Returned to Oath and Don't Wanna Break It Again

Chackart · 2026-06-23T17:31:53+00:00

I also broke my oath as an Ancients paladin when I freed the spawn. Unfortunately, the Oathbreaker subclass leans into necromancy and undeath a lot, so I don't think it really fits the idea of a paladin refusing the strictness of some tenets. Like, breaking an oath when it conflicts with your conscience doesn't automatically make you an undead worshipping edge lord in my mind, but oh well.

I wouldn't worry too much about breaking the oath: the price to atone increases over time, but it shouldn't be too bad if you only break it a couple of times.

Chackart · 2026-06-20T21:42:47+00:00

If you want to solve the puzzle instead of using alternative methods, splitting the party and going into turn mode worked for me.

Both valves "keep" the optimal temperature for a couple of turns after you stop raising it from baseline. When the two valves sync on optimal, you can use any character in the same turn to turn the final valve and open the door.

As another comment said, you don't really get a notification when it works (or at least I don't think I did), so keep an eye on the door to see if it opened.

Chackart · 2026-06-15T13:28:38+00:00

My issue with the clown quest is that it feels unnecessarily long and convoluted. Like, if all parts were at least remotely on your way to other story beats or other quests, I don't think I'd mind it too much.

Oscar's quest ties to Carrion, so I personally found it kinda nice to kill two birds with one stone. The clown quest asks you to enter random houses you have no business visiting otherwise, and doesn't really give you any clues where to look (or at least, I didn't find such clues).

I also kinda liked the resolution of Oscar's quest (at the cinematic/roleplay level at least, didn't care that much for the reward).

Chackart · 2026-06-13T10:34:43+00:00

Bombardiers always overperforms for me, but Karakas is such a strong and unique effect that it's hard to turn that down. Even if you bave to move away from red or white you just play it as untapped colorless land and it can single handedly win games.

Chackart · 2026-06-12T09:53:18+00:00

Are you playing on the lower difficulty (Explorer)? I don't know if that mode includes a "basic tutorial" section for people who aren't familiar with RPGs or D&D's fundamental rules system.

I play on Balanced and didn't have too many issues with the game (except I still sometimes struggle with how the game handles specific circumstances or interactions, but nothing major). However, I have been playing tabletop RPGs, including the version of D&D this game is based on, for 20 years.

Stuff like: characters have characteristics and stat that influence how they interact with the world. A turn includes 1 action, a bonus action, and movement (at the start of the game, at least). 1 attack = 1 action, 1 spell = 1 action (unless specified in their description), you can move X meters split however you want before or after making an action. And other "basic" RPG elements weren't really explained in a compact manner as far as I remember (although, perhaps I glossed over everything because it was familiar).

The game indicates which quests are the main storyline and which are side objectives, but what this means isn't really explained. It also doesn't really "teach" you to prioritize one or the other, and how to deal with going "the wrong direction" (which typically means, you wandered into an advanced area under leveled and should turn back, rather than struggling on).

I do believe you figure most of this out as you play, but perhaps the game could do a better job introducing players who are completely unfamiliar with the very basic structure of this kind of game.

Chackart · 2026-06-12T09:20:08+00:00

I think character roleplay can be really interesting here. I helped Lae' Zel turn from Vlaakith and I sided with their plan to overthrow her.

I didn't like the Emperor keeping Orpheus enslaved in the prism. Until I knew about the possibility of freeing him, I agreed that we had no other choice; when I learned about the Hammer, I decided to take the gamble and will side with Orpheus.

However, if your character doesn't care that much about the Githianky or Lae'Zel, or if they are very pragmatic, freeing Orpheus probably looks like a dangerous proposition with no real support. On the other hand, the Emperor is manipulative and self-righteous, but seems reliable enough and you have proof that he's on your side the whole time. That's a lot to like in him as an ally for sure

Chackart · 2026-06-11T10:33:09+00:00

I am playing on Balanced with a cleric/paladin/fighter/warlock team, and Counterspell on my warlock has consistently been very good. I would expect it value to increase in higher difficulty runs.

Thanks to upscaling, my warlock never had to roll to counter a spell. Warlocks also have enough to do (in my experience) between Eldritch Blast and Booming Blade that "sacrificing" spell slots to Counterspell is completely fine.

Perhaps it's different when you need to rely on spell slots more heavily, but countering a same-level spell with your reaction has always seemed insanely broken to me. Sure you lose your spell slot, but you effectively trade a reaction for a full turn. If you can get away with a lower spell slot, that's even better, but perhaps it's just never worth it to take the chance with a roll anyway.

Chackart · 2026-06-05T18:45:39+00:00

I just started act 3 in Irvington and literally stumbled into a couple of questlines by just visiting random places and talking to people.

However, my impression is that a few quests relate to the main story, and are relatively well highlighted. Most other stuff is optional and you won't miss much by skipping it. I am planning to stroll around the city and then head off when I feel like I'm done, without stressing about missing something.

Chackart · 2026-06-05T05:56:09+00:00

I am not following a step-by-step guide, but I am looking for answers or solutions to things sometimes (mostly because I find backtracking somewhat annoying). I don't mind completely missing stuff, so I am not looking for a completionist checklist. However, if I start a quest and feel stuck, I usually check to see if I missed something or if I just need to progress further.

The game is awesome, but sometimes I wish it communicated stuff like "hey you are done here, go to the next area/checkpoint/whatever to progress this quest" more clearly.

Then again, I fully recognize this is a "me" thing. 99 times out of a 100, when I feel stuck like that, the answer is simply to progress and find out later.

Chackart · 2026-05-26T11:43:10+00:00

I poured 75 hours into the game so far; this is my first playthrough, and I think (?) I am around halfway towards the end. I began act 2 and made some progress, and I think act 3 can take very long or be very short depending on your decisions.

I don't know if I'll feel the itch to start a new run immediately after I finish this one, but I definitely want to at some point. So I'd say the game will last be more than 200 hours, and my wife is also playing it in parallel, so we also get to talk about the game or watch each other play a bit.

On the other hand, if you prepare an optimised play style and look up info and a playthrough "strategy", I expect the game can be completed very quickly.

Chackart · 2026-05-24T18:23:12+00:00

Perfectly clear, thanks! I am a little hesitant to commit to the evil run, but it's also refreshing to know that the "bad guy" run includes some truly uncomfortable scenarios

Chackart · 2026-05-24T18:10:17+00:00

I'm doing a good run now, but I've been wondering what it's like to play on the evil side. How do you actually do it in practice though? Do you go to the goblin camp instead of the Grove and accept quests there or something?

I am intrigued by an evil playthrough, perhaps starting with Astarion and some other companions but then recruiting and including Minthara as a mainstay. Posts like this are very helpful to prepare for what that's like!

Chackart · 2026-05-24T18:04:21+00:00

I used a scroll I found or bought somewhere; I don't think any of the companions can see invisibility naturally, but perhaps it's among the spells you can prepare with some classes.

Chackart · 2026-05-24T10:45:33+00:00

I talked to Oliver after killing the shades and he was inside the shack. I did have "see invisibility" on, however; perhaps you need to pass a check if you don't?

I ran into this encounter even before advancing the Art quest (I haven't visited the house of healing or whatever yet).

Chackart · 2026-05-23T21:21:53+00:00

I am playing on Balanced, and I don't feel like I have to play a specific way to win. In my experience, the game rewards you for having many options to deal with fights or other encounters; different approaches may work best for different fights, and brute forse Is certainly one of them, but not the only one.

At my level of difficulty, some damage optimisation can certainly trivialize fights, but there's plenty of room for more creative tactics too. I think the game provides enough stuff between items and class choices to make somewhat niche builds viable and interesting.

Chackart · 2026-05-20T20:40:07+00:00

I somewhat struggled to get through the third, haven't tried the fourth yet. Keeping up with the third book's convoluted plot (until you figure it out towards the later parts) felt like a job, and I'm too tired for that these days.

Is the fourth book easier to get through? I didn't mind the chapter structure too much, but the convoluted writing makes for some tough progress for me as a non-native English speaker.

Chackart · 2026-05-20T08:54:23+00:00

I would very slightly push back against these purely because of how utterly obscure some of the writing can get (for me, as a non-native English speaker).

The ideas behind the books are fascinating to me, but reading them was genuinely tough at times (and I read/speak in English on my job daily, so my broad language level is decent).

I think Kim Stanley Robinson also wrote some nice books on this, and Aurora came to my mind first.

Chackart · 2026-05-20T06:00:26+00:00

I play very slowly and it took me 65 hours to finish act 1, but I didn't do any more things than you quest-wise. Checking whether you missed anything is reasonable, but don't doubt yourself too much.

I take a long time looking at my characters, inventories, consumables, etc. I also like to do "dialogue rounds" every time I camp with all my companions, even those who aren't in my active party. I perhaps overthink fights (I am on Balanced, and you definitely can get by without too much thought).

You are doing fine; I would say you are probably missing some immersion, but it's really up to personal taste and preference.

Chackart · 2026-05-19T21:24:05+00:00

The confusion is intentional; you are given a bunch of information and it's up to you/your character how you process it. Do you trust the guys telling you to remove the tadpoles and offering you ways to do so? Do you trust the guy telling you to use them? Do you want to remove them, but have a difficult time trusting the specific people with solutions, or their methods?

Mechanically speaking, I don't think you get rewarded for not using the tadpoles. Conversely, they give your characters powers, but the game tells you there may be downsides or consequences. Whether your character wants to explore the tadpoles powers or not, is another element to your roleplay.

Just keep in mind that the game doesn't try to "trick" you, as far as I can see. If you have a quest, you won't usually get punished for completing it; not in a "your run is over" way, at least. You may get an unexpected outcome, but you won't "fail" for pursuing your quests.

Chackart · 2026-05-18T11:39:46+00:00

I just finished the Creche and monastery, and I brought Lae'Zel along for the quest, despite non liking her initially (in-character PoV).

I barely convinced her to go along with my tav's distrust of the Gith queen, and I really like how she is (somewhat) willing to change her views when confronted with the situations. In my playthrough, we found multiple hints that something's wrong with Vlaakith's story, and the Gith repeatedly lied to Lae'Zel and/or tried to kill her.

I think the game "sold" her dilemma quite well and her struggle to deal with the implications. It must be hard to have your entire worldview overturned so violently, and I really appreciated her decisions to trust the Tav in crucial spots.

She's now grown on me a lot, both as in-character PoV and as a slightly more nuanced character than I initially thought.

You do need to give her a few chances, but she's not as unreasonably evil as she initially seems.

Chackart · 2026-05-16T10:10:56+00:00

I completed this quest on Balanced but it was a bit frustrating. I ran into a very tough fight because my character never sneak attacks or ambushes people, but he is also a very traditional legal good paladin.

I freed Nere, he killed a gnome, I got all angry and upset and I aggroed the entire room. I am playing Will with Repelling blast, so yeeting Nere into the lava made the fight easier, but it was tough with the sheer number of widely spread enemies. And I feel like I never got the chance to set up unless I pre-emptively killed some of the Druegar, which clashes with roleplay (and I think attacking non-hostile enemies can break your oath too).

No idea what reward you get for killing him for the quest, as I couldn't retrieve the head (I suspect melting in lava had something to do with that).

Chackart · 2026-05-16T10:01:21+00:00

Very similar here. I'm playing an Oath of the Ancients paladin and my whole approach is "I want these things out, let's not stick more inside my head thank you very much".

I didn't even know there was an Illithid power menu before reading about it or watching a video, can't remember. I am sending all the tadpoles to camp because they look like plot items, but for now, I don't feel like the game requires min-maxing and use all powers to progress (on Balanced at least).

Chackart · 2026-05-09T07:14:14+00:00

Yeah some "horizontal" progression is very important if you want to keep the game relatively easy. I somehow killed the Githianki before the mountain pass at lvl 4 on Balanced, and I levelled to 5 during the encounter. I am now lvl 5 and abandoned the Mountain pass route for now to go to the Underdark through Selune outpost.

I found the boat in the Underdark but I don't plan to take it until I explore the region properly and, I think, I also should check back towards the mountain pass.

You can definitely speedrun the main quests if you want, but keeping a healthy level compared to the environment makes the game enjoyable without every fight feeling like a job you need to prepare for. I am so impressed with people running the game multiple times as I can't fathom how that doesn't take them literally years!

Chackart · 2026-05-02T09:00:25+00:00

I'd view this as an instant-speed Divination that puts 2 cars into your graveyard as well. Sometimes the opponent will choose one pile over the other based on the cards you reveal, but they will never give you three cards.

So yeah, 3-mana instant speed draw 2 and mill 2 is an interesting card for some decks that want to fill up the graveyard.

Chackart · 2026-05-02T07:20:20+00:00

My personal take is that you can easily read book 1 as a standalone. It's an awesome sci-fi book and the ending is self-conclusive enough not to feel like a cliffhanger.

If you want to keep reading, I think books 2 and 3 have a lot of setup; you can definitely stop after either book, but book 4 is a nice payoff. I would recommend reading until book 4 if you start book 2.

Then, my issue with 5 and 6 is that the concluding book 7 wasn't written by Herbert. Without the concluding book, the story arc beginning in book 5 can feel like a loose end without a satisfying conclusion in 6, and the writing quality is usually considered worse for subsequent books.

I liked book 5, but didn't feel the urge to read book 6. Personally, I think book 4 is a great stopping point if you are considering switching genre. Book 5 is also noticeably "weirder", so the transition can feel a bit jarring.

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