Design Notes

November 03, 2021

November Class Changes

Class Changes for November 5, 2021

The purpose of this week’s class changes is to balance the performance of several late-game classes by adjusting their performance levels so that they are appropriate for their respective progression points. This means that classes that are supposed to be at certain tiers still perform at a level intended for them, may no longer be as large a leap from the previous stages. Classes that have been disproportionately buffed or nerfed by changes have been adjusted back to their intended performance levels.

We have also made adjustments to the Focus aura on some of the classes that utilize it for challenge boss fights, with the intent to create more interactive mechanics in the future.

Chaos Slayer

Chaos Slayer's farming performance has greatly benefited from the respawn time and aura-on-kill changes, so we're reducing its damage output while in AoE mode, but making its heal more consistent for both modes, placing it back where it used to be, while affording it some quality of life improvements.

Chaos Blade:
- Now applies Chaos Blight only when Chaorrupted is active
- If Chaorrupted is not active, instead applies Chaos Affliction, which increases outgoing damage by 1%, stacks to 30 and lasts 5 seconds

Surge:
- Surge: Heal now always activates
- Surge: Barrier can now activate alongside Surge: Heal at a 50% chance
- Reduced power of Surge: Heal proportionally

Chrono Assassin

The fix to Haste stacking and changes to Awe Enhancements have caused Chrono Assassin's damage output to far exceed what was intended for it. To address this, we have reduced the damage of its Relapse skill and corrected the values on its Condense Time aura to match the amounts that are stated in its skill description.

Relapse:
- Damage reduced
- Mana cost: 12 > 6

Convert:
- Condense Time now increases Crit Chance and Crit Damage by the intended amount

Legion Revenant

Legion Revenant has been underperforming as of late, so we're increasing the range of all its skills and giving its Wicked Purgatory skill a couple more targets to hit, to better spotlight its performance as a farmer, and keep it competitive as one of the best farmers.

All Skills:
- Range changed to infinite

Atramentous Shade:
- Mana cost: 25 > 10

Wicked Purgatory:
- Max targets: 1 > 3 (damage distribution method still the same as the other skills)
- Mana cost: 30 > 15

Depraved Empowerment:
- Mana cost: 30 > 15
- Cooldown: 10 seconds > 6 seconds

Anathema:
- No longer applies Ars Arcanum
- Mana cost: 45 > 20

Vampire Lord

The changes to the Health Vamp Awe Enhancement have allowed Vampire Lord to match, and in certain situations exceed endgame farming classes, so we're reducing the frequency at which it can auto attack. The class now performs closer to what it was intended to, and what it used to.

Slash:
- Cooldown: 2 seconds > 2.5 seconds

Void Highlord

A lot of recent changes made Void Highlord overwhelmingly strong in every category, so much that it was overtaking niches of numerous other classes. This is due in part to VHL-specific buffs, game engine updates such as the recent aura-on-kill change, as well as other changes before it (including HP cost skills not causing disconnections). Therefore, its performance has been adjusted accordingly -- we intend for it to remain one of the best classes in its category, just not necessarily THE best class in nearly every situation.

Contract:
- No longer applies Abyssal Sacrifice (see Armageddon)
- Soul Breach DoT damage reduced

Shackle:
- Range changed to melee

Highlord's Gaze:
- Congealed now applies a flat -20% reduction to Haste, Hit, and Dodge (was previously only increasing by 5% per stack)
- Mana Cost: 30 > 20

Unshackle:
- Range changed to melee

Armageddon:
- Now applies Abyssal Sacrifice
- Mana Cost: 60 > 50

Relentless Onslaught:
- Crit Chance and Hit Chance: 15% > 20%

Undying Highlord:
- Abyssal Sacrifice now increases all damage taken instead of physical damage taken
- Abyssal Sacrifice max stacks: 20 > 10
- Abyssal Sacrifice duration: 8 seconds > 20 seconds

Yami no Ronin

Giving Yami no Ronin an overall damage boost in both its dodge and damage modes and adjusting the durations of its Ichi, Ni, and San auras to improve the flow of its skill rotations.
Additionally, some skills on the class have been renamed to better reflect the design concept, and sound more realistic.

General:
- Some skills have been renamed

Batto and Kettou (formerly Dakuaktto and Kyuketsu):
- Flash outgoing damage, incoming damage, Hit Chance, and Crit Chance per stack: 5% > 4%

Tachi (formerly Sutoraiku):
- Ichi duration: 7 seconds > 9 seconds
- San duration: 7 seconds > 5 seconds
- San Crit Damage: 50% > 150%

Hisome (formerly Suteresu):
- Dodge: 75% > 80%

Gouyuu (formerly Sokudo):
- No longer increases incoming damage
- Now increases outgoing damage by 35

Chaos Avenger

As stated in our Dev Blog, Chaos Avenger was balanced around Void Highlord's previous performance levels, so we have reduced the damage output of Chaos Avenger accordingly. Additionally, we have moved the Focus aura from the Fury Unleashed skill to the Flux skill so that damage no longer has to be sacrificed in order to taunt.
The durations of several other skills have been adjusted to compensate for how the class will play, forming a better core skill rotation.

Chaos Greatsword:
- Damage reduced
- Mana restored: 50 > 60

Chaos Siphon:
- Defense Chaorrupted incoming damage per stack: 8% > 5%
- Defense Chaorrupted max stacks: 5 > 8
- Cooldown: 8 seconds > 6 seconds

Flux:
- Now applies Focus for 4 seconds
- Chaorrupted debuff durations: 15 seconds > 20 seconds
- Cooldown: 8 seconds > 15 seconds

Chaos Bulwark:
- Cooldown: 8 seconds > 6 seconds

Fury Unleashed:
- No longer applies Focus

Dragon of Time

Dragon of Time has been falling behind its fellow late-game classes, so we're giving it a boost in farming and bossing performance, based on feedback from you all. We intend it, along with other late-game classes, to be a link between midgame and endgame.

All Skills:
- Rend max stacks: 10 > 5, DoT damage per stack increased

Rend Time:
- Damage increased

Dragon's Will:
- Mana cost: 20 > 15
- Cooldown: 4 seconds > 3 seconds

Burning Fates:
- Now always hits
- Searing Timeline DoT Resistance: -50% > -150%
- Searing Timeline duration: 5 seconds > 7 seconds

Hero's Heartbeat:
- Cooldown: 10 seconds > 8 seconds

Convergence of Destiny:
- Discordance DoT Boost per stack: 10% > 25%
- Discordance max stacks: 25 > 10
- Discordance duration: 7 seconds > 9 seconds

Divergent Providence:
- Endurance reduction: -50% > -40%

Split Timelines:
- Principles of Gravitation activation chance: 20% > 50%

Changes to Focus

We have begun to evaluate loopable taunts as they remove the need to plan around the threat of multi-target attacks from challenge monsters. With that in mind, the following classes have had adjustments made to their Focus auras. Please note that we may continue to make more changes to Focus auras in the future.