Angels of the Zariman: Dev Workshop PREVIEW

[Rigtis]

RIP Void Dash. You will always be remembered as one of the best traveling tools in gamer history.

[ask-the-mentors]

4 minutes ago, Rigtis said:

RIP Void Dash. You will always be remembered as one of the best traveling tools in gamer history.

its like ... adding the stamina bar back ... why?

[(XBOX)akuma2273]

hace 22 horas, [DE]Megan dijo:

Keep an open mind to rebalances & learning new gameplay since so much is changing.

this means, "you remember how useful are those focus abilities from schools?...

well... now they don't!"

[Kaokasalis]

How is this new focus rework affecting focus costs? Will those of us that have already maxed out every focus tree need to farm more focus after the update to unlock everything? Would be nice to know so we can farm before the update drops if its required.

[(PSN)Spider_Enigma]

9 minutes ago, Kaokasalis said:

How is this new focus rework affecting focus costs? Will those of us that have already maxed out every focus tree need to farm more focus after the update to unlock everything? Would be nice to know so we can farm before the update drops if its required.

they wouldnt do that, the last time they tuched focus,they made the nodes cost less 

[(PSN)x7thmoon]

22 hours ago, [DE]Megan said:

Greetings, Tenno!

Devstream #160 showed us a sneak peek of what’s to come with our next major update: Angels of the Zariman! Included alongside reveals like the Zariman tileset, Evolving Weapons, new Void Flood game mode and much more, we have some big mechanic reworks in store for you! Let’s break it down and sum up what was shown!

 

FOCUS SYSTEM REWORK

We are going all in on Focus changes for Warframe. This is a preview Dev Workshop to recap what we discussed on our latest Devstream: the real detailed write-up will come in April. Hopefully this can hold you over until then by providing an overview of our goals and how we aim to achieve them! Change is coming, Tenno!

We introduced Focus in 2015, and it’s undergone growth and changes in the years since its release. In 2022, we feel incremental changes won’t address systemic refresh needs, and our Angels of the Zariman Update will bring a reworked Focus.

What does this mean?

In practical terms:

• This will be our most comprehensive Focus rework to date.

• We are emphasizing gameplay changes & Focus school identity.

• Keep an open mind to rebalances & learning new gameplay since so much is changing.

• Operator-to-Warframe flow is receiving improvements. 

• Void Dash is changing to be a more controlled movement tool and ‘less spammy’. We are generally inspired by the change from Coptering to Bullet Jumping. Not that the current Void Dash is an unintended movement, but redoing it to better fit our combat is the goal. 

• A full respec will be required upon release to re-select your Focus Nodes!

 

We showed a first look at some Gameplay changes that we’ll summarize here, please watch the full stream for context:

General:

• Beyond Focus school reworks, Operator combat flow is getting improvements. Whenever you are in Operator Mode, the Melee input will now instantly bring your Warframe to your location to execute a melee attack. This replaces ‘Void Blast’. Any interactions that relied on Void Blast will be audited to ensure everything still works with other Void combat abilities!

• Void Dash: this is now a telegraphed movement tool with more interdirectionality and pivoting potential to better traverse the game’s tiles and combat spaces. Chained-forward traversal is still a valid option, but it has been redesigned. 

https://clips.twitch.tv/MildBlazingJaguarDxAbomb-lIacZK0xfZcQO2Mh 

 

Unairu Changes Preview: 

• We wanted to use Unairu to preview how deep the rework goes because it is one of our least popular Focus schools, and demonstrating how we aim to improve it is key.

• Virtually the entire tree has been reviewed and changed.  

• Unairu further becomes the defensive / stalwart School of Focus. A sturdy mountain to be contested with. 

• There are now more skill opportunities for players, with the example of being able to time a reaction in the Operator transference-death animation to immediately summon your Warframe in place and flow right back into combat, rather than being sent to your Warframe’s location. 

• All numbers shown in the stream are subject to change. 

 

Beyond Gameplay:

We are adding a cosmetic Focus shop to spend your unused points in! Things like Landing Craft ornaments and more await students of their favorite Focus School. 

 

EXIMUS REWORK

The main objective of this Eximus Rework is to enhance their visibility in battle, both in how they function and their formidableness. We achieve this in 2 ways: 

1. Amplify their threat with increased time-to-kill - accompanied with justifying rewards!

   1. More on this in our official Dev Workshop coming soon.

2. Enhancing their visual and mechanical functions to be more identifiable in combat.

 

These two shifts for Eximus aim to make them more challenging to kill, but also make their specific threats easier to identify and give a more tactical way to evade. 

Devstream #160 debuted 3 of the various revamped Eximus units: Blitz, Energy Leech, and Arson. 

Let’s dive into their respective changes!

 

BLITZ

Current

A Seismic Shockwave knockdown with short range.
 

New

Blitz Eximus Units now summon a frontal chain Blast attack by slamming their fist into the ground that applies a knockdown and Blast Status Effect. This Blast attack is detected by an audio cue and FX of the oncoming Blast erupting from below.
 

Visual Changes

Blitz Eximus units are now covered in crackling energy, with the addition of small staggered explosions coming from their limbs. 

 

ENERGY LEECH / PARASITIC 

Current

An invisible aura that drains Energy over time.
 

New

Energy Leech/Parasitic Eximus units now periodically spawn an Energy Leech Zone where players are near/standing. The Energy Leech Zone is detonated within seconds, draining a large amount of Energy if not tactically avoided. This Zone is detected by an expanding energy zone and audible cue on placement & detonation.
 

Visual Changes

Energy Leech/Parasitic Eximus units now appear shrouded in Void-like energy, manifesting in short tendrils swirling from their body. The Energy Leech Zone spawns with a matching energy style and appearance before detonating.  

 

https://clips.twitch.tv/ObservantJoyousChamoisPRChase-VXXy9N_Dm7DbGfi4

 

ARSON / CAUSTIC 

Current

A concussive Fire Blast attack that knockdowns and damages enemies caught in its wake.
 

New

Arson Eximus units maintain a Fire Blast attack, but you can now counter the Fire Blast by simply rolling through it to negate its oncoming effect. However, Damage is now higher along with a forced Heat Status Effect when struck.
 

Visual Changes

Arson Eximus units are now completely engulfed in roaring flames. They occasionally send out these deadly flames in all directions as a slow rolling burst. The Fire Blast attack has been visually refreshed to not only match the fire FX engulfing the Eximus unit, but also to represent a “roaring wave” of fire as opposed to a blinding wall.
 

https://clips.twitch.tv/EvilAgreeableCormorantAMPEnergy-8QhmB5ZZF0wgzE2i 

Thank you for reading, Tenno. See you in April for our full Workshops! 

so all im seeing with this is tehno's geting back on the 'useless and pointless gemik' after they finally became a valid thing, and more changes to hurt/hender players ' that devs said was supposedly intended to be a force of great power yada yada to be recond with so on so forth '  and all the while changes make it otherwise. ever wanted to ACTUALLY  stand yer ground and face off with a squad of napalmers bombards and hvy gunners ? we used to but nolonger can a play do so without being forced to flee like a squishy meche suit who just lost over 2k hp and 4k sheilds dispite the 1k+ armour and 90% dmg reduction we supposedly get but reality we dont. meanwhile the foe gets to tank over 200k dmg even reducing a atk from 50k+ to a petty 400 ...just because devs decided to flood players with anceints that troll players by instantly respawns and hide in a little nook just far enugh around a corner to prevent players from holding 1 spot/area and useing tactical gameplay. i could literally continue with over 5 pages worth. thanks so mutch on killing more content like what was done to melee by limiting what was once diverse and fun to a mere 'spam 1 button all the time'

[(PSN)BotGuy1234]

I commend changing operator switching to be client-sided, this is a great qol feature! Removing the pool system was also a good call, and it makes sense why. However...

the goal of the operator reworks were to make it feel more integrated and smooth with warframe gameplay?

If that is so, then why make void dashes an extremely sluggish process that clearly doesnt belong in the flow of warframe? This adds little maneuverability than what was already present, and makes void dashes so much slower that players will almost exclusively use bullet jumps. At least void dashing is currently useful for traversing open spaces quickly, and is satisfying too, feels almost like a boost button. Some of the other ideas for operator, such as the melee integration, would fit so well with the current dash, the new dash will just prompt players to bullet jump to the target and slash away instead. 

Also, these changes hit eidolon hunting the hardest overall. Void dashing is critical to getting around in hunts, so that you can conserve void strike while keeping mobility, and already comes at the cost of energy, which is a fair tradeoff. This new dash would just make it a pain to get around with void dash when needed, such as in hunts.

There appears to be no basilisk gaze, which reduced falloff of area of effect amps; amps already struggle with damage, why nerf them even further? 

I understand the motivation to rework the operator, but please understand that you are destroying many other practices in doing so; please reconsider your changes, or make them optional and keep the old system as well.

[(PSN)x7thmoon]

26 minutes ago, (XBOX)akuma2273 said:

this means, "you remember how useful are those focus abilities from schools?...

well... now they don't!"

exactly that and ' we want players to play how WE the dev team EXPECT players to play, not how THEY want to enjoy the game '  fallowed by  ' we dont want players to actually run endless missions .... endlessly '   amongst other things obviously

[(PSN)x7thmoon]

5 minutes ago, (PSN)BotGuy1234 said:

I commend changing operator switching to be client-sided, this is a great qol feature! Removing the pool system was also a good call, and it makes sense why. However...

the goal of the operator reworks were to make it feel more integrated and smooth with warframe gameplay?

If that is so, then why make void dashes an extremely sluggish process that clearly doesnt belong in the flow of warframe? This adds little maneuverability than what was already present, and makes void dashes so much slower that players will almost exclusively use bullet jumps. At least void dashing is currently useful for traversing open spaces quickly, and is satisfying too, feels almost like a boost button. Some of the other ideas for operator, such as the melee integration, would fit so well with the current dash, the new dash will just prompt players to bullet jump to the target and slash away instead. 

Also, these changes hit eidolon hunting the hardest overall. Void dashing is critical to getting around in hunts, so that you can conserve void strike while keeping mobility, and already comes at the cost of energy, which is a fair tradeoff. This new dash would just make it a pain to get around with void dash when needed, such as in hunts.

There appears to be no basilisk gaze, which reduced falloff of area of effect amps; amps already struggle with damage, why nerf them even further? 

I understand the motivation to rework the operator, but please understand that you are destroying many other practices in doing so; please reconsider your changes, or make them optional and keep the old system as well.

unfortunately the same scinario as with cursers, huds and most of all melee but to warframe's demise devs chose to ignore the entire community and did it eany how.

[(PSN)Raptor6001]

And how is Unairu wisp going to work with void blast gone? That skill wasn't highlighted on stream

[kuryux]

NGL, I aint looking forward to these "focus" changes. This feels like the nerf to itzal that no one was asking for, no one liked it, yet it stayed that way cause DE

[kuryux]

5 hours ago, touc said:

have you made ANY considerations for the eidolon hunting community? it doesn't seem like it

 

edit: current dash is fast, satisfying and gets the job done. new dash is just a slow cumbersome mess. huge downgrade.

i also suspect that it's just a farce for nerfing mobility as a whole, to make the game overall slower, which has been proven time and time again to be a bad idea

Yeap, exactly what they did to blink and no one wanted, no one enjoyed, yet they kept that way cause reasons

[(PSN)x7thmoon]

3 hours ago, (PSN)Spider_Enigma said:

so the game should never have nurfs? 

and give me 1 reason y we should have been that fast in the first place?

also im not maxing out my sticks just to aim up and down instantly so i can end a void dash early so i dont smash into a wall on the other side of a room because de refuses to add mouse and keyboard support to ps4 and ps5 like they did with xbox

dont need to alter the controls or use a pc set up its fully controlable as is. why so fast ? very obvious awnsers ... tehno with no sheild, under 500 hp, pulls agro harder than a octavia mallet useing saryn molt, specificly ment as a tactical use 'stated by the devs themselves'  and renders the excuse they made up when altering melee pointless and a lie. and btw ps4 can use keyboard and mouse.

[wizardeiges]

6 hours ago, mikakor said:

i DEEPLY hope that Zenurik energy dash and Naramon combo decay are jsut waybounds now. and not nerfed into irrelevency! 

also, keep current Void Dash. it fills it's job and you are trying to re-invent the wheel for no reason about this mechanic. it's good as it is, stop trying to change things that works, and works good for what they're used for. 

there is NO NEED to have this telegraphed, even less having it nerfed to be slow, and short distance. void dash isn't used for combat purpose. it's used for TRAVELING. 

Blink Nerf 2.0. 

This. Void dash is perfectly fine the way it is.

[m0b1us1]

"Void dash will feel better"
I can't think of a better way to tell your community that you don't know how to play your own game without outright saying it.

Hey DE, how about you give us the option to pick? If you truly believe that little claim, then you should have absolutely no reason not to! Then you can see exactly how many people agree with you on the nerfed void dash.

It's not like you haven't done this exact thing in the past. You know, nerfing something to the ground right before a content drop out of fear that it will trivialize it. Come on, you guys did such a good job with the itzal nerf. DEFINITELY feels better with having the worst ability in the game. Let's see just how much you believe your own claims.

[Aeromancer]

If you want "combat flow" for void dash, why not change it to function similar to Ivara's navigator ability instead?

[Rachel_dArc]

Unairu's the least used focus school? Huh.  It's the one I use exclusively...

Asking about the new tenno apartment - will we be able to invite other tenno in?  Not their WF's, but the actual Dr/Ops?  It's the one thing we don't like about inviting people to our orbiter, they can't come in as their Dr/Ops, and with the lovely new tileset of Gaia, it's like it's made to have a bunch of Dr/Op have a picnic.

Which makes us wonder, how many people will be able to visit your apartment in the Zariman?

[Tenno_Aster]

I was wondering if the furniture and decorations shown in the player housing is static, or will we be able to remove/adjust them?

Also, I have a suggestion for the consoles in the "penthouse" section. I feel like if we have to have consoles to edit this space, there should only be one:

[DarkSkysz]

If void dash is really going to be nerfed to this telegraph thing...at least make the operator fly freely in the air while dashing... more or less like wukong but you can sustain/extend the dash using energy/sec.

[(PSN)headlock1_0]

You guys said again and again during the stream that there would be a re-spec for focus, but didn’t give enough specifics. Will we get all the focus back from the “pool” increases? All the eidolon shards we’ve spent on way-bounds? 

Also, why are you getting rid of void blast? I use that constantly. 

Please, as others have said, don’t make void dash slower as it’s currently one of the most useful and versatile traversal methods in the game. I have so much painstakingly gained muscle memory for void dash and seeing that it’s going to completely change has me really worried. 

I wish I could trust that you guys will make it work and everything will be great, but you have to be honest, Warframe has had slam dunks, complete trash fires and everything in between in terms of changes from updates. 

 

As for my fellow Tenno, please stay respectful in your criticism so the devs might hear what we’re saying. Being hostile or insulting only shuts down any reasonable conversation. 

[Fractyr]

do you devs even know how players use void dash this "new and improved" void dash is way too slow and how on earth would you even telegraph a back dash or side dash when you cant even see the destination

[(NSW)RATHURUE]

DE: we keep killing Warframe so you can finally be free from this game!

 

No, really. with EACH update you force-fed players with DOWNGRADES instead of UPGRADES. 'Warframe is a constantly evolving game!' Yeah, but in this case it's evolving from dinosaurs to chicken.  

 

Focus rework? More like 'we don't like how people keeps using only two schools so #*!% them, let's make all schools bad'.

Void Dash rework? More like 'we gonna screw up crossplay controls SO BAD mobile users will ragequit!' Guess we'll see how nobody gonna play Profit-Taker anyone after this.

And removing Void Blast for Warframe switch-in melee is...just stupid. There ARE probably some people who knocks down enemies, say, Nox with Void Blast and then switch into their Warframes to finish the job, but that's very niche use of Void Blast...and you guys expected this to be the MAIN use of VB?

[chainchompguy3]

Changes to Focus --> changes to Zenurik --> changes to Energizing Dash --> Brings up how much this game's energy system needs work.

Now, I would gladly hold out until a proper energy overhaul could be devised; I'd prefer it, even.

But, if DE isn't wanting to take that step, then a tolerable compromise would be to integrate energy-system changes into the new system.

Assuming that is the case:

• Give all Focus Schools some form of energy-restoration. Zenurik can have a stronger one, or a more casually usable one, but every school should have one. Energy-regen isn't just appealing to "the energy-hungry Spell-caster frames", it's appealing to all frames that use energy. More than Focus schools, a player's Warframe determines their playstyle, and Warframes can only perform their playstyle if they have energy.
  • Perhaps make each energy-restoration method thematic:
    • Vazarin gets energy for healing allies
    • Madurai gets energy for dealing damage
    • Unairu gets energy for redirecting damage
    • etc., Depending on what the refined Identity of each School becomes.
  • Perhaps just make it a "Way-bound" that can be shared across Schools, and just accept that most players are going to unlock that one first.
• If balancing the numbers is hard for a particular tree, I personally like the idea of a reliable energy-restoration method coming with the trade-off that it Prevents all other forms of energy restoration.

 

 

Other than that, the Eximus changes are good. We will have to see/feel them in actual gameplay before we can be sure, but so far seems like quite the improvement.

Would personally like to see similar energy-leech-eximus changes applied to Infested Ancient Disruptors.

[0_The_F00l]

The Focus rework

I am curious about the focus rework ,

Its no secret that most players prefer zenurik for its energizing dash and naramon for it powerspike primarily (while also giving some nice utility overall).

And while the knockdown immunity for 20 seconds sounds interesting (its effectively a pocket PSF ?) i am not sure its as good as the other two even considering all the things that were shown.

I really wonder what changes are happening , i really hope they will give some actual reasonable choice in the selection, *finger crossed*

The void dash 

.... i am skeptical about , unless the range of the dash is drastically increased the telegraphing seems to make it slow? not to mention that the operator falls pretty quickly when in void mode , probably want him to stay floating longer at the minimum so there is less edge crashing.

So would just request to check these two things:

1) If telegraphed , we need the distance covered to be much longer,

2) The "void glide" needs to be at a very low drop velocity (maybe none?)

The evolving weapons

i am looking forward to, this is what modular weapons should have been i think , i am also loving the idea of actual test based progression. I had suggested this for weapon growth instead of just affinity a long time ago.

Can we have the ability to actually build these weapons though ? se we can pick their starting stats too? would really be perfect- maybe a bit OP though :P.

The new game mode

Seem interesting , but cant help but compare it to disruption for some reason , the mini-bosses are a nice touch - any chance to d something similar in other endless modes?

Garuda changes

dont really feel any more compelled to use her honestly , will see.

Player housing

Nice , but , can we do missions from there? i dont want to go to a 3 loading screen room just to sit down and come back to do stuff. Hopefully there will be all the comforts of our orbiter in our home?

Eximus changes

Seems good , dont really see any issues

 

[Tesseract7777]

On 2022-03-10 at 10:43 PM, [DE]Megan said:

 

• A full respec will be required upon release to re-select your Focus Nodes!

 

Quick question, if you see this and have the time, for clarification. 

I have a decent amount of points in naramon, vazarin, and zenurik. Last time there was a change to focus, we were only allowed to respec our points within the respective schools we had already put those points in. Is this going to be the case again, or since it is such a big change, will we be able to use our points in any schools we want? 

Or are my Naramon points still stuck in Naramon, Vazarin still in Vazarin, Zenurik still stuck in Zenurik, etc?