Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!
For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.
You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!
For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.
You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Comments
How do you feel about the synergy between archetypes and status conditions?
i really like the idea of classes being able to synergize with each other. I like the idea of being able to stun/freeze/slow and to follow up with an attack for extra affect or bonus damage. however i dont think synergizing should be everything. An idea that came to mind when watching was having a support variant all about buffing. allowing the support to further capitalize with other classes. IE, you could buff an archers arrows or instead of healing you buff the tank to heal on damage done. you could apply a hp + mana over time buff but when applied together it would reduced the effectiveness.
Do you think party composition should amplify the meta?
Like some other comments have stated players will always find what works best. I think this should be allowed to a good potential but not to the point of making a class undesirable or by making groups 100% look for synergism. With having 64 classes comes so many possibilities and with talents that increases so much more. So maybe making things constantly changing/adapting. Watch what players do and make changes accordingly. Maybe the monsters "learn" and they no longer stay so heavily grouped or will actively avoid it or they could have other mobs dispel/buff each other.
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
I really like the idea. Like hey if i have a shield i want to be able to use it and not just in a minimal sort of way i think it should definitely be viable depending on class build. Maybe add different affects like heals/Dmg etc. A lot of MMOs have shields but they aren't used and in the case of the cleric or support role maybe i can shield bash an enemy to stun or silence.
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
Obviously its a work in progress but personally i like the idea of being able to customize my UI. Being able to change colors of Hp/mana bars and layout. however i don't think there should be too many options like being able to add so many hotbars that may give an advantage. Being able to see when other players are healing the same target in some sort of way would be nice as well.
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
With there being so many classes im sure this is probably addressed. But both allowing for a "heal Bot" build as well as a more active support build would be very nice. I love the flashy abilities as well for any class that uses spells. the only concern for me would be having the shield and not using it for anything more than blocking the occasional damage.
Thanks for reading.
I like it a lot, it's a very smart, fun, and rewarding idea.
Do you think party composition should amplify the meta?
Yes. I think party comp should be very important. I think it would be fun for certain classes to have stronger potential synergy if they're spec'd for it.
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
I like it, as it would provide a defensive in PvP (with a limit). And one of the concerns I have is that gameplay will be too fast and people will get blown up too quickly. I also think a passive block mechanic on top of that would be fine, too. I think players who want a more defensive/tankier/durable build should be able to create it.
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
I like the hotbar. I appreciate that it doesn't take up too much of the screen like in WoW, for example. Party looks good, but both party and icons need better resolution, and icons need better design. Targeting could use improvement, but I'm not sure how specifically at this time.
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
I thought the cleric design mechanically was very good from what I saw, and weapons also. It excites me for what else we're going to see from other archetypes.
If you chose Fighter or Tank as an archetype, great, you should have blocking as part of your playstyle, but I don't want it for the other 6.
(When the class doesn't include Fighter or Tank.)
I can see an argument for Rogue, that's fine too, although IMO it should just be for Rogue/Fighter or Rogue/Tank.
I don't feel like my Rogue/Mage (etc) should be worrying about active blocking.
I love status effects being tied to Archetypes or Classes (signatures) but I definitely DON'T want them to be combo situations between classes in a party. (Synergy--yes. Combo--No.)
Rift had that, it didn't work, and I personally hated it.
How do you feel about the synergy between archetypes and status conditions?
It's a start.
Do you think party composition should amplify the meta?
What do you mean by this? Do you mean there should a perfect composition that dictates the meta? If that is the case, absolutely no.
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
It's a start.
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
Minimalist UI is the best UI.
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
Lack of art continuity in the classes, the class abilities look out of place compared to the rest of the game.
In general, the cleric looked stunted overall. Not sure if it's because of the low level. I assume the cleric would become more fluid at higher levels. The issue remains the basic attacks which I imagine won't change at higher levels.
These aspects are good in isolation but the combined treble will make the cleric too slow in pvp.
While i think party composition is very important, punishing non-full parties is not a good idea. Because of the nature of games, most friend groups are composed of about 4 people, so that should be enough to be successful during exploration. Suggesting players to bring more men is acceptable, while punishing those who don't, not so much;
How do you feel about the synergy between archetypes and status conditions?
I think being able to do combos gives the players that wow factor that make them feel cool. But using just a single ability shouldn't be useless when not synergized (and that doesn't seem to be the case so far);
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
Universal blocking should be an option, but blocking with a Shield or with a Tank should be more rewarding. One thing you mentioned was the Parry action, which should NOT be universal. A mage parrying a fighters attack just doesn't make sense;
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
This is the reason i wanted to post. As a support main, i find that many MMOs have the whole party's health and general stats in one of the corners of the screen. Since it shows you how the whole party is doing, that is extremely helpful. However, i find that it makes the support player more focused on what's in the corner of the screen than what's happenning overall. One solution i could suggest is having a tiny health bar under every seen player. You could even have this as just a toggleable option, but it would help immensly.
Also i love the icons for the classes, but if there's some people using the same class in a party, it's going to get confusing. So i'd either go the classic MMO style of having the character portrait there, or make it a customizable icon (even just being able to customize the color would help);
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
One thing i love to have as a healer in games is an ability that heals me when i heal allies.
Something i'm just a little bit concerned about is that from what i've seen, the clerics abilities don't change when you have a weapon or a staff, so i just don't see the point of the latter. I think having the staff should amplify some abilities or at least add some kind of bonus effect to them;
I think judgement could act like a lance like Priest of Mitra from Age of Conan if you don't want dual targeting. The lance would heal players in between the healer and target. Though I believe dual targeting would be better placed to make the best cleric possible. More convictions can be earnt, more damage can be added and the heals can be balanced. I think though that dual targeting should not be appliable to the cleric itself but for the allies. Therefore, cleric secondary would be the main source of self heals for a cleric rather than the dual targeting system from Warhanmer Online.
Edit: of course, specific skills can heal the cleric like castigation. The cleric can also select themselves to heal but self selection would clear allied and enemy targeting.
How do you feel about the synergy between archetypes and status conditions?
I like any interplay that rewards class diversity in play and coordination or consistency in play (I think both are key to allow for and not strictly one or the other.)
Do you think party composition should amplify the meta?
See prior answer. I think people combining abilities within a certain timeframe and having different classes interact in a meaningful way is good. I do feel too tight a timeframe for coordination can create the opposite results (where people dislike grouping with a class because of a high expectation) so this should be measured in how it is implemented.
I hope this interplay also continues in terms of QoL buffs classes can share with one another (think utility each class brings for another to compliment play together.)
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
That requires playtesting. Stamina bars I think could be useful to create more engaging play. I have always felt dodging and blocking sharing a resource should not be the case so the choice is compelling but I have a feeling that is a nightmare to balance potentially so it currently doesn't exist.
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
I prefer more contemporary looks and have health bars confer info in a concise way. The modern design with class colors in wow for example, grid, etc. are all examples of what I like. Think of the ui as a place to confer info rather than simply to see health. I want a heat map and not just a bar. As much as you can convey in a concise and sleek fashion has always been what I enjoy as a healer of more than 10+ years in mmos.
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
Yes! I really don't like as a healer being forced into a trope of D&D cleric. I like the choice of being a bit tankier or caster in nature to be a compelling choice. I realize convention on which this game is rooted lends more to heavy armor clerics but I want there to be room to be a wizard of holy men where I work magic, I'm elegant, I'm not designed to be in the fray just like a wizard, and I play differently because of it. That being said, we really didn't dive into that part so it is possible you have a plan for it.
My biggest concern is that it is equally viable and not just possible.
I rather like the system around it. The synergy works and has lots of room for options across the class choice, religion, school etc. regardless of pvp or pve content.
Hope there is some sort of diminishing return or debuff around hard cc for pvp to prevent stun-locked pvp. This also got me thinking about AOE vs Cleave. Target limitations for both beneficial and harmful abilities/status effects. Being stun locked for too long just isn't fun for anyone haha especially with siege raining down.
Do you think party composition should amplify the meta?
I like the idea around types having beneficial counters per se as shown.
What are your thoughts regarding the active blocking shown during the November Update?
IMO, allows for more immersive class design and gameplay.
Share your thoughts about the hotbar, icons, minimap, party and targeting UI shown.
I like the simplicity of it so far. Clean UI > crowded UI.
Is there anything in particular you’re excited or concerned about regarding what was shown with the Cleric update and weapons demo?
I like how monsters/mobs/creature act more to their fantasy nature in games.
Using zombies as an example:
is there lunar events that cause them to become enraged?
will we see variants that interact hierarchically by having juggernauts, screamers, spiders, bloater variants.
It's the "little" details in games that really make it that much better. Even an open world dungeon or raid, setting a zombie trap could be really cool depending on dungeon/biome/zone etc. maybe tombs, crypts, sinister things.
With how there was talks of giants being used in sieges for battering rams or grab on to the wall with a stair case or ladder attached, you want to see them actually perform the action and not something in between.
Tangential there, but hey
So I noticed in the Tank livestream that the Cleric's abilities were at least more noticeable so that was nice to see. I noticed the visual effects as well as the sound effects much more than I did in the Cleric stream.