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Phase I of Alpha Two testing will occur on weekends. Each weekend is scheduled to start on Fridays at 10 AM PT and end on Sundays at 10 PM PT. Find out more here.
Check out Alpha Two Announcements here to see the latest Alpha Two news and update notes.
Our quickest Alpha Two updates are in Discord. Testers with Alpha Two access can chat in Alpha Two channels by connecting your Discord and Intrepid accounts here.
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A fighter that can attune his skills to fire, ice, water or air .
When doing so they can use that attuned ability to strike an enemy.
When you successfully hit an enemy with it u build up a "rune" or "stack" of that type of element
It amplifies the next skill of the same element, or augmenting other elemental skills slightly.
Setup for the example:
Your dash is attuned to air
Your shieldslam is attuned to water and because of that, pushes back with a simple waterwave
Your shieldslams' "Rune" requisite is: If under the effect of a air stack, push back enemies in a cone
Example:
You dash into the enemy and it connects. you gain a "rune/stack" of air
You then follow up with a shieldslam. Instead of it just knocking back a single target with a simple waterwave,
it amps into a cone wave attack because of the air rune, pushing back the target and anyone behind him.
This consumes the air rune and gives the fighter a water rune/stack
as the class name suggests they are masters at arms and thus are able to wield many types of weapons with great efficiency and versatility and know exactly how to fight against them, with that being said i'm hoping this class will have something for every situation like a jack of all trades whilst having strong defensive options. Skills such as cripples/maims/ruptures (conditions that would go well with precise skillful attacks) for the offensive cc and defensive skills such as parries/blocks/dodges would fit very well with the theme of this class.
Rouge + summoner
Rouge + mage
Fighter + rouge
Fighter + summoner
Fighter + mage
I still have no idea which one I will choose, there seems to be so many fun combinations so I'm tbh just excited to test different things out and find what I like
I've had a good bit of fun as a fighter type, like the Armsman of DAOC, a "fighter/spell caster" type in UO, to the Warrior and Death Knight in Wow. The fighter type is where my heart is!
My hope for this class is to be able to cast spell that give my allies tank stats such as armor or magic resist. I would also hope that other elemental resistance are added so it covers all damage.
I think that the core rogue combat is agility based, more about where you hit, than how hard. Attacking from concealment, or when undetected, should be much more effective. It would be amazing to have rogue utility like finding secret doors, traps etc. I would also like to have the option to steal, rather than strong-arming.
When I double down on rogue, I imagine a major increase in burst attack, and enhanced sneaking. Poisons, to temporarily be more effective against a specific class or type with a bit of preparation, but not so easy to make that is is just constantly used. Or...maybe let me designate a specific target and be more effective against that target only.
My main focus does not lie with the healing, but rather the increase in effects such as damage done, healing recieved, attack speed increase. That's somewhat what i envision the class to be like.
Secondly, i plan to have an alt as Summoner/Cleric (Necromancer) to do some more RP in the mountains, this would be the spiritual successor to my very beloved D&D character i played for over 2 years, a fan favorite among the group.
At the moment, I will be choosing a weapon master class or some version involving fighter as my primary archetype. For weapon master I think there should be a definitive trait or attribute that set apart this class from the rest. Obviously the class can't be unbalanced but I would love to see something unique due to making a trade off by not incorporating a secondary archetype.
My ideal fighter class would have different skills for different playstyles- I really want the ability to use a one handed sword and not be outclassed by two handed or weapon and a shield player builds. Using that logic I would want players who use a weapon and shield to have some unique skills available to them etc. If the game does not limit the playstyle of preferred combat while being balanced I think it would be great! Of course each playstyle would have pros and cons but I hope there isn't a meta.
I hope that players who choose fighters (or any class) can practice and thus be rewarded for learning the mechanics of the game. For example, if I practice dodging and parrying and I developed a high skill for it, I won't want the game to limit my ability to dodge or parry for a poor reason. I'd like my fighter class to have almost of a strategic aspect in combat- maybe I can read the moves of a player, dodge the attack, and then strike my vulnerable opponent; that may be a weak example but something like that would make combat and class choice unique and rewarding. I apologize if it is hard to explain but I want fighters to have the option to be more meaningful than hack and slash haha.
I hope this helps, thank you for listening to our opinions! I am so happy to be a part of this community and I have much respect for the developers and community managers!!
In general, I'd like Bards to have more of a field commander role, because they are the most apt to traveling across the battlefield.
Also, it would make sense to make it very rythm/combo based. The more 'perfect' your moves are, the better your (de)buffs.
I'd personally see Siren as someone who has great action based hard-CC, travels to tense frontlines, debuffs and buffs to stabilize it, then back to the rear to recover a bit and get a better view, then to another front, etc.
I think it's in line with your conception, and it would finally allow me to enjoy playing bard.
Thanks for the question !
In all honesty, this dev discussion is early. We have nothing to go on for two classes (Bard and Summoner) and we have really nothing on the augments.
Probably Summoner/Bard (Enchanter), because I like standing in the backline and constantly providing support throught buffs. Also managing units, due to the summoner archetype, adds another layer of depth to the gameplay.
I hope that the summoner architype is easy to learn but hard to master, and summons dont feel clunky.
I Think that the Enchanter could have something like diffrent sprits (like one for atacking, one for defending, one for support) who work like other summons, but also have an aura giving a minor bonus to allies around them and have basic abilities for combat (example, fire atacking spirit shoots a small fire ball or support spirit gives cc imunity or reduction to an ally). Now the spirits shouldnt be very powerfull in comparison to other summons even if you take into account the minor bonuses they give to allies around them, but should have a (ultimate?") ability where they explode and give a major buff to all alies nearby for a short period of time. (Example fire atacking spirit self destructs and gives everyone higher Strenght + Inteligence and a small fire on hit buff). This way you can increase atack/defenses/utlity of your party and turn the tides of battle, but this should be combined with a internal cooldown or a very long cast time/high mana costs so you cant spam it.
Edit: I came up with some Ideas regarding the enchanter, I will try to keep it short.
1. Enchanters should use books as their summons
2. Book Ultimate Buffs dont stack and last for about 4-10 seconds depending on their lvl
3. Books should at most have weak basic atack, and only be mostly used for their aura and abilites
4. Book Ideas: Book of Fire (DMG Buff), Book of Ice (Defense Buff), Book of Nature (CC immunity/reduction), Book of Lighting (Atack Speed/CDr), , Book of Air (Stamine Regen + Movement Speed (Dodge Chance?)),
Book Atacks:
Fire - 1.Burning Dot, 2.Fireball
Ice - 1.Ice Shard, dealing dmg and having a medium chance of freezing, 2. Freezing Breath(?), Freezing enemies in a cone/area in front of it
Nature - 1.Shooting out a Root (literally), slow but aiming and with a long cc duration 2. Wall of Roots, Creating a Wall which can be destroyed by dmg and take more dmg from Fire atacks.
Wind - 1.Zephyr Fast Wind, knocking down enemies in its path 2. Air Bubble, A small shield for all nearby allies
Lightning - 1. Spark - Medium Range, Low Dmg, nearly instant interupt 2. Thunderstorm, AoE which has a chance to proc paralysis every 0,5s
The description I've read so far reminds me of the Chanter in Aion which is probably one of the best support classes ever made. It has a wide variety of support - buffs, debuffs, dps, cc, off healing, shields, etc. and some short term, some permanent. A lot of it was situational so there was no set rotation and you had to be good at making split second decisions and paying attention to everyone and everything (and occasionally coordinating things with your entire group) - even your group class makeup would often dictate what buffs you'd even use at all. It also involved the class moving between melee range to dps/debuff or backline to help the healer out. Very dynamic.
In contrast what I don't like is the more traditional Bard style support that you see in games like RIFT. Leather wearing, backline lute player who has a strict buff/heal rotation. It's boring to start off with - the boring rotational gameplay of traditional dps classes is what made me switch to healers so many years ago. But you also don't feel like your buffs/healing make any impact at all when you're just standing in the back keeping up the same tiny buffs/debuffs 100% of the time, nor do you really have any decision making skill required.
So that's what led me to Bard in this game. I suppose if I were to recreate the Chanter I'd go Bard/Fighter becasue the idea of a melee Bard in the thick of combat sounds fun, and if I can wack people with a Staff even better. But I also love magic so depending on what augments look like, Bard/Mage could be fun as well and maybe I might be in the mood for more dps so maybe the mage could help (and who doesn't like the flair of some good magic VFX). But I'm also still a huge fan of healers and the Cleric archetype of healing in general (moreso than other healing archetypes), so Bard/Cleric could have possibilities (as a life-augment focused Bard, but I have asked myself what a death-augment Bard looks like - NecroBard could be interesting!). Hard to say what I'd do with a secondary class without more details, but at least as a base Archetype the Chanter-style Bard would make me super happy.
Mention that just because each class had an ability to do damage/heal/tank didnt dismiss holy trinity+ that Rift had perfect balance of in dungeon clearing:
Tank/mage - Riftstalker (rogue/tank/magic) class in Rift was the most unusual tank that I have experienced in mmorpg games. It was a “magic” based tank that would use large low damage aoe to agro but also had an ability to teleport around the battlefield and self heal the more aoe damage done. It had a negative for missing out on deflect and wearing leather, but having strong endurance.
Cheric/Mage - Chloromancer (mage/damage/healer) class in Rift that was “the more you dps - the more you heal”. It was focused on nercomancy and healer life energy. The more dots you put on the enemy, the more aoe healing around that enemy will be provided for allies. They were mostly HoT with very little direct healing, best for large raid and pvp.
*You had to pay attention to the battle at all times due to only oh-shit heals had 2 minutes cooldown*
From what I could see right now, cleric and tank class that were presented are similar to ArcheAge system that Steven much enjoyed. I do not enjoy AA class system, it had no balance to it. There were meta-builds, and there were trash builds. There were either combinations that worked, or no synchronization between classes at all. I wouldnt say Rift did a perfect job in class balance, but they were better at balancing meta classes and trash classes to similar level.
I really wish that AoC would not only implement best of ArcheAge and SWG but also take a quick look at other mmorpg games (GW2, Rift, FF14, ESO) for insight.
I do wish that I see more unique classes instead of usual tank is heavy and just blocks with shield or healer does no damage and just heals. Having 64 combinations with magic and range classes opens a lot higher options to make each class unique even if they will not be BIS, they would be fun and enjoyable.
Edit: fixed up my bad English
I’ve gotten used to playing the traditional sword and board, hardy character who can take a hit, it’s a classic, feels powerful and generally is fun to play - however a character archetype I would love to have is a brawler-type dodge tank.
They would fight with their fists (knuckle dusters/claws/big ol’ punchers), have faster cool downs and a more mobile/aggressive play style complimented by lighter armour.
The class would have high hitpoints, a low physical but high elemental resistance, and a play style that encourages moves with a low raw damage being chained together to sustain buffs and debuffs as well as DoTs. Instead of blocking, the class would focus on not getting hit using dodge abilities.
It’s a play style I don’t get to experience too often, but is one of my favourites.
I would LOVE a healer that plays like a DPS. for instance, on a boss fight, your main focus is the boss just like any other DPS, and the damage that you deal (a small amount in comparison to DPS) heals your group. like siphoning the boss's health and spreading it to your group.
You would use combination of abilities to achieve greater heals, skill of the class comes in perfecting your combos, timing, buffs/debuffs for higher HPS/
There are never enough healers in mmo's and if people could play like a DPs, maybe they'd likely opt to heal!
Well thank you for reading. If this idea isn't perfect please - take it and mold it into something better!
Hey! what if you were a fire summoner, but a wind elemental, and you could use abilities on your pets to make combinations! (takes a note from Spellbreaker) haha
For a different archetype, I would like to see a drain tank option. Like Vladimir from League of Legends. Not necessarily tanky stats or armor, but due to healing abilities is hard to kill. I'm not sure which combination of archetypes or augments would allow for this. but it would be a really cool class.
For Tank, I plan on going Tank + Cleric (Paladin).
What I'm hoping for from this class is a very tanky character with many heals over time using the life augment and having my damage ability doing holy/corruption damage through the death augment.
For Mage, I plan on going Mage + Summoner (Warlock).
What I'm hoping for from this class is a very versatile mage that can have summons of a variety of magical spirits. What I DONT want from this class is to summon magic weapons, that should be reserved for Battle Mage or something.
For Summoner, I plan on going Summoner + Cleric (Necromancer) or Summoner + Summoner (Conjurer).
What I'm hoping for from Necromancer is the ability to turn fallen enemies into my ally and utilize their specializations. What I'm hoping for with Conjurer is to have many summons that can be controlled with a high skill ceiling. I'm also hoping that Necromancer is more damage oriented with self-healing capabilities, while Conjurer is more jack-of-all-trades that can summon the most summons.
My idea and wish is:
He supposed to be DMG Dealer with medium damage, which also so support his summon.
At the same time he should be able to steal enemy buffs. I like the idea when one of the ability/skill deal damage based on number of enemy buffs. The more buffs that enemy have, that skill/ability is able to deal more dmg.
There is small inspiration from Aion - Summoner.
This Skill was my favorite across others MMORPG
A follow up idea to this would be the option to augment whatever class I'm playing with an in-world earned disease or subclass. For example, Vampirism and Lycanthropy. There are more out there, but in my experience players being able to have optional choices to become more like monsters in the world adds a whole different sense of immersion. Not to just combat either, but to the world and lore within it and the stories that take place.
Many games have successfully given me this and maintaining balance by having having lower impact moments that are required to build to a powerful climatic moment.
Playing a Demon Hunter in WoW does that pretty well with letting you have fun and focus on staying mobile and biding your time until you unleash something like an empowered eye beam to do big damage.
Likewise, playing Syndra in League of Legends you often are simply poking your enemy with your ball spawning ability, but always staying mindful of how many balls you have summoned and where they are positioned... At the right ball count and proper positioning you're rewarded with the ability to do massive damage.
Playing Illidan in Heroes of the Storm, is exciting in a different way as once you commit to a fight you are rewarded for staying in the fight and applying consistent damage.
Illidan has lifesteal on attacks and lowers cooldowns of abilities per attack.
Illidan's basic abilities provide him mobility to help avoid damage and stay engaged and has an ability to allow him to briefly dodge incoming damage.
Basically I want a combat class that may not make me feel like a badass all the time, but that allows these climatic moments to be memorable.
I'm looking at perhaps a Rogue/Tank combo in Ashes with the hopes that I can have those "nitty gritty" "duke-it-out" moments that eventually lead to me being able to unleash a combo at an opportune moment to get a great feeling payoff.