Divinity Original Sin: Combat Like A Hellscape

Released in 2014, then re-released a year later in an Enhanced Edition, Divinity: Original Sin, is the sixth game in the Divinity series, which began with Divine Divinity in 2002. I only learned this fact in the research to write this article. Yet, Divinity: Original Sin is not the sixth sequentially, but was planned as a prequel to the original trilogy (and its spin-offs). In spite of its chronological position, it stands alone well, and not having played any of the other games in the series, (and unable to find a website which offers any confirmation) I can't confirm whether Divinity was only planned as a prequel or is a prequel.

Developed and published by Larian Studios, a Belgian developer founded in 1996, Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition is a fantasy role-playing game like Neverwinter Nights (a favorite of the genre), but distinguishes itself from other fantasy role-playing games with its turn-based combat system. Because, for better or worse, the player will spend an inordinate amount of time in combat, this first article about Divinity: OSEE will focus entirely on this one aspect of the game.

Like all RPGs the player designs their character for the adventures ahead. They consider a number of features including aesthetic effect, combat skill, stats, charisma, abilities, magic, and a character's personality. In D:OSEE, the player chooses how a character looks and speaks, but ultimately there are three core perks: Attributes, Abilities, and Talents. Attributes (Strength, Dexterity, etc...) are the foundational values which determine the effectiveness of all actions. Abilities can be divided into two categories: those which determine the Skills a character can use (Pyrokinetic for fire magic, Marksmanship for archery skills, Man-at-Arms for physical attack and defense, etc...) and aptitudes which provide and/or improve basic actions (Single-handed increases damage done with a one handed weapon, Charisma improves dialogue options, and Loremaster allows the identifying of items, for example). Talents are passive skills, and won't be discussed in this article.
Some Abilities allow the acquisition of Skills which function like spells and activatable actions, such as Teleportation (air spell) and Crushing Blow (man-at-arms action). While a few Skills are useful outside of battle, most serve only to achieve victory in it. The Skills which the character's learn are crucial for progressing in the game, but they are limited by the corresponding Ability level. All Abilities start at a value of 0 and can be improved to a value of 5. Each point increase unlocks the use of more Skills of the appropriate type. At the first Ability point, a hero can have three novice skills, at the 2nd point in an Ability, a hero can learn 5 novice skills, 2 adept skills. At 3, a hero can know 6 novice skills, 3 adept skills, at 4 they can use 6 novice skills, 4 adept skills, 1 master skill, and at 5 a character can deploy 6 novice skills, 4 adept skills, 2 master skills. Even a hero with 5 points in an Ability won't be able to learn all the Skills in the category, and Skills can't be unlearned (except near the end of Divinity). For this reason, it's crucial to know all the available Skills before choosing any, and I recommend refering to online resources to plan one's progression.

Battle begins when a player controlled character walks into the view of an enemy. Immediately heroes assemble into a formation predetermined by the player. A turn order bar appears in the top left of the screen, displaying the initiative of the characters. But sometimes the order bar bugs out, or the order changes in the middle of a battle without any discernible reason. When it's working, the player can plan appropriately. Divinity's combat revolves around the spending of Action Points. Each skill, movement, or activatable item, costs Action Points. Spellcasters will expend most of their action points using Skills, while melee heroes are more likely to disburse them in moving and attacking.

Before long, the player will recognize that Divinity's combat favors a barrage of Area of Effect spells deployed by people on both sides: Spellcasters are the primary source of this mayhem, but grenades and other items, along with some melee Abilities contribute to the pandemonium. The elements of earth, air, fire, and water used by Spellcasters always transforms battlefields into infernos of fire and smoke. Divinity's developers decided to differentiate it from other fantasy RPGs by turning the ground, on which the character's stand, and air which they breath, into a mutable battlefield. Almost all the AOE spells leave a residual coating on the landscape, while many battles begin with the field already covered in one frosting or another. It's possible for any piece of ground to be effected by roaring flame, slippery ice, poisonous slime, poisonous cloud, dense smoke, sticky oil, spilt blood, warm steam, or water.
Each of these coatings impede the implementing of the battle plan, and as a result, each battle becomes an obstacle course as the player attempts to navigate their heroes around the treacherous terrain. This could be enjoyable, except for the pathing problem. While not in combat, heroes avoid poison, ice, and all the rest on their own, but once battle begins they walk right through it. In combat, the player must carefully micromanage heroes around the fire, earth, water, and air hurdles. This makes sense, as sometimes the player needs a hero to run through fire to win, but most of the time, it would be only an inconvenience. Except that the final problem with pathing is about location.

Unlike The Banner Saga series, which uses a board with clearly delineated spaces for its battles, Divinity's battlefields are composed, not of distinct tiles or spaces, but an infinite number of points. It's impossible to see definitively whether a space is clear or covered by a hazardous element, and it's difficult to know if a hero's path crosses the spot. To avoid incurring nature's wrath, the player must spend valuable Action Points circumscribing any possible obstacle.

And when a battle finishes, it's not unusual to end with at least one hero very low on health and standing in, or right next to, something nasty. Immediately as the battle ceases, heroes act like chickens with their heads cut off, forget to avoid these dangerous spaces, step right in, and die immediately. Resurrection scrolls, while not exactly rare, are not an abundant resource, and this infuriating result wastes the player's time.
Over time the many battles of Divinity begin to blur together into one great hellish affair, whether the player ascribes to the fire and brimstone or the icy frozen wasteland depictions. The combat becomes increasingly repetitive, with the same Skills, the same pre-battle buffs, and the same obstacles as the player traverses a deadly labyrinth of ground coatings and airy vapors.

Because of its repetitive nature, the player should combat as easy as they can. One recommendation is to ambush enemies, which isn't a difficult technique to learn. The downside: it's not clear if the enemies will deliver dialogue. Even minor bosses will skip their conversation with the player if a hero sneaks up and strikes first. But don't trust too much on Skills because some of the bosses seem immune to a number of Skill effects, though the final boss is vulnerable to the Scoundrel's Coup De Grace Skill (immediately kill any enemy who retains less than 20% of their original health)!

Even more boring then the repetitive combat and frustrating than the inability to provide reasonable pathing are the hitboxes. Not only are they small, but when the player is taking his turn, the enemies impliment an idle animation where they shift in place. This was undoubtedly done to make them seem more alive and increase Divinity's visual effect, but their hitbox moves with them. An uncountable number of players have missed and moved instead because an enemy leaned a back or shifted their footing. While it might seem like an insignificant issue, a mistake can lose a battle, and force the player to replay the ten minute combat again.
Combat is repetitive, pathing over dangerous terrain is difficult, and the hitboxes are terrible, but some times features are only a bit messed up. Blood conducts electricity like water. Toggled stances don't stay toggled between battles, which is a minor inconvenience. Late in the game Grutilda one-shots both my wizard and thief on the same turn with two different attacks.

Then there's the really broken bit, but before describing it (and it's only a minor issue which effects one class), there's a need in this article for a few compliments to combat. Overall, combat looks great, functions well, and is enjoyable in limited doses. Divinity knows and is trying to keep combat smart, like when the Aerotheurge yells, “I sing the body electric,” as she casts lighting. If the combat had more space to breathe it probably wouldn't have felt as repetitive as it did. Now the broken bit.

Taunt, the Man-at-Arms skill which is supposed to force enemies to attack the taunting hero, does nothing. The hero uses it, the game shows which enemies the Skill effects (they even receive the taunted status debuff symbol) and yet they attack anyone they want, sometimes the taunter, but other heroes as well, rendering the skill useless.

In conclusion, if one wants to reduce the number of times they engage in tiresome combat with the enemy, invest in Charisma. It won't allow the player to avoid as many battles as they wish, but it will offer some comfort.

Next week, the second and final article on Divinity: Original Sin Enhanced Edition. While this article was singularly focused on combat, next week's will explore quests, plot, puzzles, and overall design.

Also: Watch Games Done Quick 2017 complete Divinity: Original Sin in under 30 minutes.

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