Is empower REALLY + to gem levels?

hello 5% max purity

Why is it a Strength gem? I can't think of any Strength skills that benefit (much) from this support. The obvious use is to pair it with an Int skill.

Making it red seems like a hoop to jump through just for the sake of having a hoop to jump through. Very disappointed that the design is so sloppy.

"

PolarisOrbit wrote:

Why is it a Strength gem? I can't think of any Strength skills that benefit (much) from this support. The obvious use is to pair it with an Int skill.

Making it red seems like a hoop to jump through just for the sake of having a hoop to jump through. Very disappointed that the design is so sloppy.

We don't know yet, I guess. Maybe it doesn't have STR requirements at all or they're ridiculously high. Anyway, it's red for the same reason Spell Totem and Reduced Mana are red - to troll casters.

"

PolarisOrbit wrote:

Why is it a Strength gem? I can't think of any Strength skills that benefit (much) from this support. The obvious use is to pair it with an Int skill.

Making it red seems like a hoop to jump through just for the sake of having a hoop to jump through. Very disappointed that the design is so sloppy.

It's not sloppy. It's a deliberate and somewhat malicious act designed to force you to go for more off colors if you want to use it ;)

GGG loves to ninja currency sinks into the game.

*deleted*

Edit: just read the description of a level 2 empower gem... seems like other supports are not affected, so ignore my comment, thanks ;)

"

tikitaki wrote:

"

PolarisOrbit wrote:

Why is it a Strength gem? I can't think of any Strength skills that benefit (much) from this support. The obvious use is to pair it with an Int skill.

Making it red seems like a hoop to jump through just for the sake of having a hoop to jump through. Very disappointed that the design is so sloppy.

It's not sloppy. It's a deliberate and somewhat malicious act

The only thing that being Red adds to the support gem is to make it more difficult to use. GGG is not clever for figuring out where there are hoops in the game that players can jump through. GGG is clever for figuring out placing hoops in front of something unexpected.

Having an obvious synergy and mechanically interdicting is sloppy. It's flat-out bad design. I don't expect everyone in the community to understand that, but GGG should. Apparently the skill designer doesn't, or thinks he is cleverer than that, but he isn't as clever as he thinks.

It's only for active gems, it's not really that big of a deal. Casters don't have AMD or WED so this basically acts like them. If it did supports I would have my mouth on the floor but this seems ok. A little dirty that you basically need to level to 90 to use it though.

"

Moosifer wrote:

It's only for active gems, it's not really that big of a deal. Casters don't have AMD or WED so this basically acts like them. If it did supports I would have my mouth on the floor but this seems ok. A little dirty that you basically need to level to 90 to use it though.

If you are doing say, a classical Kaom Freezing Pulse build, a linking strategy might be:

Freezing Pulse, GMP, Life Leech, Blood Magic, Faster Casting, Empower

So it puts you comfortably at a specific 4-off color combo.

Maybe you'll be one of those trolls who says something like "well then I guess you should be using a 2H Sword for your FP build...It's easier to color"

"

tikitaki wrote:

If you are doing say, a classical Kaom Freezing Pulse build, a linking strategy might be:

Freezing Pulse, GMP, Life Leech, Blood Magic, Faster Casting, Empower

So it puts you comfortably at a specific 4-off color combo.

Maybe you'll be one of those trolls who says something like "well then I guess you should be using a 2H Sword for your FP build...It's easier to color"

Ahem, look here, I didn't say shit about the color of the gem. I don't give a shit how it fits into a specific Kripp build either.

The question we are all wondering is if it is OP or not. If people want to use it, they'll find a way to use it, regardless of the gear required.

Also, that build would be using a staff if I'm correct which is INT/STR, so the only off color gem is GMP. And don't act like a kaom's FP build isn't using a 2h weapon, sword would be a DEX/STR weapon so not sure why you'd use a weapon to get 2 off colors rather than 1 while using a staff.

You want to bitch about the color go bother something else, I didn't even mention it the idea then you quote and talk directly to me also imply that I'm going to "troll" people with stupid stuff like that means you've never seen me around these forums either.

I stand corrected....Staves are Str/Int =P

I still think it's somewhat bizarre that it's a strength gem (red).

To the OPness: No. I don't think it's overpowered.

If certain overpowered builds (cough totem builds cough) benefit from it, that's fine and well, but those builds, if they are broken, are broken for reasons that have nothing to do with this new gem...So I think it's kind of pointless to go in that direction.

If anything, I'd be curious how it interacts with spells that aren't traditionally used as much and see if it opens any new doorways.