The recent changes to the keep lords level of resistance to damage are deeply unsatisfying to me, enough so that i won't be playing any RvR until it returns to something similar to what it was before last friday nights largely undefendable (and far too quick) keep takes.
The length of time it took to kill keep lords during peak time was fine, reducing it to about 4/5 of that would be barely acceptable to myself and anyone else who agrees with me, keep defense needs a relatively long time and attackers want/need the challenge of that.
Suggestion: Connect the keep lords level of resistance to damage to the total number of people currently in the active zone.
If the zone pop. is low then the keep lord should be less resistant to damage.
If the zone pop. is high then the keep lord should be more resistant to damage.
If the keep lords level of resistance to damage is tied to total zone population size then that means it would take the same amount of time for different total zone population sizes to kill/defend the keep lord IF the same percentage of total zone population was killing/defending the keep lord EVERY time a keep lord is engaged WHICH MEANS if a higher than usual percentage of total zone population (ie higher than usual level of organisation occurs) attacks the keep lord then it will die relatively quicker which would be a good reward for organised effort AND ALSO if a lower than usual percentage of total zone population (ie lower than usual level of organisation occurs) attacks the keep lord then it will die relatively slower which would be a punishment for a lack of organised effort.
If the side attacking the keep lord equals/outnumbers the defending side and more people on the attacking side go to the zone then it will take longer to kill the keep lord and give more time to the defenders to mount a defense of the keep lord IF the percentage of people on the attacking side that are currently attacking the keep lord DOES NOT rise ie if the defenders manage to waylay them from getting to the keep lord or if they can draw attackers away from the keep lord by fighting the attackers at the keep.
If the side defending the keep lord equals/outnumbers the attacking side and more people on the defending side go to the zone then it will make it harder for the attackers to kill the keep lord IF the defenders get their act together enough to smush and wipe the attackers PLUS higher zone population means the keep lord gets tougher to kill.
If morale breaks on the attacking side and some people on the attacking side leave the zone then the keep lord will become a little easier to kill IF the percentage of the remaining attackers attacking the keep lord rises (by virtue of that 'last ditch effort' push we occasionally see in keep takes) BUT it will be harder to get done when they have less people to fend off the defending side.
If morale breaks on the defending side and some people on the defending side leave the zone then the keep lord will become a little easier to kill BECAUSE the attackers numbers will not be changing for the worse and the keep lord will have gotten weaker and that will end the keep take sooner but also give people on the defending side incentive to stay and fight.
The need to control bo's and run supplies during a keep take and how that conflicts with the need for more people to be on the keep lord would still add spice to that dynamic.
I feel this approach would be narratively real (and the keep lords level of resistance to damage would be on a very time-instanced basis) and it would intensify the need for people to invest more personal desire and more force of will and more organisation and definitely more SKILL to get things done, i think it's very dynamic and unpredictable and exciting.
The total zone population divided by the percentage of the total zone population currently hitting the keep lord would reflect how long it would take to kill the keep lord, the higher the percentage the quicker it dies and the lower the percentage the slower it dies.
edit: I went straight into RvR after posting this.
edit: I actually went and played some scenarios today when i could have been in the RvR lakes, think about that.
Patch Notes 29/05/17
wargrimnir wrote:[RvR]
Washette
- Damage mitigation on keep lord is scaled from -0% (if one opponent) to -75% (if 200+ opponents). This behaviour replaces the previous static -75% damage mitigation. (Note this is the base lord resistance, how it interacts with abilities needs to be monitored)
Patch Notes 2/6/2017
wargrimnir wrote:[RvR]
Washette
- Keep lord has now -75% damage reduction if 100 opponents instead of 200
