Character Balance in Path of Exile: Lake of Kalandra

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Vaildez wrote:

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MisterAbsence wrote:

So where are these videos of doing Uber bosses AFK? You can't AFK boss mechanics...

All builds in POE history that were afk base - immortal builds like ES strength stacking or aura stackers - were nerfed due to afk mods(basically being able to afk and not being able to die). All minion builds, as they are now are basically afk builds. As a player, you do not do much with your character because you afk next to the minions. That is the reason behind the rework as I see it. Yes, I understand you think dodging the bosses mechanics is a hard thing when playing minions, but imagine that other players need to attack and do other things meanwhile they dodge the boss mechanics. Now, minions builds do not care about that, because technically the minions do all the damage and you afk with the character. Also, at this point, minion builds, will be way way stronger due to access to all classes, with high investment.

Spoken like a true non-minion player... There is this assumption that mininion players are doing nothing other than dodging boss mechanics while the minions just destroy the screen. That is not how they work. I am more active in boss fights than any other non-minion build I have played... Most minion builds are also squishy AF in order to build ennough damage for end game bosses. Maybe do some research before making a bunch of assumptions?

I did a minion build too some time ago, as PoE is the only ARPG that I know of that actually allows a decent minion build that makes you feel more like an army commander.
It was an absolute unique playstyle in the argp genre and I had some flashbacks to the Diablo 2 necro that is the only other aRPG that I know that had a army commander.
Still though, if you really want to rock the summoner necro, you either need heavy investment in gear, of play motzart on your actives skills.

In all fairness I feel the manifesto is mostly a choice from a business point of view. Nerf some of the most popular builds (RF firetrap / necro skellies) to give room to other builds and skills to become the new meta, and of course sell the mtx associated with the new meta.
And let's be honest, from a business point of view this makes perfect sense.
That's why I also expect to see some buffs in the full release, either on passive, items or the league mechanic.
Guess we need a bit more patience, but we will know when we get the full patch nodes...

The problem is people complaining about builds or playstyles from watching a youtube video without playing or understanding the builds themselves... A lot of these content creators are trying to put out videos that would attract a lot of clicks on purpose with clickbait titles. Also people complaining about a playstyle being "easy" when most of the meta non-minion builds are literally no different just spamming a couple skils to clear screens.[/quote]

Ok. Sir. You know better. Have a nice day!

150 pages of complaint. I highly doubt they care.


This game is now just like those where you choose among some 5 characters and play linearly until the end. Like, say, Torchlight, but without the mods. The only difference is that in those games, you'd choose your character in the create character screen, and in this one you choose from a small list of working metas on the internet.


The game that once had the biggest depth strategy and build potential of any arpg ever in gaming History is just a braindead action game now.


"Harder"... right... You just use your reflexes instead of brains.

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1869Flame wrote:

I did a minion build too some time ago, as PoE is the only ARPG that I know of that actually allows a decent minion build that makes you feel more like an army commander.
It was an absolute unique playstyle in the argp genre and I had some flashbacks to the Diablo 2 necro that is the only other aRPG that I know that had a army commander.
Still though, if you really want to rock the summoner necro, you either need heavy investment in gear, of play motzart on your actives skills.

In all fairness I feel the manifesto is mostly a choice from a business point of view. Nerf some of the most popular builds (RF firetrap / necro skellies) to give room to other builds and skills to become the new meta, and of course sell the mtx associated with the new meta.
And let's be honest, from a business point of view this makes perfect sense.
That's why I also expect to see some buffs in the full release, either on passive, items or the league mechanic.
Guess we need a bit more patience, but we will know when we get the full patch nodes...

My problem is they come in heavy handed every time with these nerfs... Instead of nerfing the specific skills or builds they come in with wrecking ball and take everything out that even uses a skill in the build. Raise Spectres have lost 10 levels since 8.9? They haven't been a viable option for awhile as far as playing a pure version and most act minions can't even be used now cause the HP is a major problem.

Minions RAPED AGAIN..... Good gawd, there is nothing left but SRS now.

One less aura in league start scenarios.
Guess melee who has to go in and get personal will be hit the hardest.

Pog

Minions will be fine.. Just will need to spend 1 mirror more than other builds for the same effectiveness.

The summary of this manifesto is:

Problem: Enjoying the game with powerful builds.

Solution: Making the game unplayable.

:)

I mean, to get at root causes, the ultimate problem is the XP scaling at the top end. Past level 90 it starts to take a LOT of XP to level, and a single death is demoralizing with how much wasted time happens. If you died 3-4 times in a map/scenario you weren't prepared for it can be enough to make you just walk away from the league.


While levelling, no one (but hardcore league) cares about a death here or there. Once you hit maps, it starts getting important. Once you get to red maps, it becomes something you start obsessing over.

And what's the result? Finding the golden zone where you don't die and can kill relatively fast. If you want people to play the way you'd like them to, you've got to quit with the ridiculous punishment. I've never been past level 92. I don't play meta builds. I basically do Solo-Self-Found even if that's not the league I officially signed up for. Between 90 and 92 is the point at which my builds cap out and I die enough that the game stops being fun and I move on. Often not playing for a league or 3.


The Archenemesis mods and reducing defenses is going in the wrong direction unless you also deal with the XP loss, which is a major UN-FUN factor. "Oh, I have 5 more portals... screw that, I'll try again with a different map." Is the goal to make sure that "casuals" can't see any of the "real" endgame content? Seems like it.

Basically, I'll probably never see any new content unless I give in and just run builds that exploit the hell out of the mechanics that currently exist and that other people put together, which eliminates one of the main reasons I like the game. However, it's going to be just the same thing over-and-over-and-over again because I'm not "elite" enough to deserve to see the rest of it.



Maybe what you need is a "Baby" mode with less XP loss (and potentially less abuse if you decide to keep jacking up the difficulty) so that those of us that just want to see the sights and enjoy ourselves can? At some point people will just decide that they've seen the same content enough times and just not come back.