This article will deal with the fighting system and all related
questions. Many have asked for additional information, and this aims at
answering as many of these questions as possible.
As some of you have pointed out, the list we
published some time ago does not show any really innovative skills and
spells. This is indeed the case, and was done on purpose, as the
options available at release are intended to set a general frame for
each class. Thus, you can see the fundamentals for each class and their
gameplay: what their purpose in a group will be, what will allow this
class to progress in solo gameplay and group gameplay, at every level.
The choices were therefore obvious: we could not include skills that
had requirements (terrain, religion, stars...) or very complex effects
which could create balance issues between classes, and which could
prevent these classes from having a specific function. These paths
represent, with a few exceptions, the basis for the DnL combat system.
The next addition to the class tree will be a
third fighting path, with active spells, as opposed to the expertise
path. The purpose of this new path will not be to define classes, and
will have only a few or no spells with a direct effect. It will include
buff and debuff spells, and a wide range of secondary effects which,
although not central as far as fighting is concerned, will be a major
help if you choose to specialize. You will find, for instance, vampire
skills for Black Knights, shapeshifting and of course bite attacks, or
electricity spells for wizards, with unexpected and situational
effects... This is a long list, and we are waiting for your feedback
and expectations concerning what is already implemented, in order to
answer your expectations in best way.
Our requirements for these new skills, as you can
understand, are fun and originality. These attacks and spells will add
more depth to each class and will offer a coherent specialization, in
order to create a complementary path and integrate it in the best
conditions. We are quite aware of the fact that if you choose your
class without knowing what the final stage is, choices can be difficult
to make. This is why we tried to describe them as accurately as
possible. All the changes we bring to these classes, and there will be
many, will stick to these orientations. If you want to play a magician
with direct firepower, for instance, or a healer with melee skills, you
can choose a sorcerer or a monk as your class and never look back: the
new skills and future changes will only make classes better, and will
not change their purpose.
The system we intend to provide will be as fluid
as possible. Exploits and bugs will be patched regularly, and if by any
chance you manage to kill a dozen dragons with one click, don’t expect
this to last for long! Changes will be more or less obvious, but will
always be documented in the patch notes for the sake of clarity, at
least when these changes are directly visible. Concerning the Barbarian
and the Shaman, both epic classes: they will not be available upon
release. This does not mean that the idea has been left aside, on the
contrary. We will implement them when the time has come, but for now we
wish to take care of the existing classes before adding new ones. There
is much left to define for the Barbarian and the Shaman, but generally
speaking, the former will belong to the fighter side, the latter to the
spellcaster side. They will however be very different from the existing
classes. We wish to implement two entirely new classes, not modified
versions of already existing classes. Their gameplay and options will
be specific, with a series of important benefits and drawbacks for
each: they will be very powerful if in the right context, but if not,
they may be below average. You will have more information about this in
due time, as well as more information about how to unlock these classes.
Dynamics in gameplay will be one of our main
focuses in the weeks to come. We acknowledged your comments about the
lack of dynamics in some gameplay elements, and will add some
improvements. One of the first improvement you can notice: you don’t
need to wait until a missle hits a target before you can launch another
spell. Moreover, delays and casting times have been lowered. Most
classes, except the ones that play a lesser role in direct combat (such
as some healer classes) will have a wide range of attacks at their
disposal, and with future additions, you will have an increasing number
of options to choose from while in combat mode, in increasingly shorter
time frames. The ability to move will be a significant asset for some
classes, such as the Bard, and a section of the third path will offer
quick movement spells. In parallel, we will put the stress on
action/reaction effects, with counter-spells and skills.
And finally, balance and the many concerns that go
along with it. This is our main focus at this time, as far as combat is
concerned. Every class has a series of matching classes, and a series
of "opposing" classes against which it is harder to fight as equals.
This does not mean that, for instance, warriors do not stand a chance
against mages: we will avoid combinations that give you no chance of
winning, because being powerless and having no way of countering the
enemy’s attacks is not enjoyable. We will act quickly and bring the
necessary changes if such issues are discovered, nothing is forever and
we can adjust any skill if necessary. We will however be very careful
not to break player’s gameplay habits, and our purpose will not be to
make some spells useless.
Your suggestions, feedback, comments and requests
are welcome to the boards; we will check them as often as possible, and
will react accordingly in order to provide a more entertaining
experience.
See you soon on Ganareth!
Comments
Thread closed by Serpico on the official boards.
http://darkandlight.net/forums/showthread.php?t=65742
I don't quite believe Serpico's explanations though.
so just like their article to mmorgp.com regarding the egg winners, they are regurgitating old info for the simple practice of making it appear to be new , progressive status.
Someone should just stop these ppl. Totally out of control. If anything, their advertising bs should be wiped from everywhere due to Fraud.
Though of course we both could be right - they get a bollocking, so they dig up an old bit of fluff as a response.
"There are no American tanks in Bagdad, it is all lies (as they rumble by outside the news conference)....soon DnL will eclipse all other MMOS, very soon now......"
In one thread he gave a user a warning that was not even close to being against the rules (that user just happens to be one of the non-fanatical fanboys).
Are you guys missing the biggest mystery of all...? Who Wrote the F'n thing..? IT IS NOT SIGNED !!!
That was my frist question after i read it the other day. I was like; ... . .. . ..... .. . .
Hmmm... Who wrote this garbage, and why is this not signed, is this from Farlan, or from NP3 or from Vuur ...?
-Zvorak