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| Risen 3: Titan Lords |
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Min-Maxing Guide
...By Gessie
[Index]
1. Introduction
2. Essentials
3. Maximizing Glory Gains
4. Things to Hold on to
5. Maxing Stats
6. Factions
7. Hardcore Min-Maxing
8. Misc Notes
[1. Introduction]
After playing Risen 3 Enhanced Edition and stumbling across various shreds of
tips by other players, I realized there wasn't a thorough list of information
available intended specifically for the min-maxing player while avoiding
spoilers and hand-holding.
So without further ado, here it is. Ultra difficulty is strongly recommended as
the game is rather easy.
As a result, and I'll mention this right away: There actually is no need to
optimize your gains, as max stats make every single combat encounter trivial,
including bosses, and there's an abundance of all resources including stat
points. Hence, this guide is more for completionists (read: neurotic gamers)
such as myself.
[2. Essentials]
There are a few items and skills which are required very early on to maximize
your character throughout the playthrough, else both material wealth and Glory
points (XP) are wasted and cannot be recovered through any means. These are:
-> Freddie's Shackles (+10% Glory gains legendary item), found on Fog Islands
directly to the south of the unnamed hero's ship past the mountain in a ruined
house.
-> Hunting skills (significant item gains on most kills). An example trainer is
Bronach at the western hunting lodge in Calador. You'll need 4000 gold to train
them all but have the option to buy them individually.
-> Pickaxe AND Prospecting (mine ore deposits and gaining +60% ores). An
example trainer is Faris, at the northern mine in Taranis. There's also a 500
gold cost for the skill.
Thankfully, various Youtubers have created videos on how to "snipe" these. I
advise watching one, going to the island mentioned, rushing to the item or
trainer using a Parrot Doll and then going back to free play after you've
collected the must-haves.
..and that's it. You'll also want to buy a Lockpick at for example Antigua
Harbor or Calador Tavern, but there's no rush since you'll likely want to sweep
each area again after you're able to open high-level locks (120).
[3. Maximizing Glory Gains]
Beat up anyone you encounter to see if they fall unconscious. If so, there are
no repercussions whatsoever - it's a sparring match and you'll gain Glory for
winning the bout (even if the animation shows you ruthlessly gutting the NPC in
question). Unlike earlier PB titles it's difficult to mess up any quest lines.
One exception to this is the Demon Hunters initiation quest, in which for some
reason the roaming warriors you're supposed to retrieve die permanently when
defeated. This won't stop you from being accepted into the faction however.
Another exception is water; if you accidentally toss NPC's into the water while
they're unconscious you may end up being unable to interact with them after they
wake up.
Also note that creatures sometimes appear in locations you've already cleared.
I'm not sure why this is, but I suspect they appear after advancing to a new
chapter.
Lastly, keep in mind that if you thoroughly clear the entire map and follow the
tips in section 5 below, you'll max everything out with glory left over. I had
over 100,000 surplus Glory before even entering the final chapter of the story.
That means: Don't worry if you miss out on some Glory.
[4. Things to Hold on to]
You'll get filthy rich eventually. Don't be afraid to use ammo, buy equipment or
invest gold in skills (you can buy them all if thorough). Also don't worry if
you've made a few poor financial decisions.
Certain items can be sold but should ideally should be held on to, however.
These are:
- Most importantly, any permanent stat-boosting herbs (read section 5 below for
more info).
- The faction-specific materials (Jade, Ancient Knowledge and Magic Crystals).
These are used to learn spells and craft the best jewelry. You'll find enough to
buy all spells and craft all jewelry, so don't worry about a few poor
investments.
- 10 Silver Goblets and 10 Silver Plates; you'll get 80g each for these from
Colby on Kila.
- Raw Fish can be handed to Nate in Calador for 15g and 3 Glory each. It's easy
to lose this opportunity so when first talking to Nate be sure to have 10 fish
in your inventory, follow him to the Citadel when he asks and give him the fish.
When you arrive he'll buy raw fish from then on. There's a limit, though I'm not
sure what it is - maybe 40 or so.
- Iron Ores can be sold to Wilson, the Calador blacksmith, after finding his
apprentice for 25g each. They're also used to upgrade weapons, along with Gold
Ores and other items (check a few weapons for examples). You'll get around 100
surplus Iron and Gold ores in a thorough walkthrough, so don't worry about these
either.
- Horas in Tacarigua will exchange Rock Crystals for Magic Crystals if you're a
Guardian, or gold otherwise. Later you'll get them back for another quest.
- Soul Dusts can be sold to Mendoza for 40g each in sets of 5 (200g) - a much
better option than the humanity gained by giving them to Edward. Gather these
during the "dream" sequences after attempting to sleep.
- Save all plants for Potion Brewing, besides Golden Clover and Skullflower
(these are used for Distilling, which by the way isn't a good way to earn gold).
Many items in the game are used as ingredients at some point, though common
household items like Tankards and Brooms should be sold.
- Don't consume Provisions and booze too often (if at all) as they're worth
gold - let Bones heal you instead (after you've unlocked him on Crab Coast).
This will save you many thousands throughout the game.
[5. Maxing Stats]
Hold on to any permanent stat-boosting herbs (easily identified as they're worth
50g each and increase a single stat by +2). You can turn them into permanent
potions with the Brew Potions skill, but again there's no rush as you'll want to
start drinking these ONLY after maxing the stat is within reach to avoid pushing
the Glory costs up. Example:
Each potion increases the stat by 5. Suppose you have 10 Cunning potions (or the
ingredients required to make them) - you'll need at least 50 cunning through
Glory upgrades in order to max it to 100 (or 105 if the respective stat-boosting
legendary is acquired).
Using this method you'll end up with a god-like character, maxing out all stats
with Glory left over. Check the following guide for a list of known permanent
boost herbs, though I'm 100% sure there are more plants, notably Toughness and
Magic of which I had a few extra:
https://forums.nexusmods.com/index.php?/topic/3655600-spoilers-risen-3-tips-for-
accessing-areas-before-chapter-3/
According to this list there are a few pre-built potions, 10 herbs for each stat
(except the 8 for Spirit and 11 for Cunning), so a min-maxer can stop investing
Glory and start chugging potions at a base (minus legendary gains) of 50, 60 for
Spirit and 45 for Cunning. Keep in mind that you'll be near the end of the game
when you actually get them all, so extra points in combat stats would help you
max out much earlier, particularly Toughness which adds power exponentially as
more points are invested (0-40 has a minor effect, 80-100 sharply reduces damage
taken).
Here's a list of the permanent potion recipes and where to find them:
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=599422399
(by the way, the melee recipe is found slightly north-west of the southern
thunder pillar on Taranis - the description in the link is very unclear)
Note: Melee and Ranged have an attack speed skill requiring Dexterity, while
Magic has an attack speed skill requiring Cunning. There are other
co-dependencies, like Battlemage requiring Melee - check the Skills page in-game
to see what's what.
[6. Factions]
Feel free to join a faction early. This won't in any way ruin existing quests
other than those specific to joining the other factions. I strongly recommend
making a pre-faction save in case you change your mind later, or as a point to
reload after finishing the game to try the other options.
All factions can use a heal spell, a "Primary weapon slot spell" (used both in
melee and at range, meaning they all offer powerful offensive magic) and a
telekinesis spell to acquire loot from far away (an incredible quality-of-life
improvement to looting and exploration). Note that whichever you choose, you'll
end up overpowered.
A brief rundown of the factions in order of Ultra-difficulty combat
effectiveness:
A) The Demon Hunters (Rune Magic, Calador) use a thunder Primary spell, but
their main appeal comes from the ability to massively buff melee attack speed
(including their Primary spell) and a temporary shield (up to X amount of
damage). Easily the most powerful faction for pure combat, though as a minor
downside they cannot use Astral Vision to highlight (permanent booster) plants.
Joining them changes the dodge to a "teleport" but sadly this doesn't change its
function; it's purely visual. Can summon weak shadow creatures temporarily.
Focused combat gameplay with weak utility.
B) The Natives (Voodoo Magic, Kila) use a poison swarm Primary spell. Parrot
Form dolls are common enough for exploration purposes (I had 42 left after
finishing the game), but when choosing this faction you can use it constantly
for convenient transportation. The Bloodlust ability is extremely powerful but
should be used sparingly as it doesn't award Glory on kills by or death of the
enraged creature. As a downside they have a health leech spell instead of a
direct heal, requiring another creature nearby in addition to a high faction
rank. Can revive slain enemies as allies temporarily. Creative gameplay with
strong utility.
C) The Guardians (Crystal Magic, Taranis) specialize in area damage using Fire
Rain and may use three different elemental Primary spells to avoid enemy
resistances. They can also open locks using the Magic stat, thus largely
replacing Dexterity. Aggressive gameplay with decent utility. There's good
reason they're listed last as Guardians specialize in magic, while both the
Demon Hunters and Natives amusingly wield it to greater effect while they also
synergize well with conventional weaponry, unlike the Guardians.
In conclusion, choose whichever you enjoy most thematically or for fast combat
choose the DH. Note that all three can use any offensive style (Magic, Melee,
Ranged, Cunning/Dirty Tricks).
In case you're wondering which style is most powerful, it's probably magic due
to the AoE and dual role (ranged/melee). Melee attacks are faster but can be
blocked, Muskets are weaker but can crit. Again, go with what you like
thematically to get the most enjoyment out of the game - especially the finisher
animations on melee make a large difference (whether good or bad).
[7. Hardcore Min-Maxing]
A few tips for the tryhards out there:
- To absolutely maximize Glory gains, after starting a new game ignore every
single enemy you encounter on Crab Coast and rush to the temple. You'll find
roughly 1800 gold along the way by first inspecting the pirate corpse laying
close to the river (there'll be a cutscene before you take the path up into the
mountains), grabbing the treasure now marked in the quest log and finally
opening the Sarcophagus on the side-path inside the temple main hall (with the
weak floor). After some cutscenes you'll be able to travel to other islands,
allowing you to pick up the three basics mentioned above before exploring Crab
Coast properly.
- You can save-scum when opening Clams (save before opening them, load if you
don't get a good drop). It works like this: Every Clam has a chance of dropping
a Black Pearl (50g) when opened - I estimate a droprate around 2%, and if four
Clams in a row award nothing a regular Pearl (15g) drops guaranteed on the 5th
(seemingly with no chance at a Black Pearl). I wouldn't go overboard with this
however as the gains aren't very impressive, with gold being plentiful and given
how boring it is to look at a load screen; opening them in sets of 20 is already
quite neurotic given that there are over 500 clams in the game.
Good early weapons:
- The most powerful yet accessible melee weapon can be grabbed along with
Prospector on Taranis. Check the mountain just behind the harbor. It's not shown
on the map, but after a bit of climbing you'll find a few Dragon Snappers along
with a Battle Axe.
- One of the best melee weapons can be found once you're able to open a lvl80
lock - it's on the north-eastern mountain's side on Fog Island (shown as a grass
plateau on the map, directly east from the starting beach), which is upgraded to
the Spirit Hammer (77.5 average damage, the best weapons in the game have 82.5).
- The most powerful shotgun can be found early on: The Wolf's Jaw, upgrade of
the Dragon Flame shotgun which you can pickpocket off of Drake at the Calador
Tavern, in the center of the island.
- The best musket to be found early is the Spirit Musket, an upgrade of the
Bone Musket, found in a cave hidden behind some plants on the rightmost side of
the giant wall on Kila (can't miss it - just glance at the map). The best musket
in the game is identical but adds +5 crit chance, found in the final chapter:
- Once you go to the final island, Jake will conveniently sell you some of the
best weapons in the game so I won't list those.
[8. Misc Notes]
- Talk to your parrot after unlocking the large ship whenever Bones tells you
to inspect your crew, regardless of your faction or combat style. Trust me on
this one - I won't spoil the surprise.
- Generally the best companion is Bones due to his healing and tanking. Mendoza
deals high damage in melee but can't heal. Saddec deals good damage using his
shotgun, but rarely manages to distract the enemy (which requires 2 hits for
smaller enemies, 3 for "giant" enemies). The others are just generic melee
fighters, with Jaffar being the weakest, offset by his loot gathering and
cheerful demeanor.
- In my opinion nearly impossible to spot with the naked eye, you can actually
go below deck after unlocking the large ship. There's a ladder in the center of
the main deck. Below you'll find some loot, but more importantly three crafting
stations: A Laboratory, Goldsmithy and Artefactorium.
- The unnamed hero can climb surprisingly well by mashing the jump key while
holding a movement button (aim for creases or "corners" in the terrain to gain
traction). He also dies after dropping a few feet, but don't worry as watching
him ragdoll down a cliff is absolutely hilarious. It's possible to reach
unfinished parts of the map or run into an invisible wall, but sometimes you'll
be rewarded with loot or access to a location you'd normally need the Monkey or
a Parrot Doll for. Note that jagged rocks and poorly textured mountains aren't
generally worth exploring, saving you lots of time. Rooftops and grassy plateaus
often hold loot however!
