Project: Rebalance

CORE BALANCING CHANGES

The team at Valiant recognizes that this game is nearly twenty years old. In the last two decades, MMORPGs have evolved to include new quality of life changes, improvements to technology, and varying progression systems to reward players. The game has combatted this by adding new episodic content and reworking the entire game through renewal.

At Valiant, we believe that Pre-Renewal gameplay is truest to the original game, but we also understand that the gameplay is somewhat dated. Grinding mobs for hour and hours in the same location is tedious and not entirely rewarding. Therefore, we have completely redesigned the experience and player progression systems of the game to provide players with more immersive, diverse content.


Class Changes

There have been some important changes to classes that will make more builds viable. Our position is that playing what you want to play should be fun. There will always be builds that will yield the highest damage output, optimal WoE performance, best MVPer, etc. However, if someone wants to build a Battle Priest, that player should have at least as much fun as anyone else. The skill changes were discussed by the community and tested thoroughly before being implemented.

Swordsman Skill Changes

  • Magnum Break: AoE has been increased to 7 cells, Bonus HIT has been increased to 12 per skill level. Knockback effect has been removed and the delay after cast has been reduced from 2s to 1s. After usage, skill user will receive Magnum Frenzy State (See Below).Commens: With this skill change, Swordmen, and later on Knight or Crusader can rely more on normal attack and attack speed build.
  • Magnum Frenzy Buff Effect. Duration: 5 seconds. When active, has 10% chance to auto-casting Magnum Break when normal attack. Commens: So in short, Magnum Break -> Magnum Frenzy -> Magnum Break -> This loop enhances damage output of attack speed build for both Knight and Crusader.

Knight Skill Changes

  • Smashed: Status Effect. Affected target got its movement speed halved for one second.
  • Bowling Bash: The skill always hits twice, allowing damage up to 1000% per instance of Bowling Bash. The gutter line bug has been completely removed. Commens: Gutter lines are something that were never really addressed by the creators of the game.
  • Brandish Spear: ATK Damage increased to 100% + 40% per SkillLv (up from 20% per SkillLv). Castime and after cast delay have been reduced by half (to 0.5s each). Knochback effect has been removed. This skill now has other effect: it pulls all damaged monster toward the cell infront of Knight, has 10%*SkillLv to affect Smashed.Commens: Gutter lines are something that were never really addressed by the creators of the game.
  • Spear Stab: Deals a AoE (3x3) of 100% + 40% per SkillLv damage and triple up on target with Smashed Status. Cast-time and delay after cast has been added from 0s before to now 0.5 second. Knockback range has been reduced from 6 to 3 cells. Commens: Brandish Spear and Spear Stab is now Knight's new wombo-combo, which should be called Smashed Combo. Brandish Spear pulls monsters for Spear Stab to end them with triple damage from Smashed Effect.

Crusader Skill Changes

  • Holy Cross: Damage increased from 100 + 35% per skill level to 300% + 25% per skill level. Skill also has an accuracy bonus of +2% per skill level and has a range of 3 cells. New SP formula is 6 SP + 1 SP per skill level (16 SP when used at Level 10). Commens: Holy Cross is quite inferior to Grand Cross and was given a little boost to bring it more in line.
  • Shield Charge: Increased from 100% + 20% per skill level to 200% + 25% per skill level. Commens: This skill is incredibly underwhelming and while the Stun provides some utility along with its huge knockback, the skill was given a little damage boost to compensate for its purely defensive behavior.
  • Spear Quicken: Now reduces weapon delay by 20% + 1.5% per skill level for 2H spears and 10% + 1% per skill level for 1H spears. Commens: Spear builds were something that required a little bit of a boost. They pale in comparison to GC builds in term of PVE DPS, but the entertainment value out of these builds was stressed by the community and not only were 2H spear speeds increased via this skill, but also the introduction of a small bonus to 1H spears gives the skill even more versatility, especially considering the huge investment of skill points.
  • Spear Mastery: Now does +5 ATK per skill level while not mounted and +7 ATK per skill level when riding a Peco. Commens: This skill was also improved to help round out the Spear builds that Crusaders may opt to take. As with all other Mastery skill changes, this is mostly an adjustment to account for the high skill point investment.

Acolyte Skill Changes

  • Teleport Level 1: Reduced SP consumption from 10 to 8 per use.

Priest Skill Changes

  • Aspersio: Buff duration increased to 60 seconds per Skill Level.
  • Magnificat: Buff duration increased to 160/180/200/220 and 240 seconds at max level.
  • Impositio Manus: is now Party Buff, with raising SP cost from 10 + 3 per Skill Level to 20 + 6 per SkillLv. Effect is now + 5 ATK and 10 + MATK per Skill Level. . Commens: The overall increase of the buff duration was done mostly to allow greater utilization of these skills in both solo combat as a Battle Priest and in group play.
  • Slow Poison: is now removed from the game.
  • Magnus Excorcimus: This skill can now affect all monsters except Players, Plants and Mushroom. Waves occur every 2 seconds and each wave hits SkillLV times for the duration of 1 seconds per Skill Level. So for example: At level 10, it hits 5 Waves multiples by 10 hits equal to 50 hits in 10 seconds. ME will not do damage if the owner leaves the screen. The Priest can call down only two ME at the same time. Commens: The ME Build for Priests has been overlooked for quite some time. With the recent buffs, they're poised for a major comeback in large leveling and farming groups, offering not just support through buffs but also contributing significant damage.
  • NEW SKILL Duple Light: Calls forth two sacred lights, Violet Granium (Duple Strike) and Yellow Merriam (Duple Magic), that will assist the user's normal attacks periodically. The Duple Strike deals 20 ATK per Skill Level, uses weapon property, is Ranged (blocked by Pneuma) and is affected by cards that increase Physical Attack. The Duple Magic deals 25 MATK per Skill Level, is Neutral forced and is affected by cards that increase Magic Attack.
  • Redemptio: Its EXP Penalty has been removed, the costs of using skills is now 10 Blue Gemstone (changes will be made in near future).
  • Mace Mastery: Bonus has been increased from +3 ATK per Skill Level to +10 ATK per Skill Level.

Monk Skill Changes

  • Triple Attack: The chance for Tripple Attack has been fixed to always be 33% at all Skill Level.
  • Chain Combo and Finish Combo: Both are combined into one button. Player can press one button to have both the combo activated.
  • Iron Fist: Bonus has been increased from +3 ATK per Skill Level to +10 ATK per Skill Level.

Magician Skill Changes

  • Stone Curse: has been moved to second jobs (Wizard or Sage)
  • Earth Spike: has been moved to Mage from second jobs with max level 10, damage calculate exactly like other Bolts. Commens: With this change, Mage Classes have more weapons in their arsenal to choose where to leveling or farming. With skill level 10 Earth Spike, Auto-Cast Sage is also more viable.
  • Napalm Beat: Damage of this skill is not spread between targets anymore. Commens: Consider this as an option to deal Ghost property AoE attack, the only good one in the game, it deserves to get a buff.

Wizard Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary: The Wizard class sees the removal of the underused Frost Nova skill, replaced by Water Spread, which synergizes with Water Ball for enhanced single-target damage. Lord of Vermilion has been modified to deliver its full damage in one hit, allowing for more effective combos with Storm Gust. Fire Pillar now also reduces the target's Magic Defense (MDEF), adding strategic depth to its usage. These changes aim to refine and improve the Wizard's combat efficiency and versatility.

Sage Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary:In Project: Rebalance, the Sage class undergoes significant modifications to rejuvenate the auto-cast build, enhancing its viability through increased FLEE and more consistent damage output. Additionally, the Dispell skill has been updated to remove the effects of Songs and Dances, broadening its utility in combat. These changes aim to restore the effectiveness and appeal of the auto-cast Sage.

Hunter Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary: Rebalance of Hunter mainly focuses on enhancing the Hunter's Trap build, making it more effective and versatile across various game scenarios. The adjustments ensure traps become a potent tool for skilled players, significantly boosting the build's utility and performance.

Bard and Dancer Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary: aims to increase the Bard and Dancer classes' damage capabilities and area-of-effect (AoE) skills, alongside offering greater flexibility with the use of Ensemble Skills.

Merchant Skill Changes

  • Mammomite Skill now reduces the zeny cost of 50%Commens: Mammonite usage is relatively low given its high cost. Giving an opportunity to greatly lower its cost will increase its usage. However, by making it more useful per hit, we expect it to remain a reliable zeny sink. This will also greatly assist Merchants with leveling.
  • Cart Revolution: Can now knock back the target to every direction, not just toward north like in official server. Developer Notes: We decided to change this, in order to make the combo Cart Revolution and Marine Sphree more effective.

Blacksmith Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary:we enhance the Blacksmith class by improving its overall durability and mobility through a new passive skill. Additionally, Blacksmiths gain access to Throw Tomahawk, a ranged skill capable of inflicting status effects, diversifying their combat capabilities.

Alchemist Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary:The Project: Rebalance introduces adjustments to the Alchemist class, including a rework of Bio Cannibalize to enhance their party role versatility. By eliminating the item requirements for Acid Terror and Demonstration, Alchemists now enjoy improved solo capabilities without dependency on Homunculi. Furthermore, the combination of Acid Terror and Marine Sphere has emerged as a powerful option for area-of-effect (AoE) damage.

Assassin Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary:The Project: Rebalance significantly overhauls the Assassin class by redefining the combo of Venom Dust and Venom Splasher, introducing a novel Intelligence-based (Poison Build). This development lays a solid foundation for the future Assassin Cross Soul Destroyer build.

Rogue Skill Changes

  • Dive into the details here.
  • Summary:Project: Rebalance enhances the Rogue class by eliminating the usage conditions for Back Stab and Raid, increasing their reliability as damage dealers and in solo situations. Additionally, Strip Skills have been made more effective, retaining their efficacy against targets with chemical protections.

Super Novice Changes

  • HP Changes: Super Novices will now receive bonus HP at every 10 level increments starting at level 40. They are additive as follows:
    • Level 40: +100 HP
    • Level 50: +150 HP
    • Level 60: +200 HP
    • Level 70: +250 HP
    • Level 80: +300 HP
    • Level 90: +400 HP
    • Level 99: +1,000 HP
  • SP Changes: Super Novices will now receive an additional +10 SP at every 10 base levels starting at level 20 and will get a special +30 SP bonus at Level 99.

Other Changes

  • Poison Status: Poison status now reduces VIT Defense by 50%, up from 25%. It deals ticking damage equal to 2% per second, up from 1% per second. Commens: Poison as a status was not very detrimental and was easily countered in PVP due to Green Potions and Herbs. While the curing methods are unchanged, the detrimental effects of poison will make it a higher priority to counter in PVP/GVG settings. More importantly, the PVE setting is improved by giving those who inflict poison the ability to dispatch mobs faster.


HP and SP Regeneration

When considering things that make this game less enjoyable than other MMORPGs, we considered the recovery time caused by slow resource generation to be one of the biggest factors. The ability to use skills provides players with a way to dynamically change the way they play, but if this is stifled by abysmally low regeneration rates, then play is often interrupted. Alternatively, players may forego using some skills entirely due to their SP cost. Therefore, we have decided to make the following changes:

  • HP Regeneration Rate: While sitting, the HP regeneration rate is now 3% of total HP per 2 seconds. Cards and skills can also affect HP Regeneration as usual.
  • SP Regeneration Rate: While sitting, the HP regeneration rate is now 3% of total HP per 2 seconds. Cards and skills can also affect HP Regeneration as usual. Cards and skills can also affect SP Regeneration as usual, this includes Maginificat.

Weight Limits

Relatively minor, though important for fun gameplay, we have decided to increase the maximum weight limit before HP/SP regeneration penalties are imposed to 70%. We feel that 50% is too punishing for all classes and especially those that do not put stats into strength. We think each player should build a character however they wish and prefer weight limits to have less of an impact on builds so players can create characters that are fun to play and not disadvantaged by a largely outdated, unnecessary system.