These guides helped me understand Kingmaker and pathfinder in general so much man, you saved my ass with these vids. I'd love to see you go over some stuff for Wrath if you're still around, its honestly such a brilliant game.
Really good point about the support. By mid levels Linzi by herself can buff the entire party with Good Hope (+2 att/ +1 dam on a longish duration), Inspire Greatness (+2/+2, for as long as you could possibly want to fight in a day, plus a pile of temporary hit points that make survival a lot easier), and Haste (+1 att and an extra attack). In my party, that's multiplied across two primary physical damage dealers, and two tanks who serve as secondary damage dealers. And that's not taking a lot of time to really buff things up, that's just the low-effort version. She doesn't do much damage herself, but she's responsible for hundreds of damage in larger fights.
You did once more! Thank you! I was struggling with feats and I've already messed up 2 characters. Hoping the 3rd one is the good one. Thank you again!
My MC is a dual-wielding Ranger with 18 STR and 16 DEX, and using heavy armor proficiency, mithril plate armor (armor check and dexterity penalty reduced to that of medium armor), a bunch of magical shit I don't remember, and the Arcane Protector in his off hand, and multiple Boon Companion feats, he's got 30 AC at level 9, comes with a very nasty friend, and does massive amounts of damage. Melee rangers are cool and good. I'm considering taking levels in fighter, though, because ranger spells seem kind of shitty compared to what paladins get. And to think the most complicated class in P:K is the fighter, the class in Baldur's Gate that did literally NOTHING but slowly acquire HP, AC, and THAC0 until endgame when the epic abilities unlock. There were no choices to make except pump physical stats and dump the rest.
@@artyomarty391 actually. I'd argue rogue is just as proficient with range weaponry as Ranger when you build for it and Fighter, due to the feat progression it has could literally specialize with ANY weapon it so chose EASILY. This would include ranged options as the entire list of feats a ranger would get offered are also available to the fighter.
Thank you for the pathfinder content.Never played Pf before and My first character was a traditional monk, I was demolished by mobs at lvl 4+. Now I understand what I did wrong in character creation.
The Scaled Fist like the Senei can increase there attack rating by something other than dex exclusively. Since it increase the str modifier to 1.5 when using dragon style. It can also be multi-classed into Paladin correcting the will save problem or into Sorcerer(or thassilonian wizard {Greed})/Dragon disciple increase versatility/buffing and expanding their dragon abilities and allow you to enlarge person yourself.
To the tower shield specialist, it is not useless, you may think you need high con, but if you just focus STR with DEX you can build a character who will just take hits, and at 5 lvl you lose the penalty to ATK rolls while using a towershield. I built a stalwart defender using towershield and crane style, only nat 20s can hit him, and he still deals reasonable damage and hits often. Basically he absorbs all the attacks while my glass cannons come in behind him
Buffing is the single most crucial factor to getting squashed or steamrolling an encounter. Making sure you understand not to cast repeating, non-stacking bonuses will help efficiency in the buffing routine.
I found a build on RUclips I'm really excited to play my first fun through. It's a sword and board fighter with a really good balance of damage, AC, health, and stats. Mainly like it because it also allows for persuasion which is something I almost always take in RPGs. Great video, by the way! I'm very new to these sorts of games so I need some help, hehe
I was playing around with a Divine Hunter Halfling build. Problem with small races though is that it actually affects the damage caused by weapons due to them being smaller. Well, in the PnP version at least. I think its probably the same in the video game at least. Also, small characters tend to be slow, and it seems to be typically that melee characters are going to want to be faster in order to get into melee, and tie up their opposition. Smaller races are probably best suited to classes where the damage comes from things like spells, or possibly bombs, or precision damage like sneak attack.
@19:00 Tower Shield Specialist seems weak on paper, but most battles will see one or two people holding the line while you can nuke enemies from range or using reach weapons. A good TSS/Paladin combo backed up by Str focus fighters, a sorc/wiz, and a bard makes for a mean combo.
Tower Shield specialist is good. IT gets it's shield bonus to reflex saves AND touch AC. Meaning you only have bad will saves, which is fixed in 2 ways. 1. someone casts unbreakable heart on them. 2. 9 levels of tower shield specialist, 9 levels of bard. You get will saves up, blur, mirror image, and all the bard songs. Can cast unbreakable heart on themselves. Plus singing steel plate mail exists. Basically Valerie. Nothing will hit you at all. Perfect for 5 mages/ranged attackers and one tank holding everything far away.
Good info, however I found that Half-Orcs tend to die a lot in combat. Mostly because when they reach 0 HP, and the round is over, an enemy will hit them and deal more than enough damage to outright kill them. This happens very fast once he is at 0HP. It also happens to any1 that has been downed but healed - when they get back up, they provoke attacks of opportunity, they get hit once, and blam... portrait becomes grey :).
In table top, enlarge person spell is the most OP 1st level buff. The extra weapon size and reach is awesome. I used to run a paladin with a pole arm and combat reflexes. With a 15ft reach you just couldn't get near the party without eating AoO.
In this game I think monk is very op. Probably the best class. You have to take 3 levels of rogue to get finesse weapon unarmed strike but after level 4 you’re just a monster. Can dump str cha and int if you’d like.
Very good guide! Can you do an in-depth guide on some of the most useful feats and how certain group of feats have great synergies? Like what you said, the Fighter class is the easiest to make suboptimal characters by choosing feats that don't synergies well together.
After playing some time in this game, I felt teamwork feats are more useful than weapon feats at early levels especially. Outflank +2 attack and precise strike +1-6 damage seems better spent 2 feats to me rather then focusing a weapon which restricts character to a weapon. I did not played PnP version but in video game TSS is very useful since nearly all enemies will focus it. Probably AI is coded that way to reduce difficulty because some encounters and monsters are just stupidly overpowered. I am not one of the complainers :) and I like challenge but when it is meaningful. I don't know how things goes on table top version but in game while valerie tanking, amari and nok-nok just butchers everybody. Since I got opportunist advance talent to Nok-Nok which now he can hit like 5-6 sneak attacks per round with buffs and this also OP. People will like it until they get crashed by npc sneak attacks :D I like your videos but I don't like the idea of sacrificing stats for sake of +1 attack or +1 dodge etc. I am a kind of hardcore player guy and really like role play. So preferred not sacrificing anything when started. Since this is a RPG game actually there are crucial points when these sacrifices can destroy party. I will not give spoilers but players should be aware of there are mechanics like ability drain and 7 ability score means 2-3 hit away of death. I will not try to impose role play spirit into people but main reason that most of the players are complaining about game is because they try to min-max things or sacrifice things. I see a lot people say Valerie is built very badly and probably most of them will be triggered when I say I put one of her points into charisma while leveling :D The point is game is not about only battle, that +1 or +2 attack or damage can let you pass a battle but things accumulates during the game and you can get a point that you stuck in the game(kingdom wise) where you can never escape and lose 80-90 hours of game play(unless you really like save scumming) or worse(only invincible kingdom lets you go on). Also another point why not sacrificing points is getting loot and exp at early levels. For example you can kill 100 bandit which is tiresome and risky business or you can pass a skill check to get same amount of exp. Think about it. You can find a +2,+3 items and really good amulet,rings etc with perception very early and you can't specialize into some skill checks that early or you will never have enough gold to buy even one of them and therefore having multiple people having multiple abilities is a good point. You will get my point when you find a +4 str +4 con belt as early as I found :) Briefly you will get more prize than not sacrificing things, this was my experience. I was always at required or over leveled at chapters and probably always over equipped in all chapters in normal difficulty and fights was easy actually.
I agree on the awfulness of the Tower Shield Specialist. Especially since one of your primary companions is a TSS, I see no reason to ever use it myself.
Since the game uses a simple AI with enemys, she is still a good companion since if you put her on the front she will be focused first by enemys. Eventually enemys will change target but by that point she already soaked 3~5 hits for your party. On tabletop RPG where the enemys think like people(since they are being controlled by one) there is no point to focus the enemy that you cant hit and he cant hit you back, but on a computer AI that does not take those into consideration, she actually makes a good companion.
The spellcasters are more fun to play anyway, but in the early game it is kind of helpful to be or at least have a proper TSS. Ranged characters early on are fairly fragile. So it's useful if there are one or more characters who soak up hits.
Give her 4 levels of Thug and pick up dazzling display. you get sneak attack that compensates for the shit damage, demorilizing and good defense. will never be a powerhouse, but thats Amiris job anyway.
Are you able to some guides on building the pre-made companions? Kind of new to Pathfinder, and a lot of the feats in the game don't seem to work the way I'd expect.
I've only made it to level 10 but from what I've seen I would go with pet classes like Mad Dog and Ranger and then build the character for pure damage output. At level 10 I've had party members take crits for 120 damage and my 37 ac main character has been killed in 1 rnd in multiple fights by a single enemy. The enemies are balanced to hit a lot harder than they would in most table top games so stacking armor isn't going to help much. The animal companions in this game are really strong so the best strategy I've seen is to let the pets go first to grab agro then rush your fighters in to deal out the pain. (At level 10 you can buff the Smilodon to have 5 attacks + haste with +20 to hit and 20-30 damage per attack, with high 30s AC and 100+ HP. And if they die in battle they get replaced after a rest.)
Right now I am running as an Invulnerable Rager and I am level 10. I currently have the shield that has DR and the adamantine plate so my DR is at 14. My AC sits at 32 currently but goes up if I rage due to feats I took. It holds up pretty well in combat so far.
So like, I dumped my paladin's(a class I never played in dnd games) and I dumped my wis a bit because I figured with 20 cha she will get a lot of bonus saves plus she gets immunity to fear charm etc. Is this logic hilariously backward or does it kind of make sense?
Armored Hulk: I believe at least that Dwarven Cleric of Gorum will really appreciate one level of it. ^^ - Also, the role of the "vanilla" Barbarian is as a vanguard; either to take out mages and archers, or: to explore the area ahead. Thus, Perception is a class skill. And, if everything goes wrong, "trap sense" (while still nothing to write home about) and Uncanny provide at least a small buffer, combined with his enhanced movement speed (... in medium armor) . The latter works in both directions; offensively and defensively. - Also: If you are a physical character in medium armor, then you naturally want at least SOME Dexterity
I feel like what you are saying here applies more to pnp Pathfinder than this game in particular. In Kingmaker, especially on higher difficulties, the only two viable "martial" classes are magus and eldrich knight. True strike and mirror image are so good on melee chars (and absolutely necessary on unfair) that all class specific feats martials get pale in comparison. This is not just specific to this game, it's a problem with d20 systems in general, especially 3.5 and the like. Either your setting has such an abundance of high enchantment items that it doesn't matter what martial class you pick (anything with full BAB will do, items will do all the work) because items are doing all of the work, or there are not enough high enchantment items in which case gish types will be just straight-up better by making up the lack of item bonuses with buffs (in which case, again, it doesn't matter what martial class you pick because they all such equally). You will always want a divine class for healing/res/restore, a dedicated arcane class for cc/support and rogue-like class for skill monkey purposes (wizards work technically). However, assuming you want to optimize your party, you will either never touch a martial class and replace them all with arcane casters or you will want to stick as many of them into your party as you can once all the other roles have been filled up.
I think after the Varnhold DLC, there is a lvl 9 feat that can replace one weapon training slot and change bravery to give a bonus to will saves instead of just fear saves
2h fighter is IMO not very good for full attack actions as only the attacks after the 1st attack gains the double strength bonus. after the 1st attack in a round, the to hit bonus is reduced by 5. there are mobs out there that has very high AC. So against those mobs, the class ability is not very effective as you can't hit well. On the other hand, the early ability of if you only make 1 attack in a round, then you'll get double your strength bonus (overhand chop?), it's awesome combine it with a greatsword/greataxe, enlarge, vital/improved vital/greater vital strike feat as your opening encounter attack. greatsword/greataxe once enlarged (assuming you are using a medium character and not a small character), your weapon damage will be 3D6, vital strike will bring it to 6D6, imp vital strike 9D6, and greater vital strike 12D6.
Well... 20th level fighter: +20/+15/+10/+5 BAB. Attack bonuses: Strength +10 (30) + 2 GWF + 5 Weapon = +37/+32/+27/+22 before adding in other common bonuses like a +5 from Inspire Courage and from other bonuses. Eventually it becomes common to even hit things with 50 to 55 AC with the 4th attack. Don't forget that attacking 4 times has more than quadruple the critical hit chance depending on the crit range of the weapon.
I disagree with alot of what you say in this vid but I still like to listen to your opinions, I'd love to see a new vid like this from you, now after all this time it would be interesting to see your opinions 3 years later
they are more a support class, good for dealing with problems (traps, locked doors, pickpocketing, using their agility to get around problems) and with supplementing martial classes (flanking, backstabbing etc). In Tabletop Rogues are more the skill masters, they get the most skill points and the the most abilities for getting around problems that can't be dealt with by magic or smacking it over the head with a battleaxe.
Thought about the exact same thing. This breaks genre dogma, usually rogues are considered a physical damage dealer. Both in 3.5e, Baldurs Gate, etc Rogues cant even get double sneak attack twice before level 3 (?) because of arbitary limitation, yet they are not considered physical damage dealer in this vid
They have traditionally been considered to be, primarily, a skills class. With damage dealing, a secondary ability. Though with sneak attack, they can deal good burst damage, it is situational.
No. Rogue is a niche class. The most effective attack for a Rogue is Sneak Attack. Otherwise you use Rogue for scouting under stealth, disarm traps, open locks, etc.
that depends on the archetype of the fighter class you pick. if it has armor training, then for every +1 armor training you'll get, you'll reduce armor penalty by 1 and increase max dex bonus by 1 for any armor you wear. The standard fighter is pretty decent all around. Because it will have weapon training (increase a group of weapons to hit and damage) and armor training (decrease all armor check penalties and increase max dex bonus for all armor).
Ah, yes, forgot that. I recalled Variel (tower shield specialist) can get armor training automatically? which actually to make this class quite a tank if the character has high dex. Shame that variel doesn't have impressive dex (although 13 is OK for a fighter imo).
@@cuso4473 her character attribute allocation is flawed. with only 14 strength, you'll be forced to give her a lots of strength bonus items. With fullplate armor, tower shield and any other gear, she has a very high chance of being medium encumbered. That means it doesn't matter if she has 20 dex and armor training 5, because of the encumbrance penalty, her dex bonus will be severally penalized. And for the same reason, I don't agree with this video's author's aldori specialist built of having only 7 strength. Because unless the aldor guy only uses bracers of armor for protection and not actual armor, there is a good chance the character will be encumbered. And as a result, the dex bonus will be penalized as well. Dex built characters are nice, but you'll need a few strong characters around as well. Because if you can't carry any loot, you'll loose out on a lot of cash as well as have to spend a lot of time between various locations and the town to go back and forth to transport loot to be sold.
how would a good stat spread for a paladin look like, say i hire a merc at Olegs trading post? We only get 20 points. Would it be good to build it like, 17stg ,8 dex 13 cons ,7int.10wis.16char ? (+2 to something if we assume human)
I like the video's a lot and have been using them to figure out the Pathfinder rule set and how to take advantage of all the feats. One question that I have that is rather off subject is that I see that you have some custom character portraits, or at least ones that do not come with the game normally, might I ask where you sourced them?
As I was. I saw two hand and assumed dual wield... not big freaking sword 2h style. The 2h builds don't need dex as a main thing cause they likely are going to be heavily armored and restricting dex bonus for AC and skill checks. In terms of combat, the only thing Dex will really help with is initiative or reflex saves.
Question on the power attack feat, is it really wise to lose a point in accuracy in exchange for more damage? I guess I am worried and think to myself; "what is the point of being able to swing really hard if I cant land anything?". I really appreciate your video Mr. Darkfireslide, I find it very informative, I would just like to know your opinion on the topic I raised.
It's about the idea of trading. Even if you lose accuracy on power attack, the damage you gain from it over time results in a much higher total damage in the long term. In the short term it results in devastating, meaningful hits that are more likely to down opponents quickly. This is especially true with two handed weapon characters.
there is also the fact as demonstrated in the last part of the video that adding various To Hit buffs is much easier than damage buffs, and that the tradeoff for a full martial character that has excessive BAB is worth it. not sure if is viable for sword and board as you lose the Strength damage bonus.
Depends on initiative. Early on it's hard to obtain strength buffs, it's even harder to obtain the sunder armor or trip without beeline toward it. Ultimately rolling natural twenty is why two hand fighting is less consistent than relying on critical hits who are based on damage over time. Power attack is best taken on level six or eight as it early on won't matter. You need multiple attacks to benefit and archers gain to fire twice early on and the power attack without the penalty.
I'm not sure which edition Traditional Monk you mean. I've generally played traditional monk in 3.5 (Pathfinder) and I've always had a great time. Also, in NWN it could become an almost untouchable destroyer. I agree it's VERY slow at first but if I can survive to about 3rd level, my monks have become a good damage dealer. Especially like you said a bane to magic users... so fast, with mobility, run through their ranks and assassinate that powerful magic user in the back... if you kill/distract the magic use, it makes it much easier on the rest of the group... then come back and help with flanking the enemy tank/bruiser. Plus, it eventually gets a self heal, so they can be SOMEWHAT self-sufficient/survivable away from the cleric, unlike most martial groups. My group doesn't generally use the ability pool method, but one of the random roll methods (4d6, drop lowest, 3d6 x 6 for each player, or sometimes we've done a group roll - each person gets to roll 1-2 stats and then we assign to our characters based on the 6 rolls).
Weapon finesse is a must as early as possible for a monk. I focus on Dex, Wis, and sometimes Cha (since I think some of their abilities use Cha bonus). Piranha strike is something I'm not used to, but I'd take that in this game. Also, I usually try to get the dodge to whirlwind attack path to eventually be able to kill a lot of the chaff.
Barbarians in heavy armour lose their bonus movement, Armoured Hulk's gain bonus movement. Fighters have enough fighter feats to use their non-fighter feats to develop saves, skills, etc. Five levels Armoured Hulk, fifteen levels two-handed fighter is fast, offensively strong and easy to play. Was my character for Rise of the Runelords. Ekun, the ranger, is good enough not to need to play a ranger. Two weapon fighter ranger is also a beast and Freebooter is a great archetype.
Hey, really loving this series so far. I played a lot of Pathfinder back before 5e came out and I'm really curious what you think about Bards. I've always liked the concept but until 5e I've never been able to actually make them work effectively.
Bards are a great class that can do a great many things. They have an acceptable weapon selection, a great support spell selection, excellent skill selection, and of course they make their team much stronger. My main question would be what issue you're having while trying to play one :)
Oh in Kingmaker I haven't really started a serious playthrough yet, I'm just going through the first section to get a better handle on the feel for the game and waiting out the early launch bug patches. My experience comes from playing the actual Pathfinder RPG several years ago. What I tended to run into was either I focused too much on their martial aspects and physical abilities, and just kind of ended up with a really bad fighter with a 3/4 BAB and light armor/rogue without sneak attack, or I focused too much on their casting and ended up with a bad sorcerer who capped out at level 5 spells, or tried to mix the two, which just ended up with me taking actions that were an abysmal full attack or a totally lackluster spell cast with a low DC and spell level because I couldn't pump both stats with abilities and feats. Apart from the bardic inspiration of course, that's a pretty unique feature but one that didn't seem to balance a class that wasn't really good at anything. This might also be because that was more than 5 years ago, so I was inexperienced, and our game style didn't leave a lot of leeway to be only okay at something. I like the idea of being a jack-of-all-trades that uses his many skills to be something greater than the sum of his parts, but I'm not sure how to work it.
VERY good video, I wish you could do more about the current Kingmaker version with a fresh perspective; awesome you could put so much together so soon after the game's release; previous P&P experience?
I had a lot of previous P&P experience, yes, which is why most of my guides revolve around making sensical builds you can role-play rather than the consensus of dipping everything into Monk or Vivisectionist lol I may return someday but I don't know for sure, it just depends on a few factors
your assessment of the towershield spec is very bad. playa dwarf, who uses steel soul, improved iron will, and gets tower shield reflex bonuses. they are basically immune to all saves, only get hit on crits, but crits don't confirm. then add in gloves of dueling and a flail to disarm enemies. it solo'd entire encounters when i was playing him.
the problem with non-weapon training fighter types is that you won't get to use the "dueling gloves". and this type of gloves goes a long way for chances to hit and damage dealing. And the additional bonus to hit offset the combat expertise and fighting defensively to hit penalties. .
I see the potential in this game and want to try it so bad, but the reviews are stating that the game is so buggy that its hardly playable. My question is, have they addressed alot of the issues that people are complaining about? XboxOne
Oleg's trade post in the tavern with the NPC at the counter. He then moves to your barony once you are at that stage of the game. He represents the pathfinder society. The cost increases based on your main characters current level so if you are level 1 when you recruit they cost 500 gold each and at level 2 2000 gold each. Oh the point costs for them is only 20 not 25 like the main character. Just keep that in mind for build ideas.
With a Glaive and 18 or 19 str and Power Atack feat as a Inquisitor(aasimar or human) i gave +-60 crit dmg at level1 or 2 in Oleg fights. Glaive has x3 roll, and with that it gives more dmg that Amiri with that 2h sword or hers.
Amiri gets criticals twice as often with that 2h sword of hers though. More consistent crits are better than bigger crits because you're less likely to waste that damage on an overkill. It's just so damn funny when the 3x crit finally lands when you can count the remaining hitpoints of your enemy with the fingers of one hand. Sure, seeing big numbers is awesome, but 19-20x2 is just better than 20-20x3 in almost any situation. Also, 2d6 is simply better than 1d10. The real benefit of a glaive is the additional range (attack range, not crit range), not the x3 crit.
Well have a tower shield specialist and it's fine so far! I use one tower (created) then crusader cleric a sorc and my main is an Eldritch rogue who uses range n webs etc so far. (I'll probably stay pure). Also like a ranger or grenadier. (My last slot is either bard/grenadier at the mo..Thunder caller is also good). Then I take whoever I need to do companion quests. I use lots of cc and my main char n ranger do enough DMG that most creatures don't get through and two pets plus my dwarf tower (he has maxed con etc). Oh the cleric n sorc can summon...so basically u create a wall of trash while u use a good bow. P.s Am playing on normal diff. Found challenging is too hard on some boss fights. It's too easy atm but then I get to a boss and it's ok!!! Perhaps with hindsight some other Ac class better than the tower. There are a few interesting builds by using dragon bloodline or u could perhaps go duelist...with riposte.. Outflank and allied Spellcaster are musts I think!!!
Thanks for clarifying. Another question. The stat on armor mentions something about max dexterity for each piece. Does that mean total max dexterity, or max dexterity bonus of like +1, +2, +3, etc. This game is very fun and overwhelming.
The deitys favored weapon merely allows you to have proficiency in a weapon that your class otherwise couldnt wield. Example Tristian who can wield a scimitar through his deity sarenrae even though he doesn't have martial weapons unlocked through his cleric subclass. edit. this also means that usually the deity weapon doesn't mean anything for you since paladin can use most weapons anyway.
I'd agree that Monks don't stand alone...at first. Given time and a proper spec, they destroy. My lvl 7 Monk/4 Rogue has 37 AC, great saves, and does a lot of dmg even through dmg reduction. Easily the tankiest character I've played so far, including useless Valerie.
Joe Henry i tried soloing till level 4. 1 monk 3 rogue. Then at 4 picked up 1 mercenary that’s the same build. Can duo for a long time and level up super fast.
knit pick.... martial class to me was any class/build that was built around fighting with a weapon and utilizing the attack system. Like you were either martial or you were a spell caster of some sort, when it came to combat. Some builds are martial without ever actually unlocking 'martial' weapons because they stick with focusing on simple/natural/exotic weapons. A knit pick because martial is a separate category of weaponry.
in PnP or here Martial classes are the one that get full BAB progression. +20/+15/+10/+5 at lvl 20 Clerics, rogues, inquisitors only get 3/4 Bab, so at lvl 20 they get +15/+10/+5
@@SteveAkaDarktimes given how the number of attacks you get can vary widely between 1-12+ in a given round despite your BAB progression, that seems a bit limited in scope for definition.
I think the most fun I had with 3.5 was with a half-dragon monk which focused on tripping. Things became pretty bonkers once I got an Enlarge on my character and I started dealing damage in d10s or d12s. lol...
Not really, barring some exceptions. If you have a companion paladin that you could have prioritize your healer or main tank, it works very well. I main sword and board pally to keep some aggro and manipulate the field while my party disperses evil-doers. The spells pally have are quite nice for just in case moments.
To make it easy: A tank needs CON, Heavy Armour Proficiency and Armour Focus. A dexer needs DEX, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus and Proficiency in said weapon. A strengther needs STR, Power Attack, Weapon Focus and Proficiency in said weapon. A caster need a high spell casting ability, Combat Casting and Spell Focus.
5 Levels of Armoured Hulk gives you better movement in armour, the standard barbarian loses abilities in heavy armour. The rest of the levels? Take 2 handed Fighter. Fast, good a.c., d.r. and tons of damage output. Also boost wisdom! Failed will saves kill.
I think you are better off using the DR specialist barbarian where he gets DR 1/- every 2 levels. Combined with the level 8 barbarian rage ability that provides an additional DR 2/-, you can end up with DR 12/- at level 20. You can always spend a feat to get heavy armor proficiency. At ch.2 you can buy an adamantine fullplate +1 outright for 18k gold. I believe that provides DR 5/adamantine. There is also a heavy shield +2 (dwarf only? think it was in the dwarf ruin fortress) that also provides a DR 2/-. I don't know if they stack or not. On table top, the equipment bonus doesn't stack with the class ability. But it's something to think about.
hahaha... Aldorei defender + Thug + Scale Fist Crane Style + Aldorei Swordlord = my god I just created a monster... Dueling Sword is quite good in this game if you're going martial class...
After the fight in the wooden fort at the start of the game, an elf sits inside the tavern and will allow you to create brand new characters for a fee, depend on the level of your main character or party (I'm not sure which). The new character(s) in question will be boosted to your current level, and you will have full control over how they grow up to that point and into the future. Edit: This is baked into the base game. You get it no matter what.
Thanks I had forgotten all about that when I asked. I have started a new PC. Saved up my early money and hired someone at 2nd level. Can you hire new people after you defeat the Stag Lord?
all in all a good guide.. but a dex build dont have to have 7 in str to bee good in what he does.. its mostly olny 1 point of damage on a normal roll, when you olny start with 18 in your main stat.. So you dont have to berealy stupit or weak to do damage.. Its the feats that make the Build good, not the min/maxing
Your review of the Aldori Defender is off they are not a dex build they are strength build focusing on heavy armor. None of their abilities say you can't wear a shield only that you can't duel wield. Also the name dueling sword is misleading as you burn too many feats to do dex damage and hit vs just going strength.
Aldori defender is more about light armour and dex + dueling sword feats which require you to wield just a dueling sword with nothing in the other hand.
@@xVallan the aldori mastery feat is the only thing that requires no shield. Their core abilities can be done with a shield. So +5 heavy shield vs +2 initiative and +2 ac. The pnp rules were not implemented in the game.
Playing a Fighter with a bow, I'll argue that it is superior to a Ranger as a ranged character. Weapon Specialization (and the greater version), plus the Weapon Training (Bows) means that the damage will consistently be much higher (especially after getting Gloves of Dueling) and you will be much better at hitting. The Armor Training means that you can wear more armor than the ranger and still take advantage of your high dexterity, giving you an overall higher AC. The Ranger can use spells and fight the right enemies, but generally I found it to be inferior in ranged combat (though the Ranger is much much much much more flexible and useful in all other situations, with their class skills and other features).
Yes, the Fighter is a better archer, maybe the best archer in the entire game, but a Ranger has some great spells to boost their marksmanship (Hurricane Bow, Bull's Strength, and Cat's Grace, to name a few) and don't forget that one feat lets them have an animal companion on par with a druid.
True, the animal companion is great. I guess I just like the fact that the fighter very much feels like an automated turret, much more consistency in dealing a lot of damage without being supported, so you can focus more on using the special abilities of the rest of your party.
@@dianabialaskahansen8705 I actually would say the Ranger is more self-sufficient with his buffs but that the Fighter's true potential is unlocked when given Cat's Grace and Bull's Strength plus Inspire Courage by his allies, and in those scenarios he can and will outgun any other class with a longbow.
The problem with martial rangers, as in all DNDs (and pathfinder is nothing else), is that their racial enemy bonus is nice but their general baseline is so weak, that you pretty much don't choose against which enemy you are strong, but against which enemy you would perform like any fighter, while performing way worse against any other enemy. It's the same conundrum which Paladins and Barbarians face (although they don'Ät lose out that much). Barbs can be as strong as a fighter ... while raging but only then ... Paladins can be as strong as fighters, on a mid level range but will lose out in the higher range. Having that said, the bonusses in regards of spells and utility/class kits for Barbs and Paladins are a fair trade off, for their lower martial prowess, while the ranger ... welll ... it's just a sucky fighter xD
That was true in v3.5 but in Pathfinder, Ranger is an exceptionally strong class due to their spell selection and the ability to have a normal animal companion (instead of a -3 leveled one) with just a single feat, especially since animal companions are overtuned in Kingmaker especially. A fighter will be a better archer in a straight up fight but the Ranger has his bow and a bear or boar, too as well as incredibly useful spells, like making his bow do 2d6 damage instead of 1d8 for minutes/level, which is a 50% damage boost on average for the bow's base damage.
Barbs are my least favorite martial mostly due to a lack of survivability. Paladins however are easily the best fighter class, able to add enchantments to their weapon for minutes/level and heal themselves significantly as a swift action, meaning they can heal up to 3 times in a turn if need be or heal and then full attack. Paladins also add Charisma to saves, making them immune to most status effects when built properly, and they have better build flexibility since they get most of their awesomeness from their class
@@darkfireslide All true but still the same issue as the Barb has, 130% power, while buffed, once a day/fight, 50% power all of the other time. That's also the reason why in traditional DnD, a Fighter-Dual-To-Cleric will ALWAYS outpower a cleric as it has a way higher power floor with the same means of reaching the same power ceiling.
All the statements on monks in pnp tells me you don't know how to build monks. Unchained just made it easier for people to get away with subpar monk builds. A well built CRB monk is pretty devastating. High damage, great saves, and decent armor with none of the drawbacks from wearing armor. Optimal monk stat spreads aren't even that bad, compared to, say, the aldori build you mention. Don't think of it as needing Dex and Wisdom. Think of it as getting the same value from a high dex, but at less stat points. 14 and 14 gets you the same AC value as a non-monk. Monks in pnp suffered from an expectation prevalent in the community that monks needed high Dex and high Wis, and then people complained that they didnt do damage. But pump up strength and they were pretty top-tier. The traditional monk is also good. Some of the points you made for Sensei are true for Traditional Monks as well. Good Will saves on a class that is likely going to be getting some wisdom as well means they have great will saves. Notice that they retain the Unchained monks full BAB in PF: KM. Bottom line: a +2 bonus to will is good, and well worth the lack of choices compared to UC monk.
My trip monk in ADnD 3.5 Temple of Elemental Evil crpg was pretty good. He was getting people so many attacks of opportunity that he didn't even need to do damage. But when he did need to do range, his reach staff was all kinds of flexible. That WuKong motiff. The fact that dex and wisdom ac bonuses start stacking more and more later on, the monks got better AC than fighters with armor. And that AC wasn't negated by touch attacks. Pathfinder's uber monk ability is crane strike. Shaolin white Crane. Actually, that would be Fujian White Crane imported to Shaolin temples.
@@karimsonsafehold9233 pre-agile enchant dex trip monks were solid, but limited in options against trip immune targets, and required some party synergy to get full value(combat reflexes on other party members). And Monk would be suboptimal for the build. With Agile, the build starts pumping out damage and edges out the non-monk trip builds, but Str is still more optimal, with less feat requirements. Becomes top tier dps with certain build dips, too.
@@vigitant most of my party except sorcerer nuker and healer cleric were melee. In crpg, combat was more important than rpg skill checks or spell slot limits. The bludgeon dmg on monk was solid for those encounters with trip immune enemies. The high ac of monks allowed it to pull aggro and block, for flanks of rogurs.
@@karimsonsafehold9233 oh yeah. builds like that get significantly better the larger the party. Once you get to 6 players, trip/demoralize/flag bards become one of the most powerful builds in PF. Anything tripping is gonna get massive value with 3-4 AOO's on a single target. With combat reflexes and dex investments on your melee, like a CAGM Barbarian or a rogue, it becomes ludicrous.
Pathfinder is weird to me. Clearly all classes are better or at least have more interesting stuff than 3.5 buuut it still uses that broken as all hell 3.5 chassis so sure Fighting being able to get a +5 Dex bonus in a full plate is cool and rage powers are neat but spellslingers can still win fights with one spell.
Arantyr Maybe they reworked some of the more broken low level spells for Kingmaker but things like Color Spray, Create Pit, Sleep and Aqueous Orb are all low level control spells that can win a battle with one standard action. More so if you use cheap a metamagic wands and the Witch class to force someone to roll a save four times and pick the worse result. Pathfinder's class balance is just as broken as 3.5.
Well darkfireslide in my experience PF is still wildly unbalanced. 5E is where it is at for actually balance between caster and non-caster classes, accept no substitute.
ive never played 5e. Im grown up and moved from my home town so no friends to play. But i hear the same, that 5th edition its the best so far, and balanced. Melees im pathfinder with the combat manouvers, are much better than the 3.5 autoattack bot haha. But its right in the pen and paper clerics at 3.5 are gods.
So, the take away here is, in order to make a good martial character you have to rely on magic....makes me wonder whats the point of even having non-magic classes then
Got to love pathfinder when a introductory guide is over an hour
These guides helped me understand Kingmaker and pathfinder in general so much man, you saved my ass with these vids. I'd love to see you go over some stuff for Wrath if you're still around, its honestly such a brilliant game.
Really good point about the support. By mid levels Linzi by herself can buff the entire party with Good Hope (+2 att/ +1 dam on a longish duration), Inspire Greatness (+2/+2, for as long as you could possibly want to fight in a day, plus a pile of temporary hit points that make survival a lot easier), and Haste (+1 att and an extra attack). In my party, that's multiplied across two primary physical damage dealers, and two tanks who serve as secondary damage dealers. And that's not taking a lot of time to really buff things up, that's just the low-effort version. She doesn't do much damage herself, but she's responsible for hundreds of damage in larger fights.
You did once more! Thank you! I was struggling with feats and I've already messed up 2 characters. Hoping the 3rd one is the good one. Thank you again!
The name Ranger has nothing to do with ranged attacks. A ranger is a person who wanders or ranges over a certain area.
And now another reason why J. R. R. Tolkien is the GOAT writer to me 😁👍
Definitionally, rangers get their range on. Whether that is ranging at a range or ranging over a range, is totally up to you.
well, compared to other martial classes, the ranger is the one who is best at staying with ranged weapons
My MC is a dual-wielding Ranger with 18 STR and 16 DEX, and using heavy armor proficiency, mithril plate armor (armor check and dexterity penalty reduced to that of medium armor), a bunch of magical shit I don't remember, and the Arcane Protector in his off hand, and multiple Boon Companion feats, he's got 30 AC at level 9, comes with a very nasty friend, and does massive amounts of damage. Melee rangers are cool and good. I'm considering taking levels in fighter, though, because ranger spells seem kind of shitty compared to what paladins get.
And to think the most complicated class in P:K is the fighter, the class in Baldur's Gate that did literally NOTHING but slowly acquire HP, AC, and THAC0 until endgame when the epic abilities unlock. There were no choices to make except pump physical stats and dump the rest.
@@artyomarty391 actually. I'd argue rogue is just as proficient with range weaponry as Ranger when you build for it and Fighter, due to the feat progression it has could literally specialize with ANY weapon it so chose EASILY. This would include ranged options as the entire list of feats a ranger would get offered are also available to the fighter.
@22:20 Also, keep in mind that damage dice grow rapidly with size increase. An enlarged (careful now) Monk can be a deadly tool.
Thank you for the pathfinder content.Never played Pf before and My first character was a traditional monk, I was demolished by mobs at lvl 4+. Now I understand what I did wrong in character creation.
The Scaled Fist like the Senei can increase there attack rating by something other than dex exclusively. Since it increase the str modifier to 1.5 when using dragon style. It can also be multi-classed into Paladin correcting the will save problem or into Sorcerer(or thassilonian wizard {Greed})/Dragon disciple increase versatility/buffing and expanding their dragon abilities and allow you to enlarge person yourself.
To the tower shield specialist, it is not useless, you may think you need high con, but if you just focus STR with DEX you can build a character who will just take hits, and at 5 lvl you lose the penalty to ATK rolls while using a towershield. I built a stalwart defender using towershield and crane style, only nat 20s can hit him, and he still deals reasonable damage and hits often. Basically he absorbs all the attacks while my glass cannons come in behind him
Buffing is the single most crucial factor to getting squashed or steamrolling an encounter.
Making sure you understand not to cast repeating, non-stacking bonuses will help efficiency in the buffing routine.
I found a build on RUclips I'm really excited to play my first fun through. It's a sword and board fighter with a really good balance of damage, AC, health, and stats. Mainly like it because it also allows for persuasion which is something I almost always take in RPGs. Great video, by the way! I'm very new to these sorts of games so I need some help, hehe
I was playing around with a Divine Hunter Halfling build. Problem with small races though is that it actually affects the damage caused by weapons due to them being smaller. Well, in the PnP version at least. I think its probably the same in the video game at least. Also, small characters tend to be slow, and it seems to be typically that melee characters are going to want to be faster in order to get into melee, and tie up their opposition. Smaller races are probably best suited to classes where the damage comes from things like spells, or possibly bombs, or precision damage like sneak attack.
@19:00 Tower Shield Specialist seems weak on paper, but most battles will see one or two people holding the line while you can nuke enemies from range or using reach weapons. A good TSS/Paladin combo backed up by Str focus fighters, a sorc/wiz, and a bard makes for a mean combo.
Building a tss now and they're ironically based on my paladin. When would you start your multiclass?
Tower Shield specialist is good. IT gets it's shield bonus to reflex saves AND touch AC. Meaning you only have bad will saves, which is fixed in 2 ways. 1. someone casts unbreakable heart on them. 2. 9 levels of tower shield specialist, 9 levels of bard. You get will saves up, blur, mirror image, and all the bard songs. Can cast unbreakable heart on themselves. Plus singing steel plate mail exists. Basically Valerie.
Nothing will hit you at all. Perfect for 5 mages/ranged attackers and one tank holding everything far away.
Glad to see another video! can already tell its had a lot of work put into it keep it up!
@17:40 Agile weapons are your best friend in this regard. Adds Dex to damage in place of Str.
I just want to say your Favored Enemy list shows real hard bias for the first few acts. Fey is a *really* good pick for later levels.
No mention of Aasimar in the race section? They're very strong generally.
weren't in the game at that time
@@spicydeath82 they are literally shown in the video on screen :D
OpposingForces Take a look at the race screen in the video again mate.
FEETS!
If you have a foot fetish, play a fighter.
Also a centipede pet that cant be tripped. Wth pets that attack with bite trips.
A Halfling fighter.
I like the way you explained that; Support characters are still doing damage, they're just doing it through others.
Mysterious Shrine / Raven Queen
1/1, 2/4, 3/2, 4/5, 5/3,
(1/1 left upper corner, 5/1 right upper corner)
@15:00 A little birdie told me that you can acquire a +5 Greatsword around mid-game. Not a waste to build a Greatsword fighter...
Good info, however I found that Half-Orcs tend to die a lot in combat. Mostly because when they reach 0 HP, and the round is over, an enemy will hit them and deal more than enough damage to outright kill them. This happens very fast once he is at 0HP. It also happens to any1 that has been downed but healed - when they get back up, they provoke attacks of opportunity, they get hit once, and blam... portrait becomes grey :).
In table top, enlarge person spell is the most OP 1st level buff. The extra weapon size and reach is awesome.
I used to run a paladin with a pole arm and combat reflexes. With a 15ft reach you just couldn't get near the party without eating AoO.
I once had a tengu alchemist with a greatsword who enlarged himself all the time and could also chuck bombs. The GM hated it. :)
It's so good to see someone get how to play this game and how to make classes better. Keep the video,s coming.
In this game I think monk is very op. Probably the best class. You have to take 3 levels of rogue to get finesse weapon unarmed strike but after level 4 you’re just a monster. Can dump str cha and int if you’d like.
watched this whole thing. incredible video. thanks for the useful information delivered in a clear manner!
Very good guide! Can you do an in-depth guide on some of the most useful feats and how certain group of feats have great synergies? Like what you said, the Fighter class is the easiest to make suboptimal characters by choosing feats that don't synergies well together.
After playing some time in this game, I felt teamwork feats are more useful than weapon feats at early levels especially. Outflank +2 attack and precise strike +1-6 damage seems better spent 2 feats to me rather then focusing a weapon which restricts character to a weapon. I did not played PnP version but in video game TSS is very useful since nearly all enemies will focus it. Probably AI is coded that way to reduce difficulty because some encounters and monsters are just stupidly overpowered. I am not one of the complainers :) and I like challenge but when it is meaningful. I don't know how things goes on table top version but in game while valerie tanking, amari and nok-nok just butchers everybody. Since I got opportunist advance talent to Nok-Nok which now he can hit like 5-6 sneak attacks per round with buffs and this also OP. People will like it until they get crashed by npc sneak attacks :D
I like your videos but I don't like the idea of sacrificing stats for sake of +1 attack or +1 dodge etc. I am a kind of hardcore player guy and really like role play. So preferred not sacrificing anything when started. Since this is a RPG game actually there are crucial points when these sacrifices can destroy party. I will not give spoilers but players should be aware of there are mechanics like ability drain and 7 ability score means 2-3 hit away of death.
I will not try to impose role play spirit into people but main reason that most of the players are complaining about game is because they try to min-max things or sacrifice things. I see a lot people say Valerie is built very badly and probably most of them will be triggered when I say I put one of her points into charisma while leveling :D The point is game is not about only battle, that +1 or +2 attack or damage can let you pass a battle but things accumulates during the game and you can get a point that you stuck in the game(kingdom wise) where you can never escape and lose 80-90 hours of game play(unless you really like save scumming) or worse(only invincible kingdom lets you go on). Also another point why not sacrificing points is getting loot and exp at early levels. For example you can kill 100 bandit which is tiresome and risky business or you can pass a skill check to get same amount of exp. Think about it. You can find a +2,+3 items and really good amulet,rings etc with perception very early and you can't specialize into some skill checks that early or you will never have enough gold to buy even one of them and therefore having multiple people having multiple abilities is a good point. You will get my point when you find a +4 str +4 con belt as early as I found :)
Briefly you will get more prize than not sacrificing things, this was my experience. I was always at required or over leveled at chapters and probably always over equipped in all chapters in normal difficulty and fights was easy actually.
I agree on the awfulness of the Tower Shield Specialist. Especially since one of your primary companions is a TSS, I see no reason to ever use it myself.
Since the game uses a simple AI with enemys, she is still a good companion since if you put her on the front she will be focused first by enemys.
Eventually enemys will change target but by that point she already soaked 3~5 hits for your party.
On tabletop RPG where the enemys think like people(since they are being controlled by one) there is no point to focus the enemy that you cant hit and he cant hit you back, but on a computer AI that does not take those into consideration, she actually makes a good companion.
The spellcasters are more fun to play anyway, but in the early game it is kind of helpful to be or at least have a proper TSS. Ranged characters early on are fairly fragile. So it's useful if there are one or more characters who soak up hits.
Give her 4 levels of Thug and pick up dazzling display. you get sneak attack that compensates for the shit damage, demorilizing and good defense. will never be a powerhouse, but thats Amiris job anyway.
I choose weapon focus for hammers, but now i cant change it or add additional weapon focus. Any idea why?
Are you able to some guides on building the pre-made companions? Kind of new to Pathfinder, and a lot of the feats in the game don't seem to work the way I'd expect.
Will the Elven Curved Blade still work normally off of STR if I don't buy weapon finesse.
I've only made it to level 10 but from what I've seen I would go with pet classes like Mad Dog and Ranger and then build the character for pure damage output. At level 10 I've had party members take crits for 120 damage and my 37 ac main character has been killed in 1 rnd in multiple fights by a single enemy. The enemies are balanced to hit a lot harder than they would in most table top games so stacking armor isn't going to help much. The animal companions in this game are really strong so the best strategy I've seen is to let the pets go first to grab agro then rush your fighters in to deal out the pain. (At level 10 you can buff the Smilodon to have 5 attacks + haste with +20 to hit and 20-30 damage per attack, with high 30s AC and 100+ HP. And if they die in battle they get replaced after a rest.)
OMG YESSSS smilodon is the best thanker
Is a Guide on the Weapons of Kingmaker possible? or would it take a long time to make?
Right now I am running as an Invulnerable Rager and I am level 10. I currently have the shield that has DR and the adamantine plate so my DR is at 14. My AC sits at 32 currently but goes up if I rage due to feats I took. It holds up pretty well in combat so far.
What about outflank and precise strike?
So like, I dumped my paladin's(a class I never played in dnd games) and I dumped my wis a bit because I figured with 20 cha she will get a lot of bonus saves plus she gets immunity to fear charm etc. Is this logic hilariously backward or does it kind of make sense?
New sub here. I really enjoy watching you videos and I don't even own the game ! Keep up the awesome work! We appreciate it!
Armored Hulk: I believe at least that Dwarven Cleric of Gorum will really appreciate one level of it. ^^
- Also, the role of the "vanilla" Barbarian is as a vanguard; either to take out mages and archers, or: to explore the area ahead. Thus, Perception is a class skill.
And, if everything goes wrong, "trap sense" (while still nothing to write home about) and Uncanny provide at least a small buffer, combined with his enhanced movement speed (... in medium armor) . The latter works in both directions; offensively and defensively. - Also: If you are a physical character in medium armor, then you naturally want at least SOME Dexterity
Pick fighter, power atack, cleave, great cleave and imp. iniciative and grab the biggest weapon you can
Monks are overpowered in pin and paper.
Been playing pin and paper since 3.0 dnd came out.
I feel like what you are saying here applies more to pnp Pathfinder than this game in particular. In Kingmaker, especially on higher difficulties, the only two viable "martial" classes are magus and eldrich knight. True strike and mirror image are so good on melee chars (and absolutely necessary on unfair) that all class specific feats martials get pale in comparison.
This is not just specific to this game, it's a problem with d20 systems in general, especially 3.5 and the like. Either your setting has such an abundance of high enchantment items that it doesn't matter what martial class you pick (anything with full BAB will do, items will do all the work) because items are doing all of the work, or there are not enough high enchantment items in which case gish types will be just straight-up better by making up the lack of item bonuses with buffs (in which case, again, it doesn't matter what martial class you pick because they all such equally). You will always want a divine class for healing/res/restore, a dedicated arcane class for cc/support and rogue-like class for skill monkey purposes (wizards work technically). However, assuming you want to optimize your party, you will either never touch a martial class and replace them all with arcane casters or you will want to stick as many of them into your party as you can once all the other roles have been filled up.
Shit in RPGs breaks when you turn the numbers up past what encounters are scaled to be at. What a revelation
I think after the Varnhold DLC, there is a lvl 9 feat that can replace one weapon training slot and change bravery to give a bonus to will saves instead of just fear saves
2h fighter is IMO not very good for full attack actions as only the attacks after the 1st attack gains the double strength bonus. after the 1st attack in a round, the to hit bonus is reduced by 5. there are mobs out there that has very high AC. So against those mobs, the class ability is not very effective as you can't hit well. On the other hand, the early ability of if you only make 1 attack in a round, then you'll get double your strength bonus (overhand chop?), it's awesome combine it with a greatsword/greataxe, enlarge, vital/improved vital/greater vital strike feat as your opening encounter attack. greatsword/greataxe once enlarged (assuming you are using a medium character and not a small character), your weapon damage will be 3D6, vital strike will bring it to 6D6, imp vital strike 9D6, and greater vital strike 12D6.
Well...
20th level fighter:
+20/+15/+10/+5 BAB.
Attack bonuses: Strength +10 (30) + 2 GWF + 5 Weapon = +37/+32/+27/+22 before adding in other common bonuses like a +5 from Inspire Courage and from other bonuses. Eventually it becomes common to even hit things with 50 to 55 AC with the 4th attack. Don't forget that attacking 4 times has more than quadruple the critical hit chance depending on the crit range of the weapon.
I disagree with alot of what you say in this vid but I still like to listen to your opinions, I'd love to see a new vid like this from you, now after all this time it would be interesting to see your opinions 3 years later
so rogue isnt a martial class?
they are more a support class, good for dealing with problems (traps, locked doors, pickpocketing, using their agility to get around problems) and with supplementing martial classes (flanking, backstabbing etc). In Tabletop Rogues are more the skill masters, they get the most skill points and the the most abilities for getting around problems that can't be dealt with by magic or smacking it over the head with a battleaxe.
Thought about the exact same thing. This breaks genre dogma, usually rogues are considered a physical damage dealer. Both in 3.5e, Baldurs Gate, etc
Rogues cant even get double sneak attack twice before level 3 (?) because of arbitary limitation, yet they are not considered physical damage dealer in this vid
They have traditionally been considered to be, primarily, a skills class. With damage dealing, a secondary ability. Though with sneak attack, they can deal good burst damage, it is situational.
In some games, a high level rogue deals out a lot more physical damage than any fighter. Not sure how it works out here
No. Rogue is a niche class. The most effective attack for a Rogue is Sneak Attack. Otherwise you use Rogue for scouting under stealth, disarm traps, open locks, etc.
Isn’t Dex bonus having a cap for several heavy armor? Which says, if you wearing full plate, there is no point has a lot dex, say, 16?
that depends on the archetype of the fighter class you pick. if it has armor training, then for every +1 armor training you'll get, you'll reduce armor penalty by 1 and increase max dex bonus by 1 for any armor you wear. The standard fighter is pretty decent all around. Because it will have weapon training (increase a group of weapons to hit and damage) and armor training (decrease all armor check penalties and increase max dex bonus for all armor).
Ah, yes, forgot that. I recalled Variel (tower shield specialist) can get armor training automatically? which actually to make this class quite a tank if the character has high dex. Shame that variel doesn't have impressive dex (although 13 is OK for a fighter imo).
@@cuso4473 her character attribute allocation is flawed. with only 14 strength, you'll be forced to give her a lots of strength bonus items. With fullplate armor, tower shield and any other gear, she has a very high chance of being medium encumbered. That means it doesn't matter if she has 20 dex and armor training 5, because of the encumbrance penalty, her dex bonus will be severally penalized. And for the same reason, I don't agree with this video's author's aldori specialist built of having only 7 strength. Because unless the aldor guy only uses bracers of armor for protection and not actual armor, there is a good chance the character will be encumbered. And as a result, the dex bonus will be penalized as well. Dex built characters are nice, but you'll need a few strong characters around as well. Because if you can't carry any loot, you'll loose out on a lot of cash as well as have to spend a lot of time between various locations and the town to go back and forth to transport loot to be sold.
how would a good stat spread for a paladin look like, say i hire a merc at Olegs trading post?
We only get 20 points. Would it be good to build it like, 17stg ,8 dex 13 cons ,7int.10wis.16char ? (+2 to something if we assume human)
What spells, other than Cat's grace, let the Ranger self buff to enhance their ranged attacks?
hurricane bow, eagles eye are good examples
Nice video!
I'm sad its on an older version so we don't get to see SLAYER but still!
I like the video's a lot and have been using them to figure out the Pathfinder rule set and how to take advantage of all the feats. One question that I have that is rather off subject is that I see that you have some custom character portraits, or at least ones that do not come with the game normally, might I ask where you sourced them?
Can you please explain why two handed fighter doesn't need dexterity?
Because for melee str already grants +hit/dmg normally. You'd only need dex to unlock TWF so you aren't taking the full -4 to hit for your attacks.
As I was. I saw two hand and assumed dual wield... not big freaking sword 2h style. The 2h builds don't need dex as a main thing cause they likely are going to be heavily armored and restricting dex bonus for AC and skill checks. In terms of combat, the only thing Dex will really help with is initiative or reflex saves.
Question on the power attack feat, is it really wise to lose a point in accuracy in exchange for more damage? I guess I am worried and think to myself; "what is the point of being able to swing really hard if I cant land anything?".
I really appreciate your video Mr. Darkfireslide, I find it very informative, I would just like to know your opinion on the topic I raised.
It's about the idea of trading. Even if you lose accuracy on power attack, the damage you gain from it over time results in a much higher total damage in the long term. In the short term it results in devastating, meaningful hits that are more likely to down opponents quickly. This is especially true with two handed weapon characters.
there is also the fact as demonstrated in the last part of the video that adding various To Hit buffs is much easier than damage buffs, and that the tradeoff for a full martial character that has excessive BAB is worth it.
not sure if is viable for sword and board as you lose the Strength damage bonus.
Power Attack best used for enemies with DR or high HP but low AC, also great for destroying caster if you have a good initiative.
Depends on initiative. Early on it's hard to obtain strength buffs, it's even harder to obtain the sunder armor or trip without beeline toward it. Ultimately rolling natural twenty is why two hand fighting is less consistent than relying on critical hits who are based on damage over time. Power attack is best taken on level six or eight as it early on won't matter. You need multiple attacks to benefit and archers gain to fire twice early on and the power attack without the penalty.
I'm not sure which edition Traditional Monk you mean. I've generally played traditional monk in 3.5 (Pathfinder) and I've always had a great time. Also, in NWN it could become an almost untouchable destroyer. I agree it's VERY slow at first but if I can survive to about 3rd level, my monks have become a good damage dealer. Especially like you said a bane to magic users... so fast, with mobility, run through their ranks and assassinate that powerful magic user in the back... if you kill/distract the magic use, it makes it much easier on the rest of the group... then come back and help with flanking the enemy tank/bruiser. Plus, it eventually gets a self heal, so they can be SOMEWHAT self-sufficient/survivable away from the cleric, unlike most martial groups.
My group doesn't generally use the ability pool method, but one of the random roll methods (4d6, drop lowest, 3d6 x 6 for each player, or sometimes we've done a group roll - each person gets to roll 1-2 stats and then we assign to our characters based on the 6 rolls).
Weapon finesse is a must as early as possible for a monk. I focus on Dex, Wis, and sometimes Cha (since I think some of their abilities use Cha bonus). Piranha strike is something I'm not used to, but I'd take that in this game. Also, I usually try to get the dodge to whirlwind attack path to eventually be able to kill a lot of the chaff.
Barbarians in heavy armour lose their bonus movement, Armoured Hulk's gain bonus movement. Fighters have enough fighter feats to use their non-fighter feats to develop saves, skills, etc. Five levels Armoured Hulk, fifteen levels two-handed fighter is fast, offensively strong and easy to play. Was my character for Rise of the Runelords. Ekun, the ranger, is good enough not to need to play a ranger. Two weapon fighter ranger is also a beast and Freebooter is a great archetype.
Hey, really loving this series so far. I played a lot of Pathfinder back before 5e came out and I'm really curious what you think about Bards. I've always liked the concept but until 5e I've never been able to actually make them work effectively.
Bards are a great class that can do a great many things. They have an acceptable weapon selection, a great support spell selection, excellent skill selection, and of course they make their team much stronger. My main question would be what issue you're having while trying to play one :)
Oh in Kingmaker I haven't really started a serious playthrough yet, I'm just going through the first section to get a better handle on the feel for the game and waiting out the early launch bug patches. My experience comes from playing the actual Pathfinder RPG several years ago. What I tended to run into was either I focused too much on their martial aspects and physical abilities, and just kind of ended up with a really bad fighter with a 3/4 BAB and light armor/rogue without sneak attack, or I focused too much on their casting and ended up with a bad sorcerer who capped out at level 5 spells, or tried to mix the two, which just ended up with me taking actions that were an abysmal full attack or a totally lackluster spell cast with a low DC and spell level because I couldn't pump both stats with abilities and feats.
Apart from the bardic inspiration of course, that's a pretty unique feature but one that didn't seem to balance a class that wasn't really good at anything. This might also be because that was more than 5 years ago, so I was inexperienced, and our game style didn't leave a lot of leeway to be only okay at something. I like the idea of being a jack-of-all-trades that uses his many skills to be something greater than the sum of his parts, but I'm not sure how to work it.
darkfireslide either way I’m sure if you ever do a 3/4 BAB class group video or an example I think I’ll learn a lot.
VERY good video, I wish you could do more about the current Kingmaker version with a fresh perspective; awesome you could put so much together so soon after the game's release; previous P&P experience?
I had a lot of previous P&P experience, yes, which is why most of my guides revolve around making sensical builds you can role-play rather than the consensus of dipping everything into Monk or Vivisectionist lol I may return someday but I don't know for sure, it just depends on a few factors
your assessment of the towershield spec is very bad. playa dwarf, who uses steel soul, improved iron will, and gets tower shield reflex bonuses. they are basically immune to all saves, only get hit on crits, but crits don't confirm. then add in gloves of dueling and a flail to disarm enemies. it solo'd entire encounters when i was playing him.
Have a dwarf as well and so far he's ok. I use cats grace and blur displace a lot but why not?
Use Warhammer and the choice is good so far.
the problem with non-weapon training fighter types is that you won't get to use the "dueling gloves". and this type of gloves goes a long way for chances to hit and damage dealing. And the additional bonus to hit offset the combat expertise and fighting defensively to hit penalties.
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I see the potential in this game and want to try it so bad, but the reviews are stating that the game is so buggy that its hardly playable. My question is, have they addressed alot of the issues that people are complaining about? XboxOne
might be a strange question, but how did you manage to get more than 1 character into your party that is not the standard companions?
You can "hire" adventurers which are custom created characters.
care to share where and when? Havent seen that yet and i am level 7, he was level 5... so thinking i missed something in my run.
@@njohan100 npc Anoriel, he's at Oleg's then moves to your tavern in the barony.
Oleg's trade post in the tavern with the NPC at the counter. He then moves to your barony once you are at that stage of the game. He represents the pathfinder society. The cost increases based on your main characters current level so if you are level 1 when you recruit they cost 500 gold each and at level 2 2000 gold each. Oh the point costs for them is only 20 not 25 like the main character. Just keep that in mind for build ideas.
Amazing video again.
With a Glaive and 18 or 19 str and Power Atack feat as a Inquisitor(aasimar or human) i gave +-60 crit dmg at level1 or 2 in Oleg fights. Glaive has x3 roll, and with that it gives more dmg that Amiri with that 2h sword or hers.
Amiri gets criticals twice as often with that 2h sword of hers though. More consistent crits are better than bigger crits because you're less likely to waste that damage on an overkill. It's just so damn funny when the 3x crit finally lands when you can count the remaining hitpoints of your enemy with the fingers of one hand. Sure, seeing big numbers is awesome, but 19-20x2 is just better than 20-20x3 in almost any situation. Also, 2d6 is simply better than 1d10. The real benefit of a glaive is the additional range (attack range, not crit range), not the x3 crit.
Where did you get those sweet portraits ? Also love these vids.
Well have a tower shield specialist and it's fine so far! I use one tower (created) then crusader cleric a sorc and my main is an Eldritch rogue who uses range n webs etc so far. (I'll probably stay pure). Also like a ranger or grenadier. (My last slot is either bard/grenadier at the mo..Thunder caller is also good).
Then I take whoever I need to do companion quests.
I use lots of cc and my main char n ranger do enough DMG that most creatures don't get through and two pets plus my dwarf tower (he has maxed con etc). Oh the cleric n sorc can summon...so basically u create a wall of trash while u use a good bow.
P.s Am playing on normal diff. Found challenging is too hard on some boss fights. It's too easy atm but then I get to a boss and it's ok!!!
Perhaps with hindsight some other Ac class better than the tower. There are a few interesting builds by using dragon bloodline or u could perhaps go duelist...with riposte..
Outflank and allied Spellcaster are musts I think!!!
Nice guide! I'll be using some of this information in my own videos :D
I have a question about deity as a paladin. What are the benefits of using a deity's favored weapon?
Unfortunately for Paladins it's mostly there for flavor. Clerics on the other hand gain proficiency with their deity's favored weapon.
Thanks for clarifying. Another question. The stat on armor mentions something about max dexterity for each piece. Does that mean total max dexterity, or max dexterity bonus of like +1, +2, +3, etc. This game is very fun and overwhelming.
thanks nick, that's the exact answer i was looking for
does the max dexterity only apply to AC? I always thought it also effected the max dexterity applied to weapon rolls that use dexterity also??
The deitys favored weapon merely allows you to have proficiency in a weapon that your class otherwise couldnt wield. Example Tristian who can wield a scimitar through his deity sarenrae even though he doesn't have martial weapons unlocked through his cleric subclass.
edit. this also means that usually the deity weapon doesn't mean anything for you since paladin can use most weapons anyway.
I just level Amiri as a 2h Fighter, can't bring myself to use custom characters but I'm only playing on Normal difficulty so it's not too bad.
I'd agree that Monks don't stand alone...at first. Given time and a proper spec, they destroy. My lvl 7 Monk/4 Rogue has 37 AC, great saves, and does a lot of dmg even through dmg reduction. Easily the tankiest character I've played so far, including useless Valerie.
A great Allrounder is going scale fist monk + paladin so you get CHA to AC and saving throws makes for an nearly unkillable character.
Joe Henry i tried soloing till level 4. 1 monk 3 rogue. Then at 4 picked up 1 mercenary that’s the same build. Can duo for a long time and level up super fast.
Monk is the best dip class for DEX based characters, 1 Traditional monk, 19 Vivisectionist is amazeballs. :)
knit pick.... martial class to me was any class/build that was built around fighting with a weapon and utilizing the attack system. Like you were either martial or you were a spell caster of some sort, when it came to combat. Some builds are martial without ever actually unlocking 'martial' weapons because they stick with focusing on simple/natural/exotic weapons. A knit pick because martial is a separate category of weaponry.
in PnP or here Martial classes are the one that get full BAB progression.
+20/+15/+10/+5 at lvl 20
Clerics, rogues, inquisitors only get 3/4 Bab, so at lvl 20 they get +15/+10/+5
@@SteveAkaDarktimes given how the number of attacks you get can vary widely between 1-12+ in a given round despite your BAB progression, that seems a bit limited in scope for definition.
I think the most fun I had with 3.5 was with a half-dragon monk which focused on tripping. Things became pretty bonkers once I got an Enlarge on my character and I started dealing damage in d10s or d12s. lol...
Divine Guardian's main drawback is that they cant cast spells. Is this drawback enough to become an unplayable subclass?
Not really, barring some exceptions. If you have a companion paladin that you could have prioritize your healer or main tank, it works very well. I main sword and board pally to keep some aggro and manipulate the field while my party disperses evil-doers. The spells pally have are quite nice for just in case moments.
I'm just starting this game, saw the title of this video, went "ooh!" saw the length of the video and went "Jesus Christ!"
To make it easy:
A tank needs CON, Heavy Armour Proficiency and Armour Focus.
A dexer needs DEX, Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus and Proficiency in said weapon.
A strengther needs STR, Power Attack, Weapon Focus and Proficiency in said weapon.
A caster need a high spell casting ability, Combat Casting and Spell Focus.
5 Levels of Armoured Hulk gives you better movement in armour, the standard barbarian loses abilities in heavy armour. The rest of the levels? Take 2 handed Fighter. Fast, good a.c., d.r. and tons of damage output. Also boost wisdom! Failed will saves kill.
I think you are better off using the DR specialist barbarian where he gets DR 1/- every 2 levels. Combined with the level 8 barbarian rage ability that provides an additional DR 2/-, you can end up with DR 12/- at level 20. You can always spend a feat to get heavy armor proficiency. At ch.2 you can buy an adamantine fullplate +1 outright for 18k gold. I believe that provides DR 5/adamantine. There is also a heavy shield +2 (dwarf only? think it was in the dwarf ruin fortress) that also provides a DR 2/-. I don't know if they stack or not. On table top, the equipment bonus doesn't stack with the class ability. But it's something to think about.
hahaha... Aldorei defender + Thug + Scale Fist Crane Style + Aldorei Swordlord = my god I just created a monster... Dueling Sword is quite good in this game if you're going martial class...
Idk what to think about this guide since you havent shown the best martial class which is sword saint
scaled fist last level on a paladin to switch out armor for you immense charisma, better AC
How did you get all those NPCs? All I have seen are the basics. You have 3 I haven't seen
Custom NPCs. :D
Is that a mod or the high priced mercs 8 eyes offers you to hire?
After the fight in the wooden fort at the start of the game, an elf sits inside the tavern and will allow you to create brand new characters for a fee, depend on the level of your main character or party (I'm not sure which). The new character(s) in question will be boosted to your current level, and you will have full control over how they grow up to that point and into the future.
Edit: This is baked into the base game. You get it no matter what.
Thanks I had forgotten all about that when I asked. I have started a new PC. Saved up my early money and hired someone at 2nd level. Can you hire new people after you defeat the Stag Lord?
@@Rick-tt5hi you can continually hire new people so long as you've got the gold! Anoriel moves to your tavern once you get the barony.
all in all a good guide.. but a dex build dont have to have 7 in str to bee good in what he does.. its mostly olny 1 point of damage on a normal roll, when you olny start with 18 in your main stat.. So you dont have to berealy stupit or weak to do damage.. Its the feats that make the Build good, not the min/maxing
True, min/maxing merely makes the build BETTER.
is this still relevant to pathfinder now?
It should be yeah
Your review of the Aldori Defender is off they are not a dex build they are strength build focusing on heavy armor. None of their abilities say you can't wear a shield only that you can't duel wield. Also the name dueling sword is misleading as you burn too many feats to do dex damage and hit vs just going strength.
i think u need to re-read the info about what a Aldori defender is cause all this info u give is completely wrong
@@banezilla2242 read the in game descriptors. Not the pnp descriptors.
Aldori defender is more about light armour and dex + dueling sword feats which require you to wield just a dueling sword with nothing in the other hand.
@@xVallan the aldori mastery feat is the only thing that requires no shield. Their core abilities can be done with a shield. So +5 heavy shield vs +2 initiative and +2 ac. The pnp rules were not implemented in the game.
@@alexwerner487 hm I see, oh well I will still play it without a shield.
Fey is best favored enemy. :)
Primary F’s them up, Secondary F’s them over.
5:15
Playing a Fighter with a bow, I'll argue that it is superior to a Ranger as a ranged character. Weapon Specialization (and the greater version), plus the Weapon Training (Bows) means that the damage will consistently be much higher (especially after getting Gloves of Dueling) and you will be much better at hitting. The Armor Training means that you can wear more armor than the ranger and still take advantage of your high dexterity, giving you an overall higher AC. The Ranger can use spells and fight the right enemies, but generally I found it to be inferior in ranged combat (though the Ranger is much much much much more flexible and useful in all other situations, with their class skills and other features).
Yes, the Fighter is a better archer, maybe the best archer in the entire game, but a Ranger has some great spells to boost their marksmanship (Hurricane Bow, Bull's Strength, and Cat's Grace, to name a few) and don't forget that one feat lets them have an animal companion on par with a druid.
True, the animal companion is great. I guess I just like the fact that the fighter very much feels like an automated turret, much more consistency in dealing a lot of damage without being supported, so you can focus more on using the special abilities of the rest of your party.
@@dianabialaskahansen8705 I actually would say the Ranger is more self-sufficient with his buffs but that the Fighter's true potential is unlocked when given Cat's Grace and Bull's Strength plus Inspire Courage by his allies, and in those scenarios he can and will outgun any other class with a longbow.
Traditional monk solo-no-reload run inc
Anyone else motise that the tiefling girls in portrait got a muscular build but in game Sprite their very thin.
The problem with martial rangers, as in all DNDs (and pathfinder is nothing else), is that their racial enemy bonus is nice but their general baseline is so weak, that you pretty much don't choose against which enemy you are strong, but against which enemy you would perform like any fighter, while performing way worse against any other enemy.
It's the same conundrum which Paladins and Barbarians face (although they don'Ät lose out that much). Barbs can be as strong as a fighter ... while raging but only then ... Paladins can be as strong as fighters, on a mid level range but will lose out in the higher range. Having that said, the bonusses in regards of spells and utility/class kits for Barbs and Paladins are a fair trade off, for their lower martial prowess, while the ranger ... welll ... it's just a sucky fighter xD
That was true in v3.5 but in Pathfinder, Ranger is an exceptionally strong class due to their spell selection and the ability to have a normal animal companion (instead of a -3 leveled one) with just a single feat, especially since animal companions are overtuned in Kingmaker especially.
A fighter will be a better archer in a straight up fight but the Ranger has his bow and a bear or boar, too as well as incredibly useful spells, like making his bow do 2d6 damage instead of 1d8 for minutes/level, which is a 50% damage boost on average for the bow's base damage.
Barbs are my least favorite martial mostly due to a lack of survivability. Paladins however are easily the best fighter class, able to add enchantments to their weapon for minutes/level and heal themselves significantly as a swift action, meaning they can heal up to 3 times in a turn if need be or heal and then full attack. Paladins also add Charisma to saves, making them immune to most status effects when built properly, and they have better build flexibility since they get most of their awesomeness from their class
@@darkfireslide All true but still the same issue as the Barb has, 130% power, while buffed, once a day/fight, 50% power all of the other time.
That's also the reason why in traditional DnD, a Fighter-Dual-To-Cleric will ALWAYS outpower a cleric as it has a way higher power floor with the same means of reaching the same power ceiling.
Palladins gain spells thru charisma?! Since when?!
Since D&D 3.5?
Since all of Pathfinder, a change from 3.5. Pathfinder Paladins on the tabletop are really good.
As far as I know it's based on 3.0 DD not 3.5 but then agein I dont know Pathfinder at all.
All the statements on monks in pnp tells me you don't know how to build monks. Unchained just made it easier for people to get away with subpar monk builds.
A well built CRB monk is pretty devastating. High damage, great saves, and decent armor with none of the drawbacks from wearing armor.
Optimal monk stat spreads aren't even that bad, compared to, say, the aldori build you mention. Don't think of it as needing Dex and Wisdom. Think of it as getting the same value from a high dex, but at less stat points. 14 and 14 gets you the same AC value as a non-monk.
Monks in pnp suffered from an expectation prevalent in the community that monks needed high Dex and high Wis, and then people complained that they didnt do damage. But pump up strength and they were pretty top-tier.
The traditional monk is also good. Some of the points you made for Sensei are true for Traditional Monks as well. Good Will saves on a class that is likely going to be getting some wisdom as well means they have great will saves. Notice that they retain the Unchained monks full BAB in PF: KM. Bottom line: a +2 bonus to will is good, and well worth the lack of choices compared to UC monk.
My trip monk in ADnD 3.5 Temple of Elemental Evil crpg was pretty good. He was getting people so many attacks of opportunity that he didn't even need to do damage. But when he did need to do range, his reach staff was all kinds of flexible. That WuKong motiff.
The fact that dex and wisdom ac bonuses start stacking more and more later on, the monks got better AC than fighters with armor. And that AC wasn't negated by touch attacks.
Pathfinder's uber monk ability is crane strike. Shaolin white Crane. Actually, that would be Fujian White Crane imported to Shaolin temples.
@@karimsonsafehold9233 pre-agile enchant dex trip monks were solid, but limited in options against trip immune targets, and required some party synergy to get full value(combat reflexes on other party members). And Monk would be suboptimal for the build.
With Agile, the build starts pumping out damage and edges out the non-monk trip builds, but Str is still more optimal, with less feat requirements. Becomes top tier dps with certain build dips, too.
@@vigitant most of my party except sorcerer nuker and healer cleric were melee. In crpg, combat was more important than rpg skill checks or spell slot limits. The bludgeon dmg on monk was solid for those encounters with trip immune enemies. The high ac of monks allowed it to pull aggro and block, for flanks of rogurs.
@@karimsonsafehold9233 oh yeah. builds like that get significantly better the larger the party. Once you get to 6 players, trip/demoralize/flag bards become one of the most powerful builds in PF. Anything tripping is gonna get massive value with 3-4 AOO's on a single target. With combat reflexes and dex investments on your melee, like a CAGM Barbarian or a rogue, it becomes ludicrous.
@@vigitant i found out several pets had trip bites in pf. If it works, makes it alot easier.
Pathfinder is weird to me. Clearly all classes are better or at least have more interesting stuff than 3.5 buuut it still uses that broken as all hell 3.5 chassis so sure Fighting being able to get a +5 Dex bonus in a full plate is cool and rage powers are neat but spellslingers can still win fights with one spell.
Martial fighter at pathfinder are far stronger than in 3.5 and spellcasters to shine takes forever. Its far more balanced in comparsion with 3.5
It's a huge step in the right direction, at least.
Arantyr Maybe they reworked some of the more broken low level spells for Kingmaker but things like Color Spray, Create Pit, Sleep and Aqueous Orb are all low level control spells that can win a battle with one standard action. More so if you use cheap a metamagic wands and the Witch class to force someone to roll a save four times and pick the worse result.
Pathfinder's class balance is just as broken as 3.5.
Well darkfireslide in my experience PF is still wildly unbalanced. 5E is where it is at for actually balance between caster and non-caster classes, accept no substitute.
ive never played 5e. Im grown up and moved from my home town so no friends to play. But i hear the same, that 5th edition its the best so far, and balanced.
Melees im pathfinder with the combat manouvers, are much better than the 3.5 autoattack bot haha.
But its right in the pen and paper clerics at 3.5 are gods.
there are no longswords in this god damn game -_-
there are tho
@@xVallan yeah i found one. in the 5th r sixth chapter. but only a +2 longsword until then. and a cold iron+1.
pretty sure I saw a good one at a vendor I just don´t quite remember where. Might find it again in my next playthrough. @@jakubecz
If they gave us the option to roll stats it would go along way to helping the monk out.
So, the take away here is, in order to make a good martial character you have to rely on magic....makes me wonder whats the point of even having non-magic classes then
much appreciated for your videos was struggling with the game but since watching your videos I seem to be doing much better ty and luv your channel
No one can beat this game because its unfair
Just a bit of critique - your lip smacking gets very frustrating.