(PSN)BeeJayTea Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 The Wukong and Ember reworks really show how little changes can breathe life into a Frame's gameplay, and Hydroid feels a little dated IMO. Apparently the rest of the community thinks so too, so I'm throwing my hat onto the pile. Good luck to the DE staff who have to sift through it all when Hydroid gets his time under the rework spotlight! I have some ideas to make Hydroid less clunky, mainly by removing charge mechanics from Tempest Barrage and Tentacle Swarm. Also some updates to existing abilities for QoL and "game feel". I tried to change as little as possible. Passive Replace/add passive ability to introduce a resource to manage. The "Osmosis" gauge fills as Hydroid makes contact (via Tidal Surge and Undertow) with enemies and drains their "energy"/lifeforce/electrolytes, and can be spent to power up and remove the extra casting time on charged Tempest Barrage and Tentacle Swarm. Tapping these abilities casts them as you would currently expect, but holding the ability would take the same cast time, but expends the Osmosis gauge for bonus charged effects (i.e., the increased duration, range, and damage). I think it could be really neat if enemies affected by the Osmosis drain were debuffed in some manner, maybe a Pillage-esque defence strip? Magnetic proc for shielded enemies, water interferes with the electronics? Soaked armour is heavy and slows the enemy? Infested are stunned, as you wash away their pheromone trails? Or just a Blast proc, but something that rewards your effort for engaging with the system, something that makes the enemy easier to deal with. Maybe the gauge itself could be a buff for Hydroid (see Baruuk, Ember etc.), the more it is filled, the faster your shield recharges? Additional flavour for this system could be diminishing returns on filling the gauge based on its current level, on the basis that is harder for something to diffuse into an area it is already concentrated. This idea, and the Osmosis concept in general, would encourage players to use all of Hydroid's kit, expending the gauge as often as you fill it to maximise the utility. If the debuff magnitude was in proportion to the gauge level (emptiness) upon proc, you would want to have a low gauge as much as a full one! Tempest Barrage This ability and Corroding Barrage play fine in my opinion, other than the aforementioned charging. It seems like a great place for a DPS-focussed tool though, either by scaling with enemy level (Flechette Orb) or number of enemies hit (Blaze Artillery). The latter would make the damage scale with range if each bomb hits more enemies in a larger area, especially if you were able to group enemies in some manner... Tidal Surge This ability needs the same treatment that Wukong's Cloud Walker got, in fact make it just that, but confined to the ground. I've been using Ensnare on Hydroid to great effect, and I'd like to add some sort of grouping utility to this ability. You sort of get that in its current state, but the ragdoll-effect is a little unreliable. How about the enemies are absorbed like Undertow, and then dropped off in a (neat) pile at the end of the Surge? Tidal Impunity seems a little underpowered in the age of Rolling Guard, so about we make it proc the status it removes from you on the enemies you engulf? Undertow I don't have any ideas for Undertow really, it's already a cool concept with a lot of moving parts. Maybe all it needs is an indirect buff from changing Tidal Surge, and the ability to inflict the proposed Osmosis debuff. Can we turn Curative Undertow into Well of Life though? Would that be a Puddle of Life? A base rate AoE healing around the puddle, and then additional healing that scales of the damage dealt to submerged enemies? Tentacle Swarm I quite enjoy the chaotic nature of this ability, but I know some people want it to track enemies better. It feels really good with Infused Ensnare, getting all the Tentacles to spawn under your dogpile. Hopefully an altered Tidal Surge would make grouping more accessible with Hydroid's base kit. Would I use this ability without Pilfering Swarm though? It could be a reasonable lockdown CC, if combo'd with Tempest Barrage for damage. Conclusion Lets review with some actionable points, Change the passive to encourage use of all abilities, leading to more dynamic gameplay. Remove bulky charging mechanics, reward use of new passive mechanic with bonus stats on cast. Modify Tempest Barrage to be a relevant damaging ability, outside of Corroding Barrage. Make Tidal Surge feel better to use, indirectly doing the same to other abilities via grouping synergy. I am by no means a Hydroid-main endurance runner, but I think there's a lot of clunk that can be removed from the kit. I don't enjoy Hydroid as much as other (recently designed) Frames, but he is a badass pirate that literally summons a Kraken. There's potential for awesome there! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
z3us32610 Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 I agree that Hydroid desperately needs a rework. I'm sure he is near the top of the list for a handful of players as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xylena_Lazarow Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 Instead of a "rework" they can start by letting his 1 and 4 cast quickly and instantly at full strength without charging, roll the 1 and 2 augments into the main abilities, let him shoot guns while using his 3, have the 4 freeze enemies instead of ragdolling them, and swap his base health and shield values. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solarsyphon Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 2 hours ago, Xylena_Lazarow said: Instead of a "rework" they can start by letting his 1 and 4 cast quickly and instantly at full strength without charging, roll the 1 and 2 augments into the main abilities, let him shoot guns while using his 3, have the 4 freeze enemies instead of ragdolling them, and swap his base health and shield values. Freezing is super boring though... Doesn't work with the tentacular spectacular that hydroid is aesthetically unless you want to go kind of horror and pull a Hermaeus mora Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xylena_Lazarow Posted October 2, 2020 Share Posted October 2, 2020 5 hours ago, Solarsyphon said: Freezing is super boring though... Visually wrap the enemies in tentacles the way Khora wraps them in chains? Anything is better than ragdolling live enemies in this game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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