Item durability

[Dougm77]

In Titan quest there was no durability on the items that you wore or used. That meant there was no worry as to if/when anything was going to break on you and become worthless. That's OK to a point but I think it's more challenging and interesting dealing with armour and weapons that depreciate with use or abuse. Your armour Stats will decrease over time as your armour gets banged up, and same thing with weapons until they are repaired. Will this feature be in grim dawn or will it be like Titan quest where there is no worry for it?

[Josho]

To me personally, it was a gameplay mechanic in Diablo which served no use. Given the frequent trips back to town, stopping off to the blacksmith to get the items repaired for a somewhat negligible gold cost before heading off yet again didn't really add anything to the game.

[yerkyerk]

Concerning durability, I'd only want to see it in hardcore, without the option to repair. Being able to repair equipment that degrades just interferes with the action and is a hassle each time. You can be out bashing monsters while you sit near a random vendor clicking the repair button.

I would not want to see this in normal mode because of said reasons.

[Lmaoboat]

In Titan quest there was no durability on the items that you wore or used. That meant there was no worry as to if/when anything was going to break on you and become worthless. That's OK to a point but I think it's more challenging and interesting dealing with armour and weapons that depreciate with use or abuse. Your armour Stats will decrease over time as your armour gets banged up, and same thing with weapons until they are repaired. Will this feature be in grim dawn or will it be like Titan quest where there is no worry for it?

My NO!'s will blot out the sun.

[Tiptoe]

I'm with Lmaoboat on this, big huge NO!

Having to repair stuff is one of my chief hates, so if they did add this mechanic to the game, then it's one of the first things I'd mod out :furious:.

Mind you, I can see the need for some type of money sink, but there must be a better way than being forced to repair equipment.

[mamba]

I never liked that in any game, fortunately it is rare enough as pretty much noone likes it ;)

[Dougm77]

Hmph, I must be in the minority with liking this feature. I mean I didn't care for it in Diablo because the damage your weapons or gear took didnt affect their armor or dps at all as far as I remember. It was simply a money sink I think. I was referring to more along the lines of how MMO's currently do it. Your gear takes damage then your armor rating goes down. If your weapons take damage over time then the DPS goes down.. etc. And if they break without being repaired then they are worthless until fixed.

I guess it just seems odd to me to run out into the world.. watching your amor get beat on, splitting some skulls open with your weapons, and yet nothing happens to anything you own or use. Almost feels like you're somehow semi-invincible and it's unrealistic. I mean if that's the frame of mind then why not make a potion bottle that constantly fills right back up once it's has been drank from? No cause and effect going on anywhere. Now I know it's a game and if that feature isn't in the game.. I'll be ok with that. I loved Titan Quest and it wasn't included in that game and I was fine with it. I don't want the system in there to be a money sink like Diablo was where it was pointless.. I'd rather it serve some purpose such as affecting stats over time.

Now I'm also not implying that you run out of a town, thump a couple mobs on the head, and then your axe or gear is broke or worn down already. I want it to be a slowly progressive thing over time. And maybe instead of running to a blacksmith to repair everything.. make the player do it themselves. Say for example to repair armor you need hammers. To repair weapons you need a fire. And let's go even further here and make said items needed for repairs drop randomly off of mobs. I think that would be an interesting feature that's never been done before. Sort of like crafting on another level in an ARPG. It is supposed to be a chaotic world correct? And it wouldn't seem unreasonable that the mobs would be carrying such items because they wear armor and use weapons that need repaired too right?

I dunno, it was just a suggestion but seeings that the majority who have answered so far doesn't care for it I'll be happy just as well with the feature not being included. I'd be even more happy if I were just playing the game right now! :-)

[9voltkilowatt]

Just like soldiers of today are trained to maintain their gear, warriors of old were schooled in the art of field maintenance.

I gotta believe that if the characters in these games are as bad-ass as they are made out to be then they've figured out what a whet stone and oil cloth are for. :p

Just in case I didn't make my point very clear, I also gotta vote NO to repairs.

[Refried]

I gotta believe that if the characters in these games are as bad-ass as they are made out to be then they've figured out what a whet stone and oil cloth are for. :p

So does this mean they would just use them automatically without labor?

I'm for a blacksmith and repairing your gear as long as there is a benefit to it outside of a simple money sink. For instance if it went to such lengths as crafting your own gear rather than simply finding an amazing weapon from a monster, then that brings completely new depths and aspects not to mention customization to the game which would be unparalleled to any arpg in history.

I'm for it, but only if there is an obvious, equally benefiting reason why you would need to do it.

[Rainier Wolfcastle]

Sorry bud but i am not at all in favor of the idea of adding durablility to the game. It adds nothing to game play and just adds a minor inconvienence to the player. Thats a NO for me as well.

[9voltkilowatt]

So does this mean they would just use them automatically without labor?

No, but if your gong to add in the needless actions of daily equipment maintenance then why not account for the fact that you have to eat? How about the fact that a couple hours after that your gonna need a shit break. And lets not forget sleep while we're at it.

I'm sorry if it sounds like I'm trying to be a douche, believe me, I'm really not. I'm just attempting to get across the point that these are all very mundane aspects of a rather fantastical characters life. If by some chance the developers work one (or all) of these chores into a plot point in their story, well, that's cool. But forcing the player to collect specific repair based items or to travel to one of a handful of locations just so they can push a button ...seriously? Players will get tired of that real quick, especially when all that was actually accomplished was that know they can go back to what ever it was they were in the middle of.

In this style of game realism for the sake of realism is frankly, unrealistic.

[Rainier Wolfcastle]

How about the fact that a couple hours after that your gonna need a shit break.


I have to agree with you on this. Its an issue you kind of have to be blunt on. But on the other hand it would be kind of neat to see your charachter hide in the bushes real quick to take a dump or water the bushes. The only game I can think of that even uses the concept of going to the bathroom regularly is the sims and that game sucks.

[Kluga]

You have to draw the line with realism in these type of games, this concept crosses it (as illustrated by the humorous toilet break concept). In the end it does just become an annoying money-sink.

In the end, it will add nothing but an extra trip to town or visit to a smith or some kind of pause to an action RPG. Having to do it in the game just because you'd have to do it if it in real life is not cause to add it to the game, in this case.

[mamba]

I guess it just seems odd to me to run out into the world.. watching your amor get beat on, splitting some skulls open with your weapons, and yet nothing happens to anything you own or use. Almost feels like you're somehow semi-invincible and it's unrealistic.

I get it, weapons not deteriorating is unrealistic, but fighting demons and extraterrestrials is not ;)

I agree deterioration is more realistic, realism in itself is not better however. Getting gear repaired to me is just a nuisance, it does not add anything for me, it just makes me visit a vendor and go through my inventory for no good reason.

[Renevent]

I don't think it added anything interesting to D2, so my vote is no. Either way I really don't care...just like in D2 it's barely even a consideration. With all the trips to town a quick stop at the blacksmith and a small amount of money isn't anything more than a small annoyance.

The one thing I would vote strongly no to is spectral/unrepairable items...temporary use items are annoying :p

[myrmidon]

yeah only hardcore mod would be cool.

[mamba]

The one thing I would vote strongly no to is spectral/unrepairable items...temporary use items are annoying :p

I completely agree on that one, had forgotten about it by now.

I always was disappointed in finding such an item. No matter how good it theoretically was, I never used it. I always felt any other drop would have been better.

[Urban Scorpion]

In this case it would be a punishment, not a feature. Just the time used to get to a "repair station" is an imposed waste of time that separates me from my preferred waste of time: killing monsters and finding loot.

In MMOs durability is used as one of the money sinks to help keep the in-game economy in check. In normal ARPG play it serves no useful purpose.

There is some charm to having a permanent albeit slow degradation that forces you to use whatever you can get your hands on. But I think that'd sorta kill the whole twinking your hardcore character thing that a lot of people like doing.

I don't want to be bothered with reality. This is a game. I'm trying to, for a brief moment, escape the fact my stuff is falling apart. I don't want to have to deal with my stuff falling apart in the game as well. :P

[Mind Dragon]

Do knights have to be worried about being left in their shorts at the end of a battle?

[9voltkilowatt]

Do knights have to be worried about being left in their shorts at the end of a battle?

Nah, Knights are so badass they go commando (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=going+commando) anyway!

[DragonWolf]

Nah, Knights are so badass they go commando (http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=going+commando) anyway!

Right up until the chainmail catches something sensative, not to mention the chafing. :p

Chainmail and plate armour if worn incorrectly and without padding would rub you raw.

As to the durability i'm a No as well. It's an irritating feature. That said with the town portal feature it wasn't quite as bad in D2, not when you were heading back anyway to sell off a load of stuff for cash. It was just one exstra chore to do before heading back out for fun and games.

[Omega_K2]

I personally found durability to be extremly annoying in diablo. Especially in diablo 1 where your item would be completly lost if you didn't manage to repair it in it.
So a no from me too.

[Rainier Wolfcastle]

I personally found durability to be extremly annoying in diablo. Especially in diablo 1 where your item would be completly lost if you didn't manage to repair it in it.
So a no from me too.

I think Diablo 2's system was equally more annoying. The more something broke in Diablo 2 the quicker it would break next time since its durablility would go down.

[yerkyerk]

I think Diablo 2's system was equally more annoying. The more something broke in Diablo 2 the quicker it would break next time since its durablility would go down.

I dreaded playing a fasthitting assassin in D2 solely because of durability... man, one small run and back to the smithy...