Some random info...

[Rubino]

On the VN boards there was a conversation about Time To Kill and they said something that I found useful.

"Longevity is a combination of Mitigation and healing. 90% of the playerbase still ignores the mitigation component and expects healing to come from other people.

Willpower, initiative, resists and toughness.
All are needed, for EVERYONE. "

I don't have the reference or their name - I just know their title was DOAC_Team_Lead.


Found 'em - Rena Lanford - The Post is: http://vnboards.ign.com/warhammer_online_age_of_reckoning_general_board/b22997/109438593/p1/?14

[Mangala]

Welp.

That just messed up my ongoing saga in armor choices... but explains their obsession with WP on everything it seems.

[Jarkko]

Willpower is a great defensive stat in my opinion. Right up there with Toughness.

Which incudently is why it is so freaking hard to kill healers... My IB, WH and Engineer feel so squishy compared with my RP (not to mention my WP, who has in addition of quite decent WP a ton of Toughness and armour...) 


EDIT: Despite what the the WAR developer (quoted above) says, I do not think Iniative is that great. While melee has a great burst, the most damage is done by spell-casters (at least if I am to believe the sceanario scoretables and my own gut-feel).


EDIT2: JC, my spelling today do suck even more than usual...

[Debaser]

Talking IB specifically here...

I've been noticing the lack of Init at 40 in both PVE and PVP. Toughness, Armour, and resistances I'm swimming in. Willpower I'm trying to stack but from what I've seen items with +disrupt aren’t in horribly short supply and unless you’re planning to make yourself somewhat magic immune there shouldn't be a reason to stack WP all the way. Runic Shield spamming, HTL, and 1000ish Corp 700 Sprit res has been more than enough to allow me to charge an enemy line without arriving light of most of my HP.

So unless you planning the specific magic immune build (which does look the bee's knees) I would hold on to a few +disrupt items and take the INIT over WP where you can.

Later level sets you’re not really given an option it just throws all the stats you need at you in varying levels anyway and its going to be a case of jumping from set to set down the line.

[Pythias]

I don't quite like the idea that i should stack hybrid stat for mitigation. When i see weapon skill on Archmage items (alot of them), i think 'ok, parry may be nice but armor penetration and hit is worthless for me, so i'm essentially wasting a significant part of that stat'. Same for melee, give them disrupt and magic resistances (with focus on spirit and corporeal for order), not willpower.

But generally yes i agree that ppl should pay more attention to their own means for survival.

[Torgal]

I don't quite like the idea that i should stack hybrid stat for mitigation. When i see weapon skill on Archmage items (alot of them), i think 'ok, parry may be nice but armor penetration and hit is worthless for me, so i'm essentially wasting a significant part of that stat'. Same for melee, give them disrupt and magic resistances (with focus on spirit and corporeal for order), not willpower.

But generally yes i agree that ppl should pay more attention to their own means for survival.

It's just pissed up itemisation. Every game has it. Warhammer has it in spades. No caster should ever in their right mind intentionally stack weapon skill, nor strength. No melee should ever stack int (though I am willing to bet there are melee items, especially set items, with int) nor willpower imo (as you say - disrupt and resistances are there for spell mitigation).

It's just a question of how quickly they will fix it. Of course the danger is when classes get their itemisation fixed, it's effectively a buff (more stats for all). All the dps metrics they're measuring now are invalidated if they pull all the wp and ws off sorc/bw gear and give them all int instead (same goes for all other classes).

It should be a priority.

[Rubino]

I've been meaning to look up what dmg types the WE's do to stack up a little to mitigate.
I've found that at later levels, while maurders hurt, I can usually last long enough to get out with a little support.

I'm still having stance troubles with the SW - switching stances is risky during combat - too keen and you end up without a stance and you're screwed.
The 5s lag between stances makes it hard to change tactics - combine that with the Mastery trees and I feel a little gimped.

At lvl 33 - I've sunk 12pts into Skirmish, 2 into Scout and nothing into Assult.  Which means close-up & far away my dmg output is next to nothing.
I'm adding more to Scout as I lvl but the SW mastery trees don't give much scope for cross-over.

I'm hoping I can pick up a few items that boost the mastery trees (there's a set I think that does).

[Warcold]

No melee should ever stack int nor willpower imo

Hmm, looking in my old AD&D rulebook, wis also gives +es (or -es) to saving throws, so this idea of needing wis aint so weird TBH.

IMO in MMOs ppl get too powerplay minded, must be something in game mechanics. (not to attack anyone (-s opinion), applies to myself too)
In AD&D you rarely see a warrior with 1 or 2 wis, or they just would be too gullible, or a magicuser with 1-2 strength, or they wouldnt be able to carry their staff and books, etc.

[Caradir]

MMOs are all about MIN/MAXING so people never want to take the middle road, always looking for that "dump" stat. Unfortunately its the way the games are built better gear lets you do the better stuff.

Its shows in pen and paper as well the MMO generation bring these thoughts to the game table (yes im a geeky rper   )  and i usually slap em about until i get through into their heads that its ROLE playing no need to power game , MIN/MAX etc.

[Torgal]

Willpower gives a chance to disrupt magic attacks. It has the same effect for a melee and ranged dps (who get no other benefit from it) that (weaponskill/strength not sure which) does for casters - ie giving a small chance to parry. Toughness and resists are a massively better form of magic damage mitigation, there's just no two ways about it.

You can say you don't like to min/max, and that's fine, but there's no scope whatsoever for stating that willpower is a better stat than it actually is for melee (and ws/strength respectively for casters). It's an awful stat in these cases, and only exists on gear because of a huge oversight.