Change Crux Generation For Tome-Bearer's Inspiration

randconfig

My biggest complaint with Arcanist remains the limitations on crux generation that penalizes you for using subclassing or weapon abilities. The change to Banner Bearer was to combat passive crux generation, but this was also the only way we could reliably activate our class passives when using subclassing and weapon abilities, and it was the only way we could still generate Crux to use Crux consumption abilities when we wanted to use a non-crux generating spammable.

So maybe we could change the crux generation conditions on Tome-Bearer's Inspiration to compensate for this, and allow Arcanists to have build diversity like all the other classes.

[CURRENT] Tome-Bearer's Inspiration:

• Etch a series of runes onto your weapon that pulse with power once every 5 seconds. Each pulse enhances your class abilities, and striking an enemy with one deals an additional x Magic Damage and generates Crux if you have none.
• While slotted on either ability bar, gain Major Brutality and Major Sorcery, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 20%.

[PROPOSED CHANGES] Tome-Bearer's Inspiration:

• Etch a series of runes onto your weapon that pulse with power once every 5 seconds. Each pulse enhances your damaging abilities: Class abilities deal an additional x Magic Damage, and non-Crux generating abilities generate a Crux.
• While slotted on either ability bar, gain Major Brutality and Major Sorcery, increasing your Weapon and Spell Damage by 20%.

CheenTheCat

Making Crux gen harder was not the best fix there could have been to the issue that is beam, but as long as its damage is not reduced, I personally don't think making Crux gen free again is anywhere near a good, fair or balanced approach.

Even now, with crux gen being a bit harder on resources by needing to use tentacle twice, the beam is still BiS for both trash and boss fights, which still needs to be addressed imo.

MashmalloMan

I think it could definitely work with some tweaks. I think the issue with the previous context is you could essentially cast Fartcarver back to back sometimes.

Tome gave +1, banner gave +1, if the stars aligned during the 5s cast time, you may even get another from banner during the Pragmatic Fartcarver cast. You could guarantee it with Crux Weaver armor, but taking a tanking skill line over a DPS one at least balanced that decision out.

What OP is suggesting is only "non crux generating" skills generate free crux when Tome procs. If you expended 3 crux, you would only get +1 during Fartcarver, forcing you to generate +2 more via Runeblades/Tentacle via 2 GCD, or wait 10s for +2 free crux due to the 5s cooldown. I think this is fairly balanced.

The only issue I have is with how quickly Inspired Scholarship procs (3s), at this rate with the new idea, we'd be right back to Fartcarver generating +2 crux while casting which is obviously something they're trying to avoid. Frankly the morph is way too similar to Recuperative Treatise anyway because it loses -20% damage for the lower cd. Over 30s the proc ratio is 10:6, a difference of +34% DPS.

An easy solution is to make both morphs tick once every 5s, then give Inspired Scholarship +34% damage. Easy, but kinda boring, maybe add a small heal for compensation due to the lost tick frequency.

Could also decrease the frequency to 6s so it's a bit less passive.

Could swing the other direction too, increase the frequency to 3-4s, but increase the crux cap from 3 to 5. With this new cap, they could assign different values for crux spending. Eg. Fartcarver gets +20% damage up to 5, but Tentacular Dread retains the +33% up to 3, since you can store 5 and only spend 3 at a time, you could effectively cast this 2x back to back if you waited long enough like Grim Focus/Bound Armaments. Same applies to the other crux spenders for support, gives a bit more wiggle room in how powerful/fast you want these skills to reach max potential, maybe some skills cap at 2.

Doesn't need to be these ideas, but it's an example of how allowing it to generate crux all the time could work with some simple tweaks to the ability and/or crux as a whole.

I'm not a huge fan of Arcanist, nor am I supporter of the boring meta Fartcarver has introduced in PvE, but OP raises a good point I've run into myself for subclassing. Even if I want to try Arcanist, I'm shoehorned into crux generators of which there is only 2 options, both are spammables, a unique slot that you typically only use 1/10 slots for. Class script gives up the signature making those grimoires weak, and it's locked to maining Arcanist anyway. No other class really has this problem for subclassing besides maybe Necro, but corpse generation is already passive, and there is 3 options from different skill categories making it easier to slot into your build (self buff, spammable, semi spammable). Goes without saying you also only need 1 corpse, not 3 like crux.

randconfig

MashmalloMan wrote: »

I think it could definitely work with some tweaks. I think the issue with the previous context is you could essentially cast Fartcarver back to back sometimes.

Tome gave +1, banner gave +1, if the stars aligned during the 5s cast time, you may even get another from banner during the Pragmatic Fartcarver cast. You could guarantee it with Crux Weaver armor, but taking a tanking skill line over a DPS one at least balanced that decision out.

What OP is suggesting is only "non crux generating" skills generate free crux when Tome procs. If you expended 3 crux, you would only get +1 during Fartcarver, forcing you to generate +2 more via Runeblades/Tentacle via 2 GCD, or wait 10s for +2 free crux due to the 5s cooldown. I think this is fairly balanced.

The only issue I have is with how quickly Inspired Scholarship procs (3s), at this rate with the new idea, we'd be right back to Fartcarver generating +2 crux while casting which is obviously something they're trying to avoid. Frankly the morph is way too similar to Recuperative Treatise anyway because it loses -20% damage for the lower cd. Over 30s the proc ratio is 10:6, a difference of +34% DPS.

An easy solution is to make both morphs tick once every 5s, then give Inspired Scholarship +34% damage. Easy, but kinda boring, maybe add a small heal for compensation due to the lost tick frequency.

Could also decrease the frequency to 6s so it's a bit less passive.

I think in 3s with a crux generating spammable, you could cast it 3 times to generate 3 crux, so allowing inspired scholarship to proc every 3s would mean you need 9s with a non crux generating ability to generate 3 crux. So that to me doesn't really feel too unbalanced, as crux generating abilities would be able to generate full crux 3 times as fast as non-crux generating abilities.

But if you and the devs agree it is too strong, I would still accept the proc going back to 5s, so at least my class passives still activate frequently enough to be useful and I could still generate full crux using a subclassed ability like Flame Skull, even if it would take 15s, so that I could make use of crux consuming abilities like Tentacular Dread or Runespite Ward.

Either way, this would incentivize build diversity for Arcanists, as getting full crux in 9s or 15s would be suboptimal for a beam only build, since you would have to spend 9s or 15s casting other abilities to fill in the gap, meaning you couldn't just stack passives and armor sets that buff channeled abilities.

So fewer beam builds and Arcanists allowed to have build diversity like all other classes, sounds like a win-win to me. Please ZOS devs, please help us make this happen!

MashmalloMan wrote: »

Could swing the other direction too, increase the frequency to 3-4s, but increase the crux cap from 3 to 5. With this new cap, they could assign different values for crux spending. Eg. Fartcarver gets +20% damage up to 5, but Tentacular Dread retains the +33% up to 3, since you can store 5 and only spend 3 at a time, you could effectively cast this 2x back to back if you waited long enough like Grim Focus/Bound Armaments. Same applies to the other crux spenders for support, gives a bit more wiggle room in how powerful/fast you want these skills to reach max potential, maybe some skills cap at 2.

This sounds like a cool idea too, and it's not like it would be any more or less broken than allowing Nightblades to have double cast Spectral Bow, or Sorcs to have double cast Bound Armaments.

MashmalloMan wrote: »

Doesn't need to be these ideas, but it's an example of how allowing it to generate crux all the time could work with some simple tweaks to the ability and/or crux as a whole.

I'm not a huge fan of Arcanist, nor am I supporter of the boring meta Fartcarver has introduced in PvE, but OP raises a good point I've run into myself for subclassing. Even if I want to try Arcanist, I'm shoehorned into crux generators of which there is only 2 options, both are spammables, a unique slot that you typically only use 1/10 slots for. Class script gives up the signature making those grimoires weak, and it's locked to maining Arcanist anyway. No other class really has this problem for subclassing besides maybe Necro, but corpse generation is already passive, and there is 3 options from different skill categories making it easier to slot into your build (self buff, spammable, semi spammable). Goes without saying you also only need 1 corpse, not 3 like crux.

Absolutely, 100% agree, and thank you for your thoughtful response!

randconfig

CheenTheCat wrote: »

Making Crux gen harder was not the best fix there could have been to the issue that is beam, but as long as its damage is not reduced, I personally don't think making Crux gen free again is anywhere near a good, fair or balanced approach.

Even now, with crux gen being a bit harder on resources by needing to use tentacle twice, the beam is still BiS for both trash and boss fights, which still needs to be addressed imo.

Well this change wouldn't make Crux gen free again?

Even with Inspired Scholarship proccing once every 3s, and with Exhausting Fatecarver cast with full crux, it would still have the exact same behavior as it currently has in-game. Fatecarver would be able to proc Inspired Scholarship a single time, generating a single crux, just like it currently does.
Actually you're right, my brain failed me here. See discussion in replies below.

Tentacle, or Cephaliarch's Flail, is a crux generating ability, so it would not get an additional crux when Inspired Scholarship procs, but would still get the bonus damage from Inspired Scholarship's proc, which is also the exact same behavior as it currently has in-game.

MashmalloMan

randconfig wrote: »

I think in 3s with a crux generating spammable, you could cast it 3 times to generate 3 crux, so allowing inspired scholarship to proc every 3s would mean you need 9s with a non crux generating ability to generate 3 crux. So that to me doesn't really feel too unbalanced, as crux generating abilities would be able to generate full crux 3 times as fast as non-crux generating abilities.

Yeah my main gripe isn't your use case with Tentacular Dread, 9s is fine.. it's Fartcarver. With a 3s cooldown you enable the following scenarios:

1. Ticks at 0s and 3s, +2 crux
2. Ticks at 1s and 4s, +2 crux
3. Ticks at 2s and 5s, +2 crux

A 5.5s Fartcarver cast would give 2 crux which is exactly what ZOS just eliminated via the banner nerf. So this wouldn't make it to live given their clear objective on the matter. The timing needs to be reworked or the cost for Fartcarver needs to be higher, which you read and touched on. Just wanted to clarify why the 3s can't work unfortunately.

If I had to pick a favourite best case scenario. I'd make the cap 5, make Fartcarver cost 5, Tentacular cost 3, make both Tome morphs tick on 4s, then introduce a way to generate crux with the fulminating Rune morphs so you're not locked to the spammables. It could be really slow at it, but any amount would help make it more enjoyable to engage with.

randconfig

MashmalloMan wrote: »

randconfig wrote: »

I think in 3s with a crux generating spammable, you could cast it 3 times to generate 3 crux, so allowing inspired scholarship to proc every 3s would mean you need 9s with a non crux generating ability to generate 3 crux. So that to me doesn't really feel too unbalanced, as crux generating abilities would be able to generate full crux 3 times as fast as non-crux generating abilities.

Yeah my main gripe isn't your use case with Tentacular Dread, 9s is fine.. it's Fartcarver. With a 3s cooldown you enable the following scenarios:

1. Ticks at 0s and 3s, +2 crux
2. Ticks at 1s and 4s, +2 crux
3. Ticks at 2s and 5s, +2 crux

A 5.5s Fartcarver cast would give 2 crux which is exactly what ZOS just eliminated via the banner nerf. So this wouldn't make it to live given their clear objective on the matter. The timing needs to be reworked or the cost for Fartcarver needs to be higher, which you read and touched on. Just wanted to clarify why the 3s can't work unfortunately.

If I had to pick a favourite best case scenario. I'd make the cap 5, make Fartcarver cost 5, Tentacular cost 3, make both Tome morphs tick on 4s, then introduce a way to generate crux with the fulminating Rune morphs so you're not locked to the spammables. It could be really slow at it, but any amount would help make it more enjoyable to engage with.

Oh wow, my brain completely failed on that, did too much algorithm analysis math stuff earlier lol.

So then I would prefer your adjustment to crux cap and ability cost, but for visual animation purposes, do a crux cap of 6, then make fatecarver use up to 6 crux, with each crux increasing it's damage by 20% (this would be a 20% buff to fatecarver at a full 6 crux stack, but it would be balanced overall because it would take longer to generate 6 stacks, and maybe 20% is too much, but that could be adjusted).

Visually they could show 3 faded crux triangles without the green glow at 3 stacks, but then for each stack after 3, one crux becomes more opaque and has the green glow (looking just like how crux currently look in-game). So at 6 stacks, your 3 floating crux would visually appear exactly how they currently do in-game. That way they don't have to make new assets/animations, just slightly adjust the existing ones.

Lastly, the crux generated by banner Bearer class mastery script, cruxweaver armor, and crux generating abilities should be fine left alone, as being able to double cast Tentacular Dread would match Sorcerer's ability to double cast Bound Armaments, and Nightblade's ability to double cast Spectral Bow, while Fatecarver's increased max crux cost of 6 with decreased bonus damage per crux should balance out.

Also with a cap size of 6, it probably would be okay to allow x ticks of fulminating rune to generate a crux too. I like that idea.

Probably would need some more fine adjustments to balancing these numbers, but I think these changes would fix the crux issues for Arcanist. What do you think about the crux cap of 6 instead of 5?