RPGs have changed a lot in the past few years. But there’s no denying that classic games like Baldur’s Gate are still fun to this day.
And few titles manage to capture this gameplay as nicely as Pillars of Eternity.
Even though the game plays great even years after release, there are still ways to improve upon the vanilla experience, or even take things beyond the boundaries set by the developers.
Yep, we’re talking about mods, and here’s some of the best ones worth snagging for PoE1.
10. Paladin Overhaul
Paladins are very cool.
They stand fast against the forces of evil, sending back the shadow from whence it came. Not in Pillars of Eternity, though.
If you’re as disappointed as I am that Paladins in this game aren’t the stalwart defenders of light like they are in other games, you have two choices.
Either join the darkness, or download this Paladin Overhaul mod. It’s a godsend that turns Paladins into the powerful class they were meant to be. For the light!
9. True Mastery
Pillars of Eternity grants you the freedom to customize your characters in any way you want.
Only that some options are clearly inferior to others.
While we’re still here wondering why Obsidian balanced the game the way they did, someone else decided to take matters into their hands, and develop the True Mastery mod.
This is a mod that finally makes weapon focus and specialization more effective, increasing accuracy and damage so much that you’ll no longer regret having not specialized in magic.
Finally, the sword becomes mightier than the staff!
8. Unlimited Camp Supplies
After a long day adventuring in a dangerous land, you finally discover a nice spot to set up camp and rest your weary bones.
Only to curse the goddess Woedica because you’re out of supplies!
With the Unlimited Camp Supplies mod, however, this will no longer happen.
You’ll always have everything you need for a good night’s rest. Not exactly game-breaking, but does make it a lot easier.
7. Druid Spiritshift – Unlimited Duration
I don’t know about you, but I always wanted to turn into an animal and tear my enemies apart with claws and fangs.
Imagine my disappointment when I could do this in Pillers of Eternity, but only for a short amount of time!
Well with this mod, limited Spiritshift is a thing of the distant past.
It’s a simple modification that allows any Druid to stay in Spiritshift form all the time during combat. Who needs a weapon when you can turn into a bear for as long as you want?
6. Firearms Overhaul
Firearms don’t exactly scream “fantasy RPG” to me. But they must for someone, since they’re featured in Pillers of Eternity… although in a very underwhelming form.
If you want to make an all-powerful fantasy gunslinger, all you have to do (other than investing skill points) is download the Firearms Overhaul mod.
This makes firearms way better than in the vanilla game. So much better, that you could try your hand at the Path of the Damned difficulty and survive. Maybe.
5. Better Graphics
Pillars of Eternity wasn’t exactly a looker when it released. And it’s definitely not one now.
But this doesn’t mean things can’t be improved with a little bit of magic (or modding).
The Better Graphics mod is a SweetFX config that improves the quality of textures, introduces something akin to HDR, as well as several other tweaks that make Eora look nothing like it did before!
4. Level Cap Increaser
The pleasure in breaking a game is not for the benefits it brings, but for the breaking itself.
Kidding, of course.
Because with this mod we can go way past the default level cap, and utterly dominate each and every combat encounter. You’ll become so powerful that it wouldn’t surprise me if you were to become the new god of Eora.
3. Baldur’s Gate Portraits
Pillars of Eternity features a wide range of portraits. But you know how it is with fans: a wide range is basically not enough.
If you still play Baldur’s Gate every now and then, and still think about it often, download the Baldur’s Gate Portraits pack.
It won’t do much to heal your lovesickness. But hey, at least you’ll get options more to your liking!
2. Save Game Editor
When increasing the level cap is no longer enough for you, then you can only do one thing:
Start messing around with your save file!
This Save Game Editor is an amazing open-source editor that lets you edit your save files and change a lot of different things like character attributes, character names, and so on.
This lets you basically become whoever you want, without having to put it any effort in learning the game’s mechanics. Oh you lazy adventurer, you!
1. IE Mod
Do you know what IE Mod stands for?
It stands for the best mod to download for Pillars of Eternity, especially if you’ve been into computer RPGs for a long time.
In truth, IE Mod stands for Infinity Engine. Which is the game engine that powers not just Pillars of Eternity, but several other classic PC RPGs like Baldur’s Gate.
This mod aims to bring the experience closer to these older games, while fixing some very weird design choices, like friendly AOE spells.
Give it a spin if you’re planning to play through PoE a second time: you won’t be disappointed, trust me.
