Rebalancing Project: Rods/Staffs

[bkdubs123]

I'm going to get to knuckles a different time, they're a more complicated beast, but Celine is really your most straightforward, offensive spellcaster in Star Ocean 2 (despite being able to equip some weird armor and accessories that boost melee stats, it just doesn't really work for her beyond the very early game to fight in melee despite her fast attack animation). So why do her weapons, almost universally even into the post game increase her ATK more than her INT?

Part of it is spell damage scaling being higher than physical attack scaling, which... they didn't need to design the game that way so I honestly don't understand why they did. It's unintuitive, because those stats are hidden from the player, but it's also unsatisfying. She casts magic, very nearly exclusively. As a player you don't care about increasing her attack.

So let's see what we do about that. EDIT: I did not realize how barren the field between the Ruby Rod and the Silver Rod you can't get until Centropolis on Energy Nede was... ... Wow.

Creaky Rod: ATK 1, INT 70. 33% chance to break. An old, overused staff that can barely withstand the impressive magical power it once commanded. Halves Dark.

Magical Staff (previously Rod; Celine starting equip): ATK 10, INT 40.

Ruby Rod (previously Ruby Wand): ATK 15, INT 50, STM 5, CRT 2. Fire element attack. Fire damage +20%. Halves Fire.

Silver Rod (purchase in Lacuer from the "Savage Slayer," or Customize Lv 1, Magical Staff + Silver; Celine-Only): ATK 12, INT 80, LUC 10, CRT 5.

Ruby Mace (New Rod/Staff, Customize Lv 2, Ruby Rod + Iron; Celine-Only): ATK 90, HIT 10, INT 50, STM 8, CRT 5, GUTS 3. Fire element attack. Max HP +10%.

Heraldic Staff (Previously Crested Rod; steal from Marze village Elder): ATK 40, DEF 7, HIT 5, AVD 3, INT 100, LUC 5, STM 5, GUTS 3. All spells cast 12% faster. A crested staff of ancient origins. Etched with symbological wisdom passed down through generations. Halves Fire, Water, and Wind.

Rod of Jewels (steal from Celine in Krosse City; drops from Sorceress; or Customize Lv 3, Ruby Mace + Sapphire or Green Beryl): ATK 100, INT 100, CRT 12. Movement Speed -20%. 10% chance to convert spell damage received to MP. A heavy mace, in truth, made into a deadly focus for symbological energies through the rainbow of gems embedded into it. Halves Light.

Staff of Bedevilment (New Rod/Staff, Customize Lv 3, Magical Staff + Gold; Celine-Only): ATK 12, DEF 3, HIT 7, AVD 12, INT 120, LUC 30. Spells have a chance to decrease ATK and HIT.

Emerald Rod (New Rod/Staff, Customize Lv 4, Rod of Jewels + Green Beryl; Celine-Only): ATK 70, INT 150, LUC 20, STM 20. Wind element attack. Wind damage +20%. Wind spells cost 33% less MP.

Key of Corruption (New Rod/Staff, found in Sacred Grounds of Linga; Celine and Leon can equip): ATK 120, DEF 30, INT 150, CRT 20, GUTS 20. AVD, LUC, and STM set to 0. Dark element attack. Dark element attacks and spells drain 6% max HP but deal 60% more damage. The deadly energies coursing through this skeletal Rod make it a potent symbological focus, but the technology built into it is beyond the ken of any Expellian... Absorbs Dark.

Elder's Staff (New Rod/Staff, given by Eluria settlement elder if Celine or Leon are in the party; Celine and Leon can equip): ATK 90, DEF 5, HIT 5, AVD 5, INT 180, LUC 5, STM 5, CRT 5, GUTS 5. 5% chance of nullifying damage. Halves Dark.

Tabula Rasa (New Rod/Staff, found in Eluria Tower; Rena and Celine can equip): ATK 150, HIT 15, AVD 15, INT 200, CRT 10, GUTS 30. Light element attack. Light spells cast 15% faster. Light damage +20%. A staff of unknown origin, said to be engraved with the language of the gods. Nullifies Earth and Dark.

Staff of Focus (New Rod/Staff, Customize Lv 5, Heraldic Staff + Crystal or Diamond; Celine-Only): ATK 50, DEF 15, INT 220, GUTS 7. DEF +15% while casting spells. Doubles the trigger rate of Concentration.

Cloaking Rod (previously Chameleon Rod; purchase from Centropolis): ATK 1, AVD 40, INT 250, LUC 30. Makes wielder a harder target for the enemy.

Witchcraft Series S (New Rod/Staff, steal from Celine in North City or Customize Lv 6, Staff of Bedevilment + Rune Metal, Celine-Only): ATK 30, AVD 15, INT 270, CRT 15. Spells have a chance to inflict a random status ailment.

Thunderstriker (New Rod/Staff, found in Noel's home; Celine and Noel can equip): ATK 200, INT 270, GUTS 12. Wind element attack. Wind damage dealt is 50% more effective at Stunning and Breaking.

Mithril Rod (New Rod/Staff, found in the Field of Wisdom, Celine-Only): ATK 210, DEF 10, AVD 10, INT 300. All spells cast 20% faster and trigger Interrupt twice as often. Halves Light and Dark.

Blazing Salvo (previously Ruby Rod): ATK 250, INT 350. Replaces normal attack with Fire Bolt (no cast time). Fire spells cast 33% faster. It is said that the conjuration of flame is the most primitive symbology. On Energy Nede, it becomes a work of art. Nullifies Fire.

Starhammer (New Rod/Staff, found in the Field of Courage or Customize Lv 7, Silver Rod + Rune Metal, Celine and Noel can equip): ATK 450, HIT 30, INT 500, CRT 30. Attacks and spells that break the enemy also hit chain broken enemies.

Holy Rod (Rena and Celine can equip): ATK 280, DEF 40, INT 550, LUC 50, STM 80. Light element attack. 3% of Light damage dealt is converted into HP recovery for all allies.

Caduceus Staff (New Rod/Staff, found in Phynal, Celine and Noel can equip): ATK 350, INT 650. Cast speed increases as HP decreases. Nullifies Petrification and Instant Death. Halves Earth.

Duelist's Wand (replaces the Rod of Jabbering): ATK 10, DEF 70, AVD 70, INT 1000, CRT 10, GUTS 30. Spells inflict Silence on crit, cast instantly when Hasten Speech triggers, and always trigger Interrupt. Halves Water, Earth, and Dark.

Dragonsbellow (previously Dragonstaff; Customize Lv 8, Blazing Salvo + Damascus; Celine-Only): ATK 800, INT 800, CRT 35. Fire element attack. Fire damage +80%. Spell damage +50%. Absorbs Fire.

Silvermoon (Customize Lv 9, Mithril Rod + Moonstone, Celine-Only): ATK 300, INT 870, LUC 80, CRT 20. Replaces normal attack with Light Cross (no cast time). +1 spell hits. Cast speed increases with each spell hit. Absorbs Light.

Creator's Cane (New Rod/Staff, Customize Lv 10, Caduceus Staff + Philosopher's Stone; Celine and Welch can equip): ATK 1000, INT 1250, LUC 100, STM 100, GUTS 100. Begin battle with an Angel Feather effect and a Haste effect. Once per battle, escape death and recover 100% HP and MP.

Volticry: ATK 650, INT 1700, CRT 15. Wind element attack. While casting, Lightning Bolts strike the battlefield at random and battering winds surround the caster, dealing damage and pushing foes away. Absorbs Wind. Halves Light and Dark.

[bkdubs123]

(Reserved post)

[Second Duke Revier]

Yeah she needs a lot of help with her spells. Even her "best" rod only has 360 Intelligence on it! She pretty much devolved into a poor Rena in my run, having to boink everything. At least she gets the Earring of Frenzy....

[bkdubs123]

Originally posted by Second Duke of Aeria Revier:

Yeah she needs a lot of help with her spells. Even her "best" rod only has 360 Intelligence on it! She pretty much devolved into a poor Rena in my run, having to boink everything. At least she gets the Earring of Frenzy....

Before I get too deep into the weeds (as you know, I like to add a lot of flourishes to the items I design), what do you think Celine needs most of all? From her weapons, aside from just "add more INT," what do you think she lacks compared with other offensive characters?

[Second Duke Revier]

Well, many of her spells past Wind Blade are kinda bad, taking too long to charge without doing enough damage to make up for it. Eruption is like her first new viable spell. Explode is almost worth it for its damage and area coverage, but it only hits once which makes it feel lackluster. Southern Cross has a reasonable casting time and power for a high end spell but by then many serious fights, especially boss fights, are also too fast paced for spells with casting times to be viable, and the damage loss from the casting time + post cast animation delay compared to just bonking things is quite noticeable.

Long story short, casting times and damage multipliers on stuff besides her first three offensive spells need a very serious look. Perhaps more intelligence on rods may solve the latter issue, but the former is also troublesome, as it does cut heavily into the effective damage she(and other wizards) do, even if we accept that they are built more for aoeing things at range.

[bkdubs123]

Originally posted by Second Duke of Aeria Revier:

Well, many of her spells past Wind Blade are kinda bad, taking too long to charge without doing enough damage to make up for it. Eruption is like her first new viable spell. Explode is almost worth it for its damage and area coverage, but it only hits once which makes it feel lackluster. Southern Cross has a reasonable casting time for a high end spell but by then many serious fights, especially boss fights, are also too fast paced for spells with casting times to be viable, and the damage loss from the casting time + post cast animation delay compared to just bonking things is quite noticeable.

Long story short, I'm saying casting times and damage multipliers on stuff besides her first three offensive spells need a very serious look.

*furiously takes notes*

[bkdubs123]

Almost done here (aside from post game). What do you think?

EDIT: Volticry says, "long cast times are good, actually!" 😃 👍

[Second Duke Revier]

Heh. Nice work lol.

These rods sound pretty cool. :o

[bkdubs123]

I kind of want to give that Fire Bolt regular attack way earlier, like Forest of Symbols early, and make that gimmick a lot more common.

[Second Duke Revier]

More weapons with spell charges/attacks would be cool honestly.