The Black Abbot fix?

[batfish55]

I haven't even tried. I've completely finished the whole favor list, excepting litany of the dead, and there's plenty of stuff that's fun to do over and over again, but I've still got this nagging sense of non-completion hanging over me. I'd love to try it, I'd love to beat it (especially on elite).......but NO ONE EVER wants to do it, and the only thing I can ever find about it is that it's totally impossible......and this is, what? two level-caps raises since it was introduced?

Are there any plans, officially, to make the black abbot more mortal? I'm not saying I'd like it to be a snap, it doesn't have to be. I remember Gladewatch Outpost elite was a pain in the butt! especially at the recommended level, I think I was 8 or 10 at the time, but it was possible to do, just so long as you could hold out long enough. If the word on the street is true, the black abbot's nothing but a waste of time and monies.

Are there any plans to fix him?

[Angelus_dead]

Are there any plans to fix him?

Yes, a fix has been announced.

They haven't promised to fully fix the quest, but given how bad it is, hopefully this time they'll stop screwing around.

Here is the announcement. Also here.

[sirgog]

I also look forward to this fix.

There was a very narrow window (before the ranged exploit was discovered) when the Abbot was a great raid.

Now, it's ****.

[Angelus_dead]

There was a very narrow window (before the ranged exploit was discovered) when the Abbot was a great raid.

It was never great. It was temporarily decent, but it was still bad because it contained three "puzzle" rooms that were only pointless distractions from completing the quest. They were impossible to beat with any remotely reasonable success rate, so instead of being a decent help to victory, they were red herrings.

Instead of fixing it by making the puzzles more playable, they instead broke the whole raid by making them non-optional.

[Yuhjn]

If you consider slowing down the asteroids a little bit and leaving a few more bridge pieces on at any given time a "fix" for this raid, that yeah sure they are going to "fix" it.

But I wouldnt expect anyone to run it until they go back to making those puzzles optional or at least letting you pick who goes into what puzzle.

Randomly teleporting people into a mario-brothers puzzle that must be solved to get completion will NEVER work.

Never.

[Angelus_dead]

Randomly teleporting people into a mario-brothers puzzle that must be solved to get completion will NEVER work.

Never.

It absolutely CAN work. It all depends on the difficulty of the puzzle.

If all three of the puzzles were as easy as the ice chasm, the raid would be nearly fixed already. (The only other thing to resolve would be the relative duration of ice balls versus inferno/encase cooldown in the main room)

[Milolyen]

Slowing down the meteors and increasing the number of tiles up will make this raid very doable. No one runs it now because it takes near flawless communications and alot of practice and those are 2 things that will never happen in your standard pug. Slowing the meteors down will make it so you don't need as much practice/or cake (depending on how much they slow them down) and more tiles up will mean you don't have to have the flawless communication but just good timing. Groups will still need to be well coordinated and people will still need to know what they are doing and what is going on.

Milolyen

[sirgog]

I still believe the best option would be to revert to version 1.0, but with an extra, carefully placed Wall of Force up to prevent the shenanigans that got the Abbot nerfed in the first place.

I wouldn't mind keeping the increased Inferno damage that came in with Abbot 2.0, to make the Ice Wands puzzle worth completing, nor would I mind keeping Deathgrip of Doluurh on the higher difficulty levels. I'd also like to see changes made that make completion of the other two puzzles more useful - increased Phasing Wraith damage and SP drains, and more frequent use of Encasement (but NEVER on a target that's off the platform) come to mind as options here.

[deepshadow]

I'm all for taking on the challenge of the Abbot even in it's current format.

The problem with the Abbot isn't the puzzles or that random people are teleported to those puzzles.

The problem with the Abbot is the end rewards are pretty much worthless when compared to other raid items. This was true before the Shroud and it's even more true today. If even a few of the end reward items for the abbot were good, you would see much more effort in trying to complete the puzzles.

[sirgog]

I'm all for taking on the challenge of the Abbot even in it's current format.

The problem with the Abbot isn't the puzzles or that random people are teleported to those puzzles.

The problem with the Abbot is the end rewards are pretty much worthless when compared to other raid items. This was true before the Shroud and it's even more true today. If even a few of the end reward items for the abbot were good, you would see much more effort in trying to complete the puzzles.

I can think of 7 quality items from the Abbot.

There's the Banisher sword (Adherence I think it was called, not sure, never seen it)
and of course:

+3 Tome of Strength
+3 Tome of Dex
+3 Tome of Con
+3 Tome of Int
+3 Tome of Wis
+3 Tome of Cha

6 excellent items here...

[bobbryan2]

I can think of 7 quality items from the Abbot.

There's the Banisher sword (Adherence I think it was called, not sure, never seen it)
and of course:

+3 Tome of Strength
+3 Tome of Dex
+3 Tome of Con
+3 Tome of Int
+3 Tome of Wis
+3 Tome of Cha

6 excellent items here...

Well, disregarding the +3 tomes which can fall from the reaver and shroud end reward list... I think the best item out of there is Litany of the Dead. That banishing longsword isn't even that great. The other items are fairly subpar.

[sirgog]

Well, disregarding the +3 tomes which can fall from the reaver and shroud end reward list... I think the best item out of there is Litany of the Dead. That banishing longsword isn't even that great. The other items are fairly subpar.

Not sure, but I think the +3 tome drop rate is higher on Abbot than the Reaver.

And yes, Litany rocks - forgot about it.

[Lifespawn]

Slowing down the meteors and increasing the number of tiles up will make this raid very doable. No pugs run it now because it takes near flawless communications and alot of practice and those are 2 things that will never happen in your standard pug. Slowing the meteors down will make it so you don't need as much practice/or cake (depending on how much they slow them down) and more tiles up will mean you don't have to have the flawless communication but just good timing. Groups will still need to be well coordinated and people will still need to know what they are doing and what is going on.

Milolyen

fixed it for u

[sirgog]

I do actually see PUGs up for 'puzzle practice'. I don't doubt that they'll finish if one of them gets lucky and succeeds at the Phasing Chasm puzzle.

[Cashiry]

If they fix the chasm room and slow down the floor tiles... this raid can be completed.... The other 2 rooms(ice and asteroids) are pretty easy in my opinion..

Cash

[esoitl]

i'm always wondering if this is a matter of needing a fix or players needing to stop whinning and practice the puzzles

[Angelus_dead]

I still believe the best option would be to revert to version 1.0, but with an extra, carefully placed Wall of Force up to prevent the shenanigans that got the Abbot nerfed in the first place.

You seem confused.

What got it "nerfed" is the fact that people beat the Abbot without trying to do the puzzles, and that even attempting the puzzles during a run was distracting resources from the success of the mission.

I wouldn't mind keeping the increased Inferno damage that came in with Abbot 2.0, to make the Ice Wands puzzle worth completing, nor would I mind keeping Deathgrip of Doluurh on the higher difficulty levels.

To beat the original Inferno you basically needed at least two clerics respecced for that purpose. A raid should not require such specialized character builds to win.

Healing through the Inferno should be an option for those rare characters who can do it, but getting and using the ice wand should have been an option too.

I'd also like to see changes made that make completion of the other two puzzles more useful - increased Phasing Wraith damage and SP drains, and more frequent use of Encasement (but NEVER on a target that's off the platform) come to mind as options here.

The boulders are already highly useful, because otherwise Encasement is a death sentence. And since dying destroys your ice wand, any change which makes the Ice Wand important also makes the boulders important, simply to save the wand-carrier from dying under rocks.

[Angelus_dead]

i'm always wondering if this is a matter of needing a fix or players needing to stop whinning and practice the puzzles

Have you ever practiced the puzzles yourself? Then you might know the answer.

[Angelus_dead]

I do actually see PUGs up for 'puzzle practice'. I don't doubt that they'll finish if one of them gets lucky and succeeds at the Phasing Chasm puzzle.

Why don't you doubt it?

Do you have any idea how hard it is to evade the Inferno and Encasement, even if you do have the wand and the boulders?

[Angelus_dead]

The problem with the Abbot is the end rewards are pretty much worthless when compared to other raid items. This was true before the Shroud and it's even more true today. If even a few of the end reward items for the abbot were good, you would see much more effort in trying to complete the puzzles.

That's completely wrong.

First, you don't know what all the loots are, because people don't win the quest.
Second, it drops the Litany of the Dead, an item which gives +1 to every ability score, and also +1 to damage and attack. Nearly everyone should want that.