KickStarter Solasta: Crown of the Magister Thread - now with Palace of Ice sequel DLC

[Late Bloomer]

I am scarred. As I was scrolling down (stop the picture at armbands) I thought it was going to be like a goatse photoshop.

 

[rojay]

I've been playing the new DLC and it's pretty rough at the outset. Tons of exposition, including, literally "previously in Solasta..."

I imported characters who were lvl 10 and were ready to level up as soon as I started, but it was about 30 minutes of conversations with various NPCs before I could actually rest to make that happen. I found myself clicking through conversations, which is something I don't generally do on the first pass.

After an hour or so you start getting regular combats and some of the new enemies are interesting, but as much as I like this game overall, the new DLC hasn't really grabbed me.

Early days yet, so we'll see. Could also be I'm just stressed at work and that's coloring my perception.

 

[Artyoan]

I've been playing the new DLC and it's pretty rough at the outset. Tons of exposition, including, literally "previously in Solasta..."

I imported characters who were lvl 10 and were ready to level up as soon as I started, but it was about 30 minutes of conversations with various NPCs before I could actually rest to make that happen. I found myself clicking through conversations, which is something I don't generally do on the first pass.

After an hour or so you start getting regular combats and some of the new enemies are interesting, but as much as I like this game overall, the new DLC hasn't really grabbed me.

Early days yet, so we'll see. Could also be I'm just stressed at work and that's coloring my perception.

Its less work stress for me and more of the heat setting in, I think. Makes me easily irritable for no good reason.

Its been so long since I played the official campaigns that I can't remember the pacing to compare. The dialogue scenes feel more natural with the party not standing in a line as often, sometimes staggered about or relaxed around a campfire/table. The plot has some mystery to it which I'm enjoying so far. Its all still very much Solasta though, not the strength of the game and 'pretty rough' is a good way to put it. I warn anyone before playing it to set their expectations appropriately lower as far as story presentation goes.

I started completely fresh with no importation. The starting gear is significantly worse than I recall having at the end. Combat has definitely been on the easy side with high level enemies intermixed with low level ones. The low level ones are basically just fodder at all times. That contrasts with custom campaigns where all of the enemies can be made to match the level of the player easier, so nothing is fodder unless its intended to be. I am enjoying the additional companions coming and going, helps with the many flying enemies too. Legendary weapons are coming in quicker than I thought they would.

I'm mainly interested in what each new enemy does, what new items are, and how the world building plays out so any story I write up isn't clashing too heavily. I'm almost viewing this playthrough as a showcase for the DM.

 

[Lagole Gon]

Well, I'm just happy to have another adventure with my super cool dudes...

 

[Mortmal]

 

[Larianshill]

Imagine making those faces, and having the gall to make cinematic cutscenes with close-ups.

 

[Alienman]

I've been playing the new DLC and it's pretty rough at the outset. Tons of exposition, including, literally "previously in Solasta..."

I imported characters who were lvl 10 and were ready to level up as soon as I started, but it was about 30 minutes of conversations with various NPCs before I could actually rest to make that happen. I found myself clicking through conversations, which is something I don't generally do on the first pass.

After an hour or so you start getting regular combats and some of the new enemies are interesting, but as much as I like this game overall, the new DLC hasn't really grabbed me.

Early days yet, so we'll see. Could also be I'm just stressed at work and that's coloring my perception.

I like the setting of the north and cold and of course dwarves. There is some great architecture if you liked that kind of stuff. I think I enjoy it more than the jungle DLC so far. A big plus is to get to see the old team again. The cold weather mechanic is pretty cool too. They should have done the same for the jungle thing, like having heat, or malaria. The more stuff like this, the more of a challenge I think. Making the environment play a role as well, instead of just a change in scenery.

The writing is probably not the best, but it works, or well, it's on the same level as the rest of the game. So, I can't complain too much. However, there seems to be a lack of sidequests. Only found 2 so far that were very easy, and a bit weird. Like the one with the fledgling adventurer that wants to join you. One fight, and she is off... wut?

 

[Alienman]

Btw Artyoan
You have to make some fun companions/followers now that you can make your own characters for the custom campaigns.

 

[Artyoan]

Btw Artyoan
You have to make some fun companions/followers now that you can make your own characters for the custom campaigns.

I'm sure I'll use it. And the world map too, at least for one major campaign. My understanding is that so far there is no way to trigger a variable when the companion dies though, only some workarounds that aren't so great. I haven't experimented with it yet but as soon as I finish PoI I'll probably be assembling a list of DM improvements. There are some other changes I'm hearing about that are pretty good, like allowing for dialogue to give the player direct knowledge of a crafting recipe and variable change activators being repeatable which can make puzzles way more complex, among other things.

I want to flesh out companions that join so they actually have a personality and aren't a generic grunt. But if I have no way of tallying when they die, thats pretty limiting. It also doesn't give me a safety net to allow for a story important character to 'die' but be only wounded for the sake of a story potentially, or at least have their death acknowledged in dialogue. I'll just have to see how it all works.

There is also a pool of companions that have to be chosen from, not just any NPC. Had the system been in place for prior campaigns I'm sure I would have at least used it at the end of the campaign before heading off to fight the big bads. Assuming their NPC character was in the pool.

Should be pretty interesting. After Inner Strength they continued to dump some new stuff into the DM, like npc's and monsters. I'm expecting that to happen here too. Gonna take months to make a new campaign anyway. I'm sure I'll use everything new. Morrows Deep had probably 98% of the entire DM in it.

 

[mediocrepoet]

Imagine making those faces, and having the gall to make cinematic cutscenes with close-ups.

Imagine making those faces and not making close up cutscenes. Tremendous waste!

 

[Spectacle]

Symbol is a new 7th lvl spell in PoI, that creates a magical trap that manifests a nasty effect, for example stunning for 1 minute, in 60' radius when triggered. The effect always lasts for a full minute, unlike most save-or-suck effects there's no save at the end of your turn.

The implementtation of the Symbol spell in this DLC differs from the version in the 5E rules in a few ways that makes it game-breakingly OP:

• Solasta Symbol only takes 1 action to cast, instead of 1 minute for the original. This makes it possible to use it in the middle of combat.
• The effect when the symbol is triggered is party friendly, unlike the original where only the trigger is party-friendly. So you can plop it down in the middle of a melee and hit pretty much every enemy in the battle with an incapacitating save-or-suck effect.
• Solasta also removed the 1000GP material component that should be consumed, so you can spam Symbol without breaking the bank.

If you liked pre-nerf Mind Twist you're going to love Symbol. If you want any kind of challenge you shouldn't take this spell.

Also don't abuse the Conjure Celestial spell. The Couatl you can summon may not seem all that strong, but it is immune to normal weapons, and the AI is generally to dumb to understand that it shouldn't waste all its attacks on a target it can't possibly hurt.

 

[Mortmal]

At this point its as much 5E than wrath of the righteous is pathfinder. You want it harder ? Use cataclysm mode wich means 2X hp bloat and some +3 or so to hit for monsters just tedious not tactical, so nothing like the tabletop experience.
System was designed so you dont need many magic items or even any, here you end up with swords with some extra 2D6 damage +4D6 vs fiend in a fiend campaign. That symbol spell wont change much as everything is tailored and catering to the guy who had trouble doing the tutorial(in story mode). Instead of just telling him to fuck off and just watch it on youtube, no they design the whole campaign around his skills now.
If it keeps going like this, i simply wont buy anything from them anymore.

 

[Fedora Master]

Imagine making those faces, and having the gall to make cinematic cutscenes with close-ups.

With a Br'ish accent no less
Thats straight up racist

 

[Abu Antar]

Imagine making those faces, and having the gall to make cinematic cutscenes with close-ups.

With a Br'ish accent no less
Thats straight up racist

Racist or accurate?

 

[lukaszek]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

 

[notpl]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

The rogue sneak attack class feature is limited to 1 instance per turn even if "shotgun"-type spells like pathfinder's Hellfire Ray existed. Bard in 5e is a full spellcaster, the shadowcaster rogue uses intelligence and goes up to 3rd I believe, maybe 4th in this dlc?

 

[Herumor]

Can you use helmets to hide everyone's faces in this game?

 

[Reinhardt]

Can you use helmets to hide everyone's faces in this game?

i see you want easy way out

 

[Sykar]

Imagine making those faces, and having the gall to make cinematic cutscenes with close-ups.

What is the matter

 

[J1M]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

Not sure why you want a rogue. Just use the background system to pick up the skills you care about.

It really sucks when a rogue misses their only attack, even if they are well-equipped to disengage before shooting.

A Bard that can only cast Hypnotic Pattern is probably better than a Rogue.

But also I would probably prefer another caster instead of the Bard.

 

[Cat Headed Eagle]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

Not sure why you want a rogue. Just use the background system to pick up the skills you care about.

It really sucks when a rogue misses their only attack, even if they are well-equipped to disengage before shooting.

A Bard that can only cast Hypnotic Pattern is probably better than a Rogue.

But also I would probably prefer another caster instead of the Bard.

sneak attacks

 

[Parabalus]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

Rogues are trash, take whatever class with lowlife background and you have a better rogue.

 

[Roguey]

I sunk 8.5 hours into this before the license expired and managed to complete it through the second dungeon. I was hoping I'd dislike it enough to skip it, but unfortunately I read Crispy's post about how to fix the camera to make it tolerable, and once that was done, it was fine enough as a time sink. The flying mage boss was all right. Not in too big of a hurry to resume it though, I'll wait for a future sale to pick it up.

 

[J1M]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

Not sure why you want a rogue. Just use the background system to pick up the skills you care about.

It really sucks when a rogue misses their only attack, even if they are well-equipped to disengage before shooting.

A Bard that can only cast Hypnotic Pattern is probably better than a Rogue.

But also I would probably prefer another caster instead of the Bard.

sneak attacks

I would rather have the ability to attack multiple times and something like action surge or whatever a ranger does.

Unless you were referring to melee, in which case there are many better options.

Sneak attack is only 5d6 (21) damage at level 10. A fighter's second attack with an enchanted weapon is doing 2d6 + 1d6 + 1 + 5 (16.5) damage. The full math is obviously more complicated because extra attacks benefit more from ability scores than dual wielding and there are chance to hit considerations, feats that allow rerolling certain dice, and so on.

I think the level 10 math favors the fighter, but even if it doesn't at 11th level fighters get a third attack, which means 6 attacks in a turn by using action surge.

 

[Nortar]

Turns out I cant live without having rogue in my party. Thinking about finally giving spells a go, so either bard or shadowcaster.

can shadowcaster use fly scrolls?
looking at highest ability of having sneak dmg to spells that require attack rolls, which exactly are those?
Any aoe or shotgun spells that would allow to cheat multiple sneak attacks in single turn?
Whats shadowcaster stat for spells, int or dex?
What lvl spells shadowcaster and bard actually reach?

Not sure why you want a rogue. Just use the background system to pick up the skills you care about.

It really sucks when a rogue misses their only attack, even if they are well-equipped to disengage before shooting.

A Bard that can only cast Hypnotic Pattern is probably better than a Rogue.

But also I would probably prefer another caster instead of the Bard.

sneak attacks

I would rather have the ability to attack multiple times and something like action surge or whatever a ranger does.

Unless you were referring to melee, in which case there are many better options.

Sneak attack is only 5d6 (21) damage at level 10. A fighter's second attack with an enchanted weapon is doing 2d6 + 1d6 + 1 + 5 (16.5) damage. The full math is obviously more complicated because extra attacks benefit more from ability scores than dual wielding and there are chance to hit considerations, feats that allow rerolling certain dice, and so on.

I think the level 10 math favors the fighter, but even if it doesn't at 11th level fighters get a third attack, which means 6 attacks in a turn by using action surge.

Bro, it's not a fucking mmo or where else this flawed max-level mentality comes from.
You play through the whole game before you reach level 10.
At level 10 it's over, why would you endure "teh suck" for 40 hours, just to shine in the last 30 minutes?
There could be a lot of reasons to take class over another, but performace at max level is the least of them.