Some Ling Balance Thoughts

[TheMaskedMan2]

The tentacle arm is infact the Shambler arm, you uh... don't need to shamble with the tentacle arm to get robust punch wiggly boi.

1. I honestly somewhat agree that the headspider needs to be changed in some way, since it relies on DNA. This reply ties to point 3, since the Shambler costs DNA to enter, as well as leave. Unless you precisely turn off shambler at 25 DNA so you have 10 DNA left over, you won't get a head spider, and your round ends with the shamble. Hell it ties to point 2. Would you rather have a second life, or bring out a second player ad hoc, who doesn't know they are suddenly about to be a hand spider to have save you in a fight? Or a leg spider?

Cooldown mechanics maybe? Starts on cooldown already when the shift starts, maybe like a 15m cooldown? DNA total mechanic like Blob, every 50 DNA you get another head spider to use, which means a ling can have two lives if they die after reaching 10 absorbs as their shift objective? I dunno, but baseline spider I don't agree with anymore.

2. The limb critters are largely a pity mechanic. I have a heavy amount of ling rounds and I can tell you on one hand the number of times my limb critters have been helpful. The answer is once, and only because I had two really robust people I had just eaten, and they called out for it. Sadly post moment of awesomeness with them helping kill two officers, they didn't really do much else that round.

3. Shambler costing DNA to enter is absolutely fine. Its a last ditch beat em up in a tight space or rip my way through a window while ignoring stun mechanics and escape ability. Leaving Shambler costing a massive amount of DNA really sucks honestly, because it doesn't tell you it does it in the tooltip, and again, it usually cuts you off from being able to headspider.

1. I like the idea of headspider being free and mostly guaranteed, but that you can only create one every 15-20 minutes. OR you need to absorb one other person to "refresh" your DNA and be able to headspider again. Honestly, the idea of headspider being a last resort kinda similar to blobs second chances or Vampires coffin escape. Is kind of lost when you can never use it when you actually need it. (Personally I like the idea of a Final Resort ability that gibs you into a ton of critters and a headspider, but that's beyond this suggestion.)

2. I understand they're a pity mechanic, but it feels kind of lame in my opinion that I have all these players in my head begging for limbs, but I can barely justify using any of them. I think handspiders are the only ones in a decent place right now. I sometimes wonder if they should be free, but have a much longer cooldown, or if ling DNA gain-cost-mechanics should be reworked entirely. Either way, legs are the ones in the worst place though, six dna points for something that can't even get a naked assistant lower than half health before dying.

3. Yeah, in my opinion, shambler just shouldn't drain DNA when you leave it, it already makes you extremely obvious, drained a ton of DNA just by being inside of it, and leaving it stuns you. It should be possible to strategically leave it early to conserve DNA, instead of feeling like you pretty much have to fight to the death.