Brainstorming a hypothetical Sustain-focused class

[Lubaf]

Because I'm crazy, I'm wondering what a class that had 16 or 20 Sustains and a few generic trees for whatever metaclass it winds up in would look like.

Let us invent a new resource: Focus. Focus is only good for this class's unique skills. You get 100 (or 10, if you want to cheap out) at the start of the game, and have 100 (or 10) at the end game; not a single point gained over the entire game.

So, next question: Is this hypothetical class more of a Fighter, a Rogue, a Mage, a Psychic, or a Wilder? (I personally say Rogue or Fighter, but I'm interested in other people's ideas).

Thanks
Luc "Dumb Questions" French

[grayswandir]

I'd say it feels like a mage or psionic class.
Or possibly a celestial bard (to build on chants/hymns). You're constantly singing a song, and each sustain adds a magical effect to it.

[Hogulus]

The Apothecary class I'm still working on will probably end up working something like this - you get a bunch of Ingredient sustains, representing whatever's in the tank of toxic chemicals you're carting around, and various skills that involve spraying / drinking potions made from / injecting / vaporizing the stuff, with varying effects based on what ingredients are in it. You'd only get to use three or so ingredients at a time, though.

[Doctornull]

My Adventurer experiments can turn out very Sustain-heavy.

Will+Magic ones especially: so much good stuff in Psi and Wild-Gifts, plus Spells and Chronomancy.]

~ ~ ~

Focus sounds to me like a Martial Arts resource. Maybe it could be a non-Stamina resource for more interesting martial classes.

[Radon26]

focus? you mean opposite of hate? or do you mean liquefied willpower?
and why not a single point gained? then what difference does it make? OH you mean TOTAL! right?

and are you talking about active sustains, like arcane combat, or premonition?
or passive sustains, like blur sight, or shielding?
or auras, like necrotic aura or the gloomy one?

there are so many types!!

while passive sustains are good for dounding up, the build,
if you are ALL sustain, you will need a few active sustains to cast abilities for you.

[Lubaf]

and are you talking about active sustains, like arcane combat, or premonition?
or passive sustains, like blur sight, or shielding?
or auras, like necrotic aura or the gloomy one?

Any of them, restrained only by what fits the theme we eventually choose best.

Although, given the above, I'm going to say that it looks like my best idea is a a Fighter/Psychic hybrid.

The "generic" talent pool would be Duel Techniques, Shield Offense, one of the Two-Handed skills, Archery Prowess, and Combat Training.

And, for the main, two aura trees, two active sustain trees, and two passive sustain trees, for a total of 24 total sustains.

What would these two apiece trees look like?

Thanks
Luc "Leading Questions" French

[Radon26]

if you are going for a "fighter" as a base, and psychic as secondary (or the other way around) i would sugest a tree, made entirely of stances
and like with hymns and chants, you can only have one of them active at a time.
while any of them are active, rest are locked like the shot talent, when you are not using a ranged weapon.
that way, at low lvl, switching a stance takes 2 turns


defensive stance - sustain
give you bonus defence and a chance to auto-block, when wielding a shield.

offensive stance - sustain
make a guess

light-foot stance - sustain
heavy focus on mobility

stance mastery - passive
lvl1 - stances are no longer locked, but activating a new stance will deactivate the old one (one turn now)
lvl3 - activating a stance takes no time (zero turns now)
lvl5 - deactivated stances, leave behind a status effect, which give same bonuses. this status effect last for 1 turn (later up to 3?)


also, not directly connected, but i was thinking about a con based class. (original idea, were-bear)
at some point those 2 may connect, but we will see when i finish, how "active" or sustainable it is.

[Zireael]

I liked the martial arts idea.

[Radon26]

martiall arts hmm, how about

tree - battle flow - require either will, dex or cun.

t1 - untouchable - sustain - sustain cost 10% focus?
read the movements of the adjacent enemies, allowing you to react to their attacks, before they even start.
+evasion chance or something.
(scale up with "heightened senses")
if you get hit by an arrow, you have chance to instead grab adjacent enemy, and swap with him.
arrow will hit him, instead of you, and swapped enemy will be confused. (require adjacent enemy...)
Additional sight range(increased max) will let you read enemies further away

t2 - counter striking - sustain - sustain cost 25stamina?
every time you dodge, evade, block an atack, you get a free atack (only once per turn). counter takes no turn, but costs stamina.
+crit and hit chance on counters.
also, while untouchable is active, you have a % chance to disarm the enemy.

t3 - vital strike -
+% crit chance, and crit damage?
double the buff if counter striking.

t3 - flow mastery
some upgrades for all thosse sustains?

[comrade raoul]

Although it wasn't completely sustain-heavy, stinkstink was working on an awesome martial class in just this spirit (and based on the idea of a strictly limited resource pool) that never quite got finished. :: nudge, nudge::

http://te4.org/games/addons/tome/stoic-class

[Radon26]

what if they are all power-full (not allpowerfull) , but the trick is, to know what to sustain at what time, because you cant all at once?

realy, you had 20 sustains, and were killing your enemies just by showing up nearby, wouldn't it be a bit boring?
a good exmple of "killing them by beaing nearby" are the archmages storm, or alchemists body of fire.
also, mindslayers auras, or the aura of gloom.