Bashiok explains why the MoP talent calculator is out already
Blizzard unveiled the new talent calculator for Mists of Pandaria last night. Instead of making a talent point decision every few levels, you'll now be able to choose from a handful of really cool abilities. This really makes your decisions more relevant. The old system had more illusion of choice, but didn't we all take pretty much the same talents? In the new MoP system, every choice will make a notable playstyle difference.
Of course, Mists of Pandaria is a long time away. We've got an entire content patch to get through first. Bashiok hit the forums today to explain why the talent calculator is available so early.
He points out that these talent trees are definitely going to change; we're still in a pre-alpha stage of development. Since many of those changes will happen in response to player feedback, getting the dialog started early is a good thing. More importantly, the hope is that by revealing the early talents, players can get a better idea of the design philosophy behind changes.
Whether you dig those reasons or not, we're all clearly very excited to get our hands on the talents. Check out what Bashiok said behind the cut.
It was important for us to get this stuff in front of you as soon as possible though (and as a work in progress as it is) to get your feedback, which will in no small part influence that change. We also wanted to present everything on a single page to give you a fuller context for the initial talent changes we announced at BlizzCon, and to see how the overall structure of core abilities, spec abilities, and talents will function, with concrete examples.
The calculator contains elements that are experimental, still in the process of implementation, or in some cases outright failed experiments that we already intend to revise or replace. Odds are good that if it looks like we've forgotten some critical piece of a particular class toolkit, it's either accounted for elsewhere, or simply a data glitch (e.g., Prayer of Healing is currently absent from the calculator – we are not taking Prayer of Healing away from priests, and Devastate for warriors probably won't sunder armor 453%). Our hope is that revealing the calculator in this state will shed light on the philosophy behind our talent overhaul, and let you get a sense of how pieces of your core rotational gameplay, such as Hot Streak, Riptide, or Sudden Doom, fit into the new system.
The different classes are also at very different stages of design and implementation, and the fact that some mechanics changes we discussed at BlizzCon and in recent Q&As are not yet present does not mean that we have abandoned those ideas.
Any and all feedback is very welcome, but please keep all of the above in mind when considering the information in the talent calculator, and please keep feedback consolidated in the Mists of Pandaria forum: http://us.battle.net/wow/en/forum/2592425/
World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria is the next expansion, raising the level cap to 90, introducing a brand new talent system, and bringing forth the long-lost pandaren race to both Horde and Alliance. Check out the trailer and follow us for all the latest MoP news!
