This doesn't QUITE clarify enough,
@Vaknar, so if SOMEHOW you have just ONE more answer from Steven it would help, especially if y'all aren't planning to make a whole specific post about it (someone else surely will, might be me).
I just want to know if we can interpret this part EXACTLY AS WRITTEN.
Abilities with CC effects do not apply to non-combatants. The target of a cc ability must be flagged in order to suffer the CC effects. This prevents players from opening attacks that stun players during a pull for example.
I think the most reasonable way to interpret this is:
"If your ability does only CC, it cannot affect non-combatants. If it does damage and CC, it can do the damage but the CC will not function."
However I can see an interpretation that is:
"If your ability does only CC, it cannot affect non-combatants. If it does damage and CC, it will not do the damage and the CC will not function."
Which, to me, are very different things, and I feel it would be counterproductive to make a whole post just 'discussing which of them is more likely', so IF this is a decided factor, or even if 'it differs by ability', we might be able to have a much more productive conversation on it.
Thanks as always.
My. Interpretation is this - if ability has a CC effect, it just doesn't start to cast.
That could limit a LOT of the potential CC effect types in the game, and reduce the complexity of the game as a whole, if it was true.
It also wouldn't matter if there were such a thing as a ground template CC. If I augmented my Hallowed Ground to also slow enemies in the radius and explicitly cast it as 'Full flagged, hits all Greens it touches', I want it to slow them, but you also can't 'control whether or not I'm allowed to cast it' as easily.
Of your various interpretations, which do you feel would be best for Ashes of Creation and why? 🤔
So, to answer the quote.
I think it's best if the CC effect doesn't happen but the damage still does, and Intrepid can even clarify which CCs still work and which don't (there's already some implications about Hard and Soft CC).
I wouldn't like it to be 'by ability', I don't feel this would fit Ashes for multiple reasons related to both build viability and just general game understanding, especially if ANY ability can 'receive a CC augment' from ANY Secondary Archetype. This could also be very precisely curated, but I feel like 'blanket points of understanding' are better for games with great depth.
I personally don't like the approach at all, as noted in the other thread, I'd prefer something closer to Lucky Ghost's suggestion, but this IS quite a bit more code, and starts to get into the weeds. My own 'simulation tests' of a related system led to a lot more complexity than Ashes seems to want.
Therefore, within the realm of just 'should Damage+CC abilities get their damage part', I say 'let 'em'.
@Okeydoke brought up the very real problem of 'Green can fight Red without any CC happening'. I don't have a strong negative or positive opinion on this EXCEPT if Red loses access to entire potentially damaging abilities, or abilities that might do things like 'CC opponent while offering Mobility', in the case of another interpretation where you just can't target it.
But with a Hybrid Targeting system I don't expect it to come up, so yeah, my 'vote' is 'let the Damage rock, it's probably easy to turn off the CC aspect anyway'.
