Skolas Rules, Raids, some thoughts on D1 v D2, etc. (Destiny)

by Harmanimus , Wednesday, April 04, 2018, 00:57 (2207 days ago) @ cheapLEY

I have not played the Raid Lair, so I won't get into that, most of what your comments made me think of were D1 memories, anyway.

There is a set of boxes when you fight the boss in Exodus Crash (left side oriented from point-of-entry) but you can only do that as a Titan, but really there are other issues with that fight (still think there are too many phases when you can't damage the boss) that I would rather see addressed.

Anyway, I definitely think you are right about the best encounters in Destiny requiring at least some mobility. My favorite Raid encounters are usually the mobility ones. Disappearing Platforms in VoG, Tombships and The Rude Wall in KF. Though the ones that are also combat encounters which requirement coordinated movement - not necessarily complex movement, Skolas' fight doesn't being in any non-standard movement requirements and is a good example - are probably the most rewarding.

The Abyss (and to a lesser extent regarding movement, The Bridge) is still one of the most enjoyable fresh experiences I've had with Destiny. Even encounters with staggered movement, like Totems in KF as your warm up to the Warpriest is probably one of the encounters I would identify as great from an overall design perspective. In a similar manner to The Bridge in CE where you had to coordinate placement to support movement, though one-at-a-time on The Bridge, the Totem fight in KF requires all of the players to be cognizant of timing, movement, and communication in a way much like passing the debuff was required with Skolas needed you to juggle more than just what you were shooting at.

Though at this point some of the Strike bosses in D2 are still somewhat disappointing, I appreciate that they all, at a minimum, operate in phases. That was a distinct improvement. Changing geometry, introduction of environmental hazards, and varying boss attack patterns shows that there was a lot learned from D1. Even the reimagined D1 strikes showed that a lot had been learned.

But you're spot on that usually the best of the experiences are the ones that support and encourage movement. I'm hoping to see even more of the in D2 as time goes forward, though.