Funny thing is, they have addressed a lot of issue in terms of pvp balance from update 34, but then took like 10 steps backwards immediately.
I know many of the changes are pve focused, but even the pvp focused changes are problematic.
They decided to nerf resolving vigor, which might seem like a good idea if you think healing is too high in pvp.
But what's going to happen is that this will force players to fall back to their class based mostly all magicka costing healing skills, which is going to put stam users in a really wierd spot.
It is also going to force a lot of people back to rally which will once again limit weapon choices.
Like, we have been down that road before, can we not go back there?
The class changes are also really bad. Nightblades are getting pushed back to pure gank territory, templars main spammable hits like a wet noodle now etc..
It really looks like they just dont take pvp into account, or simple dont grasp the consequences of these changes.

Any form of dynamic (stickie) healing has been nerfed. It will cause more problems than it solves, but a lot of people have complained about "overhealing" for a long time and this is what they get.

Healers are going to struggle.

The death of ESO PvP has been predicted many times over the years, yet there are still hour-long queues to get into Cyrodiil.

Will this patch kill PvP? Almost certainly not.

Is this update good for PvP? Also almost certainly not.

The stated intent for this update was to make content more accessible for lower tier or casual players. Does this update further that goal? No.

For the last few years, I've watched casual PvP players get squeezed out of open world PvP. Right now, the main options for PvP are hardcore ball groups, tower *** "1vX" builds (which I have been informed is the only true and correct way to PvP in ESO), or faction stack zergs. Where does this leave the casual guy with a decent but not optimized build who wants to pop into Cyrodiil for a few hours a few days a week? Solo, he's gonna get mowed down by ball groups, zergs, or humpers. He can join the zerg and get farmed by ball groups, and being zergling #1002934 might not be the most fun way to play for many people. People want to feel like they're contributing something meaningful, which is hard to do in a faction stack. He could join a PUG or other organized group, but even an organized but not optimized casual PvP group is going to get crushed by the ball groups or zergs.

The bottom line is the space for casual PvP play is getting smaller and smaller with every update. Making it harder to stay alive isn't going to encourage casual players to PvP. Getting killed over and over with no recourse, no chance to fight back, and no way to stay alive isn't fun.

But PvP in ESO won't die until they switch off the servers for good.

danthemann5 wrote: »

The death of ESO PvP has been predicted many times over the years, yet there are still hour-long queues to get into Cyrodiil.

Will this patch kill PvP? Almost certainly not.

Is this update good for PvP? Also almost certainly not.

The stated intent for this update was to make content more accessible for lower tier or casual players. Does this update further that goal? No.

For the last few years, I've watched casual PvP players get squeezed out of open world PvP. Right now, the main options for PvP are hardcore ball groups, tower *** "1vX" builds (which I have been informed is the only true and correct way to PvP in ESO), or faction stack zergs. Where does this leave the casual guy with a decent but not optimized build who wants to pop into Cyrodiil for a few hours a few days a week? Solo, he's gonna get mowed down by ball groups, zergs, or humpers. He can join the zerg and get farmed by ball groups, and being zergling #1002934 might not be the most fun way to play for many people. People want to feel like they're contributing something meaningful, which is hard to do in a faction stack. He could join a PUG or other organized group, but even an organized but not optimized casual PvP group is going to get crushed by the ball groups or zergs.

The bottom line is the space for casual PvP play is getting smaller and smaller with every update. Making it harder to stay alive isn't going to encourage casual players to PvP. Getting killed over and over with no recourse, no chance to fight back, and no way to stay alive isn't fun.

But PvP in ESO won't die until they switch off the servers for good.

I haven't set foot into cyro for ages now, and instead prefer instant BG action over 30min cyrodiil riding exp. 1vX/open world pvp has been dead even before my absence more than a year ago. BGs are much more accessible, reliable fights, and include some sort of (weird) MRR to match oyu correctly.

So Cyrodiil might be dead (to me), but PvP certainly isnt.

tomfant wrote: »

Isn't PVP already dead, more or less?

Ball group kill PvP...

I mean those of us who organize and run in the ball groups have warned them repeatedly against buffs to our playstyle.

I'd warn them again, as I believe the nerf to Radiating Regeneration will dramatically buff ball groups, as it is, according to our logs, generally the only heal most of our opponents are using, while optimized groups have a lot more diversified HOT profile and so on and so forth.

But no one ever listens to us about any of this at all. No one cares what the actual data are. Everyone, including ZOS and too many of the players advising them, all have their minds made up. I'd tell them limiting stacks of a HOTs from a single ability is a much better way to go about this than a straight across-the-board nerf; and while it won't work either, at least it's something more in the realm of "not obviously the opposite of what's intended."

But honestly though, what's the point? We're shouting at a wall.

doesurmindglow wrote: »

I'd warn them again, as I believe the nerf to Radiating Regeneration will dramatically buff ball groups, as it is, according to our logs, generally the only heal most of our opponents are using, while optimized groups have a lot more diversified HOT profile and so on and so forth.

Since you like paradoxes: buffing ball groups' ability to kill pugs and decisively end fights will dramatically reduce the amount of ball group complaints, which are mostly brought forth because hour-long lap running heal stack stalemates are extremely boring and pointless for their opponents. Win and move to the next objective, and so will everyone else.

For what it's worth, the RR nerf will not much affect the zergs who only ever relied on numbers, nor the high-tier ball groups who always easily adapt. It will hit the smaller or mid-tier ball groups who really can't bomb anyone or even hold a flag, but have figured out how to stack mobile healing and run around to stalemate fights. The fact that those guys will be easier to kill makes it easier to roll your eyes and ignore elite groups dangling faction objectives trying to goad casuals.

The damage nerfs and new busted sets will stalemate a lot of smaller fights. Casual randoms will still chase and then die in towers and behind rocks, but any conceivable form of competitive small scale is looking pretty miserable.

I thought PvP was mostly dead already. I have heard stories of multiple campaigns being filled on weekdays during prime time and that the pop caps were significantly higher than they are now. Now it takes an event that might get as many people into various smaller campaigns. That is not a good reflection on the current health of this game segment.