Game News Pillars of Eternity Kickstarter Update #71: The Heavy Hitters: Rogues and Rangers

[Shadowfang]

In the Infinity Engine games, improving your spell damage in this way would have been pretty pointless because they did so much damage already. 6D6 damage fireball? Why would I want to pump my Might to add a few measly extra points of damage to that? I would rather increase the area of effect size.

Actually, generally speaking, damaging spells are not as important as crowd control spells in these games. Pump your Int and get a Hold Person spell that takes an enemy out of the fight for a long time.

I would agree more with you if we had any notion of how much damage spells will do. If indeed you are right then you just found the dump stat for a mage.

 

[Infinitron]

If indeed you are right then you just found the dump stat for a mage.

Haha, see, now you've gone to the other extreme. More damage might not be a must-have, but it'll never be a dump stat. Damage builds can still use it.

 

[Rivmusique]

A dump stat for a mage whose main purpose you DON'T want to be damage. If you do want that, for whatever reason (you hate the ranger concept, but want a ranged high damage dealer), a might focused wizard is probably of value.

 

[Shadowfang]

I was merely jesting, since we hardly have any notion of how much benefit each point in might has towards damage spells.
It was just a jab at how bad it would be if there was a dump stat in this game. The sky would fall.
I don't doubt the usefulness of might to mages, that was not my point.

I like how age of decadence handled the stats, they are all (discounting charisma) fairly useful for a melee combat character. Even perception.
Where is charisma in PE? Hidden within Intellect. You cant have a character that despite not being very intellectual or academic, uses his charms to convince others.
And neither the opposite a very knowledgeable character but who is socially shy.
He is chopping off everything that doesn't fit within his vision. It reminds of Bethesda. Cutting off and merging skills, opting for a safe generic medieval fantasy.
This whole game sounds like its being marketed to a very mainstream audience.

 

[Infinitron]

I was merely jesting, since we hardly have any notion of how much benefit each point in might has towards damage spells.
It was just a jab at how bad it would be if there was a dump stat in this game. The sky would fall.
I don't doubt the usefulness of might to mages, that was not my point.

I like how age of decadence handled the stats, they are all (discounting charisma) fairly useful for a melee combat character. Even perception.
Where is charisma in PE? Hidden within Intellect. You cant have a character that despite not being very intellectual or academic, uses his charms to convince others.
And neither the opposite a very knowledgeable character but who is socially shy.
He is chopping off everything that doesn't fit within his vision. It reminds of Bethesda. Cutting off and merging skills, opting for a safe generic medieval fantasy.
This whole game sounds like its being marketed to a very mainstream audience.

More likely is that the traditional effects of Charisma will be subsumed into the game's (quite complex) reputation and disposition mechanics.

 

[Shadowfang]

That sounds much better than leaving it all to the Intellect attribute.
Edit: I am now reading about the disposition at their wiki, and its quite interesting.

 

[Lancehead]

No, that's not what happens in TES.

 

[Shadowfang]

You are right, but i couldn't see any image. I edited after reading the wikia.

 

[Grunker]

This game looks more and more like it will have more reactivity than WL2

 

[Excidium]

This game looks more and more like it will have more reactivity than WL2

I don't know, I haven't read anything about drowning kids yet.

 

[Johannes]

The issue with the stats is that they aren't obviously tied to any real life attribute, not in a way that's instantly intuitive at least. "Might" - does that mean that you're big, strong guy if you've got lots of this? Or just, like, really really good at the method you deal damage with, be it a sword, spell, or crossbow?

It feels very gamey, for no real reason. It's not very hard to come up with mechanics that make any "oldschool" D&D stat (or something close to those) desirable for every character and painful to dump too much. Basically there just needs to be a notable disadvantage from having any stat low - you're suspectible to mental spell effects with low Int, you cannot efficiently wear armor without Strength, and you will be worse in melee (matters for a wizard too if you put in some nice melee self-buff spells). And so on. Or strength / constitution helps you cast more spells since those drain your fatigue.

Instead of coming up with understandable real world attributes, and giving all of them proper meaning, they came up with gameplay concepts first (Damage-stat, AoE-stat, etc.) and then matched those with names that sound the least contrived.

 

[FeelTheRads]

It feels very gamey, for no real reason.

Remember, Sawyer thinks GURPS is DERPS.

It feels he's doing it on purpose to be as far as possible from anything resembling reality, like reality is a bad thing in itself.

 

[Alex]

So...
one can say that someone is a fast/clever/skillful athlete, and that someone else is a fast/clever/skillful writer,
but one can't say, that someone is a mighty fighter, and someone else is a mighty mage?

The retarded part, in case it isn't clear to everybody by now, is thinking that the same thing that makes for a fast writer also makes for a fast athlete. I mean, thinking the hack that makes a living by writing quantityinstead of quality also is fast because he has to flee from so many creditors is kinda funny. But doesn't really help anyone respect the internal logic of your game.

 

[Chaotic_Heretic]

This is Josh and Obsidian's agenda to streamline and pander to the masses. Different stats detrmining effectiveness of different damage types? Oh noes Cazuals will rage quit.

 

[nihil]

The issue with the stats is that they aren't obviously tied to any real life attribute, not in a way that's instantly intuitive at least. "Might" - does that mean that you're big, strong guy if you've got lots of this? Or just, like, really really good at the method you deal damage with, be it a sword, spell, or crossbow?

If it's the latter, it's wrong. That should be covered by a variety of skills.

 

[Visperas]

My problem with all these (not a very big problem, mind you) is what will happen when in a CYOA segment, you need to move a big rock out of the way. Which stat will be used? If it's might then maybe the wizard is tasked with moving the rock instead of the barbarian and that breaks my precioussss immershun.

 

[Johannes]

My problem with all these (not a very big problem, mind you) is what will happen when in a CYOA segment, you need to move a big rock out of the way. Which stat will be used? If it's might then maybe the wizard is tasked with moving the rock instead of the barbarian and that breaks my precioussss immershun.

He moves teh rock with Magic, then!

 

[Lancehead]

He moves the rock with the Might of his Soul, much like how he can sense his surroundings through the Perception of his Soul or be agile through the Dexterity of his Soul.

 

[Alex]

Is he Space Ghost?

 

[nihil]

He moves the rock with the Might of his Soul, much like how he can sense his surroundings through the Perception of his Soul or be agile through the Dexterity of his Soul.

I wonder what muscles, retinas and ear drums are for in that world.

 

[tuluse]

I wonder what muscles, retinas and ear drums are for in that world.

People without whole souls

 

[nihil]

So there should be two sets of primary stats: Soul Might, Soul Constitution, Soul Dexterity, etc, and then the regular Might, Constitution, Dexterity, etc. Normally, the Soul stats are used, but if your soul is fractured, the regular stats kick in as your physical body takes over.

 

[Arkeus]

So there should be two sets of primary stats: Soul Might, Soul Constitution, Soul Dexterity, etc, and then the regular Might, Constitution, Dexterity, etc. Normally, the Soul stats are used, but if your soul is fractured, the regular stats kick in as your physical body takes over.

And why pray tell would you want to do that instead of just going "increasing your soul might also improves your body as a side effect", or even just going "fuck you we don't need extra useless stats".

 

[nihil]

I was joking.

 

[hiver]

why is Sawyer wearing that face there?

someone explain the angle to me because its really annoying just looking at it like this.