How to balance tab vs action abilities

Potato Basket

Do you think this could work?

Risk vs reward principle should apply to combat

Tab target abilities = team effort = coordination
Action abilities = individual effort = skill

Tab targeting requires less aiming skills so there's no risk involved since you virtually can't miss, therefore the reward should be proportional.

Meaning the effectiveness of the individual should be lessened but compensated with the help of others as a group which should require coordination.

In comparison to action abilities it's the opposite.
Since the risk of missing your ability has punishing consequences and hitting the mark requires skill, the effect should be more significant and rewarding.

Let's take healing as an example

If Healing a target with an action ability should heal with 100% effectiveness
The same ability but as a tab targeting should heal with less % effectiveness, let's say 30%.

Bottom line is what players can't achieve with skill they can compensate with numbers; more players.

I believe this also works in scale.
Based on A1, In large scale battles it's harder and less likely to rely on action abilities therefore the majority will use tab targeting which should be coordinated to be effective.
So numbers do the talking.

On a smaller scale, action abilities are more viable so skill should do the talking.

Just an idea I thought would be interesting to discuss

No hard feelings
Have fun 😊

Noaani

Potato Basket wrote: »

Tab targeting requires less aiming skills so there's no risk involved since you virtually can't miss, therefore the reward should be proportional.

While tab target games do not require aiming, if the game is created properly, they require skills that action combat doesnt require.

Also, tab target games put a lot of emphasis on gearing up your character, so the only way your suggestion would be viable is if gear boosted tab target performance, but not action - or at least not as much (the same ratio as the loss in effectiveness tab loses in your sugestion).

You then have the additional issue of active defense against a tab target attack - in your scenario, even if a player dodges out of the way, the attack should hit them. You cant say "your abilities always hit and so do less damage" unless those abilities do indeed always hit.

All up, it just isnt an appropriate way to implement hybrid combat.