With the impending mega-nerf to Ward, I would like to open a discussion about the diversity in classes, specifically focusing on defensive capabilities and their associated stats.
Overall Diversity of Classes
There seems to be some overlap between different class concepts. For instance, both Shamans and Mages use the same elements. Consequently, their visual aesthetics are quite similar, making them feel somewhat indistinguishable. In Path of Exile 2, an entire class was deleted due to this problem.
Letās take a closer look at Shamans. They serve as an odd-ball damage dealer within their class because the other two subclasses primarily deal with physical, poison, and bleed damage (with the exception of limited ice play for Druids).
To address this, I suggested to Moxie that Shaman spellsā damage types be shifted to a default of spell-physical and poison options. Additionally, the ice spells currently associated with Druids could be moved to either poison or physical. This adjustment would create better synergy among the Primalist classes.
This introduction outlines my thoughts on class design in Last Epoch. I believe that implementing the above changes would significantly enhance the class experience. Now, letās delve into the topic of defensive stats.
Defensives:
I would like to first point out that there are many hidden defensive mechanics that are often specific to a class or even a mastery. For example, Mages have a mechanic called ādamage dealt to mana before health,ā which can be more simply referred to as a āmana shield.ā Additionally, there are various other damage reduction types (such as dodge for Rogues and block for Sentinels). The problem is that these defensives lack the benefits of Ward, which provides stun avoidance.
I suggest that we delve more deeply into this topic, conducting a light design pass on these defensive stats. This could encourage alternative class builds. For instance, if the universal build is health + Ward, then Rogues might focus on health + dodge, Sentinels could prioritize block + armor or health, and Mages might emphasize mana and mana regeneration.
Stun Mechanics in LE Are Indescribably Bad.
The way stuns are currently designed is simply horrible. While I am a strong supporter of stun mechanics, I believe they should not be tied to auto attacks. One of the most enjoyable aspects of combat in LE is the āherdingā gameplay, where you gather lots of mobs and take them down in droves. LEās open level design contributes to this enjoyable experience, especially when compared to the restrictive hallways of D4. However, the stun mechanics become problematic with larger mob counts, almost guaranteeing multiple stuns in a rowāespecially when lag is involved.
If your argument is that players should simply stack resistance to invalidate stuns, I would argue that this is a greater reason why stun mechanics should be reevaluated. Stun mechanics should be proactive, not reactionary. In other words, if you get stunned, you should have an ability (such as immunity or traversal) to escape that stun, akin to a trinket or crowd control removal.
This brings us to the next topic: resists.
Iām not sure whatās going on with these, but they feel almost pointless, similar to how resists in D4 Season 1 did. Itās almost an identical situation. First of all, I would argue for significantly more power. Additionally, Iād like to condense elemental resists and open up room for other damage types. For instance, we could change āfire/lightning/coldā to simply āelemental resistsā as a singular stat. Then, we could use the two resist type slots to expand the options for damage (perhaps adding light and chaos or celestial damage?).
Adding a secondary effect for resists could be interesting. For example, āif you go above 100% resists, you gain x amount of your total ward retention each time that damage type deals damage to you.ā Alternatively, we could create more items that interact with the surplus of resists. The āpaddingā from extra resists just isnāt valuable enough.
Let me know your thoughts. Thanks for your time.