Steelskin and the Guard Skills

So you're called to be immortal... but you only make it, at best, 85% of the way there? I mean, I guess I'll wait to see the rest of your changes, but after so many years if IC/CWDT (which you just called mindless), this seems pretty mental. HC players ironically on suicide watch.

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FramFramson wrote:

Okay so they've just destroyed what's probably the most frequently used CWDT setup in the game (CWDT + Immortal Call) and everyone's like "oh cool" or "neat!"

Lol, did you just read the first page? That's always full of inanity since they just respond immediately without reading so as to make it onto the first page. Don't worry, this thread is gonna be full of people crying about the IC change.

Though for my part, I'm optimistic. I've actually always felt kinda miffed by how universal the CwDT + IC setup is. It's probably the most meta skill in the game, for the longest time, but doesn't get considered meta only cos it isn't a main damage skill. If there's more variation in our CwDT setups now, then that's good for the game in the long run, imo. And yes, I've run several builds that forego the CwDT + IC setup for other combos - you can survive. The reason it's so common is partly because few people even think about it - it's just become a default that they slap onto whatever build they make. If this gets them to consider other options, I'm all for it.

i'm so pumped for 3.7, guard skills are sweet. looking forward to steelskin.

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Exile009 wrote:

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FramFramson wrote:

Okay so they've just destroyed what's probably the most frequently used CWDT setup in the game (CWDT + Immortal Call) and everyone's like "oh cool" or "neat!"

Lol, did you just read the first page? That's always full of inanity since they just respond immediately without reading so as to make it onto the first page. Don't worry, this thread is gonna be full of people crying about the IC change.

Though for my part, I'm optimistic. I've actually always felt kinda miffed by how universal the CwDT + IC setup is. It's probably the most meta skill in the game, for the longest time, but doesn't get considered meta only cos it isn't a main damage skill. If there's more variation in our CwDT setups now, then that's good for the game in the long run, imo. And yes, I've run several builds that forego the CwDT + IC setup for other combos - you can survive. The reason it's so common is partly because few people even think about it - it's just become a default that they slap onto whatever build they make. If this gets them to consider other options, I'm all for it.

Considering your challenges done, you didn't go much into harder contents like deep delve didn't you? Then ofc you're fine with it because 90% of the builds can easily blow through t16 without trouble.

*cries in Arakaali-Blood Rage-Immortal Call*

wow I can finally try Hardcore, this change is absolutely game changing for me lol

Wow, all of them sound very nice; steelskin howewer i feel it should have some kind of benefits for melee characters and limitations to casters, so you favour more the close combat; otherwise casters could be yet too overpowered.

Great changes so far, keep the good work up!

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Kirian42 wrote:

*cries in Arakaali-Blood Rage-Immortal Call*

*cries in duelist*

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Exile009 wrote:

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FramFramson wrote:

Okay so they've just destroyed what's probably the most frequently used CWDT setup in the game (CWDT + Immortal Call) and everyone's like "oh cool" or "neat!"

Lol, did you just read the first page? That's always full of inanity since they just respond immediately without reading so as to make it onto the first page. Don't worry, this thread is gonna be full of people crying about the IC change.

Though for my part, I'm optimistic. I've actually always felt kinda miffed by how universal the CwDT + IC setup is. It's probably the most meta skill in the game, for the longest time, but doesn't get considered meta only cos it isn't a main damage skill. If there's more variation in our CwDT setups now, then that's good for the game in the long run, imo. And yes, I've run several builds that forego the CwDT + IC setup for other combos - you can survive. The reason it's so common is partly because few people even think about it - it's just become a default that they slap onto whatever build they make. If this gets them to consider other options, I'm all for it.

I think maybe you're the one who could have stood to read a little farther on, since the discussion moved a lot in the three pages since my post you're quoting.

In any case, I'd be happy to see more alternatives to CWDT + IC, since yes, it is ubiquitous. But the reason it's ubiquitous is because it is currently literally the only way in the game to have a chance to survive massive, sudden physical hits.

Moving from one viable setup to zero is not going to improve diversity. In fact it's possible that this will kill huge numbers of builds, resulting in "meta" builds being even more narrow and fewer in number.

Steelskin and Molten Shell seem to be potentially good, but IC appears to be ruined now. As others have mentioned, porcupines and devourers are going to wreck people. 35% mitigation, leaving armor to mitigate the rest sounds like a recipe for killing characters.

It doesn't seem like melee is being improved if a skill is nerfed to the point that it requires investment in Endurance Charges just to hit half its original effectiveness. And letting attacks now do what they should have been doing all along isn't an improvement, its a patch to fix something long neglected.

Setting that aside, the new league (which is promoting melee skills) forces players to blast (by spell or ranged attacks) packs of monsters to get some kind of prize or get to a boss that will drop a prize. And the melee guys, which have supposedly been improved, are forced to invest in move speed and area attacks to have a slightly better chance to accomplish what casters and ranged characters can already do without similar investment. So, to really get into the league, melee is encouraged and its about diving into as many packs as possible while nerfing into uselessness a defensive skill meant to keep people alive that find themselves neck deep in packs of things trying to kill them. Is that about right?

That still doesn't sound like melee has been improved. Melee isn't given a chance to shine here, they're just getting a stage to get killed faster and more often.