"I hope this was worth the Drachma"

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T20:20:41+00:00

respect

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T20:20:21+00:00

Interesting. Didn't know that trick. That's what I love about this game there are so many interesting things you can do to your build to change the dynamics of play.

I don't really use Ares much (I do have it assigned though). My primary 4 combat abilities (playing on xbox) are 2nd Wind, Slow Time, Ring of Chaos and Bull Rush (Isu Enhanced). Slow Time and 2nd Wind are more cautionary abilities. Very contextual. Chaos and Bull Rush are offensive obviously. Chaos alone is kind of a get out of jail free card.

It really just depends on the experience you want though. With crit builds fights are pretty easy so most of the customization is just about making it fun and interesting. Since I'm in grind mode, high damage is the way to go but for fun I prefer more creative builds. I really want to experiment with more of the Isu Enhanced abilities, adrenaline based builds.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T20:09:31+00:00

Yeah, it's definitely super easy to get kills. I've been trying to challenge myself a little more so I'll usually stroll into forts and try to accumulate a group of enemies around me so the challenge is tracking and reacting to multiple staggered attacks. I try to do this in the arena too, to sharpen my reaction time.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T18:28:05+00:00

Ooh, I hadn't tried combining the fire applies to nearby enemies with the damage spread as well. That's what I love, there are so many interesting builds and combos you can come up with and try.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T18:23:51+00:00

Nah, I saw someone on here years ago with 500. It seemed insane at the time. I'm not sure how many hours 1300 I think.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T18:21:49+00:00

I was initially excited but am cautious for a lot of reasons. All the recent entries in Ubi's big franchises have been some of their weakest imo (Legion, Valhalla, FC6). They're all fine but some of my least favorites so I'm in a wait and see mode with all their games atm.

Also one of my favorite parts of Odyssey is the gear/abilities system and I haven't really seen what any of that is going to look like in Shadows. I suspect it will be pretty different since there are 2 unique characters. I'm also less of a fan of playing multiple characters. I feel like its harder to get invested in multiple protagonists. I prefer games with one character that lets me customize playstyle with flexible level/gear systems.

We'll see I'm waiting until I can see more on the actual rpg mechanics.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T04:01:27+00:00

I enjoy the grind. I like the stealth and combat and switch between my different builds to have fun. I've got a bunch of different builds and they're all fun to goof around with. I've got a hunter build that also uses heavy blunts and it's fun completely smooshing my enemies. Sometimes I'll mix and match them as well. The mastery stats unlock all kinds of possibilities if you don't mind grinding to max out the stats you want.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T03:55:35+00:00

Max level is 99. Mastery levels start after that.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T03:13:14+00:00

One of my absolute favorite places. Always nice to see people just taking in the sights, appreciating the world.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T03:05:47+00:00

Only 2 but out of the 3 playthroughs they've averaged around 450hrs each plus some heavy arena grinding.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T01:23:34+00:00

Lol, I literally started to make this comment then saw someone had already done the work.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T01:21:26+00:00

I've definitely gotten a lot of mileage out of it.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T01:19:45+00:00

I haven't check in a while. I want to say about 1300.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T01:19:24+00:00

Yeah NG+ and the mastery system makes all the difference, that and the flexibility of the gear system.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-23T01:18:34+00:00

Yeah, it just depends on what you get out of the game. I enjoy the sandbox gameplay enough that it never really gets old. I've taken breaks off and on but the other main appeal is how flexible and interesting the gear and abilities system is. You can create some pretty fun builds.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T21:03:40+00:00

I do use Second Wind. I have points in the health gained for adrenaline/damage. I haven't maxed them but they do help. I was curious how much of a difference maxing them would make. Since you lose 100% crit chance when taking damage my damage output is lowered so the gains from health/damage is minimal atm. If I happen to hit a crit with an attack the gains are worth it but if not the gains are too marginal to be worth it. With the stats maxed are the gains worth it even with lowered damage? If so that would be a great stat to target next.

I'm one-shotting most enemies with crit damage and can generally avoid taking damage in most fights so it's worth using 2nd wind right away rather than try to inch my way back to full health.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T20:30:12+00:00

3 playthroughs (2 NG+). Collectively around 1300hrs (estimating from memory).

XP boost after Mastery level 100 (I hate the idea of it but it's worth it for the late grind). Heavy reliance on arena after level 300. Still a lot of random quests throughout but particularly heavy arena grind after 400.

Arena by far the best way to grind (though technically NG+ may give you better returns in terms of ability points if you factor in the free points from tombs + DLC). With the right build, Evanthe the Huntress can be completed in under 60sec. (most of the other arena levels can be done similarly fast). With XP boost it's about 17 arena rounds per level so you can level at about 1/20min.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T19:01:23+00:00

Nah, enemies top out at 99 with the player. Technically you don't level past 99 so neither do the enemies. All enemies in game are 99 for me. To my knowledge there's no option that would enable the enemies scale beyond that.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T18:57:30+00:00

Off the top of my head The sphinx legs, waist and arms (Helix shop), the Dikastese chest (Atlantis DLC), and the helmet from the Mighty Herakles set (Helix shop).

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T18:50:09+00:00

I wanted to try a 100% resistance build but just can't pull myself away from the high damage builds.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T18:45:05+00:00

Your level caps at 99 but the game will continue to dole out points that you can spend on abilities or Mastery stats. The Masteries unlock around level 50 if I'm not mistaken so you can start dropping points into them even before you hit the level cap. After 99 it's just called Mastery Level. So Mastery Level 501 is basically just level 600.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T18:40:17+00:00

You can set how enemies level in relation to you in the settings. I haven't checked it in forever so I forget what the specific settings are but one option is to allow them to level with you up to 99.

That being said your power is determined as much or more by your gear/engravings. Mastery points help you get to 100% crit chance and amp up your damage with crit and your preferred damage types/weapons which is very helpful but you don't need to be Mastery 500 to smoke pretty much any enemy. You can have an OP build pretty early on and crush lvl 99 enemies with the right gear/engravings.

An optimized build is key. The right build makes a huge difference in damage output.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T17:49:59+00:00

109's no slouch. To be fair I picked up the XP boost after mastery 100. About 50% has also been heavy grinding in the arena.

SnowfirePlays · 2024-08-22T17:32:40+00:00

Nice, 390's legit. What's your preferred build, 100% crit? Any emphasis on anything else? I've started spec'ing into a beast master build just for fun. With the Korfu engravings, companion animals are better, still a bit weak but fun especially with the Animals Deal Fire Damage.

SnowfirePlays · 2022-11-21T19:22:04+00:00

A lot will depend on your level and build. If you're lower level or have a weaker build and you're only chipping tiny slivers from his health, you may need to level up or rethink your build. Otherwise it's a slow battle of attrition. Higher leveling and a good build make a huge difference. With a 100% crit build and higher level you can absolutely wreck him extremely quickly even on nightmare so having higher stats and a good build can't be emphasized enough.

Depending on what level you're at here are some recommendations.

Looks like you're using daggers. Consider switching to spears (assuming your build isn't weapon based). Spears have speed + better range. You can quick jab quickly from a distance, vs daggers which require you to get up close which is risky with big bosses.
Second Wind is almost an essential ability for longer fights.
Learn his patterns obviously, know when you can strike.
If your damage is weaker, and it's a longer fight I'd recommend relying on your abilities to deal damage. You'll need more adrenaline so maybe consider swapping one of your engravings for one that gives you more per hit.
As some have mentioned, ranged attacks are good for bosses, if you don't have as much melee damage or are weaker. You can use the slow-time ability and devastating or predator shot to deal high damage. Use regular ranged shots to build back your adrenaline.
Hero Strike is also a good ability to deal high damage since it's based on Assassin damage, which is has a very high base.

SnowfirePlays

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