I was reading through some PTS comments a few days ago and saw some interesting change ideas - but cannot find the damned thread it was in. So I have recreated the suggestions as best I can recall them (and hence almost certainly changed them in the process) as I think they are worthy of discussion...
So what are your thoughts? Could we get around these ideas of are they too radical?
@Cathexis @Erock25 @Dracane @Xael @CP5 Lightning Form
This does not provide any protection (so no resolve or ward buffs) – or maybe only provides a minor resolve / ward buff.
The PBAoE damage it provides is much higher than currently - equivalent to Lightning Splash (and morphs) plus the current Lightning Form damage (hence why it may not provide any defence any more), but the effect is attached to the sorcerer. It is still considered to be ground targeted.
An additional idea would be to allow the lightning form to be shed, leaving a ground based AoE at the location it is shed [which could also apply a short duration root at the dropped location, 1s]. The shed lightning would last the remaining duration of the ability (and hence it would be cancelled if recast).
Base duration would be 15s, +1s per morph rank
Boundless Storm provides a mobility buff (expeditious).
Thundering Presence provides a range buff (i.e. the AoE effect is bigger) and costs / scales with Stamina/Weapon Power.
Reasoning:
This becomes the new Liquid Lightning, but the sorcerer must stay on the mob to be effective. Because it is now a melee skill, the damage is higher than Liquid Lightning (risk vs reward) – and it still synergises with Impulse (as that is also PBAoE). Because the ability can be shed, the effect of losing Liquid Lightning is reduced but to drop the Lightning the sorcerer needs to put himself at risk.
Bound Armour now becomes the class defensive skill (other than Conjured Ward).
Bound Armour
Bound Armour provides a major resolve and a major ward buff whilst active, but also reduces max magicka by 8% whilst active.
Bound Armaments provides a berserk buff (8% damage)
Bound Aegis provides a minor protection buff (8% mitigation)buff.
Each rank in a morph (past the first ) reduces the max magicka penalty by 1% (so the reduction is 5% at rank 4).
Reasoning:
This becomes the class defensive armour/spell resist skill. It has a slight impact on max magicka, but can be morphed for better protection (tanks, and some PvPers), or for better damage (dps). Both morphs are equally usable by stamina or magicka builds. The reason for a max magicka penalty is because the ability is quite powerful in this form, although the max magicka penalty could be swapped for max stamina for the Aegis morph.
Lightning Splash
Remove lightning splash completely and move the synergy either to the new Lightning Form or create a new synergy for Encase.
Replace with a “Lightning Bolt” ability. This is a close range (10m – 15m maybe) instant cast, immediate delivery, direct damage spammable single target lightning ability (such as a bolt of lightning), which does not have a CC component and is not an execute. It causes its damage immediately and does not have any appreciable casting or travel time delay. This will synergise with the class / skill line passives.
The potential morphs of this are likely to be one morph that hits multiple secondary targets based on their proximity (i.e. forked or chain lightning) and one that increases the base ability range. Alternatively there is scope for a morph to apply a debuff or CC effect (e.g. maim, defile or a snare).
One morph should be a stamina scaled morph (probably the debuff) and one a magicka scaled one (probably the multi-target one).
Reasoning: The role of Liquid Lightning has been taken by Lightning Form – freeing a slot for a new ability. The main complaint of all sorcerers is the lack of a single target direct damage, spammable ability. This provides that option for both stamina and magicka builds. It can hit relatively hard because it applies no CC and is short(ish) range, but not monstrously because it is instant and still ranged. For magicka builds it could replace Force/Crushing Shock and for melee builds could provide a class instant ability (like Veiled Strike or Lava Whip). In addition if one morph provided an AoE effect it could (at least partially) take the place of Lightning Splash for AoE damage at range (depends on the number of targets hit by it).
Questions:
Would this cripple and sorcerer playstyles?
Magicka builds:
The change to Bound Armour would reduce their potential to stack maximum magicka by 8% (which is about 3.2k at 40k magicka), but provide better base armour/spell resist and either an 8% post shield break mitigation or 8% across-the-board damage increase for the same slot requirement. So I personally think this would be neutral to positive for most magicka users.
The change to Lightning Form would mean that Impulse spam in melee range would be just as effective as currently (i.e. Impluse used with Lightning Splash whilst running Lightning Form).
The addition of Lightning Bolt would provide a spammable Lightning based filler / replacement for Force Shock/Crushing Shock and would provide much better synergies with the class passives. Depending on the morphs it could also provide some ranged AoE.
Ranged builds:
The changes could adversely affect builds that are designed to work only at range as Lightning Splash would no longer be applied at range. However weaving the new Lightning Bolt skill would be weavable with other abilities – enabling for an effective capability at range, including AoE with the multi-target morph (although with a slightly reduced range compared to Lightning Splash).
Stamina builds:
Much the same as for magicka builds, the change to Bound Armour would reduce their potential to stack maximum stamina by 8%, but provide better base armour/spell resist and either an 8% post shield break mitigation or 8% across-the-board damage increase for the same slot requirement. So again I think this would be neutral to positive for most stamina users.
The change to Lightning Form would support stamina melee favourably and better than Lighting Splash did due to the stamina morph being effective for dps.
The addition of Lightning Bolt would provide a spammable Lightning based ability that would provide much better synergies with the class passives and one morph would scale with stamina.
Overall an improvement for stamina melee builds; a neutral to minor positive impact for magicka builds.
It would also support tanks better (Bound Aegis provides mitigation) and would be neutral for healers.