Smiling_Joe

I'd just like to add that you will be gaining new human-form powers. Can't help but do that. The difference if you're form-focused is that you'll constantly be thinking: "What power can I take that benefits the forms?" You'll want to pick up hasten, obviously. The human heals are a given, and you'd be well served to take Quantum Flight (but only if you use the macro /macro qf "powexec_toggleoff white dwarf$$powexec_toggleoff bright nova$$goto_tray 1$$powexec_name quantum flight" - make two of them, one for each form's tray. Might also consider a keybind.)

You'll consider other pool powers. You might look seriously for the first time at the presence pool. Then you'll say "Naaaaaaah." But other pool powers might give you ideas.

Because you'll not just be getting powers. You'll be gaining tactics. Yeah, yeah. Anyone gains tactics and tips as they gain experience, regardless of the archetype. Whatever. As an "Inhuman" (TM) Memphis Bill Kheldian, you are voluntarily limited to just the dwarf and nova powers for the majority of your leveling experience. You will develop a keen interest in varied attack combinations, moreso than players who can just pick up another attack.

If you're like me, you'll start giving them little names. Like the ol' Dwarf Bomb. You know, fly directly over a spawn in nova form and immediately shift to dwarf. You'll shift as you fall and hit flare as you land. It's even easier now that you can flare from the air. You might even spice it up with a nova detonation before you shift. Or the Nova'splosion - WDF followed by Nova Detonation to knock them down, then back, then escape to blast from range.

Or maybe I'm just weird with the name thing. Point is that you'll be thinking along a different paradigm. You might even find yourself fitting in a human attack or two just for the heck of it.

You'll want some binds. Check my sig.

I think he's talking more about not using human form at all, verses a true triform build.

45% damage increase to white/dark nova's base attack values in place of nova's current 45% damage buff and psionic resistance added to white dwarf.
a kheldian sash something that would make him just as happy,

'Cause that's what he likes best!

Out of curiosity, what are your reasons (and if you've specified before now I missed it and apologize) for taking the forms in the high end game?

Human form already competes with Nova dps-wise (giving Nova a slight edge) but I don't have nearly the heartburn with nova as I do with what perma-light form does to white dwarf.

For white dwarf, the only reason I can see is the auto-hit taunt and gauntlet in the attacks. The problem with that reasoning, IMHO, is that in the high end game there is little reason for you to tank. You're either solo or on a team with high end builds that are nigh unkillable and don't need anyone to tank. And if you're in an i-Trial you've got an actual tanker or a brute. Sometimes two or three.

So the one thing they gave white dwarf over human form is the one thing that's invalidated by the time perma light form is achieved.

I respect your opinion, so I'm curious.

Yes. I'm grumpy. The name "Smiling" Joe has become ironic these days, where Kheldians are concerned.

I'm not really seeing how your suggestion to remove slotting flexibility from the forms benefits the forms. At all. The most it does is give human-centric players who want to take the forms less of a slot crunch. I suppose you could say it benefits the whole in the same way that Hawk's changes to light form benefited the forms as a whole. In other words, you're both buffing the forms indirectly by giving some of their power (in this case slots) to human form.

You're not actually giving anything to the forms. You're taking away abilities with the argument that when human form is stronger it will carry the forms with it. I don't buy that.

The problem is that you're assuming (a) that the non-attack powers don't need slotting, and/or (b) that all the attack powers will be slotted the same way. What if I don't have a great deal of influence right away, but want to slot four kinetic crashes into White Dwarf Smite for some knockback protection for human form with the intention of using dwarf form for the heal and the taunt? With your idea I'm stuck with either slotting dwarf for the knockback protection and minimal heal, using expensive single IO's on other powers that I might want to use for other sets, or going all human and taking acrobatics. It's not a game breaker, but it does remove flexibility for triformers.

You're trying to free up slots for kheldians in general, but what you're actually doing is creating a HUGE slot crunch for forms. Why even take them at all in that case? I can take those ten slots I'd lose by six-slotting each form for EVERYTHING I WANTED TO DO and slot something that's actually useful, since Human form does pretty much everything the forms did and now has even less of a slot crunch.

What you're not getting is that your suggestion completely invalidates the inhuman playstyle (where the forms are used 90% of the time and human is used only as a heal and buff-bot). Believe it or not, there are a few of us.

But maybe I'm missing something. Apart from taking away some of the slot-crunch disincentive that human-centric players might get from taking the forms, what does your suggestion do specifically for the forms?

So let me get this straight - you don't care if Dwarf form has enough room to slot for taunt or endurance reduction, and you'd go so far as to remove the ability to slot endurance modification?

SO with your changes so far Dwarf would be less able to conserve the endurance to sustain an attack chain with any meaningful damage, would cost endurance to run but not have any endurance modification to pay for its own toggle, much less help with an attack chain's endurance use, and has to choose between slotting for damage or the ONE THING THAT IT GETS TO DO BETTER THAN HUMAN FORM (namely tanking).

And I can just "find another place to get the set bonuses I want?"

And this is a suggestion for buffing the dwarf form? What's gained?

OH YEAH! Moar slots for human form! YAY HUMAN!

I think that's my favorite part. You're proposing a buff to human form at the expense of the forms in a thread about doing something for the forms.

Look, it's really simple. You want to give players with high end builds a reason to take white dwarf? Give White Dwarf psionic damage resistance. You want to do something to give Nova more damage? Bake the 45% damage buff into the nova powers (effectively raising Nova's damage cap without actually raising it). Shorten the shift animations as a third step and you're done.

Leave my form slots alone.

Find another place to get the slots you want.

You could always try uploading the excel spreadsheet to google docs and sharing the link. I'd be curious too.

Another thing we on the forums seem to forget is that builds that can afford perma light form also have perma inner light, enabling them to come closer to closing the damage gap between them and warshades.

SO builds, by contrast, might have a use for the forms, but also still won't do anywhere near the kind of damage (although they're closer now than before) that a comparably build warshade can do. AND they still have less survivability, due - as New Dawn pointed out - mainly to Stygian Circle.

In other words, the changes to Peacebringers benefited heavy IO builds exponentially more than SO and low end builds.

But only if they eschew the forms.

You're forgetting edurance modification in dwarf and defense debuff in the attacks.

Not being able to slot a performance shifter proc in my dwarf and an achilles' heel in my attacks would annoy me greatly, so let's see:

Performance shifter proc
Achilles' Heel Proc
1 Recharge reduction
2 Damage
1 Accuracy.

With no room for taunt IO's, Endurance reducers and Heal IO's. To say nothing of travel IO sets in White Dwarf Step (some people like to slot a stealth IO or a slow resist IO in it)

Even if you give Dwarf a boost in the resistance department or take perma light form into account, you're still not able to slot for the dwarf heal, and the recharge for the same is severely nerfed with your suggestion. Add to that the fact that anyone slotting for s/l softcap won't be able to put two kinetic combat sets in the single target attacks (and you'll never convince me that you can't comfortably find four slots for those two attacks) and anyone slotting for recharge will no longer be able to put five doctored wounds in Sublimation.

Or, some people might want to just load each attack up with procs. With your proposal that will be insanely hard.

So no, I'm not in favor of your proposal. It's the single biggest way to further nerf Dwarf form I've heard yet.

Are you saying that Peacebringers still need major help? Because while I personally might not find the changes all that suitable for me, I don't really agree with that assessment.

To what Arcanaville post are you referring?

Sorry for the confusion - yes it goes off every ten seconds in your forms and in stamina. If you have them in both, then you will get two checks every ten seconds (or thereabouts, not sure of the timing)

My reply previous to this was poorly worded.

Yes. You are correct. Conserve Power+Build Up+Photon Seekers+Dawn Strike is quite the powerful combination. I use it all the time when I play my PB. Pop a blue and keep on soaring. Additionally, if you have a Performance Shifter Proc in one (or both) of your forms you can immediately switch forms for a chance at 10% endurance right then. It also allows you to hit Light Form right away to give you time to get your shields back up.

Which still doesn't answer why these bugs weren't addressed in beta when they were reported. My remarks had nothing to do with anything being "pushed out." I understand development windows. What I don't understand is why so many major bugs weren't at least addressed during the testing period. They aren't exactly surprises that showed up the final week before release.

So at what point in that paradigm does "testers beta test and report bugs, and said bugs get fixed before the code goes live" become irrelevant?

And before you respond about developers prioritizing bugs, bear in mind that this was not the only bug in this release, and while it's not a show-stopper, it - in conjunction with several other rather sever bugs (like bases attacking players?) - was severe enough to have at least delayed the patch.

And I do believe ALL of the severe bugs were reported in beta.

And to turn it around on you - just because it isn't important to you doesn't mean that it isn't important, as evidenced by the overall response.

I got that as well. What browser are you using? I'm on chrome.

Giving Null the Gull the ability to selectively reduce or remove knockback still means that anyone who likes knockback would still be knocking enemies out of my melee range, so I'm not that interested.

And I'm REALLY not gonna sign off on giving those people the ability to actually increase what amounts to their enjoyment at my expense. Just fix the bug and leave knockback as is. Bad enough they're actually allowed to slot for it.

EDIT - that last sentence was purely tongue-in-cheek.

No offense Zwil - I realize publishing schedules are what they are and that Paragon Studios isn't necessarily calling all the shots with that - but none of this explains why such a show-stopper wasn't squashed when it was reported in beta, which is at least one thing that Paragon Studios does have control over.

Ah well. As long as there's a fix. I'll just take a short break from the game until it does get fixed. Maybe I'll read a book or - looks at stomach - excercise.

No no - BvP!

If I had a base that had PvP items used for decorative purposes that suddenly started attacking me, zoning to the base would be the first thing I'd do upon logging into the game.

Danger Room FTW.

If, you know, I had a base.

Oh HELL YA!! I would SO stop ignoring SG bases if BvP were a viable option!

This. Need more convincing? Go to the Kheldians forum and look for practically any thread started by AIB.