GC on Cata PvP

I think some of you are misinterpreting a couple of the Cataclysm goals.

We’re not “overhauling the combat system.” We are changing some lame stats to be more interesting (like Intellect) and removing some that just added complexity to the game without adding depth (like armor pen, which is pretty much just damage modified by how much physical damage you do). We are adding more health across the board, but that’s to add a few seconds in between the time you take damage and the time you die, which we think will improve both PvE and PvP.

We’re also not trying to “dumb down stats.” Complexity and depth are two different things. Depth is really important to us. Without it, the game starts to get predictable and stale. Complexity can be a route to depth, but it doesn’t have to be. The game of go has very simple rules but almost limitless depth (you can use chess if you aren’t familiar with go). The game tic-tac-toe has very simple rules and almost no depth. It’s hard to come up with examples that lots of players will get for games with too much complexity and not enough depth, mostly because those games either never become widely popular or don’t endure. Ever heard the phrase “quick to learn but a lifetime to master?” That’s depth.

Yes, we are messing with talent trees, but a simple skimming of the forums should suggest why. There are too many talents that have little depth but are mandatory (most of the talents right about the 51-pointer). There are possibly interesting talents that you can’t afford because of the passive dps / healing / tanking increasers. There are also modifications we need to make just because you’ll have 5 more talent points. There are also talents that we have modified along the course of LK in the name of closer spec balance that are now out of budget. We’re not deleting any talent trees and starting over. We’re trying to make them more interesting and more fun.

Everyone can come up with the example of “I think X talent is really fun, but I only have 2 free points in my build, so I can’t get it.” We’d like to see that 2 be a much larger number, like 10 or more.

Another way to think about it is that every talent in say the Elemental tree also says “…and increases your spell damage.” That’s the bonus you get just for investing in the tree.

Talents are one of the few choices with regard to customizing their character that players really get. Gear is often subject to random elements or even whether you have access to the content or not. Everyone gets the same spells as they level. We can’t get away from cookie-cutter builds completely, but we can have more of the type that say “and spend your last several points wherever you want.”

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I suspect we will buff Revenge to make it more attractive to push even in high rage situations.

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