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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.
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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.
On nerfing Resonance...again
MissionCreep
Member, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One, Alpha Two, Early Alpha Two
The first nerf was fine, that was lowering numbers: standard balance tuning that changed how powerful Bard could be when played.
This second nerf is to tell players how bard SHOULD BE PLAYED.
First of all, that's not cool.
Second of all, that's extra bad for the Bard who is the 2nd most versatile class in AOC. They have 2 gimmicks: mana regen and versatility. Eating into those (versatility) is a very existential proposition for the bard.
So now Intrepid don't want you being weapon-based (even though they added Resonance to get us to use weapons in the first place?). They want you to spam spells now if you want to rely on auto-attack (or manual attack if you're into that). I'm not saying button-mashing--obviously there is skill involved.
But they don't want you building around your weapon anymore.
Two things conspire to make the Bard's life miserable here, aside from the lost agency:
1) Obviously lots of spells = lots of mana
2) Bard abilities get more expensive as they level, even though they don't necessarily get more powerful. (It's based off your level not your Power) Maybe this is true for all classes but I don't play other classes in A2.
So since you are now a mana sieve:
1) You must select the Weapon proc for Mana (Refreshing something) and even that is only possible at 8th level with the weapon, so this reduces experimentation or changing weapons. Not impossible, it just makes it much more unlikely that you will switch. You'd have to chill out until gaining those 8 weapon levels.
1a) Possibly/probably selecting that proc for BOTH weapons
2) Or you have to run the Pensive Melody at all times in combat and drop the other 3 Melodies completely (4 if there's anyone who actually runs Epic Melody in combat). Less viable options is bad for any class, but as mentioned, I find it existential for the Bard.
3) Implement a combination of both, depending on build.
Meanwhile if you are in a group your companions are saying BARD DO PURPLE BUFF PLZ so it's not like you are ever casting Hymn on yourself.
Literally no one--not one person--in this game wants us to group for DPS, so why worry about our DPS if it's not higher than Mage and Ranger and Fighter and if it's not upsetting PVP balance? I have no problem with dumping DPS to Tank/Cleric levels. By all means!
Likewise with Healing. We don't want to upstage Cleric; I get that and support that 100%. We should be maybe half as good as them? Still very useful Healers but not a full replacement.
This second nerf is to tell players how bard SHOULD BE PLAYED.
First of all, that's not cool.
Second of all, that's extra bad for the Bard who is the 2nd most versatile class in AOC. They have 2 gimmicks: mana regen and versatility. Eating into those (versatility) is a very existential proposition for the bard.
So now Intrepid don't want you being weapon-based (even though they added Resonance to get us to use weapons in the first place?). They want you to spam spells now if you want to rely on auto-attack (or manual attack if you're into that). I'm not saying button-mashing--obviously there is skill involved.
But they don't want you building around your weapon anymore.
Two things conspire to make the Bard's life miserable here, aside from the lost agency:
1) Obviously lots of spells = lots of mana
2) Bard abilities get more expensive as they level, even though they don't necessarily get more powerful. (It's based off your level not your Power) Maybe this is true for all classes but I don't play other classes in A2.
So since you are now a mana sieve:
1) You must select the Weapon proc for Mana (Refreshing something) and even that is only possible at 8th level with the weapon, so this reduces experimentation or changing weapons. Not impossible, it just makes it much more unlikely that you will switch. You'd have to chill out until gaining those 8 weapon levels.
1a) Possibly/probably selecting that proc for BOTH weapons
2) Or you have to run the Pensive Melody at all times in combat and drop the other 3 Melodies completely (4 if there's anyone who actually runs Epic Melody in combat). Less viable options is bad for any class, but as mentioned, I find it existential for the Bard.
3) Implement a combination of both, depending on build.
Meanwhile if you are in a group your companions are saying BARD DO PURPLE BUFF PLZ so it's not like you are ever casting Hymn on yourself.
Literally no one--not one person--in this game wants us to group for DPS, so why worry about our DPS if it's not higher than Mage and Ranger and Fighter and if it's not upsetting PVP balance? I have no problem with dumping DPS to Tank/Cleric levels. By all means!
Likewise with Healing. We don't want to upstage Cleric; I get that and support that 100%. We should be maybe half as good as them? Still very useful Healers but not a full replacement.
4
Comments
More variety of building class, better in the long run, as it allows more replayability on that specific character. Also that freedom to focus dps over support or tank abilities and vice versa, should be a cornerstone of those extended 64 classes we are yet to see.
We know that Steven want players to have the freedom to build hybrid classes and as he said "flirt with the role lines", so I hope that philosophy is going to be reflected in the game.
Blown past falling sands…
Per this patch, Bards are now mages, full stop. I have zero points in a wand or book, for one, and I don't have time to build and end finishers anymore. It's hectic spellcasting to maintain stacks, throwing anything in as soon as it comes off cd, wasting my shields and my out of jail card... which is possible, but feels terrible.
I switched to Cleric now, which feels so much better. I do hope they don't do to Cleric what they did to Bard, though.
Try playing the changes before you critique it.
Honestly I find keeping the party's mana up easier and I'm better able to swap between Malevolent melody and Pensive melody more often when the party's got full mana. And I absolutely 100% of the time am front-line support getting in there with my greatsword unless we are fighting enemies where I don't feel safe even with Shielding Dance on standby, when I'm using a shortbow.
Don't forget to run a skill that give you mystery if you are the party's primary mana source
I guess the answer is 'git good'. I'm not even that good of a gamer, but I found these changes to be more positive than negative.
Quick wit builds stacks.... You can still auto attack as long as you are using quick wit on cooldown and maybe throw a dance down every so often (for me that's shielding dance since I'm usually on the front with a greatsword - looking forward to the tellsword life)
you never need to 'waste' a quick wit, since you are either topping off your tank if they are not full or you are throwing a tomato. Now that they've given us different buttons for each this is easy to do with defensive targetting set up.
You can now simply write an AHK script that pushes button 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, because it doesn't matter what you cast in which order. Target a mob, hit macro start key. Bam, you're now a bard.
Is that what people wanted?
I don't know, maybe. But then, you know, this class "isn't for me".
I guess learn to play the class (shrug). I'm on the front lines swinging my melee weapon just as much as I am casting stuff, and I can even weave between pensive and menacing while still keeping everyone's mana full even when I'm the only bard. Honestly this week's changes feel more like a buff than a nerf - you just have to be more skilled than merely 'brain-off auto attack'
Or go cleric - that works too. Maybe you'll enjoy it better. The changes made me nervous on paper but after leaning into them I'm digging it.