Smuggler Archive

Thread: The trade off.. less smugglers or keep concussion shot

Vampiric_Hoshi
Fri May 20, 2005 4:12 am
#1

So everyone is running around screaming "last ditch is making everyone go to smuggler" but it isn't last ditch that people are picking up smuggler for. Its concussion shot ... the ONLY root in game that can hold anything you shoot for 40 seconds.


Its fun rooting everything an blasting it from range, but at the same time its ruining smuggler. Right now on certain servers like Ahazi the number of smugglers (because of the respec) is something like 1 in 3 people are master smuggler.


As a smuggler in that kind of environment, you can't sell FP you can't slice for anything over 2k and you certainly can't sell spice.. if you try your customer will just go to someone who's respeced to smuggler solely for concussion shot and has no idea on how to play a smuggler.


So I find myself stuck in a hole ... I don't want to lose such a handy special as concussion, but I also don't want to stay in a situation where EVERYONE and their mum is a smuggler. I'm sure it's like that on every other server.


So what's the solution? I can only really think of one... improve the roots of other profressions to match smugglers. I personaly don't care if a carbineer snaring a creature snares it for the same length of time that I'd root it for ... or if a combat medic is able to imobilise someone for the same length of time.


I've been a smuggler for nearly 1.5 years now and throughout that time I've seen the smuggler population rise and fall but its never been this bad. For a profression that gains its money through a non-combat activity (i.e. slicing/spicing/fp) its as damaging for there to be so many smugglers as it would be if 1 in 3 were weaponsmiths or armoursmiths or shipwrights etc.



Abandon all hope
Jartock
Fri May 20, 2005 4:56 am
#2

I think (like many others) the concussion shot is broken. This attack is not working as intend. For me, concussion shot is a "mezz": Concussion effect has to break if the target isshot while "mezz".



NovalisPallida
Fri May 20, 2005 4:59 am
#3

Also, a lot of these people will not be selling faction and doing a lot of things the rest of us are.. they are using it to augment their fighting skills. Respec or not both my gf and I have no problems making money off of faction. The factional armor is great since it takes so much faction to get the suit on
Ragnaat
Fri May 20, 2005 5:10 am
#4

This silly thread again?

The powers that be, in their infinite wisdom, decided to "balance" professions solely based on combat prowess gained at each box, and so any profession that gives you anything more then just combat is now a more worth while use of skillpoints then one that doesn't.

Its just that simple, and there is no way of getting around it. So enjoy your new found "balance" and don't mind the other people so much.



:: Retired... For the moment ::
-I support going slow and being careful.
focus thread (n.): there for us to focus on while they went behind our backs and did whatever they wanted to, anyway. (Source: AngusMacGregor)
Vampiric_Hoshi
Fri May 20, 2005 6:00 am
#5

My point is that smuggler ISN'T a combat profression as far as the people that played it (prior to the CU) were concerned. I don't care what title the devs have given it and where they've decided to place smuggler on their silly combat pyramid.


Pre-CU you *HAD* to have atleast novice TK. Without a TK skill, especialy in PVP, the chances were stacked against you of being any good. TK was the ultimate complimant to any of the other combat professions because of its low-SP requirements high damage and high defense. As well as that, pre-CU you could gain a buff and wear 80% comp and be a novice marksman and still tank praticaly anything in game.


Now, however, you can have the best set of buffs with the best ever armour while being the highest combat rating player and not even be able to tank a Bantha ... so everyone is turning to using a crowd control profression and a high-damage profression to allow them to "freeze" the target, move away and damage it and therefore allow them to effectively "tank" it without taking damage.. so because right now smuggler has the best root in game, its obviously being chosen as the compliment to any other profession. So Smuggler is the post-CU TK...


And you'd think that people that just chose it arent slicing or selling faction points, but its simply not true. Many of the respec smugglers are putting up "Master Smuggler" as their title. Anyone wanting a slice, spice or FP are then looking for anyone with such a title and sending them a tell. The respec smuggler then recieves a "can you please slice my gun. I will pay 2k!" tell an thinks "wow i can actually make some pocket money" and so slices.. thinking they've just made themselves 2k when what they have really done is helped to lower the market of a slice.


Any smuggler that was around during the hologrind days will know what happened to the smuggler market when hologrinding jedi grinded smuggler. Those were dark days ... before hologrinding getting a smuggler to slice a weapon was difficult and that meant we had a business. When the grinders game along and started the whole "slice for 2k" just so they can grind the slicing tree it completly smashed the slicing market. Now with the respec smuggler is 20 times worse.


And this problem would be solved if another profression that was DESIGNED to be a combat profression (which smuggler WASNT) is made more desireable. In my opinion that profression should be pistoleer. So with that in mind, the following should be done:



  • Reduce concussion shot to a 10 second root

  • Increase stopping shot to a 40 second root

  • Increase fan shot (or another pistoleer special) to twice the damage therefore equaling the damage of reckless

Those 3 changes would effectively make pistoleer more desireable than smuggler. Smuggler would definitely still keep handy abilities like last ditch and faign, but for a good 60% of people that are currently using it purely for root they would drop it and go pistoleer. And since a good 90% of people that play smuggler for anything OTHER than the root special are master pistoleer as well, this change doesnt really doesn't make any difference at all.


Smuggler is designed to "support" pistoleer. So why is it all of the smuggler moves are better than all of the pistoleer moves? It should be the other way around.




Abandon all hope
Ragnaat
Fri May 20, 2005 6:14 am
#6

I totally disagree on all of your solutions.

But mostly because right now *nothing* works like it should. Go into any combat professions issues thread and there will be issues with specials not working, not daanging as they should, or being totally repetitive. Armor Break, Combo Hits, Commando AOE, elemental damage, cover breaking, weak bleeds,

Its silly to propose changing things that work to match things that don't, and given the current smuggler XP req - which don't seem to be changing anytime soon - its silly to bring us back to the days of 2 working specials and minimal to no skill mods.



:: Retired... For the moment ::
-I support going slow and being careful.
focus thread (n.): there for us to focus on while they went behind our backs and did whatever they wanted to, anyway. (Source: AngusMacGregor)
korvass
Fri May 20, 2005 6:17 am
#7


Right then..


A) Anyone that's been a smuggler for any length of time will have built up contacts, business associates, etc. People will often choose quality of service over cheap bargains. You shouldn't have any problem making the dough. I know I don't. Always remember: I don't need your business; you need mine.


B) I like my concussion shot. In fact I think it should do what the box actually states: root them and stop them attacking. That'd be ace. I like the fact I've got about 3 different ways to stop people getting to me (MS/MP). I tried to objectively question whether it was fair, but then.. in a ranged battle, guns win against swords, simple as that.


C) FOTM people come and go. It's the nature of MMOs. Just ignore them and carry on living your own life.


D) I hate it when people come in here and tell me what should be done with my specials.


E) Oh, for the record, Master Smuggler is my primary, pistols my backup. Not the other way around.

Message Edited by korvass on 05-20-2005 06:19 AM





Errathe Afi
Professional Scoundreless
Smuggler till death


"I aim to misbehave!"
"Business is always personal..."
"I'm a smuggler; sarcasm is the only content I got left!"
yimaz
Fri May 20, 2005 6:19 am
#8

Concussion shotis not working as it was meant to be so NO ONE CRY NERF when the Dev's fix it. Also, if you think people are running to smuggler now wait until after a full revamp. We will for sure be the "profession of the week" for a while so I would suggest we all get use to the idea.



Yimayz Samoot
Master Smuggler & Master Pilot
Captain of the Auto de fé

Ragnaat
Fri May 20, 2005 6:19 am
#9

Oh, and in terms of "designed to support pistoleer" well, those days are long gone. And me, my bowcaster, and my flame thrower are damn happy about it.

Smuggler was always a PROFESSION more then it was a combat SKILLSET, and I'm fairly happy that the new design supports being part of the profession with a wider variety of viable skillsets. I'm not totally happy with what it took to get here (still think non-prof certed weapons were an ugly hack to allow people to level a 2nd profession and are really bad for the game in general), but that for one I think is a good thing. Its nice that you like your pistols, but there's plenty of other ways to put down the authorities and protect your cargo.



:: Retired... For the moment ::
-I support going slow and being careful.
focus thread (n.): there for us to focus on while they went behind our backs and did whatever they wanted to, anyway. (Source: AngusMacGregor)
HOTDOG
Fri May 20, 2005 6:30 am
#10

Yeah, I'm not really feeling you on this one Vamp.


True. People are respecting to Smuggler. Whether it's for the root. The slice. The faction. The spice. Whatever it is-that is a S-load of points to sink(especially if it is for one ability) and they deserve to do whatever they want with their abilities.


Concussion probably should break on damage.It's described as if it does. So, I imagine that will be fixed. No worries there.


IDO take a little bit of an issue with you saying we aren't meant to be a combat prof. We ARE. Hence, the pistols and unarmed pre-req's.


Some prefer to play a combat Smuggler and othersa crafting Smuggler and yet even othersafaction Smuggler.Please refrain from calling outnerfs on your fellow Smuggler's play styles.


Smuggler on Smuggler nerf calling must STOP.What are you? A Jedi?


If we are going to get our revamp, there's going to be a lot of other professionsscreaming that we should be pushed back so we REALLY need to be a team until we DO getit.








TEVIN STARGUNNER | WASODO T'GADIE

Rogue | Desperado | Demolitionist Short | Dark | Handsome

Master Smuggler | Master Bounty Hunter | Commando 0400 | Rebel Capt. Smuggler | Teras Kasi Artist | Unaffiliated
riotcontrol
Fri May 20, 2005 6:36 am
#11


yimaz wrote:
Concussion shot is not working as it was meant to be so NO ONE CRY NERF when the Dev's fix it.





QFE



__
wieland argosy <gunslinger>
Tante
Fri May 20, 2005 6:45 am
#12

If you build a solid client base in the past those FOTM/Respec smugglers won't really destroy your business.
They will have noticeable impact but not annihilation.

I do agree with all the people that say Smuggler is popular because of concussion shot. CS is a very powerful attack allowing to keep purely melee based attackers at a distance, it applies very well (almost every time I hit) and it sticks really long. When I am out with some people doing missions or something like that, many of them are quite thankful for m to have it, because it can be a really useful tool for crowd control.

Enter the powergamers. Their thoughts are easy: "I see powerful attack, I take powerful attack." The problem is, that people have not yet adopted to this. I would be really thankful if some Rifleman, Carbiner or Pistoleer would come up with a killer template that tops all Smuggler based ones. I am really looking forward to it! People will drift away from smuggler as soon as they realize that it's an expensive profession (hybrid), as soon as they realize that you can get "more bang for the skillpoints".

We are smugglers, we have all the time in the world. We've seen such developments before, and they will always come back. We just wait, everything will be normal soon. Jedi and BH will cry to each other and the BHs will develop some "killer template".

Have faith in our powergamers, my fellow scoundrels, they always solve our problems. While we wait for them to fix the problem, get a nice drink in the cantina and try to find out if the rumors about that beautiful dancer over there are true



_______________________________________________________
Rogue | Gunfighter| Smartass
Thille Runningcloud <TorSo>
-- "Governments can be useful to the governed only so long as
inherent tendencies toward tyranny are restrained" --

my music| ICQ #81510866 | MSN [email protected]
Aeneas_Menosos
Fri May 20, 2005 6:58 am
#13

It's funny, but there are so many professions complaining about becoming FOTM. Carbines, Bounty Hunters, us. There may be a lot of new smugglers, but anytime I log on someone is asking me for faction, so it can't be that bad.

Aeneas.
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