POLL: What do you think of Defiance?


Accel

 

Posted

I wanted to see the general opinion of the "Defiance" power, since the developers are convinced it's working effectively. Personally I never stick around long enough to use it, as a Blaster, I feel that hanging around in a fight with low health is just going to get you a faceplant. I don't know what most people think though, so this isn't to prove anything, just out of curiousity.

If you don't know what defiance is, its that bar under your endurance which increases your attack power (far from proportionately) as your health decreases.

Since we cant make polls in this board, I made one here:

http://snappoll.com/poll/55136.php

So vote and discuss please?


 

Posted

Strangely, I wanted to select more than one option.

It has helped once or twice. Up to about level 10/12 it can actually even be used if you're carrying back up inspirations although I think that's a bad thing in a way - it encourages bad habits in lower level players which will most certainly get you killed later on in the game.

At higher level I just don't fight in the red. The line between full health and no health is just too fine on a blaster, particularly when you're fighting +3/+4 mobs which is fairly likely at higher levels. Sticking about and fighting in the red causes debt. There are many other ways I can get debt without further encouragement. Drinking half a bottle of wine before I log on for example, which seemed like a good idea on saturday night, caused me a certain amount of debt, pratting about with my health bar in order to squeeze out a bit more damage strikes me as an idea that makes that look sensible and well planned :P

Generally, it's pretty useless. Very very very occasionally it kicks in at exactly the right moment and you get a bit more damage/acc and fire off the shot that swings the fight. I can't remember the last time it happened.

I found the description of how it was meant to be used when it was first released (description courtesy of statesman, I really can't find the link to the post unfortunately, limited trolling facilities while in work) very revealing. Essentially his suggestion was that in order to get more damage a blaster may wish to go in to the group first and take the alpha strike, then get the tanker to taunt the bad people off you, while asking any defenders not to heal you of course, in order to take advantage of it.



I cannot believe that anyone who's played a blaster past the hollows could possibly have come up with that brainwave. Bosses take half my hit points on average with a mele attack at level 50, hell, some hit for more hit points than I even have, a +2/+3 rularu brute boss hits for just a little under 2000 points of damage in mele range, a KoA boss hits for about 1300 point of damage in mele range if I remember rightly, a good sneeze off a minion afterwards and you'll fall over.

I know it does me no real harm because I don't use it, I think I'm slightly offended that someone might think I'm stupid enough to do that though.

If I wish to hit the damage cap, I'll team with a kinetic thank you very much.


 

Posted

1-20 : Ooh extra power
20-32: What happened?
33-50: Yeh, like I ever let my health get that low.


 

Posted

Side Note : What do people think of the idea of Defiance being changed so that, once you run out of Endurance, you can keep blasting, but this time it takes off Health instead of End?


 

Posted

I hesitate to criticise without offering a better alternative, but I think that's another thing that's very low level orientated. I'd love to see inherrants on both blasters and defenders that actually felt like they gave a real benefit to a level 50 player, as well as a level 10 player.


 

Posted

As a level 45 blaster I find it almost entirely useless. I can't remember the last time I left my health at less than half before using an inspiration as we generally die pretty quick at that level.

As a defender I think it's great. Free endurance for me and I get to help the blaster towards their debt badges too!


Octavian Vanguard
@ohmsEU and @ohms 2

Badging character: Bimble on the Union server, Badgehunter.com and City Info Tracker.

 

Posted

when it was intoduced my blaster was already in the mid 40's, so it has been of little use to me. in fact i think it has only ever kicked in about 10 times anyway as before my health gets that low i am in hibernate.


 

Posted

Its non entity for me, The inherant AT specific powers in COV work far better than the one ins COH as a whole.

I mean yay im a blaster i can do 100s of % extra damage thats if I can actualy get a shot off!!!


 

Posted

It's pure luck mostly, especially at high levels. You can time it right if you're not surrounded by mobs, and one shot a minion with the weakest blast. It is much handier at low levels and it's occasionally useful in PvP. In fact, i miss it on my PB. I see my health dropping and have to do something about it rather than stand and take a couple more hits before popping a green.


 

Posted

I can think of two occasions where Defiance has been of any use at all in PvE, playing two mid/high-level Blasters - of all the inherents of the AT's I play, it's far and away the least used. PvP is a slightly different matter, but seeing as my main PvP Blaster (Energy/Energy) has relatively silly damage output anyway, I barely notice whether or not it saves me an extra attack to down an enemy.


@Synaesthetix
"Here, take some more bees with you. You may need them."
Union: FU//LoUD

"that Syn is that that" - Mothers Love

 

Posted

It does have its uses, when in a party of three blasters we were able to make good use of defiance,defeating three or so groups before having to rest.

In PvP it can be a nasty sting to who ever is attacking you, but usualy three hits is death to me pvp so I dojnt get to use it.

On the whole if an enemy is going to lower my health enough to activate defiance, then I am dead more so if the enemy has any help.


 

Posted

I've found it handy a couple of times at low levels...but generally, if my health is low enough for it to be of any use I'll die pretty fast.

If it started kicking in more a bit earlier it would be far more useful, as it is I can probably get off 1 or 2 attacks before I die (unless I'm really lucky and the enemies keep missing)


 

Posted

Pretty useless - the only time I can remember it has come in handy to me is when I managed to pop off one more shot in PvP whilst dying, killing my killer.

As Zortel said, the scaling is stupid - you get down to 25% health, and defiance is only 25% full as well, and if defiance is up really high, you then recover a tiny tiny bit of health and defiance shoots right back down. The bad thing is, States said defiance is WIA.


 

Posted

Essentially useless at highish levels, but it was free, so fair enough. Sometimes useful when I'm soloing, but I never remember to use it, my reflexes have been taught to get healing when health is that low - we're squishy!


�How do I like my MMOs? I like them the way Paragon Studios used to make them.� - a fitting tribute from kiasa.org

EU, Union mostly.

 

Posted

Basically, in most situations, useless.

Yes we can quote the one time in a hundred it saved the day but for most of the time past about level 10 you may as well forget about it unless you like debt (not that there is much of that kicking about these days) :P


 

Posted

I cant help but have an image of blasters self harming in their spare time for the "buzz"

Or capturing low lvl villains to keep locked up in their basement for that "defiance kick".

"well scum...tonight I'm going to fight Lord recluse..hurt me..Hurt me lots!!!!! "

Just imagine if you could hurt your team mates.

"please Hit me..Hit me!!! then I can one shot him!! HIT ME!!! "

creepy yes?


 

Posted

Meh, leap off a tall building and the one shot a purple

No risk, massive reward


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
Meh, leap off a tall building and the one shot a purple

No risk, massive reward

[/ QUOTE ]
Miss...

Miss...

...

"Res plz?"


@Synaesthetix
"Here, take some more bees with you. You may need them."
Union: FU//LoUD

"that Syn is that that" - Mothers Love

 

Posted

Ok, so it doesn't ALWAYS work


 

Posted

[ QUOTE ]
Ok, so it doesn't ALWAYS work

[/ QUOTE ]

I just tried your idea, one shot didnt work (even with build up and a well enhanced sniper), but I did manage to follow up with a couple more. Luckily a respite saved me after the first hit. I then tried it on two reds with build up and energy torrent, despite having 100/100 defiance, they only lost half their health, then I died


 

Posted

Oopsie...works a lot better at lower levels


 

Posted

I have to agree, it works well in the low levels, as I've noticed on my Fire Blaster. I think it would be balanced and in the spirit of the idea if it also added a run speed bonus and a small defence bonus, so you could effectively dodge behind cover in between exchanging shots. In open terrain, gunfighter style, a Blaster is too easily killed. A run speed and defence bonus would also make it more useful at higher levels.


 

Posted

I think defiance is pants, when you start using damage SOs and actually do stand around long enough to hit defiance it hardly gives you any damage boost what so ever. I remember testing it when i was lvl35-40 when it was introduced and i think i went up a total of 1dmg point lol. Its great if your lower in levels and not at the SO stange yet but it could be improved for the higher lvl blasters out there. Was a great idea, pitty its of no use


 

Posted

I had already taken my blaster to lvl 50 by the time they decided that blasters needed to have a helpping hand, so i have no experience with it at low lvl. But with my lvl 50 character it's completly useless.

I'm normally in a team fighting AV's or high lvl mobs, which means that if i let my health get to a point where defiance is of any use 1 hit will kill me... which i don't mind as much as debt doesn't matter (at lvl 50) but i instinctivly make sure i don't get to that point. And if i wasn't lvl 50 i'd not want to risk incurring debt
It's also annoying having to avoid the heals of any healer on the team as one misplaced heal can take you out of the defiant zone.
So as a blaster I never use defiance.

I could see how this is a useful power when soloing, as there are fewer mobs, so it can be a useful power to finish off the enemy you are fighting quickly if things start to go pare shaped. but it has no use in a team situation.

Personally i think it would be better if defiance raised your defence or made you harder to hit, that would benift a blaster more.