On Thu, 30 Mar 2000, Sylly Songsynger wrote:
> >
> > You don't understand. I've already done all that, made those
> > decisions and adjustments countless times, and figured out
> > near-optimal solutions. Starting a twink would just be
> > treading the same ground.
>
> You have played to 50 on PvP? Your enchanter is 50?
PvP doesn't appeal to me in this type of game. Presumably you
want player versus player conflict to determine who is the
better player. The best way to do that is to have everyone
play exactly the same character with exactly the same
equipment. Or different characters/equipment that are
perfectly balanced with each other (which isn't the case in EQ
nor UO). To me, it's pointless to PvP in a game where someone
in in full planes gear can kill someone naked trying to get
back to his corpse.
> > I'm for the
> > most part unable to do any of the things that made the bard
> > fun in the mid-levels.
>
> Hmm, how many deaths would it take for you to get back to level 26? Heh.
> You'd have some nice armor and items and a lot of useless songs. But then
> they seem to be pretty useless to you now?
Like I said, I've already done all that. I don't want to do
it all again. I want different challenges that require me to
figure out different solutions. Why Verant wants the nature
of this class to change so much as you level is puzzling to
me.
> > (I'd say more, but then this would
> > turn into a gripe against level and class based systems...)
>
> When you opened the box, they kinda described this (the class and level
> system) did they not? It's not something they changed in the past year is
> it? And its not anything they plan on changing.
My gripe would've been about how easy it is to screw up level
and class based systems in this manner. Yes I knew it was a
level/class based game when I bought it. Properly done, or
even decently done, it's not too much of a problem. But it's
easy to screw it up big time, which is what I think Verant has
done with bards at high level (though not necessarily
intentionally).
> I guess alot of people who focus on the get next level aspect feel the level
> 50 dissappointment. Unless you have a very active guild, or are really into
I am not disappointed at reaching level 50. I am disappointed
that:
- I cannot charm anymore.
- I cannot (practically) mez anymore.
- The damage shield songs do not keep pace with my healing,
making it for the most part pointless to use them.
- My party buffs are not as good as I'd originally believed
(would've changed a lot of song strategy early on if I'd
known this).
- My main form of offense is now equipping my lute and singing
songs, leaving me no new weapons to seek, no decisions to
make about which weapon to use.
- Resist songs are of specialized use because their
effectiveness scales logarithmically - once you get close to
100 with normal equipment and spells, there's not much need
for more.
Strategy lately has boiled down to Hymn+Niv's+CoC+CoD.
Facing multiple mobs? Hymn+Niv's+CoC+CoD. Grouped with
tanks? Hymn+Niv's+CoC+CoD. Grouped with a healer?
Hymn+Niv's+CoC+CoD. Grouped with casters?
Hymn+Niv's+CoC+CoD. I could use other songs to spice things
up, but I'd still know in the back of my mind that this combo
is almost always the most effective at killing mobs.
Can you understand how boring this is for someone who lived
off of trying to figure out what worked best in what
situation? This is why I didn't want to play a warrior (tank,
taunt) or wizard (root, stun, nuke, med) - they are so
one-dimensional. Now I find that high level bards approach
the same level of one-dimensionality. Ugh.
> that magic number. On one hand, I am focusing all my
> attention on getting the big 50. On the other hand I am
> wondering why? And an expansion with every level a hell
> level? Hmm not very apealling thought. [...] more people
> interaction to have that. So, far 90% of this game is you
> vs NPC's in endless hours of boredom - all for the sake of
> filling the yellow bard and making a ding. And you do it
> because its there. bcause your friends are doing it. "Loot
> does not matter." "Exp & Leveling dont matter" ROFLOL!
> Thats all that matters.
Level and loot do not matter to me, aside from getting a new
song or weapon to give me more options to play around with.
What matters to me is having fun figuring out how stuff works
so I can do it better.
In fact, that's a good way of thinking of it. What I found
appealing about the bard was that we had so many different
ways of dealing with a situation. I could spend days trying
the same thing over and over with slightly different
strategies to see which worked better. But since about L42+,
contrary to what you'd expect, having more songs does *not*
translate into having more options. Due to Verant's
(mis)implementation of song scaling with level, it's actually
led to fewer options. I have an easier time now deciding what
8 songs to load than I did back in my 30s.
For planes trips, I've pretty much resorted to playing
tactical back-seat driver for the person(s) running things;
offering suggestions, critiqueing decisions, offering my
analytical opinion on what went wrong/went right. Because the
bard class doesn't let me do this type of thing anymore.
--
John H. Kim
kim@...