Stats Revamp 1.3 - Electricity Feedback!

Discussion in 'Stats Revamp Archive' started by Avair, Feb 10, 2017.

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  1. Avair Administrator

    Power Set Feedback: Electricity

    If you haven't, please read this thread about overall survey results.

    In this thread, I will address the top 3 pieces of feedback for Electricity. In some cases, I will describe what changes we are making based on your feedback. In other cases, I will describe why we are not (at this time) making changes. Thanks to everyone who gave feedback and remains passionate about the Electricity power set. We appreciate it and want to make sure that we can continue working together to make Electricity amazing.

    The top three pieces of feedback are:
    • Healing: You were concerned healing feels too weak, with an emphasis on Ionic Drain
    • Power Costs: You were concerned about power costs being too high
    • PftT: You were concerned about difficulty in executing PftT
    Healing

    The number one piece of feedback for Electricity was that healing felt weak. This touches on similar issues that Ice was having with their shields. The first thing we look at here is difficulty of completing content - can content be completed? If players are unable to complete content, find it too hard, or too easy, we will adjust these numbers. Currently we are not hearing or seeing any of those things being the case. Players are able to complete content while healing as Electricity. If this is not your experience, please let us know.

    Regarding Ionic Drain, this ability is an execute ability. As mentioned previously, we want to give abilities specific identities and we don’t want them clouded with too much functionality that would just dilute that. We also want to cut down on abilities that completely change functionality when you switch roles. Ionic Drain was such an ability. We feel that it is in a good state as an execute and that the healing component is a fun and flavorful piece. However, it is not intended to be a core heal.

    Power Costs/PftT

    I combined these issues into one. Something that is apparent is that many people are struggling to create loadouts that allow them to PftT and, directly related, or using loadouts with too many high power cost abilities. There are MANY more loadout options that will be successful in the revamp vs. on live, but not ALL loadouts will be ideal, especially if you are limiting yourself to one specific playstyle. I have a couple of thoughts about this:
    • In the overall post, I discussed how we are now giving quite a bit more power through the skill point system, which will impact how easy it is to PftT
    • Power heals will get larger with this update (see other threads), which should help Electricity PftT players
    • If you feel that you cannot use abilities after you have invested in Power, then see if there are other options with lower costs and try those out (Spord suggests using the Polarized loadout)
    • Like x 4
  2. spord Developer

    In the survey and here on the forums some people expressed concern about animation/visual fx awkwardness with the following abilities. Please let us know how they feel/look now:
    • Repulse - Fixed an issue with the visual effects being mistimed.
    • Spark Barrage - Fixed an issue with the animation input window that was preventing some input from being recognized.
    • Overcharge - Fixed an issue that could cause the visual effects to fire too often.
    These changes were to help with cooldown and/or CC:
    • Static Push - Reduced the cooldown to 6 seconds from 12 seconds, decreased the supercharge amount to 75 from 150, and increased the damage output.
    • Megavolt - Reduced the cooldown to 18 seconds from 30 seconds, increased the damage of the first hit, and decreased the damage from the follow-up damage over time. This is to help in situations where enemies quickly move out of the field and some damage is lost.
    • Electrostatic Bomb - Reduced the cooldown to 3 seconds from 12 seconds
    To address some of the DoT feedback we made the following changes.
    • Tesla Ball - Added 3 more ticks of damage for a total of 6 per enemy hit and rebalanced damage to account for having double the amount of hits.
    • Voltaic Bolt - Reduced the cooldown to 3 seconds from 12 seconds, decreased the initial burst damage, and increased the damage of the follow up damage over time.
    Please tell us how you like the Voltaic Bolt change with regards to power cost. Note, it will be a lot easier to destroy your power with it being a high cost ability. And, remember that if the cost comes down so does the damage output.

    In an attempt to get the two healing supercharges closer in overall effectiveness, we made the following change:
    • Invigorate - Increased the healing per tick, reduced the duration of the heal ticks to 6 seconds from 12 seconds, and added control effect prevention.
    Bug Fix:
    • Electroburst - While in Healer Role, now chooses group members based on lowest health percentage instead of distance. It should no longer feel like it misses healing a group member that is far away while other members are close by.
    • Like x 7
  3. IamINC Dedicated Player

    Looking forward to testing this out as I am in vacation this week , thanks for all the consideration given to the feedback survey and keep up the good work guys , it is well appreciated by the Electric community especially.
  4. bmce84 Loyal Player

    I suspected Polarized was a better solo loadout, seems electrified will be for group content with a troll.
  5. hotsizz1e03 Committed Player

    excellent NEWS!! cant wait to try it out TONIGHT!!
  6. Celestial Powers Committed Player

    Hi there Avair,

    First things first, No one is denying the ability of being able to heal with the state the healer powers are on test, this is mainly because people are not running any difficult content and sorry to say it, not many people will be able to and therefore you won't see a disagreement that content can be completed. Most of the times I've been on test people are running the regular versions of the current tiered raids mainly because everyone is a DPS - they want to test their loadouts and frankly scoreboard chase, Olympus is an optimal raid for this because there isn't much going on in terms of mechanics - it's a tank and spank raid. (Any sort of difficult content as of late won't be beat by anyone on test because the playerbase isn't strong enough to attempt them (Dwf Elite / Gom Elite) So how do you account for this? You need to take opinions based on how high end players deal with them on live. You can't assume that because people can or cannot beat an easy raid like Olympus that the role is easy mode, the content was designed to be steamrolled so how can that be an appropriate basis?)

    Now for the reasons above, you won't have many people complaining that they can't heal the content with the state healing is on test but there is a lot of people complaining that healing is too weak BECAUSE you're A. Gated by cooldowns, B. Gated by power C. Gated by ability functionality. These perceptions are going to be hard to overcome because since Origin Crisis, Solo Healing Normal (Easy) content has become the norm. I myself fall into this category of these people however I have been doing this much earlier before it became 'mainstream' for LFG groups (Since T3) and I am capable of Solo Healing the hardest content that you guys produce.

    There may be an emphasis of Ionic Drain being a weak heal but this is mainly because you guys removed a healing option electric once had which limited it's already limited ability pool for healing. On live you have 8 abilities (10 with the supercharges but all together not a modest amount) available for healing use however, not all of these abilities were viable in their current state - 2 of these abilities were either too weak or required too much of a unique scenario to use in PvE content. On test we have now 7 abilities, some have changed drastically from how they worked on the live servers and have been all in all less viable to use due the ABCs I posted above, they've been changed immensely to the point where the healing potential for electric has been greatly reduced to which I quote someone who said previously "I feel like a DPS in support stance" - the gameplay is just not fluid, enjoyable or rewarding anymore.

    Now back to being able to complete content. In difficult content, these powers will not be able to perform as they do on live because of the ABCs. Solo Healing will definitely not be possible as taking damage in this game is very erratic - I have set abilities, if they're on cooldown it's a wipe, now for example with electric how it is on live I'd have been limited by the functionality of my abilities on the basis of how content is structured but I would still have some sort of consistency with the Bio Charge PI, on test I have abilities which all do a little bit more but the power to healing value ratio is really off. Strictly talking able power costs and healing values the power costs previous to 1.3 were optimal but the strength of the healing that was gained on this patch is optimal - however not every ability received these bonuses and were extremely weak in comparison.

    On live, knowing your power sets interactions rewarded you, but on test it seems as if you're rewarding the micro management of your cooldowns which makes for very tedious game play and the notion that Avair made that the combat is slowing down. Well because it has drastically, you aren't rewarded for utilizing your power interactions and knowing what ability/weapon combo is best suited for this exact situation, instead you're penalized because you either don't have enough power or the ability is on cooldown.

    This method of balancing may be fine with DPS but for support roles it doesn't make any sense - as I said before the gameplay of DCUO is erratic and you need to be able to react accordingly to actual feel like you're a Tank/Troll/Healer and I feel this has some what been acknowledged with Tanks: Pulls were reverted to their live cooldowns and Ices/Atomics survivability increased. Controllers: Power Dump reverted back to live cooldown and debuffs majorly improved. For someone like me, a healer I haven't seen anything to improve my ability to support my group, every update either takes away an ability function or increases power costs exponentially. Introducing new abilities to bandage what didn't need fixing has left a bad taste in many people who play this role and this doesn't just go for electric but sorcery as well.

    I am a broken record when I say this but the way these power sets worked on live is better than they do now in all of the ABCs I stated above and there is a greater desire to see them improved to allow them to compete with Nature and Celestial rather than reducing the healing potential in all 4 power sets. I say this because if this is the backlash from the two weaker healer sets I can't imagine the reaction when the easier healing power sets are nerfed to meet the standard of healing you guys now want.

    Doing this means less development time spent for healing since Nature and Celestial don't need to be majorly changed, standardizing range to render distance is the only necessity because A. Nature's Pheromones interaction is more powerful than any of it's singular abilities and since it's inception this has been the backbone of the power set. B. Celestial has a lot of functionality in it's abilities as well many different abilities for healing at your disposal (highest of all power sets at 11 base abilities but 19 including combos and the purify PI, in comparison on test, electric has 9 / sorcery has 11. Are you going to remove 8 ways to heal on Celestial to compensate? If you do you're doomed to receive a horde of backlash and if you don't that seems extremely unfair to the current power sets which were condemned to this treatment).

    Lastly, as much as I wanted to avoid talking about it but the last time a change this big occurred, combat wise was in GU36, which solely affected the DPS role, the previous way people were used to was thrown out the window and with it many people I knew left soon after because it majorly simplified the role. Of course I didn't leave as I'm a support main but based on what was done to that role I do not want to see it happen again, the casual playerbase will adapt, people like me who've played since the early days like 2011 who adore the challenges this game provided will not because these changes will be like playing a different game.

    I'm sorry for going a little off topic but this is all in regard as to why "healing feels weak", not just electric or sorcery but in general. Move it to the main revamp thread as I'm not sure were you'd want it.
    • Like x 8
  7. Ringz Dedicated Player

    One of the statements here is because no-one really struggled in content then its not as big of a problem as it is(paraphrasing). But didn't you guys also decreased the damage done from npc, which wasn't needed or asked? I think thats unfair then if no-one was complaining about damge, but you guys nerf the damage being done to us, which made the content easier, but things like healing isn't being taken into account because of no-one struggling in content.

    I'll read more and go deep thought into the other posts tonight. So far thats what i picked up for healing.
    • Like x 1
  8. krytine Loyal Player

    I have been playing as an electric healer since it was released. I have never changed my power or anything. And to be honest i am very dishearted by the lack of commitment by the devs to the healer side.
    Talks of decreasing the damage gap from support to dps was the center of everything. But instead of healping the role you cripple it. As a healer i should have heals that damage as well grant it they should not do the damage the dps side do but still. I have always been able to run at tier all content in healer role for any solo duo or alert and raid. And most of my league was impressed with my healing and damage. That is gone now. We as electric healers have been understaffed with choice for a long time and again you aviar and spord dont care. Why are we continuing to loose our uniqueness as a damaging healer. I get that most players dont want a healer to do damage but i proved a healer can and contribute to damage making the runs easier and quicker then expected. Currently on live every heal in my load out does heal but 2 also do damage and again we are loosing one of those options. Why?
    • Like x 3
  9. Lithiumz Well-Known Player

    Please restore electroburst in healer role to use the electric PI. Transmute is getting the same treatment.
  10. Swiftduck Loyal Player

    Can electrogenesis get the same treatment as electroburst and make it go to the player with the lowest health?

    Also is it possible to restore the PI with the safety net and bio surge? If not, why?
    • Like x 1
  11. Derio 15000 Post Club

    Flux shield duration. Did I miss the notes somewhere or was this not addressed at all?
    • Like x 2
  12. Black Jaq Devoted Player

    Honestly, I don't see myself spamming VB at all. I guess you could but I don't see why. The burst is nice for mobs that could die quickly and then you don't have to worry as much about a cool down. The DoT itself is now weaker than Electrogenesis's DoT on a single target.
  13. Avair Administrator

    Much of the feedback we got was about healing feeling too "weak". Often times we have to interpret the feedback given and make adjustments based on what we understand. I certainly cannot read every forum post and respond to each one, so there are instances where some information gets lost in the shuffle. The idea that the healer role in general is less interesting than it used to be is much different than the feedback that the healer role feels weak. I can see how they relate, sure, but the solutions are completely different. We can certainly spend some time discussing and adjusting in order to make the healer role more exciting and interesting. Please continue to provide feedback on this issue and we will take it into consideration.

    Onto another point for everyone.

    I understand and appreciate the zeal and excitement that comes with testing and expressing your opinions about a game you love. In fact, I expect it, rely on it, and am grateful for it. However, everyone must understand that some changes will be made that nobody asked for. We try to make these types of changes as little as possible and do so very carefully. I am sure that it doesn;t feel like this. Most decisions are made under very careful conversation, testing and iteration.

    We felt it was VITALLY important to change the one shot paradigm that DCUO currently suffers from. It is a constant frustration for new players and old players to get one shot and not know why or how. In order to fix this problem, we had to make damage, healing, defense, and hit point changes that nobody asked for. What we get from these changes is an environment where any player can be hit and respond with the tools they have been given, thus creating game play in an area that didn't use to have any. This is a great thing. This helps make sense out of chaos and gives choices where there used to be none. These are good things. This doesn't mean we want healers to be bad, it means we want everyone to have the chance to be good.
    • Like x 8
  14. hotsizz1e03 Committed Player



    Definitely understand..Isnt it past your bed time sir? jk..

    On a serious note, one shots are fine, when it comes to, reflects, Enraging, and/or not blocking from BOSS OP move. Esentially, there is nothing wrong with replacing one shots, with constant barrage of damage, which also gives players the opportunity to respond..

    Im Also interested in knowing how comes the devs wont run with us? Im always willing to do that as well.. I think some things are best said VERBALLY, then actually gettin your point across thru text, with also the opportunity of important feedback getting lost within tons of other great feedback.. There should be a weekly scheduled days/time where players and devs can play the game for testing purposes and not for fun. I am down for that.. combining an in game experience with feedback on the forums should give you faster insight and approach as to how WE as the players are experiencing the game.

    Ill be giving feedback towards the ELECTRIC dps side in a second.. give me a few..
  15. hotsizz1e03 Committed Player



    Yea it wasnt met for spamming but you could like you said.. It was meant to be able to spread DOTS to newer enemies without being penalized for waiting a whole 10-12seconds for the cooldown.. Skilled players will use other cooldowns as a timer to know when VB ready to be used again.. (hint: just cast VB right after ELECTROCUTE;) )
  16. Electrizzaro Loyal Player

    Just a few first impressions from the new test.
    New Spec...will probably change
    60 SP in crit chance and attack
    40 SP in Might
    70 SP in Power
    This is for the PftT style. I am not sure this is best but toying with it based off of the notes listed saying that PftT should focus on Might and power but mainly power. Not sure if this is what the intended ratio is or not but it is what I chose.

    Polarize
    I like the change for Static Push. It plays out more smoothly than Repulse, by which I mean going into the next power animation is smoother and flows better. I also think that PftT is viable for the most part for a Polarized loadout. One of the reasons I feel like it plays so well is that you have two 100 power cost abilities Spark Barrage and Shockwave. If you are running low on power you do not have to just spam the same one power over and over again. This makes the game feel more fun to me and less repetitive. This also feels like a good burst for solo, duo, or group content although I have not run group content with it yet.

    Electrified
    This one IMO still needs a bit of work. I know this is supposed to be the Dot Tree now but it is lacking in options. For starters it only has one low cost ability and that is Tesla Blast. So if you run low on power you spam this one ability and the game loses interest very fast. My suggestion would be to make Shockwave dual PI so both trees can us it. It would help with low power consumption without the game feeling repetitive. I also think another low cost burst in a Dot set up would be a good idea. Tesla Ball change is fine I think. i did not see any real issues with it and the change to VB is fine IMO also. The fact that you can spam it is nice so you can get some decent dots going on new adds but it also make it feel like you almost need to have a controller to be able to do so. Which again is fine and should not change based on its damage. The PftT LO seemed to go pretty smooth I just had to spam Tesla Blast twice because everything was on cool down except for the 300 power cost abilities so that got old quick.
    LO was Arc>Tblast>Tball>VB>Echute>Ebomb. Did not feel the need to use chute or bomb during solo stuff really but I am sure they would be handy and fun for group content. Again I feel that it needs one more 100 power cost ability and Shockwave would be the best fit but if not something else could be changed I am sure.

    More testing needs to be done but like I said these are my first impressions.
    • Like x 4
  17. Black Jaq Devoted Player


    That's when I was casting it as well and it was nice to be able to move off even when Electrocute was not ready. I mainly wanted to see how the DoT compared and I think it's a nice trade-off. I like the 6 ticks of Tesla Ball just for the visual as well. These are good changes. I thought Electricity was at about 90% prior to this update. Now it feels like it's ready to go live on the Damage side.
    • Like x 1
  18. Mystere Well-Known Player

    I do not like the change to Voltaic Bolt or Tesla.

    Put shields like they are on live

    Bring back Biocapac interaction with Primary Heal
    • Like x 1
  19. hotsizz1e03 Committed Player



    Saying you dont like it is fine.. but state reasons as to why? Just cuz? What are the pros and cons.
    • Like x 1
  20. hotsizz1e03 Committed Player



    While i do agree with you its at about 90% ready(DPS).. I think the Electrified side still needs some slight work.. Its not enough Damage buff from Electrified PI.. Compared to the POLARIZE side.. My god, the POLARIZE class is a BEAUTY!! Need to bring the Electrified side up to par with its counterpart
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