Ashiel wrote:There is quite literally no downside to improving the balance and quality of battlegrounds. There is only gain to be had from it, and it can lure fresh new players to the server. The fact that this server has BGs from 10-79 is already a huge mark in its favor compared to others. Going the extra mile would only make TrueWoW stand out more prominently.
Perhaps a stacking invisible buff similar to the Paladin buff Blessing of Kings. I'm not sure how difficult it would be to code (I'm good at gameplay-theory but my coding skills are poor), but if you could make a +10% non-dispellable stats buff, apply the buffs on arrival in the BGs, make them last until death, and re-apply the buffs when they revive, and make the buffs vanish upon leaving the BG, you could make it fairly invisible.
The buff would be applied based on the second number in the character's level range.
X0 = 9 buffs (+90% statistics)
X1 = 8 buffs (+80% statistics)
X2 = 7 buffs (+70% statistics)
X3 = 6 buffs (+60% statistics)
X4 = 5 buffs (+50% statistics)
X5 = 4 buffs (+40% statistics)
X6 = 3 buffs (+30% statistics)
X7 = 2 buffs (+20% statistics)
X8 = 1 buffs (+10% statistics)
X9 = 0 buffs (+00% statistics)
As an example, here are some statistics from my own characters with the hypothetical +% mods.Now higher level characters would have a little more of an advantage (they likely have slightly better gear, and their spells/skills are more advanced), but this would be a huge leap in the effectiveness of a lower level character in the BGs in a given bracket. At the very least it would allow you to not be one-shot and actually contribute tactically (the increase in statistics would cause an increase in things like evasion %s, damage reduction, and crit %, offsetting some of the handicap).
12th Level Paladin
Str 36 || +70% = 61
Agi 24 || +70% = 40
Sta 35 (33+2) || +70% = 59
Int 29 (28+1) || +70% = 49
Spi 31 || +70% = 52
HP 286 || +Increased Stamina = 526
16th Level Warrior
Str 49 (45+4) || +30% = 63
Agi 31 (31+1) || +30% = 40
Sta 44 (40+4) || +30% = 57
Int 22 || +30% = 28
Spi 27 || +30% = 35
Hp 411 || +Increased Stamina = 541
Level 19 Warrior
Str 56 (49+7) || +0%
Agi 33 || +0%
Sta 70 (44+26) || +0%
Int 23 || +0%
Spi 28 || +0%
Hp 703 || +0%
Comparing the 19th Level Warrior to the 12th Level Paladin
Hit Points: Warrior 703 || Paladin 526 (natural 286)
Str: Warrior 57 || Paladin 63 (natural 36)
Agi: Warrior 33 || Paladin 40 (natural 24)
Sta: Warrior 70 || Paladin 59 (natural 35)
Int: Warrior 23 || Paladin 49 (natural 29) (low stat for warriors)
Spi: Warrior 28 || Paladin 52 (natural 31) (low stat for warriors)
The net result is a good matchup. The warrior has a clear advantage on the Paladin, but in this case the warrior is wearing better gear appropriate to his level (a few blue items, and a cloak from the RDF), while the Paladin is going to get a little more bang for his buck in returns for higher statistics, offsetting the fact the warrior's weapons and skills are simply superior.
The result is a 19th level warrior and a 12th level Paladin who can both have fun and function in a BG spread across levels 10-19. The Paladin could match the warrior if he also got geared up (possibly through items acquired with Blacksmithing).
Keep in mind the Paladin's natural stats (in parenthesis) in the above numbers. The Paladin clearly won't be one-shot by the 19th level warrior due to these changes, but in a standard game, even with the warrior being a non-twink the Paladin has no prayer against the warrior no matter how skilled he is. The Paladins meager HP (less than 300) will fall to the warrior in very short order, as the warrior has more HP, more stats, more gear (I don't just mean in the twink sense of gear but her gear is a higher level requirement and has better stats), and better skills.
If we can implement this method, it wouldn't matter so much who had what levels on each side. BGs would be way more fun. Even if you had a 10 vs 10 with all 10s on 1 side and all 19s on the other, you could still have a fun and awesome BG.
NOTICE AND CONSIDER
There are many benefits that are born from this if it can be implemented. For one, it would make every battleground far more exciting. Poor matchups would more rarely be responsible for losses and it would allow players to begin engaging in PvP almost immediately, creating attachment to the server. It allows gear to be an important aspect (being in the best gear for your level will still be ideal, but that gear might include stuff like crafted items like http://www.wowhead.com/item=6214).
It can greatly increase the activity in BGs in all pre-80 BGs and would encourage people to que up immediately at 10th+ level. It also increases the balance and thus fun factor of BGs. Nobody likes getting camped, and some who are low level don't want to hold their team back by just being the useless character. With these changes, everyone can play and have fun. It can increase the size of the BGs as well (by encouraging players of X0-X4 to que up you can double the number of contributing players). More balanced BGs means more excitement, more fun, and thus more ques.
It can increase server popularity because good BGs are a rare thing in the private server community!