Class changes and balance in Game Update 1.3

I don't normally post on the forums but I felt this time there was a need to make my voice heard as im starting to see a pattern between every major update. The pattern is rather than take time to fix what is broken it is lets just swing a nerf bat and screw some class up.

To start, I play a Vanguard as my main and yet im compelled to post because looking at the changes I too feel sorry for Shadow Tanks. These changes according to past statements is done via mathematical equations and spreadsheets and no matter how you look at it, no amount of spreadsheets can tell the full story without actually playing the actual class in question. The Shadow nerf seems to be like a knee jerk reaction to PVP, and this is disappointing as no matter how hard you try you will never please everyone in PVP and your fighting a losing battle trying to balance what you cant. As long as there are winners and losers the losers will always whine about something.

I must admit im not a hardcore PVP fanatic but what this change does and previous changes are doing is taking away PVE diversity. Sometimes you will get Vanguards who prefer the dps spec and sometimes you get Shadows who prefer being a tank. So in certain groups you may get the role reversal and in other groups you might find that due to server numbers or lack of a certain class, guilds can make use of Shadow as a tank for a group when nothing else is available. As I said I don't play Shadow Tank, but even I can see that this change is way too extreme and basically ruining a class spec, just because someone with a fancy spreadsheet and mindset that light armour tanks shouldn't be main tanks is in charge of balancing and not taking the time out to garner feedback or test the class out. I feel it is wrong and with server populations the way they are, sometimes its not viable to get a raid team the way the developers envisioned and as such these type of changes not only hinder the game but hinder the community who has this diversity taken away.

And ive seen this pattern before in many games and feel if I sit here and accept the changes then next big patch its another class being ruined then rinse and repeat for every patch. The game isn't perfect and there is glaring issues with both pvp and pve yet alot of the issue's brought up either gets swept under the rug or feel like they are going in one ear and out the other. Vanguard has already been hit. Sage has been hit, Shadow is being hit, Commando has been hit.... when does PVP stop interfering with the PVE side of things. Have it so that the skills and stats are adjusted when your flagged for PVP and then revert back to PVE stats when your not flagged. That way you can make as many changes as you like for the PVP side without effecting PVE.

In a time where the game is witnessing a decrease in numbers and with other major mmo's coming out shortly, these type of unwarranted changes are only encouraging people to leave. If the object of this patch was to see how many more people you can get to unsubscribe then kudos as its working a treat. What's the point in having a group finder when there aren't any groups left on the servers any more as they have quit with disgust.

i still cant belive it how can they reduced assassins heal by 50% and armor by 35%? its brutal.

Seems to me this patch is out to kill Tanks in PvP.

Guardian Tanks - 35% reduction on Hilt Strike damage and 22.5% -- 30% off Guardian slash.
Vanguard Tanks - Lost 30% surge and 16% crit bonus on Stock Strike/Explosive Surge.
Shadow Tanks - Self healing cut almost in half. Armor reduction.

yep You are right!!!

ShadowTanks still can do PvP fairly well.. Because all the nerf whiners crying was about DPS output..

But considering PvE.. There is no more Tank spec in Shadow tree.. Yup, you can do 1-49 leveling fooling yourself that you are Tank.. but after you hit 50 you will see what a mistake you have done at level 10....
50lvl Shadow Tank is a some nonsense in 50lvl PvE content..

The truth is that swtor is not MMO.. it just «single play online game».. so you can enjoy the story while level to the 50vlv.. after 50lvl there is BIG nothing.. Thats why devs are trying to force people to start leveling Alts (go for 1-49 content..)

swtor is a great game.. this all dialogues.. level design.. that all was great.. Game Designers and artists who develop the «picture» have done great work..
And after they completed their work, the game was put in hands of marketing management guys.. Who are definatelly clueless what is MMO are.. So this bunch of straighminded employers just consequentially destroying the game since January.. They already lost half the subs (from 2mln at start to 1mln in June,2) .. A lot of people just not renew the sub after «free month»..

Even without this classdestroying nerf the game will hardly last till Xmass.. But now.. I dont believe it will survive the Summer..

They tried to balance shadows with the heavy armor classes by reducing their armor. By making their armor less, the healing would make up the difference. However, what happened is they made the armor equal, or a little under equal, and the healing put them above the others. WE have to see exactly how this works out and have a little faith that if they royally screw up then it will be fixed.

It is not that fare that they are doing this for people.

Those armors... hmm...just too much combo of WOW and Mech-warrior. They don't look Star Warsy at all. Might fit in City of Heroes but not Star Wars.

Just to clarrify what was stated-

Quote: Originally Posted by Austin Peckenpaugh - Senior Designer

this armor adjustment was making them passively just as good as the heavy armor tanks.

Now Im going to highlight the relevant phrase about Pre nerf tanking assassins...

Quote:

making them passively just as good as the heavy armor tanks

Theyre Saying Just as good, They're NOT saying "surpassing", OR "far superior", in fact the very phrase 'just as good' implies that theyre 'ALMOST' as good and that is why theyre nerfing them further.

Therefore they are clearly stating Assassin Tanks SHOULD NOT be as GOOD as the other tanks. They SHOULD be WEAKER.

SO theyre Clearly stating Assassin Tanks were never supposed to be on par with the other tanks and therefore need to be nerfed... as stated.

SO quit all your whining, Stop Playing Assassins as a PVE tank because they're NOT supposed to be played that way, CLEARLY stated by Bioware.

as a shadow tank these changes seem really harsh. i accept the healing nerf but the armor would hurt more than you think. as a tank right now i have barely over 42% damage reduction now with this nerf a smuggler is able to have more armor than me? this needs to be thought out alot more before doing something that extreme.