Report 1009

Report #1009
Skillset: Druidry Skill: Allergies
 Org: Hartstone Status: Completed May 2013
Furies' Decision:
We will reduce the increased writhe time for allergies to 50%.
Problem: The Allergies mechanic was introduced in an effort to heighten the
druid's ailing ability to fight in their demesne, and to reduce the
overdependence on sap in combat. On one front they have succeeded, in a 1v1
combat situation, druids have been buffed by allergies - too much, however: we
are still entirely dependent on the sap affliction, which has severe limitations
in group combat. In this report, I attempt to create a cure method for allergies
without effecting the status quo, to facilitate larger future changes that could
include the removal of dependance on sap (or indeed the removal of the current
sap effect altogether).
[A: 0 R: 0] Solution #1: Make allergies function like burns, in that the
 levels of allergies are used "backstage" to determine
 what the affliction is. Allow liniment to cure
 allergies in a manner similar to burns. Details and
 math in the comments. Balancing this will require
 changes to the backstage number of levels given by
 each effect and the number cured by liniment.
[A: 0 R: 0] Solution #2: In addition to Solution 1, remove the power cost on
 seedcloud. Add a ~2p enemy list, room-wide syntax.
[A: 0 R: 0] Solution #3: In addition to above solutions, reduce the amount
 allergies increases writhe times to 50% (down from a
 100% increase). In replacement, they will double the
 time it takes to successfully focus body.
Player Comments:
---[Enyalida on 5/15 @ 08:10 writes]:
I suggest implementing solution 1 by doing the following: Double the number of
total allergy levels. Having between 1 and 6 allergy levels (inclusive) results
in 'mild allergies' with 1/5th the total current effects of allergy levels. For
every bracket of 6 allergy levels up, increase the total effects by 1/5th. At
25+ allergy levels, the victim will have the full 100% of current allergy
effects, with more levels only serving only as a buffer against cure, same as
burns. Allow liniment to cure 1 level of allergies each application. Change
pollen to deal at least 6 allergy levels, with a 50% chance for an extra 2 in
the trees. Change swarm to deal at least 3 allergy levels, with a 50% chance for
an extra 1 in the trees. This raises the passive generation of allergy levels
only slightly above the passive generation of burn levels for a pyromancer (and
they have ways to hinder salves) when the extra chances fire. Increase active
seedcloud to give 3/5/6 (3 with chance for +2, additional chance for +1) More
levels are suggested, these are absolute minimum.
---[Enyalida on 5/15 @ 08:10 writes]:
Remember, the numbers right now may seem a little high, but druids don't really
have good ways of pressuring salves enough to hinder for this sort of cure,
unlike Pyromancers. Also keep in mind that building allergies will not lead to
the instakill burns does, especially in group situations. The intent with this
report is to create a mechanic that builds allergies at about the same rate they
already build up. Future reports to increase the ability of druids to hinder
cures will be paired with a reduction to these numbers.
---[Shuyin on 5/16 @ 01:00 writes]:
Sure
---[Wobou on 5/16 @ 01:15 writes]:
I am somewhat okay with this if solution 3 is implemented and the writhe penalty
is reduced (and the focus body penalty is not too intense). I dislike the fact
that pyromancer demesnes passively tie up salve balance and this change will
cause the same thing to happen in druid mesnes. While druids may not have much
to pressure salves others in your group can so in a group fight this is probably
a buff to allergy build, which is why I'd like the nerf to writhe time to
accompany it.
---[Enyalida on 5/16 @ 04:56 writes]:
If that's a big concern, you can just.. not cure the first few levels - a la
deathmark. You'd just be in the same boat you're in right now, nothing about the
skill would have intensified, it would still be the same amount of delay and so
on.
---[Synkarin on 5/20 @ 15:45 writes]:
I don't like the idea of doubling the focus body time, druid melds passively
give paralysis once every 10 seconds, which would add a 3 second delay to curing
sap, this would make it too much, in my opinion. I agree the writhe extension
needs to be removed, and I don't think it needs to be swapped out with anything.
It was overkill to begin with. I support solutions 1 and 2, and 3 without the
focus body extension.
---[Enyalida on 5/23 @ 06:18 writes]:
The writhe bonus is currently the only thing of real substance allergies add to
a druid's abilities pre-sap. Nerfing them does need to come with some other
bonus to combat that kicks in before sapping happens. In groups, where most
combat occurs, point cleanse is still an overwhelmingly good option for
relegating sap to an expensive ability to throw an opponent off balance.
Regardless of both things, this report should do nothing to increase the speed
at which allergies accrues in group combat (in fact, it should drop the rate at
which it can theoretically be built on multiple people), which is generally too
slow to be relevant in real combat. Is the objection to 1v1 druid fighters
becoming too powerful, or that solution 3 is a buff to 1v1 druid sap fighting?
---[Enyalida on 5/23 @ 06:53 writes]:
Decreasing the paralysis buff to +50% (at CAP allergies, which is a long term
goal in combat), might be agreeable as well.
---[Synkarin on 5/23 @ 14:33 writes]:
You also forget that point cleanse also requires you to have an ally in the room
with you, that realizes you are sapped to save you. Isolating people in groups
to sap isn't really that difficult and sapping in groups doesn't require the
same kind of allergy build up (if any at all) as it does 1v1. That being said,
doesn't allergies also lower poison resist as it builds up? That's pretty
substantial in my opinion. As I see it, druid 1v1 combat is to max out allergies
as fast as possible, then sap and finish them off, thus allergies doesn't really
need to add anything pre-sap. Not having the writhe bonus doesn't mean you all
the sudden can't entangle them anymore. I disagree there needs to be a tradeoff
for the writhe bonus, switching out a pseudo-perma entangle situation to a
pseudeo-perma paralyzed situation doesn't exactly make a whole lot of sense. Sap
is already incredibly difficult to cure out of if done right 1v1, it could use a
bit of reduction, in my opinion. If anything, remove the writhe bonus, see how
allergies plays out, then if it turns out I'm wrong and it becomes to easy, we
can add something back in then. Allergies is incredibly strong, overly so in my
opinion, it could use toning down in general, not just trading off effects.