The Problem of Being a Warlock

I love my warlock.  I really, really do.  If I didn’t, I wouldn’t PLAY him … I do kind of actually like the fact that I am a volatile magic using class that spikes high damage and brings a lot of chaos to the party … it’s a real kick, honestly.

Sometimes.

Other times … read on …

I can quote something that was said to me directly the other day, in Najena’s Hollow Tower (where nearly every encounter is linked):

“Stop using AE.”

And that was coming from an SK.

In an isntance that seems almost tailored for warlocks, I’m not allowed to shine.  Becuase the tank either can’t handle it, or, just as bad, doesn’t WANT to put forth the EFFORT to handle it (this is more commonly the case, although it’s no less a problem, becuase it perpetuates the perception that warlocks are volatile and therefore undesirable - when the fact of the matter is that it’s actually a combination of strange aggro mechanics adding 20% extra hate to the encounter on TOP of lazy tanks who are stuck in the “single target burn” method).

And this is by no means uncommon.  I get it all the time.  I get turned down from groups becuase it’s less “headache” for a tank to handle, say, a brigand’s or an assassin’s aggro than it is for them to handle MY aggro.  (Even when I parse 2nd or 3rd behind said classes and yet somehow die first, which is also not uncommon!)

I wish I had some constructive suggestion — but as it is, we have an open admittance from a developer that there is indeed an aggro mechanic which causes linked encounters to ’spread’ hate to their buddies, which of course means that on top of our already high AE damage nukes, we get even more hate on us because they talk to one another … and until that is just FIXED or CHANGED … our situation will not change, much.  The better gear we get the more damage we put out, the more hate we create with NO means of getting rid of it on any relative level.  Even with my weapon proccing a 12% chance to reduce my hate by 1, and using vulian, concussive, AND bewildrement REGULARLY … it just doesn’t matter.  My hate FAR, FAR exceeds any amount of de-aggro I may have.

In RAIDS this is not so much a problem.  I rarely rip on raids (COMPARATIVLEY SPEAKING), and can usually parse between 2nd and 5th (nowhere near any assassin, however, but that’s fine — they are what they are and I’d rather compete for the 2 – 5 slots than feel bad because one class parses triple what I parse, that’s just an obvious overpowering, and since it hasn’t been fixed yet I don’t ever expect it will be, and that’s just how it’s going to be, so).

But in INSTANCES … thats another story.  De-aggro or not, the ONLY way to NOT die is too purely throttle my output to such a point that people assume I am ‘not trying’ or ‘can’t play’ — neither of which is true – but my god, when I DO try, I not only die nearly instantly, I run the risk of wiping the group on top of it becuase most of the time unexpreienced tanks (who leveld from 1-70 in 2 weeks) can’t gain aggro once they lose it.

And THAT is the PROBLEM of being a warlock!

Ara

Creating a Sense of “the New” in an Old Game

How does one go about creating a sense of the new, in an old game?

It’s a question which surely plagues developers as their game ages.  Case-in-point: the recent controversy surrounding the EQ2 developer team’s choices to rename spell and combat art lines, consolidate upgrade paths, and potentially revamp several classes’ lore, roles, and themes in the process.  (Or so it would seem.)

The heart of the matter is that, in an aging game, there is always a need for “new” that has to be finely balanced against the desire to hold onto “the old” — in this case, the old being the tried-and-true gameplay elements that we have come to know as long-time players.  The new, then, is a notion that a game should try to re-capture, as often as possible, that sense of wonder and exploration that existed for us when we very first logged in and had no expectations whatsoever.

Think about the first time you logged into an MMO.  Were you nervous?  Giddy?  Excited?  All of the above, most likely.  I know that when I first logged into EQ2, I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Would I be killed right off the bat and called a noob by the more experienced players?  (Thankfully no, what I found was a lot of people just like me, exploring the world for the first time, asking questions, and banding together to help one another figure everything out, and I was hooked from then on.)

How does a game recapture those early sentiments, though?

Revamping things like the UI, and other cosmetic elements, graphical engine upgrades and the like, only go so far.  Releasing expansions with new content?  Good – but to be expected.  How about the heart of the matter: the gameplay systems, themselves.  Who should determine these things?  Are players truly happy when the things they love are changed after 4 or 5 years in use?  Some of them (myself included) look forward to such changes, eagerly, not only as a means to improvement, but also, becuase it’s FUN to speculate, and it can be FUN to learn new things, too.  The human brain needs constant challenge and stimulation — you don’t need a degree to know that, not if you are a living person walking this earth.

On the flip-side, though, how far is too far?  When do you risk revamping certain elements to the point where the original objectives in their creation become obscured?  These questions also have to be considered.

For the Record

For the record, I think the new initiative to re-name spell lines and consolidate the way spells are upgraded / gained is a GREAT one!

Just saying.

I see a lot of dissent on the forums, but truthfully, the current system IS bloated and extremely confusing.  I learned this first-hand over the past two weeks as I was helping an RL friend learn the game … and I was reminded how much I, as a long-time player, take for granted.

So, this is a GOOD change.

(And so was the fighter revamp, but too bad about that.  Just saying.)

Calling all Warlocks!

Go vote for our new spell names right now!

For anyone else reading this, there is a poll set up for each class, so go vote for your favorite spell names, too!