Talent Trees need some revamping~!

[Rilas13]

Hello, I decided to bring up a problem I have with the Talent Trees and offer a suggestion. With the current design, at level 50 the vast amount of talent points are spent for you. For example if you are a Guardian tank spec then you have most of your points into your defense tree, sometimes picking talents you may not want just to put the points in that tree. Leaving you with a few points afterwords for anything else you may want in other trees.

My solution to this I got from looking at a few other games and putting together the most logical option.

So lets say you are a Jedi Knight, and at level 10 you chose Guardian AC. I think you should be able to specialize into Defense, Vigilance, or Focus. Once you specialize you will receive an ability for that role.
In example: I chose Vigilance and I get Shien form at level 10.

Following that every 5 levels I will be able to chose a passive/active ability from a pool of 2-4. Whether the ability would be active or passive would depend on the level.
In example: I reach level 20, 30, and 50, I can chose an active ability. Level 15, 25, 35, 40, and 45, I can chose between passive abilities.

All of these possible choices have one important characteristic, they are choices between how you would like to play your class(So there would be no wrong choice, only how you would like to do things). How do you like to start battle? From far away or up in peoples faces? Weather you want your abilities to help shield you, increase your resources gain, or make you a killing machine.
An example choice for a Jedi Shadow's level 50 may be between:

[Wither]-(Causes up to 5 targets to wither under the weight of the Force, dealing(x) kinetic damage and decreasing the damage all targets deal by 5%. High threat. Lasts 15 sec.
or
[Shroud of Darkness]-(Reduces the damage taken by the caster and party members by 50%. In addition all damage absorbed gives high threat to the caster. Lasts 10 sec.

Or a Scoundrel's level 15 may be between:

[Keep Cool]-(Cool Head now immediately restores 20 additional energy)
or
[Scramble]-(Dodge increases movement speed by 30% while active)
or
[Psych Meds]-(Triage now removes negative mental effects and heals the target for (x).

So these options could be balanced and maybe one will be better in certain situations. Or hopefully just how you will want to play your class.

In addition to this change in the trees, rather then having to chose between any talent that gives any kind of flat increase that would have to be the obvious pick if you are trying to make your character as impressive as he can be. As you hit certain levels you will unlock certain increases.
In Example: at level 13, 17, 21, 23, 27, 32, 36, 41, and 49 you would receive an increase to a necessary stat or ability. So level 21 may give one of your common abilities a damage increase, and at level 49 you would get 5% increase to your classes primary stat(Strength, Willpower, Cunning, Aim).

While on that note I would like to also make a drastic change to every class "Shared Tree" and turn it into a Hybrid Tree. So if you are one of the many that likes to have a hybrid spec then you wont be forced to only go deep into one Tree.

Well that is my idea to make the Talent system more fun for all! Thanks to any and all that read it and please comment. Love the idea to want to kill me for suggesting it. I will appreciate all other ideas or comments.

[Koochulu]

So you want SWTOR to be more like WoW? Be happy with what you have, you'll live longer.

[anewok]

Talent trees are fine, aside from the Knight/Warrior tanking tree needing some tweaking.

[Coro]

Sounds like your explaining 100% what MoP expansion will bring to WoW.

SW:TOR needs to continue to distinguish its self as it's own game. By following WoW from an old talent system to a new one will not help it distinguish it for what it is.

I think the talent trees are perfectly fine. Yes, there are some pointless talents in all trees, and some spec's you have to completely give up your last 1-3 talent points as it doesn't help your spec in any way (Imperial Agent - Ops Heals for one example). But, overall, it works.

[Miah]

So you want SWTOR to be more like WoW? Be happy with what you have, you'll live longer.

Yes, they also want Curse.com to play their game for them. Why cant we pick all the good stuff and be a main Tank/Healer and DPS all in one...........wheres the shammys in SWTOR, why dont we have Barbershops, Why cant I have a class where I spam one button relentlessly and put the Word Arcane in the skill. When are we going to be able to pay Bioware $25 to make our speeders all shiny and glowy like it matters?

---------- Post added 2012-02-24 at 01:55 AM ----------

Talent trees are fine, aside from the Knight/Warrior tanking tree needing some tweaking.

We have Juggys on our server carrying the Huttball clear across the arena and doing 250k damage while doing so, I hope they leave it alone

[Matt0193]

There's dumb talent trees and dumbed down talent trees. We currently have the former and you're suggesting the latter.

I'd personally prefer the current one over what you've suggested. It's just another reason why I hate MoP, the fact they've all but moved away from a proper talent/skill progression tree.

[Deleted]

I enjoy this system over WoW's new one talent every 15 levels. It just feels better when you gradually get stronger after each level. And I don't care if talents are boring from Blizzard's view - aka 5% damage increase for one ability, I still prefer 1 talent every level with boring talents.

[zerocarbs]

I love talent trees so much that I wish we had them for our companions.

[Synche]

I enjoy this system over WoW's new one talent every 15 levels. It just feels better when you gradually get stronger after each level. And I don't care if talents are boring from Blizzard's view - aka 5% damage increase for one ability, I still prefer 1 talent every level with boring talents.

I am actually looking forward to the new WoW talents, the current system offers no choice at all or customization, even the SWTOR talents fall into this, get maybe 5 talent points to do what you wish.

Personally I don't see the point in talent tree / points if everyone "unlocks" all the talents when they are max level anyways. Might as well just be skills you learn

[ZeroEdgeir]

I'm with those who agree that the new MoP system beats the ever-living hell out of the current WoW and SWTOR model.

There is no "choice" when it comes to your spec right now. You assign 90-95% of your points in specific talents that make small increases in power (that come 5.0 in WoW, will be baseline), or unlock a new ability (that you SHOULD be taking, and there are players who don't, which won't happen in WoW come 5.0) that is core to your spec's entire design, and maybe get to spend 5-7 points for something "else". And really , even that is very meh. Nothing majorly game-impacting.

The talent system in MoP for WoW, will make it so each talent choice is a legit CHOICE, as to how you want to play, what you want to be able to do, WITHOUT impairing your spec's intended role (DPS/Tank/Heal), but augmenting it in unique ways instead. All the things you need to do your job, will already be there, provided to you when you level.

But that is WoW's choice of progression. SWTOR needs to either stick with their current model (It's been 3 bloody months! Let them breathe a little, maybe put out an expansion first, before you go about suggesting them to totally scrap the entire system they got in now that, for the most part, works fine). or later on, develop their own model, that is unique to them.

[Koalachan]

I am actually looking forward to the new WoW talents, the current system offers no choice at all or customization, even the SWTOR talents fall into this, get maybe 5 talent points to do what you wish.

Personally I don't see the point in talent tree / points if everyone "unlocks" all the talents when they are max level anyways. Might as well just be skills you learn

You do have a choice where to put them. You CHOOSE to put them where everyone else did. You can still play fine putting things where you want. You just won't be min/maxed. I put all my swtor points in places I wanted. That's what I chose to do. Is it the optimal? I don't know. I haven't looked. But its more than enough.

I far prefer this over MoPs "he look, here's six talents that you get to "choose" from (which you don't for most specs anyway), but it in no way impacts your play. It's only for your fun." I'm sorry, but if it no way effects how I play, than why even bother choosing?

[Jalek]

To be honest, there is a lot more spec diversity in SWTOR now with hybrids, pve and pvp builds than in WoW (not entirely due to the fact you need to put 31 talents in a tree to move to another tree).

Look at a PT, there is Carolina Parakeet (shieldtech/pyro), Ironfist (shieldtech/AP), pyro specs, shield specs, AP specs. Not bad for a dumb system.

[viciouss]

I like that tor has old style talent trees. Hybrids are actually used and variations are also fun to use.

[Deleted]

But that is WoW's choice of progression. SWTOR needs to either stick with their current model (It's been 3 bloody months! Let them breathe a little, maybe put out an expansion first, before you go about suggesting them to totally scrap the entire system they got in now that, for the most part, works fine). or later on, develop their own model, that is unique to them.

Very much agreed this with, they need to create their own system and not copy WoW again. The current one is old and outdated but it works... for now.

[Windry]

I like that tor has old style talent trees. Hybrids are actually used and variations are also fun to use.

I completely agree, WoW has been taking steps backwards in the way they present talent trees. Hybrid builds with strong 11 point talents in most trees make the decisions about your spec much more interesting in this game than in WoW and the MoP versions.

[Enosh]

(So there would be no wrong choice, only how you would like to do things)

and I'm the Easter bunny
this idea that there "would be no wrong choices" always makes me laugh when it comes to MMOs or any other game for that matter
there is a lot of people playing games and a lot of them are quite smart
and since developers aren't gods that can achieve perfect balance there will always be a better way of doing things that people will figure out

I love talent trees so much that I wish we had them for our companions.

yeah that would be awesome

[THoyt]

I love talent trees so much that I wish we had them for our companions.

I support this.

[moff]

Dont feed the troll
If I wanted pandas, I would not have switched to SWTOR

[Balinos]

I enjoy this system over WoW's new one talent every 15 levels. It just feels better when you gradually get stronger after each level. And I don't care if talents are boring from Blizzard's view - aka 5% damage increase for one ability, I still prefer 1 talent every level with boring talents.

This, i prefer to have 1 skill point each lvl

[SoCal]

I think wow has continued down their path of making the game more simplistic with MoP. I'd perfer talent trees just need to have more than 1 viable spec.