What’s happening with all the recent new sets (and some old ones) is that their 6-piece bonus all only buff one skill rather than all or a group of skills.
The problem with this is that these 6-piece bonuses effectively perform what could have been the role of legendary items, and the new sets end up allowing/buffing only one play style for each class.
I think this limits player creativity and reduces the fun element of the game, and there’s a higher risk of disappointing players, e.g. witch doctors really need some good speed options for mid-tier gameplay and farming; right now I’m sceptical that the new spirit barrage set will fill that gap.
Personally I think a good approach for differentiating set gears could be that:
Legendary items buff one skill;
Set 2-piece buffs a support (or other as appropriate) skill;
Set 4-piece buffs defence;
Set 6-piece provides a generic damage boost to a group of if not all skills, SHOULD a specific condition associated with the 2-piece buffed skill is met.
(As it currently stands, most sets’ 2 or 4-piece bonus, the one that’s not the defence buff or the massive damage buff, is useless.)
LoN/LoD works as is.
Will 2 overlap with 3? I think not, as, first and foremost, 3 precludes any other set bonuses, so e.g. no key farming with Cain’s 3-piece or getting Crimson’s massive CDR in a LoN/LoD build. Secondly, the 2-set buffed skill in 2 could allow for interesting interactions among gears and skills, which will never occur in a LoD/LoN build.
Just like most LoN builds, there would still just be one or two skills that out perform the others and wouldnt have much effect on diversity. Yet sets that buff one skill actually can give life to an unused skill.
There just should have been sets for every skill by now.
I’d consider that a feature rather than a bug.
Making sets into a stepping stone toward the more meaningful LoD/LoN builds. If anything, LoD/LoN needs a buff.
It would be great to see more multi-set builds though, mixing items from different sets.
I generally agree that set items being focused on a single skill or two is worse than more generalized sets.
But sadly that design issue is a lost battle at this point. Getting set items that target more underused aspects of a class, is probably a good thing, compared to the only alternative we have today.
If things could change fundamentally, I’d turn pretty much all existing sets into legendaries, and only keep sets as generalized bonuses, kinda like what Crimson’s etc. are, and at most let them be 3 or 4 piece sets.
if so, you have a point;
2 to 4 gear pieces should be useful through power OR through be able to work with other set pieces.
6 pieces on a DPS-set should make a solo player able to reach max GRIFT level.
-that’s why ‘balancing’ is so difficult: should tanking and support sets also be able to solo to max GRIFT level?
Agree, the new hydra set looks interesting, but I’m left wondering what my other skills should be… after hydra, generator I guess it’ll be teleport, mirror image and 2 other skills for passive.
I am more of a fan of Tal’s set, since as long as I get the elements I can use other skills as I wish, although naturally meteor is staple.
The 1 skill sets pretty much railroad you into maximising the potential of that skill and keep it on constant, or else lose the benefits and die horribly. I suppose it could be considered a different kind of challenge, but spamming a single skill sounds dull.
Imo they should add something like “Hydras deal 100% more dmg to targets which are also taking dmg from you”. Making something like Blizzard useful.
And add Mirror images to the dmg increase from 6 pieces.
I want sets to actually do something interesting, not just be a generic buff to a bucket of skills. It would be really boring if every set did the exact same thing, only being different in the text next to each % modifier.
It’s also a lot more difficult to balance a set around a lot of skills than it is to tune it around only one or two. Remember, we are also getting improved legendaries that go with each set, and if they added more skills, they would also have to tweak more legendaries. That’s means a lot more stuff that needs testing in the PTR, and a much higher risk that one of the other added skills will either fall too far behind or just dominate all the others.
It’s better to stay focused, and adjust the damage and mechanics of the new set than to try and force it to work with every underused skill.
I wonder if people would generally agree to these:
For each class, the “best” builds for different tasks in the game are often different; said tasks include t16 farming, gr speed, gr push, split bounty and solo bounty (I assume there are people who play solo exclusively).
Again for each class, it’s unrealistic to try to balance the game so that multiple builds will perform equally best in all aspects for the same task. For example, for t16 farming, you could have several builds that work; some may be RNG dependent (such as in geom builds), some may be squishy/finicky and require more/better micro, and some may perform more consistently but slower.
To make a build, you would always need more than just the set damage buff or LOD/LON, but also individual lengendary powers that buff specific akills.
To connect the dots, why not let people’s imagination run wild by providing generic damage buff on sets and if any skill becomes op, just tune the relevant legendary items?
Buffing only one skill seems like lacking of creativity.
As example for new WD set, in 6 pcs bonus try to insert zombie bear and acid cloud (probably bats) together with spirit barrage skill. We can group it as heavy mana spender skill.
As to make the damage become balance among those skills, you can always adjust it using individual item like scrimshaw, suwong diviner, etc.
Some of you will say this is will be overlapping with helltooth set. Yes but i dont see there is a problem here. Look at tempesh rush monk now which can be done using Sunwuko set or POJ set.
It will be fun to have more variety of skill to be played with one set item
About wizard new set. I think its same thing like i mention above with wd set.
Please insert magic mirror skill. Might be we can call it “pet” set. Wiz buff pet or pet buff wiz.
Will be fun
