Death of the beast forms

[Celerity]

I'm not fighting elites, just regular mobs.

In that case I would agree that epic attacks are not nearly as useful due to the overkill and things such as aoe and thorns become much more effective but I think it's generally agreed anyway that solo combat is relatively well balanced already.

Does true class/CA balance really matter in PG?

I agree, I don't think it matters too much that people can solo elites relatively efficiently with certain builds because it's just not fun and always slower than with a group. I personally don't do it or know anyone who regularly does it despite having the ability to. The only problem is that group combat just sometimes becomes a bit too boring if you get a really good group, but that's not a problem caused by balance issues between skills since so many skills are capable of achieving it.

[alleryn]

Does true class/CA balance really matter in PG?

Personally, i would say yes. For me, a great deal of enjoyment is achieved by theory crafting (and in the future manifesting) different builds and comparing them. If it turns out that one skill (or one set of skills) dominates others, that process feels less interesting and less rewarding.

[alleryn]

In that case I would agree that epic attacks are not nearly as useful due to the overkill and things such as aoe and thorns become much more effective but I think it's generally agreed anyway that solo combat is relatively well balanced already.

I'm not sure that's the case i'm talking about. I'm talking not about the situation where you have fully modded thorns and can walk around and everything dies, but the situation where you struggle to kill non-elite mobs (mediocre mods or gear in general). Maybe this situation doesn't matter as much, because a lot of people choose not to play that way; i thought it would still be useful to offer my perspective that at this stage of the game, abilities with high dps are more important than burst damage.

[Oxlazr]

I'm generally surprised people are consistently thinking in terms of what defines a meta at any given time; sure it's nice to be overpowered, but we're not exactly in end-game territory yet.

A lot of the initial appeal for animal forms (way back when), was that you were essentially stuck as a cow for awhile (unless you called out for help), and had to level to 18 to get the items to free yourself from the form; it felt like an accomplishment in its own right. Beyond that initial experience, the animal form mechanics (less lycanthropy, and to a lesser extent deer) feels like gimmicky restrictions intended to make gameplay more frustrating.

That said, I really don't think animals should be seen as overpowered or even balanced in any capacity - you've likely slew a few thousand pigs, why should you, as a pig, be an immortal powerhouse?

Don't get me wrong - I'm not saying animals forms are in a good place, but I sincerely doubt it's because of combat nerfs; they're an alternative way to play, and I don't really think that deserves any sort of power-creep to off-set their restrictions.

[Figger1]

Another bad thing about being an animal is when you use a bookcase or table to access storage, after you choose a storage, i doesnt have the listing of all the other storages in the zone. When accessing storages from a NPC, it does show the listing of all the storages. Is it supposed to be this way or was it a mistake?

[alleryn]

when you use a bookcase or table to access storage, after you choose a storage, i doesnt have the listing of all the other storages in the zone. When accessing storages from a NPC, it does show the listing of all the storages.

This is how it works for humanoids too. I suppose animals are more dependent on the bookcases (I would question whether being able to interact with the storages of NPCs who won't talk with you is a bug... It certainly makes it easier to be an animal than it was 'back in my day').

It's pretty easy to re-use the bookcases anyways. When you are done with one storage just press the "Use Selected" key. The bookcase will still be selected and that will bring up the list of storages again.

[poulter]

For me, using FR as a benchmark, the damage situation, is pretty well balanced at the moment.
Reason: the mob health regen rate in FR, especially on elites.

For example, I have 7+ combat skills at level 80+ and 3 of the builds allow me to wander FR solo with near impunity - as long as I avoid the elites.
If I want to kill elites then it takes 2+ vets to do so reliably - due to the health regen rate of FR mobs.

I think a way of checking out what is working 'best' (note: Not the most OP, for that try a Staff build) might be to check the skill sets, builds and mods used by veteran players (many of which are equipped with level 70+ gold, modded and augmented gear) as they tend to use what is most effective.

For the record, my most effective builds in FR are currently:
Fire /Druid using Thorns and Molten Veins. Cast them, heal as required - wait for the mobs to kill themselves
Unarmed /Psychology Triple stun /rage reduction build. DPS of a stunned mob is 0
Archery /? (Druid) Stun and damage build. Kills mobs as they reach you - not useful if you want to level Endurance
The above (using level 70 max gear) allows me to 3 shot kill non-elite FR mobs and to reliably farm FR elites with 2+ people.

Bard /Druid Song twist build is looking like it will be very effective also

Note: No animal builds used at the moment. I have tried Spider, Deer and Cow in FR, but whilst viable, other skill combos have proven more effective.