Umbral
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Posts
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Joined
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Quote:That was me and it was made in conjuction with providing Crane Kick with some high mag KU along with the KB and not giving CAK -KU.Originally Posted by Moonlighter
(Hell I might have even made the suggestion.) -
Quote:I generally put Hecatomb in MG, but that's because I want the recharge slotting Heca provides, compared to ToD.Originally Posted by Nihilii
the only constant is 5 hecatombs (all but dam/rech) in Smite.
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Quote:Well, if you want to get completely technical, Hack is actually the better attack than Disembowel thanks to animation time: Hack has a DPA of 71.27 (112.9/1.584) whereas Disembowel has a DPA of 68.13 (134.9/1.98). Hack also has greater recharge requirements for almost every attack chain out there, so slotting it with the Hecatomb rather than Mako's or Crushing Impact makes more sense on that front as well because you're getting more recharge while simultaneously allowing yourself to slot the AH proc that you should definitely want in there (in AH proc attacks, I generally try to go with 5 piece set bonus sets so that I can always fit in the AH proc).Originally Posted by DJ_Onslaught
Gotcha. I usually always put the purples when i get them in my best attacks, I never considered running them in a weaker attack but thats a really valid point you brought up and definately one that could make me reconsider the slottting on several toons.
Thanks for the advice. -
Quote:Except that all of that information largely went out the window when the TF was dramatically restructured to have substantially fewer missions and substantially different mission goals.Originally Posted by je_saist
The developers already have loads of data from the original Positron Task Force over how many different groups respond to, and handle, the various enemies found-within the Task-Force.
Even if there was any salvageable information from the original Posi that could be applied (i.e. how the players respond to the various enemy groups), it still wouldn't affect the merit award determination because the devs don't assign the merit awards based on the structure of the TF but rather on the median completion time of all completions of the TF. It doesn't matter how many AVs are in a mission or whether it has Rularuu or Hellions: the only determining factor in merit awards, as it stands now, is median completion time.
In beta, the TFs were sped run mainly because you don't get many newbies in betas (because newbies don't speed run well and experienced players tend to be able to run at quickly even when playing "normally") and most of the people that would be willing to run a TF multiple times are those that are going to speed run it (I can tell you this because I was one of those people that ran it 3-4 times and was largely focused on getting it done quickly after the first time).
Now, there is probably a very good argument that there should be some kind of failure rate variable factored into the reward equation somewhere (which would increase the rewards of TFs that are substantially harder, whether by having harder enemy groups or more difficult encounters). I can only assume that there are some problems with gathering that data, which is probably why it hasn't been done (the servers likely only log times for completion rather than times and completion percent for partial completion upon disbanding). -
Quote:Anyone that could definitively tell you about which AT can get the most out of what Kinetic Melee provides would be unable to because the set is still in closed beta.Originally Posted by Angelic_EU
But just curious as to which ATs will make the most of KM?
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Quote:Agreed. As I see it, Scrappers aren't missing ranged attacks or mez effects that need be rounded out by their APPs (which was the original concept behind them, to "round out" your capabilities"); they're missing buffs and debuffs that would allow them to get some moderate in team force multiplication going on. Rather than getting some crappy mez effects and worthless range ST attacks, I'd rather that Scrappers got some team buffs and/or heals (though I'd hope the devs would actually learn from the mistakes of the current melee APPs and forgo using a design that makes APPs useless for some ATs and a godsend for others that sends their effectiveness through the roof).Originally Posted by BrandX
I'd rather have a "5% Resist to all Fire Shield" to throw on team members than the single target immobilize. :/
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Quote:Something I've said pretty much since the beginning. Scrappers (and all of the melee ATs, in fact) get hosed by APP design. Rather than contributing to their effectiveness, they're largely a joke because they're attempts at using up animation time that melee ATs are already saturating with use in a less efficient manner than simply attacking (because, unlike support ATs, apparently melee ATs aren't allowed to have decent mods for anything but the stuff in their prim/sec).Originally Posted by Postagulous
I personally think the Scrapper ancillary pools suck
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Quote:By that same token, any debuff less than "9999% -dam and 9999% to all effects" would allow you to completely mitigate any "penalty" that the power provided if it applied a debuff rather than attacking (not to mention still allowing you to buff without suffering any ill danger while contributing at near full capacity).Originally Posted by Tenzhi
In theory, Lucks of any size (or even three-slotting with Def) should be unnecessary given the number of the buff. And in any case, Inspirations of any kind should be unnecessary if "the user is very unlikely to be subjected to any degree of danger thanks to the incredible level of survivability the power provides."
Remember as well that this is a power that you can get at level 1 on that ATs that get it natively. The power isn't meant to be your "lol, I can't die!" mode that you click any time you're low on health to prevent anything from happening to you. It's not an instant "no lose" button. The loss of the ability to attack is explicitly present because it has explicit advantages that no other similar power has (which I've outright listed before).
The fact that you've died while it was on doesn't change the fact that, while it's on, it's incredibly unlikely you'll die. I could cite the various times that I've died while using MoG or IH on my */Regen Scrapper (both of which are powers that are intended to make you nigh upon indestructible), but that's not really going to make much of a case that those powers are too weak. You're bringing up some exceptionally out of average cases that are completely beyond the norm: you're either jumping into the bubble well later than you should (and, yes, there should be a time when you know you need to turn it on) or getting incredibly unlucky (or lucky as the case may be, if you're attempting to use this as evidence of some lack of effectiveness of the power).
If the power allowed you to attack at all, I would expect some kind of timer attached to it. It's already an incredibly powerful tool for escaping or "stealthing" a mission. Allowing you to attack with it on, even if you were at a disadvantage (which was already tried and proved to be way too easily exploitable), would simply make the power too strong. -
Quote:Tell that to a Scrapper or a Tank. You may think Physical Perfection and Conserve Power are nice, but compare everything else that the ATs that get them get a hold of: it's either a rubbish ranged attack for an AT that already spends 99% of its time in melee or a rubbish mez/debuff that is rendered completely useless by the fact that, unlike Defenders and Controllers (and virtually every other AT that isn't in melee at all hours), melee ATs, for some unknown reason, get crappy AT mods for anything that isn't expressly damage (which kinda makes you wonder why Defenders, Controllers, and all of the others are allowed to maintain Tanker level melee res buff and melee def buff attributes when they're not even supposed to be "melee"). Compare those powers to Darkest Night, Shadow Meld, or the fact that neither of the redside melee ATs have to wait for level 47 to get their APP AoE.Originally Posted by Zamuel
A few times I've heard that Patron Pools are worse than Ancillary Pools.
As I see it, the problem with APPs and PPPs isn't so much a question of "which side" but "which role". Melee ATs get hosed by and large, by the APP decreased effectiveness rule ("3 times worse" overall is the standard, by and large) and the fact that, unlike the support ATs, they have crappy attribute mods for anything that isn't expressly concerned with their primary or secondary (I'm still trying to figure out why a Controller, Defender, or Mastermind should be getting more from Tough and Weave than a Scrapper, Stalker, or Brute). -
Quote:How about Maneuvers, FA, Phys Perf?Originally Posted by McCharraigin
Maneuvers, FA, Pet Gaze????
Maneuvers, FA, Touch Of Fear?
Maneuvers, FA, Laser Beam Eyes?
Firstly, you can't get Pet Gaze and FA at the same time. I'm going to assume you meant Tactics (which you could get and it will do roughly the same thing). Petrifying Gaze is largely useless because it's a mag 3 hold that deals no damage with a 9.5 second duration and a 32 second base recharge. If you want to use it on anything more than a lt. (honestly, why would you bother using any kind of mez effect on an enemy you could kill in 2-3 hits?), you're going to have to devote a lot of slots to it and it will kill your DPS. The only "use" is for PvP and, even then, it would be better to just go with Web Grenade.
If you really wanted to get some kind of mez tool, I'd say go with Touch of Fear, but, even then, I would be reluctant to do so. Touch of Fear is another one of those powers that will reduce your outgoing damage by a fair margin, though, unlike Pet Gaze, you can actually get some use out of it on hard targets and with single applications. Still, it's not really high up on my list of powers to take on DM: you rolled a Scrapper to deal damage, not try to be an ST Controller.
Laser Beam Eyes is yet another power that I, honestly, wouldn't take. Ever. It's an attack that will actually lower your DPS, even in the best of situations. The only time it's really useful is when you're trying to take down a runner and you've already got MG's immob for preventing that (or, if you don't mind it, just running after the guy and punching him like most do).
Honestly, the APP attacks and mez effects do so little thanks to APP penalties and crappy Scrapper mods that I wouldn't ever bother with them. Even the in set control powers are avoidable because damage is, in a vast majority of situations, more important than keeping a single target mezzed (especially since that mezzed target could just as easily be simply dead). I would go with the passive self buff rather than trying to cram more functionality into a build/AT that's already pressed for animation time as it is. You're better off playing to your strengths than attempting to diversify heavily. -
Quote:That build is, quite explicitly, a PvE build. My opinion on PvP and PvE builds is that you have two: because PvP and PvE are so different, if you want to do both, have one build that's specialized for each.Originally Posted by SpikyShane
My build is a lot like Umbral's, and it works really well.
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Quote:With the exception of two things: the user is very unlikely to be subjected to any degree of danger thanks to the incredible level of survivability the power provides (and remember, it doesn't turn off your natural regeneration, so it has to be capable of killing you in under 5 seconds if it was off in order to even start killing you, and that's ignoring any other +regen or +res you may have as well) and the user has control over whether the power is on or not.Originally Posted by Tenzhi
We have a power here which is supposed to be highly specialised at protecting the user from the enemy, yet what it does best is protect the enemies from the user, allowing them to potentially kill the user from a position of complete safety.
Your argument would actually have some legitimacy if it weren't for the fact that you are the one that turns it on and off and that you'd have to be completely outclassed to even be threatened by a target while it's on. -
Quote:Well, the problem with attempting to buck the current trend is that you're assuming it's got no legitimate basis. The devs have started to apply their more crashless/crash-lite design to so many things specifically because they've found that a vast majority of players don't like and/or use those powers. The crashless and crash-lite powers are substantially more popular despite their substantially lower contributions because they aren't nearly as situational.Originally Posted by WarronPeace
Which is exactly the point of this thread, lol. The current trends seem to be leading to rather bland play; with no major drawbacks, there's no major challenge. I'd just like to see some thought needed before using powers, rather than "OK, everyone's buffed, I'll just nerf these guys and we'll do the same thing to the next spawn."
Similarly, how are you assuming that adding counterbalancing debuffs to powers would lead to more interesting play? It would make play more complex (balancing the buffs with the debuffs), but I doubt it would make it more interesting (or, at least, interesting in a good way). You could make the claim that attaching debuffs to certain powers would allow them to offer substantially larger buffs, but, once again, the problem comes in balance: if it's easy to get around the debuff, the debuff doesn't really mean anything and you're simply getting a large buff for no real cost. If the debuff is so large that it's not playable while the effect is active, then there is little point to using it (beyond simply annoying one's team, which is going to happen, and we all know it). Furthermore, you can't simply state that one or the other is going to happen because the utility of a power is entirely situational: in the presence of many buffs, it might be useless, or vice versa, and the devs have to think of that. Of course, there is always the question of control: should the target have the right to accept or decline the de/buff regardless of the fact that the caster is the one that chooses it? If it's an effect on a long timer, how do you deal with the fact that, if the target ignores it, the effects of it are lost for the entire duration (which, if it's a buff, would be a bad thing)?
If a design like this were to be implemented, I would expect it to be the specific shtick of a single set, for those debuffs to be comparatively low to the size of the buffs, and for that set have mechanisms inside it specifically for counteracting specific side effects within it (such as having 2 powers, one that provides +tohit and -def and another that provides +def and -tohit so that you could choose to have either both to a smaller extent or a higher buff to one to counteract the lesser debuff of the other, though this would be the simplest; I'd prefer the set to be designed around a "cycle" of counterbalancing of around 3-4 powers). -
Quote:It was changed specifically because it was possible to work around that debuff, either by stacking on enough +tohit, enough -def, or any combination of the two. The same would still apply now.Originally Posted by Kiken
Which, as somebody said above, is how PFF used to work. Not sure if it was floored at the 5%, but there was a huge debuff to To-Hit. Enough so that you were basically just throwing Endurance away trying to attack. Can't remember what their reason was for changing it, but given how long ago it was I don't see them rushing to change it back.
The problem is that you're assuming that there should be an even exchange between survivability and offense. There isn't really a reason for that. When you start getting into hyperspecialized powers that do one thing to such an extent that it's possible to completely negate almost anything that is present to counter it, it's better design to start having powers provide less returns (or have greater countereffects in order to balance it out). The more specialized a power, the more you can leverage it so the less efficient it should be.
The argument of "they can attack me so I should be able to attack them" isn't a particularly good one either. The very fact that enemies can still attack you (albeit with negligible effect) is quite possibly the only reason why the power has a negligible endurance cost, low recharge time, and can be on for an extended period with that degree of survivability. It's also because of this that many players have found uses for it beyond "run away" (a number of FF Defenders I've known use it to soak alphas for the team). Compare it to Phase Shift (which is/was originally intended to be used in largely the same way), and you'll see exactly how much better it is because of those attributes. -
Quote:I said many, not all.Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Then since I am not, in fact, operating under the same restrictions that you are, I'm going to have to end my participation in this discussion.
I find it amusing that so many of your contributions to discussions start with "well, I can't tell you everything", move into vague generalizations, and then end in "I'm leaving this discussion now because you aren't as awesome as me". I find it highly unlikely that you are operating under some explicit dev restriction that prevents you from talking about virtually anything, much less actually providing numbers for anything. You're not the only player that has gotten the ear of the devs before, and you're not the only player that they listen to (something that I'm more and more thankful for the more I end up discussing stuff with you; you really do believe you can do no wrong and that anyone that disagrees with you is arguing with the word of god). -
Quote:What are your opinions on my method for instituting the same stylistic effect? Personally, I think it's a better solution than simply providing the power with baseline secondary effect augmentation because, honestly, unless you can get the mez on the target, increasing the duration doesn't really help you much.Originally Posted by Arcanaville
Unfortunately, people like Build Up so the cottage rule prevents making an exotic Build Up. I suggested many times in the past replacing BU with PBU (actually, that suggestion predates PBU) but with rebalanced numbers, just because it preserves the functionality of BU. But that's kinda boring to me now.
I'm curious how you can manage to label CAK as the "power least often taken" (which it seems like you are, though maybe you're attempting to reference Cobra Strike or some other power but I'm not really sure how). CAK is actually taken quite a lot, from what I've seen. Not just in top end builds, but in game as well.Quote:CAK is the power that singularly sits there mocking me in my tray. Its secondary effects are, without rehashing that debate, pitiful. But if I overload the power with a rainbow of effects designed to stack with other powers, I run the risk of buffing Martial Arts by buffing the power least often taken, which is not something I want to do.
My solution was simply to divide the set into two different synergistic secondary effect "suites". The two different suites would have different secondary effects that are complimentary rather than at odds and, within the suites, the secondary effects would be designed so as to generate appropriate degrees of synergy to make that secondary effect useful.Quote:That makes it ground zero for resolving the secondary effect problem: how to grant more secondary effects in a way that won't require the entire set to leverage, but in a way where each power's secondary effects are distinctly valuable *and* all reasonable combinations of powers have a combined secondary effect total that is reasonable.
And I'm still not even sure you can say that it's obviously underpowered. You can claim that it has two secondary effects where most powers have only 1, but that the secondary effects are largely at odds (though I would argue they combine into a single, effective secondary effect). You've said time and again that CAK is underpowered without really providing any evidence. Numerically, the power is completely fine. The only way that you could possibly describe it as being underpowered (much less "obviously") is if you operate under the explicit notion that it's supposed to have 2 effects rather than a single super effect, which really isn't true.Quote:CAK is the place to try out exotic ideas, because its so obviously underpowered.
Personally, I'd be curious whether MA really needs all of that unique attention. The uniqueness of the set could just as easily be a uniqueness of design and diversity of effects (which is likely what the devs originally intended) rather than a reinvention of the set so that it has a single cohesive mechanism like almost every other set out there.Quote:This might give a better idea of at least the general direction I'm heading in.
I'm curious as to the why you feel the need to reinvent the mechanics of MA rather than simply fixing them. The only problem MA's secondary effects have are largely due to magnitude and controllability (low proc rates and a reliance on mag based effects rather than debuffs). Those issues can be addressed without much effort on the devs or player's part unless you specifically feel that complicating the issue is somehow the only correct answer. Sometimes, simple is just the better solution. Don't try to reinvent the set to deal with the fact that the set has problems: just fix what's wrong with the set and be done with it.
You may start looking less like a self-righteous ***** if you actually starting talking rather than simply saying "well, I can't talk to you" or speaking in ridiculously vague generalizations. I'm operating under many of the same restrictions as you, but I'm not telling everyone and everything about how little I'm allowed to tell them. I make my recommendations with what I know in mind without referencing what I'm not allowed to reference. I know exactly the reasons why you're so fed up with Castle right now and why you're exasperated with the state of MA, but it does you no good to talk down to people by saying that they don't know how good they've got it because you can't smack them down. If anything, it makes you look like more of a pompous jackass than I do. And I go out of my way to look like a pompous jackass. -
Quote:Well, in my suggestion, it's largely there because I see the power as simply being an attempt to bowl the target over. The KU exists simply to demonstrate that you've simply pushed the target over (which is why the mag is so low) and they need to stand up, whereas the KB is what happens when you outright knock him off his feet. Knockup, as an effect, is largely a way to allow for higher mag knockback while preventing the target from getting thrown away from you.Originally Posted by SpittingTrashcan
I have a question, actually, since I've seen more than one person suggest knockup as an effect of Crane Kick. What makes you feel that Crane Kick, as it is animated, should knock an enemy upwards rather than backwards? It looks like a very strong horizontal force to me.
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Quote:Yet you don't seem to understand why being able to attack or tell your pets to attack (which amounts to the same thing) would be ridiculous. I'm sensing a bit of cognitive dissonance here.Originally Posted by JoshexDirad
I understand why Useing rest would be off-limits while the power is active. that would be ridiculous ^^'
Comically enough, Rest would be completely useless while in PFF, if you were planning on using PFF to use Rest in combat: PFF provides 7.5 defense (modified by the melee buff def attribute so that it's 52.5%, 67.5%, and 75% for Blasters, Controllers, and Defenders respectively) and 4.0 resistance to all but toxic (modified by the melee res dmg attribute so that it's 28%, 40%, and 40% respectively). Rest provides you with -1000% resist and -1000% defense (both use the melee ones attribute so it doesn't change based on AT), neither of which is resistable. You could turn on PFF while you're using Rest and it wouldn't change a thing about what happens if something attacks you: you'd still be at the -res and -def floors. -
Quote:Is it sad that I'm also waiting for GoRo to release, not because I want to play in Praetoria or because I want to play with the new sets, but rather because I want Castle and the powers team to have their free time back so I can get them to start working on other powerset suggestions I've got? Curse the GoRo workload!Originally Posted by Arcanaville
About MA? Not really. I'm in no real position to hide anything about MA specifically. All I said was that as soon as Going Rogue releases, I'm going to make it a priority to get the devs to reopen the design of MA.
That's how I do it too. Just asking/telling the devs to look at something doesn't really do anything for them. It works way better to create a comprehensive proposal with all of your reasoning given and plenty of math if possible.Quote:And I don't do that by telling Castle "go look at MA." That's not really my way. I'll present an actual reference design for MA and discuss it with him (or someone else on the powers team): that's more my style.
I'm curious about what your "swing for the fences" approach would look like, though. I thought I was being pretty liberal with the secondary effects in my suggestion (well, not spectacularly liberal, but definitely to such an extent that each power had a better secondary effect than any other power of the same power level), so I'd be curious how you would go completely over the top and yet still manage to put out something balanced (though "swinging for the fences" for you might equate to giving Castle pretty good reasons to break the Cottage Rule, which is something that I definitely go out of my way to avoid asking for). -
Quote:First, I'd like to defend myself by saying that I try to only bash bad ideas and then provide the logical underpinnings for the reasons why those are bad ideas. I rarely if ever simply say "bad idea" unless I feel that it should be self-explanatory,Originally Posted by BrandX
Is it me, or are you bashing Arcana for bashing suggestions from Umbral, who bashes suggestions from others himself?
Second, I don't think Arcanaville is bashing my ideas so much as calling into question the capacity for them to be brought to bear (and, even then, only one of them: reducing EC's animation time without changing everything people like about it). If anything, Arcanaville comments very little on the suggestions I make and tends to focus on the general game design interactions that I make reference to (something I've always found kinda strange since I've always expected her to throw some math at me when I'm throwing down with set design). Here, the "debate" that she and I entered into was largely one of suggestion direction (what basic concepts the suggestion should operate under and what directions it should go in) that I think the both of us arrived at a largely amicable agreement on (though Arcanaville and I generally only ever argue on very abstract game design concepts that prevent a de facto "correct" answer from ever really being established). -
Well, first things first, what were you aiming for with this build? You didn't get much of any defense, a not spectacular amount of +rech, and very little else from all of that slotting. You could get much better performance for the exact same budget by using your sets a bit more intelligently.
Getting starting, your slotting of the Claws attacks are largely a joke. 5 piece Mako's isn't really worth it and you're getting rid of the lethal damage proc and a +def set bonus for a largely useless disorient proc (10% chance for an 8 sec stun on a minion). You're doing the same thing for Slash, but at least you're getting a decent proc there. I'd still go for something other than Mako's though, like Crushing Impact 5 piece for a 5% +rech set bonus (i.e. useful). Something to remember, Follow Up is an attack: slot it as such. All of that tohit buff is doing you almost nothing since most of the +tohit from FU is already redundant considering how much you should be stacking it. For Evis and Spin, you're once against sacrificing procs and getting nothing out of it. 6 piece Obliteration is awesome. For Focus, it seems like you did that more to frankenslot than to get a real IO slotting out of it. The +dam set bonuses just really aren't worth it, especially when there are sets that will net you more useful things.
For */Regen, you put more slots into Health and more enhancement into Health than you did for Fast Healing? Why? Fast Healing is simply stronger so it should get more. For Reconstruction, Dull Pain, and IH, you're, once again, going with a frankenslotting mechanism when you could be getting useful set bonuses with just a single slot more and that single slot is definitely worth it, especially considering what you spent other slots on. Doctored Wounds is your bread and butter. Give it to your bread and butter powers that will actually see some use out of those enhancement values (DP, Recon, IH) and give simpler mono-focus slotting set up to your passive powers (FH and Integration). For MoG, you're way overslotting it. The only thing MoG cares about is recharge: the +def and +res values are already high enough that any augmentation of them is redundant. Similarly, those set bonuses you're getting out of those two extra slots aren't contributing much either: you have FU for +tohit so the +acc is useless and you have DP so +hp is useless. On a more quizzical note, why did you slot Revive like that? It's a joke power anyway (awaken on a recharge timer) and you're spending slots on it for useless set bonuses.
Other stuff to comment on...
Why did you take Fitness that early? You're */Regen, you have QR. You don't need Fitness until the extreme end of the game, and, even then, only if you don't have Physical Perfection (which you do). There is such a thing as overkill endurance. For QR, Stamina, and Physical Perfection, you've also got to learn about the wonders of the Perf Shifter +end proc: for every power except for QR, it will provide more endurance than any other slot you can put in those powers and it can't be debuffed away (for QR, it's roughly equal to anything else you can put in there, so it's still the best slot you can put in there). For Physical Perfection, you should also realize that the values in it are so low that it's pretty much useless to enhance it. PP is pretty much just a proc mule. With FA, virtually everyone and their mother 6 slots it and uses it for the Gaussian's set: it's quite possibly the best place to use that set aside from Tactics (which is an equally good option). The 6 piece set is awesome and it provide excellent enhancement values for some powers (but not those like FU).
Here's the moderate cost Claws/Regen I've got saved: it will manage better survivability (higher defense and recharge) and damage (better attack slotting and more recharge as well as more AoE). It's fully endurance sustainable without Fitness as well. The important thing to remember where IOing */Regen is concerned is that you want to aim for defense and recharge. +Regen, +hp, +recov, and other things that */Regen already does well don't stack up well so there's little point in getting more of them. Defense and recharge are pretty much all you should really care about. A lot of the slotting strategies I've used here have become the standard for most IO'd */Regen builds because they're slot efficient and effective: look at MoG, Recon, QR, Resilience (another one of those powers that's only useful as a slot mule), FA, etc. IH got the proverbial short end of the slotting lottery, but there's good reason for that (very little of IH's +regen is enhanceable so you don't get particularly good returns out of enhancing it for healing; I would only devote heal enhancement to IH if you're going to get a nice set bonus out of it; in this build, I'm already at 5 5% +rech set bonuses, so there was no need to put a 5 piece Doc Wounds in IH).
Hero Plan by Mids' Hero Designer 1.704
http://www.cohplanner.com/
Click this DataLink to open the build!
Level 50 Technology Scrapper
Primary Power Set: Claws
Secondary Power Set: Regeneration
Power Pool: Leaping
Power Pool: Speed
Power Pool: Fighting
Power Pool: Leadership
Ancillary Pool: Body Mastery
Hero Profile:
Level 1: Swipe -- Acc-I(A)
Level 1: Fast Healing -- Numna-Heal(A), Numna-Regen/Rcvry+(46), RgnTis-Regen+(46)
Level 2: Reconstruction -- Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(3), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(3), Dct'dW-Heal(5), Dct'dW-Rchg(5)
Level 4: Quick Recovery -- P'Shift-End%(A), P'Shift-EndMod(21), EndMod-I(21)
Level 6: Spin -- Oblit-Dmg(A), Oblit-Acc/Rchg(7), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg(7), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(17), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(19), Oblit-%Dam(19)
Level 8: Follow Up -- T'Death-Acc/Dmg(A), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx(9), T'Death-Dmg/Rchg(9), T'Death-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(15), T'Death-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(15), T'Death-Dam%(17)
Level 10: Dull Pain -- Dct'dW-EndRdx/Rchg(A), Dct'dW-Heal/Rchg(11), Dct'dW-Heal/EndRdx/Rchg(11), Dct'dW-Heal(13), Dct'dW-Rchg(13)
Level 12: Combat Jumping -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(23), Winter-ResSlow(36)
Level 14: Super Jump -- Zephyr-Travel(A), Zephyr-Travel/EndRdx(37), Zephyr-ResKB(50)
Level 16: Integration -- Numna-Heal(A), Numna-Heal/EndRdx(23), Mrcl-Heal(25), Mrcl-Rcvry+(25)
Level 18: Focus -- Decim-Acc/Dmg(A), Decim-Dmg/EndRdx(27), Decim-Dmg/Rchg(27), Decim-Acc/EndRdx/Rchg(29), Decim-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(29)
Level 20: Slash -- C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg(A), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx(31), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(31), C'ngImp-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(31), C'ngImp-Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(33), Achilles-ResDeb%(33)
Level 22: Hasten -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(33), RechRdx-I(34)
Level 24: Boxing -- Empty(A)
Level 26: Tough -- Aegis-ResDam(A), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx(34), Aegis-ResDam/EndRdx/Rchg(34)
Level 28: Instant Healing -- RechRdx-I(A), RechRdx-I(36), RechRdx-I(36)
Level 30: Weave -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(37), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(37)
Level 32: Shockwave -- Posi-Acc/Dmg(A), Posi-Dmg/EndRdx(39), Posi-Dmg/Rchg(39), Posi-Dmg/Rng(39), Posi-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx(40)
Level 35: Maneuvers -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def(40), LkGmblr-Def/EndRdx(40)
Level 38: Moment of Glory -- LkGmblr-Rchg+(A), LkGmblr-Def/Rchg(42), RechRdx-I(42), RechRdx-I(42)
Level 41: Focused Accuracy -- GSFC-ToHit(A), GSFC-ToHit/Rchg(43), GSFC-ToHit/Rchg/EndRdx(43), GSFC-Rchg/EndRdx(43), GSFC-ToHit/EndRdx(45), GSFC-Build%(45)
Level 44: Physical Perfection -- P'Shift-End%(A), P'Shift-EndMod(45), EndMod-I(46)
Level 47: Eviscerate -- Oblit-Dmg(A), Oblit-Dmg/Rchg(48), Oblit-Acc/Rchg(48), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/EndRdx/Rchg(48), Oblit-Acc/Dmg/Rchg(50), Oblit-%Dam(50)
Level 49: Resilience -- S'fstPrt-ResDam/Def+(A)
------------
Level 1: Brawl -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Sprint -- Empty(A)
Level 2: Rest -- Empty(A)
Level 1: Critical Hit
Level 0: Ninja Run -
Quote:And do you really think those animations would lose their luster if they were sped up a bit?Originally Posted by BrandX
Let's take one of my favorite sets...Dual Blades. My two favorite attacks in the set purely on the animation side of things?
Vengeful Slice (2.64 animation) and Typhoons Edge (2.508 animation). Those are considered long animations.
Eagle's Claw...long animation. -
Quote:Pretty doesn't have to mean "takes longer than it has any right to where performance is concerned". Katana is actually a very aesthetically attractive set, but it's not hindered by long animation times. If anything, those fast animations make it look better because it looks like you're actually fighting and not just striking a new pose every 2 seconds.Originally Posted by BrandX
I'd say probably because a majority of us want pretty animations.
If Castle simply gave BABs a number and told him to do the best he could with it, I doubt we'd suddenly see a drop in prettiness. I have confidence that BABs is a skilled enough animator that he can actually make a 1.5 second punch look just as good as a 2 second punch, especially since the problem with so many of the actual problem animations is dramatic slowing or outright pauses that just look silly and annoying after the second time you see it. -
Quote:Suggesting changes just because you want to gain an untoward advantage in your specific play area of interest is similarly selfish, especially when your suggestion is directly counter to the very reason why the power is largely useless in the first place.Originally Posted by Donna_
Suggesting changes to powers that only benefit your category of play style (pve) is very selfish.
The CoX engine is a joke for PvP. If PvP was really a high priority for devs, there would be a lot more happening than the little changes that occur that don't really do much to make the entire system operate better. If you can't tell that, then I'm not sure why you're even here.Quote:PvP'ers have taken enough nerfage for the sake of non pvp'rs already.
Enough is enough!
You're suggesting that changes that would greatly improve the effectiveness of a power and powerset in PvE where it is used substantially more often (do you really want to try and argue this?) should be cast aside exclusively because they would negatively affect your performance in PvP (which is still kinda funny when you realize just how powerful EC already is in PvP and you just want to make it stronger). Personally, I don't think the devs should apply the AoE damage nerf to the power (especially since it's largely there as a bonus to the power, not as a fundamental attribute of it). I'm not even sure why that rule exists in the first place since it's not like players stand around together allowing you to get huge gains out of AoEs, and AoE powers already take penalties to end and rech because they can affect multiple targets.
I'm also rather amused that you didn't comment on the sheer plethora of secondary effects and mez effects that the set would get in "exchange" for the EC "nerf" in PvP (though that would assume you want the set to not be able to 2 shot anything you see in Siren's Call and would rather see it perform on a roughly similar level to the rest of the melee sets; go figure). -
Quote:Actually, the pause is still there. It's smaller than it used to be, but it's still present.Originally Posted by Arcanaville
I don't see where the 15 frames of animation will come from. BaB squeezed out the pause in the backflip already just to get it down to 2.53s.
Honestly, I really don't care where those frames come from. I'm completely fed up with having to deal with long animation times making powers virtually useless just because BABs wants to make 'em pretty. As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't really matter what it looks like as long as the animation time is appropriate for the power to effective and the animation makes sense. That should be Castle's primary concern as well. It should be up to BABs to make the most out of the animation time that Castle gives him.
Ever since Dual Pistols hit test, I've had to imagine that this conversation takes place every time a set is designed:
I can't think of any other reason why there would be so many attacks that are so much longer than they have any reason to be now that we know how animation time affects performance. In all honesty, the powers guys should be setting strict animation time budgets for each power and telling BABs to do what he can with those. From what I've heard from Castle, it seems that he's a lot softer on animation time restrictions than he should be.Quote:Castle: Okay, I've got a new set. The numbers are all there, and I have a pretty good idea what it should look like. We ready to implement this?
BABs: Sure. I'll get started on some animations.
(time passes)
BABs: I got those animations done for you.
Castle: Alright, let's see 'em. Uhh... BABs, I realize that you want it to look really kewl and all, but that's supposed to be a fast attack that's used as a the base of a player's attack string.
BABs: Yeah, and?
Castle: Uhh... It's taking nearly 3 seconds to animate.
BABs: So? What's the problem?
Castle: It's taking 3 seconds to animate. When we talked about it, I though it was going to take like 1.5 seconds at most.
BABs: But it looks better this way.
Castle: I realize that, but it's going to render the power largely useless.
BABs: But it's pretty.
Castle: Well, you've got me there.
I realize that it's going to piss off a lot of people, but animation time shouldn't be under the authority of the animation guys which it seems like it has and likely always will be. It affects the performance of a power more than almost any other attribute nowadays because it has no guiding principle behind it other than a vague heuristic where the devs decide aesthetics and performance collide, regardless of whether that collision renders what should be a powerful power useless because it takes too long to do anything.