Dear player of AO.
The ability to increase your chance of getting a critical in combat is an integral part of the game. It is something we want, and we do not frown upon it. Our problem is that too many of the items that increase your critical chance actually stack. (Add up). As the system is today you can have the following things stack with little or no penalty:
1. Base Critical Chance (3%)
2. Flurry of Blows (20% critical increase at QL 200)
3. The old "Low Light Targeting Scopes" (15% at QL 200)
4. Self Only MA Crit Buff (24%) or Crat Speech Crit Buff (7%) at high levels.
Summing this together you get 62% for Martiial Artist and 45% for everyone else. This is WAY-WAY too high for the system to handle without changes.
Now we take full responsibility for it being this way. I apologize that we have to change the rules, but this is the nature of an MMO (sadly). The number of variables are infinite. Anyway, If I as the game-director were to allow this to go on unchanged it would mean that I would have to increase difficulty of ALL monsters in the game to balance the additional lethal powers of the players. Everyone would have a much harder time.
We indicated in a discussion with you that we would like to change the existing Low Light Targeting Scopes to be similar to the new ones. This received MASSIVE negative feedback. Thus, we listen to you! We will not do it that way.
I have pondered this for some time, and instead of doing a targeted "nerf" against the LLTS, we should instead change all the critical increase effects so that they do not stack in an unintended way. For instance, Low Light Targeting Scope is something that should be used for ranged combat. Self only MA Crit buffs are something that should not be used with shotguns and so on. This was their INTENTION, the way they were described and perceived by most players. I have thus the following suggestion:
1. Give "Flurry of Blows" and "Eye of the Hunter" (Adv only version of FoB) a massive decrease on Long Range Initative. This way there will be no adding up with ranged weapons critical increase items or nanos. (It still adds up with Bureaucrat Speeches or Martial Artist nanos.)
2. Give Martial Artists Self Crit buffs a massive decrease on Long Range Initiative. (This does not affect bows, as they use Physical Prowess Initiative - same as the martial arts attack).
3. Give Low Light Targeting Scopes a massive Physical Prowess - and Close Combat Initiative decrease. At the same time decrease the Initative Penalty on ranged combat initiative in all targeting scopes! (it should be there because targeting through a scope is slower - it is logical.) but it will be better for existing players using ranged combat!
4. Change all other existing critical increase items and nanos to follow this pattern.
If we do it this way most people (hopefully) will see their interaction with the critical system change in a more logical way! (Targeting scopes for ranged combat, Martial Artist for his special abilities and so on). All people having an existing LLTS will be compensated.
Yours truly,
Gaute Godager
AO Game Director.
Gaute's word on LLTS and criticals
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Sounds solid
