I know there have been threads about this before but I feel strongly enough about this to make a thread of my own to explain my reasoning, and perhaps someone will actually read it, preferrably someone higher up the chain. Sending a support ticket about this seems a bit meaningless.
The way you are implementing the Sylphs now is effectively destroying the balance of the game.
To take an example of a highly successful game that is admittedly very far from Wartune, I'll give you Guild Wars I. I played that game for years and had a lot of fun doing so. Like Guild Wars, Wartune is a PvE and PvP game, though GW focused more on the PvP part of the game, there was far less grinding to get "optimal gear" and the rest was just eye candy, which didn't stop a lot of people (myself including) to grind for it anyway. It was also a free game in the sense that once you paid for the game and subsequent expansions, you didn't have to pay a penny. There, again, these two games differ tremendously.
What Guild Wars did have was a staff that was closely monitoring PvP balance issues. Updates to fix broken skills and broken skill combos were issued on a regular basis, sometimes as often as once a week. If one "meta" was demonstrated to be so far superior to one other that it was virtually unbeatable, changes were made. Also, even if they weren't, all it took was one month to roll a new class and get with the new meta and play on a competitive level.
Rolling a new class on Wartune like that isn't possible, which makes it even more important that PvP balance issues are addressed, and there, you sadly seem to fail completely.
The new Iris sylph, with the extra skills available for purchase, makes the game ridiculous. All a player needs to do right now is to roll an archer, get it to level 50, farm an Iris sylph, get that one to level 55 (which isn't hard since Talents set in at level 50) and by the mid fifties they will have a transformed state featuring:
Blessed Light - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Purification - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Restoration - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Delphic Hell Thunder - Stronger than the maxed Mage version, 15 seconds faster recharge.
None of these skills consume any rage.
This is a skill tree that no mage is even capable to achieve at this level. A level 54 mage trying to mimick even the first three of these skills would end up with a skill tree where his only offensive skills would be Meteor 3, Lightning Bolt 2 and Rain of Fire 2.
Meanwhile an archer will have full freedom to choose all the skills he needs to make life hell for any enemy. Also do not forget that all the skills I have mentioned are subject to critical scores and archers crit better than any other class.
Clearly, this is unacceptable, and game-breaking.
There are tons of more issues about how the added skills break the game for various classes (and I expect it to go even more insane with added Sylphs, question is only who will be hit the hardest), but I think this will do.
Now, I understand that this is for all intents and purposes a Pay To Win game. People can simply say "well, just cash more on your character". Problem is I don't think this is a wise business move for Wartune. What will happen is that mages (more than any other class) will tire of the game, realizing they can never keep up with the other classes' inherent superiorities, and simply quit or at least.... Not pay much more. It's either that or trying to make another character. How many people will be prepared to repeat the same grind all over again to get to level 70+ and start kicking? I gather not many.
I implore you to fix this, one way or the other. You are making mages a redundant class. In fact, you're practically making Knights redundant too. All you need are archers.
Imagine if you introduced a Sylph that featured Armor Piercer, Scatter Shot, Deep Freeze and Incendiary Shot? Archers would cry to high heaven... And rightfully so.
You could say I'm biased. I play a mage, and I've had a good time doing it. Nevertheless I do believe I make valid points.
Best, Thomas
The way you are implementing the Sylphs now is effectively destroying the balance of the game.
To take an example of a highly successful game that is admittedly very far from Wartune, I'll give you Guild Wars I. I played that game for years and had a lot of fun doing so. Like Guild Wars, Wartune is a PvE and PvP game, though GW focused more on the PvP part of the game, there was far less grinding to get "optimal gear" and the rest was just eye candy, which didn't stop a lot of people (myself including) to grind for it anyway. It was also a free game in the sense that once you paid for the game and subsequent expansions, you didn't have to pay a penny. There, again, these two games differ tremendously.
What Guild Wars did have was a staff that was closely monitoring PvP balance issues. Updates to fix broken skills and broken skill combos were issued on a regular basis, sometimes as often as once a week. If one "meta" was demonstrated to be so far superior to one other that it was virtually unbeatable, changes were made. Also, even if they weren't, all it took was one month to roll a new class and get with the new meta and play on a competitive level.
Rolling a new class on Wartune like that isn't possible, which makes it even more important that PvP balance issues are addressed, and there, you sadly seem to fail completely.
The new Iris sylph, with the extra skills available for purchase, makes the game ridiculous. All a player needs to do right now is to roll an archer, get it to level 50, farm an Iris sylph, get that one to level 55 (which isn't hard since Talents set in at level 50) and by the mid fifties they will have a transformed state featuring:
Blessed Light - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Purification - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Restoration - Stronger than the maxed Mage version.
Delphic Hell Thunder - Stronger than the maxed Mage version, 15 seconds faster recharge.
None of these skills consume any rage.
This is a skill tree that no mage is even capable to achieve at this level. A level 54 mage trying to mimick even the first three of these skills would end up with a skill tree where his only offensive skills would be Meteor 3, Lightning Bolt 2 and Rain of Fire 2.
Meanwhile an archer will have full freedom to choose all the skills he needs to make life hell for any enemy. Also do not forget that all the skills I have mentioned are subject to critical scores and archers crit better than any other class.
Clearly, this is unacceptable, and game-breaking.
There are tons of more issues about how the added skills break the game for various classes (and I expect it to go even more insane with added Sylphs, question is only who will be hit the hardest), but I think this will do.
Now, I understand that this is for all intents and purposes a Pay To Win game. People can simply say "well, just cash more on your character". Problem is I don't think this is a wise business move for Wartune. What will happen is that mages (more than any other class) will tire of the game, realizing they can never keep up with the other classes' inherent superiorities, and simply quit or at least.... Not pay much more. It's either that or trying to make another character. How many people will be prepared to repeat the same grind all over again to get to level 70+ and start kicking? I gather not many.
I implore you to fix this, one way or the other. You are making mages a redundant class. In fact, you're practically making Knights redundant too. All you need are archers.
Imagine if you introduced a Sylph that featured Armor Piercer, Scatter Shot, Deep Freeze and Incendiary Shot? Archers would cry to high heaven... And rightfully so.
You could say I'm biased. I play a mage, and I've had a good time doing it. Nevertheless I do believe I make valid points.
Best, Thomas
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