The most recent patch reduced the cool-down on weapon-swap and 1.3 promises even better performance. These are great changes and I'm looking forward to 1.3.
But the whole relationship between weapon-swap and skill bars could be a lot better. I'd bet most people primarily use weapon-swap not because they really want to use an alternate, but to give them access to more skills than stingy 5+1 toolbar currently provides.
As a caster-type, I use Inner Light, so basically I have 4 usable skills on toolbars. I swap often, but even then I find myself spamming the same ability over and over because it's all I have slotted at the moment that works best in a given situation. And I'm constantly fiddling with what I have slotted between fights. This makes for dull gameplay when you don't have ready access to enough abilities and have to mess with skills sets so much is annoying (yes I have Wykkyd for skill set managment).
It could be better! I get that you don't want players to have access to unlimited abilities as in other MMOs, but most MMOs do give you at least 8 or so at max level.
The toolbar could be split up into three sections:
- The first two or three skills would be weapon skills and these are the only ones that swap with your weapon
- The next four or five would be class, guild or other general skills. These do not swap
- Then, just as it is now, your ultimate is in a separate slot. Maybe it swaps, maybe not.
Finally, change skills Inner Light into "auras" or something like that are not slotted like a usable skill, but rather selected as what you have active. You could add more such auras for different play styles - one for melee types, one for stealth types and so on. Otherwise, it could work the same as it does now just that it doesn't take up a slot.
Edited by aleister on July 10, 2014 3:46PM