Since the thing is bugged badly enough that it can't go live (or at least, due to the stuck song problem,
can't stay live, I don't have enough faith in Verant to assume that they won't put this into production as
is), we don't really know what they intend here. But I assume that they are attempting to "fix" the
"exploits" that exist when a Bard turns on a song and leaves the computer. If this is the case, it is yet
another utterly boneheaded modification to the class that completely ignores game mechanics in general and
Bard mechanics in specific.
If an Enchanter casts Clarity on a party, he can sit down to med, and then go smoke a cigarette, or make
lunch, or go to the bathroom, or take a quick trip to the hardware store. When a Bard (as currently
coded) turns on Mana song, he can do the same thing. If this change goes into effect, the Enchanter can
still leave, but THE BARD CAN'T. I can just IMAGINE what my party is going to say if I turn on Mana, go
away to stretch my legs, and Mana breaks 5 seconds after I get up. The same goes for Shamans and trade
buffing (an example this poster used).
Yes, it's possible for someone to log a Bard on, turn on Mana, set him to /follow the Cleric, and have the
Cleric get a mana boost that way. But you can do THE SAME THING with an Enchanter, and you don't even
have to split experience with him! You can do the same thing with ANY buffing class.
Hell, I've been in fights where the Warriors turned on autoattack and then said "AFK"!
In fact, the ONLY thing this really ends up correcting for is parking a Bard in a corner to get instrument
skills up. But I would wager quite a bit of money that there isn't a single Bard on any server who has,
for example, maxed Brass Instruments skill through normal usage alone. It's used too rarely, and it goes
up much too slowly. And that and wind instruments are really the only songs we would do this with.
Do Bards LEVEL too fast?
This doesn't begin to address what happens when you arbitrarily break group invis (even if the Bard is AT
the keyboard) - you're all visible, and often dead; or levitation (same thing) - you all plummet to the
ground; or the level 51 travel song (same thing) - you're all visible AND you plummet to the ground; or
underwater breathing (you have about 30 seconds here) - you all drown. What a nifty way to render 4 songs
utterly useless in one fell swoop.
The US Department of Labor says that you should take a break from your computer at least once every half
hour or risk serious health complications. If they really make this change, we're tied to our computer
for the entire time we're playing this game.
Much as I gripe sometimes about their incompentent balancing with regards to Bards, I still like the
class, and I hate to have to switch to something else. Their "play another class" response is really
bogus when it takes 40 played days to get a character to a high enough level for me to do things with my
quasi-uber-guild.
I really don't know what I'm going to do if they make a change like this. I really can't see continuing
to play my Bard. And I'm not thrilled with the idea of having to level something else.
If they do this, it may be time to quit. If I don't get myself banned.
Kenross Cantoforjado, 54 songs, Innoruuk
"Kimes, Dean W." wrote:
> Of course this will make Aria and Clouding instant death songs in many
> situations. I'm hoping this is a bug and not a change or I will be done,
> trade skill changes or not. Maybe I won't uncancel my account next week
> after all, sigh.
>
> Kit
>
> I just came across this thread in whineplay, which I think all of you should
> take a look at. Evidently there has been a change to the mechanics of bard
> song on Test:
>
> http://boards.station.sony.com/everquest/Forum2/HTML/027490.html
>
> It appears that this change is to keep us from indefinitely playing a song
> while AFK. The message received is evidently "Your song ends abruptly", and
> has a chance of occuring on every pulse. Once again, Verant seems to be
> putting the screws to us. We can't take a break at all from the keyboard if
> we want to keep two songs up, now I have to stay at the keyboard to keep one
> song up as well. I guess bards dont need bathroom breaks.
>
> All this will do is encourage more use of a macroed gamepad.
>
> Lago Bardoon of Bertoxx, 48th Composition, Defenders of Aleria
>
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