Nice guide! And finally somebody praises and recommends my favorite Wizard spell: Miasma of Dull-Mindedness. :) Little addition: the -10 Resolve debuff also reduces enemies' deflection by 10 points. That's nice to have on top of the ridiculous will-crushing goodness.
@@Bilessati He's at the peak of his powers! Him and I just recorded an interview where we discussed 5 new builds he developed. It blew my mind! Keep an eye open for that video!
@@Aestus_RPG More like at the peak of my midlife crisis. ;) Thanks for your appreciation, I also enjoyed our talk a lot. By the way: going for Will-based spells is also my favorite way to build Aloth. And I also really like the Essential Phantom. You spoke about its advantages (copying your gear etc.) and you're totally right. Because of everything you listed Essential Phantom is one of my favorite spells (behind Miasma), too. It's just so fun to play around with it and come up with interesting combos. That's why I like to combine Concelhaut's Draining Touch with the Essential Phantom if Aloth does massive Will debuffing and terrifies. Concelhaut's Draining Touch has the highest base damage of any melee weapon. Because of that the dmg bonus from disengagement attacks (+100%) and also crits (+25%) work really well with it, especially if the wielder doesn't have many other means to raise weapon damage - like phantoms. :) It also targets Will(!) instead of Deflection which is so great in this case bc. Aloth can destroy enemies' Will defenses easily. It deals corrode dmg which is nice. It also drains health which makes the Phantom sturdier and tank for you better. It weakens on hit which is a nice debuff. And finally (and most importantly): it doesn't dissolve after a hit if it's on a Phantom (like it would if you use it yourself). That's beause your items get copied for the Phantom, but the governing spell that will remove the weapon after a succesful hit will not get copied onto the phantom. This means the weapon will be permanent (until the phantom itself dissolves). To combine that with disengagement just wear any item that adds an engagement slot (like a small shield for example) and your phantom will have an engagement slot, too. Now if you start to crush enemies' Will and then terrify them, your Draining-Touch-wielding phantom will hit like a truck (full of corrosive waste). It will also automatically follow terrified enemies and re-engage, triggering additional disengagement attacks every time the enemy moves in terror. And of course it will hit with its auto-attacks, too. Imo it's the best phantom-setup for such an Aloth build that I know. Maybe worth picking on one of the "dead" levels. Some find it cheesy because you'd circumvent the drawback of Concelhaut's Draining Touch - but in this case I'm fine with the (quite small) cheese. PS: of course you will be stuck with Draining Touch yourself if you don't hit anybody or summon another weapon. So the bonus from the scepter cannot be used for your spells while Draining Touch is in your hand. Little drawback... best to run to some enemy with DAoM (your are immune to engagment) and hit some enemy quickly to remove the weapon from your hand. ;) If anyone is interested I could do a little list of all fun (and I think useful) things I know of (and which are pretty obscure) that cone be done with a Phantom.
Doing research for my build i surely went trough like 90 Posts, Builds and Comments of yours your a legend mate keep the builds and the crisis going i guess haha :D
Re: Petrify - it doesn't penetrate Dex inspirations (as far as I'm aware); Inspirations and Afflictions always completely cancel each other out no matter what tier they are. Petrify is a "pseudo" tier 4 Dex affliction, so applying it to an enemy with Resistance to Dex afflictions (i.e., incoming Dex afflictions get downgraded a tier), it will get "downgraded" to a Paralyse, which is exactly the same effect, whereas hitting the same enemy with a Paralyse (tier 3 Dex affliction) will downgrade it to Immobilised (tier 2)
Yew! Love it. Though I’d love some other companions guides as well. Hoping you keep putting Deadfire content out!!! Looking forward to whatever you’re putting out next :)
These hae been fantastic videos. Thank you so much for doing them. This will help me getting started in the game hopefully in a few weeks once i finish up a few other ones. Any recommendations on 3-4 Main Characters builds that would compliment these 3 starting characters?
I remember playing this game years ago and looking for information online of a similar level of quality to what Davaeorn provided for the classic Baldur's Gate Trilogy. And I couldn't find it. Fextralife videos are pretty worthless and that's about all there was. Finally your channel comes along (Slandered Gaming also likes the PoE games, which is cool) and we get some good videos like this. Since Pillars has its own engine instead of a tabletop-derived one, I find discussion of this series can be very fruitful. I still don't fully understand all of the system in Pillars. Certainly not like I do the systems in Baldur's Gate 1 and 2. I hope you continue to make PoE videos. I never know what to do with the companions, although I do prefer keeping Aloth and Xoti as pure casters.
Perfect to see just as I get home! Haven’t watched the vid yet, but it’s probably better to engage with the video sooner than later. Because of that, I’m just gonna blurt out some rapid-fire: Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general? Might as well do a Cipher guide while you’re at it. Every time a new player asks for class recommendations, it’s always Cipher, Cipher, or Brîshalgwin. In your Pillars Philosophy vid, you also teased a similar narrative appreciation vid for Deadfire. Have you since considered doing something like that?
Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general? I have an interview with Boeroer that I am editing. That video is next. Then I want cover PoE1 for a bit. I'd love to interview Sawyer, Patel, and Fenstermaker, but those are long shots. At some point Avowed will release and I'd like to cover that. I'm also really interested in covering table top rpgs as well. I am extremely hyped on Draw Steel. Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general? I can't remember teasing that tbh. I guess I must have considered it back then, but I haven't thought about it since really. That video was a ton of work. I played through both games and read a several Nietzsche books and articles, plus a general book on philosophy history to refresh my memory on the enlightenment (Durant's book). It was a blast, but not really financially viable sadly, so its hard to justify doing more videos like that. Maybe if I went all in on that kind of content it would be profitable eventually, but its a scary bet to make.
Pretty please can you do a multi class guide. What are good combos, which subclasses lean into multi classing better than others, what other considerations with a particular multi class (party composition, etc)
I imagine you're skipping Eldritch Aim because of Dire Blessing? The self buff is worth a shout out in cases where you don't have easy access to Aware, or have a party comp that self generates perception buffs.
I really liked this series and it showed me quite some different ways to look at those characters. I kind of neglected Aloth a lot of the times and I forced Xoti in the role of a healer/buffer when she is capable of doing so much more. I totally want to start a new playthrough now. You mentioned that you have a certain setup in mind when it comes to Aloth that focuses around attacking the willpower of enemies. Which other characters/classes would you think about ? I assume come clubs will be used for the modal ? Also would you advise against using two Wizards in the same group, because they would compete for too many similar items, especially the Grimoir ?
It's most useful for automating buffs which isn't very hard to learn. And once if you master it you can do almost all of the basic(non ship boarding) fights hands free.
Great video, please make more pillars 2 content, build vids, tier lists, playthroughs, guides, I'm down for it all.
Nice guide! And finally somebody praises and recommends my favorite Wizard spell: Miasma of Dull-Mindedness. :) Little addition: the -10 Resolve debuff also reduces enemies' deflection by 10 points. That's nice to have on top of the ridiculous will-crushing goodness.
Boeroer himself! Nice to see you're still following POE, and thanks for all your insightful commentary on these games.
@@Bilessati He's at the peak of his powers! Him and I just recorded an interview where we discussed 5 new builds he developed. It blew my mind! Keep an eye open for that video!
@@Aestus_RPG More like at the peak of my midlife crisis. ;) Thanks for your appreciation, I also enjoyed our talk a lot.
By the way: going for Will-based spells is also my favorite way to build Aloth. And I also really like the Essential Phantom. You spoke about its advantages (copying your gear etc.) and you're totally right. Because of everything you listed Essential Phantom is one of my favorite spells (behind Miasma), too. It's just so fun to play around with it and come up with interesting combos.
That's why I like to combine Concelhaut's Draining Touch with the Essential Phantom if Aloth does massive Will debuffing and terrifies.
Concelhaut's Draining Touch has the highest base damage of any melee weapon. Because of that the dmg bonus from disengagement attacks (+100%) and also crits (+25%) work really well with it, especially if the wielder doesn't have many other means to raise weapon damage - like phantoms. :)
It also targets Will(!) instead of Deflection which is so great in this case bc. Aloth can destroy enemies' Will defenses easily.
It deals corrode dmg which is nice.
It also drains health which makes the Phantom sturdier and tank for you better.
It weakens on hit which is a nice debuff.
And finally (and most importantly): it doesn't dissolve after a hit if it's on a Phantom (like it would if you use it yourself). That's beause your items get copied for the Phantom, but the governing spell that will remove the weapon after a succesful hit will not get copied onto the phantom. This means the weapon will be permanent (until the phantom itself dissolves).
To combine that with disengagement just wear any item that adds an engagement slot (like a small shield for example) and your phantom will have an engagement slot, too. Now if you start to crush enemies' Will and then terrify them, your Draining-Touch-wielding phantom will hit like a truck (full of corrosive waste). It will also automatically follow terrified enemies and re-engage, triggering additional disengagement attacks every time the enemy moves in terror. And of course it will hit with its auto-attacks, too.
Imo it's the best phantom-setup for such an Aloth build that I know.
Maybe worth picking on one of the "dead" levels.
Some find it cheesy because you'd circumvent the drawback of Concelhaut's Draining Touch - but in this case I'm fine with the (quite small) cheese.
PS: of course you will be stuck with Draining Touch yourself if you don't hit anybody or summon another weapon. So the bonus from the scepter cannot be used for your spells while Draining Touch is in your hand. Little drawback... best to run to some enemy with DAoM (your are immune to engagment) and hit some enemy quickly to remove the weapon from your hand. ;)
If anyone is interested I could do a little list of all fun (and I think useful) things I know of (and which are pretty obscure) that cone be done with a Phantom.
Doing research for my build i surely went trough like 90 Posts, Builds and Comments of yours your a legend mate keep the builds and the crisis going i guess haha :D
Awesome video, more pillars content and builds please
5 more builds are incoming in a single video!
Re: Petrify - it doesn't penetrate Dex inspirations (as far as I'm aware); Inspirations and Afflictions always completely cancel each other out no matter what tier they are. Petrify is a "pseudo" tier 4 Dex affliction, so applying it to an enemy with Resistance to Dex afflictions (i.e., incoming Dex afflictions get downgraded a tier), it will get "downgraded" to a Paralyse, which is exactly the same effect, whereas hitting the same enemy with a Paralyse (tier 3 Dex affliction) will downgrade it to Immobilised (tier 2)
Wizard is by far my favorite class I can't help myself but always play one as my watcher
Yew! Love it. Though I’d love some other companions guides as well. Hoping you keep putting Deadfire content out!!! Looking forward to whatever you’re putting out next :)
Was waiting. For the video so bad !! Thank you very much
Another excellent video! though I usualy dump Aloth myself...
Thanks for making these brother, really helped me out.
These hae been fantastic videos. Thank you so much for doing them. This will help me getting started in the game hopefully in a few weeks once i finish up a few other ones. Any recommendations on 3-4 Main Characters builds that would compliment these 3 starting characters?
I'll have a video with more MC builds coming out soon.
I remember playing this game years ago and looking for information online of a similar level of quality to what Davaeorn provided for the classic Baldur's Gate Trilogy. And I couldn't find it. Fextralife videos are pretty worthless and that's about all there was. Finally your channel comes along (Slandered Gaming also likes the PoE games, which is cool) and we get some good videos like this. Since Pillars has its own engine instead of a tabletop-derived one, I find discussion of this series can be very fruitful. I still don't fully understand all of the system in Pillars. Certainly not like I do the systems in Baldur's Gate 1 and 2. I hope you continue to make PoE videos. I never know what to do with the companions, although I do prefer keeping Aloth and Xoti as pure casters.
Perfect to see just as I get home!
Haven’t watched the vid yet, but it’s probably better to engage with the video sooner than later. Because of that, I’m just gonna blurt out some rapid-fire:
Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general?
Might as well do a Cipher guide while you’re at it. Every time a new player asks for class recommendations, it’s always Cipher, Cipher, or Brîshalgwin.
In your Pillars Philosophy vid, you also teased a similar narrative appreciation vid for Deadfire. Have you since considered doing something like that?
+1 for the Deadfire narrative appreciation vid
Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general?
I have an interview with Boeroer that I am editing. That video is next. Then I want cover PoE1 for a bit. I'd love to interview Sawyer, Patel, and Fenstermaker, but those are long shots. At some point Avowed will release and I'd like to cover that. I'm also really interested in covering table top rpgs as well. I am extremely hyped on Draw Steel.
Any thoughts on your next steps with Deadfire, Pillars, or RPGs in general?
I can't remember teasing that tbh. I guess I must have considered it back then, but I haven't thought about it since really. That video was a ton of work. I played through both games and read a several Nietzsche books and articles, plus a general book on philosophy history to refresh my memory on the enlightenment (Durant's book). It was a blast, but not really financially viable sadly, so its hard to justify doing more videos like that. Maybe if I went all in on that kind of content it would be profitable eventually, but its a scary bet to make.
@@Aestus_RPG sweet. Looking forward to it
Kuaru's Prize is from the island with the tribe the slavers ask you to kill if I recall correctly. I think it might be a merchant, I am not sure.
Thanks for the build! Do you plan to have builds for Maia and Pallegina?
Pretty please can you do a multi class guide. What are good combos, which subclasses lean into multi classing better than others, what other considerations with a particular multi class (party composition, etc)
@@chunkyback3692 Have you watched my class tier list video? I think I cover most of that stuff there.
@@Aestus_RPG indeed I have. What can I say I’m greedy for more
I imagine you're skipping Eldritch Aim because of Dire Blessing? The self buff is worth a shout out in cases where you don't have easy access to Aware, or have a party comp that self generates perception buffs.
Yeah, I seldom use it because I almost always have Dire Blessing.
I really liked this series and it showed me quite some different ways to look at those characters. I kind of neglected Aloth a lot of the times and I forced Xoti in the role of a healer/buffer when she is capable of doing so much more. I totally want to start a new playthrough now. You mentioned that you have a certain setup in mind when it comes to Aloth that focuses around attacking the willpower of enemies. Which other characters/classes would you think about ? I assume come clubs will be used for the modal ? Also would you advise against using two Wizards in the same group, because they would compete for too many similar items, especially the Grimoir ?
Great vid! Do you ever play with the AI tactics in pillars 2? Seems like a great system that I’m not smart enough to build right.
Do you mean the AI scripting system? If so, then yes, I use it regularly. Its very convenient. I discuss it a bit in my intro guide.
It's most useful for automating buffs which isn't very hard to learn. And once if you master it you can do almost all of the basic(non ship boarding) fights hands free.
@@Aestus_RPG That’s the one. Thanks!
@@Aestus_RPG Please can you post your AI script for these builds too?
Nice pillars vids I know it’s old but man I really was into shadowrun returns. Any interest in the future?
Its not likely, but never say never!
could you provide AI spreadsheet for how to tune Aloth AI with this build?
I made a custom Blood Mage instead Aloth. Do you miss something really good? Item reward for his personal quest, for example...
No. Custom Blood Mage is just better.
it's hereeeeeeeeee
Hey, any vid for PoE 1 planned in future?
Yep!
@@Aestus_RPG
Agracima, aimico.
Nice, I love wizards in PoE! Now if only we could respec his personality :p
Algo!
Aloth, my favorite priest 😂
Fixed... Sorry!
Maybe he identifies as a priest, since anyone could identify as anything these days.
can u give some tips how to build takehu?
@poteznaspodzielniaponczkow2492 I probably won't do a tekehu build, so post the tips the for everyone who wants one.
Great!!! I think he left my party in PoE 1 because I played a "good" paladin and because my "good" choices. Is it the case in Deadfire?
I've never had him leave my party, but he might if you piss him off enough.
in PoE2 it's REALLY hard to loose a companion unless you actually try it, at least until later in the game.
I played a good guy and tried to be diplomatic whenever possible. Seems hard to disappoint anyone like that so you should be safe.
@@rh7474 Yeah, I started replaying Tyranny after PoE2 and was kinda shocked how the first companion (Verse) HATES you for being diplomatic XD
its a complete waste that citzal's armory is an 8th level spell. is looks so cool and can match so well in a martial multiclass