I am not an avid weave player. I gave it a try when WoM first came out and decided it wasn’t really for me; however, I find the levelling up of weave weapons a significantly more enjoyable crafting system.
I can’t help but wish the base games crafting system was handled in a similar fashion to the weaves, solving a number of complaints people have had with the game from the get go, as detailed below:
Too much randomness with both weapons obtained and traits rolled - weave system allows you to unlock specific weapons and traits from a currency you earn by playing the game, not from a random loot box;
The crafting system does nothing to promote trying new builds - weave system allows you to switch out traits you have already unlocked for each weapon, at will;
Crafting system is downright clunky - I know improvements have been made (reduced craft time) but the weave system just feels like a much more polished product where you can set up a new build within 10 clicks.
Additionally, levelling could be linked to max trait bonuses and unlock as you progress through the character. Loot boxes could then be tweaked to provide us with cosmetics or additional currency to unlock further weapon upgrades, instead of gaining the weapons themselves.
I feel like a lot of effort has been put into the weave crafting system and it is a shame that it is only linked to the weaves themselves. I would be indescribably happy if the rework of the crafting system brought the base game closer to the above. I am no programmer so I cannot comment on the feasibility of this change but the pessimist within me says it would be unachievable.
What are you guys/gals/non-gendered group reference’s opinion? How do you find the weave crafting system and do you think it would have a place in the main game?
The base game’s system is useful in the very beginning (when you don’t need to pay that much attention to it), but gets pretty much completely broken as soon as you start going for particular builds. Start trying for breakpoints, and it gets extremely frustrating, fast.
The Weave system is good for doing particular builds, but it’s pretty confusing of new players who don’t know what to go for. In addition, while (after accumulating enough Essence) it’s practical for changing the build of a particular weapon quickly and testing stuff, it still takes quite a lot of work to get there, and trying to make several weapons work as alternatives is a chore - and nevermind someone like me who likes to try out everything, and actually wants to have at least one of every weapon available.
Personally I also find the Weave system quite micromanage-y, and I don’t like it. It’s fast and simple if and only if you know what you’re going for (and have spent the Essence to get there); otherwise it’s a game of “what can I do, what do I have available, what can I afford”.
So both systems have their positives and negatives, I think, and for most high-level players (who are the ones to care more about it) the Weave system is better. But it’s not just those high-level players that need to be considered, and not every one of them have equal needs either. Luckily, according to the Reddit AMA and recent stream(s), FS seems to be largely of similar opinion. Crafting reworks are coming, and the Weave system is being looked at as an inspiration, but it probably won’t move in the base game as is.
Good points. I have been playing since the game first came out and you have reminded me that I never felt overwhelmed in the early game because I just ignored the traits until I learned the game a bit more. It was only when I started getting max power level weapons that I actually cared about this stuff.
What I would say though is that the micromanage-y aspects you list are very similar to the current crafting system. We have to build up multiple resources (which are often used up at different rates), spend them on re-rolls until we get the traits we have researched and want to try and lose access to them when we try something new (unless you have multiple weapons). If anything, the weave system removes a some of the more annoying aspects like multiple crafting materials and the need for multiple weapons to retain builds.
With regards to the grind to unlock all traits etc, I think the solution would be to simply balance the rewards so that you get adequate currency so you don’t feel like you are grinding for that extra 5% power vs, similar to tweaking drop-rates of reds back in the good old days of 0 reds/cosmetics.
I think the weave system also does a lot with regards to transparency when it comes to available traits and weapon types. As a new player, you have no clue as to what weapon traits/modifiers you could potentially get by re-rolling and go into it completely blind unless you do a bit of research online. Having a list you can look through prior to making a decision on what to purchase gives new players some degree of control and pushes them to think about the choice, as opposed to going online and looking for the most meta build.
Good to know the weave system is being used as inspiration and I would expect it to differ from the weave system to make it more applicable to the base game. I just hope it lets me open the crafting menu and not feel like i’m going to need to take tomorrow off work :).
FS have said that they’ve noticed how much people are liking the Athanor system at full tilt; they’re not going to copy it over exactly or anything, but I think they’re going to take inspiration from it.
I wish they just did away with Crafting altogether and switched to the weave system. Power of the weapons depends on your level. Simple. At lvl 30, you can have max power weapons and put max properties on then. After that, loot boxes are nothing more than cosmetics. Let us save profiles of builds so we can quick switch between them and problem solved.
You end up with people being able to try multiple builds without needing red weapons. I’m always sitting on around 100 red dust and that’s with me crafting new red weapons just to try out a new build. It just seems like extra work, do away with the whole system and give us the drop down select from Weaves. It would make the higher difficulties more friendly to new players and let vets try out different builds constantly.
Yeah, this would be great. This isn’t a game about a loot grind, and the beauty of the Athanor system is that it could offer way more customization. If you wanted to forego properties and get two traits, that could be possible. If they wanted to increase the functional power of players, you could simply increase the number of points. If we want to spent a ridiculous number of points to have even higher properties but nothing else, we could do that.
Maybe it’d break balance, but it’d be interesting.
I’ll expand or elaborate upon my previous post a bit.
I think the biggest pitfall of the Weave system is the function of multiple weapons (and characters) there. If you have only one or two preferred builds (and not even per character; overall), fine. But if you want to suddenly change to something new, things get annoying.
Let’s say I’ve started with Bardin, and played some Weaves with him. Then, I want to change to Kerillian (for whatever reason) and make a full crowd-clear build for her because of what we face. My only options immediately are Longbow and Single Sword, neither of which is conducive to what I want to achieve. So I need to spend 1000 Essence just to open up another melee weapon, same amount for another ranged weapon, and a bunch more to bring both up to par (one level at a time, I might add, so it isn’t that fast either). Then I still need to figure out what Properties and Traits I want, and see whether I can afford them or (depending on Athanor level) whether they’re available. And now I have opened up one build for one character. If I want to change the character I play I need to do that again. Same if I simply want to change weapons for the next Weave as the threats we face are way different. And heaven have mercy if you don’t have the necessary Essence.
Yeah, once I have done all this, it’s relatively easy and fast to change builds for those weapons. But as builds depend on the particulars of a weapon quite a lot, this system isn’t exactly conducive to testing things. In the normal system, if I’m lacking a particular weapon, I can relatively quickly spend a few moments and clicks to craft and upgrade one - it won’t have optimal attributes, but it’ll be usable.
So I’m not that big of a fan of the Athanor system. I don’t have a strong preference to any particular character, Career or build. As I mentioned in another thread, I have at least four “fall-back” setups that I’ll pick if nothing else seems to work that day, and all of them need different setups. That’s four times I need to build the weapons, and that’s only the basics - never mind any specialist builds (that the Weaves seem to invite every now and then) or merely trying out something.
I wasn’t suggesting using the weave system with their points. Basically, each level you get on your character increases how much % of a property you can have on each weapon. Weapons are unlocked just like they are now, by reaching levels, you unlock new weapons. So at lvl 30 you can use every weapon and always roll two stats to max. Except of course for dlc weapons which need to be unlocked.
@SmokerT69 - I think I was the one being responded to there . In my previous post I listed why I preferred the weave system and that purchase options should be linked to level but I still had a currency used to purchase these items.
Your suggestion sounds simpler and would likely be more enjoyable in the grand scheme of things but I do love a bit of purchasing upgrades. Makes me feel like I have more control over my progression while making me want to replay things later when I have explored other options. Can’t actually think of any benefits, just a personal preference.
@Yzneftamz - I see what you mean. Linking the progression to levelling only and remove the need for a currency to unlock things would avoid the grind, as Smoker suggested. I am a bit of an anomaly when it comes to these games where I find a character I like then play it to death. For example, my Bardin is around level 400 while my second highest level character is Kruber…at level 20ish. Good to have opinions from people who represent more of the playerbase .
. In my previous post I listed why I preferred the weave system and that purchase options should be linked to level but I still had a currency used to purchase these items.
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