It's obvious why a new bracket is being introduced.
But why at the 201+ GS break point?
The gap between 182 and 204 weapons is minuscule. Same with gear base stats. Surely you are not convinced that the source of all the lamentations about allowing "high level GS players mow down lower GS" is due to the weapon damage and gear base stat gap.
Weapons base damage alone do not contribute for the majority of where damage comes from. It comes from Crit damage and head shot stacking as well as the Stalker Talent. For which gear sets are responsible.
Neither are the base stat gaps so large between different gear score level. The gap IN a single gear score is like to be larger (204 has something like 526 - 645 spread)
Before you make an enormous logic leap and release a redundant bracket that will do nothing other than segregate people by an arbitrary number which barely represents a characters true power, consider reducing the new bracket to 186+ breakpoint.
This keeps the Stalker talent outside of the second high bracket and secludes it to the top tier bracket only. You can still have 3 piece sets in the second highest brackets and with an array of 182 items in the other slots, it amounts to 185 GS average. This means you can still have things like 30% extra head shot damage or 50% crit damage (which by their additive nature don't present a huge threat to balance), but not both at the same time, and neither can you have a flat 45% damage boost given practically free of charge.
Unless the point of introducing a new bracket is entirely fictitious ...
They used the Gear Score to determine the break point for the brackets.
163
204
If most of your gear is above 163, you will be in the 161+ bracket in the Dark Zone
If most of your gear is 204+ you will end up in the 201+ bracket in the Dark Zone
If you go back and read my summary post, you will see that they said why there were doing this, and I included that in my post.
1. To reduce the harassment of lower end players
2. To gate off the higher end gear into the higher bracket
Gear Score is as follows:
163
182
191
204
214
240
If you go immediately from 163 to 240 gear, there is no real progression.
By splitting up the DZ and putting 214 and 240 gear drops into the 201+ Gear Score DZ Bracket, it moves the higher end players up into that level where they will get drops and loot that actually means something to them.
It will also give the lower gear scored players something to work towards earning.
One of the really big issues in the game right now is that higher end geared players get crap for loot, because the loot is all mixed together, for everyone.
Gating off the 200+ gear score players into a bracket that gets them the high end drops WILL move them out away from the lower end players because they wont get the good gear by attacking lower end players.
Players that currently nerf their gear score just to try to get into under 160 bracket are doing so because they have as equal a chance of getting good gear as everyone else AND they can attack and kill lower geared players.
Moving high end items into a high end bracket will cause the player to have a real choice. Do they nerf their Gear Score to get into a lower bracket, just to kill players and get garbage loot, or do they use their good gear to stay in the higher bracket where they will get good loot.
The new bracket, and the changes coming in the new bracket, are a good thing.
I'd be completely fine with that, even tho the DZ will have very few people in your bracket at any given time.Originally Posted by III_Hammer_III Go to original post
...ok?Originally Posted by Syr.Jake Go to original post![]()
So is the gap of a player decked in a 191 Sentry Set compared to a person with 182 gear. But they will be bunched together because apparently 200 is somehow the 'middle'. It isn't.Originally Posted by UNSCxSniper Go to original post
The new 200+ bracket will do the following:
1) Low level bracket without gear sets
2) High level bracket with top gear sets
3) Middle bracket that is a mess, has mobs that drop purples and blues, has trash gear drops, and most of all, misses the intended point of the changes entirely.
A fully decked 204 player is not far ahead of a 191 average. In fact, the only 204 pieces worth a damn currently are Reckless Chest piece and Savage gloves. Albeit the chest piece is being fixed.
Still, point being is 191 players will be bunched up with 'low level players'.
Also, from what I understood, the mobs in the DZ for the 201 bracket will start off at level 32. That alone makes it nice. Opens my chances of gaining better gear instead of walking my fat arse to DZ06 to fight LMB shotgunners. I like the thought of having Rikers/Looters/Cleaners all starting off at level 32.