Can we please get a sixth ability slot

xandervalo · February 2020

my question is in the title, my bar is always so awkwardly cramped if its not one thing its another.I am just wondering why A this has never been discussed and B, why hasn't this happened already? I really want this 6th slot as a utility slot it would be very nice.

MashmalloMan · February 2020

It has been discussed. I'd be on board for a utility slot, where only specific skills can fit into it.

I'd prefer a passive skill slot. I have a big issue with skills that are just slotted for passives since they take up your already limited bar space, but they're sometimes much stronger than slotting a regular ability making it feel necessary.

A passive skill slot would allow you to slot a skill that you CAN'T activate, but it still gives you the passives applicable to it. You could only choose 1 at a time, bar swapping wouldn't change that. So you could put Inner Light, Bound Armor, Camo Hunter, Psijic Order, etc, to get whatever bonus you're looking for.

The risk/reward aspect of a system like this is losing the active component that the skill provides. Magicka builds could still get an opportunity for minor berserk via camo hunter without feeling like they're wasting a skill slot for something that costs stamina and gives major savagery. Warden's could sacrifice activation of Wings to get 100% minor berserk and 3% damage done. There are a ton of abilities that this could work for and it still fits within the 12 skill slot limit that was most likely designed to be a streamlined and simple solution to an MMORPG on consoles.

Will it happen, nah.. but mystic items sound cool and are breaking the set formula so who knows.

xandervalo · February 2020

MashmalloMan wrote: »

It has been discussed. I'd be on board for a utility slot, where only specific skills can fit into it.

I'd prefer a passive skill slot. I have a big issue with skills that are just slotted for passives since they take up your already limited bar space, but they're sometimes much stronger than slotting a regular ability making it feel necessary.

A passive skill slot would allow you to slot a skill that you CAN'T activate, but it still gives you the passives applicable to it. You could only choose 1 at a time, bar swapping wouldn't change that. So you could put Inner Light, Bound Armor, Camo Hunter, Psijic Order, etc, to get whatever bonus you're looking for.

The risk/reward aspect of a system like this is losing the active component that the skill provides. Magicka builds could still get an opportunity for minor berserk via camo hunter without feeling like they're wasting a skill slot for something that costs stamina and gives major savagery. Warden's could sacrifice activation of Wings to get 100% minor berserk and 3% damage done. There are a ton of abilities that this could work for and it still fits within the 12 skill slot limit that was most likely designed to be a streamlined and simple solution to an MMORPG on consoles.

Will it happen, nah.. but mystic items sound cool and are breaking the set formula so who knows.

yeah thats what i want it for inner light or something like that or a buff like lightning form, or ele drain

Mr_Walker · February 2020

MashmalloMan wrote: »

It has been discussed. I'd be on board for a utility slot, where only specific skills can fit into it.

I'd prefer a passive skill slot. I have a big issue with skills that are just slotted for passives since they take up your already limited bar space, but they're sometimes much stronger than slotting a regular ability making it feel necessary.

A passive skill slot would allow you to slot a skill that you CAN'T activate, but it still gives you the passives applicable to it. You could only choose 1 at a time, bar swapping wouldn't change that. So you could put Inner Light, Bound Armor, Camo Hunter, Psijic Order, etc, to get whatever bonus you're looking for.

The risk/reward aspect of a system like this is losing the active component that the skill provides. Magicka builds could still get an opportunity for minor berserk via camo hunter without feeling like they're wasting a skill slot for something that costs stamina and gives major savagery. Warden's could sacrifice activation of Wings to get 100% minor berserk and 3% damage done. There are a ton of abilities that this could work for and it still fits within the 12 skill slot limit that was most likely designed to be a streamlined and simple solution to an MMORPG on consoles.

Will it happen, nah.. but mystic items sound cool and are breaking the set formula so who knows.

That's actually a pretty neat idea.

Vevvev · February 2020

I like the idea of a passive slot but if we dig deeper into the mechanics of the game and how things work..... we might be looking at a disaster. Having such a slot would allow me to put inner light in it for the passives and allow me to use that free slot for something else. With this extra slot I can now slot something else, and sticking with the mage's guild skills, I can now slot another ability I won't use like Volcanic rune to boost my max magicka by another 2% (Thanks to the passives).

What this means is it would lead to another spike in DPS numbers and a change in the meta. While this might be a good thing (or a bad thing) it'd create another balancing nightmare I don't think ZOS wants to solve.

I like the idea but in practice it might not be all that good of an idea...

Mr_Walker · February 2020

Vevvev wrote: »

What this means is it would lead to another spike in DPS numbers and a change in the meta. While this might be a good thing (or a bad thing) it'd create another balancing nightmare I don't think ZOS wants to solve.

Yeah, but that only works if you think they're actively trying to "balance" things. They're not. They're changing the meta regularly to keep people chasing item sets and playing the game.

Or do you really think buffing dots by 800% and then nerfing them next iteration by 95% is "oops lol an accident"?

Akisohida · February 2020

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

OwN_Reflex · February 2020

You have one. It’s called an ultimate. But saying that. Would be cool if you could just slot a regular skill in that spot if you chose to just not run one.

xandervalo · February 2020

Akisohida wrote: »

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

this is pc why are you playing with a controller, thats fine and all but yeah down on the d pad is working right you can use it?

Vevvev · February 2020

Mr_Walker wrote: »

Yeah, but that only works if you think they're actively trying to "balance" things. They're not. They're changing the meta regularly to keep people chasing item sets and playing the game.

Or do you really think buffing dots by 800% and then nerfing them next iteration by 95% is "oops lol an accident"?

Never said I agreed with them (Which I don't. R.I.P. Stone Giant) or whether they are currently trying to balance things. Just said it would create a change in balance I believe they don't want to solve.

Akisohida · February 2020

xandervalo wrote: »

Akisohida wrote: »

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

this is pc why are you playing with a controller, thats fine and all but yeah down on the d pad is working right you can use it?

Because the game is also on consoles? So whatever you do to PC, you have to do to consoles.

And I find I enjoy ESO more with a controller. PC does not mean I HAVE to use a mouse & keyboard.

And putting an active skill on d-pad down would be out of the way and hard to reach for in a fight. You might end up emoting, switching weapons, or even using a potion without meaning too.

Keep in mind that the devs probably tried many different control schemes before settling on what we have.

akdave0 · February 2020

It would have to go both triggers, right? if that could happen I would say, go for it!!

Garreth17 · February 2020

Don't think it's gonna happen. Consoles heavily stagnate improvement of games and limit available features.

PizzaCat82 · February 2020

Garreth17 wrote: »

Don't think it's gonna happen. Consoles heavily stagnate improvement of games and limit available features.

Simple control schemes are easier to use and more fun.
Adding more buttons would break the game. Imagine the parses with an extra spammable or DOT thrown in.

Frankly, if you need more skill slots, you might want to rethink the ones you have. They obviously aren't working for you.

Starlock · February 2020

Garreth17 wrote: »

Don't think it's gonna happen. Consoles heavily stagnate improvement of games and limit available features.

Not really, considering there are other games on console that let you map more abilities than ESO does.

Sylvermynx · February 2020

I had so many options in WoW and RIFT. I mapped spells and skills to asdfgwezxc (and CTRL or SHFT plus all of them). And I used them all on all of my toons no matter what class they were. I mapped each class's skills and spells to the same keys as I did other classes - attack to certain keys, defense/healing to others, shields to specific ones, etc.

I can't reliably bar swap; high ping is so not helpful. So I really only have 5 slots plus ult. Drives me nuts.

x48rph · February 2020

Maybe missed something but if it was only a passive slot, you wouldn't be activating it so it wouldn't be an issue with controllers

That being said , it's just a no for me a it'll just be another headache with certain classes having much better pasives to slot , more calls for nerfs cause higher damage, ect.. I agree they have no intention of ever actually balancing the game, it's why they always nerf the most popular things to keep people chasing the new meta but why make it worse by adding yet another factor for them to consider

IsharaMeradin · February 2020

I like the passive slot idea.

Perhaps something similar could be done for combat pets at the sacrifice of being able to use the pet's active attacks, heals, teleports, etc. And cause the skill cannot be activated, pet is summoned when weapon is drawn and pet is put up when weapon is sheathed. Has the added benefit of auto-removing pets when interacting with objects. Less complaints about pets being in the way of interacting with objects.

But I'm sure there would be way more balance issues with this than there would be with the passive slot.

Hotdog_23 · February 2020

PS4 controller picture

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=Y3sP3I8h&id=BF2C8A2E0804D4B393AEF97D3CF2C8BDDA414EEC&thid=OIP.Y3sP3I8hWsJTrkc-SeuHcwHaE-&mediaurl=http://www.theelderscrollsonlinepowerguide.com/media/17961/eso_ps4_controls.jpg&exph=807&expw=1200&q=eso+ps4+controls&simid=608022400541395563&selectedIndex=0&ajaxhist=0

No room for another skill slot. I guess you could just do a passive slot but then again by limiting the way they do now it comes to choices. You can't have everything you must sacrifice something to get something.

Side note I so wish they would allow use to assign buttons on console and not be fixed like they are now.

Ackwalan · February 2020

It's good the way it is. There are a limited number of spots to force a choice. Lets be honest, if there were 6 spots, people would want 7, and on and on.

doomette · February 2020

xandervalo wrote: »

Akisohida wrote: »

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

this is pc why are you playing with a controller, thats fine and all but yeah down on the d pad is working right you can use it?

Like it isn’t your platform obvs, and blah blah PC master race, but that doesn’t mean just pretending that consoles don’t exist is a valid argument 🙄

Ardan147 · February 2020

How about allow Rapid Maneuver to be cast outside of combat without it having to be on your bar (be able to map a key to it).

Ackwalan · February 2020

Ardan147 wrote: »

How about allow Rapid Maneuver to be cast outside of combat without it having to be on your bar (be able to map a key to it).

That already is in game, it's called sprint.

mocap · February 2020

just make ultimate flexible to slot regular skills too.

xandervalo · February 2020

PizzaCat82 wrote: »

Garreth17 wrote: »

Don't think it's gonna happen. Consoles heavily stagnate improvement of games and limit available features.

Simple control schemes are easier to use and more fun.
Adding more buttons would break the game. Imagine the parses with an extra spammable or DOT thrown in.

Frankly, if you need more skill slots, you might want to rethink the ones you have. They obviously aren't working for you.

EVERYONE could benefit from more skills

xandervalo · February 2020

doomette wrote: »

xandervalo wrote: »

Akisohida wrote: »

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

this is pc why are you playing with a controller, thats fine and all but yeah down on the d pad is working right you can use it?

Like it isn’t your platform obvs, and blah blah PC master race, but that doesn’t mean just pretending that consoles don’t exist is a valid argument 🙄

NO its not that you guys have a slot for it too
you can push thumbsticks down etc

Katahdin · February 2020

2 bars 5 skills each

12 total skills possible

Is fine, we dont need more. Make a choice and learn to live with that choice

WrathOfInnos · February 2020

I understand why we don’t have more total skill slots. But I think it would be interesting if we could slot a normal skill in an ult slot. I generally only need one ult in any given fight, and an 11th skill could be a useful option. This wouldn’t require any additional buttons.

Anhedonie · February 2020

You can thank consoles for that. Unless they make a new controller with more buttons...

D0PAMINE · February 2020

I love the passive skill idea. I really do. However, I feel like it would be too much. It just isn't needed imo. We do need some limits. 5 skills and 2 ultimates work for this game. The real improvememt would be ensuring those skills fire when they're activated.

FierceSam · February 2020

Akisohida wrote: »

The problem arises on how you map it to a controller?

This game has pretty good controller support; A B X Y , LB, RB, with LT & RT being for block and weapon.

Start opens menu, back opens map. Holding back summons mount.

D-Pad: Up is healing items, right is emotes, left is weapon swap..and I forget if down is mapped to anything..

R3 is sneak & L3 is sprint.

So that leaves down on the d-pad (maybe) for a new ability. Kind of clunky and had to go for in a fight..

And still leaves awkward combos (assuming you can find enough of them) for

Ultimate
Synergy
Interrupt
Bash
Dodge roll
Jump

I love the controller for its movement control, but boy could it use some more buttons.

One additional reason for 5 skills per bar is that it forces you to choose. Which is part of the ‘build’ gameplay. So you get to choose whether to sacrifice an offensive skill for a passive one, or a shield for a self-heal. Having an additional ‘skill passive’ slot would reduce the ‘risks’ of your choices and might make builds more similar (in the same way that many stam builds are similar irrespective of class).