If you are not using a META build, you can't play endgame AT ALL

"

xMustard wrote:

obviously its ridiculous to think you need to play a certain build to do content.

of course some builds have a much easier time with much less investment, but this will never change. something will always stand out as "strongest".

people just drastically overestimate how much dps you actually need now-a-days and such. im rolling caustic arrow with an average of probably like 900k-1m shaper dps (1.2m absolute max dps) and its completely fine. it instantly kills every mob that isn't a boss, and vs bosses its still fine dps.

i've killed AL8 sirus and all guardians, elder, shaper. the hp buff is definitely noticeable on elder and shaper though, those fights take much longer, but its still completely fine.

the problem is then GGG scales difficulty of upcoming content based on these extra powercreeps that adds these META builds

as a result, regular builds sucks even more, league after league

and it also affects the economy, prices go up and up and up, to the point where your build doesn't clear fast enough, you have to spend more time farming

or follow META and enjoy all juice....

this is gradual, the effects are seen slowly

this is getting ridiculous, and to counter that, not only you have to sacrifice defense for more damage, but also life

this league increased difficulty of rare/unique mobs even more, wich made those builds suck even more than before

they do not scale difficulty based on the meta, they purposely buff/nerf things around to change the meta.
they just didn't nerf minions/mines enough

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ryuukk33 wrote:

This is starting to become a real ISSUE!

Ahahahahaha !!!

It has always been like this...

But ok, suppose for a minute I'm taking you seriously. Name me just one game of this type where you can play any build you like and reach the final stages of the game. Just one, name only one...

You can't. Because these games are designed so that NOT ALL players reach the final stages. It is like that by design. It is logical and necessary.

The issue is even worse than what the OP stated. Take a step back and think about meta builds vs non meta builds for a sec. Can we agree on this? Meta builds = Usually faster clearing, less gear intensive (unless blatantly stated otherwise) Higher damage and sometimes better defensive mechanics?

This translate to MUCH MORE CURRENCY over the same time span played using a slower clearing, tougher to gear, less DPS, off meta build. This is the real killer in the game.

Two players play for a week, the difference in their currency, and where they are at the end of the week will tell the whole story. This definitely ties into the enjoyment of the game. Why should each person spend 100 hours, only for the person who selected EZ mode at the beginning to be much more rewarded.

In other words POE has a "Select your difficulty" right when you first choose your character.

Witch into Necro = Easy Mode

and so on... upto the highest difficulty. Many streamers are actually not that good at the game. They just choose the easier builds. Mathil and anyone that plays SSF anything might be the only exceptions. Since GGG will probably never change this, my advice to the OP and anyone else is to start with the most EZ build and then when you are rich and have done everything, try whatever you want, if you still want to.

POE has become a sad state of affairs where they just buff the end game, the difficulty, and just a few skills, while at the same time nerfing everything else, either directly or indirectly. This mindset, along with many other ARPGS hitting the scene this year, might translate to a declining instead of an increasing player base. Time shall reveal all.

And this thread is the reason why I love harder leagues.

Hey OP, just check out PoE.Ninja Builds and you will see that you're just blowing smoke. For example, just pick a non-meta main skill on the left from the "main skill (5+ links)", oh... say Ice Shot. Then see on the right see the 50 level 100 builds. I'd say it's not a meta-build with only 4% of players currently using it. Same for Aspect of the Avian, Ice Nova, Barrage, etc.

It is definitely true that the best skills are the ones defined as meta (duh!) which this league are Necromancer and Saboteur. But with the proper knowledge of PoE and playing skills there are many other skills that can get you to 100. More effort into learning to play better and less into QQing should be your endgame goal.

"

ryuukk33 wrote:

This is starting to become a real ISSUE!

If you are not summoner or saboteur, you'll never be able to handle red maps and end game

GGG balance moto is to focus on META shifts

So if you are like me and like to play something different, you'll have a hard time killing stuff in Metamorph

I tried dual void battery freezing pulse, my tooltip shows 400k DPS when i have all 9 power charges, good for mapping, but for boss damage is a JOKE, he one or 3 shot me

For metamorph? LOL, you better no do them at all

Before that i experimented a little bit with winter orb, let me tell you one thing, don't bother trying to waste your time playing a build you enjoy

you'll be better following the META shifts, or you'l be poor the whole league

I am playing a ES regen bladefall totem build and I can kill Sirius and map bosses without big problems (i may die 1 or 2 times....).
That's not even remotely close to current META builds.

Some people cannot accept they are the problem at all.

I hope they buff weak skills significantly in the next league now that they know where the average power level of each skill is.

I'd also like to see them nerf VMS while raising the general survivability of classes that stand in melee range. 6k+ shield with a 15k+ shield for bosses on a 6k life pool is really dumb. It's a stopgap and should not be what the game is designed around.

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Jerle wrote:

Some people cannot accept they are the problem at all.

i mean, you play toxic rain and trash talk to other players...

but i get your point. i really do.