SE tells bandwagon blms: take a hike

[Garland]

Accumulative Magic Resistance
Currently, a large number of players can team up to overpower the enemy in certain battles by hitting the enemy repeatedly with only elemental magic. This tactic has had an unbalancing effect on the game, and we decided a change was needed.

However, altering the effects of powerful magic spells would have a negative effect on black mages and other magic users. Rather than altering magic effects or strengthening monsters, we determined that the adjustment to solve this issue should be as small as possible in scope and affect other gameplay mechanics as little as possible.

Therefore, for the next update we have decided to implement an accumulative magic resistance effect for all monsters whose strength reads "impossible to gauge."

We have also made several other adjustments to minimize the effect of this change on black mages and other magic users. For example, a party fighting a notorious monster with one to two black mages will probably not notice the difference.

However, we have decided to give Bahamut in the quest "The Wyrmking Descends" and Diabolos in the quest "Waking Dreams" a stronger accumulative magic resistance than other notorious monsters.

-Types of Affected Magic Damage
When a notorious monster is repeatedly hit by the following types of magic, it will accumulatively build magic resistance:

Black magic (elemental), white magic (divine), ninjutsu, magical blood pact abilities, magical blue magic, magical weapon skills (e.g., Spirits Within and Red Lotus Blade), and certain job abilities (e.g., Chi Blast and Mijin Gakure)

-Resistance Fluctuation
When a monster with accumulative magic resistance is hit by a magic attack, the amount of damage it receives will decrease in accordance with that monster's resistance. At the same time, its resistance will increase.

The monster's resistance will increase in accordance with the amount of damage incurred, but each monster has a maximum resistance level.

In addition, the monster's resistance will decrease with time if it is not hit by any repeated magic attacks.

As a career blm at 75, you'd think this would bother me. When rangers and beastmasters got nerfed, Allakazham was even worse than usual for months and months. But I'm kinda glad. You see, I hated it when my job became the next bandwagon stacked at endgame job. I hated what it did for my job's rep in the eye of the community. I hated always being lumped with bandwagon hoppers even though I was there first (well not first but before them). Now the bandwagon hoppers will flock to summoner or blue mage, and there won't be 10,000 weskits running around whitegate. I'll be unique again, and I'll be glad.

[Lawr]

Lol.

[Lionx]

Fine with me, however one thing makes me wonder, the part about magical Weapon skills..Spirits Within? They gonna nerf that? o_O For what?

[Miriel]

BLMs aren't being nerfed. Manaburn parties on the other hand...

But honestly, I don't think this is too bad. Having all BLM parties plowing through everything obviously is taking the easy road for a lot of things. And it's not like regular exp parties are going to be affected.

Sorry, I just don't think that this is really a "nerf".

[Mirage]

This is fun.

[Yeargdribble]

This will not have any effect on manaburn XP PTs. It's only ITG mobs. I think the only things that it will really show up on are things like DL and on mobs that take a long time to kill like Kirin, Wyrms, Kings etc.


SMN is almost definitely gonna be the next bandwagon job. SMNs physical BPs are unaffected and after this adjustment they may be the most powerful form of consistent endgame damage.

An additional affect is that this will likely un-nerf RNG as there will now be a great limit to DDs for kited mobs. RNG damage will likely be on par and respected for being consistent in a way that black magic will not.

[Markus. D]

hahahaha yay!

nerfaliscious <3... isnt the word.... perhaps more of a pale evening for all the classes, not even that, perhaps, adding more of a diffuculty to this already hard game.


this will suck... I have 20 levels of BLM in my Hume... guess this is an excuse to stick to Monkey Monk.


edit: :O... chi blast ;_;

[Miriel]

Tsukasa, I don't think this affects you at all, unless you were planning on taking that BLM to end game levels and fight NMs in all black mage parties. Seriously, I don't think this is "nerfaliscious".

That being said, I really hope people don't jump on the SMN bandwagon. I love SMN, I don't want the job to be swarmed by people who don't even care for the job.

[Roogle]

I, too, am a Black Mage. I don't like that the strategy for every boss battle in Chains of Promathia was Black Mage, Black Mage, Black Mage!

[Garland]

Fine with me, however one thing makes me wonder, the part about magical Weapon skills..Spirits Within? They gonna nerf that? o_O For what?

I think SE tried to forsee the next steps the community would take if they couldn't stack blm. I think not nerfing smn physical BPs was just an oversight- either that or nerfing one element of "physical damage" was too complicated and they didn't want to nerf general melee damage. They took out magic, chiblast and spirits within - three of the more stacked skills in endgame. SE knows by now that the XI community's propensity towards stacking job #1 instead of thinking. Nerfing grouped elemental magic would've done the trick, but it would only be delaying another nerf for later.

[Markus. D]

Seriously, I don't think this is "nerfaliscious".

Miriel, read after what I said "isnt the word"

[Beyond]

I think her point was more "It's not that bad for you" than "lol u just made that word up".

[Garland]

It's not that bad for anyone except the majority of the people cheering it on. I hate to play the role of stuck up mage, but quite honestly, my best equipment is bought. Can't fight kirin? Ah well. It's not my loss. The jobs who made the biggest outcry against blackmages, and are largely applauding SE's efforts now - it's their loot, not the black mages'. I could bring up the phrase "don't bite the hand that feeds you" but I can kind of understand where they're coming from. Frontline melees want an active role in the big notorious monster battles. However, until said jobs get a viable ranged attack, they'll forever play less substancial roles in these battles.

You can nerf rangers, and indeed, rangers will no longer rule endgame. SE knocked them down a peg and the people rejoiced. But the people still didn't get to have fun in endgame, and black mages took the throne. You can nerf blms too. It's not too far fetched to imagine that tomorrow black mages will no longer be the top job in endgame. And the people will rejoice. But, they still won't be having fun in endgame. Summoners with their physical BPs will be the new stacked job in endgame, and SE will nerf them, and Blue Mages will be the new stacked job, and SE will nerf them, and all the while, the melees won't be having fun in endgame. After SE has nerfed every ranged job once, the melees will say "Yes, our time has come". But it won't, and rangers will be the stacked job in endgame, and then blms, and then summoners. Said "left out" jobs should be asking SE for potent ranged damage. If SE is going to make flying dragons, or HNMs with massive AOE, they should expect the players to keep a distance. Give everyone something ranged and effective.

[Lionx]

Hmm if i remember right SAMs used to be top of the heap with lots of skillchains enabling lots of magic bursts by BLMs. However...they were replaced by RNGs..never went back to it since.

[Yeargdribble]

Hmm if i remember right SAMs used to be top of the heap with lots of skillchains enabling lots of magic bursts by BLMs. However...they were replaced by RNGs..never went back to it since.

Magic Burst? What is this you speak of? You mean that there was a time when people used strategy!? *gasp* This must be some sort of heresy... the only way is zerg.

[/sarcasm]