Since I'm stuck waiting for the 20th, what do you guys who are in think of the melee combat in this game? Do you find it fast paced and exciting? One of the things I loathed in other games was the whole auto-attack system, I like to get right in there and bloodthirsty.

I love it!  It's very hands on.  I like that I can control where my guy swings, when combos are executed and the direction in which they are executed.  It gets really fun with AOE attacks.  It is more advanced then people make it out to be if you want to be a good fighter especially in PVP.  I have shortcut keys mapped to my numpad so I can move around with my left hand and quickly use attacks/combos with my right.  I've gotten where I can run into a group of people and start attacking with AOE combos, sidestep if they try to surround me and actually dodge, maneuver, and execute follow up attacks with skill and precise timing.  It's a ridiculously cool system.

Terrible considering what it could have been. It was going to be a lot more involved, but all the WoW guilds that got into the closed Beta complained about it being too hard and Funcom how to nerf it from 8 directions to 3. Its a slight step in the right direction, but not all that different from the same old combat we've all seen before. Swinging any time you want is noting new, and neither is directional swinging. It feels very... outdated and overhyped.

It is pretty good, much more hands on than most mmorpg.  I do worry that it is going to be very exploitable though.  If I learned anything from AC it is that 'player skill' driving combat isn't always a good thing. 

One nice thing is killing 2 mobs at once seems pretty standard and sometimes you take 3 at once.  I really hate the way mmorpg's like WoW and EQ focus on fighting 1 mob at a time while solo.  That is just boring.  You even get a little extra experience for taking linked mobs like in DAOC which I love.

It's actually 5 directions. You start out with 3 and ( I believe it's at 40) then gain two extra directions.

Originally posted by SignusM

Terrible considering what it could have been. It was going to be a lot more involved, but all the WoW guilds that got into the closed Beta complained about it being too hard and Funcom how to nerf it from 8 directions to 3. Its a slight step in the right direction, but not all that different from the same old combat we've all seen before. Swinging any time you want is noting new, and neither is directional swinging. It feels very... outdated and overhyped.

Was it not 5 directions to begin with? And I'm pretty sure that you will get 2 more when you get higher level.

Original Logitech G15 keyboard ftw.  (The keyboard with 18 G keys)  

Originally posted by indyin

Original Logitech G15 keyboard ftw.  (The keyboard with 18 G keys)  

 

I knocked a big cup of tea all over mine.. Ended up rushing out to buy the Microsoft/Razor recluse. Best I could get within moments of killing mine!

it sounds like the size of ur weapon actually play a big role. I was prolly going to try a Assasin, but daggers+free swing combat sounds gimp`ed imo:/

Do i have to take acces to weapon types into consideration when choosing a class?  Which class benefits the most from this new combat system?

Melee combat is the single most refreshing aspect of AoC. It is simply fantastic because everything my avatar does is what i tell him to do. Also, the animations are really good. They make it feel that there is some weight into the swings they perform and i am glad to see that this worked out. My toon has a great "presence" if you will...

I have seen a countless number of MMOs that flat out fails with the animations, thus destroying the overall feeling. This along with everything else so far has really peaked my interest for the game so i will continue for now. We will see for how long though.

Originally posted by Zhqrxt

it sounds like the size of ur weapon actually play a big role. I was prolly going to try a Assasin, but daggers+free swing combat sounds gimp`ed imo:/

Do i have to take acces to weapon types into consideration when choosing a class?  Which class benefits the most from this new combat system?

OP.....if you really want to get in there and f*ck sh*t up, try a conqueror. You have the option of dual wield or 2-handed (I use a huge 2handed axe personally) , and you will LOVE the death machine you will become.

Once you reach 20+, you will laugh as groups of enemies come rushing to their doom. See how many you can kill at once!!

The melee combat system is, IMO, a rush, and a joy to experience.

It starts off very simple, but after a while you have a strategic, fast, fun system where your options make it basically assured that no two fights will ever be the same.

Quick questions to any experts on the melee out there :D

Do you have collision Detection with mobs, or just players?

And do mobs reset easily or at all, or can you try to take on much tougher monsters with a friend, and kite it between you or use more invovled tactics then straight up trade blows until one is dead?

Thanks

I am currently level 9, almost 10, on my assassin. And this melee combat system is fucking AMAZING. in my eyes. In PvP, this is going to be ridiculously player skill based it's not even funny. You can do damage by attack their shield sides, but you can choose to avoid their shields with your attacks, and this is where the player skill comes in.

I am incredibly impressed with the way the melee combat was done, and makes me feel like I have complete control over whether I die or not.

Now how do shields play into it? Do they give a set bonus to armor, or do you actually block with them? If you do block, do you manually do it? I've seen in videos people bashing and smacking with their shields, is this a simple button press or do you have the same control as a weapon?

I think it's awesome they made a game where we control the combat unlike the regular point click, autoswing garbage.

Originally posted by Sawtooth

Now how do shields play into it? Do they give a set bonus to armor, or do you actually block with them? If you do block, do you manually do it? I've seen in videos people bashing and smacking with their shields, is this a simple button press or do you have the same control as a weapon?

There is three types as I have noticed.

1) Shields, where you got 3 direction (at start) and 3 "shield" which you can switch around (i.e. even distributed or all on in one direction). This can be switched during combat with ctrl + 1 2 or 3.  My understanding is that these are just buffs. Makes it less chance of getting hit.

2) Active block. Find it hard to use, but its not a 100% block, just another "buff" that you can activeate with a key (x per default).

3) Active dodge, double tap your walking direction your character will jump away of the range of the mobs range.

One more cool thing that works (and I was thinking it may not) is that even combat is so skill based it ain't buggy and ain't affected by lag.

I reme    mber Tabula Rasa where lag or even higher latency screws things allover. Here it's all smooth, precise and looks awesome! :)

Hmm it feels like I'm becoming a AoC fanboy hehe

Originally posted by Fateus

Quick questions to any experts on the melee out there :D

Do you have collision Detection with mobs, or just players?

And do mobs reset easily or at all, or can you try to take on much tougher monsters with a friend, and kite it between you or use more invovled tactics then straight up trade blows until one is dead?

 

Thanks

Yes...both players and "most" mobs(especailly humanoid mobs) have collision detection.  Yes...you can try to take on higher level mobs...but know the limits of you character and you'll do fine.   What is really fun iswhen you're in a huge pack of mobs just hacking away....OMG reminds me of AC and olthoi fights.   Just awesome.   OK now I am leaving.   LOL!   CYA!

Originally posted by SignusM

Terrible considering what it could have been. It was going to be a lot more involved, but all the WoW guilds that got into the closed Beta complained about it being too hard and Funcom how to nerf it from 8 directions to 3. Its a slight step in the right direction, but not all that different from the same old combat we've all seen before. Swinging any time you want is noting new, and neither is directional swinging. It feels very... outdated and overhyped.

You clearly weren't there for that itteration of the combat system. While it was indeed more complex, it was also a lot more sloppy, a lot less focused and it boiled down to 90% of the time just hitting the keys that lit up and not even paying attention to the action because you often didn't know which combo you were executing until it went off.

Folks who have heard about the original system often think it would have been far better. But trust me, if you were there, you would know that it quite CLEARLY was not better. More true to a 'combo' system as you'd see in fighting games perhaps, but much more convoluted and not remotely as controllable or enjoyable.

Perhaps the new system is a tad dumbed down, but it still contains LOADS of detail and depth, much of which is only there if you are interested in using it. (IE the system is as complex as you need it to be. If all you want to do is bash 1, 2, and 3 you can do that. But if you want real depth, it's there.)

On topic, the combat system is the most enjoyable, visceral and realistic of any MMOG to date. Everything from the animations, to the graphics, to the sound fx, come together to really make you feel like YOU are the one in combat. Where as most MMOGs you never really feel like it's you, but more that your just controlling some automaton.. some 'toon.'

6+ months of beta attest, for me at least, to the combat systems depth. I've yet to get bored with it. I still get a rush with every fatality, and I still find new techniques and new ideas to try.

'Easy to Learn, Hard to Master'

Thats what Funcom's goal has been for the combat since they first announced it. They have achieved that to a standard none has ever matched.

There is a lot of new things you have to think of during melee. The range of your weapon, the size of its cone if you swing it, how you can lure your enemy to lower his defenses where you can put in your most powerful attacks and timing.

Add in you can give yourself special buffs from double tabbing some of your movements keys during combat and actively block and you have a seriously complicated system where personal skill means a lot more than your gear or learned abilities.

Double tabbing the backward key give you a +50 percentage buff to your dodge for 4 seconds, double tabbing the forward key moves you in a short burst forward and give you a chance to stun an enemy. Double tabbing any of the strafe keys will give you a higher defense against ranged/magic attacks. All cost end to use.