Companion loyalty sould not decrease after a certain point

[lopschi93]

I already made a post about this I think. But I just started a new playthrough and got Finnundurath again. Just thinking about the bulsh*t she put m through just to complain every week makes me want to let her be taken in Kernak...

I really want to see a change in this system. My suggestion would be, that after a certain point, loyalty could not drop under neutral anymore. Throughout the different stories you go above and beyond for certain companions and even safe lives here and there. Just to be told "f*ck you" because you enslaved someone...

Here are just some ideas when the loyalty should become "locked":
1) Bound to their personal quest chain. Once finished / half way through / ...
2) After certain amount of time
3) X battles / scenarios in which the companion was used
4) Bound to reputation / insight / character level

And I also would love some more options to increase loyalty.
If 50% are pro and 50% against slavery you will have to deal with some of them all the time. And then there is this time gating on some gift giving or some stuff is just hard to get (or takes up space like oil...).

How about more general options?
1) Vacation in which you can't use them for X amount of time
2) Leave them in a town so they can get away for a bit
3) grant them slaves/mounts/money they can do with whatever they want
Espacially the 3rd point. My biggest problem in my lategame is elanie atm. Just here take some mounts to free / look after

[Zoopshab]

I think it would actually be better to divide the companions into "good-evil" playthrough styles.

Like you dont really need 2 wizard companions. They both compete for the spellweaver deputy slot. When I first saw that my impression was this wqs supposed to be an either/or decision.

Plus you only have 6 deputy slots, your insight goes further if you can focus it into fewer companions (most combat only 4 or 6 companions). And then theyre also thrle hirable companions from Lanark and that quarry; theyre no need/room for that mechanic to be in the game with 9 full time story companions.

[Wlerin]

Loyalty loss is already massively decreased as you progress their story, along with huge gains from completing each stage. By the time you're done with a companion's storyline giving them a gift every now and then should more than compensate for incidental losses. (That's true even before you complete their story, really.)

If you're such a rotten evil bastard that even Finn hates you then just completing her quest shouldn't be enough to keep her in misery. (Idk how that's possible though, she was the first/only companion I got to 1000 loyalty.)

Likewise if you can balance the various companions' competing desires the game should let you keep them, not force an arbitrary dichotomy between two groups.

[Zoopshab]

Originally posted by Wlerin:

If you're such a rotten evil bastard that even Finn hates you then just completing her quest shouldn't be enough to keep her in misery. (Idk how that's possible though, she was the first/only companion I got to 1000 loyalty.)

But your PC behaviour is arbitrarly limited because you need to act/play a certain way in order to keep that one companion happy.

It's arbitrary because who wrote this companion, and decided she should be this way? Her designed behaviour is arbitrary just like all the other companions are. On a different day the writers might have dreamed up a minotaur in her place.

With the current design you don't get to keep that companion and you're just missing content/failing quests. Unless you curb your playstyle sharply in a certain way. And now you're not fully exploring the game.

Conversely with alignment pathways you can "fail forward" so that rather than a missed checkbox, its two checkboxes for you to pick good/evil alignment.

[Wlerin]

Originally posted by Zoopshab:

Originally posted by Wlerin:

If you're such a rotten evil bastard that even Finn hates you then just completing her quest shouldn't be enough to keep her in misery. (Idk how that's possible though, she was the first/only companion I got to 1000 loyalty.)

But your PC behaviour is arbitrarly limited because you need to act/play a certain way in order to keep that one companion happy.

It's arbitrary because who wrote this companion, and decided she should be this way? Her designed behaviour is arbitrary just like all the other companions are. On a different day the writers might have dreamed up a minotaur in her place.

With the current design you don't get to keep that companion and you're just missing content/failing quests. Unless you curb your playstyle sharply in a certain way. And now you're not fully exploring the game.

Conversely with alignment pathways you can "fail forward" so that rather than a missed checkbox, its two checkboxes for you to pick good/evil alignment.

Your behaviour is "arbitrarily limited" by your companions having actual personalities separate from yours? What balderdash is this? And how is an actual arbitrary limitation according to "alignment" better in any way whatsoever. Also have you never heard of gifts? Nothing is limiting you it's just a bit more expensive.

[Jean-Maurice Nya]

Every writers create arbitrary characters with arbitrary behaviors. From the moment you understand how Gor'Goro, Finn, Eylani and Skornar are closer to good/neutral than the others you can choose some options to please them or at least to bother no one.
As for the topic question, it's not like in real life you can pass from best buddies to unfriendly to each others. So being loyal to someone can eventually lead to being disloyal at one point.

[MoreEvilSquid]

Be thankful it's not like Mount and Blade: Viking Reforged, where it's practically impossible to keep all the companions because it's not just your actions, it's the fact that almost all of them hate at least one of the others.

[Penguin_of_Doom]

After days of backbreaking labor across the desert, the comitatus' slaves are getting tired and rebelious... Then the expedition arrives at an oasis. The Vagrus decides to buy some fruits for everyone, including the slaves, which makes them ready for even more grueling work.

"DUDE what the ♥♥♥♥ why are you being nice to them, stop being nice ewwww" -Every single companion except Finndurath