Okay, so... here's another submission for you! It's a nice little player town situated on an island. There aren't really any notable buildings on the island - they're all mostly player buildings. There's a beach area for beach RP, and it won't be disturbed by beasts, either. (Hopefully, at least.) I'm not sure where it would be situated, but it seems like some people thought this would be a good candidate for Doraington? I don't know whether it would be good or bad for such - so it's entirely up to the Dev where it goes. Give me whatever feedback you have, I'd love to hear it!


  IslandTown.zip (Size: 3.42 KB / Downloads: 490)

Quote:"The default momentum bonus for Critical Hits becomes +2, and Fleur becomes another effect, I.E allowing you to not lose momentum on resist when landing a Critical Hit."

1. Build creativity is further enabled by encouraging more character builds, allowing for more character concepts to be properly represented mechanically. This also makes it so there's less of a "cookie cutter build" problem (in the sense that, you'd see the less of the same copy pasted setup that makes a particular archetype functional.)
    
   
2. Critical Evade becomes more important to bulid for, rather than a stat that's considered a 'joke' most of the time. This in turn makes the "mega doomwalls" less appealing to build for, making them put more attention into the Critical Evade stat rather than simply putting all their stats into DEF/RES and worrying for little else.
    
   
3. You finally get people to stop (commonly) bitching about basic attacks being garbage. This sounds like a joke bullet point, but I'm serious about it. How many times have you gotten a headache over people saying that basics flat out suck? It's hard to really complain about something that's decent or reasonably good (unless you're a certain Evoker enthusiast... I say this bit jokingly and with love don't worry <3)
    
   
4. You no longer have to nerf so many things into the ground for an entire archetype to be decent. That means you PROBABLY wouldn't have to nerf mages and doomwalls to the ground and go through the headache of sorting out every little thing on that end. If all archetypes are strong, then that means it's pretty easy to have fun in the game. The "rock paper scissors" feeling can stay, but it wouldn't be in a way that's overly apparent to the point you can predict every match up and making watching fights boring. Sure, there would be an advantage, but not to the point that it's so often a guaranteed win on one end I'd say.
    
   
5. Some classes that are considered kind of weak get a benefit from this. I.E, Boxer's Scharfe (the skill that buffs Critical with Schwarz Sturm) finally gets a more appealing use to it, but that's just a quick mention off the top of my head.
   

 

Things to account for if this were to be seriously implemented

1. Volcanic: You're gonna have to nerf this one if you actually make critical hits give +2M by default, I mean it. Currently it's 100% Fire ATK + Weapon Power protection ignoring damage on Critical Hit, so maybe you could just make it 50% Fire ATK + Weapon Power instead. The reasoning for this proposed change? Because in a world where basic attackers are almost always good, you don't HAVE to use Volcanic and could instead keep it as a thematic enchant or something that you can put on just because without crying about how useless it is.
    
   
2. Twin Dance: If this change were to happen, Twin Dance would become the go-to "meta" no questions asked. For reference, this is Twin Dance, the Rogue Main Class passive (https://i.imgur.com/MTFtF1S.png) / So how would we go about preventing it from going bonkers with the aforementioned system? Maybe it could just make it so your second hit doesn't get a critical hit's momentum tracking, but I'm not sure how hard it is to code that in. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. I'm just throwing out an idea.
     
   
3. Bloody Shift: For reference, this is Bloody Shift (https://i.imgur.com/KKQkGcP.png) / I mention this because Phase Fang from Phase Python is a Youkai Evoker that basic attacks and rolls an infliction check to inflict poison while also providing good mobility. This poison can reach LV30, the same as your average Wretched Oil from Hexer. Bloody Shift currently makes Youkai Evokes cost 2M to do, which would turn this into a 2M basic attack that inflicts Poison LV30. If you imagine this in a world where "global fleur" is a thing, you can probably see what I'm getting at. I don't have a good idea for this one chief, but maybe you could make it scale off a fourth of Phase Python's Level so it becomes Poison LV15 max? Or maybe you could just make it so Bloody Shift's exception are Youkai Evokes that make you basic attack. I think the second would be better, frankly, but I'm just spitballing ideas for this one since I'm not so certain. Unless you think Bloody Shift Phase Fang wouldn't get crazy, then by all means, just forget that bit.
    
   
4. Vorpal: Vorpal is currently +10 crit and 10% chance to ignore Phys. Def on a crit. In a world where basic attacks are almost always hypothetically good, I can see how this could get out of hand. You could make the Phys. Def ignoring effect a status that stacks up, similarly to Tarnada Charges, and then is consumed to do its effect. I know what you might be thinking, "wow the guy that always runs Vorpal is proposing a nerf for it" but I really just want basics to be worthwhile. Please.
   

Final Words

This change is pretty big so I can understand if you feel on the fence about it at first, but I think it would be worth thinking about/implementing. It could take a bit of work, but it could turn out pretty good I'd say! And then you could keep mages/autohitters strong as is. I think everybody would be strong with a change like this, with some rock/paper/scissors advantage here and there but not to the point match-ups are always blatantly obvious as to who the victor would be.

   

It would also save the trouble of having to implement a million basic attack passives to make them decent, I'd say.

   

So, what do you think? Please give your feedback and support in order to make this game's PVP and character building less of a heart-breaking nightmare!
 

Cripple Leg doesn't count as a valid move reducing debuff for Pulling Shot's knockdown caveat. Which is weird, because Pulling Shot's caveat, as stated in the skill description, applies when an enemy is suffering from a status that lowers move, and you have Dynamic Shooting at rank 5 or higher. Cripple Leg reduces move - by 5, at rank 5.

Get it? It's like the fall-over balance, not game balance.

It works with Snake Shot's Snake Wrap. Doesn't work with Forced Move, that's the only other status I tested. Does it ONLY work with Snake Wrap?

Insulate is one of the most rarely used skills in the game, for good reason. It doesn't do all that much to help you and most of the effects are counter acted by itself.

Lets break it down.

-10 FP
-1 Ally with 3 tiles gains +30% Ice resist 
-3 rounds duration. 
-You won't trigger ice tiles by walking on them. 
-Cures/Immunity for Frostbite during the time.

Okay the first big issue is, that its only 3 rounds. Thats very little time to make use of it and a Winterbite as counter makes them always win the Momentum Trade off.
The second issue is how weak frostbite as an effect is to begin with and how little a MA cares for Ice tiles. Shukichi? Yeah ice tiles don't matter.  Getting pushed over a line of ice tiles? the absolute strongest frost bite effect is level 50 (60 with spirit), tied to an invocation, with how damage tiles work now its not all that scary at all. Most people have plenty of ways to get around ice tiles, teleports, attacking skills that second as mobility etc. So not even as a team action useful outside of ice resist which may or may not be helping. It doesn't help that ice point greaves is also already doing the ice sheet thing.
This makes it a very easily to miss skill, because Verglas is already very skillpoint/skill slot heavy class.

Suggestion:
Insulate
- 30FP (-5FP per rank, so basically the same as now +10)
- 1 ally within 3 Tiles
- Rank*10% Ice resist
- 3+Rank rounds (Or 3+Permafrost rank.)
- Won't trigger Ice sheets (I honestly think this one is weird already, Ice point greaves does that already, and is so much more useful)
- Cures and grant immunity to Celsius OR Frozen even. (up to Frozen level Rank*20?)

Bonus:
If Ice Point Guard is active: On being attacked deal Rank*5 Protection Ignoring Ice damage, double when guarding. OR gain 5*rank Magic and/or Physical armor.
If Ice Point Greaves is active: Ice Skate costs only 1M (refunds 2). OR while Standing on Ice tiles grants you +rank*5 Evasion reduction.

Bonuses are just some ideas, cause I feel it could need a little extra for Verglas, without making their normal damage output too silly or support the tank SWA style too much.
certainly Open to other ideas. Maybe having ice point guard active could just make it refund 2M? Making it a solid quick cast protector.

The game with all the reworks has become quite the flood of skills, that you can't reasonably build for to have enough slots for.

Many of the newly added Skills cost 1 SP, and 1 Skill slot but they are extremely rarely used making them "Deadweight" in a huge majority of the fights you get into.
Here is a list of skills I propose one simple change for:
make them max level 2, and make the second level not cost a skill slot when equipped. Allowing you to spend a valuable skill point into a passive skill without entirely gimping your other options for something thats possibly not coming into play and reduces "Pre battle swapping".

Dodge builds already have to spread these stats around a lot. Having their dodge skills actually be there for the rare times they need them is probably going to help them a lot with the already limited skill slots.


Curate:
-Grace of God

Martial Artist:
-Evasive Strike (This one is probably the most useful one, but still only works on real dodges.)

Rouge:
-Empty Pockets (This is probably one of the worst. Extremely niche)

Evoker:
-Evoke Retaliation (Evoker have it hard enough to dodge, +10 power/crit isn't that OP either.)

Engineer:
-Security System (Also a good one if it works, but very tight conditions too.)

Verglas:
-Brain Freeze (also way to RNG heavy to be useful considering the condition)
-Chimera Stance (Okay this one maybe not. But I feel like its so essential for Verglas, that it might as well be an innate/no sloter. Only reason why I even line it up here is because of how stupidly skill slot heavy verglas is.)

Bonder: (maybe?)
-Contract Uno
-Contract Tres (Since their whole mechanics are basically centered around this, to begin with? I think its worth spending a skill point in exchange for a slot, but I am indifferent towards those two. At least they are not niche.)

Boxer:
-Krahenflugel (come on, dodge boxers have it hard enough.)
-Kid Gloves (They are just flavor for the most part to begin with.)

Firebird:
Kagero (VERY niche limited not only by an enemy having Riposte-likes and triggering it but also feathers.)


I believe thats all. Might have forgotten some.

Hey, Boss Man! There's 5 points as left-overs here. Mind if I pitch in some suggestions? Well, too bad, doing it anyway!

(3 SP)
Rally - When you use Guard while you have a Shield equipped, grants a buff that increases the damage of allies (only) within 2 (+SR) range by 10%, while reducing damage taken by 5% until your next turn.

(2 SP)
Savior - While you have a Shield. If an ally within 2 (+SR) range takes any damage higher than their current HP, it will be transferred to you as you will jump infront of them. If the tile has an enemy on it, they will be knocked back and knocked down. (3 round CD).

I think this weapon has potential, but it's currently restricted by its effect only working on evading basic attacks. If you allow that proc to work on Evasion! also, I think that small tweak could be enough for it to be a worthwhile weapon for people to consider as getting behind someone and immobilizing them is a huge boon for any kind of dagger user.

I want to be clear that this is mostly a discussion piece to be considered if it receives a positive response mostly.

Some time ago a discussion came up in general chat about the balance of tanks mostly in that it is much different than it was back in GR, in post-GR tanks instantly became incredibly hard to just balance overall given that there is no solid enough weakness for them, they can build both Defense and Resistance to subvert many of their problems by just being effective HP walls towards anything that dares to threaten their existence. Numerically a tank is usually much much more efficient than a dodge character might be given all of that.

One suggestion to balance all of this is to rework armor classes into being much much more important to your character's chosen defensive type, if a tank should choose to deny a lot of magical damage it would leave them more vulnerable to physical damage, and vice versa, this would in some sense impact dodgy characters only minorly, but there may be ways to assist them anyways through further buffs to specific DRs in favor of powering them up accordingly, I do relate to the armor triangle though which typically sees:

Quote:-Heavy armor as bearing the most armor of any class of armor
-Light armor as bearing the most magic armor of any class of armor
-Unarmored as bearing the most evade of any class of armor, as well as having the highest evasion damage reduction value.

Quote:-Heavy Armor allows you 100% DEF value, this would mean 50 scaled DEF = 50% P.DR, however heavy armor would have 50% RES value which would mean 50 Scaled RES = 25% M.DR
-Light armor would be the inverse, 50% DEF value and 100% RES Value
-Unarmored would have neither, and instead have 50% DEF and RES value

Quote:-Black Knight should deal physical damage only, this would convert Board Shaker/Crescent Rook/Bright Bishop to physical damage instead of magical damage.
-Any skill in a physical oriented class that is considered "Magic" that is cast from a martial weapon such as Scarlet Twister/Blood Spike/Lift Off would remain magical damage.

Quote:Physical:
-Soldier
-Demon Hunter (Retaliate/Bellowing Stag/Crashing Bull)
-Black Knight (Crescent Rook/Bright Bishop/Board Shaker)
-Duelist (Eclair Lacroix)
-Kensei
-Firebird (Feathers become physical damage)
-Ghost (Reaper Scythe becomes physical damage)
-Archer
-Arbalest
-Rogue
-Engineer (Bombs/Grenades/Flamethrower/Electro shield would all be changed.)
-Boxer (Nachenbeben becomes Physical Damage)

Magical:
-Mage
-Evoker
-Hexer
-Rune Magician
-Tactician
-Spellthief (Flying Dagger would become magical damage)
-Priest
-Grand Summoner (Youkai Tamer would also give spell power)

Split (Basically stays the exact same):
-Curate
-Lantern Bearer
-Verglas
-Monk
-Summoner
-Bonder
-Shapeshifter
-Ranger
-Magic Gunner
-Void Assassin

Quote:-Ogata Waraji becoming 15% Physical damage reduction instead of 10%, already helping towards the roughly 5-10 phys DR that an unarmored user would lose from this change.
-Weathered Body becoming 15% Physical damage reduction instead of 10% all encompassing DR
-Wraithguard becoming 30% Magical damage reduction

-Stand Off now becomes M.DR and is no longer mitigated by how much RES you have
-Weir Kounen now becomes P.DR and is no longer mitigated by how much DEF you have

The more SAN kaelnesia have, the more furry they are. They're more like their big daddy owo cubmates.
They use paint because art is very important in the furry community.

In a world where weapons such as the Mirror Spear, Anchor Edge, and Custom Tomes exist, I think it's about time Staff of Eyes got a buff to be more than a paltry 60% str scaling. Even with its Analyze Weakness effect, it's just never worth it, especially since you have to basic attack with the weapon, meaning you can't just offhand it for a nice bonus.