Class Designs for EQ/DnD inspired MMO

[Grave]

Note: While I realize this goes against what most people on this forum want in up and coming MMOs, I can't help but still long for a true high fantasy MMO in the vein of the original EverQuest, only updated for todays standards. I decided I wanted to try to come up with some new takes on the old classes, and figured I'd post it here for feedback and discussion.

I realize much of these ideas have already been done in some form or another, whether by Warcraft or Vanguard or something else entirely, but I don't see a problem with that. Games are always inspired by one another, especially in the MMO industry, that's just how it goes. Please don't bother posting "this is just a ripoff of X game". While I wont win any points for innovation, I think if you look past that you'll find that these classes would be fun to simply sit down and play.

The basic idea here is to learn from the mistakes of previous MMOs while borrowing what they did well. For example, a modern problem that we've had for some time now is that the majority of players gravitate towards a class role which has less dependency, because they don't want to be relied on or blamed when something goes wrong. This often results in a lack of Tank and Healing classes and a plethora of DPS. I have tried to design the classes in such a way that these types of players may feel more inclined to try it because it plays similarly to a DPS class. Anyway, I'll just get on with it. I'm going to post the tank classes first, and I'll do the rest in increments.

Let's get on with it then. I'll try to give a basic idea of what the class role is, and then list the main specs that you can go into and what they are intended for. Keep in mind that in this game grouping is strongly encouraged, and the classes are designed around that. Also, the goal is make every class somewhat overpowered, but balanced because they all are.
In this game, the idea would be that respeccing is common and expected. It would cost nothing except a trip to your trainer, which would be easy to do, especially if the party formed up in town first. Think of it like switching Jobs in FFXI, you would be able to do this at your leisure. Whether or not you have the proper gear for it though is up to you. Hopefully, there is at least one spec that the player really enjoys (if not all of them), and the goal is to make that spec fall into the intended role for that class even if it plays differently.


Warrior: Tank/DPS
Regardless of spec, the Warrior is an active and aggressive class. A large portion of their threat comes from dealing damage, so even main tanking will feel exciting. They are the only class that is able to use any type of weapon or armor. The game would be designed so that regardless of what type of Warrior is in your party, you will be able to do single-group content with them. All types would find their place in raids as well, though some would obviously be better than others depending on the situation.

Specs: All warriors are tanks, regardless of spec. If you roll one, you will be rolling it to tank. However, fans of the DPS type Warrior from WoW should find that they enjoy tanking with one of the latter two Warrior types.

Protector: The Protector is a natural leader and a fighter who puts his friends and companions above himself. He fights aggressively and relentlessly to defend them. The Protector spec requires the use of a shield, but maintains the best defensive stats a Warrior can achieve in return. He sacrifices some damage (but not to the point of uselessness) for extreme mitigation and massive HP pool. He becomes stronger and gains access to more powerful abilities the more hits he takes, and is able to use abilities that intercept attacks aimed at his companions. With a solid healer, the Protector will rarely fall to any foe.

Conqueror: Conquerors use massive 2-handed weapons and revel in charging straight into an army of oncoming monsters. This version of the Warrior is the best at tanking groups of mobs, and has many attacks that can strike all around him or in a frontal arc. He is fully capable of tanking single mobs as well, though he will suffer more damage than the Protector. He uses his blade for defense instead of a shield. Deals more damage than the Protector, and the most AE damage of the three Warrior specs.

Champion: The Champion is a lighter Warrior, valuing agility and avoidance in combat. He generally dual-wields and favors attacking quickly and relentlessly. He has many abilities unavailable to other Warrior specs that allow him to evade oncoming attacks and retaliate. The player must be aware of when best to use his abilities so that he avoids as much damage as possible. Deals the most single-target damage of Warrior specs. Excellent at tanking single mobs when played well, especially mobs that hit extremely hard even after mitigation - not great at tanking groups.

Paladin: Tank/Healer
The Paladin is the class to play for those who enjoy being relied on and helping others, but don’t wish to hide behind the melee, they want to be in the thick of things. Paladin spells are potent, but have short range, requiring that he be among his companions in order to aid them. They have the highest armor increasing buff in the game, and are capable of protecting others from Area of Effect damage.

Fervor mechanic: Fervor is built up as the Paladin protects himself and his allies. Healing, Buffing and blocking attacks can build up the Fervor gauge and unlock more powerful abilities.

Specs: Paladins are either tanks or healers. Regardless of spec, they are frontline fighters and are always in the thick of things. You won’t be standing at range spamming heals as a Paladin.

Crusader: The Crusader is a formidable tank, on par with a Protector specced Warrior. This Paladin is the most melee based, striking hard with his shield and weapon to keep the attention of the enemy. He maintains his powerful buffing ability, but his healing is not as potent as the Redeemer. Healing is still an important part of tanking as a Paladin, however, as a Paladin’s heals cause extremely high threat. In this way, you will be able to keep the mob focused on you while also acting as a backup healer and buffer. Has the best pure defensive stats of the Paladins.

Valiant: The Valiant Paladin prefers to smite his enemies with Divine power, and is therefore less melee based than the Crusader. He is still a tank, but has more potent stuns and damaging abilities than other Paladins. He is therefore capable of dealing much more damage than other Paladin types, and is recommended for players who want to tank a bit more aggressively at the cost of some defense. The increased spellpower of the Valiant also makes his shielding spells more potent, thus able to absorb more damage before dissipating. This helps to counter the lower defense in some ways.

Redeemer: The Redeemer is an extremely potent healer, and the best friend of melee fighters. He wades in and fights alongside them, casting protective shields that can lessen the AE damage they take while he heals what damage gets through. Having him near the tank is an additional boon, as he can grant increased armor and healing to him as well. The Redeemer gains more powerful single target heals than other Paladins, and is perfectly capable of main healing a group in this way as well, though he will always need to be within range to give the greatest benefits. Speccing this way is the only way a Paladin can remove the intense threat generated by his healing spells.

Death Knight: Tank/DPS
The Death Knights are among the most feared and dangerous beings in existence. They are even more hated than the gruesome Necromancers, for while a Necromancer deals darkly with the flesh, a Death Knight desires your soul itself. They wear an enchanted gauntlet on one hand that allows them to draw out the soul essence of mortal beings. As they strike in melee, they chip away at this essence and draw it into themselves, fueling their potent dark magic.

Soul Counter: The Soul Counter builds up as the Death Knight uses melee attacks and draws soul essence from his enemies. Some abilities accumulate more essence than others. The Death Knight uses this essence for casting some of his more powerful spells.

Specs: Death Knights are the 3rd of the plate tanking classes, and are generally designed to be played this way. However, alternate specs allow them to deal enough damage that when they are not called on to tank, they are still contributing enough to be useful.

Dread Lord: The Dread Lord is the basic tanking spec for the Death Knight. Similar to the Protector and the Crusader, he has the highest defensive capability of any Death Knight. Maintains aggro through melee strikes and especially lifetaps, which both cause high threat and make the healers jobs a bit easier. They tend to utilize their Siphon ability to reduce the enemies armor and increase their own, or reduce its chance to hit or crit. The ‘Cowering Fear’ line of spells acts more like a stun than a traditional fear, and is a great tanking or emergency-CC tool. AE melee attacks and poison spells allow the Death Knight to excel at tanking groups.

Reaver: The Reaver leans towards the melee DPS side of the Death Knight. At the cost of defensive abilities, the Death Knight gains increased melee attack power, hit and crit, as well as additional melee attacks, such as Soulreaver, which deals heavy physical damage and instantly fills the Soul Counter. He will Siphon some crit, hit, or attack power for his group and lay into the enemy with his 2-handed weapon. While he may be more offensive, the Reaver is still capable of tanking single group encounters or off-tanking in a raid situation.

Revenant: The Revenant embraces the magical side of the Death Knight, especially the ability to summon undead. He gains access to pets that other Death Knights do not, including the Wraith -a caster type pet that increases the Death Knights spell damage and hit chance as well- and the Plague Giant, a melee based offensive pet that also increases the Death Knights chance to crit with melee and spells. His DoTs are also much more potent than the other types of Death Knights. The playstyle of the Revenant focuses on well timed casting in between swings of his weapon, and management of the pet for maximum benefit. The Revenant is a solid soloing spec.

----------------

Please give any feedback or suggesstions you may have.


Classes coming soon: Monk, Rogue, Ranger, Elementalist, Sorcerer, Druid, Shaman, Necromancer

[Hateyou]

Curious are you actually going to make this game or are you just throwing ideas around?

And sup with no love for beastlord or bard type characters?

[kollos]

wtb beastlord and bard types as well.
maybe something like bloodmage/shadowpriest?

[Grave]

Originally Posted by Hateyou

Curious are you actually going to make this game or are you just throwing ideas around?

And sup with no love for beastlord or bard type characters?

I would love to do a Bard, but right now I'm struggling with how to implement it, wheras with the others I've listed I have at least the basic groundwork for how they will play.

I personally feel like the EQ2 Bard was pretty poor. Vanguard had some interesting ideas with the song composition mechanic but when I played one it just felt stupid. I want to come up with something that plays similar to the EQ1 bard, including something that takes skill like twisting, but isn't so annoying or taxing on the players hand.

As for whether I'm actually making this game or not, I would love to, but I do not have the resources to do so. At this point, I'm just throwing ideas out there and having fun with it. However, if someone approached me and wanted to try to bring this to life, I wouldn't hesitate. I actually have alot of lore written for the world this game would take place in as well, but I'll save that for another time or thread.

Originally Posted by Kollos

maybe something like bloodmage/shadowpriest?

The Necromancer should be to your liking once I get around to posting him up. He is basically the EQ1 Necro, but instead of the annoying "mana battery" type spells I have adopted the shadow priest type of mana regeneration, as well as added some other things, such as a "battle rez" sort of spell. The catch is that the Necro must control the player he rezzed like a pet, but complete with all of their abilities and gear they had in life. They will also have some decent group healing capabilities similar to the shadow priest.

I always felt like the EQ1 Necro was pretty good, but lacked utility and therefore there wasn't much reason to take them in a single group over anything else. I'm trying to give them something interesting to make them more appealing.

[Faille]

You should look into torque, specifically the mmokit. Seems pretty easy to get a eq style clone happening where you just want to redesign the classes as a starting point.

[Tyen]

You guys need to keep doing project 1, it was fun as hell.

[Grave]

Another update coming pretty soon with Cleric, Druid and Shaman in it. Then I'll hit the DPS and Utility classes. Just been busy with Christmas stuff and haven't had time to sit down and refine stuff.

Btw Faille, thanks for the tip on Torque, I may check it out after the holidays.

[ruination]

Grave, it seems we share the same view on certain mmo concepts and designs. I've been working on a class system exactly like this (down to denoting each class as "TANK/DPS" or "UB/HEAL" (UB: utility beneficial - abilities... hell, I even had things exactly like your Fervor guage and soul counter in some class ideas) In mine, I kind of scrapped the bard class and replaced it with a Virtuoso, which is a utility beneficial & utility detrimental based class. (basically the same thing bards were in eq1)

I really like your concepts so far; of course there might be balance issues with being able to 'switch specs' on a whim in game, but that will probably be far from now before it even poses a problem or anything. I'd like to hear some of your other class ideas.

[Believe]

I'd like to see another AC2 like skill/class hybrid.

I think it can accomplish what EQ2 tried to (Everything very basically boils down to Tank, Healer, DPS).

Start out with 3 skill trees: Melee, Ranged, Magic.

-Melee focuses on tanking with some damage.

-Ranged focuses on damage with some utility.

-Magic focuses on healing with some damage and utility.


Then at a certain level, let characters specialize into Class Trees (Each tree could branch off into 2-4 Class Trees). Every character would be able to fulfill their primary role using the skills from their primary tree, but still be able fulfill other roles with their specialization.

I'd also love to see some more non-standard classes, like AC2 had. Clawbearer, Tactician, Invoker, Feral Intendant, Hive Keeper. All such great classes that were actually unique (for the most part).

Class Specialization possibilities:

Melee
-Warrior, classic tank
-Knight, Half the skill tree devoted to holiness, and the other half darkness. Knights choose which path they choose to follow.
-Monk, light armored and extremely agile
-Berserker, dual wielding damage machine
-Feral Intendant, think Beastlord. Can choose between a few pets (but only have 1 at a time), and each pet determines their playstyle. Tank, DPS, Utility.
-Juggernaut, two-handed weapon behemoth.

Ranged
-Ranger, classic bow wielding archer.
-Bounty Hunter, great at dual wielding and archery, great utility.
-Engineer, creates structures with multiple purposes.

Magic:
-Elementalist, specializes in doing damage using the elements, can summon short term elemental 'pets' (Volcanoes, Storms, etc).
-Invoker, can summon spirits, good or evil depending how they specialize.
-Healer, self explanatory.
-Sorcerer, specializes in single target and AE damaging spells.
-Enchanter, utility via buffs and debuffs and crowd control.

Just some ideas.

Now the best part about this, is that you are not limited to any class based on your primary tree. For example, you could be a Melee/Elementalist and be able to tank and summon Volcanoes to help you, etc. It can make some very cool combinations. I remember playing an Ranged/Paladin-type class and I would shoot the crap out of mobs as they ran to me, then be able to very effectively tank them when they got close to finish them off.

Edit:
Forgot to add, you gain 1 skill point each time you level, this allows you to purchase new skills in the trees. All the experience you gain is pooled, and you can level up your skills by investing experience into them. You can also unlearn skills by gaining the amount of experience you invested into it, regaining all the experience and skill point spent.

Anyways, that's a very basic description, and I know a lot of people will probably blow it off because it was from AC2, but I think it had a lot of potential.

[Hatorade]

AC2 was by far the greatest skill tree ever made for any MMO to date. They all had HUGE ups and downs which made them great for any play style. AC2 Tactiction I think it was called the Lugian builder type. Could make turrets with huge cooldowns(kinda sucked for PVP) and walls and all kinds of cool shit. The Lugian bowler was awesome as well. You volleyed a bowling bowl type weapon long distances. Inaccurate as all hell but if it hit...BOOM! man that was fun. God I miss PVP on those servers.

[Grave]

Sorry for the slow update, should be picking up the pace now. Here are a few of the support classes. The idea is to have each of them be capable healers, while having their own distinct useful abilities so each would be desired equally, and remain equally useful in a raid situation. Oh, and as you'll see the format has changed. I decided focusing on the different specs was not as important at this stage as just communicating to readers how the class itself would play. Specs basically just enhance what the class already has anyway.

Cleric: Healing/Buffs
Clerics are devoted priests, dedicating their lives to serving their chosen deity. Many choose to become adventurers, devoting themselves as well to their companions. They are undoubtedly the strongest healer in the game, though due to this they tend to lack versatility. Best for players who like to be relied upon in a supporting role.

--No unique mechanic designed yet. to be added at a later date--

Key Abilities:

• Most powerful direct healing spells – the Cleric does most of his healing through simple, fast-casting direct healing spells. These spells have the additional benefit of increasing the targets maximum AC.
• Instant cast HoTs that also increase healing done to the target from all sources for their duration. Great for tossing on random raid members who may have other heals incoming, obviously good for the MT as well
• Most powerful HP Buff – increases maximum HP drastically, with additional effects at high levels of play, such as increased mitigation and avoidance. Also gives a minor boost to AC.
• Divine Intervention – an instant cast spell that has a chance to revive the target upon death until the spell wears off. Target will revive with 50% HP/Mana/Endurance.
• Prayers – the Cleric may maintain one Prayer at a time, granting the entire group a beneficial buff; reactive heals when struck, increased AC, and constant hit point regeneration, among others.
• Unique spell every 10 levels based on chosen deity - these spells would all be very powerful and useful, but ideally balanced so that all deities are tempting. It would be possible to switch your deity through a quest. At max level, receives a spell called “Avatar of (Deity)” which transforms the Cleric into an embodiment of their god, greatly increasing their power for a short time
• CC vs Undead and Demons, one target at a time
• One of the few classes who can rez during combat

Druid: Healing/Buffs/CC
Druids were among the first to practice magic in the world, mostly for healing the land and creating new life. In the current age, they are fierce protectors of what they hold dear, and have developed offensive magic as well in order to debilitate those who would harm the lands they keep. Players who desire to heal and buff others, but also be active in helping to control the flow of combat through crowd control spells would find the Druid to their liking.

Seed of Life mechanic: The Druid has a unique class mechanic called Seeds of Life. Various temporary Druid spells, such as HoTs, count as Seeds. Multiple Seeds can be stacked onto one player by casting various different spells, but it is much easier for the Druid to build seeds if he is in a group, as he has more targets to work with. Some of the Druids' most powerful spells require a certain number of seeds to be sewn before they are cast. When cast, the seeds bloom and are consumed – along with the spell that made them.

Key Abilities:

• Most powerful heal over time spells – nothing new here, the Druid is the master of regrowth and regeneration. They do the majority of their healing through HoTs and Seed of Life powered Burst heals. All HoTs add a Seed of Life.
• Druids also possess direct heals, although they are not as powerful as their HoTs. The main benefit of the direct heal is that it has the side-effect of increasing the targets maximum HP. It does not heal for the amount of health gained however, so HoTs or other heals must cover it. This effect does not stack with other Ranks of Druid heals with the same effect. Adds one Seed of Life.
• Earthward – the most powerful AC buff in the game, with additional effects at high levels of play such as increased hit point regeneration. Also gives a minor boost to HP.
• Snares and Roots – the Druid has powerful CC capability with his Snares and Roots. The most powerful root, Grasp of Venor, encases the target in a prison of earth and prevents it from taking any action, but the Druid can only maintain one grasp at a time. Other Roots have no limit, but ranged enemies and spellcasters can still act, and the root could wear off at any time. Snares have no limit, but require the Druid to kite the enemy if he is to maintain any effective CC using it.
• Other useful buffs and spells; including movement speed buffs, levitation, teleports, damage shields, invisibility and regeneration
• DoTs and Nukes; the Druid maintains some DPS and Solo capability thanks to weather and nature based offensive spells.

Shaman: Healing/Debuffing/Buffs
The Shaman has a bond with the spiritual world, and through it is able to effect things in the physical realm. Unlike the Druid, who is capable of effecting the very earth itself, the Shaman's powers are more related to the body and spirit. This class would be attractive to those who enjoy buffing and debuffing the most, and want to play a crucial supporting role in the group. They have some of the most powerful buffs and debuffs in the game, and are also capable of healing well – though they are better off as secondary healers unless specced for healing.

--No unique mechanic designed yet. to be added at a later date--

Key Abilities:

• Most powerful statistic buffs – the Shaman is capable of raising a players basic statistics, such as STR, STA, AGI, and DEX by vast amounts. Pairing the Shaman with a Bard, who is capable of raising the maximum stat cap, can be an incredibly effective combination.
• Spirit Mend - Shaman heals have the side benefit of increasing the targets maximum Mana and Endurance for a short time, some stronger types also restore the amount raised.
• Haste – a friend to all melee combatants, the Shaman is one of only two classes with the ability to increase a fighter's attack speed, and the most powerful of them.
• Slow – similarly, the Shaman can have the opposite effect on your enemies, slowing their attacks.
• Other buffs, including more powerful self-only HoTs and Wards. Spirit Bond, which creates a link between the Shaman and an Ally, causing him to take damage normally directed at the Ally. Since Shaman are generally sturdier than some of the squishy casters, this can save a group member.
• Other debuffs; the Shaman is also capable of lowering enemy stats, resists, movement speed, and accuracy.
• Spirit Animal Form – based on the player's chosen race, the Shaman may take the form of an animal such as a Bear, Wolf, Elk, or Cougar. Different, but balanced, benefits are gained from being in each animal form, though there are also some limitations and you would not always want to remain in a form.

--

These may seem a little dull, I guess. What can I say though, I liked what EQ did with healers for the most part. I tried to add some varying utility or fun spells to make them more interesting or viable though.

I could really use help coming up with some unique mechanics for the Cleric and Shaman. I'm just drawing a blank currently aside from just borrowing another class' mechanic and fitting it to them. I didn't want to do that if I didn't have to though. Maybe I'll think of something soon.

Anyway, more to come. Feel free to comment on these.

[ruination]

Shaman specific mechanic: Spiritual Affinity

The shaman would collect spirits of his fallen enemies and use them to his aid, storing their essences in "spirit vials." Throughout the game, the shaman could craft/find special "relics" that would grant new aspects of their guardian spirit. Each different guardian aspect would have a different bonuses and/or disadvantages. Perhaps the shaman could cut off an ear of a slain enemy or gouge an eyeball, which could be used to create their own relics and thereby creating new guardian aspects for themselves. Spirits could be conjured to augment an already active guardian aspect as well(1). The shaman could equip different relics to change the aspect of its guardian, immediately granting bonuses of the new relics aspect, and nullifying the previous(2).

Each different aspect would have its advantages and disadvantages, examples:
Aspect of the Stout: HP+10%, AC+10%, Healing-10%, Spell Damage-5%.
Aspect of the Seer: Spell Damage+15%, HP-5%, AC-5%.
Aspect of the Benevolent: Buffs (haste/stat buffs)+10%, Threat-15%, Debuffs-10%

etc.

They could also give stats, or maybe act as a pet and cast beneficial/detrimental spells (mana regen for you, -agi & -str debuff for your opponent!), grant new abilities, and even group bonuses. There's many ways this could go, but this is it for a simple explanation.

Each guardian aspect could have a "base" bonus (conjuring the guardian with minimal spirits) and a maximum bonus.

1: Only works if the slain enemy matches the aspect of the active guardian. If it doesn't, the spirit must stay in the spirit vial until its aspect is called forth by the shaman.

2: If a shaman is soloing and using a Warrior aspect relic, and gets a group, he could switch his relic to a wizard relic (for +dmg/detrimental power) or a priest relic (for +healing/beneficial power), or keep the same one equipped.