You know how many SDs actively use Choke anymore? One. All these changes to nerf one person.

I think a better way to phrase that is how many active SDs there are. That fight.

The rioters are mad and demand to see their executions! Nothing will stop it at this point now.

Naia:

You know how many SDs actively use Choke anymore? One. All these changes to nerf one person.

That's great, but unfortunately completely irrelevant to anything. vOv

Agreed. If balancing was dictated by how many combatants there are using a skillset, we should have deleted dreamweaving long ago. Heck, should have deleted all of Hartstone, I'm the only Hartstone combatant there has been in a while, short of people I specifically recruited to the guild to be fighters (who promptly realized what they had bought into and left).

You've completely confused the point and said the opposite thing. The point was not to touch Choke because only 1 person is using it now. By that logic, DW's shouldn't be touched.

You missed the point that the number of people using a skillset means nothing to potential balancing/fixing of that skillset or skill. Back when DWs were totally bugged out it pretty much came to "Go to a lot of work and fix a skillset that screws with the base rapture code the game is coded in" or "Screw it". Though pretty much no one at that point used dreamweaving, a bunch of work was put in to fix the longstanding (years long) bugs with the skillset. If the number of people had anything to do with anything, dreamweaving still just.... wouldn't work.

Yeah, we're just gonna move on from that, take it to another thread please!

I made some tweaks as expected, but I did make another change regarding use.

Shadow Manipulation (Version 3).

The basic theme is manipulating your victim's shadow in order to induce debilitating effects on him.

The skill works as follows:

Note: Asterisks (*) mean that the actual number may be subject to change.

-First, it requires that the victim's shadow be stolen (Night Steal). A Night user can only steal/possess one shadow at any given time.

-Next, threads of binding must be gathered from the victim (henceforth known as "threads"*) in order to empower the shadow enough to harm the victim.

-A shadow can only hold up to 5* threads at any given time.

-Threads are gathered through the use of various Night-related abilities, which are:
*Lash, Scourge, Nightkiss, Nightgaze

-Furthermore, all knighthood attacks have a chance to generate a thread every swing:
*10% for 1 handers.
*20% for 2 handers.

Note: Threads can only be gathered from a victim if you possess his or her shadow.

-Once a victim's shadow has been stolen, you can induce a variety of effects on the victim, as long as you pay the corresponding number of threads to do so. Syntax: SHADOWDANCE MANIPULATE (target) (effect)

-Here is a preliminary list of effects, sorted by cost:

1 thread:
*Sleep, Mana drain, Stupidity, Amnesia

2 threads:
*Bleed, Throatlock, Leglock, Addiction

3 threads:
*Blackout, Stun

Note: Any manipulation that costs more than 1 thread requires a wiccan athame to be wielded.

-Using 1 thread afflictions should not consume equilibrium.

-Using 2 and 3 thread afflictions should consume 2s of eq unless empowered for 2p.

-Harming the victim with this will use up the the corresponding amount of threads, which means that it will need to be gathered once more.

Changes to Skills:
-The following attacks will generate 1 thread per use: Nightkiss, Nightgaze, Scourge, Lash
-Stolen shadows will decay upon the victim's or Night user's death.
-Night users may only steal one shadow from a person. Multiple Night users can't steal the same shadow.

My changes
- Removed eq cost for single threads
- Replaced fractured skull with stupidity
- Moved addiction to 2 threads
- Changed the power cost to 2p for manipulate with the idea you wont be paying power for the mana loss and such.
- Added Amnesia as an affliction in case of astrologers with aeon, to eat wakes, etc.
- Warrior thread changed to 10% and 20%

I've changed stupidity and will add amnesia.

I'm still really not convinced about moving addiction up. What changed about addiction that suddenly makes it very contentious?

Pooka

Can't remember getting destroyed by a TP putting addiction on me and forcing me to sip!

How much is the suggested manadrain for again?

That and the free balance of level 1 afflictions is a little off putting. Perhaps a cost if more than one level 1 action is done. Warriors for instance can use it to double sleep before a combo, essentially getting a free bypass on parry/stancing.

Telepaths also have a 6 second attack, so where a wiccan could pull 3 attacks before you can sip, a TP might get 2.

The mana drain will be something to help with spam lashes and toading.

Bear in mind, drain + lash will cost at least 1p, so they can probably do it at most 2 times before they have to wait for more power to toad.

Yeah, I'm still rather keen on everything costing eq and just letting it be bypassed for x power, simpler that way.

Mkay.

Turnus:

That and the free balance of level 1 afflictions is a little off putting. Perhaps a cost if more than one level 1 action is done. Warriors for instance can use it to double sleep before a combo, essentially getting a free bypass on parry/stancing.

Are people deliberately leaving out the fact that it takes at least 15 seconds to build up to 5 charges, and that, if the combo is messed up, you have to re-load to another 15 seconds? Let's not even consider that the Nightuser can be hindered to delay that 15 seconds more.

As a warrior, 15 seconds before being able to try a combo doesn't particularly get much sympathy from me. And you can say the same thing about hindering for any class.

I didn't have a problem with Shuyin's suggestions, but the completely free level 1 action is a bit much.

Yeah, don't take Malarious' version as law, he's just really keen on helping out.

I'll put up another version by the weekend just so we're all on the same page.

The only thing I've changed is swapping fracskull for stupidity and adding amnesia.

Yeah I actually posted mine as suggestion. To avoid confusion (or try to) it ws converted to a quote and suggestions relisted after it.