They want "variety" in sets.

Necro Necro Necro!

But every class can use it with "Maw of the Infernal"

In another context, this could have been fine. With BSW best for DKs, Necro best for sorcs, and other things now possibly best for other classes (Scathing for Magblade?), there could have been some nice diversity in endgame builds, instead of BSW being the best for every class. The problem is that on live and on PTS, it doesn't really matter what's BIS for non-sorcs, since sorcs are so overtuned and so drastically ahead of the other classes in DPS. As it stands, nerfing non-sorcs' best set without giving them anything else to bring them up to sorcs' level is just baffling.

There are only four possibilities:

- ZOS does not listen to player feedback. (There has been a huge amount of consistent, clear, well-documented feedback in-game, on the forums, on Youtube, and elsewhere showing how drastically far ahead sorcs are for multiple patches.)
- ZOS does listen to player feedback, but in this case don't care: they are fine with sorcs consistently outperforming other classes in PVE by gross margins.
- ZOS does listen to player feedback, but they can't figure out how to fix this problem.
- ZOS does listen to player feedback, and 3.0.4 will finally respond to it on this issue.

Really hoping it's the last one.

No, it's not.

It's not necro that's the problem, it's the sorc damage numbers.

casparian wrote: »

- ZOS does listen to player feedback, but in this case don't care: they are fine with sorcs consistently outperforming other classes in PVE by gross margins.

Unfortunately, I think this is the most likely case. What is scary is that it goes beyond just PvE overperformance, it's just that PvE has the easiest data to analyze so it's very clear when the Zenimax is blatantly choosing to ignore the problem. The problem extends to every aspect of the Sorcerer class in all aspects of the game. When we look at PvP, Mag Sorcs are also complete monsters right now and Stam Sorc will always be the best stam/hybrid setup in the game. In no aspect of the game is the class of Sorcerer not best-in-class or top tier. It is obvious that Zenimax has a huge bias toward this class and this has been going on for years.

Neighbor wrote: »

The gap in DPS parses is already absolutely massive. 40k+ from Sorc pet builds whereas Mag DK and Mag Templar are at ~32k and Mag NB at ~30k.

BSW is absolutely essential for Mag DKs and Mag Templars. Mag Sorcs have access to one of the most broken, overtuned sets in the game to use with their overpowered pet build.

Once again, Zenimax gives a huge middle finger to any non-Sorc player in ESO.

The 40k+ sorcerer parses are on live with already unsustainable builds (i.e. they wouldn't be able to achieve that on the robust dummy on live, and they definitely won't be able to achieve that in Morrowind). On top of that, these are all on the training dummy, and most of the people that post parses this high don't have a ward slotted (which is absolutely necessary to keep the familiar alive in a lot of fights). I don't think you've even begun to think about how hard it is to use the familiar in trials.

Just a few things off the top of my head:

• There are several points where the familiar bugs out and doesn't appear until after an encounter (notably in AA), or completely ignores attack commands (in MoL). You have two wasted bar slots whenever this happens.
• The familiar will die every prayer phase on the twins in vMoL. It also takes several seconds for it to switch targets when ordered (and sometimes, it will outright ignore you). And you need to slot ward to keep it alive on Vashai (it will die if left in the negate unwarded for 3-4 seconds, and does not move fast at all).
• The familiar will die every time lightning is channeled in the first boss in vAA, unless you cast ward.
• The Serpent on hard mode will kill the familiar on every cast of world shaper (roughly every ~15-20 seconds).
• The familiar does not follow you down the portal against the Mantikora.
• The familiar will die on Ra-Kotu if you don't use ward.

Honestly, the BSW nerf was probably targeted at sorcerers (who could keep BSW up for long enough to be worthwhile just using blockade and maybe Ilambris). Personally, I think it would've been better to keep the spell damage where it is and just reduce the proc chance to 10% or 12% (so that DKs could reliably keep it up, but other classes cannot).

Honest question. With nerf to proc chance and strength of buff, is BSW now worse than Julianos?

Clamoring for the nerfing of others OP? You are not being a good @Neighbor right now.

Why don't you ask for buffs instead?

Yeah I just don't care any more. They're obviously trying to maximize the most profit out of the chapter knowing they pulled some shadow (albeit 'legal') business practices to do it. I've accepted this is the new norm from gaming companies (played many other mmos and it is pretty consistent). I'm still going to play until the enjoyment is gone and I find something else I want to play. Maybe sooner than later, and this is after coming back after a long hiatus to begin with but meh. Best I can offer as advice is play until you feel you're not getting your money's worth, then step away. It's ok to care about the game, but don't be a masochist about it.

Considering alot of the results you have seen so far. I would say be careful what you wish for.

Minalan wrote: »

Dagoth_Rac wrote: »

Honest question. With nerf to proc chance and strength of buff, is BSW now worse than Julianos?

I want to know the answer to this as well, is the average parse similar now? BSW still has the extra 129 spell damage with the third piece.

And Julianos has 3% extra crit. I personally find the extra crit more valuable in PvE as a 1pc bonus, which is also the main reason why I use Aether over Moondancer. For most DPS sets, you only need to compare the 5th piece boni.

Masel92 wrote: »

5 moondancer will be BiS next patch. That recovery gets you to so much more sustain (1900 recovery on my magblade while it's active), and the shadow blessing gives you a lot more damage. Still testing out a lot atm, but you can beat 30k easily on a magblade with 5 MD, 3 Willpower, 2 Illambris (all 7 light with one big health glyph), double vMA staffs with a drain magicka XI poison on main bar. Great sustain and you don't sacrifice a lot of damage. If you don't like illambris you can also run scathing/necropotence/tbs/julianos.

Yeah, pretty much this^ Moondancer is indeed going to be amazing next patch, but I'm afraid that it won't be enough to outparse and outsustain a heavy attack build.
That being said, its possible. But i don't think that the 7 light is really needed. You're going to be activating Orbs and Shards at least every 30sec which gives you sustain and then, the other synergies also restore resources via the undaunted passives.

Neighbor wrote: »

The gap in DPS parses is already absolutely massive. 40k+ from Sorc pet builds whereas Mag DK and Mag Templar are at ~32k and Mag NB at ~30k.

BSW is absolutely essential for Mag DKs and Mag Templars. Mag Sorcs have access to one of the most broken, overtuned sets in the game to use with their overpowered pet build.

Once again, Zenimax gives a huge middle finger to any non-Sorc player in ESO.

Is this real life, one specific pet Sorc build is now "so broken OP" we want to nerf the ORIGINAL, and for a long time ONLY pet-based item set in ESO into the ground? Said item set was only ever used by Nightblades because Summon Shade was fire and forget while actual combats pets have a huge downside of taking up slots on every bar you have... and all that extra magicka doesn't work when the pet isn't active or dies.

Using one specific pet other than Shade spam is now viable, the world is ending, nerf pets back into non-viability!

To think, the entire reason Volatile Familiar is "broken OP" now is because of a bugfix where previously Familiar wasn't affected by Daedric Prey at all. Working as intended = broken, nerf it into the ground. They're going to have to revert it to stop all this crying.

Shame on you.

Minalan wrote: »

BSW was nerfed because it was too good no matter how you look at it, there simply wasn't another choice that came close.

This is the core of the issue to me.
Then why you don't buff the other sets?

Why the nerf is always the only solution they seem to choose?