Scrapper Suggestions

These are just minor things which have been irking me, not exactly huge technical issues, but just the small things. Quick note: I'm a Broadsword Scrapper, and it's my only scrapper, heck its my highest toon.

First, Air Superiority: The animation when you are using a weapon should *include* the weapon with it. As it is, it makes the weapon disappear, and you effectively have to re-draw it on your next attack. Which not only adds a few precious ten-thousandths of a second to your attack chain, but it is in general really irritating. I'm not sure how much it affects the Scrappers who *don't* use weapons, but to me, it's one of those small things I'd like to see fixed. And now that I think of it, I realize that means a lot of work getting Air Sup to use the weapon for it's animation, but it would make attack chains flow much more smoothly. (And I'm not asking on opinions on how to have a proper attack chain, I'm noting a problem with Air Sup)

Second, and not quite as important as the first is the general Broadsword compared to Katana animations. I realize that they are in effect, the same weapon, that is, the katana has nearly the same effect, just with less damage and is slightly faster, which is true. I think one or the other needs to be slightly diversified. Nothing huge like, but just a little more distinguish-y-ness. (If only because I recently unlocked the Tsoo Katana, and it's really seems.... odd.) And I realize I don't have any suggestions about what kind of animations to use instead, but I'm not that creative.

And that's all folk. Sorry to take up all your time with reading this.

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Air Superiority: The animation when you are using a weapon should *include* the weapon with it.

[/ QUOTE ]This seems like a simple suggestion... but it really isn't. Because of the way the game's animation system works, in order to have Air Superiority not cause weapon draw, they need to create many new animations:
- AS with weapon drawn, female model, on the ground
- AS with weapon drawn, male model, on the ground
- AS with weapon drawn, huge model, on the ground
- AS with weapon drawn, female model, in the air
- AS with weapon drawn, male model, in the air
- AS with weapon drawn, huge model, in the air

Then quadruple that, since "with weapon drawn" is something different for a one-handed weapon (broadsword), two-handed weapon (katana), dual-wielded weapon (dual blades), or weapon + shield (anything paired with shield defense)

Then you have to consider that all of that animation work only "fixes" Air Superiority, and not Jump Kick, Kick, Boxing, or Flurry. And then even if you do make those changes to all of the pool attacks, there's still dozens of attacks in a character's second powerset which cause weapon redraw, and by the time you make all those changes, you've got players clamoring for non-attacks that cause redraw to be changed as well...

And once you've got all those hundreds of alternative animations added, any animation change to one of the powers in question requires that much more work to complete the change, since each of the alternative animations needs to be changed as well.

There's only one power which is outside a weapon set and doesn't cause redraw*: Brawl. And Brawl is the most complicated power (animations-wise) in the game.

* There are a handful of powers which accidentally don't cause redraw for some weapons, though I'm not certain why that is, and I'm not certain that the devs know why it occurs either.

Also, broadsword is diversified from katana in that katana is really, really good and broadsword's kinda weak.

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I wouldn't exactly call katana being *really, really good* much of a diversification. I'm talking about (again) animations. My point wasn't to say broadsword needs a I Win button because it pales compared to the katana (hell, I love the broadsword because it's got a power called Head Splitter and the Nictus Sword, I could care less if it only did 1 damage every attack) My point was to suggest that they should diversify the animations for one or the other (preferably BS).

And your point with the animations was...? I understand what you're trying to say, it's just that, I was *suggesting* what I said. I wasn't exactly looking for a "Nope. Sorry. To Much trouble." Not to say I don't appreciate what you put in, and I'm completely sure you know *exactly* what you are talking about. But, at the same time, this is a suggestions forum, not a "We like to shoot down ideas for fun" forum. I realize my suggestion isn't doable at the drop of a hat, honestly, most suggestions here probably aren't. But they are suggestions, that is, what the people who play the game would like to see. And this is something (among others) that I would like to see. I'm sure you could name a thousand others that you think are much more pertinent than mine, but it's mine all the same, and I just wanted it put out there, on that off chance that *maybe* someone might think it a decent enough suggestion and worthy of doing.

And hey, if they take my suggestion and follow it all the way through every animation like you so kindly pointed out, so much the better.

Back Alley Brawler said that if you make one power pool power like AS not cause redraw then all power will need to be done. BAB even had a post about this but it is gone

The point of the animations was to tell you that it seems like simple suggestion, but it is not. It would take a lot of work. And again I don't know exactly what would need to be done. But I do listen to the Dev like Back Alley Brawler when they said it would be to much work.

Yes this is the suggestion part of the fourms so if you post in here be ready to get good and bad reviews that is what happens. If you don't what people to give you their opinions then don't post your ideals here.

Edit: Did find a link

BAB said
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Because this game uses a statebit animation engine, discreet mode bits for the various combat stances, and has no animation blending capabilities.

And if anyone thinks for one second that we could get away with making just Fighting|Kick work with weapons and not do the same for every Secondary, Pool, Anciallary, or Patron power...you are sadly mistaken.

So sadly. Here's a sad face for your mistakeness -->


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Second, and not quite as important as the first is the general Broadsword compared to Katana animations. I realize that they are in effect, the same weapon, that is, the katana has nearly the same effect, just with less damage and is slightly faster, which is true. I think one or the other needs to be slightly diversified. Nothing huge like, but just a little more distinguish-y-ness. (If only because I recently unlocked the Tsoo Katana, and it's really seems.... odd.) And I realize I don't have any suggestions about what kind of animations to use instead, but I'm not that creative.

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They used to have the exact same animations. Katana got given new ones because a Katana and a Broadsword would not be used even remotely similarly. They've already had a very substantial animation change. They used to look identical. Now they actually look quite disparate. You've already got what you wanted.

Umbral: thank you, I never knew that they had the same animation at one point.

BrokenPrey: I fully expect good/bad reviews, not a "I'm here to kill your idea" Granted, it's basically been killed now, but with an *explanation*, which is worth it. I've no idea how this game works, and now that you've shown me *that* I'll go ahead and keep my mouth shut. But simply saying "It's too hard" is just stupid.

I thank you both for your input.