100 Uniques Buffed!

The problem with the ones they've chosen to showcase are twofold:

1) They've taken an interesting unique mechanic and amplified it, then added a shamelessly egregious downside. Example: Vaal Caress didn't need +5 to be relevant, and it most certainly didn't need -5 to support gems. And if you can't use these gloves and get mileage out of 5 seconds of onslaught, then 20 seconds of onslaught isn't going to help you, either.

Vaal Caress didn't see play for a lot of reasons. +3 additional vaal skill gem levels on a level 27 character, wasn't one of them.

It's this one-dimensional template for creating uniques that has pretty much dominated development for the last 5-6 years. Instead of interesting interactions or excellent if niche uses, they're going the Scourge Mod route of balance design. Something OP + something pervasively crippling (especially if the downside is pretty much negated by a Large Enough Investment) is not an Interesting Unique.

2) Some uniques seem to exist almost exclusively as a divine orb sink. This is fine, if the average cost of divining a suitable result (one that warrants using this unique item instead of a well-crafted well-rolled rare) is less than actually crafting that said rare.

While Shako is sort of the poster child for eating large amounts of divines, its best-case scenario may actually be better for a few niche builds than a well-crafted, well-rolled Blizzard Crown. But for many of the low-level common-table uniques, changing a stat bonus from constant to variable (especially a wide variable) just doesn't make sense for say, a level 28 on the first day of league with zero currency.

Which would you rather spend your time between act 3 and 6 in, a pair of rare 20% move speed shoes with a smattering of life and a resist, or a 6% move speed Bones of Ullr? There's probably no remaining scenario where the marginal gain from +1 zombies outweighs the incredibly stingy life (20, static) and lower-end move speed.

And this is only part of the problem with Victario's Flight as spoiled for 3.19. The 25% static guaranteed MS is now 15-20% (presumed) up to 30-40% (presumed) if you're running low life. Which as a level 12 character, you're not going to be able to support consistently.

Are they still going to see play? Yes, if it drops for you in a1 and maybe in a2 you would be stupid to not use them (unless you're already wearing 7-League Steps). Also if you're leveling in a party, makes you fast friends if you still keep your free QS flask from the medicine chest.

You can't really get the other 20% movespeed out of these shoes. It's an empty promise. You can't buy or drop Petrified Blood until level 24, and you can't get Arrogance Support until level 31. Not that you would have the mitigation needed to make these work in your favour during acts. You could consciously choose not to use a life flask, or put your main skill on Lifetap, to get to low life, but it would NOT be consistent enough. And if your flasks are down, you get nothing.***

***Unless of course you're running mageblood but then you could afford tailwind/elusive/onslaught shoes whatever right?

It's tempting to look at Victario's and say "well they are nerfing minions in all sorts of other ways, and tearing away much of the AG's identity as a support minion, why not take away a cheap support unique for a starter AG while we're at it?" It's not that big of a takeaway when you consider that a) AG has no way of using the mini battle rouse mana and b) removing passive sources of permanent move speed boost is what GGG does.

So while it seems petty, and it may in fact be very petty behaviour intended to compel players to want and need chase items they were previously able to forestall, it honestly isn't that big a nerf. It's again, the principles behind it that really have us scratching our heads.

I pretty much agree with Crunkatog, and it frustrates me because when I see reworks where I can't see the item getting used before or after all I can think is "you could have done an item someone would use" :p

Vaal caress didn't bother me too much there are a few OP tweaks you could do with them already and they are a high candidate for auto corrupt from players so +7 gloves are cheap, +5/7 VMS with 20s onslaught for early/mid mapping would be great.

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Draegnarrr wrote:

I pretty much agree with Crunkatog, and it frustrates me because when I see reworks where I can't see the item getting used before or after all I can think is "you could have done an item someone would use" :p

This is it, in a nutshell.

They're just throwing numbers at the wall, and seeing what sticks. Or maybe they have written an AI that's doing the same. And that's why we're seeing the trademark "AI Picasso" style here.

A bit of an aside: I'm following with interest the evolution of computer-generated fine art. Some of the most intriguing and hauntingly beautiful (and creepy, and jarring) images are generated entirely by computer programs set up to import, process, randomize, and apply visual data in various ways.

These artists tend to have a set of artistic symbology found mainly only in AI.

Which means that their artworks tend to be perceived as "not art" or "an attempt was made :D " or simply creepy, disturbing, disorienting, or inscrutable.

For instance, the "AI Picasso" uses Photoshop-like tools to enlarge, shrink, or otherwise distort parts of source images or found images fed to it. It's fairly skillfully done, as far as photo editing goes - no jarring sharp edges of copy-pasted stencils, smooth blending of edges, feathered borders between contrasting colours, etc.

But when you look at the result as a whole, you can see the obvious "punk/bloat" tool use, naive concepts of what shadows mean on objects or regions in a picture, leading to confusing the human eye which expects the shadows to suggest a light source somewhere where it isn't. It's this sort of disconnect that causes many people to view AI generated art as not-art, or as bad, disturbing, disorienting, negative.

And this is exactly what some of the spoiled Unique Item Buffs feel like. They feel like some AI has been given some basic guidelines (++numbers good, --numbers bad, more lines of text = more doubleplusgood) and then encouraged to run wild rehashing uniques. To get from Vaal Caress 1.0 to Vaal Caress 2.0, apply bloat tool to part A, insert equally sized doubleplusbad for part B, apply bloat tool to part C.

Where "equal numeric magnitude" casts a far larger shadow in real play than it does in AI space, because of how supports work.

It's not producing a useful, or intriguing, or tempting, rework. It's creating creepy distorted 1.0 which will get used about as much as ordinary 1.0. Which is to say, nearly never.

These uniques are at least more usable with a numerical change but not exciting.

It is kind of why I don't like legacy of fury or other boss uniques. Very rarely do they really have the kind of pop that arpg uniques should have. In the worst cases they are not better then a random item, nothing noteworthy. Average uniques are better rolled rares.

For better or worse GGG seems to want each character to use one of these things, might as well make some of them more worthwhile. Hopefully they can do so without destroying peoples builds in standard.

I bet that like 90 of the changes are minion related though.

Hateforge?

Also let us choose between your rework or the old one. Give us an option on drop like the eater of worlds choices in a map.

97 to go. Don't get too excited if the first few are any indication of their idea of a buff. These are the folks who think +2 radius to Cleave is a buff.

Edit: Bronn's Lithe today...and it's just as irrelevant as before. Big surprise.

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DamageIncorporated wrote:

97 to go. Don't get too excited if the first few are any indication of their idea of a buff. These are the folks who think +2 radius to Cleave is a buff.

Edit: Bronn's Lithe today...and it's just as irrelevant as before. Big surprise.

Isn't Flicker strike a movement skill? Or cyclone? or Wither?

+5 gem levels may be worth some experimenting.

Flicker doesnt give a f... about skill lvl. Only spells do. Might be good for Lightning Warp speed-farmer, but prolly wont beat inpulsa.

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I Denizen I wrote:

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DamageIncorporated wrote:

97 to go. Don't get too excited if the first few are any indication of their idea of a buff. These are the folks who think +2 radius to Cleave is a buff.

Edit: Bronn's Lithe today...and it's just as irrelevant as before. Big surprise.

Isn't Flicker strike a movement skill? Or cyclone? or Wither?

+5 gem levels may be worth some experimenting.

Attacks dont really scale extraordinarily like spells do, at least no one goes out of there way too much. Spells on the other hand are another story. It might be good with Frost Blink ignite or some other meme...Flamedash? lol... but really it was irrelevant before and it (might) get a bump up to meme obscureness. How many other movement skills are there that can be used to kill stuff, and you wouldnt mind giving up the plathora of desirable mods on a rare chest for this?

Why don't they buff stuff people will actually use.

Think Cyclone gains another stage at 21. 6stages at 20. 7 at 21.