[Action RPG] Path of Exile

[smackababy]

I have never reached endgame. I always end up starting over for some reason. =( Lol, I don't think I've ever even beaten the game on the hardest difficulty. I beat Cruel and then make it like half way and decide I don't like my character for some reason. So, I reroll!

 

[JamesV]

grats

no idea how you got a 6L so cheap though

Yea, I heard I'd need 5-6 exalts for a 6L, so when this guy was asking for 3 exalts, I jumped on it, sending him an offer for 2 exalts and 15 chaos.

 

[Hacp]

I have never reached endgame. I always end up starting over for some reason. =( Lol, I don't think I've ever even beaten the game on the hardest difficulty. I beat Cruel and then make it like half way and decide I don't like my character for some reason. So, I reroll!

Maybe its because you don't feel powerful enough, so you think your character sucks.

 

[smackababy]

Maybe its because you don't feel powerful enough, so you think your character sucks.

I usually am not very powerful. I end up hating the "complexity" of the grid because I will spec for extra damage in two handed axes and then find an amazing 1 handed sword that is pretty much useless, because I spent all those points making my weapon of choice at level 10, despite having no idea what will be the best at level 50.

So, I reroll with that in mind and then when I hit 60, I find a 2 handed sword that is even better, so again I have to reroll. =(


Sadly, I end up deleting these characters because I like my names and don't want to give them up. Being CritRomney is its own reward.

 

[JamesV]

Sadly, I end up deleting these characters because I like my names and don't want to give them up. Being CritRomney is its own reward.

CritRomney is good. My first was Pants_Merchant, and I spammed trade with offers to sell pants.

But she was a fireball totem MF witch... didn't quite work out how I wanted

 

[Snock514]

Welp. Just RIP'd on a level 54 bow maurader.. fml. time to take another few day break from this game. It's always when I try and progress into merciless.. fuuuuuuuck

 

[smackababy]

So, I put in quite a few more hours this weekend than I'd hoped (ended up losing my ~45 ranger in Nemesis league goofing around, so I rerolled weapon throw Scion). Got to just under 50 last night. I accidentally made it in Domination league, and didn't realize until like 4 or 5 hours in. Not a huge deal to me though. So far, I am loving it! I might actually make it to end game this time!

 

[Snock514]

Version 1.0.4

Major Features/Content:
You can now challenge another player or party to a duel! Right click on them and select "Challenge to Duel". If they accept, you'll immediately be teleported to a PvP arena. If you challenge another party, the parties will fight each other. If you challenge someone in your party, only the two of you will fight. The resistance penalties used for the arena are those of the difficulty that the challenger was in.
Added a new Intelligence skill - Flameblast: Channels to build up a large explosion. The longer you channel, the larger the area of effect and damage of the explosion. The explosion occurs after using another skill or after a short period without casting.
Flameblast is first available to the Witch, Templar and Scion from the "The Caged Brute" quest in Normal Difficulty and to the Shadow from "Delving into Sin".
Added five new Unique items, two of which are designed by supporters. A special item has also been added for a supporter.
Added three new cosmetic microtransactions: Olmec Totem Skin, Tribal Storm Call and Holiday Present Sack.
Added two new Achievements: Specialist and Full Clear: The Catacombs.
Added four new vendor recipes.

Minor Features/Content:
Resistances on the character screen now show your uncapped total in brackets.
Your resistances appear in red if you have less than 0%.
Added a new Heavy Strike animation for Marauders wielding Two Handed Swords.
Updated the Scion block animations, to deal with shield flipping.
Players must now be level 2 or higher before they can use global or trade chat, unless they have previously had a level 25 character on their account.

Balance:
Fireball: The area of effect has been increased by 12%. Damage has been increased at all levels (by around 20% at level one and around 23% at level 15).
Firestorm: The radius of the area that fireballs land in has been increased by 39%. The delay between strikes has been reduced from 0.15 seconds to 0.10 seconds. Damage has been increased by 35%. The quality bonus has been reduced by 33.33% to match the reduced projectile delay.
Incinerate: Now has a cast time of 240 milliseconds instead of 160. Damage has been increased by 77% per cast and damage effectiveness for supports has been adjusted from 20% to 30%. The number of stacks required to progress through a stage has been reduced to four casts.
Added Cold Damage has been increased by 15% at level 1, up to 100% at level 15.
Added Lightning Damage has been increased by 15% at level 1, up to 100% at level 15.
Added Chaos Damage has been increased by 7% at level 1, up to 69% at level 15.
Modified the Torture Chamber boss room with several changes. The exit is disabled during the boss fight. A pillar has been added close to exit, to better signal that the beam attack can be interrupted by breaking line of sight.
Sallazzang in the Labyrinth now correctly spawns with a magic monster pack in addition to the normal Devourers that spawn in his arena every few seconds.
The Barrage skill has been added for the Ranger in Descent Champions.
The Storm Call skill has been added for the Witch in Descent Champions.

Bug Fixes:
Fixed a bug where you could shoot wand projectiles that received unarmed damage bonuses.
Fixed an issue where some achievements with only one criterion showed that criterion as partial completion in the description.
Fixed the text on Demon King Horns to correctly describe it as a replacement skin, rather than an additional effect.
Fixed an interaction between the Headhunter unique item and the Proximity Shield Nemesis mod, where the Proximity Shield did not expire.



Time to roll a fire witch

 

[JamesV]

Wow did fire get buffed. My first character is a fireball/firestorm totem witch, and at 78 she killed pretty quickly. Might have to dust her off.

 

[Wardawg1001]

Yea Fireball and Firestorm both seem to have gotten pretty significant buffs. I like it, I always liked firestorm as a skill, but it just wasn't on the same level as other skills end game.

 

[Wardawg1001]

I usually am not very powerful. I end up hating the "complexity" of the grid because I will spec for extra damage in two handed axes and then find an amazing 1 handed sword that is pretty much useless, because I spent all those points making my weapon of choice at level 10, despite having no idea what will be the best at level 50.

So, I reroll with that in mind and then when I hit 60, I find a 2 handed sword that is even better, so again I have to reroll. =(


Sadly, I end up deleting these characters because I like my names and don't want to give them up. Being CritRomney is its own reward.

Theres really no need for this. I would advise you to just stay away from any damage nodes that affect only specific weapons, there are plenty damage increase nodes that are non-specific. The only reason to pick weapon specific nodes is if you are building around a certain end game weapon (Soul Reaper axe for instance), or the primary skill you are building around his a limited set of weapon options anyways. Either way though, there are plenty of viable end game builds that don't take a single weapon specific node.

 

[smackababy]

Theres really no need for this. I would advise you to just stay away from any damage nodes that affect only specific weapons, there are plenty damage increase nodes that are non-specific. The only reason to pick weapon specific nodes is if you are building around a certain end game weapon (Soul Reaper axe for instance), or the primary skill you are building around his a limited set of weapon options anyways. Either way though, there are plenty of viable end game builds that don't take a single weapon specific node.

But, the problem is that there is no real method to the madness to explain that in game. Which severely punishes casual players.

My new character is a weapon throw Scion and I haven't put anything into weapon specific (the exception being generic 2 hand weapons, because I know I am going to be using 2 handed weapons). The problem is, a ways along my build, I have passed up plenty of easy damage boosts to not lock myself into a particular weapon (which is good because even though I had an axe with 98% increase physical damage I found a hammer that is much better). The first of each character is likely going to end up being useless for the majority of people who play.

Something I really don't like though is my gear is basically only upgradable in slots that don't hold my skills (4+ link for weapon throw even at level 49 is a must for how I'm playing) and I would rather not waste items trying to get a level 40 chest piece to match those sockets when I would be better served using them endgame. =)

 

[Wardawg1001]

But, the problem is that there is no real method to the madness to explain that in game. Which severely punishes casual players.

No there isn't, but I'd argue that for anyone familiar with the ARPG/hack-n-slash genre, you should already know to expect that drops are going to be random in this way, and so speccing into a specific weapon type is going to mean that you will likely find weapons throughout the game that are of a different type but more powerful than what you have. Its just how these types of games work.

For those not familiar with ARPG's, yes I can see it as an annoyance. But I certainly wouldn't call it severe punishment. Characters don't take all that long to level, free re-spec points are plentiful, and there aren't that many weapon specific nodes out there anyways.

My new character is a weapon throw Scion and I haven't put anything into weapon specific (the exception being generic 2 hand weapons, because I know I am going to be using 2 handed weapons). The problem is, a ways along my build, I have passed up plenty of easy damage boosts to not lock myself into a particular weapon (which is good because even though I had an axe with 98% increase physical damage I found a hammer that is much better). The first of each character is likely going to end up being useless for the majority of people who play.

I don't really see this as a problem. You passed up a lot of other useful nodes along the way too. Any given build could probably benefit from at least 200+ different nodes. Its the nature of the game to have to make these choices, its what makes the character building aspect so unique and entertaining. You don't need those damage nodes anyways. I play hardcore exclusively, I generally take nothing but survivability nodes (hp, armor, evasion, resists, certain keystone passives, etc) exclusively until level 50+, and have no problem smashing my way through Normal and Cruel difficulties.

Something I really don't like though is my gear is basically only upgradable in slots that don't hold my skills (4+ link for weapon throw even at level 49 is a must for how I'm playing) and I would rather not waste items trying to get a level 40 chest piece to match those sockets when I would be better served using them endgame. =)

Don't be afraid to use some of your currency early on, but for the most part if you are in desperate need of an upgrade on an item that you are using to link skills, just hit up the forums or trade chat. It will be much cheaper to find something there than to try to gamble with alchs/fuses/chroms to try to get a good item. But you shouldnt need to upgrade your gear all that often until Merciless anyways.

 

[CWRMadcat]

But, the problem is that there is no real method to the madness to explain that in game. Which severely punishes casual players.

My new character is a weapon throw Scion and I haven't put anything into weapon specific (the exception being generic 2 hand weapons, because I know I am going to be using 2 handed weapons). The problem is, a ways along my build, I have passed up plenty of easy damage boosts to not lock myself into a particular weapon (which is good because even though I had an axe with 98% increase physical damage I found a hammer that is much better). The first of each character is likely going to end up being useless for the majority of people who play.

Something I really don't like though is my gear is basically only upgradable in slots that don't hold my skills (4+ link for weapon throw even at level 49 is a must for how I'm playing) and I would rather not waste items trying to get a level 40 chest piece to match those sockets when I would be better served using them endgame. =)

If you're going spectral throw, just buy a shiversting, geoffrey's baptism, and terminus est. Link LMP to spectral and you'll fly through hordes of mobs so quickly.

 

[Chiropteran]

Big patch 1.1 is next week. Lots of cool additions to the game.

Some info leaked prior to the official time:
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/934145/PoE_XP.htm

Anyone else still playing, or coming back for 1.1?

 

[masterxfob]

onslaught was pretty good, nemesis wasn't bad, but invasion seems kind of stupid. to be honest, I'm more interested in the Pandora's box in the ambush league. May be my first experience outside of hardcore in a while.league

 

[Udgnim]

onslaught was pretty good, nemesis wasn't bad, but invasion seems kind of stupid. to be honest, I'm more interested in the Pandora's box in the ambush league. May be my first experience outside of hardcore in a while.league

I think there's supposed to be special bosses in each area with Invasion

it's going to depend on how interesting those area bosses are otherwise Invasion zones will just play similarly to maps with monster variety mod

not going to be fun running into surprise devourers

 

[TallBill]

I've been playing and will keep playing off and on. Just wanna get 1 toon to the end for maps.

 

[Llwellyn]

Yeah, on Invasion, each of the bosses is unique and has new unique abilities. So, in addition to the out-of-place mobs, the boss is also special and has abilities not normally encountered. It should be damn interesting, and might be the first time I make a serious try at hardcore; especially with the challenges being in play. I hope they aren't too damn impossible, I'd love to have 8 sexy stars on my profile for awhile before the end of the next 4-month cycle!

Ambush looks interesting and fun as well, especially with being able to apply currency to the boxes. Combined with all of the stuff from the expansion, it's going to be an almost different game to play.

I just need to find a good solid build to use for Invasion. In Ambush I will probably use a Blender again; I used one for the 1-week Domination and made it to level 67 before the end of the 1-week, then kept using him after he rolled over into the regular Domination league until he hit level 70. My highest Standard character was only 63, and took a lot longer to get there than that.

It also depends on the changes to the passive tree; it could open up some interesting things that weren't quite as viable before. Ground Slam Marauder with Leap Slam for mobility is always a good choice in quick races, but I have no idea how that pans out at high levels. The Marauder starting area is one of the sections that is getting overhauled.

 

[Rhezuss]

Anyone care to explain the skills level ups?
I understand the more you use a skill the more "xp" it gain and eventually you'll see the skill popup on the middle right of the screen with a "+" icon to level it up.

Is there a point to not level a skill or should you always do it?

And if you remove the skill gem and replace it later on, do you keep your skill level?

 

[Udgnim]

Anyone care to explain the skills level ups?
I understand the more you use a skill the more "xp" it gain and eventually you'll see the skill popup on the middle right of the screen with a "+" icon to level it up.

Is there a point to not level a skill or should you always do it?

And if you remove the skill gem and replace it later on, do you keep your skill level?

leveling up gems tends to increase mana cost and stat requirement

it's not always best to always level a gem

a skill gem retains its level and XP if you remove it

 

[Rhezuss]

leveling up gems tends to increase mana cost and stat requirement

it's not always best to always level a gem

a skill gem retains its level and XP if you remove it

Thanks! Nice to see it's not just mindless leveling, you actually have to check your things a bit more than many other in the genre. I'm gonna give this another shot soon I guess.

And I must say, the music in this game is so atmospheric and awesome! One of the best in games i've heard so far. That and Planescape Torment.

 

[nanobreath]

Anyone care to explain the skills level ups?
I understand the more you use a skill the more "xp" it gain and eventually you'll see the skill popup on the middle right of the screen with a "+" icon to level it up.

Is there a point to not level a skill or should you always do it?

And if you remove the skill gem and replace it later on, do you keep your skill level?

Just a note, the gem gets experience when you get experience. It is not from using the skill, but from having the gem equipped when you gain experience.

It is almost always better to level a gem up. The only times you don't is you're intentionally keeping a gem low to reduce mana cost when you don't care about damage. There are times when you cannot level up a gem because you don't meet the stat requirements, but usually people will try to get stats to level a gem up. If you have a gem equipped it is there for a reason, and a higher level usually provides some benefit, typically more damage.

 

[Llwellyn]

There are very few gems where you don't want to level them up, unless you are trying to avoid the stat requirement increase temporarily:

Detonate Dead - the damage it gains from leveling up is pointless, all the damage comes from the explosions! It just wastes mana if you level it.

Cast When Damage Taken - You have to carefully level this one. It supports a certain combined level of skills based on its level, and triggers based on a certain amount of damage taken. Level it to high, and it won't trigger often enough because you aren't taking enough damage. Leave it too low, and you can't support a high enough blend of supports.

Clarity - the only aura in the game with a non-fixed reservation cost. The higher you level this baby, the more she costs. It's still affected by Reduced Mana, but any build that is using clarity that isn't going to have a huge tank of mana where they can ignore the reservation cost carefully considers just how high to take it. IIRC, it's 20 mana reserved per level for 2 mana per second of regen.

Those are the big three I can think of - so basically, you just have to plan your build a bit and make sure to read your gems carefully. Don't just blindly click to level them up, and it helps to study the wiki ahead of time.

That is especially important, really, because gem quality affects different gems differently as well, and you need to know if you are going to plan for having a quality gem in play (and plan how to get it - trading for it or level a regular one + GCP).

 

[smackababy]

^My build uses clarity and a lot of the reduced mana nodes. But, I also use energy shield is converted to mana, the energy shield aura, and Mind over Matter. I have about 50% of my mana pool left over after 3 auras, I use fully leveled Arctic Armor and spam EK. >_<

And, using the Cast when Damage Taken doesn't matter. By the time you get to where it is level 17-18, you take that damage in one or two hits regardless. However, I didn't level this one as I played, so before the end game, I've no idea.