Alright, I know people are up in arms about the recent statements made by ArenaNet regarding changing the PvE meta, but I wanted to talk about the good that could come of it, and how exactly we would like to see this change come about.
Now, obviously, we don’t wanna see mechanics that simply punish players with low HP pools, or require an infinite number of dodges, or something else equally ridiculous. Rather, we should talk about, and give ideas, that might lead towards a dungeon style that rewards build diversity.
So, here’s the question: What do you think might change the game in such a way as to promote build diversity within dungeon groups?
I’m gonna go ahead and start with a few ideas of my own, which you may, or may not, comment on as you see fit: :P
1) As it stands, dungeons follow a set pattern. Trash, Boss, Trash, Boss, repeat. This isn’t a bad thing, but there is no variety, typically, within the pieces of this pattern that encourage various build types. What if, say, there was a part of a dungeon which required the party to split up, either 2-3 or 1-4, or even multiple smaller groups, each of which requires the others to proceed to the next area? Some of the various split-ups might even require specific builds, like one path requiring a tankier character to survive a powerful series of unavoidable traps while performing X action, or one path having a stone-hide bear that can only be damaged by conditions.
2) Bosses can have interesting mechanics, as we’ve seen, but we need a reason to BE tough, or have condition damage, or heal allies that pertains to the mechanics of the bosses. This may come as a surprise, but why not take a lesson from (gasp!) PvP?
We have this capture point/king of the hill system in place, and various mechanics that could be effective, like cannons, trebuchets, Asuran Megalasers… why aren’t we using them? I mean, I get that we’re in a small 5 man group, but you can still throw a little spectacle in there :P. Maybe we can do something cool, like have allies capture and HOLD points that, every few seconds, fire a barrage of damage at the boss, but again, require a tougher character to hold. Not ONLY would this encourage having at least 1 tough character, but it also makes sPvP more intuitive to new players, who can understand the concept of “stand here and hold the point against assault”, and even have a little practice at it.
What if we had physical-immune illusions that damaged the players, but could be popped by condition damage (or maybe even… CC) and deal damage or inflict controlling effects on enemies or bosses, or even have it be the main mechanic in a puzzle.
The biggest problem, as I see it, is finding a way to make healing, especially in a group setting, have a big impact on the overall dungeon progression. I mean, boons give obvious aid, but how do you make over-the-top healing contribute without being overpowered? I’m gonna be honest: I don’t know. I’d love to see some ideas, though!
(edited by Moderator)
Who’s in?
