Lack of Ranged?

[Deleted]

Keep seeing this in chat in game. Is it worth now that the catch up is in place to switch to a range class.
Will ranged be rarer as future expansions come out, depending if a new ranged class is introduced?

[Quag]

There has not been a new ranged class introduced to the game since vanilla, where as there have been death knights, monks and demon hunters - 5 melee specs, 2 tanks and 1 healer. I'm not sure if there is currently an actual lack of ranged classes rather than people simply desiring them more for their groups. In many cases, but not all a full ranged grp is prefared over a melee centric grp for dungeons/raids.

[Lochton]

Keep seeing this in chat in game. Is it worth now that the catch up is in place to switch to a range class.
Will ranged be rarer as future expansions come out, depending if a new ranged class is introduced?

Uhm, I can't answer that, for in all the tiers I've played, there's never been a lack of ranged.

[Deleted]

Yeah, that's something I also find strange. With the removal of Survival as a ranged spec we actually have LESS ranged specs than in vanilla now. Just compare

RANGED DPS
number of specs: 11
number of classes: 6

MELEE DPS
number of specs: 13
number of classes: 9

HEAL
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 5

TANK
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 6

The only fact that makes the number of ranged specs close to the number of melee specs is that the "pure DPS" classes (mage, warlock, hunter, rogue) are mostly ranged (8:4 in number of specs, 9:3 before legion).

It is especially the "hybrid" classes (that can also be tank or heal) where melee specs are overrepresented (only 3 ranged dps among hybrids but 10 melee dps), especially the combination of ranged dps and tank spec is too rare (only druids can do it). Imo they should have made Demo Warlock a tank spec.

[Deleted]

Yeah, that's something I also find strange. With the removal of Survival as a ranged spec we actually have LESS ranged specs than in vanilla now. Just compare

RANGED DPS
number of specs: 11
number of classes: 6

MELEE DPS
number of specs: 13
number of classes: 9

HEAL
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 5

TANK
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 6

The only fact that makes the number of ranged specs close to the number of melee specs is that the "pure DPS" classes (mage, warlock, hunter, rogue) are mostly ranged (8:4 in number of specs, 9:3 before legion).

It is especially the "hybrid" classes (that can also be tank or heal) where melee specs are overrepresented (only 3 ranged dps among hybrids but 10 melee dps), especially the combination of ranged dps and tank spec is too rare (only druids can do it). Imo they should have made Demo Warlock a tank spec.

Or a creative plate version. A Tank/Ranged DPS with Plate is the dream for me. Like adding a Shockadin spec to the Pala.

[iperson]

The number of ranged classes has little to do with the number of players that play ranged. For the most part people either prefer ranged or melee. All of the DH mains I know were melee already.

[Raiju]

There's always a lack of ranged for raids, because people always want more ranged than melee. You can add new ranged specs to the game and the situation will still be the same (not saying taking them away/diluting them is helping, though)

[Deleted]

There's always a lack of ranged for raids, because people always want more ranged than melee.

Yes, however the situation is the exact opposite for Mythic+. I watched Blizzard's Collegiate Dungeon Race and the only ranged I saw was a lonely hunter in one team. I saw no casters at all (except a druid healer in every team).

[Orwell7]

Or a creative plate version. A Tank/Ranged DPS with Plate is the dream for me. Like adding a Shockadin spec to the Pala.

An evil paladin, let's call it Inquisitor is very much needed.

[Deleted]

An evil paladin, let's call it Inquisitor is very much needed.

I just came.

[Deleted]

when I look at the trading chat sometimes, there really seems a lack of range dds. About 70% of guilds are looking out for range dds, 20% for healer and 10% for tanks and melees imo.
If that is because of a lack of range roles or if range classes are just not that appealing to many people... thats another question

[Deleted]

when I look at the trading chat sometimes, there really seems a lack of range dds. About 70% of guilds are looking out for range dds, 20% for healer and 10% for tanks and melees imo.
If that is because of a lack of range roles or if range classes are just not that appealing to many people... thats another question

Honestly, I'm traditionally a Ranged DPS player (Elemental Shaman, Mage). However in Legion I gravitate more towards melee because of 2 things:

1) Tank role for easy M+. It's easy to find a group and much more chill than healing them.
2) Doing World Quests is so much smoother on a melee than on a range. I've always had this thing where if monsters die quickly it feels like it takes forever to get a cast off. As a melee, and even more so as a mobile melee, you just jump in, mash 2-4 globals, shit dies and you move to the next mob. It's smooth, it's fun, it's brainless.

So I went Paladin now, because I still want to heal and I'm not too fond of Legion Balance Druid.

[jaakkeli]

It is especially the "hybrid" classes (that can also be tank or heal) where melee specs are overrepresented (only 3 ranged dps among hybrids but 10 melee dps), especially the combination of ranged dps and tank spec is too rare (only druids can do it). Imo they should have made Demo Warlock a tank spec.

This. It's annoying to play a pure DPS class and be the guy who can't help get a group going but they keep marrying healing and ranged dps specs. Even with druid it's much better to combine cat + bear than balance + bear since cat and bear can share gear, consumables and such.

I'd be perfectly happy to occasionally help the tank shortage with an offspec but I won't heal and I won't tank either since they don't put tank specs in the same character as ranged specs.

[Mad_Murdock]

Make range fun to play. You want more people to play range, create a class\spec that has instant attacks versus the constant wind up and pitch classes, maybe make their biggest hitting ability have a 3 sec cast. I don't like playing range outside of raiding, because I always have to stop 15 yards from mobs so I can get some inital hits on ht mob before they run up to me and start beating on me. Melee, just runs in and unleashes the pain and I think that's why it's more fun. Granted for dungeons and raid, from having played melee, range just feels easier. It's the outside of raiding that makes range feel boring and squishy.

I understand that for PvP that would be overpowered, which is why we can't have better things in pve, stupid pvp has to hold it back.

[FelPlague]

Yeah, that's something I also find strange. With the removal of Survival as a ranged spec we actually have LESS ranged specs than in vanilla now. Just compare

RANGED DPS
number of specs: 11
number of classes: 6

MELEE DPS
number of specs: 13
number of classes: 9

HEAL
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 5

TANK
number of specs: 6
number of classes: 6

The only fact that makes the number of ranged specs close to the number of melee specs is that the "pure DPS" classes (mage, warlock, hunter, rogue) are mostly ranged (8:4 in number of specs, 9:3 before legion).

It is especially the "hybrid" classes (that can also be tank or heal) where melee specs are overrepresented (only 3 ranged dps among hybrids but 10 melee dps), especially the combination of ranged dps and tank spec is too rare (only druids can do it). Imo they should have made Demo Warlock a tank spec.

how? survival was melee in vanilal aswell, so i dont see how making it bac kto melee has made it less

also saying "less ranged specs then vanilla" as if its big news is very mis leading... the game had a MASSIVE amount of ranged compared to melee... there is a reason all 3 classes added are melee...

[Deleted]

Perhaps its just my experience, but like since forever there have always been more people playing melee classes - and that has just increased with the amount of new melee classes being introduced.
I vanilla people joked around with "world of rogue craft" because rogues was OP in pvp, and therefore many people played them.
In BC where hordes could get paladins and alliance have shamans, all of a sudden many people was playing ret (and it was face roll good/easy).
Wotlk we got tons of DKs and in periods of being OP many people play them.

With MoP monks didn't get much attention at first, since only pandas could be it. But when that got changed OMG people was rolling them, and many for pvp.

Now in Legion many play DH because of "omgimillidan!" And ofcause it is the new class. Many play monks now as they are OP in pvp, and 7.1.5 did do the same to DH.. OP.

When people ask in /1 (and yes they do..) about what class is the strongest for pvp, people say DH/monk/FDK which all are melee.
All new players to the game roles OP classes - and since top 3 is melee , guess what? We get more people playing melee..
So why people play melee is partly because of bad balancing.

[Raiju]

Yes, however the situation is the exact opposite for Mythic+. I watched Blizzard's Collegiate Dungeon Race and the only ranged I saw was a lonely hunter in one team. I saw no casters at all (except a druid healer in every team).

While you're right, the collegiate dungeon race was an appalling example.

[Kazdum]

the current design of ranged turret killed it for me, i am now a happy ww monk flying all around the map

[Thage]

Or a creative plate version. A Tank/Ranged DPS with Plate is the dream for me. Like adding a Shockadin spec to the Pala.

Some sort of spec like Shockadin or a holy-themed dps spec for priests could be cool.

[KrazyK923]

They should probably stop introducing new melee classes then. 3 to zero ranged.