Mechanisto

Aaah so much interesting discussion! I need to start reading more of this forum in general. And no, I'm not taking any of your responses as a personal attack. There was a reason I established myself as a noob when I first showed up. 🙂 I think I'd be fine with it changing. And I'll admit that, right now, it's probably more powerful than I give it credit for. Also, I haven't really used Defensive Opportunity much, so I should probably play around with it before I do any more complaining. On the topic of just giving Sentinels crits, it might be an easy and effective fix... but it does feel a little bit like homogenization. I do like the idea of giving the Sentinel a clicky button for activation, as with Dominators. A toggle would be neat, as others have mentioned... if the toggle is off, you're in Defensive mode. If it's on, you're in Offensive mode. And I do like the idea of Sentinels focusing more on single-target damage and leaving larger group nukes to the Blasters. Hmmm... What if Defensive Opportunity was something you used on an ally? It could link both characters together for a short time, boosting both character's damage/defense/to-hit/whatever and maybe reducing the threat both characters generate. The sentinel's hit cap wouldn't matter as much because the targeted ally is also getting the damage bonus, and it would help take pressure off the team's main tank so he can worry about the larger battle instead of chasing vulnerable stragglers. Sentinels could become a Blaster's best friend Maybe too fiddly to be practical in a really big group where all sorts of chaos is happening at once. But I could see Sentinels focusing more on single-target or small-group damage, so maybe they could serve as a "single-ally tank" as well? Like a bodyguard or something? Now I'm daydreaming again. You're not the only one throwing random stuff at the wall, oldskool. 🙂 I've said it before, but I think I like Sentinels precisely because they're slow, steady, reliable and consistent. They're cautious and patient. They don't have the massive stand-out advantages of Blasters or Tanks, but they also have none of their crippling weaknesses (Blasters are fragile, Tanks are melee). I really do think there's a place in the game for an AT like that. I'm only making suggestions for a more interesting Sentinel mechanic because that's what sets them apart. In terms of general statistical performance, they're middle of the road. And I'm okay with that remaining the case.

I love hearing stories like this. Wish I had some of my own. Another question. Do people think Sentinels should be lone wolf opportunists who stay on the edge of battle and do their own thing? Or should they have a trick up their sleeve that can help the whole team? If they're really just ranged Scrappers that require less babysitting from a Main Tank, then maybe the former is best. But I'd personally prefer to see them function as tough damage dealers with a tactical support gimmick. Stalkers deal massive sneak attack damage, but can also apply a Demoralize/Fear effect to other nearby enemies. It helps a team, sure, but also makes it easier for a solo Stalker to pick them off one by one. They're certainly no substitute for a Controller or Dominator, but it's still a really neat effect that's thematically appropriate and further separates them from Scrappers. It's not a critical ability, but Stalkers would feel a little less satisfying if it were removed. At the very least, I do think that a Sentinel's damage should be equal to a Scrapper's when the Sentinel's special mechanic is active, whatever that mechanic might be. If the mechanic doesn't help the team, it should make the Sentinel's damage slightly superior to a Scrapper's. Kind of how a Brute's damage is equal or slightly superior to a Scrapper's when their fury bar is full, but fury takes more effort to maintain. Wait... is a Brute's damage equal or better than a Scrappers when their Fury is full? Now I'm getting paranoid...

I think I might be engaging in two separate arguments at once: "Are Sentinels effective?" and "Are Sentinels interesting and distinct?" In my view it's like... well... I remember back on live when Stalkers had a very significant movement penalty while stealthed. It made it frustrating and difficult to get into position while on a large team, so I only played Stalkers solo or on very small teams with close friends. And I loved Stalkers, even then. But it would've been nice to be part of a team. Imagine if somebody had suggested "Well, just get rid of the Stalker's stealth and give them random crits to make up for it." Stalkers aren't Scrappers. They have very similar roles and power sets, but they play completely differently. I'm sure nobody here is arguing that Stalkers are redundant or ineffective, so it's not the best comparison... but I've seen people suggest that the Opportunity mechanic should just be removed, and the Sentinel's damage should be increased. I don't want Sentinels to be turned into nothing more than tougher Blasters. Yes, the Opportunity mechanic is mediocre and clunky. But I'd rather see it fixed than removed. In any case, I'm speaking only as a newcomer to all this. I honestly didn't realize there were such long-standing arguments on the topic. Thanks very much for explaining the finer details, and for being patient with me!

Aaah no! The dead horse got up and is chasing me!!! Apologies. I was kind of trying to suggest that primary comparisons aren't that useful. I've always thought of Blasters as Ranged/Melee hybrids. I recently made a Devices Blaster with no primary powers at all and I'm liking it more than I thought I would. I like how Sentinels are a different playstyle, and I don't think a pure damage boost will make them stand out in any interesting way. They might still need a damage boost if their damage is outright broken, though. Sorry if it sounded like I was suggesting otherwise.

Then why is nobody comparing Sentinel primaries to Blaster primaries? I think we agree that "it really brings nothing special to the table that another AT cannot fulfill". I just think maybe Sentinels should focus a bit more on the "something special" than just raw damage. I'd love to see an AT that specializes in single-target debuff, and has slightly above average damage/defense. I will confess, though, that I don't have as much experience with Sentinels in high-end content. If their damage is not merely lackluster but downright abysmal, that's a problem that needs to be fixed. All I know is they feel unexceptional at low levels, and it sounds like this problem doesn't go away as they advance. To me, that suggests there is a problem flat across the board.

Um... if they were made to do damage, why is everybody complaining about their low damage? Not being sarcastic. Genuinely confused. I figured they were Tank/Damage hybrids, the way Dominators are Ranged/Melee hybrids. They can do a lot of damage, but it's not necessarily why you bring one along. Though to be honest, when I said sentinels shouldn't be "concerned with damage," I think I might have been mentally comparing them to Blasters and their main role as a stellar damage dealer. Probably just a brain burp on my part. But regardless, the developer's original design intentions aren't what matters here. Only the reality. You could "fix" Sentinels by giving them better defenses and making them primary tanks. Would people be happy with that? I assume not.

I don't personally think the Sentinel should be concerned with DPS, but it does feel bizarre that they do less than Tanks (Unless that's part of the whole "Ranged does less damage than Melee because it's safer" ethos). I feel like their offense and defense should be somewhere between tanks and scrappers, in both cases. Would it help if the T1 and T2 attacks were buffed in some way, to make it worth capping off a rotation? Maybe those two attacks could take on a drastically different form when they trigger the opportunity mechanic. Sort of like how Tidal Power makes certain Water attacks better/different, or how Savage Melee attacks change slightly as you build stacks. If you only use your T1/T2 to trigger the Opportunity, then maybe that's the point in time where it needs to shine the most. I'm running a Water/Bio Sentinel now, and I'm using the T1 Attack just to build Tidal Power fast. It's the first time I've ever used a T1 power at all... though dunno how long I'll keep it. On your last point, I dunno if we should ask what would make a Sentinel the same as a scrapper. I'd like something that makes the Sentinel similarly useful, but in a different way. I think the main complaint isn't that Sentinels need to be as good as Scrappers: It's that Sentinels aren't very good in general. Or at least aren't perceived as such. Note: I was running my Water/Bio Sentinel just now, and thought "Oh, yeah! I got three stacks built up! Time to use my unique sentinel abilit... oh. That's Tidal Power. Well... Nevermind then." You can't make this stuff up. 😛

I kind of figured that would be the general response. It's just not as exciting as it should be. And I'm not being cynical when I ask "Should you get excited?" Maybe a passive bonus would be better than something that requires a lot of active clicky or a sudden change in tactics. Doms and Stalkers have more active abilities that don't really require or encourage teamwork, but Sentinels seem like they were designed with this in mind... thematically if not numerically. I do think that, instead of having Offensive and Defensive opportunities, they should have seperate "Minion-Mopper" and "Boss-Buster" abilities. Maybe if you trigger the cross-hairs, it only drains a percentage of your special bar? Maybe Minions only drain it by 25% or so, and leutennants drain it by half? I'd also like a change to Defensive Opportunity so it helps the whole team in some way. But maybe not in a way that overlaps with Defenders or Controllers. Dunno what that would be, exactly. I have a sudden urge to make a Sonic/Whatever Sentinel. Curse youuuu! 😄

Hi, everybody. My name is Mechanisto, and I'm a permanoob. I never actually got any of my characters to Lv50 back when the servers were live. I still haven't figured out Incarnate powers but it's been a really fun learning process. I never did Goldside, so exploring Praetoria felt like having brand-new official content for a game I never thought I'd see again... brutally difficult content, but tons of fun! Reading this thread has been mesmerizing, mind-boggling and fascinating. I have no idea what any of these numbers mean, so I'm just going by what feels fun and engaging to me. I have one question for the more experienced players and theorycrafters out there: When you see a Sentinel's big glowy cross-hairs suddenly appear under an enemy, how does it make you feel? When I'm on a team and I see a massive flare of light, I immediately think "Oh wow, somebody pissed off the Dominator! They're in for a world of hurt now!" I feel like I should experience something similar for the Sentinel, especially because it's such a big and obvious visual effect (it's absolutely massive on certain bosses, which is awesome). When I see the big glowy crosshairs, I should immediately think: "There's the weak point! Come on, everybody, strike while the iron is hot!" I'm not sure I get that feeling now that I know exactly what Opportunity does, and how Sonic powers kind of do it better (or at least easier). Honestly, I love Sentinels as a chill, relaxing way to solo. I like how they're a middle-of-the-road, play-it-safe AT. But when I'm on a team, I want to know my allies can sometimes get excited about something I did. I'd love the Sentinel to act as a sort of "second in command" for the team: Not the official leader, but a specialized tactician who... what else... finds opportunities for the whole team to exploit. What if Offensive opportunity gives allies a damage buff that slowly increases each time they hit the target, and which persists for a short time after the enemy is defeated? Or maybe it gives all attacks against that enemy a chance to crit that scales with the rank of the enemy (Minion, Lieutenant, Boss, etc), since Sentinels are sort of like Ranged Scrappers? Maybe sometimes I should have a good reason to put the Opportunity on one of the boss's minions instead of the boss itself: What if Defensive Opportunity gave a minor Heal/End recovery to any ally that attacks the targeted enemy, and low-ranked enemies give out more healing than Lieutenants and Bosses to balance the fact that they're eliminated much more quickly? What if Opportunity applies a radial debuff to nearby enemies when the victim is defeated? Dunno if any of this is viable. Just daydreaming. But I kind of like the idea of giving Sentinels both a "routine minion-mopper" version of the power, as well as a "high powered boss-killer" version. They already have two versions of their resistance debuff that deals -5% and -20%. Maybe those could be fleshed out a bit? Maybe something that makes the T1 trigger good for minions, and the T2 Trigger good for bosses? I honestly don't care if my sentinel is contributing damage like a blaster is. Otherwise, I'd play a blaster. I care if my teammates are excited to see my special mechanic light up an enemy. The same way I get excited when I see a Dominator light up their mechanic. That's it. So what's your reaction when you see the cross-hairs? Do you get excited? Does it change how you experience the game, even just a little? Does it push you to fight harder and take advantage of a momentary opportunity? What's your reward for taking advantage of that opportunity? PS: yes, this is my first post. I'm definitely in over my head.