Post by TeeWee on Jul 26, 2014 4:05:34 GMT -5
Well, we've taken the master bladesman out of the dungeons and into the Forgotten Waystation. And I must say, he's a blast and a very different beast compared to good old Vraes.
Where Vraes' modus operandi seemed to be Chaaaaaarge!!! Kincaid is much more thoughtful, tactical, sneaky even. He's not above using chokepoints and other terrain to his advantage.
Personality is also very different. I imagine Vraes to be a big veteran soldier who has always lived with other soldiers and helped new recruits survive a bit longer without actually taking a large leadership role. Down to earth but quietly confident in his abilities. Kincaid seems much more a loner, a Zorro-type hero who uses his extreme skills and his charm to get out of trouble. He's good at what he does and he knows it and is not beyond advertising his skills.
Skill wise, Kincaid is obviously not a tank like Vraes. Kincaid will be unable to absorb beatings like Vraes can. Kincaid can, however, simply stand around and not get hit at all. He barely needed Kyera coming out of Red Hill for healing. Sure Parry is a great skill to negate a melee hit (beware, it won't work against Ranged attacks!) and his thrown weapons are fun too.
Most of his skills have to do with finesse. Adding Dodge, Accuracy and Crit, rather than huge amounts of base damage. Also, at first look it seems like he has multiple skills that remove Dodge / Parry from opponents. I haven't given it serious thought yet, they may stack wonderfully or they may be too similar to warrant splitting points between them.
As for play style, I imagine it's useless to try and make him capable of absorbing large amounts of damage the way Vraes can. If you want Vraes, choose Vraes and not Kincaid. Kincaid will probably revolve much more around movement and avoiding damage. Not exactly by hit and run, retreating to safety (which is how I envision melee-Vincent), but much having a fluid front line with a long running battle, avoiding hits through Sure Parry and extreme Dodge. He probably cannot hold a front line by himself: Kincaid + Kjartan + Ranged Kyera + Tamilin is likely a doomed spec; Vraes would also have a very hard time, but I think he has a bit more chance to survive by himself.
All in all, Kincaid will be your finesse bladesman. He can be similar to Selen in that they both use accuracy and Crit% to kill and both rely on large amounts of Dodge, parry and mobility to survive rather than by absorbing damage. There are some differences in the curses, where Kincaid attacks Parry and Dodge and Selen attacks damage output and damage soak.
But Kincaid + Pinning Shot Selen + Ashes Kjartan should be able to make even a Deathkin clumsy! Coupled to Kincaid's +Acc party buff and gone are the days of a gazillion misses before connecting one blow on those vile creatures.
I'm looking forward to taking this character a little bit further to see how he plays out. For now, great work, it opens up really different play strategies and I'm already having fun!
Where Vraes' modus operandi seemed to be Chaaaaaarge!!! Kincaid is much more thoughtful, tactical, sneaky even. He's not above using chokepoints and other terrain to his advantage.
Personality is also very different. I imagine Vraes to be a big veteran soldier who has always lived with other soldiers and helped new recruits survive a bit longer without actually taking a large leadership role. Down to earth but quietly confident in his abilities. Kincaid seems much more a loner, a Zorro-type hero who uses his extreme skills and his charm to get out of trouble. He's good at what he does and he knows it and is not beyond advertising his skills.
Skill wise, Kincaid is obviously not a tank like Vraes. Kincaid will be unable to absorb beatings like Vraes can. Kincaid can, however, simply stand around and not get hit at all. He barely needed Kyera coming out of Red Hill for healing. Sure Parry is a great skill to negate a melee hit (beware, it won't work against Ranged attacks!) and his thrown weapons are fun too.
Most of his skills have to do with finesse. Adding Dodge, Accuracy and Crit, rather than huge amounts of base damage. Also, at first look it seems like he has multiple skills that remove Dodge / Parry from opponents. I haven't given it serious thought yet, they may stack wonderfully or they may be too similar to warrant splitting points between them.
As for play style, I imagine it's useless to try and make him capable of absorbing large amounts of damage the way Vraes can. If you want Vraes, choose Vraes and not Kincaid. Kincaid will probably revolve much more around movement and avoiding damage. Not exactly by hit and run, retreating to safety (which is how I envision melee-Vincent), but much having a fluid front line with a long running battle, avoiding hits through Sure Parry and extreme Dodge. He probably cannot hold a front line by himself: Kincaid + Kjartan + Ranged Kyera + Tamilin is likely a doomed spec; Vraes would also have a very hard time, but I think he has a bit more chance to survive by himself.
All in all, Kincaid will be your finesse bladesman. He can be similar to Selen in that they both use accuracy and Crit% to kill and both rely on large amounts of Dodge, parry and mobility to survive rather than by absorbing damage. There are some differences in the curses, where Kincaid attacks Parry and Dodge and Selen attacks damage output and damage soak.
But Kincaid + Pinning Shot Selen + Ashes Kjartan should be able to make even a Deathkin clumsy! Coupled to Kincaid's +Acc party buff and gone are the days of a gazillion misses before connecting one blow on those vile creatures.
I'm looking forward to taking this character a little bit further to see how he plays out. For now, great work, it opens up really different play strategies and I'm already having fun!
but Kincaid is tons of fun and as an overall addition to the game is just right.
