|
Post by gwek on Jul 19, 2011 21:53:42 GMT -5
Hey, folks. Welcome! First, thanks to HM for setting up the board here. And now, on to business...
This set idea is something I've been kicking around since before WotC finished its run, and it evolved from my "Five Easy Pieces" threads on the WotC forums (which were designed around the idea of "You can we make a minor faction competitive with only five new pieces?").
when originally conceived, Balance of Power was intended to springboard off of many of those ideas and result in a 40-piece set that would help raise the minor factions to be on equal (or almost) equal footing with the major factions.
That was then.
WotC wrapped things up, and the first virtual set, Destiny of the Force, game along accomplished a lot of the things I would have wanted out of BoP (sometimes even in very similar ways).
So what do I want to do this time around?
Well, it's a little bit of a wishlist for future virtual sets. I think the focus will still be on the minor factions, although I would like to have each of the factions get at least one piece.
I've also been looking at the threads on the bloomilk related to other people's wishlists and would like to incorporate some of that (including support for "sub-factions"/species). I'd also like to address in some way the current "gatekeeper" (the Lancer squad).
I also want to be mindful of the V-Sets as they currently stand, so as more of R&R is revealed, we might need to adjust our thinking. A related note: A few weeks back, a Polish forum spoiled drafts of the entire set. I looked (couldn't help myself!), although I don't remember much of what I saw, and who knows what will make the final cut? Point is, I may periodically reference things I saw there, so if you're scrupulous about avoiding V-Set stuff, proceed with caution. (Also, while I think it's okay to discuss some of the spoiled stuff on the confines of this forum, I respectfully request that we not bring any of it to bloomilk or any other forums until the official spoilers get out there).
To get conversation rolling, I'm going to start a number of different threads, each of which will eventually hold a few pieces for discussion/
I hope you'll join me in fiddlign with this stuff!
|
|
|
Post by surfrider56 on Jul 20, 2011 1:34:50 GMT -5
I'll be honest and say I've not kept up with the V-Set Discussions. I'v got the pdf of the 1st V-set, seen the outline of the 2nd set, and heard a fair amount of the Epic 3rd set. Having said that, I think it would be silly to rehash what's already been discussed on other Boards; has anybody got or has seen a general outline of what's been done/decided elsewhere so we don't duplicate work?
From what I've seen (admittedly rather a small sample) the Big Four of the Republic, Rebel's, Imperials and New Republic have become the Big Six with the Separatists and Vong getting a lot of attention lately (The Yammosk has become all the rage it seems.)
That leaves Gw's Old Republic, The Mando's and the Sith. The Fringe will as always fill in gaps whereever.
OR - The good Melee pieces and what few shooters they have are expensive. Ways to the make the Force users more survivable? I've always noticed the OR had more interesting/unique Force abilities than the Republic, more of an Unleashed feel to it before it became popular (Ex. Sever Force.)
Perhaps some more Affinity with certain Republic characters? How much did the other Boards go into Elite Republic Troopers? Maybe an OR version of Republic Commando's?
The Sith are mirrors of the OR, but their Gloomwalker troops try to address the cheap fodder/Trooper issues.
The Mando's main problem is they have no cheap faction fodder. Better weapons, explosives, possibly ranged attack? More options to add Flight perhaps? If it could be worded to Not be overdone? Elite fighting forces would have the ability to hit hard, fast and often.
One of my pet peeves has always been that a technologically advanced era as "Long Long Ago" was supposedly, so why is door control ever an issue? Any good Trooper squad should be able to blow a door or a commando should be able to hotwire a door opened/closed.
Mercs losing some of their movement restrictions, but possibly more susceptible to Betrayal perhaps?
I've mentioned my take on Satine to Gw; My vision of Satine has her as Mando, with Diplomat, Mando Reserves, and a CE similar the Leia, Hoth Commander.
My first thoughts; any play the OR, Sith or Mando's often enough to add more? I've not put nearly as much thought into this as Gw has. I just try to come up with new characters as read; Kerra Holt for example is interesting but she seems to not have a great variety of Force abilities and really isn't a stellar Duelist; if anything I'd say she another Zayne with Karmic Luck to spare.
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Jul 20, 2011 10:38:46 GMT -5
I'll be honest and say I've not kept up with the V-Set Discussions. I'v got the pdf of the 1st V-set, seen the outline of the 2nd set, and heard a fair amount of the Epic 3rd set. Having said that, I think it would be silly to rehash what's already been discussed on other Boards; has anybody got or has seen a general outline of what's been done/decided elsewhere so we don't duplicate work? I think the easiest thing to do is check out bloomilk. The first set (Destiny of the Force) is in the search engine. The second set, Renegades and Rogues, is about half-spoiled (I think 25 or so of 60 characters). For the record, the Epic set isn't the third set, but a "side set". There is also a Battle of Theed set with 10 pieces (5 Rep, 5 Sep). In the individual threads, I will try to comment on some of what the V-Sets have added to help direct conversation. One thing to note: During a recent SHHN podcast, they were discussing which factions are doing well in regionals and which are likely to be big at Gencon. One speaker said that the only faction that doesn't really seem to be competitive right now is the Mandos. This thread has the squads for the regional winners (for 2009, 2010, and 2011 so far): www.bloomilk.com/Forums/default.aspx?g=posts&t=9647You'll recognize many of the names. Lots of Seps (Lancers), Republic, Imps, and some New Rep. A few very different Old Rep squads have won regionals (but all share Bastila). The Sith, Mandos, and Vong are completely absent. The Rebels also seem to be unrepresented, although during the podcast, they discussed that that's probably not because the Rebels can't win, but because people are ready to play different squads after so many years of Rebel power! See comments above. I'll address some of the faction-specific comments later, but my wife and daughter are back right now and it's time for lunch!
|
|
|
Post by surfrider56 on Jul 20, 2011 13:46:04 GMT -5
I was at the CA Regional June 4th; couldn't play because of time constraints. There were two Vong squads that were Very competative, but it was won by a Sep/Lancer squad; 2nd place was another Sep squad.
I forsee a need to help counter Lancer and Yammosk squads down the road. The Seps have become quite the beasts lately and the Vong squads were very enthusiastic about there chances. As soon as they learn how to work the Yammosk, the could also be quite interesting.
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Jul 20, 2011 16:59:35 GMT -5
Don't get me wrong, I think the Yammosk is a great piece, and it definitely helps the Vong, but I don't think it's ever going to become a "gatekeeper" piece, at least not on it's own.
The ability to replicate a commander effect is great, but it's also limited by what the other guy brings to the table, so you have to be very flexible. There are also a ton of commander effects that simply won't help the Vong (trooper only, droid only, pre-reqs they can't match, etc).
And while a new commander effect is great, it's still a commander effect, and therefore subject to Disruptive and Distraction.
|
|
|
Post by surfrider56 on Jul 21, 2011 21:36:57 GMT -5
Ok, I can see one quick problem already Gw; you're throwing too many pieces at us at once. We need to figure out possibly which faction and/or pieces to look at first, maybe not one at a time but just a few, maybe 3-5 at a time.
Also, I've never been big on creating stats for anything that I at least didn't have a faint idea on an actual custom for.
So ... One faction at a time, or the "Little" factions get 2-3 worked on each?
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Jul 22, 2011 22:53:59 GMT -5
Way I figure it, I thought I'd throw everything out and see what you guys responded to first. Looks like it may be the Sith and the Mandos... Ironically the only faction I DIDN'T post anything for yet.
|
|
|
Post by surfrider56 on Jul 29, 2011 9:35:10 GMT -5
Well, I take off for my last mini vacation and I return to the Crickets ... We all on vacation or just gathering our thoughts?
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Jul 29, 2011 21:35:41 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't know where everybody went!
I know you felt like there was too much going on at once if we discussed all the factions at once, so why don't you pick one and get discussion going again and hopefully other folk will hop in!
|
|
|
Post by bountyhunter9 on Jul 30, 2011 20:20:11 GMT -5
Yeah, I commented on the Sith because I feel that's where I can help most, and the Mandos because I don't have much to say ;D. I had parts of a custom set in place a few months ago, and there are some decent ideas there, so I'll throw them out if I see an opportunity to. Otherwise, I'll continue commenting where I can, though I don't know how much time I have for a lot of big 8000 character posts . Should we focus the discussion on a few threads at a time or take a stab at all of them? Maybe we can post original thoughts as to what each faction would benefit most from or would be cool (equally important IMO ), then focus on whichever factions have the most immediate interest?
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Jul 31, 2011 0:52:41 GMT -5
I figured I'd post thoughts in on pretty much every faction, see where the most responses where, and head over there. So clearly I'm headed to the Mando and Sith threads next. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to also post an idea I had for a New Rep/Vong piece when I get the chance! By the way, In terms of set breakdown, I'm thinking that the focus will be on the Sith, Mandos, and Old Rep, with each of them (and the Fringe) getting about 7 pieces each. The Vong and Seps will probably get approximately 4 pieces each. The "major" factions (Rebel, Imperial, Republic, and New Rep) will only get 1 or 2 pieces, and where possible, those pieces may have affinity for "lesser" factions, too.
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Aug 2, 2011 22:43:27 GMT -5
Hey, folks. The stats for the new V-Set (and Battle of Theed) are officially out there. Check them out and get to know them, since they're now canon.
|
|
|
Post by surfrider56 on Aug 3, 2011 1:04:53 GMT -5
Hey, folks. The stats for the new V-Set (and Battle of Theed) are officially out there. Check them out and get to know them, since they're now canon. Kind of hard to read ... A Link for others to follow ..... www.bloomilk.com/Forums/default.aspx?g=posts&t=9820
|
|
|
Post by gwek on Aug 3, 2011 1:10:33 GMT -5
Thanks for posting the link. Probably should have done that myself. I'm sure better versions will be up eventually, but I found these weren't too hard to read when I saved the jpegs to my desktop and blew them up. Just have to find the right balance before they become too blurry...
|
|
|
Post by bountyhunter9 on Aug 4, 2011 16:43:12 GMT -5
Can't read all of the text, but from what I see most of it is okay. Zannah looks like she will never die, though. Kaan's Thought Bomb, if I'm reading it right, looks much less useful than Unleash the Force. Is that VCA 2 on the Fire Breather? I hope that's a mistake, there's no reason for even having a save if it's just 2. Maul looks broken. Four attacks on the move at 40 damage each? I hope there's no way to buff his damage or give him FR. B2 SBD looks like a complete replacement for the 'old' ones, good to see that they can survive a shot but still get cut down by a lightsaber. Still, not sure something so small should have DR10. Anyways it looks decent, not a lot of ideas we could use here though.
|
|