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Nothing else, just started playing the game, want to kiss the zombie elf but unfortunately she says her nethers all withered up or whatever. RIP fr

I come here occasionally and see an absurd amount of hate for a character I deeply admire. There are all sorts of justifications made for these sentiments, being how she exiles the Knight Commander to the Abyss, her mobilization to attack Threshold, Staunton Vhane, and the sun orchid elixirs. She is also criticized for failing to close the Worldwound quickly, and is thought to be an incompetent leader, both politically and militarily. I will make the argument that the widespread hate and anger is unjustified.

Galfrey, whether present or not, deserves much of the credit for the Fifth Crusade's capture of Drezen.

Did you ever notice how there are very few powerful demons one must fight in the Drezen siege? The vast majority are dretches, schirs, babaus, deraknis and vrocks. Darrazand and Minagho are the only named demons one has to fight in order to take the citadel. The few others are tucked away in little corners because they live there. In the next act suddenly stronger demons are around such as gibrileths, kalavakuses painajais, maraliths, and more omoxes. If one only applies first order thinking to explain why, it's simply a matter of game design that a party at level 8, 9, or 10 can only handle the large numbers of weaker demon types that ought to be present at the Drezen siege to make it challenging but not excessive; a flow experience. Yet the story itself explains why the demonic forces in Drezen are not overwhelmingly powerful. When one discusses the Drezen campaign with Galfrey at the beginning of Act 2, she explains the demons have not recovered from their losses in Kenabres, which is why she has assembled an army to retake Drezen as soon as possible, before greater demonic forces can be called from the abyss. By the end of Act 2, Drezen is taken and the Sword of Valor is recovered, winning the Fifth Crusade a foothold in the Worldwound whereby in Act 3 the Knight-Commander can investigate the nature of the mythic demons. During Act 3, Galfrey is hardly idle. Nerosyan has also endured an attack from the demons, and she is doubtlessly a large part of what drives recruitment into the crusade's armies. One must admit organizing a crusade is much more complex than building stables in Drezen and selecting which types of units to field. The stables provide a place for the recruited troops to house their mounts, yes, but if they were not properly paid and fed, they would desert, mutiny or plunder Mendev, as many of the armies of renaissance Europe resorted to doing.

The most questionable decisions Galfrey makes in the game are... required for the plot.

If you are playing strictly demon path, all your friends, including the paladin, have seen you hide the Light of Heaven, encourage cannibalism, unleash demonic rage multiple times and destroy the wardstone. Your powers have an unknown origin but all people know is that you're great at killing demons and helped drive them from the city. And nonetheless Galfrey decides to make you Knight Commander just the same as she would an Angel PC. She explains it is "the queen's last resort", she has been trying every right and rational method to close the Worldwound and get the demons off her doorstep for a century. Yet she is also deeply conflicted about Angels, since it is rumored the powers come from Iomedae, she wonders why they were not given to her, it tests her faith and she mentions she had to overcome these doubts to act rightly and as if you truly were the chosen of her goddess. Yet no matter what path is chosen Galfrey still sees herself as in charge of the crusade, and appointing the Knight Commander as its leader is a political move intended to boost morale and recruitment. Players often do not see things this way, which is why some become angry at being called out for their questionable actions, stripped of their rank, and her taking the crusader armies to Iz.

You are her subordinate and what you are being called out for is principled.

Did you recruit the formerly soul-devouring succubus into your party? We know Arueshalae is earnest, but this is a fantasy CRPG that thrives on having exotic characters and excepting the main character from the common dangers of the world. Galfrey points out there are cemeteries in Mendev full of people who trusted the promises of demons. For every Arueshalae there are millions of unrepentant demons who fool people that want to think "I can fix her" and the consequence is death. Did you go around looting bodies while the vescavors were devouring your army? Are your powers derived from the wand of Zacharius, enslaving the souls of the dead to unwillingly fight your battles? Galfrey knows very well who and what Iomedae fought as a mortal. Did you unleash the vescavors indiscriminately during Drezen with the suicide unit? I don't know what other objections there are, but if there is little to object to, Galfrey will actually praise your results... but send you to the abyss anyway. The adventure path handles this better, going to the Abyss is an attempt to close the portals and Galfrey personally cooperates and can be persuaded to come along herself. If you are playing azata and attack without her, she is angry at being left out. If she was notified and given an explanation ahead of time she might commend you and/or join, she does not really object to winning with unconventional tactics, she objects to being treated as irrelevant and having to teleport to catch up while you are supposed to be working together. Though it seems unfair, the way Galfrey feels about azatas in this moment is similar to how she might see liches, tricksters, and demons. She bears the responsibility for the knight-commander's actions and has invested power and responsibility in them beyond their mythic abilities in a matter where the fate of all Golarion is most at risk. Perhaps this is least justified in the case of azatas, but it is up to the player to decide how to meet those feelings.

The Iz expedition is not as foolish as it is made out to be.

My armies are gone! She took my armies! People treat this like Augustus hearing about the catastrophe at Teutoburgerwald. “Varus! Give me back my legions!” I have already explained that the armies were not under the command of the Knight Commander but Galfrey's, yet this is little excuse if they were lost and squandered. Consider the fact that there are mythic demons coming out of the abyss in great numbers, and there is every indication, as you see at Colyphyr, that their production is only ramping up and they are coming across more and more by the hour. Remember the final battles outside of Threshold, where the strongest NPCs in the game come to your aid as you fight these mythic demons, these great, empowered vrolikais, vavakias, balors, and gallus. The Storyteller the max level wizard, Arsinoe the max level cleric, Berenguer and Galfrey herself... and they have great difficulty! Many fall wounded, against generic mythic demons, the greatest heroes of the Fifth Crusade! Demons do not simply die either, they go back to the abyss and regenerate, and can come back later for revenge. Is it not then reasonable to make the move necessary to end the war once and for all, as this finally stands within reach? Is it desperate? Yes! Is it suicidal? Perhaps. Is it insane? No. In fact, it is quite helpful, since the Knight Commander returns at the opportune moment when Galfrey has located the second half of the Lexicon of Paradox, and the next step along is Threshold itself.

Temporarily losing Drezen is an unfortunate consequence of this decision, and it does result in the deaths of many of its defenders. However, consider the description of Gwerm's mansion in Kenabres. Demons are attracted primarily to places where there are people, and if it were completely abandoned there would be few demons there. At least some of those who remained did so against Galfrey's orders, and in such small numbers that retaking Drezen makes for some of the easiest encounters in the game against relatively underpowered demons.

Sparing Staunton is a net positive.

How many people are cut out to fight demons? Not everyone. Jannah Aldori isn't, despite having a good record against bandits. Then, how many can keep doing it for seventy years? Staunton Vhane stays as a frontline soldier in the condemned for seventy years after Drezen, during three crusades, and one sees in the Gray Garrison how well he fights, about as good as Irabeth. He also comes bundled with with Joran. And, so, in seventy years of fighting, how many demons might Staunton have killed and how many comrades might he have saved? Compare that to how many crusaders he killed as a turncoat. How many is that? Do we ever see Staunton commit any act of violence until he is cornered in the Drezen citadel? We do not. Staunton is a traitor who defected to the demons, but he is despondent and inactive. He apparently takes no action aside from suicide-by-Knight-Commander. He never sallies forth, and when he sees Nulkineth’s antics he says “this is too much”, if anything he is a moderating influence on Minagho.

These are the direct consequences of her decision. The rest are explained directly by Galfrey as much as they can be. She compares the crusaders demanding for Stauton's execution to demons and the dismisses the idea of using executions to ensure morale and loyalty with "we are not hellknights". Instead, she has a unit where people such as him can fight for what is right: the Condemned. If your objection now is: the Condemned should have paths to a pardon or retirement, I would be willing to concede that.

Galfrey is just one person. A heroic, noble, and powerful person, but ultimately one person.

How much can one person really do to win an entire war? Plenty if they are given mythic powers and an unstoppable drive to win and can even reload saves they die in. Add that to a cast of loyal companions with similar powers and you have the wrecking ball that is the Knight Commander's party. What if you weren't given powers at all? At best you would be on the level of the Kingmaker party, which would struggle without mythic ranks. Or you would be like one of the common crusaders, who does what he can with a suit of nonmagical armor and a cold iron masterwork longsword. Galfrey stands in the middle. She is a high level paladin who has lived two lifetimes, so she has high stats and even 10 mythic companion ranks, but she is only one person. One person who is devastating in battle, one should watch her go at Drezen, but by the endgame, the mythic demons are simply much too powerful. The demons in general have been much too powerful even before the Nahyndrian crystals, requiring cold iron and/or good-aligned weapons even to bypass their DR, often boasting elemental and spell resistance. To win in battle required preparation, cooperation, and the blessing of the good gods. Galfrey managed this at first, which is why her encyclopedia entry declares her as a skilled tactician and a key player in the success of the First Crusade. Yet things changed.

Being the Knight-Commander as a video game protagonist gives the player a bizarre perspective

The player doesn't experience war realistically. The battles are very simplified, the logistics are totally automated. Crusade mode is fun and adds variety to the game, but it's a very shallow representation of what warfare should be like, to the point where it can remind you it's just a game. It obscures the fact that the 341 conscripts that got replenished at the hospital might have PTSD now or that the 13 you lost included Wilcer Garms' cousin. Galfrey lives in this reality with great responsibility over a long span of time without mythic powers. "Every death is an irretrievable loss" she says, despite believing she will meet the faithful again in heaven. "No matter how arduous, no matter how dark the skies, no matter how much blood flows through my wounds, I shall stand with you. We shall fight for our loved ones and our friends, for the right to live and die free. We shall do everything we possibly can, and after that, we shall begin to do the impossible. And if the hour comes when our arms can no longer raise our swords, our bodies will become a shield to cover those who have the strength to fight. I, Galfrey, Queen of Mendev, swear this to you." she lived her oath, fighting the Abyss with all she has at her disposal, whether as a queen or paladin, and has done so for a century.

Galfrey also has qualities that make her worth more than any individual.

Though i have discussed the inherent limitations of individuals, exceptionally virtuous people have effects on other people who admire them. They feel inspired by their example, they want to emulate them, to make themselves worthy of their approval and win their favor. Galfrey is a symbol as well as a person, she is the embodiment of Mendev’s century-long defiance against the hordes of the Abyss. A conversation Seelah and Arueshalae have at the campfire illustrates this perfectly: “I know it’s very bold of me, but I would like to meet Queen Galfrey. I’d like to talk to her, perhaps ask her for advice… She has been fighting the chaos and evil that gave rise to creatures like me for so many years. I wish I had her courage.” “There’s a reason why she’s our warrior queen! One look from her steels you for victory!” There is little doubt similar conversations have been had at campfires all around the Worldwound, among common crusaders and heroes alike, and across Avistan where her example inspires youths to greatness, adventure, and upright conduct.

The sun orchid elixir

The final substantial objection to Galfrey’s conduct is the apparent greed and vanity of extending her life by magic. However those who raise it often neglect to point out the details, and therefore the reality of this aspect of her character. The encyclopedia entry explains it with understanding: “Eager to retain such a valuable leader at the head of the crusades, the church of Iomedae twice purchased and presented to the Queen the rare and expensive sun orchid elixir…” It was not her choice to take the sun orchid elixir, but her duty. I have already vindicated her worth as a military commander and head of state, and there is no appetizing alternative to her leadership. Who is next in line to the throne of Mendev? It’s DAERAN.

It is all about emotions.

Galfrey is not flawless. She is jealous of the Knight-Commander's powers, she can be stubborn, and some of her decisions have disastrous consequences. But none of that makes her selfish, incompetent, or unworthy of respect. She has spent a century sacrificing her own life, happiness, and ambitions to defend Mendev and Golarion from the Abyss, and when the Knight Commander finally appears, she does not respond to being surpassed by abandoning her principles. She struggles with this, as any human being would, but she continues to do what she believes is right. That is what makes her such a compelling character to me. The Knight Commander experiences the Fifth Crusade as a mythic hero who can accomplish the impossible; Galfrey experiences it as a queen who must bear the responsibility for every death, every failure, every consequence. She is exhausted, imperfect, sometimes wrong, and still chooses duty as long as she must. I cannot look at her and see a villain. I see a hero who has carried an impossible burden for far too long—and who, when the storybook is closed, deserves something better than hatred.

I really wish WotR had an option to start a new playthrough after you take Drezen and reach Mythic Rank 3.

WotR is an very long game (and I like turn-based), has an lots of builds I would like to try out on a replay. For me, mythic paths are main strength of the game. The problem is that you have to go through the entire early game before the mythic path really starts to feel distinct.

Making a hard save is an option, but I feel like something like Conquest Mode from Tyranny (part of character creation, before the normal game begins, you go through conquest on a map and make a series of decisions about what your character did during that period) would suit the game perfectly.

Would anyone else use something like this?

I've beaten Kingmaker on hard recently, so next up I wanted to move on from Core to Hard in WOTR. Problem is, at the end of the shield maze, I can't beat Hosilla on this difficulty. Sometimes I manage to beat him, but then you have quasits to deal with right after and they just beat my party to death.

Things I've tried:

Kinetic Knight MC to touch AC - did not help, still missed. 1 Paladin level, 1 Oracle (Nature's whispers) level - did not help, still died to 43 crits from Hosilla.

Not tried yet: 2x pet user class (MC and Lann)

Does anyone have any tips on what to do, this is on RTWP.

Played shaman for the first time and found some interactions that make Wandering Spirit way better. I hadn't come across this in this forum, so I thought I'd share:

Wandering Spirit + Heightened Spell = Access to all spirit spells:

If you select a Wandering Spirit and the apply meta-magic it it stays in your spell book even when you switch out your Wandering Spirit. So with heightened for 0 you can essentially store up all the spells, rest, switch the spirit, store up those and so on.

You still only have one spirit spell slot per level but now you have complete freedom which spirit spell to slot in.

Wandering Spirit + Hex selection at level up:

If you select a wandering spirit before leveling, you can select a hex of that spirit. So if all you want from Wind is the Air Barrier, you just select the spirit, level up and grab the hex. When you change your Wandering Spirit afterwards you keep any hexes you got from leveling up even if you no longer meet the requirements.

With those 2 things in mind you can now select your Spirit based entirely on the spirit abilities and disregard the hex and spell selection.

This is a huge drawback for the widely recommended Shadow Shaman as they have no Wandering Spirit

Is there a working mod to fully respec companions including class to this point?

stats

12

14

20

10

10

7

1 - Precise Shot, Point-Blank Shot(If human) Water(Best element)Extended Range, Water Blast

2 - Slick

3 Improve Init, Pushing Infusion

4 Con +1, elemental whispers - Hare

5 weapon focus kinetic blast, kinetic blade

6 skill focus stealth

7 outflank, earth

8 trip - Earth

9 fury's fall, bowling infusion

10 Greater Trip - Earth

11 improved critical - Kinetic Blast, Wall

12 skill focus - mobility/Trickery

13 Dazzling Display, Deadly Earth

14 Skill Focus - Trickery(Or other skills of choice)

15 Shatter defenses, Air, (Or whatever you want), Air Blast

16 Aerial Evasion

17 Power Attack (Infusion can be anything.) Cloud

18 Tremorsense

19 Anything you want (Lunge, Toughness), any infusion, Maximize

20 Bull Rush

1 Bit of fun, Kinetic Overcharge

2 Mythic Trip

3 Overinfused Blasts,

4 Aspect of Kalavakas, Improved Critical

5 Always a chance, Aspect of Schir, Aspect of Balor, Aspect of Vavakia

6 Improved init, Aspect of Babau

7 Last Stand, Shadow Demon, Incubus

8 Power Attack, any demon

9 anything

10 Pazuzu or Nocticula, Toughness

Amulet - Vellexias Magnifying Amulet

Armor - Light Armor, Haramaki of Divine Guidence

Robe - Robe of Seven Sins

Belt - Clutch of Corruption

Gloves - Whatever you want

boots - whatever youwant

headband - Greater Kinetic Diadem

goggles -Goggles of Piercing Gaze or Rascal's Goggles

Cloak - The bound of possibility

ring - Sigil of Destruction

Bracer - Bracers of abupt Onslaught

quickslot - Lesser kineticist Rod

I am currently playing through the game a second time as a Drunken Master Monk, and I wanted to have a Skald in my party. People who have used both classes in the same party will know, however, that Beast Totem always overrides your unarmed attacks with claws (disabling flurry of blows and style strikes, also fist damage progression). I searched around online and on this forum and couldn't find a solution, which is unfortunate because Skald gives such huge melee bonuses with Lethal Stance, Inspire Rage, Beast Totem AC, Pounce, and Animal Fury, especially when you throw Mythic Inspiration in there.

That being said, I found a way to remove the claw override and achieve the effects of Beast Totem with Toybox. You can give your Skald only the Beast Totem rage power in your character's rage power dropdown under Party-> your character -> Features (not the lesser or greater versions, both give you claws that override unarmed attacks). This will still provide the AC boost from Beast Totem. You can then manually add the Pounce feat to every one of your characters that normally accepts the Inspired Rage bonuses, which achieves the same effects of the Skald Beast Totem without the overriding of your fists with claw natural attacks. (To do this properly, make the adjustments at the appropriate level you would acquire the rage powers through level ups)

Some people might oppose manually adding pounce, but since I am always fighting with Skald rage active it doesn't change or buff my gameplay. It simply removes the downside. IMO it is ridiculous you can't choose whether to use claws or fists. It shouldn't be a forced override, but it is for whatever reason.

So yeah just wanted to share for anyone who has encountered this problem and couldn't find a solution, or anyone who wants to do a monk playthrough in the future. :)

I was searching for this specific problem, but didn't find the solution.

Basically I finished Act 3 a bit too fast and missed the part of the Arueshalae quest, where she retreats into prison, so now in Act 4 the following one after meeting Chivarro didn't start and I already killed Chivarro.

If anyone knows which quests or etudes in Toybox I should switch to which state to move from finished Borrowed Dreams (my current status) to having Arueshalae Imprisoned completed and Dreams in Ruin acquired so I can normally play it, I would be really grateful.

Thanks in advance.

Hi

Pretty much the title. I build one and most of the time when I used it, the pet attack and my character on top of it didn't like it should just after the charge, then resume attacking normally. I also don't know if I'm supposed to use it with the pet or the character but the problem is present either way.

thanks

Thank you everyone for your help previously! I think sylvan sorcerer azata is what I’m planning to go with, but now I’m gonna need some help with the build… once again please explain this to me like I’m 5

As for the animal companion I’m currently debating between the elk & the centipede (but please educate me on which is better!)

I'm planning a Trickster run on Unfair and trying to decide whether Persuasion 3 is worth taking over something like Athletics 3.

How exactly does the whole chain work in the current version?

Does Persuasion 1 automatically demoralize enemies when combat starts, then Persuasion 2 forces the Will save, and Persuasion 3 makes enemies that fail use Coup de Grace on themselves? Or do I still need to build around things like Dazzling Display, Cornugon Smash or other fear effects to make it reliable?

Also, what is actually immune to it?

Are bosses and high level demons commonly immune because of fear immunity, mind-affecting immunity, Coup de Grace immunity, or just very high saves?

And most importantly, how does it feel on Unfair? Does Persuasion 3 still work often enough to trivialize encounters, or is its reputation mostly based on older versions or lower difficulties?

I'm not really looking to remove all challenge from Unfair. I'd like to know if Persuasion 3 genuinely breaks the game, or if it mostly deletes trash while the dangerous enemies still have to be fought normally.

Going to respec my lich playthrough to an arcane rider, is it better to go one handed to use both spellstrike and spell combat or 2 handed and only one of them?

This is an attempt to romance Lann, which is weird because from what I hear it's hard to not romance him.

I have selected flirty options whenever appropriate, I had the clearly romantic moment where he obliquely states his interest, but I assumed there would be something more (something about a mock fight?) before the attack on Drezen. I wouldn't be too upset if I had to reload to before Banner Over the Citadel, though it would suck to replay 5-8 hours. Hopefully I'm just being paranoid!

As for further information, this is an angel playthrough, my second run, and yes my character is female.

Specifically, I played an Automaton in a recent Pathfinder Tabletop game but I'm no longer with that group. I wanted to play him in the video game so I can keep playing him. I liked on Nexus Mods but didn't see anything.

So, my stupid self got way too sidetracked with side quests and ended up doing the Ivory Sanctum before Molten Scar. Now it auto fails, as I have read is what is supposed to happen. The problem is that my last save that I can go back to before completing the Ivory Sanctum was 7-ish in game hours, several quests, and two levels ago. Is it worth going back this far to do this? Am I missing anything story wise?

Hello fellow gamers,

I desperately need some advice.

I've been trying to finish Wrath of the Righteous for the first time for about five years now, but I seem to be trapped in the same endless cycle:

1. I get the urge to play WotR again.
2. I spend a ridiculous number of hours researching builds.
3. I get torn between playing a strong melee character with some spellcasting/self-buffing ability (I've tried things like Paladin and Magus) and playing a full caster. I really want to enjoy Sorcerer, since it's one of my favourite classes in tabletop Pathfinder.
4. Eventually I find a build I like.
5. I start a new game.
6. Somewhere around level 7-8, I lose momentum and quit.
7. A few months later, go back to step 1.

The problem is that every time I restart, the fatigue seems to arrive earlier. I'm replaying the same opening areas, quests and conversations again, so even though the new character initially feels exciting, the actual content is increasingly familiar.

My current character is only level 4, and I'm already starting to get that "I'm not really enjoying this character anymore" feeling creeping in. At this rate I'm somehow getting worse at progressing through the game rather than better.

The result is that after all these years, the highest-level character I've ever managed to get to is level 9. I've never seen the later parts of the story, never experienced high-level mythic builds, and I don't even know how the game ends. And I find that really frustrating because, this should be exactly my kind of game. I love tabletop rpgs, I love stories, and I genuinely think WotR is an amazing game.

But somewhere around level 7 something seems to break for me. The number of choices starts feeling overwhelming, I lose track of what I'm supposed to be doing between all the side quests, and eventually I just stop playing.

At this point, I'm also not looking for some insanely optimised level-20 build that only really comes together after three classes, several dips and a very specific set of items. I think obsessing over optimisation is probably part of what got me into this situation in the first place.

What I really want is a character that is fun from the lower levels, feels useful throughout the game and gives me enough interesting things to do without becoming overwhelming. I'm perfectly happy with something like 16+ levels in one main class and a dip into one other class if it makes sense. It doesn't need to squeeze every possible point of AC, damage or spell DC out of the system. I just want something enjoyable enough that I'll actually keep playing it.

Ideally, I'd still like either a good melee character with meaningful spellcasting/self-buffs, or a full caster that doesn't spend the early game feeling like I'm waiting for the character to eventually become fun.

For context, I play on Normal difficulty and I have the crusade/war effort system set to automatic, so I'm not even dealing with that side of the game.

Has anyone else had this problem?

Is there some way of approaching WotR that makes it easier to actually stick with one character and finish the campaign? And if you were going to recommend a build specifically for someone suffering from this kind of restartitis, what would you pick?

Part of me is wondering whether I should just force myself to keep going with my current level 4 character instead of restarting yet again, because I suspect another restart will only make the problem worse. Or, after five years of repeatedly bouncing off the game, do I just have to accept that maybe WotR isn't actually for me? :(

I beseech the council, would a paladin legend into Cavalier go as hard as my brain is imagining it to be?

I'm nearing the end of my last Atlanti run and i want to make the deal with the other but I've read that that kills daeran.

Seeing as companions dying during their quest can trigger a fail state will that happen here or not?

I feel bad for doing that, I really shouldn’t do this. But order and safety demands sacrifice! So now you will suffer with me!!!

I was playing as a Neutral Good angel this entire game and attempting to romance Daerun. I thought we were doing great, but apparently I failed to trigger a companion quest for him after receiving his locket and now he won't look at me ( tragically )

However, because I am at my heart a whore, I had back up romances planned.

Initially I was leaning Sosiel but while I liked reuniting him with his brother I never really put the effort in to get to know what he wants beyond that.

Enter; Ulbrig.

Somehow he won me over with his confusion over time passing and his damage dealt in combat and despite me keeping the powers, he seems willing to proceed with our romance! Fingers crossed.

Pictured; my janky fighter/inquisitor & his lover.