An idea for a new perspective on sets

Feedback and Suggestions
1

Ok, so this isn’t really a new idea, I’ve suggested this a few times in set related issues.
But one thing I’d like to happen with sets is something I’ve never really seen in other ARPGs, which is to make sets a build creator that is useless for other builds.

Of course, this is easier said than done, so I thought about it and I came up with an example that might illustrate this. Keep in mind that this isn’t actually balanced or even very specific, it’s just a broad example of how I’d like to see sets work:

Mage set:
Helmet gives +1 magic missiles, plus other generic stuff
Wand gives +/% magic damage
Off hand gives missiles never miss

2 set bonus: increased magic damage
3 set bonus: either transform a skill (like fireball) or add a new one (with skill tree): magic missile, that does magic damage, which is a special type of damage that only exists with this set.

I hope that gets the idea across. If you use just one or two pieces it’s completely useless for any build, but if you use a full set now you have a completely new build that isn’t available anywhere else.

That makes it so that sets don’t compete with uniques/legendaries/exalted gear. In short, they’re totally useless for other builds, while being an awesome new build creator.
You can even create niche builds with this that you can’t create via normal masteries/skills.

Anyway, it’s something I’d like to see sets become and I think it would be a unique take on them, which is something EHG likes to do in LE.

2

I know you say you haven’t seen this in other games, but this sounds a lot like Diablo 3’s version of Sets. They were build enabling, and they were mostly useless if you were not doing the build they were for. I did not like it.

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3

Ok, I see your point. It does sound like D3 sets. However, my take is different in this:

-D3 sets basically enhanced a skillset of the class that already existed. It boosted its damage, sometimes gave it all runes or something related to them. So if you wanted to use frenzy you used the frenzy set, if you wanted to use earthquake you used that set, etc. And you used the set because it was definitely stronger. However, you could make a frenzy barb without it. The build already existed, the set just made it much stronger.

-What I’m proposing is to create an entirely new build, completely separate from existing builds. The D3 equivalent in LE would be to have a set that makes falcon’s dive bomb deal 1000% increased damage. But this isn’t what I would like. I would like a set that would make a new skill, or change one in a totally different way.

4

TQ did this with some weapons and armor all the way back in 2010. No reason its not possible in 2024. I said before they need to be reworked. Either do this, or do what I suggested in my revered gear idea by combining weavers will with set items

5

I don’t think WW on sets is a good idea. That just makes them another unique.
I know they are working on them. No idea what they intend to do. But I would like to see something like this. At the very worst, it will simply increase the build versatility.

6

Unlike the others on the forum, I am a strong supporter of sets. I hate rng, and prefer deterministic loot. Sets should be in game, and should be strong. How strong is debatable, but I lean towards many many many sets, all of them should be 10x stronger then they are now.

7

Sets are as deterministic as uniques. The only difference between sets and uniques are the set bonuses (and not being legendary).
If you make sets general purpose, like they are now, and you make them too strong, then sets will effectively replace uniques and become mandatory for most builds, which I don’t like.
On the other hand, adding WW of LP to sets also makes them just like uniques and they end up competing for the same space.

The advantage of my idea, in my mind, is that they become separate. You want to make a totem shaman, you don’t use sets because they’re useless, so you use uniques and exalteds. You want to make a whatever build the set creates, you use the set.
You could even increase the set pieces required for this and make completely unique builds and archetypes without having to create a whole new mastery for it.

EDIT: There was recent talk on Mike’s streams about hybrid builds, meaning builds that use masteries for different classes. And this would be a hard thing to accomplish, in regards to mechanics and balance. But you could use a set to bridge that in a controlled way. So you could make a ranger (example Mike gave on the stream) as a bow wielder with companions, via a set. No need to worry how both masteries interact because your interactions are all focused on these items and their bonuses.

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8

It would be fun I think if you wrote, and or drew up which exactly builds these set items would enable for you. Feel free to take some inspiration from my own thread, and lay it out in a similar manner, just do it for SET instead of class. Or you can do what I did, when I compressed the affixes in my thread and proposed some sets. Have fun. Let the creativity and madness flow. Class Request- Dragon Prince

Rest of yall pitch in, flex those creative muscles.

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9

Chronicon does that. Essentially sets 3 set effect and rarely 2 set effect is something like “you inflict some mechanic that allows this feature to pop off” like “your fire passive debuff can now stack instead of being limited to one, and scales based on number of inflictions” or whatever. The 2 set effect is usually something like “Skill Y is transformed in some way that is beneficial” and set 4 was always “you take less damage globally based on X” and sometimes just straight up less damage. the condition was always related to something else the set did.

And the end game usually revolved around 2-3 sets. and rarely double two set.

I think most people still likened it to d3, because sets were essentially mandatory for any late game scaling.

Honestly the magic missile example should just be a unique. Sets I think should certainly move away from being 3 set. and should instead be 2 sets that focus on creating an extremely unique playstyle with the 2 pieces.

A good example is the lich set. Gloves modify infernal shade, the offhand dreadshade, the two items dont have much overlap, but hte set effect is basically like double shade limit, which can make really whacky builds by letting you have boatloads of shades. its set effect is niche, but the items stand alone on their own merits.

I really think however if they go that way, sets should just be recolored to orange and given LP.

The “Soft set” of low life for example needs no set effect, it naturally is always played together, but also happens to have LP.

By simply being green pieces, they are automatically shit and need to basically be broken to ever consider using.

like honestly, the biggest problem with sets is you are giving up X slots of gear to get set effect, that set effect needs to be able to make up the damage of X slots of gear, if not, its trash garbage. Especially considering now a days stuff like MG players are filling up slots with uniques that have 0 unique effect related to their build, but is an item that has a few stats, and then can be slapped with 2-4 other stats essentially letting you make 6+ affix items.

10

Well, that is what I don’t want to happen. Sets need to be more than just uniques with an extra step.
I would actually argue that sets need to have a higher number, for the purposes of my suggestion. Maybe even 5-7 pieces.

For example, imagine you wanted to join the masteries of void knight and necro. You could have a full set where the final result would be that you have void minions that have echo skills. Or any other hybrid class.
This would make it possible to have those builds without the sets becoming mandatory on any other build.

Basically, if sets work the same as uniques they compete for the same space and they’re basically just other uniques that need to be balanced overall. And for that, sets don’t need to exist at all.
But if they’re in a separate space of just creating unique builds then they don’t compete at all and you just need to balance the build itself.

The idea isn’t to change a build like the squirrel helmet, where you basically have a wolves build but reskinned and with a few buffs, even if it’s a cool unique, but to create something which can’t be done outside of using a set. To give us completely new skills and archetypes.

11

I hate RNG too, but understand that for a game to have chase items it’s a necessity. What I really don’t like is for the RNG to be layered so deep that it’s nearly impossible to get anything you want. LE has a lot of RNG, and I feel it is a little too much, but with luck (and I have none) you can normally get what you’re after eventually.

I would like for some way to change the RNG to be a little more deterministic through Blessings, Prophecies, etc. I’m just not imaginative enough to provide the “right” way of doing it.

I do agree that sets are a good thing to have in the game, and that they are in need of some serious work to be worth something. I know EHG is working on this and am looking forward to seeing what they come up with.

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