Weekly thread:

Issue 1:
Thanes need 1 or more group friendly toys or buffs. Something as simple as group endo reduction moved from skalds to thanes would be a step in the right direction. Other more group friendly chants like paladins would help.

Issue 2:
Thanes are the hardest class in the game to template. They also have the least artifacts available to them of any class despite being a "hybrid". Either more artifacts need to be unlocked or thanes need to be given self buffs that make templating easier. Like heretic self 10% spell pierce.

Issue 3:
Thanes now lack sufficient self defense. Considering template constraints, the lack of inherent toughness (hp), lack of tank like bonuses, and lack of any duration CC. Also considering recent spec melee style shield nerfs, dual wield bypass, and block cap reduction... Thanes are in a really bad place defensively. High spec cost, low return and no other options. Thane shield spec and inherent defensibe abilities need a serious boost or more spec points need be available like wardens.

 

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Oh god!
You really have no idea what's called love. Thanes have all the love in the world compared to VWs, Wardens and BMs.
Did you know VW has no grp utility? (Not talking about MLs) They have 0 abilities that help their grp, they have 0 survivability as a melee class, their spells suck on damage and there are many other things VWs have very bad in grp. That's called no love.
And Wardens just have NO damage. More like a joke. A walking PBT/Celerity bot.

And about thanes:
Issue 1. They have guard, shield side styles, energy debuff. These things help the grp.
Issue 2. Damn, I really don't want to troll you on this one. Let's just say the are ways to template a thane, and it's not that hard as you think.
Issue 3. LOL. You have chain armor, you have shield, you have parry, you have engage, you have shield stuns, you have instas to interrupt incoming spells.

Please, at least learn what you can do on your class then QQ here. Many Hib classes can't even achieve a half of Thane's performance in rvr grp.

[TOS]

 

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[TOS]

 

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At RR 5/6 a VW is probably one of the better classes to solo on imo. This must be a troll cause I'm honestly not that great of a player and I can decimate people on the VW. Many times I can take on 2 or more.

 

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Huh? There was no one taking about solo. Learn to read.
It's just the same that savage is much better then a bers in solo, but in grp bers is better, becaue of BL.
Same goes for VW. They are good at solo, but completly suck in grp.

Again. Learn to read, trolls.

lold

 

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Actually Thanes are pretty solid when played well

For group... you have stuns/snares/instas/ranged DD/Ranged AoE/Throw weapon/PBAOE for pet clears/Guard/ Access to ST (combined with healer AoE stun if you're talking about group utility...) and so on

For solo you're supposed to kite... not stand toe to toe with people (you have engaged if you choose to do that)

What exactly is the issue? You just not happy with the ML lines? Well plenty of other classes have sucky ML options too...

 

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Regarding solo and kiting, as a Thane - Vs. bad or not so good players it's quite possible to kite, then again, it's not that hard to dance them down with a 2-hander either. The good players just got too many ok/good tools to all too often make the kiting a bad idea.

Now add the adders, solo as well as smallmans, fullgroups and zergs, and quite often it's a bad idea to even try to kite(kite-get interrupted/added... and you've given the enemy a free stunimmunity, instead of landing some melee hits).


Now add the hardship of templating Thanes(having 100% of what say a heavy tank want/need + 98% of what a "pure caster" wants/needs AND trying to have 5-6 none craftable doubleproccing(+ charges), keep up the not-so-good HP(75, 79 and 83 con is common numbers in a Thanes template, and 200-300 HP). This means that without RA's, my main Thane got about 2250 HP fully buffed.


Also add that Thanes as good as always have to get either somewhat less good resists, or quite notable less resists - with the low HP. Did I mention how easy it is on most melee/melee-hybrid classes to have 25% healbonus in template, to further enhance those 5-6 healingproccing armor items, where it's very hard to get a good healingbonus + 5-6 nonecrafted heal and doubleproccing armor items in a Thane template.


Having "all that is needed", make it hard(er) for the Thane to get both qui and str into the template - as an example, most good allround templates ain't using 2-handed ML10 weapons, becaues the str lands around 60-80/101.


The problems of the Thane is kinda layered. For example, the ML10 %-heal, rather 200-ish heal instead of 300-ish of most other hybrids, not to speak of the heavy tanks. A good template for a Thane today, very seldom have any extra +parry or +shield in it.

Also most high end templates have a crafted shield(missing out on either speed and good and more often procs, or if using a small shield, just being able to block 1 person per round).


BM as a MasterLevel is quite nice, but comparing the Thanes use of it, to the other common hybrids/melee's who use BM often enough, such as the Warden, the Friar, the Champion, the Savage and the Paladin - Thanes ain't got no selfbuff/chant that give the class neither a End reduction nor a End endurance buff, or End-shout ability(nor the possibility to get a end-reduction buff from a bot/friend/player).


I could go on, but I think it's obvious that the class IS in need of some fixing - and while it might look good on paper, most experienced Thane players agree that in actual fights/pvp it's often darn hard, compared to most other hybrids/tanks, to play a Thane to it's(or even near it's) full potential.

 

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^ No offense, but none of that sounds like anything that any other hybrid class in this game isn't facing. I'm not saying they aren't valid issues, but much of what you say is the curse of the hybrid in DAoC. Wanting everything in your temp didn't used to work for pure classes either, and sure as heck wasn't even remotely possible for hybrids in the past, but now we're at a point where pure classes have it fairly easy to make perfect temps and can even load up on things that aren't specific to their class, while hybrids still have considerable issues making remotely perfect temps. Still hybrids have made considerable strides too with a strong increase in availability of Spell Pierce items for example.

It's the same with RAs where many hybrids have no access to obvious hybrid RAs like Dual Threat, which of course Thanes do have access to.

You're also comparing apples to oranges when you compare utility hybrids who have no ranged attack to Thanes.

I don't think Thanes need love as much as they need a role in groups, but they're far from alone in that gripe in a game of 15~16 classes per realm and only 8 slots in a group. You can't give many of these classes that what they really would need to get groups, without instantly making another class seem obsolete.

It's thus the specifics that make things difficult for many hybrids including Thanes. What would you give Thanes right now that would truly improve the class? The range and speed of their DDs is already quite powerful and unique to Thanes. Their AoE DD's delve is at a cloth nukers level, with more range and radius to boot.

From a melee perspective they have large shields & parry spec, chain armor, and can use 2hers. What else is there to add? It's hard to justify the often requested bump in damage table, because of their DD procing styles on top of their high defensive capabilities...not to mention their ranged & even AoE damage capabilities. Even if you did bump it, it wouldn't make Thanes any more desired in groups, and would also only --at best-- slightly improve their solo experience.

They also have a solid RA selection and a pretty nice RR5, so again not much to change there.

The only thing left would be rather ridiculous additions to group utility, or Charge/Stoic, or something crazy like that...because IMO that's what it'd take to get them more groups in the current RvR environment. (Again, a similar issue shared by other hybrids in the game.)


What I would like to see is Kobold Thanes, as the race selection certainly leaves a lot to be desired and kinda makes a heavily casting oriented Thane difficult. (but I think this is why they got the 2.6s DDs, so Mythic may disagree with that too) The addition of a Heretic-like self RP buff would be a good idea too to alleviate some templating headaches.

More hybrid friendly items in general would be a boon to see, but again historically Mythic has not budged on this either as they feel hybrids should make tough decisions instead of having it all.


Just my meaningless little 2 cents on the issue of Thanes.

Not trying to be a jerk or get a flame war started.

 

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