Companions aren't really doing it

CoronHR

i'm not keen on seeing multiple versions of companions running around with their players

Mythreindeer

I think expectations of what Companions were going to be capable of were too high. That said, they clearly need some tweaking and I’m sure that’s coming though perhaps not prior to release.

I also expect them to get significantly buffed as time goes on and many will complain they are too strong because they can tank the whole dungeon for you or heal you so you never die as you solo vet content.

KovalskyNestor

I have never understood this obsession with spell crafting

Iccotak

Kosef wrote: »

Wish they would shake up the class system...get rid of it all together..

Everyone gets the other skills like weapon/armor/world/guild/alliance war/racial/craft BUT all the class skill lines would be pooled together and you can choose like 3 different ones from any tree. So like I could have 1 line be Aedric Spear, another be Winter's embrace, and then like Ardent Flame if I wanted.

I think the amount of unique builds we would see would be crazy. It's be so much fun creating new builds.

At that point they might as well scrap the game and completely remake it. Look I am all for making it feel more like an Elder Scrolls game but it is a bit late to get rid of classes.

KovalskyNestor wrote: »

I have never understood this obsession with spell crafting

Part of it really comes down to wanting the crazy & overpowered abilities that spellcrafting provided. As well as bring back some of the classic TES magic system; conjuration, alteration, illusion as separate schools. Further more some of them want to get away from the restrictions of the class system.

But like I said, it is a bit late for that. I could see Alteration Staves being added as the new Magic Tank Support weapon. As well as introducing elements of that magic in 1H + Rune. Or even a new skill line for all classes.

VaranisArano

KovalskyNestor wrote: »

I have never understood this obsession with spell crafting

I started off playing Skyrim, so by the time I played Oblivion and TES 3 Morrowind years later, I had a greater appreciation for how spellcrafting offers a much more flexible approach to playing a mage.

ESO, as an MMO, is a lot more restrictive. It almost has to be because it's a multi-player game. It's okay if someone breaks the balance of their singleplayer game, but that just doesn't work in a multi-player game. And so ESO just doesn't have a lot of flexibility to its "mage" playstyle.

Erelah

FLuFFyxMuFFiN wrote: »

Spellcrafting was put on the backburner long ago and many doubt we will ever get it. I still hold out a tiny amount of hope but I know it will be terribly balanced.

Don't the person who was working on the spell crafting system left years ago. Nobody elder understood the system.

GarnetFire17

Mythreindeer wrote: »

I think expectations of what Companions were going to be capable of were too high. That said, they clearly need some tweaking and I’m sure that’s coming though perhaps not prior to release.

I also expect them to get significantly buffed as time goes on and many will complain they are too strong because they can tank the whole dungeon for you or heal you so you never die as you solo vet content.

I don't think they will do that. They know they would get too much PAY TO WIN clap for doing that. Also they would have to completely rebalance the game because it would be too easy. These companions are designed to help new players do baby content until start to understand how combat and building a character works.

Sidonius

I predict companions will be sold in the crown store later on.

Iccotak

GarnetFire17 wrote: »

Mythreindeer wrote: »

I think expectations of what Companions were going to be capable of were too high. That said, they clearly need some tweaking and I’m sure that’s coming though perhaps not prior to release.

I also expect them to get significantly buffed as time goes on and many will complain they are too strong because they can tank the whole dungeon for you or heal you so you never die as you solo vet content.

I don't think they will do that. They know they would get too much PAY TO WIN clap for doing that. Also they would have to completely rebalance the game because it would be too easy. These companions are designed to help new players do baby content until start to understand how combat and building a character works.

How much help can they be if they keep dying all the time to the simplest situations?

VaranisArano

Iccotak wrote: »

GarnetFire17 wrote: »

Mythreindeer wrote: »

I think expectations of what Companions were going to be capable of were too high. That said, they clearly need some tweaking and I’m sure that’s coming though perhaps not prior to release.

I also expect them to get significantly buffed as time goes on and many will complain they are too strong because they can tank the whole dungeon for you or heal you so you never die as you solo vet content.

I don't think they will do that. They know they would get too much PAY TO WIN clap for doing that. Also they would have to completely rebalance the game because it would be too easy. These companions are designed to help new players do baby content until start to understand how combat and building a character works.

How much help can they be if they keep dying all the time to the simplest situations?

Well, they might teach the truism of "don't stand in stupid" by example.

Sidonius

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWyodKbcsrk

FrancisCrawford

VaranisArano wrote: »

Spellcrafting is very difficult to balance. In a multi-player game like ESO, we'd almost certainly be limited to certain preset options to combine, and then ZOS has to figure out if the spells are acceptable as increases to player power or if they have to nerf other things to account for the extra power.

For example, if you have Scrolls be consumables, do you balance them versus Class Skills or vs potions? Where do they fit in with cooldowns and the buffs that we get from other sources? It just gets complicated. It's worse in PVP where being able to recognize what your opponent is using is a big part of the learning curve - we'd need distinct animations for all our spellcrafting options.


My experience was that even in singleplayer Oblivion and Morrowind, spellcrafting wasn't really balanced. My Morrowind characters had a 1pt spell they spammed in order to train up my magic skills to a usable level. My Oblivion playthrough featured creating high-value Charm spells with a short duration so I could charm merchants into to giving me amazing prices.

I only played Morrowind, but I completely broke the balance of that game. I had armor that gave me 100% damage reduction. I could fly at high speeds (but the game crashed frequently when I stressed the graphics system that way). I had an item that let me unlock anything. I had, much as in the quoted post, an item that made merchants love me. And so on.

Jem_Kindheart

One thing in the thread caught my eye: Do we have to level the Companion per character? As in, their level is not account wide?

This seems like a phenomenal mistake if so. I get the idea that the player would spec them out differently for different toons, but...ouch.

GarnetFire17

Iccotak wrote: »

GarnetFire17 wrote: »

Mythreindeer wrote: »

I think expectations of what Companions were going to be capable of were too high. That said, they clearly need some tweaking and I’m sure that’s coming though perhaps not prior to release.

I also expect them to get significantly buffed as time goes on and many will complain they are too strong because they can tank the whole dungeon for you or heal you so you never die as you solo vet content.

I don't think they will do that. They know they would get too much PAY TO WIN clap for doing that. Also they would have to completely rebalance the game because it would be too easy. These companions are designed to help new players do baby content until start to understand how combat and building a character works.

How much help can they be if they keep dying all the time to the simplest situations?

they hold up pretty well against normal mobs and survive better if you heal them and shield them. They are supposed to be your "companion" after all and if you don't help them and be a team player with them then they really shouldn't be worth it. However they can use a lot of abilities like circle of protection. I have seen videos of them tanking dungeon bosses, it just takes a certain set up. What they need is some options for how much they light attack, block and heavy attack.

kaisernick

Sergykid wrote: »

if i hear spellcrafting one more time

"Spellcrafting in your own homeland, what are you going to do?"

kidding aside i could not care less for such a system, i would however prefer a new stamina ranged and magic melee weapon skill line.

BlueRaven

Jem_Kindheart wrote: »

One thing in the thread caught my eye: Do we have to level the Companion per character? As in, their level is not account wide?

This seems like a phenomenal mistake if so. I get the idea that the player would spec them out differently for different toons, but...ouch.

I have been on the PTS and while I may be wrong, it appears there are three leveling systems at play with companions.

1) The direct companion level from one to twenty is carried over amongst all your characters.

2) Some abilities need to be leveled by doing specific things, like via the mages guild dailies. That is account wide as well.

3) There is also a “reputation” system, that one is per character.

SammyKhajit

Spell crafting will be nice. This one wants to levitate again!

milesrodneymcneely2_ESO

Bradyfjord wrote: »

A simple way (on paper) to create a balanced version of spellcrafting for ESO is to allow select skills in each skill line to scale off of the highest max stat. Other options might be to change damage types or status effects. Like a flame staff that gives the concussed effect instead of burning.

You know what I think would be a great compromise with Spellcrafting?

The issues that detractors have (and I think they're right about) is the balancing nightmare that it would be.

But, it seems to me that more people want it than not. That could be my own bias talking, but the idea just WILL not go away. And why should it? Spellcrafting has been part of the Elder Scrolls franchise for most of its lifespan.

What I would like to see is a Spellcrafting system that targets the CLASS SKILL LINES, allowing us to change the visuals (and MAYBE damage types, but NO OTHER MECHANICS) and the sounds to create different power fantasies, while still being in keeping with the themes of the class. I'll give a few examples to make my case.

Take the Sorcerer's "Daedric Summoning" skill line. Thus far, they have access to Scamps, Clannfear, Winged Twilights, and Storm Atronachs. Let's say you wanted to play a character whose entire schtick is dealing with atronachs. What if there were a Spellcrafting option that let you swap your Scamp's skin out with a Flame Atronach skin? What if you could do the same thing with your Storm Atronach to make it look like a Frost Atronach, while swapping the Shock damage for Cold damage? What if your Clannfear visual could be updated to look like that nifty Air Atronach with the spinning swords? You could run your atronach summoner without changing the playstyle or strength of the character in the slightest.

Same idea with the Warden, just give them different animal types on some of their abilities. Maybe their Winter's Embrace skill line could get some updates that look more Water based, as opposed to Ice. That way, anyone who wants to run their Hydromancer could do just that. Heck, maybe some aquatic animal skins for the Animal Companions skill line and you could go full Aquaman, if you wanted.

And, since it doesn't look like we're going to be getting an Unarmed skill line anytime soon (if at all) what about giving Templars an option to replicate unarmed attacks on some of their Magicka based attacks in the Aedric Spear skill line? Crescent Sweep, Puncturing Sweep, and Toppling Charge are just RIPE for punches, kicks, elbows, knees - all of the martial artsy goodness that you can handle. And since they're Magicka based, it would synergize perfectly with Light Armor, playing even further into the idea of the lightly armored, unarmed attacker.

Anyway, that's just a few of my ideas about how a Spellcrafting system could be a nice way to change your thematic flavor and power fantasy within the game, without impacting balance and mechanics. Maybe a damage type would need to be changed here and there for the theme to fit, but that would be minor, in my book.

Just a thought.

Iccotak

SammyKhajit wrote: »

Spell crafting will be nice. This one wants to levitate again!

Yeah that is not gonna happen

Chaos2088

Companions are cool, they just need abit of a power boost and will ok-ish currently its just like getting a banker or merchant out.

Jem_Kindheart

BlueRaven wrote: »

Jem_Kindheart wrote: »

One thing in the thread caught my eye: Do we have to level the Companion per character? As in, their level is not account wide?

This seems like a phenomenal mistake if so. I get the idea that the player would spec them out differently for different toons, but...ouch.

I have been on the PTS and while I may be wrong, it appears there are three leveling systems at play with companions.

1) The direct companion level from one to twenty is carried over amongst all your characters.

2) Some abilities need to be leveled by doing specific things, like via the mages guild dailies. That is account wide as well.

3) There is also a “reputation” system, that one is per character.

Ah cool thanks, that sorta makes some sense. Yeah I figured the interpersonal systems would be per char.

ShawnLaRock

I predict similar results to the dual-person mount... and you & your companion can ride this decrepit engine into the sunset.

S.

Shantu

I think this whole companion implementation was WAY over-thought. I was hoping a they would be a little like a sorc pet...you know...does decent damage and stays alive enough to make them useful. Certainly not something I have to level and grind gear for, talk to to make happy, all to perform miserably in combat. Unless there is some serious redesign, companions will be the flop of the year. It's really kind of hard to understand how anyone could consider this current iteration was a good idea. Just make it simple and fun...not some sloggy grind-fest for temperamental cartoon.