What´s the point of picking a pure dps class nowadays?

Latella

Back in the day, each class had a role and a prupose in the community  and had its own strenghts and weaknesses.

Some classes were very good at healing and supporting their teammates.

Some classes were good at tanking and soloing but suffered in pvp

Some classes were good at damaging and pvping but suffered at soloing.

Some classes were very good at pvping and ganking, but were not as desiderable on pve content

Some classes were decent at everything and had the special feature of being able to combine several roles in a single character but in exchange they were not as good in any of them as the original class was, but were still helpful as they could bring several benefits with a single slot.

But nowadays healers. tanks and hybrids have been made into this omnipotent characters that can play and perform most, if not all the roles the game offers with the same or even better efficiency than the  pure roles, while pvp and dps classes have been dumped into these monothematic, gimped, underperforming characters that offer their users a fraction of what hybrid classes are able to do.

So my question is, what is the point of having "pure dps" classes when everyone else can dps just as well if not more than them while having a lot of vantages, options and possibilities that said pure dps classes do not have?

I do not think it´s fair at all to be honest.

 

davestr1zl

The point of a pure dps class is for players that only ever want to dps. If I want to do dps and nothing but dps, why would i want to play a hybrid (or play a class that can re-spec into a different role)?

There are a number of times in MMO's when ive seen people who play a class that have multiple roles that get forced into being a healer/tank because no other healer/tanks are available and they're the next best choice. If i only want to dps, i dont want to be doing this.

Additionally, a lot of the time pure dps classes have the highest dps output (whether intentionally by design, or unintentionally - it usually works out that way). If i want to be the best possible dps then picking this class is the best choice for me.

The only problem that can arise is if a pure dps class has a worse dps output than a hybrid. If a pure dps class outputs an equivalent, or even higher amount, of dps then they still serve a purpose. (this is evident by the fact that, generally speaking, pure dps classes are the most played classes in mmo's)

aesperus

Really depends on the game.

What you're talking about, for one, is pretty much limited to trinity games. In other games, this entire question is somewhat irrelevant, so I'm going ot answer it from the point of a trinity game.

Different types of DPS:

For example, a hybrid might be able to say heal & dps. However, their dps might be reliant on dots / sustained, instead of burst. You could then look at an archer, or a mage class if you wanted more burst, or more AoE, etc. Point being that sometimes the hybrids just don't fit a person's playstyle very well. I felt that way about shamans & druids in WoW. I knew they were strong characters, but they felt more 'cheap' than fun to me.

However, if you only care about numbers, then probably the class that can do it all will feel better than a class that is more specialized. Also, hybrids may feel more convenient (as you'll spend less time waiting for a healer). Personally I love / hated this in games like Rift. Because usually what it meant is 'well, you can heal, so you are going to have to'. At that point I usually go DPS just because it's physically impossible for me to play other roles, and as such I never get asked / pressured to play them.

Adamantine

I kind of like the idea I had recently, for a new Trinity:

- Tank classes are the ones that can especially well take damage

- Healer classes are the ones that can especially well compensate damage

- Crowd Control (CC) classes are the ones that can especially well control damage (meaning they can make mobs hit the tank, not the healer or CC)

- And everyone can deal damage

- There is no aggro mechanism. Mobs choose to attack whatever is best in their opinion. The CC is standing right next to them ? Lets take a good chunk out of them and see how it tastes !

This way everyone would have one "boring" group task, not just tanks and healers. We would get rid of people claiming its the healers or tanks fault the group wiped. For everyone would have now something they could get blamed for.

Volkon

    The whole trinity concept has run it's course. Everyone's too hung up on specializing for roles. You must do this if you want to tank a raid. You must build this way for a main tank healer, that way for an off tank healer. DPS must be of this build for their class and use the precise rotation for maximum value. Oh yeah... don't stand in the fire.

    I won't miss it, not in the least. I love that GW2 is tossing the whole trinity concept out and even shattering the role concept. You'll have your own heal. You'll have a blend of skills that damage opponents, control opponents through a variety of means and help support allies through light splash heals or the application of buffs, removing conditions, etc. And you'll have all these capabilities with you at once. No more memorizing your optimal rotation. No more staring at a UI clogged with health bars and playing whack-a-mole with heals while the fight goes on around you. No more taunt and stand there spamming skills to hold threat. Now it'll be a matter of watching the fight and using the right skills at the right time when they're needed.

    A lot of people like roles and the dedicated jobs that come with them. They're comfortable. You know exactly what to expect from yourself and everyone else in the party. There's absolutely nothing wrong with that at all. I've done the main tank, off tank and dps thing in WoW. There's a degree of pride involved in being known as a great tank or someone that will top the dps charts without pulling aggro off the tank. It feels good, like an old pair of fluffy slippers. But for me, it got old. One day I simply couldn't log in anymore and haven't since.

    Now there's a real change coming, and for me personally I love it. I got to feel what it's like to experience combat that requires you to think both proactively and reactively. I like how it feels to use skills while on the move, seeing what's needed, crippling foes about to catch an ally, burning down others. Interrupting that big cast that's coming then bringing the pain down on a dazed foe is flat out fun. It won't be for everyone, no doubt. But having tried it... I couldn't even talk myself into logging into the Tera beta simply because they're still using the old trinity concept. I'm done being locked into a role. There's too much to do for me to be stuck with a single task in any fight, and I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it well, and have a freakin' blast.

 

Boatsmate

Sometimes you get tired being face rolled in pvp and you just want to kill as many as possible as fast as you can. Like a Mage that can set everyone in sights asses on fire and leave the world smoking before you go down. I know it makes me feel better.

BeansnBread

Can you name a class that is a pure DPS and from what game so I can get a feel for what you are talking about?

 

Every game I've played has DPS classes that are also usually able to use CC, debuff or bring mobility.

 

For instance, in WoW,  a hunter has an ice trap for CC, a tranq shot for angry bosses and a movement speed buff for the group. A rogue has a sap for CC, an inerupt for casts and a buff that increases a teamates DPS by 15%.

 

I'm sure you are referring to a different game, but I've played a lot of them. It would be nice if you were more specific with you complaint about the lack of fairness that DPS is receiving.

Theocritus

     I kinda thought that was the trend nowadays??....Everyone takes high damage classes and simply outdamages the AI instead of using strategies and the trinity system.

Wolfenpride

Kills stuff faster. Typically gain the most kills, if not flat out the best or easiest class to play in PvP. Don't have any stressful/challenging roles in groups.

The min/max mentality is also a lot more rampant than it use to be with regards to group make ups.

Quenchster

I think it is because DPS only classes don't have a responsibility in protecting others most of the time. All they are responsible for is their damage per second. Hyrid classes usually are forced into roles they don't like or they are on something like battle-rez duty.

Banaghran

Originally posted by colddog04

For instance, in WoW,  a hunter has an ice trap for CC, a tranq shot for angry bosses and a movement speed buff for the group. A rogue has a sap for CC, an inerupt for casts and a buff that increases a teamates DPS by 15%.

 I'm sure you are referring to a different game, but I've played a lot of them. It would be nice if you were more specific with you complaint about the lack of fairness that DPS is receiving.

He is probably not.

The problem is all the abilities you mentioned are either practically unused (tranq shot) and/or have been made replaceable (buffs, cc, interrupts).

They key these times is streamlined gameplay, without needing to search for that rogue for that specific thing (picking locks has been largely discontinued, too), thus classes are given new abilities left and right, but not much is heard about the pure dps getting heals, extra hp or armor, now that they are replaceable. 

All you can hear are people unable to read class descriptions (hi, pre-wotlk druids!) arguing that "those people just wanted to dps, that is what they have picked! Im off getting my third only-my-class-can-wear-it gear set while rolling on cloth."

Flame on!

 

 

olepi

We were having this discussion before MMO's even existed. It was frequently called "dual classing", where you could take on skills from more than one class. Dual classing typically stopped your progression in one class, keeping its powers, and starting a 2nd class at the beginning. You could not reach top level in either class.

My first MMO, DAOC, addressed this problem by having different factions with different classes. For example, the Albs (from Albion) normally have stricter classes, and it took a full team to fulfill all skill requirements. The other factions have more hybrid style classes, and take fewer people to fulfill all skill requirements.

Also, I take exception with the "trinity" concept. This is a hot topic in CoH. Every good debuffer knows that if you can debuff 30% dmg, 30% movement, 30% accuracy, and 30% recharge speed, on the enemies, you don't need much healing. I've been on many successful teams that had no "healer",  and required almost no heals at all.

However, MMO's today also have to work as SRPG's, single player RPG's in a setting with other people that you don't play with. Almost every modern MMO has to be soloable, so therefore each player has to have enough to fulfill all skill requirements. At least the three main ones.

But, if you want a pure DPS class, with nothing but carnage to protect you, try playing a Fire Blaster in CoH. And solo it.