I'm posting this to raise the awareness of people who use DoTs. This is going on the Test server but the fix is bugged right now. The real fix will be probably next test patch. - Fixed a bug that caused post-crit foci to apply to DoT spells before critical damage was applied This includes, but not limited to, bard songs and faycites. I know from experience that faycites add about 7.5% to the base damage of a DoT depending on the spell. I don't really know how much bard songs add to DoTs so I am not going to say anything. The fact is this fix will drastically nerf all DoT damage. I will be doing some testing when the intended fix does show up on the test server. Expect to see some results here later.
It seems they're rebalancing the classes with the next expansion with the nerf bat. Aside from certain people getting their panties in a wad over it, it's really the best way to balance things as it means less "mudflation."
That sounds like a bug fix, not a nerf. As far as I can remember, foci were never meant increase crit damage. They've said over and over that they don't want more multiplicative effects. And I agree with Qest. Increasing the value of everything else rather than decreasing the few just leads to more problems. This is the more pragmatic approach.
This is the issue they never should have tried to balance the class types(tank/healers/dps/etc) in the 1st place. Back when this game came out each class had a area that they were great in. Warriors where the best tanks because they had the best defense. Clerics had the best heals. Wizards where the best at blowing stuff up in the shortest amount of time. Back then if you had cleric healer and he/she left and you got a druid, your group had to change how they fought cause the druid would have a harder time healing then the cleric. Same if you switch out tanks or you cc. Depending on which class you had for what roles in the group you had to change how that group was doing things. Now each class within each type are so close that you have little to no change in how the group runs. I can understand why they are doing it. They are trying to make it so that you can switch out a war for a pally or a cleric for a druid and not have to change how your group is going. IE they are going after the newer gen of gamer who want everything easy mode. But I have to say its stupid and never should have happened. Now don't get me wrong. I am not saying that a druid/shaman should not be able to heal a tank in t4 rof zones or that a pally/sk should not be able to tank in those zones. I just think it was nice knowing that someone picked x class knowing that they where the best in some areas and not the best in others. I picked my necro knowing that I would suck at short fights but that i would rock on longer ones.
Faycites have worked that way since they were implemented. Which just screams design choice, not bug.
So this only effects: 1. Faycite crystals 2. Bard songs Faycites are a very small amount of damage. And bard songs (when you have a bard playing caster songs in your group) only do so much as well. Whats the big deal?
Faycites are small damage for DD spells because the damage is added after critical hits. Pretend that you increased the base damage of your DD spells by 7.5% and just took away any faycite additional damage you would get for the spell. That would be the equivalent to what faycites are doing for DoTs right now. Regardless if it was intended or not, I fear that this change (switched the wording to make people happy) will have no compensation after it goes live. That will be a direct hit to all DoT spells.
If it is a bug, they still have been balancing around them for several expansions even if they were never meant to work that way. Necro dots don't get any benefit from spell damage either, so there was never any comparison to say what they should have been doing, or how it should be done. I just seem to think if it has been "broken" for so long, it has pretty much been seen as normal until now, and would have always included it in our damage totals as it was, including the course of developing new stuff. If they didn't catch it as an issue, how am I to know that some new mechanic (referring to when they were added) is putting the math in the wrong place. Its another case of "fixing" something way down the road from when it came out. Necros don't even have the highest (discounting swifts, for raid purposes) damage dots in this game, our money always comes from using more of them, and boosting the crits on burns, and this will cut back on every one of them for those of us who are completely maxed out on type 3 slots just for dots.
I wouldn't look for compensation, be grateful they don't remove 7.5% of your total exp retroactively as part of the bug fix, extreme I know however it always pays to look at the other side. I think maybe what you mean by compensation is that a developer look at DOT balancing and ensure any required adjustments are made at the same time the foci bug fix goes live?
Its always possible necros were never balanced around it. The developers assumed that dot crits worked the way they were supposed to, and designed spells accordingly. On live, necros were getting more dps than intended. Now they are being brought back into line for what was the original design intention.
The change he "tried" to adjust was something that has been set in for a long time. Which is the over all damage necros have been focusing on for years. So yes it was taken into consideration when balancing.
You are the one making assumptions. Dots have always been able to crit focus effects. The intended change was only to stop focus effects from working on slot 3 augs and one bard song. The change to focus effects was clearly stated as a non intended bug which "hopefully" is fixed before the patch goes to live. The issue is most are fairly confident that the fix will take longer than that and thus there will be a very drastic nerf to dot damage. Related to this recent change a very valid point has been brought up regarding the + spell damage mod. It does not currently work for dots and if it did it would be roughly the same result of us getting focus effects to work on tiny boosts from slot 3's. There have been 2 or 3 failed attempts at trying to fix + spell damage to work for dots but they can't get it to work. So why not leave well enough alone or at least wait until they can fix the issue with the mod 3 + spell damage for dots before making this change. Very valid questions for a class taking it on the chin for zero reasons outside of pet peeves or envy.
I agree with what someone mentioned somewhere that its awful convenient to have noticed this when so busy with beta stuff and no new dots being added, after it being missed for years. It only makes it worse having the other abilities more than tripled on recast, and then dots being cut back as well. So that if they had the best intentions in the world with it, it sure doesn't seem like it. Unfortunately it seems like multiple classes are taking a hit on this "upgrade" of an expansion, so they are probably all over the place hearing complaints, but not very much doing anything about them. Not being in beta, this pretty much came out of nowhere for a lot of people (both deathbloom and dot issue) when they opened the beta forums to viewable to all. There is nothing GOOD coming with the release it seems, only backsliding. If they were dead set on doing it anyway, these probably would have been better left for a regular patch than an expansion drop. Not that I would like it either way, but it would certainly be less to take on at one time. Last thing on my mind is, if its so much trouble, and they have already broken focus effects by trying to fix this, it seems like it is taking a lot of work. It doesn't seem like they would put in quite as much work for things that would benefit us to be fixed.
It is not just what I posted before. He posts updates on what he does in a day. Usually big lists of stuff and "fires" he has to put out in order for the game to run. Him poking around in five year old code means either it was a focus of his or he greatly overexaggerates his workload.
Hah, it's almost like them acknowledging berserkers are lacking in sustained, then nerfing Brutal Disciplines was a logical/much needed choice as well, I guess? At least our epic was already destroyed in SOD.
As a Raiding necromancer ive noticed my dps is way down and mobs i solo i have to double swift dot where i didn't have to before. tho it looks more like the "Necro fix" is looking like a Nerf because of all the People i see complaining that Necros are way over powered. with that said im of a mindset to wait and see how it goes, im not going to cry about being nerfed or say im going to stop playing and cancel my sub. I enjoy playing my Necromancer , i like raiding as necromancer and i will continue playing my necromancer. Im sure Devs have a hard time trying to keep everyone happy but they are doing the best job that can with a very old game. i for one am happy over all with everquest. Greydeeds now Wraithwalker
