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Hi DOS2 community!

I'm currently doing a playthrough on Tactician difficulty with only one character. It has been working surprisingly well so far and it's a ton of fun and highly tactical! So I thought it would be interesting to share some ideas here.

Very minor starting area spoilers (Act I) ahead!!

Here are some things that I've experienced so far:

* I'm playing Sebille. Since I am completely avoiding any companions throughout this playthrough I thought it would be best to play as an Origin character because their stories and dialogue options are very enjoyable and captivating. So far this has really payed off. I've already gotten attached to her story and ambitions.

* I have killed almost everybody at Fort Joy except Beast, Fane, the Red Prince, the people in the cave, the dwarf and lizard at the camp fire, and some guards in the fortress. I might kill all of them a bit later haha. As of now I just left Fort Joy.

* Usually it takes me about 1-5 approaches to win a fight. There are so many things that you can do within the combat system of this game, so having to reload and start over from the beginning of a fight never gets old. If I feel like a fight is too hard then I simply avoid it and come back later.

* I put most points into Memory which so far is my main stat. This really changes everything in a solo build in my opinion! Having access to so many skills gives me a lot of options and flexibility in every fight. I still have a few stat points left and I'm not sure where to put them, since Memory is already on 24. I put 1 point into Strength for carry weight purposes since I only have one character that can carry loot. I might put another 1 or 2 points into Strength in the future mainly for carry weight.

* Ability-wise I first chose Geomancer and Necromancy, then Hydrosophist, Pyromancy, Scoundrel and Aerotheurge. I have 2 points in each of those now (because Lone Wolf gives you 2 points for every 1 point spent) and I still have a few points left to spend. The only reason why I didn't choose Warfare, Polymorph, Summoning and Huntsman is because me and a friend are playing characters with these abilities in a separate 2-character-coop-playthrough (which is also loads of fun!).

* During most fights I use about 90% of my skills, so having a high Memory stat has really payed off. It's tough to say which skills are most important because pretty much all of them are useful depending on the enemies I'm facing.

* Still haven't decided whether I want to go melee or ranged. They both seem viable for a solo build. So far I tried bows and staffs and they both worked well. Ranged is really nice for kiting groups of enemies and killing them one at a time.

* For my first talent I chose Lone Wolf. Not having this talent would make things a lot harder of course. Haven't decided what to choose for my second talent yet. Any advice is appreciated

* I chose thievery for my main non-combat ability. My basic approach was to first steal skill books from the trader NPCs, learn those skills, and then kill the NPCs to gain more loot and XP haha.

* The Loremaster point that you get from choosing Elf is very useful because you can identify early items right away.

* The Elven ability Flesh Sacrifice rocks and I'm using it all the time. Also the Scoundrel ability Adrenaline and the Pyro ability Haste give me the flexibility to move far away from enemies if I'm surrounded. I can have a very long first turn (9 AP) by using Flesh Sacrifice and Adrenaline, so I usually have a strategic head start at the beginning of a fight.

* Because of the high memory and the thievery ability I already have a lot of protection and healing abilities at my disposal: Fortify, Armor of Frost, Blood Sucker, Regeneration, Mosquito Swarm, Haste. So if things get bad I can always backup a bit and heal/protect myself. The Bloated Corpse summon is also nice to distract and blow up enemies.

* Playing an evil character makes things a lot easier of course because I can gain more XP by killing people and gain more loot by pickpocketing. I think that playing the game solo as a good and lawful character would probably be the hardest challenge of them all. Additionally, if you avoid Lone Wolf then you will get the true masochist challenge.

* Before choosing Sebille I tried an hour or so with Fane as my main character and a Geomancer/Hydrosophist build, but I didn't like that I was using the Rain and Contamination combo every time in order to create a huge poison (= undead-healing) area. It felt a bit like an exploit to me, but maybe that's just me and maybe that combo will get weaker throughout the game. So I started over with Sebille who I enjoy a lot more. If I would play Fane again I would probably avoid Contamination and/or Rain, just to keep it challenging and less monotonous. Again, I haven't played this undead build long enough, so maybe I'm wrong here.


One of the many things I love about this game is that there are so many viable builds. Instead of choosing memory as my main stat I could have gone with any of the other stats or even mix them up and it would still be managable, fun and probably a very different experience.

Have you tried a solo playthrough? If so, how did you approach it and how was your experience? Any fun builds you recommend or tips to share?

Good read.
Some interesting ideas which will help me in my game, so thanks for that.

Haven't tried a solo playthrough.. then again, haven't even finished a playthrough yet, lol. :P
Though, reading about Fane and the Rain/Contamination combo had me wanting to form a full undead, poison orientated party. ^^

Next talent should definitely be pawn - allows you to do free movement at the start of your move (worth 1ap), so you can kite even better

@Nuttikrust

Hmmm, sounds like... Scourge party!

@NuttiKrust: Yeah haha the undead are a lot of fun. Me and a friend are doing an undead-duo playthrough as Warfare/Polymorph and Huntsman/Summoner characters. Playing as undead changes a lot of things in the game and the way you approach things, so I can highly recommend it. Also, the game is full of hilarious dialogues that are tailored solely towards the undead.

@TsunAmik: Pawn sounds like a great choice for solo. I'll probably go with that one, thanks!

My first start was with Fane; but that was mostly just getting the hang of things. My second start has Fane as a party member; main as a custom male (Knight .. totally badass.. just waiting for that perfect 2h Hammer) - and it's going better.
That said, I think I will start a custom undead and grab Fane from the get go; then focus on Rain/Contam and poison potions and weapons. Just to see what it's like. :>

I love the idea of the R/C combo because it heals and causes a lot of damage at the same time. Will need to see how it plays out though.

Well I have this bad habit... that everytime i tried to use rain+contamination - whole map ended up as fire!
Like.. everytime!

Some people just want to see the world burn...


As for high sustain build, I actually found rain of blood+necro or leech bit better, but sadly its overall usefulness is highly diminished by armor, as I rarely get vitality damage at all.

Hah I guess setting NPCs on fire that weren't involved in combat can cause some unexpected complications

Another cool thing about undead for solo or an all-undead group is that Play Dead basically let's you reset a fight after having killed a few enemies. Plus you always have a lockpick at hand.

.. Like Lohse dying about 5 minutes after you enter Fort Joy and get into a fight with Gruff's thug.


Didn't think about Play Dead.. lol. Always useful.. though getting back up might be a problem if the NPC is too close... xD

Good ol' Lohse. She died very soon in my game. If I would do it again I would probably let her and her friends live. I assume that you meet the companions later on again and maybe there are some opportunities that open up later (don't spoil if you already know whether this is the case or not ;)), so it's a bit sad that she's dead now haha.

So I gave my aforementioned undead army party a try.

...

Wow.
Really. Really. Wow.
This is SO MUCH FUN!

Things die quickly. Very quickly.
It's just Fane and I, against the world.

Thanks to Lone Wolf; my main Ank Nor has a large amount of AP (7 I think?).
Opener:
Rain --> Contamination

Trash Single Target:
Poison Dart
Range attack (dual Poison wands)

Seriously.. this is crazy.. against Trash single targets, they're usually dead before I've finished my opener! LOL

Boss/Multi-Targets:
Incarnate (situational, usually Poison)
Totem (situational, usually Poison).

Will expand tonight when I have my PC at hand.
But this play through is so epic, it's glorious.

~ NuttiKrust

be wary of another undead with poison immunity tho

Yes, I picked that up last night; fights are a bit more difficult when everything you do heals your opponent.

Hence my forum post; tonight I want to build up a second line of assault - focused Undead murder. >:D

~ NuttiKrust

Indeed they are quite more diffifcult haha!
Great thing is, that geomancer spells can also deal earth damage, so all your geo investments are not wasted!

I am only 12 hours into my current solo tactician run but I am certainly having a blast and I will definitely continue. I've had so much fun I sincerely regret not keeping a better log of my character and her exploits.

I really wanted to go dwarf for the 5% dodging bonus (and dome of protection) and then later on I would stack more dodging. But, I ended up choosing Sebille because her special ability "Break the Shackles" seemed like it would prove itself more useful in more difficult encounters that I have yet to experience. Given my characters play style dome of protection would have been less useful (I move, hide, and sneak a lot). Like you, Bokajon, I wanted to choose an origin character to make my adventure more interesting and I am glad I did.

At character creation I chose Huntsman (Pin Down & First Aid) and Pyrokinetic (Haste). I planned ahead that I would be investing into at least Necromancer and Polymorph. I made sure to put at least 1 point into Wits to spot hidden caches because I knew I would be exploring every inch of the world looking for advantageous loot and planning attack strategies. I went with 1 lucky charm at character creation knowing that I would choose 1 in bartering as my next civil ability. I found thieving to be much more challenging (and less rewarding) solo so I decided to role play a different approach. Also, I needed the extra points to invest into Retribution since as a solo character it really adds up quickly. I will definitely get sneaking and thievery later on (the priority being sneaking). So far my Sebille has gotten by comfortably with her silver tongue and in my case her "needle" is for crafting because she primarily uses a bow for combat.


[u][b]Some tips I learned along the way:[/b][/u]
Early on before you expand your repertoire of abilities, try to be the same level or no more than 1 level below your enemies. I accomplish this by saving harder quest objectives for later on, exploring for xp, talking to everyone, and of course snuffing out the occasional innocent.

[b]Crafting[/b]
-Learn it, love it. Crafting junk into profit.
-Learn to craft your own special arrows!
-Do not undervalue Physical and Magical armor potions or any potions for that matter. For example, I haven't needed a single point into Geomancer or Hydrosophist and the only reason I got Milo's ring/Astarte's Tears is so that I can heal foolish neutral NPCs that I choose to "save."
-Grab an ooze barrel (and water and oil if your making arrowheads) and then use waypoint travel (the turquoise anchor looking icon to the left of your minimap) and teleport ability to put it near your favorite vendor. Right click on the ooze barrel and combine it with any weapons you plan to sell. On that note, if you plan to sell a lot to a particular vendor it's a good idea to get on their good side (give them gold or items for free to increase their attitude towards you - it varies for each vendor but I just get their attitude in the "green" zone - their attitude score text will change color).

[b]Bedroll & Food attribute buffs[/b]
-Great to get that extra strength to lift heavy coffins and move items around.
-More importantly, part of my "pre-combat-essentials."

[b]Flesh sacrifice + Elemental arrowheads on the blood[/b]
-Blood arrows add extra physical damage to your attacks.
-If you plan to stand still the blood from enemy attacks and Flesh sacrifice can be scooped up for vitality with Blood Sucker

[b]Clear Mind[/b]
-This buff also gives 20% accuracy which can be very useful for equipping bows (and other weapons? - I haven't checked) above your level which impose an accuracy penalty. Worth it for the initiative from Wits alone.

[b]Shackles of pain[/b]
-Excellent way to control the battlefield flow and if the enemy doesn't mind hurting their friends now you are essentially attacking an extra enemy while its not your turn. So far the animals in the game appear to care more about their friends than both the humans and undead (the undead being the worst offenders for killing their kin with reckless abandon).

[b]Movement in combat[/b]
-Combat abilities that allow you to re-position yourself for a decent AP cost are a game changer! Before I got my first one (tactical retreat) I had to use up to 2AP (and sometimes more) per round to kite enemies. Tactical retreat costs me 1AP to use and has the bonus of being able to re-position to higher or lower ground.

[b]Enemy AP denying[/b]
-Denying your enemy of AP they could have otherwise used to attack you is IMHO essential to a solo tactician run. Use the environment and your abilities to plan a battle carefully. Don't leave yourself exposed to the enemy with 1AP left. Re-position yourself such that the enemy is forced is choose a new target or waste AP walking/climbing.

[b]Ricochet[/b]
-If enemies decide to hide around a corner but there is an attackable object (eg. a barrel or a crate) within attack range, you can Ricochet off of the object and it will still fork and hit the enemies within range.


Since I didn't keep a more detailed log of my character I will detail my current abilities and talents.

[u]Sebille - Level 5 (94% xp to next level)[/u]

[b]Attributes[/b] (including Lone Wolf bonuses and +1 Con from gear)
Strength: 12
Finesse: 16
Intelligence: 10
Constitution: 15
Memory: 18
Wits: 14

[b]Combat Abilities[/b] (including Lone Wolf bonuses and +2 to necromancer from gear)
Retribution: 2
Huntsman: 2
Necromancer: 6
Polymorph: 1
Pyrokinetic: 2

[b]Civil abilities[/b]
Bartering: 1
Lucky charm: 1
Loremaster: 1 (from Elf racial Ancestral knowledge)

[b]Talents[/b]
Ancestral knowledge
Corpse eater
Lone Wolf
Guerrilla

[b]Memorized Abilities:[/b]
Pyrokinetic: Haste, Clear Mind
Necromancer: Blood Sucker, Shackles of Pain, Raise Bloated Corpse
Huntsman: Elemental Arrowheads, Pin Down, Ricochet, First Aid, Tactical Retreat, Barrage, Sky Shot
Summoning: Summon Cat Familier

[b]Abilities granted by items:[/b]
Teleport (Gloves of Teleportation)
Restoration (Astarte's Tears)


I just got done saving Garreth and after re-visiting the Sancuary of Amadia next I plan to attempt to take on the Arena at Fort Joy after Magister Orivand (tip: there is a reinforced crate in the corner tower where Orivand is that you can access from the swamp).

My next level I will probably be getting 1 more into Polymorph so I can use Heart of Steel. Despite my weakness to magic it's enemies with opportunist and high armor that actually give me the most trouble. Mages are easily handled so far with just magic armor potions, shackles of pain after stripping their low physical armor and focus firing. Eventually, I may also get the Phys/Mag armor regeneration buffs from Hydrosophist and Geomancer (Mending Metal and Soothing cold). Pumping Polymorph early on gives extra attribute points so I can quickly inflate my memory score. Also, I made a mistake in my planning and I over-valued Chameleon Cloak. Regardless, Spread your Wings, Medusa head, Chicken claw and more will make Polymorph more than worth it. If I had to do it again, initially I would probably choose Hydrosophist for Armor of Frost.

The adventure continues!

Special thanks to Larian!! I believe as usual you have outdone yourselves and created another work of art.

Bump!

Something I want to try soon solo...

Fane poly 5 +elementals
apotheosis has been huge in my first full party playthrough for alpha striking enemies. But, with fane's extra turns and the bonus ap from solo build... gonna be messy.

maybe 1 pyro for haste then 5 geo for pyroclastic/skin graft/ pyroclastic

wont be a real build till mid game though

I played solo honor and it was rush to summon10 and poly2 + all points in thievery. But in act2 summons became too weak, so my solo run transfer into duo. Coz i dont know how to survive 800+ damage in 1 round on 10 level.