Dungeon Siege 2
Dungeon Siege II is a computer role-playing game and is the sequel to the 2002’s popular game Dungeon Siege.
It was developed by Gas Powered Games and released on August 16, 2005, one year delayed from original projections. The story is a continuation of the Dungeon Siege storyline. On August 2006, the expansion Broken World was released.
In the development of Dungeon Siege II, Gas Powered Games brought in professional writer Susan O’Connor, who has experience in writing story lines for games. That addressed the complains people had about the story of the original Dungeon Siege, which, fairly enough, was seen as lacking.
Dungeon Siege II takes place between 100 and 200 years after Dungeon Siege, and reveals some very important history from as much as 1000 years before. Just like the original game it takes place on the continent of Aranna, in the middle of a war. You will start out as a mercenary fighting for the tyrant Valdis, but what will happen then is up to you!
Races
| Race | Dryad | Elf |
| Gender(s) | Female | Male and Female |
| Bonuses | +1 to Natural Bond, +1 to Dodge, -2 Strength, +4 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, +10% Death Magic Resistance | +1 to Critical Strike, +1 to Brilliance, +1 Dexterity, +3 Intelligence, +5% Mana Regeneration |
| Description | Dryads are excellent nature mages and highly skilled with the bow, which they use to protect their treetop homes. Dryads are a mysterious race, having emerged after the cataclysmic battle between Zaramoth and Azunai. They have an instinctive bond to living things and their appearance reflects their jungle heritage. Dryads are impulsive, wild creatures, and conflicts between them are common, but they live in close proximity, like packs of wolves, and have a strong sense of community. | Elves are extremely well educated in the scholarly arts of combat magic, and their society teaches study of the sword as a foundation for a disciplined lifestyle. Elves have a great love of learning, and teachers play an important role in their culture. Elven scholars have been responsible for many advances in magic theory. Their knowledge and empathy makes them an insular people, and while they believe that it is better to be among elves than among strangers, they feel compassion towards all races. |
| Race | Half-Giant | Human |
| Gender(s) | Male | Male and Female |
| Bonuses | +2 to Fortitude, +6 Strength, -2 Dexterity, +5% Health Regeneration | 2 Unspent Skill Points, +2 Strength, +1 Dexterity, +1 Intelligence, +10% Chance to Find Magic Items |
| Description | Half-giants are large creatures, standing ten feet tall. They are also incredibly sturdy, capable of remarkable feats of endurance. Their life spans are long -- most giants are hundreds of years old -- but they don't truly appear old until the last few months of life. Ceremonial markings and tattoos tell the story of their culture's struggles and wartime experience. While half-giants are a formidable foe when angered, as a rule they are quiet and introspective creatures that prefer their own counsel. They have a strong work ethic, and take pleasure from simple tasks, but something about them is always sad in some way. Other races avoid half-giants, unsure of what to make of them. | Humans are adaptable and strong, capable of mastering any discipline. Humans are an aggressive, often warlike race, but believe they have the common good at heart. Their tightly knit civilizations and reinforced fortresses are often the strongest bastions against oppressors. Humans are outgoing, social, and curious as well. Their world is full of danger and history, but human explorers have pushed on despite the risks and discovered many wonders. |
Attributes
Characters in Dungeon Siege II have three attributes – strength, dexterity, and intelligence – which they improve by fighting in battles. Shown below are the benefits gained from each attribute.
- 1 point of Strength adds:
- 2.50 to health
- 0.05 to mana
- 0.15-0.25 to melee damage
- 1 point of Dexterity adds:
- 1.95 to health
- 0.60 to mana
- 0.15-0.25 to ranged damage
- 1 point of Intelligence adds:
- 1.15 to health
- 4.35 to mana
- Magnitude and mana cost to spells (the exact amount depends on the spell)
Item types
- Unique
- Set
- Rare
- Magic
- Normal
Sets
| Type | Name | Mode | Pieces | Requirements |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melee Sets | Frostheim's Trappings | 2H Weapon Set 1 | 4 | Melee: 21 - 33 |
| Legend of the Fire King | 2H Weapon Set 2 | 4 | Melee: 43 - 60 | |
| Lorenthal's Legacy | 1H Weapon / Shield Set 1 | 8 | Melee: 3 - 28 | |
| Luun's Deathblades | Dual Wield Set 3 | 2 | Melee: 34 | |
| Night's Shadow | Dual Wield Set 1 | 5 | Melee: 13 - 29 | |
| The Furious Tempest | Dual Wield Set 2 | 4 | Melee: 44 - 56 | |
| The Undying Warlord | Armor Set 6 | 5 | Melee: 52 - 72 | |
| Treasures of the Dwarven Lords | Armor Set 4 | 3 | Melee: 36 - 47 | |
| Vistira's Undoing | 1H Weapon / Shield Set 2 | 4 | Melee: 36 - 48 | |
| Ranged Sets | Bloody Vengeance | Bow Set 2 | 4 | Ranged: 42 - 55 |
| Eternal Grace | Armor Set 1 | 4 | Ranged: 12 - 25 | |
| Fallen Soldier's Gift | Crossbow Set 1 | 3 | Ranged: 28 - 37 | |
| Olimarch's Bane | Bow Set 1 | 4 | Ranged: 4 - 16 | |
| Plainswalker's Journey | Armor Set 7 | 5 | Ranged: 42 - 70 | |
| Winds of Kel'drassil | Thrown Weapon Set 1 | 5 | Ranged: 22 - 46 | |
| Mage Sets | Chaos' Avatar | Cestus Set 1 | 3 | Combat Magic: 22 - 32 |
| Keh's Regalia | Armor Set 5 | 4 | Magic: 52 - 66 | |
| North Keeper's Vestments | Staff Set 2 | 3 | Nature Magic: 45 - 56 | |
| Silks of the Master | Armor Set 3 | 4 | Magic: 6 - 20 | |
| The Circle of Four | Armor Set 2 | 4 | Magic: 33 - 46 | |
| The Lich's Carcass | Cestus Set 2 | 4 | Combat Magic: 50 - 61 | |
| Thena's Serenity | Staff Set 1 | 4 | Nature Magic: 4 - 16 | |
| Other Sets | Ghostly Visions | Armor Set 11 | 3 | Character Level: 26 - 38 |
| Jewels of the Nexus | Armor Set 8 | 5 | Character Level: 3 - 34 | |
| Nature's Vigilance | Armor Set 10 | 4 | Character Level: 3 - 8 | |
| Secrets of the Forgotten | Armor Set 9 | 3 | Character Level: 32 | |
| ! Mysterious | ??? | 3 | Character Level: 0 - 30 |
Damage per second
In order to truly understand how much damage you are doing, you must learn to calculate DPS (damage per second). Since weapon damage is dependent on your ability stats and class levels, it will vary from person to person. However, you can compare two different weapons for your character by equipping each and calculating DPS for each.
DPS can be calculated with this formula:
(MIN_DMG + MAX_DMG) / (2 * SPEED)
Where:
MAX_DMG= Maximum damage of the weaponMIN_DMG= Minimum damage of the weaponSPEED= Speed factor of the weapon according to the following table:
| Speed | Factor |
|---|---|
| Slow | 0.9 |
| Normal | 0.73 |
| Fast | 0.67 |
| Faster | 0.625 |
Let’s consider a 34th level fighter choosing between a one-handed and two-handed weapon. The 2h weapon has a damage range of 90 to 143, the 1h is 67 to 105. Two-handed weapons have a speed factor of 0.9 and 1h is 0.67:
2h: (143 + 90) / (2 * 0.9) = 129.41h: (105 + 67) / (2 * 0.67) = 128.6
The DPS of the weapons are almost identical. However, the 1h weapon allows the fighter to use a shield, thus drastically increasing armor ratings. On the other hand, the 2h weapon can stun enemies and would be greatly superior used with Brutal Strike.
When choosing among several weapons, equip each one and run the formula. Take the one with the higher DPS or one with only slightly less DPS but more bonus enhancements. In the long run, the faster your enemies die, the better off you’ll be.
The Journey
My plan was to start with a dual-wielder melee human character and add a tank, a nature mage (healer and frost) and a ranged party member for Mercenary Mode, a Death Necromancer combat mage for Veteran Mode and another nature mage (healer and summoner) for Elite Mode.
The Act I Boss was very easy, I killed Vitalus first and I didn’t even bother to run around the long pedestal.
Knotted Shambler was a bit harder than the Giant Trilisk but still, nothing complex. Destroy the Leaf Generators, when there are no more leaves the Shambler can’t regenerate itself.
The Dark Wizard of Valdis is arguably the toughest boss fight you’ve yet encountered, since he possesses a lot of health, good defenses, and a lot of offensive tools, as well as spells that are just plain annoying.
Talon can, indeed, only be defeated with the ballista here; he keeps his distance from the platform it’s on, so you won’t be able to hit him with ranged weapons or spells. Killing him, then, is a matter of aiming the ballista and firing it at him while he sits in one of the five positions available to him.
Tools
Screenshots
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Mods
- Dungeon Siege 2 AllSaves - for Dungeon Siege 2 only, version 1.
- Ely’s DS2 Succubus Manager - version 10.
- Aranna Legacy Mod - for Broken World, version 3r.
- Hotfix Mod - for Dungeon Siege 2 only, version 5f.