Some confusion in Patch notes v5.1.0 vs v5.0.5

DTStormfox

The newly 'leaked' patch notes make me confused when I look at the recent Elsweyr update.
For example:

v5.0.5:
Lava Whip
Molten Whip (morph) developer comment: we wanted to bring this one up to par [with other spammable abilities]

Yet in v5.1.0:
Lava Whip
Molten Whip (morph): Reduced the stacking Spell Damage bonus from this passive to 75 at Rank IV from 125.

First a buff, then a nerf again?

- - -
v5.0.5:
Ash Cloud: Increased healing of this ability by approximately 15% [because it was underperforming]

Yet in v5.1.0:
Ash Cloud: Decreased the healing of this ability and its morphs by approximately 30%.

First increased by 15%, then decreased by 30%.
According to the current wiki, it heals for 158 hp per tick (=115%). That means before patch v5.0.5 it healed for 137 hp per tik (=100%). But after v5.1.0 it will heal for 110 hp per tick. (=70% of current value). Meaning it will heal for less hp per tick than before patch v5.0.5. Making it more underperforming than it ever was, while in patch v.5.1.0 it clearly was your intent to make this ability perform more up to par with other AOE healing abilities. How does that make any sense?

- - -
v5.0.5:
Hidden Blade:
Flying Blade (morph): Increased the damage dealt from this morph by 10%

Yet in v5.1.0:
Hidden Blade: Reduced the damage dealt by approximately 25%.

Again, first, a small buff of 10% and then all the morphs' damage is heavily nerfed by 25%. Meaning that Flying Blade will do less damage after v5.1.0 than before v5.0.5. What's up with first buffing and then putting large nerfs on these abilities?

- - -

GeorgeBlack

They are cooking smthg

Sandman929

The darts land in different places every time they play.

Kolzki

v5.0.5: Razor Caltrops (morph):
the initial hit deals as much damage as an instant cast AoE spammable ability (approximately 350% damage increase for the initial hit). Added a 1 second delay between then initial hit and the first tick, and increased the damage per tick by approximately 8% to make up for the loss of the first tick.

v5.1.0:
Reduced the damage per tick by approximately 60%, and decreased the duration to 10 seconds from 12 seconds. This ability no longer deals initial hit damage, but instead applies Major Fracture to enemies hit by the DoT, up to 4 seconds at Rank IV.

Soundinfinite

This should seriously be at the top of the forums and put also in combat and general forums. Granted, it can be simply argued after placing these in game they found them overperforming, HOWEVER it doesn't explain why they nerfed them more than their initial standing, or greater nerfs than buffs they gave them. Likewise it doesn't explain the initial comments of them finding some of these skills underperforming initially then nerfing them under the initial performance. Lastly it seems to show no clear direction or plan in their balancing, which they claim they now have, it boggles the idea of standardizing the damage output of skills.

Asgari

Lol

Tyrion87

Indeed, these were my first thoughts after reading the crappy patch notes. Just look at .e.g. solar barrage: at first they redesigned the skill, then they were buffing its dmg constantly each patch recently and now, out of a sudden, they changed their 'philosophy' and nerfed dmg again.

For me it looks like the combat team lost their credibility and long-term vision. I don't believe them anymore and don't think they know the direction they want to take for the combat in this game. Sending contradictory signals to players is not how they should build players' trust in them.

Tirps

Kolzki wrote: »

v5.0.5: Razor Caltrops (morph):
the initial hit deals as much damage as an instant cast AoE spammable ability (approximately 350% damage increase for the initial hit). Added a 1 second delay between then initial hit and the first tick, and increased the damage per tick by approximately 8% to make up for the loss of the first tick.

v5.1.0:
Reduced the damage per tick by approximately 60%, and decreased the duration to 10 seconds from 12 seconds. This ability no longer deals initial hit damage, but instead applies Major Fracture to enemies hit by the DoT, up to 4 seconds at Rank IV.

That's some IQ 200 tactic to get us to run soul trap right there.

Kolzki

Tirps wrote: »

Kolzki wrote: »

v5.0.5: Razor Caltrops (morph):
the initial hit deals as much damage as an instant cast AoE spammable ability (approximately 350% damage increase for the initial hit). Added a 1 second delay between then initial hit and the first tick, and increased the damage per tick by approximately 8% to make up for the loss of the first tick.

v5.1.0:
Reduced the damage per tick by approximately 60%, and decreased the duration to 10 seconds from 12 seconds. This ability no longer deals initial hit damage, but instead applies Major Fracture to enemies hit by the DoT, up to 4 seconds at Rank IV.

That's some IQ 200 tactic to get us to run soul trap right there.

Soul trap FTW!

LegacyDM

They are engaged in trial and error vs actually having a solid vision and strategy. You missed one

5.0.5 Lotus Fan: Increased the damage the DoT applies from this ability by approximately 175% to put it on par with our DoT standards. Note this was in last week’s PTS patch but was missing from the patch notes.

5.1.0 Lotus Fan (morph): Decreased the damage per tick of the DoT by approximately 22%, and fixed an issue where the final tick was not being affected by Minor Vulnerability.

Huh? You buffed to 175% to put it on par with DoT standards and than reduced it by 22% immediately in the next update?! I would ask, Which one is the correct DoT standard 5.0.5 or 5.1.0? And why the variance change so close in between updates? How long have you known the last tick didn't work? Why wait till now to fix it?

What drives your decision making? While I'm not complaining about an overall 153% increase, it just doesn't give me confidence that you know what your doing in between updates if you continue with this ZoS Giveth and ZoS Taketh mentality so quickly between updates.

SeaUnicorn

This needs a bump

kalunte

"Many Damage over Time abilities, both single target and Area of Effect, have been re-standardized to follow similar behaviors to other ability types. Area of Effect DoTs will now be 33% weaker than a single target DoT counter-part and cost 30% more, just like direct damage AoEs vs single target ones."

you forgot this one, i cant count how many direct dmg AoEs got buffed in 5.0.5 dealing up to 90% of the best single target spamable and even S2W being used in basic stam melee rotation for pve on top of anything else for many classes.
needless to mention ult with AoE ults dealing more tooltip dmg than single target (for direct dmg).

the idea isnt this bad. it's just hard to see them going back and forth while so many of us warned them that they were doing things wrong.

Divoria

v5.0.5.
Spear Shards:

Increased the initial hit damage of this ability and its morphs by approximately 36%.
Increased the DoT of this ability and the Luminous Shards morph by approximately 5%.
Blazing Spear: Increases damage dealt by entire ability as it ranks up.

v5.1.0
Spear Shards:

Decreased cost of this ability and its morphs to 3024 from 3240.
Decreased the DoT damage of Spear Shards and Luminous by approximately 37% per tick, and Blazing Spear by approximately 42% per tick.

Vercingetorix

ZoS has that imported stuff, the good skooma. It helps them in ways you just can't understand. It's not madness or stupidity - these patch notes are just ZoS' version of 4D chess on a 2D board in a 3D world...

redlink1979

GeorgeBlack wrote: »

They are cooking smthg

CP system refurbishing on the horizon? Maybe.

Juhasow

They wanted to bring certain dk abilities in line with others but since now they're nerfing many of these other abilities nerfs to dk abilities are kinda logical. DK nerfs are just in line with overall nerfs of the new update and rules that developers want to develop for certain types of abilities.