If one wants to be rid of the class-based system, then avoiding highly tuned content is a must. Highly tuned raids and group encounters require certain roles to be filled, certain skills to be used, thus leading to preferential builds.
In early EQ for example, a dragon boss wasn't that 'tuned'. You had unlimited group sizes. Because of this, you could have crazy, sub-optimal builds playing along side better optimized builds. Granted, EQ has a class system, but it isn't the most rigid I've played.
So yeah...as for EQN...I'm hoping for no classes. If want to be a heavily armored wizard, why not? There is no 'law', other than tired convention, that prohibits it.
The problem with an open skills system is that developers still don't want tank-mages or cleric-mages or rogue-mages. They'll implement something that makes it detrimental to having heavy armor with magic, mixing healing with high damage spells or stealth with high damage long range spells. So, you are still stuck with a substandard build that no one will want in groups, either forcing you to solo the majority of time or conform to the needs of the group or raid. At least with a class system, you have all the necessary components for a group while still being distinct from other skill sets and where content can be designed without needing everyone to have heals or crowd control in their builds.
Originally posted by jdlamson75 If it's a sandboxy kind of game we're going for, then a classless system with a skill cap suits my fancy. There would have to be tons of useful spells/abilities, and I mean really useful, or everyone will have the same stuff. If done right, it could be pretty damn awesome.
THIS
Give us 55 skills all with sub-skills and abilities (everything from combat, magic, stealth/thievery, crafting, gathering, influence, taming, riding) each with a 0-100 scale. Allow 1100 skill points per character so each character can master 1/5th of the available skills so 5 people can have/do everything. Make attributes govern skill-caps and allow players to max 1/2 of the attributes. Then assign titles (roles) to people who max out certain combinations of skills.
Then add a plus-minus-lock OVER TIME respeccing system (when you want to learn a new skill but have spent all your SP you set a maxxed skill to minus and the new skill you are learning will pull points from the minused skill as you learn).
Everything you can do in the game should be skill-based.
PER
FEC
TION
So basically Asheron's Call.
Indeed, a little variation on UO and Meridian 59 really.
Highly tuned raid content is boring as all hell anyway. Once you get the pattern, rinse-repeat YAWN.
Give us the sleeper and enemies like him. Huge world bosses that take hundreds of people hours to kill and then make us fight over who reaps the truly unique rewards. Once dead that boss will never return/respawn.
I really hope that they revert back to EQ1 classes, rather than the diluted EQ2 classes. They made some nice additions to the classes in EQ2, but this would be better addressed by alternate advancement rather than diluted classes (ie: a Bard speccing into ranged combat and spell support would be like a Troubador, one speccing into melee support would be like a Dirge, a Druid specialising in melee would be like a Warden and a Druid specialising in spellcasting would be like a Fury etc).
(the EQ1 version not EQ2's) I truly fell in love with this class, it had great lore & really good class-quests, plus being "the angry dude with a big-f***-off-axe" was totally iconic, this class alone was responsible for keeping me in the game for four further years & stopped me moving onto WoW when many others did, its play mechanics made discipline useage into an art form for me.
2. Bard
First class I played in EQ, I loved it even though I personally wasn't up to the amount of twisting required to make it powerful, always fun to play & easily one of the most flexible classes in any game.
3. Beastlord
Refreshing to play a martial-arts fighter (also enjoyed the EQ2 Bruiser) in a genre so focused on flashy-looking swords, the mix of Monk & Shaman with a really good pet was so much fun.
4. Druid
Always felt the druid got a bum deal & needed to be more "druidy" its fire spells didn't jive with me but animal & plant based ones were things I really liked & felt it should of had more of them, perhaps with more in the way of shapeshifting.
5. Bloodmage
Awesome conceptually & really fun to play, something like this really should be crowbarred into the EQ universe.
I would like to see the EQ Magician renamed to the Conjurer. I think years of D&D burned into me that a Wizard and a Mage are two different names for the exact same thing. I never understood why they didn't do it from the get go, they had the Necromancer and the Enchanter, both of which are D&D Specialist Wizards, but they didn't name the Magician the Conjurer, which it is clearly the most analogous to.
Also if they went the awful "no class" route, which they wouldn't, there's no way in hell I would touch the game. I'm ok with people having no way of knowing your level, if you are /anon tho.
If one wants to be rid of the class-based system, then avoiding highly tuned content is a must. Highly tuned raids and group encounters require certain roles to be filled, certain skills to be used, thus leading to preferential builds.
In early EQ for example, a dragon boss wasn't that 'tuned'. You had unlimited group sizes. Because of this, you could have crazy, sub-optimal builds playing along side better optimized builds. Granted, EQ has a class system, but it isn't the most rigid I've played.
So yeah...as for EQN...I'm hoping for no classes. If want to be a heavily armored wizard, why not? There is no 'law', other than tired convention, that prohibits it.
Why on earth would you want to do that? Classes in EQ are iconic and full of lore. If EQNext doesnt have classes then it may as well not be EQ at all.
I wish for a Bloodmage (!!!) although that's a Vangaurd class.
Playing: TESO (great!) ************** Most looking forward for: Everquest Next ************** Have Played: World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars, Lord of the Rings Online, Vanguard, Everquest Online Adventures, Everquest 1, EverQuest 2, Dungeons & Dragons Online, The Chronical of Spellborn, Warhammer Online, Age of Conan, Aion, CoH, Loong, Dragon nest, LoL, Alods, Diablo 3, NWN, Tera, Poe, Guild Wars 2, Rift Most favorite; Everquest online Adventures (EQOA, 2003, PS2)
I would like to see... no classes. Just skills. Skills that get better with use. Skills that have experience points unique to them. So if I spend an afternoon fishing and earn XP, I can't use said XP to level up my tracking.
Tracking and fishing... that I level up independently. So I can build my version of a Ranger class. Which is completely different from the next person's version of a Ranger class.
Comments
The problem with an open skills system is that developers still don't want tank-mages or cleric-mages or rogue-mages. They'll implement something that makes it detrimental to having heavy armor with magic, mixing healing with high damage spells or stealth with high damage long range spells. So, you are still stuck with a substandard build that no one will want in groups, either forcing you to solo the majority of time or conform to the needs of the group or raid. At least with a class system, you have all the necessary components for a group while still being distinct from other skill sets and where content can be designed without needing everyone to have heals or crowd control in their builds.
Ranger
Beastlord
Necromancer
Druid
...and steal VG's Disciple
Indeed, a little variation on UO and Meridian 59 really.
Highly tuned raid content is boring as all hell anyway. Once you get the pattern, rinse-repeat YAWN.
Give us the sleeper and enemies like him. Huge world bosses that take hundreds of people hours to kill and then make us fight over who reaps the truly unique rewards. Once dead that boss will never return/respawn.
I really hope that they revert back to EQ1 classes, rather than the diluted EQ2 classes. They made some nice additions to the classes in EQ2, but this would be better addressed by alternate advancement rather than diluted classes (ie: a Bard speccing into ranged combat and spell support would be like a Troubador, one speccing into melee support would be like a Dirge, a Druid specialising in melee would be like a Warden and a Druid specialising in spellcasting would be like a Fury etc).
The classes I want the most are:
Oh my god yes!
My favourite class ever.
Enchanter
Druid
Necromancer
Shadowknight
Shaman
Help support an artist and gamer who has lost his tools to create and play: http://www.gofundme.com/u63nzcgk
1. Berserker
(the EQ1 version not EQ2's) I truly fell in love with this class, it had great lore & really good class-quests, plus being "the angry dude with a big-f***-off-axe" was totally iconic, this class alone was responsible for keeping me in the game for four further years & stopped me moving onto WoW when many others did, its play mechanics made discipline useage into an art form for me.
2. Bard
First class I played in EQ, I loved it even though I personally wasn't up to the amount of twisting required to make it powerful, always fun to play & easily one of the most flexible classes in any game.
3. Beastlord
Refreshing to play a martial-arts fighter (also enjoyed the EQ2 Bruiser) in a genre so focused on flashy-looking swords, the mix of Monk & Shaman with a really good pet was so much fun.
4. Druid
Always felt the druid got a bum deal & needed to be more "druidy" its fire spells didn't jive with me but animal & plant based ones were things I really liked & felt it should of had more of them, perhaps with more in the way of shapeshifting.
5. Bloodmage
Awesome conceptually & really fun to play, something like this really should be crowbarred into the EQ universe.
You're making the foolish assumption there will be classes in the game. if this is going to be truly next gen, then classes will not be.
- Necromancer
- Shadowknight
- Monk
- Ranger
- Warrior
Paladin
Shadow Knight
Warrior
Magician
Enchanter
Bard
Janitor
Rancor of the Covenant of Blades
Mindscythe
Weaver
Soulking
Dreamwalker
Pyromancer
Aeromancer
Hydromancer
Geomancer
Cleric (D&D style)
My 5 (all taken from EQ1)
Magician
Bard
Druid
Necromancer
Enchanter
Necromancer, err that's it really, the rest are just peeps to carry my stuff and clean my lab
Shadowknight, ok one more just remembered I will need someone to open my front door and tell people to F**K off my lawn.
*happy clap*
love this.
Druid from EQ1
Shaman from EQ1
Beastlord from EQ1
Hunter from WoW
Summoner from FF :P
Also if they went the awful "no class" route, which they wouldn't, there's no way in hell I would touch the game. I'm ok with people having no way of knowing your level, if you are /anon tho.
Why on earth would you want to do that? Classes in EQ are iconic and full of lore. If EQNext doesnt have classes then it may as well not be EQ at all.
Playing: TESO (great!)
**************
Most looking forward for: Everquest Next
**************
Have Played: World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy XI, Guild Wars, Lord of the Rings Online, Vanguard, Everquest Online Adventures, Everquest 1, EverQuest 2, Dungeons & Dragons Online, The Chronical of Spellborn, Warhammer Online, Age of Conan, Aion, CoH, Loong, Dragon nest, LoL, Alods, Diablo 3, NWN, Tera, Poe, Guild Wars 2, Rift
Most favorite; Everquest online Adventures (EQOA, 2003, PS2)
Overlord from Lineage 2.
Anyone with me?
Loving where your heads at !!!
Beastlord
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No matter how cynical you become, its never enough to keep up - Lily Tomlin