Caed Nua: The Empty Stronghold

Pillars of Eternity has been a really fun and rich adventure: beautiful environments, interesting and loveable characters, and an intriguing main plot. My expectations of this game have been met and exceeded many times. But, nearing the end of Act 3, I've found something I really wished was implemented better. As the title says, it's about Caed Nua. To be more specific, how empty the stronghold seems.

This stronghold is given to players very early on in the game, and it promises to bring many benefits as it is slowly rebuilt through much love and attention (not to mention gold) from the Watcher. Now, I have rebuilt everything there is to build in the stronghold, and I am quite disappointed. Make no mistake, there is a certain feeling of accomplishment to see Caed Nua transform from a run-down, dusty ruin to a stronghold that looks sturdy enough to repel an invading force. But my main problem with it, is that it feels so lifeless.

Sure, there are hirelings you pay to guard your stronghold from bandit attacks, the occasional merchant or supplicant who visits, and the permanent merchants (who stay in their buildings). The thing is, with only 8 hireling slots and visitors who come only once in a blue moon, the population seems so sparse that it's no better than a ghost town.

When I first got Caed Nua, I'd envisioned something more like Crossroad Keep in Neverwinter Nights 2. Now that stronghold bustled with people. Merchants hawked their wares outside of their designated buildings, companions hung out at various parts of the Keep, and guards kept watch at their posts or patrolled around. I felt like I was actually part of something important, instead of being a lord of an abandoned keep which travelers use as a rest stop. Granted, Crossroad Keep needed to have more people due to its significance in the story (housing the army that would repel the antagonist, and the PC who basically owns that land around it). But Caed Nua could have been much, much more.

So the entire point of this entry is: Caed Nua needs more life. More people. There are a few ways to go about it.

1. Place the merchants outside of their designated buildings. Not only would that help with the "lively" aesthetic, it would significantly reduce the amount of loading screens the player has to go through. Right now, if I wanted to visit two different merchants in Caed Nua, I'd have to suffer through a grand total of 4 loading screens (from entering and exiting the buildings). There are already enough loading screens in the entire game, people.
2. Let us have more hirelings. I'm not really sure if it's a game engine or scenario execution limitation, but having more hirelings would make my stronghold defence force feel more substantial.  Really, 8 people to defend the entire stronghold? That doesn't really boost my confidence, especially if I have to fast travel back to Caed Nua to help defend it every time there's an attack. Auto-resolving it just puts many of my hard-earned structures in jeopardy of being destroyed.
3. While we're on the subject of attacks, let the battles take place outdoors. Either that, or give us more locations around the stronghold to fight in, depending on the type of attackers. For example: Doemenel thugs (whose reputation sounds more devious) could take place in the Main Keep, where they enter through some back door in a crafty attack plan. Ogres (if there are, I can't remember from offhand) would attack from the main entrance in their usual lumbering fashion, and that is where the battle is located. Mix it up a little. I'm getting tired of resolving mini-fights in the Main Keep, where my steward is munching on proverbial popcorn and watching the bloodshed take place.
4. Add more NPCs. It doesn't matter if they are random stock characters. Just stick them in. They can be the families of merchants who have moved in. People who are taking shelter in Caed Nua, or are living there. It could be a small settlement springing up around the stronghold. Think Athkatla from Baldur's Gate 2, just not as busy to keep up the appearance of a keep that is admittedly rather out of the way.
5. Scatter the companions around. I understand that Brighthollow is a good place to rest in, but having them quietly skulk about in their rooms is just...no. Place them in areas they would feel at home in. Sagani, as a ranger, could hang out near the trees along with Hiravias. Durance could be near the chapel. Kana bounces on his heels near the entrance to Od Nua, throwing puppy-dog eyes at the Watcher and asking them to continue their adventure into the depths. Put the companions in environments they would feel most comfortable in, not boring rooms.

That is it. My main gripe with Caed Nua. This is, however, not a very glaring problem as I don't spend much of my time there anyway. But having more and more people appearing in the stronghold as a result of my (and the steward's) care would have more of a sentimental impact on me. It would raise the stakes as well, in the event of attacks. You'd have actual people to defend, a motive to fight with all you've got. Right now, it's just a money-making home for my Watcher to travel back to for free lodgings.

I'll probably write another entry on Pillars of Eternity after I've finished it. Can't wait.