Dev Watercooler -- Critical Hits (And Misses)

[Deleted]

Explain what does LEAD SYSTEM DESIGNER mean to you , developer that makes coffee breaks changes right ? >.>

I dont remember when was the game this unbalanced and sad part is blizzard thinks this is the most balanced season of them all which shows that they are clueless and have 0 touch to reality .

This game is not made or balance only by one person! It's a team! GC is only the responsible and the face of the team. Don't know how his team work but or they get ideas and GC have the final word or they brainstorming and all agree with one idea after debate. Ofc GC as lider give the face for the change.

IF the team sucks? That other story.

And btw did you play wowlk when palas were imortals and kill you with one fart?
You remember vanilla when many class oneshot others?
You remember raids when you bring class only for buffs and other only for debuffs while the rest was there for dps and do the real fun?
You remember the days when only one class chould tank and the rest sucks or only there for aoe trash?
You remember when warlocks were gods and noone could kill them because overpower fear.
I can continue all day..

I can't say this game is perfect balance but is way better balance now then few year ago! All 4 tanks are good, All healer can do their job, almost all dps specs can raid.
The game is way more noob friendly abd maybe that is what some ppl don't like because casuals don't have to play the game 24/7 to be good at his job.

Anyway I think blues have to talk about all aspect of the game and crit is one aspect of the game. This kind of talk is to make ppl talk about one subject so they can see what wowplayers think about something they are reviewing or will. This is not to talk about nerfs and buffs. For that they have enouth QQ on foruns. they don't need to post about mages buffs and nerfs because people do it without anyone ask but they need this kind of post so ppl talk about crit! I think I made my point.

[Theronus]

homogenization is something we fight against all the time

made me lol so hard, damn!

[Deleted]

when he says that 10% haste gets your heal 10% faster to the target, he is correct. But when he says that 10% crit you heal for 5% more it seems wrong imo, shouldnt it be that 10% of the time you heal 5% more?

is my assumption wrong?

[Deleted]

10% of the time it's 50% more, so 5% more in total.

[Taleas]

Every time I hear this dude talking I think "ummm ok".

Then I look at the game again and think "ummm ooook? Wait, LOLWUT?!"

[Nibelheim]

Ofcourse people wan't to see other "thoughts" than "uhm, we're still trying to figure out how to balance stuff, can't spend time on actual content"

People wan't awesome new features and additions, not the same old bs, classes will never be balanced, accept it and add content that doesnt evolve around said classes beeing balanced or not.

An interesting point. Their topics probably stem from the sheer amount of posts on PvE/PvP/Class Role forums over the tiny differences in each spec, each stat, each encounter, etc. While balancing the game is a good thing, they seem to be focusing too much on it. Some topics on changing WoW in terms of features / entertainment value / extras / new BGs / etc would probably be far more popular than "Yeah, we thought of boosting this one stat and reducing this other one, but it's kind of something we don't want to do" blogs.

[Deleted]

Healers do not like randomness. Crits are random. I would rather every heal heal for 25% more than 25% of heals heal for 100% more.

This is the same reason procs that don't regenerate mana aren't fun for healers. They add a level to the game that healers don't want, that we don't have any control over--the thing healers want is control.

This is the exact opposite of what good healers want. We want MORE control, not less.

I agree with you, and your example of procs that don't generate mana is a good point.

I really think that if they make this change for healers, they should at the very least wait until nextg expansion, not throw it in mid-expansion. It is going to be a big deal for healers (whether you like it or not, personally I don't).

The main problem with such a crit change as GC suggested is that it is going to affect different healer classes wildly differently, and thus upset the game balance: Those who rely on many small heals, like HoTs, like for example druids, will get a lot of benefit out of it. Classes relying on fewer big heals, like pala, is going to get less benefit out of the change.

Secondly, it is going to throw off spell balance wildly, and any current rotation will be thrown off the board as some spells (again - HoTs more than anything else) will benefit more than other, and classes that currently rely on a mix of different spell may end up having to spam just one spell. Holy priests may end up Renew spamming like in ICC again... stuff like that.

GC's post makes me worried that Blizz doesn't realize the extent of such a change. I hope they don't just rush into it. Wait until next expansion, if you're going to do it at all!

[Pretorian]

Not at all, in my opinion. It's just the community views them under a massive magnifying glass and wrongly cries foul over the slightest thing, no matter how benign it might be. Given the way this community acts I'm surprised they even try.

Given the way devs act, I'm surprised the community still tries...

Q: What is the difference between being mugged on the street an being milked shamelessly by Blizzard ?
A: Mugging is faster and less painful.

Most of you cannot understand why GC keeps being evasive... Really ?! The longer he talks, the more money they make. The more money they make, the more games they can develop which again, bring more money. It's just business, don't take it personally.
Yes, there is also the positive side where there's the desire to create something new, different, even unique; the desire to make other people happy, the hunger for fame and gratitude. Unfortunately, that is only valid for the beginnings as in the society we live in today, money overshadows almost everything else.
My point is: do you think CG is doing a very bad job ? I think he's doing a very good job. He's not there to keep you happy, he's there to keep you paying. For those of you who want to believe something else, please do, whatever makes you happy (at the end of the day).

I just stopped paying, after 6 years. It's the only way.

[Chozobo]

So wait I didn't know this before...ALL healer classes have 150% chance to crit with offensive spells/non-physical attacks? Including Rets/Moonkins?

[valiorik]

Could someone with premium Curse (if there's atleasr one person in the world who desided to pay them) giveaway beta key for Age of Empires Online please?

---------- Post added 2011-04-20 at 01:19 PM ----------

And btw did you play wowlk when palas were imortals and kill you with one fart?
You remember vanilla when many class oneshot others?
You remember raids when you bring class only for buffs and other only for debuffs while the rest was there for dps and do the real fun?
You remember the days when only one class chould tank and the rest sucks or only there for aoe trash?
You remember when warlocks were gods and noone could kill them because overpower fear.
I can continue all day..

I felt very cool and unique buffing in vanila. I felt like my character is asom and only he can perform the task. Now I can replace anyone with virtualy any other class. Classes lost their asomnes long ago. It could be just: tank, healer, meele dps, range dps now not to confuse people.

[slosh]

I felt very cool and unique buffing in vanila. I felt like my character is asom and only he can perform the task. Now I can replace anyone with virtualy any other class. Classes lost their asomnes long ago. It could be just: tank, healer, meele dps, range dps now not to confuse people.

That was a giant waste of time back in vanilla and lead to some people I knew rerolling because they didn't want to sit there casting kings or salvation NON STOP.

And if you're really claiming that the current environment could be broken down into 4 roles and completely ignore the classes, then you obviously are not raiding or pvping. There is still plenty of flavor in the different classes, with different mechanisms for both what your casting and how you manage your resources.

We are in a much, much better state now than we were when this game came out. People complaining about balance and homogenization now obviously didn't go through the inbalances and frustrating aspects of vanilla, or the pains that raid leaders in TBC went through trying to figure out not only who to invite due to buffs/debuffs, but also which group everyone should be in.


But back on topic, I would welcome the crit changes even though as a Pally healer I'd probably be the largest victim of overhealing. Again, if you decided to cast the heal in the first place, the fact that it crit should just be gravy. If you're sitting there counting on the spell to crit, then you're a bad player.

[Deleted]

I felt very cool and unique buffing in vanila. I felt like my character is asom and only he can perform the task. Now I can replace anyone with virtually any other class. Classes lost their asomnes long ago. It could be just: tank, healer, meele dps, range dps now not to confuse people.

Ok if you were one of the guy who like spread one spell over all raid every few time just to buff them instead doing real dps and big numbers. Its fine not all should like to do dps and big numbers that why healers exists. But bring you over a raid just because you buff or not because you're a good player is just stupid. You telling me that you want that system because if you chose one class you have your spot saved even if other player is way better then you. ok. thanks god devs don't thing like that. Caring ppl days are over. Rl now is easier job and you don't have to care about your buffer that don't show up today and let 24+ without possibility to raid because their buffs are mandatory. If someone don't show up you can fit their role easily with someone else and raid even if someone don't come.
But anyway thats not balance. Balance is all class who have the role dps actualy can do their job well, healer same and tanks idem.

Edit: Crits on healers are allways good. If crit overheal that not a big problem because you did not wast mana to heal more but if you filling up a tank and your spell crit and heal all hp tank that is lovely and fun because you see a big number and save one gcd/mana. Healer should not heal base on crits. Crits are there to give some random to fight and help you. Sometimes helps, sometimes not. In the end healer should allways expect to heal 2 times but if 1 spell crit then you don't need to heal the second. That is fun thing and bring other thing to the game to skill. Like respond to a crit. when you crit you stop cast if you overheal or change next cast to a less expensive.

[Tonystark]

The constant change in abilities and spells is never ending with this game. Every expansion they have reworked them and this time around has been a CF. Adding stats, combined stats, removal of stats, talent tree reduction, three different glyph slots etc etc etc. They're never going to get the classes worked out because they constantly try to reinvent them every expansion. Come next expansion they are going to revamp it all over again.

[EndOfDays]

So does Ghostie play a Mage or what?

Thats why mages are so cheesy with all those cc's they have is a damn joke alrdy.

[Deleted]

Just what fire and frost mages need, bigger crits!

[Deleted]

If poisons crit for 200% damage and mutilate gets nerfed by 10%..... is the game more fun?
If enchance get 200% crit LBs and stormstrike is nerfed by 10%.... is the game more fun?

The fact is, 5 minutes after they make these changes, nothing really matters. They will then have to spend a month trying to rebalance everything to deal with the increased damage of these new 200% crits. But in the end, is the game more fun?

They spend far to much time talking and thinking about these ´deep´issues and are not adding enough FUN things to the game. These issues are not ´deep, they are negligible issues.

I think GC is too caught up in spreadsheets and needs to step back like the original designers and constantly ask ´does this make the game more fun?´ 200% crit poisons and 10% nerf to mutilate does not make the game more fun, no matter how ´deep´it s.

I couldn't have said it better myself.

[shokter]

I've been playing WoW for nearly four years. Maybe I'm just easy to please but imo this game just keeps getting better and better. GC's blogs are great. There has not been one that I do not find interesting. These blogs are not a place to go to get an inside scoop on upcoming changes to your class or even to game as a whole. They are simply an insight into the development process, and one that is pretty unique. I can't think of many (or any) other games that give this sort of glimpse into how ( NOTE: 'how' ...not 'what') they think about the game.

And wow...all you people complaining about the soft pokes he takes at the community (the whole 'we used to all play rogues not we are all fr.mages) need to relax and learn to laugh at yourselves a little. I know I am.

ps I do not play a mage or warrior (in pvp) or any other class considered OP.

This game is fine (read: fine not perfect) and the dev blogs are a way of showing that wow is a more a process than a finished product. The fact the game is constantly changing is, in large part, why it is still around. I appreciate being given an insight into that process.

[Meera]

Call me idiot but, the devs says "no promises" but they do it:

Letting rogues and Enhancement shaman get 200% crits with non-physical damage would be a larger change, and not the kind of thing we would do mid-expansion. But it’s definitely something we’re considering for the future.

wtf

[Freese]

Call me idiot but, the devs says "no promises" but they do it:



wtf

"Something we're looking at" =/= "Something we are going to do.""

[slosh]

The constant change in abilities and spells is never ending with this game. Every expansion they have reworked them and this time around has been a CF. Adding stats, combined stats, removal of stats, talent tree reduction, three different glyph slots etc etc etc. They're never going to get the classes worked out because they constantly try to reinvent them every expansion. Come next expansion they are going to revamp it all over again.

I've been playing since Vanilla, and I feel like each expansion has been an improvement over the prior in terms of balance while also maintaining enough variety in the classes to keep them from all being the same.

The removal/combining of stats was a welcome change imo. Before you'd occasionally see gear from a previous tier be better than the next simply because the stat allocation on some items would be horrific for certain classes/specs. Not anymore. With primary stats driving more secondary stats (e.g. Int -> SP) and the introduction of mastery, they've finally made a system that's simpler to understand, allowing people to quickly look at gear and determine if it's an upgrade rather than go to a spreadsheet to figure it out.

This discussion about crit is just further refinement. I can understand their hesitation of doing it mid-expansion because it might require adjustment of numerous classes, specs, or spells to keep things balanced (e.g. PvP and Mortal Strike in his post).

But what I like most about these blogs is not that you get an insight into what they are looking at, but you hear some of the logic behind why what seems like a simple idea to implement becomes so much more complex due to ramifications you hadn't considered but they are truly concerned about. Being a programmer myself, I can relate.

To me, it shows time and again that they want to improve the game. There are tons of ideas on how to do it, but knowing that they thoroughly think things through is comforting.