My disappointment with Xoti was the fact that you could never discuss the nature of the gods with her. It would have been the perfect topic for her. I agree with Eder being number 1. He just rolls with the punches, can only respect that.
Agreed. While I do like the Deadfire party members I don't feel that things go as deep as they do with the first Pillars game. There's nobody here who compares to Durance or Grieving Mother.
I feel that it's a weirdly muted aspect of the story. Even early on you can choose dialogue options to share the information that the gods are artificial to other NPCs ( I remember the Vihtrack asking to share rare knowledge in delvers row for example) but party members never really acknowledge it. The Poe1 party members reference it or allude to them remembering at times, though with Pallegina, that knowledge changed nothing for her, she already had no faith or trust in the gods.
Great list! Fellow Maya-mancer here, surprised to see Tekehu so low because hes such a layered character and has alot of reactivity in being able to shape his outlook on whether being a dutiful god chosen or finding his own way, plus shark man is never going to be not cool
Great post Slandered! I beat this game ~4 years ago and really enjoyed it. I definitely want to revisit this again before Avowed comes out, so your video definitely makes me want to get back into this soon. 1 is also superb, but I beat that ~6 months ago and don't feel like another replay is necessary.
My first Deadfire character was a fire godlike druid. I had been romancing Maya, but then I met shark man and we just had too much in common for it to not be fate. Also, Maya shot me in the face when I sided against her faction, so I guess we were never really meant to be.
Resolve is actually a pretty good stat and I would certainly rate it above constitution. Its the only stat with significantly increasing returns to scale (if you can pump resolve high, you can dramatically reduce debuff durations) and deflection is also a very good defensive stat which again has increasing returns to scale.
Not gonna lie, I found this channel from the Pathfinder content and found it useful. So I dropped by the most current video to drop a like and comment to help a brother out on the algorithm.
@@SlanderedGaming You haven't tried it yet!? You definitely have something to look forward to - in terms of QoL and polish it's definitely a step down from WotR, but I love the carefree setting of the game
i just have to put this here: Fassina being a conjuration specialist and having the option to multiclass with druid is absolutely insane. This is your very best character to play a corrosion (dot) + heal over time build. (with the exception of a mainchar Lifegiver Druid/Conjuration Wizard, which elevates the build to godtier levels). You absolutely have to try this if you like fast paced spellflingers, combined with a multitude of summonable weapons (Blights, Lance, Rot Skulls and the very unique snake fists). There are also a f*load of unique items for her build in the game. Personally i like Eder best followed by Aloth (by the way, wizard/rogue is not a melee build, but rather a wand/sceptre monster), straight up because of the banter. Even tho Xoti is very heavily invested into the story and has a drastic character development i just cannot stand her XD. Tekehu is extremely cool because of his unique class, but as you said, his personality sucks XD.
I actually really liked Edér's quest in the first game (to be honest, I don't remember what his quest is in the second). I think the "unfulfilled" ending ties in perfectly with his complicated relationship to his religion/god. And to me, how you deal with these kinds of "unanswerable" questions is a major theme in several companion quests in PoE1, as well as its main story (with regards to the metaphysics/gods of the setting). Sagani's quest in PoE1 is another really good example of it.
1. Eder (The boi, no need to elaborate, but his plot was good in PoE 1 and even better in PoE 2, he should be in Avowed in some capacity imo and I'd be surprised if he doesn't pop up) 2. Tekehu (He's got serious depth and isn't just an egotistical airhead once you get further into his arc, also his playstyle is really fun) 3. Aloth 4. Seraphen 4.5. Ydwin (Very interesting char, even without the reactivity of other companions she FEELS like a true companion) 5. Maya 6. Vatnir 7. Pallegina (really liked her in the first game, she's written differently in PoE 2 and is much more of a zealot regardless of your choice in PoE regarding the Vailian Republics) 8. Xoti (She's kind of just a nothing character, like there is potential there and the branching path is cool, but most of her personality comes across in a grating way) Everyone really doesn't have the reactivity to justify ranking honestly (besides Fassina in DLC but I never really used her), if Obsidian just did away with most of these sidekicks and made Ydwin a full-fledged companion
konstanten is top 1 for me since you can equip him with sasha's and use a non-offensive invocation to raise his max chant count. it's the highest party attack speed buff possible. with weyc's gear you can absolutely trash anything with a starting empowered eld nary. second to him is tekehu for the same instance but lower phrase count but compensates with foe aoe only spells
Very nice list, my guy. I'm very happy with Pillars II and it's gotta be one of my favorite CRPGs from its very high replay value, respect for choices, and tremendous diversity of options. While Garrus Vakarian might be the best companion in video games for me, Eder is probably the best friend just from the great long-standing friendship. It's sad that I found his gameplay in both games to be very lackluster, but he just feels so indispensable with all of his wisecracks and the spice he puts into both games. Not only does he complement the Watcher very well, but he bounces off splendidly in both games with his banter dialogue when talking with other companions, especially when both he and Pallegina are in the party. I'm probably gonna play Pillars II again very soon, I'll be trying out some of Magran's Fires to make combat a bit more intense since I've already beaten the game on hard difficulty. Once again, awesome review, I love your content and you bring such a measured, chill vibe that makes your content consistently nice to watch.
This is pretty close to how I would rank them, though I'd probably rank Maia a bit higher. One thing that bears mentioning is that one or more of Maia, Pallegina, Tekehu, and Serafen can leave your party depending on your choices towards the endgame.
Great video! I'm just getting into this game, so this is perfect timing. More PoE2 content please! Preferably turn-based content, but I'll take anything. :)
hello, thanks for the hard work and the content. quick question, your commentary / suggestion on how powerful each companion is based on real time with pause right? if based on real time, any chance we can have a list on the turn based? thanks in advance.
How can i recruit vatnir? He refused to follow me at the first time i met him. I have a feeling he's a big loser but i need another healer to replace xoti
Love your narration, and I was loving the video, but it's a bit spoiler-filled for a new player like myself. Stopped after that blurb about Rekke and 30 days. Not sure what your average viewer will know, but consider that you might have more than few others that have only now discovered POE. Keep the vids coming!
Um for some reason like all the characters are not in the game for me. I played the first game on another system and I put for the first game just do random. Acts and I think it killed them all because they are not even in this game.
hey dude, can you please make a video about Spellbound games Desperados Wanted Dead or Alive and Robin Hood Legend of Sherwood? both are great games that not just copied commandos but also innovate on the genre of stealth tactic games, compare to the new ones that are too generic on its approach , thanks
@@SlanderedGaming have you ever play commandos? they are still making those stealth strategy games now, but what they made today are too rigid with its genre, its all isometric and so very PC gaming
I was really disappointed when I disccovered Ydwin was a sidekick and ended my first run not long after. Good to hear that she has more of a presence in the DLC and I might get back into the game.
Companions sadly are the weakest point of PoE2 along naval combat. I find sidekicks more appealing than all regular party members with the exception of Eder, so that's a lot of wasted potential. If I could in my Skaen Priest playthrough sacrifice some of them to get back my Hiravias I would throw in Tekehu without any hesistation and give Xoti as a bonus.
@@SlanderedGaming The "upgrade" to sworn enemy is terrible, doubling the zeal cost AND adding 4 seconds recovery whilst doing absolutely pathetic damage (even the total damage is unimpressive, but as its done in several small increments with mediocre penetration, even moderate flame DR largely negates it). You are far better off using just the base version of the ability. Even worse, its mutually exclusive with the sworn enemy upgrades available to all paladins, one of which includes a zeal refund if the target dies. Given the base effect is powerful, the cast time very short and zero recovery, being able to use it on one enemy after the other for 1 zeal cost total is really nice. Being locked out of this option for an alternate ability which is absolute garbage makes this version of paladin objectively worse than having no subclass features at all, and clearly worse than the actually useful features of other subclasses.
Brooooo I can't believe you legit called my boy Edér "ed-er". How can you not pronounce it right when they do it so many times in-game? Shame on you! lol
They neutered far too much with the class mechanics in this game.. I was greatly disappointed with this game, from top to bottom.. Absolutely love the 1st game!
@@SlanderedGaming Multiclassing was a great addition.. but seeing how the spells were spread toall classes, and uses became cooldowns, it kindve snuffed my excitment for multiclassing. I did not like Eder dual classed. Hes best when getting hit in the face, lol
My disappointment with Xoti was the fact that you could never discuss the nature of the gods with her. It would have been the perfect topic for her. I agree with Eder being number 1. He just rolls with the punches, can only respect that.
Agreed. While I do like the Deadfire party members I don't feel that things go as deep as they do with the first Pillars game. There's nobody here who compares to Durance or Grieving Mother.
@@SlanderedGamingI love the whole idea of Grieving Mother. I still miss a companion of her caliber in Deadfire.
I feel that it's a weirdly muted aspect of the story. Even early on you can choose dialogue options to share the information that the gods are artificial to other NPCs ( I remember the Vihtrack asking to share rare knowledge in delvers row for example) but party members never really acknowledge it. The Poe1 party members reference it or allude to them remembering at times, though with Pallegina, that knowledge changed nothing for her, she already had no faith or trust in the gods.
@@SlanderedGaming dudes!!! you guys should colab, podcast or something, awesome guys with same pc gaming interest
@@tahnadana5435 Yup I definitely want to at some point.
Laura Bailey incorporating the southern twang into the priest incantations was my favorite part of Xoti's character
Absolutely fantastic work by her!
Great list! Fellow Maya-mancer here, surprised to see Tekehu so low because hes such a layered character and has alot of reactivity in being able to shape his outlook on whether being a dutiful god chosen or finding his own way, plus shark man is never going to be not cool
He's not my cup of tea but agree there's a lot of content for him.
Great post Slandered!
I beat this game ~4 years ago and really enjoyed it.
I definitely want to revisit this again before Avowed comes out, so your video definitely makes me want to get back into this soon.
1 is also superb, but I beat that ~6 months ago and don't feel like another replay is necessary.
There's been some additional patches and content since then so it's definitely worth revisiting.
My favorite is Aloth, the neurotic wizard who is least equipped to deal with being possessed by an ancient barbarian 😂
😂
My first Deadfire character was a fire godlike druid. I had been romancing Maya, but then I met shark man and we just had too much in common for it to not be fate. Also, Maya shot me in the face when I sided against her faction, so I guess we were never really meant to be.
Resolve is actually a pretty good stat and I would certainly rate it above constitution. Its the only stat with significantly increasing returns to scale (if you can pump resolve high, you can dramatically reduce debuff durations) and deflection is also a very good defensive stat which again has increasing returns to scale.
My team always has a Priest who is automatically cancelling out debuffs making high Resolve significantly less useful on my tank.
Just picked it up on sale a few says ago. Your timing is perfect haha
Nice hope you enjoy it!
Not gonna lie, I found this channel from the Pathfinder content and found it useful. So I dropped by the most current video to drop a like and comment to help a brother out on the algorithm.
THATS MY BOOOYYYYY EDER!!!!!!!!!!!!!
😂
Nice video. I am loving this game
Hi, love these companion rankings to death - any chance you'd do one for Pathfinder Kingmaker? Think that game has some really interesting characters!
Yup once I have played through that game I definitely plan to do that.
@@SlanderedGaming You haven't tried it yet!? You definitely have something to look forward to - in terms of QoL and polish it's definitely a step down from WotR, but I love the carefree setting of the game
i just have to put this here:
Fassina being a conjuration specialist and having the option to multiclass with druid is absolutely insane. This is your very best character to play a corrosion (dot) + heal over time build. (with the exception of a mainchar Lifegiver Druid/Conjuration Wizard, which elevates the build to godtier levels). You absolutely have to try this if you like fast paced spellflingers, combined with a multitude of summonable weapons (Blights, Lance, Rot Skulls and the very unique snake fists). There are also a f*load of unique items for her build in the game.
Personally i like Eder best followed by Aloth (by the way, wizard/rogue is not a melee build, but rather a wand/sceptre monster), straight up because of the banter. Even tho Xoti is very heavily invested into the story and has a drastic character development i just cannot stand her XD. Tekehu is extremely cool because of his unique class, but as you said, his personality sucks XD.
I actually really liked Edér's quest in the first game (to be honest, I don't remember what his quest is in the second). I think the "unfulfilled" ending ties in perfectly with his complicated relationship to his religion/god. And to me, how you deal with these kinds of "unanswerable" questions is a major theme in several companion quests in PoE1, as well as its main story (with regards to the metaphysics/gods of the setting). Sagani's quest in PoE1 is another really good example of it.
That's an interesting way to look at it. I guess I am just not used to party member quests resolving in that manner.
Priest is literally gamerbreaking in Deadfire, not sure what you are talking about.
As always, Eder is like the best friend you always wanted to have. I love him because he is so humble and easy going . Plus, you can give him a pet
1. Eder (The boi, no need to elaborate, but his plot was good in PoE 1 and even better in PoE 2, he should be in Avowed in some capacity imo and I'd be surprised if he doesn't pop up)
2. Tekehu (He's got serious depth and isn't just an egotistical airhead once you get further into his arc, also his playstyle is really fun)
3. Aloth
4. Seraphen
4.5. Ydwin (Very interesting char, even without the reactivity of other companions she FEELS like a true companion)
5. Maya
6. Vatnir
7. Pallegina (really liked her in the first game, she's written differently in PoE 2 and is much more of a zealot regardless of your choice in PoE regarding the Vailian Republics)
8. Xoti (She's kind of just a nothing character, like there is potential there and the branching path is cool, but most of her personality comes across in a grating way)
Everyone really doesn't have the reactivity to justify ranking honestly (besides Fassina in DLC but I never really used her), if Obsidian just did away with most of these sidekicks and made Ydwin a full-fledged companion
konstanten is top 1 for me since you can equip him with sasha's and use a non-offensive invocation to raise his max chant count. it's the highest party attack speed buff possible. with weyc's gear you can absolutely trash anything with a starting empowered eld nary. second to him is tekehu for the same instance but lower phrase count but compensates with foe aoe only spells
Very nice list, my guy. I'm very happy with Pillars II and it's gotta be one of my favorite CRPGs from its very high replay value, respect for choices, and tremendous diversity of options. While Garrus Vakarian might be the best companion in video games for me, Eder is probably the best friend just from the great long-standing friendship. It's sad that I found his gameplay in both games to be very lackluster, but he just feels so indispensable with all of his wisecracks and the spice he puts into both games. Not only does he complement the Watcher very well, but he bounces off splendidly in both games with his banter dialogue when talking with other companions, especially when both he and Pallegina are in the party. I'm probably gonna play Pillars II again very soon, I'll be trying out some of Magran's Fires to make combat a bit more intense since I've already beaten the game on hard difficulty.
Once again, awesome review, I love your content and you bring such a measured, chill vibe that makes your content consistently nice to watch.
Thank you!
Mirke used to not wear any underwear unlike every other playable character, but I guess they patched that at some point.
This is pretty close to how I would rank them, though I'd probably rank Maia a bit higher.
One thing that bears mentioning is that one or more of Maia, Pallegina, Tekehu, and Serafen can leave your party depending on your choices towards the endgame.
Great video! I'm just getting into this game, so this is perfect timing. More PoE2 content please! Preferably turn-based content, but I'll take anything. :)
More content on the way!
Love your content homie
I love your Pillars of Eternity videos. Cheers, SG.
Thank you!
Maia, Xoti, and Edér would share my #1 spot, if it wasn't for best birb, Ishiza.
Yup all great options!
hello, thanks for the hard work and the content.
quick question, your commentary / suggestion on how powerful each companion is based on real time with pause right?
if based on real time, any chance we can have a list on the turn based?
thanks in advance.
Yes it's based on RTwP. I've actually never played the game in turn based so I wouldn't feel comfortable commenting on that.
my head canon had Eder building a small village near Caed Nua with Maia.
bro deserves to live somewhat peacefully with a big buff waifu.
How can i recruit vatnir? He refused to follow me at the first time i met him. I have a feeling he's a big loser but i need another healer to replace xoti
My favorite are ofc Eder then Pallegina, and 50/50 Maia or Aloth.
Love your narration, and I was loving the video, but it's a bit spoiler-filled for a new player like myself. Stopped after that blurb about Rekke and 30 days. Not sure what your average viewer will know, but consider that you might have more than few others that have only now discovered POE.
Keep the vids coming!
Will do thank you!
hope we can find eder and aloth in avowed.......
I played this three time i loved the companions I just wished the ending were better
Yeah hopefully we get a third game to wrap it up properly.
Great video Slandered!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Um for some reason like all the characters are not in the game for me. I played the first game on another system and I put for the first game just do random. Acts and I think it killed them all because they are not even in this game.
hey dude, can you please make a video about Spellbound games Desperados Wanted Dead or Alive and Robin Hood Legend of Sherwood? both are great games that not just copied commandos but also innovate on the genre of stealth tactic games, compare to the new ones that are too generic on its approach , thanks
Never heard of those games and sure I'll add them to my list.
@@SlanderedGaming have you ever play commandos? they are still making those stealth strategy games now, but what they made today are too rigid with its genre, its all isometric and so very PC gaming
YES! WE'RE GETTING OUT OF DEADFIRE WITH THIS ONE
😂😂
I need to get back into PoE.
It's a great series!
I was really disappointed when I disccovered Ydwin was a sidekick and ended my first run not long after. Good to hear that she has more of a presence in the DLC and I might get back into the game.
Awesome I hope you enjoy the second run more when you do. :)
slandered ma amn how are you
Cannot complain! How are you doing?
hehehehehe, 'missionary', hehehehehe
Companions sadly are the weakest point of PoE2 along naval combat. I find sidekicks more appealing than all regular party members with the exception of Eder, so that's a lot of wasted potential. If I could in my Skaen Priest playthrough sacrifice some of them to get back my Hiravias I would throw in Tekehu without any hesistation and give Xoti as a bonus.
😂😂
Eder BFF
All non reactive "companions" are best replaced by proper custom made hires. You get the same silent guys, but more control.
Palegina's paladins subclass is pretty awful imo.
I have never looked at the other subclasses. Why do you dislike it?
@@SlanderedGaming The "upgrade" to sworn enemy is terrible, doubling the zeal cost AND adding 4 seconds recovery whilst doing absolutely pathetic damage (even the total damage is unimpressive, but as its done in several small increments with mediocre penetration, even moderate flame DR largely negates it). You are far better off using just the base version of the ability.
Even worse, its mutually exclusive with the sworn enemy upgrades available to all paladins, one of which includes a zeal refund if the target dies. Given the base effect is powerful, the cast time very short and zero recovery, being able to use it on one enemy after the other for 1 zeal cost total is really nice. Being locked out of this option for an alternate ability which is absolute garbage makes this version of paladin objectively worse than having no subclass features at all, and clearly worse than the actually useful features of other subclasses.
Was wotr top 5 games ever ?
Brooooo I can't believe you legit called my boy Edér "ed-er".
How can you not pronounce it right when they do it so many times in-game? Shame on you! lol
😂
They neutered far too much with the class mechanics in this game.. I was greatly disappointed with this game, from top to bottom.. Absolutely love the 1st game!
I like the first game more but I like the class mechanics better in this one. Mutliclassing was fantastic.
@@SlanderedGaming Multiclassing was a great addition.. but seeing how the spells were spread toall classes, and uses became cooldowns, it kindve snuffed my excitment for multiclassing.
I did not like Eder dual classed. Hes best when getting hit in the face, lol