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  • Pathfinder Online User Guide w/Informational Images and Charts


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    This Guide is brought to you by The Empyrean Order, a Sponsored Company of Brighthaven. For more information on The Empyrean Order, you can message me here, or on Paizo forums. Currently we are located in the South East of the in game map, around the Brighthaven and Keeper's Pass areas.

    If you are interested in talking in voice, getting some pointers, asking questions, need some advice, or just somewhere to hangout and play, come stop by our Mumble:

    Address: 74.201.57.188
    Port: 64738

    Scroll down to Pathfinder Online and join a Public Channel

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    Table of Contents

    To Seach this Guide use Ctrl+F and search for topics within the [X].

    Getting Started Section

    Ch 1. Helpful Links [LNK01]
    Ch 2. Frquently Asked Question [FAQ02]
    Ch 3. What Race do I Choose? [RACE03]
    Ch 4. Where do I find my training at? [TRAIN04]
    Ch 5. What skills/feats give me X Attribute boost? [ATT05]
    Ch 6. What do I train with my first 1,000 experience? [EXP06]
    Ch 7. Where do I find Gear? [GEAR07]
           Includes information about Tutorial Quests.
    Ch 8. What do I do next? [NEXT08]
           Includes information about acheivements, gathering, and knowledge skills.
    Ch 9. In game Maps [MAP09]
    Ch 10. Class Roles [ROLE10] 
    Ch 11. Keywords [KEY11]
    Ch 12. Crafting Guide [CRAFT12]

    UI Guide Section
    Ch 13. UI Guide [UIG13]
           Home [HMN13A]
           Gear/Paper Doll [PD13B]
           Map [MAP13C]
           Feats [FEAT13D]
           Inventory [INV13E]
           Character Sheet [CHS13F]
           Achievements [ACH13F]
           Quest Log [QTL13H]
           Company Search/Company Information [CMP13I]
           Chat Window [CHAT13J]
           Action Bar [ACT13K]
           Character HUD [CHUD13L]

    Advanced Guide Section
    Ch 14. Types of Gear [GEAR14]
    Ch 15. Combat [CMBT15]
    Ch 16. Loot [LOOT16]
    Ch 17. Reputation and PvP [REP17]
    Ch 18. Escalation Guide [ESC18]
    Ch 19. War of Towers [WoT19]

    Key Bindings Section
    Ch 20. Key Commands [KEYC20]


    Helpful Links  [LNK01]
     

    Helpful Links and GW Starting Guide:
    Goblinworks Starting Guide
    Goblinworks Combat Guide

    Goblinworks

    Goblinworks Blogs

    Pathfinder Online Wiki

    PFO Paizo Forum

    Goblinworks Forum

    PFO Kickstarter

    Pathfinder University
    Pathfinder University Keepside Chats (Interviews) and Classes on Youtube

     

    Player Guides and Resources:
    Goblinary - Pathfinder Online Database and Lookup

    Caldeathe Baequiannia's Player Resources
    Dazyk's Keyword Guide
    Guurzak's Critical Hit Guide
    Guurzak's Stacking Effects FAQ
    Nightdrifter's Simple PFO Calculators

    Sspitfire's No-Brainer Guide to PFO

    Developer's Posts

    Pathfinder Online: Criticals, Opportunity, and Flat-Footed Reactives Guide

    Pathfinder Online: Deities and Domain Selections Guide
    Pathfinder University "What to do in your first 15 days"

     

    Maps:
    Aussiedwarf's pfomap.com
    Duffy's Political Map
    Harad Navar's Unofficial Pathfinder Online Atlas
    Elevation and Specialized Icon Map
    Coordinate Map


    Spread Sheets: 
    Attacks, Expendables, Passives, Weapons, Armor, and Recipes
    All Experience Costs for Skills/Feats/Abilities
    Quick Reference Guide for Keywords, Attributes, Damage, Effects, and Buffs/Debuffs
    Ingredients and Substitute List (Raw and Salvage List)
    Armor Chart - Explaining which Armor Sets go with each Armor Feats
    Quick Reference Crafting
    Quick Reference Refining

    Keywords:
    Pathfinder Online: Cleric Guide - Armor, Weapons, and Spell Keywords
    Pathfinder Online: Expert Guide - Armor Keywords
    Pathfinder Online: Fighter Guide - Armor, Weapons, and Maneuver Keywords
    Pathfinder Online: Freeholder Guide - Armor Keywords
    Pathfinder Online: Rogue Guide - Armor, Weapons, and Maneuver Keywords
    Pathfinder Online: Wizard Guide - Armor, Weapons, and Spell Keywords


    Frequently Asked Questions: (Quick Start Guide Follows) [FAQ02]

    Q. What is alignment, and how is it important? 
    A. Currently alignment is not implemented in game, but it will be an important part of how you play the game in the future. Right now there are several decisions in which you can make in game that will require you to be a specific alignment later (or lose your training). All domains (cleric feature feats) are attached to one of 9 deities (eventually this will expand to 20 deities) and each deity will have a specific alignment, also each of the special divine attacks in game are attached to a specific deity. To save yourself from losing training check HERE to see the alignment of your deity and which domains they support, you must be within one step of their alignment horizontally or vertically on the following chart: 

    bfnbxl.jpg

    Eventually your alignment will come into play when choosing a Player Settlement to join or eventually a Faction to join (there are multiple levels of factions you can be a part of). Generally the rule is that you must always be within one step, horizontally or vertically, of the target alignment to be a part of that faction, group, company, settlement, or organization. If you want to read more about alignments within the pathfinder universe read HERE

    The following is a list of active player settlements and their declared alignment: 

    Lawful Good - Ozem's Vigil
    Neutral Good - Alderwag, Brighthaven, Keeper's Pass, Stoneroot Glade, Talonguard
    Chaotic Good - Tavernhold
    Lawful Neutral - Callambea, Canis Castrum, Kruez Bernstein, Forgeholm
    True Neutral - Emerald Lodge, Pathfinder University, Phaeros
    Chaotic Neutral - Aragon
    Lawful Evil - Hope's End, Golgotha
    Neutral Evil - None
    Chaotic Evil - None


    Q. How do I get out of a hole I have fallen into? 
    A. If you use an ability that can move you, like a charge (if an enemy is near), or if you have the evade utility equipped you might be able to get out. Your second option is to contact a Goblinworks member via Help Chat and ask them to move you out of the hole. Finally, if you must, you can F1 target yourself and kill yourself. 

    Q. What is husks/looting? How can I save my gear? How do I find my husk?
    A. A husk is what you leave behind when you die. Everything in your inventory has a 25% chance of being destroyed, that is every single item is checked for that 25% chance to be destroyed. Stacks of 3+ only lose 25% of their stack if they are slated to be destroyed. 

    To loot a husk you must right click on the husk (you act as if you are farming a node), open the window, and pull out what you want. You can only pull out one stack at a time, but if it is your husk you can just loot all at one time. 

    Everything currently equipped on your Paper Doll will only lose a durability point, it will not be dropped, and it can not be looted. To find your husk look on your mini map, it will have a location pin to your last husk. 

    Q. How do Companies work? How do I apply a Company to be sponsored of a Settlement? 
    A. You can create a company by typing "/vccreate companyname" and sending an invite by typing "/vcinvite companyname, playername" You can now go directly to the tower icon in the top left, find and apply to a company, if you want to accept an invite type "/vcaccept" you can also decline with "/vcdecline"

    If you want to edit your motto and message, and look at your holdings, allies, and membership type /companysearch
    If you want to apply to a Settlement type /settlementapply settlementname, companyname

    Q. How do I access the Crafting Window? 
    A. You right click on the door of the crafting facility. 

    Q. How do I whisper someone? 
    A. type the following, without <>, but with the comma, and a space between first and last names:
    /w <Player's Name>, <Message>
    To replay you can just hit: /r then enter

    Q. How do I trade with someone? 
    A. Get within 5-10 meters of them, highlight them by clicking on them, then type /trade
    Remember you need to hit both the trade and offer buttons.

    Q. How do I make a party? 
    A. You find someone to party with and type without <>: /invite <Player's Name>
    You can then leave a party by /leave, or you can promote someone to party leader with /promote

    Q. How do I switch my weapons? 
    A. Hit the green button on your bar, or hit the ` key, beside 1 on US keyboards.

    Q. Why is all my stuff I just put in the bank in Settlement 1 not at Settlement 2? 
    A. Banks are not universal, but local, meaning if you put your stuff in the bank in Thornkeep, it will not be in Brighthaven when you arrive. Furthermore, the money you gain from farming/killing Monsters is automatically put into the bank when you access it, and creates a universal credit system you can access at any Bank or Auction House. 

    Q. Why aren't my attacks/cantrips/orisons better after I level them up?
    A. Each attack ability if you hover over it gives you a list of key words, when you level those attack up you gain more keywords. These keywords must match the keywords on your weapons (Wands/Staves for Wizards/Focus for Clerics) to gain in power. So, if I have a Level 1 Attack, that matches with a basic weapon, but to use a Level 2 Attack I need a +1 Weapon, so that I can utilize the 2nd keyword I got from upgrading. 

    Q. What is Damage Factor and how does it work? 
    A. Damage Factor is what you multiply with your base damage to get your actual damage. Your base damage is 40 +5 Points for every keyword you match (+20 for major keywords at Tier 2 and Tier 3).

    Q. What are all these empty slots on my paper doll? 
    A. Defense Feat Slots, Reactive Feat Slots, Armor Feat Slot, and Feature Feat Slot can be filled with Feats that you gain from various trainers. If you click on the slots inside your paper doll it will open a window directly to the type of feat that can be slotted there.

    Q. What are expendables? Where do I find them? How do I learn them? How do I slot them? How do they work?
    A. Expendables are Spells (like Arcane/Divine from the table top) or Maneuvers (things like feinting and intimidating from the table top) that are specific to your role. If you have one it will be listed in your all tab and say Maneuver: OR Spell:

    To learn an Expendable you must right click it in your inventory, but you have to pay the experience cost and meet the prerequisites. To do this you must also have an implement slotted (you need the proficiency) on your paper doll (hit P then I, and drag and drop your implement onto your paper doll), before you learn the spell or maneuver. After this you can hit F, go to active feats, highlight expendables and it should list what you just learned. Then slot them into the top 6 spots on your bar. 

    Expendables cost Power (that yellow bar) and you can cast them/use them like anything else. Most can only be used once per battle, but some of the maneuvers can be used more than once. You can increase your max power by equipping better armor and purchasing power from a role trainer. Power regenerates at 5% of your max per 12 minutes, currently anywhere, but in the future you will need camps, player housing, or taverns to regen. 

    To use the spell/maneuver properly, you must match the keyword of that spell/maneuver to the key word of what ever is in your Feature slot (the top right hand corner of your paper doll, where your role feature feats go).

    Q. What is an implement? 
    A. These are items that are specifically used for your Role and allow to use Expendables (Spells and Maneuvers):
    Clerics use Holy Symbols
    Fighters use Trophy Charms
    Rogues use Rogue Kits
    Wizards use Spell Books

    When equipping your implement on your paper doll, remember that you will need 2 of them, one for each set of weapons, if you intend to switch weapons a lot.

    Q. How does Armor work? (How do I stop taking so much damage?)
    A. You must match the keywords on your Armor to the keywords on your Armor Feat (on your paper doll). Each keyword you match gives you the bonuses listed on your Armor Feat (Tier 2 and Tier 3 Keywords give you x4 the bonus). 

    You can also access this combat guide, pages 10-14 gives you information on Keywords and the best armors for each Armor Feat, and pages 14-22 give you information on each Armor Feat.

    Q. How do I gain Experience? 
    A. You begin with 1,000 experience as a new character, you gain 100 experience per hours after that. You do not gain experience in any other way. You must have selected training for your character in the character screen for him/her to gain experience. You can only gain experience on one character right now. 

    Q. How do I loot from NPC/Monsters? From Players? 
    A. Looting is automatic for NPC/Monsters, it is added to your inventory automatic, but  right now you must check every so often, because you are not notified by the system you gained anything. When a player dies they will drop a husk (minus 25% of their inventory) and you can access that to gain their loot. 

    Q. How do I use Salvage from the Salvage tab? 
    A. Salvage from the Salvage tab is used in the Refining process, you don't actually have to salvage it, you just have to have it on hand when refining. In the refining window when you click the categories of raw resources to add, it will automatically be there and you can select the Salvage item to replace a raw resource. 

    Q. Is crafting suppose to be this hard? 
    A. Crafting is suppose to be extremely group intensive. You need people to gather from nodes/combat, bring that back and refiners refine into components that crafters use to craft. You are not suppose to be self-sufficient, and yes you have to run all over the map to gain specific resources, this is intended, and once we have larger populations you will have greater access to these materials on AH or through direct Trade by merchants. 

    Q. How do I gain Achievements (Category Points)? How do I count how many points I have? 
    A. If you hit F11 or the Chalice on the top left hand of your screen your Achievements window will open. If you go to Completed you will see all of the Achievements you have completed and how much each is worth. On the bottom right hand side you can easily filter what you want to look at. The completed section of the achievements window, or hovering over your XP on your character sheet, will display your total achievement points.

    You gain achievements by killing things with weapons, completing escalation events, and pvping. Categories are Arcane (Wands or Staves), Divine (Focus, or killing Undead/Cultists), Subterfuge (Short bow, or knife/short sword/rapier, and stealing during escalation events), Martial (Swords (Great/Long), Axe, Spear, Bludgeon (Club/Mace)), Adventure (Killing Specific Types of Creatures and their Elite Versions, or gathering from nodes), Social (PvPing), and Crafting (Refining/Crafting).

    For everything BUT Social you add their value consecutively, for example:

    I need Martial 6, I go out and I kill 50 Creatures with my Longsword to give me Heavy Blade level 3 Achievement. Level 1 is worth 1 point, level 2 is worth 2 points, level 3 is worth 3 points for a total of 6 Points. So, if I have Longbow Achievement 4 it is worth a total of 10 points. You add each level together consecutively. 

    For Social the first 5 Levels are worth 1 point each, the next 5 are worth 2 points each, and so on. 

    Q. How do I use all of these Tokens I keep finding? 
    A. Open your paper doll (press P), and your inventory (press I), go to consumables, and drag and drop your Tokens in the Wonderous Item slots. They will show up on your bar on the bottom left of the UI. You can target yourself with F1, and then click/use them. Greater and Superior tokens require 11 or 19 in a specific ability score. 


    Quick Start Guide:


    What Race do I choose? [RACE03]

    For a lot of people this is a major decision, and it comes down to two avenues, are you choosing based on Roleplaying or Min/Maxing? All values for skills max out at 300, but there are various ways that you can actually attain a combination higher than 300, but you gain no added bonus. Races allow you to gain an early bonus or penalty to a skill and over time it becomes cheaper to max out said skill, but everyone, no matter what race you choose, will have the ability to max out their skills. So, what it comes down to is do you want to Roleplay or gain an early bonus? 
     

    Dwarves
    Skills: Armorsmith +10, Weaponsmith +10, Miner +20, Smelter +20, Stonemason +10, 
    Sawyer +10, Tanner +10, Carpenter +10, Iconographer +10, Apothecary +10, Scavenger +10, 
    Forester +10, Perception +10, Sense Motive +10, Survival +10, Dowser -5, Sage -5, Officer -5,
    Seneschal -5, Bluff -5, Handle Animal -5, Perform -5, Persuasion -5
    Combat: Heavy Melee Attack Bonus +10, Fortitude Defense Bonus +10, Divine Attack Bonus 
    +10 
    51afqd.jpg2ce1z4z.jpg

    Elves
    Skills: Perception +20, Alchemist +10, Artificer +10, Bowyer +10, Engineer +10, Jeweler +10,
    Leatherworker +10, Tailor +10, Gemcutter +10, Miner -5, Sawyer -5, Smelter -5, Tanner -5,
    Weaver +10, Architect +10, Carpenter -5, Arcana +10, Dungeoneering +10, Geography +10,
    History +10, Local +10, Nature +10, Stealth +10, Planes +10, Disable Device +10, Escape Artist 
    +10, Ride +10
    Combat: Arcane Attack Bonus +10, Light Melee Attack Bonus +10, Ranged Attack Bonus +10, 
    Reflex Defense Bonus +10
    14seic0.jpg2eojp6u.jpg
     
    Humans
    Skills: Alchemist +5, Armorsmith +5, Artificer +5, Bowyer +5, Engineer +5, Iconographer
    +5, Jeweler +5, Leatherworker +5, Tailor +5, Weaponsmith +5, Apothecary +5, Dowser +5,
    Scavenger +5, Forester +5, Gemcutter +5, Miner +5, Sage +5, Sawyer +5, Smelter +5, Tanner
    +5, Weaver +5, Perception +5, Survival +5, Architect +5, Carpenter +5, Officer +5, Seneschal
    +5, Stonemason +5, Soldier +5, Arcana +5, Dungeoneering +5, Geography +5, History +5,
    Local +5, Nature +5, Stealth +5, Handle Animal +5, Planes +5, Athletics +5, Disable Device +5, 
    Escape Artist +5, Fly +5, Perform +5, Persuasion +5, Ride +5
    Combat: Base Attack Bonus +5, Base Defense Bonus +5

    359a1ol.jpgnq4ghx.jpg

     

    Where do I find my training at? [TRAIN04]

    Academy 
    Spellbook Proficiency, Wizard Feature Feats, Wizard Armor Feats, Arcana, Power
    Alchemist Lab
    Alchemist, Dowser
    Apothecary
    Apothecary, Forester 
    Arcanist’s Workshop
    Dowser, Sage, Spellcraft
    Artificer Workshop
    Artificer, Dowser, Geography
    Dreadnaught 
    Medium Armor, Heavy Armor, Shield, Axe, Heavy Blade, Hammer, and Polearm Proficiency.
    Base Attack Bonus, Critical Reactives, Heavy Melee Attack Bonus, Recovery Bonus, Fortitude, Great Fortitude, and Hit Points. Axe, Heavy Blade, Hammer, Shield, and Polearm attacks. BAB and Fort based Utilities. 
    Fighter College 
    Trophy Charm Proficiency, Bravery, Master of Opportunity Reactives, Fighter Feature Feats, Fighter Armor Feats, and Power.
    Geologist 
    Gemcutter, Miner
    Iconographer 
    Dowser, Iconographer
    Jeweler 
    Jeweler, Miner

    Keep Trainer 
    Officer, Seneschal 
    Leatherworker
    Leatherworker, Scavenger
    Loom
    Scavenger, Weaver
    Occultist 
    Arcane Weapon Proficiency, Base Attack Bonus, Cantrips, Willpower, and Iron Will. 
    Quartermaster
    Armorsmith, Engineer, Weaponsmith
    Sawmill
    Forester, Sawyer
    Seminary
    Focus Weapon Proficiency, Base Attack Bonus, Divine Attack Bonus, Orisions, Willpower, and Iron Will.
    Skirmisher 
    Bow, Light Armor, and Light Blade Proficiency, Reflex Utilities, Critical Reactives, Base Attack Bonus, Reflex Bonus, Lightning Reflexes, Hit Points, and Bow, Light Blade Attack Bonus, and Attacks. 
    Smeltmill
    Miner, Smelter
    Tailor
    Scavenger, Tailor
    Tannery
    Forester, Survival, Tanner
    Temple 
    Holy Symbol Proficiency, Cleric Feature Feats, Cleric Armor Feats, Religion, and Power. 
    Thieves Guild
    Rogue Kit Proficiency, Bluff, Perception, Stealth, Reflex Utilities, Rogue Feature Feats, Rogue Armor Feats

    War Wizard School
    Arcane Weapon, Clothing Proficiency, Base Attack Bonus, Arcane Attack Bonus, and Cantrips
    Woodshop
    Bowyer

     

     

    What skills/feats give me X Attribute boost? [ATT05]

    Constitution -  Shield Attacks, Bulwark, Great Fortitude, Toughness, Bravery, Recovery, Fortitude Bonus, Base Attack Bonus, Miner, Sawyer, Smelter, Tanner, Hit Points, Power, Fighter Armor Feats (Except Archer), Medium and Heavy Armor Proficiency, 

    Dexterity - Bow, Light Blade, and Simple Weapon Attacks, Evasion, Trip, Tumble, Lighting Reflexes, Bleeding Attack, Befuddling Strike, Crippling Strike, Critical Feats, Bow, Light Blade Specialization, Rogue Feature Feats, Ranged, and One-Handed Melee Specialization, Fighter Armor Feat Archer, Rogue Armor Feats, Reflex, Ranged and Light Melee Attack Bonus, Base Attack Bonus, Stealth, Gemcutter, Weaver, Bowyer, Leatherworker, Tailor, Power, Light Armor, Light Blade, Bow, and Rogue Kit Proficiency, Trophy Charm Proficiency, Fighter and Rogue Expendables 
    Intelligence - Cantrips, True Strike, Wizard Feature Feats, Wizard Armor Feats, Arcane Attack Bonus, Base Attack Bonus, Willpower Bonus, Arcana, Geography, Planes, Alchemist, Artificer, Engineer, Jeweler, Power, Clothing, Arcane Weapon, and Spellbook Proficiency, Wizard Expendables
    Personality - Cantrips, Resiliency, Arcane Attack Bonus, Base Attack Bonus, Willpower Bonus, Divine Attack Bonus, Local, History, Bluff, Dowser, Sage, Officer, Seneschal, Power, Clothing and Arcane Weapon Proficiency, 
    Strength - Axe, Heavy Blade, Polearm, Hammer, and Simple Weapon Attacks, Bull Rush, Charge, Trip, Master of Opportunity Feats, Critical Feats, One-Handed Melee Specialization, Fighter Feature Feats, Base Attack Bonus, Heavy Melee Attack Bonus, Encumbrance, Armorsmith, Weaponsmith, Power, Trophy Charm, Shield, Axe, Heavy Blade, Hammer, and Polearm Proficiency, Fighter Expendables

    Wisdom - Orisons, Iron Will, Cleric Feature Feats, Cleric Armor Feats, Base Attack Bonus, Willpower Bonus, Divine Attack Bonus, Dungeoneering, Nature, Religion, Perception, Survival, Apothecary, Scavenger, Forester, Iconographer, Power, Focus and Holy Symbol Proficiency, Cleric Expendables

     

    What do I train with my first 1,000 experience? [EXP06]

    You only gain 100 Experience per hour. There is no limit to how much experience you can save. The following is a general build, just to get you started. 

     

    STEP ONE:  10 Spent, 10/1,000 Total

    Grab all of these knowledge skills, as well as basic Perception and Stealth. The knowledge skills will increase drop rates/loot tables from monsters, and Perception/Stealth might help you survive longer. When you gain a Skill/Profession/Craft it increases your skill by 10 points per level. 

     

    Perception(Wis) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Arcana(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Dungeoneering(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Geography(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    History(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Local(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Nature(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Religion(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Stealth(Dex) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Planes(Int) lvl 1 = 1xp

    Knowledge Skills increase loot tables by 1% by every 6 points, so at level 3 that you would have 5% increase to loot table chances. Also, always party when searching for loot, as you can kill faster and gain more chances for drops. 

     

    STEP TWO:  40 Spent, 40/1,000 Total

    Choose a gathering skill, this will help increase the max you can get from a node, and open up a few things beyond the very basic raw resources. Try and choose one based on the bonus you get from your race, but if I were you grab all of them, because if you are by yourself you can always grab a node. 

     

    Choose one of these:

    Dowser(Person) lvl 1 = 30xp

    Forester(Wis) lvl 1 = 30xp

    Miner(Con) lvl 1 = 30xp
    Scavenger (Wis) lvl 1 = 30xp

    Dowser collects the blue shimmering nodes for essences used by the Sage. Forester collects the plant nodes for wood, wool/hemp, and plants for Sawyer, Weaver, and Apothecary. Miner collects the rock nodes for chemicals, precious gems, and ore for Apothecary, Gemcutter, and Smelter. Scavenger collects the midden heap nodes for Leather, as well as a combination of Forester/Miner drops for all of the aforementioned groups and Tannery. 

     

     

    STEP THREE: 147 Spent, 187/1,000 Total

    Go and grab an one armor, melee weapon, and ranged proficiency, when we're out there you will most likely pick up what ever armor that you can use, alternatively you might start with the Player Pack, which gives you the lowest level weapon/armor combo from your role.

     

    Cloth(Dex) =  49xp

    Light Armor(Dex) = 49xp

    Medium Armor(Con) = 49xp

    Heavy Armor(Con) = 49xp

    Shield Wpn(Str) = 49xp

    Arcane Wpn(Int) = 49xp

    Axe Wpn(Str) =  49xp

    Heavy Blade Wpn(Str) =  49xp

    Light Blade Wpn(Dex) =  49xp

    Bow Wpn(Dex) =  49xp

    Hammer Wpn(Str) =  49xp

    Focus Wpn(Wis) =  49xp

    Polearm Wpn(Str) =  49xp

     

     

    STEP FOUR:  567 Spent, 754/1,000 Total

    Grabbing basic bonuses will help with your defense and offense, as well as grabbing a combo of Attacks/Cantrips/Orisons.

     

    Choose a Ranged and Melee:

    Heavy Melee Attack Bonus(Str) =  36xp

    Light Melee Attack Bonus(Dex) =  36xp

    Ranged Attack Bonus(Dex) =  36xp

    Arcane Attack Bonus(Dex) =  36xp

    Divine Attack Bonus(Dex) =  36xp

     

    There are two attacks now, Primary and Secondary, one going on the left bottom of your bar, the other going on the right bottom of your bar for all Melee attacks. These are for Phsycial Weapons only, allowing you to skimp for now on needing attacks. I would consider grabbing a combination of 5 attacks/cantrips/orisons at 81xp eacg for a weapon/stave/wand/focus that you want so if you pick it up you have some variety/versatility. 

     

    Grab Recovery (good for recovering from status effects) and  at least one defense bonus:

    Recovery Bonus(Con) =  36xp

    Fortitude Bonus(Con) =  54xp

    Willpower Bonus(Wis) = 54xp

    Reflex Bonus(Dex) = 54xp

     

    Finally Hit Points.

    Hit Points(Con) lvl 2 = 6xp

     

    STEP FIVE: 249 Spent, 1,003/1,000 Total

    Go and grab an Armor Feat and Feature Feat from which ever role is close to what you want.

     

    Axe Spec(Str) = 81exp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Heavy Blade Spec(Str) = 81xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Light Blade Spec(Dex) = 81xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Bow Spec(Dex) = 81xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Hammer Spec(Str) = 81xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Polearm Spec(Str) = 81xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Hit/Damage)

    Archer(Dex&Con) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Speed/Ranged Attack)

    Dragoon(Str&Con) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Improved Critical, Bonus to Light/Heavy Melee Attack)

    Unbreakable(Str&Con) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Reflex Defense, and All Resitances)

     

     

    Cut-Throat(Dex) = 81xp (Sneak Attack while enemy is flat-footed OR doesn't have you targeted)

    Daredevil(Dex) = 81xp (Sneak Attack while enemy is flat-footed OR you give opportunity)

    Opportunist(Dex) = 81xp (Sneak Attack while enemy is flat-footed OR they give opportunity)

    Chameleon(Dex) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Stealth)

    Scout(Dex&Wis) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Perception)

    Swashbuckler(Dex&Per) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Reflex Defense/Light Melee Attack)

     

    Abjurer(Int) = 81xp

    Conjurer(Int) = 81xp

    Diviner(Int) = 81xp (Bonus to Perception)

    Enchanter(Int) = 81xp

    Evoker(Int) = 81xp (Give burning/slowed/oblivious on critical hits)

    Illusionist(Int) = 81xp (Bonus to Reflex Defense/Stealth)

    Necromancer(Int) = 81xp

    Transmuter(Int) = 81xp (Bonus to HP and Status Effect Recovery)

    Binder(Int&Con) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Energy Resistances/Fortitude Defense)

    Mage(Int&Dex) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Physical Resistance/Reflex Defense)

    Scholar(Int&Wis) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Will Defnse/All Knowledge Skills)

     

    *Note: All Domains Eventually give some of their bonus to party members from the Aura Mechanic.

    Charm Domain(Wis) = 81xp

    Fire Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Large Bonus to Fire Resistance)

    Glory Domain(WIs) = 81xp (Bonus to Base Defense)

    Luck Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Improve Critical)

    Protection Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Bonus to all Resistances)

    Strength Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Bonus to Heavy Melee Attack)

    Sun Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Bonus to Perception)

    Travel Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Bonus to Speed)

    Trickery Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Bonus to Bluff/Stealth)

    Water Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Large Bonus to Cold Resistance)

    Weather Domain(Wis) = 81xp (Large Bonus to Electric Defense)

    Evangelist(Wis&Per) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Speed, and Ranged/Divine Bonus)

    Healer(Wis&Con) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to Reflex Defense/Hp Regeneration)

    Crusader(Wis&Str) lvl 2 = 61 xp (Bonus to all defense, and Light/Heavy Melee Attack)

    Guide(Per) = 
    61 xp (Bonus Perception, Dowser, Sage, History, Local, Geography)
    Pioneer(Con) = 61 xp (Bonus to Speed, Forester, Miner, Sawyer, Smelter, Tanner)
    Rambler(Wis) = 61 xp (Bonus to Stealth, Scavenger, Apothecary, Gemcutter, Weaver, Survival, Nature)

    Artisan(Dex) = 61 xp (Bonus to Ranged Attack, Bowyer, Jeweler, Alchemist, Leatherworker, Carpenter)

    Outfitter(Int) = 61 xp (Bonus to Speed, Tailor, Artificer, Spellcraft, Arcana, Architect)

    Wright(Str) = 61 xp (Bonus to Light/Melee Attack, Armorsmith, Engineer, Weaponsmith, Iconographer, Stonemason)

     

    Also grab your implement proficiency.

     

    Holy Symbol Implement(Wis) =  99xp

    Trophy Charm Implement(Str/Dex) =  99xp

    Spellbook Implement(Int) =  99xp

    Rogue Kit Implement(Dex) =  99xp

    Finally grab some Power. 
    Power(All) lvl 2 = 10

    Once you are finished spending your experience you are essentially a level 1 Character, with some extra hit points, and the ability to utilize Tier 1 equipment for your Role. While some of you may feel that you don’t want to spend your experience on this specific build, I implore all of you to do so, this is the MINIMUM build to survive, while giving your character access to everything he or she will need right off the bat. 

    Where do I find Gear? [GEAR07]

    There are four tutorial quests that you can do to get some basic gear after you complete the Movement Tutorial given by Isaja Fannell at your starting location:

    Illa Springtree  (Wizard)
    Ogden Delsane (Fighter) 
    Finna Kor (Cleric)
    Kel the Red (Rogue)

    Follow their quest and open the chest, you will be supplied with one of four basic tutorial packs based on a role.

    Wizard Tutorial Pack:
    Charged Staff, Charge Gem, Charges (ammo isn't in yet), Runespun Robes (clothe armor), Introductory Spellbook, and one of the following expendables:
    Burning Hands - Fire based short range Area of Effect attack. 
    Enfeeble - Ranged debuff that reduces defenses and attack.
    Force Missile - Force based ranged attack.
    Hydraulic Push - Physical based ranged knockback attack.
    Rainbow Spray - Ranged Area of Effect debuff  that reduces perception/attack, with a chance to stun.
    Speed - Short duration buff to speed, attack, and reflex defense.

    Fighter Tutorial Pack
    Longsword, Hide and Steel Banded (heavy armor), Introductory Trophy Charm, and one of the following expendables:
    Bully - A ranged debuff that reduces defense.
    Fluster - A melee debuff that reduces perception/attack, and can cause unbalanced/dazed. 

    Cleric Tutorial Pack
    Acolytes Battle Focus, Charge Gem, Charges (ammo isn't in yet), Novitiate's Scale (medium armor), Introductory Holy Symbol, and one of the following expendables: 
    Blessing - Melee Area of Effect buff to attack.
    Cause Fear - Ranged debuff that reduces defenses.
    Endure Elements - Melee buff that increase resistance to fire, cold, and electric.
    Lesser Cure - Melee heal.
    Lesser Inflect - Melee touch damage.

    Rogue Tutorial Pack:
    Short Bow, Quiver, Arrows (ammo isn't in yet), Footpad's Leathers (light armor), Introductory Rogue Kit, and one of the following expendables:
    Blinding Dust - Melee debuff that reduces perception/attack.
    String Bolos - Ranged deubff that reduces speed, reflex defense, and immobilizes. 


    What do I do next? [NEXT08]
    You will go on and attempt to gain achievements. 

    Adventure - Killing NPCs/Monsters, finding hidden locations, and gathering from nodes. All Roles need Adventure Points. 
    Arcane - Killing NPCs/Monsters with your Arcane Weapons/Implement. Wizards need Adventure Points. 
    Class - Advancing your Role. All Roles need Class Points. 
    Crafting - Crafting and Refining. Crafters and Refiners need Crafting Points. 
    Divine - Killing NPCs/Monsters with your Divine Weapons/Implements, also killing Undead/Cultist. Clerics need Divine Points. 
    Martial - Killing NPCs/Monsters with most Melee Weapons, Bows, and Trophy Charm. Fighters need Martial Points.
    Subterfuge - Killing NPCs/Monsters with Short bows, Light Weapons, and the Rogue Kit. Rogues need Subterfuge Points.
    Social - Gained through Social Interactions. 

    NOTE: When you complete each level of a Achievement you get the listed levels points. 

    Example: I just finished Martial 1, Martial 2, and Martial 3 by killing a total of 50 bad guys, I get the listed points for each level for a total of 6 Martial Points. 

    Grab a party and begin exploring the wilderness, gathering, and killing everything in sight. This will net you Achievements, Raw Resources, Salvage Resources, Gear, Recipes, and Expendables. Once you have at least 3 to 6 points in your appropriate Achievements for your Role, you should be able to come back to town to train, as you will have unlocked around 2 more levels for each of your Skills/Feats. 

    Gatherers, Refiners, and Crafters: Plan for the first 10 days. 

    All Gathering: Level 7, While it does take almost 10 days to get the experience alone, if you stretch out the time several more days, you can pick up one of the Freeholder Armor Feats, as well as some basic feats to increase your survivability. 

    Try and gather the following resources: 
    Miner: Coal, Copper Ore, Iron Ore, Silver Ore, Sal Ammoniac, Brimstone, Cinnabar, Bloodstone, Tigereye, Moonstone, Onyx, Chrysoprase
    Forester: Wool, Pine, Yew, Foxfire, Smoked Peppers, Bloodflower Gum, Chickweed, Juniper Berries, Belladonna Berries, Henbane, Blood Nettle, Cabble-Weed, Tansy Leaves, Gentian, Valerian Root, Dragoon Leaves, Arnica Root, and Coltsfoot.
    Dowser: Antithesis Essences, Esoteric Essences, Ordered Essences
    Scavenger: Smooth Animal Pelts, Smooth Beast Pelts, Hemp, and Wool.

     

    Refining: Go straight for level 5, as you should be able to Refine most Tier 1 items at that level. 

    All Crafting: Go straight to level 5, as you should be able to Craft most Tier 1 items at that level.

    NOTE: A Quick Crafting/Refining Trick is if you Craft the highest possible version of something, you get all the previous Achievements. 

     

     

    Gathering from Combat: 

    PvErs make sure that you increase your Knowledge skills so that you can increase your drop rate, and get better drops from mobs. Remember that in PvE the system auto loots monster/npcs directly into your inventory, you have to be within 20-30 meters of mob killed to get loot from it. Not everyone will get a share in the loot, it is random who will get what.

    Make sure that you save ALL Recipes, Maneuvers, and Spells (you can access the latter two in your All Tab). The following is a list of Salvage Resources that will be needed from combat. 

    Goblins: Bad of Dangerous Stuff, Bag of Sticky Stuff, Bag of Smelly Stuff, Bag of Bitter Stuff, Bag of Dreamy Stuff, Bag of Itchy Stuff, Bag of Fiery Stuff, Bag of Healthy Stuff, Broken Goblin Weapons, Goblin Armor Scraps, Purgative Kit, Diversion Kit, Toxic Kit, Broken Hobgoblin Weapon, and Hobgoblin Armor Scraps. 

    Bandits: Target Marking Paint, Crude Knockout Gas, Sticky Pine Resin, Improperly Made Sunrod, Crude Longsleep, Fragment of Battle, Fragment of Secrets, Fragment of Learning, Torn Merchant Clothes, Torn Peasant Clothes, Shattered Merchant Furniture, Destroyed Peasant Furniture, Broken Basic Weapons, Basic Armor Scraps, Advanced Armor Scraps, Nonstandard Silver Coins, and Broken Advanced Weapon. 

    Ogres: Secret Giant Mushroom, Secret Giant Moss.

    Wolves: Sleep Stones, Crawling Crystals, Blood Crystals, Energized Flora, Unusual Spices, Cotton Nesting, Peasant Rags, Dead Prey, and Dead Predator.

    Knowledge Arcana: Elementals, Crystals (constructs), Towers (constructs), Nhur Athemon (wizard)
    Knowledge Geography: Ogres(giants)

    Knowledge HistoryGhouls(undead)  and Skeletons(undead)

    Knowledge Local: Bandits(humanoids), Cultist(humanoids), Goblins(humanoids), Knights(humanoids), and Raiders(humanoids)
    Knowledge Nature: Nothing at the moment

    Knowledge Plane: Hellhounds(outsiders)
    Knowledge Survival: Wolves(animals)


    In game Maps - [MAP09]

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    24b80u1.jpg

     

    THORNKEEP
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    Class Roles: [ROLE10]

    Cleric -

    2a9zdw4.jpg

    Domains 

    Pathfinder Online: Deities and Domain Selections Guide

     

    Fighter - 

    300z5l3.jpg

     

    Rogue - 
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    Wizard - 

    2rw6k37.jpg

     

     

    Keywords: [KEY11]

     

    There are 2 types of Keywords, minor and major. Each keyword must be matched between a piece of gear and a slotted feat or ability, except for the keywords on expendable which match with the Feature Feat. For ever minor keyword that you match you gain the listed bonus, for every major you gain x4 the listed bonus. 

    Weapons (Melee/Ranged/Staves/Wands/Foci) match Keywords to Attacks/Cantrips/Orisons 
    Armor (Clothe/Light/Medium/Heavy) match Keywords to your Armor Feat
    Belts/Gloves match Keywords to your Utility Abilities 
    Expendables match Keywords to your Feature Feat

    Weapons gain 5 base damage for each keyword matched, Armor gives you hit points, power, and defenses, and Utilities have better longer effects. Expendables are a bit different every 3 keywords that are matched, you gain an extra bonus, these bonuses include more damage, as well as longer lasting, and better effects.

     

     

    Crafting Guide: [CRAFT12]

    You will need access to three levels of Feats/Skills in the crafting process.

    Gathering: These Feats/Skills will allow you to collect from Resource Nodes. The higher your skill the more you are able to gather from a node, as well as find uncommon and rarer resources. 

    Refining: These Feats/Skills will allow you to access Refining Recipes and Facilities. At these Facilities you can turn raw resources and collected materials into Crafting Components. 

    Crafting: These Feats/Skills will allow you to access Crafting Recipes and Facilities. At these Facilities you can take components and craft them into usable items. 

     

    Crafter < Refiner < Gatherer

    Alchemist (Consumables) < Apothecary/Sage/Smelter
    Artificer (Sorcerer/Wizard Implements and Weapons) < Gemcutter/Sage/Sawyer/Smelter
    Armorsmith (Medium and Heavy Armor) < ApothecaryGemcutter/Sage/Sawyer/Smelter/Tannery/Weaver
    Bowyer (Bows, Quivers, and Arrows) < Apothecary/Sawyer/Smelter/Tannery/Weaver

    Engineer (Aristocrat/Expert/Rogue Implements, Camp Consumables, Shields) < Apothecary/Sawyer/Smelter/Weaver
    Iconongrapher (Barbarian/Cleric/Druid Implements) < Apothecary/Gemcutter/Sage/Sawyer/Smelter/Tannery
    Jeweler (Fighter Implement, Belts, Bracelets, Circlets, Necklaces, and Rings) < Gemcutter/Smelter
    Leatherworker (Light Armor, Belts, Boots, Gloves, Hats, and Pouches/Packs) < Apothecary/Smelter/Tannery/Weaver
    Tailor (Robes, Belts, Caps, Cloaks, Clothes, Gloves, Slippers, and Pouches) < Sage/Smelter/Tannery/Weaver
    Weaponsmith (Commoner Implement, Melee Weapons) < Apothecary/Gemcutter/Sage/Smelter/Tannery

    Apothecary < Combat/Forester/Miner/Scavenger
    Gemcutter < Combat/Miner
    Sage < Combat/Dowser/Miner
    Sawyer < Combat/Forester/Miner
    Smelter < Combat/Miner
    Tannery < Combat
    Weaver < Combat/Forester

    The following links will give more specific information:

    Goblinworks Crafting Guide
    Crafting Recipes
    Refining Recipes

    Ingredients and Substitutes
     
    Refining/Crafting time Equation = (Basetime)*((Item Quality^2)/(Skill*Facility Quality))

    Knowledge Skills:
    All of the Knowledge Skills in the game increase the different kinds of loot you get from Harvesting, off dead mobs, and from loot chests. 

     

    Most items in Pathfinder Online are crafted by players, meaning all your weapons, armor, implements,etc. will be gained by making them yourselves or interacting with other players. There will not be merchants selling equipment (aside from player-run auction houses) and monsters will not drop finished gear beyond basic gear in the starter areas. Items are made by gathering raw materials, refining them into components, then crafting them into finished goods.
     
    Raw Materials
     
    Raw material components drop from creatures, or chests in the future, (often as “salvage”) and are gathered from nodes. The skills used for gathering are Dowser, Forester, Miner, and Scavenger (each targeting a different type of gathering node). Gathering a lot of a specific resource in a given hex will make that resource appear in fewer nodes and tend to be of greater weight (as only the lower-concentration versions remain). Higher Knowledge skills (Arcana, Dungeoneering, Geography, History, Local, Nature, Planes) and Survival improve the chances of getting salvage items from creatures (and chests in the future), depending on the associated creature types.
     
    Often, raw materials will vary in their prefix to indicate greater weight (e.g., Dilute, Fair, Infused, or Potent chemicals), creating difficulty getting less pure materials back to a safe location. These items are identical once refined: Dilute Foxfire and Infused Foxfire both count as a single unit of Foxfire once refined. In most cases, you should use up the heavier ones first.
     
    Raw materials have one or two “stocks.” This is often just the name of the item (e.g., all purities of Iron Ore have the Iron Ore stock). Some materials, particularly herbs, minerals, and salvage, can be used for two different things (e.g., Foxfire is Weak Acidic and also Weak Luminous). Materials with one stock are often more straightforwardly and generally useful, while those with two may be less frequently used but have more options when they are.
     
    The item’s stock is used when making refined components.

     
    Refined Components

     
    Several profession skills are used to turn raw materials into refined components that can be used with craft skills. The skills used are:
     
    • Apothecary (chemical)
    • Gemcutter (gem)
    • Sage (essence)
    • Sawyer (wood)
    • Smelter (metal)
    • Tanner (leather)
    • Weaver (cloth)
     
    To refine, you must have access to an appropriate facility, have trained the relevant skill, and have learned a particular recipe (which may demand a minimum rank in the skill). For example, to make Dwarven Steel Ingots, you need to be a Smelter of at least rank 7, have learned a recipe for those ingots,and be at a smelting facility of sufficient level.
     
    Recipes come in four variations for each component: +0 to +3. You usually get the +0 variation for free upon training the minimum rank that supports it, but to acquire recipes +1 to +3, you must find recipe consumables in the world and use them to learn the upgraded recipe. You do not have to have the entire sequence (e.g., you might only have +0 and +2 of a recipe).
     
    Each upgrade of a recipe consumes more components than the base recipe (generally 20% more per upgrade), as you use only the choicest pieces and discard results that didn’t meet your standards. However, as your skill improves, there is an increasing random chance that each component created improves for free by one or two pluses. The only way to get a +5 component is as a bonus result of a batch of +3 components.
     
    When you’ve loaded the refining interface by clicking the door of the appropriate facility, your screen displays (on the left panel) a list of the recipes you know for that facility. Selecting a recipe displays the item that will be output (on the top right panel), and the material requirements to create it (in the center right panel). Each recipe will often produce several components at a minimum, and you can increase the output by that number (e.g., if a recipe outputs five items, you can make five, ten, fifteen, etc.). Selecting multiple batches increases the required materials by a proportionate amount, but averages any inputs across the increased batch (i.e., each batch is not made independently).
     
    You can now fill the required materials for the item by clicking the icons for each stock required and selecting items from your inventory and storage to meet that requirement (selecting from the panel that appears once you’ve clicked a stock). For example, Dwarven Steel Ingots +2 requires 14 Lodestone, 28 Iron Ore, and 28 Coal for every five ingots. As mentioned above, some materials count for multiple stocks, so make sure you’re not using a material you’d rather use in another recipe for its second stock.
     
    Once you’ve made all your selections, the recipe is ready to Add to Queue (consuming the materials and queuing up the job). The total time for production is based on your skill level, the facility level, and the difficulty of the recipe. Once added to your queue, you can see how long it will be before the item is output (in the queue panel in the bottom right). This countdown progresses whether or not you are online, so you can queue up several jobs and expect that they’ll be significantly advanced if you come back later. Once you have queued up at least 24 hours’ worth of refining, you cannot add anymore (e.g., if you had 23 hours in the queue currently, you could add something that would take three hours, but then not any further jobs).
     
    Once you’ve refined a few components, you can sell them to a crafter or make crafted items yourself.
     
    Crafted Items
     
    Crafting works similarly to refining, but has some notable differences. The skills used for crafting are currently:

    • Alchemist (consumables)
    • Armorsmith (metal armors)

    • Artificer (arcane weapons and implements)
    • Bowyer (ranged weapons)
    • Engineer (shields, campsites, and kit implements)
    • Iconographer (divine and miscellaneous implements)
    • Jeweler (jewelry accessory items and trophy charm implements)
    • Leatherworker (leather armors and leather accessory items)
    • Tailor (cloth armors and cloth accessory items)
    • Weaponsmith (melee weapons)
     
    Crafting has several elements that are very similar to refining. You get a few recipes for free based on attaining the required rank, and must find the rest. You’ll use these recipes at a facility that supports them, and must have the right skill and rank to learn them. Once in the facility, recipe choice, output item, adding materials, and looking at the queue will appear in basically the same areas of the screen.
     
    Unlike refining, each recipe supports the whole range of plus values for an item; you’ll determine the 
     
    final upgrade by which refined components you use to make the item. When you select from your inventory or storage to fill a component requirement, the average value of all components used is displayed (e.g., if you need five Dwarven Steel Ingots, and choose two +0 and three +1 ingots, that stack will display +0.6). 
     
    The collected values of all component stacks required is averaged together (with some weighting based on tier variations and your total craft skill) to generate the final output value and how close it is to going up to the next plus. If you’re very close to another plus, you might want to swap a few weak components with some stronger ones, and if you’re midway into a plus, you may want to replace some better components with weaker ones so as to not waste them (remainders are lost).
     
    On many items, you can apply an enchantment (an additional recipe that has a minimum Spellcraft rank that you must have learned separately). This is selected from the far right panel from those enchants that are appropriate to the item you are crafting. This is the only way to add magical properties to an item; once it’s crafted, you cannot enchant it subsequently, and will be limited to its base properties. Enchanting an item adds an additional component stack requirement, and that’s figured into the final upgrade total of the item (e.g., if you add an enchantment with +0 components to a previously +3 item, it might be reduced to a +2 or even +1 item depending on the new average). (Enchantments may not be available until late Alpha or Early Enrollment.)
     
    As with refining, once you’ve made all the required selections, you can add the item to your queue and will receive it when its job time is complete. Unlike refining, there is no chance that it will come out at a higher plus; the bonus for high crafting skill is a small predictable increase to the plus of the final item.

    Crafting from your bank

    You are able to craft directly from your bank, so there is no need to actually hold the raw resources or refined components on your character. You can place everything directly into your personal, company, or company secure vault to craft from. If you pull anything from your company or company secure vault during the crafting process the finished product will deposit there, if you crafted just from your personal vault it will instead be placed there. 

     
    Edited by Cheatle
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    UI Guide: [uIG13]

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    Home [HMN13A]

    Log Out
    Quit 
    Help
    Submit Bug
    Settings 

    Gear/Paper Doll [PD13B]

     

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    TIP: If you right click on your armor you get the pop up on the left which will allow you to customize your armor. 

    Map [MAP13C]

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    Hex Details:

    Monster Hex - This denotes a hex that spawns escalations.
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    Monster Home Hex - This denotes a hex that runs the same escalation over and over. 
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    Pass Hex - This denotes an elevation change. 
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    Player Settlement - This denotes a player run settlement. 
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    Ruin Hex - This denotes a hex that might have future content, they also increase the reinforcement rate of escalations.
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    Shield Hex - This denotes a protected hex by Thornkeep. 
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    Starter Settlement - This denotes a starter or NPC settlement. 
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    Feats [FEAT13D]

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    Feature - Role Specific.
    Armor - Armor, Race and Role Specific as well.
    Magic Item - Feats required to benefit from magic items. 
    Reactive - Automatically activating Feats.
    Defensive - Constant Defense Bonuses. 

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    Attack - Your various Weapon attacks, limited by current weapon equipped.
    Expendable - Role Based abilities that consume Power.
    Utility - Attacks that aren't weapon specific, as well as non attacks that are useful. 

    Inventory [iVN13E]

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    Encumbrance - How much an item weighs and how much you can carry. The bottom bar can be filled, fully, without a decrease to your speed. The top bar, as it fills, will slow you down, eventually rooting you. 
    Durability - Items lose durability each time they resurrect with you. 
    Rarity - Grey>White>Green>Blue>Purple>Red>Orange>Gold from least to greatest. 

    Character Sheet [CHS13F]

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    TIP: If you hover over your attribute or XP the tool tip will give you more information. Attributes will show to the second decimal place their progress, and XP will give you total achievement points. 

    Hit Points: Hit points represent how much damage you can take before you are rendered unconscious. Once you are unconscious, you can take 100 points of damage before dying (and you lose 10 every second while unconscious and perhaps more if something continues to inflict damage on you while you are unconscious). You can purchase more Hit Points with XP, and equipping various feats can also grant you Hit Points. When visible, your Hit Points will be represented by the red bar on the UI element associated with your character.
     

    Stamina (Not on Character Sheet): All characters have 200 Stamina. All actions (including attacks, utilities, and expendables) consume Stamina, as does sprinting. If you are out of  Stamina, you cannot use any actions that consume it. Stamina is recovered at a rate of 10 points every second. When visible, your Stamina will be represented by the blue bar on the UI element associated with your character.

    Power (Not on Character Sheet): Power is consumed in addition to Stamina by expendables (more powerful abilities like spells, special powers, etc., that would normally be daily powers in the Pathfinder tabletop RPG). Power is regained through resting at special locations like taverns or camps. If you do not have the Power to pay the activation cost of an ability that requires it, you cannot use it. Power is also used for certain activated magic item actions. Most abilities that use Power are slotted in your implement, which is the top row of icons in your action bar. When visible, your Power will be represented by the yellow bar on the UI element associated with your character.
     

    Ability Scores: These act as prerequisites for feats. Unlike in the tabletop game, Ability Scores
    do not provide modifiers to game mechanics. They all begin at 10. Each time you expend experience points for a feat, you may also raise your Ability Scores by some amount (Ability score increases are usually linked to the Ability Score prerequisites for a feat). So if a feat requires Strength, buying it will most likely raise your Strength. The ability scores are:
     
    Constitution: Health and durability
    Dexterity: Agility and fine motor control
    Intelligence: Intellect and information retention
    Personality: Charm and forcefulness
    Strength: Physical vigor and clout
    Wisdom: Perception and force of will
     

    Resistances: Resistances are how much you reduce incoming damage by. They are divided into several damage types and are improved by gear and buffs:
     
    Physical: All damage from solid implements
    Fire: Damage from flames and heat
    Cold: Damage from frost and cold
    Electric: Damage from lightning and static
    Sonic: Damage from thunder and magically intense sounds
    Acid: Damage from dangerous chemicals
    Negative: Damage from necromantic and other life-draining sources
    Psychic: Damage that affects the mind directly
    Holy: Damage from divine (good AND evil) sources that is very hard to resist
    Force: Damage from pure magical energy that is very hard to resist

    Defenses: Defenses determine how difficult it is to hit a target. All attacks are made against one of the three defenses to determine if the attack hits. (Behind the scenes, a simulated attack roll is made and modified with various bonuses or penalties derived from the attacker’s abilities, gear, buffs & debuffs, and environmental effects) and, if it is higher than the target’s relevant Defense, the attack hits with full effect. If the result is lower than the Defense, the attack has a reduced effect.

    o Reflex Defense: Used against normal attacks and attacks where the main concern is getting out of the way
    Will Defense: Used against attacks that primarily affect the mind or spirit
    Fortitude Defense: Used against attacks that affect the body like poisons or disease

    Attack Bonuses: Attack bonuses make attacks more likely to hit. All attacks have the Base Attack Bonus applied to them with one other attack bonus applied based on the type of attack.

    Skills: Skills allow the character to perform special tasks like crafting items, harvesting resources, sneaking undetected, or perceiving those trying to be sneaky.

     

    Achievements [ACH13G]

     

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    In Progress - You have some progress done on them.
    Other - All achievements that you don't have the 1st level in is listed here.
    Completed - Everything you have completed. 

    There are 10 levels to every single achievement. Also, each one gives you a specific type of point that is required for training, as you level them up each specific achievement will give you more points. Bandit Slayer 1 will only give you 1 Adventure Point, but Bandit Slayer 5 will give you 2 Adventure Points. 

    • Adventure: These achievements are gained by finding interesting locations and defeating types of monsters. They are needed by Rogues, Rangers, and Barbarians.

    • Arcane: These achievements are gained by defeating creatures with cantrip attacks and casting arcane spells. They are needed by Wizards, Sorcerers, and Bards.
    • Class: These achievements are gained by reaching the requirements to advance in a role. They are needed by all roles and each role has its own set. 
    • Crafting: These achievements are gained by crafting items or refining resources. They are needed by anyone who seeks to craft or harvest items, especially Experts and Commoners. 
    • Divine: These achievements are gained through defeating creatures with orisons and divine spells and from healing others. They are needed by Clerics, Druids, and Paladins. 
    • Martial: These achievements are gained through defeating enemies with physical weapon attacks. They are needed by Fighters, Barbarians, Rangers, Rogues, and Paladins. 
    • Social: These achievements are gained through social interactions with other players. They are needed by Aristocrats.

    * Barbarians, Bards, Paladins, and Sorcerers will be developed soon, while Druids, Monks, and Rangers will be added most likely after Open Enrollment. 

    Quest Log [QTL13H]

    This is your quest log. Currently, there are a bevy of starter quests, and each settlement has several quest NPCs, this is a decent way to make some fast coin.

    Company Search/Company Information [CMP13I]

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    This is the company search window, you can get here by clicking the tower icon in the upper left hand corner. You can use the search function at the top, or you can search by name, size, or holdings. By clicking on a companies name you can open up the company information window. 

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    Company Details - This will show you the members of a company, officers, as well as their motto/company blurb. You can also apply to a settlement through this window.

    Holdings - This shows all holdings, hexes where you have places a holding, as well as your influence. At the bottom of that screen you will also see the time frame for your PvP window.

    Alliances - This lists all the companies that are in your settlements, as well as Settlements that are considered allies. 
     

    Chat Window [CHAT13J]

    General - Goes to everyone in the Hex
    Party - Goes to everyone in your party. 
    Local - Goes to everyone in 50 meters.
    Whisper - Goes to a specific person. 

    Action Bar [ACT13K]

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    Character HUD [CHUD13L]

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    Red - Hit Points
    Blue - Stamina used for all abilities.
    Yellow - Power used for most powerful abilities. 

    Injuries - A small bar every time you take a critical hit will slide up your HP bar. As it gets higher the more debuffs you take. 
    Buff/Debuffs - All Buffs and Debuffs are displayed as chevrons to the left and right of the HUD. 
    Status - on the top of the bar you will gain colored ?s. These indicate various statuses like Flat-Footed, or if you are an aggressor/attacker. 

    If you click on a PC you will get 3 colors: 

    Green - Friendly.
    Grey - Neutral.
    Red - Hostile. 

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    Types of Gear [GEAR14]

    fksh04.jpgA picture of various armor and weapons! 

    Weapons 
     

    All ranged weapons will require ammunition that must be equipped in the off-hand’s ammo container. Once a weapon’s ammunition is consumed in a fight, it cannot be replenished until the fight is over.

    Weapons have a number of minor and major keywords; for each minor keyword on your weapon that matches with one on the attack you are using, you get a +5 bonus to damage. For each major keyword, you get a +20 bonus. Matching more keywords also improves the effects on your attack relative to your target’s armor keywords (i.e., your effects will be stronger against targets with fewer matched armor keywords and weaker against target with more matched armor keywords).
     
    Weapons are defined by the following traits:
     
    • Range: The range of the attack. This is Melee (approximately 2 meters) or a listed range in meters (often 20 or 35). 
    • Handedness: This denotes how many hands the weapon occupies and where it can be equipped. This is normally Two-Handed or One-Handed. 
    • Damage Factor: This is the common damage factor for attacks from the weapon. Individual attacks will vary, but this gives a sense of the weapon’s average damage factor. 
    • Speed: This is the common speed for attacks from the weapon. Individual attacks will vary, but this gives a sense of the weapon’s average speed.
    • Category: The type of weapon, such as a One-Handed Sword, which qualifies it for attacks that can be used with a variety of specific weapons of a general category. 
    • Encumbrance: The weight of the weapon.

     

     Heavy Melee: These weapons rely on Strength rather than Dexterity to master. They tend to do more damage but be slower. Longswords, axes, two-handed swords, and greatclubs are examples of Heavy Melee weapons. 
     
    • Light Melee: These weapons rely on Dexterity rather than Strength to master. They tend to be fast but do less damage. Rapiers, Short Swords, and Daggers are examples of Light Melee Weapons. 
     
    • Ranged: These weapons are physical weapons that do damage at distance, like bows and crossbows. They rely on Dexterity to master and will require ammunition, usually arrows or bolts, kept in a quiver.
     
    • Arcane: These weapons harness arcane forces to do damage at range. Wands and staves are the most common examples of these weapons. Wands tend to be fast, single target weapons while staves tend to be slower but affect more targets. Wands will require ammunition in the form of a charge gem which holds arcane power. 
     
    • Divine: These weapons harness divine forces to do damage at range or manifest basic heals and buffs. A divine focus is the most common example of these weapons. Foci will require ammunition in the form of a charge gem which holds divine power.

    Armor

    Armor comes in a single piece that, when equipped, covers the entire body. Armor has minor and major keywords like weapons, only these increase the protectiveness of the armor and the passive bonuses to hit points and defenses provided by the Armor feat you have equipped (each role has three Armor feats to select from for different builds of that role). In addition to these passive bonuses, Armor provides has the following traits.
     
    • Base Physical: This is the base amount of damage resistance the armor has to physical damage (i.e. damage dealt by normal weapons), before keywords are applied. 
    • Base Energy: This is the base amount of damage resistance the armor has to all energy damage types before keywords are applied. 
    • Crit Resistance: This trait makes the wearer of the armor more resistant to suffering critical hits.
    • Spell Penalty: This is the penalty to attacks that arcane spellcasters suffer if they cast spells or
    use cantrips while wearing the armor. (This is not implemented for alpha.)
    • Reflex Penalty: This is the penalty to Reflex defense that you suffer while wearing the armor. 
    • Encumbrance: This is how much the armor weighs. 
     
    Armor has the following types:
     
    • Clothing: Clothing is favored by arcane casters because it is the only armor that does not interfere with their spells. It provides no physical resistance, and a good energy resistance. 
    • Light: Light armor is favored by rogues and other sneaky types. It provides a small amount of physical resistance, some energy resistance, and a small arcane armor penalty. 
    • Medium: Medium armor is favored by clerics and other mid-range combatants. It provides average physical resistance, small energy resistance, and a moderate arcane armor penalty. 
    • Heavy: Heavy armor is favored by fighters and other heavy combatants who don’t expect to move around much. It provides good physical resistance, no energy resistance, and a heavy arcane armor penalty. 

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    Miscellaneous Gear
     
    Miscellaneous gear provides keywords that are used with Utility feats. Additionally, they can be enchanted in certain ways to provide specific types of bonuses:
     

     

     Fingers: Rings can be enchanted with any of the other types of effects. You can wear two rings.
    • Head: Head slot items generally provide bonuses to skills or to crit resistance if it is a helmet. 
    • Back: The back slot is either used for cloaks, which generally provide some bonus to defenses or resistances, or is used for a backpack that increases encumbrance. 
    • Feet: Boots provide the major keywords for mobility- or defense-related Utilities, and can be enchanted to gain an additional bonus effect when using those Utilities.
    • Hands: Gloves provide the major keywords for attack or healing-related Utilities, and can be enchanted to gain an additional bonus effect when using those Utilities.

    • Consumables: Consumables must be slotted to be used and you can only have two slotted at a time, though you can have a stack of each to draw from. Most consumables are things like healing potions, scrolls, etc. Some consumables are not used during combat and instead give long-term buffs when consumed. Items that train recipes and Expendables are also consumables, and are destroyed when you learn the knowledge contained within.

    Azlanti Stones: Special event and subscription based items that give you a small buff, eventually you can combine them to make better versions.

     

     
    Combat [CMBT15]
     
    Any time you take damage or make an attack, you enter combat. Your Character HUD appears as soon 
    as you enter combat. 
     
    To target a character, click the target with the mouse or use the Tab key to cycle through all available targets. Once you have a character targeted, you can use keys 1-6 to activate your attacks while Alt + 1-6 will activate your Expendables (on your implement). 
     
    While in combat, you must manage your stamina and power in order to keep using your abilities. If you run out of stamina you will have to wait until it regenerates, but if you run out of power you will likely be out of power for the rest of combat. 
     
    Most attacks and expendables have a cooldown timer, represented by a translucent overlay on the icon that disappears when the cool down is over. While the cooldown is in process, that feat cannot be used. Some expendables are only usable once per combat; once they are used you must wait for the combat to end before they become available again even if you have the power to use them.
     
    Certain weapons (e.g., bows, staves, wands, and foci) will require ammunition, which is supplied by an off-hand container like a quiver or a charge gem. If you run out of ammunition, you cannot get more until the end of combat without using special feats. The Inventory, Gear, and Feat windows cannot be accessed while in combat. 
     
    If you are reduced to 0 hit points, you begin bleeding out and fall helplessly to the ground. You take 10 hit points of damage per second while bleeding out, and, if you reach -100, you die. If you take damage while bleeding out, this damage is counted towards reaching -100. While bleeding out, normal healing spells will still affect you, and if they bring you back above 0 HP, you are able to begin acting again. 
     
    If you attack one NPC in a group, they will all respond and attack you. Be careful of drawing more attention than you want if you are wearing little armor.

     

     

     

    Loot [LOOT16]
     
    If you defeat an NPC in combat, you are automatically rewarded with coins and any specific items (like recipes) the creature has. Any items are automatically transferred to your inventory on creature death. (Eventually, you will have to click to loot non-Spoil items and Spoils will be event distributed to all killers.)
     

    You will primarily get minor consumables (tokens), recipes, expendable training items, and crafting components as loot. 


     

    Reputation and PvP [REP17]
     
    Reputation is a measure of how much unsanctioned PvP you have taken part in. Unsanctioned PvP is any PvP combat outside of wars, feuds, defending yourself from attack, or combat in areas that have been declared free-for-all PvP zones. If you attack a player once outside of these conditions, you will receive a temporary attacker flag that makes you a free kill to anyone for one minute, but if you do not attack the target again within that minute the flag goes away. If you do attack the target again inside that minute, you get the full attacker flag, which lasts for several minutes after combat ends and allows anyone to kill you without penalty. 
     

    Also, if you get the full attacker flag, you lose Reputation. You lose more Reputation the higher your target’s Reputation, the lower his or her power level (based on total ability scores), and the higher your own power level. If your Reputation drops too far, guards will attack you in town and you will be unable to use trainers or crafting facilities.


     

    Escalation Guide [ESC18]

    The River Kingdoms are home to a variety of monsters and predators, most having few plans beyond their next victim/meal. However, larger threats regularly pop up in the Monster Hexes, filling them with their own forces and expanding to neighboring hexes unless players work together to take them down. These are called Escalations, and when left alone they tend to grow in strength and size, spawning more and more creatures, as well as more powerful ones, to fill the growing number of hexes they control.
     

    Meet the Enemy

    There are currently 16 Escalations appearing regularly in the Echo Woods area:

    • Standard Escalations
      • Bonedancers: The Bonedancers, a tribe of goblins with an unhealthy interest in necromancy, are out looking for dead bodies, and creating some new ones. Their Home Hex is two hexes northeast of Blackfeather Keep.
      • Broken Men: The Broken Men, Crusaders returned from the Worldwound broken in both body and spirit, have armed themselves and are attacking the local Riverfolk. Their Home Hex is two hexes northeast of Iron Gauntlet.
      • Goblin Ghouls: The Gutglut Goblins, devoted followers of Venkelvore, found a new way to maintain their sacred hunger after death: ghoul fever.
      • Moloch Cultists: Lord Brevain Talmont is carving out a new river kingdom with the aid of hellounds provided by the arch-devil. Their Home Hex is two hexes east of Stoneroot Glade.
      • Mordant Spire: Theresiel and her army of Mordant Spire “researchers” are seeking a powerful network of sensor artifacts left behind by Nhur Athemon.
      • Nature's Wrath: Wolves and other natural creatures have begun attacking in large, organized groups, some led by hunters and other wilderness folk. Their Home Hex is two hexes southeast of Freevale.
      • Razmiran Cultists: Agents of Razmir invite the Riverfolk to worship their Living God, or to meet their own gods sooner than they’d planned. Their Home Hex is three hexes southwest of Ossian’s Crossing.
      • Ripping Chains: The Ripping Chains, a savage tribe of goblins known for hanging their victims on hooked chains, are raiding the area for supplies and killing anyone they come across.
      • Skeletal Uprising: An unknown force is raising armies of skeletons from the ground. Their Home Hex is two hexes northwest of RiverBank.
      • Skull-Basher Ogres: The Skull-Basher ogres and their goblin allies are seeking victims for their next “Bone Boil.” Their Home Hex is two hexes northwest of Alderwag.
      • Undying Ogg: Ogg the Undying, the only ogre ever brought back by a Pharasma shrine, believes that taking control of all the shrines will grant his entire clan immortality. Their Home Hex is four hexes southeast of Keeper’s Pass.
      • Ustalav Invaders: Tairina Olislova, a landless noblewoman from Ustalav, is sending in troops to claim new lands for herself. Their Home Hex is two hexes north of Rotter’s Hole.
    • Mini-Escalations
      • Bandit Raid: The Black Snake Gang believes strongly in the Six River Freedoms, particularly the part saying You Have What You Hold.
      • Float Any River: The River Shepherds, a misguided cult of Hanspur worshippers, seeks his help against Pharasma’s interference with the natural flow of life and death.
      • Goblin Raid: The Charred Fang goblin tribe is out in force, stealing and eating anything that isn’t nailed down.
      • Mercenary Raid: The Stone Claw Company is doing a little light raiding between mercenary contracts.
    It Begins

    Escalations start in Monster Hexes, indicated by a lion icon on the map. When an Escalation has taken over the current hex, an Escalation icon appears to the upper-left of the mini-map. Hover the cursor over that icon to see which Escalation is running and what its status is in that hex. This Source Hex for the Escalation generally starts out at a relatively low percentage of its maximum strength, then grows in strength over time if left alone (the Escalation icon transitions from gray to blue to yellow to red as the strength increases). The exceptions are the Mini-Escalations, which start at their maximum strength and lose strength slowly over time. Escalations can increase in difficulty as their strength rises (launching tougher mobs, larger encounters, and more challenging events) and become easier as their strength drops, though many (particularly the Mini-Escalations) remain at a constant difficulty level regardless of strength.
     

    Once an Escalation starts, its forces quickly overtake the hex, spawning random Encounters where its forces have set up camps, attacked locals, or done other generally bad things. The simplest way to weaken the Escalation is to kill the mobs at these encounters, and there are always more mobs to kill. The tougher the mob, the more points of Escalation Strength it’s worth.
     

    The Escalation also begins running Events, offering opportunities to thwart the Escalation’s plans or to exploit a temporary weakness. For example, the Gutglut goblins may have captured some Brambleclaw prisoners that the player can rescue, or the Skull-Basher ogres may have sent some of their worker members out alone and undefended to prove themselves.
     

    Any Events that are running in the current hex are listed in the Tracker at the upper-right of the screen, along with information about how close the Event is to being completed and what to do next to help complete it. Hover over the Event text to see a more descriptive explanation of what to do next. When the instructions call for interacting with a person or object (recover supplies, talk to a priest), this is done by right-clicking on the requested target when you locate it in-game. At that point a message will appear over the target and the Tracker will either update the counter for the current task or move on to the next instruction.
     

    Completing Events is usually the most effective way to weaken Escalations. Events are completed by following the Event instructions in the Tracker until all of the Event counters are met. That could mean recovering 15 bags of supplies from the Ripping Chains goblins, freeing 20 prisoners from the Skull-Basher Ogres, or killing 50 Mordant Spire Stormcallers. In most cases, these tasks must be completed within a certain period of time, or else the Event will end and the Escalation will actually be strengthened a bit (the timer is not currently displayed anywhere, something we hope to get fixed soon). When an Event is completed, a message appears in the Chat window for any players in the hex, and the Event disappears from the Tracker.
     

    While Events are running, any nearby Event encounters are shown on the mini-map with a white circled-cross icon. That’s where specific mobs that need to be killed (arsonists, leaders, scouts) or things that need to be interacted with (supplies to recover, prisoners to free, people to speak with) can be found. Hover over the icon to see what can be found at that encounter. If it’s taking a while to find Event encounters, it’s important to also regularly kill off some random encounters of varying sizes. That makes room for the Event encounters to appear.

    Soon, the Escalation begins spreading to neighboring hexes. Every hour, it looks at its unoccupied/unprotected neighbors and sends a small percentage of its strength to a random selection of them. When enough strength builds up in a hex, it too becomes Infected by the Escalation. At that point, the hex fills with the Escalation’s forces and Events start running there. The Infected hex has its own strength value, so killing mobs and completing Events in that hex affects the strength value for that hex only. This also means that Event progress is tracked separately in each hex. It can be confusing to cross a hex border between two hexes running the same Event and see the Event counter suddenly change, but it just means that the Tracker has switched over to showing the Event progress in the hex that was just entered.

    The newly Infected hex also begins spreading the Escalation to its own neighbors just like a Source Hex, allowing Escalations to take over large portions of the map if left unchecked. Escalation Hexes (both Infected and Source) also reinforce the strength of any allied neighboring hexes, and attack the strength of any competing ones. Every hour, they look at their neighbors and send a percentage of their own strength to any hex controlled by the same Escalation Source. If neighboring hexes are controlled by an entirely different Escalation, they send the same percentage of their own strength there, lowering the competing Escalation’s strength in that hex. If the neighboring hex is controlled by a different Source hex running the same Escalation, then they ignore each other.
     

    The Thrill of Victory

    Booting an Escalation from an Infected Hex is as simple as lowering its strength in that hex to zero. As soon as that happens, Events will stop running and new Escalation mobs will stop appearing in the hex. Any remaining Escalation mobs will sneak out when nobody’s looking. This defeat doesn’t have an immediate effect on the rest of the Escalation, but the defeated hex will no longer reinforce its neighbors. Because of this, steadily removing Infected Hexes from an Escalation is an effective way of whittling down the overall power of an Escalation.

    However, truly destroying an Escalation requires defeating the Source hex, which is a tiny bit more complex. The first step is to lower the strength of the Source hex below 500. At that point, a Win Boss Encounter will appear as soon as it finds an open space. If the Boss is killed before the strength rises back above 500, then the Escalation is defeated. As with an Infected Hex, Events and mobs will stop spawning and remaining mobs will soon exit. The eventual plan is for Settlement-level rewards to be given out when Escalations are fully defeated, but for now the rewards are just the good loot the Win Boss drops, and the 12-36 hours that the hex will be free from Escalations before a new one is chosen.
     

    In addition, all of the Escalation’s Infected hexes become Orphaned and stop spreading, running Events or reinforcing each other. These Orphaned Hexes can be claimed by other neighboring hexes of the same Escalation that are controlled by other Source Hexes, so it’s a good idea to clear them out before that happens. However, since they lack any sources of new strength, reducing them to zero strength is only a matter of time.
     

    The Agony of Defeat     

    Other than the Mini-Escalations, all the Escalations also have Fail Bosses who appear when the Source hex strength goes above a specified number (usually somewhere between 80% and 99% of the Maximum Strength for the Escalation). If the Fail Boss doesn’t have a timer associated with it, then it’s just an extra-challenging opponent looking to kill players until it is defeated or the strength drops back below its appearance threshold.

     

    However, if the Fail Boss has a timer (again, sadly, not currently displayed in the UI), then failing to defeat the Boss before it runs out results in the Escalation ending, but with the players defeated. There isn’t currently any penalty associated with that defeat, other than losing out on the loot from defeating the Win Boss, but this will eventually become a much bigger deal. Currently, the only Fail Bosses with timers are the Mordant Spire elves (who return to the Mordant Spire once they’ve found the sensors they’re seeking) and the Skull-Basher ogres (who declare victory once their massive cooking pot is full).

     

    Home Is Where You Wear Your Hat

    Home Hexes, indicated by a castle icon on the map, are related to Escalations, but are currently much simpler. Eventually we plan to run special, permanent Escalations inside these hexes, but for now they do not spread to neighboring hexes, run Events, have a strength rating, or do any of the complicated processes done by Escalations. They are simply restricted to spawning mobs from the same list of enemies as their related Escalations. As such, they are dependable places to go when players want to kill specific types of monsters, and in fact there are quests available at the NPC settlements offering rewards for doing so.
     

    Put Me In, Coach!

    The most efficient way to battle Escalations involves a succession of appropriately-leveled parties operating over the course of hours or days, steadily killing mobs and clearing Events. Send too many people, or too highly powered people, and the mobs aren't regenerating fast enough to fully take advantage of such a powerful attack. Send too few, or underpowered characters, and the natural growth of the escalation counterbalances the damage being done to it. A simple way to judge whether a party is appropriately-leveled is whether the tougher encounters are challenging players to fight well, but not forcing them to use time-consuming tactics like kiting mobs one by one.

    One appropriately-leveled party operating for 2-3 hours should always be able to do significant damage to an escalation, but should only expect to completely defeat it if it’s already fairly weak.
     

    It’s So Simple

    That’s kind of true. Escalations start in Monster Hexes, they get stronger and spread to more hexes, and players can weaken and destroy them by killing mobs and completing Events. Players should focus on Escalations they’re tough enough to handle and that are tough enough to provide a reasonable challenge. Knowing those things, and where to look for the Escalation info in the UI, is enough for most players to get started tackling escalations.
     

    However, the explanation given so far glosses over a lot of details. Most of those details don’t really affect overall strategies for battling Escalations, but there are edge cases where they become important, or where understanding the details can at least explain some non-obvious results.
     

    Like Clockwork

    Every hour on the hour, the servers update the Escalations in the following ways:

    • Launch new Escalations.
    • Apply the hourly strength increase/decrease to Source Hexes.
    • Attempt to take over empty neighboring hexes.
    • Attack competing neighboring hexes.
    • Reinforce neighboring hexes.
    • Claim Orphaned Hexes.

    Other updates, such as launching Events, spawning Encounters, and updating strength after mob kills, are handled on a much more dynamic basis, but there are often slight delays before these updates show up in the UI. For example, the strength reduction after completing an Event may not show up on the Escalation icon for 15 or more seconds after the Event is completed.
     

    It’s Just a Phase

    As said before, some Escalations change in difficulty as their strength rises and falls. Technically, this is accomplished by having the Escalation move through a series of Phases based on the current strength. Just like strength, the Phase is tracked individually for each hex. For example, a hex could be in Phase 1 if the strength is between zero and 1000, then Phase 2 from 1000 to 2000, and finally Phase 3 if it’s between 2000 and 4000. The top number for the highest Phase is equal to the Escalation’s Maximum Strength.

    Each Phase has its own unique name and descriptive text, shown when hovering over the Escalation icon. They also each have unique lists of Encounters to spawn, mobs to populate those Encounters with, and Events to run. In addition, each Event list is split between the Events to run in Source Hexes and the ones to run in Infected Hexes.
     

    Typical Multi-Phase Escalations start out in Phase 2 (think of it as the initial invasion), giving themselves one regrouping/collapsing Phase to fall back to, room for one or more ramping-up Phases, and a final completely-in-control Phase.
     

    Some Escalations, particularly the Mini-Escalations, have only one Phase, so they use the same Encounter, mob and Event lists regardless of their strength.
     

    Can’t Touch This

    Most of the hexes can be taken over by Escalations, but certain types are safe from infection. While Monster Hexes are potential Source Hexes, they cannot be infected by an Escalation with a different Source. NPC hexes such as those surrounding Starter Towns or those containing the main roads (which should be thought of as being regularly patrolled by NPC guards, and hopefully eventually will be) are also safe, as are Settlement Sites and Home Hexes.
     

    Miles to Go

    As stated above, Escalation Events are tracked per hex, so the overall progress counters can be different between two instances of the same Event that are running in different hexes. Freeing a  prisoner in Hex A increases the counter in Hex A, freeing one in Hex B increases the counter in Hex B. While 15 prisoners may have been freed in Hex A, only 25 prisoners may have been freed in Hex B. Most importantly, every player in Hex A sees a count of 15 prisoners while in Hex A, and a count of 25 prisoners while in Hex B.
     

    This works pretty straight-forwardly for simple events, but there is a slight complication for the more complicated events, such as those where players need to talk to an NPC before or after doing a limited portion of the Event. For example, Shallow Graves requires purifying a total of 30 graves, but players need to talk to a Priestess of Gorum first to get just enough supplies to purify 5 graves, and then need to return to the Priestess each time 5 graves are purified.
     

    Progress on this aspect of the Event is tracked per player. While tackling Events in Hex A, Player X may see the instruction to speak to a Priestess, while player Y may see the instruction to purify graves, with a counter showing 2 of 5. If Player Y crosses from Hex A to Hex B, the instructions will not change. If Player Y then purifies a grave in Hex B, the overall counter for Hex B will go up by 1, ignoring the fact that the purification supplies came from Hex A. Player Y’s personal counter for purified graves will also go up to 3/5. Player Y can cross back and forth, with credit for purifying graves always going to whichever hex the grave is in, ignoring which hex the purification supplies were obtained in.
     

    That’s not so weird, but some Events reverse the order, requiring players to perform multiple actions before speaking to an NPC. For example, Empty Crowns requires that 40 Skull Piles be brought to a Priest of Gorum. However, players can only pick up 4 Skull Piles each before turning them in. Each time 4 Skull Piles are brought to a Priest, the overall counter for the hex goes up by 4. This means that if Player X picks up 2 Skull Piles in Hex A, then 2 more in Hex B, and finally turns them all in to a Priest in Hex C, the counter for Hex C goes up by 4. Hexes A and B receive no credit, because the important thing is where the Skull Piles were turned in.
     

    This personal progress is also tracked long after the Event itself is completed or times out. For example, if Player X picks up 2 Skull Piles, then the Event is completed by other players before those Skull Piles could be turned in, Player X could find herself in another hex months later that’s running the same Event and start out showing that 2 Skull Piles have already been picked up.
     

    This Time You’ve Gone Too Far

    Each Escalation has its own Maximum Hexes setting, limiting its ability to spread. This number for each Escalation is based on a mix of story-based reasons (the Skull-Basher ogres just want to take over enough hexes to find victims for their next big meal, while the Ripping Chains goblins are seeking to establish a new kingdom and want lots of land) and game-balance reasons (the Mordant Spire elves are too tough for most of the player base right now, so they’re limited to 3 hexes temporarily).
     

    As soon as a Source Hex controls its maximum number of hexes (including the Source Hex and all Infected Hexes), it will stop doing all of the following until it loses a hex:

    • Attempting to take over neighboring hexes, whether uninfected or infected by a competing Escalation.
    • Reinforcing allied hexes (this is actually a low-priority bug, so it will probably change in the future.
    • Claiming Orphaned Hexes.
    • Taking control of neighboring hexes that are in the process of becoming Infected, even if those hexes have somehow risen above the Infection Threshold. This can happen if two or more hexes rise above the Infection Threshold at the same time, but there’s not enough room to take control of all of them without going over the Maximum Hexes setting.
    Its Own Reward

    There are some incentives provided for battling Escalations, some explicitly given by the Escalation and others just a natural byproduct of killing mobs:

    • Achievements are granted for participating in Events. There are currently some bugs in cases where multiple Achievements should be granted and for events that involve killing mobs, but tackling Interaction Events will grant Achievements that aren’t available elsewhere.
    • Destroying an Escalation blocks new ones from starting in the same hex for a while, generally making gathering in the resource-rich Monster Hex much easier for that time. New Escalations are blocked for 12 hours when a Mini-Escalation is destroyed and 36 hours for all other Escalations.
    • The tougher Escalations offer better loot drops than can be found in any of the uninfected hexes, since the toughest mobs never appear in any of the default terrain Encounters.
    • Keeping the Escalations near a Settlement under control makes life a lot easier for that Settlement’s gatherers and lower-level members.

    Long-run, there are plans to provide more incentives, such as giving out Settlement-level rewards for defeating an Escalation, but many of those can’t go in until the systems they interact with are available.
     

    That’s All, Folks Okay, that’s probably not everything, but that’s the bulk of what’s going on with Escalations and should cover most of the issues that have been raised in chat and on the forums. Keep the questions coming, I’ll keep trying to answer them.  

     

     

    Keys Commands [KEYC20]

    2pgeo.jpg

     

     


    This guide is an amalgamation of the GW User Manuel, Decius and Nihimon's spread sheets, Dazyk's Quick References, Scarlette's Recipes, Urman's Map, Dev Posts, and my own research and compilation. Thank you to everyone that helped compile data.

    Edited by Cheatle
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    Fantastic read. I found it interesting in their charts they chose 'personality' over 'charisma'. Thanks for compiling this here for us Cheatle.

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    Added: 

    Cleric Domains and Gods available from start. 

    Leveling information, Experience Cost, and Achievement guides. 

    Quick Start Guide.

    Edited by Cheatle
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    • 2 weeks later...

    Much further down your to-do list: Achievements section is obsolete as it was written before Subterfuge achievement was in.

    Rogues need subterfuge, harvesters need adventuring (not crafting).  But low priority since new players won't even need any achievements until they've managed to find trainers, buy skills etc.

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    • 3 weeks later...

    Added: 

    Helpful Links
    Quick Start Guide
    - Races
    - Trainers 
    - Attributes and Feats/Skills
    - Where to spend your first 1,000 experience
    - What you should next
    - Achievements
    - Gathering 
    - Refining/Crafting
    - Combat Gathering
    World Map
    Thornkeep Map
    Update UI Guide

    - Control Bar Update
    - Paper Doll Update
    - Achievements Update
    - Quest Log Update 

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    wait, so we can only gain fighter levels by leveling heavy weapon stuff, Jeepers, I'm going to be an archer and this means that the xp i spend into the archer feats won't count for levels, or do they and this is just one of multiple paths that can be used to gain levels as a fighter

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    oh good, was worried for a bit there, thanks, also, where can i find out more about the trophy implements, i have no idea what they do and i looked through a lot of articles to find out what, but i couldn't find any good description, they just talk about changes to it or how much xp it costs or how important it is, not what it actually is.

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    wait, so we can only gain fighter levels by leveling heavy weapon stuff, Jeepers, I'm going to be an archer and this means that the xp i spend into the archer feats won't count for levels, or do they and this is just one of multiple paths that can be used to gain levels as a fighter

    No, Dexterity works now. I am a level 4 fighter, and I have no heavy weapon skills trained.

    Looking at the Fighter Level chart

    You do need the trophy charm proficiency, the fortitude bonus, hit points, power and base attack bonus.

    You can use Bow, Light melee or Heavy melee specialization,

    You can use Ranged, Light melee or Heavy melee attack bonus,

    you can use Unbreakable or Archer or Dragoon for your armor feat.

     

    ps

    You can get martial achieves from all the fighter weapons without spending exp on them, if you fight wimpy foes.

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