Dragonflight Alpha/Beta General Discussion

[Xilurm]

It is the illusion of choice though. Just like the original ones. Bad options or non-viable paths is something people may do in pen and paper but it shouldn't be a thing in a mass-market video game.

Making a "wrong" choice isn't going to make the game unplayable. Would you rather have no talents at all?

[Ferlion]

It is the illusion of choice though. Just like the original ones. Bad options or non-viable paths is something people may do in pen and paper but it shouldn't be a thing in a mass-market video game.

A lot of the "illusion of choice" options in the old trees were there due to design issues that just don't exist anymore.

Damage of timer scaling, pandemic as a mechanic, etc.

The simple fact is there should be bad builds. And there should be good builds. But a good build shouldn't outperform a bad build by 50%.

[rhorle]

Making a "wrong" choice isn't going to make the game unplayable. Would you rather have no talents at all?

If your damage, healing, or threat/survival output declines then it is effective unplayable. You act as if WoW is a game with out checks on performance in order to do content. While most of that content is generously tuned at the casual level it is still possible to be a liability. Even in LFR you have wildly under performing players. Now think about how having a choice that limits your DPS on top of poor skill will impact those things.

- - - Updated - - -

The simple fact is there should be bad builds. And there should be good builds. But a good build shouldn't outperform a bad build by 50%.

A bad build is an illusion of choice. They exist only to make you think you have a choice when in reality you don't because you should be picking the good builds to maximize your performance for content.

[Catastrophy349]

If your damage, healing, or threat/survival output declines then it is effective unplayable. You act as if WoW is a game with out checks on performance in order to do content. While most of that content is generously tuned at the casual level it is still possible to be a liability. Even in LFR you have wildly under performing players. Now think about how having a choice that limits your DPS on top of poor skill will impact those things.

- - - Updated - - -



A bad build is an illusion of choice. They exist only to make you think you have a choice when in reality you don't because you should be picking the good builds to maximize your performance for content.

An illusion? What are you hiding?

[Xilurm]

If your damage, healing, or threat/survival output declines then it is effective unplayable. You act as if WoW is a game with out checks on performance in order to do content. While most of that content is generously tuned at the casual level it is still possible to be a liability. Even in LFR you have wildly under performing players. Now think about how having a choice that limits your DPS on top of poor skill will impact those things.

- - - Updated - - -



A bad build is an illusion of choice. They exist only to make you think you have a choice when in reality you don't because you should be picking the good builds to maximize your performance for content.

People that wildly under perform in LFR are people who either, have no idea how to play their class, or just decide to go in and press one button while watching netflix.

For Normal and Heroic, you don't have to be an amazing players in order to clear it. As for mythic, if people aim for that goal then yes, they will have to look up guides on talents, optimal rotations, and bis.

Sorry to say but you can't expect everyone to be at the top of their game, and neither does everyone want that. People want to clear some content atleast, it doesn't have to be the hardest. There's a reason there's multiple difficulties.

Not having talents at all is just one less immersive system for people who care about that. The catch is that hardcore players have to spend 5 mins looking up guides and then they are set until the next patch.

[rhorle]

Sorry to say but you can't expect everyone to be at the top of their game, and neither does everyone want that. People want to clear some content atleast, it doesn't have to be the hardest. There's a reason there's multiple difficulties.

Right. Which is why giving bad choices isn't a good thing. Because people will be handicapping themselves on top of performance issues. So the "Good choices" will always have an easy time while the "bad choices" will barely clear content if they do at all. It is the problem with bad choices and the illusion of choice that you and others think is actual choice.

It is like you are ignoring the reason for the conversation completely just so you can complain about a talent-less game. Which is only something you've suggested.

[Catastrophy349]

After re-watching the Dragonflight Announcement video, and reviewing each of the interviews, they definitely have more planned that either: A). Has not been brought up, yet OR B). Has been mentioned but not in depth. A common phrase I hear is “and much more to come.”

What is my point? Since the announcement, we’ve been sucking on hopium/copium to fulfill our lives devoid of information. Blizzard has been pretty quiet outside of a few instances. We’ve been begging and praying for alpha forever it seems like. Well, guess what? It’s almost here. Next week, in fact. So, let’s enjoy our weekends, stop obsessing over everything because now we know when it is happening (compared to copium/hopium for the last 2 months).

- - - Updated - - -

After re-watching the Dragonflight Announcement video, and reviewing each of the interviews, they definitely have more planned that either: A). Has not been brought up, yet OR B). Has been mentioned but not in depth. A common phrase I hear is “and much more to come.”

What is my point? Since the announcement, we’ve been sucking on hopium/copium to fulfill our lives devoid of information. Blizzard has been pretty quiet outside of a few instances. We’ve been begging and praying for alpha forever it seems like. Well, guess what? It’s almost here. Next week, in fact. So, let’s enjoy our weekends, stop obsessing over everything because now we know when it is happening (compared to copium/hopium for the last 2 months).

We’ll know, soon enough mind you, how much they have complete, if there is more to come that hasn’t been mentioned, and/or what type of state the testing is in.

[Xilurm]

It is like you are ignoring the reason for the conversation completely just so you can complain about a talent-less game. Which is only something you've suggested.

Because there's no other way to make it work. They can't balance it in a way that will make every single talent viable, that's impossible.

[Eldryth]

After re-watching the Dragonflight Announcement video, and reviewing each of the interviews, they definitely have more planned that either: A). Has not been brought up, yet OR B). Has been mentioned but not in depth. A common phrase I hear is “and much more to come.”

It's possible, and in particular I wouldn't be surprised to see some new form of open-world content because I remember they briefly mentioned a new outdoor content team when they were asked about dragon racing in some interview.

Since they've already taken inspiration from Guild Wars 2 for Dragon Riding, I'd like to hope that this team might be a sign that they're working on something like GW2's big meta events (its other big strength imo), but that's probably too optimistic.

[rhorle]

Because there's no other way to make it work. They can't balance it in a way that will make every single talent viable, that's impossible.

The MoP to Shadowlands system works without the illusion of choice. If they can't make every choice viable then the choice shouldn't exist, right? Because then it isn't a choice. This isn't pen and paper or a niche RPG where a bad choice can be part of the design. This is a mass-market MMO where bad choices shouldn't exist. Even more so when WoW also has a toxicity problem that will only get magnified by low performance with bad talents.

[Bsirk]

So....Alpha next week?

https://twitter.com/Zorbrix/status/1545592153392353280

[Veluren]

So....Alpha next week?

https://twitter.com/Zorbrix/status/1545592153392353280

Seems likelier than this past week, from what Marlamin's twitter has said in inclusion to this tweet

[Ersula]

After re-watching the Dragonflight Announcement video, and reviewing each of the interviews, they definitely have more planned that either: A). Has not been brought up, yet OR B). Has been mentioned but not in depth. A common phrase I hear is “and much more to come.”

Considering how condensed the beta is going to be, and how Blizzard consistently says things like this, even when they produce less than what they promised, what you describe is extremely unlikely. I like what I've seen of Dragonflight, but the "Surely there are going to be features they didn't announce or promote" people are just delusional. This doesn't happen. The people who say things like that are then "Quests? I had no idea the new expansion would have QUESTS. THIS IS SUCH A SURPRISE FEATURE"

[Teriz]

Ah yeah these are way better, the cromie one reads similar to current Fae Guardians but the Alex one is perfect for a healing CD (to compete with disc/paladin)!

Also I'm looking forward to seeing how they implement the black dragonflight into the trees (probably defensives) since they said it was so important to incorporate all 5 flights.

I actually wouldn’t be surprised if the Black Dragonflight abilities are the core abilities of the class, since the specs are Red/Blue and the Green/Yellow.

The Dracthyr racials kind of support that, since Wing Buffet racial comes from Onyxia.

[Veluren]

I actually wouldn’t be surprised if the Black Dragonflight abilities are the core abilities of the class, since the specs are Red/Blue and the Green/Yellow.

The Dracthyr racials kind of support that, since Wing Buffet racial comes from Onyxia.

Would also make sense from a lore standpoint, even before he became Deathwing Neltharian was arrogant as hell and a bit of a supremacist, it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility that Black Flight was the base of their magic, then the capability for the other four flights on the side.

[Chickat]

Happened almost 3 hours ago at this point. But yeah, HYPE!

- - - Updated - - -



Alpha likely begins Thursday, July 14th (as has been said over and over again). Client/build day before so the 13th.

NDA lifted on the 12th?

- - - Updated - - -

Compiled image of Dragon Isles minimap. Probably won't have time for that at the start, but I'll be damned if I don't have that up within a day after client hits.

Yes. I love maps/minimaps. They are so interesting to look at. And we can get a sense of world scale with minimap data too. Like comparing Pandaria to Dragon isles for example.

[Veluren]

So just spitballing out of boredom, assuming Thursday July 14th which is 6 days away, and 2 talent trees per day, that will give us...

3 more days of talent tree reveals, assuming they show us the Evoker trees alongside whichever existing class is the odd-one-out.

A dracthyr customization preview they promised us but never showed up. They might do it before the last two trees so we have some context to what we see on the Evoker's tree. I wouldn't expect to see an Evoker preview itself, since all their skills would be listed in a theoretical talent preview.

A dragonriding preview which has also been absent.

Seems like it would work out nice and tidy with all the major information they'd want to get out before Alpha goes up publicly.

[Nyel]

So just spitballing out of boredom, assuming Thursday July 14th which is 6 days away, and 2 talent trees per day, that will give us...

3 more days of talent tree reveals, assuming they show us the Evoker trees alongside whichever existing class is the odd-one-out.

A dracthyr customization preview they promised us but never showed up. They might do it before the last two trees so we have some context to what we see on the Evoker's tree. I wouldn't expect to see an Evoker preview itself, since all their skills would be listed in a theoretical talent preview.

A dragonriding preview which has also been absent.

Seems like it would work out nice and tidy with all the major information they'd want to get out before Alpha goes up publicly.

Does this make sense though? Getting the Priest talents without any other class a week ago, then two talent trees yesterday and next week it's supposedly three days full of information? I mean I don't see any logic, reason or patter behind this.

Alpha on July 14 seems like a safe bet now, though.


- - - Updated - - -

After re-watching the Dragonflight Announcement video, and reviewing each of the interviews, they definitely have more planned that either: A). Has not been brought up, yet OR B). Has been mentioned but not in depth. A common phrase I hear is “and much more to come.”

That's what they always, every single time say though? Even for content patches?

[Kiria]

OMG.... I can build my Hunter as a pure Dark ranger, I'm so freaking happy about this!!

My hype for DF has increased 10 fold! Hunter Trees are amazing!!

[Revamp Man]

OMG.... I can build my Hunter as a pure Dark ranger, I'm so freaking happy about this!!

My hype for DF has increased 10 fold! Hunter Trees are amazing!!

dark rangers and crafter mafias