Heat System / Locked Combat still sucks

1. Ridiculous Cooldowns
Why is there a cd/heat at all? Charging any skill already requires time effectively applying a built in cd.

Example:
Stacking something like rapid fire takes 4+ seconds to stack, 2 seconds to cast, another second on global cooldown. If you want to cast it again that's another 4 seconds before it fires.

That's a 11 second cd without heat at all.

2. Global Cooldown
After casting a charged attack, you can't seamlessly start charging another skill. There's a GCD where you have to guestimate when you can hold the next button. Unless you plan on staring at the combat bar you end up holding down a button to find you've been charging jack sht.

3. Reactive skills
Having to hold down a button for damage means you can't cast any reactive skills if the situation calls for it.

When you have to get off a quick stun / teleport / heal etc it means repeatedly losing the time/dmg you've spent charging.

4. Mobs that repeatedly stun / cc
Have fun trying to stack against mobs that repeatedly stun/cc while you also...

5. Cannot spam single glyphs
Massive focus costs in a short period of time + inability to cast at all after a certain point.
Meanwhile drawn decks can sit there spamming all day.

6. Spells with fizzle
Nothing like repeatedly charging a spell for 3 seconds and watching it fizzle.

7. Skills slide off bar when charged with mouse / cannot charge skills on utility bar

8a. Timers
Charged skills / heat now add new timers to compliment the billion defensive spells / stances / buffs / pots and other timers we already have to manage.

I can't tell whats more useful for combat in this game; a sword and a shield or 10 watches strapped to my arm.

8b. Timer Location
You have to look up at your nameplate for buffs, down at your combat bar for heat disippation.

If you actually look at what you're fighting, chances are something has expired.


9. Charged attacks do not fit with this game design.

Games that use charged attacks give you a feeling of "BOOM" after unleashing the attack.

With the damage range in this game, you can easily hold a button for 4 seconds and watch it do less damage than a 1 stack glyph that crits. It's absurd.


10-99. Will add once I've narrowed it down to the more important points.

100. Being compelled to write a wall of text and potentially blind / permanently injure my fellow avatars after simply engaging in combat.

101+ Save for next release

 

I like the idea of reactive skills in that being any controller type can be utilized better by making more meaningful actions. GCD seems a futile restriction at times.

 

So far I love it. I'll get back to you if that changes.

 

I agree that unlocked deck is still far more effective in combat right now as it is.. I only use it for an alt deck to buff up as I go to a safe place ( where I will not be disturbed ) I cast my buff or stack skills before entering combat..
the OP does have good points.. I used to use a fully locked deck before and for about a year now a fully unlocked deck. I can say the NEW is better than the old locked system but it still suffers greatly in combat compared to unlocked deck due to cool downs, casting time, and also if you get interrupted by a stun as it cancels your previous time spent stacking it ( this does not happen with unlocked stacking as retains the stack level with unlocked decks ).

So yes loosing your stack level is a great disadvantage right now so I recommend the devs make it so it retains the stack level in the event of the stun or other magic event..
They should also tweak the cool down a bit as its a bit too slow ( especially on certain glyphs that are prone to fizzle ) as point out by the OP.

I think with a few tweeks though it can be at par or very near par with a unlocked deck and would be used in or as a hybrid deck more effectively than the way it is now.. Version 64.652 - 08.31.17

 

These are all valid and good points brought up here. I guess that was all said with only PvE in mind.

For PvP things are totally different. The recent changes allow people to run around with a fully charged up spell indefinitely to release it on their victim as they please. I've been told yesterday certain keyboards even allow for a toggle so you don't have to hold down the key manually.

This is not a good change for the PvP part of the game.

With the new system you can now also quickly charge up defensive buffs that are meant to last only about 30-45 seconds to last a lot longer. That makes bosses like the dragon even more trivial. Personally i can be at 78% damage avoidance for way too long. If you add dodge modifier or even deflect with a shield you hardly get hurt by a boss that is supposed to be difficult.

I guess that new system can work but it needs a lot of tweaking. The first change I'd make is to let a spell cast as soon as it is charged up.

 

QUOTE "I guess that new system can work but it needs a lot of tweaking. The first change I'd make is to let a spell cast as soon as it is charged up."

Good possible solution .. and other possibilities of the top of my head are
1: It cast when it is charged up but with a cool down to warn that its about to be casted.
2: When its charged up it has a cool down before it starts unstacking one by one...
3: When its charged up it has a cool down to warn that its about to burn/fizzle out.. ( its still can fizzle like it can at the moment but this would just make it the default action if not fired off ).

Not sure is my other possibilities are actually useful as I have not thought it out thoroughly

 

I charged up a [Sneak Attack] a couple of times... it felt good.

What I wonder is, what happens when you charge [Silent Movement] and why does it take forever to charge it?

And how does it work with [Opportunity Strike]?

 

Thats a good question.. perhaps they think it would be better balanced but I think its needs more tweeking as its way to slow to charge..

 

PvE group experience last night, we really liked it. My friend healed me for over 200, which was crazy. Seems like this could really help dedicated healers.

It certainly was great for pre-combat buff times! We usually sit around playing instruments while he waits to get the stacks ready and buffs each of us. This probably cut that time by 90%, and got us into the game so much faster.

I was making "tougher" (not sure that stacking actually does anything for them, damage was still feeble) skeletons. The trade off was that means no skeleton mages. So I dropped the locked skele again since he was still only hitting for like 8. Might as well not stack and have the open space + chance for a mage (who's fire spell doesn't cause burning and does the same damage, but at least it looks cool.)

Used a more powerful ice shield than ever before.

Kept most of my normal attacks on unlocked and stacked them as usual.

I liked it, more options without losing anything, more strategy available and to think about.

I see the drawbacks the OP has listed, they seem like fair drawbacks to have considering the ease of stacking.

And I hear the PvP "I just got nailed by a 5 stack" complaint. Has that happened to anyone yet? I can understand the worry.

 

I agree with the OP that some things, like Rapid Shot (or Soothing Rain), take too long to charge - plus interruptions like stun, kill it and you're a sitting duck.

Also, (I play mostly with a mouse) the breaking of a charge when you move the mouse off the glyph (or accidentally move the glyph itself while charging) is pretty frustrating.

All in all, I like the concept a lot - makes deck building interesting.

 

Yep with the breaking by moving the glyph. I mostly charge via keypresses, mouse would be hard.

 

would be nice if the global cd was toned down a bit. I think some of it has to do with the animations. also, would be nice if the reactive skills could flash or have some other type of indicator to say 'click me now!'

when a parry occurs sometimes it's tough to figure out if it's you or your opponent that parried.. they're both white

 

I rather enjoy both systems. I use what I call a limited draw deck though. My cheap/spam abilities. are thrown into 2-4 unlocked slots and 1 or 2 situational attacks(or attacks I want to combo with an unlocked slot) and all my buffs/heals/utility(that won't go on the utility bar) are locked in the remaining slots. I enjoy it. Since I use locked slots for mostly buffing and utility, the charge feature works out perfectly for me. The only downside I see is abilities like sneak attack and other time sensitive attacks, you don't have time to charge them... at least not when soloing. I'm still pretty satisfied with it, just wish the bar was 1 or 2 slots longer still