Somebody help... exactly how is this better for us?

[Yt]

<DIV>Let me start by saying that I'm a 28 Mystic and enjoy playing this class very much. But I've been playing the past few hours, post-Combat Upgrade, and my life has been twice as difficult as it was less than 24 hours ago. Perhaps I haven't played enough with the changes or perhaps the benefits don't truly reveal themselves on Mystics until the higher level's, but here's what the changes look like to me:</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- My wards now last half as long and cost twice as much, not to mention drawing equivilent hate on me for every point of damage they absorb on their target. This sucks. Spectral Ward, my once primary single person ward, is now on and gone so fast that I can't even keep up with it. And when I try, I'm burning so much power to keep it up that I'm tapped twice as fast as usual... just on warding. Wards of Shadow is a decent group ward, but burns nearly a fifth of my power casting it. How are we expected to protect anybody let alone ourselves when that hate comes screaming our way?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- It seems like my primary purpose in this game (and the reason I chose a Priest class to begin with), to heal, has been diminished signifigantly. My max heals have been cut in half. I used to be able to heal up to 330 in a single cast with Aladad's Mending Chant (which is now nowhere to be found post upgrade). Now my best heal is the 178-218 Healing Ritual. If anybody has any other options at this level then send em my way, cuz I'm at a loss.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- My primary DoT's (such as Contagion, Miasma, and Cold Fire (now called Cold Flame)) no longer restart with multiple casts and now last half as long as well. This limits my HO options severely as I now need to monitor each DoT and wait for it to expire before re-casting as part of a complete HO, or risk losing time while the game tells me that "That spell would no take effect".</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- And overall, it seems like now I can barely beat a white /con creature by myself let alone a yellow, which I used to handle easily. I was attacked by two lvl 20 bears together in the Steppes today, which were once grey /con and no threat, are now pounding me into the orange health levels, despite everything I try to do. 24 hours ago these lowbies wouldn't have given me a second look. I thought the catalyst for these changes was to make the game simply more fun and rewarding for us... the players... Not only is playing a Mystic now more difficult, but practicilly pointless. </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Someone please help... any info/advice/or new play styles are appreciated. I don't want to see my favorite character turn into the one I simply can't stand to play anymore.</DIV>

[Jarvahl]

<P>I completely agree with you. I play a lvl 30 Shaman. I sat here looking at my spells for a solid hour tonight. Looked at the cast times,  durations, power use, etc. I am stunned. I can't believe it. I logged on tonight expecting to see a few minor changes, and see huge, dramatic nerfs.</P> <P>I thought the wards being fixed would be great,  but how in the world?... why in the world so dramatically lower the amount of damage warded against, and the duration? I am completely baffled. And the heals being so low. Just unbelieveable. Maul gone from bear form. Blessed weapon gone from my buffs. All desire to play has drained from me...</P>

[Zearo]

<P>Other than our Badger pet not working at all, I love the combat changes!  ( they did make the badger more of a ghost lookin thing however)</P> <P>Wards are awesome, our buffs are really great.  The runic line regens super super fast.</P> <P>Our DPS went down, even though it said priest damage would go up.... power requirement is down across the board on almost all spells.</P> <P>Our Rez spells could use some work however.. a 600 pt ward on our best rez is kinda weak.</P> <P>Other than this I am happy with the way things turned out.</P>

[ctrcivic]

Hi I am a 50 Mystic....and to put it simple we suck !!!! All heals except 1 are on same timer...lost 3 wards...lost a damage spell....Grey wind to the same timer as the ire of grey (which is the last upgrade for smite hehe) Wow but we got group water breathing <img src="/smilies/69934afc394145350659cd7add244ca9.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> Bascially Siakar is retired till further notice <img src="/smilies/9d71f0541cff0a302a0309c5079e8dee.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> <div></div>

[Guy De Alsace]

I agree, I went all the way through the arena in SP (apart from champ) with no too many problems before update. Now my lvl 26 Mystic had a really hard time against the second challenger. Her ward went down almost as soon as it was cast. All heals have been nerfed, all buffs nerfed too. My best heal was an Adept III Healing Ritual which has had over 100 points of healing reduced from it. Maul and Blessed Weapon have both gone and been replaced with nothing at all. I couldnt see anything but total nerfs across the board with no compensation at all in other areas. Some of the healing spells are laughably weak now considering monsters do loads more damage. <div></div>

[Baccalarium]

<DIV>Wasn't as bad as I expected.    I ran out to feerot and solod some greens,  then went to sinking sands and soloed some whites and yellows.   Both were easy, where I'd normally have had substantial med time after soloing a yellow, (if I survived)   these were quite bearable.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>In a group as sole healer working yellow heroics,   I could barely keep up with healing,  and a couple wipes were by inability to keep up not by running out of power.    Its definitly going to take some getting use to where can I try to sneak those debufs in between those long heal and ward cast times.   Probably have to put abilities instead of macros on quick bar so I can see the recast count downs better for a bit.   After getting used to it  and realizing I had to get the wards out quick if I was to keep up with heals,    I was able to keep my gorup alive,  with very little down time between pulls.    Actually was tanks needed power meds,  cause indeed I was working out their taunting ability significantly.    We managed and I had forgotten  all about haveing  an agro disperser, which would have come in handy.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Doesn't look like I'll have to worry about saving the chanter nearly so much anymore.   Chanter seldom got higher in the hatelist that I did.    Debuffs didn't seem gain agro nearly as much as they used to.   But this may just be becasue heal and ward agro was much more apparent.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Its definitely different.   The way I play will have to change substantially,  but I don't think I could have kept the group I was with tonight alive with just the direct heal tools I had before.    I feel like I lost a couple abilities due to the linked recast timers,  but gained usefulness of wards to make up for it.   </DIV>

[b1ackartem]

<div></div>OK so as a lvl 41 Mystic, I now have 2 wards 1 is half power, one is a 15 min recast. My heals now share the same recast timer.. I draw 5x the hate just RUNNING AROUND. And if I preward I get equivlent hate to what the Tanks takes? I even chose all my [+] abilities as wards I feel like Helen Keller trying to cross I-84 Though I am understanding, and hope they fix this backalley abortion they call a patch, 3 weeks should be more than enough time. Because right now I don't feel it is worth $15 of my dollars. It's not a rant and rave I am leaving, but it just feels no fun any more to play a character that can not do the job he was designed to do. <div></div><p>Message Edited by b1ackartemis on <span class=date_text>09-13-2005</span> <span class=time_text>09:12 PM</span>

[Mynkie]

Honestly, its not "better" for us.. Its worse.  I personally am not even going to try and figure out how to save my toons life or my groups life during battle.. Only one ward usuable now and only 1 piddly heal and 1 useless heal to choose from?!  Yeah no thank you.  This lvl 50 Mystic has experienced a game that was fun to a game that went far to incredibly frustrating!  My subscription is cancelled,  how I wish I could get my money back from buying this expansion. <div></div>

[b1ackartem]

I feel you, so now we have a increased exp thing going on but hell I can't even heal properly to group! Man and Dungeons and Dragons online isn't close to done yet... <div></div>

[Mynkie]

ROFL!!!!!  Helen Keller on I-84 I totally know what you mean! <div></div>

[Bloodspitt]

<P>Ytse,</P> <P>While I don't necissarily disagree with you on all the points you've made, perhaps I can help answer the question "exactally how is this better for us?"</P> <P>- You have to invest heavily in your power pool. I'd have to know what gear you have on, which traits you've chosen and what race you are in order to determine if you are underpowered for your level. As for the wards accruing hate, we're going to have to make some changes in <STRONG>how</STRONG> we wand and <STRONG>when</STRONG> we ward. Now that wards have gone post-AF and our heals on non-targeted group members gather less hate, we should not be pre-warding, but rather healing and applying wards at opportune moments... particularly at lower levels when your tank may or may not have a strong command of the mob you are fighting. We can't chain wards like we used to... and I love that. I get to DoT and attack more... no longer relegated to the infamous role of "support" or "secondary" healer.</P> <P>- My heals seem fine, but perhaps that's because I'm between Adept 1's and 3's on most of them. Haven't tested the range thoroughly enough yet to make a judgement on diminished effectiveness.</P> <DIV>- I grabbed the Master 2 Cold Flame and it <STRONG>rocks</STRONG>. I am now able to solo when necissary without having to rely on outdated DD smites and my mace for most of the damage. I don't know about Contagion since I don't use it much. I favor Miasma and Keening Haze, which... when staggered throughout a fight... seem to take care of business just fine. Besides, do you want long-lasting multiple DoTs on a group target when your wards and heals are already accumulating enough hate?</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>- As for your ability to solo, I'm not sure when you cast things, but I'm doing fine at level 30 with whites and yellows. I stagger DoTs (as I meantioned above), initiate HO after Delusion goes up and begin the hacking and slashing process. The fact that I can cast multiple simultaneous wards at regular intervals on myself is one of my favorite sustainance tactics and DoF doesn't seem to have affected it at all.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I guess it all depends on how you play your class and what you expect from it. So far, I have no complaints, but I hope some of the things I've mentioned help you see the good in the changes. Some things will be nerfed and some things will be given a boost in the future if the general population feels that the changes are unfair, but I'd like to give it a chance before I start praying this doesn't go the way of AC2 and loses subscriptions because of poorly planned class alterations.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>EDIT - Seems most people have discovered that the biggest problem is in the Runic Talisman line. Other than that, all seems to be in order.</DIV><p>Message Edited by Bloodspitter on <span class=date_text>09-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>03:00 AM</span>

[thedu]

<P>Ok, I wasn't expecting much tonight either. All my spells except for th [+] are Adept 1's.  I had Spirit of Rhino, Ursine Oracle, Omen(yeah 1 conc), and Runic shield. I had conc slot open, nothing to fill it in....I hope something is available in the future.</P> <P>I was 39.8 tonight when I went out to the Sinking Sands. I pulled a 'caiman' that was 1 arrow down level 46 solo mob. Very orange to me. Most of my gear is now listed as starting at 30 (go figure..it was all yellow and orange yesterday)</P> <P>This is what I did:</P> <P>1) Ancestral Ward</P> <P>2) Howling Haze</P> <P>3) Mourning Soul</P> <P>4) Grim Lethargy</P> <P>5) Fallacy</P> <P>6) Cry of Ancients</P> <P>7) Start HO</P> <P><img src="/smilies/b2eb59423fbf5fa39342041237025880.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> Pox + Cold Wind (or touch of grey, i mix it up)</P> <P>9) Depending on if the ward dropped, re-ward</P> <P>9) Start HO</P> <P>10) Touch of Grey + Icy Flames (or, mix of 8 and 10)</P> <P> </P> <P>This guy dropped like a rock and I had at least half my pool left. I'm drinking and eating Level 40 high food and drink.</P> <P>I teamed up with a 41 SK later and we had no problems taking on 1 up arrow, at least 3 group member mobs level 45-46. Although the fight took a while, so we stuck to orange solos.  Later we teamed up with a 42 ranger, who became 43 shortly. We took on level 48 <FONT color=#ff0000>red</FONT> mobs, I barely even used wards because the SK was mitigating so well (his taunts sucked though). I mostly doing slows and debuffs, and direct heals. </P> <P>The warding has definitely become tricky. Mostly because it's hard to manage in a chain pull situation -- I found myself canceling a lot just so I wouldn't get aggro.  At one point we got jumped by three 46 orcs. It was touchy there, but no sweat  -- I used up a majority of my power, but it worked out.  Except for +++ mobs, we were able to deal with just about anything. </P> <P>So to be honest I'm liking the change so far.</P> <P>I'm not sure why other people are having problems but I was having a blast. But the wards are definitely going to be the trickiest part to deal with.</P> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Forgot to add, the way I heal is I use spiritual healing (master II, one of the [+] choices), and spiritual replenishment. I use this in tandem because of the longer reuse time for SH, I can keep using SR and warding if necessary. I've trained myself over the last year to almost never use group ward because it always took too long to cast and has an AE effect; and to almost never use group heal in combat situations unless it was real bad and also because of it's AE component. Maybe I'm being bass akwards here, but I think it's greatly helped out with this new combat revamp.</DIV> <P>Message Edited by thedump on <SPAN class=date_text>09-14-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>12:21 AM</SPAN></P><p>Message Edited by thedump on <span class=date_text>09-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>12:28 AM</span>

[Finora]

<DIV>What happened to my ability to solo is all I have to say. I was in beta but had been tradeskilling for a few days since I 'thought' they were done tinkering with the combat stuff. When I was testing the combat in beta I could solo well even though it was slow. The char I had on beta was also 2 levels lower than I am now on live.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I went to everfrost this evening to check things out since they were live...Oh dear god what a horrible surprise. I had trouble at lvl 47 with the stupid lvl 41 ice wolves that I've been killing since I was level 39. I've never been interrupted that much, even on beta when my focus skill was less than 100. I could forget about it if I got an add. I had to FLEE FOR MY LIFE from solo lvl 40 mobs, just because there was more than one of them in the solo group. That just simply should NOT be happening.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[Khorfa]

Man talk about overreacting. Most classes whine like never before after this expension, but still alot of chars are managing as good or even better than before. Please use a few days and try to learn how to play your class again. <div></div>

[Jarvahl]

<P>So Khorfang, do you play a Mystic? What do you consider an appropriate reaction in the light of the massive changes to the Mystic class, Paladin class, etc?</P> <P>My own question now is... is it worth it? Do I want to play a Mystic now when it takes so much more effort now to solo? I'll give it a week and decide.</P><p>Message Edited by Jarvahl on <span class=date_text>09-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>08:28 AM</span>

[Godflower]

<P>/cancelled</P> <P> </P>

[Banditman]

Bad tanks are a lot more obvious after this patch, that's for sure. If a tank doesn't know what he's doing, aggro goes crazy. If a tank has neglected upgrading his spells, aggro goes crazy. My group last night had multiple wipes, deaths and other "unfortunate incidents" for the first couple hours of killing L51 and 52 mobs.  Once the tank and I found our groove though, we were killing L58 mobs in Pillars of Flame with no problem.  His comment to me afterwards was "I've never had to taunt like that before, I was always able to let my DPS build some aggro". Remember, it's not just you, the healer, who is learning how to play.  Your tank is also learning again.

[b1ackartem]

I am still confused where people are getting this easier to heal crap from. I mean my 2 main heals now share a timer so I am down to the Master II at 780hp and 2 old grey ones for barley 200 a piece. Then my wards are now what 500pts and green an one with a 15 minute timer? From 2 800+ point wards? I can't cast my buffs because the constantly generate hate, if we are in a group and walk around EVERYTHING goes to me and I seem to get [Removed for Content] now, even with all white conned armor. I HATE the changes done to my class, but I have another heal comming to me at 41.6 and I guess if they might tweak the changes I should try to adventure and take advantage of the extra exp. though even the lvl 50's say we are $#^@ed... <div></div>

[Silda]

<div></div><span><blockquote><hr>b1ackartemis wrote:I am still confused where people are getting this easier to heal crap from. I mean my 2 main heals now share a timer so I am down to the Master II at 780hp and 2 old grey ones for barley 200 a piece. Then my wards are now what 500pts and green an one with a 15 minute timer? From 2 800+ point wards?<hr></blockquote></span> When you try to re-learn how to play your class after changes, you will find (supposedly)- Wards take mitigation into account now = wards more efficient = you dont have to cast blast heals nearly as much. Therefore by virtue of mana expended you are a more efficient healer. Our ward should be our most efficient heal and you should be able to use it now without the need for direct heals nearly as often as before. As far as your complaints on agro, read the 500 other threads in this forum about it. It just requires re-learning the class (im 44 and got owned for a while last night prior to changing my playstyle -oh boy was I irritated at the time- and it worked out better in the end.) <div></div><p>Message Edited by Sildaan on <span class=date_text>09-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>08:26 AM</span>

[Banditman]

Ok, lemme put the Ward numbers in perspective. Yes, no arguement, the values dropped.  Keep in mind that Reactives and Regens *also* had their values cut.  I still feel like we should be asking for a slight tweak upward in Ward value . . . perhaps 15 to 20 percent. Now, take Master 1 Ancestral Aegis.  It was 1500 points worth of Ward on Monday evening.  It's now 915 points on Wednesday morning. However! 915 HP of Ward on a tank with 50% mitigation is the equivalent of an 1830 HP Ward when mitigation isn't considered. 915 HP of Ward on a tank with 66% mitigation is the equivalent of a 2772 HP Ward when mitigation isn't considered. 915 HP of Ward on a tank with 75% mitigation is the equivalent of a 3660 HP Ward when mitigation isn't considered. 915 HP of Ward on a tank with 80% (capped) mitigation is the equivalent of a 4575 HP Ward when mitigation isn't considered.

[DobermanChampion]

<P>My experiences were positive..</P> <P>In a giant/cyclone group near the Ancient Tables instance zone my.</P> <P>- Wards lasting against 58-60 Heroic Mobs</P> <P>- Oberon now usefull, I used it against some named mobs after slowing and debuffing (the ward stayed up until it expired)</P> <P>- I am not sure about Mourning Soul, but, when the spell was on the tank the tank did not seem to take as much dmg.</P> <P>- I was main healing the group no problem while taking on the raptors (blue and yellow conned mobs) while the templar was afk for dinner.</P> <P>So far so good.</P> <P>Mishra<BR>50 Lvl Mystic<BR>Mob Squad<BR>Kithicor</P> <P>I did however draw some aggro when the tank pulled, but I figured that was from Runic and/or  when the tank chained pulled while Ancestral Aegis was still on the tank.</P> <P> </P> <P> </P> <P>Message Edited by DobermanChampion on <SPAN class=date_text>09-14-2005</SPAN> <SPAN class=time_text>09:09 AM</SPAN></P><p>Message Edited by DobermanChampion on <span class=date_text>09-14-2005</span> <span class=time_text>09:10 AM</span>

[b1ackartem]

I haven't prewarded, I didn't last night. I still pulled hate like no other. With a really good tank who never had this problem before. Even with the new ward set up my ward was taken down faster than before and I STILL couldn't get the heals out like I needed to. Trust me I went and relearned it all, I spent time looking at the respec etc. I shall try again with a tank who has had more time dealing with the changes and see how that goes. But really I am upset, and if by 3 weeks of playing one end doesn't come up (their side or me learning to enjoy the new mystic) I just don't feel it's worth the money at the time. :shrug: <div></div>

[Eepop]

I havent grouped yet, but at 41 with appr4s/adept 1s and mostly crafted gear I was having no trouble with single mob solo encounters up through orange con.  Beat up to a 3 mob solo encounter, but it was close ( and thus challenging and exciting).  Use debuffs they help.  Use your most recent spells in a line.  Using spectral ward at 28 is going to cause problems.  The level of the spell means alot more now.  You can't use spectral ward and Healing Ritual until you are 40 any more. <div></div>

[Kyin]

<P>I still dont see how you think that your healing is nerfed when the mobs damage is nerfed.  I have yet to loose anyone in a group killing heriocs 9 levels higher than me.  My group where I was only healer would pull 2-3 groups of heroic that were level 52-53 and I still was able to heal everyone even though it got interesting at times on what spell I would do next to keep people alive.  Oberon is by far the best spell we get. Oberon is adept 1 for me (have a ruby waiting on a sage) and Runic Talisman is Master 1.  RT gives my group an 89point regen ward every 8 secs.  This means you will pick agro but at the beginning of a fight if your tank is not doing what he is suppose to be doing.  I have had no problem with agro though, yes i have pulled adds off the tank becuase he hadn't taunted the group yet but it wasnt anything a taunt couldnt fix.  The game is harder, soloing I can solo back to back and not have to much worries.  I will go down to about half HP on 50 51 mobs but the fight is interesting.  I soloed a solo encounter of 3 yellow 53 down arrows and found it to be very tough though I still won with little trouble.  My best stratigy is to pull with a slow and throw Oberon up till it runs out.  By then there mana will be gone or almost gone leaving you with a much easier fight.  My suggestion is to play around with your spells, try new things, try new combos.  Just because you are not clicking at the same speed you were 2 days ago doesnt mean its doom and gloom time.  If you can not tell I love the changes.  I have a few things I want changed, I would love a better group cure but I have yet to find anything that I couldnt ward the damage away.  Study your spells, get a good tank that has done the same.  Agro is not an issue unless your in a group without a tank and if your spaming wards and heals.  </P> <P>BTW, you have 3 heals.  Single target faster cast lower hp heal. Single target Big heal.  and Group heal.  note group heal is much lower mana now and is very effective.  Later when you get Torpor and Protective Spirits you will want to upgrade those ASAP for the healing power they will give you when wards are up.  Group ward is still great to keep up, I normal start with a single on MT then cast group ward and sit back and watch the nukers do their work.  If anyone gets hurt its nothing a 1200 hp heal couldnt fix.  </P> <P>Again the biggest things with our heals I would like see changed is the Max hp changed to a ward instead.  As of now the max hp part of our spell gets used about 0.5% of the time.  A ward would be much better and have the same effect as Max HP increase idea.  As of now with a Master 1 Enlighted healing Max hp increas is something like 200-300hp increase, so a 200-300hp ward instead would be much better and would help close the gap in the healing balance area that I hear about (not totally done testing currently)  Also fix the EB.</P> <P> </P> <P>Thank you SoE for fixing alot of the things and making my class a more enjoyable experience.  So far I think you did a great job with the changes and the expansion is great.</P> <P>Gustave</P> <P>Nektulos server</P> <P> </P>

[Faddor B]

I hate my Mystic now...quitting or rerolling. I agree with the original post entirely...I feel like a total [Removed for Content]. Couldn't have imagined feeling weaker than before. <div></div>

[Terq]

<DIV> <P>Anyone who actually thinks that we are worse off as a healer is either still playing their "Monday Mystic" and hasn't bothered to figure out the changes (including reading the patch notes), or simply never knew what spells did what to begin with.  As far as keeping an exp group alive, the "Tuesday Mystic" is 10X better than the "Monday Mystic" was.  </P> <P>Now raiding might be a different story.  The lack of group heals will definitely impact raiding short term.  It is yet to be seen whether the fast cast/fast refresh single target cures can keep up.  <BR></P></DIV>

[Finora]

<P>Khorfang---Was in beta could play and solo just fine there and was actually LOOKING FORWARD to most of the changes. Didn't expect to be completely gimped in the solo game when it went live since I wasn't in beta.</P> <P>I hope the group aspect is as good as people are saying. I don't want to have to play an alt ...</P> <P> </P>

[Fanga]

I have a 44 Mystic and I am happy with the changes.  Healing is much improved for me although it is a little trickier to manage aggro now.

[tebion]

i'd say in the state shaman were before the patch, almost any change would have been positive for us <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> and i personally dig the changes, sure, there will have to be alot of tweaking, aggro still feels a bit weird now and then and i dont think we are really balanced with the other priests yet, but we are as close as never before to it and it actually feels GOOD to be able to do my job <img src="/smilies/3b63d1616c5dfcf29f8a7a031aaa7cad.gif" border="0" alt="SMILEY" /> <div></div>

[BigDa]

<P>I don't get you guys. Mystics were in a bad way pre-DoF. I'm a 43 mystic with no better than Adept1 spells and bought equipment - nothing amazing. I can solo yellow single-up mobs (just) which is very good given the new /con system. I can solo yellow down-arrows all day long with very little resting. I can keep a level 50 paladin up against level 48 double-up mobs.</P> <P>I am the first to moan when something is wrong, but it's looking way better than a few months ago IMHO.</P> <P>Sure there are issues (the ward on one of our conc buffs gets us aggro instantly when something is attacked - our Haze is a little underpowered and doesn't last long enough - our direct heals are a little inefficient - the STA/STR doesn't last long enough to be useful - losing Maul is annoying) but none of that is stopping me/us performing.</P> <P>If you are having problems, /report with as much detail as possible, guys - you'll be helping us all!</P>

[MRRX]

<P>I had a blast with the combat update.</P> <P>I did not group, only soloed, at level 28.     First I went through all my spells carefully then settled on this set.</P> <P>Pull harder mobs with Howl of Ancients, follow up with Delusion.</P> <P>Grey Wind - DOT - For an HO.</P> <P>Mix up grey wind and dots to complete further HO's until it dies.</P> <P>How did this work ?     Didn't die once.    I did get killed when walking around but that's expected, I was exploring Nek for the first time & got too close to ^^^ white treants.</P> <P>What did this work against ?</P> <P>Greens - Up to ^.    Groups of up to 3 no-arrows.</P> <P>Blues - Up to ^.    Group of three no-arrows forced me to run.</P> <P>Whites, Yellows - Singles with no arrow.</P> <P>I wish I had tried yesterday to kill oranges, given the patch today to make oranges & reds more difficult.        I wonder how I can do against a green ^^; orange; or green ^^^.     I get the sense from everyones comments that green ^^'s will cream me.</P> <P>Then again I also got the idea from forum posts that the combat upgrade was going to be a gigantic clusterflock.    My experience is the polar opposite - I really like what I've seen.</P> <P><A href="http://eqjournal.blogspot.com" target=_blank>http://eqjournal.blogspot.com</A></P> <P> </P>

[Finora]

<DIV>Just an FYI, I've posted several times about having to run from green mobs. However after some testing I did make an interesting observation. There seems to be a screw-up with the expanded con range and the mitigation/avoidance scaling by level of the monster you are fighting.<BR><BR>Any solo encounter that cons blue: I have little trouble with. Takes a bit longer than before but they aren't extremely difficult fights. I didn't find any white or yellows to test so I don't know about them, I'm going to assume from what I've heard from other people these shouldn't be impossible either.<BR><BR>Any solo encounter that was pre-revamp grey to me for several levels but is now green: quite easy. Just as you would expect from something that green.<BR><BR>Any solo encounter that had JUST TURNED grey on my last ding (for me level 40-41 mobs) kick my butt. They are just inexplicably hard. I get interrupts left and right, get hit for more damage, hit them for less damage. The works. It is as if I am fighting a much higher level creature than I actually am.</DIV> <P>So there is some issue somewhere that was overlooked I'm thinking.</P> <P> </P> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV> </DIV>

[wag]

<P>well im a 51 (yeah! dinged last night) mystic on lavastorm server.</P> <P> </P> <P>i have 2 instant powerless wards, and im guessing 4 others. Good news is wards actually work now! bad news is it will cause MT to lose aggro. Seemed the more i cast it the more the MT would lose aggro. So we tried to figure it out. He got information stating that the wards reduce there abality to keep aggro. From what i noticed he was right. When i didnt cast wards and tried to just heal (wich kinda makes me worthless) he kept aggro easy. But when i did wards after a while it would go nuts. granted the MT didnt take much damage heh.</P> <P> </P> <P>Also reduced my healing abliity. i used to be fine in at it. I had 4 single heals and a group. now i have 2 single and a group. well i still have all theold ones its just they share a stupid timer.</P> <P>I actually like the changes ( except for the dumb water breathing spell. i do not want to walk on the bottom!). But i really hope wards are not working as intended. it should not screw up the MT's ability to handle aggro. if it is then we are kinda screwed. </P> <P> </P> <P>I have played with it today. i did manage to cut down aggro but when we run into to much trouble and i ward like mad all hell breaks loose! </P> <P> </P> <P>Tandian </P> <P>51 mystic </P> <P>TDS lavastorm</P> <P> </P>

[Banditman]

Accordant Spirits is your friend.

[Jays]

<P>It is far to early to start saying "I'm crap and I'm gonna re-roll" I am a lvl 50 Mystic and to be honest I have not had any major problems apart from aggro on the pull when in groups, or have I come across anything that makes me feel gimped. I feel reasonably comfortable with the changes and now enjoy healing using Wards unlike before LU 13. </P> <P>Stick at it, don't give up, get yourself the best equipment you can lay your hands on either by questing or buying on the broker. A decent sized power pool and power regen make a huge difference to how comfortable you are playing your Mystic. </P> <P>Give things time to settle down, there will be no doubt countless little changes and tweaks in the coming weeks. We have just been given a new box of tools and now we have to find the best way of using them. If after we have explored all the possibilities something is [Removed for Content] then start posting and petitioning until then evaluate not denigrate.</P> <P>Ummari</P> <P>Lvl 50 Mystic of Synergy</P> <P>Splipaw Server</P>

[CazTirin]

<div></div>I play a Fury. I play a god. Even after The Change, I still play a god. HOWEVER, I play a god that has been mortally wounded and is waiting to die.  My fiancee plays a Shaman/Mystic.  She can barely solo the things that I laugh at.  She's VERY good at her class.  So it isn't lack of skill.  Our friend plays a Conjuror.  He can't solo [Removed for Content] without taking a Rodney King beating, and that's against a solo mob, he can forget an encounter of 2 or more.  He is also extremely good at his class, so lack of skill is again not the issue. Before The Change (BC) they could solo the writs for their level in a reasonable amount of time.  Now, to solo ONE writ takes them almost 3 times as long, if not more. Our guild is not a "I want to solo" guild.  But there are several time zones among our members so we can't always be on when everyone else is.  Sometimes only one person is on and that means, they can practically forget about doing writs to advance the guild. But it's not about the writs, it's about the fact that SOE is FORCING us, the paying customers, to play in a way that we may not want to.  A lot of us are having to go back to zones that we left behind because we had outleveled it.  For me, that means Thundering Steppes.  I don't really like the idea of going and beating on gnolls some more.  I was happy when I could quit that, and I don't like that I am being herded like a cow to do so. I know a few people that don't like grouping a lot, and now they are not being given any "reasonable" alternative.  Fighting greens until you hit level 30. 40, etc is anything but a reasonable alternative. I can take yellows under certain conditions solo.  I don't know many others that can do that.  I can take a group of 4+ yellows solo if I'm careful. I am still debating whether or not this "Change" has broken the game.  SOE didn't just change the combat system.  They completely threw the old one away and implented an entirely new one.  I've yet to meet anyone that believes their class to be what it was a week ago. I won't quit the game because I enjoy spending time with my fiancee in the game.  However, I have heard her on several occasions state that she can hardly wait for DDO and/or Vanguard.  She's said this more often and with more zeal than ever before since "The Change".  I grudgingly sacrifice my hard earned money to SOE only because there is nothing else out there right now that is as in-depth and complex.  WoW is fun, but more in a "I need my nicotine fix" sorta way.  Lineage 2 I can play whenever I want for free due to the abundance of private servers available though I usually don't want to play that.  So I'm left with a game that the deveolpers have possibly broken in the name of "balance and improvement". I am going to start writing to Sigil and Turbine beggin them to let me into the Closed Beta just so I can play a game that I KNOW is going to have extreme and drastic changes unexpectedly.  What SOE did was a beta move, not something that should have been done AFTER retail. Sorry if I rambled a bit.  I'm trying to write this after working all night and I'm super tired. <div></div><p>Message Edited by CazTirin on <span class=date_text>09-16-2005</span> <span class=time_text>08:02 AM</span>

[Liw]

I play a lvl 38 mystic.  Overall the changes have been good for me, in the grouping sense.  My wards work more effectively and efficiently, I can control my mp usage alot better now with them because yes even tho they only last for 30secs, they dont cost me the earth.  If I ward well in a grp i don't have to worry too much about the heals, and when i do have to heal I have enough mp to do so.  Ive noticed also my debuffs are now really worth it compared to before.   My role in groups has not really changed post combat changes, altho I ward more (because of the reduced duration of them) and I debuff a hell of alot more.  There are classes that have done alot worse.  I group with a Paladin friend and a Conjuror, pre combat changes we were great, the paladin was good at holding aggro and the damage was good.  Post combat changes we have had to be extremely careful in what we take on, the Paladin's damage has gone down and the Conjuror's pet is insane with taking aggro from the paladin and if it drops its terribly difficult for the paladin to pull the aggro again.  Some might say that Paladin's are now exactly what they should have been, the supporting Tank, but my friend is finding it to be a totally different class from what he originally created.  Soloing - Basically even though grouping is better for me now than before in some respects, soloing has proven to be ALOT more difficult than before.  Because my overall dmg is down, ive found I can't hold up to things that were easy pickings for me pre combat changes.  When I do I end up totally out of MP or with a small % of HP left and cringeing. I have found that SOE seem to be totally for the grouping over the soloing.  Yes that is a good thing, but sometimes players like to solo, and were previously I would solo mob encounters the same level as me with ease, now I can't even risk doing that.  I now have difficulty soloing encounters that are 4 levels below me, none heroic and all down arrows.  I play my class well, this is going to take some major adjustment, as I now have to relearn how to play my mystic if I do want to solo. <div></div>

[Ellywen]

<DIV>I really like the changes.  After I stopped using Runic Talisman in a group, I never got agro again.  I solo yellow ^'s easily, and though it's not a very quick fight, I'm not a scout, and my cleric friends are faring the same.  My ward can run to expiration, ehter it be on an avoidance tank or a plate tank.  And it's kinda funny - I suppose we technically have less heals than before, but, I find I rarely need to use them - my ward's better.  In a raid, I toss up a ward, and let the clerics heal up the remaining dmg while the ward is running.  In a group (if I am only healer) my two direct heals in case I slack on recasting the ward are more than sufficient.</DIV>

[Eepop]

<span><blockquote><hr>Liwet wrote: Soloing - Basically even though grouping is better for me now than before in some respects, soloing has proven to be ALOT more difficult than before.  Because my overall dmg is down, ive found I can't hold up to things that were easy pickings for me pre combat changes.  When I do I end up totally out of MP or with a small % of HP left and cringeing. I have found that SOE seem to be totally for the grouping over the soloing.  Yes that is a good thing, but sometimes players like to solo, and were previously I would solo mob encounters the same level as me with ease, now I can't even risk doing that.  I now have difficulty soloing encounters that are 4 levels below me, none heroic and all down arrows.  I play my class well, this is going to take some major adjustment, as I now have to relearn how to play my mystic if I do want to solo. <div></div><hr></blockquote>I have had the exact opposite experience at level 41.  Monsters that tore me to pieces (Pit Champion for example) I can now handle. I think if you do take the time to relearn, you will be pleasantly suprised and able to take some monsters you couldn't before.</span><div></div>

[windspeaks]

<P>I have been reading thru posts, and after my experiences I am seeing a trend here...</P> <P>It would appear that the ones who see the changes as good, are higher lvl, or better supported by higher end gear. Which brings me to my point. Again they have tuned the game to the maximum skilled/supported players as they did in EQ1. </P> <P>What does this mean? It means that the feedback and or base they made changes based on were on the high end of the scale to make it so these better players dont "sweep" the game. Can anyone say "Havenlight"? No offense to this guild. They were able to accomplish things no others could. But by their efficiency, they set a standard that SOE took as a norm.</P> <P>The changes may be great for those who can afford them, or have the ability to handle Super fast paced battles. The  ammount of casting has doubled in combat now, as if it wasn't fast enough before, and the price of items will now skyrocket because people will need to buy better gear to keep up.</P> <P>This means the poor get poorer and the rich get richer to coin a phrase...</P> <P>No I am not happy with the changes! I dont have but a few problems with the way spells were nerfed, but i see a BIG imbalance here as far as players. Some folks just dont like having to keep up with the jones's. This is EVERYONES game, not just a select few who see this as good.</P> <P>/shrug</P> <P>Fix the wards, let us heal too.. My God the Cleric was and still is the best healer...</P> <P>And for Justice sakes FIX THE DOTS! Disease and poison are NOT the same.</P> <P>Ravenhulk 29 Mystic</P> <P> </P> <P> </P>

[Banditman]

Wards are fixed. Mystics don't have a Poison DoT, never have.

[thedu]

<span><blockquote><hr>windspeaks wrote:<div></div><p>It would appear that the ones who see the changes as good, are higher lvl, or better supported by higher end gear. Which brings me to my point. Again they have tuned the game to the maximum skilled/supported players as they did in EQ1. </p> <hr></blockquote> I've had craptastic gear for the longest time. In fact I hardly played for four months, and I missed out on lot good gear from raids and in general questing.  In the last three months I've worked as hard as I could to afford whatever I could, right now it's either fulginate or feysteel. Not imbued and not ebon.  Yes, gear does make a big difference, but how you play with what you got makes an even bigger difference.</span><div></div>

[Banditman]

It was the same way in EQLive, even though many hand wringing whiners complained. No, my Shaman in EQLive couldn't heal as well as a Cleric, I can't say he could. However, I could do things that very few other Shaman, and a good many Clerics didn't.  I was simply better with what I had than they were. The same has been true for 11 months in EQ2.  No, I didn't have the tools that other healers did, but I got by as best I could.

[Dinal]

<P>If all of the sniffling crybabies threatening to quit every time there is an adjustment would go ahead and leave already, these boards would be so much more enjoyable to read.</P> <P> </P> <P>Dinalle Arcana</P> <P>45 Mystic/Toxxulia/eq2</P> <P>68 Shaman/Luclin/eq1</P>

[tebion]

<span><blockquote><hr>windspeaks wrote:<div></div> <p>It would appear that the ones who see the changes as good, are higher lvl, or better supported by higher end gear. Which brings me to my point. Again they have tuned the game to the maximum skilled/supported players as they did in EQ1. </p><hr></blockquote>well, if you call only fulginate (cept the ebon bp) without any adept III spell and only quested stuff, no fabled no nothing higher end gear ... well dunno. even with the normal non rare tradeskill items mystics have a much much better life than before the combat revamp.</span><div></div>

[BALTO]

" It was the same way in EQLive, even though many hand wringing whiners complained. No, my Shaman in EQLive couldn't heal as well as a Cleric, I can't say he could. However, I could do things that very few other Shaman, and a good many Clerics didn't.  I was simply better with what I had than they were. The same has been true for 11 months in EQ2.  No, I didn't have the tools that other healers did, but I got by as best I could. " Left the game many months ago, once i was noticen our gimpness before many others even believed or came to this relization. stuck it out for a bit more till our one tool, debuff/slow was nerfed below cleric...so now the cleric had a better debuff an heal, hit cancel not long after that move to the subscription. as for the today's mystic/defiler im still try'n to figure out where we fit in the scheme of things, before i choose which side to take; the fan boys, or the disgruntled player. was dissapointed an [Removed for Content] when a green^^^ heroic (non named) mob agrod onto me an dropped me while tryn to get outa the engagement zone...[Removed for Content] at the con system say'n i should take this blue^ solo out, but it kills me an laughs at my attempt... ya my two wards now mitigate damage, but...at what cost...AT WHAT cost lol...i'll stick it out for a bit, like i did duren the pay to beta release of this game. as for banditman, you've always been a good poster, but i feel your heading the way of Moronguard (yes if you read his posts from the start till present, that nick fits him well)... he use to stick up for the EQ players calling the devs on their *explicit remark here*, till SOE (sadistic Online enterainment) bought him out an hired him into the fold to hush up his harsh postings of days gone past against sony... well i'd rant more but back to figure'n out if SOE deserves my buisness, scales are sway'n to vangard, which cracks me up due to its not even out or public beta heh. <div></div>

[Caldabuse]

Don't like it. Level 33, a few rare things. I can still kill most of what I could kill before, by being more defensive. Problem is, it's boring. The lack of procs coupled with the reduced duration on my DoTs means I was hit with a significant DPS nerf. I mean... a slightly downward gameplay adjustment. This means I basically just sit around waiting for the mob to die. I can kill yellows fine. It just takes forever. I can solo blues fine. It just takes forever. Everyone loves grinding, right? I know, I know. Learn to play. Got any tips to raise my DPS? Cold Flame and Miasma are both Adept III. I could possibly respect to Master II Cold Flame, though. I just hated the idea of basically wasting a rare I worked hard to get. Better weapon? I guess I could get a rare crafted one with a proc. It'd cost me a ton for a minor gain, though. Better armor? Running out of power isn't the problem. I'm just honestly puzzled. I expected to get a significant boost in group healing and to otherwise be left alone. I mean, I wasn't one of the ones killing heroic encounters. I could solo things like Delving into the Darkness, though it was somewhat of a challenge. I was a mid-level player that soloed most of the time and was fine with that. The changes made in the combat revamp did not make my game more challenging, it did not make it more exciting, it simply nerfed it. I desperately want to like this game. The thing is, if the revamp had included some additional abilities, then i might feel differently. When you get right down to it, our (as well as most classes) spell selection is incredibly limited, allowing for very little tactical variation. There is nothing to Mystics that make you feel like a mystic as opposed to any other sort of healer. Anyway, I've gone way off topic. The point is, I can still solo. It's just not fun. <div></div>

[Prismata]

<BR> <BLOCKQUOTE> <P></P> <HR> <P>Caldabuse wrote:<BR> Anyway, I've gone way off topic. The point is, I can still solo. It's just not fun.<BR></P> <BR> <HR> </BLOCKQUOTE>I agree. I duo when my ranger partner is on, but most of the time I solo. I can still do it, but what a yawn. If I wanted to sit around LFG to have meaningful progress I'd go back to EQ.<BR>

[Blackwolf]

<P>I spent 3 days trying to work with the changes for soloing and failed for the most part, sure I could solo the occasional yellow but a single add, no matter the con, would cause a speedy death. Yes, I've spent hours trying to work out new startegies with the changed spells but soloing is pretty well dead for me as far as I can see. Grouping seemed to be fine against single con encounters but are these not suited for a lone player? If so then they would pose little challenge for a group anyway. So off we go and encounter a lvl 30^^^ named (group is lvl 31 to 34) and he wipes the floor with us, now our group was small but pre patch I would have easily kept the tank up through this fight, we add a mage and a bruiser for attempt 2 and he goes down easily, ok named mob should be harder so no real complaint there just observation on the difference from before CU. For the heck of it we take EL boat ride, lots of regular heroic groups to work with, keeping in mind that I had never done this ride as lone healer in the group I expect to be challenged considering my largest single target heal is now only for 266, we have 34 palidan, 32 conjuror, 31 bruiser, 31 mystic (me) and an enchanter, we handle the groups of blue heroics pretty well, things are of course very different for me and I adjust fairly well I think and manage as primary healer but of course we wipe on the named baddy at the end, I just couldn't keep up with the damage being dealt. Honestly I have never been so confused about my feelings for a game change and in 6+ years of playing SoE games I've never had this hard of a time over coming a class change, I see on the boards here it seems about evenly split between those that love and those that hate(though it does seem the higher levels tend to like it more) with those that love mostly just saying to relearn your class but not really giving much advice to your brothers and sister having problems. How about sharing some of what you have changed about you playing to compensate here.</P>

[Domini]

<DIV>I am a level 45 Mystic and I am soloing level 51 singles with relative ease in DoF.  I can still do my job healing as Main healer as long as the MT is fairly competent.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>I am using the following equipment...</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV><A href="http://eq2players.station.sony.com/en/pplayer.vm?characterId=228897201" target=_blank>http://eq2players.station.sony.com/en/pplayer.vm?characterId=228897201</A></DIV>