Underrail: The Incline Awakens

[Parabalus]

I'm playing this build right now http://underrail.info.tm/build/?HgM...EH2bCh8KIwrd6woriorUC4quGBeKsggHirIMC4rGgBd-_
It's very fun and safe actually - you wander around in stealth with full hp. When big fight is about to start - you equip your anti-rifle kevlar overcoat, turn on your 2k capacity shield emitter, take your combat drugs, activate hemopsychosis - and drop your health below 30%.
Now you have 15% resistance from all damage from aegis, around 20% resistance from stoicism, 15% against mech/cold/fire from conditioning - for the case when some unlucky crit gets through your defence layers.
And if somehow you're about to die - there is morphine shot+last stand combo.

Wew lad, that is some top-tier min-maxing.

It's the type of build Parabalus regards as fairly normal and standard, which (coupled with complete meta knowledge of the game) is why he erroneously believes that Normal is too easy.

There's not much need to min-max with a PSI build, it plays itself. That build can lose stealth and still faceroll DOMINATING.

Only thing I'd personally change is Mantra for Advanced Psi Empathy, because of the way reductions stack it gets ridiculous. But that's very minor in such a powerful build.

Do you mean psi cost reductions? AFAIK they stack multiplicatively, i.e. you have psychosis (1.20 multiplier), psi beetle soup (0.85 multiplier) and muffled headband (e.g. 0.8 multiplier).
Resulting psi cost will be 1,2*0,85*0,8*100=81,6%

There's also PSI beetle carapace armor, muffled headbands go to 0.6-0.7 and the wizard staff which is another 15%.

 

[Blaine]

There's not much need to min-max with a PSI build, it plays itself. That build can lose stealth and still faceroll DOMINATING.

Yeah, because the base attributes are a slot machine of 3s (the minimum, key word here) while Will is very nearly to the engine maximum. As for skills, damage skills are pumped to the max, while most others are strategically nudged to key useful plateaus that require meta-knowledge to game in such a way.

The fact that you apparently have trouble seeing min-maxing for what it is when it's as literal and obvious as it can be only proves my point.

Anyway, I personally don't care that the game ALLOWS for min-maxing; most cRPGs that offer substantial build freedom do. I only wish that Styg wouldn't balance the game in a fashion skewed toward min-maxing.

 

[Goromorg]

Normal is definately not easy for a new player - protagonist can get wasted in 1 turn easily.
Personally I am playing on Normal - because the game is balanced around it.
I have played Dominating - and it's not super hard - just very tedious.

 

[Parabalus]

There's not much need to min-max with a PSI build, it plays itself. That build can lose stealth and still faceroll DOMINATING.

Yeah, because the base attributes are more a slot machine of 3s (the minimum) while Will is very nearly to the engine maximum.

The fact that you apparently have trouble seein min-maxing for what it is when it's as literal and obvious as it can be only proves my point.

Anyway, I personally don't care that the game ALLOWS for min-maxing; most cRPGs that offer substantial build freedom do. I only wish that Styg wouldn't balance the game in a fashion skewed toward min-maxing.

Why would you not have 3s as a PSI build?

The 3s almost invite themselves upon reading what each attribute does. I think my first ever build was in UR was 3 4 6 4 10 3 10 as a psychosis wizard.

Other builds have a much harder time min-maxing, but for PSI it's really braindead.

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Parabalus]

>Cool, it's like that time in BG2. Well I guess I'll get it back soon or there'll be some easier than usual fights first.

you can get that stuff back instantly...

It's difficulty dependent.

 

[toro]

...fuck ...

jesus fucking christ ... this build is like apex build... you ruined the game for me.

spoiler that shit plz

 

[hell bovine]

Yeah survival instincts looked scary, I'm already squishy enough as it is and 30% crit is nice but it's not 100% so it's always a gamble (unless you can push it up north of 80-90%). But it's still an option as is pumping stealth for a few levels and crafting black cloth armor. Hmm.

The thing is that you can stack it: base 5%, survival instincts is +30%, psychosis +15%, focus stim +15%, headband - depends on crafting - already you should be around 70%. Then there is psychostatic electricity. If you initiate combat first, well... But even without survival instinct, that's still a fairly good critical chance.

But really, invest a bit in stealth and start sneaking & initiating combat first. Also, if you don't have it, buy thermodynamic destabilization and experiment with it.

edit: The best part about stealth is that you can evealuate enemy positions and prepare a 'safe spot'. Not always, but fairly often. To give a non-spoilery example. My current character is sneaking around in expedition. On certain maps, there are a LOT of enemy groups that will come running when alarmed by a fight. So to save up on time, Patsy sneaks in, lays down some bear traps to create choke points, then places a dynamite package. TNT explosions are so loud, every lemming will come running to investigate. And once they are all there, she opens up with an mkiv... :D But for a psi in such a situation it'd even easier, e.g. destabilization on the weakest target, followed by proxy & premeditated critical telekinetic punch.

 

[hell bovine]

>Enter facility, it makes me take off all my gear, which it stashes somewhere else

So that's what was supposed to happen?! I was wondering, because that part bugged out in my game. First after Patsy stripped down to undies it refused to acknowledge that and kept repeating to get rid of all items. Upon reloading, the door opened, but all the items remained in the container, so Patsy got them out and dressed up again. It seemed so pointless.

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[BING XI LAO]

No, on hardcore you lose your gear (temporarily I assume) at the Joint Security center.

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Parabalus]

my new knifer build http://underrail.info.tm/build/?GAM...EmHRYGE1xRSxIAPifChcKewp_CoBrCreKgsgbiqLsD378

based on my expedition experience - basically robots, robots everywhere and evasion not doing anything.
I consider opportunist mandatory now as it helps destroying robots a lot after throwing that emp grenade. You can enable it on living target too with stingball but i dont think its necessary.
Fatal throw got nice boost that I did not notice before. It went from being a free finisher for knife build to blitz with 1 turn cd and no agi requirement. At lvl 26 you can get AP cost of throw down to 10, while boosting AP gain to 27.
Higher focus on throwing knives comes with obvious pick -> 3pointer feat, giving you crit chance in 40-50% range.
Need to overcome DR of machines brings another utility: rusting acid mk3 traps. You could slap quick tinkering if needed but im against that feat in general. Since its so close I grab requirement for mk5 grenades. They are helpful in places were you face large number of enemies -> plasma mk3 radius is quite small.
As such higher int was required(I grab all the crafting skills after all). As follow up it opened poisons and medicines in general. On lvls past 24 you can unlock heartbreaker if needed for some reason. Im mostly in it for leper bringing another way of dealing with DR(no robots though)
Packrathound is not needed prior to expedition as you dont need to carry traps around before that. Even then you can do without and just store them in jet ski, carry only 3 with you or so. You can call it convenience feat.

I think you could drop INT to 8 and grab Uncanny dodge as well, it's pretty good.

Also with 3-pointer TM becomes even better, you have the spare points so getting LTI for grenade spam seems great. Haste is also great, even more so since you didn't take sprint.

 

[BING XI LAO]

No, on hardcore you lose your gear (temporarily I assume) at the Joint Security center.

container is not locked or anything, I took it back on hard right after door opened

It gets shunted into a different container that you can only access by sneaking around to find some TNT. I didn't notice the damaged wall (which isn't the fault of the game, just me being dumb), so I went on an epic quest involving trying to cheat the game by leaving my gear outside the facility where I could pick it up ''relatively'' easily after getting to the security console and ending lockdown, surveillance and disabling turrets.
Of course after fighting 2, then later 4 statues naked, I go outside to see a band of Sormirbaren waiting not far from my gear, so I had to use sprint and Mirror Image (can't remember proper PSI names), to grab it and run back inside. Then when I go back having geared up I was fighting with them nearly on top of me. Sheesh.

Being chased in your underwear like that is memorable. I think I reloaded about 30 times for this.... of course, after beating the Sormirbaren I walk back inside onto the one trap I still hadn't spotted yet; and it's one of the few so placed as to trigger another nearby trap, thus killing me instantly. The chad game vs the virgin player

 

[Tigranes]

While Security Centre can be irritating (and the hotkey thing is shit), I do appreciate that at least it results in a different gameplay experience from most of the rest of the DLC being boring copypasta. It also bugged out on me first time and I never realised I was meant to run around naked trying to find a Haxxor and get my gear. (Which is the alternative to TNT.)

Also keep in mind folks you don't have to fight the native horde, if you're coming out the exit that they're not watching...

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Old One]

I JUST WANTED TO SHOOT THINGS AND TAKE THEIR STUFF TODAY

The problem with that puzzle is that it's randomized every playthrough, so you'll have to do a bunch of busywork every time you start a new game and want to solve it.

The good thing about it is that once your curiosity is sated by solving it once, you don't really ever feel compelled to do it again.

A small price to pay for making it impossible for the brain-lazy to look up the answer without trying.

 

[BING XI LAO]

Is there anything I can do about Expedition getting low on ammo and other supplies?
And what else can I do in regard to the Marcus quest for improving the Expedition's defenses - I reactivated a Naga Protector and a Plasma Turret, can't see what else there is?

 

[Tigranes]

In my experience Aegis seems to do fine even after you give away a lot of their resources, never help them in the fights, and don't give them any upgrades. I suppose they will be eventually eradicated if you take your time exploring, though.

You can use rifts and the Juice (there's a rift portal middle floor of lighthouse at base) to get around quickly or use the jet fast travel taxi.

 

[ItsChon]

And what else can I do in regard to the Marcus quest for improving the Expedition's defenses - I reactivated a Naga Protector and a Plasma Turret, can't see what else there is?

This. I still have no idea

 

[Richard Leaks]

And what else can I do in regard to the Marcus quest for improving the Expedition's defenses - I reactivated a Naga Protector and a Plasma Turret, can't see what else there is?

This. I still have no idea

Deploying mines I guess.

 

[Tigranes]

The Scientist I think was by far the most entertaining build out of the half a dozen I've run on Expeditions (speedhack & know the content by heart at this point, so doesn't take very long). The key is that you can actually use different weapon types (3 chemicals, laser, electroshock, plasma) throughout the game instead of just having sledgehammer sledge 800 dudes or something, while full PSI just feels too magicky for me.

What are some other builds that maintain that qualitative variation, that feeling that you can set up different loadouts for different enemies?

 

[ItsChon]

The Scientist I think was by far the most entertaining build out of the half a dozen I've run on Expeditions (speedhack & know the content by heart at this point, so doesn't take very long). The key is that you can actually use different weapon types (3 chemicals, laser, electroshock, plasma) throughout the game instead of just having sledgehammer sledge 800 dudes or something, while full PSI just feels too magicky for me.

What are some other builds that maintain that qualitative variation, that feeling that you can set up different loadouts for different enemies?

I'm running a Throwing + Traps build right now and I feel like that is also pretty varied in regards to set up and the different poisons you use. Crossbow as well maybe from the different bolt types? I tried making a crossbow build though and it was too boring for me.

 

[Blaine]

I JUST WANTED TO SHOOT THINGS AND TAKE THEIR STUFF TODAY

The problem with that puzzle is that it's randomized every playthrough, so you'll have to do a bunch of busywork every time you start a new game and want to solve it.

The good thing about it is that once your curiosity is sated by solving it once, you don't really ever feel compelled to do it again.

A small price to pay for making it impossible for the brain-lazy to look up the answer without trying.

Yeah, well, I solved it and received a pistol that I can't use, although it's worth a fortune and there was a massive amount of loot in there as well. No doubt there will come a time when I'm running an energy pistols build and I'll have to solve it again.

Actually, the resale value of the pistol is kind of a big deal. You'll be able to barter it for a whole bunch of nice stuff, plasma cores, and batteries from certain high-end merchants.

Of course, I'm keeping it in my unique weapons collection instead....