[UPDATED] Tactician / Honour Mode - Tips and Strategies

[2017 UPDATE] Looking to try out the Ironman / Hardcore mode of Divinity: Original Sin? This guide will give you some tips and pointers to finish your undying quest.

1) What is Honour Mode?

Having recently replayed DOS:EE, I'm revisiting this guide to clean up outdated, irrelevant, or just plain bad information. The guide concept is still the same!

Honour Mode is the hardest difficulty that Divinity: Original Sin has to offer. It combines the already difficult 'Tactician Mode' (DOS:EE's Hard mode) with the added difficulty that, if your two Source Hunters die, your game is over.

You also only get one save file, to prevent making backup saves; crucially, if anyone in your party dies, the game will autosave so you can only continue from that character's death.

This guide is not to tell you what party you should make to win; that's not the sort of game you're playing. It's not a walkthrough on how to beat each fight or solve every puzzle; that's down to you! Instead, this guide offers a variety of tips and general strategies to maximise your chances at beating Honour Mode.

(Note: All of these strategies are valid for any difficulty, but you'll have more flexibility in Explorer and Classical; Tactician is the same difficulty, only you won't be penalised if you die.)

Why play Honour Mode?

It offers an achievement for completion (Never Say Die), along with the greatest challenge and prestige for completing it. If you're reading this, you're most likely an achievement or challenge junkie (or both) - so read on!

Note, if your party does die, especially if you've progressed some way into the game, expect to rage a great deal. DO:S isn't the shortest of games to complete, especially when you're playing cautiously and reguarly reloading as you progress through the story.

You have been warned!

2) Planning Your Party

Before you venture into Character Creation, you need to consider what party you want to make - you need your party to be effective at all stages of the game. Note, due to the extensive customisation and abilities available, there is no single 'best' party (although some abilities are certainly more useful than others).

Consider planning your party around where you expect to be at various stages in the game. The most crucial points are:
- Character creation (you can easily die before you reach Cyseal)
- Level 3 (before you leave Cyseal and have access to additional followers)
- Level 7 (North Cyseal, Adept Spells)
- Level 10 (Finishing Cyseal, epic gear)
- Level 12 (Access to some Master spells, Hiberheim)
- Level 15 (Access to all Master spells, North Luculla)
- Level 18+ (endgame builds)

One of the key reasons to play through the game before you try Honour mode is to get a feel for what you'll be fighting, and when. Certain spells are highly useful, if not mandatory, to continue onwards; different builds will also be stronger or weaker throughout the course of the game (e.g. early game Rangers won't carry your damage, but have some of the highest damage potential lategame).

2.1) Combat Roles

When creating your party, you want a balanced team that is synergistic with one another. These can be seperated into three general roles (not mutually exclusive):

Damage Dealers (DPS)
All of your party members should be able to deal damage in some capacity, via melee, ranged attacks or spells. At a minimum, you'll want to cover all elemental types and have at least one dedicated physical DPS.
It's worth noting none of your characters should focus exclusively on damage. All classes should have access to crowd control (CC), allowing you to manage the battlefield without getting overwhelmed.

Tanks
Tanks are your frontline, providing a meat shield for your other teammates to do their job. They can deal damage (and can deal substantial burst built correctly), Since 'aggro' (focusing enemies to target you) is relatively non-existent - Taunt does exist, but it's unreliable at best - you'll want to use CC and body-block projectiles for your other characters.
You'll generally want to use Summoned creatures in this way, as using them this way creates no risk to your party's safety.

Supports
The Support sacrifices damage to provide healing, buffs and additional crowd control for your party. As DOS:EE is not a 'class-based' game, you won't necessarily want only a dedicated support character (e.g. a mage is capable of both effective supporting and high DPS); should they end up CC'd, the risk of your party being overwhelmed in the meantime increases drastically.
Most spell schools have access to some form of support which can be worth considering; for example, a point in Expert Marksman on a non-Ranger class gets access to a range of debuff removal spells; a point in Man-at-Arms gets a damage buff and Knockdown / Burning removal with no drawbacks and no need to invest in strength!

2.2) Non-combat Roles

Outside of combat, you'll need to consider what your characters are capable of. There's a host of NPCs to interact with, more crafting recipes than you can shake an Inert Wooden Wand at and thousands of hazards to ruin your day.

Leader
This character must be one of the Source Hunters. The leader is the person you'll use to interact with anyone and everyone (besides auto-dialogues which you can't choose). They'll buy items for your party and sell all your loot for the best value; they're also your Rock-Paper-Scissors champion. Although also very important, this isn't to be confused with Leadership.
Requirements: Bartering, Charisma


Spotter
This is the character you send alone to scout / clear a safe path when you're entering a trap-infested zone (or you're just feeling really paranoid). Armed with a Teleport Pyramid, they allow your party to safely navigate or entirely bypass hazardous areas. They can also spot buried items, some of which are extremely beneficial to your party or are required to advance quests.
Rangers and Rogues naturally fit into this role; it doesn't need to a Source Hunter ( arguably preferable that they aren't, as they're intentionally taking the most risks).
Requirements: 8+ Dex, 8+ Perception, Winged Feet (Scoundrel 2 - Novice), Walk in Shadows (Scoundrel 1), Burn My Eyes* (Pyro 1), Light Stepper (Talent)

*Burn My Eyes doesn't have to be taken on the Spotter, though it's advised for quality of life./i]

Crafter
The character that makes and improves stuff for your team. Although it's not essential to finish the game, utilising crafting allows you to make a versatile range of items - pretty much anything you can use or equip - as well as enhance them. You'll need a minimum crafting / blacksmithing level to make some items; items and enhancements improve with character level. There's plenty of crafting guides and lists if you hunt around other guides or Google them.

Requirements: Crafting 2, Blacksmithing 2, Scientist (Talent), +2 Crafting / Blacksmithing from gear, Tenebrium 3 to smelt bars / enhance gear

Loremaster
A category of its own, your Loremaster provides several handy benefits. The obvious benefit is identifying items in the field, without having to head back to town and spend gold.
However, a less obvious benefit comes into play against your enemies. Out of combat with the Loremaster selected, or In combat during their turn, you can right-click and Examine an enemy to see their total health, armour talents and resistances. Though some information can be obvious from the environment or the monsters, it provides a specific breakdown of strengths and weaknesses; knowledge is power.
It can also be helpful to combine Loremaster with a high Initiative so you can assess enemies on the first turn to not waste precious AP on non-damaging (or worse, healing) attacks. It costs no AP to examine someone, so take your time.

Requirements: Loremaster 1-5, high Initiative from gear

2.3) Hybrid Classes

[Update in progress]

A 'hybrid' class refers to one that uses multiple 'primary' stats, namely two (or all three) of Strength, Dexterity and Intellect. Higher primary stats increase the damage/healing of abilities and reduce their cooldowns; spreading your focus reduces their ability to specialise in one particular area, but can create synergy between different disciplines.

Personally I wouldn't recommend running a full hybrid party, but one or two hybrids is generally worth the investment for the utility they can provide.

2.4) Example party

To illustrate the above concepts in practice, below is an overview of the party I used to complete Honour Mode.

Source Hunter 1: Crossbow Ranger, DPS
- Strongest DPS in the party. Takes Pinpoint / Slingshot at creation to use grenades, doesn't really use special arrows.
- Heavily auto-attack reliant but can use Expert MM skills very effectively. Carries late-game with Rain of Arrows / Arrow Spray / fat crits.
- Key Abilities: Crossbow / EM 5, Scoundrel 1, Leadership 2*.
- Key Talents: Pinpoint, Slingshot, Pet Pal, Bully, Elemental Ranger.
- Key Stats: Dex, Per, Spd.
- Serves as 'Leader' and 'Spotter' out of combat.
*This goes up to 4 with a +1 helm and the Righteous trait, giving Madora +10 initiative and damage buffs.

Source Hunter 2: Pure Mage, Support / DPS
- Covers most schools of magic. Uses staves.
- Loads of tools; healing, buffs, debuffs, Burn My Eyes, Rain, Teleport, access to all elemental damage. High AoE burst with late-game spells (Meteorstrike, Hail Attack, Storm)
- Key Abilities: Pyro / Hydro / Aero 4, Geo / Witchcraft 2.
- Key Talents: Scientist, All Skilled Up.
- Key Stats: Int, Spd.
- Out of combat: Crafter.

Bairdotr: Bow Ranger, Support / DPS
- Slightly less damage than SH1, compensated by extra utility. Good late-game damage with Rain of Arrows / Arrow Spray.
- Buffs SH1 with Farseer / Oath, uses special arrows to combo with rest of party.
- Key Abilities: EM 5, Loremaster 3*, Bow 5, Witchcraft 2, Scoundrel 1.
- Key Talents: Bully (baseline), Elemental Ranger
- Key Stats: 8 Int, Dex, Spd
- Out of combat: Loremaster.
*Can easily get +2 Loremaster from gear. Bairdotr also starts with Loremaster 2 baseline.

Madora: 2H Warrior, Tank
- Damage sponge with good early game damage and fat crits.
- Provides reliable knockdowns for your rangers to do work.
- Key abilities: Leadership 5*, MaA 5
- Key Talents: Bully, Opportunist (baseline), Iron Hide
- Key Stats: Str, Con
- Out of combat: Nothing relevant, can carry heavy stuff (ores etc.)
*Can get Leadership 6 with +1 helm / weapon for Willpower and Body Building bonus.

2.5) Lone Wolf and Glass Cannon

I feel these two talents are worthy of discussion - of all generally available talents, these two will have the most significant factors on how you play.

Lone Wolf

Lone Wolf essentially allows you to 'drop' a follower to significantly improve your Source Hunter.
Overall, I feel Lone Wolf's drawbacks outweigh the benefits. Although it has the potential to turn one of your characters into a juggernaut, the risk of being chain-CC'd and killed is too great for Honour Mode, especially in the early game before Lone Wolf can really start to shine. That's not to say you can't, of course, but it will hamper your chances for success compared to running a 4-man party.

To explicitly list the pros and cons of Lone Wolf:

Pros:
+ 70% extra vitality (Hit Points)
+ 2 Action Points per turn
+ +1 Ability Point gained per level (19 extra AP @ L20)
+ Achievement for completing the game with Lone Wolf (Wolfpack)
+ Less inventory management

Cons:
- You lose access to a companion
- Costs a Talent point which could be used for something else
- Makes your party more vulnerable to CC (somewhat mitigated if you spend the extra Ability Points in Body Building / Willpower)
- You don't gain further Attribute Points (you receive an Attribute Point every even level as normal)
- Cannot use Glass Cannon

Glass Cannon

This is arguably one of the strongest single talents, but it needs to be chosen wisely; the reduction in survivability can be made up for using extra CC, especially at high stat levels where some abilities are available every turn. Consider very carefully if you are going to take Glass Cannon on your Source Hunters - remember, if they both die, it's game over!

Personally, I tend to not use this now - it's brilliant in Tactician and below, where you can simply reload if a fight goes badly, but it's very easy to lose half your normal HP in a single turn. The investment to then resurrect and protect said cannon shifts the momentum of a battle totally out of your favour, with no way to reload. That said, it's good in the late game with access to spells like Hail Attack and Earthquake (read: Large AoE crowd-control / damage spells).

Pros:
+ 4 extra Action Points per turn! (= +8 Speed)

Cons:
- Reduces vitality (Hit Points) by 50%, also halving the effectiveness of health potions
- Needs to be carefully balanced with Con so you're not generating more AP per turn than your maximum pool allows
- Easy to waste AP

3) Named Followers

Before you create your characters, it's worth deciding which followers you want to utilise (unless you're running double Lone Wolf, in which case, good luck - you'll need it!).
While you can potentially gamble at the Hall of Heroes (available after you find the second Star Stone, before you leave Cyseal), it's best not to rely on it, as available followers may not have optimal stats, talents or skills when you hire them. Each of the named followers is discussed below.

3.1) Bairdotr

Overview

Bairdotr is arguably one of the best followers. Her damage in the early game isn't spectacular, but with a few levels and hunting for special arrows, she provides incredible utility and good damage. As with all Rangers, late-game she has the potential to carry your team's damage with the incredible burst of Arrow Spray and Rain of Arrows.
Taking an early point in Scoundrel will do wonders for her survivability and her base Constitution is quite high. She's an excellent candidate for Spotter and Loremaster outside of combat and starts with solid talents.

Attributes

• Str - 5
  
• Dex - 7
  
• Int - 5
  
• Con - 7
  
• Spd - 6
  
• Per - 6

Abilities

• Bow - 1
  
• Expert Marksman - 2
  
• Loremaster - 1
  
• Tenebrium* - 1

*Bairdotr is the only character that can safely use (and carry) Tenebrium items from the beginning of the game, before you have access to Brandon's quest or the book within Attenberah's house at Sacred Stone.

Skills

• Ricochet
  
• Treat Poisoning
  
• Ranged Power Stance

Talents

• Arrow Recovery
  
• Bully
  
• Stench

3.2) Jahan

Overview

Jahan is a strong follower, with excellent starting stats and skills. From joining your party, he has a significant amount of CC and utility through Hydro and Aero spells, which only improves as you progress (and starts with a Water stave, a notably rare damage source in the early game). He can easily scale into a high-damage mage with massive utility, or build into a hybrid class. Coming with Scientist, he's also an optimal choice for your group's Crafter.

Attributes

• Str - 5
  
• Dex - 5
  
• Int - 8
  
• Con - 7
  
• Spd - 5
  
• Per - 6

Abilities

• Aerotheurge - 2
  
• Hydrosophist - 2
  
• Willpower - 1
  
• Blacksmithing - 1 [Scientist]
  
• Crafting - 1 [Scientist]

Skills

• Regeneration
  
• Rain
  
• Shocking Touch
  
• Bitter Cold
  
• Blitz Bolt
  
• Teleportation

Talents

• Elemental Affinity
  
• Far Out Man
  
• Scientist

3.3) Madora

Madora is a strong follower who can provide a durable tank for your team, with the potential for high burst and moderate crowd control / utility. She's a straight up toe-to-toe fighter, who really shines in the midgame once she's got some equipment and stats.

Madora's kit is purely combat focused and doesn't naturally build into any non-combat role (though there's nothing stopping you from doing so). However, her stats make her a good candidate to stack Leadership on to benefit your party. Comeback Kid is also normally a talent gated behind Willpower 5 (leaving her health at 1 if she takes a fatal blow, not counting lava); it won't always save her from chain attacks / poison etc., but it's a brilliant talent to have from the start.

Attributes

• Str - 8
  
• Dex - 5
  
• Int - 5
  
• Con - 7
  
• Spd - 6
  
• Per - 5

Abilities

• Two-Handed - 2
  
• Man-at-Arms - 2
  
• Body Building - 1

Skills

• Battering Ram
  
• Crushing Fist
  
• Whirlwind
  
• Helping Hand
  
• Melee Power Stance

Talents

• Comeback Kid
  
• Opportunist
  
• What a Rush

3.4) Wolgraff

As much as I personally love Rogues, Wolgraff is the weakest of the named followers. This is mostly due to Scoundrel changes in EE; in short, Rogues offer very little payoff compared to the setup required to enable them, especially considering what can be achieved with other followers.
The role of Scoundrel is generally used to support other builds, as the Novice skills are fantastic, but a squishy melee character versus large durable groups offers nothing compared to a safe ranged character (that has more damage potential and versatility anyway).

If you are dead set on running Honour Mode with Wolgraff, his starting stats are below. He can build into a hybrid dual-wand user or archer, and is an excellent Spotter from day one.
However, due to his low strength, he won't build into an effective tank and his Nasty Deeds see little use when you can burn doors down or just steal everything with Walk in Shadows. Escapist is a wasted talent too as it's useless if he escapes while your Source Hunters die.

Attributes

• Str - 4
  
• Dex - 7
  
• Int - 5
  
• Con - 5
  
• Spd - 8
  
• Per - 7

Abilities

• Dual Wielding - 2
  
• Scoundrel - 2
  
• Lockpicking - 1
  
• Pickpocketing - 1
  
• Sneaking - 1

Skills

• Fast Track
  
• Walk in Shadows
  
• Lacerate
  
• Cloak and Dagger

Talents

• Backstabbing
  
• Light Stepper
  
• Escapist

4) Character Creation

Update in progress

Now that you've decided on potential followers and setups, it's time to consider the element completely in your control; the Source Hunters themselves.
The first thing to consider is that you need to survive the first two levels before you reach Cyseal, without followers or access to any special gear (although you will have some preset gear, based on the Class you choose at creation). You'll have access to three skills, based on the skill trees you choose (Man-at-Arms, Hydrosophist etc.). If you're running a melee or ranged (bow / crossbow) champion, then focus on utility abilities initially; for casters, a mix of damage and utility is beneficial.

It's mandatory for one character to start with Hydrosophist. Regeneration is essential to survive the early fights. Summon Spider is also a great pickup for both characters, as you can summon a spider ahead of you to initiate combat, saving valuable AP and placing the source hunters in relative safety at the start of combat. Midnight Oil along with a way to start fires (Wizard's starter staff is enough) is also a good pickup.

Another factor to consider is that ranged classes generally have better damage and control over the fight than melee do; there is also a significantly reduced risk factor, as choke points and cover can be used much more effectively. I personally tend to run one Strength melee (Madora or DW/Shield SH) to act as the group's tank, with three ranged (two spellcasters and one ranger) to deal damage and support the group. Generally, diversity is key - but experiment with your own combinations, as there's a good chance something different will work for your playstyle!

Finally, even if you're planning to play a hybrid class on one character (or several), pick one of your specialisations first and stick with it until at least level 9 or so - you'll have access to some reasonable gear and gold at this point, making synergies between your specialisations much stronger. Trying to run a hybrid very early in the game usually results in your character being pretty bad at everything.

5) General Tips

Don't make your first playthrough of the game Honour Mode.

Unless you're the ultimate adrenaline junkie, complete the game on another difficulty so you have a general awareness of where you need to go, what to do and who you'll be fighting. Going into a fight you don't know, especially a boss fight, will likely spell the end of your run (Personal experience: I forgot how Imal the Squealer worked; I paid the price for it).
I'd recommend beating Tactician Mode before trying Honour Mode, as you'll know more about the encounter changes and what to expect compared to easier modes.

Remember you can flee from combat.

If a fight's not going your way and you don't expect to win it, live to fight another day. As long as one Source Hunter escapes, you're still in the running. You can head back to the field, resurrect from outside of enemy range (hopefully) and heal up to fight again. Enemies that were killed won't respawn, giving you an advantage for the second round; some monsters (generally bosses) won't regenerate health after combat, so you can win a war of attrition.

Save often!!!

If you can tell a fight isn't going your way, don't be afraid to reload (before a character dies, of course). If you were just unlucky, try again; if you made mistakes, then analyse where you went wrong and change your strategy for the fight, when you know what to expect.

Use your items.

Chances are, if you take a fight and lose it, your strategic choices were poor. If you get lucky and reload before anyone is killed, or successfully regroup after a lost fight, check your skillbook and inventory. What items or spells could you have used to prevent or mitigate what happened? Are you playing as a party of four or four 'individuals'?

Use as much Crowd Control (CC) as possible.

Crowd Control is your best friend for stopping fights getting out of hand due to too much incoming damage. Hard CC (Stunned, Petrified etc.) is great, but don't forget soft CC like slows and smokescreens (Midnight Oil!) to keep enemies in check or force them where you want them.

Summons improve your odds of survival.

Summon spells are incredibly useful for combat. Various creatures provide additional damage and a small amount of utility - but they can block shots/spells and soak damage for turns at the cost of a few Action Points, providing an extra line of defense while your party dish es out the damage.

Give Resurrect scrolls to everyone.

If one of your characters dies in combat, you won't be able to access their inventory until combat ends (you can only access the character's inventory whose turn it is). Thus, if you've given your Res scrolls to one member, and they die - you won't have any Resurrects. Coupled with the fact the game autosaves after a character dies, this can very easily spell doom for your Honour run.

Learn which spells do and don't rely on primary stats.

Some spells are equally effective regardless of your stats, such as Midnight Oil, Wind of Change and Helping Hand. Generally Novice-level and non-damaging, these abilities can be worth picking up on everyone. E.g. a point in Aerotheurge on Madora gets her Thunder Jump, Teleport and Wind of Change; the only 'loss' is the reduced chance for Thunder Jump to stun, but it can be hugely useful for mobility.

Don't forget your 'non-combat' spells in combat.

Spells like Teleport and Rain are incredibly useful for exploration, but they can turn the tide in combat as well. Rain can neutralise the threat of fire against you and also weakens some fire enemies - Teleport can take a melee combatant out of the fight for a couple of turns, along with extra damage if you drop them on another target.

Changelog

30/5/17: Couple more tweaks to end sections.
16/5/17: Some more revisions, example party added.
11/5/17: 2017 update started, revising whole guide.
16/11/15: Clarified guide is usable for all Modes of play, updated Followers.
14/11/15: Updated and clarified Lone Wolf section (thanks sethmage!)
09/11/15: Guide created.

[Jaggid Edje]

@Certisko, EM = Expert Marksman.

[Certisko]

Hello, tahank you for your guide. I have question, please what mean EM5?

- Key Abilities: Crossbow / EM 5 , Scoundrel 1, Leadership 2*.

[hubbcaps1973]

there are 4 buttuns that have to pressed in order to gain access to the source temple. ive got 3 of 4 but i cant figure out how to get the one on the hill with the green teleporter. what did i miss?

[Miedzic]

what about most important part (character creations) ?

[DiceOnSphere]

Thank you for an articulate, well thought out guide. I've recently had to give up on my Honour Mode dual lone wolf attempts. I have smashed the game in Tactician LW, and was trying to do it in HM, but omg the chain cc is just way way way too real.

My first attempt was met with a wipe at the trivia statue after failure to answer who King Boreas' brother was, where both my characters were standing too close together after failing to answer correctly, and ~42k dmg explosion blew both of them to bits.

Most recently, before going after B-Rex , I was finishing up the Cyseal map at the lava mountain boss-like guy. Whelp, he managed to position himself in between both my characters, and after delivering the killing blow, he turned into lava and promptly shit on both of them .

TL:DR - good guide, thank you!

[D!cK]

Its possible take Borea early I make ice and him slip on it and fall down for the stairs and die :D

Anyway the last fight are the biggest problem I think. I have not try but I guess its possible heal that lady full health with bloodstones ?

I have not try but I think 2 fighter fast can kill void dragon on 2 turn with little help from spells :) or one of them have chains and dragon start hurt one of them.

[THAC0]

Hybrids honestly are kinda the way to go for your main characters on Honur/Tact mode if you ask me, Madora is a good Damage dealer for example and can easly be a tank as well, You can do that with just about all your characters if you know RPGS pretty well and get away with a badass group, With the whole '1 Person per role' Tends to get you into sticky situations on the harder Modes Why? What happins when your healer gos down in the first 2 rounds of combat or even to boot?
Glass Cannon is just horrible on Honour mode and not that great on Tact Mode, but it can still be useful, But it dos lose alot of its flavor as ITS super easy to get 1 shoted when you have Class cannon on the harder diffs in the first round of combat.

[Ssenkrad_II]

Just to clarify, have you beaten the game on tactician or honor mode yet?

[sethmage]

No problem.
Your tips are valid regardless what difficulty level someone chose, even for beginner player (especially for the beginner player) who just started, that's why I was suggesting to change the title of your guide.

Good job dude

[hastore]

Thanks for the comment.
I've clarified the bit on AP/level on Lone Wolf, was an oversight on my part.

The second point was mostly related to hybrid specs (which I forgot to mention, naturally). Could definitely be worded better, but it was more that you don't gain additional Attribute Points on top of the base increase every couple of levels , to offset the fact that you don't have your follower's stats.

Personally I think, thematically, Lone Wolf is great - but since this guide is focused on Honour Mode, I feel taking LW slashes your chances of survival compared to running the usual 4-man group.