Zealot Overdrive Engine (ZOE) Review -- from Godlike to mere mortal.

Discussion in 'MAX' started by Wrel, Jan 20, 2014.

  1. Wrel Developer



    An extremely long video outlining my thoughts on ZOE in its current form.
    Timestamps and TL;DW (though the context will be off, if you don't,) listed in the video description.

    How has ZOE been performing for you since the update?
    Let me know what you think!

    P.S. People who are still experiencing PTSD from those 6 or so months of ZOE domination, please keep the conversation civil.
    • Up x 6
  2. Alox

    Nice review. I have tried out the ZOE after the nerf, and I find that I do not really kill stuff faster when using ZOE. I know there is a damage bonus, but effectively I don't really feel it.

    However, it is quite noticeable that I take more damage when ZOE is on, and the 15 seconds forced uptime has gotten me killed on several occasions.

    I have also rank 5 charge, and in all honestly it just works better both offensively to push past enemy maxes and taking out their support or defensively to get out of a sticky situation.

    Basically I have stopped using ZOE completely.
  3. AccelPrime

    Having 7k+ kills with my VS MAX I never used ZOE pre-nerf or post-nerf, I always thought charge was superior, at least to the way I play the MAX. And with the current ZOE, i'll definitely never use it :rolleyes:.

    But for the sake of conversation I think your suggestions to make the current ZOE more interesting (& better) are quite good. I'd definitely try it out, that's for sure, despite not having any prior interest in the ability.
    • Up x 1
  4. DevDevBooday

    Still leagues ahead of lockdown.

    If ZOE went from Godlike to mere mortal then Lockdown went from paraplegic mortal to... well still a paraplegic mortal.

    Complaining about ZOE nerf from TRs perspective is like you are all rich kids complaining that you only get 100 dollars a week pocket money now instead of the original 200 dollars whilst us TR have only been getting 25 dollars from the very beginning.

    It just makes it very hard to be sympathetic if you arent VS
    • Up x 3
  5. acksbox

    It hasn't. I spent the refunded certs elsewhere.

    Even the old ZOE wasn't worth the certification points. As far as I am concerned, ZOE was broken months ago, with the first hotfix-nerf two days after it was released.

    With this latest change, based on VR and test server experience, I cannot imagine spending anything on ZOE until I've got everything else in the game.

    New ZOE is fake **** on a zombie useless.

    Looking at it from my perspective, I always found it puzzling that people complained about ZOE, even if Lockdown was worse.

    Charge has always been the more useful ability, except for a 30 hour period about 7 months ago, before the first ZOE nerf.
  6. Shellana

    First of all, thanks for the hard numbers on the damage increases(taken and dealt).

    Charge 1 > ZOE 5.

    Yes, ZOE gives you better acceleration, but if you stay moving, then acceleration is not a problem.
    If I comes around a corner, and there are 3 heavies waiting for me, charge will get me out alive, ZOE won't.
    If I am running from building to building in a base that is under heavy bomdardment, charge will let me make it trough with less damage taken than ZOE.
    If I need to stop, I can turn charge off, I can't do that with ZOE.
    Finally charge can do all of this without increasing the damage I take by 25%.
  7. minhalexus

    trust me, ZOE needed this nerf. Why? cuz it was clearly OP, and charge was definitely not superior to ZOE before PU02.

    when i used to see a ZOE max before, i used to feel more screwed than when i was within 6 meters of the NC max.
    now at least i have a chance to kill the Max
    • Up x 2
  8. Xasapis

    A chance? Any MAX that now activates ZOE in front of another MAX is a free kill. There is a good reason the usage of ZOE has dropped to practically zero and the serious outfits forbid their members from using the ability.
  9. Manetheren

    He meant he has a chance to kill the ZOE MAX, not the NC one.
  10. Xasapis

    Well, if he can't kill the current incarnation of the ZOE MAX, there is something seriously wrong with his fighting tactics.
    • Up x 1
  11. AssaultPig

    so tl;dr, ZOE's the option to go with if you want to... hump corners a bit more effectively?

    yeesh

    I don't really see what the purpose of it is now, to be honest. Before the nerf it increased mobility enough to offset the increased damage taken, and now it doesn't do that.

    I'd prefer if it increased mobility a la pre-nerf, but decreased rather than increased damage (MAX redirects energy from guns to movement, whatever.) Then it might have some more combat use in low-density situations.
  12. minhalexus

    so you want a fast running killing machine?

    i do not mind at all if ZOE gave the VS max higher DPS and movement speed for less defense, but giving extreme speeds to maxes is just wrong and imbalanced.

    the ex-ZOE was more imbalanced than the current ZOE (for those who think that ZOE is imbalanced)

    the ex-ZOE was the biggest in-game imbalance that caused players to quit PlanetSide 2.
  13. Robyn

    Pretty funny was it that while ZOE was broken (before balacing) i saw pretty much everytime more than 3
    Was damn hard to chase only one with an decimator in my hands.
    The night after the balacing i only saw 1 max most in the open
    Now i actually see not so much of them around.

    I think that the VS ZOE before the balacing was really too good to be an sidegrade
    They were faster than infantry.
    Harder to hit.
    Instant turn off and turn on.

    Only downpart for them that they were easier to defeat with good aimed rockeds.

    But thats only my opinion and i was only on the reciving end of the thing.
    So i can not really make an good desicion on this ZOE MAX question.