Its been so hard to post here......

[Skydude]

<DIV> <DIV>I'm finding it very hard to post anything on these boards right now due to the fact, not a whole lot looks bright in the Templar's future. I hate to be one to cast gloom and doom as in real life I'm the proverbial optimistic that normally gets on people's nerves, because I'm almost always in a good mood with a positive outlook.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I can't be positive here. The templar population on every server overshadows any other healer class in number. There is a reason for that, they were the primary healer of a group. They have no offense to speak of and each of you chose this class because of healing ability, group cures, and the armor selection. The rug is almost pulled and it seems we will most likely all be discontent with the current changes if they do come to life.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I can't begin to tell any of you how much a Combat Upgrade scares me as I'm a Star Wars Galaxies veteran and went through this very same thing with SOE. In SWG they lost a multitude of faithful gamers to the combat upgrade and space expansion. The server population was cut by 50% on Bria a couple short months after the upgrade was introduced. I'm beginning to think they're using the MMORPGs I've come to love as a tax shelter. They bombed completely with the upgrade there as I believe they will alienate a sizable amount of faithful gamers in EQ2 as well. I have no idea who is responsible for this lapse in reasoning, but listen to your consumers, they are crying out.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Most gamers have a favorite character they choose to play and mine is my Templar. Sony promotes massive self-run-riot guilds when they suggest that there is no all-purpose healer anymore. Why do you take so much away in one fell swoop instead of gradually grooming them with the ruse of character balancing? This is not class balancing, it is class crippling. We worked hard to make these specific characters and we paid money to do it. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I'll be the first to agree there is a few changes that need to be made, but this isn't it. People choose a class for what they can do, not what we think is safe from your nerf bat. I believe a few classes need some loving, you have dropped the ball there and now your making a touchdown in the wrong endzone with this.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The other classes are finally getting some much needed upgrades and I'm happy for them. I personally include every class in raids now and I'm successful. So why are certain classes not needed now? I really want to know.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>If you want to implement this CD (combat downgrade), by all means you run the show, but instead of letting us /respec, why not let us change classes at an equivalent level. Buying the new gear shouldn't be too hard for our specific class and level. Your turning us into something we would have never chosen. Nerf the Templar even more, if I had a choice I wouldn't be so angry at SOE right now. I stay away from the boards because its usually flaming or bragging or both. I don't even know if this makes sense, but I do know the mood on the server is the same one that was the background of JTL and SWG before I left, very much so negative.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>peace,</DIV> <DIV>Skydude aka Minowa</DIV> <DIV>LVL50 Templar on Oggok</DIV></DIV>

[Suite]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> Skydude wrote:<BR> <DIV> <DIV>If you want to implement this CD (combat downgrade), by all means you run the show, but instead of letting us /respec, why not let us change classes at an equivalent level. Buying the new gear shouldn't be too hard for our specific class and level. Your turning us into something we would have never chosen. Nerf the Templar even more, if I had a choice I wouldn't be so angry at SOE right now. <BR> <HR> </DIV></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>Skydude, thanks for your comments. I like the forums because, along with the flaming and arguing, there's also some great information. I appreciate getting the heads up on changes to the templar class from people like you. </FONT></P> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>I agree with you about the templar downgrade. It would have been better to leave us alone and to fix what was broken for druids and shaman than to nerf templars as they have. I played all three priest classes in EQ2 beta, and all three priest classes in Live. At about the mid-20s for each class, I felt that the templar was the type of healer I wanted to play because, while having no real utility other than healing, she could really heal and also wear plate armor (i.e., could take a few hits). Before then I had a perfectly equal love for my mystic and my warden. </FONT></P> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>Now that I've deleted my mystic and left my warden at level 23, I'm sorry to have leveled my templar to 50 and put all my effort into her (heritage quests, ebon armor, etc.), because she's not going to be what she was. My friend's level 50 mystic can now almost always keep up with me; after the expansion she will be the top healer in our guild. <STRONG><FONT color=#ffcc66>I'd have liked it if SOE would have kept their word and we had been EQUAL healers all along. All healers should have all cures; all healers should heal in their own special ways for the same amount of health points at the same power cost. </FONT></STRONG>That's it! End of argument: give us what you promised us, Sony. It's not that hard. Every single heal should heal for the same amount; every group heal should heal for the same amount and cost the same amount of power. Our specialty lines (shaman wards, cleric vitae, druid HoTs) should heal or absorb attacks for the same amount of hit points. </FONT></P> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>It's not rocket science, guys. We're players and we can figure out what "all priests heal equally well" means in the game. You're supposed to be experts at programming these things... <FONT color=#ffcc66>what's so impossible about MAKING ALL PRIESTS EQUAL, as you promised?</FONT></FONT></P> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>/rant off,</FONT></P> <P><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" color=#ccffff size=2>Eliana<BR></FONT></P> <p>Message Edited by Suite on <span class=date_text>09-09-2005</span> <span class=time_text>11:52 AM</span>

[SenorPhrog]

<DIV>Skydude believe it or not I do understand what you are saying.   I've been lurking here (at least in these area of the forums) for probably 6-8 months without posting because I really didn't have a reason too.   Yes there are going to be a lot of changes that concern many of us and some of them we may not see as positive.    The best thing we can do first is to wait until the finalized changes are actually in game and not in beta.   They are still going to need to tweak things and make changes as necessary.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>The best thing we can do right now is to remain civil and calm about everything.  Honestly I don't think every templar is negative.  I unlike you am not always an optimist and can see the downside but I'm not bummed yet because I haven't even tried any of these changes.   Am I annoyed I can't lazily depend on my reactives anymore?  Yes.   Am I bummed I'm losing my group cures?  Absolutely.   I need to see what the Devs have to say about it though.</DIV>

[Zunnoab]

<DIV>I understand and I commend you for having more restraint than I do.  When they propose to change something I've come to love to the point where if it's all true I doubt I'll want to even play anymore, it's hard to say anything positive.  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <HR> They have no offense to speak of <BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE><BR>This confuses me though.  At level 24 at least, I can pack a powerful punch if needed.  It takes away from power needed for healing, but if the mob is weak sometimes I can punch out like 1/5th hp with my solo HO.  If it's a barely green mob I can punch out about 1/2 hp at times with a powerful HO especially if my mastery smites apply.  That's not something I'd do in a group where I have other people to heal, but I've found my dps as a templar to be quite high if I choose to blow all my power into it.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Does this mean at higher levels our offensive spells become less significant?  I wouldn't be too surprised, since we are healers, but overall I've found the Templar class to be far more versitile dps and solo wise than the Clerics of everquest.  In short: in EQ as you got higher basically ALL mobs are group only for the most part at the high end.  I got the impression that in EQ2, a solo white at 24 and a solo white at 50 will still accurately reflect the con color.  Does this become untrue at the higher levels, or is it similarly balanced?  I'm not really complaining, I'm just very curious because at 24 my burst dps is quite powerful if it needs to be.</DIV><p>Message Edited by Zunnoab on <span class=date_text>09-10-2005</span> <span class=time_text>08:02 AM</span>

[Supernova17]

Minowa, you know me as a successfull raid healer, so trust me when I say the Templars' role in groups and raids will not drastically change. We will still be powerful healers, just more on the same level with the other classes now. As far as raids go, we will still be the best class (ie Cleric) to handle burst damage. Our specialty is to dump our entire reactive healing power in mere seconds, where the entire healing effect of Druids takes time to work. Some of our new spells give us greater utility and diversity even if we may not like loosing half of our group cures and being brought off our high pedstal to share the same level as the other healer types. The only thing we can do is wait and see what the changes may bring. I'm also very calm about this as SOE is revamping the Paladin to be a MT and my Wood Elf Paladin will be 40 when DoF launches. If Templars get screwed up, I have my Warlock and Pally to fall back on <span>:smileysurprised:</span> <div></div>