10-03-2005, 07:08 PM
1) Number one issue with warlocks - shards. It is IMPOSSIBLE to balance warlocks with and without shards, by the very nature of the situation.
If you are balanced without shards, you will be overpowered with shards; if you are balanced with shards, you will be underpowered without them. Call the system a failure, get rid of shards, rebalance the class accordingly.
2) Number two issue is flexibility, which in large part relates to pets. Again, similar to above issue, if the warlock is ready for an encounter, and has appropriate pet out, the fight becomes much easier then if he had a different pet out. This poses another problem in balancing - you don't want warlocks with the wrong pet be too weak, and the warlocks with the appropriate pet to be too strong.
We have to treat the warlock pets as an extension of the warlock - almost like another form, or stance. If we look at other classes, most of them have forms and abilities that are better in some situations and worse against others. Druids are a good example - when they get aggro from heals, they can switch to bear form. Warrior is another example - they can switch stances between defensive to absorb damage or berserker to deal damage.
So what should be done? Simple. Make the pet summoning instant. Can you imagine how different druids would be if their forms took 10 seconds to cast? Of course, it would probably be necessary to introduce cooldown on the pets then. Perhaps something to the tone of 40 secs on imp and 2 minutes on most other pets, except maybe infernal and doomguard, who now can have 30 min-1 hour cooldown (perhaps they can be changed to a set duration, and buffed accordingly). Once this is done, it would be much easier to balance the warlock on the simple premise that all basic pets are available all the time.
Before this patch, there were two other issues, but I am glad to see them addressed:
3) Damage spikes. This is already is being addressed, in the form of Curse of Shadow/Elements change. I think it's a good change, especially since CoS will probably now work with DOTs as well, which with the DPS increase on the DOTs is huge.
4) Escape mechanism is being already addressed in the next patch as well. With new death coil and 3 seconds with the changes I listed above is enough time to get the right pet, get some distance, and proceed with the fight.
If you are balanced without shards, you will be overpowered with shards; if you are balanced with shards, you will be underpowered without them. Call the system a failure, get rid of shards, rebalance the class accordingly.
2) Number two issue is flexibility, which in large part relates to pets. Again, similar to above issue, if the warlock is ready for an encounter, and has appropriate pet out, the fight becomes much easier then if he had a different pet out. This poses another problem in balancing - you don't want warlocks with the wrong pet be too weak, and the warlocks with the appropriate pet to be too strong.
We have to treat the warlock pets as an extension of the warlock - almost like another form, or stance. If we look at other classes, most of them have forms and abilities that are better in some situations and worse against others. Druids are a good example - when they get aggro from heals, they can switch to bear form. Warrior is another example - they can switch stances between defensive to absorb damage or berserker to deal damage.
So what should be done? Simple. Make the pet summoning instant. Can you imagine how different druids would be if their forms took 10 seconds to cast? Of course, it would probably be necessary to introduce cooldown on the pets then. Perhaps something to the tone of 40 secs on imp and 2 minutes on most other pets, except maybe infernal and doomguard, who now can have 30 min-1 hour cooldown (perhaps they can be changed to a set duration, and buffed accordingly). Once this is done, it would be much easier to balance the warlock on the simple premise that all basic pets are available all the time.
Before this patch, there were two other issues, but I am glad to see them addressed:
3) Damage spikes. This is already is being addressed, in the form of Curse of Shadow/Elements change. I think it's a good change, especially since CoS will probably now work with DOTs as well, which with the DPS increase on the DOTs is huge.
4) Escape mechanism is being already addressed in the next patch as well. With new death coil and 3 seconds with the changes I listed above is enough time to get the right pet, get some distance, and proceed with the fight.