Producer's Letter - 5/21/15

[Severlin]

Seriously? More melee buffing?

Wow...

Who is making these decisions? Please tell me it's not based on that moronic survey in which all the people who play melee characters said casters were over powered.

That would be just sad.

Ranger has a lot of ranged options?

Sev~

[Rys]

Ranger has a lot of ranged options?

Sev~

Make sure so we actually have the options after the pass.

[axel15810]

Devs, thanks for the letter. Looking forward to the next two updates, especially epic amrath. I hope the comments from people that keep rolling 1's on their reading comprehension skill checks don't deter you from communicating with players in the future.

As others alluded to, I hope the team is considering merging servers if we're moving to different hardware anyway.

[edrein]

Make sure so we actually have the options after the pass.

Nice edit by the way, but to your original post. Ranger has a lot more ranged options at this moment than melee. Tempest has always been niche as a pure ranger, now as a multiclass build it works fine in tandem with things such as monk levels for the 100% offhand proc or the holysword 14/6 build I've seen a lot recently with pally-rangers.

[patang01]

Can we get a sense of what your plan about Epic Green Steel is? Specifically, ML of the items? My personal preference is that this is not end gear. Because quite honestly the great stuff about Heroic GS is that you end up spending lots of runs adding mats and stuff to get a nice bunch of TR gear for each toon. You have to run the content for the shards and you use the combined saved mats to build the item you need for that specific toon. It's really the perfect combination of rewarding grind over time and adding pieces of pivotal equipment that eventually 'replace' a bunch of gear you might have stored so you don't have to keep 'replacing' pieces as you level.

By making Epic GS gear in the high end range you probably end up screwing over any high end content over time, making it harder to make and provide less incentive to even run. By making it a ER type gear by setting the ML around say 22-23 you create a replacement cycle that might eventually mean you phase out existing level 22-25 gear but it'll be some times anyways because the progressive grind and it won't be all pieces but some and it'll aid further ERs until you reach high end stuff; high end you'll end up adding over time and that'll be the 'final' gear selection.

[zehnvhex]

As others alluded to, I hope the team is considering merging servers if we're moving to different hardware anyway.

I would like this too. I've recently gotten several friends and old clanmates from other games back into the game but some are reluctant to leave servers where they have friends/family playing.

And yes, thank you for keeping us in the development loop. I have a lot of fun playing this game and new content is great!

[Xerio]

Two weapon fighting tests show it doing a lot more damage than comparible THF and SWF at the top end for Paladin, Barbarian and (of course) Rogue builds.

Tempest specifically is behind the curve though if that's what you are running.

Sev~

Short of those three recently revamped classes/enhancements, outside of that SWF and THF both feel ahead if used for any other build.
Tempest being the key point though, yes.

[Lanadazia]

Update 26 is coming in June, and it will focus mainly on a new class; the Warlock!

Update 27 will follow in July. It includes an all-new adventure pack that returns to Shavarath, showcasing the Archons’ side of its endless war.

We'll have more updates this year as well, of course. Players will be able to increase their character level to 30. We’ll have more adventure packs for you. We’ll have an Epic and extended version of our popular Shroud raid and a new adventure pack that relates to the Vale of Twilight. Players will be able to use an updated and epic version of Greensteel to craft more powerful gear.

YAY! finally that shavarath storyline is going to be continued. also a new raid! will we have some cool sets again? or will the old Tower of Despair sets be revamped maybe, to make the initial shavarath adventure pack more popular in the community? i'd really like to see shavarath being run more frequently. right now its a dead adventure pack, what is pretty sad, since the story is quite good and the loot used to be, too..
a revamp of the ToD sets would make the 1st pack alot more interessting (aka you sell more stuff), and would (re-)add a raid to the common run raids (more raids = more fun)

Also a new class! can't wait to roll it artificer and druid were major additons to the game, i hope the warlock will turn out just as well

you wrote "epic AND extended version of shroud". does that mean you make us run a heroic-shroud-setup with epic monsters and just add something in the end?
please make it an all-new raid. (if it is like reavers fate <> fall of truth it'll be fine) but please don't make it the same, just with higher numbers and something more at the end
"a new adventure pack that relates to the vale" (??) is that all-new too, or are locations re-used / quests getting epified? (no friend of epifying content... its like that coffee from yesterday you decided to reheat. :/ )

will the heroic greensteel system be updated aswell (more recipes maybe)? the way i understand that sentence, it means there will be epic GS and the heroic GS will be updated.
(but that'd be strange, since the greensteel is THE best crafting system in DDO)

[Monkey-Boy]

I should not tell players that Ranger will be next once we finish up Warlock in case something causes us to change our plans. Nor can I say that fighter will be some time after that, probably after we work on a new Favored Soul tree. Sadly I cannot confirm any of this information.

Sev~

Perfect non-answer Thank you.

[sharachan]

As we've mentioned previously, the biggest weakness of casters currently is putting out good boss DPS without completely draining spell points. We will be addressing that with some kind of new high level damage over time spell. I have no time frame to announce at this time, but unlikely it will be 3 years out.

Sev~

Seems like my desicion to let the VIP run out was correct. Have been waiting since MOTU was releaced to get epic spells. Dont want to wait another year so i will silently leave the game.

[The_Human_Cypher]

The stuff about the archons got me really excited. LOVE the devil battlefield, with arrows peppering the ground as the trace of the conflict.

I guess the archons are unlike kobolds--they will forget about that little incident in the vale?

I mentioned including the Archons in the new Shavarath story line for Update 26 a while back.

https://www.ddo.com/forums/showthrea...avarath+Archon

[Zasral]

Can we get a sense of what your plan about Epic Green Steel is? Specifically, ML of the items? My personal preference is that this is not end gear. Because quite honestly the great stuff about Heroic GS is that you end up spending lots of runs adding mats and stuff to get a nice bunch of TR gear for each toon. You have to run the content for the shards and you use the combined saved mats to build the item you need for that specific toon. It's really the perfect combination of rewarding grind over time and adding pieces of pivotal equipment that eventually 'replace' a bunch of gear you might have stored so you don't have to keep 'replacing' pieces as you level.

By making Epic GS gear in the high end range you probably end up screwing over any high end content over time, making it harder to make and provide less incentive to even run. By making it a ER type gear by setting the ML around say 22-23 you create a replacement cycle that might eventually mean you phase out existing level 22-25 gear but it'll be some times anyways because the progressive grind and it won't be all pieces but some and it'll aid further ERs until you reach high end stuff; high end you'll end up adding over time and that'll be the 'final' gear selection.

This is spot on getting epic shroud, and it's crafting right, could be great for ddo. Personally I would like to see everything available now in shroud, available in epic form. Either by crafting the new item or upgrading the base item. Both have there good and bad sides. I would imagine from a code perspective upgrading heroic items would be the easier route.

[Severlin]

Seems like my desicion to let the VIP run out was correct. Have been waiting since MOTU was releaced to get epic spells. Dont want to wait another year so i will silently leave the game.

Honestly I don't understand this response, since we said we intend to address caster's weakness with high hit point bosses by, in part, introducing a new epic spell, and you voiced your dissatisfaction at not getting new epic spells.

Sev~

[Thar]

When you stuff say this like this it makes me wonder if anyone on the Dev team actual plays the game.

Casters do need more low sp options at epic to get away from shiradi. Devs have that part spot on. Is this the biggest need... no.. the get hit once and blow up cause we can't wear heavy armor is probably #1...

oh wait we have displacement...

oh wait champoin has true seeing and fort bypass... and double damage...

[Rys]

Nice edit by the way, but to your original post. Ranger has a lot more ranged options at this moment than melee. Tempest has always been niche as a pure ranger, now as a multiclass build it works fine in tandem with things such as monk levels for the 100% offhand proc or the holysword 14/6 build I've seen a lot recently with pally-rangers.

I think you misunderstood me. What I am worried about since the day I heard about the ranger pass is that one option will be only replaced by another option. So we'll end up with the exact same number of options and many ****ed people

[sharachan]

Honestly I don't understand this response, since we said we intend to address caster's weakness with high hit point bosses by, in part, introducing a new epic spell, and you voiced your dissatisfaction at not getting new epic spells.

Sev~

I can only level my sorc to 20. After that i got 8 levels of commoner. Almost all my spells are capped at 20. Its like a barb could not use his weapons after 20.

While you make even more passes to melees you want to fix casters by giving us a single spell to use on bosses. What is the point of that? At the moment i get more from leveling from 19 to 20 then i get from all epic levels.

Since no devs is playing this game i dont think you understand what the problems with casters is and will probably make some changes that dont help us at all.

[Portalcat]

Hopefully this isn't another epic feat that cost 100 spell points.

Why not? Ruin is ridiculously strong because of its bypass and relatively better cooldown versus Energy Burst. If they want to give us a big DoT that cost 100 SP, that's fine by me so long as the damage justifies the cost.


A much more important question is the balance concern - it's been okay that decked out DC casters top-kill most content and have excellent CC because they aren't high raw DPS when it's needed. Change the dynamics of DPS too much and the build doesn't have real tradeoffs anymore.

[Lanadazia]

As we've mentioned previously, the biggest weakness of casters currently is putting out good boss DPS without completely draining spell points. We will be addressing that with some kind of new high level damage over time spell. I have no time frame to announce at this time, but unlikely it will be 3 years out.

Sev~

While you're on that topic, please consider adding new spells in general! divines still only have 5 grade 9 spells to chose from.
actually there are very few grade 8 and 9 spells, i'd love to see more choice there, even if its a situational-spell.
like i want to think about, if i get mass-hold, wail of the banshee and enervation as 9th grade spells on my sorc, or if i should pick up something else that fits my playstyle better
more spells = more fun

and yes, caster damage on EE bosses is meh. actually i'd like to see something else than a DoT like biting cold or electric surge. some stationary spell like firewall, icestorm or fog-spells, that continuously deals damage

By making Epic GS gear in the high end range you probably end up screwing over any high end content over time, making it harder to make and provide less incentive to even run. By making it a ER type gear by setting the ML around say 22-23 you create a replacement cycle that might eventually mean you phase out existing level 22-25 gear but it'll be some times anyways because the progressive grind and it won't be all pieces but some and it'll aid further ERs until you reach high end stuff; high end you'll end up adding over time and that'll be the 'final' gear selection.

i see what you mean. heroic GS is nice TR gear, so epic GS should be nice epicTR gear. to be in a good level range for epic TR gear it should be 22-23 as you wrote, but i fear that the CITW weapons will get obsolete. and that would be pretty sad, since these weapons are actually nice.

i think its pretty hard to balance epic GS though. we have CITW weapons in lower 20's and thunderforged weapons (that need a heavy grind to accomplish!!) on level 28.

adding another weapon-system into 23-28 level-range will make one of the 2 systems above obsolete, and thats something that has to be prevented. no more dead crafting/gear systems in DDO!

we got cannith crafting dead, we got the old epic system dead, we got LoB/alchemical weapons dead, we got ToD sets dead...
nothing is more frustrating, than dead gear-systems you've invested your time in and cannot complete it (LoB is the best example here, even though it actually somewhat is the epic GS... really good eTR gear! check it out)

[dunklezhan]

I can only level my sorc to 20. After that i got 8 levels of commoner. Almost all my spells are capped at 20. Its like a barb could not use his weapons after 20.

While you make even more passes to melees you want to fix casters by giving us a single spell to use on bosses. What is the point of that? At the moment i get more from leveling from 19 to 20 then i get from all epic levels.

I can empathise that the epic levelling system is lacklustre at best. I can't get on with it at all really. But you can't tell me that the way EDs and twists overlay all the possibly different heroic builds does not allow for caster growth or build complexity. I can appreciate that because there are only 9 destinies it can all feel a bit samey across different characters in terms of some of the main things you use on your hot bar at those levels, but I've seen plenty of casters laying down their earthquakes/icestorms/firewalls/other persistent AOEs quite successfully in Epic.

I'd like to see them even out the epic level advancement system so it's not so devoid of choices in the first five levels, but unless you simply don't have access to the destinies I can't understand where you're coming from in terms of caster advancement at all. If you don't have destinies then I'd say you're quite correct. Turbine do want you to buy the destinies. And you should - many of them increase things like maximum caster levels and introduce new SLAs you can use.

Your last comment about devs not playing... well I don't even know where to start. Maybe read the weekly DDO newsletter from time to time and watch some of the videos.

[Monkey-Boy]

As we've mentioned previously, the biggest weakness of casters currently is putting out good boss DPS without completely draining spell points. We will be addressing that with some kind of new high level damage over time spell. I have no time frame to announce at this time, but unlikely it will be 3 years out.

Sev~

Please read my signature.