Energy Melee needs love

[Nether]

It's no secret that Energy Melee needs some rework. It was once one of the best power sets in the game, and hasn't kept up with the changes and nerfs implemented by OG devs have really hurt the set. I have a few suggestions that might help and anyone else that loves and misses energy melee can add their suggestions. 

 

-Dominator "Energy Focus" mechanic should be implemented across the board to all Energy Melee sets across all Archetypes

 

-Blaster EM boost range should be combined with build up, and whirling hands or Energy transfer should take it's place in that tier

 

-Melee power sets should get a fill the bar/build energy mechanic. Doing damage/taking damage could fill the bar, and that bar can be spent on whirling hands, total focus, or energy transfer. All will do extra damage depending on how full the bar is, but whirling hands could do a secondary debuff, total focus could have 100% stun chance with longer stun duration, and energy transfer would do pure extra damage. Using any of these powers will spend the "Energy Focus" and deplete the bar. 

 

-Obviously, shorter animation times, even just slightly. 

 

IDK, anyone have any suggestions? I really love EM, and hate to see it fall by the wayside. 

[CrimsonSurge]

I would say Energy Melee needs an extra AoE as atm it only has Whirling Hands as it's singular AoE, Energy Torrent would be my  pick since it still fits thematically with the set while giving it a cone power and kinetic melee already has a similar cone so isn't breaking from other cones that melee sets already have.

Edited April 15, 2020 by CrimsonSurge
Fixing typo and phrasing

[BrandX]

As someone who loves EM, I still feel all EM needs is substituting ET and TF with Spinning Strike and Crushing Uppercut animations.  Keep the damage, speed up the animation. 

[Rathulfr]

I am all for buffing Energy Melee to some semblance of its former glory.  I have an Invuln/EM Tanker that I'd love to dust off and play again.

 

[siolfir]

 

 

The significant part is at the bottom:

Titan Weapons will see significant adjustments in Page 6. It was going to happen on Page 5 but we want those changes to come at the same time as the update for Energy Melee and another round of Dark Melee buffs.

Page 5 was the last major patch released.

 

Soon™.

 

Personally, I'd be happy with just undoing the nerfs (old ET animation, Total Focus back to mag 4 stun) and think that all the extra mechanics are unnecessary and undesired. If you want Energy Melee with gimmicks to provide more AoE, play Rad Melee.

[Solarverse]

Give ET back its original animation and make Whirling Hands have a larger radius and problem solved. Everyone wanting to change ET into some new animation I personally feel should come second to those wanting the original back. You can't miss what you never had...we who love the ET old school animation miss it, and honestly no other animation will fill that missing hole in our hearts.

[Vulgaris]

And a small suggestion- It's ENERGY melee. But it's 80 percent smash, 20 percent energy. Could flip the values and see improvements too.

[Naraka]

12 hours ago, Nether said:

-Blaster EM boost range should be combined with build up, and whirling hands or Energy transfer should take it's place in that tier

Going to go with a no on this one.  That would either be a ridiculous buff to BU or an unnecessary nerf to Boost Range as BU is 10sec duration and 90sec rech while BR is 30sec duration 60sec rech.  So are you going to have fewer BRs or more BUs?  Or longer BUs or shorter BRs?

 

That and I don't think they need that many bonuses.  It already has TF, the best sustain click in all the blaster secondaries, and enough blaps to catch a boss off guard then sweep them off their feet.

 

Personally speaking, I think they should change Stun and all its incarnations into a cone or something so you can have AoE mez, including blasters.  I don't feel they need Whirling Hands, especially if it's getting the treatment that Dominators got.  Again, they get access to quite a bit as is.

 

12 hours ago, Nether said:

-Melee power sets should get a fill the bar/build energy mechanic. Doing damage/taking damage could fill the bar, and that bar can be spent on whirling hands, total focus, or energy transfer. All will do extra damage depending on how full the bar is, but whirling hands could do a secondary debuff, total focus could have 100% stun chance with longer stun duration, and energy transfer would do pure extra damage. Using any of these powers will spend the "Energy Focus" and deplete the bar. 

I think the Charge mechanic Doms have is all you need.  No bar necessary but I do like the concept of using the Charge mechanic to grant the various spender powers in the set different effects.  I'd like it even more if the Charge mechanic were something like Shock Therapy's Static mechanic and you could get multiple stacks and spend them individually, although the stacks would have to be harder to come by if they can be spent individually rather than all at once....of course an all-at-one spender mechanic could also be an approach, I'm just throwing other ideas in the mix.

[BrandX]

12 hours ago, Solarverse said:

Give ET back its original animation and make Whirling Hands have a larger radius and problem solved. Everyone wanting to change ET into some new animation I personally feel should come second to those wanting the original back. You can't miss what you never had...we who love the ET old school animation miss it, and honestly no other animation will fill that missing hole in our hearts.

I had the old animation.  My main and namesake was WP/EM Tanker, until they nerfed ET with that horrid animation.

 

I'm still for changing ET and TF into different animations.  Losing the 1 second animation didn't hurt me as much as just getting a really awful and long one in it's place.

[tidge]

19 hours ago, Nether said:

IDK, anyone have any suggestions? I really love EM, and hate to see it fall by the wayside. 

Many of us love EM, and with all the suggestions made over the past year I have faith in the Homecoming team to review.

 

My personal opinions (as another Invuln/EM tanker) are that I don't want gimicks, I don't want more AoE. As far as tanking with it, I want it to be the premier single-target Tank secondary, preferably by improving damage, and shortening animation (and possibly recharge) times. I think the Stun secondary effect (and power choice) is absolutely fine, and my opinion is that it was almost entirely due to the Stun effect of EM in PvP that led to the nerfs and the steadfast refusal to revisit them by the original team(s).

[BrandX]

4 minutes ago, tidge said:

Many of us love EM, and with all the suggestions made over the past year I have faith in the Homecoming team to review.

 

My personal opinions (as another Invuln/EM tanker) are that I don't want gimicks, I don't want more AoE. As far as tanking with it, I want it to be the premier single-target Tank secondary, preferably by improving damage, and shortening animation (and possibly recharge) times. I think the Stun secondary effect (and power choice) is absolutely fine, and my opinion is that it was almost entirely due to the Stun effect of EM in PvP that led to the nerfs and the steadfast refusal to revisit them by the original team(s).

 

I will agree, I like it's ST focus, it's WH PBAOE was all I needed AOE wise from it, and it's Stun aspect.  Just needs to get ported to Scrappers too!

[kenlon]

It would be nice to have an EM rework that really leans into the single-target focus. Though I do like the idea of giving the stun a small AoE, so you can apply some crowd control to clustered minions while pounding on a boss.

[Solarverse]

3 hours ago, BrandX said:

I had the old animation.  My main and namesake was WP/EM Tanker, until they nerfed ET with that horrid animation.

 

I'm still for changing ET and TF into different animations.  Losing the 1 second animation didn't hurt me as much as just getting a really awful and long one in it's place.

For me, I didn't care how long it took, I just loved the animation. That, thrust in your face animation was just epic. How long it took to animate was of little consequence to me. If they changed it back, but made it charge before the one handed thrust to your face, I would be as happy as a pig in sh*t.

[Nether]

10 hours ago, Naraka said:

Going to go with a no on this one.  That would either be a ridiculous buff to BU or an unnecessary nerf to Boost Range as BU is 10sec duration and 90sec rech while BR is 30sec duration 60sec rech.  So are you going to have fewer BRs or more BUs?  Or longer BUs or shorter BRs?

 

That and I don't think they need that many bonuses.  It already has TF, the best sustain click in all the blaster secondaries, and enough blaps to catch a boss off guard then sweep them off their feet.

 

Personally speaking, I think they should change Stun and all its incarnations into a cone or something so you can have AoE mez, including blasters.  I don't feel they need Whirling Hands, especially if it's getting the treatment that Dominators got.  Again, they get access to quite a bit as is.

 

I think the Charge mechanic Doms have is all you need.  No bar necessary but I do like the concept of using the Charge mechanic to grant the various spender powers in the set different effects.  I'd like it even more if the Charge mechanic were something like Shock Therapy's Static mechanic and you could get multiple stacks and spend them individually, although the stacks would have to be harder to come by if they can be spent individually rather than all at once....of course an all-at-one spender mechanic could also be an approach, I'm just throwing other ideas in the mix.

The reason I suggested it, is we already see this in other secondaries. Plant gives a +toxic damage, Time gives +recharge, and I know there is another I'm forgetting. Boost range feels old and clunky. I already click build up, aim, and boost range on most mobs, so I figured why not combine them? I would go with fewer BR's personally. I think EM for blasters is a far more decent place than EM for melee, given the AT, but I think it still needs love when compared to newer sets like Rad. 

[Infinitum]

1 hour ago, Solarverse said:

If they changed it back, but made it charge before the one handed thrust to your face, I would be as happy as a pig in sh*t.

Yeeeesssss.  Yes

 

[TraumaTrain]

I'd like Energy Melee ported over to scrappers.

[Haijinx]

Nerf Regen

[Myrmidon]

Water is wet, the sky is blue and Energy Melee could use some love.

[Troo]

Energy Melee for everyone!

[Taboo]

If they switched ET back that would be awesome. If they gave it to scrappers that would blow peoples minds.

[Golden Azrael]

I like the Domi' En Melee charge mechanic.  Be nice to have that on the En' Melee tank.

 

I'd change the single target stun to a an AoE target stun.

 

I like the Pom Poms on ET.  If it did revert to previous animation, keep the poms.

 

More stuns all round.  Up the stun rate.  

 

Give Energy Punch more bite.

 

Whirling hands.  Another AoE dam attack would be nice.  Whirling 'stun'?  Turn the stun into a damaging stun that is AoE?  So that it stacks with Whirling hands.

 

I like the super tanker intention of Energy Melee.  Plodding piston like devastation.

 

But I want more damage MOAR devastation.

 

Azrael.

[Taboo]

@Golden Azrael Noooo too much dude.

[Golden Azrael]

🙂

 

I'm hopeful of an energy mech' ala Dom's energy melee.  So cool.  Build it up...then POW!

 

The stun (Single Target) in Tank's energy melee?  I'd like the energy hands in the ground...BZZZZZZZZ BOOMMMMM!   Stun AOE.  And some nice dam ta boot.

 

As for the single hitting bushakka?  Double those damage numbers and we have a deal.

 

See?   Easily fixed.

 

Azrael.

[Taboo]

Still too much.

[Golden Azrael]

Lol.

 

HC will do what they must.  And I invite them to give Energy Melee the shot in the arm it needs to make it more compelling.  Energy Melee.  I can see why it was popular in the early days.

 

But it's a bit plodding and plain compared to Titan Weapons or Dual Blades where you have that compelling mechanic.

 

The Tank patch was a much needed base re-alignment.  (Upping the damage.  Radiating the footprint.  Removing the unstoppable crashes made a big difference.)

 

It seems the power patch passes are next on the list.  No drastic overhauls..?  (I think the Energy Mechanic from the Dominator Energy Melee is the way to go.  And in keeping.)

 

The stun is single target 'meh.'  That needs looking at. 

 

But leaving the old school tanker melee sets untouched isn't an option in the face of Titan Weapons.  Stuff like Energy melee.  Doesn't seem that popular compared to it.  

 

I wonder why?  (I guess the old school sets weren't flavour of the month and the latest hot set had to impress to draw people in.)

 

Stuff gets old.  Sometimes it needs a tweak or a re(total)focus to get it doing again.  

 

Oh, and Taboo.  You didn't say what you're suggestion(S) were. 🙂

 

Azrael.