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Beast Mastery

  • Thread starter Antion_Vallin
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Antion_Vallin

Guest
I've been perma-banned from the SWG forums sinse the CH7.1 post, so I'll just post a few things I think Beast Mastery can use.

Crafting:
Bring the resource requirements for sub components down by 1/3 what they are now.

There's no reason for such small items to require so much when the DEVs know their only useful in bulk.

Incubation/Mutation
Alter the mutation system to count Either/Or the Mutagenic value of Hydrolase. Have it so the Mutagen value has a total cap to it. Have it count based on the Quality of the incubator. If the Quality of the incubator is up to the 4.0 cap have it so your base Mutation value is 70% and the Mutagen rating on Hydrolase count for 30%. If the incubator has 0.0 Quality or below have it so the Mutagenic value of the Hydrolase accounts for the full 100%.

What's this do? Other than making Mutations a bit more reliable than they currently are it would help speed up the process of testing should you choose to go for Function over Quality and use high point Mutagen Hydrolase.

Mutation is unreliable, even when useing the best materials available. Mutation should be less of a gamble and open to those who do indeed use high enough quality materials. Having the Quality to Mutagen ratio will also add merit to lower quality incubators. All other current Mutagenic factors should remain roughly the same.

Combat
I am happy with the overall perfomance of pets in combat. However, the Devided Attention debuff seriosely needs to be removed. Beginers already have limmited access to pets and creation and even with the DPS increase it's a huge nerf to Beast Masters who can't poor 27 points of their expertise into the combat side.

As far as I'm concerned Beast Mastery should be seen as your main profession and whatever your base profession offers should simply determine what kind of Beast Master you are. However, the professions that do well with Combat Beasts are only a few.

Mounts
Mounts are fairly useless for anyting other than eye candy. The Hoth addition is adding a form of vehicular combat to the game which I believe we've all been waiting for. So, this portion of the proposal is for Mounted Combat.

Current Mounts: All the current mounts would function under the new system. What will happen is that the mount and rider will become a single target that consists entirely of the players armor ratings, stats and such. The "slow down for combat" should remain a function as a debuff icon, though I believe a low level of Beast Mastery should remove this debuff while mounted. While mounted the rider will have access to ranged combat, though I believe creatures low enough to the ground should also permit melie combat from the rider. All combat functions will be available. While initiated in combat mounts can neither be called nor stored.

This function is to add more diversity to combat as well as another level of combat we don't currently have access to.

Combat Mounts: Any combat beast capable of being mounted should offer such a function to the Beast Master once they reach level 90 BFF. The option would be radial and the sadle only apear while the Beast Master is mounted. Some pets will have to have their adult sizes adjusted to match that of their mounted forms, such as Dewback, Graul and Rancor. There will be a radial option to dissmount, though the option to mount or dissmount should be unavailable should the BM already be in combat.
While mounted the Beast Master will not have access to their basic attacks, though their specials will remain available (some may be unavailable, such as the "Stasis" ability) as well as access to the beasts specials. The BM will require to be within melie range of their oponents and there will be a buff based on the mount that effects the beast as well. As above, the beast and rider will become a single target, though all stats and resistances will be that of the beast instead of the rider.

It's currently an option in PvP to completly ignore the beast and go streight for the BM, killing both at the same time sinse the BM is most likely the weaker of the 2 targets. However, under this system the mounted beast will have to be faced.


*On a side note players that are mounted, wether their a Beast Master or not, should be easier to hit sinse their essentially larger targets.
 
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BadgerSmaker

Guest
The Devs are happy with the resource requirements, stating that BER 44+ Eliete Harvesters do a fine job of ripping huge amounts of these resources out of the ground.

I was working on a bug with incubation time modifiers recently, either the time reduction mods from expertise or the ones from skill attachments were not working, if we could get this pinned down then you could see a 10 hour reduction in incubation time which would be good for cranking out mutation tests.

Your combat ideas are well put together, but utlimately would mean that every combat player would put one point in Beast Master and have a cl90 Pet/Mount that they could kite MObs on and fight other players in PvP, anyone that didn't would be at a disadvantage and we would have "Pet Wars Galaxies", the intended design is that BM is a tradeoff in expertise points and full profession viability, not free DPS for all.

Have you tried appealing for your ban to be removed? Email [email protected] and ask for it to be looked at.
 
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Antion_Vallin

Guest
Your combat ideas are well put together, but utlimately would mean that every combat player would put one point in Beast Master and have a cl90 Pet/Mount that they could kite MObs on and fight other players in PvP, anyone that didn't would be at a disadvantage and we would have "Pet Wars Galaxies", the intended design is that BM is a tradeoff in expertise points and full profession viability, not free DPS for all.
Which is why I meantioned the specific limitations. If a player is riding a normal mount that anybody can own it is the PLAYER who is the source of the larger targets stats, resistances and abilities. Mounts in this manner will still undergo the "slow down for combat" mounts do (or did, haven't checked lately). The point is that a player who chooses to mount does so for a mount-specific buff while the tradeoff is that they both become easier targets, both in a point-and-click sinse as well as a debuff to their evasiveness.

Now, for what your speaking of involving a level 90 Combat Mount. While being mounted it is the PET who's stats and resistances are used. The player still has access to some of their abilities but cannot actually attack their oponents. It is the mounted pet that will be the attacker, meaning the rider has to get within melie range. Sinse it is the pets stats and not the riders a 1 point BM will be nothing more than a big target on the field in both PvE and PvP. Their pet is weak, which makes them weak.

For either a Mount or Combat Mount a rider CANNOT mount or dissmount while in combat. The rider and mount are a single target, so when one dies they both die. In either case this is totally optional and designed to work with current Mounts and Mountable Combat Beast.


Mounts are pointless eye candy. If the DEVs are actually developing vehicular combat I figured now is the best time to propose mount changes. Also, while you don't have the combat beasts automatic speed to their target in combat the BM could not simply be singled out in combat and the oponents would actually have to face the pet.
 
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BadgerSmaker

Guest
OK, so you mount your pet, get attacked in PvP, can't get off, pet gets snared, you die?
 
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Antion_Vallin

Guest
OK, so you mount your pet, get attacked in PvP, can't get off, pet gets snared, you die?
You could have also replied with:
"OK, so you get attacked in PvP, get snared and you die?"

As I said, the mount and rider are 1 target. What determines the targets stats is based on what the mount origionally was. If it was a common mount it's no different than fighting any other player. Their a bit faster than a walking player even with the slowdown, recieves a posotive buff based on the mount their riding (someone riding a Falumpaset would probubly get a rifle bonus sinse their walking sniper post) while at the same time their easier to hit visually as well as have a slight debuff to their evasiveness (while the posotive buffs varry dependant on the mounts build the evasiveness debuff would be generic). If their a Beast Master then it's as if the oponent is forced to fight the pet to get to the Beast Master. Lacking the ability to attack themselves the Beast Master loses a bit of their own DPS while at the same time the Beast Master could not be singled out.

Another thought occured to me about beast buffs. You cannot keep a buff on a beast once their stored, but why not add a generic buff icon (like the beasts happieness icon) or even an expertise bonus that allows whatever buff is on the master to effect the beast? This would mean that the beast themselves couldn't be buffed, but would mean storing and calling a beast would still keep it buffed. Sinse they share different resistances the resistance buff might not work on them, but the "effect" (second chance) and other "non-resistant" (evasion, hit chance increase, ect.) buffs would apply.
 
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BadgerSmaker

Guest
Right, I see...

Lets say you are a Dark Side Jedi/BM riding a Rancor towards my Smuggler.

I unload on you but only your pet takes damage while you can hit me with force lightning while mounted? I have to kill the pet and then I can cause damage to you?

Conversly I can snare you from 64m away, kill your pet and then I get to cause damage to the player?

I love the idea of mounted combat, but what you've got so far seems to have some holes in it, post more ideas and maybe we can find a concept that won't be contentious.
 
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Antion_Vallin

Guest
I unload on you but only your pet takes damage while you can hit me with force lightning while mounted? I have to kill the pet and then I can cause damage to you?
No. As I stated the mount and rider are 1 target. Killing 1 kills the other, the same as if you were to go for the lone BM and kill them, resulting in their pet dieing. If the Jedi came at you on a normal mounted rancor it'd be as if you were fighting that Jedi themself. However, I did state that melie would most likely be restricted to smaller mounts and some specials would not work. While they could use force lightning they wouldn't have access to force run.
Now, let's say they were on a combat beast. Their stats would be that of their pet. Now, would they be riding a weak pet spending only a few points in BM? Fine, kill their weak pet and they die too. If you couldn't do this while the Jedi was mounted you certainly wouldn't have had a shot of killing them while they weren't, like in TODAYS system.
So, they spent a lot of points in BM to make a strong pet and have VERY LIMMITED ACCESS TO THEIR PROFESSION BASED ABILITIES? Tough, kill it or flee. If your weaker than a character who obviously spent more time and effort on their character than you did then so be it. The only changes in this scenero to todays system is that; 1) You'd have to face the pet instead of neglecting it to kill the BM in control, killing 2 birds with 1 stone by targeting the weaker of the 2. 2) The BM is sacraficing DPS by doing this by negating their own basic attacks. Neither melie nor ranged attacks from the rider will be available nor will the specials that are effected by these two attacks. For example, the Jedi you meantioned would have a Force Lightning option, but an ability like Saber Block wouldn't be available.


I like defending my topic and all, but I've pointed out all this in my other posts already. I could probubly convert all this into a short PRO-CON list if you want.
 
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Antion_Vallin

Guest
NORMAL MOUNTS:

Pro-
* The rider will be slightly faster than normal.
* The rider will recieve a buff based on the mount being ridden, simmiler to the AT-RT buff.
* The rider will maintain all basic attack functions with the exception of a few special abilities.

Con-
* The rider will "slow down for combat".
* The "/gallop" command will not function while in combat.
* The rider will recieve an evasive debuff.
* The rider will obviously be easier to hit sinse their a larger target. This is not an in-game effect, but something that should be expected in a "point and click" firing action useing the corsehair instead of the auto-fire option.

Basics-
* The stats, resistances, ect. are that of the rider.
* The rider can neither mount nor dissmount while in combat.
* Should the single target be killed that the rider and mount are forming then both die.
* Some mounts will only permit ranged combat while others will offer a melie option. Small mounts like Carrion Spatt or mounts that are low to the ground like Varactyl would permit melie combat.


COMBAT MOUNTS:

Pro-
* The rider will be faster than normal.
* The rider will recieve a buff based on the mount being ridden, simmiler to the AT-RT buff.
* The rider will maintain all non-weapon abilities, such as most area atacks or ranged striking abilities.
* The rider will maintain all combat beast abilities.
* The "Heal Pet" ability functions like a self healing ability.
* In PvE where the Beast Master would normally draw aggro from the creatures not fighting their pet (Not sure of the DEVs reasoning for this in the first place.) the Rider/Mount entity would instead be the target.

Con-
* The rider will "slow down for combat". (This might be removed based on Beast Mastery Expertise.)
* The "/gallop" command will not function while in combat.
* The rider will recieve an evasive debuff.
* The rider will obviously be easier to hit sinse their a larger target. This is not an in-game effect, but something that should be expected in a "point and click" firing action useing the corsehair instead of the auto-fire option.
* This is only an option if the combat beast is a mountable variety. The sadle will apear once the BM selects "mount" from the radial menu and will be removed while the beast is unmounted.
* To initiate combat for your beast you must be within melie range. You will be restricted to the mounts speed, so the tradeoff to being mounted or dissmounted based on todays system would be the speed at which the beast could reach and follow a target. Being unmounted would mean the beast would go to the target pretty much automatically and initiate it's own combat while it would be considerably slower while being restricted to mount speed. (There are offencive and defencive perks for one style of combat while the other style offers it's own offencive and defencive perks.)

Basics-
* The stats, resistances, ect. are that of the mount.
* The rider can neither mount nor dissmount while in combat.
* Only a mountable level 90 BFF pet will offer the mount option.
* The option to mount or dissmount will be listed on the beasts radial menu.
* Should the single target be killed that the rider and mount are forming then both die.
* Some current combat beast will have to have their level 90 size readjusted to that of current mount sizes. (Not really a priotity, just think it'd look goofie if someone mounted a mini-tulrus or mini-dewback or had their pet "grow" to fit mount size and shrink back while unmounted.)


NOTES:

* Not quite sure if a Combat Mount should count the buffs of the rider unless the "Beast Buff" option I meantioned earlier was instated. The point of the proposal is to make the Combat Beast and Beast Master a single entity and I'll admit a beast with an energy buff, 2nd chance and riders healing ability would floss their teeth with a lightsaber. lol

* A precaution for the future involving an uber Combat Mount would probubly be a Medic riding a Borgax. The first and only Borgax mutated was converted to a mount, meaning it could either retain it's Borgle abilities or the abilities simmiler to Carrion Spatt. If it retained it's Borgle abilities then, on top of the Medics healing abilities as well as the Heal Pet ability, they'd also have the "Health Leech" attack.

* Housing structure limmitations should still apply as they normally do. However, caves and possibly instance-related housing structures should permit mounted combat. I was a MCH/MBE from back in the day, so my best pets were commonly mounts. Back then, like today, mounts could not be ridden in caves nor any structure for that matter. I'd understand the DEVs not changing this. However, I'd like to consider a change at least in terms of the instance structures and caves.
 
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