Assassins Creed Odyssey

[Asharak]

I'm confused. How am I supposed to recruit one of the mercenaries when I can't knock them out on the first try? I attacked one this way and it turned into a big fight and the merc got killed

You have to fight them but keep a careful eye on their health and when they're about one hit from dying, use a non-lethal attack (i.e., the Sparta Kick) to "finish" them. At that point, they'll lie around on the ground and you can stand over them and either kill them or recruit them.

I think that has not been released yet. There's a video out detailing the future content plans and in it they show a picture for legendary creatures.

They might be planning more in the future but some are certainly in the game now. Some of the reviews that I read around launch time mentioned them, in the context of "this stuff is really cool and it's a shame it's hidden away at the back end of a very long game, where a lot of people won't see it".

---

Played more myself last night, advanced from Level 21 to 24, and triggered the major plot point where:

Spoiler:

Athens is struck by the plague. I haven't finished that, yet, but after I'm done I really want to google a bit to find out if that happens differently depending on how you handled the Blood Fever side quest in Kephallonia. I let the family there go, which caused the same thing to happen there. Is Athens better off if I slow or halt the spread of the plague in Kephallonia earlier?

The game is still a lot of fun. I do think it's too big, in the sense that there's far more world than the story seems to support. It's an incredible artistic and technical achievement to have created this world, sure, but when I'm basically ignoring naval combat, and conquest battles, and have skipped two entire low-level regions and moved through others without coming close to completing them... there's clearly more here than there needs to be. I also just played a part of the story that, while objectively part of the main plot, seemed to be more padded than was necessary. I was given a very BioWare-esque set of the three things to go do, in any order I chose, and when I went to each of them, it turned out they I had three things to do for each. So one stage of the plot turned into three quests which turned into nine sub-quests. It's not that the activities involved were uninteresting (OK, one involving snakes in a bathhouse was rather pointless), it's just that it feels like... well, a marathon.

- Ash

[Chaz]

Gotta bump that assassin damage!

Actually, I have no idea. The only dude I haven't been able to one shot so far was a mercenary. I think the kick can also knock them out if you drop their health low enough? My experience may be skewed because I'm focusing entirely on assassin damage, and can kill everything except the for bosses and mercs with one stealth shot.

I'm at level 10, and this is exactly what I wanted more of after 100 hours of Origins this year. I can definitely see myself going completionist on it. It's also perfect for playing with a newborn, because stuff is bite size, and you can save anywhere.

[Asharak]

Gotta bump that assassin damage!

Actually, I have no idea. The only dude I haven't been able to one shot so far was a mercenary.

Yeah, you'll never one-shot mercenaries or the more-elite soldiers (Captains, Polemarchs), no matter how high you get your Assassin damage. Upping your Assassin Damage is still helpful, as it does a lot of damage when you start the fight with a sneak attack or use Hero Strike during the fight, but those guys are designed to require at least some actual combat to take down.

I was surprised to realize, though, that if you want to Assassinate some of the regular enemies, even on-level ones, you will need a few bonuses (from skills or gear) to your Assassin damage (I'm playing on Hard, which may be affecting this). The enemies seem to have different amounts of health: unarmored archers are very easy to kill, the big two-hander wielding brutes much less so. If I don't keep at least a few pieces of +Assassin Damage gear, I only get 50-75% of the health of a bigger enemy with an Assassinate action.

- Ash

[coopasonic]

Gotta bump that assassin damage!

Actually, I have no idea. The only dude I haven't been able to one shot so far was a mercenary.

Yeah, you'll never one-shot mercenaries or the more-elite soldiers (Captains, Polemarchs), no matter how high you get your Assassin damage. Upping your Assassin Damage is still helpful, as it does a lot of damage when you start the fight with a sneak attack or use Hero Strike during the fight, but those guys are designed to require at least some actual combat to take down.

That depends the mercenary, your gear and your skill selections. I can one shot most captains and polemarches but I also have all +assassin gear and critical assassination. The ones I can't one shot I can generally assassinate and then follow up with Heroic Strike to put them down before anyone notices.

As far as knocking dudes out to recruit, you can unequip a weapon and go with good old fashioned fisticuffs. The damage isn't that bad. When you get higher level it is too easy to accidentally kill someone you want to recruit when whittling them down.

Mythical creatures are definitely in the game. I have met a couple.

[Asharak]

That depends the mercenary, your gear and your skill selections. I can one shot most captains and polemarches but I also have all +assassin gear and critical assassination.

Fair enough. I have been mixing Assassin and Warrior Damage, so I'm sure my Assassin damage isn't as high as your's and, yeah, I completely forgot about (and have not taken) Critical Assassination. That one would certainly help.

The ones I can't one shot I can generally assassinate and then follow up with Heroic Strike to put them down before anyone notices.

This. I love doing this.

- Ash

[Chaz]

I'm wondering if I'll be able to get a mix of bonuses and skills that will let me do the combo sniper/assassin that did for most of Origins. In that one, I'd grab a predator bow, snipe exposed dudes that I was able to (one shot head shot all day), then sneak in and take out the rest with stabbing from behind. It was super easy, but fun. In Odyssey, I'm guessing that even with Predator Shot, you're forced to either be able to one shot with arrows or with stabbing. But I'm pretty close to being able to one shot mooks with my current build, so it might be possible to tweak slightly to still be able to one shot stab almost everyone, and also be able to snipe at least regular guards.

If not, it wouldn't be the worst thing if it forced me to get up close the whole way. That can be fun too.

[coopasonic]

My hunter damage is pretty pathetic so I generally don't even bother with the bow and wipe out most places with close up assassination. I do have a skill that gives me a 1000% hunter damage explosive shot that takes 3 bars of adrenaline that I use when I want to have some fun, but that's just for special occasions or packs of animals (which seem impossible to sneak up on).

[YellowKing]

I'm at level 10, and this is exactly what I wanted more of after 100 hours of Origins this year. I can definitely see myself going completionist on it. It's also perfect for playing with a newborn, because stuff is bite size, and you can save anywhere.

Same here. I 100%ed Origins and loved every minute of it. I get totally obsessed with these open world games - for some reason the tedium doesn't bother me. I have a compulsive drive to discover every question mark, clear every location, etc.

I do need to work on my hunter stuff. I loved one-shotting from afar in Origins, but I can't come close to doing that in this game. I've been primarily playing an assassin with a smattering of warrior thrown in for survivability.

[jztemple2]

I'm at level 10, and this is exactly what I wanted more of after 100 hours of Origins this year. I can definitely see myself going completionist on it. It's also perfect for playing with a newborn, because stuff is bite size, and you can save anywhere.

Same here. I 100%ed Origins and loved every minute of it. I get totally obsessed with these open world games - for some reason the tedium doesn't bother me. I have a compulsive drive to discover every question mark, clear every location, etc.

I got through the main campaign in Origins and got 96% completion, finally burning out after 85 hours. Sadly, I'm having some hand numbness issues so I have to also do bite sized chunks of playing. And I still have that reluctance to go clear a fort just for the sake of clearing a fort. I just had to go assassinate a character in a fort and I just wasn't up for all the work, so I snuck through the whole building and went and nailed the one guy. I'll go back some other time and clear it out.

I think I'm also being put off a bit by something someone else mentioned, that there are *so* many things to do it seems a bit overwhelming. I'm just going to take a break this afternoon and then this evening I think I'm going to avoid doing any Odyssey quests and just wander around and check out the lay of the land.

Oh, I was also going to mention a couple of weird missions I had. Each had an hour glass symbol and the mission was to take something to a location. I did this, expecting to get jumped or find that there was something more to it, but no, they just wanted a delivery. I got money and some XP and that was that. Oh well, it's a living.

[Daehawk]

This may be my most wanted game now.

I still wish they'd make a game like these but without the Templar / Assassin stuff and NO modern day crap at all. No animus. Maybe a full game simply lacking those set in Inca or Aztek settings.

[coopasonic]

Oh, I was also going to mention a couple of weird missions I had. Each had an hour glass symbol and the mission was to take something to a location. I did this, expecting to get jumped or find that there was something more to it, but no, they just wanted a delivery. I got money and some XP and that was that. Oh well, it's a living.

The hourglass missions are pretty much the same as the message board missions. Mostly trivial and pointless and have a 24 hour time limit.

[Chaz]

This may be my most wanted game now.

I still wish they'd make a game like these but without the Templar / Assassin stuff and NO modern day crap at all. No animus. Maybe a full game simply lacking those set in Inca or Aztek settings.

Good news! This one barely mentions the Animus (at least early on), and it's set before Origins, so the Templars and Assassins aren't really a thing yet.

They've been moving away from the modern day stuff pretty hard ever since 3. The games will still have some tiny modern day elements, but mostly they ignore it.

[Sepiche]

They've been moving away from the modern day stuff pretty hard ever since 3. The games will still have some tiny modern day elements, but mostly they ignore it.

I get the feeling that the real world stuff in Origin and Odyssey is mostly just fan service so the few people who actually liked those parts of the game will be happy.

That's one of the few things I hated about Black Flag: the slow, mindless real world segments.

[coopasonic]

There is a bit later where you are booted out but can go right back in and then another bit where you actually have to do a little bit in modern times, but it's not much. It has been about 5 minutes of my 45 hours of play time.

[Chaz]

They've been moving away from the modern day stuff pretty hard ever since 3. The games will still have some tiny modern day elements, but mostly they ignore it.

I get the feeling that the real world stuff in Origin and Odyssey is mostly just fan service so the few people who actually liked those parts of the game will be happy.

That's one of the few things I hated about Black Flag: the slow, mindless real world segments.

See, I really liked those segments. But I was probably more amused because of the in-jokes and references to working in a video game company.

[Newcastle]

So I'm playing on a PS4. Is there anywhere where it shows how many of X i've collected be it say ores, or tablets or things of that nature? Is there a stats page?

[coopasonic]

So I'm playing on a PS4. Is there anywhere where it shows how many of X i've collected be it say ores, or tablets or things of that nature? Is there a stats page?

On PC across the top of the inventory screen shows all the wood/metal/etc that you have. Or maybe that was the ship screen (and blacksmith upgrade screen) where it is actually used.

[Newcastle]

I meant more along the lines you have completed 6/600 of collectible A, and 3/100 of collectible B. Emphasis on collectibles. IE tablets, the special, special ores, and so forth.

[Asharak]

MASSIVE spoiler for the end of the quest "And the Streets Run Red" (seriously, DO NOT read this if you haven't heard of and finished that quest):

Spoiler:

Oh, fuck. Phoibe. I kind of expected something bad to happen to her, given that they pushed her cuteness so hard and so early, but I didn't expect her to get cut down in the street. That made me legitimately connect with Kassandra's anger, and I really liked her "I don't fucking care" response when someone immediately told her that she should be focused on Pericles.

The more I play, the more impressed I am with Kassandra. Her voice acting is excellent and her facial animations are phenomenal. I've never seen a video game character emote through unvoiced facial expressions as well as Kassandra does.

I meant more along the lines you have completed 6/600 of collectible A, and 3/100 of collectible B. Emphasis on collectibles. IE tablets, the special, special ores, and so forth.

I don't think so.

They've been moving away from the modern day stuff pretty hard ever since 3. The games will still have some tiny modern day elements, but mostly they ignore it.

I really like the idea of the modern day stuff and I wish they'd do a good job with it... but as long as they're committed to NOT doing a good job with it, it seems ridiculous that they keep including these minimalist and half-assed attempts.

- Ash

[Daehawk]

If this would have a huge Halloween sale and hit the $30 something mark I could grab it next month....barring pop up emergencies

Maybe me and Blackhawk could pool our change and buy a game and take turns playing it ...BH just saying cause you seem to know how it is man.

[jztemple2]

An update is now available, 1.88 GB. Am downloading now.

[Daehawk]

Is there any difference between the female and male player characters in game other than looks? Ive watched some videos and the female looks more interesting but plan to play the male.

[Sepiche]

Is there any difference between the female and male player characters in game other than looks? Ive watched some videos and the female looks more interesting but plan to play the male.

Different look and voice actors, but basically the same story for both.

[Daehawk]

Thank you.

[YellowKing]

I will say though that playing as the woman I haven't been hit on by any male characters, but nearly every female in the game wants my hot bod.

I actually got tired at one point of having to figure out which conversation tree would *not* enter me into a lusty lesbian relationship.

[jztemple2]

I will say though that playing as the woman I haven't been hit on by any male characters, but nearly every female in the game wants my hot bod.

I seem to recall in the first minute of the first cutscene she gets a quick punch to the nose. She takes it well.

I do think the animation is amazing.

[jztemple2]

So, a few things... one item added by the patch, all weapons and objects you have engrave now show a symbol to that effect in the inventory.

And I just did the mission that unlocked the weird society stuff.... I'm not sure I know what the heck is going on, but I suspect it involved this guy:

[Jolor]

So, for someone who holds AC2 as "the best ever" followed closely by AC1, and couldn't really get into Black Flag, this game is:

• a Pass
  a Must

[jztemple2]

So, for someone who holds AC2 as "the best ever" followed closely by AC1, and couldn't really get into Black Flag, this game is:

• a Pass
  a Must

Hmm. If you couldn't get into Black Flag, I'm thinking you're not going to enjoy the more open world feel. Did you play any other of the series besides those three?

[Jolor]

I didn't play any of the others.

[YellowKing]

It's a tough question because the early ACs are vastly different than Odyssey.

While Black Flag hinted at the open world/RPG-lite structure to come, Origins really overhauled the entire structure of the series.

Whereas AC1 & 2 were largely about a handful of assassination quests coupled with lots of busy work (vantage points, collectibles, etc.), Origins went to a primarily quest-based structure with RPG elements in terms of equipment and ability tree upgrades. Whereas previous entries had elements of this, Origins really expanded it.

Have you played any large scale open world RPGs like Skyrim? It leans more towards that style of gameplay than the more linear progression of the early ACs.

Note: I didn't play Unity or Syndicate, so I don't know how much those pushed the series towards Origins' format. Also, I'm focusing on Origins vs Odyssey because Odyssey is essentially just a more refined version of the Origins formula.

[jztemple2]

Note: I didn't play Unity or Syndicate, so I don't know how much those pushed the series towards Origins' format. Also, I'm focusing on Origins vs Odyssey because Odyssey is essentially just a more refined version of the Origins formula.

Unity was significantly different than Black Flag, taking place completely within the confines of Revolutionary Paris. Ditto for Syndicate, London in 1865ish. I don't remember it in Unity, but in Syndicate there is a whole subsystem of taking control of different parts of London, not so unlike that found in GTA San Andreas.

Odyssey does have an interesting feature that I first saw in Ghost Recon Wildlands... (spoiler for Odyssey game structure, but doesn't give away story endings)

Spoiler:

you are hunting down a web of interconnected people, access to whom you unlock by going after the "small fish" first.

Both Origins and Odyssey have excellent character development for the protagonists and also great NPC folks.

[coopasonic]

Odyssey is way more Witcher 3 than AC1/2. They've really been totally different games other than the theme... and even in Origins and Odyssey the theme has shifted because the Assassins aren't even a thing. I kind of miss the Assassins and hope we get back to them with the next game. I really liked the parts where you recruited your own team and sent them out on missions. The recruiting in this game exists, but it's relatively pointless as unimportant as ship battles are.

[Daehawk]

I never finished Syndicate. I keep reinstalling and going back at it. But I found it to be a fun AC game.

[jztemple2]

I just learned something. If you working in a province to lower control by the Spartans/Athenians, if you leave the province and then return, the Fortified meter is reset . I had lowered the Spartan strength in Phokis and even assassinated the nation leader, but once I left and returned, the Fortified meter was back at it's full level. So I guess fair warning, if you are planning to do a Conquest battle don't leave beforehand!

I'm not sure if there is a new Nation Leader to assassinate or if there are more supplies to burn, so I'm not sure how to lower the meter again. However, the two Conquest battle sites (one for each side) have definitely been removed off the map.

[coopasonic]

I think it depends how long you spend out of region. I have made quick trips and seen it stay low, but I haven't really monitored to see how long it takes for them to build back up. I am 90% sure I have also seen a region switch sides without me triggering a battle.

[Sepiche]

I just learned something. If you working in a province to lower control by the Spartans/Athenians, if you leave the province and then return, the Fortified meter is reset . I had lowered the Spartan strength in Phokis and even assassinated the nation leader, but once I left and returned, the Fortified meter was back at it's full level. So I guess fair warning, if you are planning to do a Conquest battle don't leave beforehand!

I'm not sure if there is a new Nation Leader to assassinate or if there are more supplies to burn, so I'm not sure how to lower the meter again. However, the two Conquest battle sites (one for each side) have definitely been removed off the map.

I'm not sure if they reset so much as fluctuate randomly on their own from time to time. I've seen the fortified meter go down to low in provinces I've never visited, so there seems to be something else at work there. I haven't looked at supplies respawning, but I have seen that very soon after killing the leader of a region it spawns a new one, so that should be available at least.

[jztemple2]

I just learned something. If you working in a province to lower control by the Spartans/Athenians, if you leave the province and then return, the Fortified meter is reset . I had lowered the Spartan strength in Phokis and even assassinated the nation leader, but once I left and returned, the Fortified meter was back at it's full level. So I guess fair warning, if you are planning to do a Conquest battle don't leave beforehand!

I'm not sure if there is a new Nation Leader to assassinate or if there are more supplies to burn, so I'm not sure how to lower the meter again. However, the two Conquest battle sites (one for each side) have definitely been removed off the map.

I'm not sure if they reset so much as fluctuate randomly on their own from time to time. I've seen the fortified meter go down to low in provinces I've never visited, so there seems to be something else at work there. I haven't looked at supplies respawning, but I have seen that very soon after killing the leader of a region it spawns a new one, so that should be available at least.

Well, in my case the Fortified meter was at zero, after I burned, looted and killed the Nation Leader, then I stepped across the border, came back in less than a minute and bang, the meter was full again. And there was no longer an option to go to the Spartan or Athenian camp to start a Conquest battle. The meter may also fluctuate for other reasons, but I just wanted to folks to know that the option for a Conquest battle may disappear if they change provinces.

Also, running around Malis, I'm a bit disappointed in how at least this region seems to differ in gameplay from Origins. In Origins when I wandered through a region I would occasionally find bandits, but otherwise I'd find villages and hamlets and towns who would welcome me. Wandering through Malis I would find a camp of these people who would attack me on sight, or a camp of those type of people who would attack me on sight, or a military camp where they would try to kill me if I entered into the camp. I'm hoping that this will be different in other regions.

[Jolor]

It's a tough question because the early ACs are vastly different than Odyssey.
.
.
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Have you played any large scale open world RPGs like Skyrim? It leans more towards that style of gameplay than the more linear progression of the early ACs.

Thanks. I've played - and thoroughly enjoyed - open world games like Elder Scrolls III, IV, V, the Witcher series, Far Cry 3, Fallout New Vegas & 3.

I couldn't get into AC Black Flag or Fallout 4.

I think that the reason I couldn't get into either was that they had strayed too far from my original experiences(?) Not really sure, tbh.

[Newcastle]

I just learned something. If you working in a province to lower control by the Spartans/Athenians, if you leave the province and then return, the Fortified meter is reset . I had lowered the Spartan strength in Phokis and even assassinated the nation leader, but once I left and returned, the Fortified meter was back at it's full level. So I guess fair warning, if you are planning to do a Conquest battle don't leave beforehand!

-This happened to me yesterday. I brought down a region to zero and I was preparing to do a conquest battle when I noticed my gear was slightly outdated. Due to the fact there was no Blacksmith in this region, I had to run over to Phokis and upgrade my gear. When I checked the map, the area I had brought to zero had flipped to the other side and was at fully strength. So takeaways. 1. Plan your conquest battles, get gear upgrades and such a bit before you hit the conquest battle window, 2. if you leave a zone and its at zero strength chances are it will flip.

-So I've also been redoing my characters abilities a few times now. I also did it prior to the conquest battles. And man that is pretty cool. Its nice to be able to respec from a total assassin build to a more combat focused warrior build. Not that expensive, so will be doing that going forward. Also lets you play with different builds.

-I've definitely been enjoying the warrior and assassin builds much more than the Hunter.

-its still taking time for me to flip between the two action wheels for melee combat. I kind of dont like that switching. Just one more thing to remember really. So I've kind of made 2 wheel types. 1st wheel is more of all the moves i'll use in a combat. 2nd wheel is those I dont use as much...on the second one I'll use my heal, rush assassination, vanish and my poison. On my main wheel I'll have my shield breaker, spartan kick, hero strike.

-I am not in a rush to complete this game, but MAN...this game is HUGE. It's overwhelming at first at how much there is to too.

- I hope they make ship combat more meaningful than a simple diversion.

-I've been tempted to spend the 900 helix points on the maps. But so far I've refrained from doing such.

-MUCHO fun alert...Getting to level 20, enables you to take ZERO falling damage. Yeah, Zero. So if you want to run off that sky high cliff just to do some base jumping. DO IT! Fun way to scamper down sheer straight cliffs.

-i've also been spending money and resources to upgrade gear that I've liked from the 6-10 levels. The stuff just works for me. I've not had a cash crunch thats too bad. Its expensive, but it seems worth it to me, especially in conquest battles, I have a few items which I'll put on for that (IE my big ole axe).

-since i am usually flush with cash, but resource poor, I always buy out blacksmiths of their skins, wood and metal. This is based on Assh's tip earlier. But it's a good idea to do such.

-I've been actually deconstructing most of my gear, and rarely selling it.

-i've got 18 lieutenants now. I try to recruit guys whenever I can. I have 2 I think are legendary and a couple of epic ones. Before taking down a fort, I'll use my eagle to scout out the guys and note ones I might be interested in. I've actually recruited about 3-4 mercs who've tried to attack me. Maybe more. I'll keep recruiting, because well that's how I roll. Also its fun when boarding a ship and seeing those dudes come aboard and fight on your side also.