Today or tomorrow is the last day of the owlcat humble bundle that has not only this game but also all of neverwinter's nights, both Pathfinder games with season passes, and baldur's gate 1 and 2. Go get it guys there's no excuse not to
I started playing on the second from highest difficulty, and the combat is now fun AND challenging. The thing about Owlcat games is they give you a ton of options for making the game harder or easier, so there's not a lot to complain about in that regard unless you just ignore difficulty entirely.
Agreed! The combat in this game provides a lot more enjoyment than most in it's genre. Between actions per turn and the many character building options, it's quite satisfying.
I just wish they stopped changing the balance. Sure, fix the bugs, but when I have to make new builds every 6 months, it does get old. It doesn't make sense to nerf the player in a single-player game.
The talent description layout still sucks though and it's simply a UI issue that's easily fixed when doing level ups, so I can go back to dropping crates of Air Jordans on Argenta.
Rouge traders combat is so good that I desperately want a sequel. It being set in the insane universe of 40k is... It's not icing on a cake. It's two cakes. It's so goddammed good.
I also wouldn't mind them doing an equivalent Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay game too since it's also a similar percentile system with a wide range of character building and similar tone.
@@NefariousKoel hell yeah, the total war games a pretty cool, but i suck at them and that kinda game was never really my thing to begin with. an actual rpg alng the lines of this would be much more up my alley
@@terminator572 yeah I though the option would just lead to your mates bonking her. I was quite surprised when Argenta just straight up blew her head off lol
@@duongquan4986 is the one with videogames first? The list's dumb as that "lady" (too polite for a random attention 304 on the internet) given that they put videogames as worse than: magic tricks, collecting figurines, gambling, bird watching, online trolling That woman's a joke.
The Emperor Smiles upon this video. Always remember kids. Suffer not the Xeno to live. Burn the witch to ashes. Only in death does duty end. FOR THE EMPEROR!
Ive always felt like Owlcat games (and old school crpgs in general) feel like an extension of the table top rather then a replacement. I like reading, and building my character in my head more then I do having it all done for me in game.
The morality choices really start to rear their heads and show the distinct differences once you manage to push one of the paths over level 3. Your entire ship bridge will be decorated to match your level 3 path and you'll start seeing bigger, more noticeable impacts from them in a lot of choices. Especially in chapter 4. Chapter 4 is where your choices morality wise really come to a head.
yeah this game does a decent job of holding back on the consequences of your actions, only to hit you over the head with them once its built up enough to actually make an impact. and its not JUST a oh your heretic path is now level whatever this pathway now opens up for you, after playing multiple full playthroughs ive found this game will bring up choices you made multiple chapters ago because the person you talked to held a grudge about it and ran off to go do something about it in the background
@@CrazyxEnigma I bought Mechanicus FOR the ost and sound design. I didn't play the whole game, but those sound waves were truly blessed by the Omnisiah. It was like holy binary to my auditory receptors and the machine spirit in my headphones was appeased even before I anointed them.
Near the end of act 2 I got a build which had Argenta takeing 6 turns at round 1, this basically turned into building my rouge trader to be as fast as possible so the chain could start, and from then on almost garented all combat would be over round 1, even though it trivialized it somewhat I still had a lot of fun, and hearing the heavy bolter fire constantly was just a wonderful experience. Combat became more like a puzzle where I needed to figure out how to move Argenta inorder to maximize kills.
I did a similat thing, iw as running 2 officers, with a couple of soldiers and a master tactician, fights rarely lasted more than 2-3 turns, and the feeling of planning out a strategy and then executing it felt great.
On one hand, heavy bolter arch militant argenta breaks combat as she gets way too many attacks. On the other, "each strike is a prayer". her VA is fun to hear
there were plenty of differences in my dogmatic and heretic runs granted I wasn't ever forced to pick a moral choice, I never did FULL dogmatic of FULL heretic, there was always some room for a few small iconoclast choices here and there yet there were plenty of differences in my runs, especially in my companions and, of course, the endings
There is no difference until half your party leaves. The main difference is that Dogmatics kill half the party and Heretics have them disband cause you didn't kill them like a Dogmatic. That being said the Heretical party members are stronger than the Dogmatic and will wipe out a whole field of enemies in 1-2 turns to make up for that.
Oh, cool, an RPG for Warhammer 40k. I've always been curious about W40k, since everyone I know who is into it seems to REALLY be into it, and the passion for it is infectious.
I believe now is a great time to take a look into 40k as it's very accessible in the sense there are a lot of ways to enjoy the setting. There is now a solid library of ok to good games, a ton of cool fan projects to take a look at, the tons of books and audiobooks, the tabletop of course, or just painting the models etc etc . i myself enjoy reading/listening to, and creating my own stories set in the setting since it's just that big and fun.
I'm sending you my chiropractor bill because I hurt my neck nodding in agreement so much. Especially at the stuff about "I wish you could see your stats and inventory when levelling so you can make choices with easier information". Like maybe a "Recommended Skill Synergies" at the bottom of every skill/perk data card that shows you if you've got them already. And maybe it shows you the best weapon in your inventory that is affected by the skill/perk if it's one of those. But besides that the rest of the game is amazing and like you I was waiting for a 40k game that's a CRPG rather than every other genre GW has tossed the license at.
The nuttiest thing to me about playing rogue trader is I’m a long time player of the 40k Fantasy Flight Games RPGs, including the rogue trader one. Seeing all the same stats and that many of the talents and stuff were straight up from the book blew my mind. I could see it tripping up some people but it all just clicked very quickly with me from familiarity.
Inquisitor had phenomenal interactions with their rogue trader investigating their lineage and the specifics of how they skate the gray line. Great work, looking forward to the next. 40k is always awesome
Any man who underestimates the power of the humble lasgun has never had to charge across a field with 5000 of them. And you unlock better variants of weapons, but even then the starting lasgun with Master Tactician still wrecks house
It's funny because I just tried to play Wrath of the Righteous and everything you said made total sense and pretty much why I put it down as soon as I picked it up. Now this game is on my list.
11:15 exactly what you're asking for is possible while you're on the archetype screen looking at skills if you click around that left edge of the screen it'll put your stats on the left and leave the talents/archetype screen on the right
This game is an absolute banger! So much depth which keeps it very interesting. A lot to read through though, which limits when I actually get down to play the game.
Ive played pathfinder tabletop since it came out. So I never had the knowledge problems many people did when the crpgs came out. Playing RT gave me a lot of perspective. This must have been what people were going through with those games. I spent the first 4 hours just reading skills and abilities. Great time! Very dense 😅
You’ve sold me on this game. I’ve been hesitant to play the Pathfinder games because I’m a perfectionist and don’t sound intrigued by anything they offer except for their character building, but this sounds like an experience that would scratch most of my itches. I think it’s just the quality of these intertwined systems that appeals to me. I’ll get to play it and marvel at how the devs pulled this off. The profit factor element also sounds fun. I’m often worried about spending from my character’s wallet. I know RPGs revolve around resource management in and out of combat, but the threat of wasting money on something I want to try at the cost of being able to try some other cool item makes me anxious. Going by tiers of wealth plays into the power fantasy while letting the player experiment.
Biggest difference really is that the Inquisition isn't bound to rules. A rogue trader is very similar in that aspect. The inquisition wields nigh unlimited power inside the Imperium while a Rogue Trader wields nigh unlimited authority outside it. When both collide it often comes down to circumstances on who is right. While an inquisitor in theory holds power over a rogue trader, in practice they are a short ways away from an airlock and cold dark space.
@@verySharkey not really. There completely different. The eclesiarhy runs in faith. They take care of sacret places and the spiritual health of the masses. The inquisition is more like the internal affairs concerned in looking for corruption in the populace and other organisations as well as inventing better methods to fight chaos.
@@jackmalin2528 No I get you. I said biggest difference. Not that you are wrong. The Inquisition of the 41st Milennia is a deeply religious organisation though and it is by all means closely connected to the ecclesiarchy in their faith, not in their organisation. As far as the imperium is concerned though the Inquisition is more of a secret police with unlimited authority. What I meant to say is that in their respective roles rogue traders and the inquisition are closer than the inquisiton and the ecclesiarchy. Both are vested with nigh unlimited power in their respective domains and neither is truly above the other.
Profit Factor is a really cool mechanic of balancing in-game gold and incorporating pragamtism into roley-playing. Like, what's the point in nuking Megaton as opposed to disarming the bomb if all you get from it is extra 500 caps that you can spend in one place and can easily farm elsewhere? Now with PF, the game can make you make a choice - do you do the right thing, but also deprive you of tangible gameplay advantages and maybe some future plot opportunities, or do you do the pragmatic thing and increase your abstract "richness" factor which will allow you to do good later on a larger scale?
I've played 20+ hours of this game, using a steam deck with windows and I've yet to have any issues aside from some slowdown, it is surprisingly well put together.
Strat, so glad you made this vid - I bought this game a few weeks ago and have adored it. Completely agree about combat, it's so satisfying tactically. I disagree though that iconoclast means siding with those who are wrong. The morals are obviously very grey; to me iconoclast is more like holding back an impossible tide - you're trying to do the right thing but constantly suffering for it. I tried to save as many as possible from Rykad Minoris (act 1) instead of doing exterminatus and I got a permanent debuff to my willpower due to that world becoming a daemon world. By the same token though, following iconoclast allowed me to defuse some situations, and I had no qualms consorting with xenos, often to my benefit. In the imperium, people or entire worlds turn to heresy because of the boot on their collective necks - it's an ouroboros. To that effect, I see dogmatic as lawful neutral, heretic as neutral/chaotic evil and iconoclast as neutral good. I love that the game will actively punish you for being iconoclast - I think KOTOR2 tried to instil this in us using Kreia but it fell flat to me. But I think there are enough shades of grey that iconoclast still isn't necessarily the 'wrong' choice. EDIT the coolest build combo I've found so far is pyromancer allowing me to crit on dot effects, plus a hand flamer, plus a holster that gives me free attacks if I crit with a pistol. add on a staff that increases my psy level for every enemy on fire. It's beautiful
My personal take is very simple. "Dogmatic" is to follow the Dogma of the Imperial Creed, Purge the Heretic, Death to the Xenos, etc. "Heretical" is to quite literally indulge in power, you are given my your warrant of trade nigh unlimited authority in your role as a rogue trader and you WILL USE IT TO ENJOY YOURSELF. "Iconoclast" then isn't so much a middle path of the two. Iconoclast characters are very much opposed to herecy. They are as much fighting against the ruinous powers as dogmatic characters would, it's just that they are allowed to think critically where a dogmatic character very much is not. As a dogmatic character you are not expected to think about why something is right, you are expected to follow dogma and act decisively. Iconoclast characters can think critically then, "Do Xeno's really deserve to be exterminated indiscriminately? Do we really need to decimate the population as punishment? Can't we be lenient sometimes when it's warranted?" A very iconoclast option can be taken when dealing with revolting prisoners on a prison colony. You imprison the guards for not doing their jobs and elevate the most suitable prisoners to guard jobs. They reduce punishments for disobedience from the most vile "decimation" to the most humane "deprivation of food supplies" Instead of killing every 10th inmate you now don't give them food anymore. Reasonable isn't it? The issue with Iconoclast characters is that they often run into problems that explain why the dogma is what it is. The Empire has seen enough situations where leniency led to disaster so the creed does not allow for deviation and leniency. If you give the poor masses enough respite to allow them time to think, it's easy for them to start thinking critically, thinking critically quickly leads to heresy. If heresy didn't lead to mass butchery, worlds being consumed by literal physical hell and other gruelties that'd be fine.... but well it isn't. - This excerpt was sponsored by an Inquisition apologist.
Appreciate the Rogue Trader vid! Been wanting to check this game out for a min, as I'm binging 40k' content in preparation for SM2. I think this one might be my next pick 😁 great vid as always man. Keep up the good work!
Looks really cool, if I eventually manage to start and finish the Pathfinder one I bought ages ago I'll definitively give it a go. Maybe sometime in the 2030's.
I find it funny that he plays a clip of Vermintide gameplay as he explains how little he knows about 40k since Vermintide takes place in the OG Warhammer Fantasy setting.
I have just completed playing through this game for the first time this last month but since Darktide came out I've come to learn almost everything there is to know about 40k already, the only particularly big revelation this game taught me about the setting is just how unbelievably catastrophic the average warp jump is. Like I knew ship conditions were real bad and all the work that would be done by massive machines in a normal setting were done by hundreds of slaves and that warp jumps could cause demonic incursions but I didn't realise they were basically mini Hive Cities outside of the bridge and that almost every time you warp jump, 2000 of the 10000 or so crew members would go completely insane and rip their own heads off. It's hilariously over the top. In general though I think this game is actually way better to play if you know nothing about the setting, the vague references to how the greater imperium works, the odd mention of other Xenos races you don't actually see in the game and the threats you end up facing in the final act must make it way more entertaining, intriguing and just in general increase the atmosphere immensely if you're not already aware of any of it.
completed it in a Dogmatic run and then completed a Heretical run as soon as I finished the first one, what a trip now I'm waiting for both DLCs to come out, so I can do an Iconoclast run as a long time WH40K fan I have to say the Dogmatic run was the best one, it's just fun to be a hand of the Emperor and force His will on to others but I respect the fact they were so bold as to even include the chance to do a Heretical one
The Exorcist (that church organ tank) was literally the deciding factor as to what faction I wanted to build. Now I have 4k+ points of Sisters and I’m still looking to add more
Going from Kingmaker, to WotR, to Rogue Trader and then back has made me realize how much better each game is getting. I actually found it hard to get back into WotR because of how much better Rogue was.
The only things i missed between this game and the TTRPG were the lack of crit table and that my character had way more health and would not constantly fall unconcious after having his foot shot off by a plasma gun in one shot or falling from a great height.
Playing a Soldier Pyromance from a Forge World then going Arch Miltant is my favorite new drug. What is a Greater Daemon , the lord of change himself compared to spamming BEAMS of molten Lava.
I was hoping for Dark Heresy first, but Rogue Trader is probably my favorite game of the series. It doesn't have nearly BG3's polish, but it's damn good.
This "review"??? finally gave me the info i needed to make a decision about this game. Loved Kingmaker, WotR was a bit much for me, so I wasn't sure if I'd like this. The depth the video went into was very helpful, so thank you!
A banger vid. I was initially uninterested in this game too, but after playing it I got addicted to the plastic crack called miniature gaming again. I did collect Warhammer as a kid years ago, but this game got be back into it.
Had a little musing when you mentioned bg3, I find that I'll often find an optimal playthrough and repeat it. What could add true replay would be if you got rid of dice, but had unique outcomes based on if you did a skillcheck or a companion did. Suddenly the replay comes from team composition and your own skills. Eg I always see no point making a rogue given Astarion is there and you can teleport to camp at will. Like bg2 strongholds, it may make your class matter
100% owlcat games are always better a year or two after release with all dlc and patches. I'm still waiting to play wrath as the last dlc just dropped a month or two ago
I'll bring your friend and play the game with ya pal. You gotta invest into those sister models, though 😊. (I promise I am not a GW employee. I just also play sisters)
Really got into playing this so I resurrected a dead channel to upload up to date build information for 1.2 patch that overhauled the game last few months
Strat's games crash when he pours milk over his breakfast cereal, so I'd say a crash-less run in a video game means it is time to buy a lottery ticket.
Banger of a vid! Really glad to hear that the game is amazing AND that the performance and stability issues seem to be almost gone. I told you I'll be getting the game if your video was positive about it and I'll be just doing that when the DLC comes out. We are eating good this month regarding WH40K games boys! (My wallet though... it hates me in recent times)
Lying is a grave sin, and I would be lying if I said that the series wasn't fun, for the first could of episodes where he explained the over the top lore in a humouros way, until the Swedish sperg got delusions of grandeur and started inserting his shitty headcanon and copious amounts of LORE, and doubly so after the online Special-ed class started taking it as gospel about how the lore should go. Suffer not the secondary, the Loretuber, the Scandi.
FINALLY, I LOVE YOU ❤ (and I'll keep thinking that my spamming you about Rogue Trader for the last half of a year everywhere had something to do with this vid, it's not just sponsorship!) Now do Colony Ship, Arcanum, Temple of Elemental Evil, and Age of Decadence, I won't stop spamming.
As a huge 40k fan and an anti-fasc irl who really enjoys playing with different morality systems in fiction AS WELL, I just want to say something about your "they're kinda right" comment (which I'll try to keep as less than TED talk length) The TL;DR is that they are not, and they cause a lot of their own problems. Example is that the warp reflects the strength of emotion, and the demons themselves are reflections of WHICH emotions they are spreading - Khorne being anger, Slaanesh lust, etc. Big E decided the best way to pacify that warp was with a giant galaxy spanning war. (there's nuances here but I'm giving you the really short version) This is much more pronounced in the older lore aspects of 40k (the Badab war is a great rabbit hole for this) and Rogue Trader definitely takes that aspect into its writing style, which I appreciate. But overall the Imperium likes to sell that it IS right, the only way, the only possible future. But they created this future with their own hands, the perpetual "only way" that all fascists try to create. The enemies are always perpetually too strong and too weak, the right man in the right place with the burning heart of the Emperor can fix any problem, etc. But it's just not really true. There's a lot of different ways to approach governance and some of them even appear in the 40k universe! And they work! Then the Imperium cuts off its nose to spite its face. Because that's how fascists work. The ending of this game actually has one of those (spoilers below) . . . . . . . The ending that allows you to work with the "nomos AI" gives you a happy ending where you throw everything off, rule your territory with a just hand and people get civil liberties and generally become happier. The Imperium sends a crusade force to kill you and destroy everything you've built. Because they are the only way. Just a thing I wanted to say as when dealing with fascism, even in fiction, we have to be very very careful so that (and I don't believe that YOU believe this) people don't start seeing fascism as right and okay Love your work! Thanks for all you do!
In addition to your comment it seems to me a lot of people either don't know or memoryholed the fact 40k is satire, specifically satirizing the UK under Thatcher.
I'm not asking this to flame you, but to genuinely ask a question. From ~16:00 to ~16:30, you discuss preferring carefully designed """"linear"""" areas over an open world because there's a sense of discovery, whereas an open world feels like you just stumble upon stuff. I agree, first off, but that's why I prefer Dark Souls over Elden Ring, whereas I recall you saying that Elden Ring is your favorite RPG (I could be wildly paraphrasing, but that's what I remember hearing). Could you talk about why you prefer ER despite its open world, or point me in the direction of where you've already talked about it? I don't remember if you covered the topic or not, but I don't see many people at all discussing how the formula lost its spark (for me) with the move to a more open world.
The way I look at Elden Ring is that it is Dark Souls design, but open world. Like, if you think about it, the areas are designed like older games because there's usually only a handful of ways into any given area, and they use height to gate keep you away from certain areas so you don't stumble into them. Like that one area in Liurnia that's up on a mountain and you can't get to it until you do the ranni questline, that reminded me of older games because of that sense of, oh shit! This place! I was trying to figure out how to get there! I feel like a lot of open worlds tend to forget that type of design and just make everything accessible from the start.
Today or tomorrow is the last day of the owlcat humble bundle that has not only this game but also all of neverwinter's nights, both Pathfinder games with season passes, and baldur's gate 1 and 2. Go get it guys there's no excuse not to
"there's no excuse not to" what about the excuse that I already own all the games and dlc that are offered in it?
@@StFidogift it to a friend that’s never played them. It’s how I got my buddy into 40k now he’s over here hyped as hell over SM2
@@cheezburgrproduction Good call. Also, the bundle includes Planescape: Torment EE and Icewind Dale EE. Holy shit.
@@simondaniel4028 oh yeah i only mentioned the highlights, but theres stuff i didnt even know they made. its a great value
@@StFido dumb dumb still commented even though the question wasn't for him. True to form youtube chatter right here
Finally someone who recognises how *fun* the combat is and doesn't just complain about the balancing or having to read to figure out the talents.
I started playing on the second from highest difficulty, and the combat is now fun AND challenging. The thing about Owlcat games is they give you a ton of options for making the game harder or easier, so there's not a lot to complain about in that regard unless you just ignore difficulty entirely.
Agreed! The combat in this game provides a lot more enjoyment than most in it's genre. Between actions per turn and the many character building options, it's quite satisfying.
I just wish they stopped changing the balance. Sure, fix the bugs, but when I have to make new builds every 6 months, it does get old. It doesn't make sense to nerf the player in a single-player game.
@@katyushamarikov8819 I hate that shit.
The talent description layout still sucks though and it's simply a UI issue that's easily fixed when doing level ups, so I can go back to dropping crates of Air Jordans on Argenta.
"Abelard, introduce me to this peasant" is always the correct choice.
Rogue Trader:“Abelard kill this man he didn’t pronounce all 526 of my titles”
Abelard:”Good soldiers follow orders”
Abelard be like, "that's pretty fucked up, Lord Captain.
You're technically correct, though."
@@thechrononaut1 Abelard would already be slapping the shit out of that dude for insulting the Rogue Trader.
@@kalashnikovdevil yeah you only have to tell abelard a couple times, then he does it on his own like a good soldier most of the time.
Rouge traders combat is so good that I desperately want a sequel. It being set in the insane universe of 40k is... It's not icing on a cake. It's two cakes. It's so goddammed good.
Two cakes. Perfect descriptor.
I also wouldn't mind them doing an equivalent Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay game too since it's also a similar percentile system with a wide range of character building and similar tone.
@@NefariousKoel hell yeah, the total war games a pretty cool, but i suck at them and that kinda game was never really my thing to begin with. an actual rpg alng the lines of this would be much more up my alley
Wouldn't mind a sequel that has ya playing an ork rising up the ranks to become a boss among the boyz.
I love how they made the psyker realistically obnoxious and trouble-causing
The moment I saw demons infesting that bitch I got rid of her.
Hurt my heart to do it but I ain't fighting a greater demon today
Ah yes, I killed her the first chance I got. She was a heretic, and a witch. The emperor's mercy was too good for her even.
I also love how you can just BLAM her when she inevitably fucks up so badly your entire ship is at risk
@@terminator572 Which is the right thing to do.
@@terminator572 yeah I though the option would just lead to your mates bonking her. I was quite surprised when Argenta just straight up blew her head off lol
0:40 that's were your wrong, much like crosses guards against vampires or salt for demons, those figurines will protect you from women for decades.
Saw a lady's post about a list of hobbies that make man unattractive and collecting figurines are on it.
@@duongquan4986 is the one with videogames first? The list's dumb as that "lady" (too polite for a random attention 304 on the internet) given that they put videogames as worse than:
magic tricks,
collecting figurines,
gambling,
bird watching,
online trolling
That woman's a joke.
@@duongquan4986 if I remember right gaming was number one and collecting figures was top 5
The Emperor Smiles upon this video.
Always remember kids. Suffer not the Xeno to live. Burn the witch to ashes. Only in death does duty end.
FOR THE EMPEROR!
Ive always felt like Owlcat games (and old school crpgs in general) feel like an extension of the table top rather then a replacement. I like reading, and building my character in my head more then I do having it all done for me in game.
The morality choices really start to rear their heads and show the distinct differences once you manage to push one of the paths over level 3. Your entire ship bridge will be decorated to match your level 3 path and you'll start seeing bigger, more noticeable impacts from them in a lot of choices. Especially in chapter 4. Chapter 4 is where your choices morality wise really come to a head.
The heretical companion is pretty out there
yeah this game does a decent job of holding back on the consequences of your actions, only to hit you over the head with them once its built up enough to actually make an impact. and its not JUST a oh your heretic path is now level whatever this pathway now opens up for you, after playing multiple full playthroughs ive found this game will bring up choices you made multiple chapters ago because the person you talked to held a grudge about it and ran off to go do something about it in the background
Less than a minute in and you've accurately described how I got into collecting Adepta Sororitas.
The music 🎶 was one of my favorite parts. For some reason the map screen’s music was very calming.
Music is great in this game. Mechanicus has an even more sublime ost imo though.
@@CrazyxEnigma I bought Mechanicus FOR the ost and sound design. I didn't play the whole game, but those sound waves were truly blessed by the Omnisiah. It was like holy binary to my auditory receptors and the machine spirit in my headphones was appeased even before I anointed them.
Rouge trader Plus Space Marine 2, Just glad to see grimdark making a comeback
Space Marine 2 looks so fucking dope. Comes out on my birthday too.
@@StratEdgyProductions
Congrats to both events.
Plus, Forever Winter entering early access, fresh grimdark to enjoy. It's a good time for grimdark fans.
Comeback from what? 40k games were mostly doing from good to great since firtst Dawn of War.
Strat and 40k in the same video??? Today is a great day!!!
Near the end of act 2 I got a build which had Argenta takeing 6 turns at round 1, this basically turned into building my rouge trader to be as fast as possible so the chain could start, and from then on almost garented all combat would be over round 1, even though it trivialized it somewhat I still had a lot of fun, and hearing the heavy bolter fire constantly was just a wonderful experience. Combat became more like a puzzle where I needed to figure out how to move Argenta inorder to maximize kills.
I did a similat thing, iw as running 2 officers, with a couple of soldiers and a master tactician, fights rarely lasted more than 2-3 turns, and the feeling of planning out a strategy and then executing it felt great.
On one hand, heavy bolter arch militant argenta breaks combat as she gets way too many attacks.
On the other, "each strike is a prayer". her VA is fun to hear
"I've been playing heretic and dogmatic and don't see much difference" - that's how it's supposed to be
I was wondering about that as well, as I played dogmatic
there were plenty of differences in my dogmatic and heretic runs
granted I wasn't ever forced to pick a moral choice, I never did FULL dogmatic of FULL heretic, there was always some room for a few small iconoclast choices here and there
yet there were plenty of differences in my runs, especially in my companions and, of course, the endings
Heretical gets pretty zany later on
There is no difference until half your party leaves. The main difference is that Dogmatics kill half the party and Heretics have them disband cause you didn't kill them like a Dogmatic.
That being said the Heretical party members are stronger than the Dogmatic and will wipe out a whole field of enemies in 1-2 turns to make up for that.
i cheated and started dogmatic and then via character growth, am leaning iconoclast/ neutral choices
Oh, cool, an RPG for Warhammer 40k. I've always been curious about W40k, since everyone I know who is into it seems to REALLY be into it, and the passion for it is infectious.
you're either into it or you are not. it's been around for like 40 years; it's a fun rabbithole to fall down.
I believe now is a great time to take a look into 40k as it's very accessible in the sense there are a lot of ways to enjoy the setting.
There is now a solid library of ok to good games, a ton of cool fan projects to take a look at, the tons of books and audiobooks, the tabletop of course, or just painting the models etc etc .
i myself enjoy reading/listening to, and creating my own stories set in the setting since it's just that big and fun.
@@bjorn-falkoandreas9472 ..This sounds heretical.
I'm sending you my chiropractor bill because I hurt my neck nodding in agreement so much. Especially at the stuff about "I wish you could see your stats and inventory when levelling so you can make choices with easier information". Like maybe a "Recommended Skill Synergies" at the bottom of every skill/perk data card that shows you if you've got them already. And maybe it shows you the best weapon in your inventory that is affected by the skill/perk if it's one of those. But besides that the rest of the game is amazing and like you I was waiting for a 40k game that's a CRPG rather than every other genre GW has tossed the license at.
The flesh is weak, but the machine is eternal.
The nuttiest thing to me about playing rogue trader is I’m a long time player of the 40k Fantasy Flight Games RPGs, including the rogue trader one. Seeing all the same stats and that many of the talents and stuff were straight up from the book blew my mind. I could see it tripping up some people but it all just clicked very quickly with me from familiarity.
Inquisitor had phenomenal interactions with their rogue trader investigating their lineage and the specifics of how they skate the gray line. Great work, looking forward to the next. 40k is always awesome
Soldier into Tactician will never fail to bring a smile to my face; even the humble lasgun can become a torrent of death.
Any man who underestimates the power of the humble lasgun has never had to charge across a field with 5000 of them.
And you unlock better variants of weapons, but even then the starting lasgun with Master Tactician still wrecks house
It's funny because I just tried to play Wrath of the Righteous and everything you said made total sense and pretty much why I put it down as soon as I picked it up. Now this game is on my list.
you delivered some heat here Strat, this is one of my favourite games of the past year
11:15 exactly what you're asking for is possible while you're on the archetype screen looking at skills if you click around that left edge of the screen it'll put your stats on the left and leave the talents/archetype screen on the right
Yeah, I just realized that shit today, of all days.
Hell yeah, Strat strikes again!
This game is an absolute banger! So much depth which keeps it very interesting. A lot to read through though, which limits when I actually get down to play the game.
The Emperor protects.
Ive played pathfinder tabletop since it came out. So I never had the knowledge problems many people did when the crpgs came out. Playing RT gave me a lot of perspective. This must have been what people were going through with those games. I spent the first 4 hours just reading skills and abilities. Great time! Very dense 😅
Damn you sold me. I just bought the game after watching this video. They should sponsor you
Hearing you talk about itemization brought me back to Diablo 2 LOD memories. Good video as always
You’ve sold me on this game. I’ve been hesitant to play the Pathfinder games because I’m a perfectionist and don’t sound intrigued by anything they offer except for their character building, but this sounds like an experience that would scratch most of my itches. I think it’s just the quality of these intertwined systems that appeals to me. I’ll get to play it and marvel at how the devs pulled this off.
The profit factor element also sounds fun. I’m often worried about spending from my character’s wallet. I know RPGs revolve around resource management in and out of combat, but the threat of wasting money on something I want to try at the cost of being able to try some other cool item makes me anxious. Going by tiers of wealth plays into the power fantasy while letting the player experiment.
I've played w40k for 20+ years and the look and feel of this game is literally perfect.
I've been sitting on the fence on this one for awhile. This video made me pull the trigger
The inqisition is a different department than the eclesiarchy. Totaly not the same and often oposed organisations.
Biggest difference really is that the Inquisition isn't bound to rules.
A rogue trader is very similar in that aspect. The inquisition wields nigh unlimited power inside the Imperium while a Rogue Trader wields nigh unlimited authority outside it.
When both collide it often comes down to circumstances on who is right. While an inquisitor in theory holds power over a rogue trader, in practice they are a short ways away from an airlock and cold dark space.
@@verySharkey
not really. There completely different. The eclesiarhy runs in faith. They take care of sacret places and the spiritual health of the masses.
The inquisition is more like the internal affairs concerned in looking for corruption in the populace and other organisations as well as inventing better methods to fight chaos.
@@jackmalin2528 No I get you. I said biggest difference. Not that you are wrong. The Inquisition of the 41st Milennia is a deeply religious organisation though and it is by all means closely connected to the ecclesiarchy in their faith, not in their organisation. As far as the imperium is concerned though the Inquisition is more of a secret police with unlimited authority.
What I meant to say is that in their respective roles rogue traders and the inquisition are closer than the inquisiton and the ecclesiarchy. Both are vested with nigh unlimited power in their respective domains and neither is truly above the other.
Just wanted to say I love your content. I’ve watched your pathfinder video like 3 times and your baldurs gate one probably 20 times lol
Profit Factor is a really cool mechanic of balancing in-game gold and incorporating pragamtism into roley-playing. Like, what's the point in nuking Megaton as opposed to disarming the bomb if all you get from it is extra 500 caps that you can spend in one place and can easily farm elsewhere? Now with PF, the game can make you make a choice - do you do the right thing, but also deprive you of tangible gameplay advantages and maybe some future plot opportunities, or do you do the pragmatic thing and increase your abstract "richness" factor which will allow you to do good later on a larger scale?
Profit factor is taken straight from the pen&paper Rogue trader RPG.
So glad you enjoyed the game Strat!! 2023 was a stacked year for games and Rogue Trader is definitely in the contender for 'Top '3.
This was my first WH40K game, and what got me into the the franchise. Amazing CRPG! I really hope it gets a sequel
I can tell you have good taste due to your recognition that the Sisters of Battle using pipe organs as an artillery piece is metal as fuck.
I've played 20+ hours of this game, using a steam deck with windows and I've yet to have any issues aside from some slowdown, it is surprisingly well put together.
40k is the most rewarding fictional universe to get invested in. So much detail it will suck you in and suck you off!
An additional benefit to being alive is that I get to watch Strat vids.
@@bjorn-falkoandreas9472 There is a full tank of promethium in my heavy flamer. (nice try though)
As soon as I saw Owlcat making a 40k RPG I have been waiting for this kind of video, I am not disapointed. this is amazing. FOR THE EMPEROR!!
Brother, you deserve that sisters of battle tank as an ornament, treat yourself!
Ah shit! I never knew this was an RPG. I thought it was another team shooter or something.
Guess I have a new game this week, Thanks Paulie!
One of my favorite guys in the business! Thanks for the upload
@7:45 thought my brain stroked out there for a second, turns out it was just yours, so that was a relief.
Strat, so glad you made this vid - I bought this game a few weeks ago and have adored it. Completely agree about combat, it's so satisfying tactically.
I disagree though that iconoclast means siding with those who are wrong. The morals are obviously very grey; to me iconoclast is more like holding back an impossible tide - you're trying to do the right thing but constantly suffering for it. I tried to save as many as possible from Rykad Minoris (act 1) instead of doing exterminatus and I got a permanent debuff to my willpower due to that world becoming a daemon world. By the same token though, following iconoclast allowed me to defuse some situations, and I had no qualms consorting with xenos, often to my benefit.
In the imperium, people or entire worlds turn to heresy because of the boot on their collective necks - it's an ouroboros. To that effect, I see dogmatic as lawful neutral, heretic as neutral/chaotic evil and iconoclast as neutral good. I love that the game will actively punish you for being iconoclast - I think KOTOR2 tried to instil this in us using Kreia but it fell flat to me. But I think there are enough shades of grey that iconoclast still isn't necessarily the 'wrong' choice.
EDIT the coolest build combo I've found so far is pyromancer allowing me to crit on dot effects, plus a hand flamer, plus a holster that gives me free attacks if I crit with a pistol. add on a staff that increases my psy level for every enemy on fire. It's beautiful
My personal take is very simple. "Dogmatic" is to follow the Dogma of the Imperial Creed, Purge the Heretic, Death to the Xenos, etc.
"Heretical" is to quite literally indulge in power, you are given my your warrant of trade nigh unlimited authority in your role as a rogue trader and you WILL USE IT TO ENJOY YOURSELF.
"Iconoclast" then isn't so much a middle path of the two. Iconoclast characters are very much opposed to herecy. They are as much fighting against the ruinous powers as dogmatic characters would, it's just that they are allowed to think critically where a dogmatic character very much is not. As a dogmatic character you are not expected to think about why something is right, you are expected to follow dogma and act decisively.
Iconoclast characters can think critically then, "Do Xeno's really deserve to be exterminated indiscriminately? Do we really need to decimate the population as punishment? Can't we be lenient sometimes when it's warranted?"
A very iconoclast option can be taken when dealing with revolting prisoners on a prison colony. You imprison the guards for not doing their jobs and elevate the most suitable prisoners to guard jobs. They reduce punishments for disobedience from the most vile "decimation" to the most humane "deprivation of food supplies"
Instead of killing every 10th inmate you now don't give them food anymore. Reasonable isn't it?
The issue with Iconoclast characters is that they often run into problems that explain why the dogma is what it is. The Empire has seen enough situations where leniency led to disaster so the creed does not allow for deviation and leniency. If you give the poor masses enough respite to allow them time to think, it's easy for them to start thinking critically, thinking critically quickly leads to heresy. If heresy didn't lead to mass butchery, worlds being consumed by literal physical hell and other gruelties that'd be fine.... but well it isn't.
- This excerpt was sponsored by an Inquisition apologist.
Appreciate the Rogue Trader vid! Been wanting to check this game out for a min, as I'm binging 40k' content in preparation for SM2. I think this one might be my next pick 😁 great vid as always man. Keep up the good work!
Another great video! Been on the fence about this game so definitely loved the insights
Looks really cool, if I eventually manage to start and finish the Pathfinder one I bought ages ago I'll definitively give it a go. Maybe sometime in the 2030's.
Everyone gets grenadier, everyone gets krak grenades, everyone gets plasma weapon expert, everyone gets plasma rifle, no one can stop me
If I could make every character soldier+arch militant I would.
Yooo. I just wanna shut out my apreciation for you my guy
That is all, you rock keep up the good work
It's nice of General Sam to narrate all of these videos for you
A war hammer 40k add on a war hammer 40k review video, perfection 👌🏻
Love this game. Been binging it non stop since I picked it up last friday
What the fuck are the odds. I watched few 40k lore videos and then this gem drops?
I find it funny that he plays a clip of Vermintide gameplay as he explains how little he knows about 40k since Vermintide takes place in the OG Warhammer Fantasy setting.
Strat! Wanna tell you that you influenced me to purchase this one.... Aaaaand I absolutely fell in love. Cant thank you enough. To your health!
I have just completed playing through this game for the first time this last month but since Darktide came out I've come to learn almost everything there is to know about 40k already, the only particularly big revelation this game taught me about the setting is just how unbelievably catastrophic the average warp jump is. Like I knew ship conditions were real bad and all the work that would be done by massive machines in a normal setting were done by hundreds of slaves and that warp jumps could cause demonic incursions but I didn't realise they were basically mini Hive Cities outside of the bridge and that almost every time you warp jump, 2000 of the 10000 or so crew members would go completely insane and rip their own heads off. It's hilariously over the top.
In general though I think this game is actually way better to play if you know nothing about the setting, the vague references to how the greater imperium works, the odd mention of other Xenos races you don't actually see in the game and the threats you end up facing in the final act must make it way more entertaining, intriguing and just in general increase the atmosphere immensely if you're not already aware of any of it.
I am so glad you made this video. I saw this game once but disregarded it thinking it was a freaking card game...oh how wrong was I haha
completed it in a Dogmatic run and then completed a Heretical run as soon as I finished the first one, what a trip
now I'm waiting for both DLCs to come out, so I can do an Iconoclast run
as a long time WH40K fan I have to say the Dogmatic run was the best one, it's just fun to be a hand of the Emperor and force His will on to others
but I respect the fact they were so bold as to even include the chance to do a Heretical one
The Exorcist (that church organ tank) was literally the deciding factor as to what faction I wanted to build. Now I have 4k+ points of Sisters and I’m still looking to add more
Going from Kingmaker, to WotR, to Rogue Trader and then back has made me realize how much better each game is getting. I actually found it hard to get back into WotR because of how much better Rogue was.
Rogue trader is the modern Yugioh of CRPGs. It feels really good to pop off and really bad when they pop you off.
The only things i missed between this game and the TTRPG were the lack of crit table and that my character had way more health and would not constantly fall unconcious after having his foot shot off by a plasma gun in one shot or falling from a great height.
I never got into playing a lot of 40K but good lord the lore is amazing.
Playing a Soldier Pyromance from a Forge World then going Arch Miltant is my favorite new drug.
What is a Greater Daemon , the lord of change himself compared to spamming BEAMS of molten Lava.
I was hoping for Dark Heresy first, but Rogue Trader is probably my favorite game of the series. It doesn't have nearly BG3's polish, but it's damn good.
This "review"??? finally gave me the info i needed to make a decision about this game. Loved Kingmaker, WotR was a bit much for me, so I wasn't sure if I'd like this. The depth the video went into was very helpful, so thank you!
A banger vid. I was initially uninterested in this game too, but after playing it I got addicted to the plastic crack called miniature gaming again. I did collect Warhammer as a kid years ago, but this game got be back into it.
I agree with your assessment. This was the only Owlcat game which I actually completed. Good game.
This game made me go from only being vaguely aware of 40k because of memes to becoming a fan of the setting
dual wielding waifu nun with hand-melta, bolter pistol and heavy flamer attacking 20 times in one turn is my new kink
Had a little musing when you mentioned bg3, I find that I'll often find an optimal playthrough and repeat it. What could add true replay would be if you got rid of dice, but had unique outcomes based on if you did a skillcheck or a companion did. Suddenly the replay comes from team composition and your own skills. Eg I always see no point making a rogue given Astarion is there and you can teleport to camp at will. Like bg2 strongholds, it may make your class matter
Man i have a blast with this game SUFFER NOT THE HERETIC TO LIVE
The grind is real lately
I hope people saw the game after Space Marine 2 success and get it, it is a great RPG and deserve more love
Playing through it now. Hope they make a sequel as it has much potential for a second attempt.
A crpg set in star wars made by these developers would be sooo good
Ah good! You were the real determiner if I played this.
Ok I will buy the game once all the DLC releases this December
100% owlcat games are always better a year or two after release with all dlc and patches. I'm still waiting to play wrath as the last dlc just dropped a month or two ago
I'll bring your friend and play the game with ya pal. You gotta invest into those sister models, though 😊. (I promise I am not a GW employee. I just also play sisters)
Really got into playing this so I resurrected a dead channel to upload up to date build information for 1.2 patch that overhauled the game last few months
reminds me of 40k mechanicus game at a glance
Strat's games crash when he pours milk over his breakfast cereal, so I'd say a crash-less run in a video game means it is time to buy a lottery ticket.
Banger of a vid!
Really glad to hear that the game is amazing AND that the performance and stability issues seem to be almost gone.
I told you I'll be getting the game if your video was positive about it and I'll be just doing that when the DLC comes out.
We are eating good this month regarding WH40K games boys!
(My wallet though... it hates me in recent times)
RTWP and turn-based in one game has proven to be the best. RTWP for most stuff, switch to turn-based if you get into a hard fight, or enjoy it.
I swear one day I'm going to go back and actually finish this game
This is the guy who I want to hear from regarding this game
Love the special thanks to the Gremlins lol
Going to the cathedral in Ely UK will make you feel you are in 40K
Emperor TTS , is a great series.
Here on UA-cam.
Lying is a grave sin, and I would be lying if I said that the series wasn't fun, for the first could of episodes where he explained the over the top lore in a humouros way, until the Swedish sperg got delusions of grandeur and started inserting his shitty headcanon and copious amounts of LORE, and doubly so after the online Special-ed class started taking it as gospel about how the lore should go.
Suffer not the secondary, the Loretuber, the Scandi.
Trying to figure out how the system works in Rogue Trader is a metaphor for trying to get into 40K lore
FINALLY, I LOVE YOU ❤ (and I'll keep thinking that my spamming you about Rogue Trader for the last half of a year everywhere had something to do with this vid, it's not just sponsorship!)
Now do Colony Ship, Arcanum, Temple of Elemental Evil, and Age of Decadence, I won't stop spamming.
As a huge 40k fan and an anti-fasc irl who really enjoys playing with different morality systems in fiction AS WELL, I just want to say something about your "they're kinda right" comment (which I'll try to keep as less than TED talk length)
The TL;DR is that they are not, and they cause a lot of their own problems.
Example is that the warp reflects the strength of emotion, and the demons themselves are reflections of WHICH emotions they are spreading - Khorne being anger, Slaanesh lust, etc.
Big E decided the best way to pacify that warp was with a giant galaxy spanning war. (there's nuances here but I'm giving you the really short version)
This is much more pronounced in the older lore aspects of 40k (the Badab war is a great rabbit hole for this) and Rogue Trader definitely takes that aspect into its writing style, which I appreciate. But overall the Imperium likes to sell that it IS right, the only way, the only possible future. But they created this future with their own hands, the perpetual "only way" that all fascists try to create. The enemies are always perpetually too strong and too weak, the right man in the right place with the burning heart of the Emperor can fix any problem, etc.
But it's just not really true. There's a lot of different ways to approach governance and some of them even appear in the 40k universe!
And they work!
Then the Imperium cuts off its nose to spite its face. Because that's how fascists work.
The ending of this game actually has one of those (spoilers below)
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The ending that allows you to work with the "nomos AI" gives you a happy ending where you throw everything off, rule your territory with a just hand and people get civil liberties and generally become happier.
The Imperium sends a crusade force to kill you and destroy everything you've built.
Because they are the only way.
Just a thing I wanted to say as when dealing with fascism, even in fiction, we have to be very very careful so that (and I don't believe that YOU believe this) people don't start seeing fascism as right and okay
Love your work! Thanks for all you do!
In addition to your comment it seems to me a lot of people either don't know or memoryholed the fact 40k is satire, specifically satirizing the UK under Thatcher.
@@CrazyxEnigma "satirizing the UK under Thatcher" like a fat leftist would do it...
Thanks strat
GAH! Another upload, let's go!!
Almost thought i am listening to the Gobcast xD
I'm not asking this to flame you, but to genuinely ask a question. From ~16:00 to ~16:30, you discuss preferring carefully designed """"linear"""" areas over an open world because there's a sense of discovery, whereas an open world feels like you just stumble upon stuff. I agree, first off, but that's why I prefer Dark Souls over Elden Ring, whereas I recall you saying that Elden Ring is your favorite RPG (I could be wildly paraphrasing, but that's what I remember hearing). Could you talk about why you prefer ER despite its open world, or point me in the direction of where you've already talked about it? I don't remember if you covered the topic or not, but I don't see many people at all discussing how the formula lost its spark (for me) with the move to a more open world.
The way I look at Elden Ring is that it is Dark Souls design, but open world. Like, if you think about it, the areas are designed like older games because there's usually only a handful of ways into any given area, and they use height to gate keep you away from certain areas so you don't stumble into them. Like that one area in Liurnia that's up on a mountain and you can't get to it until you do the ranni questline, that reminded me of older games because of that sense of, oh shit! This place! I was trying to figure out how to get there! I feel like a lot of open worlds tend to forget that type of design and just make everything accessible from the start.