Did the New Minions make up for the MM nerf?

One of the first things I did when I got to Factions was get my hands on the new minions, those being the Golem (which I can raise at lvl 26) and the Vampiric Horrors which give you back health with their attacks. Yes, we are limited to 10 minions now, and you are only allowed one Golem but I have seen mine hit for 200+ on a single blow. I feel very powerful with a team of these on my side.

Does this make up for the nerf? Other players are stunned by the Golems the first time they see them. I also have a habit of bringing them back to Tyria and running missions with them for guildies which adds to the drama of raising the Golem. I have not taken them into Underworld/Tombs yet, but how effective are the Golems down there, and how much are they in demand?

I have been playing my MM through and I honestly don't feel nerfed too badly. I think the new minions added much needed variety into the MM of old which pretty much only ever made bone fiends... obviously we can't get completely disgusting in some maps anymore where you could raise 15-20, but come on... how unfair is it that MMs got to basically over double their party size without needing to share drops. I mean that's just ridiculous versus what any other classes can do (aside from maybe some of the 55 builds.) My Mesmer cries at night because she can't carry parties as easy as my MM...

The new Minion Master armor is pretty spiffy too - much improved from what was shown at the FPE - +10 armor while you control 3 or more was pretty crappy, but Anet changed it to +5 while you control 1 or more, another +5 with 3 or more, and yet another +5 with 5 or more minions.

How many minion masters don't roll with 5 or more minions anyhow? +15 armor is hella sweet.

So I'd give Anet a "B+" on this one... a C for nerfing me, but an A for making up for it with new cool minions and armor.

Vampiric Horrors are good, with them you don't need self heals. Also they do definit damage to any class. I like the flesh golem too.

Well I never used an MM before the Nerf. But I made one for Cantha and I have to say that I'm not having much of a problem at all. The Minions are nice (Vampiric horror helps a lot with keeping health up), the Golem is nice, and I have absolutely NO problem getting into any group. It doesn't feel like a "nerfed" class/build at all.

No they cannot make up for it as my Necromancer is stuck in Prophecies. She has not finished prophecies. She will not for sometime. If she should find something necesary to make her MM equipment, it will be useless.

It is not that I did not purchase the my copies of the game early enough for NC Soft to know what they needed to provide. It is that they simply have not done their job. ANet did not adequately watchdog them. The public sources of purchase failed to find out about what was going on. Many of us do not have our games, are frozen from having access, and cannot play these things. We paid for it and they failed at every level to do anythng to ensure we would get the product we paid for in a timely and efficient manner.

Fitz Rinley

I've had no trouble with my "new" MM. Yes, it's a bit harder. I can't be basically on auto-pilot spawning minions. However, I never had much trouble maintaining 30-40 minions so 10 is a cakewalk. I've got mixed feelings on the Vamp Horrors... they're very expensive and have a slow recharge on the spell. However, they do add some very nice damage and help with the BotM. If I'm running Vamps I usually don't bring Verata's Sacrifice.

The Golem is sweet and I've known that since FPE. I've been using him to PvE and he's great against soft targets. He routinely hits the Afflicted casters for between 70-100 dmg. That's sweet. He also can absorb an incredble amount of damage. With dark bond up and a golem I'm next to impossible to kill.

I'd say ANet has made up about 70% of what they undid with the nerf.

Err.... Wha?

I don't get it.

EDIT: Nevermind, I caught your post in another thread. Although, I don't see why you're quite so upset. It sucks not to recieve the game, true... But it will be exactly the same when you get it, and you won't lose anything while you wait (if I understand correctly)...

(Yes, yes, Fitz, you're upset about your CE. Understandable but off topic.)

The minon masters I've grouped with in Cantha didn't appear to be overly nerfed, they did an excellent job of dishing out the damage and shielding the other casters. The abundance of fresh corpses no doubt helped, and they did require significant healing once they started spamming BotM, but their minions were providing more than enough utility to justify the healing they required.

Exactly. So many people keep acting like the new summons are part of the nerf update, that they balance the nerf out and vice versa. But the nerf affects ALL necromancers, even ones who don't buy Factions and don't get access to the new skills.

What are you talking about Fitz?

And I agree that minions were overpowered. They were hit a little too hard imo ie Verata's sacrifice. But the reduction of minions is something that can be lived with.

I believe the MM nerf was primarily for the 12v12 alliance battles.

In those battles, minion masters became invincible, unreachable and able to control the pace of battle.

i always found the best use for minions was to blow them up anyway=P

I lol'd...

If they were nerfed for that, PvP'ers should stop whining. It's so easy to beat them its not even funny. Seriously, just look at some Fire/Smite skills to kill them. Easier: Barrage + Judge's Insight (hits for 100+ damage/ minion)
Even easier: Verata's Aura or just kill the MM (was a bit hard due to Vampirics though)

Actually, the only reason MM were nerfed is because of Vampiric Horrors. If ANet only nerfed that skill, MM would pretty much be the same and not really overpowered, not even in PvE (only a few areas where a MM was good).

Anyway, I found a build for my MM, but I honestly don't like it. It were the numbers that did the trick for me, and probably for many others. Anyway, i'm now running a N/Me SS build that gains an extra 3 EN per second thanks to the nerf. gg ANet, I have yet to get my energy below 10 in Cantha. Great balancing.

I doubt it. They could have limited the number of vhorrors within the skill, the way they limited golem to 1, rather than limiting ALL minions to 10. That really would be a kick in the balls to the prophecies-only owners that were told over and over that they don't need to buy the new chapter to remain competitive.

Yes, I lose the time of opportunity for which I paid. I lose my faith in ANet having the capacity to do the job.

I can comprehend how with body blocking a traditional Prophecies based MM who has 10-20 minions and body blocking on a field could be unreachable by everyone except that Raner with the Poisonous Longbow +15^50 using Conflagration, Read the Wind, and Poison Arrow. Maybe an assassin who can just teleport inside and knife the MM in the back.

When I got Prophecies, it described the Necromancer as someone to raise undead hordes. Ten doth not a horde make. The concept in the sales pitch is gone. Caveat Emptor - they are full of empty words.


Fitz

Well, its a game with support so expect things that "work" to get nerfed

Yes the golem and the vampiric horrors definately make up for it. I'm experimenting with a N/Rit with minions and spirits right now to see how that works out. So far so good.

MMs still dominate 12 vs 12 because:

1- People are noobs and mostly go for single target spike
2- People don't realise the power of the MM till they are being dominated at midfield and losing 5 bases in 15 sec
3- People don't know of what skills can actually counter MMs.

In a 12 vs 12 battle, should there be 2 MMs on one side, the battle is pretty much decided. Even if one dies, quick signet rez + veratas aura would soon fix things. So to all MMs, don't complain, at least PVP wise.

Yes the MM is less effective in PVP, but as long as the 12 vs 12 battles stay like they are, a log of PUGs will be rolled by the MMs

/agreed with hunter

Ten for vampire horrors,yes. Just like the 1 ogre.


I mainly tried my hand at being a MM for the number of horrors and fiends I could have..