Ranged combat
Posted: Mon Feb 03, 2020 5:27 pm
So ranged combat seems a little gimped in that circle/feint both rely primarily on melee combat for defense rolls. This combined with the fact that breaking ranged position seems to be incredibly easy (as in most the time I've been attacked it's pushed me into position engage.) This means that against most melee enemies you're automatically at a balance disadvantage. Given that balance also can only really be lost in a fight unless you use circle, another melee based move that you are highly likely to fail unless you've invested into melee combat. This problem only grows as you become more adept in ranged combat, making you take on higher melee fighters to gain exp via, and since ranged fighters have no way to really keep range, or to gain back balance, it makes combat against melee fighters unbalanced(mind the pun).
As it is, in order to be an affective ranged fighter, you have to invest into both ranged combat and melee combat, even if you want nothing to do with the latter of the two. I have a couple of suggestions that could help with this, though they're by no means perfect, nor would all of them work together
When making a defense roll for feint or circle, allow the game to select the higher of either ranged or melee combat skill for the roll. Eg if you have 100 melee combat and 400 ranged combat, your roll would be based on ranged combat.
Allow ranged fighters to circle effectively without needing high melee combat. I don't believe ranged fighters should be able to feint at all however. Alternatively, let us get back balance faster when in position ranged
Make position ranged harder to break, and don't allow feint/circle to work on people who are in position ranged. As is, position ranged is broken extremely easily, i'm unsure what rolls factor into breaking position as I do not believe there's a helpfile on it yet, but against a target with similar level skills (albiet it was still an unfair fight for the reasons above), it didn't even seem like position ranged mattered. I'd go in, fend off maybe one attack via quarterstaff, then be forced into engage. More often than not it skipped the fending off, and simply pushed me into engage. And going back into position ranged while in combat puts you in roundtime.
All in all, the point I'm trying to bring up is that ranged combat doesn't seem effective without melee combat skill, which seems to defeat the purpose of it. I'm not suggesting we make ranged stronger than melee, just that we make it viable without having to exit the room and return over and over again because of being unbalanced, and out of position.
Edit: I really hope this doesn't come across as complaining, more so just what I have experienced in the subject.
Edit 2:I should clarify my character I play ranged on is a warlock, and thus does not seem to have access to 'aim shot' or anything of that nature, however this means they are not a 'combat guild'.
As it is, in order to be an affective ranged fighter, you have to invest into both ranged combat and melee combat, even if you want nothing to do with the latter of the two. I have a couple of suggestions that could help with this, though they're by no means perfect, nor would all of them work together
When making a defense roll for feint or circle, allow the game to select the higher of either ranged or melee combat skill for the roll. Eg if you have 100 melee combat and 400 ranged combat, your roll would be based on ranged combat.
Allow ranged fighters to circle effectively without needing high melee combat. I don't believe ranged fighters should be able to feint at all however. Alternatively, let us get back balance faster when in position ranged
Make position ranged harder to break, and don't allow feint/circle to work on people who are in position ranged. As is, position ranged is broken extremely easily, i'm unsure what rolls factor into breaking position as I do not believe there's a helpfile on it yet, but against a target with similar level skills (albiet it was still an unfair fight for the reasons above), it didn't even seem like position ranged mattered. I'd go in, fend off maybe one attack via quarterstaff, then be forced into engage. More often than not it skipped the fending off, and simply pushed me into engage. And going back into position ranged while in combat puts you in roundtime.
All in all, the point I'm trying to bring up is that ranged combat doesn't seem effective without melee combat skill, which seems to defeat the purpose of it. I'm not suggesting we make ranged stronger than melee, just that we make it viable without having to exit the room and return over and over again because of being unbalanced, and out of position.
Edit: I really hope this doesn't come across as complaining, more so just what I have experienced in the subject.
Edit 2:I should clarify my character I play ranged on is a warlock, and thus does not seem to have access to 'aim shot' or anything of that nature, however this means they are not a 'combat guild'.