Change lightning strike & ground slam to cast/attack where you're standing

if you use it on the ground, you'll cast LS and then inch forwards, then repeat the cycle again.

I am also for making LS more like GS. GS is without a doubt most powerful skill in the game and I am for making more skills like GS.

Why is LS not good in melee? Because enemies are most of the time fast and surround you fast. By the time you attack one in front others are not behind him anymore and your projectiles don't hit them. It is much better to use it from range to maximize number of hits like you would GS.
Other reason and more important one is you link LS with LMP/GMP and sometimes Pierce. That is less slots for single target melee hit damage. You are gimping yourself by using it as melee instead of plenty of other good options with proper supports attached.

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Torin wrote:

Other reason and more important one is you link LS with LMP/GMP and sometimes Pierce. That is less slots for single target melee hit damage. You are gimping yourself by using it as melee instead of plenty of other good options with proper supports attached.

(Ignore how shitty the armor is... need more chaos)
Tell me more about how I use Lightning Strike. I have never had a need to add more projectiles to the skill. The rare occasion that I use it as a ranged skill is to kite a tough rare, and why would I want less damage while doing so?

Temporal Chains works wonders if you are having problems with mobs surrounding you while you are LSing... I usually just use Warlords Mark though.

LS is one of those skills that I think even the designers aren't sure what to make of it. It behaves as a melee attack skill in the way that it requires a weapon to use it, yet you don't actually need to hit something in order to produce the aoe effect. You can simply stand a screen away and shift+click to kill mobs like you would with fireball or ice spear. Ground slam is more or less the same, but it has a significantly shorter radius so it isn't as effective as LS in being used in such a spell-like manner.

When I picked LS up with my shadow at around lvl 25, the playstyle of my character changed dramatically. I no longer had to melee mobs. Most normal mobs die to 1 or 2 lightning tendrils that hit them. That's what made me think I might as well have rolled a witch and have the same playstyle. Round up a group of mobs, curse them with elemental weakness and plow away with LS from range.

Don't get me wrong, the skill is not broken, it works fine. It's just awkward design. If you want to make it a spell, why do I have to have a weapon equipped to use it?

I suggest removing the ability to release lightning tendrils unless you actually hit something with LS itself. If I wanted to play a caster, I'd have rolled a witch. I'm pidgeonholed into using a strength skill for AOE as a dex/int class since there is no other effective green aoe skill. But that's another problem altogether.

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dsifu wrote:

if you use it on the ground, you'll cast LS and then inch forwards, then repeat the cycle again.

This is also not true. If you click close to yourself your char will stand still.

I paid more attention to the times I went into melee with LS yesterday and realized that I never do because the positioning to AoE is better outside of melee range and it was better to not take damage.

Also I think you're right about LS, it does feel like a worse version of freezing pulse. I just don't think there are sufficient benefits to even melee with LS vs the cost of taking dmg and losing positioning/mob clear speed. It's not a good choice for single target damage and if that's what you're using it for then you're gimping yourself of dps and safety.

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Mark_GGG wrote:

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Torin wrote:

Other reason and more important one is you link LS with LMP/GMP and sometimes Pierce.

No, you do. And you do this because you're choosing, for your build, to focus on the projectiles.

Other people use the skill differently, and use different supports. "It's linked to multiple projectiles and pierce" is not a reason not to use Lightning Strike in melee, it's a reason to not use it in melee if you use those supports on it, or would be equally valid as a reason not to put those supports on it if you're using it in melee.

No actually I don't. My LS character is a shadow that cannot progress due to lack of accuracy for daggers in his tree. But that was my plan.

But most people do, it is the most optimal build for melee characters using LS. Asking for people to use it in pure melee is like asking them to use Ground slam in pure melee. They don't, it will kill you later.

It is a great AoE skill, and a much weaker single target one.

We are not asking for much. Just let us click on ground to use it as GS or click on monster and then our character moves to hit that monster. Best for both worlds.

Torin, you've had several responses from devs, saying they aren't seeing the behaviour you've outlined. Yes, there are people who is it as a projectile, there are probably just as many people who use it as a melee with additional ranged use. They are pretty adamant about leaving it how it is, it seems. You demanding it won't really change their minds.

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ghostcub wrote:

Torin, you've had several responses from devs, saying they aren't seeing the behaviour you've outlined. Yes, there are people who is it as a projectile, there are probably just as many people who use it as a melee with additional ranged use. They are pretty adamant about leaving it how it is, it seems. You demanding it won't really change their minds.

I disagree on not voicing your experiences. After hours and hours of beta testing, the testers should share their experiences with devs whether or not it's the experience that devs expect with their planned skill gems, passive tree, etc.

I've personally put in over 80 hours of using LS in not just one build, but multiple builds from nearly every starting location (except the templar). Devs need to know all the player's perspectives in order to test it out themselves to make an informed decision.