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Recommend a Strategic/Respec MMORPG

ran88dom99ran88dom99 Registered User regular
edited October 2012 in MMO Extravaganza
Recommend me an mmorpg where the player has the option to completely change his build without having to pay. Or xp being for every class or something. I also want challenge, meaning loosing often enough, or at least the option to play on hard enough difficulties. Pvp in guild wars counts although its not really an rpg. The the mod that allows a player to respec all his companions in DA:O is probably a better example. Another way to put it is I'm looking for mmorpg with the most thinking required.

I suspect this request wont get many replies so whoever sees this thread just tell me the one you know that best fits.

ran88dom99 on

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    ringswraithringswraith Registered User regular
    Well, would you like to check out The Secret World? Check the OP for that thread for more info.

    But basically, while we still fall in the trinity of tank/DPS/heals, we're able to switch out all our abilities on the fly (as long as you have the abilities- which you earn via ability points- and you're not in combat). Personally I've had at least one dungeon run where I was the tank, but I was having trouble keeping aggro on me. Our healer offered to tank, another DPS said they'd heal, and I switched to my own DPS build. Boss went down easy. :)

    Caveat: "builds" are also very equipment-dependent. As you can probably imagine, tanks need different gear than DPS's, which need gear different than healers, and so on. So you do have to bring at least three sets of equipment with you for this freedom to work. IMO, that's not such a big deal. The game does have a Gear Manager that lets you switch on the fly, although it tends to break somewhat easily during updates. ^^;

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    ringswraithringswraith Registered User regular
    The game does not allow you to "respec" in the sense of "oh, this build isn't working- let me (do something) and get the points I spent back and try something else." Instead it's "Hmm. This isn't working. What abilities do I already have that I can play with, that will work better in this situation?"

    Once you purchase an ability, it's yours- for better or worse. You cannot get those points refunded. Which sounds like a bad thing, but eventually you're going to want those points there anyway so as to get access to even more abilities.

    For example, let's say you started playing with a blade (sword) and pistol. Then you see other players using assault rifles and hitting stuff well beyond your range. So you think "Oh! I want to try that!" Well, whatever points you've spent in blade and pistol can't be refunded. You'll have to earn more points to spend in assault rifle. And the way to do that is to either a) continue questing or b) repeat quests you've already done.

    Now, I've spent a lot of time in TSW's first zone. Why? Because I ended up changing my build twice while I was there. Which meant I repeated quests quite a bit. My first build was kinda meh. Then I did some research and found one I wanted to try. It was good, but I didn't realize how much AP (ability points) I needed to complete the build, plus it was rather squishy. So I did even more research and found a third one that I stuck with and was easier on the AP.

    Would a respec option (like WoW) have helped me? Maybe. However I don't regret what I did, because it gave me more of an understanding with regards to how the Ability Wheel works. Plus once you've got certain quests down, when you repeat them you can complete them really quickly, ultimately giving you more points to spend. And those points that I spent in my first-ever build that I didn't use? Well, I'm using them now- for an alternate healing build that I wouldn't have discovered had I not had this experience. :)

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    DarkewolfeDarkewolfe Registered User regular
    Ringswraith, I find the "deck building" explanation works best for TSW.

    Each skill you unlock is a card for your character's deck. You can rebuild your hand of cards on the fly by picking different skills/cards you've bought. "Oh, this dude seems to be weak to afflictions, let me get rid of my hinder cards and add affliction skills instead."

    What is this I don't even.
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    ringswraithringswraith Registered User regular
    Ah- Excellent comparison. :) Thank you.

    I was trying not to use the game terms for it, guess I should have. :)

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    AvynteAvynte Registered User regular
    Rift is pretty respec friendly, with tons of advanced classes, and the ability to select three of them to swap through while in the field.

    It's still an mmo though, so I wouldn't call it particularly strategic or difficult outside of the very hardcore endgame raiding environment it focuses on.

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    ran88dom99ran88dom99 Registered User regular
    Ok so the challenge part, in either rift or tsw how do i get to a mob or a level way above what I'm supposed to be playing?

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    ringswraithringswraith Registered User regular
    Are you asking how you can defeat something that's beyond your level?

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    ran88dom99ran88dom99 Registered User regular
    How to loose to it. You know pick my own challenge level. The difficulty of loosing while trying is a test of a game for me.

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    ringswraithringswraith Registered User regular
    Well... Losing to something is... rather easy to do in TSW, actually. ^^;

    And it may not even be a mob. I remember quite a few quests that made me want to throw my mouse at the wall. I took some time away and tried the quest again later, and did it no problem. (In another case, I actually left the quest alone and continued questing elsewhere to get some more abilities/equipment, and then tried again).

    Mobs are quite varied in the way they operate. (I should probably mention that there is no auto-attack in TSW, nor is there a generic "attack" for your weapons.) Many use specific moves that are telegraphed (there will be an indicator on the ground, showing you both size of the effect as well as the time until it hits) and active dodging is a very useful skill. Sometimes it's just learning these about the mob. Other times it's because you've hit a wall and need something more to continue (could be gear, could be you need certain abilities, etc.). Or it could be as simple as reading up on the mob's abilities/buffs. ("Oh, it's invulnerable while it's using that... but the description only says 'front...'")

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    override367override367 ALL minions Registered User regular
    GW2 allows you to change your major traits in a line out at any time, a full respec costs a pittance, and you can kill enemies quite above your level if you're good at avoiding damage with dodges and whatnot

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    kaliyamakaliyama Left to find less-moderated fora Registered User regular
    Secret World is the best.

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