Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire Update 52 - Beast of Winter Preview

Greetings, Watchers!

Welcome back to another Backer Update.  This week, we're proud to show off some of the cool things to come in our first major DLC, "The Beast of Winter", a new vendor that will be available in Patch 1.2.2, and the upcoming changes that are on their way in Patch 2.0!

The Beast of Winter

In case you missed last week's Obsidian Stream with Narrative Designer Alex Scokel, he provided quite a few insights for any budding narrative designers looking to join the industry. In addition to Alex's exuberant persona, the stream also included our very first sneak peek into the island of Harbinger's Watch, where "The Beast of Winter" begins. If you missed out on the live stream, you can see it any time through the VOD that is available on our Twitch page.
The Eternity Website has also been updated to include some more details about "The Beast of Winter".
And remember, if you subscribe to our channel on Twitch, you get access to emotes that you can then use across all of Twitch. All money we receive from Twitch subscriptions and cheers goes to benefit the Children's Hospital of Orange County. Do it "For the chids!"

Vatnir, a New Sidekick

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If you tuned into the stream or took a look at the VOD, you may have noticed Vatnir, the sickly-looking Endings Godlike. This new sidekick has been a studio favorite since his conception, and we've been anxiously waiting to finally, officially, reveal him to the community.

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Vatnir is a rare Priest of Rymrgand with the Condemnation domain and a focus in Famine, Entropy, and Winter. Additionally, any spells that depend upon a priest's god and faith reflect Rymrgand's portfolio.  Vatnir can summon aspects of Rymrgand through his Spiritual Weapon, summons dual battle axes, or Incarnate, which summons a reflection of Rymrgand to fight at his side. If all else fails, he can cast the Call and the Symbol of Rymrgand to usher in the cold from Rymrgand's realm to freeze his enemies. If Vatnir is just one too many priests to have in your party, he also has the option to multiclass as a Celebrant (Priest+Chanter), or a Zealot (Priest+Rogue).
Vatnir's role won't just end with the DLC, however - you can bring him on your adventures throughout the Deadfire and he will chime in where he can...If he survives what awaits him in the cold depths of Harbinger's Watch.

More Sneak Peeks!

During the stream, we showed the happy town of Harbinger's Watch - and they are indeed quite happy, as death cultists are when on the frost-slick precipice of having their dreams fulfilled. We stopped the stream right before the good stuff, but even we thought that was cruel, so here are a few more quick shots of what's in store for "The Beast of Winter".

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Beast of Winter Wallpapers

But wait, there's even more Beast of Winter love for you! Deck out your desktop with our wallpapers below:

2048x1536 Wide

2560x1440 Standard

Patch 1.2.2

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This week, we have a small patch with an oft-requested feature from our community! As you might know, the development team hid secretive codes throughout all of our media prior to Deadfire's launch - some sharp-eyed community members began noticing these codes and began to search for and compile them before they even knew what they were for. Just prior to launch, we revealed the Deadfire Scavenger Hunt items, which would only be available to those who found and input those codes into our specialized site. With Patch 1.2.2, users on platforms outside of Steam can finally get their hands on the items the community unearthed together!

If you ever run across those members of the Explorer's Society who found and collated all of the codes that made obtaining these items possible in the first place, give them a salute or shake their hand - this one's from them.

The full patch notes can be found here: Patch 1.2.2.

Beginner's Guide

We understand that the game might be intimidating at a first glance, especially for players who have never approached this kind of game before. To this end (and to make it easier on those of us who are the resident "RPG Expert" of our group of friends), we created a Beginner's Guide. It will assist new Watchers in their adventures in the Deadfire just past the point they can leave Port Maje, so if you have any friends who might be interested in playing the game but get too intimidated by the early portion of the game, have them check it out!

What's Next?

In case you missed it, we were happy to announce a new community feature going forward: community-voted items! We were blown away by the level of participation last week on the World of Eternity Twitter polls, and we can't wait to unveil a new hunting bow made of...rather unpredictable animancer technology as created by Watchers all around the world! Stay tuned for more updates regarding this cool new weapon that you, our awesome community, helped to create.

Physical Backer Rewards Update

By now, some of you may have noticed that the status of your order has been changed on our backer portal - fear not, as your rewards are finally ready to be fulfilled. We apologize again for the delay and can't wait for your deserved rewards to arrive on your doorsteps.

 If you're worried you might not be home at the time of the delivery, no worries! Please contact us with your order number and any pertinent details (such as when it would be the best time for us to send your rewards).  Additionally, we will be sending out new information on a weekly basis until the end of the year, so please go ahead and send us your new or updated information and we'll get the details over to our distribution centers to fulfill your order. Once your order has been sent out, you'll receive tracking information from our fulfillment centers, so please keep an eye out! 

Community Corner

We loved our community participation in the last update's Community Corner, so it's here to stay! Check out our community page on the Pillars site to see who is streaming the game on Twitch as well as links to threads on the forums. Some artistic highlights from our wonderful community can also be seen below.
If you'd like your art to be hosted in our next update, please contact us at fanart@obsidian.net, and keep an eye out for your work in our next Community Corner!

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By Captain_the_magic_kick

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By @fangmich

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By @Majdfwolf

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By @Sabalmirss_Arts

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By @Ulisaypo

Thank you again for your continued support! With your help we're continuing to make Deadfire an even better experience for everyone on a daily basis. If you have any issues with the game, contact us through our support portal to help you on your journey.
Cheers,
The Deadfire team
Reach out to us on our various social media channels (TwitterFacebookInstagram, here on our forums) and let us know your comments, your critiques, and what you love about the game.
Did you miss our last update? Check it out! To join the conversation on this update, head to our forums!