I'm doing my standard coverage of the patch. There's no major systems to go over this time like 1.0.5 had (all who remember the detail that went into that coverage) but there's a few things that I wanted to look at and show in video form for anyone that doesn't want to participate in the PTR themselves.
As this is a forum, I want to provide some textual context for those who cannot watch while browsing the forums. So let me attempt to transcribe and expand upon what I talk about here. First the video description:
Farming Act 3 (Monster Power 5) in Patch 1.0.7 and taking a look at the new features of the patch along the way. This video takes one night of Act 3 and 4 farming (up to Rakanoth) and splices it all up into a nice short(?) package. All commentary is live as it's happening for initial impressions.
Topics:
MP on public games
It's pretty easy to join Monster Power games now. The dropdown is easy to find at the bottom of the quest selection screen just like when you try to create one. Supposedly you will join an empty game of your own if one cannot be found, but I've not seen this yet.
Demonic Essence (2:45)
I picked up some Demonic Essense without realizing it. Why? Because it looked just like a yellow item and I was expect some kind of unique color or even the same color as a legendary.
New equipment patterns (5:20)
Pattern is liked by a party member, confirming that each pattern is a seperate drop unlike the Hellfire Ring. If you want an intelligence armor set, you have to find the pattern specific to intelligence.
New Molten and Plauged (6:05)
The damage levels for Molten and Plagued have been adjusted and it was my hope that the overall change would equal to the same damage when they are both in play. It's been awhile since I really looked at the damage I suffered from both at the same time, but it doesn't feel too far off.
More on Demonic Essence (6:45)
Finally noticed the Demonic Essesnce when it dropped this time. Really hoping to see them change the color. I pick up yellows and don't always read the name. Other players pass yellows. The drop of the Demonic Essense really needs to be pronounced in some way.
More plans (7:40)
XP boost to Inferno Monster Power (8:05)
XP boosts feel pretty good, leveling isn't bad. This is comming from someone who hasn't tried to power level and doesn't use the XP farming routes that has become popular. I imagine these routes will be even better with the XP boosts for inferno added in this patch.
New reflect damage aura (8:30)
Finally got a really good look at the refelct damage aura. Not exactly what I thought it would be, but it makes sense. It can be somewhat hard to see when there's a lot of spell effects going on, but this is true of most things in the game. Considering that Reflect Damage is always on in the current Live version, this is a minor issue.
More plauge damage (9:30)
Plagued is definitely more dangerous now even by itself. I used to be able to ignore huge pools of plagued even with other damage sources on the field, now I might have to be a bit more careful.
Even more plans(10:15)
Nephalem Valor persisting through acts (12:20)
Showcasing the persistance of NV stacks between acts after killing and end act boss. This does not allow you to leave a game and come back with your NV stacks on a new act, it only applies for killing the act boss and moving on in the same game. This seems most useful when going into Act4 to take on Iskatu and Rakanoth.
Iskatu with 5 NV stakcs (13:40)
UNFORTUNATELY killing Iskatu is still pointless. You get no additional rewards for killing Iskatu with 5 NV stacks. Considering he's a fairly dangerous foe with how quickly you can get surrounded, Act 4 still seems like a terrible place to farm. Hopefully the decide to add rewards to Iskatu.
Rakanoth with 5 NV stacks (14:35)
Rakanoth acts like any other sub boss, dropping fairly standard loot when killed with 5 stacks of NV. Just like with Iskatu, the trouble of getting to him combined with the strength of the foe you're facing (not to mention the monsters in act 4 are all rough to fight) seem to make this new bonus of having 5 NV stacks in the start of act 4 as being not worth the effort.
Final farming results - Act 3 (15:00)
I go over the spoils of my efforts. This was not a farming run, it was a full clear of Act 3 on MP5 along with the deaths of Iskatu and Rakanoth. A fair amount of Demonic Essences (14 IIRC) dropped and I got 3 of the new patterns along with 2 old patterns (yay for 400% drop rate increase).
Crafting Archon Spaulders (17:05)
Crafting Razorspikes (18:20)
These two are just to show some random procs on the new gear to give you a feeling of what to expect. This may help in deciding if trying to get the patterns and craft them are worth it to you.
Thank you both. I've been a bit quiet on these forums as of late, primarily as I have not been playing as much as I used to. Doesn't help that I've got a lot of other games I have been meaning to spend time on. I wanted to be sure that once I broke my silence it was for something worth saying Admittedly I still need to get more active in the more recent discussions.
As this is a forum, I want to provide some textual context for those who cannot watch while browsing the forums. So let me attempt to transcribe and expand upon what I talk about here. First the video description:
Topics:
Thank you both. I've been a bit quiet on these forums as of late, primarily as I have not been playing as much as I used to. Doesn't help that I've got a lot of other games I have been meaning to spend time on. I wanted to be sure that once I broke my silence it was for something worth saying Admittedly I still need to get more active in the more recent discussions.