KickStarter Grim Dawn

[ERYFKRAD]

Lots of options. Soldier + Occultist (Possession and Blood of Dreeg), Soldier + Arcanist (Mirror of Ereoctes, Maiven's Sphere), Soldier + Necromancer (Spectral Binding, Mark of Torment), Soldier + Shaman (Wendigo Totem, Mogdrogen's Pact, Primal Bond), Soldier + Demolitionist (Vindictive Flame, Blast Shield). All options let you weave in different damage types as well. With an Occultist you could try to go for melee chaos or acid damage, Elemental or Aether dam with the Arcanist, Cold / Vit with Necro, Lightning with Shaman, Fire with Demolitionist. Pick whatever theme you like the most. I couldn't say what is overall the best choice but anything with X% Damage Absorption will help make you a lot tankier.

To be clear, I was looking for a character purely focused on physical damage (though I'd count piercing damage as well) and not spamming spells (though I'd use buffs). Is relying just on soldier for damage good enough?

Basically the playstyle I'm going for is a barbarian. EDIT: Not diablo 2 barbarian just a stronk dude with big sword.

I basically just ran with soldier alone.

 

[Average Manatee]

Yeah I actually decided the same, pure soldier. Just hit level 50 and got to equip a nice legendary two handed axe that dropped off the warden. Really lucky find. Been using Olerun's Might component along with war cry and its been nerfing enemy damage enough that I can face tank most things no problem.

Didn't realize this before but GDStash lets you edit characters as well so I gave myself 30 devotion and max faction rep to help boost me to ultimate difficulty.

Question: do I need to raise spirit to wear all high level amulets/rings or are there ones that don't need that stat? Right now the best stuff I can equip is level 20.

 

[Average Manatee]

Maybe I'm a retard, but its apparently taken me 200 hours to realize you can type "amulet" into your storage search to highlight which components can go in amulets and so on.

 

[Lacrymas]

Maybe I'm a retard, but its apparently taken me 200 hours to realize you can type "amulet" into your storage search to highlight which components can go in amulets and so on.

You can also mouseover any amulet (or whatever) and it will highlight the components that can go into it.

 

[Average Manatee]

Maybe I'm a retard, but its apparently taken me 200 hours to realize you can type "amulet" into your storage search to highlight which components can go in amulets and so on.

You can also mouseover any amulet (or whatever) and it will highlight the components that can go into it.

That would be useful, but doesn't work. It's the other way around, need to pick a component and it highlights what it can go in.

EDIT: wait nvm, now it does work. Swear it didn't work a minute ago

 

[Hobo Elf]

Lots of options. Soldier + Occultist (Possession and Blood of Dreeg), Soldier + Arcanist (Mirror of Ereoctes, Maiven's Sphere), Soldier + Necromancer (Spectral Binding, Mark of Torment), Soldier + Shaman (Wendigo Totem, Mogdrogen's Pact, Primal Bond), Soldier + Demolitionist (Vindictive Flame, Blast Shield). All options let you weave in different damage types as well. With an Occultist you could try to go for melee chaos or acid damage, Elemental or Aether dam with the Arcanist, Cold / Vit with Necro, Lightning with Shaman, Fire with Demolitionist. Pick whatever theme you like the most. I couldn't say what is overall the best choice but anything with X% Damage Absorption will help make you a lot tankier.

To be clear, I was looking for a character purely focused on physical damage (though I'd count piercing damage as well) and not spamming spells (though I'd use buffs). Is relying just on soldier for damage good enough?

Basically the playstyle I'm going for is a barbarian. EDIT: Not diablo 2 barbarian just a stronk dude with big sword.

Doesn't matter. You can pick any of those combos and still go pure phys. The magical damage types are just an extra option. Many of them have utility spells and passives that are useful for all characters, but especially melee oriented characters.

Also you don't go pure one class unless you are doing a challenge run. Investing points into a second mastery isn't done solely for the skills it unlocks. The stats are also important.

 

[Average Manatee]

Honestly pure soldier is absolutely killing it on Ultimate right now. I don't think I've died since chapter 1, where I had mostly negative/zero resists and hadn't hit level 50 to wear legendaries and get augments. Right now I can facetank most totems/bosses/shrines and am playing at 2x speed. In fact single bosses don't even dent my HP bar (due to -20% enemy damage from Oleron's Might and -30% from War Cry, along with mostly maxed resists). Of course I did die like 20 times in chapter 1 because lmao no defense.

I'll probably run out of places to throw skill points at in soldier eventually though. Also needing to dump points in spirit to wear jewelry is kinda lame. But I've got a nice ring with +80 spirit so maybe I can just invest a little and pull myself up by my own bootstraps there.

For Devotions I've gone for Oleron, Assassin, Bat, Tortoise, Bard's Harp, Azrakaa abilities along with Hydra

 

[Average Manatee]

Hmm, weird-ass bug with GDStash I encountered.

So I'm using GDStash to cheat my faction rep to max if I need it. I did it once (for malmouth resistance items), then progressed a bit, then hit the reload button in GDStash and did it again for Barrowhelm after finishing Malmouth in order to go for 100% quest completion. Problem is, GDStash seems to not have completely reloaded the character. It reset my character to level 83 and world progress/state to the first time I loaded it, but my quest progress was kept (I was level 86 with Malmouth finished).

So now I'm in a broken state where I can't actually finish the game again because I don't have the quest to finish up Malmouth. This was also after spending like 30 mins fucking around optimizing stats and items after hitting 85 and sorting through all the level 85 items I had. So I guess I'll abort this game. Malmouth was really easy after I got to ~3.8k armor and I doubt Forgotten Gods would be any different.

So I guess word of warning if you are using GDStash, exit and restart it, reload character button is broken.

 

[ferratilis]

Two handed weapons are getting some love in the next update.

https://forums.crateentertainment.com/t/grim-misadventure-181-tip-of-the-spear/136529

Grim Misadventure #181 - Tip of the Spear ​

ZantaiCrate Employee - Designer

3h

A Grim Misadventure has risen, as was foretold in the last Grim Misadventure. Last time 33, we unveiled some of the vast arsenal that awaits you in the Fangs of Asterkarn expansion. These formidable new weapons will surely lead you to victory against the encroaching corruption.
Today’s reveal has grander ramifications…
Anyone that has wielded a two-handed weapon in Grim Dawn knows that…it leaves something to be desired. Back in the before times, when the Earth was young and primordial forces were still shaping the reality we know today, we operated under some very different limitations. Much of this has changed over our 15-year history. Thanks to your continued support, we are now positioned to not only deliver future titles with a larger team than ever before, but to reflect upon our past work and make…improvements.
So…those two-handed weapons. As you know, swinging a big sword in Grim Dawn looks exactly the same as swinging a big mace, which looks the same as swinging a big axe…and let’s not even talk about the spears we had added over the years. Swinging a spear with one universal animation set is a recipe for sadness, but it was a reality we had to accept…until today!
We are in the process of a complete overhaul of our two-handed melee animations. You can look forward to distinct attack patterns for each weapon, and no weapon distinguishes itself more than a proper two-handed spear.
This is just a sample of what is coming:

​

Needless to say, Fangs of Asterkarn will feature an array of new spears for you to enjoy with these animations, but you do not need to purchase the next expansion. In fact, we are making this animation overhaul available to all versions of the game for free, coming soon with the v1.2.1 update, which is currently in public playtesting 124.
If this is not a buff to two-handed playstyles, we do not know what is!
Like knowing what is coming up next for Grim Dawn? Check back on 06/10/2024 for the next Grim Misadventure!

 

[Lacrymas]

That's not a spear, it's a sword attached to the end of a stick.

 

[Peachcurl]

That'd be a swordstaff, or a glaive maybe.

 

[Kruyurk]

I looked up swordstaff and found this historical drawing of a bastard stabbing another poor bastard in the dick. These were dark times.

 

[luj1]

Does Albrecht's Aether Ray work with procs from the Devotion tree? I assume it doesn't work with "on hit". but does it work with crit procs for example?

Maybe you guys know ArchAngel Sykar

 

[Covenant]

Does Albrecht's Aether Ray work with procs from the Devotion tree? I assume it doesn't work with "on hit". but does it work with crit procs for example?

Maybe you guys know ArchAngel Sykar

Pretty sure it does work with 'on hit', it's just that there's a cooldown for all of them.

 

[luj1]

Pretty sure it does work with 'on hit', it's just that there's a cooldown for all of them.

Well thats great. I remember it being the only build I liked.

 

[Lacrymas]

It works. If you can assign a skill to a devotion ability, it will work.

 

[luj1]

If you can assign a skill to a devotion ability

How does this work?

 

[Lacrymas]

If you can assign a skill to a devotion ability

How does this work?

The red stars in the devotion tree are proc abilities that are assigned to an active skill. You'll get a dropdown menu when you click the red star and can choose an ability that way. If an ability isn't in the dropdown list, then you can't assign it to that.

 

[RoBoBOBR]

And you don't even have to invest in the star to get that menu.

 

[ferratilis]

Changes going live next week, 19th.

https://forums.crateentertainment.com/t/grim-misadventure-182-giant-news/136937

Grim Misadventure #182 - Giant News​

Grim DawnDevelopment Updates
Jun 10



ZantaiCrate Employee - Designer
1d

We have it on good authority that this Grim Misadventure is absolutely giant. Last time we unveiled our overhaul of two-handed melee animations coming in v1.2.1, which is current in public playtest. Well today we are pleased to announce that v1.2.1 will be going live for everyone next week, June 19th! Our latest major update for Grim Dawn features the new two-handed animations, a completely overhauled Nemesis spawning system, rebalanced consumables, and of course many balance changes. Final patch notes are forthcoming, but you can view last week’s build notes here 1.3k.
As for Fangs of Asterkarn, it is not every day that we get to do a giant update, so one might say this is a big deal. In fact, it’s huge. We are, of course, talking about Astekarn’s giants. What else were you expecting?!

Giant_Comp011440×800 172 KB
​

These titans of the tundra roam the far reaches of Asterkarn, following the herds of megafauna which they hunt for food and tools. Though they speak a primitive tongue, relations between the Kurn and the giants had rarely been amicable. If anything, a hungry undiscerning giant may simply opt to devour a puny human if they are within reach. Giants are known to craft elaborate bone spears which they often coat with a poison they extract from hardy toxic plants in the mountain peaks. This poison can bring down a full-grown mammoth. Should a human be unfortunate enough to have it penetrate their skin, the results can be grisly. Of course, a single swipe from a giant’s spear would be more than enough to cleave a man in two, so concerns about poisons are largely secondary.

Giant_Spear011024×569 78.3 KB

Legends say that when the great beast Beronath’s blood was spilled upon the Roof of the World, the giants were the first to rise from the stone. Their skin is as the mountain which gave them life and their hearts beat with the spirit of Asterkarn. Some of the mightiest ancient giants are so closely attuned with nature that they assume the form of the elements themselves. Such sightings are rare, or perhaps all that have witnessed them never lived to tell the tale. These living embodiments of the forces of natures no doubt carry weapons that resemble their bearer’s boundless fury.
Like knowing what is coming up next for Grim Dawn? Check back on 07/15/2024 for the next Grim Misadventure!

 

[Lacrymas]

Blade Trap/Wendigo Totem build hype.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

One of the best ARPGs ever

 

[Zurat-Yarkuch]

Just got back into the game and when I found out they released a version on Xbox I realized they must have added controller support. Decided to try it. Now that I am in my mid 30's carpal tunnel syndrome is something I want to avoid. Was shocked at how amazing it feels, especially when you consider this game was designed with mouse and keyboard in mind.

Haven't played since Ashes of Malmouth so interested in what the Forgotten Realms expansion is like, plus Shattered Realms endgame.

 

[ferratilis]

Interesting post from Zantai on Steam forums, someone asked "why is this game so overlooked?"
Basically, they could keep releasing expansions because the interest will always be there. Still, I'd like to see GD2 some day, if possible.

Looks like you doubled up on reddit, so I'll repost my response from there here as well for everyone else:

Grim Dawn was made by a scrappy team of ~9 people. We had no budget for significant advertising (much of it was word of mouth) and online servers (a must-have feature for many players) were a distant dream. The game was built upon an old engine and, visually, it was not what some would call "modern".

So we never got that giant spike when the game first released, but you have to keep in mind that our definition of success back then was to ship 200k copies. We're just a few million copies past that now!

Another thing about Grim Dawn, is that it has enjoyed an unprecedented tail on copies sold. Sure, it tapered off, but it's going remarkably strong even 8 years later. The pick up rate on expansions is also above average. These are some of the reasons why you have a third expansion on the way. :D

So metrics can be a bit misleading.

 

[Average Manatee]

I mean I get what they say, but have they also employed those 9 people for the 8 years since Grim Dawn's release? That's still a *lot* of dosh, and while they may have sold a few million copies I assume that most of them are like -80% off, so 3m copies would only be "worth" 600k full price copies. I'm not going to try to do the math since there's too many unknowns but the numbers seem pretty tight after factoring in Steam's cut, overhead, taxes, etc. And its not like they are CDProjekt that can employ poles who work for half a potato a day, they are US based.

I do seriously appreciate that they've put out patches on a fairly consistent twice a year basis that shake things up. I think a lot of bigger devs/publishers could learn from that and have a small team that makes small refinements over time. It generates a ton of goodwill, which a lot of bigger devs sorely need. The only thing that comes to mind as comparable is Blizzard still updating WC3 balance (which goes to show how cheap it is because Blizzard isn't going to invest the time to fix Remastered but tweaking the meta and keeping things interesting is easy), and the 15 year anniversary update that Guild Wars 1 got.