KickStarter Grim Dawn

[Sykar]

It is possible to get up to +10 and this is generally what is meant when the dev use the term "ultimate" in reference to skills. The ultimate levels (i.e. ones only achievable via +skill stuff) generally start scaling lower.

There were more +all skills in previous builds but they got rid of some of them.

As far as RPG mechanics most of Titan Quest carries through to GD, both for mastery/skill stuff and item/combat stats. They have tweaked various things so its about an 70-80% overlap but some changes are very significant in their effects such as Defense Rating.

Titan Quest had a hard cap of max skill level+4. Getting more than +4 only helped if you could use points you'd remove from your maxed skills and put somewhere else, something I did on my Elementalist.

 

[gestalt11]

Titan Quest had a hard cap of max skill level+4. Getting more than +4 only helped if you could use points you'd remove from your maxed skills and put somewhere else, something I did on my Elementalist.

Yeah a lot of base ideas/structures are basically the same, but with either numeric tweaks or in a few cases mechanics changes either in function (defense rating) or some more subtle things like I think how some things interact in effect or ordering.

It seems like in GD you can use +skills to either a) save some skill points or b) pump it to the "ultimate". But unlike TQ ultimate it has enough of a buffer to not make it pointless to heavily invest skill and +skills together. Although it seems when you look at TitanCalc that getting to max skill level is usually pretty crappy returns, some really focused builds might do it I suppose. Alot of people seem to do their builds to the "normal" max even with +skills though.

 

[Sykar]

Yeah a lot of base ideas/structures are basically the same, but with either numeric tweaks or in a few cases mechanics changes either in function (defense rating) or some more subtle things like I think how some things interact in effect or ordering.

It seems like in GD you can use +skills to either a) save some skill points or b) pump it to the "ultimate". But unlike TQ ultimate it has enough of a buffer to not make it pointless to heavily invest skill and +skills together. Although it seems when you look at TitanCalc that getting to max skill level is usually pretty crappy returns, some really focused builds might do it I suppose. Alot of people seem to do their builds to the "normal" max even with +skills though.

My builds usually looked like this since I like builds with a lot of active skills:
http://www.titancalc.com/TitanCalc....12-0-8-1-0-0-1-16-0-1-1-0-0-1-1-0-0-12-1-12-0

That was prior to me getting +5 skills, with +5 I maxed out Squall with all the freed point by shaving off 1 from each maxed skill. I usually did not try to level to 75 since it took a godly amount of time to get there without mods.

This was also my absolutele favourite build, even though it is not the most powerful which was reserved for anything piercing damage or vitality damage related.
It was very safe though thanks to the core dweller.

 

[gestalt11]

Er meant look at GrimCalc above as it will show you what ultiamte numbers are.

 

[Aeschylus]

Nightblade is very very sick. Love teleporting all over the field, weaving and dodging auto attacks, trapping enemies, throwing knives and using Smash from a relic for triple single target damage which comes from both weapons. Those Blade Spirits really help a lot when you cannot stand long in melee range.
Still unsure wich secondary class to go, Arcanist sounds tempting for more freeze damage and stuff, Soldier for more HP etc.

My strongest character is still a Nightblade/Occultist vitality+chaos damage build with Phantasmal Blades, which does stupid amounts of damage (40kish single target DPS). It does require a lot of good gear to hit that point though.
The default "Easy" option is Soldier as it offsets the NB's relatively low life, but NB is honestly really strong no matter what you pair it with, as long as you have the right gear to support your build.

 

[Metro]

It's 40% off for the next day and a half at Humble Store.

But... 50% off or gtfo.

 

[Hobo Elf]

My strongest character is still a Nightblade/Occultist vitality+chaos damage build with Phantasmal Blades, which does stupid amounts of damage (40kish single target DPS). It does require a lot of good gear to hit that point though.
The default "Easy" option is Soldier as it offsets the NB's relatively low life, but NB is honestly really strong no matter what you pair it with, as long as you have the right gear to support your build.

A DEE Occultist is very easy to gear up as well. It was (and still is) my go-to build when I was making loot farming characters due to how often +poison damage gear dropped. Slap a few Mutagenic Ichors on your gear and you'll do a ton of damage with minimal effort spent on gearing your dude.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

I always purchase a few days prior to the sales FFS.

 

[roll-a-die]

Holy shit, just played a bit of this for funsies with a mate, Shadowblade + Shaman(Trickster) = surprising amounts of wreckery. After complaining about my build being so squishy for 10 levels, we're level 15 now, I'm still squishy, but dear god, at level 15 I'm doing 300 damage per hit because we're both aura stacking, and that's before savagery kicks in for a massive boost, I'm easily hitting them for 600 a hit with savagery. He's playing Demo-Occ(Pyromancer) with Rifles as his main weapon. It's freaking awesome though. Figured I should share, savagery builds super quick with dual weilding as well, and you can keep it maintained so easily with the Shadowblades dash. And that dash also benefits from Savagery. I'm popping in and nearly killing yellows in one hit. Probably wouldn't work very well solo though. I forgot how much diablo games benefited from having a party around for additional synergy, something Diablo 3 kinda forgot about too.

 

[Sykar]

Holy shit, just played a bit of this for funsies with a mate, Shadowblade + Shaman(Trickster) = surprising amounts of wreckery. After complaining about my build being so squishy for 10 levels, we're level 15 now, I'm still squishy, but dear god, at level 15 I'm doing 300 damage per hit because we're both aura stacking, and that's before savagery kicks in for a massive boost, I'm easily hitting them for 600 a hit with savagery. He's playing Demo-Occ(Pyromancer) with Rifles as his main weapon. It's freaking awesome though. Figured I should share, savagery builds super quick with dual weilding as well, and you can keep it maintained so easily with the Shadowblades dash. And that dash also benefits from Savagery. I'm popping in and nearly killing yellows in one hit. Probably wouldn't work very well solo though. I forgot how much diablo games benefited from having a party around for additional synergy, something Diablo 3 kinda forgot about too.

Good news here, Blizzard destroyed group synergy even more by gutting CC all around even harder because of one very specific skill set and item! Rejoice at another chapter of Blizzard's incompetence.

 

[roll-a-die]

Good news here, Blizzard destroyed group synergy even more by gutting CC all around even harder because of one very specific skill set and item! Rejoice at another chapter of Blizzard's incompetence.

Oh boy, oh boy!

Sounds wonderful.

 

[ArchAngel]

I was doing some Salazar cultist hideout runs and got Salazar's blade to drop. I gave than to my Summoner and now he has the Demonic summon as additional pet for boss battles :D
Now all I got left is to somehow gather all the components for the Stormhound relic.

 

[Hobo Elf]

I've wanted to make a vitality damage based caster for a long time and with the Shaman class I felt that the Storm Totem would've been a good addition to the Occultist arsenal, but it requires a too heavy investment in the Shaman line just to get the Storm Totem + Corrupted Totem. Any suggestions for what I could dual with an Occultist or should I just go pure?

 

[RoBoBOBR]

Found a neat little combo with shammy (can easily apply to other classes i bet) - get a Cracked Lodestone in your weapon, put Lightning Nova on a hotkey. Now go to a mob and just hold your Savagery hotkey, the press and hold Nova one. Your character will alternate using Savagery and casting Nova in quick succession, with all them shammy's lightning buffs Nova hurts quite a bit, so it's good even on 1 target. AoE packs are delt with in seconds.

 

[4249]

I've wanted to make a vitality damage based caster for a long time and with the Shaman class I felt that the Storm Totem would've been a good addition to the Occultist arsenal, but it requires a too heavy investment in the Shaman line just to get the Storm Totem + Corrupted Totem. Any suggestions for what I could dual with an Occultist or should I just go pure?

To be honest the real shiner from Shaman seems to be Devouring Swarm. At the first level it reduces the enemy's vitality resistance by 10%, but at level 16 it reduces it a whopping 100% according to grimcalc, which sounds pretty crazy.

 

[Aeschylus]

I've wanted to make a vitality damage based caster for a long time and with the Shaman class I felt that the Storm Totem would've been a good addition to the Occultist arsenal, but it requires a too heavy investment in the Shaman line just to get the Storm Totem + Corrupted Totem. Any suggestions for what I could dual with an Occultist or should I just go pure?

As I mentioned the best vit/chaos based caster I found to pair with occultist is Nightblade, as their Phantasmal Blades line pumps up vit damage a lot (and is crazy good).
Another possible option is going Arcanist and getting the chaos/vit transformer of Albrecht's Aether Ray. It won't really work as a build until you hit lvl 50, but when you do it's very powerful. Arcanist can also let you focus more on Occultist as their low level stuff is good for boosting magic damage in general.

 

[Trodat]

Update #79 http://www.grimdawn.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24885

Spoiler

You are reading Grim Misadventures, the premier source for all things up and coming in Grim Dawn. In today’s update, we will look beyond the Darkvale Gates and venture forth into the environments of Act 4!

You may have already heard, but we released a major update a week ago, which included our 6th and final class mastery, the Shaman! Take a look at the staggering list of changes that came along for the ride with our master of storms.

With the Shaman and the remainder of Act 3 out in the public eye, we turn our attention to the finale, the culmination of events which have drawn you to the north, where the vile Cult of Ch’thon plots to destroy what little there is left of Cairn. But Inquisitor Creed and Ulgrim are not about to sit idly and watch their world burn. They are marching on the ancient burial ground known as the Necropolis, and they need your help.

But the road leading up to the city of the dead is a treacherous one, filled not only with the enemies of humanity but also bloodthirsty wildlife. But through your valiant deeds, you have weakened the Cult’s hold on the Darkvale Gate, and so the north is open to you.

The other side of the Darkvale Gates

First, you will venture into the frozen wildlands known as the Asterkarn Mountains. The snowy peaks have claimed many an adventurer, even when the area was under the protection of the Black Legion. Beware the roaming Chillmane Yetis, and keep an eye out for the lone male known as Ragrathar Rageblood. The deranged yeti’s fur is matted with the blood of its victims, counted even amongst the Black Legion ranks.

The Asterkarn Wilds

Feeling Devoted?

Should the wilderness prove insufficient in deterring you from your journey, perhaps the various tombs will. These forgotten burial grounds hold many secrets, but not all are meant to be uncovered. Tread carefully upon the bones of the dead.

The Crumbling Crypt

The Forbidden Crypt

Should you survive the Asterkarn Mountains, you will be greeted by Fort Ikon, the last bastion of the Black Legion from which humanity will emerge to retake its besieged world, or make its final stand…

How will this chapter of your story end? Will you end up frozen upon the peaks of Asterkarn? Or perhaps crushed under the heel of the Cult of Ch’thon as they complete their world-ending ritual at the Necropolis? Your greatest challenges still await.

 

[ArchAngel]

I must have fallen asleep while playing GD, but I don't remember us at any time defeat the Aethereals. You beat Warden and act 2 bandit boss and you find some of them in act 3 north east of the town and that is it.
In Act 3 main story suddenly turns to Cult of Ch’thon and Aethereals are basically forgotten without any kind of closure. It felt like playing Diablo 2 but after finishing Act 2 just deciding to go after someone else and forget all about Diablo.

So did I miss something here or is this what happens?

 

[roll-a-die]

I must have fallen asleep while playing GD, but I don't remember us at any time defeat the Aethereals. You beat Warden and act 2 bandit boss and you find some of them in act 3 north east of the town and that is it.
In Act 3 main story suddenly turns to Cult of Ch’thon and Aethereals are basically forgotten without any kind of closure. It felt like playing Diablo 2 but after finishing Act 2 just deciding to go after someone else and forget all about Diablo.

So did I miss something here or is this what happens?

Basically from what I've seen, the Aetherials weren't all that interested in actually ruling the areas, and it was more their minor lords there that were, and defeating their rebelling minor lords, has quelled them for now. The Cult of Ch'thon is basically a greater threat at this point. The note from the warden states that they are "Far to the North." Which could be a hint for act 5/expacks and beyond.

 

[Ivan]

If anyone wants to hardcore run: add me
http://steamcommunity.com/id/Pimpollo/home

 

[roll-a-die]

I'd like to talk about the writing in Grim Dawn really quick like. It's simply excellent I've read and enjoyed every little lore tidbit I've found thus far. This is kinda different from Diablo and titan quest, where I just clicked through everything without much reading. What I like about the Dialogue, is that none of the characters initially assume you are a hero, in fact, they are hesitant and fearful in the case of the Devils Crossing folks, and it's only after you defeat the Warden that they start opening up to you, even then it's still a case of less awe and heroic worship, and more, you've proven yourself useful. Almost every other character is doubtful of your abilities until you prove them to them. Each character also seems to have their own agenda, well the ones that are quest givers at least.

The gameplay is really good, as is the design of the levels, I'd love them to be more randomly designed, but I fear that element of diablo likes has fallen by the wayside bar things like PoE(Which has a feature I hate, in it's base gameplay, having to click on each monster individually), and torchlight, which is shallow and not deep enough to hold my interest.

Grim Dawn's writing, level design and gameplay are really good, what's not to like about it, I'd say anyone whose hesitant about buying it SHOULD probably wait till release, I got the game on a whim, and thus I'm not too fussed about the long nature of the games development. But you could buy it now and have a really solid enjoyable experience, with more content than PoE had on release.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

Couldn't find any info on the release date, anyone know?

 

[Aeschylus]

Couldn't find any info on the release date, anyone know?

Tentatively 'before the end of the year' for the full release according to the devs, and they've been pretty good in the last year of coming in close to or before their release estimates, so there's hope.

 

[roll-a-die]

Couldn't find any info on the release date, anyone know?

I think the conservative estimate was middle of december. And the optimistic one, was end of october to middle of November. They are planning monthly updates, and have been sticking to those thus far. The only delay I remember is in june or july they pushed a release back by 6 days.

 

[roll-a-die]

Also they are planning the first major content update 3 months after release. IIRC again.