Mostly better, but still seems broken in significant ways.
The good thing is it’s made gameplay much more engaging in that you pay much more attention to shots + dodging. Some things take longer to do as you take breaks for In Combat to wear off and recover some HP/MP, but that just winds back the gameplay to more like it was when pets were new, were not so OP.
As it impacts high level pets most, it makes lower level pets more viable. With other changes such as 2x boosts to HP/MP regeneration, lowering the duration/impact of many nerfs, it should make the early game a better experience.
But it still seems broken as it’s so unbalanced. The difference between 50 and 60 def, say, used to be just you take 10 more damage per shot. But hopefully you get shot less as you can stand further away, or have some other ability like a cloak that can let you get close. Now though it also means you get put In Combat more, often far more, so you need far more downtime to recover, while e.g. melee classes that take more shots from getting in close can just keep taking them.
I find I now spend some time with a new class learning what puts me In Combat, what not. I have a rough idea obviously but I don’t know the precise amounts of damage each enemy does, I am not going to sit down with a calculator working them out, so i get in game, take some damage and make a mental note which puts me In Combat.
Even worse is vit, which determines the time it takes IC to wear off. But class vit caps seem pretty arbitrary. At best they are based on previous ideas about gameplay, such as healers would not need much vit because they can heal themselves. But some just seem random.
They are clearly aware of this as many newer items and sets include vit and/or healing. But nothing has been done for older sets or tiered gear, and it puts some classes at a big disadvantage.
i play, dodging 2 hard just let me tank shit ;-;