Here are some completely made-up convo scenarios (BTW, all of these tags can be disabled as an option and are off by default in Expert):
NPC: "I can't believe she rejected me! My family bloodline will be broken! What am I supposed to do now?"
1. "I will find someone else for you, a more suitable match. I'll spare no expense and scour all the Dyrwood if I have to!" [Benevolent - Average]
2. "You are clearly suited to bigger and better things. The duc is looking for an ambassador to Rauatai. I'm sure you could easily take the position." [Diplomatic - Minor]
3. "Well, you could weep into your beer about it like every other heartbroken would-be lover. If you give up this easily your bloodline deserves to die." [Cruel - Average]
4. [Shrug] [Stoic - Minor]
NPC: "What are you doing in here without an escort? Wait - damn you, how did you get in here in the first place?!"
1. [Intellect 14] [Lie] "Through... the side door. It was ajar and when I knocked I thought I heard someone say to come in. I apologize if I was mistaken." [Diplomatic - Minor]
2. "Charm, guile, maybe a little force. I find one of those three is always the key to opening any door." [Clever - Minor]
3. "Try asking again, this time with a kinder tone, or I'll bury you. Understand?" [Aggressive - Average]
4. "I won't deny I broke in through the side door. I know the thayn is hiding evidence in his study and I'm not leaving without it." [Honest - Average]
In those scenarios, your reputation doesn't have anything to do with being able to select the responses. In the second scenario, only your Intellect is used to gate the first option. How people react to you IS based on your reputation. So, for example, if you picked 1. in the second response, the dude might be swayed and say, "Hmm. Well, you are mistaken. The thayn isn't here today and I'm afraid we aren't taking visitors. Please follow me to the front..."
But let's say you have a well-established reputation for being Deceptive. His response may be, [Deceptive] "Hmm. Well, you are mist- Wait a minute, aren't you <CHARNAME>?" His momentarily confused face twists into an angry sneer. "Well, it looks like your poison tongue has finally caught up with you. You'll regret breaking into the thayn's home!"
These scenarios are completely fabricated, but I hope they illustrate the basics of how the system works.
April 2014 was the estimated delivery date on the kickstarter. I don't think anyone really expected it to be completed that soon.
The estimated delivery date of Wasteland 2 was October 2013. I'm guessing that Eternity will probably take around the amount of extra time as that game.
I would've expected the original delivery dates to hold if the campaigns had generated roughly the original goals. With a whole lot more money and goals and extensions, it's no wonder that the schedules need a little revamping. There's a lot more game being made than originally planned.
Here are some completely made-up convo scenarios (BTW, all of these tags can be disabled as an option and are off by default in Expert):
NPC: "I can't believe she rejected me! My family bloodline will be broken! What am I supposed to do now?"
1. "I will find someone else for you, a more suitable match. I'll spare no expense and scour all the Dyrwood if I have to!" [Benevolent - Average]
2. "You are clearly suited to bigger and better things. The duc is looking for an ambassador to Rauatai. I'm sure you could easily take the position." [Diplomatic - Minor]
3. "Well, you could weep into your beer about it like every other heartbroken would-be lover. If you give up this easily your bloodline deserves to die." [Cruel - Average]
4. [Shrug] [Stoic - Minor]
NPC: "What are you doing in here without an escort? Wait - damn you, how did you get in here in the first place?!"
1. [Intellect 14] [Lie] "Through... the side door. It was ajar and when I knocked I thought I heard someone say to come in. I apologize if I was mistaken." [Diplomatic - Minor]
2. "Charm, guile, maybe a little force. I find one of those three is always the key to opening any door." [Clever - Minor]
3. "Try asking again, this time with a kinder tone, or I'll bury you. Understand?" [Aggressive - Average]
4. "I won't deny I broke in through the side door. I know the thayn is hiding evidence in his study and I'm not leaving without it." [Honest - Average]
In those scenarios, your reputation doesn't have anything to do with being able to select the responses. In the second scenario, only your Intellect is used to gate the first option. How people react to you IS based on your reputation. So, for example, if you picked 1. in the second response, the dude might be swayed and say, "Hmm. Well, you are mistaken. The thayn isn't here today and I'm afraid we aren't taking visitors. Please follow me to the front..."
But let's say you have a well-established reputation for being Deceptive. His response may be, [Deceptive] "Hmm. Well, you are mist- Wait a minute, aren't you <CHARNAME>?" His momentarily confused face twists into an angry sneer. "Well, it looks like your poison tongue has finally caught up with you. You'll regret breaking into the thayn's home!"
These scenarios are completely fabricated, but I hope they illustrate the basics of how the system works.
erection rising
I'll be honest, this piques my interest far more than any discussion of character classes, lore, or combat mechanics. A while back in another thread, I pondered how conversation could move forward from simple stat checks, making dialogue more complicated and requiring some caution in what you say. I gave the example of Fallout New Vegas, specifically in Goodsprings, where you're allowed to ask Trudy what happens if you side with the Powder Gangers. That should have been a massive red flag - "this character is somewhat mercenary and may betray us" - yet no consequences come of it (which is understandable, it's a tutorial location for the most part). With a more complex dialogue system, just asking that question would make it harder to convince her you're genuinely on her side.
The idea presented here is more reputation dependent, but it hits on another thing I'd like to see: noticing consistency or the lack thereof. A common issue with dialogue is that there is typically a 'best' option that bypasses a fight or comes up with an ideal solution, without thinking much about the speaker's overall mindset. That's fine if the character's a bullshit artist, but at some point someone should figure out this person will say anything to anyone to get what they want. Obviously not every single word you say should get around, but if there's a contentious issue at hand, surely someone would notice if you're walking into and out of meetings with all involved parties.
From the sound of it, what you said earlier can affect what you're saying now - namely, whether people buy it or not - and that is easily the most interesting thing I've read about this so far. Can't wait to see it in practice, which unfortunately makes the delay sting a bit more. Oh well.
I got to see my custom character portrait, and it is awesome. I chose to be a Aumaua, and I think it is an Island Aumaua they went with (I think I read somewhere that they are the more remote/primal of the two?). Sharp teeth, rather sharklike and intimidating fella, but still recognizably me. I am extremely happy with it. I've already saved up for the next Kickstarter. They said on RPS more news about it in March, right? Heard any more since, C2B?
when the game comes out can you point out the NPC for us?
Here are some completely made-up convo scenarios (BTW, all of these tags can be disabled as an option and are off by default in Expert):
NPC: "I can't believe she rejected me! My family bloodline will be broken! What am I supposed to do now?"
1. "I will find someone else for you, a more suitable match. I'll spare no expense and scour all the Dyrwood if I have to!" [Benevolent - Average]
2. "You are clearly suited to bigger and better things. The duc is looking for an ambassador to Rauatai. I'm sure you could easily take the position." [Diplomatic - Minor]
3. "Well, you could weep into your beer about it like every other heartbroken would-be lover. If you give up this easily your bloodline deserves to die." [Cruel - Average]
4. [Shrug] [Stoic - Minor]
NPC: "What are you doing in here without an escort? Wait - damn you, how did you get in here in the first place?!"
1. [Intellect 14] [Lie] "Through... the side door. It was ajar and when I knocked I thought I heard someone say to come in. I apologize if I was mistaken." [Diplomatic - Minor]
2. "Charm, guile, maybe a little force. I find one of those three is always the key to opening any door." [Clever - Minor]
3. "Try asking again, this time with a kinder tone, or I'll bury you. Understand?" [Aggressive - Average]
4. "I won't deny I broke in through the side door. I know the thayn is hiding evidence in his study and I'm not leaving without it." [Honest - Average]
In those scenarios, your reputation doesn't have anything to do with being able to select the responses. In the second scenario, only your Intellect is used to gate the first option. How people react to you IS based on your reputation. So, for example, if you picked 1. in the second response, the dude might be swayed and say, "Hmm. Well, you are mistaken. The thayn isn't here today and I'm afraid we aren't taking visitors. Please follow me to the front..."
But let's say you have a well-established reputation for being Deceptive. His response may be, [Deceptive] "Hmm. Well, you are mist- Wait a minute, aren't you <CHARNAME>?" His momentarily confused face twists into an angry sneer. "Well, it looks like your poison tongue has finally caught up with you. You'll regret breaking into the thayn's home!"
These scenarios are completely fabricated, but I hope they illustrate the basics of how the system works.
erection rising
You know what would be more awesome (and already somewhat implied)? Being able to use your reputation to fuck with people.
I am picturing a scenario:
You have built a reputation of Honesty. No matter how much it hurt, you spoke the truth and treated others fairly, admitting to your crimes, never screwing anyone over and so on, until that one moment, out of desperation, or for a greater cause, you lie... and it's not just a bending of the truth, it's a shattering of it, a crazy story that constantly changes and would fall to pieces and the merest questioning...
...and it's accepted, at face value, because you are Honest <CHARNAME>, who has trouble lying to females when those clothes do make their ass look big, of course you're telling the truth!
Alternatively, being a deceptive bastard means you start getting into "Boy who cried Wolf" scenarios, where noone believes you even when you are telling the truth... which with a little reverse psychology, you can still use for misdirection.
Foefaller on
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Dr. ChaosPost nuclear nuisanceRegistered Userregular
edited March 2014
Delay doesn't surprise me, kind of expected a few going into these epic Kickstarter RPGs.
Here are some completely made-up convo scenarios (BTW, all of these tags can be disabled as an option and are off by default in Expert):
NPC: "I can't believe she rejected me! My family bloodline will be broken! What am I supposed to do now?"
1. "I will find someone else for you, a more suitable match. I'll spare no expense and scour all the Dyrwood if I have to!" [Benevolent - Average]
2. "You are clearly suited to bigger and better things. The duc is looking for an ambassador to Rauatai. I'm sure you could easily take the position." [Diplomatic - Minor]
3. "Well, you could weep into your beer about it like every other heartbroken would-be lover. If you give up this easily your bloodline deserves to die." [Cruel - Average]
4. [Shrug] [Stoic - Minor]
NPC: "What are you doing in here without an escort? Wait - damn you, how did you get in here in the first place?!"
1. [Intellect 14] [Lie] "Through... the side door. It was ajar and when I knocked I thought I heard someone say to come in. I apologize if I was mistaken." [Diplomatic - Minor]
2. "Charm, guile, maybe a little force. I find one of those three is always the key to opening any door." [Clever - Minor]
3. "Try asking again, this time with a kinder tone, or I'll bury you. Understand?" [Aggressive - Average]
4. "I won't deny I broke in through the side door. I know the thayn is hiding evidence in his study and I'm not leaving without it." [Honest - Average]
In those scenarios, your reputation doesn't have anything to do with being able to select the responses. In the second scenario, only your Intellect is used to gate the first option. How people react to you IS based on your reputation. So, for example, if you picked 1. in the second response, the dude might be swayed and say, "Hmm. Well, you are mistaken. The thayn isn't here today and I'm afraid we aren't taking visitors. Please follow me to the front..."
But let's say you have a well-established reputation for being Deceptive. His response may be, [Deceptive] "Hmm. Well, you are mist- Wait a minute, aren't you <CHARNAME>?" His momentarily confused face twists into an angry sneer. "Well, it looks like your poison tongue has finally caught up with you. You'll regret breaking into the thayn's home!"
These scenarios are completely fabricated, but I hope they illustrate the basics of how the system works.
erection rising
(Honest - Minor)
Accruing reputations by deeds and words sounds awesome.
[when the game comes out can you point out the NPC for us?
They asked for my permission to include it in an update, which I gave, so you will see it sooner than that.
I don't know which update or when it will come though. As C2B said, there is probably news coming at the GDC which starts this Monday. Next Kickstarter reveal, and possibly we are finally going to hear what the "big secret next gen" RPG they've been working on for quite some time is. So maybe they are all too busy with preparations for that to also do a PoE update.
[when the game comes out can you point out the NPC for us?
They asked for my permission to include it in an update, which I gave, so you will see it sooner than that.
I don't know which update or when it will come though. As C2B said, there is probably news coming at the GDC which starts this Monday. Next Kickstarter reveal, and possibly we are finally going to hear what the "big secret next gen" RPG they've been working on for quite some time is. So maybe they are all too busy with preparations for that to also do a PoE update.
Yeah, I just got mine back as well; great stuff, they've clearly got talented artists. It wouldn't surprise me if Obsidian has their hands full right now, if another Kickstarter and a separate next gen RPG are both in the works. Hopefully that just means all the more information in the next update/at GDC.
I don't want Obsidian to feel at all rushed. This is their love project. I want them to be incredibly happy with the end result. I'm sure when we eventually get to it, we'll all appreciate the care and awesome they packed into the game for us.
Steam and CFN: Enexemander
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BrocksMulletInto the sunrise, on a jet-ski. Natch.Registered Userregular
Seriously, who doesn't have a backlog a mile long?
Hopefully they'll be a little more disciplined than Double Fine and not run out of money prior to finishing. This is definitely one of my most anticipated games, regardless of which year it actually ends up releasing in.
Hopefully they'll be a little more disciplined than Double Fine and not run out of money prior to finishing.
Judging by the updates things are progressing well, they seem to be on schedule with lots of content in place already. Of course, it is a well known phenomena in software projects that once you are 90% done, the last 10% somehow takes another 90%... Unless you've kept the code really clean and have lots of tests in place.
Dude spent the last weeks since South Parks release on the forums helping out users, providing workarounds and asking for info the fix their issues. Not because he needs to, cause its a forum that is for users supporting other users. (With the official support being Ubisoft) But because he wants to help. Gets harassed by users through pm's.
#gaming
Yeah, I just got mine back as well; great stuff, they've clearly got talented artists.
Nice, what race/class did you pick?
Ah, just a plain ol' human cipher. I had to double back and read up on what the classes actually do, since I hadn't been paying close attention beyond the backer updates.
Of course, now that I am, the wait's going to seem even longer. Curses!
Welcome to our second class pair update. This week, by popular vote on our forums, we will be looking at the folks who rain down death (figuratively and literally) on the masses: the mob rulers, wizards and druids.
Before we begin, I would like to remind our backers to complete their orders on our website if you have not already done so. Many of our backers have filled out their surveys and we've been able to work on implementing their content. Not long ago, Kaz generated these portraits for some of our generous backers.
Backer Portraits
We've also finished some of the inns that were designed by backers. Hector Espinoza just finished this render of the Celestial Sapling, an inn that is built into an enormous tree.
The Celestial Sapling
As always, the earlier we get your specifications for the content you've backed, the easier it is for us to integrate into the game. For those of you who backed content, remember that the deadline is March 31st, only two short weeks away! In our next update we'll be showing off some of the cool animations from Pillars of Eternity.
Partnership
A few minutes ago, Obsidian made an important announcement about a new partnership with Paradox Interactive for Pillars of Eternity. We wanted to give some information to our backers to give you a full understanding of what this partnership means and to let you know that nothing has or will change when it comes to the making of Eternity. Pillars of Eternity is still our product, we're making 100% of the development decisions, and we will still be communicating directly with you every chance we get.
So, you are probably asking, why are we doing this? Obsidian is really good at making games. Everyone here is focused on that goal every day and we are heavily invested in our work. That said, Obsidian's focus is in creating games and not in marketing and distributing them. It takes a lot of time and effort to do those things properly - time and effort we want to use to make Eternity the best game it can be. We chose to partner with Paradox because they can help us with those things and really believe in PC games in particular. This lets us spend 100% of our time (and your money) towards making Eternity great. Every dollar you have given us will to go into making the game.
We have setup a FAQ on our forums that will go over any questions you may have about what this partnership means for Pillars of Eternity. Please take a look and let us know if you have any other questions. And now, on to the magic of the mob rulers!
Mob Rulers
While neither wizards nor druids are restricted to offensive spells that target groups or areas, they excel in that arena. Whether it's dishing out elemental damage or inflicting status effects on enemies, both classes have a wide variety of spells to whittle down the hordes. Rangers and rogues are the kings of single-target takedowns, but the mob rulers exist to soften up, slow down, hinder, or otherwise mess up groups of enemies. Both classes focus heavily on spellcasters, but they have slightly different mechanics to how they work. Together with priests, wizards and druids are the "traditional" spellcasting classes that can cast a certain number of spells of each level per rest. As they gain levels in their classes, they can access more powerful spells. Over time, their weakest per-rest spells become per-encounter spells. At very high levels, the weakest spells eventually become at-will abilities, capable of being cast indefinitely.
Wizards
Typical Wizard Grimoire
Wizards are researchers and experimenters. Like animancers, their understanding of the spirit world and soul energy is technical and scientific. For this reasons, wizards have a skill focus in both Lore and Mechanics. Also like animancers, wizards rely on special tools to achieve their effects. Specifically, wizards use grimoires, arcane books made with rare materials that can absorb and temporarily hold fragments of ambient soul energy. Unlike priests and druids, wizards do not personally shape the magic that is released. Instead, their grimoires' spell pages do most of the work. The wizard's specialty is in understanding how to help the magic flow in and out of the grimoire without going haywire. As wizards continue to research, more spells are created every year. Some spells remain in the private collections of individual wizards while others see widespread distribution and can be found in grimoires all over the known world.
In game terms, all wizards start with a single grimoire. Even as big as they are, grimoires can only hold a set number of spells from each level. Wizards have the potential to access many more spells than priests or druids, but that potential is restricted by what a grimoire can hold. As a result, experienced wizards carry multiple grimoires with subsets of spells to handle different situations. Grimoires can be switched during combat, but there is an opportunity cost to doing so -- the new grimoire needs to attune itself to the wizard for several seconds before its spells can be used. Outside of combat, wizards can outfit their grimoires with any spells that they have learned. If they come across a spell in an enemy's grimoire, they can choose to learn that spell for the cost (in copper pieces) required to research it.
As a result of their varied studies, wizards have access to both "meat and potatoes" spells and more eccentric effects. They excel at area attacks, but also have a healthy number of spells for personal defense and more than a few oddballs in the mix. Occasionally, wizards become known for a particular spell or family of spells that they've invented and their names are inexorably linked with their contributions to magical research. Here are some of the many spells wizards can learn in Pillars of Eternity:
Fan of Flames - Creates a short-range cone of fire that does Burn damage to everyone caught inside. (Reflexes)
Jolting Touch - Inflicts heavy electrical damage to the target then jumps to the two nearest enemies. (Deflection)
Minoletta's Minor Missiles - Launches three missiles of magical energy that inflict Crush damage on a single target. (Deflection)
Thrust of Tattered Veils - Generates a precise thrust of Crushing force that does little damage but has a high Interrupt. This fast-casting spell is often used to disrupt enemy actions. (Deflection)
Wizard's Double - Creates a single duplicate image of the caster that grants a high Deflection bonus against a single attack.
Concelhaut's Corrosive Siphon - Inflicts a Corrode effect and restores Stamina to the caster over time. (Fortitude)
Ray of Fire - Creates a lingering stream of flames between the caster and target, doing damage to the target and everyone caught in between. (Reflexes)
Kalakoth's Minor Blights - Creates a random "blight" in the caster's hand that does Burn, Freeze, Corrode, or Shock damage to the target and anyone caught in the area. After the wizard throws one minor blight, it will continue to spawn additional random minor blights until the spell's duration runs out. (Deflection/Reflexes)
Minoletta's Bounding Missiles - As Minoletta's Minor Missiles, but each missile bounces to one additional target, does more damage, and has shorter overall range. (Deflection)
Ryngrim's Repulsive Visage - Targets near caster are Sickened and Terrified by the wizard's horrifying appearance. (Will)
Dimensional Shift - The caster and one ally are able to immediately switch locations, leaving a shockwave between them. Anyone caught in-between may be briefly Stunned. (Fortitude)
Essential Phantom - Summons a ghostly double of the caster that fights with its bare hands, doing Shock damage. Other than the appearance of the caster, it shares no other properties.
Minor Arcane Reflection - The caster erects a field of arcane energy around himself or herself, similar to the Arcane Veil. However, Minor Arcane Reflection has the ability to reflect an incoming hostile targeted (only) spell, sending it back to the original caster. The Reflection can try to reflect spells up to 3rd level -- and up to 10 total levels of spells -- before it expires. A failed attempt at reflection counts toward the limit. When an incoming spell targets the caster, the Reflection attacks the enemy's Will. If it succeeds in the attack, the spell is reflected. If two casters both have Arcane Reflections up, the attack can potentially bounce back and forth repeatedly until one caster fails his or her attack -- or exhausts his or her Reflection.
Citzal's Spirit Lance - Creates a pike out of magical energy that does Pierce damage and causes a foe-only Blast explosion like wands do. (Deflection/Reflexes)
Malignant Cloud - Creates a cloud of virulent poison that does raw damage (ignoring DT) to anyone in the cloud over time. (Fortitude)
Arkemyr's Capricious Hex - Targets are randomly subjected to one of several afflictions, each with an equal chance of appearing, although at different durations: Dazed, Sickened, or Paralyzed. (Will)
Ninagauth's Freezing Pillar - Slams a huge gleaming shard of ice into the ground, doing Freeze damage to anyone in the immediate area. A circle of frost spreads from the pillar, creating a Freeze hazard that also inflicts the Hobbled affliction on anyone it touches. (Reflexes)
In addition to their per-rest spells, all wizards have two basic abilities that serve them well: Blast and Arcane Veil. Blast allows wands, scepters, and wands wielded by wizards to do a small amount of foe-only damage in a small radius around their target. Arcane Veil is an instantaneous ability that dramatically raises the wizard's Deflection for a few moments. Its one weakness is firearms; the Arcane Veil is not able to react to the speed of a bullet before it passes through.
Druids
Druid Backer Portrait
Druids are animists, drawing power through the webs they believe connect all living souls in the world. When not casting spells and transforming into mythical beasts, druids spend a great deal of time in nature, giving them skill foci in Athletics and Survival. Much like priests, druids draw ambient fragments of soul energy toward them and shape their effects through practiced concentration. While druids do not have the diverse spell repertoire of wizards, they have more than enough to handle most problems that come their way. Druids' spells often take the form of natural phenomena -- storms, coiling plants, rapid decay -- to reflect their primal connection to the world. Despite their heavily-offensive nature, they do have a few defensive and healing spells to aid their allies.
Druid Stag Form
Nature's Mark - Enemies are outlined in pale green light, decreasing their Deflection and Reflexes. (Will)
Talons' Reach - Caster creates an oversized projection of beastly talons striking everyone in the area for Slash damage. (Deflection)
Tanglefoot - Lingering, sprawling patch of magical vines and other plants Hobbles anyone caught in the hazard. (Reflexes)
Winter Wind - Characters in the area are pushed back and take Freeze damage. (Fortitude)
Firebrand - Caster wields a massive sword-shaped blade of fire that does Burn damage on a hit. Switching to another weapon ends the spell.
Insect Swarm - Targets take Pierce damage over time and have reduced Concentration. (Fortitude)
Beetle's Shell - An allied target is encased in a shell that prevents him or her from taking actions (including moving) but will absorb a fixed amount of damage before shattering.
Twin Stones - Two boulders fly out from the druid, causing Crush damage as they go. If the boulders strike a solid surface the boulder explodes, doing Pierce damage to anyone in the area. (Deflection/Reflexes)
Moonwell - Creates stationary radius in which allies recover Stamina and gain a bonus to all defenses.
Overwhelming Wave - Creates a rolling wave of water that smashes everything in its path, causing Crush damage and a Stun. (Fortitude)
Firebug - A ball of fire rapidly bounces from enemy to enemy causing Burn damage. It hits up to 8 targets total. (Deflection)
Nature's Terror - The druid gains a terrifying electrical aura that causes Shock damage and the Terrified affliction to anyone nearby. (Reflexes / Will)
Wall of Thorns - Creates a wall of thorns, which does Pierce damage to anyone in it or who attempts to cross it. (Reflexes)
Garden of Life - Plants spring up from downed enemies, generating healing auras around them.
Rot Skulls - Summons necrotic skulls into the caster's hands. The skulls can be thrown at targets for Crush damage and a Corrode explosion. (Deflection / Reflexes)
In addition to their spells, druids have two base abilities that assist them in dealing with single targets. At character creation, players select a damage type for their Wildstrike passive ability. Wildstrike adds a small secondary amount of damage to all damage-dealing attacks that the druid makes.
Druids also all choose a spiritshift form at character creation. This form represents a type of animal spirit with which the druid has developed an intimate level of understanding (wolf, great cat, bear, stag, and boar). A few times a day, they can use this understanding to transform their bodies into a hybridized form between their natural shape and the shape of the creature they are emulating. In these forms, they cannot use any of their normal equipment but can attack with powerful natural weapons. Each form also has a special passive ability that applies while the druid is in that form. Over the course of the game, druids can acquire additional spiritshift forms to give them more options.
There are many more wizard and druid spells where these came from. They all add up to give both classes a wide variety of abilities to play with. Please let us know what you think of the flavor and mechanics of these classes in the discussion thread!
Paradox to Support Obsidian’s Upcoming Release of Pillars of Eternity
SAN FRANCISCO — March 18, 2014 — Obsidian Entertainment, the developer of Fallout: New Vegas and South Park: The Stick of Truth, today announced that they are entering into a partnership with Paradox Interactive to launch their upcoming role-playing game (RPG), Pillars of Eternity.
Pillars of Eternity, an RPG inspired by classic titles such as Baldur’s Gate, Icewind Dale, and Planescape: Torment, was funded via Kickstarter in late 2012, raising $4.5 million through both backer pledges on Kickstarter and Obsidian’s own website. Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian Entertainment, stated that every dollar raised through the crowdfunding campaign will be spent solely on the game’s development.
“This game would not have happened if not for the passion and generosity of our backers, and their faith in us to create the game they wanted,” said Urquhart. “How we are developing Pillars of Eternity has not, and will not be, changed; we will deliver the game we promised to our backers, and we will deliver it this year. Having Paradox as a partner, with their expertise in independent games like Pillars of Eternity, lets us put all of our focus on making an incredible game.”
Paradox will assume key marketing and distribution responsibilities for the title, which will support Obsidian by allowing them to concentrate entirely on development.
“When we signed this partnership we called it two independent players in the games industry supporting each other to stay independent by doing what we do best,” said Fredrik Wester, CEO of Paradox Interactive. “The fans backing this game—many of us included—are looking forward to a classic RPG as envisioned by the designers at Obsidian, and that’s exactly what they’re going to get.”
Obsidian and Paradox have published a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page for Pillars of Eternity backers, including further details on the new partnership, and on backer rewards, which will remain unchanged.
XBL - ArchSilversmith
"We have years of struggle ahead, mostly within ourselves." - Made in USA
I don't know what would happen if Obsidian and Paradox teamed up to make one of their grand strategy titles. Crusader Kings 2 has eaten up so much of my time already.
I feel that resting between battles is an outdated and silly mechanic. I remember playing Baldur's Gate and being told by an npc that I had only been gone for a few weeks, it was actually more like a year. If you have to rest in a dungeon it should be a terrifying last resort sort of thing. Not something you do as a matter of course.
It is nice that they're balancing out lower level spells by making them per encounter and then at will with higher levels.
...Together with priests, wizards and druids are the "traditional" spellcasting classes that can cast a certain number of spells of each level per rest. As they gain levels in their classes, they can access more powerful spells. Over time, their weakest per-rest spells become per-encounter spells. At very high levels, the weakest spells eventually become at-will abilities, capable of being cast indefinitely.
As long as it has a proper save system I'll be happy. At-will spells sound awesome, and resting is just whatever really. It works, and offhand I can't think of some system to limit spells that's super better. But if someone comes up with one lets hope for a mod toolset!
I already confirmed a kickstarter pledge on my Obsidian page, $20 for the full game. Can I add the $20 expansion without having to add a new pledge for the full game? Can't really find it in the obsidian portal
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Between this and Witcher 3's delay, 2014 is looking like a wasteland for any game releases I was interested in.
Old PA forum lookalike style for the new forums | My ko-fi donation thing.
It'll be worth it, i'm sure.
I really don't want this game to be rushed.
erection rising
It didn't have a concrete date as far a I know.
"We have years of struggle ahead, mostly within ourselves." - Made in USA
The estimated delivery date of Wasteland 2 was October 2013. I'm guessing that Eternity will probably take around the amount of extra time as that game.
I already posted about this a month ago
It's delayed to winter 2014. Might as well still come this year.
I'll be honest, this piques my interest far more than any discussion of character classes, lore, or combat mechanics. A while back in another thread, I pondered how conversation could move forward from simple stat checks, making dialogue more complicated and requiring some caution in what you say. I gave the example of Fallout New Vegas, specifically in Goodsprings, where you're allowed to ask Trudy what happens if you side with the Powder Gangers. That should have been a massive red flag - "this character is somewhat mercenary and may betray us" - yet no consequences come of it (which is understandable, it's a tutorial location for the most part). With a more complex dialogue system, just asking that question would make it harder to convince her you're genuinely on her side.
The idea presented here is more reputation dependent, but it hits on another thing I'd like to see: noticing consistency or the lack thereof. A common issue with dialogue is that there is typically a 'best' option that bypasses a fight or comes up with an ideal solution, without thinking much about the speaker's overall mindset. That's fine if the character's a bullshit artist, but at some point someone should figure out this person will say anything to anyone to get what they want. Obviously not every single word you say should get around, but if there's a contentious issue at hand, surely someone would notice if you're walking into and out of meetings with all involved parties.
From the sound of it, what you said earlier can affect what you're saying now - namely, whether people buy it or not - and that is easily the most interesting thing I've read about this so far. Can't wait to see it in practice, which unfortunately makes the delay sting a bit more. Oh well.
Now playing: Teardown and Baldur's Gate 3 (co-op)
Sunday Spotlight: Horror Tales: The Wine
You know what would be more awesome (and already somewhat implied)? Being able to use your reputation to fuck with people.
I am picturing a scenario:
You have built a reputation of Honesty. No matter how much it hurt, you spoke the truth and treated others fairly, admitting to your crimes, never screwing anyone over and so on, until that one moment, out of desperation, or for a greater cause, you lie... and it's not just a bending of the truth, it's a shattering of it, a crazy story that constantly changes and would fall to pieces and the merest questioning...
...and it's accepted, at face value, because you are Honest <CHARNAME>, who has trouble lying to females when those clothes do make their ass look big, of course you're telling the truth!
Alternatively, being a deceptive bastard means you start getting into "Boy who cried Wolf" scenarios, where noone believes you even when you are telling the truth... which with a little reverse psychology, you can still use for misdirection.
Not expecting Tides of Numenera until 2016.
(only half joking)
Never believe it'll be ready in just a year's time. Small dev teams, big ideas. Gotta give it time.
(Honest - Minor)
Accruing reputations by deeds and words sounds awesome.
They asked for my permission to include it in an update, which I gave, so you will see it sooner than that.
I don't know which update or when it will come though. As C2B said, there is probably news coming at the GDC which starts this Monday. Next Kickstarter reveal, and possibly we are finally going to hear what the "big secret next gen" RPG they've been working on for quite some time is. So maybe they are all too busy with preparations for that to also do a PoE update.
Yeah, I just got mine back as well; great stuff, they've clearly got talented artists. It wouldn't surprise me if Obsidian has their hands full right now, if another Kickstarter and a separate next gen RPG are both in the works. Hopefully that just means all the more information in the next update/at GDC.
Now playing: Teardown and Baldur's Gate 3 (co-op)
Sunday Spotlight: Horror Tales: The Wine
Steam: BrocksMullet http://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561197972421669/
Nice, what race/class did you pick?
Judging by the updates things are progressing well, they seem to be on schedule with lots of content in place already. Of course, it is a well known phenomena in software projects that once you are 90% done, the last 10% somehow takes another 90%... Unless you've kept the code really clean and have lots of tests in place.
Dude spent the last weeks since South Parks release on the forums helping out users, providing workarounds and asking for info the fix their issues. Not because he needs to, cause its a forum that is for users supporting other users. (With the official support being Ubisoft) But because he wants to help. Gets harassed by users through pm's.
#gaming
Ah, just a plain ol' human cipher. I had to double back and read up on what the classes actually do, since I hadn't been paying close attention beyond the backer updates.
Of course, now that I am, the wait's going to seem even longer. Curses!
Now playing: Teardown and Baldur's Gate 3 (co-op)
Sunday Spotlight: Horror Tales: The Wine
"We have years of struggle ahead, mostly within ourselves." - Made in USA
"We have years of struggle ahead, mostly within ourselves." - Made in USA
I think that would have been mentioned close to each other. Doesn't seem like it so far.
Also, yay, Druids.
"We have years of struggle ahead, mostly within ourselves." - Made in USA
I'm not sure that paradox has the funds to make a AAA next gen title anyway
It is nice that they're balancing out lower level spells by making them per encounter and then at will with higher levels.
I love this so much.
Steam profile.
Getting started with BATTLETECH: Part 1 / Part 2