I hope the next expansion reverses Heavensward's emphasis on rotations

[Mutemutt]

Honestly, I'm not really seeing a lot of emphasis on rotations. Maybe I'm missing something but I feel like the rotations are by far the easiest part of any given encounter of the game; mechanics ends up being the usual downfall of runs. I'd say most of the rotations work like a simple priority flowchart rather than a large sequence of moves. The issue comes from having to juggle the rotation while also dancing the mechanic dance and I like that aspect.

While it is fun managing rotations, i think it is extremely boring if you have a fight that you are able to keep your rotations up for long periods of time. It sounds like easy mode to me.

I think fights are boring not because you can keep rotations going for a while, but because the fight's mechanics are so simple that your dps rotation is your only worry.

[odie]

I think fights are boring not because you can keep rotations going for a while, but because the fight's mechanics are so simple that your dps rotation is your only worry.

I felt like I mentioned that, but if it wasn't clear, then that was part of what I was trying to get across. Currently the mechanics equal out to how much damage you need to put out to succeed, or how much damage you take if you fail. And one-shot wipe mechanics are just cheap. With our ilvls ever rising, echo being added to various duties, and the stat/level sync being completely unbalanced you can now stand in many of the AoEs that can either be ignored or fixed with a single Medica. And you're right. It leads to duties where all you have left to worry about is rotation. The fights need to be much more dynamic. You don't have to throw enemies in there with massive HP pools and a timer.

I imagine a boss in an arena, and players will mainly need to move about the arena, possibly spitting up at some points to handle a mechanic that isn't reliant on roles. You could even have low HP enemies. Maybe players run to rooms or platforms to activate switches that release something that falls on the boss, fires at the boss, etc. Meanwhile trash mobs appear to attempt to disrupt you. Splitting the players up will allow it to be more focused on trying to perform the mechanic instead of having someone hit the switches while the rest of the party AoE showers the trash. Even more interesting fights environment wise would be good. We KIND of see this fighting Gilgamesh as he moves to other rooms. This however isn't the best example of how this could be done.

In the game Dragon's Dogma you fight a boss dragon and in another part of the game a Griffin, and in their respective stages, you are basically chasing them throughout the fight dealing damage how you can. For example the dragon fight you are cornered into a room. You attack him up until he bursts through the cieling to escape you and you pursue him running along a wall dodging his attacks while the wall crumbles beneath you. You run up into a tower and fire balistas to knock him out of the sky, eventually being flown on his back to an arena with more balistas, and places to take cover from his attack. There is a combination of dodging, firing balistas, and fighting on the ground. This is one fight.

If maybe instead of boss fights being a circular arena where we dps dps dps and move to the next phase which is maybe another moveset + dps check/enrage timer....SE could design boss dungeons. Instead of just trash mobs the entire way through the dungeon with 3-4 bosses throughout...we could fight a single boss through the entirety of a dungeon and maybe throw in trash to distract us or prevent us from succeeding at managing a door/switch etc. The environment could change as we go.

I believe that by changing the way the fights are designed, we could not only keep them fun, but also prevent them from being entirely boring faceroll, while also giving epic bosses the epic encounters that they deserve.

Could you imagine that instead of just fighting titan on a circular stage....maybe he could chase us to various chambers in the kobold's mineshafts...angrily smashing out the tunnels, crumbling floors and walls, and bringing the roofs down around us?

[odie]

[HB ][/HB ], without space.

Thanks! I fixed it!

Imagine fighting on Hraesvelgrs back while battling Nidhogg in the sky, attacking him when they become entangled trying not to fall off, and eventually bringing the battle to the bridge?

[Anzaman]

and apparently i don't know how to post spoiler tags

[HB ][/HB ], without space.

[Dement]

I have to ask if the nay-sayers actively try to tackle more difficult current content. Yes, your rotation is there but at those level of fights, it is typically in the back of your mind at best, operating mostly off of muscle memory. Savage Gordias was built more around high DPS checks but Savage Midas has gone back to more mechanically intensive fights.

The only fight that comes to mind that is solely based around rotations in Savage is Hummelfaust which is a simple mini-boss. The other fights all have quite varied things in which you have to react to and often times the attacks do not have an AoE indicator (step into Nidhogg EX where you have to react to a variety of elements, none of which are telegraphed by AoE indicators). I can't think of any fights that are "the same thing over and over" in any of the Midas Savage Floors and they often change how they work by different phases. Part of the challenge is being able to keep up on your rotation as best as you can WHILE you deal with the reactive elements of the fight.

[odie]

editing for character limit

[Noshpan]

Rotations are still simple AF in HW. A lot of skills come down too Press 1 > Is OCD up? If Yes: Hit it. If No: Press 2 > Is OCD up? If Yes: Hit it. If No: Press 3.

Complex AF man.

As a DRG, I wish that was my rotation.

[Kazrah]

Honestly I think the next expansion needs to focus more on traits. Easier way to add something to jobs and classes without trying to cram more into already-stuffed hotbars (amirite ps4 players?)

[Jetstream_Fox]

As a DRG, I wish that was my rotation.

As a BRD I wish it were as well. Half the time those bloodletter resets can't even be used (thanks WM.)

[Cynric]

Im confused you say you have a problem with rotations but it seems like you actually have a problem with fight design. Rotations are by far the easiest part of xiv