Darkest Dungeon II - now available on Early Access - coming February

[Gradenmayer]

Usually the Epic Exclusive deal is for 1 year. Darkest Dungeon 2 got added as far as I can see on October 26th last year. So Steam release will be October this year at the earliest. Perhaps a Halloween drop?

It will drop to steam on full release, like Hades.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Usually the Epic Exclusive deal is for 1 year. Darkest Dungeon 2 got added as far as I can see on October 26th last year. So Steam release will be October this year at the earliest. Perhaps a Halloween drop?

just pirate it, uncle Tim already paid for your copy

 

[Ibn Sina]

Shit game

 

[Reinhardt]

Usually the Epic Exclusive deal is for 1 year. Darkest Dungeon 2 got added as far as I can see on October 26th last year. So Steam release will be October this year at the earliest. Perhaps a Halloween drop?

just pirate it, uncle Tim already paid for your copy

nah, somehow i have literally zero interest in second game despite backing and liking first.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/highwayman-hero-paths/

Darkest Dungeon II: Highwayman Hero Paths

Mar 18, 2022

The Highwayman.
"Violently versatile, ruthlessly pragmatic"



Sharpshot or Rogue?

The Sharpshot Path bestows Highwayman with higher ranged damage and speed, while decreasing melee damage. This allows him to be more useful in the back flank, opening up more options for team comp.

With the right skill kit, this Path can serve the Highwayman from any position. He can deliver a Stun with reasonable damage from the back with Pistol Shot or crushing damage from the front via Point Blank Shot.

Don’t underestimate the potency of Grapeshot Spam. Strength Tokens on top of the Path’s 50% damage buff quickly promote the skill from Token stripper to flesh ripper. Alternatively, chaining Grapeshot into Double Tap makes for an extremely potent mid-rank setup.

While this Path weakens melee damage, Double Cross and Open Vein can still serve valuable support roles in the kit. Conversely, Duelist’s Advance loses a fair amount of value as Riposte damage is also cut in half.

Any Trinkets that increase Ranged damage, such as the Greater Raven’s Reach, are obvious picks for this Path but there are others that offer fun synergies as well. Consider pairing the Highwayman’s Rat Skull Trinket with Grapeshot; every missed target in the AoE will proc the free CRIT Token up to a maximum of two at once. A Smoldering Hymnal can earn you some extra actions while the Grapeshot is cleaning house; twice the kills equals twice the chances for it to proc!

If you’re a fan of Point Blank Shot, The General’s Dream Trophy can lock the Highwayman into rank 1 for repeated applications of intense violence.

Spoiler

The Rogue Path highlights the Highwayman's melee abilities while buffing his riposte. The increased damage in rank 1 and decreased damage in rank 3 and 4, forces the player to put him in the front ranks to get the most out of his skills.

Making the most of the rank 1 damage buff means limiting your skills to primarily melee or Point Blank Shot. Open Vein becomes a fairly solid damager in addition to the normal Bleed and Wicked Slice packs plenty of punch, neither of which give up your rank 1 position in the process.

While Duelist’s Advance will gain no benefits from use in rank 2, the Riposte Tokens it grants do receive the full damage bonus while in rank 1, making the classic Point Blank Shot / Duelist’s Advance chain more effective than ever.

As with the Sharpshot Path, The General’s Dream Trophy sets you up for a constant barrage of Point Blank Shot and the Riposte Token you gain from it will receive the full rank 1 benefit while you’re locked there.

Given the mixed nature of your attack options, damage buffing Trinkets that don’t rely on melee or ranged – such as the Greater Sharpness Charm – can serve the Rogue Path well. With rank 1 positioning being of critical importance, Trinkets such as Clenching Claw can keep the Highwayman planted.

Stirring Snuff can provide the occasional Strength Token for a really big bang, assuming it isn’t consumed by one of the many Ripostes this Path is likely delivering.

Community Impression

We asked you on Discord and social media which path you preferred, per the vote Rogue was chosen with 58.8% and 41.2% for Sharpshot on twitter and 81 votes for Rogue and 52 votes for Sharpshot on Discord. Some commented that they preferred default/wanderer hwm over using unique paths.

“Rogue is just so satisfying landing devastating point blank shots. Sharpshooter is really nice, especially complementing surgeon or ritualist” - @MyLittlAptmnt

“Either way I love abusing point blank shot. Turns out horrors from beyond the veil of time and space are very vulnerable to being shot in the face.” - @ParasicialSera

“Base highwayman is really flexible.

His type of skills are diverse compare to other 'only damage dealing members' and he does not need to rely on other team members.
However, Sharpshot's -50% melee dmg makes hesitate to upgrade melee type skills such as duelist's adavce which can do both offensive and defensive move.
Rogue,on the other hand, forces highwayman to stay at row 1-2 which can also affect selecting other team members.
(There was no reason to think about position of highwayman before, so it is a significant disadvantage.)” - Karyuen

“Rogue HWM is a caveman with a fully maxed out DOOM super shotgun.” - Controlled Burn (Discord)

“I like sharpshooter because he plays very differently to standard issues dismas but also doesn't NEED to be in the front, which is very choked atm.” - Lakida (Discord)

“Sharpshot hwm kinda makes him fit in more teams tbh” - Halltaker (Discord)

“Rogue Highwayman + Jester Encore makes quick work of the goats. Point black one goat then pushes the next one into position.” - kilerM (Discord)

We would love to hear your thoughts on the Highwayman’s paths, how it’s changed your playstyle, what trinkets you use, and any suggestions you may have. The best way of providing feedback is to join our Discord server where we have a dedicated feedback channel.

To join our Discord server follow the link below:
https://discord.com/invite/darkestdungeon

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

I see their last content update added spiders back in.

Wise move, Vancouver-boys.

plays boombox and jives down the street

Btw this whole "spec" thing doesn't sound too thrilling. You could basically do all this in DD1 with skill selection/trinkets to build around said skills.

 

[Sarathiour]

Is the relationship system still garbage ?

 

[Chippy]

Trying to play the first game. Just starting to get into it, but it keeps crashing. Heard it's something to do with trinkets duplicating, and stack overflow something or other.

Is the second game fucked as well? Fool me once and all that...

Edit: Initial reaction to this game after 1/2 a day or so is that it's less about gaming, and more about gambling.

Edit2: Kind addictive. I don't mean this in the positive millenial sense. I mean it plays like a slot machine, and your party members die as a result. That's not good.

Because if everything is random, then you could play for days like I have and not enjoy the game with 3 random party members and a healer, because your healer dies and another one never comes up for healing.

Or you just play the game with self healing classes like x2 lepars, a werewolf, and a marksman. And it becomes easy because there's millions of the fuckers in the recruitment pool. Slot machine gameplay and mechanics are for gamblers. Not gamers.

Right, I've had enough of the first game. Just don't have the time these days. And if I invest the time, I don't want it totally wasted/multiplied because of slot machine game mechanics.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/runaway-hero-paths/

Darkest Dungeon II: Runaway Hero Paths


The Runaway.
"Fire and smoke - destruction and concealment. "

Survivor or Arsonist?
The Survivor Path increases Runaways heal abilities, while giving her more dodge and speed tokens. This gives her the opportunity to focus on support to keep herself and the team alive longer.

This Path really leans into the Runaway’s support kit, punching the heal effect of Run and Hide+ up to 5 points per tick and Cauterize+ up to a whopping 50% of the target’s max HP. Her Cauterize pairs well as support for a Ravager Hellion (or an unlucky Occultist).

Starting each fight with Dodge Tokens gives her some buffer room in positioning and the Speed Token guarantees her immediate initiative in the second round; a quick Dragonfly followed by Searing Strike can land significant Burn with a little Combo luck.

The Survivor Path has no debuffs so you’re free to kit your non-support options however you normally would but, if you want to stay on the support end, consider some combination of Smokescreen, Hearthlight, and Firestarter. Smokescreen keeps a target in check, Hearthlight can consume a Dodge from all enemies in addition to its stated effects, and Firestarter can change the nature of AoE in your party. I’m looking at you, Man-at-Arms Bellow / Hellion Breakthrough!

Trinket options are very open on the Survivor Path. If you’re going to make use of Run and Hide, the Galvanizing Goblet may net you extra turns. Pile of Ash or Laden Lantern will support any of your Burn skills while Hearthlight can provide the rest of the party with greater offensive opportunities via Disarming Dagger or Staggering Striker.

Spoiler

The Arsonist Path exploits the Runaway’s pyromania by raising her Burn chance and CRIT for Burn skills. While there is a decrease in the Runaway’s overall damage, the extra Burn damage makes her highly useful.

The Arsonist Path makes skills like Firefly and Dragonfly obvious picks. They have high Burn values and significant CRIT, which can further raise their penetration and lengthen duration. While Searing Strike may lose a notable amount of its damage, it now also has a much higher chance of inflicting the double-strength Burn when used against a target with Combo.

Opening a battle with the Runaway in rank 1 lets you drop some quick AoE Burn via Dragonfly, with a chance to set up Searing Strike. A second dose of Dragonfly will push her into Firefly position while likely dooming the enemy front ranks to an imminent end. Alternatively, pairing the Runaway with Heroes such as the Man-at-Arms or Highwayman who have forward movement skills can keep her in constant Dragonfly position.

If you’re planning on leaning into Dragonfly, Trinkets that apply secondary effects to the target, such as the Sparkleball or Strange Sapper, can help keep the front line in check while the Hag’s Hoard improves the Runaway’s survivability.

If you prefer to operate at range, Pile of Ash or Laden Lantern will all but guarantee a successful Burn and Speed trinkets like the Oversprung Pocketwatch ensure that the Runaway is landing her DOTs before the enemies take their turn.

Regardless of focus, the Charred Litany goes a long way towards resisting the self-inflicted Burn that can happen on each turn.



For added fun, slap the Complete Catalogue on your Stagecoach to add even more Burn to your Runaway’s CRITs!

Community Impression
The Community seemed to be a bit split between the two. On twitter Arsonist was favored with 53.2% votes, and 46.8% for Survivor. However Discord members preferred Survivor with 53 votes and 19 votes for Arsonist.

“I like them both. Survivor gets the edge for me just because I don't like taking across-the-board damage debuffs, even if she isn't necessarily a fully-fledged damage dealer.” - @crowboyo

“Survivor has no downsides and gives Bonnie some much needed survivability for the first couple of turns” - @ShuffleFM

“I'm struggling to find much use for the survivalist. Her heal is already locked behind a specific DOT and you have to upgrade the Run and Hide to fully use the effect bonus of her self heal. Just too niche.

Arsonist at least to me feels more useful.” - @Britishbrat

“If it's a question of which I like better, then it's arsonist.

I love things that give +crit, and I love having to play around significant downsides.
Survivor is pretty much just a straight buff which is less interesting.

Plus survivor makes turn 1 run and hide worse because the speed makes you get less time in stealth.” - Dismas (Discord)

“The Survivor path is solid all around. It even makes a skill like "run and hide" a decent mastery upgrade option.

The burn chance on Arsonist should be combat start.” - kilerM (Discord)


We would love to hear your thoughts on the Runaway’s paths, how it’s changed your playstyle, what trinkets you use, and any suggestions you may have. The best way of providing feedback is to join our Discord server where we have a dedicated feedback channel.

To join our Discord server follow the link below:
discord.gg/darkestdungeon

 

[Mauman]

I'm getting tired of roguelikes adding "relationships" to party members.

Curious expeditions did it recently as well, and it's just as aggravating there too.

I just want to have a team that isn't fluctuating from "love boat" to "Dysfunction Junction" every other second.

And even though I support I'm totally fine with inclusion of LGB stuff in a game (being bi myself), it has to have some sort of moderation. It's down right bizarre when a team of all men suddenly become Bear Force 1. Ditto for a team of ladies.

 

[Sarathiour]

That's what you get for listening to coom-addled brain from reddit.

 

[quixotic]

Who the hell plays a ROUGELIKE for relationships?

 

[quixotic]

ROUGELIKE

I’m officially retarded.
Still less retarded then RedHook, but that isn’t saying much.

 

[Fedora Master]

I would like to smugly point out I was right in my predictions on page 1.

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

Runaway is such a nothing character. Completely forget she's even a thing.

Not worth losing Crusader/Vestal over.

 

[NJClaw]

I would like to smugly point out I was right in my predictions on page 1.

Dude, your predictions are always "everything is shit". You're playing on easy mode.

 

[Brickfrog]

I would like to smugly point out I was right in my predictions on page 1.

Dude, your predictions are always "everything is shit". You're playing on easy mode.

Don't think iv ever seen him post anything else.

 

[Fedora Master]

I would like to smugly point out I was right in my predictions on page 1.

Dude, your predictions are always "everything is shit". You're playing on easy mode.

Don't think iv ever seen him post anything else.

Stop playing shit games with shit threads then.

 

[Brickfrog]

Stop playing shit games with shit threads then.

i think you just enjoy whining

I knew a guy in college who sounded a lot like you. Every conversation was about how something was shit/worse than something else, etc, etc.

 

[mediocrepoet]

Stop playing shit games with shit threads then.

i think you just enjoy whining

I knew a guy in college who sounded a lot like you. Every conversation was about how something was shit/worse than something else, etc, etc.

FM has his moments, but his normal mode is "more butthurt than the prettiest guy in prison."

 

[Brickfrog]

Stop playing shit games with shit threads then.

i think you just enjoy whining

I knew a guy in college who sounded a lot like you. Every conversation was about how something was shit/worse than something else, etc, etc.

FM has his moments, but his normal mode is "more butthurt than the prettiest guy in prison."

I blame zero punctuation for making a generation of nerds think that wearing a fedora and being snarky is an acceptable substitute for a personality.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

He's a pothead, that's what smoking the devil's weed does to a person.

 

[Brickfrog]

He's a pothead, that's what smoking the devil's weed does to a person.

This is actually true. My buddy got me high in Paris once and I went to Zara and bought a fedora the same day. Only time I ever wore one. Threw it out like two weeks later.

 

[Infinitron]

https://www.darkestdungeon.com/news/hero-paths-the-leper/

Darkest Dungeon II - Hero Paths: The Leper

The Leper.
"When pain is accepted, strength flows in abundance."

Poet or Tempest?
The Poet’s Path is one of acceptance and serenity in the face of hardship. With increased self heals, stun resist and move resist, the Poet Leper is able to take a great amount of damage, and become a veritable King of tanking.

A Leper who walks the Poet Path sacrifices damage in the name of incredible resilience. Rendered all but invulnerable to Stun, Daze, and movement skills, the Leper can easily maintain his position in the front ranks. While the buff to healing won’t affect his combat consumables, it turns Solemnity+ into a full self heal and allows him to recover from the brink of death with ease.

Liberal use of Withstand and Intimidate will keep the Leper under fire, protecting the rest of the team while he soaks up the damage. Pairing those with Ruin will allow the Leper to overcome the Path’s damage debuff, or you can lean into the reduced damage role and use support skills to set up your more offensively minded Heroes; Bash primes well for a Hellion’s Wicked Hack, or Purge can set the Highwayman up for a Pistol Shot Stun.

The strength of Solemnity means you can easily forgo healing Trinkets. Similarly, there’s no need for additional Move or Stun resistances. Stacking the Greater Hale Draught and Hag’s Hoard will drive the Leper’s HP up while the Reverberating Redoubt can turn the many hits he’s weathering into additional actions of his own.

If you’d rather focus on the Leper’s damage role, the Greater Gnarly Knuckles will undo the Path’s inherent damage penalty. As his attacks are frequently at risk of missing, the Enlightening Element and Calibrating Censer can offer excellent bonuses in the event of a failed attack.

Spoiler

The Tempest Path enrages the Leper, greatly increasing his Damage as well as giving him a higher debuff and disease resistance. Even though there is a decrease in the Leper’s Max HP and SPD, the higher damage allows him to dispatch enemies quickly.

The Tempest Leper sacrifices HP and Speed in favor of raw damage via the Chop skill. In addition to being able to score much larger hits at the top end, this raises the minimum damage of the skill to a much better value – those of you who always roll minimum will appreciate this. You know who you are.

The massive Disease resist buff renders the Leper all but immune and the 33% increase in Debuff resist helps protect him from Weak Tokens (keeping his damage up), Vulnerable Tokens (keeping his lower HP pool safe), and Blind Tokens (keeping his hits landing).

Did You Know: Debuff resistance helps the Leper resist his own self-inflicted Blinds. It will not, however, protect him from Intimidate’s Taunt Tokens.

The Tempest Path’s Debuff resist means that, in addition to Chop, you may be able to spam skills like Hew or Break without going Blind, particularly when stacked with Reflection+ for a whopping 73% base resistance.

The high Debuff resistance, coupled with easy access to Block Tokens, means that the Leper can still perform as a respectable tank in spite of reduced HP. He can easily shrug off side effects that would be inflicted on other Heroes; resisted Vulnerable Tokens won’t chip away at his supply of Block Tokens, after all.

Consider kitting the Leper out with Silent Treatment or Greater Protectorate to push his Debuff resist to unprecedented levels. If you really want to see the Big Numbers TM, Greater Gnarly Knuckles coupled with Grim Mask will maximize Chop’s potency. If you’d rather shore up some of the weaknesses introduced by the Path, Greater Hale Draught will undo most of the HP penalty and Greater Wolfsblood will get this sluggish Hero moving again.

Community Impression

The community’s favourite was slightly biased towards the Tempest Path. Twitter was most approving of Tempest with 59.1% votes, and 40.9% for Poet. Meanwhile, on Discord, the two were close with 74 for Poet and 87 votes for Tempest.

Poet's probably better, but I just love big damage too much to place it over tempest. - @crowboyo

From strictly winning perspective, the Poet is the superior option as it transforms the Leper into the games premier tank with Withstand & Intimidate spam.
However, Tempest is more fun with big damage. Just make sure to also bring the MaA to be the teams main damage soak instead - @Swiftsea96

I prefer Tempest because it helps Leper resist his own blind debuffs better. A lot of the combat in game is a damage race and Tempest ends those fights much faster than Poet. - ShuffleFM

I'm a fan of Poet but both paths are very fun. They remind me of DD1 Tank where he's just a frontline wall of <60% Protection and 70HP or the big 14-28 Melee Master builds. - KoffeeCubby

Tempest for sure. Poet isn't weak, but being having bigger chop damage, debuff resist and disease resist is so much fun. I do wish it buffed hew a little though. - giant_rat

Poet Leper feels to me like it's a free Solemnity mastered with stun resist. Normal Leper can tank just as good.
Tempest do big number. Big number good. The trade of HP and always going last is worth the big 36 or more crit hit. Hew should also get the damage buff in my opinion. - KillerM


If you would like to vote on which hero we write about next, come over to our Discord server!

We would also love to hear your thoughts on the Leper’s paths, how it’s changed your playstyle, what trinkets you use, and any suggestions you may have. The best way of providing feedback is to join our Discord server where we have a dedicated feedback channel.

To join our Discord server follow the link below:

discord.gg/darkestdungeon

Thank you everyone for being a part of the community and taking a part of this ride through the crumbling chaos of the world.



-Red Hook

 

[Sunri]

This runaway class looks cringe, is this some kid who left home? damm crusader died for this sad.