Re: The pending changes to Two-Handed use

[RogueGunslinger]

Pending changes to Two Handed Combat
« on: Today at 09:38:01 pm »
   

To better balance two handed skill with other fighting skills, the following changes will go live, Wednesday, April 2.

Two handed skill will give a more constant bonus to offense and defense.

Wielding a weapon in two hands will give half-again your strength bonus, regardless of skill.

If you have two-handed skill you can increase your damage from strength beyond this.

Delay timer between swings for people using two hands will be decreased significantly based on two handed skill.

Wielding a weapon in two hands gives a bonus if the disarmer is using a two handed weapon. Similarly, if two-handed weapon is being used by the victim, a penalty is applied to the disarm check.

If either victim or disarmer has the two handed skill (and is using a two-handed weapon) an appropriate  bonus/penalty will be applied to the disarm check.

Parry will branch from two-handed skill for classes that would get parry from dual wield.

AWESOME!!!!!! So glad I chose two-handed as my desired weapon skill. And here I thought I hit hard before.... ;P

[Tisiphone]

This makes me happy, and nothing any of you can say will change that.

[RogueGunslinger]

The game is going down right after the change, and 2.arm isn't coming.

[Dalmeth]

For some time now, I've had the sneaking suspicion that duel-wielding had an insane damage advantage over two-handed.  Given the nature of the changes, it seems that might be the case.  The benefits of two-handed always did a little off and on.

[RogueGunslinger]

I agree, but hopefully the added time between strikes wont completely negate those new effects.

[X-D]

I'm betting its april 1st where Morg is.

[Fathi]

I'm betting its april 1st where Morg is.

[RogueGunslinger]

This is where a laugh a bit maniacally, then go on a murdering rampage if this is an April fools joke.

[jstorrie]

These sound suspiciously like the current advantages already offered by the etwo combat skill.

[BlackMagic0]

I'm betting its april 1st where Morg is.

[fallacy]

These sound suspiciously like the current advantages already offered by the etwo combat skill.

It sounds like the intended advantages of etwo which has never really given any visible benefits, clearly reflected in the amount of characters who choose to dual-wield or shield-wield compared to two-handed.

[flurry]

I'm not really seeing the joke aspect to it, if it is an April Fools gag.  It looks like a perfectly reasonable change.

[Fnord]

I'm not really seeing the joke aspect to it, if it is an April Fools gag.  It looks like a perfectly reasonable change.

The homepage of Armageddon.org OTOH...

[Agent_137]

i'm stoked. so stoked, i almost want to retire my non-combat char

[veryalien]

for wha tit's worth i'm all for using dual wield, shields and etwo depending on the situation.

these all appear as tools depending on the foe you are battling.

[roughneck]

Watch out for those HG soldiers.

[Sokotra]

Watch out for those HG soldiers.

Yeah, as if you didn't have to watch out for them before... gah! 

I'm hoping there's a big enough penalty to hit and slow enough strikes for HG's with their poor agility to balance things out.
 

[helix]

for what[sic] it's worth i'm all for using dual wield, shields and etwo depending on the situation.

these all appear as tools depending on the foe you are battling.

While this can be a useful tactic once you've got an older warrior that is fairly well advanced, I've found its best to concentrate on one style in the beginning and then switch to another -in training-, while still using the real one for main combat. Its less useful to be moderately skilled in all three than it is to be highly skilled in one, allowing you to be effective against most opponents, before switching to another style.

[LittleLostThief]

The April Fool's joke with this is that it makes sense but would mostly please a large amount of the player populace.

Suckers.

[Furious George]

This addition to two handed...coupled with the request for a new 'Nak Salarri family member means that it IS a conspiracy of some sort, since the additional force and strength behind all the folks trying out two handed combat will result in a massive upturn in shattered weapons.
DOH

[Cutthroat]

I know of one or two asskicking PCs who are going to be kicking even more ass now.

This is a good, necessary change. Gotta have fun with it sometime 

[jstorrie]

Now is the time to app not that big two-hander beast you've always wanted, but the meek weaponcrafter who replaces all of their shattered weapons. MONEY IN THE BANK.

[Mood]

Now is the time to app not that big two-hander beast you've always wanted, but the meek weaponcrafter who replaces all of their shattered weapons. MONEY IN THE BANK.

... or a big two-hander beast who can make weapons.

[Tisiphone]

Or a wide-hipped dwarven weaponscrafter. Cover ALL THREE.

[Fathi]

Suggested additions to two-handed use combat in light of recent changes (http://www.zalanthas.org/gdb/index.php/topic,30315.msg335018.html#new) to the code:

• etwo penis: Allows the player to wield their tool in both hands, halving again their strength bonus. Be warned when using this technique with novice partners--that extra strength bonus ups the chance to 'reel' your partner significantly, and too many reels in one session CAN codedly affect your character in negative ways.
• sheath etwo <target>: While using etwo on the approved tool, the player can now specify not only which character in the room to target, but specific orifices upon those targets. Please note that at lower skill levels, slip-ups are likely.
• etwo baby: A baby object, when equipped using the etwo command, will function as a shield. Please note, this may not last for very long, as babies have a tendency toward fragility.

[brytta.leofa]

• etwo baby: A baby object, when equipped using the etwo command, will function as a shield. Please note, this may not last for very long, as babies have a tendency toward fragility.

<both hands> a tousle-headed infant

...moments later...

<both hands> a new tousle-headed infant

...moments later...

<both hands> a used tousle-headed infant

...moments later...

<both hands> a cracked tousle-headed infant

[Tisiphone]

and then you could eat your shield.

a partially eaten cracked tousle-headed infant is here, crying.

[X-D]

You can only eat Blue eyed infants.

[Tisiphone]

Code Select Expand

i
a packet of bitter blue dye
a cracked tousle-headed infant

craft dye infant into blue-eyed, tousle-headed infant
You begin crafting.

You put liberal drops of dye into each of the infant's eyes, dying them blue. You monster.

eat infant
You eat part of your cracked blue-eyed, tousle-headed infant

i
a partially eaten cracked blue-eyed tousle-headed infant

[Armaddict]

Ah, I suppose that explains why the parry branching thing was never done in the past.  Thanks for trying for us, though, Morg

[Tisiphone]

Also, note that this was not an April Fool's joke. Rock on.

[Ender]

Just gotta say that this code change makes me very happy.

[slipshod]

I just wish it would have come a day sooner, Ender

[Kill4Free]

Does 2h, get parry anymore, I noticed that originally that he said if we got parry from dual wield, we would eventually get parry from 2h.  Then he made a post saying it doesnt work right now, is this fixed, or did he just edit the original statement to say only if you get it from dual wield?

[Morgenes]

Does 2h, get parry anymore, I noticed that originally that he said if we got parry from dual wield, we would eventually get parry from 2h.  Then he made a post saying it doesnt work right now, is this fixed, or did he just edit the original statement to say only if you get it from dual wield?

If you feel you should branch parry from two-handed (you have trained two-handed enough to get it branched), you can submit a request and we will review your skills.  Unfortunately Arm 1 won't allow us to let you branch parry from both/either skills.

[Kill4Free]

Gonna be a while before that happens, but thanks for answering my post quickly.

On a note of how you might fix it, couldnt you make a new skill that does the same thing as parry, and uses the same code parry does with just a different name, that 2h could branch into.  Im not sure how the code is designed, but its an idea.

[Morgenes]

Gonna be a while before that happens, but thanks for answering my post quickly.

On a note of how you might fix it, couldnt you make a new skill that does the same thing as parry, and uses the same code parry does with just a different name, that 2h could branch into.  Im not sure how the code is designed, but its an idea.

That would do it, but it would be quite a bit of a kludge, and then we'd have to kludge choosing between the two, or somehow keeping them in sync.  For Arm 1, I think this will have to do.

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Morg, why not branch parry off of the defense skill instead, so that anyone with the proper level could get it? I think that would be a better option all the way around.

[Morgenes]

Morg, why not branch parry off of the defense skill instead, so that anyone with the proper level could get it? I think that would be a better option all the way around.

This may sound weird, but in Arm 1's code, defense isn't a skill like every other skill.  It is handled differently, and can't branch anything.  And, if we'd wanted it to branch from defense, we probably would have worked it so it would.

[Is Friday]

Can you have a hidden skill that mirrors the higher level of either two_handed or dual_wielding and in turn branches parry?

[The7DeadlyVenomz]

Morg, why not branch parry off of the defense skill instead, so that anyone with the proper level could get it? I think that would be a better option all the way around.

This may sound weird, but in Arm 1's code, defense isn't a skill like every other skill.  It is handled differently, and can't branch anything.  And, if we'd wanted it to branch from defense, we probably would have worked it so it would.

Err, alright. It was just an idea, boss. Nothing more. Not being critical or anything.

[Morgenes]

Morg, why not branch parry off of the defense skill instead, so that anyone with the proper level could get it? I think that would be a better option all the way around.

This may sound weird, but in Arm 1's code, defense isn't a skill like every other skill.  It is handled differently, and can't branch anything.  And, if we'd wanted it to branch from defense, we probably would have worked it so it would.

Err, alright. It was just an idea, boss. Nothing more. Not being critical or anything.

No offense, no worries, just explaining.

[Lakota]

Hey Morg, sorry if you've answered this before, but I didn't see anything in the staff blog:

Are you coders tinkering with a way so that different skills can branch the same thing? i.e. two-handed and dual wield both branching parry, depending on which is your focus?

From what you guys hinted at earlier, it sounds like that'd be a hassle, but I didn't know if you were reworking a lot of the new code for 2.0.

Thanks.

[Morgenes]

Hey Morg, sorry if you've answered this before, but I didn't see anything in the staff blog:

Are you coders tinkering with a way so that different skills can branch the same thing? i.e. two-handed and dual wield both branching parry, depending on which is your focus?

From what you guys hinted at earlier, it sounds like that'd be a hassle, but I didn't know if you were reworking a lot of the new code for 2.0.

Thanks.

Yep, a much richer skill branching specification is in the works for Arm 2.

[Kill4Free]

While you are explaining all this, any advice on how we can tell when our skill is high enough to make it worth asking a staff for the extra skill?

On a sidenote on my char I somehow got stuck with the subguild acrobat, when I chose armorcrafting, not sure what happened there, but it really didnt fit with my character's background, story, or even race.  I did put a request up quite a few days ago, right after I made my char, as I didnt want to suicide him or anything to restart.  And there hasnt been a reply, now, I dont mind waiting, but if a mistake like that isnt approved to be fixed, then would it be likely that parry would be given?

[Lakota]

Hey Morg, sorry if you've answered this before, but I didn't see anything in the staff blog:

Are you coders tinkering with a way so that different skills can branch the same thing? i.e. two-handed and dual wield both branching parry, depending on which is your focus?

From what you guys hinted at earlier, it sounds like that'd be a hassle, but I didn't know if you were reworking a lot of the new code for 2.0.

Thanks.

Yep, a much richer skill branching specification is in the works for Arm 2.

Awesome, thanks!