Decent for mages but still, when used by spellcasters other modifiers in the item may be quite a waste of mods power.........
A custom made imbued item for a spellcaster might be more bang for the buck focusing on those modifiers really wanted and needed, I think.
Yes, a custom imbued item without the 2 resists/hpi and higher intensities on sdi/dci/fcr is much better for a mage isn't it? It can be made better, faster, stronger.
However, until I find a magical version with the correct base properties to imbue, it is useful for my hybrid peerless hunter (tamer/mage/weaver + mage weapon bow).
As to why arties seem to have non-optimized stats - the reason is due to balance. As with good game-masters and game designers, the devs have always sought to balance new arties by intentionally making them non-uber. Introducing an uber item into a game has a tendency to kill the entire campaign.
Consider the soul-seeker - 60ssi, repond slayer, hll, hml, hsl, 100% cold damage. But no DI. I would have traded 3 of the less useful properties for 50% DI. So why did they not do that? Because it will make most other artie/imbued/magic weapons (AND consequently macers/archers/fencers) alot less desirable.
As a game master/designer, you always need to consider multiple angles and different folks with different play styles. Not doing so, or catering to 1 play style more than others will upset and may even cause an uproar with the other players.
If you look at an item and think to yourself "damn, it's good, but it will be perfect if it had the uber xxx property instead of that useless yyy property", then that means they have done their job well.
Think of it this way - in FF7, you have weapons that have the max number of materia slots (8), but no materia growth (the materia don't gain AP and grow more powerful). Then you have weapons that give max materia growth (3x normal), but have only 3 slots. Wouldn't it have been perfect if the 8 slot weapon also gave 3x the materia growth, and on top of that, be the most powerful weapon in the game as well? So why did they not do that?
In prototype, you don't have a shield power that will protect your entire body like the armour power. Nor do you have an armour power that will not slow your movement unlike the shield. Why can't I have the best of both worlds?
In battletech, you have really unoptimized mechs that are intentionally designed that way. No XL engine, no endo-steel, non double heat sinks. It's painful to see.
In Fallout, high damage weapons are almost always balanced by making them hold less ammo. High damage and high ammo weapons are balanced by making them extremely inaccurate or heavy.
A one-size-fits-all ultimate item makes all other items useless by comparison. Without variety, and without allowing players to choose items based on what suits them best, it kills a huge part of the game's re-playability (or in MMOs, continued playability).
And it's not easy. Try this - adjust the stats of the token of holy fevor and try to make it balanced. ie, it must not be overpowered to the point of making other bracelets useless, and you must make sure no one complains about it in one way or another. Not mages, not spellweavers, not warriors, not archers, not tamers, not pvm'rs, not pvp'rs, not crafters, not imbuers, not even gardeners. At the same time, it must still be useful and desirable. Post what you come up with.
Next, start from scratch on an item with no stats, then make it into a balanced artifact.
The thing is, that "perhaps" there are items that address those mods more incisively ?
For example, DCI one can find as high as 25 on Aegis of Grace
For example, HCI one can find as high as 30 with Orc Chieftain Helm [Replica] or 15 on a ring of vile
For example, FC/FCR one can find as high as 2/3 on Ornament of the Magician
For example, SDI one can find as high as 30 on an Invasion spellbook, 20 on a Crystalline Ring
Considering that the current price of a Token of Holy Favor on average can be about 12-13 milllions, it is not like this item is a much cheaper alternative...
Just as an example, let's say the token of holy fevor has the following properties:
HCI 15
DCI 25
FC 2
FCR 3
SDI 30
Would I love to have something like this? Hell yeah!
Is it balanced? Honestly, nope.
Would it render most all other artie/magic/imbued bracelets useless for mages? Most assuredly.
Does it favor mages more than warriors? Yes.
Would it be cause for unhappiness/jealousy/gripe for other templates? Yes
Would every mage and their spellweaving moms and their mystic friends be using this item? Yeah, well at least all the rich/older players. All others wearing the orny will be relegated to "LOL, you noob!"
Would new players (who you have always championed for), be at a great disadvantage playing against players that have such an item? Definitely.
So, how do we balance it? What do you think is a good balanced holy token of fevor?
Now, as to the 12 mil price tag, it's not always a good indicator. Remember, items do not come with a manufacturer's label that says "Recommended price - 12 million gold". The devs do not set prices on the items.
Prices are set by players more or less based on what the sellers and buyers
perceive it to be worth to them. It boils down to the maximum amount prospective buyers will be willing to pay for it, and the minimum amount the sellers are willing to sell it for.
Perceptions can be different for everyone, can change over time and can even be wrong. If one person gets 5 tokens in a month of hunting peerless, while another person got zero in the same month, the person that has 5 will think it's not really that hard to get and it's not worth that much. The person that has zero will think that it's uber rare and will be thinking that it's worth quite a lot.
I bought 2 AOFs for 5 mil when the new Doom point system was first implemented and drops were plenty. At that time, I only had 1, so I was thinking, "Woot! Great bargain!". The seller for all I know could be thinking "Woot! Managed to finally sell those first 2, now 40 more to go". Drop rates were nerfed shortly after, driving the prices back up to between 10-20 mil.
If the seller sells a token for 50 mil, and someone actually buys it, that means at least 1 person views it to be worth 50 mil. The seller will continue to price it at 50 mil. If a second one gets sold within the same day at 50 mil, the seller will likely raise his price.
Should the 50 mil token not sell for weeks, then the seller will likely lower the price because no one seems to think it is worth 50 mil.
In no circumstance do the devs step in to say "Sorry, that's too expensive, you must sell it at 1 mil".
