Overview:
- Estimated achievement difficulty: 5/10
- Offline: 31/37 [895/1000]
- Online: 6/37 [105/1000 ]
- Approximate amount of time to 1000: 50-75 hours
- Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 6+
- Missable achievements: None
- Does difficulty affect achievements: Yes [Legend and Deity difficulties]
- Unobtainable/glitched achievements: Three but obtainable: "One for All," "Bodyguard," "Perfectionist."
- Extra equipment needed: Yes, a second controller.
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DLC: Malakhim
- Difficulty: 2/10
- Time to 45: 10-15 hours
- Glitched Achievements: Yes
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DLC: Underworld Story
- Difficulty: 3/10
- Time to 45: Under 5 Hours
- Glitched Achievements: Yes
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DLC: Orc of Thrones
- Difficulty: 2/10
- Time to 45: 10-15 Hours
- Glitched Achievements: No
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DLC: Orcland Story
- Difficulty: 2/10
- Time to 45: Under 5 Hours
- Glitched Achievements: No
Introduction:
So if you're a Sacred 2 veteran and you were expecting Sacred 3 to be more of the same; then you'll probably be disappointed. Sacred 3 has completely changed from the vast open world with dungeons, towns and even a rock concert with moshing orcs in Sacred 2; to a linear dungeon crawler that is "Diablo-esque". Unfortunately there is no open world but a map with a road that you can loosely follow to complete main and side missions along the way. There is also no random loot or collectibles to to be had; you gain weapon, armor, and skill upgrades as you level your character and complete missions.
There are four characters to choose from (five if you pre-ordered and got the DLC codes); they are the Seraphim, Safiri, Ancarian, Khukuri and the DLC class: Malakhim. The Malakhim is not required for the main game achievements like "Skilled Culture" and "Perfectionist." The voice acting can be awful at times; but some of it is funny and off kilter; especially Zep'tik.
Button Overview:
Attack
Roll/Block
Shield Break
Resurrect/Spirit Attack/Throw Enemy
and Combat Arts
Execute
Battle Prayer
Use Item
Movement
Item Inventory (rotate)
Prologue:
You must complete the prologue to be able to play the game online! This is your first solo mission; upon its completion if you load up your character you'll see on the right side it will say "matches" with a number next to it. This represents the available matches out there that are set to 'public.' You can then join public games at will, or create your own and invite friends.
Once you complete the Prologue you can basically go to any point on the map you wish and play that level. You may notice that the map icons are RED in color; this just means they are above the recommended level for you to complete. There is a natural progression to the main missions and you will notice a pulsating circle around the mission you should complete next.
Playthroughs:
**Efficiency Playthrough**
This is a random suggestion, but if you have a dedicated player; and you both have two controllers (you can log in a guest account) you can knock out the "Couch Party," "Party Like it's 1999," "On the Line" and "Online Master" achievements in one playthrough. I would recommend playing on easy as there's no split screen and you either have to control both toons on the screen at once (which can be a pain) or have an actual person play with you. (It has also been mentioned that you can just sign in a controller before you exit the level and you will get credit. Recommend you play in a private match if you go this route.) The other 'con' to this method would be the adjustable difficulty the game makes to the amount of players in the game. So if you have four players, but in theory are only playing two, the game will scale to the four players, hence more difficult enemies.
At the start menu, choose your character for adventure and your difficulty (recommend Normal) and you'll begin your adventure in Halios. (again) You must complete this mission to be able to play online. I also recommend that you play each character through the prologue as you will eventually have to level them up regardless for the "Perfectionist" achievement. It also gives you a feel for each character and lets you decide on what to play for now. The other reason I recommend this is because you'll need each character for specific achievements on certain levels; especially at least one female character for "Girls Night Out."
There are 15 main missions and many smaller side missions. You must complete all but two of the side missions for the "Overprepared" achievement; please see the description for more details. Once you complete Champion difficulty (normal); move on and run through the main missions again on Legend difficulty which will net you "Sacred Ancaria." Once that is complete do it all again on Deity difficulty and you'll get "Sacred Savior."
Achievements:
**Glitchy Achievements**
"Perfectionist" - We are relatively certain that the cause of this glitch is due to maxing out the Malakhim skills first. So it is easily avoided, just make sure you level your other characters and purchase their skills BEFORE you finish off the Malakhim (if you have the character DLC). If you do not have the DLC you do not need to worry. If the achievement glitched on you, the only way to fix it is to delete your save and start over from scratch, re-leveling all 4 main characters to 49. (credit "uhkillswitch" for the info) **Deep Silver is aware of this glitch and it affects PS3, Xbox 360 and PC; supposedly a patch will be put in place when the Orcland DLC is released. No ETA on that yet.**
"One for All" - Just keep using the Battle Prayer and it will eventually unlock; many people have reported that it just takes more than 10 times to finally unlock.
"Bodyguard" - Same as above, it just takes a few more times than five for the achievement to unlock if you are doing it correctly. Just use the strategy provided and do your best; it will unlock eventually.
There are no missable achievements so you don't need to worry about that. I will be making notations on specific achievements on whether or not you should have four players to attempt it, or whether you need a second controller or not. Most other achievements will come as you play naturally. And obviously you can keep playing your character(s) once you complete the game on a certain difficulty.
With this game, being patient and leveling your character and then doing a lot of the random achievements is the best way to go about it. With a high level character on a low difficulty setting you can knock out plenty without breaking a sweat.
DLC: Malakhim
Overview:
If you pre-ordered Sacred 3, you got a code to unlock a new character. The Malakhim is some type of assassin that uses blood magic and dual wields sickle type weapons. The mission you must complete is part of the main game, so it is not extra content. Most of your time will be spent leveling the Malakhim to level 50.
**Please Note**
The DLC achievements are glitched; but they are still obtainable. Currently, when you meet the requirements the achievements do not unlock. The fix is to go back to the dashboard and clear the system cache of your hard drive. When you load the game again, do not accept the update and you will be forced offline. Once the game loads and you enter the character lobby; the achievements will unlock. The only downside is they will not have time stamps. If you do not want to go this route and you want timestamps; do not attempt the DLC achievements until a patch has been implemented.
DLC: Underworld Story
Overview:
If you pre-ordered Sacred 3, you got a code to unlock the DLC missions. The Underworld is a separate set of missions that you can access via the main map. There is a vortex to the left of Palambron Keep that will take you to the Underworld. Here you must complete a handful of side missions to access the final dungeon where the Black Seraphim is located.
**Please Note**
The DLC achievements are glitched; but they are still obtainable. Currently, when you meet the requirements the achievements do not unlock. The fix is to go back to the dashboard and clear the system cache of your hard drive. When you load the game again, do not accept the update and you will be forced offline. Once the game loads and you enter the character lobby; the achievements will unlock. The only downside is they will not have time stamps. If you do not want to go this route and you want timestamps; do not attempt the DLC achievements until a patch has been implemented.
DLC: Orc of Thrones
Overview:
This is the next installment of DLC for Sacred 3 which adds a new playable character.. the Orc! There are a total of 2 new achievements for 45 which can be played 'offline'. They are very straight forward and shouldn't take you longer than 15 hours to complete. Most of your time will be spent getting your new Orc to level 50. To the achievements!
DLC: Orcland Story
Overview:
This is most likely the last DLC expansion for Sacred 3. There are a total of 2 new achievements for 45 which can be played 'offline'. They are very straight forward and shouldn't take you longer than 5 hours to complete. In all honesty, it is very similar to 'Underworld Story' and shouldn't take longer than 2 hours; but everyone plays differently. The recommended level for this expansion is mid-teens; however, you can play with any character on whatever difficulty you wish to get the achievements done.
Conclusion:
So if you're a fan of hack 'n' slash ARPG's with four player co-op and none too complicated dungeons, then this is the game for you! The humor is pretty corny; but it grows on you. Originally we all thought there was never going to be a Sacred 3, but Keen Games and Deep Silver made it happen. Regardless of all the nit-picking, the game is still enjoyable. You will spend most of your time grinding levels for the four, non-DLC, characters to get to level 49 to finish off their skills. Most experienced gamers will probably spend somewhere in the 50 to 60 hour range to complete everything for the original 1000.
**Special thanks to 'spockroxfaces', 'GB Kakuzu', 'ox0 Shad0w 0xo' and my 2nd controller**
[XBA would like to thank Xenolith666 for this RoadMap]