I figured we should have a post for random thoughts, questions and other comments that people might want to do without having to create a new post just for that.
Do people agree this idea? We can have these up (possibly pinned) for a while. Maybe a few days, at most a week.
Please keep discussion spoiler free, unless you are using the appropriate tags.
Act 3 is really something. I am loving all the wheeling and dealing happening. I wish it was optimized better, but the story is so exciting. I can't wait to see what happens next.
Also, I've been comparing notes with my husband on his playthrough and I have had important story scenes with characters that have never appeared in his playthrough. He and I also have opposite outcomes for several companions and it's kind of mind blowing how big the differences are.
Act 3 has been a mass of script errors for me. I feel like every time I play, I have a scene where a companion talks about a plot line we have already resolved, or acts like something happened that didn't. It has actually really dampened my enthusiasm for the game, compared to how polished Act 1 was especially.
I have had one instance where Gale chided me for making a deal with a character I hadn't even met yet. And the romance path with Minthara seems to be broken completely. I'm still having a blast, though.
I wish this game came out during a dry spell. I'm like a quarter of the way through act 3 after 110 hours and all I want to do is replay bg1/2, pillars of eternity 1/2, Pathfinder 1/2... I need an irl haste spell
Also, playing as shadowheart has been the absolute best experience. Rping as a sharran and just being manipulative as fuck to everyone has been super fun. Plus interacting with your god is fucking dope.
I love this game but there is so much to do and so many different ways to play I always feel like I’m going to miss something critical or just really interesting that I almost have anxiety about it.
All I’ll say is the replay value of this game is waaay off the charts
I initially had the same worry. The game becomes a lot more enjoyable if you take a hard roleplaying approach: only do what your character would do, not what a completionist good two shoes would do. From early in my first playthrough, I had already decided that I was going to do a few more. So, it doesn't feel like it matters if you really obviously miss some content.
I played through act 1 and then restarted because I wanted to try another build. I thought I had done everything and discovered all I could, but boy was I wrong. Maybe I’m just a noob, but there was so much more I hadn’t discovered in my first run.
All this running around trying to lift a curse, but no-one seems to be discussing whatever curse locked the necks of every creature in Faerun so they cannot look upwards.
Someone cast some sort of stone-spell on the kingdoms' necks, clearly.
This is certainly a good idea. I've had random thoughts but my friends bailed on the game already 😭
What's been top of mind lately is how I don't find any of the companions boring. With every other Bioware/Bioware-like game I've played with this companion system, there's always been a dud. I'm on a second run now and I'm really impressed with Lae'zel's writing and mocap. Maybe I'm imagining things but I could swear she was quaking during a scene where she was particularly full of zealous fervor.
Gale is the other one that I never put in the party on my first run. I know not everyone likes him--and I'm still not sure I really do--but his story is still interesting to me.
Edit to add: My second run here is with Storm Sorcerer, and this could be the most fun I've had in a game with a lightning build (always a top power fantasy for me). I love how loud the sound effects are. Too many games have little bzzt bzzt sounds with lightning spells and these are all big booms. Even a cantrip like Shocking Grasp!
How can you not like Gale? He's adorably charming. I find it hard not to take him and actually do some stuff with someone else, but then... I have that issue with them all because they are indeed all interesting and fun to be around. I can't even choose a favorite, which was always easy in past games like BG1/2, Torment, and NWN (Minsc, Morte, Deekin).
Yes! The companions are so good that for the first time in a game like this I could decide on a core party for my first play through. I’ve always been able to eliminate a lot of characters as boring or not my speed, but not in this game. I got as far as the crèche in act 1.5 before I got too frustrated with it and installed a party size mod so I can just bring them all with me
I'm nearing the end of act III with a couple of friends and I'm having a great time. I'm very likely to have a 2nd and maybe 3rd playthrough coming up. I love the game as it is, but I do have a few complaints.
My biggest complaint is that we can't just let a more appropriate character take over a conversation. One of my clumsy, dim-witted brawler friends runs ahead by one pixel triggering a cutscene, and I can't jump in mid-conversation to smooth things over with my bardic talent. This is our most common reason for loading a previous save.
Second biggest complaint is the number of things that you can mis-click to destroy your character's reputation. I'd love to be able to opt-in to an "are you sure" dialog when you accidentally click a random item on the floor while moving around. This is our second most common reason for loading a previous save.
Absolutely loving the game despite some very confusing storyline elements that must have relied on earlier foundational elements that we missed.
My biggest complaint is that we can’t just let a more appropriate character take over a conversation. One of my clumsy, dim-witted brawler friends runs ahead by one pixel triggering a cutscene, and I can’t jump in mid-conversation to smooth things over with my bardic talent. This is our most common reason for loading a previous save.
Yeah, we were running into this in my game with my buddy; I'm definitely the dumbass running ahead because I've got stealth and dex for scouting, but invisible cutscene/conversation triggers keep catching us and my dunce of a character gets stuck talking to the punters. It's kind of frustrating that the game encourages players to specialize in that way, but then makes it rather hard to take full advantage of that specialization if you don't set up the encounter absolutely perfectly.
The other one where that happens is that when a combat encounter ends with dialogue - first Auntie Ethel fight, say - the game picks the character who had the last turn as who Auntie is talking to when the conversation starts. In that case, it's almost always the party member doing big damage that pushed her past the damage threshold, and they're generally not built for talking to people.
Those get even more frustrating because there's an interface option to swap who's talking, but it doesn't seem to actually work in the majority of important conversations. It's only when talking to filler characters that I can hot-swap who's talking. I'd also love if, in addition to that button working more consistently - it'd tell you if someone in the party has 'unique' dialogue options for that moment. I think that having the whole party participate in conversations is chaotic and hard to implement in multiplayer - but a better capture of how those same interactions 'would' play out in a D&D game.
Second biggest complaint is the number of things that you can mis-click to destroy your character’s reputation. I’d love to be able to opt-in to an “are you sure” dialog when you accidentally click a random item on the floor while moving around.
It's very frustrating to get a whole faction pissed at you due to misclicking some 'owned' container or accidentally dragging a barrel. Gith creche was a nightmare for that, because every room and hallway is decorated with owned containers. Some measure to make it harder to accidentally loot someone's mold cheese while they're standing right in front of you would be really valuable.
My main character is a Gloomstalker 3/Assassin 3/Shadow Monk 6 mix, but after finally getting enough Monk levels and gear to want to use only fists I discovered they don't work with the Gloomstalker extra attack, so I might change to just Assassin/Monk.
Character one I won't name because of spoilers is Eldritch Knight 5/Druid of the Land 7 because I wanted to keep them a fighter/druid for lore reasons. It's surprisingly decent to have access to Extra Attack, Shield and Magic Missile though. Obviously not an inherently powerful combo, but good enough.
Character two I won't name for spoiler reasons is Berserker Barbarian 3/Hunter Ranger 3/Champion Fighter 6 because I wanted them to be a Berserking Ranger for lore reasons and Battle Master felt too complex for that character. It does what you would expect, which is hit stuff hard and not much else.
I respecced Shadowheart to Life Cleric 1 and the rest in Lore Bard. Not really an odd multiclass but it's very powerful. Bless, Guidance, Heavy Armor, the Life Cleric healing buff plus the full bard experience.
Thats an odd multiclass i guess it gives you wildshape but not sure why else youd want it.
I get crossclassing into fighter for a level for armor or to rogue for a few for bonus action moves/disengage or for sneak attack. The magic classes seem to not be so favorable to crossclass into though.
Fantastic game. I've tried to get my wife to play other multiplayer WRPGs like Divinity and NWN2 in the past, and this one finally hooked her hard.
We're on our second run and I'm a bit disappointed in playing Monk. Way of the Hand/Tavern Brawler is too good, if not a little boring, and invalidates the other subclasses a bit. I wonder if I can multi into Sorcerer or something fun without making a huge mess.
Multi into Barbarian and just go hard on throwing motherfuckers at other motherfuckers! You can just pick up an enemy and yeet them directly off a cliff, or into other characters, if they're small enough and your strength is good enough.
Quick question: If I throw the iron flask will the thing inside pop out where it lands or can I only release it through interacting with it and using the dialogue scene?
I've got a few things I'ma try when I get the chance. I wanna empty it and see if I can fill it again with something else because I wonder how deep Larian took the rules. When I looked up what it was cuz just noticed it was worth hella money, I got the actual SRD page for the PnP item.
I got confused in act one and haven't played recently as a result. I think I missed a character and then I am not sure if I should be running around the village doing things, or going in the cathedral, and so I did a little of both and then I went down underground and done pillars just fireballed my whole party to death.
I guess I'm so used to having boxes around my play so it's clear what I need to do, freedom is suddenly paralyzing
After reaching act III with a sorcerer, I got overwhelmed and restarted with a spore druid dark urge. I still have a handful quests left in act III and it feels a bit weird being that close to the finale with an underwhelming epilogue to look forward to. But it truly is an awesome game and I'll probably start another dark urge as soon as I'm done and not try to save everyone and their mother.
I feel like the dice roll and the re-rolling (spending inspiration) is kinda pointless when you can just quick save / quick load or am I missing something?
I mean you can always "save scum" (not judging it, it's a single player game, do whatever you like, I do it too). But the inspiration is just a way to do it from within the rules of the game. Same as having Advantage. It's just another resource for you to manage.
Same way with not long resting after every battle.