Bard's Tale The Bard's Tale IV: Barrows Deep - Director's Cut

[Fluent]

Just crafted my first weapon, an Elven Shard Sword, which is also a puzzle weapon. Not only is this a huge upgrade for my main character's Strength (putting him on par with my other Rogue's lethality), but it offers a boon of 100% critical chance after landing a critical hit. Not only that, but he has a skill that refunds his entire cooldown when he lands a critical with Storm Of Blades (as well as the sword having +1 swing with Sword Of Blades). This means that when he lands a crit, the cost is refunded so he can immediately use the skill again, and that also will be the guaranteed crit, so cost is refunded again and he can use it a 3rd time! Crazy! :D

Feels good to build myself completely different than my other Rogue, as well as different than my Rogue in reserve who doesn't join us in battle (although I've used her a bit and she's good, too!) It's just cool, heh. It's going to be insanely interesting when I start getting all types of puzzle weapons to choose from. I'll probably outfit my whole roster with them so I can mix and match characters freely, and they all stay equipped well. Game on, gamers.

 

[Fluent]

Hey guys. I'm now 30 hours in and the game is offering a lot of exploration and advancement. Fairy Golf is fun! And there's not that much of it. The way some people talked I expected just endless amounts of it, but nah. The puzzles are actually pretty limited in the first 20-25 hours. When u get around 30 hours it seems the main quest offers some large puzzles, which are also enjoyable for me. All in all I'm still having a blast, will update the thread every 10 hours or so.

Now that I have this Elven Shard Sword, I'm one of the deadliest in the party. I can Taunt the enemies with my 2 Fighters and get them in range, then unload Shivs and Storm Of Blades on them. I'm using dual Rogues so my other Rogue is equally deadly, and equips a short bow to snipe enemies while also occasionally setting them on fire (due to his Elven Dagger weapon). A couple of the puzzle weapons now offer riddles that I'm trying to figure out. The game just has a lot of cool complexities that tease your brain and let u unload your creativity and ingenuity on. Such a treat!

 

[Fluent]

Man, what's amazing about this game is that as you progress, it keeps adding and opening new layers upon layers of neat stuff! So I unlocked an NPC who teaches

Spoiler

the Cleric class

by doing a pretty hard to find item search quest. And that is a whole new skill tree! To train characters with him, they have to

Spoiler

pray with him, and also retrieve one of the hard to find items.

Not only does it add that new tree, it changes the name of your class(es) based on what u train in! We know a Fighter can turn into any number of advanced/prestige classes, but did u know that

Spoiler

Sage, i.e. Cleric + Practitioner

was one? So cool that it reflects those choices in the name of the class of your character (as it changes). Man...can't get enough of this beauty! Cheers guys!

 

[BruceVC]

Hey guys. I'm now 30 hours in and the game is offering a lot of exploration and advancement. Fairy Golf is fun! And there's not that much of it. The way some people talked I expected just endless amounts of it, but nah. The puzzles are actually pretty limited in the first 20-25 hours. When u get around 30 hours it seems the main quest offers some large puzzles, which are also enjoyable for me. All in all I'm still having a blast, will update the thread every 10 hours or so.

Now that I have this Elven Shard Sword, I'm one of the deadliest in the party. I can Taunt the enemies with my 2 Fighters and get them in range, then unload Shivs and Storm Of Blades on them. I'm using dual Rogues so my other Rogue is equally deadly, and equips a short bow to snipe enemies while also occasionally setting them on fire (due to his Elven Dagger weapon). A couple of the puzzle weapons now offer riddles that I'm trying to figure out. The game just has a lot of cool complexities that tease your brain and let u unload your creativity and ingenuity on. Such a treat!

I misunderstood you as I thought you had completed the game because of your general knowledge but its even better you still on the exciting journey of " first time "

Just something I do recommend, the puzzles get harder and more complex....especially the "liquid flow " and also I found some dungeons confusing how you open certain doors by having to go to different places in the dungeon

So dont think its a betrayal to use game guides, rather use them than get frustrated and give up on the game as they can provide important clues and solutions. But some of the game guides are not 100% accurate, for example with the " liquid flow " puzzles they can use screenshots around how you move cogs to redirect the liquid. I found this wasnt always exactly correct and sometimes difficult to see....but they still help

And Fairy Golf is fun but I use to consider it one of the easiest puzzles to solve, I dont think I needed to use game guides for them ?

 

[Fluent]

I misunderstood you as I thought you had completed the game because of your general knowledge but its even better you still on the exciting journey of " first time "

Just something I do recommend, the puzzles get harder and more complex....especially the "liquid flow " and also I found some dungeons confusing how you open certain doors by having to go to different places in the dungeon

So dont think its a betrayal to use game guides, rather use them than get frustrated and give up on the game as they can provide important clues and solutions. But some of the game guides are not 100% accurate, for example with the " liquid flow " puzzles they can use screenshots around how you move cogs to redirect the liquid. I found this wasnt always exactly correct and sometimes difficult to see....but they still help

And Fairy Golf is fun but I use to consider it one of the easiest puzzles to solve, I dont think I needed to use game guides for them ?

Cheers man! This is actually my 2nd playthru of it, but my first playthru stopped short after about 25 hours when I got distracted by other things. I played it at release though and largely forgot the details by now so it's pretty fresh and new. The puzzles already are getting trickier but nothing too crazy so far. Really enjoying the variety of them, there's a good mix of different types so they stay fresh throughout. Not sure when I'll need the guide but if I get stuck for longer than an hour I'll probably look up the answer. So u said it took 150 hours - without spoilers can u say that there is a lot of content after

Spoiler

getting the blessing from Mathan, the bear goddess?

I hope so! Thanks for responding to my posts bro. Take care.

 

[BruceVC]

I misunderstood you as I thought you had completed the game because of your general knowledge but its even better you still on the exciting journey of " first time "

Just something I do recommend, the puzzles get harder and more complex....especially the "liquid flow " and also I found some dungeons confusing how you open certain doors by having to go to different places in the dungeon

So dont think its a betrayal to use game guides, rather use them than get frustrated and give up on the game as they can provide important clues and solutions. But some of the game guides are not 100% accurate, for example with the " liquid flow " puzzles they can use screenshots around how you move cogs to redirect the liquid. I found this wasnt always exactly correct and sometimes difficult to see....but they still help

And Fairy Golf is fun but I use to consider it one of the easiest puzzles to solve, I dont think I needed to use game guides for them ?

Cheers man! This is actually my 2nd playthru of it, but my first playthru stopped short after about 25 hours when I got distracted by other things. I played it at release though and largely forgot the details by now so it's pretty fresh and new. The puzzles already are getting trickier but nothing too crazy so far. Really enjoying the variety of them, there's a good mix of different types so they stay fresh throughout. Not sure when I'll need the guide but if I get stuck for longer than an hour I'll probably look up the answer. So u said it took 150 hours - without spoilers can u say that there is a lot of content after

Spoiler

getting the blessing from Mathan, the bear goddess?

I hope so! Thanks for responding to my posts bro. Take care.

I just confirmed my gaming time on Steam and I clocked 125 hours but I finished it on 18 January .....I have played about 10 other games since then including the brilliant and dark Czech RPG Inquisitor. I spent 240 hours to complete that.

But I just dont remember that type of specific information about BT4 , sorry for not responding more constructively. But I am sure another Codex member will know

 

[newtmonkey]

BT4 (especially DC) is definitely worth playing for any "blobber" fan. I actually played through both versions, and did all the puzzles in the original release but skipped them in the DC. The puzzles get longer as the game goes on, but never more complicated—with the exception of the final dungeon, where they actually do something different with them.

IMO the best way to play this game now is to skip all puzzles outdoors, and just do the puzzles in dungeons. You get a nice balance of exploration/combat outside of dungeons, and puzzles/combat in dungeons.

The combat starts out pretty interesting, but quickly becomes routine. The DC corrects this somewhat (in the original version, a single mid-level rogue with the hide in shadows ability made every encounter basically irrelevant), but it's generally not very difficult even on "hard"... until you get to the DLC which I suspect is balanced for a specific party layout—the DLC even allows you to recreate your party at the start.

BT4 launched with a lot of issues, and even after a lot of patching still had serious issues. The DC is a fine game, but is what the developer should have released at launch.

 

[vortex]

Will they remake BT4 as UE5 Enhanced edition?

 

[Fluent]

Hey guys. 36 hours in. The thing I'm finding about puzzle weapons (now that I have a handful of them) is that they are quite powerful, IN the right hands. That is, they offer unique bonuses that are more powerful than your typical bonuses, as well as being unique, as well as being strategy-changers. So if I equip a puzzle weapon dagger that has nice stats and a high chance to set enemies on fire, I'm more likely to focus my Masteries with that character on physical attacks, as well as favoring using Opportunity with that character to deliver the physical attacks. Or, if a weapon offers Dispel, which drains Spell Points from enemy casters, I'm going to make sure I give it to a melee character who can then do the same as the dagger wielder - focus on mages and favor physical attacks. The puzzle weapons just shift your strategies and synergies in different ways, and there are a million possible combinations and ways you can use them. There's also very good "regular" loot, but nothing offers quite the same unique bonuses that a capable puzzle weapon offers. Just some food for thought. Cheers!

 

[Peachcurl]

Have they fixed that in the mean time? I remember that with exception of the early game and maybe one weapon, the puzzle weapons quickly became less useful than other stuff I was finding.

 

[Parabalus]

Hey guys. 36 hours in. The thing I'm finding about puzzle weapons (now that I have a handful of them) is that they are quite powerful, IN the right hands. That is, they offer unique bonuses that are more powerful than your typical bonuses, as well as being unique, as well as being strategy-changers. So if I equip a puzzle weapon dagger that has nice stats and a high chance to set enemies on fire, I'm more likely to focus my Masteries with that character on physical attacks, as well as favoring using Opportunity with that character to deliver the physical attacks. Or, if a weapon offers Dispel, which drains Spell Points from enemy casters, I'm going to make sure I give it to a melee character who can then do the same as the dagger wielder - focus on mages and favor physical attacks. The puzzle weapons just shift your strategies and synergies in different ways, and there are a million possible combinations and ways you can use them. There's also very good "regular" loot, but nothing offers quite the same unique bonuses that a capable puzzle weapon offers. Just some food for thought. Cheers!

There's a puzzle stuff which drops +Opportunity orbs every time you move, found that to be insane throughout, especially with the Red Boots. You get lots of free movement abilities later on, which just feed you HP and AP.

Prob possible to make it go infinite.

 

[Fluent]

Have they fixed that in the mean time? I remember that with exception of the early game and maybe one weapon, the puzzle weapons quickly became less useful than other stuff I was finding.

Hey. They must have fixed it, because I'm using all puzzle weapons pretty much and a couple of them I found 25 hours ago. Their stats were great when I found them and still pretty much better than the regular stuff I've found since. Hope that helps!

 

[Shackleton]

I have to admit, having had this in my 'play next' queue in Steam for what seems like forever, I finally gave it a proper chance and am actually enjoying it. Was totally turned off it at launch because a) InXile and b) it's not really BT4. So a) is still valid, there's lots of the typical InXile shit writing and terrible attempts at humour, but the actual game part I'm finding pretty fun. 20 hours or so in and although the combat is starting to get a bit routine, I'm playing this over WotR currently. It's got that 'one more fight' or 'one more puzzle' hook going and the speed of levelling is set right to keep you pressing onwards.

Not really minding the puzzles so far. They've all been simple enough to solve quickly, but not so simple I don't have to think about them at least moderately. Not the best game ever, but at least I'm not mad I backed it on KS anymore.

 

[Sinatar]

Have they fixed that in the mean time? I remember that with exception of the early game and maybe one weapon, the puzzle weapons quickly became less useful than other stuff I was finding.

Yea in vanilla BT4 the puzzle weapons were hot garbage, i'm guessing the directors cut addressed that.

 

[Fluent]

Yeah guys. I can verify they are fixed. I'm all these hours in and still using early game puzzle weapons because their stats were so good. So yes, it's been fixed most definitely.

 

[Fluent]

Hey again. If I may speak a bit on why the original BT4 had "bad" puzzle weapons. I *think* it was their idea of balance - i.e. the puzzle weapons provide a unique bonus, therefore it's a give and take. U take a hit on the stats to access the unique abilities of the weapon. They now changed that to have the stats be good as well AND include the unique bonuses. So it was a tweaking of the balance by them. I'm playing on Hard/Legendary (switching between them) and I think the difficulty is fine. I am challenged often and enemies require me to use my party wisely most of the time. But that's why I think the puzzle weapons were as they were. Now we don't need to worry and they have great stats as well. Take care guys!

 

[Peachcurl]

Damn, I really think I need to replay this. :D

 

[Fluent]

Damn, I really think I need to replay this. :D

Hope u enjoy it if u do!

 

[Fluent]

Since I'm about 40 hours in I'll talk a little bit about the party synergies u can create in the game. So eventually u unlock a full 6 person party. This is important because with 6 characters u can really build a literally infinite amount of strategies and synergies. Each battle will also be different, especially those that really challenge u and force u to use all 6 members. For easier battles u may only really use 4 or 5 of them, but challenging fights require all hands on deck. There's so many aspects to the combat, it's incredibly complex. Boots often add movement bonuses that encourage u to move around the grid. Some puzzle weapons offer bonuses that acrue when u use non-damaging abilities, such as moving, giving u more incentive to move around. Eventually u will create a pretty bad-arse group of 6, who are nicely decked out gear wise and also have a handful of combat strategies in your back pocket. I recommend playing on Hard and then when you're comfortable with that, perhaps boosting it up to Legendary (although Legendary seems to require min/maxing, I'm not sure, I play on Hard mostly now.) And if u guys do play, let us know some of the synergies and strategies u come up with for your party! Cheers.

 

[Fluent]

Hey guys! At a little over 40 hours, I do fear i'm coming to the end of the game. Unfortunately, heh. I'm not 100% sure but the plot has really picked up and in case you're wondering what happened (SPOILER ALERT!) -

Spoiler

I finished Iwon Rheg, killed Mangar and now am headed to the Stennish Isles.

So, does the game generally get finished around this point? Also, please don't give me game spoilers of locations or any spoilers at all really, just curious if I have much game left. I figure i don't have a ton, BUT the Completionist + Leisure runs of the Director's Cut on howlongtobeat say about 80-88 hours or so. So, maybe there's hope. I figure that would take me around 100 hours then, since I tend to play slower. Can anyone confirm there's more game but also not mention any spoilers? Thanks!! Cheers to The Bard's Tale IV!

 

[anvi]

Have you got the expansion/dlc/whatsit?

 

[Fluent]

Have you got the expansion/dlc/whatsit?

Hey bro. I guess I do? I'm playing the Director's Cut, so i guess it comes with that.

 

[anvi]

Maybe. I think it was a big dungeon you can do after you finish. It was called Haernhold and I liked it, even more than the base game.

 

[Fluent]

Maybe. I think it was a big dungeon you can do after you finish. It was called Haernhold and I liked it, even more than the base game.

Yep, got it! Should be fun then. But hopefully the base game still takes me a bit yet. Really enjoying the 6 person combat now.

 

[Zed Duke of Banville]

Hey guys! At a little over 40 hours, I do fear i'm coming to the end of the game. Unfortunately, heh. I'm not 100% sure but the plot has really picked up and in case you're wondering what happened (SPOILER ALERT!) -

Spoiler

I finished Iwon Rheg, killed Mangar and now am headed to the Stennish Isles.

So, does the game generally get finished around this point? Also, please don't give me game spoilers of locations or any spoilers at all really, just curious if I have much game left. I figure i don't have a ton, BUT the Completionist + Leisure runs of the Director's Cut on howlongtobeat say about 80-88 hours or so. So, maybe there's hope. I figure that would take me around 100 hours then, since I tend to play slower. Can anyone confirm there's more game but also not mention any spoilers? Thanks!! Cheers to The Bard's Tale IV!

The majority of my screenshots were taken after this point in the game.