Guild Wars 2

A lot of classes in this expansion seem to be based around boon corruption mechanics, meaning that these builds would not be terribly useful in an environment low in available boons to corrupt. I’m hoping that PoF enemies will be balanced around having a lot of active boons. Their base damage and speed and defense and all of that should be lower than average mobs, but offset by having boons restore that functionality to normal levels. To most characters, this would make no difference, but to the new boon-corrupting classes it would allow them to benefit from those effects.

Even in Core and HoT, there’s alot of boon corruption (such as Necro), yet the mobs still barely used boons, so honestly I wouldn’t count on it.

People would constantly complain “NOO!! AN AI THAT IS SMART!! NOOO!!”.

Hannelore.8153:

Even in Core and HoT, there’s alot of boon corruption (such as Necro), yet the mobs still barely used boons, so honestly I wouldn’t count on it.

People would constantly complain “NOO!! AN AI THAT IS SMART!! NOOO!!”.

Otoh it would fix much of the balancing woes related to WvW since both modes would be equivalent, as far as mob (whether they be AI or zerglings) skill use is concerned. It might take some adjustment (just like HoT did with the upped difficulty) but I think it would be healthy in the long run.

People would constantly complain “NOO!! AN AI THAT IS SMART!! NOOO!!”.

It really doesn’t need to be an issue. I mean I wouldn’t give enemies that use boons in any clever ways, I would just give them really simple, cheap boon use, something where if you’re a generic power build it would make absolutely no difference and you could ignore it, but if you’re a boon-based build it would make all the difference.

I don’t want to do the math on this using real game numbers, but let’s say that a given enemy is meant to do 1000 damage per hit, that’s what is considered a fun and balanced amount of damage for that type of enemy to be dealing.

A normal enemy, you’d just give him an attack that deals 1000 damage and call it a day. Instead, give him only 900 damage per hit, but give him pulsing Might stacks that replace themselves every few seconds so that they’re always active, and they bump his damage to 1000.

With them, he’s exactly as balanced as he should be. If you strip them, he’s underpowered. If you steal them, you have Might now. If you corrupt them, he’s really hurting.

Give each enemy a couple stats like that, things where they are by default below the balance line, but then have constantly pulsing boons that keep them permanently at their intended level, unless the player does something about that.

they should implement more of this kind of mob AI in GW2 : https://wiki.guildwars2.com/wiki/Chak_Bracer

They would need to add at least some form of easily accessable boon stripping skills or traits to all classes. A lot of classes can’t even strip boons, let alone steal or corrupt them. Mobs with lots of HP and retal or protection and regen are a PITA if you can’t remove that.

They would need to add at least some form of easily accessable boon stripping skills or traits to all classes. A lot of classes can’t even strip boons, let alone steal or corrupt them.

Again though, that would be fine. That would be balanced. The enemy would be balanced around having his various boons active, rather than being balanced without them and then having boons as a bonus on top.

If you’re just a power-spec hero with no boon-stripping at all, that’s a fair fight, you just punch the thing to death and it would be about as hard as any other fight. But if you can mess with boons, then you can make that fight easier.

Will probably see boons bolstering mobs instead of raw hp/toughness bags as a way to bring counter into play for pve.

Hannelore.8153:

Even in Core and HoT, there’s alot of boon corruption (such as Necro), yet the mobs still barely used boons, so honestly I wouldn’t count on it.

People would constantly complain “NOO!! AN AI THAT IS SMART!! NOOO!!”.

It’s not about AI being smart but overpowered in its skill mechanics Oo. Imagine there are monster with a lot more dmg, hp, mechanics but you can solo all these mobs because they are stupid. Now imagine there are some mobs that are thieves with skills of legendary pvp players, that would make ‘trash mobs’ with low hp pool ‘smart’

Once more, AI is never too smart in gw2, just overpowered in terms of mechanics.

Breakbars, immunity to any cc – you cant cc most of HoT mobs… that is what makes people angry. It’s not about ‘normal’ boons you can simply strip with most of classes.