I mean only the regular flares such as fire, lightning, etc. Not special flares like poleaxe, rotflares, etc.
Feel free to expand on your answers as necessary.
I would like them to hit every time but for between 5-20 damage.
Flares are fine as is. You can often stack multiple types on one weapon, they can result in death crits, and they're fun.
@vishra I meant specifically regular flares, like you would find from an e-blade. Fire, lightning, earth, etc. I have clarified myself in the original post.
You can stack multiple types of regular flares on one weapon via banes.
And, to this day, lightning and fire flares are some of the strongest in the game. Really, they're doing just fine. Fancy flares have neat messaging and can have higher flare rates, but they're generally not any stronger than standard flares.
@Vishra that may be true but I as an archer much prefer flares every time from fletchings over %chance on arrowheads.
Sure- but those fletching razors can also give standard flares, right?
So that doesn't really reflect negatively on them.
No it doesn't reflect negatively on the regular flares but those regular flares activate every hit versus arrowhead regular flares which is a % chance.
I think flares on every hit with low damage output could also add legitimacy in some respects to under utilized weapons. Think of brawlers (not gloves or boots) or fast weapons with low damage output. Those weapons could be more competitive with flares because now they are flaring 2 times to one swing for slower weapons. Granted the slower weapons would still be the better overall choice but it could resurrect weapons that have long been pawn fodder.
Might be interesting to help weapon bases out if the flare chance was improved depending on the weapon's base speed or min RT. Anything faster than say 5 seconds base speed, would get a modifier to improve the % chance to flare on the attack.
At 5s base weapon speed, the flare modifier is 12 times per minute for 25% chance to flare. At 4s base weapon speed, the flare modifier is 15 times per minute for a 31.25% chance to flare (15/12 = 1.25 -- 1.25 x 25 = 31.25) At 3s base weapon speed, the flare modifier is 20 times per minute for a 41.6% chance to flare (20/12 = 1.66 -- 1.66 x 25 = 41.6) At 2s base weapon speed, the flare modifier is 30 times per minute for a 62.5% chance to flare (30/12 = 2.5 -- 2.5 x 25 = 62.5) At 1s base weapon speed, the flare modifier is 60 times per minute for a 100% chance to flare
The above chart might be too powerful, but you could just change it to min RT, and then you'd cap out at 41.6% chance to flare (all weapons have a min RT of 3 seconds or greater when swung using ATTACK command).
This would only be compatible with non-UCS attacks as the UCS combat system is too fast to flare that often, and already benefits greatly from 25% chance flares. But something like this would make swinging brawling weapons (i.e. cestus / knuckle-blades / hook knives) much more appealing while also improving whip-blades / daggers / and other faster but low damage weapons better for flaring.
@Wyrom Any chance of seeing rotflare type flare for other lores? Fire, lightning, holy, etc.
@sabotage said in Flares Questionnaire:
@Wyrom Any chance of seeing rotflare type flare for other lores? Fire, lightning, holy, etc.
that's a good idea, have lores tied to greater elemental flares to increase the strength (keep the base as is)
I could go with possibly just general lores increasing flare chance, as flares should be useable by everyone and not just end up stealth buffing a few select classes.
But I agree with the general notion that flares need some love especially since it's seen as almost decorative compared to the far and away more prized weighting.
@god I think greater flare buff would be to accessible.
Rotflares are pretty rare maybe under 20-30 around? I was thinking of repurposing a script to work for more class lores.
Basic elemental flares are extremely meh - their downsides (such as harder to enchant), taking up space of other things (less of an issue now), and some places not being friendly to flares, make them not that worth it. I've tossed a lot of basic 4x flaring weapons, just no point in keeping them.
Giving them increased flaring chance by roundtime would go a long way to make slow weapons more useful. Lores would also be a very cool benefit - give much more opportunity for diversity
RotFlares are extremely potent. At the time, necromancy wasn't a very desirable lore for sorcerers either (before ensorcell). Sorcerers and runestaves also haven't had a lot of love either when it comes to itemization. They were also created under different approval management.
Creating another script similar to RotFlares would likely go through a more rigorous approval process. I don't think we'd slap it on Greater Elemental Flares. If we went down an elemental lore flare like RotFlares, it would be a whole new script that could work with other scripts. But I'll be honest, if I were to code something like this, I'd probably go with some of the other lore types first before doing anything elemental.
I do love the rotflares. They are pretty mean and fun to use.
It'd be interesting if flares could be enchanted the same way that one can ensorcell something. A wizard could enchant the strength of the flares to different tiers.
And isn't an e-blade less % than a regular flare? I thought I heard/read that somewhere.
@wyrom 
I'd be first in line for a non-evil rotflares at the next DR for my Voln wizard.
@ponclast said in Flares Questionnaire:
I'd be first in line for a non-evil rotflares at the next DR for my Voln wizard.
You mean holy water flares?
@vishra Yes but lore based. With the flare chance and damage increasing with ranks.
@ponclast said in Flares Questionnaire:
I'd be first in line for a non-evil rotflares at the next DR for my Voln wizard.
This. I purposedly stayed out of chances for rotflares because it didn't "fit", and in hope to catch future development that may work for gear improvement opportunity as a subscript.
And if @Wyrom is saying elemental is likely out, then maybe like using religion lore, that would enhance plasma or holy water (meh) flares for an anti rotflare type effect through subscript (and make it work with splitters! kthx)
Honestly, when it comes to sub-scripted flares- I do worry about power creep if we start introducing too many of these. We've already got blessable crit weighting, flares with crit-weighting, ensorcell, etc.
But- I wouldn't mind seeing holy water flares added to sanctified weapons- particularly for clerics who don't have access to 1604.
@vishra said in Flares Questionnaire:
Honestly, when it comes to sub-scripted flares- I do worry about power creep if we start introducing too many of these. We've already got blessable crit weighting, flares with crit-weighting, ensorcell, etc.
But- I wouldn't mind seeing holy water flares added to sanctified weapons- particularly for clerics who don't have access to 1604.
As long as flares of the same power as rot are kept as uber-expensive as rot, power creep might not be an issue. But to some degree that Elvis has already left the building with multiple DRs spinning out so many good items for dirt-cheap, ensorcelling added to the game, the new wps system everyone can use, and so on. I'd be surprised if this wasn't a topic at the top of the mind of the GMs.
I don't want too many of these, I just want possible (in a non dark themed way).
@Vishra I don't think crit blessable will have that much of an impact when heavy weighting only gets 2 swings. Yes these is a little bump for levels below heavy but overall it would seem the old guard is still the better route.
And rotflares are realistically attainable by 5-10% of the population would by best guess due to pricing unless there is some kind of raffle so the holy version would probably be similar.
I think this is a great idea! For my rogue and ranger.
I guess the only peole who would disagree are Paladins. We've kinda taken away their unique class ability to hit undead with crit weighted weapons , I think doing something like this which is effectively an itemized form of 1625 would takeaway too much from the class.
@losus Heavy weighting- with the benefit of consecrate- gets quite a few swings from what I've heard.
Though I haven't tried it out myself.
@vishra Can confirm. Consecrate is amazing and mandatory for any bless to be really useful.
@Vishra good to know but still will never compare to permablessed (which to be fair you were only commenting on the length of the bless not the difference between the two).
@God and for the pally they would still get their flares with their permablessed weapon.
@losus Yeah, but their arguement is they used to be the only class to be able to swing a crit weighted weapon and hit undead and now anyone can willy nilly hit undead with a weighted weapon.
@god well, thats a different beast and it doesn't look like they're getting that back.
Things change, clerics used to be the only raising class, then paladins came along. Being the only class to have something isn't always the most important, being able to do it best can also be important.
@god said in Flares Questionnaire:
@losus Yeah, but their arguement is they used to be the only class to be able to swing a crit weighted weapon and hit undead and now anyone can willy nilly hit undead with a weighted weapon.
As someone who plays a Paladin, I'm really skeptical of this argument. I've heard folks point this out, and to me it's just an argument of opportunity. People aren't making it because they want to get back something Paladins lost (we didn't- we have the same functionality we had before). They're making it because they feel like if they do, they might get something new out of the argument.
I don't find that particularly compelling.
@god said in Flares Questionnaire:
I think this is a great idea! For my rogue and ranger.
I guess the only peole who would disagree are Paladins. We've kinda taken away their unique class ability to hit undead with crit weighted weapons , I think doing something like this which is effectively an itemized form of 1625 would takeaway too much from the class.
@god I feel that my Paladin is in no way diminished by others having the capability that I have.