Ok, finding a perfect ring is hard (usually all in the stat you want, +6% dmg, +41 dmg). However, this is MUCH harder as a mage. Why?

Fighters can find both melee damage and slash/pierce/crush damage (depending on weapon).
Rangers can find both ranged damage and piercing damage.
Mages are left to elemental damage alone.

So fighters/rangers have a much wider selection which makes it unfair. So I suggest you introduce an equivalent to ranged/melee damage option. A 'magic damage per second' option, increasing all elements by said amount.

"They" have it, now we want it!

well said, I agree with you a full 110%

I don't think that it is a fair comparison. If a Ranger using a crossbow finds a 107/6/41 Slashing ring switching to a shotgun is not exactly easily done. Same goes for Warrior and mage if you find a +element ring that you are not using. So in that regard they all are at a disadvantage.

But the +melee and +ranged still only gives more power to physical attack; maybe butcher and cleave get a small boost (has anybody tested this?), but no other skills that I can think of off the top of my head.

Adding +x% or +damage to magic damage would be overpowered IMO. It would add that percentage or straight damage to all elements, and basically buff the entire bar of a pure magic caster. You could amass all +magic damage gear and then go shadow lightning, ice shards, gaseous blast, etc and you get the best of all worlds. I don't see a comparable advantage to +melee and +ranged items. Think about what this will do to PvP also.



Edited by Falcheon (08/05/07 09:38 PM)

No comparison? A fighter with a full +melee gear can switch weapon whenever he want. From a slashing Death by the Slice, to a piercing Giant Spork, to a crushing Warhammer. That is the equivalent of going from fire bolt to shadow lightning to ice shards. You know, you only use one element at a time anyway when attacking with bolts.

Ok, for the above to be true let's nerf it a bit so it only applys to 'mage elements', that is ice, fire and shadow. Then it's exactly like +melee/ranged.

Yes but the fighter can't hot switch between them like a mage would be able to with the skills. And +melee doesn't apply to fighter or ranger skills (especially since INT affects divine and poison). If there was an alternate weapon slot where you could press a button and have a 2nd set of weapons out then I might agree with you more, but the way it is now I just think that the benefit from +melee would be lower than from +magic buffs. If they included such a thing then I hope they would make skills like poison shot and the divine attacks for warrior dependent on the usual ranger/warrior stats, not INT.

The main concern I have now is that +% to element applies to element on weapon attack. So if + Magic applies to multiple elements, then it would be possible to buff up 3 elements on weapon strike with a single set of equipment. I'm trying to make such a build now for fun, so it wouldn't bother me if they did it; but I'm trying to think of balancing issues.

I'm also concerned about how overpowered this will be for PvP. Obviously it doesn't matter too much for PvE because it doesn't make a difference to player 1 how much faster player 2 kills a boss. But we don't know how powerful a mage will be yet or whether or not we will be able to switch equipment mid-fight.



Edited by Falcheon (08/08/07 01:34 PM)

PVP will be balanced differently than PVE for many skills and attack modifiers. If they did this it would be another that they would have to take a look at.