Is empower REALLY + to gem levels?

Because if it is I would like it removed from the game immediately.

I just saw a post on reddit claiming when sticking empower in a geofri's crest it gave + to gem levels.

Why would you ever put an abomination of a gem like that in the game?

It is everything a support gem SHOULD NEVER BE. A universal increase to any and every skill.

Support gems are supposed to change the way a skill functions in interesting ways. + to gem levels adds no new functionality to the skill, it just make the skill better. That is not only uninteresting but HARMFUL to the game, a game that needs the choices such as the supports you attach to your gems to matter.

Please someone come in here and tell me empower is not + gem levels.

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Gravethought wrote:

Please someone come in here and tell me empower is not + gem levels.

It probably is.

It's no more offensive than "melee physical damage" or "weapon elemental damage" or any of the other "numbers get bigger" support gems. They're all uninspired.

I wouldn't say +levels is "universally strong". It's really good on Purity (to hit the next max res number) and it's okay on spells (since they rely on levels for damage), but even for spells, it's competing with so many other "numbers get bigger" supports that it won't dominate.

It's particularly terrible on attacks, fwiw. +2 levels on Cleave is 8% increased physical damage.

It being bad on melee attacks has nothing to do with why the gem is just bad news.

2 gem levels is usually a 20% more damage to a spell with no change in the way the skill behaves, how it does it's damage, or extra utility.

More X damage gems are just as bad, but I was sure we wouldn't be getting more of them. I was wrong.

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pneuma wrote:

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Gravethought wrote:

Please someone come in here and tell me empower is not + gem levels.

It probably is.

It's no more offensive than "melee physical damage" or "weapon elemental damage" or any of the other "numbers get bigger" support gems. They're all uninspired.

I wouldn't say +levels is "universally strong". It's really good on Purity (to hit the next max res number) and it's okay on spells (since they rely on levels for damage), but even for spells, it's competing with so many other "numbers get bigger" supports that it won't dominate.

It's particularly terrible on attacks, fwiw. +2 levels on Cleave is 8% increased physical damage.

I imagine it being used on an item such as searing touch.

Or on a perfect +2/+1 staff to get +5 to the spell

or on the chaos build boosting PA/VS

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Gravethought wrote:

More X damage gems are just as bad, but I was sure we wouldn't be getting more of them. I was wrong.

I'm with you here.

Given that +levels has different relative strength between different skills (compare: +2 cleave to +2 searing bond or +2 purity), it's not as bad as it could be.

Buffs the overall quality but also increases the cost of the skills it is linked with which I think is a fair trade. Whether or not the 125% multiplier is high enough is another question.

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Real_Wolf wrote:

I imagine it being used on an item such as searing touch.

Or on a perfect +2/+1 staff to get +5 to the spell

or on the chaos build boosting PA/VS

Or a +2/+1 bow with elemental hit/explosive arrow since those scale much like spells.

Numbers are irrelevant. I'm talking about gems being interesting.

As an example, concentrated effect gives an aoe skill massively more damage at the cost of making the area much smaller. It is an interesting choice.


Empower is not. It's "Oh? I have room and mana for another support.....better plug my empower there!"

Support gems shouldn't be attached to skills just because they can, which is what empower encourages.

It would be op on spells in mid-game, they often get 50% more damage on certain levels. At high levels the curve kinda levels out and it's not possible to use the gem sooner anyway.
Level 2 is available around the time your other spells hit level 19, if you have a max quality empower it's still around 18.

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raics wrote:

It would be op on spells in mid-game, they often get 50% more damage on certain levels. At high levels the curve kinda levels out and it's not possible to use the gem sooner anyway.
Level 2 is available around the time your other spells hit level 19, if you have a max quality empower it's still around 18.

You know it's possible to level the gem on one character and then use it on a different character, right?