Single Buff/Mastery Feedback

I get the intent of trying to make the player feel like they make a choice here. However, with specalties/masteries being a single (not the idea of two that was thrown around), adding the single buff between Enlightenment/Air's Embrace/Strength of Earth...

You just introduced classes!

Want to play a tank? Mastery Heavy Armor and Strength of Earth!
Rogue? Blades and Air's Embrace!

etc.

I grant you the tooltip is the only thing I have to go on for masteries so far, but as it reads, we get exactly 1 (all others are untrain if you set the mastery to anything but untrain).

If the single mastery is being kept, why not try an in-between step before going this far? Pick 2 out of the 4 (include Celestial Blessing in the mix). Maybe even do the 2 buffs if you go up to two masteries. Going (right now) from live to QA, this feels like a glorious slap in the face with a wet fish.

 

I really do not understand the need/rationale for limiting the buffs. The long-term buffs were not a problem - and most builds rely on more than a single stat. Sure, strength builds will use strength and dex builds with use dex but with our current system there is a LOT of middle ground.

Air mages that rely on dex and int, etc. Earth mages who rely on strength/int. Any hybrid build that relies on more than one stat. Fighters who need to beef up dex to help hit, etc. etc. etc. Light armor wearers who don't have the heavy armor passives/alternatives for strength, who just want a little more HP.

I think limiting them to two would be far more reasonable but can't really think of a good reason to limit them at all. This is not creating 'choices' - its funneling players into using the most beneficial buff for their build and losing the (minor) benefits of the other two.

What is the harm if a mage who is relying primarily on int for damage also has an extra 50 hp from the str buff and the ability to carry a bit more? Why is this an important "choice" to make? It isn't really a choice at all. What is the harm in a fighter using an int buff - that they have invested the experience in, mind you - to give themselves a bit more focus pool? Not really creating a huge problem but just giving players a slight bit of convenience in exchange for investing in the skills.

@Chris said:

So...yeah....the 30 min buffs? Were not the problem here. And its not much of a choice at all....hitting it with a stick ? Strength. Hitting it with magic? Int. Shooting at it? Dex. Sure, some builds are exceptions, but everyone has their most important stat in mind. Other minor bonuses from other stats = removed. Picking two would allow an actual choice - the main one that you obviously need, with a choice between which secondary is more helpful.

Instead, now I cast 1 buff out of combat instead of 3, every 30-40 mins or so. Still cast 8 things every fight with short durations. Not a lot has changed.

Its bad enough you get hardly any choice whatsoever in crafting your gear, but suddenly players have to have a 'choice' for the stat buffs. Really? Can we have the same 'choice' for our gear then, please?

On an unrelated note, what if !idea you could only cast one on yourself, but could be buffed with the others by party members, as a way to encourage grouping/cooperation? The buffs are really nice to cast on lower level party members that you may be with to make them a bit sturdier.

 

I will add that per r51 instructions looks like the tooltip is misleading, and one mastery train, one maintain (how we keep them from chewing up xp....we shall see...). Still, it doesn't feel good to lose those stats unless combat damage (PVE) was re-balanced with this in mind. Dropping the dodge out for casters, and associated HP cause they rely on int, lost hp for crit focused weapon builds (and spell damage if they mixed in magic)....

 

Yeppers learn a skill master it not a learn all, as it always SHOULD have been never was it intended to have player with 100S of skills.


If you are a fire mage you should be FIRE mage, and not be able to use each and every other tree as efficiently.

To bad they cold not explain it earlier and actually deal with the issues when they came out.

Sadly all this means is some players will be so overpowered in one tree or another that they will have to adjust the game to meet their abilities again.

 

From the R51 release notes (just so everyone is clear on this):

 

+1 for at least 2 buffs
As it is stated above, Earth magery is strength depended. And magery at all is depended on intelligence.
You already nerfed Earth now you remove the supporting buff. The damage output without this buff is lowered aprox. 25%. And int is needed because of overall dmg and crit chance.
There is nothing like a choice: mages will always buff int, archers dex and tanks str.

What is about potions, will str/dex/int potions replace the magic buff?

Great idea, an trial account will help out...

 

I want to keep the str and dex buff please, I need them both.

 

I actually like it, less buffing =good. Yes the game might be a little harder, and gear choices are more difficult.

 

Sure it was fun to have 3 ability buffs active at all times, but it was also a no brainer to always have all 3 buffs active all the time. (Might as well just have the game auto cast them when you log in.)

I am in favor of the change. It adds meaningful choices to the game. Now I need to think about when I want to use which buff. (Instead of just always casting them all.)

 

The Air school is int and dex depended and the oppositing Earth school is int and str dependend.
As a mage you will cast the int buff, so it is still a no brainer.
The current change drops the dmg output of earth 25%, this is the second time.

However, as a earth or air mage you are forced now to drink potions even that you have the magery spell for it.
Better solution would be to only allow either magery stat buff or potion stat buff, so that magery and potion buff does not stack. But have all three (or at least two) active.

Maybe @Chris was upset that tanks change their clothes to buff themself and after that changes their clothes back. But mages need not to do that. For tanks, there are potions.
And if the tanks say, but potions cost gold. Yes reagents, too.

If it should stay this way, all three potion buffs + one magery buff, it would be good to remove one nerf from earth. 2 time -25% is overnerfed.
Currently earth does a little more dmg as fire, but earth is pure direct damage.

I didn't know if someone from the devs is playing a mage.

 

With the skill mastery won’t this pretty much eliminate the death mage since 90 percent of zones have undead and death can’t hurt them? Why would anyone do this?

 

Actually as an air mage its NOT a no brainer. Its a tough decision but I will probably cast the dex buff instead of the int buff. Why?
My air attunement is so much higher than my sun attunement that when I cast the buffs I get about 20 int vs about 40 dex.

• The 20 int will up my spell crit chance a little bit and up my spell damage and give me some more focus
• The 40 dex will increase my air spell damage almost as much as the 20 int and will give me an extra 20 dodge...
  • Since I am going to be specialized in air it will also give me increased weapon crit chance with my staff/wand for the annoying creatures that are all but immune to my air damage.

So its a choice:
A little more spell crit chance and more focus vs extra dodge and weapon crit chance.

This change just means I cant have my cake and eat it too. The sky isnt going to fall because I cant have an extra buff to int and dex at the same time. I just have decide if I want the int or dex more. (There are also times when I will DECIDE to cast the str buff)

 

Yup - even corrected myself in the 3rd post based on the instructions. Still feel strongly about the 2 out of 4 buffs (StofEa/CeBl/AiEm/En)

 

These changes are slowly making me want to come back.

 

You're not the only one who's said this. It's a very hopeful sign that we're back on track.

 

two does make sense but I would do it at a small penalty like 75% effective, but wait have said this before and before and before . . ., .

 

Another suggestion id like to put forward would be , if having one stat buff active at a time is going to stick then Tie the appropriate Attunement boost from the Shield spells to the Specific stat boost .. Thoughts?

 

sounds like a pretty reasonable solution I often thought that something like that could help early developing mages that are focusing on death. later game like you said if you can have two im sure they can find away around it but my concern was more for early game.

 

Also I wanted to add my 2 cents about the 1 buff.... I always thought it should work that way I always found it odd that you could buff every category possible. Buffing what you absolutely need will make the player adapt to different situations. Never understood why you could buff out most negative effects of other buffs. Makes more sense this way, just gonna be difficult because so many people (including myself) grew used to this. But still a good change thinking about the game and not just my personal temporary setback.