Pillars of Eternity character stat question

[VarenTai]

So I'm a veteran of BG 1&2, a little IWD, and a lot of P:T. I'm looking at the new stats and I am unsure how they work in gameplay when it comes to conversations. In P:T, Wis, Int, and Cha are more valuable than Str, Dex, and Con, but it's not quite as obvious which stats in PoE are more valuable in conversation.

It seems that Might is good for intimidation interactions, but that's not typically my style. Is Int the main stat that replaces both Wis and Cha? Perception is for observing things, which seems valuable, but I'm betting that most of the stats are valuable in different conversations and since you can't max them all (without cheating), you pick a gameplay style you like.

I assume that you can't use your companions' stats for conversations, only your own. I guess I'm having trouble coming up with a class that focuses on the stats I'd like in interactions and combat both since I don't really understand how the stats work. Am I making sense?:smallsmile:

Anyhoo, any wisdom y'all might have to offer would be great!

[thirsting]

Haven't played very far yet, but Resolve seems useful in conversations. It's sort of charisma replacement, or rather improvement, as resolve represents "inner strength" better and more clearly than Cha ever did in those older games.

But really, any and all stats in PoE are useful, so you can pretty much concentrate on any of them for any class. At least almost :]

[factotum]

I'm pretty sure *all* the stats are used as optional conversation triggers at one point or another, so you might as well just concentrate on what's good for your playstyle and character build--if you get some extra conversation options from it that's just gravy. You simply won't be able to unlock every single optional conversation option in a single play-through no matter what you do, though.

[VarenTai]

I'm pretty sure *all* the stats are used as optional conversation triggers at one point or another, so you might as well just concentrate on what's good for your playstyle and character build--if you get some extra conversation options from it that's just gravy. You simply won't be able to unlock every single optional conversation option in a single play-through no matter what you do, though.

So like P:T and BG, but unlike IWD, only your main character's stats are used in conversations, even if you start the convo with one of your companions?

[thirsting]

Yep, exactly.

[Inarius]

The most used conversation stat is resolve followed by either int or strength then perception then the rest. That being said you can get by with a lower int score because int is easy to raise temporarily via inn resting bonuses in Defiance Bay, gear, and food. As for combat Int and Str are generally the most important depending on class and what kind of a build you're going for while Resolve is probably the weakest combat stat of the bunch.

[Mikeavelli]

It should be noted that Combat is dirt simple in PoE unless you crank the difficulty up to Path of the Damned. Early game is pretty awful (everyone gets killed by the stupid bear in the cave) - but once you get halfway through Act 1 you can mostly just steamroll through everything.

So, if you want more dialogue options, don't be worried about gimping your combat abilities. It won't matter much.