I must point out that this post is just one part of an even larger post. In this way, even if for now it is possible to provide some insights into the proposed changes, given the holistic nature of MO2, I ask you to read the other posts before formulating your conclusions. Preferably, discuss about it in the last post (Final Considerations)
One thing that has always bothered me in the development of the game's magic schools is this insistence on fundamentals (mechanics) that govern all the magic present in the school.
Currently, we have the following schools with their respective fundamentals and major mechanic in bold:
One thing that has always bothered me in the development of the game's magic schools is this insistence on fundamentals (mechanics) that govern all the magic present in the school.
Currently, we have the following schools with their respective fundamentals and major mechanic in bold:
- Ecumenical - Non-instant cast, Hitscan based, Can hold spell for 20 seconds, Can not be casted while running, Can be casted mounted, Requires both hands free;
- Spiritism – Instant Cast, Hitscan based, Can not be casted while running, Can be casted mounted, Requires both hands free;
- Necromancy - Instant Cast, Hitscan based, Can be casted while running, Can be casted mounted, Requires both hands free;
- Elementalism – Instant Cast, Projectile based, Can not be casted while running, Can not be casted mounted, Requires both hands free;
When observing the fundamentals present, it is possible to see that the playtsyle provided by them ends up being very limiting in the construction of builds, especially with regard to hybrid combat, whether through the active use of a melee weapon as a source of damage, or just as a form of defense for mages, since in all cases, the user must put away their weapon before casting a spell.
Star Vault claims that “someday” they will release more magical schools, each with its own mechanics, including the ability to use magic with just one free hand, using instruments, drawing symbols with the mouse and so on... What happens is that eventually creativity will run out, so I wonder what else they must have in mind, maybe one day there will be some magical school that I need to perform a pirouette and clap for it to work!?
The biggest problem is that Starvault is unable to see that this philosophy of magic school mechanics is in fact one of mortal's biggest problems, especially when it comes to balancing.
A great example of how this philosophy is harmful to the game is the case of Auw Surge. Everyone must remember how dominant this spell was at its peak. This was the only spell in the game that received 3 nerfs in a row. First the reduction of your base damage, then the linear damage reduction according to the target's distance, and finally the inability to use Self cast. The spell in question today is in an almost useless state, serving only in extremely specific cases where you need to eliminate a moving target and don't have time to execute a spell from a distance since the target will hide behind something.
Some people will claim that the spell is still good, can be used in various scenarios and that this is the user's inability. In this way, I propose the following reflection, it is not because one Levia, Nighfall, or any other high skilled fighter is capable of going naked with just the Haven Sword, and killing a series of casuals at the door of Meduli that being naked with the haven Sword is viable , it's meta. That's just high skill difference. The point is that even if you are able to drive in a screw using a hammer, that doesn't make the method viable, after all the screw is not a nail.
The saddest part of this story is that the biggest reason for the nerf is related to the use of that spell by hybrid builds. In this way, all builds, mages included, suffered from the nerf due to a specific build known as "DeathKnight". This is another problem with the game, in which everyone tends to suffer from nerfs due to the existence of very specific builds... But this is topic for the next post.
At this point you must be asking why this whole story... The reason itself is simple. Can you imagine how things would have been if the nerf to Auw was based on the school's foundation, that is, taking away the ability to use it while running instead of all the previous nerfs? The spell would still continue to be very used as an anti-push weapon, which can be baited, situational use as a source of AoE damage and terrorism in houses.
Can you see that the problem with Auw Surge was that it was restricted to a magic school mechanic that allows it to be used while running?
In this context, what I propose is the end of school-based mechanics, but rather the balancing of mechanics by spells.
Such a change would make it much more convenient to balance spells without completely destroying builds that have nothing to do with the superior performance of a specific build. Furthermore, it would also be possible to allow playtstyles without the need to wait for Star Vault to “someday” decide to release a new magic school suitable for such style.
For example, let's imagine a world where some spells in the game can already be used with a free hand, such as outburst or propulsion spells in elementalism. Such spells are not problematic to the point that they make this playstyle unbalanced. Of course, spells like flame strike, death hand and other powerfull tools are out of the question. You could consider some restrictions for spells when cast with one hand, such as longer cast time, or lower effectiveness. Some spells could ignore such restrictions... But this is something that is up to the balance team to decide.
We could go even further, and consider the properties of holding a spell for 20 seconds, of ecuminecal. Which could be used in other spells. We could make this spell holding time scale with int or psyche, in order to have a greater impact on the distribution of points in the build.
This new form of philosophy when it comes to spells aims to allow:
Star Vault claims that “someday” they will release more magical schools, each with its own mechanics, including the ability to use magic with just one free hand, using instruments, drawing symbols with the mouse and so on... What happens is that eventually creativity will run out, so I wonder what else they must have in mind, maybe one day there will be some magical school that I need to perform a pirouette and clap for it to work!?
The biggest problem is that Starvault is unable to see that this philosophy of magic school mechanics is in fact one of mortal's biggest problems, especially when it comes to balancing.
A great example of how this philosophy is harmful to the game is the case of Auw Surge. Everyone must remember how dominant this spell was at its peak. This was the only spell in the game that received 3 nerfs in a row. First the reduction of your base damage, then the linear damage reduction according to the target's distance, and finally the inability to use Self cast. The spell in question today is in an almost useless state, serving only in extremely specific cases where you need to eliminate a moving target and don't have time to execute a spell from a distance since the target will hide behind something.
Some people will claim that the spell is still good, can be used in various scenarios and that this is the user's inability. In this way, I propose the following reflection, it is not because one Levia, Nighfall, or any other high skilled fighter is capable of going naked with just the Haven Sword, and killing a series of casuals at the door of Meduli that being naked with the haven Sword is viable , it's meta. That's just high skill difference. The point is that even if you are able to drive in a screw using a hammer, that doesn't make the method viable, after all the screw is not a nail.
The saddest part of this story is that the biggest reason for the nerf is related to the use of that spell by hybrid builds. In this way, all builds, mages included, suffered from the nerf due to a specific build known as "DeathKnight". This is another problem with the game, in which everyone tends to suffer from nerfs due to the existence of very specific builds... But this is topic for the next post.
At this point you must be asking why this whole story... The reason itself is simple. Can you imagine how things would have been if the nerf to Auw was based on the school's foundation, that is, taking away the ability to use it while running instead of all the previous nerfs? The spell would still continue to be very used as an anti-push weapon, which can be baited, situational use as a source of AoE damage and terrorism in houses.
Can you see that the problem with Auw Surge was that it was restricted to a magic school mechanic that allows it to be used while running?
In this context, what I propose is the end of school-based mechanics, but rather the balancing of mechanics by spells.
Such a change would make it much more convenient to balance spells without completely destroying builds that have nothing to do with the superior performance of a specific build. Furthermore, it would also be possible to allow playtstyles without the need to wait for Star Vault to “someday” decide to release a new magic school suitable for such style.
For example, let's imagine a world where some spells in the game can already be used with a free hand, such as outburst or propulsion spells in elementalism. Such spells are not problematic to the point that they make this playstyle unbalanced. Of course, spells like flame strike, death hand and other powerfull tools are out of the question. You could consider some restrictions for spells when cast with one hand, such as longer cast time, or lower effectiveness. Some spells could ignore such restrictions... But this is something that is up to the balance team to decide.
We could go even further, and consider the properties of holding a spell for 20 seconds, of ecuminecal. Which could be used in other spells. We could make this spell holding time scale with int or psyche, in order to have a greater impact on the distribution of points in the build.
This new form of philosophy when it comes to spells aims to allow:
- The creation of new viable builds (Such as Arcane Swordsman),
- Better balancing possibilities;
- Introduce at least one form of defense for mages, as they will be able to use some spells using one-handed weapons and be ready to counter atack with certain time (you won’t be able to insta cast something after a parry, at least not with the current spells);
Just a fun fact, I know that Star Vault dont see any problems with the idea of put away the weapon to cast a spell, especially after they improved the weapon switching time. But I'm going to tell you a secret Henrik, even though things have actually gotten better, and I don't doubt that you have done your best in developing your own ping normalization method, I must inform you that you cannot ignore the laws of physics. You're hearing this from someone who plays with ~220ms natural ping, ~180-190 with VPN.
Allowing some spells to be used, one-handed, would greatly help people with high ping to at least be able to defend themselves quickly.
Allowing some spells to be used, one-handed, would greatly help people with high ping to at least be able to defend themselves quickly.
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