We need an option to Respec our Ability Scores

sethria · December 2013

Could you give us an Option to re-roll our Ability Scores?
We have the option in game now to respec our feats and powers, so could you give us this option to respec our Ability Score too?
When I first started the game I didnt know about rolling for the class ability score.
I had worked the toon to 20 and then made a 2nd toon, then I leaned about the rolling of the scrore.
But I had advanced to far in my Cleric to remake her.

We should have the option to respec ability scores in game just as we do for feats and powers.
Is this something we may see in the near future?

dematto · December 2013

I mean, I suppose it's possible, but I'm not entirely certain they'd add it.
I feel like this is something that happens, at most, once to any given player. After that, you kinda know when you roll up your character, "Ok, I need to roll this toon and see what bonuses each stat gives me. Then I delete the character and re-roll it with stats I actually kinda care about."

mconosrep · December 2013

dematto wrote: »

I mean, I suppose it's possible, but I'm not entirely certain they'd add it.
I feel like this is something that happens, at most, once to any given player. After that, you kinda know when you roll up your character, "Ok, I need to roll this toon and see what bonuses each stat gives me. Then I delete the character and re-roll it with stats I actually kinda care about."

This would only be true if the Devs never changed anything BUT with every module at least the best stat allocation can significantly change...

krisst0f · December 2013

That suggestion was made since the beginning. I don't understand why it would not be possible.

ability scores are an integral part of any char build. As a GF deflect build initially, I tried to respec all I could to make it a dps, but obviously, I couldn't match up with someone who was more STR/CON than DEX/CON... So I am stuck...

This should be easy do to...

Hopefully we'll get some clue it is coming some day.

melodywhr · December 2013

here's the official word on being able to re-roll your initial ability scores:

ejziponken wrote: »

"The "Respec Powers" button is now properly labeled "Respec Characters," as this respec covers powers, feats, ability points, and paragon path."

Im guessing that dosent include resetting ability points from scratch?!

terramak wrote: »

That's not included in the Respec Character respec, no. I'll look into what it takes to get that feature, but I don't expect that for the Shadowmantle release.

ejziponken wrote: »

Very disappointed to hear that... Neverwinter is my first MMO-game. I had no idea what I was doing when I created my character. I invested so much time and effort into this one so starting over is not an option for me. To be able to reset the ability points from scratch is very much needed and It cant be that hard to implement. You don't need the option to change race.

It just feels so bad playing a character everyday that you know don't have the optimal settings. What ever you do and how much time you spend in the game, you will always know that someone with better placed ability points has the advantage over you. Feels like giving others a handicap.. Its just so irritating knowing it.

terramak wrote: »

Yeah, I totally agree that it's not an ideal scenario. It's something that we want to do, it just needs to get on our feature list and weighed against our other priorities.

melodywhr wrote: »

as for the future addition of the ability to re-roll initial ability stats, is it too early to say whether this will just be an add-on to the respec token or will this be along the lines of a resurrection token to follow d&d lore and how initial ability stats are re-rolled?

terramak wrote: »

I can't really say for sure. It's an honest "We want to do this" feature, but I can't make any promises as to how, when, or if it actually ends up happening.

ianthewizard2012 · December 2013

I would rather re-allocate the Ability Scores points than use a re-rolled one. For my CW, I really don't want to waste the points in Dexterity.

krisst0f · December 2013

Thanks... I am hopeful. What we need is just being able to re-roll the dice as when we create a new character, nothing more.

ltgamesttv · December 2013

As this game evolves and more modules come out with new gear/artifacts/enchantments/paragon paths the beginning ability scores become very intertwined in future changes to a character's build. It presents a challenge to keep up with the changing nature of PVP in particular. When your build is tied to Ability Scores you may have rolled (as I did) when I knew nothing of what to expect from them it can make adjusting to new paradigms difficult, if indeed your character isn't completely outmoded. I have a toon from each class and different races but I find that as builds/paragon paths change I need the flexibility to completely reroll my original stats to stay competitive. For example, TR's were originally all about STR and DEX and maxing out Crit and Armor Pen... the glass cannon build. However as gear has changed and new feats become more appealing Con is becoming more important as rogues become more survivable. While this is just one example it highlights nicely that ability scores are important and may hinder progression in the game environment if they can't be adjusted. All I'm suggesting is that they should be able to be rerolled when you use a respec token to allow for more continued enjoyment from the same toons as the game environment changes with future modules.

mconosrep · December 2013

This becomes even more relevant once you consider the time needed to get all the boons as well.

So now after major changes, if your initial ability rolls are now outmoded then you have to not only get another character up to 60 (pretty fast), get the gear (can be easy if you are loaded) and also grind the boons (which is going to take a long time no matter what).....

ltgamesttv · December 2013

My thoughts exactly...

mconosrep wrote: »

This becomes even more relevant once you consider the time needed to get all the boons as well.

So now after major changes, if your initial ability rolls are now outmoded then you have to not only get another character up to 60 (pretty fast), get the gear (can be easy if you are loaded) and also grind the boons (which is going to take a long time no matter what).....

noxisst · December 2013

I would pay 1 mil AD or 3000 Zen for this feature, even if it was a one time re-roll like during character creation. Just as the OP stated, I had no idea the importance of some of these other stats, so i just rolled until i got a high dex and str score with no regard to the importance of Cha and Con. How is one to know that crit chance is easily maxed, or just how underwhelming the STR stat is, or that your HP pool is a determining factor in other stats and enchants such as regen, tenebrous enchants, ect..

I do hope they bring this one day, even if at a ridiculously high price (which it should be)

stabbath · December 2013

It always should have been the way you suggest imo. More money for them, surprised they don't do it.

mconosrep · December 2013

noxisst wrote: »

I do hope they bring this one day, even if at a ridiculously high price (which it should be)

Why should it be a high price when the standard respec allows you do reassign 8 ability points, your powers and your feats all at one go. If anything this should be simply be added to the normal respec.

At the very least we should get an initial ability and a standard respec token every module to cope with all the changes.

angrysprite · December 2013

I suspect this is one reason Cryptic calls it a "Retraining Token" rather than a "Respec Token". I do somewhat agree that character stats should be reset during a respec, but at the same time I can also understand keeping them as they are (Hey you are the way you are born, right?) LOL

Actually, I suspect this is a technical issue. Yes, it can be done, but more work than their priority list allows right now.

noxisst · December 2013

A reroll is a very very big deal in the realm of dungeons and dragons. I have never played the original board games or any of the old school D&D, but im fairly certain that a re-roll of ability scores on a character is a big 'no-no'.

noxisst · December 2013

All that being said, Cryptic will eventually realize how much revenue they can generate by implementing such a feature, especially if they charge zen. it will come eventually, the fact that this game is free-to-play only guarantees its eventual addition to the zen store.

ltgamesttv · December 2013

While I understand trying to pay homage to the original pencil and paper game completely, you must also take into consideration that one can change their character name, their appearance, and even change their paragon path/ability scores. All of these are "no-no's" in the original board game. If you are the "way you are born" then appearance/name changes as well as feats and abilities should not be allowed. "Retraining" vs. "respeccing" really is semantics when you can lose or gain STR, DEX, CON and the like. So while I sympathize with the argument, I don't feel it's legitimate in this respect.

Edit: I also agree with the sentiment that this is likely a technical issue more than an obligation to remain true to the D&D heritage. I feel that it is a significant issue, however, and one that would be worthwhile for both the Devs as well as the players in terms of revenue/enjoyment/replayability.

lucidproph3cy · December 2013

So I know there was an old thread about the subject and I don't want to bring a old thread back to life. But why haven't they inputed a reroll or race change token. Most mmos have this as an option. I would definitely pay money for this as well so I believe it would be a great way for cryptic to make some money and offer a service. I don't know how hard it would be to do but they could just have you start your character like when you created him. Race, rolls, names, and background you would just have to take out the class selection part or just lock it so it couldn't be change. A retraining token would be nice as we'll because if you choose human you may need to change the stats or just give the three additional points.

So I know they said they were looking into this but I haven't heard anything yet. What do you guys think? I know they are busy with content but I would love to see this happen.

greekstud · December 2013

tiotaly agree on race change token and i would pay money too as most of the friends i know...

mconosrep · December 2013

I am fine with any and all of these being available.

I do think that the initial stats roll should be combined with the standard respec, or at least we should get one free at the start of each module for precisely the same reason we get the standard respecs each time.

imsmithy · December 2013

I'd like a option to change your initial choices too , my main ( CW ) started life as a prayer bot and storage alt , my first main that I played with for the first few weeks of open beta when I first started playing was a GF . My CW is a female and although I'm perfectly happy with the stats I chose and everything else I made the mistake of making a female , personally I couldn't care less what gender my character is but unfortunately a lot of let's say immature or uneducated people in the game seem to be under the impression that if a RL Male makes a Female character they are either Homosexual ??? or out to rip other players off , usually I'd just make a new Male CW and mail everything over to him but the inability to transfer gear and stuff makes this impossible and since I have BiS weapon and armor plus I have now spent a fortune on all the other stuff for her I don't really want to start over. Gender change would really be awesome lol

echokazul · December 2013

I would love to see a reset option for background and deity available as well. I know, I take the little things way too seriously, but when I created my character, I had one story in mind, and now that I've actually played her a while, a different story and background seems to fit better. And, when I started, I sadly didn't know much Forgotten Realms lore. Now that I've read a few books, the dieties I've chosen for a few of my toons don't seem to fit as well.

ianthewizard2012 · December 2013

I would like a service for re-rolling, too. Or better, re-allocating, ideally.

ianthewizard2012 · December 2013

echokazul wrote: »

I would love to see a reset option for background and deity available as well. I know, I take the little things way too seriously, but when I created my character, I had one story in mind, and now that I've actually played her a while, a different story and background seems to fit better. And, when I started, I sadly didn't know much Forgotten Realms lore. Now that I've read a few books, the dieties I've chosen for a few of my toons don't seem to fit as well.

You are fine with the request for deity change. Many players, including me, want that service, too. Role-playing is interesting and fun, and should also be serious.

lucidproph3cy · December 2013

I was just trying to think of an easy way to implement it in the game by having a recreate token and just hit a button on the character screen. That way they could reuse what they have already created this making it easier for them to put it in the game. I never thought about the RP aspect of backgrounds and that you couldn't change it. That's would definitely bea benefit I just don't see why they haven't done it yet.

ironyoga · December 2013

I do have to say I support something like this myself. I often pick a race based on what I am feeling and their looks. I don't often care about racials and while they do have some impact on the game it is often very small though it can be a slight edge. I have found quite often when I get in game and spend some time with my character I just don't like how they look even though when I selected them they seemed perfect. Also in a game like this where you get to pick your stats they do matter and at endgame it can be significant if you don't roll a certain way. I don't feel it is game breaking enough to worry about unless you just do something horrible like pick a CW and put everything you have into strength but it does make a difference. Yes you can reroll a character but I don't see why so many people are opposed to this idea and tell me to just reroll it's not that big of a deal. Well I say if I am willing to spend my money to buy a service like this then why do you care so much. It's my money and I will spend it how I please. It seems to me a lot of people want this in a lot of PW games that and it's not available. I just don't understand why. It would definitely make them money as there are many threads about it on many game forums.

ordensmarschall · December 2013

New race/new stats/new background/new deity=new character, why should a new character be able to start off fully geared and at level 60?

frarii · December 2013

Yeah, that's the point, in this game, leveling to 60 takes about 2-7 days depends of your game time (24-30 hours tops) changing race should never be allowed, this is DnD, you dont stop being a dwarf to become an elf because you're tired of being awesome and want to become a vegan hipster, i can understand the deity change, i can even understand the rerolling in terms of gameplay (not in terms of roleplaying though) but race change should never be allowed

lucidproph3cy · December 2013

I don't see your point ordenmarschall.. We are saying you can just change race and other things you can already do with name change and appearance tokens. Just add race change and background change. You just shouldn't be allowed to change the type of character / class like if you have a cw Lvl 60 and do a race change you still have to be a cw but you can change the race and roll the initial stats again. This is not creating a new character.

However I would settle for account bound items so I can recreate one how I want and transfer the items and just delete the character I don't want anymore..

ironyoga · December 2013

ordensmarschall wrote: »

New race/new stats/new background/new deity=new character, why should a new character be able to start off fully geared and at level 60?

This isn't a NEW character. It is one you are working on and have invested in already. We aren't talking about a service that allows you to drop some cash and be level 60, geared out and with perfect stats. It isn't as if it would hurt your experience or investment into the game. It would be an option for those that choose to do so. Why do you care so much how others spend their money.

ordensmarschall · December 2013

So your saying it is only the class that defines the character? Then why even bother picking a race/rolling stats/creating a background/choosing a deity? Isn't all of that plus class part of the character? Or put another way-What if all I want to do is change my class but keep everything else the same? Why should I have go through all of that leveling nonsense again? Just let me change my class and go over to the AH/Market and buy the gear I need for my new class that is already at 60th level. After all I only want change one thing so he is still basically the same character.

That is a hypothetical question as I would never condone this being allowed. After all what will happen is most people will find the armour they have doesn't allow for the perfect min/max scores they are going for with all of those changes and go buy the stuff they want for that "perfect" character. Also all that allowing for willy nilly race/stat changes will lead to is; "If you don't have an Elf CW with 26 Int/Dwarf GWF with 26 Con/Halfling TR with 26 Dex your a useless <font color="orange">HAMSTER</font> and can't play with us" I have seen this before and the MMO culture has only gotten worse since then. Then you get nothing but cookie cutter characters running around which is what so many people are crying about already and goes against all of the calls for more customization.

Another point. This is a F2P where everyone regardless of finances is supposed to have the same advantages/disadvanteges. Allowing you to purchase a race/base stat change would give you an advantage over someone who cannot do that. As it stands right now those who are free players can eventually achieve the same gear as those who can pay, just a lot slower. The free player and the paying player are eventually equal. What you want would skew the equation. The only inequality that exists right now is the customization field and that does not effect game play.

We need an option to Respec our Ability Scores

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