What is wrong with the lab?

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Tarille wrote:

As is stands right now, 90% of the Lab is boring because you have to be overleveled to really face Izaro and account for a mistake without being one shot (Even without stepping on a trap. Game doesn't use your mobility skill to dodge his attack when you pressed it for whatever reason? Whelp, back to town). So being outleveled means there's no point spending time with Silver Keys, no much point looking for extra Treasure Keys, no point doing anything other than rush to Izaro and hope to not mess up and to get a nice to deal with set of mechanics (The golems are BS solo. "Oh, they buff Izaro if they get close to him. Well, good thing it's possible to kill them without Izaro jumping on you and as a result, next to them... Oh wait it isn't)

Not true at all. I did every lab as soon as it was available before I started the next difficulty and Uber at level 83 as soon as I got the trials. And you know what? It wasn't hard.

Im interested to see what would the people that don't like the lab would change about it. WITHOUT ruining the reward of making a build DEDICATED to farm it. I've been in countless of games where certain mechanic was requested to be changed.Then in got changed and everyone jumped on the other "problem".

I have the feeling the enchants would be next,"omg its so hard to get cyclone damage,and i don't have 5 exalts".The best i can offer is the removal of the uber lab as an ascendancy requirement but make it even harder and buff the enchants. This is not something you just nerf,whether if its hard or boring.

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Kasapnica wrote:

Im interested to see what would the people that don't like the lab would change about it. WITHOUT ruining the reward of making a build DEDICATED to farm it. I've been in countless of games where certain mechanic was requested to be changed.Then in got changed and everyone jumped on the other "problem".

I have the feeling the enchants would be next,"omg its so hard to get cyclone damage,and i don't have 5 exalts".The best i can offer is the removal of the uber lab as an ascendancy requirement but make it even harder and buff the enchants. This is not something you just nerf,whether if its hard or boring.

There's a really comprehensive post about this in Feedback and Suggestions forum... the Original Post has been updated with most of the well-thought-out suggestions (so you don't need to read the entire thread filled with people arguing back and forth for pages between the good posts).

My solution of choice is:
From the main entrance of the Labyrinth, add a method (either a portal, or an NPC you talk to, or a secret passage) to enter a single map in which you find the three Izaro arenas separated by chambers with fodder monsters (undead labyrinth builders who were trapped in these secret passagways) mainly for flask refills. Argus may or may not be included in one of these in-between chambers for extra non-avoidable ARPG-boss-challenge.

The battle mechanics are the same as the original battles, except you won't be able to make the battles easier by finding/using the trinkets that can disable some of Izaro's buffs on some days.

Deaths or leaving this 1 map reset the entire thing.

Izaro and all the monsters in this arena map drop nothing.

After the battle, the "treasure room" only contains the Ascendancy points.

* This solves disconnect issues between areas (only 1 area)
* No more tedious mini-game trap avoidance gameplay using messy point-click movement.
(possibly only traps in the final battle with Izaro)
* No more dealing with game mechanics that ignore 90% of defensive build choices (aside from Izaro boss battle traps, if they remain - I could still see complaints, but not as many)

* Retains no death zerging, no portalling out for flask refills either.

* Retains the boss battle and keeps Ascendancy points linked to the lore.

* Retains the original labyrinth with its full rewards of ascendancy points + enchants + loot + racing + whatever fun people get from the trap avoidance gameplay - you keep getting what you already get on every single Labyrinth run after you have already gained your Ascendancy Points currently.

While yes, this means enchants are still behind the minigame, enchants are not build-defining like the Ascendancy Classes. The only reason there has been this much outcry, is because of how important Ascendancy Classes are, and how undesirably different the mini-game is from the rest of PoE (it is admitely different gameplay by GGG's own declared design intent, so don't go there).

For the record, I love the labyrinth. It's the only area in any ARPG I've ever encountered where you have to hold back and think, be considerate. Far cry from just being all twitch or glib.

Should a full lab run be required for ascendancy? Nah. For enchants and the treasures? Absolutely.