Isn't balance skewed too much towards Deflection ?

[Crucis]

D&D featured an "autohit" mechanic meaning you can get hit no matter what. I think PoE needs smth like this (or alternatively some defense reduction system as suggested). It's not only deflection though, it's the same with all defenses. It's just that deflection bonuses are more common and enemies attacking deflection are prevalent (which is another problem).

 

I don't think this is a problem at all.  It's the nature of things.  Deflection is attacked because it represents how a character avoids a physical attack.  The other 3 represent "defenses" against magical attacks. 

 

One thing could see is that Reflex seems sort of redundant, and could be merged with Deflection.  I think that Deflection makes more sense if it was based on DEX and PER, same as the Reflex save, than PER and RES.  I don't understand how one justifies using Resolve to determine one's ability to avoid getting it.  It seems to me that it makes much more sense that this should be dependent on one's agility and ability to read opponent's actions (i.e. DEX and PER).  Anyways, it seems to me that the same things that create the ability to get hit by a weapon should add up to evading a fireball's damage.

[Razorchain]

 

 

 

 

No matter how you build your tank they will always do very low damage compared to casters and monsters should always attack the latest first. In other games developers gave tanks the ability to "taunt" in order to justify why monsters are attacking them. Engage is just that - an excuse for having monsters not attacking casters in the first place - it has nothing to with disengage damage "scaring" the monsters.

 

Disagree, my monk super tank build could get higher Deflection with gear but I want to get hit in solo to get Wounds for TR. However I can assure you- you can put him in front and he will dish out more DPS than your DPS fighter with Torments Reach. Never underestimate Torments Reach. And he will still tank as good as tank paladin. Not as good as Fighter but he will at least dish super AOE (cone) DPS every second unarmed!

 

 

Don't understand what your monk has to do with the discussion and where I'm talking about my fighter? And a monk tanking like a paladin? It's a joke, yes? 

 

 

No. That was to you saying "how you build your tank they will always do very low damage compared to casters". All I wanted to say that you can build monk for a tank and he will do great DPS. Thats all. And yes, my monk can tank as good as your paladin, becasue he will actually kill stuff 4x faster while doing so and being very capable against any CC in game. Tested in solo 2x runs, so in party that would be tank in the park.

 

 

No, your monk will never do "great" DPS compared to a caster - that was my point. There's a difference between surviving and tanking - the paladin would probably finish most battles close to full life while your monk would need to rest after nearly every fight. When your monk will be able to tank the adra dragon then you can compare him to a paladin.

 

 

I must disagree on this. Tank is somebody who can take a lot of damage, you put him in front of your softer party members to soak the damage and prevent them from taking damage. The tanks role is to survive the onslaught and protect your weaker party members from getting engaged in melee.  Then it is your choice if you want to take a Might 2 Paladin and Fighter whose job is to stand there and look pretty while the enemy tries to hit them.  You can also take a offensive built Monk or Barbarian or whatever to fullfill the role.

 

At this moment I'm using a Barbarian, Druid and Fighter as my tanks in Potd.  My fighter has an estoc, my Barbarian is dual wielding sabers and I had to give my druid a shield...she was just too squishy. But the druid is a melee caster with the second role as a tank to prevent the enemy to reach my wizard, ranged rouge and priest.  My frontliners are actually contributing to the fight and dishing out damage as well as taking it, both the fighter and the barbarian have 18 in might and 16 in dex.  The druid had to make some compromises and only has 16 in might and 13 in dex as she had to have some points in Int and Resolve so she doesn't get interrupted while casting spells.

 

I'm a huge strategy fan and this is just like other games where you harass the enemy with your light skirmishers before retreating them behind your heavy infantry because else they will get slaughtered in melee.

[koski]

No, it's you who missed my point. You talk about realism in a fantasy game - ie lightning should do more damage than a sword. What I said was that a warrior doing that kind damage with his sword isn't more ridiculous than the idea of a guy calling the lightning.

 

 

 

It's not about balance, it's about not limiting choices and not forcing players into stereotypes. If a fighter is able to kill a dragon by himself (like it seems you agree) he won't certainly do it using a toothpick and trying to outlast the dragon...

 

 

I'm not talking about realism, I am talking about concepts as realism loses its meaning when magic is involved. But to be honest, most fantasy worlds still follow basic laws of physics, just with added methods of breaking them with magic. Magic is supposed to be special and powerful. That is what fantasy is all about. In a fantasy settings (all I've seen, aside from MMOs) warriors would get their asses handed to them by wizard spells or dragons breaths, the only reason they tend to survive is due to sheer luck of being able to dodge the actual attacks or by hiding behind a more or less magical shield and they beat these powerful & magical opponents by cunning (such as reflecting medusa's gaze from a mirror) or luck (being swallowed by a dragon but able to jam a sword between its jaws), never by actually being more powerful than them. This is exactly what is happening in PoE, in the form of fighters (and paladins) being superior to most in the form of defence, able to come alive from situations where others might have fallen.

 

Complete balance in defence and offence between classes is a ridiculous concept best left for MMOs and PvP games, where such things are needed for competitiveness.