Sunday, July 11, 2010

Panic in Lion's Arch

This weekend went from cussing A'net for putting in such as a difficult final quest to end the 'War in Kryta', to enthusing about the finale when I eventually got it done. On Friday, lag made it unplayable, Saturday tried to pug with another person, no good. Tried on my own with several builds and hero set-ups, even tried 'tanking' and bonding which is not really something I know how to do well on my warrior. In the end settled for a Barrage/SY! bar, because the mission is all about AOE, the alternative is build a wall of minions and spirits. There is certainly an epic feel to the encounter, standing on a hill behind barricades, firing upon hordes of enemies. In the end the toughness made the reward all the sweeter.

Special mention goes to 'Panic', this is the mesmer spell that got buffed the last big update, and it is amazing for this mission. The fun of turning the White Mantle and mursaat into a bunch of panicky idiots is immense, only moments after them walking into Lion's Arch confident of victory. Created a mesmer recently and fully intend to make it the elite when I get up to level cap. It could be considered overpowered but it only works best when mobs bunch up together. '!!' '!!'

I wonder about it though, this is the kind of skill that hints a lot towards the sequel. Going on the roles they released last week, this skill is control, but with great potential to prevent a lot of damage taken by allies. Initial thoughts about those roles were that they were replacing one trinity with another but have reconsidered since then; preventing damage taken by allies and preventing foes dealing damage are two sides of the same coin, thus control and support tend to blend together, with damage falling by the side as something you just need enough or of a certain type. The system as outlined is all about giving all classes the tools to be able to work together and coordinate their efforts for greater effect. I don't see anything to be worried about in this, it is a good thing. The argument could be made that the classes would become indistinct, but so what, if they have a distinct style and feel. Artificial differences between classes is an out-dated notion, as an adventurer needs be a adaptable if they are to make it anywhere in the world.

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