Larian Studios Forums Divinity - Original Sin Divinity - Original Sin - General Experience scaling?

Hmmm... I guess the problem of potentially being underlevelled for the final boss areas could be solved by having a dungeon section explicitly mentioned as leading towards the boss, but before the point of no return with enemies of the appropriate challenge level, so if it's too tough, players can go back and do other things until they're ready. If they try and exploit the system to go ahead before they can handle it, well, they've been warned already.

As long as Larian does a few different playthroughs with various amounts of content completion, I trust them to get a good balance.


I would prefer to hit the level cap sometime in the 70-85% content completion range, but not at, say, 98% when all that's left is the final dungeon. Getting it too early could make things boring., but that can't be helped in a huge world with respawning enemies like Fallout 3. Getting the level cap too late doesn't give you the time to enjoy it.

True, if a level cap will be in place for D:OS, the highest level possible should be something you get to play for a decent while. Too many CRPGs have timed their level caps to the final dungeon(s).

Look, the problem is scaling TWICE...if enemy lv 10 give 10000 exp thus is enough for lv 1 char to increase to lv 5 and the lv 1 player manage to kill it? Sure! It's not like high level enemies shouldn't give more exp...The problem I have is that double scaled exp (which is what Divinity series is using) makes it REALLY bad when interacting with static quest exp reward...basically that lv 10 enemies should give 10k exp whether you're lv 1 or lv 25 not 10k on lv 1 and only 200 on lv 25...because the amount of exp to level at lv 1 and lv 25 WILL be different and the amount needed at lv 25 will ALREADY be more...

If the player does everything the game has to offer they should get max exp possible and not "Oh you do all the quest before killing monsters? You want max exp possible? Nope.avi" situation, especially that it's REALLY likely that amount of enemies present will be limited (aka no enemy respawn)...just take a look at the example I give back then...as I said before, it's should be that no matter order of things you do, if you do all of them total exp should be the same and not the kill monster first then quest...it just encourage "optimum" route...

Really though, level cap will be there if there's only limited thing you can do (there's just maximum amount of exp you can get)...the 80% range sounds reasonable though...

Sorry if this sounds a bit angry...

If there is no experience scaling, though, the lack of reward for defeating tough opponents also encourages the game to be played in a specific order. While I like the experience scaling, I wouldn't care much if it were removed (it mostly evens itself out in the end, anyway).

At least in the previous Divinity games, the majority of people finished about the same level whether they just played or tried to level as mush as possible.

I agree with onyhow on xp scaling but to comment quotes above...

No! Why do u need to play at lvl cap at all??? Why do u have to reach lvl cap at all i dont understand u guys why u want this, its RPG u are supposed to upgrade your character when u travel through the game. You are not god and never will be. If you want to be god so badly im sure Larian can give u the code for godmode and have fun with it, but i dont want it cuz it kills everything.

If its the ending boss fight u are afraid that it would be too easy or too though then imo your fears are pointless cuz Larain has enough capable men/women that in world so rich with magic and other various stuff they will be able to make boss fight challenging (not put just a huge bunch of HP on main boss) for reasonable ending range of levels.
If u die u die and thats not smt thats wrong or bad in RPGs - u go back reload lvl up a bit and come again or be smart and figure some other way out.

I have been playing Scion wrong then.
There is no reason why a max level character should feel like a god, or at least a god who doesn't have challenges to overcome, the best part of some games are the optional endgame dungeons and those are hard no matter the level. Also, in tactical games, levels are only one of many variables, having a good strategy is more important.

But isnt exploring such a dungeon more appealing if u know that there is possibility that u will upgrade your character? Who would ply Diablo if they knew that all that dungeon crawling wouldn't be awarded with getting new and better powers for your heroes? Dungeons are known for poor stories so beside nice items u can get this is pretty much what remains to do in them - to lvl up.

Nevertheless if there is going to be a big dungeon of some sort i would prefer Baldur's Gate 2 Watchers Keep to the one in Divine Divinity (under starting town). With this i mean interesting story in every level some red line to get u through to the bottom and ofc hard challenges/fights.

Part of the enjoyment for some people is getting to the max level, Fanest. And for some of those people - like myself - there is a sense of actual accomplishment at then getting to play around with the max leveled character. I would much rather have at least a dungeon or area or two to play around in once I hit max level rather than never hit that or hit it right before the end of the game.

It's not about "being a God" - which you were the first person to mention - it's about planning ahead for certain builds and then getting to play with the final product. It's like putting together a puzzle. Your stance seems to me like someone saying that we shouldn't get to enjoy looking at and maybe placing the puzzle somewhere nice once it's done because we should be concentrating on the act of fitting the puzzle pieces together. Fitting the pieces together can be fun, but that's not why I do puzzles.

Personally, I don't see why you're so upset about the fact that we enjoy a different style of play than you. For me, dungeons aren't just about leveling up, they're about exploring, testing my builds and taking on the challenge of different enemies. Loot and xp are just bonuses that further enhance my ability to explore, test, and challenge.

As for dungeon's having poor stories, that's a failure on the part of the developers, not because "Dungeons are just supposed to be for items & leveling up". Frankly, if that's all there was to dungeons, I'd never enter them. The Divinity series has oodles of examples of dungeons that are much more intricate and story based than just Diablo style dugeon crawlers.

At the end of the day, though, each of us enjoys games for different reasons and play in different ways. That doesn't make any of us "right" or "wrong", it just means we have different play styles. Thankfully, they're including the editor, so whichever side the game isn't made for can just alter it so that it is.

I thought that diablo was more about the loot than the character stats, mind you, i haven't played the game, is just the general feeling i get from it, why it always needs to be about getting more levels or purple loot tho'? Something like a Bellegar encounter would be reward enough imo.
Depends of the game, is true for more western ones but, in a lot of japanese games, plot segments are part of the dungeons' progression.

Easy does it, Fanest!

Stabbey and I merely pointed out that if a level cap is in (I'd prefer a more relaxed approach, like in DD), that final level should be something to enjoy too. Most RPGs and CRPGs have been carefully designed, so that last level shouldn't make you a god or anything. Like I wrote, the difference between that and a penultimate level shouldn't be big at all. And none of this has anything to do with running around thinking that I am a god, since I know that I am a major deity already, whose hegemony is omnipotent and hideously over-powered.

@Jonlevir
I understand you still though i prefer to constantly learn and build stuff than sit, play and enjoy watching stuff. In both cases u can test your build but in the latter once u build it u cant change it and with that great part of enjoyment for me is gone.
Imo in gaming because of these different approaches we have so many different genres which suit each of these approaches and mixtures of them. But in my view RPGs in core are the ones that satisfy gamers who want to progress with their character constantly or at least to late endgame.

As for dungeons i really hope they will make them interesting and not just spam hordes of enemies against us.

@rupuka in Diablo both loot and lvl are more or less equally important, and with "new powers" i meant both. As said before i really hope dungeons will be more than just dungeons in most action RPGs and i hope they look after Baldur's Gate 2 or similar RPG when they will be building one.

@Indira the omnipotent Weresheep
good i can agree with that

We have different philosophies. Your enjoyment is only for the REACHING of a new level, Mine is for USING that new level. To me, if I do basically everything in the game and only hit level 20 in the final dungeon, that makes the actual level cap 19 or less.

Besides, hitting the level cap is most definitely NOT making the player a god. For example, there can be a different, higher level cap for enemies.