Nightfall weapon balance issues

Kryopsis

Kryopsis

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Aug 2006

The City of Saints, Canada

Modus Dei

Rt/N

Before I begin, a disclaimer: I am not trying to criticize Anet's decisions, I am aware this is just an early prototype of a game. Also my apologies if this was posted (I tried to search but to no avail).

I was comparing the weapon statistics on GW wiki and the Nightfall weapons look unbalanced.
The Paragon's spear is 1 damage short of being a ranger's short bow. This is preposterous as the ranger is supposed to be the primary ranged combatant. Having a support character best a ranger in archery seems illogical.
The Dervish's scythe deals 9-41 damage which is the most damage a weapon can deal. Even the hammer's maximum damage is 35 and it doesn't hit THREE targets.

Does this look strange to anyone else? How would this be justifiable?

arcanemacabre

arcanemacabre

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Feb 2006

North Kryta Province

Angel Sharks [As]

I kinda, half-assed agree with you on the spear. Overall, it's simply better than a shortbow in damage, and defense, since you can have a shield equipped as well. However, when comparing the Scythe with the Hammer, and the Spear with the Shortbow, you need to be looking at the skills more, not the base weapon attributes.

I'd say a Hammer far exceeds a Scythe when it comes to skills (knockdown, conditions, insane overall skill damage, etc.), not to mention coupled with Strength it becomes a force to be reckoned with. Same goes for the Shortbow, with Expertise, Marksmanship, and Wilderness Survival skills that make the bow the useful swiss army knife of weapons.

There could be some tweaking that may need to be done, but I think the skills definately need to come into play when considering which weapon tops which.

Phoenix Arrows

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Mar 2006

With many other ugly people

We Are All Pretty [ugly]

R/

I agree with the Paragon thing. It just seems to be too much better than a bow. Faster refire, near-same damage, etc...but...it's ONE HANDED. Change spears to like 10-25 or something...

With the Dervish thing, 9 as min damage mean lower average. Also, Dervish attack skills (IMO) don't do that much damage. Scythes can be kept the way they are.

Angel Netherborn

Angel Netherborn

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Jun 2006

Lower Ward, Sigil

Goda Vos

I disagree on both accounts. As mentioned, it's not the weapon, it's the skills.

Since you want to put in some realism, then realistically, spears are bigger and should do more than than arrows. Also... there's nothing stopping the ranger from using spears.

Scythe damage is way too inconsistent when compared to a hammer. The range is just too big to reliably maintain damage output.

Mordakai

Mordakai

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Aug 2005

Kyhlo

W/

Spear probably should be shorter range than Shortbow.

I always thought the Paragon should be right behind melee attackers anyway... what's the range on "Earshot" anyway?

Quid Pro Quo

Quid Pro Quo

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2005

They both look fine to me.

Paragon rely more on the normal damage of the spear and not so much on the skills so having them do more damage makes sense to me and the spear attacks don't seem that great if you were to use them I don't see a problem.

I'm sure a Ranger who uses bow attacks will end up doing much more damage then the Paragon who use spear attacks.

Scythes are extremely random which I think balances the greater damage that they do.

Former Ruling

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Oct 2005

Cedartown, Georgia

R/

Arenanet (or rather Alex/Gaile, i Forget) said on a forum one time that not counting Crit Hits or Skills, that all of the different weapon types deal the same Average dmg over a period of time. The noticable exceptions are when other factors figure in to the average dmg, like the differences between a longbow and shortbow are to balance out the range and such.

A sword is going to have mid range dmg every hit, while an axe has a higher max dmg, it will also statistically hit alot lower than a sword from time to time also - averaging it out. A hammer is similairly going to average out with the scythe, even hit alittle higher on average probably because of just HOW low the scythe's min hit is, and that would be to balance out the multi-targeting of the scythe.

These differences also allow for different weapons to go with skills differently. Like an axe having a higher max hit will benefit more from Crit hits and big spikes.

Arcador

Arcador

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2005

--

R/N

They reduced the speed of the scythe from the pvp preview :P Also a most paragon spells now have "adjustent" than nearby range (which was totaly insane previously).

Mordakai

Mordakai

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Aug 2005

Kyhlo

W/

"Hammer has highest DPS of any weapon in the game" (this is from Guildwiki link above).

Is this true?

Is that counting crits and skills, just crits, or just avg DPS with no crits or skills?

Kryopsis

Kryopsis

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Aug 2006

The City of Saints, Canada

Modus Dei

Rt/N

Quote:
Since you want to put in some realism, then realistically, spears are bigger and should do more than than arrows. Also... there's nothing stopping the ranger from using spears.
It's not a question of realism, it's a question of balance. Otherwise Paragons would've carried an stack of a few hundreds of spears because in real life, spears/javelins disappear from your hand once you throw them :P.

Using the logic that 'it's all about skills', why are the casters stuck with an 11-22 damage wands? I am sure my ritualist wouldn't mind a quick-firing 14-27 weapon that still would give him bonuses to his spells.

Cloudpiercer

Cloudpiercer

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Sep 2006

R/

The thing about Spears is that they use alot of Adrenaline skills (bows dont use any). They also have the range of a shortbow but fire .5 seconds faster, and there one handed.....

I dont see any advantage the shortbow would have over the spear. I think I'll have my ranger use spear mastery in place of markmanship in some cases, unless I need the range of a longbow.

Clawdius_Talonious

Clawdius_Talonious

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Aug 2006

Screwston, Tejas

KOS

N/Me

Quote:
Originally Posted by Mordakai
what's the range on "Earshot" anyway?
during the last two Nightfall events Earshot was the exact size of the "danger zone"

Quote:
Originally Posted by Pepsi Jedi
A sword has less damage than an axe but it's quicker.

An axe has more damage than a sword but it's a bit slower.
Neither of those statements is true, they're both 1.33 second swing, while hammer is 1.75

Axe is much more variable damage, you can hit for 28 one swing and 80+ the next. Sword is the most consistant melee damage (even Assassin has slightly more variable damage and is reliant on double strikes for additional speed)

The Scythe has the most highly variable damage in the game, coupled with the slower recharge time, also its skills are rather expensive and it lacks adrenal skills which are energy independant and are a quite useful type of Warrior weapon skill.

GloryFox

GloryFox

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jan 2006

Good ol' USA, where everyone else wants to be

Now Plays World of Warcraft on Whisperwind

If all weapons were created equal then most classes would lose their appeal.

Sorry I don't want my class options to be equal. I want them to be good at the roles they perform.

Horseman Of War

Horseman Of War

Desert Nomad

Join Date: Jun 2006

The Cult of Doom

P/

this thread is funny.


Id like to add, for the record, that IW Scythe is stupid. How many mesmer go around running IW hammers?

Attacks too slow, you dont concern the 9-41 dmg with IW, you get no offhand for boosting (illusion) mesmer skills and energy.

Just an opinion, Im sure some poeple have a real good strat with it.

Yes, its close to being off topic, but I think its a good point to make (whether ppl agree or not)


Isnt scythe attack like every 2 seconds? I know its slower than hammers, if im wrong plz correct me... Ima go look at the wiki right now...


Quote:
Warrior Axe 6-28 1.33 seconds
Hammer 19-35 1.75 seconds
Sword 15-22 1.33 seconds
Daggers 7-17 1.33 seconds +2% double strike /Dagger Mastery
Scythe 9-41 1.75 seconds hits 2 adjacent targets
is this correct tho? thats what the wiki says... but the wikis been wrong before...

Clawdius_Talonious

Clawdius_Talonious

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Aug 2006

Screwston, Tejas

KOS

N/Me

Quote:
Originally Posted by Horseman Of War
Id like to add, for the record, that IW Scythe is stupid. How many mesmer go around running IW hammers?
No, but hammers don't hit every single target around you, Iwep mesmers are often targeted first by warriors as they are a major threat that has weak armor. But, even in the Nightfall PBP book it mentions that the Illusionary Weaponry mesmer/warrior with a scythe and flurry will be a useful build (as long as they don't strip your enchants and stances and kill you, heh)

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

ok, in a hope to end this, i just spent 5 minutes in the island of the nameless with my warrior and a stopwatch. tested the hit rate of the sword, axe, and hammer, and i can now say, definetivley, that the wiki is right. 1.33 s for sword and axe. 1.75 s for hammer. dont have a scythe to test, so i cant vouch for it, and i wont. but untill i see otherwise, ill go with the reported 1.75 s for it to.

moriz

moriz

??ber t??k-n??sh'??n

Join Date: Jan 2006

Canada

R/

you wanna test out weapon swing speeds? here's how you do it. pop over to the Isle of the Nameless, go up to a target dummy, and start hitting it. hit it 10 times, count the time in seconds, divide that number by 10.

basically, you'll find that the attack speeds are exactly as listed.

PS: the numbers posted on wiki are obtained using fraps, not a stopwatch. it is about as accurate as it can get.

PSS: no one is insulting you. there's no need to disillusion yourself.

Sir Skullcrasher

Sir Skullcrasher

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Jun 2005

California

15 over 50 [Rare]

W/Mo

But here is the thing.. would balancing the weapon itself fix the issue? What about changing some of the skills to cut back on the power a spear or a scythe might have?

moriz

moriz

??ber t??k-n??sh'??n

Join Date: Jan 2006

Canada

R/

actually, unless there's a lot of lag, hitting and movement speeds are consistent.

like i said, the numbers are obtained using fraps, which counts the individual frames and time it that way. swords and axes use the same amount of frames per swing. hammers and scythes too.

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

yes reaction time is different for each person. but the numbers every other person in the gw community are getting are not seeing these variations.

its not like ppl are getting 1.25 s for the sword and 1.37 s for the axe and just rounding the numbers. in my tests alone, i got 1.35 for the sword and 1.34 for the axe. that was done over 30 swings each. i didnt just do 3 swings over 4 seconds. if my lag and reaction time were rly affecting me that much, wouldnt the there be some kind of gap?

if the lag was lengthening my times for the sword, that same lag would be lengething my times for the axe as well. it would maintain that ratio. by your reasoning, i should be getting inflated numbers for both. like 1.35 for sword and 1.64 for the axe. but the fact is, no one is getting that.

and you say that human reaction increases the time? then it would increase both times not just the swords time, again maintaining the ratio.

actionjack

actionjack

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Oct 2005

Kali

W/E

Well.. I say it is a secret conspircy that the dev make the weapons for the new class better so to get people to buy there game....mmm... conspircy...

Anyhow.. I would recomand making the Spear shorter range than that of bows. Afterall, they are meant more for mid-ranger fighting (and you got a shield for it) Also might want to reduce the attack speed for it, and maybe up the damage power (afterall, spear is lot bigger than arrow...)

For scythe... I think the damage is balance, as it has a wider attack range. But maybe just me, but still feel that its attacking speed are faster than hammer.. might want to lower that more to factor in the multi attacks.

Why_Me

Why_Me

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Apr 2006

New Jersey

Mo/

This thread is getting a bit off topic, but anyway...
There is one more thing to consider when comparing spears to bows. Spears always have the same range, arc, and refire rate. Bows change. Being able to have an arrow hit almost immediately with a recurve and read the wind is much more valuable to me than DPS. Same with range, a longbow can shoot a lot farther than a spear. Want damage? Get a hornbow, inherent 10% armor penetration isn't something spears can achieve.

Mordakai

Mordakai

Grotto Attendant

Join Date: Aug 2005

Kyhlo

W/

OK, now we've settled weapon rates, how do you determine DPS?

I took the avg. damage of a weapon (18.5 for sword), and divided it by the refire rate and got these numbers:

Sword: 13.9 dam/rate
Axe: 12.7 dam/rate
Hammer: 30.8 dam/rate
Scythe: 28.5 dam/rate

of course, this does not take into account crits (which would make Scythe higher), or area attacks (again, making Scythe higher), or any skills.

ss1986v2

ss1986v2

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Apr 2006

Mo/

yes, back on topic now. i think a small decrease to the spear range would be fine, but if that happens, id say keep the dmg and the speed where they are at. paragons are alrdy at a disadvantage not being a core class, they are gonna get a lot of undeserved hate. no need to compound it.

plus, who says ranger is supposed to be the only ranged attacker in gw? why cant the paragon be just as or nearly as good at ranged damage? rangers have spirits, paragons have shouts, it all balances out.

Clawdius_Talonious

Clawdius_Talonious

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Aug 2006

Screwston, Tejas

KOS

N/Me

You can obtain FRAPS at www.fraps.com

PVP is the reason everything is balanced, but it helps in PVE as well, if everything was unbalanced the only thing you'd see in PVE would be the few character types that were unbalanced with benefits, and the other classes wouldn't serve the purpose they were intended to.

Saider maul

Saider maul

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Nov 2005

Baltimore, Maryland

I agree on scythe dmg being to inconsistant making it an unreliable dmg dealer as scythe user.
The dervish is great conditioning, alot of timing, and fairly technical to work due to the co-op of enchantments and attack skills.
A good class but need a slight balance in the range of dmg it deals out.
I'd like to see a 1.50 sec attack speed and tighter window for the base dmg then any one of the Scythe skills changed even thought some of the skills do have high recharges and could use about a 3-5 sec recharge reduction.

Paragon range should be the range of earshot period. my only beef with them is stunning spear. with an adreniline booster its way to spammable for the unconditional dazed duration it inflicts.

I think if they balance this right it will make up for factions and may even make up for not totally fixing the assassin.lol

1 more question... Pepsi, your name wouldn't happen to be leeroy by any chance would it?

Mercury Angel

Mercury Angel

Avatar of Gwen

Join Date: Apr 2005

Wandering my own road.

Spears definitely have their uses in their own right, and I love the Paragon no matter what role I'm playing with them, but Spears and Bows are definitely 2 unique weapons played 2 different ways. I don't feel that either weapon obsoletes the other at all.

That, and if you played paragon over the weekend, you probably rekindled your love for Read the Wind with a bow. <_< Spears have awful flight times, and they're incredibly easy to strafe unless you dedicate slots to snaring foes.

chicks boy

chicks boy

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Feb 2006

No guild

A/E

Yes I Agreee!!!!!! Paragons Should Not Be Ranged Melee!!! Spears R Suppsoed To Be Like Melee Front Line Jus Like In Diablo2, Dynasty Warriors Etc... !!!!!!!!!

akh

Academy Page

Join Date: Aug 2006

Europe

FTW

A/E

i don't get your point guys. you are not limited to shortbows only. you have 5 different types of bows and skills that will outdamage every spearmaster.
and scythe... so you are trying to tell me that scythe is unbalanced because it deals more damage than hammer ? you forgot that dervish is light armored character and scythe is supposed to compensate this. you don't expect either warrior to have best possible armor and highest damage weapon or dervish to be light armored with low damage weapon, do you ?

Clawdius_Talonious

Clawdius_Talonious

Krytan Explorer

Join Date: Aug 2006

Screwston, Tejas

KOS

N/Me

Quote:
Originally Posted by chicks boy
Yes I Agreee!!!!!! Paragons Should Not Be Ranged Melee!!! Spears R Suppsoed To Be Like Melee Front Line Jus Like In Diablo2, Dynasty Warriors Etc... !!!!!!!!!
Words are supposed to be typed, and not abreviated to single letters, but that didn't stop you from doing it your own way did it? Well, in real life spears can be ranged or melee, of course you can't endlessly throw the same spear... But lets not get into that...

Quote:
Originally Posted by akh
i don't get your point guys. you are not limited to shortbows only. you have 5 different types of bows and skills that will outdamage every spearmaster.
and scythe... so you are trying to tell me that scythe is unbalanced because it deals more damage than hammer ? you forgot that dervish is light armored character and scythe is supposed to compensate this. you don't expect either warrior to have best possible armor and highest damage weapon or dervish to be light armored with low damage weapon, do you ?
it has the potential to deal more damage, it also has the potential to deal close to the least damage of any weapon in the game with 9 being it's low point

Kryopsis

Kryopsis

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Aug 2006

The City of Saints, Canada

Modus Dei

Rt/N

Quote:
Originally Posted by GloryFox
If all weapons were created equal then most classes would lose their appeal.

Sorry I don't want my class options to be equal. I want them to be good at the roles they perform.
Which is why a paragon (support yeller) dealing as much damage as a ranger (ranged specialist) makes no sense. Weapons should not be equal: they should be balanced accordingly.


Quote:
Yes I Agreee!!!!!! Paragons Should Not Be Ranged Melee!!! Spears R Suppsoed To Be Like Melee Front Line Jus Like In Diablo2, Dynasty Warriors Etc... !!!!!!!!!
First, ask mom to buy you a thesaurus for christmas.
Second, you could throw javelins in Diablo2.
Besides, no one is saying Paragons should be melee fighters but they have no need for a high-damage weapon. I wasn't serious when I asked for a higher damage-dealing weapon for my ritualist but I tried to make a point. Casters (especially monks, mesmers and ritualists) need good weapons as much as paragons: in other words, they don't.

As for people who think balance is irrelevant, they should go PVP in Diablo2.

dawnrain

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Nov 2005

Balancing weapons solely on their auto-attack damage went out with Factions and the introduction of daggers. A two-handed melee weapon that at best (provided you're an assassin using a -75hp rune) does ~95% of a hammer's (the only other two-handed melee weapon) damage and at worst ~62%.

I was actually surprised the designers didn't tie some of the scythe and spear properties to the applicable attributes. For example the number of additional targets a scythe could hit is dependent on scythe mastery and the range of the spear is dependent on spear mastery.

actionjack

actionjack

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Oct 2005

Kali

W/E

Maybe they could have vary damage with the spear depend on the distance.
So at far distance, (like range of horn bow), would have -25% damage, where when it throw close (a ranger shorter than that of short bow), will have normal damage.

Bow and spear, which is faster? (also keep in mind that spear is one-handed)

Quid Pro Quo

Quid Pro Quo

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2005

Quote:
Originally Posted by dawnrain
I was actually surprised the designers didn't tie some of the scythe and spear properties to the applicable attributes. For example the number of additional targets a scythe could hit is dependent on scythe mastery and the range of the spear is dependent on spear mastery.
Wow.. thats an extremely great idea.

akh

Academy Page

Join Date: Aug 2006

Europe

FTW

A/E

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kryopsis
Which is why a paragon (support yeller) dealing as much damage as a ranger (ranged specialist) makes no sense.
paragon doesn't deal as much damage as ranger.
*ranger has expertise which allow him to spam his skills
*ranger doesn't have to "waste" time on activating chants, he only reaply preparation every 24 sec
*ranger has barrage
*ranger has 2 penetrating attacks (weaker than spear of lightning but shorter recharge)
*ranger has dual shot
paragon skills are adrenal. the most damaging skills such as cruel spear and stunning strike require 7/10 adrenaline and are elites. as a paragon you neither attack as often as warrior nor take as much damage so you gain adrenaline much slower unless you use focused avenger which is elite.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Kryopsis
ranged specialist
thats why ranger has longest range weapons in game.

lightblade

lightblade

Forge Runner

Join Date: May 2005

The Etereal Guard

Me/Mo

Bow can have skills to decrease their flight time...spears however doesn't..

TheBaron82

TheBaron82

Frost Gate Guardian

Join Date: Jan 2006

Quote:
Originally Posted by akh
paragon doesn't deal as much damage as ranger.
*ranger has expertise which allow him to spam his skills
*ranger doesn't have to "waste" time on activating chants, he only reaply preparation every 24 sec
*ranger has barrage
*ranger has 2 penetrating attacks (weaker than spear of lightning but shorter recharge)
*ranger has dual shot
paragon skills are adrenal. the most damaging skills such as cruel spear and stunning strike require 7/10 adrenaline and are elites. as a paragon you neither attack as often as warrior nor take as much damage so you gain adrenaline much slower unless you use focused avenger which is elite.

thats why ranger has longest range weapons in game.
I totally agree, plus if you want to use spear instead of bow as a ranger, go ahead but keep in mind that you put 97 attribute points into spear to raise it to 12.

TGgold

TGgold

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2005

Flying Gophers

Rt/P

I thought that they're balanced just fine.
I AM getting annoyed with things like...
Ranger = Ranged Specialist (trappers and BMs probably aren't happy with this generalization. I'd say that Rangers are hammer masters too :P)
Paragon = Shout Support (well...it seems he has decend damage capacity...his damage seems more competent than say, a smite monk.)

They are TWO different classes. They serve DIFFERENT purposes. A ranger doesn't use adreneline. A paragon doesn't have a projectile speed-increasing ability. The ranger has X skills. The para has Y skills.

The weapons seem to fit what the character needs.

Now, as a ranger using a bow, would an offhand really *really* help you? What isn't covered by a bow that you desperately need? Energy? I mean, it's not like you have Expertise or anything.
Paras: They get an offhand and a shield. Now, seeing as they're a midline fighter, or frontline (need to keep your targets in earshot), it seems that the addition of a sheild is warrented. The one handed spear seems just fine to balance this. The damage seems fine as well. They fly really...really...slow. Lets hope the AI doesn't learn how to strafe.

Yawgmoth

Yawgmoth

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Apr 2005

IMHO the weapons are balanced well.

I think the basic stats of spears and scythes were among the first things developed during creating the new professions. And they had to balance them first, to create and test skills after that. See that the damage didn't change since the PvP preview event? And lots of nerfage came since then.

Paragons won't obsolete rangers as ranged damage dealers, we can be sure about that

TadaceAce

Wilds Pathfinder

Join Date: Jul 2005

Dumb thread if you ask me,

You can't compare bow to spear or scythe to hammer, thats like comparing apples to oranges. Bow gets kindle arrows or read the wind, boom it now does more damage than the spear! Hammer gets knockdowns, crushing blow, and irresistable blow... scythe gets as yet to be proven otherwise crappy conditional scythe attacks.

I am looking foward to running R/D with a scythe though, along with the already proven good R/P.