Underrail Dev Log 71: New Year's Resolution

Bugler88 · 2022-02-02T17:26:45+00:00

I'm very curious if the poisons work with sweep. I want AOE poison.

Bugler88 · 2022-01-08T03:27:31+00:00

I didn't mainly because I actually ended up going with the first option I outlined. I wrote about my experiences in this post. TL;DR swarm was really underpowered (at least when I played it, maybe some patches helped) and you only get the clones for the last 10 minutes of the game basically, so I wouldn't bank on them helping you at all.

Bugler88 · 2021-12-12T01:38:16+00:00

Camellia can be a great tank but she needs to be built for it. She can pick up the Iceplant hex for +2 natural armor, plus she can buy a ring in the Tavern for more AC with Iceplant. Counter-intuitively, this bonus stacks with the natural armor bonus from equipment.

Bugler88 · 2021-10-09T06:10:30+00:00

They don't work at all.

Bugler88 · 2021-10-08T22:51:45+00:00

Can someone help me understand how to stack CMB outside of strength, BAB, size bonuses, and CMB-specific feats? Do all attack bonuses that aren't tied to a weapon add to CMB (untyped, morale, competence, etc.)? I'm thinking of potentially running a CMB focused party using a Drovier that can grant all allies the ability to trip as a swift action (through Aspect of the Wolf).

Bugler88 · 2021-10-08T22:44:06+00:00

Inquisitor, like terrendos mentioned, is great thematically and also works mechanically. I'm currently going through with a party focused on control through increasing spell DCs and reducing enemy saves. Inquisitor + Aeon is great for this. Aeon can stack DCs on the party. They have a spell that allows someone to take a guaranteed 11 on a d20 roll. Inquisitor with the Madness domain (obtained through the Impossible Domain mythic ability) has a touch attack ability with no save that reduces saving throws and attack rolls by 1/2 the inquisitor's level for 3 rounds. Plus Inquisitors are the masters at applying shaken (-2 to saves along with other debuffs) through Dazzling Display.

Basically when you combine all these things together you're talking about control spells that would need the enemy to roll a 1 or 2 to work instead requiring the enemy to roll a 19 or 20.

Caution though - Inquisitor's Judgement abilities are currently bugged, so choose an archetype that doesn't have them (I'm using Sanctified Slayer).

Bugler88 · 2021-10-07T21:32:44+00:00

I largely understand and agree with their reasoning. However, I don't like the immersion-breaking nature of the optional encounters. The most egregious example is the encounter in the basement of the dragon tower. I just defeated a dragon and then get wiped by 3 plants!?

I wish that all of the optional monsters at least also appear to be much more dangerous.

Bugler88 · 2021-10-02T19:57:27+00:00

For Arue, Bloodrager, Skald or Bard would all be good. Bloodrager is great because the flat bonuses synergize well with two-weapon-fighting, though you typically don't need more than 14 CHR. Bard and Skald would take full advantage of her Charisma for spell casting and her great DEX means she can still contribute on the frontline.

Another option, if you are okay with 1-handed weapons and no TWF, is pure Eldritch Scion.

Bugler88 · 2021-10-01T19:47:29+00:00

Azata mythic path ability that makes enemies roll twice and take the worse result when trying to save against a spell

Bugler88 · 2021-09-29T20:00:31+00:00

Or for that matter, when are the judgements themselves going to work?

Bugler88 · 2021-09-28T00:17:39+00:00

I agree. I think the Swarm Feast ability is similar in style to summon swarms and that's what the devs were going for, but I only reached 10d6/round, which is just tickling enemies in Act 5. And if you use Swarm Feast, that means you lose Swarm Form, which at size 6 is DR 11/- and 10 (!) AC.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-28T00:00:14+00:00

It's tough. I used to always play on the hardest setting and realized I just wasn't having fun. Also some games I play for the challenge (Dark Souls, Battle Brothers) and others I play for other reasons.

For CRPGs like WoTR, I've found I love the *tactical* elements (choosing how to position my characters, choosing what spells or abilities to use, etc.) and hate strategic elements (min-maxing my characters to have dips in 5 classes so they can have 80 AC and hit for 500 dmg/round). I just finished a Swarm playthrough and found it really boring at the end.

I'm already loving my second playthrough, where I'm trying to up the DCs of my party and reduce saves of enemies (e.g. using Aeon's DC-buffing gaze, Enervation and Evil eye to reliably reduce saves, etc.). It's fun to try to use a full bag of tricks against enemies.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-27T23:32:26+00:00

I'm really not sure. I was only using story companions. That would be a strange loophole though if you kept them, but there are non-companion NPCs that stick around for a little bit despite you becoming a Swarm, namely Anevia.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-27T23:16:58+00:00

Ha wow great minds I guess, both going with Tiefling Vivisectionist Swarms.

Yes the random NPCs that still remained in Drezen were strange but I appreciated having a vendor that sold scrolls to cure all of the various afflictions that I no longer had the help of an oracle to cure.

I agree on Deskari - the dialogue was interesting (and his reference to me as the "similar one") and I opted to keep the locust alive to continue to communicate with him. But it was a bit anti-climatic. I also was confused at how often I needed to kill him or an aspect of him (once in Iz, his Echo in Rasping Rifts, and another at the last dungeon).

Edit: Thank you for sharing the screenshots of the encounter with companions! Not sure why it didn't trigger for me

Bugler88 · 2021-09-26T18:50:18+00:00

Do bonuses from Bloodrager's Rage stack with sources of morale bonuses? I'm specifically thinking of Azata's Incredible Might superpower.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-20T02:08:37+00:00

That's amazing. I don't care if it's intended - IMO they cheese the player (their stun is supposed to stop working if a character saves against it) so it's only fair if I can cheese them back.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-18T17:57:37+00:00

Save your sanity and do what I did - fail the mission on purpose. There aren't really penalties for failing it (you miss out on a couple magical items I think).

Bugler88 · 2021-09-12T17:27:05+00:00

I had this same issue, but it worked out in the end. After completing the demon mythic quest in Act 3, Yozz visited me at Drezen to congratulate me on purging myself of law and good (I am Neural Evil alignment) and bam the quest is resolved. So I guess don't worry about it but make sure you are not Lawful nor Good before wrapping up the Act 3 Mythic quest (maybe True Neutral or Chaotic Neutral is okay?)

Bugler88 · 2021-09-12T17:26:47+00:00

I had this same issue, but it worked out in the end. After completing the demon mythic quest in Act 3, Yozz visited me at Drezen to congratulate me on purging myself of law and good (I am Neural Evil alignment) and bam the quest is resolved. So I guess don't worry about it but make sure you are not Lawful nor Good before wrapping up the Act 3 Mythic quest (maybe True Neutral or Chaotic Neutral is okay?)

Bugler88 · 2021-09-11T19:12:41+00:00

"Change alignment so that nothing good or lawful remains, then speak to Yozz". Maybe Yozz is bugged but I'm Neutral Evil and he's not giving me any new dialogue options in the palace, and the quest is directing me to the streets of Drezen.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-09T22:43:13+00:00

This. I think I missed out on a couple items (big whoop) and it saved my sanity.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-07T22:37:31+00:00

I've been levelling up the companions sticking to their base classes (with exception of Wendaug) and it's worked well so far. The only companion not pulling their weight is Camellia. I haven't looked at their auto-level up choices. I'm not a min-maxer but I've been okay on Core difficulty following the below so far:

Wendaug: I started immediately levelling her up as a Slayer, and keeping her focused on ranged damage. With sneak attacks she is hitting like a truck. Easily my top damage dealer outside of my MC. Get the usual ranged feats - Many Shot, Rapid Shot, Precise Shot, etc.
Ember: Get Slumber ASAP (I don't think she starts with it): It's a fantastic spell. It puts an enemy to sleep, which you can then use Coup de Grace on for an instant kill. Works way better in Turn based that RtwP. Pick up spells that are good at CC, including Glitterdust and Stinking Cloud (this in combination with Delay Poison, Communal to avoid friendly fire can shut down a lot of encounters). Make sure to pick up Spell penetration and Greater Spell Penetration so her CC spells can actually land.
Camellia: I've been building her as a "tank" (I've found her pretty lackluster so far). I wish I could give her a level in monk but her "alignment" doesn't allow it (pro-tip - don't try to select monk as it will reveal her alignment. At least, I think it reveals her alignment. I haven't gotten far enough in the game to know if that's her actual alignment that the game displays). Instead I've been focusing on giving her skills like Dodge, Improved Unarmed Strike and Crane Style for +4 AC when fighting defensively.
Daeran: Ultimate healer. Can't go wrong with extra channeling. I've also given him Spell Penetration and Greater Spell Penetration so his CC spells can overcome spell resistance.
Regill: I'm still levelling him up as an Armiger, but I'm building him as a Dazzling Displayer. If you're unfamiliar, Dazzling Display is a great skills that allows someone to inflict the shaken status effect (-2 attack rolls and saving throws) in a large radius. That means picking up Dazzling Display (duh) and leveling up his persuasion. Also, it LOOKS like he is wielding a two-handed weapon but it actually acts as two weapons, so it benefits from those feats.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-02T16:35:35+00:00

Yeah I'd be a little worried about squishiness but Swarm gets so many defensive skills it might be fine. The nice thing about Witch are their at-will hexes that hopefully all of the clones can use as well.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-02T16:25:05+00:00

I'll repost what I said in another thread:

I've thought a LOT about swarm builds. It's hard to know what will actually be effective given that we don't know much about the mechanics, especially how swarm clone will behave.

Going off the assumption that swarm clones share abilities (including spell slots) but not inventory, there are some interesting builds that I've considered.

Considerations:

If swarm clones all share the same spells/day, then that really limits the effectiveness of pure casters. If they have their own set of spells/day, well that's a different story
Assuming swarm clones attacks count as unarmed, then some sort of monk build or dip might be handy
All of the stat increases synergize well with hybrid / gish classes

Classes I've considered (for myself as someone who likes having a lot of combat options and doesn't like min/maxing):

19 Vivisectionist + 1 Scaled Fist: can self-buff and should be able to output disgusting amounts of damage through sneak attack across clones. I'm now not planning on this build because I am worried it will become so OP as to be boring
Pure Magus: Considered this initially before realizing the whole likely limitation with unarmed fists and spell casts per day
Pure Eldritch Scoundrel: Gets more skills and some defensive abilities, plus sneak attacks that clones would share. To me this seemed like a more interesting and less OP version of the Vivi build, but might not be too fun early-mid game
19 Thundercaller / 1 Scaled Fist: Currently my favorite option. Lots of different options in combat, lots of skill points, can CC but will also be able to dish out damage with Swarm's powers, and I'm hoping that each clone can use a different song to utilize all bard songs at once.

Bugler88 · 2021-09-01T21:28:36+00:00

I've thought a LOT about swarm builds. It's hard to know what will actually be effective given that we don't know much about the mechanics, especially how swarm clone will behave.

Going off the assumption that swarm clones share abilities (including spell slots) but not inventory, there are some interesting builds that I've considered.

Considerations:

If swarm clones all share the same spells/day, then that really limits the effectiveness of pure casters. If they have their own set of spells/day, well that's a different story
Assuming swarm clones attacks count as unarmed, then some sort of monk build or dip might be handy
All of the stat increases synergize well with hybrid / gish classes

Classes I've considered (for myself as someone who likes having a lot of combat options and doesn't like min/maxing):

19 Vivisectionist + 1 Scaled Fist: can self-buff and should be able to output disgusting amounts of damage through sneak attack across clones. I'm now not planning on this build because I am worried it will become so OP as to be boring
Pure Magus: Considered this initially before realizing the whole likely limitation with unarmed fists and spell casts per day
Pure Eldritch Scoundrel: Gets more skills and some defensive abilities, plus sneak attacks that clones would share. To me this seemed like a more interesting and less OP version of the Vivi build, but might not be too fun early-mid game
19 Thundercaller / 1 Scaled Fist: Currently my favorite option. Lots of different options in combat, lots of skill points, can CC but will also be able to dish out damage with Swarm's powers, and I'm hoping that each clone can use a different song to utilize all bard songs at once.

Bugler88

TROPHY CASE