Materia: the new Armory System

[Khal_Drogo]

My Response to Brannigan:

I'm sorry Brannigan, but I don't agree. I think you're letting the "materia advocates" get off way too easy. It is completely ridiculous to make crafting the "mainline" method of obtaining end game gear. We're not playing harvest moon, or rune factory, or legend of mana.

This is an MMO, and we should be relying on MASSIVE amounts of ppl to obtain the best items/gear, not the "skill" and prowess of one insignifcant crafter with a lot of luck....

Proposal:

And why not both? Powerful U/U items should exists along with craftable gear with materia on it.

To make U/U more interesting, add special bonuses/effects that cannot be obtained through materia. Add also active abilities with cooldown that can only be used if you are wearing a specific U/U piece of gear. Then balance stats cap of all classes so players are forced to equip a mix of U/U items and crafted gear with materia in order to be able to cap everything.

That's how gear & itemization worked on DAoC, players had to own powerful U/U items AND, in order to cap all their major stats, were forced to have couple of crafted armor piece, enchanted with gems they wanted (basically the same system as the materia system we have).

Equipping only U/U items wouldn't work because you would overcap some stats, while some would remain uncapped. Equipping only crafted items with gems wouldn't work because bonus provided weren't high enough + no special abilities.

The key? The perfect mix between U/U and crafted items. Everyone was happy.

I feel, slightly, compelled to agree, Antipika, but one major issue stands keeps me from doing so:

There isn't the ability to do gear swaps in this game.

It's nice to have "unique" buffs on U/U gear that cannot be attained through materia, but what good does that do you if the stats on the materia'd gear are so much more diverse? If you can't swap gear, what do you prefer, as a mrd for example:

Being pretty good at taking dmg and really great at dealing tremendous dmg (options available to you, via materia)? or being able to do a "Blood Bath" for let's say a 500% increase in effectiveness? Now, obviously, you'd say "both" (the former during party play; and the latter during solo play), right? But what separates you from every other mrd? I'll tell you:

More than likely, it's always gonna be your U/U gear, cuz w/ enough gil (in a materia-inclusive system), anyone can be as good as anyone else. And when you take away the "competition," you take away the fun, and that overwhelming sensation you get when you accomplish something that so many others failed to do. And if you remove U/U gear from the picture (in terms of it's application during party play), you remove the opportunity for "bragging rights," which is a core aspect of the MMO experience.

U/U gear, obtained from EXTREMELY difficult fights/quests/missions, or w/e else, is always going to be a more compelling incentive than getting enough gil to *buy* end game gear. It's a really depressing prospect.

[Antipika]

My Response to Brannigan:



Proposal:



I feel, slightly, compelled to agree, Antipika, but one major issue stands keeps me from doing so:

There isn't the ability to do gear swaps in this game.

It's nice to have "unique" buffs on U/U gear that cannot be attained through materia, but what good does that do you if the stats on the materia'd gear are so much more diverse? If you can't swap gear, what do you prefer, as a mrd for example:

Being pretty good at taking dmg and really great at dealing tremendous dmg (options available to you, via materia)? or being able to do a "Blood Bath" for let's say a 500% increase in effectiveness? Now, obviously, you'd say "both" (the former during party play; and the latter during solo play), right? But what separates you from every other mrd? I'll tell you:

More than likely, it's always gonna be your U/U gear, cuz w/ enough gil (in a materia-inclusive system), anyone can be as good as anyone else. And when you take away the "competition," you take away the fun, and that overwhelming sensation you get when you accomplish something that so many others failed to do. And if you remove U/U gear from the picture (in terms of it's application during party play), you remove the opportunity for "bragging rights," which is a core aspect of the MMO experience.

U/U gear, obtained from EXTREMELY difficult fights/quests/missions, or w/e else, is always going to be a more compelling incentive than getting enough gil to *buy* end game gear. It's a really depressing prospect.

It's all about abilities you are willing to add on the U/U gear. Also U/U must have good stats + abilities. DAoC had no gear swap, but U/U gear had special effects that couldn't be obtained on crafted gear.

For example: Instant MP recovery or Instant DMG Absorb shield (like SS) etc.

Having such effects on U/U gear make them more desirable versus crafted gear, yet doesn't make them mandatory. It's all about balance. The average player will still be able to have decent stats, while someone who did endgame and all will have good stats + special abilities.