An external copy of this post (with additional formatting): http://tinyurl.com/kwkhhfj
Preface / Overview
This is an attempt to address the oft discussed “DPS / Zerker Meta” and provide a solution that improves build diversity across the board. Following, there are actually 3 different approaches described, each built around the same principles.
The initial targets of this discussion:
- The idea as a whole and any issues that it fixes or creates.
- The individual approaches and their pros / cons relative to each other.
This is not intended to be a comprehensive solution to all that ails us. The overall viability of conditions, Defiance, AI, and numerous other things would all still need to be addressed even if this were implemented.
The Problem
There are two important points to consider:
- First, the primary source of defense is player agency (Moving, Dodging, Blocking, Reflecting, etc.). This is a good thing and a large part of what makes this game fun. Reducing the efficacy of player agency will make the game less fun by shifting the focus from active interaction to raw stats.
- Second, the content can be “learned” such that an experienced player can avoid harm with relative impunity. This is a common form of expertise in single-player games (e.g. Mega Man), but those games are not meant to be played indefinitely (at least not in the same manner that an MMO is).
This means that (defensive) player agency should not be reduced, but, so long as it remains effective, experienced players will have no incentive to invest in anything that isn’t damage output. Over time, more and more players will become “experienced” and the meta inevitably degenerates into a “maximize DPS or bust” mentality.
This has already been discussed at length (along with many potential solutions) in several other threads. A few of the larger (and recent) ones:
- https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/PvE-Revising-the-DPS-Meta/first
- https://forum-en.gw2archive.eu/forum/professions/balance/To-clear-the-air-about-Berserker/first
The Solution
In a single sentence:
Convert all existing Attribute combinations on items to have a uniform offense to defense ratio.
A bit more detail:
This means that there would no longer be “offensive” (e.g. Berserker’s) or “defensive” (e.g. Sentinel’s) Attribute sets. Instead, both damage output and survivability would be provided in equal measure. This change does two significant things:
- It changes the nature of deciding what equipment to use. It is no longer about damage output vs. survivability and, instead, is about the type of damage and type of survivability. This shift encourages players to give their Profession (and their personal playstyle within it) more weight, fostering build diversity within a Profession and Equipment diversity among the playerbase as a whole.
- It provides a more reliable “base” of Attributes for all players. By ensuring every player has some offense and some defense, it helps to deliver on the original promise of “everyone can fulfill every role” — it’s just a matter of how they do it.
Ultimately what this is doing here is narrowing the band of variance on the theoretical Damage / Survivability scale, which sounds a lot like restricting customization (which it is). But this is not without precedent. Consider the fixed set of weapon skills that the player is given — a basic set of tools that gives the player a solid foundation on which to build their character. Item Attribute combinations should be guided by the same principle: each is useful and well-considered with no “bad” options.
Players who want to “unbalance” their character (either by skewing toward damage or survivability) can still do so with Skills, Traits, Runes, Sigils, and Consumables.
No doubt many who play full DPS would be upset. No doubt many who play full survivability would be upset. They would feel that something has been “taken away” from them, but they would also be getting something else in return. This is really just a matter of comfort. No one likes to have their things messed with. An advantage of doing this across the board instead of just targeting a specific combination (e.g. Berserker’s) is that no group of players is singled out. After going into effect, every player would go through the same transitional period together as a community while the equipment system normalizes.