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Helnar Offline OP
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Hey again.

Since I love this game so much (OLDSTYLE RPG - YAY!) I'd like to report something that might ruin the fun for some players (it surely annoys me...)

On the "Oggie Woggie" beach, there are a set of traps, quite a lot actually clustered together. My characters are level three, exlporing there for the first time. From lvl 1 to lvl 3 I've never had the opportunity of increasing perception, yet there's no way of detecting the trap cluster. No matter what character, or in what means I decide to approach the cluster, it remains hidden.

On normal difficulty you almost die from stepping on one, on hard difficulty (which I play the game) it's instant death. Even on normal, with no means of detecting the traps, you will surely die though you survive the first hit.

So the balancing issue is this: With no way of detecting those traps since you can't raise your perception from lvl 1-3, those traps should either not be there, be detectable, or require at least 3 hits to kill on hard difficulty, 4 hits to kill on normal difficulty (so you manage to stumble your way though them at least). Either that, or the area should be off limits until you have some way of detecting them.

The only way now to survive that scenario is to use the bug I mentioned in another post (which only solves half the problem since the other half of the trap zone is out of sight) or to save/load your way through the place, which is not how a game should have to be played for a scenario to be accomplished.

Input please! Am I missing something or have more people experienced the same?

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Don't go there. You're going to get anally ravaged by the level 10 enemies who are past the traps anyway.
Level up elsewhere and come back later.

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Helnar Offline OP
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Originally Posted by dirigible
Don't go there. You're going to get anally ravaged by the level 10 enemies who are past the traps anyway.
Level up elsewhere and come back later.


Thanks for the reply. I think it's still an issue though. Maybe it can be sorted as a "game with levels issue" but I still think, with the area easily accessible by lvl 3, that you shouldn't have to experience this the hard way.

Maybe I've just forgotten the true old RPGs and how unforgiving and demanding of save/load exploration they truly were! laugh

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I went there around level 4, blew myself up several times trying to find a way through, and finally gave up - concluding that I clearly wasn't equipped to handle what lay beyond the explosives. I was right. I came back later, bypassed the traps, and cleared that area.

Keep in mind that you can walk all the way to the final boss's dungeon without leveling up. Nothing is stopping you, except for traps, and enemies which will kill you in a single turn if they catch you. The game doesn't prevent you from exploring into areas that are too high level for you. You just have to know how to turn back when you hit an obstacle you can't overcome.

Last edited by dirigible; 29/07/14 08:15 PM.
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Helnar Offline OP
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Originally Posted by dirigible
I went there around level 4, blew myself up several times trying to find a way through, and finally gave up - concluding that I clearly wasn't equipped to handle what lay beyond the explosives. I was right. I came back later, bypassed the traps, and cleared that area.

Keep in mind that you can walk all the way to the final boss's dungeon without leveling up. Nothing is stopping you, except for traps, and enemies which will kill you in a single turn if they catch you. The game doesn't prevent you from exploring into areas that are too high level for you. You just have to know how to turn back when you hit an obstacle you can't overcome.


Yup, as I figured. I've become brain washed over the years with theme park style games where everything is just handed to you!

Oh dear... I've become a semi-carebear!

Thanks for the clarification smile

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dirigible isn't quite right, you need 15 things scattered through the game's world to open the door. Of these, 13 can definitely be acquired completely through non-combat means (just walking, being invisible, sneaking, etc). One of the 15 is dubious; I don't know if you can sneak to collect Braccus' treasure chest or not, and even if you do, you can only get the key from killing him (or pickpocketing?), and I don't know whether it's lockpickable or if there is a way to smash it to pieces somewhere else, etc. The last one would definitely involve a fight; there is no way to kill the totem without a battle afterwards, so they will try to attack you, and there's a chance you might not be able to flee before they kill you. (I guess you could just grab what you need and skedaddle instead of killing them.)

But even then, there are 5-6 required fights in the entire game. Two of these are before you even get to Cyseal; two of these are the final encounter itself. Who knows, maybe you can skip the pre-Cyseal ones if both of your characters start with Walk in Shadows; in which case, there would be 3-4 required fights in the game.

It might be cool to see if anyone can take a "noncombat challenge" and beat the game with only the absolute minimum number of fights.

Last edited by ScrotieMcB; 29/07/14 09:29 PM.
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I just meant you can walk TO the final boss' dungeon. Not actually get inside it. It would be interesting to see a 'pacifist run', but I'm not sure it's possible.

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Tradeoffs. Can't have open world, mobs that do NOT scale with level, without players able to wander in to higher level areas. The traps may or may not kill an appropriate level character (depends on fire resist, constitution x lvl).

I personally went this route early b/c I wanted to see if getting a plot item might give different options. It didn't. But the idea of doing higher lvl areas by choice in an rpg is part of the appeal.


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once you set the trap off for the first time you know its there right, so when you reload use the wizard to cast a giant spider in the area to set the trap off or other area of effect spells. that's what I did.

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Gamer starts game.
Wants to explore.
Sees dangerous area.
Saves games.
Dies to stuff. Realize it's a series of mines that he is unable to detect until he invests on Perception at higher levels.
Decides to reload and explore further.
Dies again.
Claims D:OS unbalanced instead of coming back later once his party has leveled up.

Welcome to Modern Gaming in a nutshell.
Please have a sanity check next time before adventuring.

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Originally Posted by Helnar
Thanks for the reply. I think it's still an issue though. Maybe it can be sorted as a "game with levels issue" but I still think, with the area easily accessible by lvl 3, that you shouldn't have to experience this the hard way.


In a way it is cute how new players react when they are not held by the hand at each step. wink

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Originally Posted by rk47
Welcome to Modern Gaming in a nutshell.
Please have a sanity check next time before adventuring.
You know, it may behoove you to read the entire thread before jumping to conclusions about the character of the OP. In this particular case, it's clear he's since seen the light... and clear that you haven't, because you are more than willing to judge someone on woefully incomplete information.

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Originally Posted by rk47
Welcome to Modern Gaming in a nutshell.
Please have a sanity check next time before adventuring.
This really wasn't "welcoming" at all. smirk

Last edited by Tsort; 30/07/14 01:18 PM.
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Helnar Offline OP
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It's a very interesting phenomenon when people start judging others based on little or no information on the internet, even though all of the needed information is right there in front of them.

I'm a psychologist by profession, yet I still haven't fully digested why some people become rude and inconsiderate (trolls) when they are nameless and behind the screen. Why? Because I don't care for explanations about the "dark side" of human nature. I think it must stem from a lack of self esteem, or the need to "rise above the pack," so to speak, by putting someone else down (the need to feel superior).

I any case, there is either something "not right" regarding their social development, or they are in that critical stage when social development is rapid but fragile and can easily swing one way or the other (teenagers). If you guys happen to read this, I suggest you try to explore why you act this way, and if no answer comes to mind, talk to someone about it.

Last edited by Helnar; 30/07/14 02:21 PM.
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I think it's pretty straightforward, Helnar.
You don't say or do things because you know that there are social repercussions. My boss is rude to my coworkers, but I don't say anything because I could get fired.
Remove the social repercussions (via anonymity) and you have no reason not to do those things. All of a sudden I can verbally abuse my boss as much as I want.

Doesn't mean someone is socially dysfunctional, it just means they're free to say exactly what they want to say without any inhibitions.

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Originally Posted by dirigible


Doesn't mean someone is socially dysfunctional, it just means they're free to say exactly what they want to say without any inhibitions.


But, the question here is WHY would anyone want to say rude things to start with?... think

Last edited by Elwyn; 30/07/14 05:40 PM.
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Because they're angry.
In this particular case, rk47 is probably angry at what he perceives to be a simplification of modern video games, in order to pander to a least common denominator market.

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There are rewards too : he ranted about video games online and got a full psychoanalysis for free. Good job rk47! smile

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Back on topic: That the whole map is accessible at first and you must make decisions when you enter what area relative to your current powerlevel is part of the game. I think it adds to immersion when I see "I am not powerful enough for now", but have to learn and change, then I can come back (and beat that freaking Hilltroll that would have killed me before).

For me, that adds plausibility to the world the game is set it. Not everything is just "strong enough to pose a challenge". Some games do not need that to work (think Mass Effect, which has a different approach than Divinity, which is to "tell a smooth story", while Divinity tries to give you a world you can (relatively) freely roam and discover it (while it also tells a story).

The latter playstyle got a bit out of fashion in the last years as, from the late 90s onwards during the early 2000s, RPGs got mainstream. Divinity is a step back to that other playstyle (which at least Larian has never left, you could find areas that simply are too strong for you also in Divinity 2).

As this is a fairly known to most people playing this game, it is no surprise that a complaint about that openess creates "D'uh, what do you expect? That is what this game is about?" reactions, that sometimes are veiled, sometimes supressed, and sometimes stated very directly (which then comes off as rude).

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Originally Posted by dirigible
Because they're angry.
In this particular case, rk47 is probably angry at what he perceives to be a simplification of modern video games, in order to pander to a least common denominator market.


I'm sticking to the topic.
OP knew the issue.
OP understood the problem.
Yet the conclusion he drew is complete garbage.
Amazing.
Can't you at least wait 3 more levels before exploring that zone if it's too hard? Did someone point a gun to your head saying you MUST do it? Didn't the guard tell you it's dangerous?

Amazing.
What more do gamers want?
Does the OP want Larian to start announcing to people entering a zone in, BIG HUGE font that an area is dangerous?

Holy shit.
I just went pyscho-anal on OP cause he came upon the stupidest conclusion on how to solve the 'difficult' problem: Blame the Game and ask the dev to fix it.



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