How do you level up in fort joy?

[Kao]

I'm playing with 2 of my friends and we struggle leveling up. We cannot fight much since we're level 2 and most encounters feature at least 3 opponents of lv3/4 with mad armor/Marmor while we're half naked with a couple "good items" (understand not-starter-item).

the quests are super enigmatic as to what to do, where and with whom, etc. we pulled a 4v8 fight against a merchant we failed to pickpocket, who called for 7 people to help her including lohse, and they ganged up on Ifan during the fight while he was just wandering around. so now both ifan and lohse are dead. how bad are we screwed leveling wise?

so how do you level up in fort joy ? i've heard you'd better be lv8 to escape it but reaching lv3 is already complicated.

i'd appreciate any general advices that don't involve major spoilers !

ps : we're in classic mode. before anyone suggests lowering difficulty, i remind we won a 4v8 with a totally naked sebille so i'm not sure difficulty is our main problem but more a lack of knowledge of how to progress. also we loot everything with a lucky charm character and we do the dialogues with a persuasion char, yet the gear doesn't get better.

[fzoulcmbyl]

You can level up by just talking to people and continuing quest progress. There are some fights here and there, but talk to everyone, there are a lot more quest givers than it appears.

[Cyber SGB]

I talked to every npc and explored everywhere I could find first before doing any fighting. I had points in wits and lucky charm, so, I found some good equipment early.

[Kao]

I'm just afraid that stupid fight killing 2 origins, 1 merchant , and 5 random dudes with or without armors (so I guess with or without importance?) screwed quests :/

[Ozymandias]

On the bright side, you got lots of free xp from killing passer by. Also, if you intend to have a 4 person party, there are still at least two recruitable npc's.

Go around talking to people in camp. These Larian games have a problem with pacing in that regard, you always have to get early game xp from exploring/talking before doing fights. I'd suggest just gritting your teeth and being peaceful till your level 4 and have "good armor" on all of your characters.

Also, not all fights are created equally: the infamous crocodile fight is a good first/second fight, there is also a cave with elves in it that has lots of xp opportunities.

Try to make everyone have a good amount of both magic and physical defense, to protect from cc.

You can make lockpicks from nails and a hammer if you dont have an undead character (which can be sold for a fair bit of money)

Hope this helps!

[dgarzaescobedo]

At level 2 your best bet is to explore new places without going to far in them. Go to the arena, enter the cave where the elfs are, play the hide and seek game with the boy, etc, etc.

[Lord_WC]

Originally posted by Kaozium:

the quests are super enigmatic as to what to do

During the conversation the quest giver usually tells you who you should talk to or there are huge yellow/red flags on the map indicating the quest area. Generally talking to everyone is a good idea.

For quests what you can do with a level 2 party:
gawin and the crocos
magister yarrow
healing up the guy at the healer (you can individually heal him up for 250 xp a piece - you theoretically can recruit and dismiss other origin characters for even more xp)
the imprisoned elf (no fight if you are not a hero, you should buff/heal stingtail though)
if you have an undead the frogs are a joke also
turtles in hidden alcove

That's probably more than enough to get to 3 or even 4.

Also if one party member talks to the merchant your thief can conveniently steal (and get far away before finishing the conversation).

[Severian]

I wouldn't recommend killing merchants early on, because they restock with every level you gain, and might actually have useful stuff on offer. Gear and skillbooks are super important!

That said, there is a lot of xp to be gained by simply accessing new areas. That alone should get you to lvl 3, and if it isn't quite enough, there are a handful of quests that do not require fighting to solve at all:

The elf who is being shaken down by a couple of thugs, the quest to free the prisoner in the kitchen, playing hide and seek with a kid, finding out about a missing child, reuniting a gheist with his daughter - talk to everyone! Just because there are no golden quest icons hovering over people's heads doesn't mean there's nothing to do :)

[Råb!d]

You really don't need to kill any random people. After all, those are people that have quests and gear that you can trade.

There are quests for you to complete. Press L to see them, on the left side. You can then try to discern what needs to be completed. Also, look for the red flags on the map. It shows where important quests should be done.

Make sure to improve your gear on your characters. It has made a difference for me. By the time you get to the end of Act 1 you should be level 8, having killed all the bad dudes on the island.

You will level.

[wakey wakey]

Best bet on act 1(tactician and above) is to rely on summons. Both Incernations(even if not at 10 without lone wolf) and Totems will make your game so much easier.

Especially Totems have only a 1 turn cd so you can place them every round and they're not limited.

You can even place 2 totems per char in mp pre combat. Unskilled they should do around 30-40 dmg per hit while skilled(15+) with lone wolf they can hit for over 100 in the first act. ^^

[Råb!d]

Originally posted by Kaduceus:

Quick save before attempting theft. Or anything really. I even quicksave before talking to someone.

Good suggestion. F5

[Jess The Titty Leech]

you can become a psychopath and murder everyone

[eom]

lvl 8 is prob more like when you leave the island
when you escape this 'town' you will be much lower lvl, but then there is a whole island to explore and level on before you leave

[Samael]

https://divinityoriginalsin2.vidyawiki.com/Areas+By+Level

[Sneakimus]

I must admit, I find that the levels having such a huge impact on fights, as opposed to good tactics/builds, to be a detractor from the game's enjoyment.

1+/- level is like changing the entire difficult slider.