Official Feedback Thread for Non-Class Changes

Joy_Division

My feedback for the Monster sets:

• Lord Warden - I knew nobody would wear this upon release. Proc rate is now appealing, but that's not much mitigation and the protective area is very small.
• Molag Kena - This is the standard for all sets. If something isn't as desirable or as this, plz buff. That includes one piece bonuses
• Valkyn Skoria - In my limited testing, I still believe this set is bugged and does not account for multiple DoTs (i.e. it just checks to see if a DoT is present). The damage is still lacking and I don't believe we will see people who care about their DPS wearing this.
• Nerien'eth - It's OK, but I'd like to see the crystals explode a little quicker, a little larger area, and do a bit more damage.
• Maulbeth Harvester - It's proc rate is too low (and it doesn't proc on damage shields). When I wore this, I usually forgot I was wearing it, something that never should happen with a procced set. Since the effect has actual restrictions and can be easily broken, it either should be more speculator or the proc rate higher than Bloodspawn.
• Bogdan - When you watch streams of your new trial, count how many healers are using this. That's all that needs to be said.
• Engine Guardian - A lot of people wear this not because it is so good, rather most of the other sets are just not that appealing.
• Bloodspawn - It's OK, but I'm betting its unique 1 piece stam regeneration bonus accounts for a good portion of it's popularity.
• Spawn of Mephala - I will use this in stationary PvE fights. Good change here.
• Maw of the Infernal - What I don't understand is the constant dedication and updates to convince us to use this set without addressing the fundamental problem: it procs so rare I forget I am wearing it and the duration is too short. I will congratulate you on making it fast, its breath hit targets, and its attacks having some punch - all of these issues are fixed. I still won't wear it because you making me average 20 [!] weaved attacks before I see the daedroth do it's thing. 20 weaved attacks takes at least 20 seconds. Many boss encounters are over before that.

In short, I see you are trying to make these more appealing. Appreciate the effort, but with most of these, not quite there yet.

I think all the one piece bonuses need to be adjusted to make these more attractive. @Nifty2g wrote an insightful thread a couple months back about this. In giving us many news sets with just 5 pieces, it seems the expectation is that we will wear these to fill out our gear. Most of them quite frankly are not as good as the "always on" bonuses we can get elsewhere, and the well-fitted trait coupled with an undesirable bonus to health undercut their potential appeal.

Ffastyl

With a full set of each armor type:
Light Armor gets 21% cost reduction and 28% Magicka Recovery.
Medium Armor gets 21% cost reduction, 28% Stamina Recovery and 28% reduced Dodge Roll cost.
Heavy Armor gets 346 Stamina/Magicka when hit every 4 seconds (173 Stamina/Magicka Recovery), 28% Health Recovery, 20% reduced Block cost and 7% healing received.

With the Champion System:
Warlord can grant 16% cost reduction.
Magician can grant 16% cost reduction.
Sprinter can grant 24% reduced Sprint cost.
Bashing Focus can grant 25% reduced Bash cost.
Mooncalf can grant 25% Stamina Recovery.
Arcanist can grant 25% Magicka Recovery.
Healthy can grant 25% Health Recovery.
Tenacity can grant 16% increased Heavy Attack returns.
Tumbling can grant 18% reduced Dodge Roll and Break Free cost.
Blessed can grant 25% increased healing.
Elfborn can grant 25% increased critical healing.
Precise Strikes can grant 25% increased critical healing.
Block Expertise can grant 25% reduced Block cost.
Quick Recovery can grant 16% healing received.
Bastion can grant 24% increased Damage Shields.

The first thing we can look into in terms of sustain is cost reduction. While possible to attain good resource management in Heavy Armor, by default it's terrible. All types get Recovery so that by itself is not enough for high sustain -- cost reduction is the other half.

Sustain was also a problem prior to Update 6, when Recovery stats could reach 10% of Max stats. Since then cost has gone up, Recovery down and the ways to reduce cost have gone up along with ways to increase Recovery.

Update 6 was a re-imagining of the game's balance and it will take a long time to sort out all the major issues it introduced and went unnoticed as we all relearned the game.

Ffastyl

In the spirit of my post on the Official Templar Feedback thread, there should be a basic toolset collectively available to all weapon and armor lines. These basic tools are the de/buffs Major Resolve, Major Ward, Major Evasion, Major Mending, Major Defile, Major Fracture, Major Breach, Major Brutality, Major Sorcery and Minor Maim. Players should be able to choose between class and non-class abilities for each of these tools, choosing Stamina vs Magicka for some and ability utility for others.

Collectively, weapon and armor lines have:

• Major Resolve
• Major Ward
• Major Evasion
• Major Defile
• Major Fracture
• Major Breach
• Major Brutality
• Minor Maim

Individually,
Two-Handed has:

• Major Brutality
• Minor Maim

One-hand and Shield has:

• Major Defile
• Major Fracture
• Major Breach
• Minor Maim

Dual Wield has:

• Major Brutality

Bow has:

• Major Defile

Destruction Staff has:

• Major Breach

Restoration Staff has:

Light Armor* has:

Medium Armor* has:

• Major Evasion

Heavy Armor* has:

• Major Resolve
• Major Ward

*Passives are excluded.

As shown from the collective list, Major Sorcery and Major Mending are missing from the weapon and armor lines. The individual lists show places they could be introduced, such as Major Mending to Restoration Staff or Major Sorcery to Light Armor. Major Sorcery could also go to Destruction Staff.

Not every weapon/armor line should have the entire toolset, but collectively they should so players have alternatives to turn to from class abilities, either because the non-class ability consumes a different resource or it provides other effects that are more useful to the build. Due to the limited number of abilities and passives to each weapon, granting them all the basic toolset will lessen weapon identity. Therefore weapons and armor collectively should have the basic toolset rather than individually.

These lines are very close to having the basic toolset. From there individual abilities and passives can be tweaked for further balancing.

Ishammael

Ffastyl wrote: »

In the spirit of my post on the Official Templar Feedback thread, there should be a basic toolset collectively available to all weapon and armor lines. These basic tools are the de/buffs Major Resolve, Major Ward, Major Evasion, Major Mending, Major Defile, Major Fracture, Major Breach, Major Brutality, Major Sorcery and Minor Maim. Players should be able to choose between class and non-class abilities for each of these tools, choosing Stamina vs Magicka for some and ability utility for others.

Collectively, weapon and armor lines have:

• Major Resolve
• Major Ward
• Major Evasion
• Major Defile
• Major Fracture
• Major Breach
• Major Brutality
• Minor Maim

Individually,
Two-Handed has:

• Major Brutality
• Minor Maim

One-hand and Shield has:

• Major Defile
• Major Fracture
• Major Breach
• Minor Maim

Dual Wield has:

• Major Brutality

Bow has:

• Major Defile

Destruction Staff has:

• Major Breach

Restoration Staff has:

Light Armor* has:

Medium Armor* has:

• Major Evasion

Heavy Armor* has:

• Major Resolve
• Major Ward

*Passives are excluded.

As shown from the collective list, Major Sorcery and Major Mending are missing from the weapon and armor lines. The individual lists show places they could be introduced, such as Major Mending to Restoration Staff or Major Sorcery to Light Armor. Major Sorcery could also go to Destruction Staff.

Not every weapon/armor line should have the entire toolset, but collectively they should so players have alternatives to turn to from class abilities, either because the non-class ability consumes a different resource or it provides other effects that are more useful to the build. Due to the limited number of abilities and passives to each weapon, granting them all the basic toolset will lessen weapon identity. Therefore weapons and armor collectively should have the basic toolset rather than individually.

These lines are very close to having the basic toolset. From there individual abilities and passives can be tweaked for further balancing.

This is a good starting list for comparison. You'll need to add: gap closer, execute, damage buff, heal, etc. for a best comparison.

For example:
1h/Sh has:
Gap Closer + Hard CC
Snare
Reflect
Block Cost Redux
No (direct) Heal
No execute

2H has:
Gap Closer
Hard CC
Execute
Heal
Empower

Ffastyl

Things like charging attacks, executes, crowd-control and healing are not part of the basic toolset. Such attributes would be part of an advanced toolset, which is different for each intention and may well be a separate advanced toolset for each skill line.

For example, should Bow have a charging attack like Critical Rush? Should Restoration Staff have a taunt like Puncture? These attributes are not intended to be universal, as such they are part of the advanced toolset.

The basic toolset approach is about making sure every class has access to the same set of useful buffs and debuffs. Applying the basic toolset to the weapon and armor lines is to allow alternatives if the class source is not desirable for whatever reason. Ideally weapon and armor abilities should be as desirable as class abilities and "weapon builds" should be as viable as "class builds."

For comparing weapon lines, each one is intended for a different playstyle and therefore comparing them is moot. The two weapon lines that are used in a similar fashion are Two Handed and Dual Wield. Even then, underlying mechanics such as base Damage prevent the two from being fully comparable. So the best 'comparison' that can be made between weapon lines is deciding on common attributes for a certain intention. For example, DPS intended weapons should have an execute. Two Handed has Reverse Slash and morphs, Dual Wield has Whirlwind and morphs and the passive Slaughter and Bow has the ability Poison Injection. Destruction Staff does not have an execute but should it? Bow is already a stretch in comparison as it is Ranged vs Melee and Destruction Staff also adds Magicka vs Stamina.

If a Stamina ability and a Magicka ability do exactly the same thing, people will prefer the Magicka ability. Why? If the two abilities are identical save for resource consumption, it makes more sense to conserve Stamina which is used for Break Free, Sprint, Block and Dodge Roll. Because of the Magicka vs Stamina dynamic, Stamina has to be better than its Magicka counterpart, if there is one. The big picture of Magicka vs Stamina balance is Magicka can do more than Stamina but what Stamina can do, it does better than Magicka.

As soon as we step out of the basic toolset and into the advanced toolset, far more variables come into play that make balancing and comparisons significantly more difficult.