Before mentioning anything, I want to say that I generally like what Boost: X can do for a theme. Any race-based support rune with access to Boost: X tends to look more appealing than a race-based support rune without it. With that said, certain things about Boost: X need to change. First, Rank 3 of pretty much any Boost: X ability is problematic because 6 spaces is such a large AoE. In addition, though I don't mind the HP gain so much, the DMG boost is very decent (perhaps too much). As such, I thought I'd open up a thread to discuss what a healthy Boost: X would/should look like.
Here's one idea... Boost: X (Rank 1)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +1 DMG and +4 HP (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 6) Boost: X (Rank 2)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +2 DMG and +6 HP (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 10) Boost: X (Rank 3)- Removed From Game. Or another... Boost: X (Rank 1)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +1 DMG, +1 DEF, and +4 HP (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 8) Boost: X (Rank 2)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +2 DMG, +1 DEF, and +6 HP (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 12) Boost: X (Rank 3)- Removed From Game.
I really think it should not boost HP. I don't like the interactions between Boost and HP - like how sometimes a champ is alive only until it leaves the boost zone, which makes no sense to me.
It could give +DMG and +DEF? Boost: X (Rank 1)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +1 DMG and +1 DEF (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 4) Boost: X (Rank 2)- Friendly XXXX champions within 5 spaces gain +2 DMG and +2 DEF (this ability does not stack). (Nora Cost: 8) Of course, this makes Boost a little too similar to Improve Damage/Improve Defense.
I think Boost is a lazy mechanic and toxic to game design. I don't think that what it does for themes justifies the weird riskless power surge runes can get just from having the classification of their race changed. It is a mechanic that ruins the balancing of individual runes by inflating the value of their abilities. How can you balance a champ when its practical stats are "somewhere between a and b" hp and "somewhere between x and y" damage?
Boost is such a fkin passive abillity it hurts. Even zombie herder is better. Edit: boost is brainless.
Improve was added long after Boost and is both easier to reuse and gives greater control over the benefits. My suggestion is to replace Boost with: Improve: X for race based stat increases and Enhance: X for class based stat increases with a clause that Improve and Enhance do not stack. This allows different stats to be increased more selectively, rather than gaining an all encompassing increase just from plopping down a single champion. Improve: Damage (+2), Improve Defense (+2), Improve Health (+5), Improve Speed (+1), Improve Range (+1) Enhance: Damage (+2), Enhance Defense (+2), Enhance Health (+5), Enhance Speed (+1), Enhance Range (+1) Even if a theme had multiple boosts, it would require several specific deployments to equal the current effects of Boost 3 with a nora investment of 21 instead of 10 for the abilities. Commander would be another ability that could easily be replaced this way. By doing this, the boost depends on proximity rather than being global. As a side note, I disagree with the sentiment that Boost is brainlessly passive. Global boosts are brainlessly passive, since they are literally drop and benefit. Proximity boosts require positioning and the resulting Ap expense to maintain.
Let me just say im not a heavily experienced player nor a pro at poxnora, but in my short time ive taken note of something. Part of why pox is so complicated is due to the sheer number of unnecessary abilities. Like you said, boost that involves only dmg/def is much like improve: dmg/def. I think we should focus on condensing skills for the sake of a simpler game that is more attractive to newer players. I would love to see boost removed, and replaced with improve: X for racial themes. Oh and u have great ideas xirone
I like the idea of Boost maybe becoming a buff like Sermon that is broken by the unit moving (but with a range). I would support this happening to Sermon too, if it meant it would be placed on a unit with less green about the edges (and the AP cost, cooldown, and stats re-balanced to account for the unit needing to turn it off more often).
This would require rebalancing a bunch of themes to keep them playable. Rebalancing all the units with that race that are tuned around the availability of boost. Which is a ton of work and would take a long time. This in the middle of a ton of other nerf, buff, flavor, costing, and general balance issues people are requesting and complaining about every day that don't require reworking an entire swath of champions. I'd prefer they just fix the broken things and leave boost as it is instead of burning a bunch of man-hours on it.
There is something to be said about burdening the devs with multiple changes. At the very least, I believe Rank 3 of all the boosts should be deleted from the game because a range of 6 is often nutty. I'm not saying this as someone who lost to Boost but rather as someone who plays KF Beast decks.
Boost: X should not give physical changes to a champ. Boost: X should be racial specific within range of 2, for example, Enrage to Garu, ZA to Zombies, Tough to Beasts, Bloodlust to Demons, Evasive to Elves and Voils, Violent to Draksar, Take Root to Trees, and so on. Of course, the mechanics for these would have to be reworked some.
I been saying boost 3 is handed out wayyy to much. They basically put it on every single champ even the ones that shouldn't have it I would be just fine with removing boost 3 from the game.
I agree with aspects of this and propose the following changes: Tie DEF/RNG/SPD bonuses to source's CLASS/RACE: Enhance: Defense/Range/Speed: +1 DEF/+1 MAX RNG/+1 SPD for same CLASS friendlies within 5 Improve: Defense/Range/Speed: +1 DEF/+1 MAX RNG/+1 SPD for same RACE friendlies within 5 Enhance Armor renamed to Transfer Armor Enhance Weapon renamed to Transfer Weapon Enhance and Improve wouldn't stack with each other. Separate DMG/HP bonuses from source's CLASS/RACE: Augment: RACE: +1/2/3 DMG for RACE friendlies within 6/5/4 Command: CLASS: +1/2/3 DMG for CLASS friendlies within 6/5/4 Fortify: CLASS/RACE: +5/7/10 HP for CLASS/RACE friendlies within 6/5/4 Command: ABILITY renamed to Order: ABILITY Augment and Command wouldn't stack with each other. Increasing the bonus while decreasing the buff range at each rank supports the logic that ranged champions can provide a weaker buff from farther away while melee champions provide a stronger buff for being closer. Boost could also become an activated temporary bonus: Boost: CLASS/RACE: [CD: 4, AP: 3] Friendly CLASS/RACE within 4 gains +4 DMG/+2 DEF for 4 turns Reduce the range of Global bonuses: Surge: CLASS/RACE: +1/2 DMG for each friendly CLASS/RACE within 10/6 Surge: CONDITION: +1/2 DMG for each CONDITIONED unit within 10/6 Bulwark: CLASS/RACE: +2 MAX HP for each friendly CLASS/RACE within 10, +1 DEF for every 5 CLASS/RACE Motivate: +1 ATK for ALL friendlies within 10 Hearten: +1 DEF for friendlies with <2 base DEF within 10 Bolster: +7 HP for friendlies with <40 base HP within 10 Vitalize: +1 SPD for friendless with <6 base SPD within 10 Reducing the range for rank 2 Surge makes it easier to apply to more champions. Bulwark, specifically, may need a slight buff (+3 HP/1 and +1 DEF/3), though. There are a number of other global abilities that could be changed as well, but these seem like the easiest to start with.
That is way too many new abilities. What stacks and what doesn't stack. Does enhance: range not be stacked with any improve: X abilities? Or can it be stacked with anything thats not improve: range? I don't see an issue with command, because it's not a crazy stat boost.
My list is based on Gorebucket's suggestions and the majority of the abilities I listed already exist. A quick breakdown: Enhance STAT (CLASS counterpart to the Improve STAT line) Augment: RACE (replaces Commander: RACE abilities) Command: CLASS (replaces Commander: CLASS abilities) Fortify: CLASS/RACE (replaces Boost: CLASS/RACE abilities) Enhance wouldn't stack with Improve and Augment wouldn't stack with Command. This results in a maximum collective bonus of: +3 DMG (Augment or Command) +1 DEF (Enhance or Improve) +10 HP (Fortify) +1 MAX RNG (Enhance or Improve) +1 SPD (Enhance or Improve Surge, Bulwark, Motivate, Bolster, Hearten and Vitalize stack with everything. The activated version of Boost would also stack with everything (if it were added). TL;DR: Add 4 abilities (Enhance Defense/Range/Speed + Augment: RACE) Enhance STAT is CLASS equivalent of Improve STAT Commander: CLASS/RACE split into Augment: RACE + Command: CLASS Boost: CLASS/RACE renamed Fortify: CLASS/RACE Foment renamed Bolster Surge/Bulwark/Motivate/Bolster/Hearten/Vitalize given a non-global range
And I thought that skeezicks were a cool theme with 1 spell, +2 dmg racial and a racial warcry. All this +x Def + x hp +x Speed is making me nausious.
