Weapon Mastery as a single weapon skill stat
by Matthew Rossi 
Sep 4th 2008 at 1:00PM
Forum poster Exodeus has made a suggestion that I heartily endorse: abandon the weapon skill mechanic for a universal weapon mastery system. It's not just for the reasons he suggests that I'm on board. His examples (of a hunter having to go AFK on Dr. Boom after getting a new gun drop because he's always used bows, or a rogue having to mindlessly slaughter low level mobs to get that dagger skill up) resonate for sure... we have a talented DPS warrior in my guild who had to go buy a green 2h axe because he hadn't used one since the old Arcanite Reaper days and he was supposed to be using the 2h legendary in the Kael fight, so I know how ridiculous the skilling up process can be... but because his suggestion makes sense in light of all the other ways the folks at Blizzard are unifying things like spell power, hit rating, crit rating and so on. His point about how the introduction of Expertise effectively made the whole system obsolete is dead on in my eyes.I personally even like his proposed mechanic, but adopting it wouldn't be necessary: I'd be fine if they simply abandoned weapon skill entirely and just based everything on your character level to start with (so that if you were a level 80 paladin and you got a new hammer, you'd automatically hit with it as if you had a 400 weapon skill, no muss, no fuss) if you're dead set on keeping things simple. No matter how they go about it, since training dummies still don't provide weapon skill on use, I'd have to believe that some change or revamp of the system would be a very nice improvement to the gameplay. Getting a nice drop shouldn't send you into the Blasted Lands to find Servants of Razelikh. Those poor guys -- not only are they cursed to be unable to die, but they get smacked in the head by guys way higher level then they are all day. It's a hard life being an unkillable mob.
If Blizzard was a pixie one could make wishes to, this would definitely be one of mine. Also, I'd try and keep them safe from Captain Hook.
Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Forums
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
stylewalker Sep 4th 2008 1:08PM
I feel sad about people complaining over every little effort they have to do in this game. Blizzard is already removing a lot of "unnecessary" parts, as attunements, heroic instances lowered to honored, poison reagants removed and a lot more.
Why should everyone get everything for free? Soon, there wont be any progressing part left in this game. What is next? We go to an "Dungeon Master" and get instantly equipped and enchanted for any raid we want to go to? Maybe we can even get one character of every class as soon as we hit level 80, with full epic gear of course.
totallyninja Sep 4th 2008 1:16PM
call me crazy, but I'd rather put my effort into activities that are *fun* rather than having to spend an hour hitting a mob that won't die.
I don't want them to take away progression things like hard raids, getting people together, learning the fight, and executing on strategy. All that? Totally fun and challenging.
Logging in on my lunchbreak to swing on a mob that will never die for an hour cause I've never used a 2h axe before? Totally lame.
Preston Sep 4th 2008 1:16PM
Are you serious? This is a game. It's not supposed to be a part-time job. I don't want to have to stand still in the Blasted Lands swinging at a mob for half an hour to raise a number up. THAT'S NOT FUN.
You sound like an elitist whose self-worth relies on videogame accomplishments. It's just a cartoon RPG.
Barth Sep 4th 2008 1:18PM
Taking a green 2H axe back to blasted lands as a lvl 70 warrior is not "progression." I agree that not everything should be handed to you in the game, but this is just a poor mechanic that should be changed in some way. I don't have the answer, but I don't think it would hurt the game in any way whatsoever if they just removed the individual weapon type skills. The only time these have any effect is when you get a new weapon then realize "oh crap I haven't used one of these since lvl 45!" Suddenly the drop or quest reward you just worked for is actually a nerf rather than a buff. Other than that, you never even think about your weapon skill.
Like I said, the current system doesn't add anything but frustration and a time sink. It's not progression to go back to noob zones and watch your weapon skill crawl painfully slowly up.
BillDoor Sep 4th 2008 1:23PM
Spending hours being afk while autoattacking mobs in blasted lands or dr.boom is something you want to encourage? Nobody ever passes up a drop because they haven't skilled up that ability, instead they get it and then spend three or four hours after the raid wasting time leveling up that skill, when they could be doing something more interesting.
placebofud Sep 4th 2008 1:46PM
You play a caster don't you?
Darkharmony Sep 4th 2008 2:02PM
Just thought I'd note. To make matters worse the enemies in blasted lands no longer give weapon skill ups in the beta.
Tridus Sep 4th 2008 2:20PM
The last time I had to level weapon skill (I mostly play casters), it was on a prot warrior.
So I did what anybody sane does: I found a servant in the Blasted Lands, turned on auto-attack, and walked away for 20 minutes.
Came back, broke combat, bandaged, and repeated two more times.
I'm not sure how exactly you can call this "work", or how doing it requires any sort of "skill", or why doing it should be necessary before I can use the shiny new tanking sword I just earned in a raid.
To me, it was just an hour of playing the game where I wasn't really playing the game (in fact I was playing on my Xbox while this was going on).
Zanathos Sep 4th 2008 2:22PM
Attunments and heroic keys at least provided a sense of accomplishment to people who get them done. For newer players, they make sure you're somewhat experienced in starter instances before charging into harder ones.
Hitting unkillable mobs to skill up weapons provides no such benefit to the game. I don't feel like i've accomplished something. I feel like I've wasted my time. And it doesn't teach you anything or make you a better player. Other than to tab out and check your toon every couple of minutes. The weapon skilling up mechanics could be done away with and reworked and the only negative effect on the game is it would give people who complain about anything another reason to complain.
Not ruling out the possibility you're a subtle troll.
Clbull Sep 4th 2008 2:29PM
I HATE the fact that if you get a new weapon of a different type, then you have to swing and miss for hours just to train the skill up.
Whilst its more realistic that way than just abandoning Weapon Skill altogether, in this case how is this example of realism any fun?
Is constantly swinging your weapon and seeing "Miss" all the time for upto 2 hours anyone's idea of fun? Probably not. I don't find it fun and I think it would be great if Weapon Skill was removed.
Zali Sep 4th 2008 8:20PM
I have to say, I agree with Stylewalker here... although for different reasons.
One of the reasons that WOW is successful is that it is constantly reinforcing a persons ego by having them reach milestones every time they turn around. You may not like training that weapon up, but you feel a sense of accomplishment when you do. You might not like attunements, but you felt like you accomplished something when you got it. WOW is successful, because like in life, there are a vast number of opportunities to feel as if you overcame a difficult challenge. Many of them are big and easily recognizable, but a large number of them are small, hardly noticable by themselves, but the little ego boosts add up.
Agent Smith in the Matrix had one thing right. We define ourselves by the obstacles that we overcome... the challenges that we struggle though. Opposition in all things, right? You can't know joy unless you know sadness, etc. People that play video games in GOD mode will bore quickly. It might be fun to be unstoppable for a little while, but soon it is mundane because there is no challenge, no struggle, no work, and no appreciation. Isn't that the whole point of them putting in accomplishments? A large number of lists of things for you to grind through? People talk about how fun or cool that will be. Why? How is grinding up a weapon skill any different. They are both time sinks, and can become mundane. I just know that I feel good about myself when I finally max out a skill or trade. Even if the grind pissed me off... and sometimes especially if it pissed me off. And this translates into real life activities too.
WOW is successful, not in spite of the annoying little things we have to work through, but because of them.
arcady0 Sep 4th 2008 1:09PM
Call it unpopular, but I like weapon skills being diverse just the way they are.
I don't think we need more and more unity of everything, and honestly it is not that much work to skill up a weapon skill if you decide to switch what weapon you're going to be working with.
I'd rather they give more reasons for not everyone at a given progression level to be using the same weapon. Add more diversity, not thin it down.
Ametrine Sep 4th 2008 3:20PM
Not much work, huh?
I'd ask what you meant by that, but I gotta go BRB for an hour while I learn how to hit things with a stick.
Brimoonfang Sep 4th 2008 1:10PM
I'm afraid I'll have to disagree with you here.
Building your weapon skills while you level up
is just one of the timesinks you have to accept when you play this game. (Similar to First Aid / Fishing / Cooking.)
I should point out that my Feral Druid has very nearly
maxed out ALL of her weapon skills even though they are entirely useless in feral forms.
All for the Master of Arms achievement...
Saelorn Sep 4th 2008 1:33PM
You don't have to accept Fishing as a time-sink. I have chosen to ignore it entirely (after some brief early attempts), and I feel my life is the better for having made that decision.
hal Sep 4th 2008 1:10PM
i thought they changed the mechanics of the Servants of Razelikh to not give skill up anymore.
http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/thread.html?topicId=8557026801&sid=2000
Matthew Rossi Sep 4th 2008 1:54PM
They probably did. Which means you have even less choice but to go inconvenience people trying to do quests by going to lowby areas and killing stuff.
I'm crazy enough that I have all my weapon skills maxed in terms of any weapon I can equip and use. Even staves. So I haven't done this in a while.
PeeWee Sep 4th 2008 2:27PM
I skilled my shaman's 2H Axe skill there just the other day, so it still works perfectly fine.
PeeWee Sep 4th 2008 2:29PM
Doh doh doh, ignore me.
I is teh flathead ^^
Galgotha Sep 4th 2008 1:10PM
I found out a few weeks ago leveling cross bow on my hunter that the Servants of Razelikh do die after about 15mins of hitting them. Had to go thru three of them to get from 0 to 350 in one sitting. lol. But that is where I go when ever I need to level my weapon skill and it is utterly a boring and waste of hours of my game play time just to use that epic that I want to use.