So...you do you, and I appreciate the work you did to make this. Clearly you put thought into it, and care. But...this is one of the goofiest descriptions I've ever read. The worst stones in the game you don't change, saying they aren't broken; yay, I can continue to pick one non-master lock per day, how exciting. Or the Apprentice Stone, which sucks. The ones you DO change, mostly the good ones, you change to be like the Apprentice Stone; a small buff coupled with a larger penalty. 100% weakness to fire in exchange for a 50% resistance to shock and a mere 50 armor? And the stones that give you control over how fast you level were altered because you want players to have control over how fast they level...umm, yes, that's what the stones are FOR, why would you REMOVE the very flexibility you seem to support? If your changes were the default in the game, 90% of us would just the Mage stone and nothing else, ever. I guess for a self-imposed challenge or some kind of role-playing, the changes could be impactful, but for the most part, they just make the stones a terrible idea. That isn't to say the Standing Stones weren't in need of improvement, but those are mostly the ones you didn't improve.
Sorry if I sound rude. It's not my intention. It's just, this mod is like the opposite of what the majority of people agree should happen. It'd be like if you made a mod nerfing destruction spells and boosting archery, or increasing the sale price of created potions and poisons, or slowing down the leveling speed of speech.
Thank you for your feedback. I realise that far from everyone will agree with these changes, or the designs of the unchanged stones.
I do actually find the ability to once per day open an Expert or lower level lock, without even touching Lockpicking, to be exciting. It gives you access to loot, areas and perhaps even quests that you otherwise could be locked out of. I feel the same for the other stones that grant a power.
The Apprentice Stone indeed has a substantial downside, but I think this is counteracted by the general scarcity of magical enemies. If you have around 300 magicka, you don't have to spend more than twenty seconds in combat (without casting) for it to outweigh the bonus from The Mage. Fifty seconds of combat restores your magicka completely.
50 armor increases your effective health by up to 30 % with the recommended armor mod. For the same reason as with The Apprentice, I suspect the fire weakness has less effect overall than the armor boost.
A player can tweak their leveling speed to any multiplier using mods. Perhaps they want it to be 90 % as fast, 150 % as fast, or even 25 % as fast. The level speed stones only allowed for two options - regular speed or slightly faster. If one uses such a mod (or simply prefers the regular leveling speed), this makes the level speed stones counterproductive.
The greatest point in the stones for me is variety in gameplay; to make each playthrough more unique. As you theorised, they are intended to be picked from a roleplaying perspective. However, I believe they are reasonably balanced for people who are looking to pick a stone that is optimal for their build as well.
4 comments
Sorry if I sound rude. It's not my intention. It's just, this mod is like the opposite of what the majority of people agree should happen. It'd be like if you made a mod nerfing destruction spells and boosting archery, or increasing the sale price of created potions and poisons, or slowing down the leveling speed of speech.
I do actually find the ability to once per day open an Expert or lower level lock, without even touching Lockpicking, to be exciting. It gives you access to loot, areas and perhaps even quests that you otherwise could be locked out of. I feel the same for the other stones that grant a power.
The Apprentice Stone indeed has a substantial downside, but I think this is counteracted by the general scarcity of magical enemies. If you have around 300 magicka, you don't have to spend more than twenty seconds in combat (without casting) for it to outweigh the bonus from The Mage. Fifty seconds of combat restores your magicka completely.
50 armor increases your effective health by up to 30 % with the recommended armor mod. For the same reason as with The Apprentice, I suspect the fire weakness has less effect overall than the armor boost.
A player can tweak their leveling speed to any multiplier using mods. Perhaps they want it to be 90 % as fast, 150 % as fast, or even 25 % as fast. The level speed stones only allowed for two options - regular speed or slightly faster. If one uses such a mod (or simply prefers the regular leveling speed), this makes the level speed stones counterproductive.
The greatest point in the stones for me is variety in gameplay; to make each playthrough more unique. As you theorised, they are intended to be picked from a roleplaying perspective. However, I believe they are reasonably balanced for people who are looking to pick a stone that is optimal for their build as well.