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Since I´m one of those kind of Kickstarters that backed this game but never ended up playing it. This Lp has reminded me that this game has been waiting a long time for me and I just installed it for the first time. I´d just like to know how badly shafted a created character gets, storywise, compared to the premade characters?
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Dec 29, 2020 23:25
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The named characters mostly don't affect the main plot and they follow their own stories off to the side as the main plot happens. The question isn't "do created characters lose out?" so much as it is "how much do the named characters add?" And the answer to that is, eh, a decent amount, but if you're only concerned with the main plot, then it'll be unchanged. And by the way, by my count, I'mma boop that guard's nose.
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Dec 30, 2020 00:29
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The game is really weird about the main controlled character. I actually found that the preset characters actually lose personality when they're your avatar. Yeah, you get the reactions of people to you, but I found that your own responses.... lose impact for some reason. Granted, that's my personal opinion. The bigger loss is not taking the premades as party members, since they interject reasonably often. The biggest pitfall is 'don't have a generic as a party member' and it's fine beyond that. Generics as party members add literally nothing.
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Dec 30, 2020 00:36
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I loved playing as Lohse, it felt like playing through her story added a lot to the game and I would always recommend playing as an origin unless you really want a race/gender combination that isn't available. Also I like how you're giving specific lines to the vague descriptions that you choose in the dialogue boxes.
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Dec 30, 2020 04:35
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I've been itching to replay this but don't want to devote the 100+ hours to it, so I'm excited for this LP. I really like Fane as a character, but he caused me immense amounts of frustration later in the game because of his inability to be healed by standard healing. If I were to do another playthrough I think I'd pass on undead entirely, even if they do add a neat and unique flavor. Have there been no attempts at an LP of Original Sin? Both the ones in the archives died after a page or two it looks like. Melufa fucked around with this message at 10:00 on Dec 30, 2020 |
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Dec 30, 2020 09:57
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The vote on what to do with the guard and the prisoner was pretty close, but there was only one option that, realistically, could have prevailed over the others.   : Mmmm… is my shift over? Are you here to relieve me? This is our first attempt at persuasion, and is a part of the learning curve of the tutorial. You’re given a number of discussion possibilities, and your success depends on two things: if you have the points in Persuasion necessary to succeed (if you don’t, you auto fail); and if the stat you’re using to persuade the target is high enough (for instance, if my Wits, Constitution, or Finesse reaches a certain threshold). Now, your points in Persuasion is overall the more important choice – if, for example, I require at least two points in Persuasion, then if doesn’t matter how high my Wits is if I don’t have enough. But if I do have that many, then how many points I need in Wits will be determined by the person I’m trying to persuade. If you talk to someone that seems, well, pretty dumb, then you would have an easier time trying to outwit or outsmart them. If you talk to a coward, then flexing your muscles could intimidate them into behaving. Rennart doesn’t take his job seriously enough to not fall asleep on it, so, frankly, any of these choices seem correct. We could easily convince him to leave his post with any of these. However, my Constitution stat is my highest.  : I heard what sounded like shouting coming from above. They would need an extra pair of hands up there more than they’d need someone to look after a single man in a cell, wouldn’t you think? : Persuasion Success! : These bars must be as thick around as my wrist, and the prisoner’s been left with nothing to him but his pants. I doubt he’ll be going anywhere while you’re gone. Since Fane is our poster boy, I put one point in persuasion, but he needs two in order to succeed this second check. The only way this could be possible in this tutorial dungeon is if you are also a lizard, since they get Spellsong. : If it’s all the same, I think it’s best he comes with me. Some offense intended. Hear that, Hemwar? We’re talking a walk! Some conversations will have multiple checks. The general rule of thumb is, if you fail the first, it’s a fight; if you fail the second, if applicable, it’s not a fight, but you still don’t get what you want; and if you succeed all checks, everything comes up Milhouse. Since we succeed the first, Rennart will let us by without any trouble, but since we failed the second, he’s not going to leave us alone with Hemwar.   Oh, this probably isn’t good.    : Hemwar and Rennart : Combat Music 3As soon as Rennart steps onto the oil spill, Hemwar casts Fireball on him, igniting the whole spill and exploding half of the brig. Rennart already started at half health and this sneak attack isn’t doing him any favours.  The top of the screen shows us our turn order. Turn order is decided by Wits, meaning my stat is the lowest of the bunch. In larger fights, all battles are strictly my-turn-your-turn, so unless the odds are unevenly stacked, the only reason why you’d want higher Wits (at least with respect to turn order – Wits also determines critical hit chance) is if you want to go first in a fight. Which is reason enough, but what I’m saying is, don’t fret about Wits too much. Rennart is highlighted in yellow, meaning he’s a neutral party; he’ll attack us if provoked, but his main concern is Hemwar. Hemwar is in red, meaning he’s an enemy; blue highlights are player characters; and green hightlights are NPC allies. You can turn these highlights on or off for your immersion’s sake. You take damage when walking through dangerous terrain like fire or poison – one tick of damage for every meter, generally – and Rennart hauls rear end right through it to get to Hemwar.  Rennart and Hemwar are both unarmed, meaning, rather than punch Hemwar in the head, or hug him since he’s on fire, he figures that this is the perfect time to demonstrate his martial prowess by roundhouse-kicking Hemwar in the back of the skull.   Hemwar, after setting Rennart on fire, decides that his work is done and instead focuses on me, kicking me in the crotch before he also roundhouse kicks me in the bucket.  Since every character has Opportunist, and Hemwar put himself within striking distance of me, my movement options are a bit limited. So instead, I fight him man to man.    Anyone that’s familiar with XCOM ought to know how missing a 95% to-hit attack feels. I should probably poke eyeholes into this bucket or something.  A thrust of my knife lands true, at least. You may have noticed the spheres above my health bar. Those are Action Points. I can perform actions as long as I have green spheres to use, and different actions cost a different amount of points. Before any buffs or skills or statuses, a regular strike always costs two AP. Skills and magic depend on the skill or spell being used; Sucker Punch only cost one, for example. Movement costs AP depending on how far you’re moving; whether you have The Pawn (which everyone does); and how many points you have in Scoundrel (the higher, the farther you can move). Everyone always gets four AP a turn to play with and some statuses can give you more or less. Any AP you don’t use is carried over into your next turn. If your positioning isn’t to your liking, and you haven’t made any actions yet, you can choose to Delay your turn, which moves your action to the end of the turn order for that turn. This can be particularly useful if the person delaying moves near the start of the turn order – that way, they get two moves, back-to-back.  Fire, poison, and bleeding do damage per turn. How much damage they do depends on their element, and some people are more resistant to statuses than others (for example, a mage will take less fire damage than a soldier). Rennart’s going to die from the fire on his next turn, so he spends his last breath roundhouse kicking Hemwar once more before trying to blow out his knees with a kick from his boots.    Jeez, these two are very nimble. And Rennart is in full uniform. For my next turn, let’s try using a bit of necromancy magic.    Mosquito Swarm literally summons a swarm of mosquitos to suck the blood straight from whoever I target and heals me for 100% of the damage it does, and it also causes Bleeding. Necromancy also heals the user based on any physical damage they do, and Mosquito Swarm is considered a physical attack, so I heal 37 HP total. Making an undead character a necromancer not only makes thematic sense, it’s also a mechanically sound decision. I end my turn with another stab into Hemwar’s chest.  Predictably, Rennart perishes from the flames on his next turn.  : A dead Magister? Somebody’ll have to take the blame for this… and it won’t be me.: So much for a peaceful stroll. Hemwar stays within my attack range, so I can’t hit him with an Attack of Opportunity, and he strikes me three times in the back of my legs.  On my next turn, I think to try and show off a mechanic in this game, but I need to get away from Hemwar. This’ll give him a free strike, but whatever.   I have two scrolls of Electric Discharge, and Hemwar is standing on a puddle of blood, oil, and water. I could target him directly with one (and, in hindsight, it would have been the smarter move), but I wanted to show off that water and blood can be electrified, which will do air-based magic damage to anyone that touches them while also inflicting Shocked (or Stunned, if they’re already Shocked).   I end my turn with that, saving two AP.  Hemwar is bleeding and shocked, so he takes additional damage from both statuses at the start of his turn. Statuses are no joke in this game!  Hemwar makes his way to me and kicks me once, but is then forced to pass, because his Shocked status messes with his AP:  Let’s [try and] hit him with a different status:   Battering Ram will move the caster to anywhere within the area highlighted in red, and they will tackle any non-allied character as they go, dealing physical damage. It will also Knock Down anyone it hits on the way. Battering Ram is a good, cheap way to move around, especially if you’re Slowed, since the distance is fairly generous and it only costs two AP. It can also be used to reposition, since it’ll go straight through enemies. However, you will still take damage per meter if you use it over a dangerous surface, such as fire or poison, so you can’t cheese environmental dangers with it. If you’re unsure if you’ll hit a target with Battering Ram, turn off the character hightlights. Battering Ram will highlight any targets in its path in red.   Now Hemwar gets only two AP per turn to work with, meaning he can’t move beyond the distance The Pawn grants him and attack on the same turn. All physical attacks against him also have a 225% chance to hit now. Not that he’ll get the chance: I still have 4 AP to work with. Two stabs to the kidneys, and he’s down.    When Hemwar died, he spilled a massive puddle of blood, which hit my feet, which connected to the larger, electrified puddle of blood, which electrified me as well. These are things you need to think about!  I wait for the electricity to simmer out before I check the bodies.  Hemwar had nothing on him, while Rennart had the key to the lab. Fat lot of good it is now, but, when I combine it with a certain ingredient, I can file it down and turn it into lockpicks, so, used keys still have some utility to them.  A quick nap later, and it’s time to finally put this tutorial dungeon behind us. 
Maple Leaf fucked around with this message at 07:53 on Jan 10, 2021 |
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Jan 3, 2021 20:28
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 Well, this place doesn’t look much friendlier. Starting here, we keep a journal that’s constantly updated with our objectives in missions and side-quests, as well as a map and a transcript of any recent conversations. It’ll be used rather frequently throughout the game, and I won’t bog us down with each and every update – except for this one….  Here, we learn that Fane is from a race called the Eternals, and that he was imprisoned by his own king. After breaking free, he had learned somewhere that there may be evidence of his kind located at a place called the Blackpits. Making it there is our first real goal as Fane the Eternal.  With this new area comes lots of new things to loot and examine. The Cooking Pot and Mortar And Pestle are crafting utilities, so I may as well grab them. The Pot Still is also a crafting utility that provides an infinite amount of a resource – for example, a well combined with a bucket will give you infinite water – but it can’t be picked up. The Jawless Skull is just trash, but it can be ground up into dust for yet more crafting. And the book?   We’re an Eternal, and we’re also a Sourcerer. Thanks to some rear end in a top hat calling himself the Source King, we’ve gotten something of a bad reputation (as if our undeadedness wasn’t bad enough), and now we’re being hunted, persecuted, and collared like animals. So, you know, if the boat prison wasn’t sign enough, things are looking pretty cheery! I mean, at least we aren’t dea— Um, right.  It’s the lady that met us in the brig and released us from our bed. She told us to meet up with her after we’ve ‘gotten our bearings.’ Two people have died since then, so, consider our bearings gotten! Maybe Magisters aren’t really chill, down-to-earth folk, but I’m also wearing a bucket for a helmet, so getting all uppity and disrespectful is the wrong play. For now, at least.  : Why, you’re looking a bit more chipper! Yes… looks like that collar fits you snugly enough. Nice bit of work, even if I do say so myself.: Not too tight, I hope? The collar I mean. Oh, not to worry: every dog has to get used to its leash.: In the meantime, your next stop will be Magister William. All passengers have to be registered in the ship’s manifest, and he’s the chap in charge of the logs.Good to know I’m a ‘passenger’ on what is clearly a cruise ship.  Typically, I’m going to try and lean towards the conversation topics that involve our tags (Scholar and Mystic, in this case), for the sake of our immersion, even if I don’t think they’ll be the more beneficial choices. : I recently had a long, dark dream about a dreaded ship, sailing across the river of the damned. But we’re not dead yet, are we?: No… You’re alive and you’re having a conversation. You are on a ship of course, but luckily for us we’re merely sailing the plain old sea.: Index fingers pressed to her lips, she pauses a moment to give you a scrutinising gander.: My word, you do seem a bit befuddled, don’t you? Perhaps I was a bit too generous with that sedative….Yeah, I can hardly feel my toes! : Oh well, I’m sure you’ll soon gather your wits. Most likely. Eventually. In the meantime, all you need to know is that we’re on route to Fort Joy. : If I’m to be treated like a dog, I want to at least know why I’m being dressed like one. ‘Draining a body of Source?’ drat, we’re really leaning into the necromancy part of our inquisitor job! : Currents of magic surge inside you, boiling, bursting, then… breaking, only to fade back into your soul like rain into the earth.: You better stop before you hurt yourself. All will, but no result.: There you have it, see: the collar’s function. It… neuters you, of sorts. Makes you unable to cast Source.Magic and Sourcery are different: most people are able to cast magic, same as most people can wield a sword. But Sourcery is different, and relies on a mystical energy that permeates the world and everyone and everything in it. Sourcerers are a rare breed, and casting magic from Source is similar to playing with the life energies of yourself and anyone and anything around you – it’s essentially blood magic. Magic and Sourcery being different explains why we can use necromancy, but, as demonstrated, we can’t use Source magic while this collar is on our neck. If you thought summoning a swarm of mosquitos from the ether was a neat trick, you haven’t seen anything yet.  May as well come clean about Rennart and Hemwar. She’s going to find out eventually. : There was an… incident involving the prisoner below, in the brig. I believe he’s dead. Do mortals normally excrete that much blood from a stab wound? Wow, she really could not care less about Hemwar. Let’s try telling her about Rennart. : The guard watching the prisoner met the same fate. His blood remains firmly inside his body, for whatever that’s worth. As far as I could tell, anyway.: She frowns and peers at you closely, concern clearly etched upon her face.: Hmmm. Delusions such as these are rare, but not unheard of. I recommend a cup of mulled wine and another night’s sleep. Just… take it easy.Nah, she just doesn’t care. Good to know. She told us to go meet Magister William to be registered into the ship’s manifest. We’ve learned about the collar and its purpose, but, you know, we’re still essentially naked and we’ve but cut off from our most powerful magic. The safer move is to just do as she says for now.  Beside her, sitting on a pedestal, is a book that is cryptically titled “Ancient Book”. You might notice that it has a red outline, though – this book is considered off limits, and trying to read it would be akin to attempting to pickpocket someone in broad daylight. Which is to say, I can. I just can’t be caught doing it.  So if you want to do something illicit, you have to make sure you won’t be caught doing it. Haven’t you ever heard of the eleventh commandment? “Don’t get caught.” Pressing the Sneak button is a simple yes-or-no equation. Are you currently in someone’s line of sight (highlighted in this picture as the red area)? If no, you are now sneaking. If yes, they will notice your attempt and call you out for it, and depending on their attitude and your location, it may just result in a fight. As long as Siwan doesn’t turn around and look at us, we can read, or even steal, the book if we want. And in case you’re curious: what you sneak as depends on the terrain you’re standing on. Grassy terrain normally results in a bush; rocky terrain results in a rock; and most man-made terrains result in this barrel.   Apparently, the ‘Source King’ was something of a… tinkerer, and he delighted in thinking up ways to manipulate that which was previously thought untouchable. Considering manipulating Source is already akin to dreaded blood magic, this guy must really have been off his rocker.  And Siwan got it from someone named Dallis. So, the scribbling from the book must be Dallis’s? That’s probably a name to remember. Moving on….  The closest magister guard has nothing to say; she just gives us a dirty look and holds tighter onto her weapon when we pass by. She apparently doesn’t feel too comfortable next to a man wearing rags, a neutering collar, and a bucket on his head. The other one proves a bit more talkative.  : Dear Gods… what’s happened here?: There’s been a murder. A Sourcerer was killed by one of your own. Lucky you were busy getting your collar fitted at the time, or you’d be a suspect like the rest of ‘em. : (Not the first distraction I had in mind, but whatever keeps their attention away from me is a welcome turn of events.): Move along. We’re allowed to just waltz right on in to the crime scene. We leave footprints in the blood puddles and we’re allowed to tamper with the scene as much as we like (but not the body – we’ll have to be sneaking to do that).  : Ugly sight, isn’t it? : Security seems pretty relaxed around this crime scene if you’re letting just anyone enter it. It could have been me, after all.: She looks up at you with a mirthless smile.: I was on duty in your room when the murder happened – you were asleep the whole time. Didn’t even stir. : What basis do you have to assume that a Sourcerer did this? Any magister on this ship could have easily done the same.: Finn was killed by Source. If a Magister could do that… they wouldn’t be a Magister.: It looks more like a passenger managed to slip their collar. And the rest… well, you see the evidence in front of you.: Listen… I could use someone to keep their ears open among the passengers. Sometimes they clam up in front of a uniform. : One of your colleagues referred to me as a ‘dog on a leash.’ And I can’t say I’m feeling particularly obedient.: Think about it. It’s one of you who got killed. Not one of us. We want to find who did it and bring them to justice. Who’s your real enemy here?Well, a group of innocent people have been shackled, collared, neutered, and are being brought to an island prison where they’ll probably spend the rest of their lives. Even if whoever killed Finn wasn’t a Magister, that doesn’t mean that the Magisters are my friends. : You let me know if you hear anything. Whoever did this is dangerous.Sure, I’ll get right on that    A guy, presumably Finn, in a place called Driftwood, kissed a lady; the lady turned into a spider; the spider bit the guy and drank his blood; and he… liked it quite a lot, apparently. Fun story!  I can loot Finn’s corpse, but his outline is red, and Waters is staring directly at it. I’ll need her to turn the other way if I want to scrounge around this guy’s remains.   Just like that. I took what looks like a piece of drumstick from Finn’s still-burning-with-Source corpse. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do with that, but, I have it now, so that’s good. Let’s move deeper into the ship. I hear voices on the other side of the next door over – maybe it’s time to meet my fellow passengers.   : Do you know Lohse? She’s a really good singer. I’m better though. Listen! LA LA LA LA LA! : I’m here because I’m magic. Are you here cause you’re weird? : You look like my daddy. His name is Freder. He’s waiting for me at home.I sort of doubt I look like anyone’s dad. Well… unless they’ve been dead for a while, anyway.  : Ah, there you are, *ahem*, husband! : I’m afraid you’ve confused me for… someone else wearing a bucket on their head.: Why, I never! I left my good pearls at home or I’d be clutching them with all my daintiest, most lady-like might! Say as you will, husband. Madame Josephine Gribbles De Peeb won’t be treated so!: The children break out into giggles.: What? What’s so funny?: Her pinched face cracks into a great grin and she shoos the children away from her with a laugh.: You ok, you found me out. Go on and git and maybe I’ll sing you somethin’ when I’m good and ready!: She turns to you, dark-eyed and dirty-haired, and smiles flatly. : Couldn’t you have found some companions that were more your age group to mingle with? : A Sourcerer was recently murdered on this ship. I was in the brig getting my collar fitted the whole time and I’m left a bit in the dark, as it were. Would you happen to know anything about it? : Like I said, I’ve been in the brig the whole time, and I could use someone to watch my back while I get a handle on my bearings. We could look after each other, if you’ve nobody to watch your own.: Thanks, but I already belong to an elite and exclusive ship gang. We play ball every day after lunch. You’re too soft for it. You take care, though.I’m literally the hardest person on this boat. I’d certainly grant that I’m too hollow for it. : Suddenly, her eyes cloud to an unnatural black. Greyish veins run down her face, and her mouth tightens into a cruel sneer. As quickly as they came, the clouds clear. She smiles as though no change came over her.: Good luck, chief. Uh… you too. Heading around to the other side of the ship….  Bedrolls! Never underestimate the rejuvenate effects of a good night’s sleep. Sleeping in a bedroll will restore your party’s HP and will also grant the Well Rested status, which provides a handful of buffs that last for several turns. You only need one bedroll (per team, anyway – if you play with three other friends, they’ll each need their own), and it’s likely that this one will last us the entire game. One of the Larian Gift Bag mods allows us to resurrect anyone in our party from the dead by sleeping in a bedroll. This isn’t overpowered so much since you can’t sleep during a fight, but I do feel it intrudes on the economy of the Resurrect scrolls you can find or purchase, so I didn’t install that one. However, there’s another Gift Bag mod involving bedrolls and Source Points that I did turn on. It’ll be a long while before Source Points are relevant, and I’ll explain what that other mod did and why I turned it on when we get to that point.  : You’re looking positively radiant, Missus Cottentail. Would you mind if I had some wool for myself? : H-a-a-a-ven’t got any shears, have you? People these days…Well, she’s willing; we just need some shears. Wool is another crafting ingredient if we’d be so inclined.  Continuing around the bend of the ship, we come across another unique individual. I wonder if we’ve seen here before somewhere? : An elf sits tucked away in a dark spot, lazily rolling dice onto the surface of a barrel. They sound like the dry cackling of an old witch. : Snake eyes.: She chuckles. : What are you doing here?: Rolling dice. : Hah! Seeing the future in the roll of a pair of die! And I suppose you could tell a person’s fortune in a pile of cow guts, too?: She eyes you quite seriously.: Not the future, no. But I can read the past in flesh. One of the perks of being an elf, you see. I’m quite good at it, too. : Why not? Let’s see if there’s any truth to what you’re saying.: She looks at you in surprise when you bare an arm of bone.Oh. Right. Kind of important. : My. Guess I’ll have to find out the memory from marrow, won’t I?: She gives your arm a vigorous stroke of the tongue; efficient, like a cat grooming.: Hmmm… You were in a cellar with other Sourcerers. Watching. Staring at them. Hoping that none would stare back. : That’s… that’s correct. Wow.: Of course it is. The truth’s right there. Skin deep – so to speak. But don’t you worry, darling: your secret’s safe with me. : Alright, I’ll admit that I’m intrigued. Whose fate are your dice deciding?: Don’t worry, honey. It isn’t yours.: She looks you up and down with the merest hint of a coy smile on her lips.: Never say never, though. So… elves can see the past by tasting someone’s flesh? Or, in my case, their bone marrow? That… gives me an idea. I need to find some place secluded.  There’s a landing just across the hall from Finn’s murder scene. It has a door to keep me secluded, and there’s nobody else in there. Provided nobody interrupts me, it should be the perfect spot.  After closing the door behind me, I equip my Mask of the Shapeshifter. I can turn into any of this world’s races and assume all of their qualities and traits. Meaning, if I turn into an elf, and I consume this drumstick that I found from Finn’s corpse….    : As the dead man’s flesh slides down your throat, you feel his consciousness enter yours. His memories are yours to experience. You are Finn.: Your heart is heavy. You know too much; it’s all too much. You met… you met… him…: A bright light blinds you, then fades. You feel a tremendous power in your hands, but they are shaking so hard you can barely use them.: Suddenly, you’re on this very ship, crouched in a corner, hugging your knees. A figure approaches – an older woman. Her eyes are kind. She comes closer; she says she wants to talk. She reaches a hand toward you – you grasp it.: The memories end. You are no longer Finn. You return to yourself with a jolt. So, Finn met someone, a ‘him,’ and apparently this one meeting terrified Finn to his very core, and then after that, he met an elderly woman that just wanted to talk with him. Seeing as his memories end as soon as their hands meet, it’s probable that this ‘elderly woman’ is the Sourcerer that exploded him. But, moreover, we learned the skill Adrenaline for free with that memory. Consuming the flesh of others as an elf will imbibe their memories and skills onto you – usually, this is either flavour text or a hint to a puzzle or somesuch, but occasionally, you’re rewarded with free skills. Since skills are usually purchased from vendors, getting them for free is a big bonus. Adrenaline is a Scoundrel skill, and we have no points in Scoundrel to use it, but it’s such a useful skill that it’s worth considering investing a point just to utilize it. Adrenaline gives us two Action Points to use immediately, but in exchange, our next turn will have two AP less. This is such a wildly powerful skill that the Divinity Unleashed mod had to nerf it by removing the user’s armour until two turns after Adrenaline is used. We can’t use Adrenaline, but we have it, and it’s nice to have things.  Moving onto the central platform of the floor, we find two dwarves arguing about something. One is shirtless and the other is wearing a really nice hat. God, that’s a nice hat.  : You one of them? A Divine Order loyal? They killed a Sourcerer, you know. They’ll hide the evidence well enough, but make no mistake.This guy may have every reason to be paranoid. Let’s try talking to his companion and his magnificent beard. : A board dwarf sits totally upright on the bench, eyes closed, palms face up on his knees. His beard is a cascade of meticulous plaits, each one braided through with golden medallions. He raises an eyebrow as you approach but doesn’t open his eyes. : What am I meant to be hearing? : A wave of sound washes over you: The unintelligible chatter of your shipmates; the groaning of wood from floor to ceiling; the boom, crash, and crackle of waves around you, complaints from the sea itself. : It’s almost as if the sea’s come alive with fury and is trying to take us under.: The fellow cocks his ear, listening. : That isn’t anger. It’s…: He cocks his ear to the other side, then smiles.: Anticipation. She senses something. I’d hold onto my breeches if I were you, mate. : What, exactly, am I supposed to be listening for this time? I’ve already told you – :There, now… just like that…: Squ-e-e-e-e-a-a-a-k!: Aha!: His eyes snap open as his countenance breaks into an expression of joy. One great paw claps you on the back; the other catches you before you lose your footing. : … It’s just a rat.: No, you beautiful idiot! That wasn’t any rat. It was the wheel. Squeaks whenever the helmsman jerks it clockwise, which means we’re heading east. : You must be a practised sailor for you to pick out such a fine detail through all the ambience of the ship. Does that figure mean anything to you?: Captain, actually. And the figure tells me we’re getting close to the Joy… close to what lies beyond it, too.: The dwarf leans back from the table and strokes his beard, gold medallions jingling merrily. His eyes roll over to you. If we’re going to a prison island, it might do to have a sea captain as thoroughly experienced as him on hand to get out.  Wandering all throughout the deck is a Magister accompanied by his hound. They’re probably doing the rounds to try and find the murderer themselves.  : *Snifflesnifflesnifflesniffle* You! Sourcerer! Blood? No! Go! *Bark*! : I am Fane.: Well, you aren’t here on my list. Scram, eh? We’re trying to catch a killer here.Okay, good talk.  In what appears to pass for the ship’s kitchen are two lizards, a blue one and a red one. They appear to just be milling about.  : *Sigh*. I spent my life singing for my slaves to bring me my supper. Finer fare than boiled roots and rotten tubers, too! Meanwhile, the Magisters feast on honeyed meat behind this very wall. The indignity…Slaves? Was she royalty back home? Maybe this is karma. Hopefully the red one isn’t nearly as… high-brow.  : Well, well! What have we here? A fresh face in this stale hell. Let’s size you up, shall we? See if you’ll do.: The lizard looks you up and down, like a farmer would a fetching horse.That’s immediately a bad sign.  : Wha’ on earff are you doing?: I’m inspecting your teeth – in case that wasn’t spectacularly obvious.: Mmmmm… There’s some discolouration – as well as a rather disconcerting lack of tongue and gums – but I’ve seen worse. After all, one can’t expect to find prime merchandise on a squalid little ship like this.I should hope you wouldn’t find people to be ‘prime merchandise’ anywhere else, but I guess that’s just the world we live in, now! Not to mention that the ‘world we live in now’ includes people missing their tongues and gums and an undead dude is still in better condition than that.  : Without getting into details, the last time I tried, your parents’ parents’ parents weren’t even ideas, yet.: In which case I take it your cuisine is limited to the introduction of eggs to hot water. How disappointing. : Well… give me a sheet of satin and I can make a bum look like a baron. Although my skill was entirely borne out of necessity than passion.: Oh, but to feel the caress of satin on my scarlet skin once more! A most satisfactory answer indeed! : I’ve been locked in a crypt for most of my very, very long life. The concept of a perfume is a new one to me. In fact, I haven’t seen a washtub in… what year is this, again?: Just as I thought. That explains what’s besieging my nostrils.: So! Three questions asked, three questions answered. Let’s evaluate, shall we? As per your own testimony, you can tailor, but you have the taste buds of a dung beetle, and your personal hygiene reminds one of a carcass rotting in the sun. : … Beg pardon? Your what?: My slave, of course! Oh, but I see. Yes, I suppose it must take some time for the full extent of my disheartening refusal to sink in. Still, hone your skills, and one day you may just qualify for a position in a lesser household than mine. You keep dreaming, you hear! … Cool. Let’s, uh, talk to someone else. Someone away from this pompous rear end in a top hat. I hear voices coming from my right; surely they’re better company than this.  Oh, good! A much brighter, more welcoming topic than slavery! This one Magister looks different, and I’m pretty wary of that big, swinging mace he’s got on his belt. Maybe I’ll just skip directly to the rugged gentleman in the back. : A scruffy man lounges against the wall with scarred arms folded. A sly smile playing on his face, he stares across at the Magister guarding him. Noticing you, he straightens and beckons for you to come closer.  : Watch your back, new fish. There’s a murderer on board, and I’d bet three months pay it’s this tramp Ifan. : He leans in and adjusts your collar with a sharp tug, balancing its weight so it no longer presses unpleasantly on your neck. He winks. : Pinches less that way, right?I am a skeleton. I’m surprised I have nerves to pinch.  : We used to know each other, more’s the pity. I was his command many many many moons ago. Isn’t that right, Vik?: Standing far back from Ifan, the tight-faced Magister draws one finger across his throat in an elaborate fashion, but says nothing. Ifan grins, flashing pointed white teeth. : You were once his superior, you said? What happened to cause your positions to be reversed? : … Did you do it? For my own curiosity.: No.: The dead man – Finn, is it? I’d no business with him. And I wouldn’t put a man down without good reason.: He glances over at Magister Viktar, who’s staring back at him with pointed intensity. : I’ve heard the name Fort Joy from time to time during my socializing here. All I really know is that it’s an island prison. Do you know anything else about it?: The Joy? I’ve heard a lot. Nothing good. No surprise there, since Bishop Alexander runs the show. : I have my own concerns to worry about. I’m not interested in anyone named Alexander; all I need is to survive Fort Joy and get out.: Not interested in the son of the Divine himself? Ha, I don’t blame you one bit… but Vik here’ll blow a blood vessel if he hears you talking like that.: What are you conspiring about over there? You! What’s your name?: Ah, don’t mind him. Vik’s just got a bee in his bonnet. And that bee is me. : In order to properly pronounce it, I’d have to remove your tongue, then gut your throat and salt the wounds.: So, instead, you may call me Fane.: Magister Viktar looks at you suspiciously, then scrawls something illegible down in a tiny notebook. He scowls at you as he stows the notebook back in his voluminous robes.: Away with you. At once!: Ifan performs an elaborate pantomime of keeping quiet, one finger in front of his lips as he leans back against the wall. Of all the people I’ve met so far, Ifan seems like a pretty cool guy. The next closest is maybe Sebille or Lohse, if they weren’t interested in tasting people or if they weren’t very obviously possessed, respectively. That’s everyone on this floor of the ship. The only thing left to do is report to Magister William and get myself registered on the ship’s manifest. Nobody that I’ve met fits the description of an ‘elderly woman,’ so we’re not much closer to solving this murder mystery – not that I’d report to Waters if we were.  This guy guards the door to William’s chambers – I’m assuming, anyway. Siwan told me to go to the other side of the deck, and this is the only way forward.  : Here to register, sir? Good, good; Magister William is just about done with the last passenger. : Well, I’m wearing a collar that blocks me from a part of myself that I’ve known all my existence; I’m stuck on a ship being transported to an island prison; and there’s been a murder on board and we’re all stuck with a murderer. How are you?: He tugs the collar of his uniform and chuckles.: Sorry you’re upset, sir. But we all wear what we wear for a reason.Easy for you to say. : You head on in now. William’ll get you sorted fast. The door swings open, and we’re treated to what looks like a beautiful, full-course banquet… but there are a number of Magisters off to the side of the table, with several of them pointed their weapons at… an elderly woman!  : You seem on edge, officer. What on earth is the matter? : Murder most foul! And I strongly suspect you know all about it!: Do you? Well, perhaps you’re absolutely right…: Standing at the centre of the room you spot a Sourcerer haughtily eyeing a pair of nervous-looking Magisters. They keep their crossbow trained upon her as she’s being interrogated by an officer.: So you admit it then? You murdered that poor fellow?: Yes, I did. But of course that was only the beginning…: She turns her head and looks you straight in the eye.: There are others whose lives must end.: Good gods, the woman’s mad! : … Why did you look straight at me when you said that?: It means your journey draws to a close. Do stick around for its finale though. Because…: She reaches for her collar and simply removes it.Oh, it’s just that easy, is it? : I’m just about to create a scene.: Subdue her, men! Quickly! If she casts Source, the Voidwoken will come! They’ll end us all!: She smiles with wicked satisfaction.: Precisely. Finally, it’s time for another fight! I’m a bit under-prepared, but it’s four-versus-one. All we have to do is take her out before she blasts us with Source!    And just like that, our journey is at its end. Thank you for joining me on this Let’s Play of Divinity: Original Sin 2! This ending was a long time coming, and I loved every second of it. Our journey has had its ups and downs, but hopefully, you’ve come to appreciate this masterpiece of a game like I have. I’ll see you next time! Maple Leaf fucked around with this message at 19:18 on Jan 4, 2021 |
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Jan 3, 2021 20:28
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Wonderful conclusion, I can see why this game is rated so highly. Thanks for showing it off.
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Jan 3, 2021 20:54
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Well we weren't going to tell her we found the murderer anyway.
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Jan 4, 2021 01:55
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The combat really shows the problem with the AI, they act really randomly in combat.
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Jan 4, 2021 09:10
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Jan 4, 2021 13:42
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Alas, poor Fane! I knew him, Goonatio, a fellow of infinite jest and of most excellent fancy
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Jan 4, 2021 13:43
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This update shows the issue I had with Red Prince- at the outset, he's a huge jerk who's all about enslavement. I had no idea about this when I made him my main, so I spent the entire game trying to negate "Lizard Supremacist" as a concept.
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Jan 4, 2021 18:54
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It is also why I never took him with me and made it a habit of killing him on the boat...and in all future locations you encounter him. I don't bother to get to know Slavers just like you shouldn't bother looking past other certain traits.
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Jan 9, 2021 01:30
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Hello, and welcome to my New Game Plus playthrough of Divinity: Original Sin 2! Larian made the unique and unusual decision to put most of the game’s content in their post-game material. Our last playthrough ended with us dying, which ended our campaign rather suddenly. Luckily, our next campaign begins with all of our stats, materials, and techniques just where we left them. With one exception.  Our Mask of the Shapeshifter’s been stolen, and most likely by that elderly woman while we were out. So until we get it back, we’re stuck as an undead – we can’t turn into any of the other races of the setting, and if we’re seen with any part of our body exposed, we’ll incite a panic. That’s concerning. Also, the ship is on fire.  Everyone except me has been reduced to a pile of blood and guts. The Source Blast that the Windego fired off absolutely vaporized every single person on the ship. The sheep and the dog from the previous update weren’t spared.  Or… did it vaporize everyone?  : WAKE UP!: She doesn’t stir. Well, I’m… reasonably confident that Lohse survived the blast, but she’s out of sorts and out of commission. I’ve tried absolutely everything to wake her up and nothing worked. Let’s keep looking. Maybe there are other survivors. Survivors that are conscious.  Odds aren’t looking great….  : Get up, we have to go!: Her hand lies limp in yours. She’s too weak to stand.: The dice roll darkly… They’re rolling for me… Not only did Viktar absolutely not survive the blast, even his remains are still on fire.  : His eyes flicker open, but he doesn’t register your presence at all.: Lucian, Lucian…: Ifan cries out, then his eyes fall closed again. No matter how much you shake him now, he cannot be roused. Maybe the sea captain? Surely a little shake isn’t going to knock a guy as surely as him out for long, right?  : Are you alright? Did you survive the blast?: Ungh… … As much as he may or may not deserve it, it wouldn’t sit well with me if I didn’t at least check on the slaver.  I’ll gladly take the opportunity to slap him awake, though. : You… you dare strike a royal… Ooohhh…: The lizard’s eyes close as he slips into unconsciousness. Well, I tried. As far as I know, that’s everyone on this deck of the skip. Everyone else exploded into a pile of blood and guts.  Heading back to the dining room, where the explosion first happened, there’s a handful of things to investigate, including three dead bodies. There’s lots of food on the table, but I can’t eat any of it – if I tried, I’d hurt myself.  Each of the dead Magisters have some equipment for me to pilfer, though. I’m wearing rags and bandages in order to keep my appearance concealed, but, naturally, I can replace any of it with actual equipment that’ll give me a fighting chance in some real combat. That’s to say, while I wouldn’t exactly be willing to pick a fight with a dragon or something with a pair of muddy mittens, the muddy mittens would, in fact, provide more protection than the wrappings I have now.  And, bonus, these pants even give me slightly better movement.  There’s a chest in the corner of the room that’s been marked with ‘confiscated goods.’ Hopefully there’s something in there that I can use, too.  An improvised staff for wizards; a two-handed makeshift club; and a rusted two-handed sword that appears broken. This equipment all works in my favour, since I have a point in both Strength and Intelligence, and I could easily work with all three of these weapons if I wanted to. But since I’m an inquisitor, I’ll be more of a tankier, in-your-face kind of guy, and a wizard’s staff doesn’t really inspire that kind of fear. Although a two-handed sword would probably ‘inspire fear’ better than a wooden club… well, it also might not. Are you more afraid of a big guy whipping around a big sword, or a big guy whipping around a big, faceless wooden club?  Since my offhand is no longer free, I don’t get access to Sucker Punch any longer. However, in exchange, since I’m using a two-handed weapon, I now get access to a skill called All In: for 3 AP, I can deal a single attack that does 125% of my normal damage. Normally, that’s actually an awful trade, but the thinking is that, since you’re using a big, heavy two-handed weapon, you probably aren’t going to be doing a lot of moving in the first place, and you may find yourself with an odd number of AP to spend. You could spend them on doing a normal attack and then some other action that only costs 1 AP, or, you could blow all three right now and just wallop a guy. It has a fringe use.  There’s a door here that’s been blocking my entrance into a room that looks to be the ship’s proper kitchen, with plates and pots and racks and food, as opposed to the squalor the prisoners had. Although the kitchen has two doors, they’re both locked, and my thievery level is too low to pick them. Time to break in this old club, then.      There’s a ton of food just sitting there, out in the open… along with a small bottle of poison. Odds are decent that someone on this ship wasn’t looking to play nice. Still, that bottle of poison would actually be the equivalent of a healing potion for myself, so I’ll go ahead and take that. And what’s this about a journal?  Hell yeah, dude.  There’s nothing left for us to steal on this deck, so we might as well continue upwards. Luckily for us, this ship is taking its sweet time to sink.  As soon as I make it to the top of the stairs, I’m greeted with this particularly easy environmental puzzle. I also hear a dog howling in one of the side rooms. Let’s just put out this fire first….   If you let fire go out on its own, it creates smoke; if you put it out with water, it makes steam. Steam is essentially a water surface, but as a gas, meaning it can be electrified, and if I’m on fire, I can walk through it to put me out. Which, you know, considering it’s steam, that seems counter-intuitive, but I’m not going to judge. Entering the next room over introduces me to the source of all the howling.   : The dog notices you for the first time and snarls, the hairs on its back prickling as it lowers itself into a lunge.: *Snarl!* You! Sourcerer!: It sneezes suddenly and paws at its nose once more.: Can’t smell! Can’t breathe! Too much Source! Too much! Too much! : I’m not the one who did all this, and believe me, if I could stop whatever’s happening to the ship to keep it from sinking, I would!: *Growl!* Sourcerer… BARK! BARK! BARK!: The dog whines and continues pawing at its nose. The ship is heaving so hard that water is flooding in from the windows above the beds. It’s a perfect time to get some beauty rest, if you ask me. We appear to be in the crew’s quarters. There’s a locked door nearby that I can see leads into a much larger room with a more opulent bed – perhaps the captain’s quarters? Odd that you have to go through the crew’s before you can get to the captain’s.   The door is locked, but it doesn’t require any skill in lockpicking to open, thankfully.  The captain’s personal chest contains a crummy shirt, some alcohol, a psychedelic mushroom, and a fire arrow, presumably to smoke the mushroom with. Guy knew how to party.  Throwing the shirt on gives us this. Aesthetically, this is the look we’re rocking, at least for now – we can put on a belt, two rings, and a necklace to further improve ourselves and our stats, but they don’t show up as clothing on our model. I feel the bucket helmet really completes the look; lets the world know that they are speaking to Boney Goonerson.  There’s a great big desk with some shelves loaded with books in the center of the room, as well as two Magisters cowering in the corner. Approaching the desk puts us in conversation automatically.  : Thank the Gods! By Divine grace, who was that howling…: He eyes the collar circling your neck and reaches a hand towards his blade. : Think of your priorities, man! If you can get this drat collar off of me, I can help you and your friend get off this boat with our lives! : Are you certain that woman’s a Sourcerer? She removed that anti-Sourcerer collar of hers without any trouble at all. : There was no ‘Sourcerer mutiny.’ If there was, why am I still here, wearing this collar, trying to find a way out?: Persuasion Success!: Go on then. Find a place to hide. And stay there.Hide? On a boat? Every man for himself, then. Fine. Just remember that I offered first. There’s a letter on the table to my left, and another on the captain’s desk.   And if Murtof is the captain (which I base on nothing), then Ricks must be the first mate. And I assume Ricks is the Magister curled into the foetal position at Murtof’s feet.   : What… what will happen to us?Well, I’m the protagonist, so I’m probably fine. You’re a Magister, so immediately you can get bent, but your letter also implies that you’ve got your doubts about what it is you’re doing and whether it’s the right thing to do, so… I don’t hope you die, but you’re on your own.  Alexander. I’ve heard exactly one story about him, just recently. Something about him being the Divine’s son, which makes him the leader of the Magisters. The one person that can get the bentest. There are a handful of books stacked up beside this fancy chair and footstool next to Murtof that provide some interesting insight into the backstory of the setting – as well as some references to Divinity: Original Sin 1.    So, the Source King from before is named Braccus Rex. He had been resurrected recently – or, well, however ‘recently’ was, since the publication of this book – by a cult named the Immaculates, and it took two Source Hunters to take him down. Braccus was once an ordinary man that, like many Sourcerers, used his powers for the good of mankind, but, like many Sourcerers, the Source eventually corrupted him into performing unspeakable experiments on an ‘isle he called home,’ eventually culminating in him turning his own sister into a lich and binding his soul to hers, making him immortal. This being a game and story inspired by Dungeons & Dragons, odds are pretty good that the island prison we’re going to is one in the same. Wait… if he was immortal, then why did he need to be resurrected in the first place? And how did just two Source Hunters take him down? Questions for another game, perhaps.  The opposite side of the captain’s cabin has another locked door, which leads to a private dining hall with nothing but a cup made of gold in it.   Whenever you find a new item that you want to pick up specifically so you can sell it, you can right-click that item and choose “Add to Wares.” When you meet a trader, pressing one button will offer up every item that you’ve listed as wares automatically, so that you don’t have to scour through your inventory and manually select every piece of vendor trash that you’ve picked up one after the other. Divinity: Original Sin 2 gets a lot of flak for how terribly its inventory system was handled, but this one move was genius. And it’s perfect for you min-maxing packrat players!   The next room over appears to be the ship’s storage. Crates and barrels and bags of stuff line the deck from front to back, along with the occasional dead body.  Nails have generally one use as a craftable item that we’ll be seeing fairly liberally in the future.  That door looks fun. Whatever’s behind it must be important, and I doubt they’d have left it unlocked. Just to the north of the door is another dead body, and this one is important because it has a name. Looting his body gives us a key and a note.   Something called Deathfog? That ought to be a name to keep in mind for later. Following traditional RPG mechanics, let’s try using the skull-shaped key on the door with the giant skull on it. : The marking on the door was painted recently, judging from its pungent scent. You recognise the symbol immediately for what it is: a warning of Deathfog within. As opposed to how I normally feel otherwise, I guess? Which… is a good thing? Things like personal health get murky when you’re a skeleton.     As soon as the door breaks open, several long tentacles, each the size of one of those hallways behind me, burst through the ship’s hull and destroy some of the barrels of cargo within the Deathfog room, spilling their contents all over the floor.  Deathfog will instantly kill anyone that’s not already dead. There is no defense against it. It’s the ultimate weapon to use against a living target. If you can procure a barrel of the stuff and you have the storage capacity to haul it around with you, it’s essentially a one-time-use instant-win button for nearly any fight in the game. Also, it’s very pretty to look at. It has a weird particle effect where the starry sprinkles inside the fog remain stationary no matter how far the camera pans, which is difficult to convey with screenshots.  Us being undead, we can just waltz right into Deathfog like it wasn’t even there, but any living companions we might get in the future won’t be so fortunate. Aside from three dead bodies each carrying pocket change, there isn’t anything of note in the Deathfog room, other than the fog itself. This was probably just to introduce you to the fog and to let you know not to mess with it – the message would probably have landed a lot better if we weren’t already undead.  Nothing left but to go up to the top deck of the ship–   : Battle Above Deck: Symphony of the Void– and as soon as we do, we’re thrust into combat with a neutral Magister Knight and two… slug things.   Sorry, just the two slug things.  The first slug thing walks around the poison puddle in order to whack me in the shin with its… tongue? Hitting me for a solid 24 HP.   So I return the favour by summoning my swarm of mosquitos to suck its… blood? Dry.   I also use Battering Ram to knock it down and give it some more debuffs, but looking back on this fight, I should have either aimed for the voidling in the back, or I should have stopped in the center of the poison puddle. The voidling walked around the puddle, so it’s probably not immune to poison, whereas that’s kind of my natural habitat.   The other one takes the shortest distance from point A to point B and makes a beeline straight for me, but doesn’t have the AP to make it all the way to me, so he stops just after the poison and then chitters menacingly toward my general direction.  The first voidling takes a few potshots at me….  … So I respond in kind. The voidling has 82 HP remaining, and I’m hitting for roughly around 42 per hit, and it’s bleeding from the mosquitos, so I should be able to take it out on my next turn.  The other voidling hiccups in its poison… and then passes its turn. Most likely, it’s too fat to fit between its partner and the dead Magister Knight beside me in order to strike me, so it can’t actually do anything to hit me. But, that said, it’s going to have a ton of AP next turn.  My turn comes up first next round, and, with two surely strikes of my wooden, faceless club, the first voidling goes down.  Thanks to the Executioner perk, I get two more AP to spend this turn. The other voidling is going to hit me for quite a lot of damage next round, so I use Mosquito Swarm on it to restore my own HP a bit in order to brace for the strikes.  It hit me five times total….  … Leaving me with roughly a quarter of my total HP remaining. The other necromancer spell I have, Blood Sucker, sucks up all of the blood in a small circle around my feet in order to heal me. The more blood around me, the more I heal, and it seems like these creatures bleed normal blood, so, if it’s not going to do them any good, I might as well suck it straight into my marrow.   Blood Sucker only costs 1 AP, leaving me with three. I can’t attack more than once with only three, but I can use All In, which costs three AP for a single strike that does 125% damage.    I go first on the next turn, and, with one more strike and one more use of Mosquito Swarm to get as much healing out of it as I can, the bug is squashed.  The ship is under attack my some kind of kraken. Armoured tentacles, each longer than the sip is from bow to stern, coil around the ship and repeatedly squeeze and jiggle around it, blocking off most of my paths for exploration.   Approaching the ship’s wheel causes some smaller tentacles to strike at an oil barrel sitting on top of a spill; the strike causes a spark (even in the torrential rain) and it immolates the two Magisters trying their best to get the ship back under control from something many times their size.  But what I see are two water barrels, as well as two lootable corpses in the depths of the inferno. You can pick up drat near any object that it’s nailed down in this game; barrels can contain anything from water to oil to ooze (poison) to Deathfog, and you can add them all into your inventory for use on the go whenever and wherever you want. Naturally, they take up a hell of a lot of carrying capacity, but, generally, your party’s bruiser isn’t going to have an issue carting it all around.  You know, up to a point.    Getting up as close as I can to the fire, I throw the first water barrel onto the blaze, putting out most of it, and making a path for me to reach the two dead Magisters. My reward for that effort was seven bucks, a makeshift wand – not even a real one – and a Blinding Radiance scroll. Blinding Radiance does Air damage and Blinds anyone within five meters around me, which, hey, that’s a decent spell for an up-close-and-personal guy like me to have.  Whatever is underneath this boat is… well, it’s big. To think, this was brought forward by that little old lady casting one little spell.  Rounding the bend to the other side of the ship, I find… a lifeboat! I mean, the frigate didn’t stand a chance against the kraken, so a lifeboat very seriously has all the prospects of a snowball’s chance in Hell, but the frigate is toast; the lifeboat’s odds of making it out in the storm with the kraken are infinitesimal, but non-zero. : Shut yet trap, kid. Children and dwarves first, just like the ol’ stories say!: The dwarf yanks at one of the nearby ropes to no avail.: You said there were other people down there. We… we need to help them! If you recall, there are a number of our acquaintances below the decks that are still alive, but were unconscious and unresponsive when we tried to rouse them awake. The ship is being torn apart by the second, but they’re still down there – can we be so callous as to leave them down there at the fate of the kraken? Can we afford to spend the time to rescue them? Do we head back below deck to rescue some of our fellow Sourcerers? Or do we take this opportunity to escape on the lifeboat? Let me know by tomorrow! Maple Leaf fucked around with this message at 20:12 on Jan 10, 2021 |
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Jan 10, 2021 07:48
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I'm trying something a bit different with the cropping for the pictures. The character sheet is maybe a little tall, but their width is flush with the rest of the screenshots. Let me know if you'd like me to make some more adjustments to the screenshots for clarity!
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Jan 10, 2021 07:51
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Maple Leaf posted:Whenever you find a new item that you want to pick up specifically so you can sell it, you can right-click that item and choose “Add to Wares.” When you meet a trader, pressing one button will offer up every item that you’ve listed as wares automatically, so that we don’t have to scour through your inventory and manually select every piece of vendor trash that you’ve picked up one after the other. Divinity: Original Sin 2 gets a lot of flak for how terribly its inventory system was handled, but this one move was genius. And it’s perfect for you min-maxing packrat players! quote:Do we head back below deck to rescue some of our fellow Sourcerers? Or do we take this opportunity to escape on the lifeboat?
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Jan 10, 2021 08:01
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Maple Leaf posted:Whenever you find a new item that you want to pick up specifically so you can sell it, you can right-click that item and choose “Add to Wares.” When you meet a trader, pressing one button will offer up every item that you’ve listed as wares automatically, so that we don’t have to scour through your inventory and manually select every piece of vendor trash that you’ve picked up one after the other. Divinity: Original Sin 2 gets a lot of flak for how terribly its inventory system was handled, but this one move was genius. And it’s perfect for you min-maxing packrat players!  I am a simple soul. This makes me very happy. Maple Leaf posted:
Rescue, I guess. They might be useful. We're undead, we're not on as strict a time limit to escape as the others would be. Worst case scenario we can jump overboard, sink, and walk to the nearest coast.
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Jan 10, 2021 08:16
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Rescue 'em. If they managed to survive a blast that vaporized a bunch of magisters maybe we could use them.
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Jan 10, 2021 08:40
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Abandon. If they were amenable to being rescued they could have woken up when we tried, this is all on them.
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Jan 10, 2021 08:43
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\b\ Rescue.\b\ HOW BOLD WORD. silence2090 fucked around with this message at 09:07 on Jan 10, 2021 |
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Jan 10, 2021 09:03
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Rescue While we couldn't care less about some mortals living a few years longer, we're not at our strongest right now, despite the bucket and shirt. Might be a good thing to have some others in our debt. And at least the elf didn't seem to have any problems with us being undead.
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Jan 10, 2021 10:26
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Rescue. Because we, in fact, are the protagonist of a video game. Isn't that reason enough?
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Jan 10, 2021 12:03
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Rescue. Also, seeing you bash in that kitchen door was a bit weird, considering there's a key to the door on the other side, though I guess you just wanted to show off more bashing?
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Jan 10, 2021 15:13
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Rescue. We've got the bones to do it, and won't waste a single one of them.
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Jan 10, 2021 16:10
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Rescue
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Jan 10, 2021 20:23
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I've played act one of this game about a dozen times. I've played the final act once. This is one of those games where I just get about 20-30 hours in, get distracted and play something else, then remember I keep meaning to finish my [CHARACTER] run. The only one I've done the whole way through was Lhose, and I legit teared up at the end of her questline. Next on my list was Fane, so I'm looking forward to this LP. Also, you can't just let those randos die! They're probably important! I say rescue!
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Jan 11, 2021 05:22
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Rescue I bet there’s extra loot/exp if we do.
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Jan 11, 2021 06:49
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 : If this is how people of the modern age treat each other in their times of need, the world’s in a sorrier state than I thought. We need action, and if you won’t get down there and help them, I’ll do it myself! : Thank you, thank you, thank you! There’s a ladder right over there. You can go straight down!: You’re gonna be the death of us. You hear? Right next to the lifeboat is a ladder that takes us back belowdeck, to the room where I ate Finn’s chicken leg and learned Adrenaline. All of the other named characters that we met are still there, but knocked out and/or dazed; if we can help just one of them get off this boat with their life, that’s one more hand to help us in Fort Joy.    : Rescue the Passengers: Combat Music 3As soon as we approach the main hold for the ship, we’re assaulted by four of those larva voidwoken bugs. Three of them are right next to and facing me, letting me know that all the agro is on me right now, while the fourth one spawned more towards the center of the battlefield.     I open the round by using Mosquito Swarm on the one farthest away from me, making it weak and bleeding so that Lohse can take it out, and I Bull Rush in the opposite direction, trying to put some distance between myself and the trio of bugs. Getting surrounded means you’re probably about to die, even if it’s to some worms, and especially since I don’t have any skills or armour to defend myself with. Naturally, Bull Rush missed with a 95% to-hit, but at least I’m out of the heat.       Beat goes next and solos the voidwoken in the center of the hold with Shocking Touch, Fireball, and Blinding Radiance. It’s an awful lot of effort for a single bug, particularly since it’s six-against-four and the one he was focusing on was surrounded, but hey, it frees up everyone else.   The one I charged at and missed hits me twice for 23 HP each…    … and then the Red Prince turns his skin to stone with Fortify and then chucks a loving grenade at the two still clumped together. Man, I’m feeling kind of inadequate, considering all I did was poke one and then swing impotently at another.  The one I made bleed, which is now also on fire, meanders over to Prince and… punches… him with its… proboscis, I guess. Prince takes significantly less physical damage as long as Fortify is up, so the hit does next to nothing to him, at least compared to me.   Lohse makes her move on the voidwoken that just struck Prince and, by summoning lightning bolts from her fingertips, she takes it out. That was the one I hit with Mosquito Swarm, so she did exactly what I hoped she’d do – if a little more intensely than I was expecting    Sebille opens her turn by chucking a poison grenade at me and the voidwoken. There’s a tiny lick of flame to the left of me in the second-previous screenshot, and when poisonous ooze touches fire, it ignites. Thankfully, she hit me with the poison, and since I’m undead, that means I’ll start healing on my next turn, but I was standing just outside the flame’s reach to catch fire.    Ifan, for his turn, puts himself as in-the-middle between me, Sebille, and Beast as he can before he uses his innate human talent of screaming incoherent noises until team morale eventually improves.   The second-to-last voidwoken decides that Prince is clearly the most pervasive threat of the group and crawls over open flames to get to him so he can also taste him with his proboscis. To be fair, though, it’s making Prince bleed quite a lot of blood, even though his skin is currently made of stone.    A radiant Beast makes his way to that same voidwoken and, with two stabs to the thorax, it’s down, leaving only the one standing next to me as the final threat.    It’s poisoned and on fire, but it still finds the gusto to hit me twice. Prince and Lohse are too far away to do anything meaningful with their turns; Prince chugs a potion and Lohse uses Encourage on everyone that Fane missed, and they both call that their turns. Sebille, you might have noticed, is currently in hiding. And she uses that to her advantage:    While in stealth, characters get bonus damage when performing certain stealth-based attacks, including Backlash. Backlash also does bonus damage because it forces a backstab, if the equipped weapon allows it (knives, in Sebille’s case), but its base damage is slightly lower as a trade-off. One more attack later, and the final voidwoken is down. And I was present!    Once the fight concludes, each of them run for the ladder leading abovedeck towards the life boat. The ship is barely hanging on as it is, being torn apart by that massive kraken beneath us, and we haven’t a moment to spare. So, anyway, I looted all the dead voidwoken to see if they were carrying anything. They weren’t, which was a bummer.  But, on my way back to the ladder, I remembered Magister Siwan – the lady that told me that ‘every dog has to get used to its leash.’ She didn’t explode like all of the other Magisters, but she’s also not up and about like Ricks and Captain Murtof.   … sigh. On the one hand, the vote was to come down here and rescue some of our fellow Sourcerers, and we’ve done that. We don’t have to treat our jailor with any sort of respect. She barely did the same for us. But on the other… it just wouldn’t sit right to leave her, bleeding out from a neck wound, while the ship gets ripped apart by a kraken. I’m not too concerned for myself: I’m already dead and if Deathfog has no effect on me, I can’t imagine that a little bit of water is too big of a threat. gently caress it, I don’t want to be the monster she thinks I am.    : It’s working; the pressure is stemming the flow of blood; Siwan clutches your arm, her eyes locked with yours. : Siwan struggles to her feet, clinging to you tightly. The ship lets out a deep groan… then CRACKS.   : This is it… she’s going down!     Video
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Jan 18, 2021 07:12
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  Waking up on a beach at the start of a game is a very Larian thing to do. : Am I the lone survivor? Depending on one’s definition of ‘survivor,’ of course….The kraken had destroyed the ship and literally ripped it apart, and we were thrown into the ocean. We were about to sink to the bottom, where, if we weren’t going to drown, we would have been crushed by the water pressure… but we were quite literally lifted back to the surface by a disembodied voice telling us that they had ‘plans for us.’ So, good news: we survived the kraken and the storm. Bad news: we washed up on Fort Joy, the one place we didn’t want to be. Silver linings, I guess. We can find our way off Fort Joy but we can’t exactly escape the abyss of lifelessness.  Near where we washed up is this statue of a pretty cool dude that isn’t at all very threatening and imposing. This is a Waypoint, a place we can fast-travel to; Waypoints are usually either distinctive landmarks or town centers, such as marketplaces. Discovering them usually grants us some experience. : Ah, Braccus Rex. I’ve read his history – quite gruesome, even for a human. Straight south from Braccus’ statue is, presumably, the dilapidated entrance to Fort Joy. There are some goodies up there ripe for the plucking, but we don’t have any way to reach the platform from here. The rest of the fort is probably in much better condition, surely.  West of the statue is a child, all by his lonesome, standing at the edge of a… lagoon? Is this technically a lagoon? If we’re on an island of prisoners, it seems dangerous for a kid to be wandering all by himself out on the beach. : The child has a small mirror in his hands. He holds it up at angles, inspecting his eyes, his chin, the crown of his head. He spots you and his arms snap to his sides. : Everyone is strange, but what makes a person stranger than another?: The child considers your statement. : You’re weird. : That I am, and if you’re here, wearing that collar, you must be one, too.: The child looks at you straight on, unafraid, searching the shadows cloaking your face. He lifts the mirror to his nose, closes one eye, and looks at himself again. : Why can’t they be both? : Do your parents know you’re here? : You shouldn’t stay out here, so close to the ocean. I was on a ship that was attacked by Voidwoken not far off this shore; there’s no telling if any are nearby. : Aren’t you scared? Even a little? : I don’t even know how I survived the Voidwoken attack. You should really get out of here and find somewhere safer to be. Judging by these ruins, civilization shouldn’t be far away.: There isn’t anywhere safer. That’s what I mean.: You’ll see. That’s… comforting to hear, especially from a child that’s apparently seen some poo poo.  That’s about everything to discover near the statue of Braccus. Which, by the way, it’s great that that’s the first thing I see after washing up on shore from a near-death experience. Good to know the world is a friendly place, all told.  There’s a bit of blood in the sand up ahead. Good to know that’s the third thing I see, after a child disconnected from his own sense of safety.  Two more Voidwoken worms loitering around a dead Magister. I can probably handle two bugs by myself.  I probably can’t get much closer than this without getting caught – all it would take is for one of them to look towards my direction to break my sneaking, even though my disguise is so foolproof.   : Bugs On The BeachI get as close as I can and I use Battering Ram to sneak in a free shot before the fight begins, although this does put me right next to both of the Voidlings at the start of the battle.  One… one of them spoke. And it said my name. Cool. Cool! Cool.  They both have Vampiric Hunger, which means they heal for 50% of the damage they directly do to me. It’s essentially the same as my necromancy, but, well, frankly, much better. I can still win this fight, but it’s going to be a bit more drawn-out because of that.  Because I opened the fight with Battering Ram, it’s now on cooldown, so I have to rely on my other skills and my big ol’ gently caress-off two-handed club to deal with them for the next little bit. Mosquito Swarm will heal me up right now, and it’ll be off cooldown by the time I’m hurt and need another pick-me-up.   Also, the bleeding will help counter their Vampiric Hunger a bit.   Characters in a fight get flanked when they have more than one opponent against them standing on differing sides of them. They don’t have to be exactly opposite each other, like they’ve manoeuvred themselves into, but the AI still figures that it’s the optimal positioning to take. When you’re flanked, your chance to dodge an attack is reduced by 10%, meaning the two Voidwoken currently have a 105% chance to hit me. Having 100+% chance to hit doesn’t mean anything special; it just means you’re guaranteed to hit. Also, because of the mod, I can’t move out of position without triggering Attack of Opportunity on both of them.  There’s not a whole lot I can do even if my two attack spells weren’t on cooldown, so I just whack the one I’m working on twice.   Well, that doesn’t help.  A couple of hits later, and I’m… not looking great. I have about a quarter of my HP remaining.   Mosquito Swarm is off cooldown now, so I can use it to deal, and heal, 37 HP. And after that, since I’m still not looking great…   … Blood Sucker will suck up all the blood around me and heal me for practically the entirety of my remaining HP deficit, putting me back to max. Every hit I deal has the voidlings bleed more blood, and Blood Sucker has the same cooldown as Mosquito Swarm, so this is essentially a fight of attrition and my victory is a forgone conclusion. Unless I start missing and they start dealing crits or something.  They both hit me twice, putting me back down to half, but…  … it’s tough to tell from this screenshot, but the one behind me is close enough to my body that I’ll hit it with Battering Ram, even though I’m facing away from it completely.  Because they were Knocked Down, my next strike has a 198% chance to hit, and the first worm goes down. Executioner gives me another 2 AP to spend, but I have nothing that’s off cooldown, so, I instead end my turn and save the AP for the next.   You know when you’re in a game that you can’t win, so you try and make it as annoying as possible for the winner instead?   Anyway, what you really need to know about the rest of this fight is that it alternates between Mosquito Swarm, Blood Sucker, and the occasional melee swing until the last bug finally goes down. Neither of us have a lot of tools or goodies to play with – in hindsight, I could have used a scroll to hurry things up, but winning was just a matter of time, and it’s not like I’m playing for a live audience or anything.   : Drowned and eaten by a Voidwoken. I wonder in which order.Neither of the bugs are carrying anything, but Magister Jalen, according to his nametag, has some cash, a potion, and a Resurrection Scroll. Res scrolls are important and they can be very costly, so, well, it may not have done him much good, but I’ll put it to better use.  Well, leaving that little skirmish behind us, we continue heading south, down the beach. In the first real fork in the road, there’s… what looks to be a squirrel… riding an undead cat?  : Look here, Quercus: another giant! My word, this blasted isle is teeming with them.: … What’s that? Yes, I did see how it made short work of the Great Acorn’s servants. … Quite right, very impressive… But that is no reason to trust it – giants like that destroyed our forests. They are the very reason the Great Acorn is returning in all its wrath!: What? … Dear me, have you taken leave of all six of your senses? You would have me use this giant for a shield? Why would I… Oh, I see… You cunning devil, Quercus. Of course! If it defeated the Great Acorn’s vile servants, it can do so again! : … What?: Egads! It speaks our tongue, Quercus! Hush, before…: … What do you mean, a good time for introductions? You know full well who I am, you silly old cat! The great Sir Lora, grandest of the… Oh! Introduce myself to the giant? I shall do no such thing! You give away your trust too easily, my dear steed.: No, we will have the giant march. In time, we’ll see whether it deserves our confidence. Now onwards, Shield! Venture forth post-haste! The Great Acorn waits for no one! : I, uh, have several questions.: Dear me, it has questions, Quercus!: Hmmm? Why yes, I suppose answering them is the polite thing to do. : I suppose I should start with whatever the Great Acorn is. Can you tell me more about it?: A giant body, but no giant brain, hmm Quercus?I mean… I’m assuming my brain is incorporeal, so, who knows how big it is? : Surely even the tall folk know that Rivellon was bare before the Great Acorn fell from above and seeded the Urwood, covering this land in beautiful, perfect forest?: Beautiful and perfect until the giant races – no offense – realised they could use it to build their houses and fuel their fires. They carved the Urwood up and the forests shrank and shrank. None of the original wood remains. : If the forests came from the acorn, then where did the acorn come from?: Oh Quercus, it wants answers. As if it is the first creature to ponder the big questions of the universe. ‘What tree did the Great Acorn fall from?’ ‘Where did that tree come from, if not a greater acorn?’ ‘Could you build a nest great enough to store the Great Acorn for the winter?’: Some questions have no answers, Quercus. Why is that so difficult to understand?Well, don’t get mad at the cat!  : So, if the Great Acorn returns and covers the world in lush, beautiful forest… wouldn’t that be a good thing, especially for you? You’re a squirrel, after all.: … What do you say, Quercus? We once believed it was good, but now?: … No, quite right. As terrible as the giants have been to us, we do not want to see them wiped out.I… I get that. I tried to rescue Siwan, and all.  : You sound like you believed the Great Acorn was a positive factor once, but not anymore. What made you change your mind?: Sir Lora stops short, then shakes his head and pats Quercus affectionately.: Squirrels change, don’t they Quercus? Priorities change. If we do not adapt, we are sure to perish.That’s a rather cryptic non-answer, but I’ll take that to mean he isn’t ready to give me a real answer just yet. Sir Lora was an addition when the game was upgraded to its Definitive Edition. He’s a little sidekick that will follow us around for, quite literally, the entire game; he has his own unique interactions to the events as they play out throughout the game. His constitution is very high, and he’s always rocking an obscene amount of magic armour, but he’s not a battle companion – whenever combat begins, his AI will attempt to find a place to hide that’s out of the battle, but not so far away from the avatar character (Fane, in our case) that he ‘voids out.’ Gameplay-wise, he’s honestly a bit of a hassle to keep around, particularly if you want him to survive to the end. Story-wise… well, you’re about to find out.  Moving further down the right fork in the path…  … of course the first survivor we come across is the slaver. : You spot a strange lizard gazing over the water with a steady, malcontent stare. His skin is of a bright, blood-red colour. Could he be…? : You don’t forget a first impression like the one you made. I have a bone to pick with you, and I’ve got plenty.: The lizard turns about with the graceful ease of a dancer – or a duellist. You lock eyes with his: two smouldering embers that sizzle your very soul.: Yes, I imagine you do. You’re made of sterner stuff than I first gave you credit for.: Chances are I wouldn’t have survived the shipwreck, had you not returned to the aid of your fellow passengers down in that dreadful hold. : *sigh* Well, it’s better that you’re alive. Drowning is one of the worse ways to go out (I’m told), and I couldn’t live with myself if someone was in mortal danger and I did nothing about it.: Yes, I’m sure you’ve all the makings of a hero and all that, but let’s not get carried away, shall we? : So. You’re a busy, important lizard. What’s next for you, now that we’re here, wearing rags, staring at the ocean?: If you really must know, I haven’t quite decided yet. I’ve a frightful amount of things on my mind, hence my standing here, contemplating the waves.: He sighs dramatically.: Tell me… : I see… what was. Days of my youth, playing on the beaches and spending my time in the sun.: Memories… Quite so.: He looks out over the water once more, and so do you. A few tranquil moments pass as the waves lap against your thoughts.: As for myself, when I consider this vast expanse before us, I see an empire. : What do you mean by ‘lost?’ I’m guessing you mean something a bit more literal.: What do you mean, ‘what do I mean?’ I mean just what I say: I have a very actual empire that I lost.: Suddenly having all the air of being deeply offended, he stares at you with utter incredulity. : Well, there aren’t a lot of other red male lizards, so you must be the Red Prince.: The very same! I am the Red Prince! The All-Conqueror. The World-Tamer. The Spouse of the Sun. Of course you know me.Oh, how far we fall. : There’s a brief moment’s pause, during which his grandiloquent pose deflates ever so slighty.: That said, I suppose I must own up to the fact that I find myself rather in between all-conquering and world-taming opportunities at the moment. : Well, you could say that I, too, have this and that to accomplish once I got off this island. If you want to tag along, the more’s the merrier.: This and that? Tag along? Do you really mean to compare the fact of an empire to whatever foibles you seek to fix?You’re acting awfully high and mighty for a guy standing on a rock on a beach on a desolate island wearing rags wearing a slave collar. We’re both starting from square one, my man. : On the other hand… I really could do with a dogsbody, and you’ve already proven to be trustworthy enough. You came back for the others on that ship after all.: Fine, I accept!Cool. : On one condition.Cool. : For reasons I’ll not disclose right now, it is imperative that I should meet with a Dreamer: one of the mystics of my kind. : Sure, I promise. We have nothing but time here. : Before we make this official, what’s your opinion on, you know, the livingly-challenged.: The undead? Like your good self you mean. Come now, did you really think a handful of linen towels could fool me?: But don’t worry, I have studied the arcane arts for years, including necromancy and demonology. I do not hold the petty prejudices of common folks. In fact I prefer the exceptional in all things. Your secret is safe with me.: So, now that that’s settled, first things first: Even if you are as versed in the art of eloquence as I am, that our swords will be doing a lot of the talking from here on goes without saying. Whenever you recruit a new character, they mention what it is they prefer to do, but they’re also going to mention that they’re good at pretty much everything else, too, if you’d rather. Prince is saying that he’s good at melee combat, same as me, and his default loadout is a makeshift shield and a sword that consists of a shiv attached to a stick. I initially tell him that him being a Fighter is fine, and we can certainly stick with Prince being a Fighter if we want, although, me being an inquisitor, I’m already dealing enough melee damage all by myself. The general rule of thumb for strategy in Divinity: Original Sin 2 is to always go two-two – two physical damage dealers and two magic damage dealers. You can go four-zero if you’d rather – some fights will be a bit lopsided but you’ll never truly find yourself to be in such a predicament that you’d wish you’d have set your party up as something else. Never, ever go three-one. We’ll be able to respec our avatar Fane as well as any companions we pick up very soon, so which class I choose right now isn’t imperative. What class do you think Prince should be? While I’m on the topic, our choices are:
: The Red Prince nods and gives you a smile that wavers ever so delicately between courtesy and contempt.: Now as you’re aware you’ll be travelling with a prince. Proper forms of address include ‘Your Majesty,’ ‘Your Royal Highness,’ or if you’re feeling particularly frivolous, ‘Milord.’ As your luck would have it, I seem to be fresh out of luggage so you won’t be required to carry my belongings.: Of course there are other forms of protocol to bear in mind, but I’ll see to it you’ll pick up the rest as we go. So without further ado: let us be off! Alright, so, now we have this shaggy, smelly bum hanging around us, doing what we do and walking where we walk. He comes with his own skills and some provisions. As a Fighter, he’s primarily focused on Warfare and Geomancy – all about physical attacks and physical defense.  We haven’t made it to Fort Joy yet, though. We still have the rest of the beach to traverse. Maybe we’ll find another survivor from the boat on our way.  As pretty as the beach is, there isn’t a whole lot to find. Some plants, some ruins, some dead trees. At least the day seems pretty nice.  … And, speak of the devil, as soon as I come up to certain rock outcropping on the left fork in a path, I’m approached by another cat. This one with all of its skin, fur, and organs still in place. And, presumably, its bones. : It seems we’re not the only ones taking on strays.: Oh no need to be jealous, Quercus. Fur maketh not the cat.: The cat’s eyes are clouded and grey, but it stares at you with acute intensity. : What? You are following me! : … Are you alright? Your speech is slurred and you’re talking in circles. : Where did you come from? Is this your home?: The cat opens his mouth as if to speak, but his eyes lose focus and with a jerk he turns away from you. Well, alright then. Now we have three animal companions. Like Sir Lora, this nameless black cat will follow us through thick and thin – and unlike Sir Lora, it has very little HP and no armour to speak of. If we want to keep this kitty alive, we’ll have to watch our every step.   There’s a small hill that leads to this broken section of bridge, and someone clearly had a life out here. The cat’s previous owner, maybe? I’m not sure what to make of the fact that this exists – the Magisters are clearly okay with their inmates just milling about outside of the Fort as they like, just as the kid implied. What kind of prison is this?  Combing the coast some more, we find another child – this one is Trice, the girl on the lifeboat that begged us to head back belowdecks and rescue whoever we could. It’s good to see that she’s alive, although I’d rather I didn’t meet her here, in Fort Joy. : Hey, mister! It’s a lot nicer here than that stinking boat, huh? Sinking boat. That sinking boat. : I’m sure glad you went back to save the others. Saw one of ‘em wringing out their tunic at the shore a few hours ago. Say hi for me! I imagine she’s talking about Prince. So, hey there, how’re ya doing?  You can talk with your companions at any point you like, and at various points in the story, they’ll have something new to say about whatever recently transpired. Since Red is fresh off the boat and new to the party, he’s naturally got quite a bit to say. : You may be a Sourcerer, but how did a royal empiric prince find himself tagged and collared in Fort Joy?: There was a small… incident, which prompted my many rivals to move against me. Technically, they had the letter of the law on their side. : Right. So… how did you find yourself tagged and collared in Fort Joy? : Context clues suggest that it was an open, flagrant display of Source magic that got you here. : If we’re not going to talk about our personal histories, then let’s talk about your culture. What’s this pressing need of yours to find a Dreamer?: There isn’t much to say, but for the fact that I simply must. : You have a ‘quite literal empire’ down here in the material world. You don’t need to build another in the sky.: How you lack in vision. By the time I’m done, I will have real castles in the sky. : Look… for all the missteps our first impressions had, I’m nonetheless happy to see that you’ve survived the shipwreck.: As am I. A prince should die of old age or on the battlefield. Anything else could be construed as weakness of character.: That said, I’ve the distinct feeling I wasn’t meant to die today, for despite your heroics I was still cast into the water. I sank. I drowned… : If you’re being honest with me… I heard the same thing. A voice telling me that it ‘had plans for me’ as it lifted me out of the water.: Truly? How intriguing. To hear a voice whilst drowning is a rather specific delusion to share, is it not?: Still, I wonder if…: He hesitates. : No, and if I were, I’m sure my god abandoned me shortly after my king did anyway.: I’m rather relieved to hear it. Religious persons tend to be all-too self-important in their supposed humility.Can’t let religion get in the way of all that princeliness, I suppose. : As for myself, I perform the ancient rites of prayer and ceremony with a kind of languid indulgence. After all, when one is revered by many as a living god oneself, public deprecation would be needlessly self-important as well, wouldn’t you say?Okay, so, this jackass thinks he’s above the law and sees himself as a god. Whatever his crime to be put here on Fort Joy clearly involved Source, but whatever that was must have involved… something heretical. Something ‘indulgent.’ I feel like he wouldn’t let himself be arrested for anything less.  Continuing on my way to scour the beach, I find a big-rear end stick.  This is our crafting menu. We can attempt to combine any five ingredients to create something else. And what constitutes an ‘ingredient’ doesn’t have to be what you think it is – an ingredient could be something more material, such as combining a well and a bucket to get a bucket full of water. So, if we take that big stick we just got and combine it with a rock….    This two-handed axe that we just made has a lower minimum damage than our current weapon, but it also has a higher maximum, meaning the window for rolling damage is wider and deeper. You always want higher maximums, but lower minimums can be risky, because it could mean doing less damage than what you’re equipped with right now purely thanks to RNG. However, this new axe also does an extra 20% damage to anyone within a semi-circle in front of us that we are not targeting, which isn’t something the makeshift club has. Also, we made this with our own hands, and it’d be nice to use something we made for a bit.  The beach is beginning to get grassier the further south we go. The Fort proper shouldn’t be too far away. At the base of this rock is a mound of dirt that stands out a bit. Whenever there’s an unusual mound of dirt, you can dig it up if you have a shovel handy. Or, if there’s a lizard in your party…   … they can just dig it up with their hands, no need to lug a shovel around.   This pouch must have belonged to a hunter of some fashion. Neither Fane nor Prince is any proficient with the bow, but either of them can equip the armour. Sometimes, a piece of equipment may require that the character have a minimum of a certain stat before they can equip it. This vest, for example, requires Finesse 10. Luckily, 10 is the baseline for every stat, so everyone can wear it, no matter their class. Prince is currently wearing a shoddy rag over his torso and calling it armour, so he might as well have this vest.  Exploring this little grassy nook reveals this ravine, as well as a chest that I’m sure someone would rather I didn’t find. And in it is some money and a staff – and, like the bow, neither of us are proficient with staffs, so, I’ll just hold onto it for now. Continuing down south, and… I start to hear voices.   : I am a proud loyal to the Order. I would not dream of subverting our cause. : Atusa, please! : Your Godwoken has asked you a question. Answer him.: Need I repeat myself?: But… I know nothing of any Verdas.Sounds like some infighting is going on. : Stay back, Sourcerer. And stay silent. Our Godwoken speaks.: We know you’ve been helping Sourcerers escape, Atusa. We have proof.: I’d sooner cut my tongue out than lie to you, Alexander. I know nothing of any escapees.: If you can tell the Godwoken no more, your tongue is of no use. Cut it out.: This can’t be serious, Alexander! Come! : (If they’re having trouble keeping some Magisters in line, this would certainly be a good way to scare them straight.): Atusa pinches the tip of her tongue with two fingers and brings her dagger to its root. Her eyes squeeze shut. Drops of blood form against the dagger’s edge and quickly fall to the ground. She groans.: Stop. My father, may his soul rest in peace, would be disappointed in you, Atusa. To think you would lie to his only son – your bishop and your friend these many years.Way to show it. : The fate of our realm hangs in the balance. If you will not help us save it, then you will help the Void destroy it.: Dallis.: Yes, Your Holiness?: I… believe we are done here.   Holy Jesus, Atusa just exploded! There’s nothing left of her but some giblets and a lake of her own blood! : What a waste. Come. We’ll be needed elsewhere. And then Dallis just walked right over Atusa’s remains. You can see her footprints in the blood. We’ve heard of Bishop Alexander from Ifan on the boat, and we’ve read a book that mentioned Dallis’ name, saying she invented the collars. Goddamn, but if she isn’t cold as ice.  Whenever certain story beats happen, if we have companions that can weigh in on the events that have occurred, it’ll be marked with an exclamation point above their heads, letting us know that they have something important to say.  : She was a lizard, yet a Magister. No matter her reasons, her penalty was fair.Alright, well, good to know we’re in agreement.  Atusa was carrying a big, fat healing potion; a Firestorm grenade; a Resurrection scroll (fat lot of good it did her); and it seems one of her legs survived the blast. The leg could be useful later, once I find my mask… or an elf that’s willing to share what they learn.  Finally, we’ve made it to Fort Joy. Just past these gates is the prison proper. And Dallis and Alexander both just walked into there, so, you know, this is clearly a place I also want to be. But that’s for next time. In the meantime, do we want to stick with The Red Prince for now? If so, what class should he be? Let me know by tomorrow! Maple Leaf fucked around with this message at 20:10 on Jan 23, 2021 |
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Jan 18, 2021 07:19
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I must insist we keep Sir Lora and Quercus around for the rest of the game. But don't take the poor nameless confused kitty. I imagine he'll get killed and that would be sad. As for the Red Prince... keep him for now because lizardman representation is important, but I'm not that concerned about what class because he's frankly a dick and I doubt we'll be able to put up with him permanently. Make him do whatever is most useful paired with our own skillset. Comedy option: Pyromancy and make him pretend to be a dragon. Black Robe fucked around with this message at 09:00 on Jan 18, 2021 |
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Jan 18, 2021 08:44
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Black Robe posted:But don't take the poor nameless confused kitty. I imagine he'll get killed and that would be sad. We don't have a choice in the matter, I'm afraid! We own this cat now. I don't want to give too much away, but if we keep him alive for long enough, we do get a halfway decent reward. quote:Comedy option: Pyromancy and make him pretend to be a dragon. Lizards can all breathe fire, so he's already got that covered. Maple Leaf fucked around with this message at 20:36 on Jan 18, 2021 |
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Jan 18, 2021 09:07
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Keep the Red Prince , and if he does fighting, I say keep him Fighter. This is looking like a right good start to our adventure overall, can't wait to see more.
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Jan 18, 2021 09:28
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Black Robe posted:I must insist we keep Sir Lora and Quercus around for the rest of the game. I quite fully agree with this.
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Jan 18, 2021 14:01
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Haven't read part 2 to vote yet, but there's one comment I have to make. Wait, what? Did we seriously just save a life by making a tourniquet on someone's neck? I just... what? I guess she didn't need that brain anyway?
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Jan 18, 2021 18:06
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Black Robe posted:As for the Red Prince... keep him for now because lizardman representation is important, but I'm not that concerned about what class because he's frankly a dick and I doubt we'll be able to put up with him permanently. Make him do whatever is most useful paired with our own skillset. Agreed. I bounced hard off this game when I got it, so I'm hoping I'll learn how to play it effectively from this LP.
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Jan 18, 2021 18:42
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Cythereal posted:Agreed. Same.
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Jan 18, 2021 22:07
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FoolyCharged posted:Haven't read part 2 to vote yet, but there's one comment I have to make. It's odd to me that so much media doesn't know what a tourniquet is. I've read a book where someone put a tourniquet on the head. That doesn't even begin to make sense since you're not cutting off blood flow to anywhere. The neck is still a worse location though, given that not only are you stopping blood flow to the brain, you're also stopping air flow, ie, breathing.
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Jan 18, 2021 22:23
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We are a skeleton. We are probably not good at fleshbag medicine.
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Jan 18, 2021 22:30
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Sure, keep the Red Prince, but I want you to make him a lizard wizard Pyrokineticist since he already has the fire resistance going on. Give him points in Geomancy too so he can ignite his own oil slicks!
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Jan 19, 2021 00:17
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