Senior Member
I was going to wait a few days to post this, but after 8 or so hours of playing season 5 I think I know what needs to be said.
Very little has changed. Berserker was always pretty good in group fights due to good mobility and high damage output, and a bit of a noob stomper, but struggles against experienced players in 1v1 due to a lack of openers and fast stamina drainage. All these things remain the same, the buffs have essentially just made him better at what he did well already, and helped him very little at the things he struggles with.
Unblockable finishers - These are nice to have. However, being at the end of a chain and also very slow means they will still be consistently parried by those with the skill. Unblockable top and side heavy will essentially just make it more difficult for new players to deal with Berserker, as most can’t parry consistently. The same crowd that struggled with him before. They are virtually meaningless in proper duels.
Top heavy damage - Ok. 55 was a bit crazy, especially with the old OOS pubish. But slashing the damage of it almost in half to 30 was even crazier. It’s slow as hell and highly telegraphed. A good Berserker will only really use the top heavy when he’s almost certain it will land, like with trades or punishes. All nerfing the damage of it and making it unblockable has done has essentially made him worse off in 1v1, whilst increasing its lethality against noobs.
40 damage seems reasonable for this move, and makes it a viable trade option. If I had the option to swap back to regular blockable top heavy for 55 damage - I’d take it.
Slashing rush - the input is fixed and much easier. So the main problem is solved. But this move was always situational and is now even more so. Don’t know what the team were smoking when they made it cost 65 stamina. 50 is loads.
Dance of the paired blades - Again, it got a shade more difficult for experienced players to deal with due to 400ms lights, but has made it even more of a headache for noobs to deal with. Even more so now I’m able to take a low rep player 100 -> 0 hp in a few seconds if they’re not good at block/parry.
Hyperarmoured 400ms light after heavy feint - a decent buff overall. It helps, but isn’t game changing really. I’ve got some trades off that I wouldn’t usually, and it’s blocked slightly less often. It still drains a LOT of stamina to keep using this though, so his main problem remains.
The changes to head splitter, head crusher and forward zone are on point and seem good. More fixes than anything but much needed.
I’m not going to lie and say I’m not disappointed. After seeing the love the Kensei got, I was pretty p!ssed at the Berserker changes. I’m not going to list other ideas as so many threads have been made already, but the idea of a melee attack that can be woven into Berserker’s attack patterns somehow has been thrown about a lot. I honestly think a punch like gladiators would help him out more than the sum total of the changes listed above. Something to take the sting off his stamina consumption would also help greatly.
Let me know what ya’ll are thinking.
Senior Member
As someone who doesnt care for Zerk (Or any of the viking heroes) I can confirm not much has changed, I just dodge roll when I see unblockables now... Still fight him pretty much the same way.Originally Posted by PDXGorechild Go to original post
The damage nerfs on BOTH Berserker and Nobushi are completely unnecessary, Nobu's 600ms zone now deals the same damage as Orochi's 500ms zone.... I thought the slower the attack, the harder it hits but I guess I thought wrong.
Senior Member
Senior Member
I am waiting for the promised Feedback Thread for the Rewoks, to post all my feedback and my suggestions :'D
Basically - Berserker improved - but not much... i would say around 10% totaly.
From low to average gameplay he improved around 40 % - since you can now let those unblockables fly and the chain most of the time.
Above average up to advanced/"pro" gameplay he improved around 5% - you need to feint a ton stamina kills you, you can't rely on Slashing Rush that much, because you lose half of your stamina.
Basically his mixup game improved in a good way.
I am ... OK with those changes, the problem here is - we don't get any compensation for the negative aspects, which were there befor the changes and got amplified with the changes.
I am talking about stamina in most cases.
Trades aren't worth that much anymore, but chained attacks overall have a bit more dmg.
I agree on making Top heavy finisher 40 dmg.
i would trade top heavy unblockable for a mix up sucker punch.
"Easily confused with a punch defined as a "bit.ch move" a true sucker punch is quite a bit more complex than a simple unanounced attack.
It primarily involves a closed fist contacting the soft underbelly of a person (beneath the rib cage) at a high velocity, causing the ensuing force to press upward on the victim's diaphram, leading to a sudden expulsion of air from the victim's mouth and lungs. This opening blow leaves the victim open to various other attacks, often leading to what would be called "bit.ch moves" becuase of the defenseless nature of the victim. "
There are more points to it then just speed.Originally Posted by BTTrinity Go to original post
Range, cancelable or not etc.
Do you really thought that a all around hitting 600ms with double of the range of nearly every other hero hitting with 33dmg was fair?
20 are fine, i would understand 22-23 dmg.
You have more range then Orochis zone, dmg and speed isn't everything in this game.
Senior Member
Agreed, think top heavy damage should be moved to 40. Considering the uncomboed top heavy from neutral still does 38.
I, too, miss the oos deflect. No big deal, learn to adapt i guess.
Tell you what i do like though, new oos punish. If you're lucky, they make a mistake and you can get it twice. That is ridiculous damage. Also, hyper armor adjustments. All of them. They work great.
4v4 zerk feels largely unchanged. Sliiiightly improved as a ganker because of the easily accessed unblockable. 1vX situations, not much different honestly. Which is fantastic, because 1vX is my favorite way to fight and I'd be angry if zerk wasn't good at it anymore.
1v1, I'm learning how to mix in even more feints than before (which i didn't think was possible, my god) and having some real success. Relearning how to make that opening move. It's not about trading anymore boys, it's a whole new ball game. It's all about the heavy feint game now. Luckily, it's the same feint game you used to play we're just more reliant on it now. Which seems fine because it's more successful now. I don't know about the rest of you, but last night i got the fastest kills i have ever gotten in FH by a long shot. Still can't really mix in bear mauler in to 1v1, anyone had any luck yet?
Overall, I suppose I'm not disappointed at all. 1v1 playstyle only changed mildly, barely at all, but it is indeed more successful. 4v4 i also feel slightly improved.
Only real critiques i have? 40 damage on the top heavy and can you PLEASE drop the stamina cost on slashing rush? Holy piss that is ridiculous. Effectively made slashing rush useless
Senior Member
I partially agree, I think the damage nerfs were necessary, but over the top. I’m a fair player, I get no pleasure out of winning in a situation that I feel is unfair, hence why I used to feel a bit guilty utilising a 90+ Damage OOS punish. Nobushi’s zone has a lot of range, and has the potential to hit a lot of players. 33 damage per hero up to a max of 4 players = 132 damage total. That was a lot for one move. Berserker doing 96 damage, guaranteed, to somebody on the deck the was also a lot. Both needed toning down, but I can confidently say Berserker was toned down too much, in typical nerfbat fashion.Originally Posted by BTTrinity Go to original post
I agree on swapping the top heavy for a sucker punch. It fits Berserker’s style I think - he’s a savage and relentless bast*rd, and wouldn’t be opposed to landing a sucker punch. Or a cutting elbow to the head, or knee to the groin, or a similarly below-the-belt sort of attack. Giving him an opener that allows for a free light attack to start chains would be so useful. I really don’t think it’s much to ask as some of the crew have 2 or more such attacks.Originally Posted by S0Mi_xD Go to original post
The new OOS punish is cool - it allows for high damage, 33 and 35 damage side heavies guaranteed I believe. That’s 88, plus another potential unblockable for 45 damage soon after if it lands. But again, I feel this is only going to make new players lives harder whilst effecting experienced players very little. Experienced players will parry the third strike if you follow through, whilst noobs will be left on the deck suffering 133 damage, base, wondering wtf happened.Originally Posted by bmason1000 Go to original post
1v1 I’ve got a few bear maulers off by using DOtPB to do light > heavy > heavy > heavy with alternating sides. Doesn’t work against skilled players though but great for ganking.
My main two critiques are also the damage of the top heavy and the stamina cost of slashing rush. The changes aren’t bad overall, and have made him slightly better in some situations, and worse in others. But I wanted help in 1v1, not group fights. Making my trades worse actually makes 1v1 more difficult against some classes, like a good Warlord for example, who already mops me up.
My only other beef that I forgot to mention is deflect - I suffer a lot of the time due to forgetting to guard break to initiate “brute force”. This is probably me just getting used to it, but I feel the loss of auto guard break has been detrimental more than anything. It used to give me a split second to think to act if I deflected accidentally, whereas now it’s wasted. This seems fair though I guess, more in line with other assassins.
Junior Member
1) Stamina consumption needs to be addressed, if played correctly using feints we're rapidly left with no stamina.
2) Top heavy damage needs adjusting, as it is now its not a threat, even when it lands, the damage is laughable, barely a scratch, and it's extremely slow rendering It practically useless as it leaves you wide open for dodges/parries/higher damaging trades, trade with a highlander and you'll be left with 1/4 of your health bar.
As it is now the berserker works very hard to accomplish very little, I spend a lot of time staring at my opponent while regenerating stamina, the overall damage output has dropped drastically, if the top heavy and stamina consumption issues are addressed he will be a well rounded option again.
Senior Member
Senior Member
Senior Member
I had just tried her out earlier today, and I do feel it was more of a nerf than anything. More stress on feint and stamina drain, and less raw damage overall. Meaning, less good trades, and more OOS situations. Which equals a nerf, in my mind.
She needs higher damage on the overhead heavy, she needs to have the third comboed heavy unblockable be softfeintable into either a light, heavy, bash move, or another unblockable heavy. She also needs less stamina usage on the feints. And she needs a bash move from neutral. And she needs her pre-rework Slashing Rush stamina usage. She also needs the feint tactic of Kensei from heavy to bash move. Also that blue spinny glow on the dodge attack should go.
I share your pain, or rather, half of it. My secondary is Zerk. Your main is Zerk, so it certainly threw you into an even bigger sadness than mine.
