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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
LibraryOgre
But what pissed me off in WotR was the vastly inflated ACs. "Hi, your martial characters are useless because we've given all the big enemies a +20 or more to AC."
That was actually quite annoying at times. But, if you attack enough times, you'll eventually hit. That 5% chance on every attack still matters. I got around those pesky uber AC monsters by throwing an ungodly amount of attacks per round at them. Summons help soak up damage until you can manage to hit.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Eldonauran
That was actually quite annoying at times. But, if you attack enough times, you'll eventually hit. That 5% chance on every attack still matters. I got around those pesky uber AC monsters by throwing an ungodly amount of attacks per round at them. Summons help soak up damage until you can manage to hit.
That sounds like a horrible game play experience though.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Keltest
That sounds like a horrible game play experience though.
I wouldn't call it horrible, unless you want to classify everything that causes mild annoyance as horrible. It wasn't as if every creature, or the vast majority of them, had such highly inflated armor class. If I recall correctly, most of them were optional 'boss' monsters, or there was something else going on that either allowed alternative ways to defeat or bypass the encounter.
To be honest, there were tons of ways to get around high AC enemies, though little to be done with purely martial characters that chose to focus on just the one thing. Not even resistances or immunities stopped elemental attacks if you had the right mythic power or chose a mythic path that opened up other tactics. There are even mythic powers that let you deal damage even when you missed.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Keltest
That sounds like a horrible game play experience though.
The one time I've liked that sort of mechanic is with the Geist from Battle Brothers. They have incredibly high evasion and 1 hit point. Battle Brothers uses honest dice rolls and has a lot of attacks per turn. If you're in melee with them, your chance of hitting them is pretty decent, but the hard part is breaking through the zombie front line to get to grips with the Geists in the back.
But remember what I said about honest dice rolls? The minimum hit chance is 5%. This means you can have your archers (who suck vs zombies anyway because a zombie doesn't really care how many arrows it has sticking out of it) spam attacks at them, and sooner or later they'll roll that natural 20 and the Geist goes down. There's only a few Geists per combat, so by preemptively flinging a crapton of missiles at the ghosts in the back you can remove most or all of them. It turns what would be a really irritating mechanic into an interesting tactical decision.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Well, I just started a Gale origin playthrough and I've got to say... The first night's rest was interesting, as is the magical item I received to consume. Ring of Evasion. Nah, I was not going to consume that. That ring is awesome.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Came back after a break, ended up restarting as a halfling lore bard. Also finally bothered to look into a hair bug I was getting, now some styles and beards look so much better.
I just need to remember to nab spells that target more than WIS saves. Oh, and probably Fireball/Lightning Bolt and Counterspell for my first Magical Secrets.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
Came back after a break, ended up restarting as a halfling lore bard. Also finally bothered to look into a hair bug I was getting, now some styles and beards look so much better.
I just need to remember to nab spells that target more than WIS saves. Oh, and probably Fireball/Lightning Bolt and Counterspell for my first Magical Secrets.
Counterspell, yes. Not sure about Fireball/Lightning Bolt, Glyph of Warding works almost as well damage-wise, gives you several options, and unlike table-top version it's pretty much an instantaneous spell, and it's also a Bard spell.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Hey, i wanted to ask about Abigail Thorn's character, the sharrite Nocturne. Whats their deal?
In my one playthrough Shadowheart bascially went full lightside despite us breaking up on amicable terms, and I'll be honest when we showed up at the Shar cultist compound, they showed up out of nowhere "oh yhea ive been Shadowheart's bestie for years but she doesnt remember me", which was immediately swept away by the much more impactful reconciliation that happened immediately after.
Like, is Nocturnal more relevant for Darkside Shadowheart? Or when you play as Shadowheart?
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
Hey, i wanted to ask about Abigail Thorn's character, the sharrite Nocturne. Whats their deal?
In my one playthrough Shadowheart bascially went full lightside despite us breaking up on amicable terms, and I'll be honest when we showed up at the Shar cultist compound, they showed up out of nowhere "oh yhea ive been Shadowheart's bestie for years but she doesnt remember me", which was immediately swept away by the much more impactful reconciliation that happened immediately after.
Like, is Nocturnal more relevant for Darkside Shadowheart? Or when you play as Shadowheart?
From what I can tell she exists so the game can pretend to actually be trans inclusive, despite literally every major NPC being cis.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
Hey, i wanted to ask about Abigail Thorn's character, the sharrite Nocturne. Whats their deal?
In my one playthrough Shadowheart bascially went full lightside despite us breaking up on amicable terms, and I'll be honest when we showed up at the Shar cultist compound, they showed up out of nowhere "oh yhea ive been Shadowheart's bestie for years but she doesnt remember me", which was immediately swept away by the much more impactful reconciliation that happened immediately after.
Like, is Nocturnal more relevant for Darkside Shadowheart? Or when you play as Shadowheart?
I don't recall her doing anything more with full evil Shadowheart. Haven't played as Shadowheart yet, maybe there's some more there then, but I don't expect it's much. She just seems to be a minor flavor NPC, someone from the Sharran compound that knew Shadowheart and was her friend, since it makes sense there'd be someone like that given how many years she spent there.
Also she's a minor shopkeeper, so there's that.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
From what I can tell she exists so the game can pretend to actually be trans inclusive, despite literally every major NPC being cis.
:smallconfused: I don't recall any indication that Nocturne is trans?
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Zevox
:smallconfused: I don't recall any indication that Nocturne is trans?
I believe if you give Shadowheart the nobles talk she hallucinates a memory of pre-transition Nocturne.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
I believe if you give Shadowheart the nobles talk she hallucinates a memory of pre-transition Nocturne.
Nobles talk? Not sure what you're referring to?
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Zevox
Nobles talk? Not sure what you're referring to?
Phone added a space for some reason, the mushroom.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
Phone added a space for some reason, the mushroom.
*Googles* Oh, that thing! I didn't even find that until my third time through the game, and I just gave it to the Dwarf woman that time. Didn't know you could give it to Shadowheart and have it do anything.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Zevox
*Googles* Oh, that thing! I didn't even find that until my third time through the game, and I just gave it to the Dwarf woman that time. Didn't know you could give it to Shadowheart and have it do anything.
Shadowheart, Durge, and either of the two dwarves are all viable people to give it to. Honestly I think giving it to the woman whose name I cant remember off hand is probably the best use of it, at least after the first playthrough. Giving it to either of the origins is strictly a story move, and Baenlen(?) is, well, awful if you give it to him.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
I think if you're patient, you can buy back the noblestalk from her in Act III in Baldur's Gate and then give it to Shadowheart or Durge.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
From what I can tell she exists so the game can pretend to actually be trans inclusive, despite literally every major NPC being cis.
I do think there's value to giving a sense of what Shadowheart's life in the cult was like from a peer and friend's perspective rather than an authority figure's. It makes sense for a character like her to exist, even if she's an easy cut.
Although now I'm curious, are there any other characters in the game voiced by trans actors? Nocturne's probably the only textual one, but this is a big game and it feels like they hired a lot of VAs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Keltest
Shadowheart, Durge, and either of the two dwarves are all viable people to give it to.
Okay, that is a neat thing to include.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
I still found it an odd choice to have the one trans-NPC be a member of the evil cult that brainwashes people.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
diplomancer
I still found it an odd choice to have the one trans-NPC be a member of the evil cult that brainwashes people.
I think it could have worked if Shadowheart was trans, she has a lot more story to establish a set of values that don't drag her into a problematic presentation. Spoiler
Show
Especially as it's explicit that the brainwashing just isn't working on her, and she shakes it off completely in her primary route.
It could have also been balanced out by having another NPC be trans, Braccus Wroot for example as I can't get him out of my head at the moment.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
God i love warlocks in this game. So Gishy. So sexy. Warlock invocations are a great feature.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
diplomancer
I still found it an odd choice to have the one trans-NPC be a member of the evil cult that brainwashes people.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
I think it could have worked if Shadowheart was trans, she has a lot more story to establish a set of values that don't drag her into a problematic presentation.
Spoiler
Show
Especially as it's explicit that the brainwashing just isn't working on her, and she shakes it off completely in her primary route.
It could have also been balanced out by having another NPC be trans, Braccus Wroot for example as I can't get him out of my head at the moment.
I mean, all in all i am just frustrated that Nocturne's presence only boils down to a mostly unforeshadowed token appearance that is totally immersion-breaking. Nocturne doesnt join the Sharrites against Shadowheart, nor do they join Shadowheart against the Sharrites if they realize they were also manipulated and exploited.
Nah, they are just there, say "Hello! Im a key part of Shadowheart's backstory but I've been completely irrelevant until now, and will be completely irrelevant after you stop seeing me! You could remove me from the game entirely in transphobe China and nobody would even notice!" Im the PERFECT TOKEN CHARACTER.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
I mean, all in all i am just frustrated that Nocturne's presence only boils down to a mostly unforeshadowed token appearance that is totally immersion-breaking. Nocturne doesnt join the Sharrites against Shadowheart, nor do they join Shadowheart against the Sharrites if they realize they were also manipulated and exploited.
Nah, they are just there, say "Hello! Im a key part of Shadowheart's backstory but I've been completely irrelevant until now, and will be completely irrelevant after you stop seeing me! You could remove me from the game entirely in transphobe China and nobody would even notice!" Im the PERFECT TOKEN CHARACTER.
I didn't even know Nocturne was trans, so they failed pretty hard on the token bit.
Shadowheart's quest conclusion bugged me because it felt really truncated. The game makes like you're going to go through the Unburdening again, but then you just walk past all that straight to the confrontation with Viconia. Nocturne is there as Shadowheart's bestie, but you can't meet her until you've slaughtered everyone whether you're pro-Shar or not. It really felt like there was supposed to be an extended segment where Shadowheart confronts her past before the big throwdown. It's another sign that Acts 2 and 3 were kinda rushed compared to Act 1.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Rodin
I didn't even know Nocturne was trans, so they failed pretty hard on the token bit.
Shadowheart's quest conclusion bugged me because it felt really truncated. The game makes like you're going to go through the Unburdening again, but then you just walk past all that straight to the confrontation with Viconia. Nocturne is there as Shadowheart's bestie, but you can't meet her until you've slaughtered everyone whether you're pro-Shar or not. It really felt like there was supposed to be an extended segment where Shadowheart confronts her past before the big throwdown. It's another sign that Acts 2 and 3 were kinda rushed compared to Act 1.
I mean, act 1 is as polished as it is because they had direct feedback from their audience. The rest they had to just apply the lessons learned from act 1, and hoping momentum carries you through.
Act 2 and 3 weren't "rushed", its Act 1 that received an absurd level of feedback and rhythm/narrative fine tuning.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rodin
I didn't even know Nocturne was trans, so they failed pretty hard on the token bit.
Yeah, the quest is quite easy to miss and if you aren't familiar with the performer you're not going to notice.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
Act 2 and 3 weren't "rushed", its Act 1 that received an absurd level of feedback and rhythm/narrative fine tuning.
For what it's worth I think we see this sort of pattern pretty consistently in RPG games. Generally more content and better reactivity in the early game that had more time to cook, even in games that didn't have early access periods.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
Act 2 and 3 weren't "rushed", its Act 1 that received an absurd level of feedback and rhythm/narrative fine tuning.
Subjective vs objective. Some people should learn the difference.
Subjective opinion 1: Act 2 and 3 were rushed.
Implied opinion: Act 2 and 3 did intentionally or circumstantially not receive nearly as much attention.
Subjective opinion 2: Act 1 was polished as all hell.
Implied opinion: Act 1 was superbly crafted, Act 2 and 3 are just standard fare for the studio.
A more objective observation: Act 1 has received a lot more detail and writing. Act 2 and 3 received less development time. the final personal quests are often bugged (mostly due to how many variables the stories have). I remember BG 2's romances being binary in choices. Either romance=true or romance=false. (Don't get your nickers in a twist, the gender choice at the beginning of the game was pointless in 1999, too. Pretty sure the earliest mods just made romances to the possible NPCs viable regardless of CHARNAME's gender or sex).
Or how we say in the "industry" of writing forum posts: You are talking about the same thing, but from different angles. You cannot tell the goal and implication without a direct interview and/or sources/citations from the developer. Cut back on slander and praise a bit. this may sound dull, but you won't nearly as easily fall into hype or tribalism (my game is better than your game) and cannot be as easily manipulated and make more informed choices.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
To be clear, I still find the game incredible and a worthy GOTY winner. And Acts 2 and 3 were still fun as hell with more content than any other RPG I’ve ever seen.
But there are still obvious holes where Larian didn’t have the time/resources to fill out the game. Halsin gets a lot of focus in Act 2, and then his quest line just…stops. He has barely any dialogue in Act 3. Minthara gets it worse, with her dialogue being noticeably sparse even in Act 2 and lacks an Act 3 companion quest. Karlach’s quest just sort of stops as well.
Given that we know the entire upper city was cut, it’s fair to say that it’s not just a lack of polish and feedback from EA players that’s to blame. They had to draw the line somewhere, and the result works well enough but does lead to some jagged edges. Like Nocturne.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Rodin
To be clear, I still find the game incredible and a worthy GOTY winner. And Acts 2 and 3 were still fun as hell with more content than any other RPG I’ve ever seen.
But there are still obvious holes where Larian didn’t have the time/resources to fill out the game. Halsin gets a lot of focus in Act 2, and then his quest line just…stops. He has barely any dialogue in Act 3. Minthara gets it worse, with her dialogue being noticeably sparse even in Act 2 and lacks an Act 3 companion quest. Karlach’s quest just sort of stops as well.
Given that we know the entire upper city was cut, it’s fair to say that it’s not just a lack of polish and feedback from EA players that’s to blame. They had to draw the line somewhere, and the result works well enough but does lead to some jagged edges. Like Nocturne.
Yes on Karlach, but Minthara and Halsin are not Origin Companions (Minthara specially so, she's almost a bonus character, and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of players didn't even know she's a possible companion- I didn't in my first playthrough, by the time I heard about that possibility, I'd already killed her). I don't think they even get their "Companion Quest" tab. Halsin fulfills his personal Quest in Act 2, and then decides to help you face the Absolute, but his main interest in the Quest is done, he's not even tadpoled. Consider also how many people feel Act 3 is too cluttered with all the side quests, it would be even more so if you had more Halsin and Minthara quests.
What I'm saying is, I don't expect the same level of detail from any of the additional companions that I do from the Origin companions.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
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Originally Posted by
tonberrian
God i love warlocks in this game. So Gishy. So sexy. Warlock invocations are a great feature.
I maintain warlocks are one of the best-designed classes in 5e.
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Cikomyr2
I mean, all in all i am just frustrated that Nocturne's presence only boils down to a mostly unforeshadowed token appearance that is totally immersion-breaking. Nocturne doesnt join the Sharrites against Shadowheart, nor do they join Shadowheart against the Sharrites if they realize they were also manipulated and exploited.
Nah, they are just there, say "Hello! Im a key part of Shadowheart's backstory but I've been completely irrelevant until now, and will be completely irrelevant after you stop seeing me! You could remove me from the game entirely in transphobe China and nobody would even notice!" Im the PERFECT TOKEN CHARACTER.
Don't forget that we do have another GNC character, in Lucretious the Necromancer.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Started a halfling rogue run (reclassing Astarion to bard), was enjoying it but the oversized heads for small characters are putting me off slightly. I may continue or go for a human/half-elf/dwarf paladin run.
If I do the latter I'll probably reclass Lae'zel into being a Red Dragon Sorcerer.
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Re: Baldur's Gate 3 III: No Plans for DLC Or A Fourth Thread
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Anonymouswizard
Started a halfling rogue run (reclassing Astarion to bard), was enjoying it but the oversized heads for small characters are putting me off slightly. I may continue or go for a human/half-elf/dwarf paladin run.
If I do the latter I'll probably reclass Lae'zel into being a Red Dragon Sorcerer.
I am toying with the idea of playing more actively through the Origins character.
Evil Karlach
Savvy Wyll
Red Dragon Sorcerer Lae'zel
Like, i just want to see how playing these characters against their type will play out. Its like doing a cover of an existing character that i know and love.