Divinity: Original Sin

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Fri Oct 30, 2015 6:31 am

The camera auto follows the focused character unless you pan the camera and then it won't auto follow until you hit the Home key (I believe) or you double click on the character portrait that you want to follow)

Tao · Post by **Tao** » Fri Oct 30, 2015 9:56 am

Thanks for the responses...found the key, wow did I miss a lot of loot. I thought I attempted to double click the portrait but perhaps not, will try that this evening.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 12:53 pm

I really am the worst. I made two characters --a Knight and a Ranger and when I get to the first town I'm able to add (wait for it) a Knight and a Ranger (of sorts) to my party. 4 hours in and I'm seriously considering starting over...or maybe just plowing through everything with a double-up.

NOTE: I'm totally kidding about plowing through everything. Combat is hard.

stimpy · Post by **stimpy** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 1:38 pm

Smoove_B wrote:I really am the worst. I made two characters --a Knight and a Ranger and when I get to the first town I'm able to add (wait for it) a Knight and a Ranger (of sorts) to my party. 4 hours in and I'm seriously considering starting over...or maybe just plowing through everything with a double-up.

NOTE: I'm totally kidding about plowing through everything. Combat is hard.

So are the only 2 options you get to add to a party a Knight and Ranger?
That will help decide my starting 2.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 1:44 pm

I'm sure others with more experience can chime in, but they were the only two I've come across so far in my relatively short amount of time with the game.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 1:58 pm

I'd read it was a two handed fighter and an air/water mage you got early on. Maybe they changed that for Enhanced.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 1:59 pm

That might be closer to the truth. The one companion fights with a 2H great sword and the other fights with a bow. Both had similar skills/loads outs to my Ranger / Knight player combo though, so I'm not sure about the mage element in there.

TiLT · Post by **TiLT** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 2:00 pm

There were only 2 NPCs in the original version, but the new one added two more, for a grand total of 4. Keep looking. They should all be in or around the first town you get to.

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 2:03 pm

There's a mage in the library on the upper floor of the mayor's house

Dramatist · Post by **Dramatist** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 3:23 pm

I decided to buy this on the PS4. Haven't played it yet but it seems right up my alley.

Jolor · Post by **Jolor** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 3:23 pm

TiLT wrote:
Scuzz wrote:
Jolor wrote:Just a heads up that DX11 is a requirement to run the EE.
well I am fucked, my PC won't load DX11
How is that even possible at this point in time? DX11 has been a standard in graphics cards since 2009 or so. Your GPU must be positively ancient if it can't handle that.

Btw, get used to new games expecting at least DX11 (and soon DX12, especially for PC exclusives) and a 64-bit system. The 32-bit DX9 requirements were an artifact of the previous console generation, and are pretty much dead at this point. Fewer and fewer games will support the old standards.

A: I have a good rig but a GTX260, and have been out of work for two years with just part-time contract work coming in. Hopefully it'll be Merry Christmas to me in just a few months.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 5:01 pm

IceBear wrote:There's a mage in the library on the upper floor of the mayor's house

I found I had to split up my party to recruit him, since my characters couldn't agree to let him join.

ColdSteel · Post by **ColdSteel** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 5:13 pm

stimpy wrote:So are the only 2 options you get to add to a party a Knight and Ranger?

No, you have 4 companions that will join you. A fighter, a mage, a rogue, and a ranger.

Spoiler:

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 5:16 pm

This game is fricking hard. Even minion battles are lasting 15 minutes or longer. For stronger opponents, since you can't pull one or two, I have reverted to some old school tactics. I pulled some mobs all the way into the city in order to use the guards as a meat shield. Surprisingly the mobs are stronger than the guards, so I have depleted most of their ranks. Of course this has the added bonus of allowing me to loot the city with abandon. It also led to a hilarious scenario when the Orc boss stood alone bereft of minions. There were no guards left, but a swarm of merchants plus a sheep and a cow distracted him long enough for me to take him down.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 5:25 pm

ColdSteel wrote:
stimpy wrote:So are the only 2 options you get to add to a party a Knight and Ranger?
No, you have 4 companions that will join you. A fighter, a mage, a rogue, and a ranger.
Spoiler:
The ranger is in a cage near the legion HQ, the knight is in the inn, the mage is in the library at city hall, the rogue is in a cave you can enter by digging the big mound at the center of the graveyard northwest in town.

I don't know what class he is because I did not invite him, but I found a companion:

Spoiler:

Tao · Post by **Tao** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 6:33 pm

Starting to feel overwhelmed with trying to speak to every NPC in the town. Also wishing the game offered a bit more direction at the lower levels. NPC's keep talking about various locations and missions but they keep turning out to be way beyond my abilities which is resulting in lots of reloads and replaying the same portion of the game over and over is wearing thin. The first few battles were challenging but not overly hard, then I hit the graveyard...

Spoiler:

Might have to restart the game a 3rd time.

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 8:21 pm

Jaymann wrote:
ColdSteel wrote:
stimpy wrote:So are the only 2 options you get to add to a party a Knight and Ranger?
No, you have 4 companions that will join you. A fighter, a mage, a rogue, and a ranger.
Spoiler:
The ranger is in a cage near the legion HQ, the knight is in the inn, the mage is in the library at city hall, the rogue is in a cave you can enter by digging the big mound at the center of the graveyard northwest in town.
I don't know what class he is because I did not invite him, but I found a companion:
Spoiler:
down a well to the west of town (upper gate, not the beach).

That's the same rogue that Tilt mentioned that you can also get to via the graveyard

ColdSteel · Post by **ColdSteel** » Sat Oct 31, 2015 8:43 pm

IceBear wrote:That's the same rogue that Tilt mentioned that you can also get to via the graveyard

Yes, that's Wolgraff down there.

For those having some issues, you can use your pyramids to your great advantage in fights. Drop one in a good defensive position and then run your crew up to initiate the fight. Have the pyramid holding hero wait on his turn to let the others go first. I like to knock some mobs down with the boulder spell and that oils them up as well, then I set them on fire or explode nearby barrels if there are any. You should have teleport (you should get that ASAP) and you can drop nasty stuff on them or drop them on each other. Use up all your ranged attacks/spells and then after the pyramid guy that waited comes up again, have him use the pyramid and it will transport your whole party to the pyramid you left at the defensive position. Then the burning/injured mobs will have to come to your defensive position. You can also cast the rain spell outside of combat and electrocute them instead if there's any puddles around.

You have to think outside the box some but the rewards are great. I haven't really had any issues with fights at all. I dug up all the graves in the graveyard and killed all 3 of the mods there (Dave, Helen and whoever the exploding guy was) at level 4.

Tao · Post by **Tao** » Sun Nov 01, 2015 1:21 am

You have to think outside the box some but the rewards are great. I haven't really had any issues with fights at all. I dug up all the graves in the graveyard and killed all 3 of the mods there (Dave, Helen and whoever the exploding guy was) at level 4.

Then I am either doing something seriously wrong or I seriously suck at these games now. Dave in the graveyard was hitting my characters on average 70+ damage per swing. That one shot my caster, my hit ratio was around 20% but I figured it was due to his level, I'm not see how gaining a level is going to even that playing field.
I also took another run down in the tunnels. After a few tries I managed to finish the first group with no damage, next beat the Scorchers henchmen pretty quickly but he alone managed to put a hurt on my characters but I figured I had him at the end. He was down to only a few hit points with all 3 of my characters left with a decent amount of health. Hit him, killed him, and he then exploded and wiped out my party.
Really? A high damage AOE, regening, magic warded, henchmen summoning creature that explodes on death for significant damage....at level 2. So the dragons and demons come in at what, level 4?

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Sun Nov 01, 2015 6:47 am

Scrolls and magic arrows can be used by anyone. I'm trying to remember that battle but can't. I must have not had any issues as I can't remember it so it's not sticking out. I probably had 4 party members at that point though and the air/water wizard helped with healing and keeping burning to a minimum with rain

There are some other undead things that look like walking bombs that can't explode when they're wet so not sure if that's the same with that guy

ColdSteel · Post by **ColdSteel** » Sun Nov 01, 2015 9:10 am

Tao wrote:Then I am either doing something seriously wrong or I seriously suck at these games now. Dave in the graveyard was hitting my characters on average 70+ damage per swing. That one shot my caster, my hit ratio was around 20% but I figured it was due to his level, I'm not see how gaining a level is going to even that playing field.

The key to the graveyard fights (and any fight against a single foe where you are seriously out leveled) is to never let them get close enough to hit you to begin with. It helps to have mages with teleport. Heck, my fighter even has teleport. Have I mentioned Teleport? It's one of the best spells in the game.

Before you start, make sure you have 4 party members. Get the mage in the library. He has teleport. As soon as you dig Dave up, attack with any high initiative party members that may move first, then use the pyramid to teleport the entire party to a safe distance away where you dropped the other pyramid (when that character's turn comes up). The dog Murphy is going to attack Dave as is the grieving mother to the north. Make sure you've dug up Jake's grave and talked to Murphy and gotten him to smell all the suspects' smelly clothes (if you've found any) first for the XP before you dig up Dave because with you at distance, the poor doggie will draw agro and likely die. Talk to the nice lady by the north grave first as well because she's also on a suicide mission. So, while Dave's busy massacring them, you at a safe distance should oil him with Midnight Oil, which also slows him, and then set him on fire. While he's on fire, if you have any poison grenades to throw at him, that will help as it creates a poison cloud which will explode from the fire. Poison arrows are good too. Poison and fire are good. Especially with undead. In general, undead and fire do not get along well.

If he makes a run at you, try to knock him down with your fighter's Crushing Fist and then teleport him right back into the fire. If you have the novice earth spell that summons a spider. Use that to draw his agro and keep him away from your party. A few turns of this and he should be dead and you'll get about 1500 XP. Those are the tactics I used and he was never able to reach me. You can also use the same tactics against the others there and against the big orc on the western beach.

Side note: I cast healing on Murphy during the battle and he actually survived but then died afterwards because he was still on fire and I didn't have time to cast heal again once I was out of combat. That really pissed me off. He was a good dog.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Sun Nov 01, 2015 10:59 am

Dramatist wrote:I decided to buy this on the PS4. Haven't played it yet but it seems right up my alley.

I'd love to hear some impressions once you've had a chance to play some. I don't think my comp can handle it, so I'm tempted by the ps4 version.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Sun Nov 01, 2015 5:33 pm

My impression is that if you like turned based party action it is a must buy. The learning curve is a bit steep, but once you get the hang of it, it is very fun, especially the ability to use the environment to your advantage. I recommend getting Lore and Blacksmith on one of your companions, as it will save you a ton of money and make for fewer trips to town. Major thanks to ColdSteel for the teleport stone trick - it is a real game changer (I am surprised it is allowed in battle).

Just finished one of the best fights of all time, taking down King Diederik with a level 9 party:

First set up 3 party members behind the little door near the teleport shrine, with an oil barrel dropped in the doorway. Sent my fastest character up towards his throne area, cast haste and shot an arrow at the king (you can do this a little further back than setting off the dialogue, and every step is critical). Dashed back as far as I could, then used a scroll to toss an ice elemental between the gates to distract the rush. Worked better than I hoped because some of the mob slipped on the ice and blocked the King, allowing me to split their party. The bitch queen and some casters were on me like white on rice, but managed to make it back through the doorway with about 10% HP. Blasted the oil barrel, and took the first group down with relative ease. By this time the King and his remaining minions were out of range, so I healed up, did a rinse and repeat, and the King went down like scum.

Dramatist · Post by **Dramatist** » Mon Nov 02, 2015 12:14 pm

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:
Dramatist wrote:I decided to buy this on the PS4. Haven't played it yet but it seems right up my alley.
I'd love to hear some impressions once you've had a chance to play some. I don't think my comp can handle it, so I'm tempted by the ps4 version.

I will do this. I'm just so busy this week I won't have much play time.

Ralph-Wiggum · Post by **Ralph-Wiggum** » Mon Nov 02, 2015 12:42 pm

No worries - I bought it yesterday on a complete impulse purchase.

So far so good, though, although I have probably spent 75% of the 3 hours or so I played just on character creation. Too many choices! I ended up with a ranged guy that can summon spiders (I always have to have a summoner) and pure elemental mage. Hopefully I haven't already gimped myself.

It took me some time to get used to the controls (I got stuck with a top down almost useless view until I realized how to change it), but I'm starting to get comfortable. The game play seems pretty well thought out for the controller, although I have accidentally lit myself on fire more than a few times...

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 2:22 pm

Ralph-Wiggum wrote:No worries - I bought it yesterday on a complete impulse purchase.

So far so good, though, although I have probably spent 75% of the 3 hours or so I played just on character creation. Too many choices! I ended up with a ranged guy that can summon spiders (I always have to have a summoner) and pure elemental mage. Hopefully I haven't already gimped myself.

It took me some time to get used to the controls (I got stuck with a top down almost useless view until I realized how to change it), but I'm starting to get comfortable. The game play seems pretty well thought out for the controller, although I have accidentally lit myself on fire more than a few times...

Don't worry about "gimping" yourself too much. If you feel your character has a deficit, you get levels fairly quickly and each level comes with a talent point you can put into a skill. Since each special ability school (like magic, arms, or marksmanship) only needs one point to open up, you can easily become more rounded. All magic schools rely on INT, so you can quickly make your mage a master of loads of spells. I would suggest you pick up the Air and Water spells, however. Regeneration is a life saver for its healing capacity (a water spell) and Teleport (Air) is a heavy damage dealer. As soon as you get to town, you have the option of picking up a few companions (and you can even create new companions, after playing for a while).

The game actually encourages being a "Jack of All Trades" by giving you one skill point per early level (and to go to level 2 requires two points), but then making the Adept abilities require level 6 to use. So you can rush to skill level 2 to improve your Novice abilities, but it won't get you any cooler powers initially.

I did find a pretty powerful spell combo. The "Touch of Decay" spell, which is a witchcraft spell, makes it so that healing spells harm the target rather than help and it lasts for two rounds. It also only takes 2 action points (and has a 7 range, which can go up to 9 with a perk). Regeneration heals a good amount of damage (around 54 at my level) and pulses for two turns. It takes around 4-5 AP to cast, so if you have 6 AP your caster can cast both. That means an instant 54 damage and then another 54 damage when regeneration pulses! Some enemies can counter this by dispelling witchcraft spells, if they survive the initial casting. You can also combine it with the Man at Arms healing skill, which does a single heal (or in this case damage) of around 94 HP. That combo, however, will require two turns as the Arms heal takes more AP.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 3:15 pm

I'm having a real difficult time with this game (I think) because I don't typically play spell casters in video games. As near as I can tell, this game more or less expects you to use environmental spells/effects to assist in combat - it's seemingly not a game you can just sword and board your way through? I mean, I'm doing it with a party of 4 - two melee, two ranged - but it's slow going.

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 3:26 pm

Smoove_B wrote:I'm having a real difficult time with this game (I think) because I don't typically play spell casters in video games. As near as I can tell, this game more or less expects you to use environmental spells/effects to assist in combat - it's seemingly not a game you can just sword and board your way through? I mean, I'm doing it with a party of 4 - two melee, two ranged - but it's slow going.

Remember a lot of spell effects can be simulated with arrows and grenades, and anyone can use a scroll

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 3:32 pm

Yes, I am trying to use various arrows for my archers, but I didn't realize the scroll thing. Though they've both used the Resurrection scrolls so I guess that makes sense. I'm just not that kind of player - more of a "hulk smash" mentality.

Lordnine · Post by **Lordnine** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 3:34 pm

Smoove_B wrote:I'm having a real difficult time with this game (I think) because I don't typically play spell casters in video games. As near as I can tell, this game more or less expects you to use environmental spells/effects to assist in combat - it's seemingly not a game you can just sword and board your way through? I mean, I'm doing it with a party of 4 - two melee, two ranged - but it's slow going.

Magic really is a huge part of the game. As IceBear says, you can use arrows and scrolls to fill the role but I think you are going to have a really hard time if you try not to use anything at all.

A large part of what makes the game special is the way elements interact. Make a puddle of water and enemies in it can be electrocuted and stunned. Or use a freezing spell on that water and it becomes ice, which is slippery and will make people fall down if they walk on it. Speaking of which, don’t forget to drive nails through your boots so you don’t slip! (Really, this is a thing!)

baelthazar · Post by **baelthazar** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 5:07 pm

Smoove_B wrote:I'm having a real difficult time with this game (I think) because I don't typically play spell casters in video games. As near as I can tell, this game more or less expects you to use environmental spells/effects to assist in combat - it's seemingly not a game you can just sword and board your way through? I mean, I'm doing it with a party of 4 - two melee, two ranged - but it's slow going.

Yeah, as Lordnine says, you almost have to use magic to some extent (and one of your companions is a full-on magic user). Arrows and scrolls are fine, but finite. The previous games in the Divinity series tended to have characters who used magic as they bashed things with swords. But the interactions are super fun, so give them a try!

IceBear · Post by **IceBear** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 5:47 pm

Yeah, I almost give all of my characters, even the tank, some points in magic - especially water magic so they can cast regeneration

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 5:50 pm

Smoove_B wrote:Yes, I am trying to use various arrows for my archers, but I didn't realize the scroll thing. Though they've both used the Resurrection scrolls so I guess that makes sense. I'm just not that kind of player - more of a "hulk smash" mentality.

I started off trying to use a companion with sword & board + a rogue with dual wield daggers. But eventually trained both in bows in order to keep my distance. This plus a mage and a battlemage with dual wielding wands (very effective since you can mix and match damage types). Add to this some summoning including

Spoiler:

and you can step back and pepper the mobs.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 6:02 pm

I have a thought on a rogue strategy I want to try out:
Use the invisibility power to sneak up behind an enemy, backstab them then then use the pyramid stone to teleport out. Can anyone knock a hole in this strategy?

ColdSteel · Post by **ColdSteel** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 7:00 pm

Jaymann wrote:I have a thought on a rogue strategy I want to try out:
Use the invisibility power to sneak up behind an enemy, backstab them then then use the pyramid stone to teleport out. Can anyone knock a hole in this strategy?

That should work just fine. Your backstabber probably won't have 6 AP left after backstabbing but one of the others can do it. I defer the turn of my pyramid holder (melee), let all the others attack (ranged or rogue sneak attack), then when his turn comes around again, I port everyone back to a defensive position and make them come to me (wounded, bleeding and burning as they do). I don't do it all the time but when fighting a boss or high level mobs, it sure helps.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 7:06 pm

See, in reading up and trying to learn more about combat, I saw that teleportation strategy. It's not something I would ever think of or use in combat. It seems...cheesy and it would take me out of the game. I might drop Madora and pick up Jahan but that really goes against my play style.

ColdSteel · Post by **ColdSteel** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 8:01 pm

Smoove_B wrote:It seems...cheesy.

Why? It's just another tactical tool in your toolbox. You can use those things for a lot of really cool outside-the-box stuff in the game. Larian intended that they be used in those ways so I'll certainly use them at times. After all, they could very easily have prevented it in the EE but did not, despite removing and balancing a lot of other stuff they considered exploits in the original version. They've now restricted the number of spells you can have in the EE so much that I just think of the pyramids as a mass teleport spell that you can use once per battle.

All in all, after playing for quite a bit now, I think the original version is actually more fun to play than the EE. I think they went a bit overboard with the nerfs.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 8:23 pm

I guess I'm rather particular about how I play CRPGs and having a fighter (or thief) rush in for an attack then teleport back to the party while they pepper the the enemy with ranged weapons just feels...wrong to me. I'm a classic D&D kind of dude.

Jaymann · Post by **Jaymann** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 8:36 pm

ColdSteel wrote:
Smoove_B wrote:It seems...cheesy.
Why? It's just another tactical tool in your toolbox. You can use those things for a lot of really cool outside-the-box stuff in the game. Larian intended that they be used in those ways so I'll certainly use them at times. After all, they could very easily have prevented it in the EE but did not, despite removing and balancing a lot of other stuff they considered exploits in the original version. They've now restricted the number of spells you can have in the EE so much that I just think of the pyramids as a mass teleport spell that you can use once per battle.

All in all, after playing for quite a bit now, I think the original version is actually more fun to play than the EE. I think they went a bit overboard with the nerfs.

I read somewhere that Larian studied the most common strategies used in the original then made it so they wouldn't work in the EE. I'm glad I never played the original or I would probably be pissed. When mobs seem overpowered to me I will go full cheese mode.

Butterknife · Post by **Butterknife** » Tue Nov 03, 2015 8:40 pm

You don't really need to use any of the "cheese" tactics if you play on the normal difficulty. I've been playing that way on my enhanced edition playthrough (no teleporter cheese) and I'm doing quite well, having to replay a few fights but overall I feel that the difficulty is just right.

They only did the stuff to counteract the most common strategies on the hardest difficulty level, so you don't need to worry about that if you aren't at that level of play. My dual-wanding geomancer and dual-dagger rogue are having a blast, although my rogue is dying almost every battle -- I keep forgetting to cast my "Become Air" ability.