Stastical Imbalance

[Kevin]

I never quite understood why they just didn't have a spell power stat, like melee or ranged attack power. Weapon levels have a base damage range for the level in game design it's not too hard to match spells to that then have int and spi have some effect on the spell power, one for damage, one for crit, just like with melee/ranged attacks. You can add some new weapon types or just put more int or spi on weapons or +spell power instead of +attack power on things. Or have weapon speed affect channeling power (or just add a channeling power factor to existing weapons) so that you can use the same type of formulas that you have for melee stuff. Spells have a base speed but that changes based on the channeling power of the weapon and also changes the bonus you get from spell power. So you have a fast channelling weapon that lets you get the spell off faster than normal but you get no or very little benefit from spell power. You have a slow channeling weapon that gives you full spell power bonus but slowss the cast speed of the spell.

The issue is of course mana. Well scale the mana cost as well so you do the dmg/MP or healing/mp per cast. You channel faster you do less damage spend more mana you channel slower do more damage spend more mana.

Yeah this would mean base cast times of many spells would have to be changed but I just don't quite get why a system like this wasn't used in the first place when they knew itemiztion was going to be character progression at L60. So do you want that base cast of 2 second heal, base mana of 500 to go off in 1.5 seconds and do 800 health for 375 mana; take 2 seconds and heal 1066 health for 500 mana; or take 2.5 seconds and heal 1333 health for 625 mana, depending on what weapon you have equipped. Now keep in mind that if your raise your spell power, via int or something, you can keep that 2 second heal at 500 mana but it now does 1200 health not from +damg or +healing but from getting your spellpower up 300 points or whatever.

You now start to add a whole new dimension to PvP as well. And you can keep the global 1.5 second cooldown for weapon swaps they added. So you now have a way to get weaker spells off quicker or you can have longer cast high damage spells. Pretty much like the choices a lot of other classes get to make. Some spells that are more "ritualisitic" could be left unaffected such as summoning a pet, conjuring water, making a healthstone. Instant cast spells would get a flat percentage of spellpower since they aren't channeled in any way. Currently channeled spells migh get a higher or lower chance to be interrupted from the gear you have or they stay the same and just get a higher spellpower bonus.

Dunno maybe there is another huge flaw in this.