Eternity Pillars of Eternity + The White March Expansion Thread

[prodigydancer]

the dragon fight

/sigh
Fighting the dragon is a total waste because the alternative solution is so much better story-wise. It's an RPG, people... But it seems everyone opted for yet another combat encounter. And then people say PoE is dull and disappointing. Yeah, right.

 

[Roguey]

He basically quasi asked if that should come at the expense of other content and a large vocal plurality basically said, yes, cut other stuff and make the stronghold matter more.

You're not as large as you think you are.

Josh knows from experience that their x-pack will get harshly criticized if it doesn't have enough "real" content (Heart of Winter).

 

[Shevek]

You're not as large as you think you are.

I meant numbers of folks there who largely agreed that the Stonghold was a weakness in the game. Normally folks on SA pretty much jump to Josh's defense. Several there even agreed that trying to please the "No Stronghold" folks by making the Stronghold totally inconsequential was a mistake. It was funny to see his reaction when a large amount of posters there pretty much said the Stronghold was half assed and a fair amount agreed that a better Stronghold would improve the game more than a little bit more voice acting.

 

[Deleted member 7219]

Yes, the stronghold is half-assed, but honestly that was the best thing they could do with it. Name one RPG that actually well done player housing. One that actually adds something to the game beyond playing house. It, and crafting, were stupid KS promises that should have never been in the game. The way they build the item system, with obviously crafting in mind, is probably the main reason the items are so boring in PoE. Last thing they need to do is make the stronghold important too.

It didn't need to be a player house. It just needed to have some story relevance other than the quest with the old man you get when you first get there.

Maybe some companion quests that only happen when you are at the stronghold. Dragon Age: Inquisition actually did this well. BioWare did some interesting things with the Normandy in the Mass Effect games.

Obsidian did some interesting things with Crossroad Keep in NWN2. There are some examples of strongholds done well sprinkled around other RPGs.

I'm not saying have the main bad guy invade the stronghold or anything like that... it's been done (I just mentioned Crossroad Keep), but they could have had something in the late part of the MQ happen there instead of it all happening in Twin Elms.

 

[Abu Antar]

It didn't need to be a player house. It just needed to have some story relevance other than the quest with the old man you get when you first get there.

Maybe some companion quests that only happen when you are at the stronghold. Dragon Age: Inquisition actually did this well. BioWare did some interesting things with the Normandy in the Mass Effect games.

Obsidian did some interesting things with Crossroad Keep in NWN2. There are some examples of strongholds done well sprinkled around other RPGs.

I'm not saying have the main bad guy invade the stronghold or anything like that... it's been done (I just mentioned Crossroad Keep), but they could have had something in the late part of the MQ happen there instead of it all happening in Twin Elms.

Even sitting on the throne, being the judge of conflicts would have been good enough for me. Just something of interest.

 

[Deleted member 7219]

Even sitting on the throne, being the judge of conflicts would have been good enough for me. Just something of interest.

Right. And have some reactivity for decisions taken out in the world - in Defiance Bay, Gilded Vale etc. Maybe the effect on the stronghold will depend on how you have upgraded it, and how you've treated your companions.

That would have brought a bit more life to the stronghold, and actually rewarded the player for spending money on upgrading it.

As for judgements - nah, they could have just went with the prisoner idea more fully instead of the half-assed approach it ended up being.

 

[tdphys]

I'd have liked the leaden key to be more covert, with your stronghold gaining significance as the base to maintain prisoners, send out sorties and be the center of operations as you tried to stomp them out. Higher prestige could get more tips. Multiple quests required to find the right leverage on prisoners, uncover plots- etc...

 

[Irenaeus II]

Mods will fix it.

 

[Infinitron]

I think integrating the stronghold with the world at large might be too much work, but there is a possible compromise here.

IMO, PoE can be viewed as two separate games - the Icewind Dale-esque romp of Caed Nua + The Endless Paths, with the Adra Dragon as the final boss, and, well, everything else. When you go to and from your stronghold, it feels like you're switching between two games. This is actually cool, it gives the world a feeling of breadth.

So what they could have done is found a way to integrate the stronghold mechanics with what's going on in the dungeon. Like, I dunno, off the top of my head, establishing relationships with the "Underdark" factions like the Vithrak, hiring people to excavate new rooms or haul off the dragon's horde, stuff like that. You could put in all sorts of little bits of choice and consequence in there.

 

[Excidium II]

IMO, PoE can be viewed as two separate games - the Icewind Dale-esque romp of Caed Nua + The Endless Paths, with the Adra Dragon as the final boss, and, well, everything else. When you go to and from your stronghold, it feels like you're switching between two games. This is actually cool, it gives the game a feeling of breadth.

2 games for the price of 1. Seems worth it now

 

[Saxon1974]

So still have not played the game since I knew they were changing stuff in this expansion that would change the base game. Is now the time to get my bowl of popcorn and kill some fampyr's? Any news of major changes to things after this expansion?

 

[Grotesque]

Soulbound weapons video

That homage weapon art sure looks nice!
better late than never I guess.

 

[Irenaeus II]

Awesome! Hyped for this tomorrow

 

[Deleted member 7219]

I'm looking forward to it too, although the Part 1 / Part 2 nonsense does have me a little concerned. Also, I'm not convinced about the expansion's storyfag merits, with Obsidian never ceasing with the comparisons to Tales of the Sword Coast and Heart of Winter.

 

[Fairfax]

Part 1/2 thing was a Paradox thing, I think. So much for being "just a partnership for physical reward distribution", but, alas, there it is.

 

[CptMace]

I'm not convinced about the expansion's storyfag merits

Considering they although talk about IWD, that could be surprisingly interesting to some extent. If they fail to surprise, at least a bit, with the plot around the white forge, then it's bad news for the company's future games.

 

[Fairfax]

I was expecting at least one city in the expansion. Doesn't seem like we'll get one, though, which makes it feel more like DLC than the promised huge expansions to me, but I guess we have to wait and see the scale.

 

[Infinitron]

People ITT complaining about the two parts are being dumb. It is a good thing because it encourages them to make each part larger (so as not to get a bad review score), resulting in a larger final expansion than what would otherwise have been.

I was expecting at least one city in the expansion. Doesn't seem like we'll get one, though, which makes it feel more like DLC than the promised huge expansions to me, but I guess we have to wait and see the scale.

There's a town in the expansion, you know, like Tales of the Sword Coast and Heart of Winter

 

[Fairfax]

People ITT complaining about the two parts are being dumb. It is a good thing because it encourages them to make each part larger (so as not to get a bad review score), resulting in a larger final expansion than what would otherwise have been.



There's a town in the expansion, you know, like Tales of the Sword Coast and Heart of Winter

Looks as large as Gilded Vale in the video.

 

[ArchAngel]

I think integrating the stronghold with the world at large might be too much work, but there is a possible compromise here.

IMO, PoE can be viewed as two separate games - the Icewind Dale-esque romp of Caed Nua + The Endless Paths, with the Adra Dragon as the final boss, and, well, everything else. When you go to and from your stronghold, it feels like you're switching between two games. This is actually cool, it gives the world a feeling of breadth.

So what they could have done is found a way to integrate the stronghold mechanics with what's going on in the dungeon. Like, I dunno, off the top of my head, establishing relationships with the "Underdark" factions like the Vithrak, hiring people to excavate new rooms or haul off the dragon's horde, stuff like that. You could put in all sorts of little bits of choice and consequence in there.

Two average games inside one ? One worse than BG1 and another worse than IWD1.. maybe it is better they focus on games like Armored Warfare..

 

[Roguey]

Looks as large as Gilded Vale in the video.

I can't recall a single RPG expansion with a big city. If such a thing were to be done, it'd probably end up being the entire game.

Oh wait now, I do, Flames of Vengeance, and it was as I said.

 

[Tigranes]

I expect the expansion to be largely more of the same. Especially divided into two parts (a bad move), part 1 is unlikely to provide huge systemic changes. That said, I am looking for two things:

(1) Improved writing is fair enough to expect. First, POE was the first game in the franchise and setting, so anybody would be expected to do better now they've got the installation kinks sorted out. Second, Obsidian's writing has traditionally shined when deriving, analysing, exposing, satirising an existing set of expectations - which suits an expansion or sequel better. We will see, of course, how true this is after MCA's departure. I thought POE had uneven writing quality, but I really liked the understated tone that Carrie Patel, for example, seems to be achieving.

(2) Improved encounter design. This, um. I mean, it really shouldn't be hard to improve on the original. No matter what you think about the rest of the game, it was a clear weakness.

I'm pretty sure I'll have fun, as I did with POE, but let's see if they show signs that they can push on.

 

[Roguey]

I wonder if everyone would be happy if they only released this one part.

 

[Excidium II]

I wonder if everyone would be happy if they only released this one part.

Dunno bout happy but smug as fuck for sure.

 

[dukeofwhales]

Part 1/2 thing was a Paradox thing, I think. So much for being "just a partnership for physical reward distribution", but, alas, there it is.

It could have been as simple as a phone call "Yo Feargus, DLC sells wayyyyy better if you can get it out quickly so people haven't forgotten about it, I'll email over some stats"

Can't imagine a man like feargus turning the opportunity for extra money down - no need for Paradox to insist on that kind of strategy.

The "buy both parts and save a fiver even though the second part requires the first" is pretty clever as I imagine it will convince people to pay $25 up front even if they have lost interest by the time part 2 comes out.