what is the point of the new mastery?

[ProtoGunner.4953]

Too short duration and far too long cooldown. The idea is good though. If you are running/flying through a heavy mob area you can easily get dismounted, which is annoying be cause you and in combat mode. This prevents it. But with 3mins CD it's far too long, and why the heck only 10 seconds? I first though it will just remain forever...

[Menadena.7482]

> @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> Too short duration and far too long cooldown. The idea is good though. If you are running/flying through a heavy mob area you can easily get dismounted, which is annoying be cause you and in combat mode. This prevents it. But with 3mins CD it's far too long, and why the heck only 10 seconds? I first though it will just remain forever...

 

Maybe it would work for a battle mount (and hints that is coming) but even then ...

 

This seems to be akin to healing someone, right? When was the last time you did that and the next time the person was struck down you got downed as well?

[Adenin.5973]

They should just let us use our currently equipped heal skill downscaled to the mount healthpool.

Or make a new unique heal skill for the different mounts.

 

But in general I absolutely !LOVE! the intetion to give us extra skills on mounts through the mastery system.

 

Good idea but badly executed.

[lokh.2695]

LS4 masteries so far feel uncreative and underwhelming.

[Kururu.8140]

Yep. I'd much rather get knocked off my mount for a couple seconds than getting downed and being a sitting duck for any nearby enemies.

[Aurelian Omenkind.2470]

All the masteries have been created to overcome or enhance content designed to best be addressed by the mastery. Everything from mushroom bouncing to legendary crafting to HP sharing - you can play without them, but it’s easier/more direct to get the mastery to play.

 

My only beef is how limited-use most masteries are. Why won’t my poison mastery from HoT combat the fumes in Sandswept Isles? Oh, it’s only for “Itzel” poisons. These are Asura poisons. Where are the random ley-line flows I can glide on now? Where are the updrafts? All of the masteries address artificial difficulties to give a character a feeling of constant growth. To answer a previous question: content is designed around a new mastery created to overcome the content.

[Solaris.2489]

I used this skill once while running past some undead on the new map and got downed in 2s. Never again lol

 

[Rauderi.8706]

What's it used for?

The save-the-skritt achievement. ...woo

Even then, it might not have been necessary if the Springer could jump without smacking into tiny roofs or could actually catch a kittening ledge...

[ReaverKane.7598]

> @"ProtoGunner.4953" said:

> Too short duration and far too long cooldown. The idea is good though. If you are running/flying through a heavy mob area you can easily get dismounted, which is annoying be cause you and in combat mode. This prevents it. But with 3mins CD it's far too long, and why the heck only 10 seconds? I first though it will just remain forever...

 

10 seconds is more or less so you don't end up dying because the effect is too long... 10s is just right i think, but i do agree the cooldown is a bit too long since the skill already punishes you if you misuse it.

I think they either should drastically reduce the cooldown, or remove the shared risk of down state. Having both seems too penalizing.

 

> @"Rauderi.8706" said:

> What's it used for?

> The save-the-skritt achievement. ...woo

> Even then, it might not have been necessary if the Springer could jump without smacking into tiny roofs or could actually catch a kittening ledge...

Well, you wouldn't have time even with perfect jumps (which i actually managed to get a perfect sequence and still had to heal up). But it's also useful in similar radioactive/poisonous corridors to gather volatile magic inside them.

 

> @"Aurelian Omenkind.2470" said:

> All the masteries have been created to overcome or enhance content designed to best be addressed by the mastery. Everything from mushroom bouncing to legendary crafting to HP sharing - you can play without them, but it’s easier/more direct to get the mastery to play.

>

> My only beef is how limited-use most masteries are. Why won’t my poison mastery from HoT combat the fumes in Sandswept Isles? Oh, it’s only for “Itzel” poisons. These are Asura poisons. Where are the random ley-line flows I can glide on now? Where are the updrafts? All of the masteries address artificial difficulties to give a character a feeling of constant growth. To answer a previous question: content is designed around a new mastery created to overcome the content.

 

I have to agree here. Again Arena Net is continuing it's tradition of "drastic" measures. And instead of reducing but maintaining the presence of HoT mastery "items" like bouncing mushrooms, up-drafts, ley lines, etc. To enhance and justify the purchase of HoT in the long term (and even as an incentive for people only buying PoF to get HoT). But instead they simply removed everything. And while you can still glide in a place or another to circumvent mount uses (like the Mastery point in Sanctum of Nabkha) for the most part PoF is built around a philosophy of disregarding everything that came with HoT. Which honestly only makes an arguably content-poor expansion, that much poorer.

[Gudy.3607]

> @"Rauderi.8706" said:

> What's it used for?

> The save-the-skritt achievement. ...woo

> Even then, it might not have been necessary if the Springer could jump without smacking into tiny roofs or could actually catch a kittening ledge...

 

Well, this achievement **is** perfectly doable without the mastery by jumping on the pipes and going from there. So for me this falls into the same category as the Sirens Landing mastery - mostly useless except in certain niche situations. And then I will probably have forgotten that I have it in the first place precisely because it is so generally useless.

 

But hey, it's not as if there were a dearth of PoF mastery points, and if it marks the start of an effort to give us more mount skills, I'm mostly OK with it.

[Lord Trejgon.2809]

> @"Menadena.7482" said:

> > @"Lord Trejgon.2809" said:

> > > @"Menadena.7482" said:

> > > > @"Lord Trejgon.2809" said:

> > > > > @"Menadena.7482" said:

> > > > > > @"Dzjudz.9142" said:

> > > > > > I've found it useful on several occasions already to get past groups of mobs without dismounting.

> > > > > >

> > > > > > I don't know how people call this the 'most useless' mastery, when we have masteries that don't give you any gameplay changes, like the volatile magic collection mastery (wow a mastery to be able to collect orbs whose sole purpose is to be collected).

> > > > >

> > > > > We had the equivalent in season 3 with unbound magic for ep 1 so I was not TOO surprised they did the same with volatile magic. I just was expecting them to give us a real mastery in ep 2, even if it was just useful in a couple of zones.

> > > >

> > > > personally I find this mastery more usefull than termal tubes....

> > > >

> > > > yeah sure termal tubes allowed you to cover some routes on soem of maps like really fast, but in the end I use mounts much more often than I need to use termal tubes and I run throught big groups that includes ranged mobs also much more often than that.

> > > >

> > > > altho I am kinda still sad that my favourite mastery from S3 was locked to that single map... :/

> > >

> > > Which one? There were several that were only used on a single map.

> > >

> > > I am surprised the extra downed skill from Doric did not get more attention. I find it to be HUGE. It can be used all over Tyria and has gotten me out of scrapes more than once.

> > >

> > >

> >

> > the sirens one :|

>

> Ah, the one so useless I did not bother to get. :)

 

actually it is very potent mastery. Extremely influencing for events but with huge issue of working only on that single map severly hampering amounts of stuff it can influence....

 

but then in it's current form it coulda be kinda breaking if simply unleashed onto rest of tyria I guess....

 

also muh lore in the mastery ;-;

 

EDIT: to all poeple complaining about "unimaginative ls4 masteries so far" friendly reminder that in ls3 around this time we had what? - story-locking special action button poping up for a very certain type of foe, and magma tubes.

[Faaris.8013]

I find the mastery system in general awesome as replacement for simply setting new max level caps. It's a unique and very smart solution for fixing power and gear creep.

 

However, I think it does not live up to its potential. Especially the huge difference in fun and usefulness between masteries is just weird. You have gliding with all its specialisations, and then you have that sharing health with your mount mastery. They are not on the same level, not even close. There is also a lot of inconsistency going on. Why do we have the downed skill #5 everywhere, even in fractals, but not the Siren's Landing mastery? Why don't we have some kind of tubes on new maps, or even added to old maps? Someone who bought PoF but not HoT certainly wouldn't be bothered if there were tubes in the desert, same as they are certainly not bothered by other players using gliders and the downed skill, or having autoloot unlocked. I think I would even overcome my sense for "lore" and accept jumping mushrooms in the desert.

 

I think there is a lack of creativity going on when it comes to new content. I'm not a game designer myself and I don't have ideas that are better, but I see when something has been done without creativity and imagination. I would expect more from actual designers. The latest mastery looks merely like an excuse to "have anything at all" because every episode gets a new mastery. This is not new, we also have Nuhoch Proving, Itzel Leadership and Exalted Purification, or that pointless Koda's Flame mastery.

 

A look at the two recent PoF masteries tells me that nobody really had a good idea what to add, so they just gave up and arbitrarily made something up within 5 minutes. We didn't have to get a mastery to gather Unbound Magic, why do we have to get a mastery to harvest Volatile Magic? My guess is because nobody came up with something creative so they made something that was never intended to require a mastery now require a mastery. It's easier than giving players the ability to gather Volatile Magic after completing the story chapter (as it was done in HoT) and then thinking about a new mastery that adds fun to the game. Bond of Life will probably be used as little as Nuhoch Proving, the only justification to actually buy that mastery is that they connected an achievement to it and if you are a completionist.

 

Maybe it's time to get someone who can give inspiration to the team and make it be creative again. The addition of mounts and how it was done was great, but that's the only thing in the Expansion that I can describe as creative and fun.

[Tran.6498]

It's helpful in some case, let me explain:

-My mount's hp is 5000, and when it get hit and low to 1000 or every number, I use the mastery. When use, My max hp become mount's hp which mean 1000hp of it( which lowing from 5000 to 1000) come to 13000 (max). And when my hp (are on mount) get low to 1000, I use skill 1 or button X, my hp is max again (13000). That mean which this mastery you will have x3 hp, you can avoid mob if you are in hurry for meta or something

 

 

[Zok.4956]

> @"Aurelian Omenkind.2470" said:

> My only beef is how limited-use most masteries are. Why won’t my poison mastery from HoT combat the fumes in Sandswept Isles? Oh, it’s only for “Itzel” poisons. These are Asura poisons. Where are the random ley-line flows I can glide on now? Where are the updrafts?

 

Because the basic idea behind the metroidvania-style mastery system was, that HoT-masteries work only in HoT-Maps, PoF-masteries work only in PoF-maps etc. So there is no global power creep or vertical progression (like it would be with an increased max level) and the masteries only help to better travel the maps (metroidvania) they are designed for (horizontal progression) but do not help on other maps.

 

Of course there are now a lot of exceptions to this basic idea because of the popularity of some masteries (example: gliding was at first only allowed in HoT-maps and was later also allowed in other maps because the players demanded it).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[InsaneQR.7412]

> @"RoseofGilead.8907" said:

> I found it useful exactly one time (for an achievement in the final instance). I've yet to find a use for it anywhere else.

 

I even did this whithout the mastery unlocked.

 

The mastery is more a convenients thing when you travel with your mount. Not that impactful.

The position reset would have been much cooler. Something similar to the oakvine, so you pick them up via nodes all over the map (or even Tyria) which gives you the abbility to mark and reset your position, that would have been cool. We got it through a gyzmo now but as a mastery it would be much cooler than the mount heal. Maybe it will be the start of the "Mount utilities" and we get 5 total skills in the end in addition to the disengage.

 

[InsaneQR.7412]

> @"robertthebard.8150" said:

> You just have to love MMO forums:

>

> "There's too much power creep, stop giving us all this power" becomes "this is the dumbest thing ever, it didn't give me any power" as soon as an update hits that doesn't add to the power creep. The next thing you know, someone will be complaining that the CS sells too many cosmetic items or something...

 

Already happened. Twice last week actually.

You come here for the warmth of anger and the taste if salt. It was always the case and it will always be. Sometimes a decent discussion emerges from anger and salt and sometimes vice versa. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Menadena.7482]

There are two problems:

1) We only get one new mastery every few months. Now we have to wait until the next episode to hope for a useful mastery.

 

2) Masteries do not just come to you for free. Those are mastery points you could use for something else but instead have to spend 3 here so you can get the next one.

 

Given the inexact way of explaining this there was also some confusion as to how it worked until people were able to test it. For example, could your mount siphon your health any time it needed it?

[robertthebard.8150]

> @"InsaneQR.7412" said:

> > @"robertthebard.8150" said:

> > You just have to love MMO forums:

> >

> > "There's too much power creep, stop giving us all this power" becomes "this is the dumbest thing ever, it didn't give me any power" as soon as an update hits that doesn't add to the power creep. The next thing you know, someone will be complaining that the CS sells too many cosmetic items or something...

>

> Already happened. Twice last week actually.

> You come here for the warmth of anger and the taste if salt. It was always the case and it will always be. Sometimes a decent discussion emerges from anger and salt and sometimes vice versa. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

>

 

Yeah, I've posted in one of the latest ones, and after I posted that comment, it was the thread right under this one, my cat thought I was losing my mind, I was laughing so hard.

[Sarge shot Grif.6450]

It's actually really helpful if you full-yolo through large groups, wait until you get low on health and then pop it. Other uses were going into places like the poison areas in the new map to get a little extra time.

[Cragga the Eighty Third.60]

I never thought of using it to extend times in the poison gas corridor--thanks!

 

I hate it when I'm running through the PoF deserts and get dismounted, and then can't get remounted because forged and sand eels and sand lions and sand sharks keep popping up all around me, and I end up slogging and fighting my way through a tedious sandy hell for miles, trying to find a place to remount. This mastery gives me one desperate chance to get out of danger and regain my HP somewhere safer. With the risk of getting downed, of course, which would also be a possibility when I'm on my feet in these places. Seems useful to me.

[Kalendraf.9521]

Limited use, but not useless. I've used it in poison areas, and in a few areas with heavy aggro to avoid having my mount die and dismount me. Used effectively, it becomes a time saver helping to avoid the reduced speed and loss of mount abilities during the cooldown time that would occur from being dismounted and put into aggro.

[castlemanic.3198]

> @"Sarge shot Grif.6450" said:

> It's actually really helpful if you full-yolo through large groups, wait until you get low on health and then pop it. Other uses were going into places like the poison areas in the new map to get a little extra time.

 

This is how I've used it (though to be fair sometimes enemies hit too hard too fast for you to react to this, plus my lag's been super bad lately). This is great, especially for when you're almost out of the area and you're taking damage, and you know you have enough health to survive any oncoming hits. It's still a chance you're taking but like, if you're almost out of the area and you're about to be dismounted, this mastery is such a great tool.

 

That said, while I love the utility of this tool, I absolutely hate that this mastery is tied to Aurene. When I read crystalline champion in the mastery box, I was super hyped about getting dragon related mastery things, no matter how slight they might be. When I got this mastery, I realised that every mastery we're going to get is gonna be mount themed and that made me REALLY sad. If this wasn't under the label of 'crystalline champion', I'd be fine with mount related masteries. But I'm super sad that season 4's masteries are mount related while themed under being a dragon champion. It's not cohesive.

 

Sorry for the sidetrack. Back to the main point, this mastery does have a use, and currently, a far wider use than it's season 3 equivalent (since mounts can be used anywhere).

[Blocki.4931]

It's supposed to be a very niche thing. It's good for the achievement in the story (the skritt in the poison corridor) and usually just some additional convenience when you really don't want to get dismounted, or you failed a crucial jump/low health and now the mobs you were ignoring before would dismount you