60 is probably a bit much, unless it is unblockable. But I agree that decent damage for higher cost makes sense.
It needs to have a niche besides "something you do between casts of other powers" because that is the domain of auto attack to begin with.
Exactly, capn233. What other class has a skill that's meant to be filler until your more desirable skills are available for use? Pretty sure the answer to that is none.
Exactly, capn233. What other class has a skill that's meant to be filler until your more desirable skills are available for use? Pretty sure the answer to that is none.
Let's be honest here though, the reason for that is because they didn't want to have SP Knight Enchanter and MP AW using melee warrior weapons. This is why SB is what it is.
SB is was built to be a spammable auto-attack substitute, the "cost" of it was never meant to be mana but the skills slot.
Let's be honest here though, the reason for that is because they didn't want to have SP Knight Enchanter and MP AW using melee warrior weapons. This is why SB is what it is.
SB is was built to be a spammable auto-attack substitute, the "cost" of it was never meant to be mana but the skills slot.
The AW is the closest thing to a hybrid/multi-class in the game. The SB is NOT a physical weapon and the AW is still classified as a "mage". Correction, the Templar would be the closest crossover. Anyway, SB is still a magical attack weapon not like say the Daedric weapons in ES3: Morrowind which were physical weapons (with a limited lifespan) that had a one-time mana cost as a part of the Conjuration tree. I understand what you're trying to say as far as they didn't want a "mage" using physical weapons so they created a magical weapon as a replacement. It's a stretch to say there should be no mana cost associated and that it was meant to be an AA substitute. There's always some mana cost associated to magical items or magic use. If SB were engineered like the Daedric weapons, then you may have had a valid point but it doesn't hold water.
Your idea about a chance to fail spell casts sounds purely like personal preference, not like something that has to happen. Though, now that I think about it...there is spell interruption in DAMP, even for the AW funnily enough who has a stagger resistance passive.
When I said "guaranteed spell" I listed out multiple mechanics that break the guarantee which also includes CtC. It's not a matter of personal preference but game mechanics that have existed as long as I've rolled dice and moved from one dot to the next on paper. You said Weakness was a problem and I offered a solution (that would not be unheard of).
I have not played the Virtuoso, so I don't know how it is with him. With the AW, nigh constant barriers only comes with high/top end gear (of course lots of promotions help a good deal, but that I do not have).
So you're making recommendations for change without having played all the characters to understand how changing X would impact Y? Admitting such thing can get you filleted in BSN, if not having anything else you say outright ignored. I'll go easy on you... this time. Am I not merciful? The AW doesn't require the best gear (well didn't) originally. That's why people were requesting it to be nerfed. Do a forum search of AW nerf requests back b/w Nov-Feb. Most of them reference changing or removing Fade Shield. There were way too many noobish players who relied on AW to get their way up (hence lolcrutchkit). It is still possible to keep up a constant barrier on Perilous with a SB-less AW build and not have the best gear.
And even then, it's possible for the AW to be overwhelmed. This barrier continuity issue doesn't really bother me. I'm fine with characters/classes not being absolutely balanced (even if the Virtuoso and AW get hit with a massive nerf bat, I wouldn't call DAMP balanced). And really, before anyone of the DAMP community suggests taking a nerf bat to something, we should wait until patch 8 lands. I imagine the changes to guard (and potentially barriers) will come with it, possibly changing the entire conversation on the matter.
Any kit can get overwhelmed even with the best stats. That's no small thanks to archers mostly. Kits don't have to be completely balanced. I'm just pointing to the specific examples where the progression curve for players is drastically shorter when playing certain kits and way. Why wait? You can roll the changes now and rebalance them later anyway. These won't be the last set of changes coming out.
Let's be honest here though, the reason for that is because they didn't want to have SP Knight Enchanter and MP AW using melee warrior weapons. This is why SB is what it is.
SB is was built to be a spammable auto-attack substitute, the "cost" of it was never meant to be mana but the skills slot.
If that was meant to be (which I'm not agreeing with), then why was Spirit Blade so powerful from the get go? The devs couldn't have been oblivious to that. I disagree with your assertion about SB originally being intended as a filler skill. Especially when taking into account how effective staff attacks are in conjunction with Gathering Storm and other skill usage, it makes it seem like Spirit Blade doesn't have any business being on my skill bar. Why? Because running without it leads to better results in all but perhaps a couple of specific situations. And I'm pretty sure no other class has any skill that could be considered filler like Spirit Blade is currently, which makes SB seem even more like a bastard skill.
@Shadohz: I haven't played all the classes, and that's a surprise somehow? Not all classes appeal to everyone. It's common sense that not everyone is going to play every character. Also, I didn't make a suggestion for change that would have a direct impact on the abilities of more than one class, so why are you saying that I made a suggestion for change that would (well, it most certainly seems like you did anyways. There's not much point in making the statement you did unless that's what you were trying to say)? Also, just because people clamor for a change doesn't mean that I agree with it. As I said before, I don't care that the AW has greater survivability than most other classes
And there's a reason why I say wait until patch 8 before making any drastic changes; The reason the AW stands out is because of how crappy guard is compared to barriers in terms of durability (which there should be a difference since barriers have a duration) in DAMP. In single player, guard can become very, very durable (so much so that I stopped caring about having barriers handy, lol). But in DAMP we can't reach the high armor values (and resistance values without massive promotions) that give guard its durability, thus making barriers obviously much better for survivability in DAMP. The problem lies more with the incongruence between SP and MP damage mitigation systems.
I actually think KE and AW would have been more interesting if they equipped warrior weapons.
If that was meant to be (which I'm not agreeing with), then why was Spirit Blade so powerful from the get go? The devs couldn't have been oblivious to that. I disagree with your assertion about SB originally being intended as a filler skill.
I would wager it was balanced completely around SP. In which case you won't have "end game" base weapon damage until the mid to late game depending on how much metagaming you do (you won't even necessarily have KE spec until the teens). You also don't get access to anything from the Rift Mage spec which is probably one of the best collections of powers and passives.
In any case, the original intent isn't necessarily the most important determinant of how to balance SB. The game has evolved since release, and devs can't always anticipate the way the players will end up playing the game.
I actually think KE and AW would have been more interesting if they equipped warrior weapons.
I would wager it was balanced completely around SP. In which case you won't have "end game" base weapon damage until the mid to late game depending on how much metagaming you do (you won't even necessarily have KE spec until the teens). You also don't get access to anything from the Rift Mage spec which is probably one of the best collections of powers and passives.
In any case, the original intent isn't necessarily the most important determinant of how to balance SB. The game has evolved since release, and devs can't always anticipate the way the players will end up playing the game.
Fair enough, though I don't appreciate Spirit Blade being made almost pointless. I like being a melee oriented mage; it's what attracted me to the Arcane Warrior in the first place.
Fair enough, though I don't appreciate Spirit Blade being made almost pointless. I like being a melee oriented mage; it's what attracted me to the Arcane Warrior in the first place.
I don't either, and even with the little buff this weekend it is still not particularly great.
I did a little solo yesterday at level 14. It gave me demons, which is the best faction for SB. It may not be a wet noodle any longer, but at best it is a moist noodle. In Zone 5 it almost seemed like it was a waste of the little mana it cost to use it.
If it is going to retain the low standard damage, it needs guard and barrier multipliers. But I would rather it cost 15-20 mana and hit harder.
I don't either, and even with the little buff this weekend it is still not particularly great.
I did a little solo yesterday at level 14. It gave me demons, which is the best faction for SB. It may not be a wet noodle any longer, but at best it is a moist noodle. In Zone 5 it almost seemed like it was a waste of the little mana it cost to use it.
If it is going to retain the low standard damage, it needs guard and barrier multipliers. But I would rather it cost 15-20 mana and hit harder.
I agree with your comment at the end there. There's no point in having a skill with supreme mana/stamina efficiency if that skill isn't worth using.
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