Arcane Gems and Related Equipment

[Amairgen]

Okay . . The door is not closed on the Arcane Gems yet so we are still open to changes.

Alk, I will ponder what you have said (as I do with everyone) and consider dropping the SDI provided by Arcane Gems from 20 to 5. I will also consider the suggestion of dropping charges but that goes against the history of Arcane Gems. Charges and any inconvenience they pose is a good reason to look for Arties instead. Also if there are no Arcane charges then there is less reason to hunt for (or value in selling) Arcane Gems.

Have you seen the Worg or Drow Dragon in action against Quest bosses? Many of them are not 'overly' impressed by those pets and I continue to adjust that with these new pets. Yes they are very effective against regular monsters like Dragons and even Greater Dragons but a good warrior handles those too (and some warriors use Mercs to help without needing to invest skill points in Taming, Lore and Veterinary etc).

I admit Worgs and Drow Dragons stand up well (for the moment) against a Drow Guardian dragon and that could change. The thing with the Drow Guardian dragons (in my mind) is this . . they are keepers of a special egg which is sought by tamers. I do not have a problem if a Tamer uses a pet to attempt getting something only valuable to a tamer.

Note:

1) I do prefer discussions of this nature taking place under the Suggestions Board or in a PM to me rather than under the News Board.

2) Effective immediately - Until we get this sorted out to the community's mutual satisfaction (including me *smiles*) the SDI bonus on Arcane Items has been limited to +3 or +4 or +5. This was done to limit the number of items with high charges until we settle on an appropriate SDI bonus amount.

[Crossbreed]

Arcane Gems

I understand not wanting arcane imbued items to have more SDI than more difficult to obtain artifacts, as that does feel strange. It's part of why I had suggested potentially making them into a crafter's tool for making powerful, very specific gear slot items that we have not yet found great variety for (Boot items, Necklace items, for example) among each crafting class. These items could be artifact-levels of power and be customizable by the crafters. Maybe they could also maintain the Arcane Gem flavor of having charges, or be similar to the repair system and be unable to adopt the "self repair" attribute. There are many options.

The charge mechanic is a part of arcane gems in vanilla, but is also a big part of why no one uses them (besides being weak items originally), similar to why no one likes to use reagents - it's a pain to manage and adds a "minigame" of sorts no one wants to participate in. I think if the charge count is too low, no one will want to use the items.

But, all of this depends on the intended direction for the Arcane Gems. With how they are right now, the arcane gear can't outpower artifacts, which then makes them quite useless in comparison unless you're working your way up in power level. This combined with having charges means they're very undesirable.

I guess the biggest question is, what is the intended goal for Arcane Gems?

Also, regarding class balance, imo:

I've got characters of each class and they can all do the content on this server well (except my crafter of course ), I don't think balance is an issue regarding class strength, per se. Rather, having a "best" weapon/pet/etc option within each class stagnates variety within classes themselves. I.E. Norbert's Axe for warriors, for example. It's nice to have a "best" gear option, but it's even better to have multiple "best" options to open up variety and personal choice. If anything, that could be an improvement point moreso than anything relating to balance.

[alk760]

All I wanted was to bring back the mage wearing clothes instead of armor aspect by allowing more items to accept caster and stat crafts.
Pants,Short Pants,Half / Full Aprons and footwear.
We already have Stat Shirts and Reward shirts that give stats so these wont be needed.

NO Resistance or Defense crafts on clothing keep that to armor only.
This will keep some restrictions in place when spellcrafting gear and not allow a Crafted set to be stronger than any arti set.
Casters will be able to load up on SDI mana bonus and regens but no so much on defensive stats.
Clothing SDI cap can be lowered to 10 on clothing so the Artifacts and 15 SDI pieces will still be Viable.

Norbert's is fast and hits like a 1 ton Acme anvil but I prefer the Runic Double Axe because of the whirlwind and double strike ability.
Runic's give you a choice on what weapon you want to use. even if they are weaker than an artifact in some cases.
Being able to pick what attacks you want will be the deciding factor.

[Amairgen]

Aug 29, 2021 8:16:26 GMT -8 alk760 said:

All I wanted was to bring back the mage wearing clothes instead of armor aspect by allowing more items to accept caster and stat crafts.
Pants,Short Pants,Half / Full Aprons and footwear.
We already have Stat Shirts and Reward shirts that give stats so these wont be needed.

This appeals to me and I will look into it. Part of the problem with Arcane items is the fact that they have separate graphics depending on whether the Gems are in effect or not. Look closely at a charged arcane item in your pack sometime can compare it to a regular one.

Items used as wearable not only need the basic graphic file but they also need other .MUL files edited to permit equipping. (for example you cannot equip a curtain around you). So it may be complicated. I will see if I can do a 'work around' to add pants, shirts. aprons etc.

No promises but I am interested.

[alk760]

Can the cast counter be removed or no?
because it only changes back when it runs out of charges.

A working and player friendly Arcane Gem gear system that adds a few new item slots I see working out.
Mainly trying to avoid extra stat stacking so I was proposing we use items that take an already used gear slot.
IE pants/long skirts,Aprons and footwear being sandals, boots, shoes, and thigh boots.
I don't know of any cloth chest piece that takes up the Tunic armor slot so that should just be left out.

[Crossbreed]

Aug 29, 2021 8:16:26 GMT -8 alk760 said:

Norbert's is fast and hits like a 1 ton Acme anvil but I prefer the Runic Double Axe because of the whirlwind and double strike ability.
Runic's give you a choice on what weapon you want to use. even if they are weaker than an artifact in some cases.
Being able to pick what attacks you want will be the deciding factor.

Yea, I'd just want that choice-range to be wider than the few useful moves that exist that Norbert's doesn't cover. Armor pierce on a high stat weapon is too good in most end-game boss fights, many of the strongest baddies have high resistances across the board.

My point as a whole is that stagnation comes with a lack of true variety, and is a better building point than looking to knock down anything that's too strong or replace what was previously the best. Having options is always more fun.

Also yea, for arcane gems, I think leaning into covering more options for players is a good path forward as well.