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Here you go guys. The format is a little different this time. Thunderheart wants a Top 5, and a list of "Wish List" items afterwards. The list I actually submit to him will be very simple and plain, so he can put it into an Excel spreadsheet for effecient tracking. He's going to answer the Top 5 Lists from the various boards in a "staggered" pattern this time around, rather than try to tackle them all at once. I don't know what order he's going to do them in.
TOP 5 ISSUES
1) 10 out of our 12 specials are redundant, inadequate, or broken.
"Status of Pistoleer Specials" in the Pistoleer forum has an up to date list of problems, coupled with recommended fixes. It can be found here.
2) We have no state effects or interesting attacks.
All we do is damage, aside from 1 melee range KD and 1 bleed. Because of this, our only recourse is to pick the special that deals the most damage and spam it. "Vanilla" Random HAM damage is everywhere in our tree. We need state effects and special attacks, both to be competitive and to be exciting to play.
3) Our DPS is too low.
It's so low We have difficulty outdamaging the regeneration of buffed players. Other professions can have up to 4x or even 7x our damage output, far greater accuracy, and comparable defenses all from the same tree. Pistoleers feel that the answer doesn't lie in a simple speed increase. Increasing our speed to what we consider adequate levels would have 2 side effects: 1) virtually ignoring the speed stat on weapons, and 2) burning through our HAM too quickly. A speed & damage increase is recommended.
4) The Speed System used by the game is completely screwed up.
Pistols are supposed to be "fast but not hard hitting." In the current state of SWG, all weapons attack at roughly the same speed at master level: 1.x seconds per attack for most specials. Our speed advantage simply isn't there, but our damage disadvantage is all too apparent. This has been well documented.
The formula is exponential - DPS doubles and redoubles at 50, 75, 87.5, 93.75, 96.875, 98.4375, 99.21875 and so forth speed. At 100 speed, the player would deal infinite damage if they weren't restricted by the 1 second speed cap. Not only does this screw up the rate of progression, it makes the system exceedingly difficult to balance.
5) Our defenses need help.
Dodge is the minimum of what it should be. Our Melee/Ranged Defense is nearly meaningless unless stacked, and dwarfed by other professions that deal more damage. Our State Defenses are virtually meaningless, as our opponent need only spam the special once or twice more.
WISH LIST ITEMS
We would like to emphasize that the matters listed below should take a back seat to the fixing of our Top 5 Issues.
6) Our accuracy is too low. Pistoleers report extraordinary difficulty hitting defense stackers in PvP.
7) Pistoleers wish to Dual Wield pistols, either in the Master box or in an "Elite-Elite" Space Expansion profession.
8) Pistoleers desire a new weapon in the Master box, one worthy of it's location. A damage type otherwise unavailable to us would be preferable.
9) Pistoleers wish to have holsters and "twirly" moves.
10) The dodge animation while standing is a bit lackluster. We are glad to hear it will not display while running in Publish 8, as this was hindering our movement. Ideally, we would like it to be replaced with a stylish new "dodge while running" animation that would not affect our movement in any way. If we could replace the "dodge while standing" animation as well, that would be wonderful. The simple side step isn't very exciting. Message Edited by Randonb on 04-08-2004 04:47 PM
"...You're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view."  biwan:Former Pistoleer Correspondent (02/04/04 - 09/05/04)
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. One can only hope that this time round they actually listen and act on what we've said.
