Recent Posts

yah, i (quickly noticed) that the soft characters couldn't use others for positional defense. Fear not, I am now in the Keep, preparing for our next move. :-)

Also, Tamilin just reached level 18... Stealth [4] and Farsight [2] were both improved, along with Dexterity [14]

Now I get it!  Much thanks  :-)

When Vraes is attacking, a +1, +2, or +3 appears over him, separate from the damage.  Does anyone know what this is?  *scratching head*

So... I am just about to finish Episode 1 (tinkering around and basking in the achievement before entering the command tent); I put together a spreadsheet of my upgrades/levels to help me make sense of things that are related between Skills, Attributes, Talents. Just a quick spreadsheet, but for a newbie like me, it helped to have everything in front of me vs. paging through each character's traits. Things like lore, soak, dice rolls are old-school for many of you, but they are all new concepts to me; but I am loving the game, and learning so much from the forum and your collective postings and advice!

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Now, for my team and direction. Using the standard characters, playing on easy, all of them are at level 17. I'm learning about finding choke points when under attack, but recently have also been having success in open field battles by putting Vraes out front to absorb punishment (how I finished Ep. 1 in Red Hill), and using the others in specific roles.

Vraes - He is the normally out front when confronting new territory, and makes a decision to fight, find a defensive (backing up) choke point, or charge forward to draw enemy fire. Everyone else on the team will fall into place based on his decisions. Unless I forget, all buffs will be enabled, and Phalanx Shield [5] (and Kyera's Warder's Shield [3 ) protect him, and his fighting style is a one-handed sword and shield. I've seen advice on Natural Mastery [3] to improve attacks, but unsure of how much this impacts things vs. improving Crushing Blow [3]. He relies on Kyera to restore HP, though I used potions to ensure he didn't die under heavy attacks in Red Hill at the end. Moving forward, I just added Burst of Speed [1] to enable him to move into an 'absorb punishment' position when needed (there were a few times in the Throne Room that put others closer to the boss, and ... yikes!). Reading up on Juggernaut, Beserk, etc... but at this stage, I haven't had issue with his attack capability with just Crushing Blow. I don't think I can afford the SP on some of the high-end attacks, like Ferocity. And have no clue yet on the moving forward component of Juggernaut. I am thinking of just upgrading his Strength [10], Constitution [8], and Intelligence [6] based on what he seems to be lacking since the previous upgrade. And a point in Lore [3] at some point, but have been able to manage refreshes without a big problem so far.

Kjartan - He is normally in a protected postition and is responsible for dropping enemies defenses/offenses. I've started using one of his turns to use Choking Ash [6] to allow the rest of the team to attack, and then Meteoric Shockwave [5] to minimize the most dangerously positioned enemies after everyone else has had their fill of killing. Constitution [9], Willpower [7], and Intelligence [9] are upgraded based on what he seems to be lacking since the last upgrade. Conjuring [12] is the main skill, though I plan on dropping a point into Lore at some point. Depending of the types of enemies, I know I'll have to start worrying about magic on magic with a higher Pureflame Shield [2], and Immolation or Firestorm. Intentionally not trying to spoil the fire/ice buffs in the gear, looking forward to what happens. He occasionally fires off a Firebolt [1], and the enemies just laugh at him. In the meantime I'll keep improving his Choking Ash/Meteoric Shockwave.

Kyera - She is tail-end-charlie for me. She is able to be the rear defensive unit on the team (if there is a possibility to get attacked from rear direction), or as a wing-woman to Vraes (for a second offensive option) with her one-handed Hammer [13]. She has Strength [5] high enough to attack with her hammer effectively Smiting Blow [3], but also has to keep an eye out for anyone hurt and lacking in HP with Myshana's Tears [5]. But she is primarily responsible to keep space between enemies and Kjartan/Tamilin. Constitution [8] and Intelligence [10] are upgraded as needed, but will drop points in Strength [5] when her effectiveness drops off as a secondary option. I haven't needed to use Sacrifice [1] for anything significant, have just used potions to this point when needed. Same with Purifying Breeze [1], though I suspect I'll need to improve that at some point. Again, keeping an eye on holy vs. holy (some bosses were susceptible to holy attacks, but haven't had a need to invest in this yet).

Tamilin - Splitting skill points between Bows [9] and Thrown [9], she uses a variety of ranged attacks to assist in killing off the enemy. When grouped, the throwing knives are a great way to take down the enemy (Torrent of Steel [5]). Silent Stalker [3] is a great way to initially hit enemy archers from a distance, then Ranged Shot [1] is responsible for attacking archers out of range for Kjarten. Dexterity [13] is the key to her effectiveness in this role. I put a couple of points into Blacknight [2], but really don't understand the Stealth [3] mechanic yet. If someone has a link to a post, or can explain how Stealth and/or Blacknight work, that would solve a big riddle for me, and determine how I can use Tamilin going forward. I kind of assume that improving them will allow her a % chance of not being seen/detected moving around (or staying where she is), but am pretty clueless on figuring it out so far. I feel like I'm missing out on good strategies to use with her. But see using Ranged Onslaught when reaching level 18+ as well.

I truly appreciate any feedback, insight or thoughts. This is my first RPG of this type that I've started to figure out (though I've tried to play Baldur's Gate and others) . It really is an awesome community to interact with (along with the developers so actively involved), much love and thanks for helping me along.

cowboypete you need to put a beard on your avatar! :-)

just a quick update, made it to Red Hill depths, level 14 and 15 team. Grinding to get to the end of Episode 1. My learning curve keeps going 2 steps forward, half-step back, but becoming more comfortable in decisions to upgrade. A few more ideas I'm implementing:

-Different type weapons/armor/gear depending on who I run into (checking monster details: thank you fallen)
-Using chokepoints to advance to/retreat to in order to handle the onslaughts.
-reading forum for thoughts on symbiotic traits/skills among different team members to attack/defense strategies.

really enjoying the continuing storyline, and an update screenshot: s19.postimg.org/9vu88u00j/Screen_Shot_2016_02_02_at_1_07_15_AM.png