SwiftStriker Skill Line - Released!

I'd appreciate it! Thanks!

 

Tried it. Played through DL9 with it. Loved it. The new Quickstep is a very different beast, but it still has amazing utility, especially for stuff like getting that one extra square you need to be able to launch an Acid Bottle Bolt at a zoo or to put enough room between you and a named mob for a Hand Grenade. I didn't realize just how often one square really opened up tactics for you in this game until I had exactly one square at my disposal.

All you need now are some badass icons, and SwiftStriker will be a done deal.

 

Stay tuned then! And thanks for the feedback!

 

Just cleared DL 6 with both the test character I created for Swift Striker and the "control" character I created with Artful Dodger. So far, neither character has died but this isn't the hard part yet.

Thoughts on the skill abilities- Shoulder Slam doesn't really seem that useful. I've had a couple of "oh crap" moments when I used it against a named mob and they resisted the pushback. I didn't even get any damage to show for it, and that felt very lame. What we have here is basically a weakened version of Unarmed Combat's second level skill, and I'm not sure I care for it much. I'd say either turn up the functionality (maybe give it some as their breath is knocked out of them or make it unresistible?) or cut it entirely.

Ditto for Target Locked. If this ability does anything I can't figure out what it is. At the very least you could make it more evident what benefit I'm getting by being blinded.

Bolt Proof is supposed to let you get close to the magic using monsters, right? Because I generally use Tackle or Jump for that. What I usually use Bolt Proof for is messing with traps while fearing them very little. Pretty much the only monster I use it against is eels. (I wonder if I can drown by Jumping on an eel?)

Enough with the bad stuff. Here's the good stuff:

Essence is right. A single free move is totally badass. I'm playing with Unarmed Combat as part of my build and there's nothing more fun than Jumping into a group of enemies, Quickstepping and unleashing Gray Heron to hammer them in all directions. A Buffalo Throw to take care of any stragglers and it becomes a mop up from there out.

I'd say, make Target Locked a little more useful (or at least make it clear what it does, so I don't feel gipped by having to spend a point on it to get the cool stuff) and do something with Bolt Proof that doesn't let me run roughshod over huge stretches of traps laughing as enemies suffer in my brimstone filled wake (although this is fun) and I'd say we have a great tactical skill here.

Choosing when (and what) to hurtle yourself towards as you enter combat leads to some very interesting and fun tactical decisions. The new, improved Quickstep opens dozens of options both offensive and defensive. There's probably dozens of fun combos with the various weapon skills or even summons wrapped up in here. I'd say this skill will make playing warriors a much more fun, carefully thought out experience, as opposed to constant mindless grinding, but I'm too busy making Bruce Lee sound effects as I do wire-fu to kill Pumpkins.

Initial Impressions - Bolt Proof is probably overpowered and doesn't really seem to fit the skill theme. If you want to keep it, I'd tone the down to no more than 30. Don't forget there are other ways to get the stat, and in this game no skill should be a perfect solution on its own. Shoulder Slam and Target Locked seemed underpowered. Otherwise, a fine skillset.

 

Thanks for the feedback!

Target Locked... I thought I made its function clear in the OP: It reduces your vision, but use it on an enemy and their critical and counter rates are reduced for the same duration.

Shoulder Bash is actually VERY hard to totally resist, because it, like all of the other knockback moves in this skillset, attempts to knock the enemy back THRICE. It may have said "resist", but it should have still knocked back the enemy

As for boltproof, I suppose it should be toned down a tad. Maybe to 30 magic resistance, as you said.

Thanks a ton for the input! I'm glad everyone seems to like the new quickstep!

 

Target locked: Ahhhh... so you did.

And the RNG can be a witch sometimes. Still, maybe a little more bonus on the skill, maybe as a passive bonus? Most skills, especially Warrior Skills, give slightly bigger bonuses at level 1.

 

More than +1 melee power?

 

Well, let's have a look at it.

Swift Striker offers +1 and +1. That Caddishness is +1 and a fractional boost to counter and critical chance.

Compare too:

Swords: +1 and +2.

Big Game Hunter: Butcher, an totally awesome proc.

Master of Arms: +3 and +5.

And most of the warrior skills also give you rollout gear. is a big bonus for warriors, you might say its the one thing they need more than anything else. Getting it straight out from a skill is a big bonus. But yes, I think you have a little room to make your starting skill better. Maybe a rollout piece of gear? Something that emphasizes swiftness? A flat dodge chance? It's your call, but I don't think it would be unbalancing.

 

Adventurer Pants FTW

 

I thought we had a bug where pants weren't rolling out mentioned somewhere around here. Was that worked out?

 

(was joking)

 

So, shoulder bash isn't helpful? Is this the general consensus? I'm willing to replace it with something else if it comes to that, but I just want to make sure that's what people want.

 

Personally, I used it often, but almost never for what it was intended for. I used it to bust Iron Grates around and get to the artifact after I had killed the Enraged Diggles, or to let the Unfriendly AI loose out of it's little cage. Never ever once used it for it's listed purpose, but then I never got cornered unless I wanted to.

 

Honestly? I stopped using it on DL 1, but I have Buffalo Throwing, so I'm not sure if that's coloring my impression of it.

 

That's what I've been using for mostly as well, funny enough

Yeah, that knockback sure is handy.

 

What if I added a normal melee attack to it? Would it be less useless then?

 

Most of my objections to it would go away, yes.

 

I can imagine it having a fundamentally different purpose. Rather than being used to escape...

 

That could be it's own skill line.