Because of mutators and dmg variety in Cru, we have to stack DA. Moo used to one-hit my purifier with 4k8 DA and 11k hp, Alex meteor can sometimes deal over 7-8k, and on the other chance only 1-2k. So as much as lower char DA, pls nerf their dmg and speed of some units in Cru, they move so fast that only 2 type chars can survive in Cru: CDR and massive DA.
The farming part is another issue, but the one positive of the DA meta is actually that Stalwart of readiness is like 10x as easy to get compared to Stonehide of kings. I donāt understand anything about D2 cause I didnāt play that, but what I got from that is that the loot from the āultimate challengeā is good as opposed to the loot from 170. The point of 170 is not the loot, though, itās the accomplishment, so I donāt see any point in comparing loot.
As for farming the necessary items to get there, I kinda have that trust in Crate getting the droprates right someday. Farming has become increasingly easier since expansion released.
Some more research:
Strictly speaking, increasing DA does not yield increasing returns.
This is true for both PTH > 70 and for PTH < 70 and is ONLY false when PTH is exactly 70, strictly from a mathematical point of view.
This is easily proven by taking the partial derivative of the PTH function with respect to DA, taking into account the damage reduction multiplier when PTH <= 70. Alternatively, you can graph the functions and note the upward concavity; or you can simply plug and play values and manually calculate differences between intervals, as long as those intervals donāt include when PTH = 70.
This also means I was wrong about the rational part being the culprit - in fact it tries to do the opposite of increasing returns by trying (unsuccessfully) to tone down the linear part a bit.
What DOES happen is that at PTH <= 70, the net damage received, P^2/70, decreases relative to PTH >= 70 because of the damage reduction multiplier. But then they converge again at PTH = 0 (obviously).
Hereās some more chart porn illustrating the principle:
Source:
https://www.desmos.com/calculator/nbfbal98p3
As you can see, at wave 170, the PTH = 70 threshold occurs roughly at 3535 DA.
IMO Crate should take a look at Crucible RNG, some mutators are too strong (+40% hp or 281 hp reg for mobs), some are weird (-25% char hp for 6% max vit res, -10% total dmg for 20% armor??) and affect builds, I know RPG is all about RNG, but a little less RNG is fine as we can make more viable builds rather than doing massive DA or CDR.
Donāt put words in their mouths 
They know itās not balanced and said that it hinders build/gear diversity and imagination. That some chinese community members are really bored with crucible now due to this.
They donāt share some builds due to other mechanics but not DA.
Edit:@holystar88. By far some melee builds are affected the most by this. like DW flat dmg. Toughened, armored, Shattered with a pierce charā¦GG
Apart from mutators AoM bosses deal unreasonable amount of dmg. A combination of Ezekul+Skeletal Monstrosity can shotgun characters w/o flat reduction in less that a second. And there is nothing you can do, cause unlike bosses you are not immune to traps. Reaper deliver devastation blows and -%phyz res debuffs from bone prison can lead to 30k dmg taken in less that a second.
This is just one more reason why 4K+ DA and some fumble added maybe, is very strong vs reaper because he doesnāt get to charge his attacks. That is the big danger with him.
But if he does charge it and you are debuffed from him or other enemiesā¦maybe add in berserk mutator:)
Just thought of a more elegant solution to the scaling problem:
- Get rid of the damage reduction multiplier
- Add the following code instead:
if(pth < 70 && da > 3500) pth += 0.0115*(da - 3500);
This results in a PTH of about 40 at 5500 DA at wave 170, which is reasonable I think. The constants can be adjusted.
Didnāt that affect the player only?
I thought only in TQ did DA affect damage received by player
Easy and elegant. That the right way to do with DA madness. With nerfs to stalwart this should work just fine.
Just to make sure Iām on the same page - we are talking about beating 170 WITH buffs &/or banners, yes?
Yes ofc.
To that end they are buffing the buffs:)
To add to my previous comment: this DA meta has made green MIs more valuable than even Legendaries. Legs are still there, to COMPLEMENT green MIs, which have become the HEART of builds. I wonder if this is āworking as intendedā? That Crate specific intent is to undermine the value of Legendaries and make people hunt for āperfect MIsā?
Why wouldnāt green MIās be more valuable? Stonehide stoneplate of kings is BiS afaik.
Green MIās, in my humble opinion, are meant to supplement legendary sets. You donāt build a toon around them, but rather use them to patch up holes.
Do not nerf the Stalwart/Readiness/Dranghoul. DA is too hard to get in caster builds. Hardcapping DA should be enough. Elsewise players will get their DA using Solemn Watcher, Obelisk of Menhir, Wolverine, Quill or so on instead of wearing one ring for example.
You can get 80% trap resistance, to avoid all that.
However, there are many other dangers and scenarios, that cant be avoided with mere resistanceā¦
Yes you can get trap resistance, but you still will be trapped for some time. 4 Skile heroes can chain-lock you for 1.5 seconds despite 80% resistance. If there a basilisk nearby and one of Skele can freeze then you are dead. Locked in place with a swarm blocking escape path and Alex meteor falling right on your head.
Trap resistance, stun resistance, slow resistance, petrify resistance, freeze resistance, sleep resistance, damage types resistances, life leech and energy leech resistance 
One character simply canāt handle all of these and keep dealing good damage.
Aeon Arcanist has to disagree :uuu: https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd.net/ugc/851605207738779947/E0E50ECE285758DAC9A66A27BB2688FF094B3BA2/ and that another reason why arcanists-based are so good in crucible.
Not only Arcanists but anyone who use 2x Seal of Resonance, which is not the best component for other classes.