- Joined
- Jun 25, 2008
- Messages
- 14
The Short:
Give every Unit in a map the same amount of HP and Mana and keep it constant. Do not let STR and INT affect the amount of HP and Mana a Unit has. All Units should have the same amount of HP and Mana from early game to endgame.
The Long. WARNING: Essay Ahead
Every game/map created will have balancing issues. There will always be a select few heroes/items which every player will choose time and again. This is because the benefits and advantages provided by such heroes/items greatly outweighs any other heroes/items available in the said game/map.
The reason such balancing is difficult is because there are too many variables to the game/map, from Stats Gain (Agi, Int, Str) to HP and Mana, to Damage and Attack Speed. Of course, such a problem will never go away, which is why Patches and Updates are released periodically to temporary solve the issue at hand (DotA comes to mind, as each of their updates tweaks the balance of the game).
From the way I see it, the problem is due to the ever changing amount of HP and Mana. Imagine, for a moment, that every hero in a game/map has the same amount of HP and Mana. The only difference between heroes are their skills. It would allow for more diverse gameplay, allowing players to have an equal chance of success with just about any hero they choose to play at any given time.
The reasoning behind is such: when HP and Mana remain constant, it is easier to tweak the spells and items to achieve a balanced gameplay. Also, it would allow spells to be effective regardless of the phases in which the game is in (Early, Mid, Late). Anyone who plays DotA would know that those early 300/400 Damage spell is practically useless when the enemy has gone beyond 3,000 HP if it has no other effect. The same can be said of most maps where the spells do Fixed Damage while the Heroes keep gaining more and more HP. (Maps with Tomes anyone?)
Lets say that in a certain map, the heroes' HP range from 1,000 HP to 5,000 HP. If there is a spell that deals 600 Damage to a Hero, that would seem to be overpowered from the view of heroes with 1,000 HP whereas it would seem like a small sting to heroes with 5,000 HP. It would be difficult to balance that particular spell, as it would need to be effective against heroes with 5,000 HP and yet not overpower heroes with 1,000 HP. Such balance is delicate and breaks easily.
Again, in another map, lets assume that there is a spell that does 600 Damage and requires 500 Mana to cast. Lets also assume that there are two heroes, one with 3,000 HP and 2,000 Mana and another with 3,000 HP and 1,000 Mana. The Hero with 1,000 Mana will be the one to die if both heroes go against each other 1-on-1.
What am I trying to suggest here? It is always easier to put a maximum limit on HP and Mana in the first place for easier balancing. Damage, Damage Reduction/Resistance and other variables will become far easier to scale when the amount of HP and Mana remains the same throughout the game.
Next time when you're making a map that requires tedious amount of balancing, do not let INT and STR give players extra Mana and HP. Instead, start the heroes off with a moderate amount of base HP and Mana (1,000/1,000 seems to be fine). That way, you could make a 1,000-Damage spell and scale damage reduction/resistance(through items/skills/whatnot) to prevent it from being overpowered.
In relation to RPG maps, players would want to feel that their Character has become powerful as they gain Levels, that they should not die to low level monsters. A simple way to do this would be to create a Damage Reduction/Resistance System which reduces damage both in Percentage AND in Flat Numbers (similar to Ragnarok Online's Damage Reduction). The same thing can be used in terms of Damage, where Damage is dealt in Multipliers AND Flat Numbers(Example: [AGI x 5] + 400) for consistent effectiveness from early game to late game. In addition, when creating a RPG map, consider lowering the ridiculous amount of HP bosses have. I know that such bosses are meant to be challenging, but giving the boss an absurd amount of HP =/= challenging, merely delaying the inevitable death and being tedious for players. Give the boss a semi-intelligent AI if you want to provide some challenge. (One cannot help oneself but to point again at DotA Maps with AI, as they have some wonderful AIs.)
Of course, I'm not saying that this is the only way to balance a game. Its one of the many, and, in my believe, easiest way to do so.
Give every Unit in a map the same amount of HP and Mana and keep it constant. Do not let STR and INT affect the amount of HP and Mana a Unit has. All Units should have the same amount of HP and Mana from early game to endgame.
The Long. WARNING: Essay Ahead
Every game/map created will have balancing issues. There will always be a select few heroes/items which every player will choose time and again. This is because the benefits and advantages provided by such heroes/items greatly outweighs any other heroes/items available in the said game/map.
The reason such balancing is difficult is because there are too many variables to the game/map, from Stats Gain (Agi, Int, Str) to HP and Mana, to Damage and Attack Speed. Of course, such a problem will never go away, which is why Patches and Updates are released periodically to temporary solve the issue at hand (DotA comes to mind, as each of their updates tweaks the balance of the game).
From the way I see it, the problem is due to the ever changing amount of HP and Mana. Imagine, for a moment, that every hero in a game/map has the same amount of HP and Mana. The only difference between heroes are their skills. It would allow for more diverse gameplay, allowing players to have an equal chance of success with just about any hero they choose to play at any given time.
The reasoning behind is such: when HP and Mana remain constant, it is easier to tweak the spells and items to achieve a balanced gameplay. Also, it would allow spells to be effective regardless of the phases in which the game is in (Early, Mid, Late). Anyone who plays DotA would know that those early 300/400 Damage spell is practically useless when the enemy has gone beyond 3,000 HP if it has no other effect. The same can be said of most maps where the spells do Fixed Damage while the Heroes keep gaining more and more HP. (Maps with Tomes anyone?)
Lets say that in a certain map, the heroes' HP range from 1,000 HP to 5,000 HP. If there is a spell that deals 600 Damage to a Hero, that would seem to be overpowered from the view of heroes with 1,000 HP whereas it would seem like a small sting to heroes with 5,000 HP. It would be difficult to balance that particular spell, as it would need to be effective against heroes with 5,000 HP and yet not overpower heroes with 1,000 HP. Such balance is delicate and breaks easily.
Again, in another map, lets assume that there is a spell that does 600 Damage and requires 500 Mana to cast. Lets also assume that there are two heroes, one with 3,000 HP and 2,000 Mana and another with 3,000 HP and 1,000 Mana. The Hero with 1,000 Mana will be the one to die if both heroes go against each other 1-on-1.
What am I trying to suggest here? It is always easier to put a maximum limit on HP and Mana in the first place for easier balancing. Damage, Damage Reduction/Resistance and other variables will become far easier to scale when the amount of HP and Mana remains the same throughout the game.
Next time when you're making a map that requires tedious amount of balancing, do not let INT and STR give players extra Mana and HP. Instead, start the heroes off with a moderate amount of base HP and Mana (1,000/1,000 seems to be fine). That way, you could make a 1,000-Damage spell and scale damage reduction/resistance(through items/skills/whatnot) to prevent it from being overpowered.
In relation to RPG maps, players would want to feel that their Character has become powerful as they gain Levels, that they should not die to low level monsters. A simple way to do this would be to create a Damage Reduction/Resistance System which reduces damage both in Percentage AND in Flat Numbers (similar to Ragnarok Online's Damage Reduction). The same thing can be used in terms of Damage, where Damage is dealt in Multipliers AND Flat Numbers(Example: [AGI x 5] + 400) for consistent effectiveness from early game to late game. In addition, when creating a RPG map, consider lowering the ridiculous amount of HP bosses have. I know that such bosses are meant to be challenging, but giving the boss an absurd amount of HP =/= challenging, merely delaying the inevitable death and being tedious for players. Give the boss a semi-intelligent AI if you want to provide some challenge. (One cannot help oneself but to point again at DotA Maps with AI, as they have some wonderful AIs.)
Of course, I'm not saying that this is the only way to balance a game. Its one of the many, and, in my believe, easiest way to do so.
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