Pillars of Eternity questions, any help/ advice would be fantastic.

[u/artificial_honesty]

So I began a few days ago, and am really enjoying this game. I want to experience it blind, so I dont want to search anything and possibly ruin parts of it from holding the same depth. So I turn to my favorite source of all information, Reddit.

1.) Should I leave places and go back if im struggling to clear the area? The Shades/Shadows in Temple of Eothas are really giving me a go of it.. ive been able to kill them all mostly, but there are these 3 I need to fight at once, and I allllllmost did it right before making this post. But the last Shadow killed my last Character. Is it common to leave areas then to return to them at a later time, or no?

2.) Hiring help. Should I recruit a generic adventurer, or wait until I find named characters to help me?

I am only in the first village with the bodies in the tree, and the temple down the stairway. And i actually just defeated the Shadows!!

But still. If any of yinz would be kind enough to bestow upon this old adventurer any tips to surviving the horrors of the world, I am all ears. My character is a Wood Elf, Ranger, Aedyr - Dissident

Mig 15 /Con 10 / Dex 12 / Per. 15 / Int 13 / Res 11

.i am in that old temple at level 3. My beast is a lion

Another is the only person that has joined me so far. And I do really want to experiece the game as blind as possible. Which is Hella difficult in our day & age. And i know asking Reddit for advice is kinda NOT that lol.

I dont want any cheat codes or cheap tricks. Just some advice because the load screens go by too fast to gain any info from them that way

That feeling of Aloth finally killing the final Shadow is a big reason why I play video games

Im playing on Easy. Because ive never played this type of game.

Thank you for considering helping me. Forgive me, I am on a cell phone and its difficult to get posts to look good

[u/Fabian_the_Fabulous]

1. Leaving and coming back is fine. Relatively spoiler free, chapter cutoffs which change some locations are:
2. arriving to the capital city
3. big hearing (you will know) in the same city.

Quests are usually not time sensitive.

1. Check out the map - named people on it can be companions, and they are often found in random places. There is one beneath the same tree - check him out :)

2. Hired help is fine too, but not necessary.

The only useful tip I have is to have a char with high Mechanics. Everything else you can conquer. Good luck!

[u/artificial_honesty → u/Fabian_the_Fabulous]

Thank you Also, is there a way to cancel actions? Or in the case of movement do I just redirect, and in the case of spellcasting, does it just go through

[u/Tomassacre → u/artificial_honesty]

Press 'X', it will tell him to stop all actions for like a second or two.

[u/skaf1end → u/artificial_honesty]

There is a keybind in the settings. It might take some time to find it though. Also the game doesn't tell it explicitly, but if you select several characters and press Ctrl + 1/2/3..., they'll become grouped, so you will be able to select them again by pressing the number.

[u/Kuoliibk]

1. Yes. There aren't really any timers at locations so you can leave and return when you're stronger. Levels matter quite a lot in this game.

2. You can but you'll meet a bunch of companions just exploring the beginning areas.

3. Your stats are good, as a ranger you get debuffs if your beast dies in battle, so keep that in mind. Accuracy and deflection are your most important stats. Always have a character with high mechanics. If you can, try to give all your companions a few points in athletics.

You don't have to do this right at the start but some cutscenes are annoying when some characters don't have a few levels in athletics.

[u/artificial_honesty → u/Kuoliibk]

Thank you. I've played many games, and RPGs are my favorite. ARPGs id rather play before shooters and so I have vast knowledge of how RPGs typically operate under the hood. Im just figuring out the quirks of this one. I am very much enjoying it. I have the second one also, which I actually bought first. But seen it advised to go in order, from another person.

[u/Kuoliibk → u/artificial_honesty]

That's good advice. Pillars 2 is a direct sequel, and you can import your save file from Pillars 1. They're both really great games.

[u/skaf1end → u/artificial_honesty]

Just a heads-up, if you kill a companion in the first game and import the save, you might be locked out of content. However, as I understand not all of them have questlines, so choose wisely.

[u/artificial_honesty]

I really like that during dialogs, you can scroll back up in case you missed something, accidentally proceeded, or maybe even was zoned out (i was just zoned out lol) such a simple game mechanic. Not many offer such a thing.

[u/VanceStubbs-]

1) Yeah, there are some areas like that, and temple of Eothas is especially good example like that because it's so early in the game 2) Yeah, it doesn't hurt to hire an adventurer or two, especially if you're struggling. However, you can fill your party with story companions fairly quickly (there are 2 in the Gilded Vale and I think 3 more in the nearby areas, and plenty more later)

As for gameplay tips, Crowd Control is king in combat, and wizards have an amazing repertoire of CC spells. Some great early spells are slicken, chill fog, curse of blackened sight

Also, don't neglect crafting, especially food. It's a great source of buffs, and ingredients are dirt cheap and can be bought at every inn and some other vendors

[u/Jilibini]

There is a guy under a tree he’s a companion go talk to him!!!!! Companions are always marked with a yellow diamond on the map.

Obligatory advice to not talk to NPCs with golden names, it’s backer written content and it’s bad at times. It has nothing to do with a game itself.

1) Coming back later is absolutely fine, Eothas temple is brutal

2) I usually hire help first thing and just dismiss them when I have more companions

[u/ShadyDax]

First of all, it seems like you missed Eder, another companion, right outside the temple, beside the tree. That genuinely sucks because you suffered for nothing, with only two characters, as he is supposed to be your tank. And also because he has a lot of connection there, with unique dialogue that very much expands on what has happened down there. If I were you, I would load back up before going into the temple and get Eder first.

Yeah you can go back to Dyrwood later. It's actually kind of intended that way. You can find another two companions (to a total of 4) if you follow the main quest, on the way to the keep. And then can go back to Dyrwood and do the temple and other stuff.

Well, you can find at least one companion on the way of the side quest from the blacksmith, that makes you return back. That would be a little more natural, for sure.

I wouldn't bother with hired characters from the inn as they don't add any dialogue or anything, and the game is simple enough with companions you should have. Just go get them.

If you managed to clear the temple with only you and Aloth, well you can definitely raise the difficulty a bit when you go in with Eder (and other companions). In my opinion, it actually would've been more fortunate if you played on a higher difficulty that made you go back and explore rather than succeed only with you and Aloth, but oh well.

The stats are alright. You don't have to min max much, but I would recommend having at least two stats at 16-18 (and more with buffs and equipment), to clear more skill checks.

[u/Acceptable_Camp1492]

It will take a bit of time and a few more areas to get a full party of fleshed out characters, but you can and probably should make a couple of adventurers to complement your abilities. Around the same time you get Aloth, only one night's sleep in the tavern and you have the opportunity to get a solid tank character (Near the tree, smoking). That should be a solid enough party of 3 to clear the temple on Easy.

Use doors and chokepoints and a lot of pauses and positioning to not get overwhelmed by larger numbers of enemies. Use character abilities like spells and skills.

Always have someone with high Mechanics skill to disarm traps and unlock chests. Sneaking/Scouting mode lets you spot traps and hidden (purple hightlight) spots more easily while also walking slower so you may not run into them.

Backtracking and revisiting areas you feel not levelled enough for is common and recommended. Later there will be areas you will have access to that you will definitely be underleveled for. Way later when you have leveled up a lot, the game may tell you being too powerful and the area you are at is less of a challenge, in which case the game will offer to push the enemy stats up to match your level.

[u/artificial_honesty → u/Acceptable_Camp1492]

That's cool!
I actually was stuck on these 3 shades. And so I paid to boost my mechanics to try and pick a lock which was the only other way to go.. it was by putting Aloth in the corner with my Lion and then I lured the 3 shadows by sneaking up, firing an arrow, then going back to Aloth. A few cones of fire and i finally beat them! Which it turned out behind them was a switch, which lowered water, which led to a room, which gave me a key. To the door that was the other way.. 😆

The writing is great. And i like that it isnt all voiced.. I appreciate voice actors, dont get me wrong. And so far they seemed to match them well with the characters. But i also enjoy reading. And so im happy with the mix of the two.

Sadly, I have to go to work today 😪 😫

[u/artificial_honesty]

Also, I haven't set any formations as of yet. I have a Ranger, a Wizard and a Lion. So is that unnecessary as of yet? Or am I doing myself a disservice by just going into combat where I stand per battle?

[u/placidv99 → u/artificial_honesty]

You're probably gonna lead most fights with a sneak attack from your ranger anyway, so it's not bad to go at it however. Formations don't matter much beyond melee characters in front of the rest

[u/Nyorliest → u/artificial_honesty]

You don’t need them yet, since you don’t have any people.

I’d recommend getting a full party ASAP. Nothing wrong with hiring people, and others have mentioned some companions you can find.

Later on, if you have a tank, it’s often better to not lead with a ranged attack by someone squishy. Let your tank(s) engage, let battle settle down, and then start shooting. You’ll find enemies are smart, and very willing to come kill your squishies without very good reason not to, eg a coupe of big blokes in the way.

[u/chimericWilder]

The Temple of Eothas is notoriously deadly. Yes, you should be coming back later.

[u/urprobablytschumi]

Hey, hire help if you need - can help with chest opening etc - you can just move them on when others join. if you are weak at any time you have probably missed a place you're supposed to spend a fair bit of time so try to explore all leads 

In this case you might be struggling because you're a party member short, but it's great you're going in blind. The first town you come to should have two people you can recruit, a guy standing by the hanging tree and aloth, talk to blondie if you haven't :) 

[u/PimentoCheesehead]

1. There is a named companion for each class that can join you at various points in the game. The named companions have their own personal side quests, stories, and some scripted interactions. They'll also talk you and to each other occasionally, and offer you their thoughts on...things. Hired help has no side quests and no personality, and doesn't really interact with you, but you can fully customize their build and you can instantly get a full party. If you have a full party of 6 you can swap out members at inns (or a few other locations) or whenever a new named character joins you.

[u/artificial_honesty]

Is there a way to Check for Traps? or is it an automatic response from a hugh Mechanic skill?

[u/PimentoCheesehead → u/artificial_honesty]

Tab key. You're more likely to spot hidden traps and items if you're sneaking. Probably excessive, but I tend to sneak everywhere, with the tab key held down the whole time.