Review: Divinity: Original Sin II

Going with a physical damage party will have the best outcome for the player. An example of a party built for physical damage could start with a Cleric. Put points into the Attributes of Constitution and Wits, and then the Combat Abilities Hydrosophist and Geomancer. Take skills like Armour of Frost, Restoration, and Fortify. Pick a Knight as the next character in the party. Make sure there are points put into Warfare. Select Battle Stomp, Battering Ram, and Crippling Blow as Ski

Things are a little bit different this time around. For starters, the Divinity: Original Sin **** II takes place over 1,000 years after the events of the original. The Divine is no more, and the Void is ever expanding and will consume the world if allowed to grow unchallenged. In addition to the great time gap between the two games, the role of the player in relation to the magical force known as Source has been completely flipped. No more are we engaged in a witch hunt but instead we step into the shoes of a Sourcerer and get to experience what being on the receiving end of said witch hunt feels like.


Upon starting the game, players may choose to select pre-built characters with their own story in Divinity Original Sin 2, or they can build a custom character. If the player chooses the latter, they may select from Human, Lizard, Elf, Dwarf, or Undead as a race. Race selection has unique combat benefits in the form of Talents and Skills, and also affects conversions with NPCs. All custom characters' races come with Dome of Protect


Perhaps players want to throw caution to the wind and create a team that consists entirely of melee or ranged characters, even though each of those will present unique challenges. Some players prefer to go all-in on one damage type, whether it be physical or magic. It can make some battles harder, but the overall experience more enjoyable. Some prefer to min/max their characters and party. If the player is unhappy with their builds, they can change the specs of the characters later on in Divinity Original Si

The first thing a player must do in the campaign for Divinity: Original Sin II is either select an Origin character or create a new character. There are technically eight races to choose, though that number is slightly inflated because of the Undead. The options are Human, Elf, Dwarf, Lizard and the Undead versions of each of these classes. Dwarfs are sturdy and begin with talents that contribute to vitality, dodging and sneaking. Elves gain bonuses to lore and may gain the memories of the dead by eating their corpses (yum!). Humans gain bonuses to critical chances, initiative and bartering. Lizards gain resistance to heat and poison and persuasion and have a useful function of being able to dig up secrets without a shovel. All Undead have the undead talent which causes healing items to harm them and poison to heal them and one of the other traits associated with their race when they were alive, plus they can also attempt to pick locks with their bony fingers and no other tools.

Upon arrival the player is alone and free to explore the island. Certain NPCs and Origin characters from the ship can be found and react to the player based on how the player behaved toward them previously. Up to three party members can be recruited and there is no shortage of side quests or other activities. How the player behaves towards the party members and other people around influences the attitude they form toward the player, and if they find the player particularly unpleasant they may leave the group outright. All Origin characters can be recruited but only three may be in the party at any time so players are encouraged to swap out members and see who is the best fit based on combat attributes and personality.

Several weeks ago I was fortunate enough to get some hands on time with Divinity: Original Sin II at PAX . That experience only gave a brief glimpse into what is offered in this build and I imagine I will feel the same way about the Early Access build when the complete game is released. The predecessor was a massive choice-driven RPG that was in the vein of classic computer RPGs. The bar was set high by Divinity: Original Sin and everything that made that title so great returns here and then some. Making any definite declaration about a SLG Game DLC's quality prior to its final release is impossible and I do not want to over hype this title to the point of having expectations it can not reach, but anyone who enjoyed its predecessor needs to keep this one on their radar, regardless of whether they want to wait for the final version to come out or if they want to dive into the early build right away.

There are four difficulty modes to choose from, which are Explorer, Classic, Tactician, and Honour. Explorer is designed for players who lack experience with RPGs or simply just want to enjoy the story. Taking advantage of the strategic skills that are offered helps, but being a brilliant military strategist is not required as this mode is pretty forgiving overall. Classic is geared towards RPG veterans or people who enjoy challenging combat. Your abilities will be tested but if you take the time to learn how the combat system works you should prevail, this mode is challenging but doesn't feel unfair. Tactician is the mode where the enemies have essentially harvested the source of George Patton, Zhuge Liang, Julius Caesar and Alexander the Great. This is where being a brilliant military strategist is almost essential to be victorious, as the enemies show no mercy at all and will throw every dirty trick they have at you. Playing this mode might also not be a bad way to learn some useful combat tactics. Honour mode is for the truly confident and cocky or those who just enjoy suffering, as this brings the grueling challenge of Tactician but adds a hardcore mode, meaning if you fall in battle say bye bye to the save file. This way could be potentially fatal to one's PC, but many bragging rights will come from completing the campaign on this setting.