Poll: Do you support Raid/Environment themed sets over Tier sets?

[Rixarius]

Blizzard has been pushing this idea that tier sets don't really make as much sense right now, and have obviously opted for a single armor set with various colors per raid, and are not sure whether or not they want to add tier sets in for Shadowlands. Now I cannot fathom anyone preferring the single sets over tier sets personally, which is why I'm making this poll and opening it up to discussion. Do you prefer the thematic of the zone or raid? Or do you prefer having an armor aesthetic that matches your class?

[Ophenia]

Well both, as they were before

Firelands sets were fire sets for every class. If firelands was a 8.0 or 9.0 raid, you would have 4 sets instead of 10

[Nathasil]

Don't want to sound rude....but i think you are missing the point here.

The discussion about Tier-Sets is only partially about the cosmetics...it is more about the lack of actual bonuses, which makes Raid-Loot extremely undesirable and class gameplay extremely stale. In expansions with Tier-Sets your class automatically changed with each Tier. In BFA, sure, the Azerite Bonuses saw some tweaking but across the board there was very little change after the initial 2 big waves of tuning and most specs did not see any signifiant change during the expasion.

I know a lot of players are not interested in gameplay changing during an expansion. Fine. But if that means you are collecting the EXACT SAME FUCKING items every patch just 20-30 ilvls higher than before from the exact same sources....then something is wrong. This is not fun.

I want Tier-Sets each patch to spice up the gameplay and shuffle the Hirarchy around a bit. If the Set also comes with a unique cosmetic is secondary to me, since in most cases i will overwrite it with some decade-old TMog anyway.

So, long story short:
As long as the stuff that drops in raids (and preferably is also available in a lower ilvl-version on a currency vendor or from dungeons or whatever) has SEPC SPECIFIC BONUSES that are DIFFERENT each patch and promote slightly different playstyles of the specs and classes...i'm totally fine with all of them sharing one cosmetic.

Azerite armor did NOT deliver on this at all. Most of the bonuses that were raid specific were flat %-bonuses and exactly the same for everybody.

[Val the Moofia Boss]

Don't care as long as it looks cool. At this point, you can draw upon 15 years of item sets to assemble pretty much any variation of a class themed set of gear you want. What we need are more sets that fill specific niches. For example, we could do with some sets specifically made for Sunwalker Paladins, or Gilnean/Kul'Tiras witch sets.

[Archmage Alodi]

I don't care about the theme, I want cool bonuses that change how my spec plays every tier.

[Rixarius]

Don't want to sound rude....but i think you are missing the point here.

The discussion about Tier-Sets is only partially about the cosmetics...it is more about the lack of actual bonuses, which makes Raid-Loot extremely undesirable and class gameplay extremely stale. In expansions with Tier-Sets your class automatically changed with each Tier. In BFA, sure, the Azerite Bonuses saw some tweaking but across the board there was very little change after the initial 2 big waves of tuning and most specs did not see any signifiant change during the expasion.

I know a lot of players are not interested in gameplay changing during an expansion. Fine. But if that means you are collecting the EXACT SAME FUCKING items every patch just 20-30 ilvls higher than before from the exact same sources....then something is wrong. This is not fun.

I want Tier-Sets each patch to spice up the gameplay and shuffle the Hirarchy around a bit. If the Set also comes with a unique cosmetic is secondary to me, since in most cases i will overwrite it with some decade-old TMog anyway.

So, long story short:
As long as the stuff that drops in raids (and preferably is also available in a lower ilvl-version on a currency vendor or from dungeons or whatever) has SEPC SPECIFIC BONUSES that are DIFFERENT each patch and promote slightly different playstyles of the specs and classes...i'm totally fine with all of them sharing one cosmetic.

Azerite armor did NOT deliver on this at all. Most of the bonuses that were raid specific were flat %-bonuses and exactly the same for everybody.

I made a post about this in the front page thread actually. The tier sets are cool for multiple reasons, and the gameplay changing effects are one of them. Having an ability be buffed through a tier bonus can bring new, cool builds into the spotlight for a bit, which is fun. Honestly though, I don't care if the tier sets are minor. I just like the aesthetic of class themed gear.

- - - Updated - - -

Well both, as they were before

Firelands sets were fire sets for every class. If firelands was a 8.0 or 9.0 raid, you would have 4 sets instead of 10

And the Firelands sets are some of my favorites! I played a Paladin back then, and I still love the Paladin tier from that raid.

[FlasKamel]

I don't care about the tier bonuses or whatever, but aesthetically and as more of a collector, hell yeah I miss tier sets. Just another motivation to play different classes to me.

[Alkizon]

Ideally, both, but if I had to choose, according to logic - art style should have primarily raid theme (that is, pieces of what can be unscrewed somewhere, recapture from some of local representatives (but!) of my class, etc., etc.). This is done quite simply taking into account that they will have to create design for raid mobs/characters/bosses/environments - which have actually ready sets and weapons, the same story with bonuses on them, but!

Archmage Alodi
I don't care about the theme, I want cool bonuses that change how my spec plays every tier.

this ^ isn't how such system really works. No-no

...but this is for PvE; for PvP, of course, theme of expansion and class (although given transmogrification, this doesn't really matter). The only real problem that I see is if raid/dungeon is scarce of trash and mechanics, and its style doesn't have much expressiveness, then they'll have to really invent something. As for fact that someone may not like "raid art style", well, not everyone should like every, each one for their own, we all are different.

[Eosia]

I don't care about the theme, I want cool bonuses that change how my spec plays every tier.

No, you don't. Because it will make you fall in love with a spec and then hate it when those bonuses are gone. Ask Hunters about Tier 18 armor out of Hellfire Citadel.

[Pachycrocuta]

I prefer the class-based sets within the theme of the raid, similar to how it used to be. Some of the worst sets they made, with the most criticism, were those sets where all cloth were the same, all plate were the same, etc. AQ40, Sunwell gear, Argent Tournament (tier 9). Then you have the BFA gear, and honestly, I don't know what they look like except the plate Uldir set because I had gotten a helm look-a-like from the Arathi warfront. I don't know what the armor after that looks like, or the current one's armor looks like. I did enjoy the plate 7th Legion armor, and the mail Honorbound armor (I think the plate looks stupid), though. I'm a paladin, and I want to look like a paladin, not a warrior or death knight.

[Archmage Alodi]

No, you don't. Because it will make you fall in love with a spec and then hate it when those bonuses are gone. Ask Hunters about Tier 18 armor out of Hellfire Citadel.

I almost cry everytime I remember T18 MM 4p.
Anyway... It's better than having a spec that's the same throughout whole expansion.

[Eosia]

I almost cry everytime I remember T18 MM 4p.

Yup, that was exactly what I was referring to. Took me back to fond memories of MM in Wrath, running around with 100% ArP.

Anyway... It's better than having a spec that's the same throughout whole expansion.

Not against spicing it up each tier, but not fundamental changes like above.

[Archmage Alodi]

Yup, that was exactly what I was referring to. Took me back to fond memories of MM in Wrath, running around with 100% ArP.



Not against spicing it up each tier, but not fundamental changes like above.

I agree that wod sets were too strong, but removing them completely without some sorts of improved replacement is just devs being fucking lazy.

[Eosia]

I agree that wod sets were too strong, but removing them completely without some sorts of improved replacement is just devs being fucking lazy.

Well, there is the challenge of coming up with 72 new bonuses each tier. But the other thing too is how to balance 144 of them. I still remember how many people whines, cried, and bitched at each new raid tier as their 2p or 4p from the previous tier got nerfed when the next one came out because a 2p/4p combo was OP.

[this is caranthir]

I prefer class sets, both from a gameplay and transmog point of view.

[spalernTJ]

I were excited for raid tier themed sets, but well... Then I look at Eternal Palace and BDA and I realize there was nothing I wanted. Uninspired, no creativity, no drive at all. The Eternal Palace ones especially grinded my gears. They're all just... Murloc themed? Like what? You take a raid tier that's themed around the very depths of the ocean, you have giant eel bosses, electrical squids and naga, and yet all you can come up with is regular armor with some fish fins? Where's the deep sea creature themes? Eels, squids, whales, angler fish... The ocean depths has all the weirdest animals, why didn't you use them? T_T

[Archmage Alodi]

Well, there is the challenge of coming up with 72 new bonuses each tier. But the other thing too is how to balance 144 of them. I still remember how many people whines, cried, and bitched at each new raid tier as their 2p or 4p from the previous tier got nerfed when the next one came out because a 2p/4p combo was OP.

And removing them is the perfect solution? It's the easiest for sure.

[jstnw89]

If they make the sets look cool, I don't care if it's raid themed, class themed, or w/e..

BFA sets look like absolute generic shit and it's hard for me to take it seriously that they peddled moving away from class themed sets was to focus their creativity.

[Zyrinx]

Theme sets are terribad, made me not want to bother trying to raid for an entire expansion.

[Baine]

As a non raider, I don't care about tier set bouses. However, I prefer class themed sets overall. I know it become increasingly hard to imagine an original concept for each class for each tier.