Radiate77 wrote: »

@ZOS_GinaBruno understanding fully that the majority of Dragonknight players are happy with the new iteration of Spikes, (admittedly they are better now than they were) but I have a suggestion for a skill style for those of us who are not.

In the following artwork from Pinterest, you can see a sort of baseline knight in the top left, and then additional spikes added to the armor in different locations for each following picture.



I would really appreciate if at some point, we could get some obsidian spikes that augment plate armor, similar to how they work in that concept art.

MXVIIDREAM wrote: »

Someone said they look like a 4year olds back pack haha

Pretty big post about it on Reddit aswell https://www.reddit.com/r/elderscrollsonline/comments/1qbe378/the_dragonknight_animation_changes_look_great/

iyx wrote: »

The look of the back has definitely improved, although I think the texture could use a bit more darkening and contrast for a more solid "lava" look, as it's currently looking a bit washed out. The arm spikes still need some improvement; their baseplate should fit more snugly to the arm, the spikes themselves could be slightly more curved to complement the look of the spine spikes, and they don't necessarily look too long. I hope this small changes can be done easely.

For example look after:


and before:

Striiiks wrote: »

iyx wrote: »

Well, the more I squint and stare at the new effect, the less I like it. As many in this thread saying, it's simply not iconic enough. DK is my favorite class which I've been playing since 2017, and I'd really want it to retain its visual and overall identity in the updated version.

Here I tried to mash:
1. old look
2. The new pinecone aesthetic~
3. draconic spine (most frequently mentioned by other players in this thread)
4. hot obsidian spikes (my personal preference)



Sorry if the image isn't legible enough, I made it quickly.

This is perfect. But if it's not achievable, why it isn't just possible to keep the old one ? I understand that cost and time have been consumed to create the new ones, but don't fall into the unrecoverable cost bias. If it seems that the majority of the community prefers the old one, just keeps it simple and don't change anything.

Howewer i want to congratulate the transparency, the communication and the fact every others skills look pretty cool (just maybe not dragon blood). It's very refreshing.

ZOS_Erin wrote: »

Thank you all for the detailed feedback regarding the refreshed visuals for the Dragonknight's Earthspike Mantle. We've heard your concerns and updated certain aspects of the design to better align with the Dragonknight's visual identity:

- The spikes have been elongated and curved outward to better express an aggressive stance
- The spikes are now larger and extend further down the back

There were certain changes that we could not make due to the nature of the model - specifically, we could not remove the baseplate from the spikes without requiring a full remodel and rework of the asset. The team is hard at work on our future refresh efforts, so we wanted to do our best to find a solid compromise with the Earthspike Mantle visuals that we could turn around quickly within the PTS window without delaying other work.

You can view the new changes coming to PTS 2 in this video: https://youtu.be/d6XYK-4uaFQ. The sound design for the ability is unchanged.

The team will continue to do our best to make adjustments to the Dragonknight's visuals within the PTS window based on player feedback without delaying other refresh efforts. We appreciate your continued feedback and patience as we work through the Combat Refresh.

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

It still looks cartoony and clunky because the spikes are a big cluster on big thick shells that lies on top of the skin, instead of having the spikes emerging evenly out of the skin.

iyx wrote: »

MXVIIDREAM wrote: »

Yeah I think we are all awaiting a reply to say weather that base plate can be removed in the future of if we should consider this the final look

I think this might also require some animation editing, because in the new version, the character first summons a lava pancake on his back and arms, then grows spikes from that base, so logically, it's makes sense. But still feels like an unnecessary addition.

spoqster wrote: »

@ZOS_JessicaFolsom the Earthspike Mantle animation looks better than the original one. But it still doesn't look good.

It still doesn't look nearly as good as the original one. That original animation of Spiked Armour was pure gold. Can you please ask the team if they can consider to just not change it at all?

I know the dev team is probably proud to present new changes and some of the changes the team did are really, really, really good. But Earthspike Mantle and the new Dragonblood are just not good. Sometimes being a good designer means you need to recognize when you've already got the best possible design.

Please just leave Spike Armour and Dragonblood with the old animations.

ZOS_Erin wrote: »

MXVIIDREAM wrote: »

First of all, thankyou for turning this around so quickly. It genuinely means a lot, and I think it goes a long way with the community as a whole. Seeing feedback reciprocating with updates and even acting as fast as you have on like this incredible

It feels like, within the limits of this PTS window and the existing time restraints, you’ve done everything realistically possible to get the skill as close to perfect as it can be right now and it’s gone beyond what many of us expected. So thank you, sincerely, for that.

I just wanted to check that I’m understanding things correctly on behalf of everyone else as well. Is the remaining lava plate element something that couldn’t be revisited within this timeline technical constraints, rather than a firm long-term visual decision and is something you’ll address later on and patch in ? Or should we consider this the final look going forward?

I also want to say the updated spikes look fantastic ,genuinely didn’t think the original could be improved on, but this version actually looks better. The plate is less noticeable now, though it does still stand out a little, particularly around the arms, which is why I wanted to ask for clarification rather than assume either way.

Either way, thanksyou sincerely again for the effort and the quick turnaround it really is appreciated and it’s made such a difference I wasn’t sure it was possible and you went above and beyond

@ZOS_Erin

Class feedback for balance, feel, and visual identity will continue to be reviewed by the team and actioned upon as time allows throughout the duration of the Refresh effort and that will not be limited to the release window when a particular class refresh is first released. While we cannot guarantee that we can respond to every piece of feedback, the team will do our best to ensure that high priority items are addressed without risking a delay in future class refresh efforts.

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

Oblivion_Protocol wrote: »

NotaDaedraWorshipper wrote: »

It still looks cartoony and clunky because the spikes are a big cluster on big thick shells that lies on top of the skin, instead of having the spikes emerging evenly out of the skin.

Unfortunately, that’s the part of the change that can’t be reverted. The entire character model would need to be rewritten to remove the baseplate of the model, aka, the thing that the spikes come out of.

But the old Spiked Armor look does this better than the new one. Why would a model need to be rewritten when the old has a better look. This one even lies on top of the armour.

ZOS_Erin wrote: »

MXVIIDREAM wrote: »

First of all, thankyou for turning this around so quickly. It genuinely means a lot, and I think it goes a long way with the community as a whole. Seeing feedback reciprocating with updates and even acting as fast as you have on like this incredible

It feels like, within the limits of this PTS window and the existing time restraints, you’ve done everything realistically possible to get the skill as close to perfect as it can be right now and it’s gone beyond what many of us expected. So thank you, sincerely, for that.

I just wanted to check that I’m understanding things correctly on behalf of everyone else as well. Is the remaining lava plate element something that couldn’t be revisited within this timeline technical constraints, rather than a firm long-term visual decision and is something you’ll address later on and patch in ? Or should we consider this the final look going forward?

I also want to say the updated spikes look fantastic ,genuinely didn’t think the original could be improved on, but this version actually looks better. The plate is less noticeable now, though it does still stand out a little, particularly around the arms, which is why I wanted to ask for clarification rather than assume either way.

Either way, thanksyou sincerely again for the effort and the quick turnaround it really is appreciated and it’s made such a difference I wasn’t sure it was possible and you went above and beyond

@ZOS_Erin

Class feedback for balance, feel, and visual identity will continue to be reviewed by the team and actioned upon as time allows throughout the duration of the Refresh effort and that will not be limited to the release window when a particular class refresh is first released. While we cannot guarantee that we can respond to every piece of feedback, the team will do our best to ensure that high priority items are addressed without risking a delay in future class refresh efforts.