Thrust hits for 1.. or maybe 19 (That RNG)

One thing that has been irking me for a bit now is this. Abilities can hit for absurdly low values, average values or high values.

In combat this isn't reliable and doesn't feel like I'm using an ability. Thrust says it is a powerful strike. It hit for 1 damage on the same target that then takes 19 from it on the next hit.

I may as well just load up my bar with these melee abilities and call them "extra auto attack" for a lot of cases.

Their effects need to be more pronounced and their damage needs to be more consistent. A "powerful hit" should not sometimes just deal 1 damage when it can potentially deal 19 to the same target.

I got the same feeling from bludgeon abilities too. I knock a skeleton down and as it's falling? It slides towards me and just continues attacking, basically ignoring the knockback. At the same time it just seems to deal a random amount of damage between 1 and 25 or something.

Shouldn't knockback have more effect? But at the same time, nothing in bludgeoning can take advantage of someone knocked back or knocked down. I'd like to see Ground Slam or whatever it is called maybe jump to and deal extra damage to a knocked down target. Just something that isn't "deals some damage between auto attacks"

Abilities need better visual feedback (which I can accept isn't ready yet), but the actual effects of the abilities are lackluster in many cases. Ohh, double strike, but deals the same damage as one strike. quadruple strike! still the same damage as one strike... I can't even accurately say if the numbers imply otherwise, I just see the health bar decreasing at the same speed regardless and wonder why I bothered doing the combo.

Spells seem about the same but with mildly more reliable damage (death touch seems to do reliable damage and fire magic has burning damage)

But yeah, just thought I'd share my current frustrations. But this did solve my issue of looking at the hotbar all the time. I just have my melee attacks on there and just generally... don't bother looking, it doesn't matter what I'm pressing right now as they are all just "deals X damage" where X is pretty much completely random.

The only time it seemed slightly more impactful was applying a stacked armour debuff in bludgeoning before hitting. That was about the extent of tactics for melee for me. This is all PvE ofc.

The whole thing gives me the impression that armour needs a lot more tweaking as it goes between stopping everything or nothing. It's like it doesn't have enough wiggle room to allow for reliable mitigation, and thus, reliable damage. This doesn't solve the lackluster effects of abilities though ofc.

 

Try raising dexterity to go along with that strength ^.^

 

So does that mean that until I'm level 50+ my abilities are all actually designed to feel like they dont do anything extra?

Also, in my blades build I raised dex, in bludgeoning I raised str. Didn't notice a difference unless you specifically need to raise both at once to see your damage become more reliable.

Or are you talking about effects like knockback becoming more useful with stats?

I mean, I saw my max damage raise with stats, but not the minimum really.

Could you give me an example build where your damage with weapons isn't randomly hitting between 1 and X?

 

Not being terse btw. I'm on my phone at work. Pain in the A typing on it

 

Stats have a lot of impact but I do agree that the minimum damage of many melee abilities should be raised or reworked or something because early on it certainly does not feel right and I fear that it might scare of newcomers

And before anyone goes ballistic I do not mean that melee fighters should have higher output of damage they probably need it reduced

 

strength will raise your max damage and dex will see more consistent max hits (accuracy) so the more you get dex up the less you will see low end hits like 1 damage.

 

Does Dex impact spells as well?

 

it very much seems to yes

 

Well, the RNG is weird.

I saw spell to crit for 19? then do regular damage for 21, then crit for 81, then regular damage for 11... the ranges are too wide and crits often do not feel like crits at all and at other times they are the deciding factor in the fight.

 

Just for reference:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19r1l2p06Jitoa9Y_p2Wm12pDlydyXSZlbms_uUfgTR8/edit?usp=sharing

That has:
10 str, 10 dex build over 24 Thrust hits
And
61 str, 51 dex build over 24 Thrust hits

The overall damage increases, but I did manage to hit for 1 damage in both builds, even with all the extra stats. I dislike that amount of random chance.

All hits were against Large Grey Wolves.

 

yeah you will still get the low hits, just less often.

 

That's sort of my whole issue though. Should I get low hits? Why?

The wolf's armour isn't changing per hit.
My stats don't change.
The ability stays the same.

But my next hit could hit for 1 or 38.

That's pretty darn unreliable. And it doesn't feel right as an ability.

My Auto-Attacks were hitting for between 1 and 28, and they were hitting far more often than Thrust.

This isn't really helping with the idea that things like Thrust are just an extra auto attack. Just as unreliable, used less often, and deals pretty much the same range of randomly generated damage.


Same Target Armour, Same High Stats, The target I just hit for 38 damage takes 1 damage this time instead.
That is just wrong. The range is just too ridiculous.

Remember Diablo 2's Lightning? Did damage between 1 and it's MAX at all times. It wasn't the standard of all abilities, they designed Lightning to be unreliable.

(I feel I should point out again, not arguing with you, just arguing my case. I come off as so ANGRY )

 

I put it down to glancing blows and off balance strikes, but yeah i see what you are saying.

 

UO was very much like this. I credit it among one of the many factors mages had been so popular. Due to the wide RNG, armor was kind of pointless; you could get hit for the same 50 damage in full plate from a halberd or below 5 damage when in your britches from the same weapon. It felt like you had no control or influence.

I'd like to see something with tighter ranges. I don't mind there being ranges, but they need to be reliable. When we have sudden death nukes, we don't need our basic attacks glancing for 1 damage for no reason. Parry, Riposte, Dodge - some kind of counter or block - but not "just 'cause".