2026-04-12 · Tests & balance

Paladin balance iteration and technical test context

The Paladin showcase repeatedly frames the class as work in progress. Many abilities, values, visuals, and even some core mechanics are presented as provisional, with the upcoming test positioned primarily as a technical test rather than a polished beta.

Iterative state of the class

The talent tree layout is described as a current iteration rather than a final structure. New effects may require the tree to grow further, and several talents or spell placements are still being reconsidered.

Multiple examples of unfinished implementation are acknowledged during the demonstration, including translation mismatches, incomplete tooltip text, cooldown bugs, placeholder visuals, and effects that are still being wired into the latest build.

Animation and combat feel issues

The Paladin's melee presentation is explicitly identified as below target quality. The current build shows desynchronization between melee strikes, animation timing, and visual effects, especially on parts of the attack chain.

Improving the melee animation controller is described as an active priority. The stated goal is to raise the feel and readability of Paladin combat before treating the current presentation as representative of the final game.

Ability-specific balance concerns

Several Paladin abilities are discussed in terms of whether they fit the class or need further tuning.

Heavenly Dive is the clearest example. Although it provides mobility that the class currently lacks, it is considered likely to be removed because its leap-and-slow behavior is viewed as more appropriate for a warrior archetype. A charge-based alternative is preferred for Paladin identity.

Avatar abilities are considered functional but not yet fully satisfying. The design concern is to make them impactful without making the class feel weak outside the cooldown window.

Castigation and other area-control tools are treated cautiously because area stuns are considered potentially excessive. Delays, smaller radii, and other forms of counterplay are used to keep them from becoming oppressive.

Cavalcade of Light is also under review, particularly its pull behavior. The intended effect may shift toward a knockback-to-center, stun, slow, or root depending on what best preserves the spell's fantasy without creating unhealthy gameplay.

Blocking, dodge, and hit reliability

Blocking is already part of the combat model and can fully negate projectile damage when used correctly. This means combat is not intended to be a system where every attack always lands for full effect.

Dodge is still under evaluation and is not expected to be ready for the test. The discussion presents dodge as a feature that could require too much development time relative to current priorities, and therefore something that may be delayed or removed if it threatens overall delivery.

AoE balance philosophy

Area-of-effect spells are discussed as a major balance risk in both PvP and PvE. Concerns include visual clutter, excessive power in group fights, and the ability to farm large packs of enemies too efficiently.

The proposed solutions are balance-oriented rather than conceptual removal. These include higher resource costs, target caps, or other restrictions that limit how many enemies can be damaged effectively by one AoE ability.

Talent-tree size versus bloat

The discussion around tree size distinguishes between meaningful progression and unnecessary expansion. Small stat nodes are considered useful when they create pacing and milestones, but the class should not be filled with low-value filler simply to increase the node count.

Because talent points are limited, excessive bloat is seen as harmful to the feeling of impact. The intended balance is a tree large enough to support experimentation while still making each point matter.

Technical test scope

The upcoming playtest is described as a technical test focused on crash rates, networking, server stability, and bug discovery. It is not presented as a finished or highly polished gameplay preview.

Players are expected to encounter unfinished content, placeholder assets, and technical issues. The purpose of the test is to expose those problems and help the team identify where the game breaks under real use.

Streaming and content creation are stated to be allowed during the test, but the expectation is that participants understand the unfinished state of the build.

Test rollout and access

Access to the test is planned as a gradual rollout rather than a single large opening. The reason given is the large number of access requests and the need to scale participation in stages while monitoring technical performance.

The test is expected to begin with a smaller group, followed by larger waves of invites as stability improves. The current target test level cap is described as around level 20, though this depends on how much content is ready.

Quality-of-life items outside the test scope

Some features are acknowledged as desirable but unlikely to be included in the test build. Examples include a threat list for tanks and possible UI changes such as smaller inventory or stats windows.

These are treated as future quality-of-life improvements rather than immediate priorities, with current effort focused on stability, core combat, and fixing visible issues.

Source

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