Pillars of Eternity Post-funding Update #99: Expansion and Update 2.0

Obsidian Entertainment has cranked out a 99th post-funding update for Pillars of Eternity, and this time they cover their recent announcement of The White March Part I expansion pack, the two new companions in the add-on, and the upcoming Update 2.0 patch that will introduce a host of enhancements that are meant to both fill some gaps and address player feedback since launch.  Within the entry, there’s also a new two-and-a-half-minute video featuring executive producer Adam Brennecke showcasing some of the features to be expected from the 2.0 patch:

On the new companions:

The expansion will include two new companions: Zahua (the monk shown on the cover of the game and formally known as Forton) and the Devil of Caroc (a rogue). Here is a brief description from Eric and Carrie who are writing them.

Zahua

From Eric Fenstermaker:

Zahua comes from an agrarian people known as the Tacan that dwells in the Ixamitl (ih-SHAH-mitt -ull) Plains to the north. (You may have known him as Forton once, but we renamed him to reflect his region of origin.) He belongs to the Nalpazca, a strict order of warrior-monks that constitutes the Tacan’s standing army.

The Nalpazca distinguish between the material world and the imagined world of perceptions, feelings, and false structures, seeing the latter as the limiting force that prevents a person’s transcendence. They employ extreme practices to remain ever-conscious of what is truly real, and are known for exhibiting bizarre anti-social behavior in public settings, consuming powerful hallucinogenic drugs, and inflicting great pain upon themselves, all so as to allow themselves to “see more clearly.” There are even rumored to ritualistically cannibalize the flesh of the recent dead so that they might come to terms with their own mortality, though such rumors have the ring of superstition.

Zahua is the greatest living practitioner of Nalpazca beliefs, and even as you meet him, he is in continual pursuit of their ideals, which he believes will transform him into an unbeatable combatant. Above all, he believes in suffering as the path to enlightenment, and nearly every inch of his body is covered in scars – mostly self-inflicted. While some might see that as a grim or depressing viewpoint, from Zahua’s perspective, suffering is a thing of beauty, to be admired and revered, and he is often able to appreciate situations that would dishearten most others. (Perhaps with a little too much cheer for some people’s taste.)

The player will meet and get to know Zahua as a party member in White March Part I, and then his vision quest will come into focus later, in Part II.

The Devil of Caroc

From Carrie Patel:

The Devil of Caroc is a bronze golem inhabited by the soul of a convicted murderer. She’s ruthless and relentless, yet something about the player piques her interest when they first meet.

The Devil was once a trapper in Cold Morn, a village that became notorious for its role in the Saint’s War. When she and her neighbors let the Readceran troops pass through town unopposed, they became a symbol of treachery and cowardice throughout Dyrwood. The Purges that swept the country began in Cold Morn, and everyone the Devil ever knew perished when an angry mob burned the village to the ground. The Devil survived and sought revenge on the men and women who set her home ablaze.

She’s still a rustic at heart, but her crude manners belie cunning and a cynical sense of humor.