Unique Items (weapons and other)

London 2038
1

Hello, I would like to know when the unique types of weapons will be changed? I understand that the game is very old, but there is a question that never leaves me - the meaning of unique things. Unique things have to have something really unique. Something that will distinguish it from other things of the same type, not just a 5-star and few stats. What we have now is no different from its basic version. What they painted the icon in a bright color and attached 5 stars… That’s all. Fire mode and the behavior of weapons exactly the same as the “white” weapon. Nothing changes. There are a couple of representatives of their kind - Jin’s Chromium Dragon, Moyer’s resource and a couple of other units. There is no uniqueness of the weapon, it is still the same white-legendary weapon with different digits.

1 Like
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Hello. Feel free to learn Blender or other similar software, remodel textures of weapons to your heart’s content and then submit it in discord. You’re welcome.

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Hello there Sayber, welcome.

I do share your sentiment, in that Uniques should generally be unique. How uniqueness is defined seems to differ, however, both from person to person and between FSS and modern players/observers. Say,

This was indeed the case with some Uniques. For some examples, to add to yours:

This philosophy, to answer part of your question (delving into our creative direction, rather than into retroactive changes), has informed many of our own designs. For some examples:

And it will continue to do so.

Now, where FSS’s definition of uniqueness differed was that it often swayed from the weapon itself and considered the slot and the player. It often delved into one of two categories, each with its own subgroups:

  1. Uniqueness for the slot, and
  2. Unique affixes, affix values, or affix combinations

So for examples:

Design philosophies aside, this I think should be understandable - even if one deems it a “compromise” compared to what a Unique item should really be. Understandable in practical terms, as there are only so many ways to truly make something unique as regards

In many cases, FSS seemed to ask not “how does this weapon differ from its base variants”, but “what makes this weapon unique for the slot or for the player” or “what affixes, or values or combinations thereof, make this item stand out in general”.
As much as, again,

I do share your sentiment, in that Uniques should generally be unique

I’m more and more finding myself in agreement with this direction, and can understand its necessity.

Finally, to answer this question:

There are no such plans at the moment, and I doubt there will be ones.
This is not just because we find many items to be, in fact, Unique in the above sense. Yes, in some individual cases we might indeed agree some items are lackluster - or not unique enough.
It is mostly because

  1. We’d rather not change designs left over by FSS, when we can help it
  2. Such an undertaking would be massive, and would require considerable work when we’re busy elsewhere
  3. Such retroactive changes would require ample testing for balance, after the creative process is done, which would also require considerable work

When such an undertaking doesn’t seem necessary (if at times theoretically appealing), these factors are a bit too heavy to ignore and proceed.

This reluctance to take up such a task, under these circumstances and when we’re a small team with a very full roadmap, I hope is understandable.

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Thank you very much for such a comprehensive answer. Unique things must be really unique. And having on a weapon or armor +1 to skills or +5 to stats (and nothing else) is a dubious advantage to take an entire slot. Well, in the future hopefully you will pay attention to the “uniqueness” of unique weapons. Thanks again)))

2 Likes
5

Hello. Another question, and will be added to the modules such properties as - rate of fire and attack speed, speed of movement (attack) minions, strike on the chain (your projectile is divided). And many other things. Since the game is outdated, it is still a favorite of many, and such edits to the improvement modules will make the gameplay more diverse.

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To clarify and make sure I’ve understood your question properly, do you mean if such information can be communicated to the player?
If so, we’re actively working in that direction. A recent example can be found in this Discord post, for instance, and another in the enemy mind control immunity affix we’re set to release - following the skill description clarifications and similar work we’ve done before.
Unfortunately, the game works in rather arcane ways in places, so not every attempt to make it clearer is equally easy. We do still focus on it, but there’s no telling how much we’ll eventually be able to do.

If you meant if we can add such properties/affixes to skills or gear, the answer would be rather similar. We’ve experimented with un(der)used affixes and customization options, such as in 1.5.5 - which saw new Elemental Masteries for Summoners and new inherent affixes for armor for all factions. More obscure affixes have also been tried, such as increased Rate of Fire on Visor of the Invader and increased arcs in Reach of Talos.
That said, there are two fundamental problems with taking this approach more consistently. One, the game is indeed quite arcane - so trying to innovate within its boundaries can be quite hard. And two, player performance can sadly have odd interactions with the game’s engine - like in the infamous “armor break” example, which increased attack speed facilitates.
So between the two, we do try to enrich the game but also have to mind what is possible and what is safe. Both are, sadly, limiting.

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I meant modules like battery, fuel, relics, ammo, and missiles, which will have properties that are new. Such as +#% to rate of fire/attack speed, +#% to minions speed (attack and movement speed), +1, +2 to chain damage (i.e. missiles and bullets with this module will 100% ricochet to the nearest target), and so on. Here’s what I mean. Modules for weapons (and maybe in the future armor) with these properties.

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I see. In this case, the second part of the above should be the relevant one:

This should cover most of the examples you provided. Say,

  • “+#% to rate of fire” was added to Visor, and melee attack speed can be found on weapons like Black Angel - and was added to the Heroic dye kit and the Enhanced Melee Speed expertise
  • “+#% to minions speed (attack and movement speed)” has been tried alongside other 1.5.5 modifications, but not all such properties are as easy as the final effects of Elemental Masteries (or even necessarily possible)
  • “+1, +2 to chain damage” rings similar to Reach of Talos, which is of course not the same as “missiles and bullets with this module will 100% ricochet to the nearest target” - but that’s a far more ambitious effect with no precedent to go by, while Talos’s effect modifies an existing, inherent weapon property

That is to say, we do want to keep expanding in such directions. I hope my list of items above also helps illustrate that.
However, how easy or possible such additions are is a notable factor - eg. minion stats. How safe such additions are is also a factor, as some can be far more dangerous than others - eg. attack speed, melee or otherwise.