Development Cycle Archive

Thunderheart:

Thanks for actually listening to people. There will always be complainers among the powergamers- I actually liked the first version of the changes better -but it appears you did listen.

Yet, the one major question NOT answered is how do Wookies fit in CH - or for that matter the game?

We still don't have an answer as to how the Wookie species taming bonus works under the new system. We need one.

Given there are almost no advantages and a plethora of disadvantages in playing a wookie, this is a very important question to answer. In speaking on behalf of my wookie player colleagues, we'd also appreciate it if you could consider opening another separate topic on wookie development. There are issues that need to be discussed.

thanks!

Sorry to interject, I just wanted to make sure this thread was at the top of the pile for awhile. People CONTINUE to post to the old thread about the previous round of proposed changes and it's getting on my nerves. I've tried telling people to come here, but if you like wander on over to the other thread here:

http://forums.station.sony.com/swg/board/message?board.id=Developers&message.id=7098&page=1

And set those people straight. I can't even tell you how many times, even in the past couple days, I've heard: "They nerfed CH! They are taking away our active pets!"

You may return to your regularly-scheduled flame war.

Why dont you just remove the custom character tree, and force us all down one freaking path? We can all be CH masters, or sit around in towns and complain about how we all wished you could get a freakin clue. Oh well flame on masters. We all want to hear more about how you need to be the ONLY elite PVM profession. And how you can sit and tank Rancors solo, while the rest of us cant take a GSP, at lvl 23, solo, at all. Dont tell me you can. Ive tried. Trapped, stuck, hit hard, incapped, deathblowed. Oh I just cant wait for decay. Then we will really be done.

Take a Master CH and a Master Commando (or Bounty Hunter). In PvE, the CH has an advantage because of his tanks...but then again, NO PET has armor penetration. So, yeah, 3 GSPs can do 750 points of damage to unarmored foes every 2.0 seconds. Against something with light armor that becomes 375, and I haven't even started on kinetic resistance yet. Mostly, the creatures are there to tie up one's opponents.

Now, in PvP, take a Master CH, a Master Commando, and Master Bounty Hunter (assuming no other non-required skill trees). The CH is screwed, quite frankly. The pets will be ignored and the CH will be chased around by lightning cannons and flamethrowers until he's crying for Mama. Sure, he could pay some points to be a Commando--but then he's paying the points for it--so what's the problem? The MBH or MC who is NOT a CH or even a dabbler, is still--bar none--carrying the most powerful, damaging weapons in the game. If there's anyone in a viable solo combat class, it's the BH and the Commando. They worked hard to get there--rightly so.

Now....you can't have it both ways. People complain frequently that "This is Pet Wars not Star Wars". The number of people running around with pets is extremely unbalanced. Some of these people should be running around with droids. What would you prefer? Anyone who wants to be effective in PvE combat has to dabble in the CH tree and carry around a lot of pets....OR, a player can skip CH altogether and purchase a new, upgraded droid that can tank for them in combat? When you don't have to invest points in a skill tree to have a droid (and you shouldn't), it makes droids more attractive--particularly if a good combat droid measures up to some of the 'dabbler class' pets out there. We'll have to wait and see on this one.

On the whole, you should look at these changes as addressing "Pet Wars". Unless you don't mind Pet Wars, in which case carry on. But if you get tired of city streets filled with graul maulers and every third person trailing an animal behind them--this change was made for you. How do you get people to stop using the creature pets they've come to rely on? Seems to me you have three primary means of addressing it.

1. 
   
   
   

   Create a good, viable alternative to creature pets (ie., a better Probot)


2. 
   
   
   

   Encourage people who want to have powerful creatures invest points in the skill tree to earn the powerful creatures.


3. 
   
   
   

   Make pets for non-CH be just that: pets. Not really useful in combat, and more of a novelty item.

It's called: Sarcasm.

Also known as "tongue firmly in cheek".

I was equating being irate about a game being unbalanced (in its first four months of release) as being comparable to being irate at America for having to pass all those amendments since the founding fathers couldn't get it right the first time.

Moral of my story: When the status quo doesn't work, change is a good thing.

Hence wailing that I'm going to leave America (SWG) because the Founding Fathers (Devs) couldn't just have every issue resolved in advance or possess the foresight to see every exploit in its laws(code). Curiously, fixing issues/bugs is considered to be further evidence of incompetence rather than a committment to getting things working and well-balanced. Go figure.

If you took my comparison to America seriously and didn't see the sarcasm, I guess the joke is on you.

Your[sic] probably soaking up tax dollars anyway.

I actually owe thousands in taxes, FYI, after an ill-advised self-employment venture. So I'm not soaking up anything. I've got a full-time job and (somewhat) a life. Know what's really soaking up tax dollars?

The Pentagon.

I know, it's off topic. But it still illustrates my point. I don't agree with a lot of what my country does, but I'd rather stay and try to make things better than endlessly complain (which solves nothing) and move to another country.

Please read Thunder:smileyvery-happy

I want to thank you for being a subject of a very nasty sort, and for taking the time to bring this to the devs. And for the devs for listening to all of us ranting and raving about the nerf that was going to happen. I believe you came out smelling a hell of a lot better then what you all were before this last announcement=)

The only concerns I do have are the mounts! Now mounts shouldn't be even counted as a ch nch pet. Since atm you have nerfed every mountable pet there is for the nch. I'm a ch with 3-3-1-1 so I won't be hurt and by the time this patch comes out I won't be worried about it. YET I am concerned for those nch that are looking forward to the mounts like everyone else is. Shouldn't mounts be just that? If you have a mount pet it shouldn't be used or even seen as a lvl pet. it should only be used for mounts. And hopefully be able to make a code in the game that will see the mount command being used and ch's can't train it to do anything else.( fighting commands ect) That way you are avoiding the dabblers since there won't be any reason for people to have to do it. As it is right now I can see more dabblers in the future just to get mounts=)

Once again thank you for listening to us rant and rave. Keep up the listening please!!!!!

Ok- Here's where the problem is.... NAMES IN THIS GAME ARE MISLEADING!!! If i am an imperial Surface Marshall, i should be able to have a thousand stormtroopers marching in formation behind me, ready to kill anything and everything that moves. If i go and blow THOUSANDS of faction points, and then pay the TRIPPLE (i am a rodian) faction penalty, I should be able to call as many stormtroopers as I jolly-well feel like it, and any overt newb that has a problem with my army could (AND SHOULD) die kicking and screaming under my boot. You want to tell me I am a surface marshal??? Then give me an army I can patrol a city with... otherwise either change the names, or tell people that dont like faction pets to stay COVERT.

Thank you.

Dharque Dethnight, Tarquinas

Great job on the skill tree Thunder. It seems you and the rest of the crew have been working really hard to help us out. I say for everyone that we appreciate you putting our ideas into action, while making them reasonable to others. Keep the ideas coming, can't wait till they are put into action.

ManiacMikeafk -

Master Creature Handler/Ranger

Ok, ok, I don't want to flame, I haven't done it yet on a thread but this is beyond... Ch is clearly the best class for hunting. What I hate about it, is it has almost no relevence to anything in star wars EXCEPT the one time Luke beat a Rancor with his bare hands. Besides that it was ALL droids. Next, you complain that BH and Commando is better, NO WAY. They might be better PvP, but hunting not a chance. You guys can master CH and pistol/rifle/carbine or even some BH or Commando and never get hit because of your tanks. Really What the DEVS need to do is take A LOT away from CH, creatures are good agaisnt other creatures, blasters would OWN creatures. Im trying to feed my brains why the DEVs are doing this. From now on look completly at the stats. Make the proffesions no one is better, not the ones everyone is. Here is what I think the proffesion stats should be from best to woarst

BH, Commando, Droid E. Top 3, Droid are clearly better than creatures, and so are almost all guns. My god just nerf the CH already, you say that nerfing is hard because it effects the population, but who gives a rats toot. This needs to be changed. CH must be nerfed, there is no way around it. All you CH tell me why your rancors and gruals should be better than a flamer thrower or rocket launcher or lighting rifle, or assault droid. Give me one instance in star wars were they used creatures instead of droids and weapons, or were creatures beat droids and weapons... JUST 1

as i read through the last new pages i see some compares pets / heavy weapons..

just my 2 cents... some weapons and moves are to powerfull and heavy weapons are far to unbalanced..

so atm nerfs of single professions helps not much, the hole dam system needs a overworking

it was no good idea to let ppl stuck with there 1 K ham and only balance chreature challenge via ham...

the damage of the best weapons are ok againt high level creatures but now pvp is most times a question of who hit first (even with the 25 % pvp dam modificator).... coz the first his is direct deadly (heavy weapon) or indirect ... (knockdown/dizzy)..

I ´realized this again this morning... if u got surprised all armor is without use... 1 shot was enough to put me for the hole combat on the ground unable to defence myself.. if he had missed me the same would be true otherway around... coz a hit with a llc single 2 is most time combat ends......

pvp is atm only a question of who see the opponent first or who is lagging less..

it is some time ago i had a real fight ... so the proposed CH changes will have some impacts in PvE but according PvP they are without any impac at all