Disclaimers:
- This is my opinion; if folks disagree, that’s fine, we all like what we like
- I only play PVE, my comments are not about PVP, I don’t enjoy PVP in survival games
- I will not interact with any whining or pedantic posturing
The indifferent:
- Combat is combat, stamina changes mean changing tactics
- Thralls are much more squishy, requiring a change in tactics
- Legendary items are now consumables, requiring a change in tactics
- Thralls are no longer the star in combat damage dealing, requiring a change of tactics
The Bad:
- Grind is massively increased, for no good reason
- Journey steps still meander across 15+ levels, which are now harder to get, due to the massive increase in grind
- The Purge is still using the old model, meaning it is both inconsistent and unpredictable as to if it will bug
- Sorcerer skulls are now an item with no purpose, they are not redeemable, treasure, or anything
- Reduced NPC and Boss HP means reduced XP, which results in an increase in the grind for the player and thralls
The Good:
- Treasure rooms are a great concept that are slated to become useful in the future
- First tier truncheons can knock out named NPCs, with a lot of patience
- Players deal a lot more damage
- New configurations around the map add a reason to go see things
Conclusion:
Meh.
I’ve played Conan for five years now, I will continue to play it. My thoughts on this update is that it is too little and too much. Too few reasons to endure the pretty large changes in gameplay. Once part two drops with the associated purge changes and the resultant gameplay updates, Age of War will, hopefully, be interesting. Right now, not so much.
There is nothing compelling in this update, nothing exciting, nothing to look forward to and much to regret. Did headhunting make the game super easy for folks who traded skulls and sorcerers for a chance to get T4 crafters and named fighters? Sure, and allowing us to get a Dalinsia from around the Sinkhole was a poor application of the system. Higher level thralls should have been restricted to higher level areas.
Now we will farm blood crystal beasts for the same effect. It just takes longer. So, nothing changes except the grind is massively increased
My unscientific prediction is that the user base will take a hit after the initial response to the Age of War release. There is nothing to excite veteran players and a lot to discourage new players.
I am interested in the conclusions of others. If my stances and posits are stupid, tell me why they are stupid. Insulting me, personally, is a poor choice because so few folks are competent at insults. If this is offensive to anyone, please understand, it was intentional.
I posted after a day of play on test, people were going to be real disappointed after the content dump the age of sorcery was. I don’t have an issue with it. Still needs some tweaks because stamina is really all wrong. I’m not a numbers guy but fighting feels wrong/bad, unsatisfying. But it could be PVE servers are set to extra civilized vanilla. And I mean hot chocolate with marshmallows soft.