End of Cottage Rule? Please?

Well now we have a guy in Pocket D who will shut off Speed Boost's run speed enhancement for you if the SB aoe is giving to woes. Could we possibly have this same guy do this sort of thing for other powers? Powers that are terrible but a hand full of very loud people go into seizures if any mention of changing them is brought up. I wont say which powers. But I'm sure most logical people know a few who's mechanics are only useful in VERY limited situations.

Here's an example. We'll call the power we wanted changed generic Power X, again to stave off flaming from raving lunatics.

"I don't like Power X. It's very limited in usefulness. It's not worth taking at all. But they can't change it because of cottage rule. Oh wait! That guy in pocket D can change the power's effects to something updated into usefulness? Sweet! Now Power X is useful in more situations and is totally worth taking!"

I'd have to say that's Unlikely.

If they wanted to include a 2nd version of powers the playerbase generally doesn't like, they've had the ability to do so at least since the VEATs were developed (via exclusive power picks like Widow Build Up /Follow Up or Soldier Grenades).

If people want changes to the undesirable powers, those changes are going to have to improve the power without altering it's primary functionality.

Blackhole and Dimension Shift are the most oft sited "useless powers" but I know there have been viable fixes proposed for them that would greatly improve their performance without completely changing what those powers are.

@Oathbound & @Oathbound Too

Frankly, I'd be ecstatic if they gave us the option to turn knockback powers into knockdown powers.

So, you'd be perfectly happy if, say, you just worked up an Inv/SS tank... only to have INV completely changed? Say, they decide Inv needs an aura that has a *physical* AOE effect on the enemies, and turn Dull Pain into Safety Zone, which does an AOE Knockback instead of the heal/hp boost?

Or maybe take Kinetics and turn Fulcrum Shift into a sort of Group Fly?

"Oh, I'm not talking about that, I'm talking about minor changes." If you're talking about changes to magnitude, the ever popular-to-whine-about request to change KB to KD, or changes like Electric Aura got (which changed a power *name* when they turned Conserve Power into Energize - END discount to END Discount *and a heal,*) you're not having a problem with the cottage rule. If you're talking about (say) Hide losing its end cost, you're not talking about the cottage rule. The base purpose of the power stays the same.

Do you know WHY (hint, *especially in this day and age of sometimes very expensive IO sets, for instance,) the "Cottage rule" exists? And exactly how many times it's been violated? (Once, *maybe* twice - Fold Space getting removed completely, Wormhole being moved into place and Gravity getting a pet is the only single instance I can think of, and that was an Issue 0/Issue 1 change.)

Little history for you:
When the devs added a fifth power in the Patron (and later Epic) pools, they didn't do so because they thought "Oh, a fifth power would be great." No. In beta (closed, at the time,) they *flat out replaced* a slew of powers. For instance, my Ice/Psy/Mace Dom had her Disruptor Blast just *replaced* with a Personal Force Field. I had no use for it, they removed a source of damage, and irritated the hell out of me. And that was one of several "we think it's useless so we're going to replace it" powers. They got a VERY good, firsthand reminder of why they should NOT just do outright power replacements, as most of those in the beta at the time were calling out for blood.

You'll notice five powers in those pools now, which by *increasing* choice is a FAR better solution.

Also, you don't "get" what Null does. NULL DOES NOT CHANGE THE POWER. He removes ONLY a movement buff *from you.* The power itself is the same - and, frankly, was useful before *AND IS STILL USEFUL* (just ask a Stone tank what they'd think if the devs just did a universal removal of the speed buff from Speed Boost.) Null is as much an argument "for removing the cottage rule" as the moon being round is for buying tennis shoes.

Remember, your "terrible" power is one that someone else *likes* and *uses.* The devs have to have a very good reason (such as a power directly counteracting an AT or powerset's abilities to a debilitating degree) before they'd likely look at it. "I don't like it when other people knock back a target," for instance, is not that sort of issue.

See my Guides and Tutorials

Taunt got put into a new spot as well on Tankers.

Why won't you say which powers? Are you afraid that you will hurt their feelings?

Cottage rule is not what I think you think it is, I think. From ParagonWiki:

An existing power will not have its core functionality and purpose changed, though its strength may be altered and effects secondary to the power's true purpose may be added or removed.

You know, something the devs could do, is look over the sets, and give them all a few "alternate power picks"

Much like the Widows have the option of Follow Up or Build Up. Once they pick one, they're locked out of the other.

The devs could do something similar.

I do see the problem of people flocking to the one people consider the min/max power of choice, and then wondering why the power just wasn't changed all together to begin with though, if the better power was the new one.

Sure a few die hards may stick with the old one, but most new players I'd imagine would take the newer better power, and I'd imagine the die hards sooner or later changing out as time went by.

I say go down the line of sets that seems to have similar consensus of having issues between player base and the Dev's and create alternate powers for those in question.

EG I will use Propel since it seems to be a common one that comes up with this. Have Propel old school and Propel new school to pick from at the appropriate level. This way both sides are happy. Decreased cast time for maybe less damage compared to maybe upping the damage on the original maybe for the amount of cast time it has currently.

Not only does it quell this Cottage rule debate but it also introduces new powers to older sets and older builds. It spices up everything for older and newer players.

Another example is players asking Trip mine to be grenade type of attack. The graphical effect is already in place via temps. The numbers and base lines have already been established regarding several power types. Meaning many follow the same numerical value for based on the type of attack it is with just minor changes in secondary effects. EG hit debuff, recharge debuff. But the cast time and and recharges and range for the powers are pretty much even keel across the board.

So my point is why not explore the idea and toss out a bunch of this stuff on test and have players check it all out. It doesn't mean it will be introduced but at least they might get some feedback on what players think about these new powers and concepts.

Again I just don't see how all that can be a bad idea.. Unless we are going to complain we have too many choices now.