I think given the recent upcoming changes with Special Strikes that it's worth talking about them again.
Firstly, here's what has improved since the last time I brushed on this topic:
- Cooldown is much more manageable, down to 2 Rounds by default and 1 Round with the Set Bonus with Weaponmaster's Glove and Cypelle Amulet.
- With the introduction of Star Charts, we now have the Duet's Boon, which is a buff that can add +10% additive chance to triggering the next Special Strike, as well as a bit of HP and FP recovery.
- In the upcoming patch, Special Strikes that replace attacks will no longer be actively detrimental, keeping desired benefits of basic attacks like On Hit effects, Critical Hits and Critical Momentum.
While these are all nice, it unfortunately still isn't enough to bring Special Strikes into being an archetype of builds that are effective and fun to play.
There are major three pain points they still have:
- Very low activation chance.
- Low impact compared to other weapon effects and skills in general.
- Attack focused builds are typically reliant on Attack Skills, which work against how Special Strikes work.
Two of these can be mostly remedied by some number changes. The third is a bit more nuanced and would require some kind of change to the mechanics of Special Strike to alleviate.
Issue 1: Low Proc Chance
Low procs aren't a bad thing ordinarily but that often comes with the caveat that the effect is powerful to make up for the rarity. With the limitations Special Strikes are currently designed with and their intended power level, they do not intersect well in terms of "risk vs reward", being high "risk" but low "reward". But we don't just want to make Special Strikes so strong that scoring one essentially wins you a PvP fight on the spot, thus it's more reasonable to increase the odds.
For comparison, in Golden Sun, which has a similar mechanic, the default rate of their "Special Strikes" are 35% for most weapons. Now, SL2 isn't the same kind of game but even so, I remember it being pretty satisfying in Golden Sun to have these go off, so I think at least emulating around the same ballpark would work well for us too.
There's one other item I'd like to touch on and that's the Cypelle Amulet, which is okay but the one-time 10% boost is mediocre compared to what some other accessories can offer while those benefits tend to be more more impactful (like Spirit Mirror) or not limited to once a battle (like Deadly Shades). So I think it should shine in it's niche by being a guarantee to the first Special Strike you use.
Proposed Suggestions:
Issue 2: Low Impact
A lot of the Special Strikes we have apply bonus damage but only in small amounts, however, these effects are generally outclassed by weapons with On Hit Bonus Damage.
Let's compare two weapons in a pretty similar bracket, the Gorger and the Vampire Bat. The Gorger has a special strike that deals 35 Dark Damage, restores 35 HP and applies 2 additional instances of Claret Call. The Vampire Bat has an On Hit that deals 50% Dark ATK Dark Damage.
Now for one attack, it's not so bad for the Gorger, if it procs, you deal similar damage, get a small heal and apply some added Claret Call. In a vacuum, that seems okay... but the problem is Special Strikes, even in a world where they always activate, only apply once every 2 Rounds (or 1 Round at best). All it takes for the On Hit weapon to outclass this is a second attack. Further, On Hit weapons are not constrained to Basic Attacks, they can apply to any Attack Skills and even to some niche skills that enable On Hit effects or counters like Riposte, gaining much more frequency and value.
For me, I think what would be fair is that Special Strikes in terms of damage be comparable to 3 Elemental On Hits, this would give them situations where they may outclass On Hit style attackers, which I think would be fair since to reach that point would likely need the Item Set as well. To me, an average build has about 60-70 Elemental ATK in their favored Element and On Hits tend to be 50% ATK (so ~30/35 Damage), so I think we should be aiming for the 100 Bonus Damage mark for single target Special Strikes.
As for the attack replacers, I want them to be comparable to using a Skill in terms of damage, since that is the alternative usually. Since it's been recently added, I think Druid's Animal Skills are satisfying to use, thus I think we should put these Special Strikes in a similar bracket.
As for the bonus damage attack skills, some are very low and aren't even comparable to the likes of Power Gradation. That said, I think I'd like if these kinds of Special Strikes (especially the ones without much to offer in terms of utility) where closer to Phase Fang's threshold of ~30 Attack Damage.
Proposed Suggestions:
Issue 3: Anti-Synergy With Attackers
Most attacker builds in the game use Attack Skills: Duelists, Archers and BKs. Currently, the only notable exception is Twin Dance but they have other issues with Special Strikes, such as not being able to use the Weaponmaster's Glove (nor the set) and while they can use 2 Special Strike weapons, as with above, they benefit so much more with two On Hit Damage weapons.
Attack Skills are generally better and more reliable for current builds, there's rarely a case where they would want to take the gamble on a Special Strike. And because they are already not using their Basic Attack, the low chance remains low for the whole fight, never presenting itself as a viable option.
Of course, since some Special Strikes replace attacks, asking for Special Strikes to apply to these attacks could cause problems when replaced or altered. Further, if the point of this is that it's a mechanic to make Basic Attacks better then it's against that idea in the first place if they work this way.
However, I think there's a good middle ground where they can contribute without stealing the original theme.
Proposed Suggestion:
Firstly, here's what has improved since the last time I brushed on this topic:
- Cooldown is much more manageable, down to 2 Rounds by default and 1 Round with the Set Bonus with Weaponmaster's Glove and Cypelle Amulet.
- With the introduction of Star Charts, we now have the Duet's Boon, which is a buff that can add +10% additive chance to triggering the next Special Strike, as well as a bit of HP and FP recovery.
- In the upcoming patch, Special Strikes that replace attacks will no longer be actively detrimental, keeping desired benefits of basic attacks like On Hit effects, Critical Hits and Critical Momentum.
While these are all nice, it unfortunately still isn't enough to bring Special Strikes into being an archetype of builds that are effective and fun to play.
There are major three pain points they still have:
- Very low activation chance.
- Low impact compared to other weapon effects and skills in general.
- Attack focused builds are typically reliant on Attack Skills, which work against how Special Strikes work.
Two of these can be mostly remedied by some number changes. The third is a bit more nuanced and would require some kind of change to the mechanics of Special Strike to alleviate.
Issue 1: Low Proc Chance
Low procs aren't a bad thing ordinarily but that often comes with the caveat that the effect is powerful to make up for the rarity. With the limitations Special Strikes are currently designed with and their intended power level, they do not intersect well in terms of "risk vs reward", being high "risk" but low "reward". But we don't just want to make Special Strikes so strong that scoring one essentially wins you a PvP fight on the spot, thus it's more reasonable to increase the odds.
For comparison, in Golden Sun, which has a similar mechanic, the default rate of their "Special Strikes" are 35% for most weapons. Now, SL2 isn't the same kind of game but even so, I remember it being pretty satisfying in Golden Sun to have these go off, so I think at least emulating around the same ballpark would work well for us too.
There's one other item I'd like to touch on and that's the Cypelle Amulet, which is okay but the one-time 10% boost is mediocre compared to what some other accessories can offer while those benefits tend to be more more impactful (like Spirit Mirror) or not limited to once a battle (like Deadly Shades). So I think it should shine in it's niche by being a guarantee to the first Special Strike you use.
Proposed Suggestions:
Quote:- Trigger and Bonus Rates bumped to triple the rate. (The current Default: 10% Trigger + 5% Bonus -> The new Default: 30% Trigger + 15% Bonus)
- Cypelle Amulet being bumped from 10% to 100%. (First Special Strike always triggers but effect is consumed afterward.)
- Red Letter's Strike has a lower rate, due to the potential of spamming Fire Absorb. (20% + 10%)
- Sthenno, Shadow Wind Claw and Rapier of Resentment's Strikes have increased rates, due to their lower perceived effectiveness: (40% + 20%)
Issue 2: Low Impact
A lot of the Special Strikes we have apply bonus damage but only in small amounts, however, these effects are generally outclassed by weapons with On Hit Bonus Damage.
Let's compare two weapons in a pretty similar bracket, the Gorger and the Vampire Bat. The Gorger has a special strike that deals 35 Dark Damage, restores 35 HP and applies 2 additional instances of Claret Call. The Vampire Bat has an On Hit that deals 50% Dark ATK Dark Damage.
Now for one attack, it's not so bad for the Gorger, if it procs, you deal similar damage, get a small heal and apply some added Claret Call. In a vacuum, that seems okay... but the problem is Special Strikes, even in a world where they always activate, only apply once every 2 Rounds (or 1 Round at best). All it takes for the On Hit weapon to outclass this is a second attack. Further, On Hit weapons are not constrained to Basic Attacks, they can apply to any Attack Skills and even to some niche skills that enable On Hit effects or counters like Riposte, gaining much more frequency and value.
For me, I think what would be fair is that Special Strikes in terms of damage be comparable to 3 Elemental On Hits, this would give them situations where they may outclass On Hit style attackers, which I think would be fair since to reach that point would likely need the Item Set as well. To me, an average build has about 60-70 Elemental ATK in their favored Element and On Hits tend to be 50% ATK (so ~30/35 Damage), so I think we should be aiming for the 100 Bonus Damage mark for single target Special Strikes.
As for the attack replacers, I want them to be comparable to using a Skill in terms of damage, since that is the alternative usually. Since it's been recently added, I think Druid's Animal Skills are satisfying to use, thus I think we should put these Special Strikes in a similar bracket.
As for the bonus damage attack skills, some are very low and aren't even comparable to the likes of Power Gradation. That said, I think I'd like if these kinds of Special Strikes (especially the ones without much to offer in terms of utility) where closer to Phase Fang's threshold of ~30 Attack Damage.
Proposed Suggestions:
Quote:- Bonus Damage effects damage increase: 25-50 -> 75-100 (AoE & strong utility on the lower end while single target with low utility on the higher end.)
- Thunder Strike & Flames of Rebellion: Bonus Damage ignores Armor.
- Bonus Attack Damage effects bumped from 5-15 -> 15-30
- Rose Flourish, Deadly Roundabout, Machinegun Punch: 110% SWA -> 150% SWA
- Black Spear: 100% SWA + 6 -> 100% SWA & 100% Dark ATK
Issue 3: Anti-Synergy With Attackers
Most attacker builds in the game use Attack Skills: Duelists, Archers and BKs. Currently, the only notable exception is Twin Dance but they have other issues with Special Strikes, such as not being able to use the Weaponmaster's Glove (nor the set) and while they can use 2 Special Strike weapons, as with above, they benefit so much more with two On Hit Damage weapons.
Attack Skills are generally better and more reliable for current builds, there's rarely a case where they would want to take the gamble on a Special Strike. And because they are already not using their Basic Attack, the low chance remains low for the whole fight, never presenting itself as a viable option.
Of course, since some Special Strikes replace attacks, asking for Special Strikes to apply to these attacks could cause problems when replaced or altered. Further, if the point of this is that it's a mechanic to make Basic Attacks better then it's against that idea in the first place if they work this way.
However, I think there's a good middle ground where they can contribute without stealing the original theme.
Proposed Suggestion:
Quote:- Attack skills do not trigger Special Strikes but will grant you Bonus, much like a failed attack roll will do. This allows you to use Attack Skills to "charge up" for a Special Strike.
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