Hello all,
I’m proposing a change to how the Immutable Order node in the Runic Invocation tree works. My proposal is for the devs to create a UI that allows the player to select a specific invocation instead of relying on skill order placement on the skill bar.
The Immutable Order node in its current form is too inflexible. The inflexibility comes when one chooses to use damage element conversion (ex: fire → cold) but wants to preserve the skill slot assignments. The inflexibility is compounded if one decides to level and play 2 different Rune Master characters that want to use different invocations, and the player attempts to alter key/slot assignments in the settings which are global for all characters. As stated above a more flexible design would be to allow the player to select a specific invocation. This would allow the player to preserve the skill slot assignments per Rune Master character, and not modify the global key/slot assignments in the settings.
I expect someone to say that it is a simple matter of arranging the skills accordingly. The problem with that approach is that it has built in assumptions about how players prefer to arrange skills and a damage element conversion forces a shell game of action bar slot swapping. For example, in ARPG games I tend to assign skill slots to the numerical keys [ 1…7 ] (not the keypad), and I always assign my mobility skill to key #3. Key #3 is the mobility skill across all of my characters regardless of the ARPG. This is a habit since the days of D2 and WoW, and carried forth to D3, PoE and now Last Epoch. This skill/key assignment is backed by muscle memory. Here is where I run into trouble. On my Lightning Blast Spark Charge and Hydrahedron Rune Masters I need different rune combos. For the Spark Charge char I want Reowyn’s Frostguard (cold-fire-cold), and the Hydrahedron requires (lightning-fire-fire). The Spark Charge RM converts Flameward and Flame Rush to cold, while Frost Wall is converted to fire. I can’t have Flame Rush assigned to key #3 and produce the Reowyn’s Frostguard invocation. If I attempt to re-assign keys/slots in the settings it will be a global change not a per character change.
So a UI that allows the player to select a specific invocation would be all that is needed. I imagine the invocation selection would be implemented via a drop-down list in a dialog box (maybe within the Runic Invocation skill tree dialog). However, I would be open to other selection UI designs. The devs have done a good job thus far, so this should be relatively easy for them.