combat
Latest
Birds of prey: Is Druid epic flight form OP in PvP
I was sitting at dinner with a buddy of mine (I'll call him Zebulon), excited about the prospects of being one of WoW Insider's newest bloggers. He suggested that I should write a post on why Druid's Swift Flight Form is "OP." I thought he was just whining, so in my least empathic voice I said, "QQ more nub, you knew what you signed up for on a PvP server." As it turns out Zebulon had a run-in with a shifter who really knew how to use his class abilities. As he was flying back from Skettis daily questing high above Terorkkar Forest, Zebulon, who was playing a Rogue, was ambushed by a Druid in Swift Flight Form. The attacker flew above him and shifted into caster form. The Druid cast Insect Swarm and began spamming Moonfire as he dropped toward the ground. The altitude permitted the Druid to break combat and return to flight form. Because of the speed boost from epic flight form the Druid was able to make another pass. Damaged, dotted, and desperate, Zebulon searched for a safe body of water to drop into. The plan was to dismount into the water, Cloak of Shadows, and then Vanish from the attacker. No luck- HK for the Druid.
Forum fun: you can't always get what you want
When it comes to MMOs, change is inevitable. Every conscious decision that the developers make in response to player feedback is liable to affect the game in a number of important, though quite often unforeseen ways. When Destination Games acknowledged that they were going to tweak the effects of health and armor in Tabula Rasa's patch 1.4, most people (including yours truly) assumed that bumping up health relative to armor would have the positive effect of encouraging a larger role for Tabula Rasa's underutilized healing classes. And while experimentation on the public test server has shown that this has largely come to fruition, it has not come without its side-effects. The TR crew also opted to make similar changes in the health/armor to Tabula Rasa's enemies, and a large segment of the community has made the case that this has slowed the pace of the combat on the PTS considerably. Tabula Rasa's combat, driven in large part by the brain power of designer Paul Sage, was the one area of the game that most people agreed was an unmitigated success. Even playing solo, players get to feel like Rambo (more Rambo IV in this case than the first one) as they use high tech weaponry to pew pew wave upon wave of enemies. Reports from the PTS, confirmed by this blogger, show that the average engagement has increased by several seconds. Moreover, fights with multiple enemies (which are really the combat du jour) are made even more difficult by enhanced armor regeneration for humanoid enemies.Sadly, there isn't much for players to do but bitch. And bitching alone won't fill the content gap from 30 to 50!
Breakfast Topic: Non-combat uses for combat spells
Obviously, all of our classes have a bunch of combat spells, and we use them in combat all the time. But when it comes to standing around the city, all of us might as well be clowns mocked up in different outfits, because we don't use our magic unless we're killing something. Of course there are also a lot of non-combat spells, such as mages summoning food and water, or warlocks summoning you and me. But is there any use to some of our combat spells for those times when we're not in combat?The greatest non-combat use I can think of for combat spells is in roleplaying, such as the frost-mage gnome I featured in an article, who had such a horrible cold all the time -- she would sneeze and Frost Nova at the same time for a really fun character effect. I'd love to hear some more of these roleplaying ideas, but I'd also like to hear from non-roleplayers as well. How do you use your spells to entertain yourself or your friends, without killing something at the same time?
An argument for random battles
After writing about the upcoming Concerto Gate here, I started thinking about the random battle aspect, and how my first reaction was to deride it. Then I started thinking about the current state of pre-planned, visible enemy encounters, and what that does to player expectation. When you wander around in, say, WoW, with the possible exception of PvP areas, there's almost no such thing as a surprise attack. You can see your opponents, attack them first, even avoid enemies you know will trounce you. This lends itself to a more planned, bloodless approach to combat. Sure, it's still fun, but think for a moment of the challenge of being suddenly beset by a hidden enemy.
AoC opens the door for more hands-on combat
As seen here and here, the combat in Age of Conan is something we've not seen in an MMO before, and it's to Funcom's credit that they're trying to bring combat closer to something approximating the choices an actual fighter might have to make during a battle. If this approach proves successful (and it's likely to please at least a portion of its audience), it's possible we could see other MMOs take up the challenge of refining an active-combat methodology themselves. I'd like to see a combat system with some depth applied to the martial arts MMO genre, where a warrior's style actually does matter -- a lower, more grounded stance versus a higher, more mobile one; the option of attacking different locations on an opponent's body; a succession of keypresses to activate special chi-based abilities; a workable, skill-based blocking set of actions. Much better than simply firing off a macro, such a system would truly test a player's mettle, leading to a deeper appreciation of the complexities of real-time combat. Here's looking to the future: may it bring us innovation!
"Lurting" and how not to do it
Nibuca from Mystic Chicanery gets credit for coining this one, but I don't disagree: Lurting is bad-- don't do it.Lurting, as you can see in the video above, is a made-up term for looting during battle. Sometimes, we can't help it (yes, I'm a sometime lurter, too, I'm sorry to say)-- the thrill of seeing shiny sparkles on a foe is just too much. But while it seems like it won't matter, odds are that that's when things will go wrong-- looting not only distracts you from the fighting, but also can cause exactly what happens in this video. If a loot window pops up while you're trying to keep the main tank healed. And it's a distraction that could cost the whole group.In short, no looting during combat: no lurting allowed. That loot ain't going anywhere, and it's got your name all over it. Wait until all the sheeps are dead, and all the targets are down, and then right click away and claim your goodies.
Encrypted Text: Examining your spec
So yesterday on Build Shop, I mentioned that I'd gotten an email this past week from a Rogue who wanted to know about the viability of a 30/0/31 build for casual instances, raids and PvP. The short answer is OK, not very, and sure. The long answer is slightly more complex, so this week on Encrypted Text I'm examining exactly where a non-conventional hybrid build like could work, and why there are usually better specs available for both PvE and PvP.First of all, I'm a big supporter of non-standard specs. I think that your own play experience should help determine where you spend your talent points. However, I do think that you should at least examine why certain specs are tried and true, and how certain talents outperform others. If you never play in any type of group (instance, raid, battleground, arena, etc), then how you spec only affects you. Once you start spending time with other players, though, the way you play and spec starts to directly impact your teammates. Raids especially are all about teamwork, and if you're not contributing 100% in all the ways that you could, you start to become a liability. You become less of a liability in dungeons where fights are generally shorter, but you're still not living up to your potential.
Build Shop: Rogue 19/42/0
Welcome to another Tuesday edition of Build Shop! This past week I received an email from a Rogue reader in an up and coming guild that's just starting to raid Kara who says he's a non-believer in the "No Ruthlessness, No Murder, No Relentless Strike -- No Raid" policy. He also wanted to know about the viability of a hybrid build (30/0/31), and how it could be improved for casual instances, raids, and the occasional PvP skirmish. Well, that's kind of a tall order, and I plan to address it more fully tomorrow in Encrypted Text.However, I will deal with part of the question today by talking about why Combat is the superior tree for PvE in many cases. Although there are many different types of Combat builds (Mace + Sword, Daggers, Fist, etc) these days, I'm going to focus on Combat swords (19/42/0). This is a build that doesn't rely on positioning like Combat Daggers or Mutilate, making it great for fights with a lot of movement. This is also a build which can really crank out the damage with the right weapons and gear. I feel that this is one of the finest and most effective DPS builds in the game -- read on to find out why.
Games Radar lists five things MMOs are doing wrong
The following slipped through the cracks a few days ago, but like Lewis Black we're going back to it because it's worth a look. Games Radar ran a feature called "Saying no to the MMO," listing five evils embedded in the genre's culture and design that have really got to go.Read it for yourself, of course, but the five things include gold farming, elitist endgame content, unhealthy addiction, drab action-bar-and-auto-attack-based combat, and the continual bleeding of players' pockets via monthly fees and microtransactions.The genre needs an infusion of fresh ideas to progress, but Games Radar's list is controversial. For example, a lot of people like the elitist endgame content. But maybe raiding games don't need to go away; maybe there should be new (or old) types of MMOs with different philosophies, and maybe those MMOs could co-exist with the EverQuestian standards. It's food for thought.
Shiny new interview with Age of Conan devs
Eurogamer got a chance to sit down with Ole Herbjornsen (associate producer), Joel Bylos (quest designer) and Erling Ellingsen (product manager) from the Age of Conan development team and chat them up about what's been going on with Age of Conan recently. Some of the subjects touched on are a bit familiar, such as the issue of the mature game content. The more interesting bits are further into the interview when the developers are asked about the combat system and what's changed since the player feedback during closed beta testing. The only thing that wasn't discussed -- that we would have been very interested to hear about -- was further information on mounted combat. Overall, it seems as though Age of Conan is shaping up to be a nice alternative MMO for players interested in something a bit different. The narrative aspects of the game -- which are closer to something out of a Bioware title -- are much more involved than your usual quest text. Another thing that AoC has going for it is that obviously FunCom is very interested in listening to player feedback and adjusting the game accordingly if need be. Now-before-later is always greater; especially when you're talking beta invites!
Stargate Worlds designer dodges questions, gets back to work
mmolecule has an interview up with Chris Bernert, Lead Systems Designer for the upcoming Stargate Worlds. He ducks most of their questions pretty adeptly (newsflash: SGW has "exciting plans" for their PvP system!), but there are a few interesting tidbits in here, including the fact that players of different factions will be able to communicate with each other, a la Star Wars Galaxies rather than World of Warcraft.The other big note is that players will have three ways of reviving in the game-- either at the nearest "hospital," by another player, or right at the site of death. But CME says they haven't figured out the penalties for each situation yet. Bernert also says they're still working on coming up with the UI design. There's no question the folks behind SGW are facing a lot of challenges in trying to make a great MMO game out of a cult IP, but considering that they're hoping to go live a year from now, maybe they should cool it a bit on the interviews and get to work on the game itself.{Via Curse]
STO interview comes with first non-space screenshot
WarCry interviewed Perpetual Entertainment's Daron Stinnett, the head honcho on the Star Trek Online project. The interview itself contains very little new information; it covers the reasoning behind the new art style, the interaction system described in the most recent devlog, and the balance between space and land combat. Stinnett also squashes (again) the rumor that STO is going casual and tries to alleviate concerns that STO's future might be in jeopardy. He doesn't convince us that Perpetual is totally out of the woods just yet, but there's no way to know for sure.Really, the best part about the interview is the new screenshot, and the best thing about the new screenshot is the revelation of how dead-on that old tongue-in-cheek fan video was.
Heads roll in new Age of Conan trailer
GameTrailers published an exclusive new Age of Conan trailer today. It (and everything else on GameTrailers this afternoon) will probably and unfortunately be blown to the wayside by the thermonuclear hype-bomb that is the new Grand Theft Auto IV trailer, but really, it's worth viewing. You can watch or download both standard def (embedded here) and high def versions of the trailer.It's narrated by an old warrior at a bar. He describes the decline of his homeland and the trials that followed -- all against a backdrop of countless shots of AoC characters decapitating one another to epic music. So, pretty much the Age of Conan we've grown to love and expect -- blood that runs like rivers, graphics as impressive as Steve Jobs' resume, and women as loose with love as cable news networks are with the facts!
Top 5 combat tips for Tabula Rasa recruits
So you bought Tabula Rasa, created your character, and conquered basic training with ease, and maybe even found your first Logos. Good for you! As with any new MMO though, the learning period has only just begun. There are a myriad of subtleties, strategies, and nuances that dictate your success in Tabula Rasa, and most of them are only discovered via trial and error. That or prodigious use of alt+tab and Google. After spending some time on TR's dedicated new players channel, we've boiled down the most common sources of complaint and confusion, and compiled them into our top 5 list of combat tips for Tabula Rasa recruits. It's by no means a comprehensive guide, but for players still getting their bearings, and perhaps even for some veterans, this should serve as a basic guide to surviving in Destination Games' Tabula Rasa.
Conan newsletter brings blood, savagery, information
Funcom sent out the new "Clan of Conan" newsletter today, and it includes a bunch of cool stuff to whet your Age of Conan appetite. It's mostly the usual sorts of stuff, just new content. This time we got an article on mounted combat, info on a couple of new enemies and the "Sanctum of the Souls" location, as well as screenshots, desktop wallpaper, and a two-minute video of the area. You can also download a complete 23-page Age of Conan comic book, but it's the same one that was included with the last newsletter, so if you were already on top of that, it's nothing new.The article on mounted combat is the most interesting part of the package. Mounted combat is not something we're used to in MMOs; it's one of the most exciting innovations AoC offers. According to the article, there are many different kinds of mounts with different kinds of strengths and weaknesses. One mount might charge faster than another, for example.[Via Warcry]
SGW dev interrogated by Jaffa, reveals combat secrets
Stargate Worlds' combat is mostly ranged, is more action-oriented than the combat in other MMORPGs, and utilizes a cover system. Before today, that was all we knew. Cheyenne Mountain's Josh Kurtz (a familiar face, now) wrote up a developer journal describing Cheyenne's ambitions for cover-based combat. The journal is humorously presented in the form of an interrogation by a Jaffa. Stargate SG-1 geeks will smile.Most objects in the world will act as cover, and players will be extremely vulnerable in open spaces like grassy fields or desert dunes. Kurtz described a scenario in which a player in Faction #1 might sit in an ambush position, waiting for a player in Faction #2 to wander into the open. If the player from Faction #2 is dumb enough to do that in a PvP area, he or she is likely to get ganked. On the other hand, he or she could move around in the woods nearby; it would take longer, but it would be stealthier and more secure.Kurtz also said that humanoid NPCs will be the most common enemies, and since humanoids will build structures and trenches and stick near them, most combat will be in cover-rich areas
Build Shop: Rogue 41/20/0
It's Tuesday, which means that talent junkies everywhere get their fix (well, part of it, anyway) -- welcome to Build Shop! Last time we talked rogues in this column it was all about the Subtlety tree. Well, this time we're going into a heavy Assassination / Combat build, known to some as "Combat Mutilate."Unlike builds that incorporate talents from the Subtlety tree to go along with Mutilate, this build is aimed at rogues who want a competitive PvE build that doesn't suck the fun (and the life) out of you like some other PvE-centric builds. Since Mutilate is an attack that must be made from behind, like Backstab or Ambush, it has a positional requirement. And yes, for it to do the maximum amount of damage, your target must be poisoned. And yes, there are several other things you can do if you want to buff up your damage even further. It's the price you pay for a build that's fun to play, with quick combo point generation and the potential for a lot of damage.
First Impressions: Flyff
Flyff is a play-for-free 3D MMO with that anime style that today's youth hungers for. In my quest to devour all MMOs in existence, I took it upon myself to give Flyff a shot. Akela: He plays weird stuff so you don't have to.Here's the immediate take-away: Even though their tagline is 'Fly for fun', it's not immediately clear how the flying will occur. A lot of their advertising features great-looking airships, people soaring through the air on their own, fabulous critters wafting along, etc. In my initial hour, though, Flyff gameplay followed the standard, whacking things with a sword until they dropped loot like so many naughty piñatas.%Gallery-10430%
Stratics interviews Stargate Worlds' Kevin Balentine
When Cheyenne Mountain Entertainment revealed back in March that it would be outsourcing some of its game design jobs for Stargate Worlds, a lot of people took that as a bad sign. Outsourcing game design? That's kind of like the Conan O'Brien sketch in which Conan absurdly outsourced the show's writing to India (though, if the WGA strike keeps going for too long, you never know what might happen).Stratics interviewed Kevin Balentine this week, and he defended the decision to outsource design by saying that it cuts back on a lot of the detail-oriented busywork that consumes lead designers' time, so that time can be spent designing more unique, story-based missions or quests. Maybe that will alleviate some people's fears. The interview is fairly short, but Balentine also talks about instancing, squad-based combat, and a couple of other things.
STO fan video depicts the way of the warrior
We know almost nothing about Star Trek Online's ground combat. We haven't even seen any screenshots of it yet. However, we do know that Star Trek fans are a passionate bunch. In this case, they were passionate enough to make their very own concept video of what Star Trek Online's ground combat might look like.It's pretty amusing, and if you're a fan it will probably make you even more anxious to finally learn what the combat really looks like. It also ought to make you a bit nostalgic about how awesome Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's "The Way of the Warrior" episode was. Hardcore Trekkies (or Trekkers) will surely get a kick out of the fact that the combat text for Klingons is actually in Klingon. To the zealous fan(s) who made this video, we say "qapla'!"
