I just watched the interview with Rax, and one of the topics that were discussed were how to avoid fishing for specific layouts and monsters without making the Pit static.
What if, instead of using simple Runeshards, we had the option to use multiple materials that define the monster type, tile-set and maybe other aspects of the dungeon (like specific debuffs, similar to Nightmare Dungeons).
You could get different aspects of it as some kind of crafting materials, and you use one of each category to craft a custom Runeshard you then use to open the Pit (i.e. one tile-set shard piece, one monster shard piece and one ailment shard piece to craft a Runeshard).
This means that people can get relatively deterministic outcomes without making it static, and it adds a meta-progression system (e.g. specific activities unlock/reward different kinds of shard pieces). There could even be some really rare pieces with interesting surprises like a goblin monster type.
I feel like this could make a really engaging endgame system.
Please no. No more hoops to jump through.
Just let me press the pit button and generate a new pit and i promise to enjoy whatever randomness spews forth.
Less menus, more action
Engaging sure, overly complex even more so, another set of items to farm, no thanks.
How about we just try the new systems before we make anymore changes to them? Just a thought you know. Not that they would make any changes between now and the patch, but you know just throwing it out there.
Don’t blame you there. Everything in the patch notes isn’t all they changed either. I made a guide on all the stuff in the PTR that wasn’t fully noted or explained.
Let’s just say people are going to be a little confused going into the patch for the first time. In more ways then one.
What is the issue of fishing the PIT? If someone gets an easier PIT layout and complete the highest tier is it a problem as there is no leaderboard in this solo content?
Imagine loading up gr150s in D3 and playing the tunnel maps or keep depths filled with wormhole electricfied morlus. What a colossal waste of your time.
While I’m against fishing as well as you, I’m leaning towards the side that it just won’t happen or be necessary.
In D3 fishing was mandatory to push leaderboards. In D4, there is no benefit to fishing the perfect pit 200 board vs blasting a pit level 150. Sure there are some minor material drop differences but the speed farming will be the meta for materials.
It will be about what level pit can I crush in a 3 minute run vs what’s the highest pit I can run in the 10(?) minute timer.
Honestly don’t see why anyone cares if someone fished tier 200 if you don’t like the design don’t do it what’s it matter if people do it or not? I don’t think the devs should spend any time on it imo
the obvious, you got beneficial buffs . Who isnt going to try to maxmize advantage out of this if you offer it?
The mobs and bosses were HP sponges. Zero mechanics, zero thought. You wanted the max buff at the end for the rift guardian. And tbh, I feel D4 headed in the same direction. The only mechanically difficult fight in the game is Lillith (potentially slightly over tuned with wave hit boxes and too many one shots), but instead of HP sponges, create more lillith fights.
I can see the dev from Raxx’s interview from yesterday reading this and saying “Yes but the majority of our players are casual and having all fights like this is not our game”. Then youre game wont improve, ever, in this area. Bosses will be either push overs, or just damage sponges. And it’ll have a rep for not being difficult.
Solution to fishing? I dont know. Some negative effect for leaving the run early? A lot of games do this…if you leave the run early 3x in a row, you get a 30 minute CD of some negative effect where you cant enter again until that CD is up. I know ppl hate it, but that DOES solve it for a majority of the fishing cases.
Another is for the resources required for pit runs to be increased so much that you dont want to waste your resources. Have them consumed at the start, and if you leave, you waste your resources. Have these resources be a high premium.
But also, bosses need to not be dmg sponges so people feel compelled to do this in the first place.
This is similar to a system in PoE and it gives the player a lot of agency in how they play. Unfortunately, fans of Diablo don’t want agency: they want a system that “works” without them having to do a lot of thinking.
But this can be a good thing: Players that DO want that agency will use the clunkier “fishing” method. Casual players can ignore it and play the pit as-is and ignore deeper methods of gaining agency.
If all the maps are good there’s no need for fishing. Monster affixes should be standardized at a certain point. Same with mobs. Take out the rng above 150. Example: Levels ending with 0 could be hoarfrost with humanoids. Maps ending with 1 could be blind burrows with bugs. Ending with 3 could be Alderwood with animals. Etc, etc. Make finishing them in order an adventure- something you can plan for. Make life easy on guide writers lol.
If you spawn a Pit without finishing it, make it so you cant make another pit for 10 minutes.
Or give the player a “Curse of a Quitter” debuff after leaving an unfinished Pit, that reduces your rewards from the next Pit by 50%. The curse goes away when you finish a Pit.
Should discourage fishing reasonably.
