into late game or if enemy burn DR eventually pushes it back toward “good” instead of “absurd.”

I’m currently running around the countryside, killing things, doing quests, as one does, and guided by a Reddit post I found that had a fairly detailed recommended order to do things (main quest acts, white march 1, white march 2, the paths, etc). What it doesn’t mention is bounties. Being a filthy cheater, I looked up bounties on the wiki, and it kinda looks like it’s possible to miss out on some bounties if not done at the right time? I can’t seem to find anything here on the subject, so maybe I am just truly dumb to go with my fear of missing out… but… is there a recommended order to do bounties, or something about bounties you can miss if not done at the right time? Thanks in advance!

For reference, I’m not totally clueless, I’m currently in Emerald Stair in Avowed, and working my way through White March 2 in PoE1. Haven’t started Deadfire yet. Allow me to share my understanding of Animancy.

Animancy is a science/field of research that utilizes souls as the core component for conducting research and performing experiments.

In Eora, reincarnation exists, which implies that the number of souls in the world is fixed, and the resource is finite.

I’ve also never heard of any phenomena that created new souls (I haven’t been TOO diligent, so if there’s any mention of new souls being created somehow at some point, I’ve missed it).

Upon death each soul goes around The Wheel and is given a new form in a new life.

So, Animancers utilizing souls for their research essentially means that they are denying the souls they use their chance to go around the wheel again, trapping them in corpses to work fields or suits of armor to protect estates or whatever.

Is this rundown accurate? And if it is, how the hell are Animancers and their practice only banned in Aedyr and not everywhere else? How is it that not everyone looks at these guys as just straight up evil?

I’ve been planning a PoTD/Trial of Iron run recently and dabbled with the idea of making a Gish/Battlemage type of Watcher that focuses on conjured weapons and self-buffs. I’ve never really played Aloth in this way and naturally assumed that conjured weapons were a bit of a trap (as they are in a lot of RPGs with spellcasters), but holy shit. A Wizard with Citzal’s Spirit Lance, Deleterious Alacrity of Motion, and decent DEX does some insane damage after testing and will pretty much cap out their recovery speed unless they’re in heavy armor (I’d need to look into it further, but I think they can still cap out their recovery speed in the heaviest armor with enough DEX and the Gauntlets of Swift Action). This is without stuff like Savage Attack, Two-Handed Style, Weapon Focus: Soldier, and other consumables/buffs active too. Hell even without the Spirit Lance, you can just use Tall Grass and save the Spirit Lance for tough fights. Spell Mastery lets you take DAoM and Merciless Gaze later on, so you can have both up pretty much 24/7 alongside all of the other martial stuff.

The only comparable builds I can think of are Spiritshifting Druids (they can only do this twice with the right items and not for nearly as long though), Zahua specifically (he can cap out his attack speed indefinitely with two-handed weapons because of his special passive, but you’d have to reforge the weapon in Durgan Steel and he can’t wear heavy armor to do it), and Rogues with spellstrike/spellbind weapons (that’s obviously burst damage though).

I’ve gotta say, I really like how Pillars Wizards are designed if my idea holds out to be true. Let me know if I’m wrong, but it’s kind of crazy that this comes online at level 5/whenever you can afford Tall Grass. I always knew the build was an option, but I didn’t think it was this good.

Edit: Ok, so I redid the math and realized that the recovery speed calc WAS NOT RIGHT (you’ve still got like less than 10f of recovery even with like 16 or above DEX in less than heavy armor), so Zahua is still the king of attack speed. However, the fact that you beat him out for pretty much the whole game (in regard to two-handed weapons) until you get his personal ability and access to Durgan Steel is bonkers since you‘ll get the Spirit Lance/Tall Grass way before you try to take on Durgan’s Battery in PoTD.

Greetings Watchers,

Thank you so much for participating in our Public Beta. Today we are releasing Patch 3.9.4.0 on Steam, GOG, and Xbox PC. Please check out the latest fixes below:

If you come across any issues, please contact us at support.obsidian.net

Patch Notes 3.9.4.0

Combat and Mechanics – Turn-Based Mode Specific

• Prone status in TBM will now include an additional 3 initiative delay on the victim.
• On cast tick for several TBM pulsing AOEs should now apply properly.
• Spiritshift no longer lasts indefinitely on enemies in TBM.
• Traps with ticking behavior should now work properly in TBM.
• Wall of thorns should no longer behave in real time in TBM.
• Fixed an issue where Grimoire Imprints could sometimes lock combat in TBM.
• Radiant Sporelings are no longer able to revive multiple times in TBM and lock combat.
• Xaurips in TBM with Adra dragon should now consistently aggro the player’s party.
• Xaurip priest in TBM Adra dragon combat can no longer lock combat state by casting Holy Power in fog of war.

Visual and Audio

• SFX for Wall of Thorns should now play at the proper time in TBM.
• Fixed an issue where firearm reload animation would trigger after using a free action, instead of waiting until end of turn.

User Interface and Interaction

• Combat in TBM will no longer pause when tutorials appear.
• User cursor will no longer show the movement indicator when quitting out to the main menu.
• Certain elements of the HUD will no longer briefly remain fully visible when fading out into a transition.
• Ability tooltips will now display “Action used” in TBM when the user has no action point.
• Free action abilities will now indicate when the free action has already been used for the turn.
• Tooltip for toggle TBM button on the HUD now indicates its bound key.
• Current turn indicator will no longer display on the master when it is their pet’s turn.
• Arrow for collapsing center HUD element no longer clips with character portraits.

Source

I started playing Pillars of Eternity on 2024, my first character being a Fire Godlike Fighter (very original, I know). Since I always prioritize having fun over having a challenge, I always played on Normal mode to feel like I'm achieving something without feeling the game is actively cheating against me.

I played five characters this way: Fighter, Druid, Paladin, Barbarian and Priest. The game got progressively easier with each character, to the point that even the Bog dragons weren't much of a challenge on my last character. That's when I decided it was time to up the stakes.

Hard mode is another thing entirely. Sure, I'm still on PoE and the enemies don't get more stats, only more mobs, but I can already feel the difference. A party of 5 is weaker than a party of 8, regardless of how generic those additional 3 mobs are, and that makes combat a lot harder.

Now I understand the importance of priests and chanters. Everytime combat starts I'm buffing my party with all necessary prayers and buffs before using Salvation of Time. Goddamn what a difference it makes.

I'm at Raedric's Hold for the second time, at level 14, and I intend on finishing all Act 3 sidequests and Bounties before going to TWM2 and then finally beating the game. There's still a ways to go, and I'm excited for that, but I'm even more excited at the prospect of what Deadfire will bring to the table.

(Still don't use consumables besides potions and scrolls :D)

Edit: Forgot to mention I'm using upscaling whenever I'm queried about it, as well, so that's definitely a factor.

I'll be honest rtwp isn't my thing, but from my understanding ps5 isn't getting turn based (poe1) so...

... and who knows, with the right direction I might end up enjoying it. I think closest I've played might have been Dragon Age Origins and FF12 but I don't think it's quite similar. Is there sort of a gambit system in this game?

Is there an easier class or party composition to manage? Any recommendations, suggestions to get started? Any option I should change?

I love playing the fighter/ thief in d&d games, I enjoy being the tactical squad leader spec ops "Elite Operator" that is good enough to fight at the front line and deal damage, be able to somewhat tank, but still be agile, dual wielding, and a good party leader as far as dialogue choices go in the narrative. A hybrid character, basically, but the undisputed professional leader of the party. Good and compassionate, but professional and deadly. I was thinking the rogue would be a good choice, but would that not work for what I'm going for?

I'll be starting this game this weekend and I really want to have at least the bones of my character figured out beforehand. Would love some help building a character, basically. I would be willing to give up the scout and thieving abilities if the PoE1 rogue class isn't as much like the d&d fighter/ thief class. Any help would be appreciated.

Played many years ago, got a decent way through but didn't finish. Thinking of starting again, but just curious if anyone has some meta advice on mistakes to avoid, how to keep the game fun, tips and tricks, etc. TIA

Hey so i had no idea accepting the Dozens quest meant it permanently locked me out of the Knights, and i kinda just think the Dozens are far too lame and i care too much about what my character would actually do to just ignore it and move on..

Problem is, the only save i have before taking up the Dozen's quest is like 25 hours of gameplay ago, and i just don't have the time in the week to replay all of that for a single quest.

I tried using the StartQuest command, and it did give me the Winds of Steel quest, but it tells me to meet Aranroed at Anslog Compass and she's never actually there.

I tried using the SetGlobalValue to advance the quest stage but it didn't work, tried to use TriggerQuestAddendum, also didn't work

Anyone savvy enough with the console to help?

I was a backer of the old game on kickstarter, even got a T-shirt. I don't know if you can remember, but the excitement was through the roof for those early kickstarter projects. They said they will give us a Planescape Torment(My GOAT) Infinity engine inspired game. They had all the right people including Josh Sawyer and Chris Avellone. The game was good, but compared to what I remember of the old games, it wasn't as good or as immersive. Maybe because I played it on a crappy laptop screen but I doubt it. However, it built a great world and lore and had a great system and some highs like the main villain, conspiracy etc. All I remember was that by thr end of it I wasn't enjoying it much and just wanted to finish it.

So when this sequel released I didn't rush in to get it, and Kingmaker released around that time I think so I played that instead. I wasn't that excited to try the sequel and thought it will be the same as the old game.

Right now I am playing Deadfire finally and it is really good. I am enjoying this on Veteran better than I enjoyed Baldur's Gate 3.

I don't know how many people are like me, but maybe that's how they felt. The game probably released too close to the original and too many people got burned by bad kickstarters that they didn't give it a chance. It's probably why the original outsold the sequel on release.

Now that a trilogy is in limbo I can't help but feel some guilt for not supporting the game earlier.

TLDR: you can blame me for POE3 not being released yet, lol

Edit: Removed Chris Sawyer, a fusion of two great developers!

I’m late game, level 15., hard difficulty. Up to now absolutely loving the game, and liking the combat enough. I’ve reached the point that companions can leave, and I know for sure I won’t side with RTC and Maia will likely leave. (I don’t want to do the hacky method to keep her … she’s a spy and I need to face the truth). Unfortunately she’s absolutely carried the team and is my primary DPS

Full team: MC melee beguiler trickster, Eder fighter tank, Tekehu Druid, pallegina herald, Maia scout.

Option 1 - drop Maia from the squad. Respec my MC to be ranged and take Maias gear. RP that my MC uno reversed her honeypot trap and picked up her tactics

Problem - I did this and went to beast of winter and got demolished repeatedly to the Messenger. Gave up and went to Bekarna and can’t get past the first mob. Either late game difficulty really spikes, or I am helpless without Maia

Option 2 - sacrifice the RP, come up with a good excuse to keep Maia. Maybe drop her for some secret missions that she doesn’t need to know about

Option 3 - get better. Nah. I’m going to lose interest soon. My ADHD needs more dopamine soon or I’ll have no choice but to start a new run.

Option 4 - drop difficulty. Might need to do it - I’m just surprised because most games get easy at the end

I know it’s super personal but curious if folks have had similar experiences or what I’m missing . Thanks!

Hello. In Deadfire, can a single-class fighter finish the game on normal difficulty as a solo class? Many of the fighter's abilities are short-lived, making survival particularly difficult, especially against DLC bosses and the Seeker Slayer Survivor arena. It might be possible on easy difficulty, but it seems impossible on normal difficulty. Thanks.

First time playing Deadfire, right after blitizing through PoE1 after finding a character that I didn't get restart the game in an hour. In this case, an Deadfire Orlan woman, who in PoE was deeply smitten by Kana, and in Deadfire she leans pro-Huana.

Yesterday I got Tehaku proposing. I like him, but he isn't my type, too laid back and a leech, plus I barely tolerate his mom. Now, today, Xoti, Maia and Aloth took their turns in quick sucession. On top of my Watcher being straight, her relationship with the gods/religious people took a nose dive and often was a struggle to not yell at Xoti. Besides Maia just coming clean over murdering a ranga, I was like "I wanted to ride your brother, girl!". Aloth got the closest, they were bonding nicely over their worldviews and, if not because that kiss ~would have locked me into the romance~ couldn't be a friend's kiss with a side dish of "maybe one day, elf boy", he would have gotten it.

But so many people coming to her at once! She would have been like "do you have a pool going? Eder, Serafen, Palegrina, shoot your shots, lets get this over with" lmao.

I just need to gush a bit.

I bought both these games back in 2019~ and bounced off both. Tried P1, got to Act 2 but I didn't take the time to read. I didn't understand the proper nouns, I didn't have opinions about the world, so I got lost and quit. Tried P2, but didn't have the momentum or shakes of having finished P1. In both, I didn't have an open mind to try and learn RTwP, which made the game grind to a halt (P2) with low difficulty turn based, or just Story difficulty RTwP.

Two weeks ago, something changed. I decided to give Eora another shot. And holy shit. My fully developed brain with life experience ADORES these games and this world. I put in the time to understand the combat systems, I read every piece of text thrown at me, and I made bold character choices.

My death godlike rogue in P1 started out as an *awful* person, and I let the world around them and the companions they met make them more and more empathetic. The twist at the end of P1 was earth shattering, and it's been so SO rewarding to go into P2 with the consequences and regrets of P1 and have my protag attempt to stone for their sins.

>!I sacrificed Durance. I took every opportunity for individual power, sucking up souls like slushes. I killed and intimidated until I learned about the gods. I returned the souls to the Wheel and became Berath's sword with the renewed mission of returning the gods to the Wheel, and uplifting the innocent souls of those on Eora along the way. Now, we'll see what the end of Deadfire has for Kestrel. Maia, hopefully. !<

I'm excited to finish Deadfire, but I'm also going to really miss it. It's sad knowing that only Avowed waits for me after this. Eora is maybe my favorite fantasy world, and it's hard for me to pitch it to my friends with so much overhead. Pillars 1 with full voice acting and Pillars 2 combat would go so far.

Anyways, thanks Josh and team. I'm glad I came back around for this. After I'm done, I might run a Blades in the Dark game set on Neketaka!