Combat and PVP team update!

I dont think you should immobilize you. But it should require a channel to keep up. You can cast small damaging spells. You can walk. Both have a chance break your channel to the roots. The higher the roots skill is the less the chance to break when walking or casting small spells. If you run it breaks or if you cast a major spell.

I like the cut down or damage the roots to break free...

 

I'd like to get away from "having the initiative wins!" It seems to me that having the initiative is a reward in and of itself. But most MMO's (focused on DPS) make having the initiative the trump card of all combat.

That's what's so frustrating about root and stun, etc...is that you loose the initiative and if you watch just about any PVP video, that's a core foundation of winning. So what I'd rather see casting of root be about is gaining some advantage but not really getting the initiative and "winning" because of it.

For example, if I root you and you're busy trying to chop your way out of the spell. I may need to stand in place, I can still cast spells, but if I cast a fireball it's going to burn through the roots and free you (and maybe the roots actually give you some noticeable protection in this situation). Now you're free and neither of us really has initiative.

Instead of a fireball, I might just run away...and after I stop concentrating on the spell maybe a timer starts up and we're back to normal MMO rules. Or maybe I take the extra time to cast a summoning spell and when you finally break out of the roots you're surrounded by zombies? Or, maybe I just want to talk to you and this is the only way I can do it without getting my head chopped off?

The point I'm trying to make is that I can accomplish all of these things while not moving and it still seems very balanced to me. But if you allow me to move while my foes are immobile, that gives me a lot of room to turn what might have been a fair fight into a completely lopsided fight.

 

So you can root and once you stop channeling it a timer start. That is no different then any other MMO. Now you have time to cast a heavy spell or recast roots.

I do like that the roots give added protection to the victim.

Walking while channeling is not going to give you an advantage. What I am saying is your channeling to keep the roots wrapped tight around the target. He can still hack and slash his way out. Your channel does not renew the roots. Once the channel is broke or you run out of man the roots fall apart and he is free. If you can just walk some to start your getaway or to make a gap it my be enough to get an extra hit before you become chop liver.

 

this would be very useful then in a group that is partied. the mage can channel root and the others could attack

 

I'm surprised that I haven't heard a lot about melee vs. melee. I was actually hoping that when PVP got added (at first) it would be ALL melee (just a sword and a shield) since that seems like the base of all combat. But it looks like that ship has sailed.

Totally free-style example:

I'm really into the idea that instead of hit points and DPS, we're focused on weak points. So a guy that has armor (might have let's say 10 weak points) but he carries a shield that reduces 4 of them. He also carries a long sword that while parrying reduces 4 more. The remaining 2 weak points may just be something that is very difficult to get to unless a person is immobile or you sneak up behind them.

So now your job as a player is to LOCATE and ATTACK weak points. Forget about damage...you hit one of those weak points and you're either going to cripple the person or you're going to kill them.

It seems like this would be much easier and a smarter way to balance combat. The whole "dance" of combat becomes a chess match of protecting and attacking weak points.

 

Right! And it gives the mage a very valuable role as well as a high level target to protect and attack.

A solo mage is also possible, but they really need to come prepared. They can't just dance around and spam spells at everything.

 

It's fine if that is your stance, but I don't appreciate my stance being referred to as "********." It is a cheap shot at someone who has different values than you.

 

Reminds me of the energy weapons used by the Predators... )

 

Also, as a pure mage I do like using a staff as a melee weapon. I am hoping our staff will be usable as such and not just something I can add charges too. I also want my staff to be able to be imbued to effect my chosen schools of magic. Staves and mages for me have always gone together.

 

has anyone heard anything on if there are going to be rogues in SOTA, or assassin/thief/ranger abilities?

 

lol well as a melee/warrior type one thing I hear only touched on a bit is what if I get to do a head shot, or hit someone in the knee will any of that make them stagger or fall back a bit? Also will we be able to aim shots at body parts? I think this is really important for fun and not having this be a hack and slash and how much you hack and slash (or for casters, spell them to death). I want it to be about skill, as in did I move out of the way or duck or use a shield to block, but then oh no maybe they hit me in the head and I didn't block that area. It would make it feel more like a real fight and not what most games do. Most games you point and if you're lucky it will be deemed a good hit, but who knows, to me not so fun. I too want my blows to matter and my skill to matter, but if I'm trapped in the locked on target mode and can't anticipate a blow or use my head and use a skill I have for example like a knock back or move out the way if I'm quick enough then I wouldn't feel like a warrior. I think that sounds fun. I want my warrior to have charge and warrior skills that are fun to me that I can surprise the opponent with. If they aren't prepared or skillful then they will fall back on my charge. They may fall back and be skillful and recover and use something of their own that is meaningful on me. So I guess one of the points is that I don't want it to be like click and point at just the avatar, but point at the head, maybe the leg , good even if you're a caster/archer to slow them down while they limp it out or you run circles around them to regroup or plan the next move or plan to avoid the next move lol.

 

They have said something like "stealthy players will be supported" but that was over a year ago. So it's probably something that will be addressed as we balance combat.

 

since this is an RPG they might have critical hits etc but they could be more percentile based or something like activating a skill.

having to actually aim, and have fast twitch reactions is something SotA probably shouldn't do. I peraonally dont think this is that sort of game where we aim amd have head shots and manually blocking with a shield.

 

From what I understood some of the stealth elements will come with the "moon magic".. alss maybe some will come in water or air?? I think I am kind of suggesting at the same time.. I can't remember either.

 

Chris I assume that your still going with soft breakage to ensure that people aren't left completely defenseless because a sword breaks in combat or far from town as you stated in that video ages ago.

If this is still the case can we have reagents power spells up rather than be required for spells. Therefore if you run out of reagents you can still cast spells but the damage is dropped relative to fully powered reagent spell to a similar ratio to the way swords would work if soft broken

My concern about forcing spells to require reagents to work at all is how do single players play at all because a mage would be completely defenseless if they don't have a group to protect them

 

You're totally right based on what we know so far. Moon Magic and Light Armor.

 

You mean if they don't have reagents they would be defenseless? Wouldn't that work the same way if a warrior didn't have a sword or an archer didn't have a bow?

 

Having a problem with the attitude of come prepared have reagents. I can live with this position if the reverse is not I come with a sword so I'm prepare and it becomes I come with a sword that permanently when used 100 times. That is the equivalent of having lets say 100 sulfdric ash so I can cast 100 fireballs, when e each cireball uses 1 ash. that is the equivalent we are talking about if we sat someone has 100 reagents or 100 arrows and can't do anything once they are gone. Oh yeah they can only bring 1 sword to the fight as well.

 

Actually carbear was a term thrown around in early uo, got really popular when trammel was added. So you can see my refrreference has absolutely nothing to do with you or your posts. It's simply a reference to dumbing down pvp, if people run out of reagents then spells should fail if they have no arrows they should not be able to shoot. I think the whole being able to cast a weaker version of a spell with out reagents is bad.

 

But a fighter never doesn't have a sword because the sword never completely breaks, it just degrades.