Breakpoints

[Drytchnath]

I've heard alot of people saying that breakpoints should return. Why? Why would anyone want such a broken, arbitrary system that didn't scale correctly to come back? From what I remember, breakpoints basically were implemented because of the Sprite-based animationsused in D2. Every frame of animation was hand-drawn.

With a 3D model this should no longer be a concern, therefore a mod that says it increases your attack speed by X% will actually *gasp* increase your attack speed by X%! I hated breakpoints with a passion in D2, so I admit I'm biased. But seriously, there should be no reason for breakpoints to return when they can make a smooth system for all forms of IAS that scales correctly.

What do all of you think? And I'm sorry if some of my info isn't totally accurate. Haven't played D2 since my cd key was permanently muted for trying to be a good Samaritan about 2-3 years back.

[stillman]

I think most people are against breakpoints too.
I'm opposed to them because I don't like being lied to. Plus, you need to look outside of the game (on websites) just to find basic game mechanic info. What I hate even more is diminishing return formulas. Those are outright disgusting.

[teh_Thrasher]

woooooorrrrrrrd

[Farmrush]

Breakpoints didn't make sense and they were a repercussion of 2d graphics. This shouldn't be an issue at all with the switch to 3D graphics and if anything would require additional coding to use a system that is more difficult to understand and inaccessible.

[KillaMike]

i dont know about you ppl sayin about break point, i actually love the whole idea, aspecually in d2, when all cheaters wore gear +2 skills and res, without fcr, and had 255% fcr and killed u in seconds, I LOVED IT, TO BE PWNED (SARKAZM)

i d like to see it remove permently, hate idea:coffee:

[Foober]

I'm not sure about "a lot" of people saying breakpoints should return. I know I posted this a few weeks ago:

"I had assumed that ground stomp would be able to be cast as fast in DIII as the 105 faster cast breakpoint of war cry was able to be cast in D2. I loved that 105 breakpoint in D2. Bring back breakpoints in DIII! Breakpoints are fundamental to the franchise!"

But I was kidding in that quote. I don't want breakpoints to come back in D3. I do however like the concept of there being secret numbers in some table on the Internet that one must consult if one is to make "the perfect character."

[In the name of Zod]

Breakpoints were interesting once I knew about them but for people who don't its just plain wrong. If there's going to be breakpoints then blizzard own us this information.

[NASE]

What's wrong with breakpoints, it makes gear selection that much more interesting. Fine, it should be all know and distributed by blizzard, though if blizzard does that, I really don't see why not.

P.S. If it's part of the both diablo and diablo II, why not in diablo III. Perhaps we can simply make a random game and name it diablo III. As clearly, someone people don't mind what happens with the game anyway.

[Farmrush]

What's wrong with breakpoints, it makes gear selection that much more interesting. Fine, it should be all know and distributed by blizzard, though if blizzard does that, I really don't see why not.

P.S. If it's part of the both diablo and diablo II, why not in diablo III. Perhaps we can simply make a random game and name it diablo III. As clearly, someone people don't mind what happens with the game anyway.

How does it make gear selection more interesting in the context of Diablo 3? I find them to be pointless. They were the result of 2D graphics and they should be updated so things like "5% increased attack speed" increased your actual speed by 5% Gosh! What a novel idea having things do what they say is! It means instead of 5, 6, 7 breakpoints you essentially have several hundred depending on maximum attack speed (keeping that example).

It was part of D1 and D2 BECAUSE they were 2D. It shouldn't be in D3 BECAUSE it is 3D and it would require additional coding to recreate an outdated system. Obviously people do mind what happens to the game because they are here talking about it.

[NASE]

Because now you have to look at your gear and chose it in order to get to hour breakpoints. If it's gone, you can simply thrown some equipment together and it'll work. And that's something that makes D2 interesting. You need to make choices in order to get the best out of you character. If they disappear, items will become less interesting it seems.

A second things to remember it the kick it gives you get to your next breakpoint. Ever compared a 8fpa multishot to a 9 fpa? I did and I'll never go back to 9fpa because it's that fun. Same goes for my sorcerer with 110 fcr. That teleport is just so great.
If you go for smoot increasing, then you lost this rush. And you lose the importantness of some items.


P.S. When I talk about not caring about that game, I'm referring to the fact that each and every aspect of what for me is part off diablo seems to be up for discussing. And if that's how they are going to make diablo III, I prefer they don't make a sequel at all. Just make a random game and call it baal I or something.
Diablo II is about diversity, choices and possibilities. Breakpoints add a lot of choices which make it fun, although I agree that it should be worked out better then in diablo II.

[Sass]

I assumed it was due to how many frames per second diablo used and how fast the char can act. Is there some mechanic to 3D that makes it be able to cast between frames? (going by percentages rather than set frame amounts will likely lead to casting faster than the fps or just not in synch like they are in D1 & 2.)

[NioTumsSpik]

im just going with a straight hell no to breakpoints.
it was just a thing that over complicated the game, and is not needed when its not in 2D anymore

[In the name of Zod]

They'll probably be back you know. If the game is planned to run at 60fps then that won't divide into a percentage properly. However, that's if they use percentages, the weapons say things like 1.2 attacks per second on them so there's obviously some sort of work around they've got going so we can understand what's going on this time.

Edit that: there's definitely some sort of breakpoints. Its got nothing to do with it being 2D.

[Matora]

As much as I hate breakpoints, I hate them. I think the introduction of dps may help. Whn a skill says it upps your attack rate by a per cent (IF they do) it would be a tad easier to work out if in fact, it has. Or am I crazy?

[Bomber]

I also agree that breakpoints should return. I plan to be rich and I like breakpoints because I am a calculated gamer that is going to have the right gear to hit the right breakpoint. If that happens to be FCR/WW/IAS/FHR/FRS it does not matter because I am going to be rich.

[Sass]

IDK if I'll be super rich this time, but I'm perfectly meticulous when it comes to chars :D

[Akse]

Breakpoints became annoyance when LOD came around.. There was so much more available increase speed items that it got utterly messy, throw along the breakpoints for whirlwind hits and you got a new player really confused.

Pre-LOD there wasn't even percentages visible. You only had Slightly Increased Attack Speed(10%), Increased Attack Speed(20%) and Greatly Increased Attack Speed(40%) and for casting Fast Cast, Faster Cast and Fastest Cast. The required breakpoints changed quite a lot also when LOD came. It was quite simple to build up an amazon with maximum available speed for a type of weapon. For last available frames in gothic bow for example you needed twichtroe armor, slightly increased attack speed gloves, goldwrap belt and gothic bow with Increased attack speed. In lod you have all kinds of jewels etc that you can stack up to huge amounts of ias and without magically(read forums) knowing the exact amounts, you can easily go above the maximum needed.

I for one am really bored about the stats window not showing us the real facts.. aura not really affecting damage sometimes when in stat window it seems like it? All those things are damn annoying. I'm quite sure in D3 these kind of things are being handled a lot differently.. and we don't even know yet what kind of item attributes we will have to deal with the speed enhancements. In WoW speed is increased by % and it exactly adds the right amount of speed for your swings and shots like it should, so I don't see why in D3 it would not be possible to implement like that.

What the hell does being rich have to do with breakpoints... you can probably get the right gear even when being poor.

[DominoDeja]

thanks for the tips!

[Dolera]

looking at all these opinions had me thinking, IMO i love the whole breakpoint system it made game just so much more fun but as many ppl have said it would be cool if it said IAS 5% that it was an actual 5% from the weapons base speed, either way thats kind of a breakpoint because i mean everyone would aim for the most % because faster attack = more damage per second, so yeah i would like to see the breakpoint system modified into that type of real system

[GoldenBird]

I HATED the breakpoint system. It just doesn't make sense! I would like the gear to do what it says. Or, ATLEAST make it logical so that the breakpoints are at every 10% or something (I mean like 37% and 63%? What the heck?)

[Fox VII]

im just going with a straight hell no to breakpoints.
it was just a thing that over complicated the game, and is not needed when its not in 2D anymore

:thumbup:Stated Perfectly!

[Grug]

Yeah, why anyone would still want breakpoints is mindboggling. IT WAS A TECHNICAL LIMITATION! WE DON'T NEED IT NOW!

[NASE]

Some want breakpoint because they remember their first time they reached an 8fpa multishot. Or a /2 strafe.
Or my 8 fpa tele/fireball sorcerer.
Or my 2 fpa block paladin.

That sudden rush/ecstasy you get when reaching a faster breakpoint, haven't you ever gotten that rush?
If you want to keep the rush/ecstasy, you need to keep breakpoints. And I like that rush, I like it that much that I refuse to take of my cat's eye because I would lose a single frame. That's a facet that will be broken without breakpoints - without breakpoints, you will see a gradual increase and there won't be something to achieve.


And the item system will change. Now, a lot of piece of equipment are aimed for reaching a breakpoint. Without breakpoints, equipment will be viewed totally different. Now, some equipment is good for some builds because it offer 5 ias more. Without breakpoints, 5 ias will - assuming a similar ias/eias system - become irrelevant.
Now, I'm not saying that this last have to be a bad thing. However, I like the system in diablo II quite a bit and I wouldn't mind seeing a similar equipment system coming back.

[obsoleteAUS]

If you like the rush why don't you play a FPS game like Q3, then you'll get 4 times the rush when you pickup the quad-damage. ;)

I never knew about break points until I stopped playing Diablo. I only played it single player or with a few casual mates over lan. We never researched builds off the internet or looked up cube recipes or anything like that.

I believed when an item said "10% IAS" that's what it gave me.

Having breakpoints that aren't readily available to all players isn't a good system to have.

Having breakpoints that are known to all is better, but still not that good. I don't see how you can get a huge rush of esctacy from reaching a break point? Isn't it annoying looking up all the items in the game trying to find gear that will give you that, before you work out the math to give you those break points? Do you get a rewarding feeling from copying the gear needed that someone else has already put online?

Having a system that works as the items say it will is by far the best option. Sure, you don't suddenly start attacking alot faster simply because you added a +2% ISA charm but you get more customisation over your character as a whole. You can still work towards a fast attack speed, while knowing you can exchange or find gear that will trade off between huge IAS or bonuses in different stats.

Don't you think it would be cooler seeing a huge number of different characters running around, some slightly faster in attack, but lacking some defence, or lacking some power? Rather than heaps of people running around trying to get the same gear to hit the same break points?

Having a seamless system that lets you accurately build up your character makes your character much more unique and lets you see a huge range of different characters running around. That sounds far more appealing to me than having a 8fpa tele/fireball sorc and running into 20 others that have the same hero...

Actually you've just reminded me of something I heard in a band documentary.

One of the guitarists said something like:
"You know, fans always want you to make things one album behind. They want your new second album to sound like your first, and your third to sound like your second"

Somethings are going to change, it's part of growing a game/series and improving what you can from the last cycle. Seems to me like they are overhauling alot of things in the next installment of Diablo, I'm putting faith in most being good. Even if some fail, they can always modify in patches, unlike bands with cd's. ;)

[NASE]

Having breakpoints that are known to all is better, but still not that good. I don't see how you can get a huge rush of esctacy from reaching a break point? Isn't it annoying looking up all the items in the game trying to find gear that will give you that, before you work out the math to give you those break points? Do you get a rewarding feeling from copying the gear needed that someone else has already put online?

I do not find it annoying to look up certain breakpoints in the game, I generally don't even care safe for ias/fcr. And I don't just copy gear other present, I try to find my own way through the maze of items and I enjoy it as much as creating the character and playing it.
Call me crazy if you want, but I like that.

And don't forget, you have been playing the game for quite a while without knowing anything about breakpoints. Didn't you have fun because of those breakpoints. Would you not play it again if you could start over? I'm just saying people who want to do with math do it because they want to. and those that don't want to aren't forced to do so. Safe for ias/fcr, there isn't a single breakpoint that is really important to get if you combine it with a smart build and smart playing style - and no pvp.

Having a system that works as the items say it will is by far the best option. Sure, you don't suddenly start attacking alot faster simply because you added a +2% ISA charm but you get more customisation over your character as a whole. You can still work towards a fast attack speed, while knowing you can exchange or find gear that will trade off between huge IAS or bonuses in different stats.

We're all playing the game and still using the breakpoints, so it's not that bad.

Having a seamless system that lets you accurately build up your character makes your character much more unique and lets you see a huge range of different characters running around. That sounds far more appealing to me than having a 8fpa tele/fireball sorc and running into 20 others that have the same hero...

You are assuming that no-breakpoints will increase differences between different build. I'm not sure this will be that case. The difference between 100 and 110 ias isn't going to be noticeable. And I don't think many people will care. They will just shoot for a nice number and don't care about it. So instead of breakpoints made by the game, they will simply say, I want about 100 ias and not care about the rest. And probably everyone will do the same when it's easier to hit that number then any other.

I believe both system have there strong points.


[edit]
It might be more interesting when the game is build around rares - with ias/fcr going from 1 to 50 - instead of uniques - where it will be set to more round numbers like 10, 20, 30 ias -. You can't do math with rares anyway, so a straightforward system is better in this case.
I however hope they don't make rares to important. It's fun knowing that you can have certain items to build around instead of hoping to find something that might help.

[Grug]

Look, I'm sure you get excited when you reach a new break point, but it's a lot more important for the buffs to do what they say. If it says "+5% Attack speed", I expect to attack 5% faster.

[NASE]

does the one exclude the other?

[Grug]

Yes, actually. Normally, +5% means +5% attack. However, if the breakpoint is +10% and you equip a +5% item, you're actually getting +0%

[obsoleteAUS]

And don't forget, you have been playing the game for quite a while without knowing anything about breakpoints. Didn't you have fun because of those breakpoints?

Well since I never knew about them I had fun thinking I was getting the gear that did what it said. I never played D2 while I knew about breakpoints, and no - I wouldn't replay the game now that I know.

there isn't a single breakpoint that is really important to get if you combine it with a smart build and smart playing style - and no pvp.

Of course, no item/skill should be a must-have to beat the game or 'the best' that serious players have to get or risk being subpar compared to others.

We're all playing the game and still using the breakpoints, so it's not that bad.

Obviously it's not that bad, it's more so that there are better was to do things now. I understand you like breakpoints because you've put in the extra work outside of the game to do your research etc but for the casual gamer it's far more important to have items/skills that do what they say. It also makes it alot easier to track your characters progress and fix up weaknesses if everything works how it says it does.

they will simply say, I want about 100 ias and not care about the rest. And probably everyone will do the same when it's easier to hit that number then any other.

That's just taking the easy option out. That's like me saying 'Oh, once everyone reaches the first breakpoint they will have a good attack speed and won't need to keep going.'

Sure, 100ias might give you a good attack speed, but you can still have the option of going to 105, 110, 115, 120....200. How many options does using breakpoints give you for increasing your attack speed? 5?

It might be easier to hit 100, and alot of casual gamers may float around that number, but that's where the seperation occurs between the casual gamer and someone who wants to go more in-depth and increase that further. So with a system that does what it says, you can still do all the extra work finding gear/researching gear/constructing a build but your less limited by the items you NEED to get to pull it off.

[sastavenu]

Why would we show eq stats at all?
Over time players will find ways to figure them out but some will be left undiscovered. Would it not add some additional thrill to the game? Rumors will start to from around items and their properties. Perhaps one could reveal some stats with skills and even imbue with skills. A plain sword with a level 34 magicuser imbue would be better then a level 5 magicuser imbue and so on.

Perhaps its just not possible as all games are so stuck in the number/calculating thing.

[NASE]

Yes, actually. Normally, +5% means +5% attack. However, if the breakpoint is +10% and you equip a +5% item, you're actually getting +0%

You can always put your breakpoint at 5, 10, etc. that means that 50 ias will cut your speed in half. However, 51 will do the same. 55 will give you a bit faster attack. Like if you're attack is 20 frames - frames are useful for explanation. 50 ias will put you at 10 frames, while 55 at 9. Now, 51 ias will have the same effect as 50, but is that a problem?

Sure, 100ias might give you a good attack speed, but you can still have the option of going to 105, 110, 115, 120....200. How many options does using breakpoints give you for increasing your attack speed? 5?

You are assuming that 100, 105 and 110 will be different. I'm not sure this will be that case. The speed difference will be very minimal - certainly with diminishing returns - so people won't make a reasonable choice to go for 100 or 105. They are just going to take things as they go.
So instead of well defined gear - to hit a breakpoint - you will just throwing some equipment together and see what comes out. Eventually, 100, 105 or even 99 isn't going to make a difference.

I hope you can see where the difference in approach is? You don't have to like it, though if you see where the difference is, I'm already quite happy.

[Grug]

You can always put your breakpoint at 5, 10, etc. that means that 50 ias will cut your speed in half. However, 51 will do the same. 55 will give you a bit faster attack. Like if you're attack is 20 frames - frames are useful for explanation. 50 ias will put you at 10 frames, while 55 at 9. Now, 51 ias will have the same effect as 50, but is that a problem?

Okay, so if the break point is 5, 10, etc, what happens when I equip something that's +8%? Same problem. Instead of +8%, I'm actually getting +5%. Even if the +3% difference is hard to notice, it should still be there. What you're suggesting is have every increased attack speed bonus be a multiple of 5, so only +5%, +10%, +15%, +20%... could be found on items.

[Phranx]

I'm wondering if Diablo will go with the rating system that they adopted in WoW. Personally I find it better than Diablo 2 break points but still prefer no break points at all.

For those non WoW players:
Haste Rating Required Per 1%
Level 60 - 10 Haste Rating
Level 70 - 15.77 Haste Rating
Level 80 - 32.79 Haste Rating

So at level 80 you get a peice of gear with say 60 Haste Rating you would only gain 1% IAS but if you used a gem or other peice of gear with 6 Haste Rating then you would then go up to 2% IAS.

I can understand that not having a rating system means that either lower level gear can't have much IAS or lower gear stays comparable to higher level gear in IAS.

Either way it's going to be one hell of a game!

[NASE]

Okay, so if the break point is 5, 10, etc, what happens when I equip something that's +8%? Same problem. Instead of +8%, I'm actually getting +5%.

True, and perhaps that isn't good. However, I really can't see it damage or even change gameplay.

[obsoleteAUS]

The only difference in approach I see is that you want items that don't do what they say, instead you want break points so you can organise your gear towards hitting a break point. Something you think gives you more options when building a character.

You can always put your breakpoint at 5, 10, etc. that means that 50 ias will cut your speed in half. However, 51 will do the same. 55 will give you a bit faster attack. Like if you're attack is 20 frames - frames are useful for explanation. 50 ias will put you at 10 frames, while 55 at 9. Now, 51 ias will have the same effect as 50, but is that a problem?

Yes, that is a problem. After all the posts in this thread about it, do you still think hiding information or giving wrong information to the player is the right way to do things? (ie: having break points only on the net or havning +5% IAS not giving you that IAS).

You are assuming that 100, 105 and 110 will be different. I'm not sure this will be that case. The speed difference will be very minimal - certainly with diminishing returns - so people won't make a reasonable choice to go for 100 or 105. They are just going to take things as they go.
So instead of well defined gear - to hit a breakpoint - you will just throwing some equipment together and see what comes out. Eventually, 100, 105 or even 99 isn't going to make a difference.

Casual gamers may not make a choice of having 105 IAS over 100 IAS, but players like you should be loving this aspect. Now you don't have to have certain items to hit break points, if all your good gear gives you +199 IAS you don't need to exchange something that you may love to hit a break point of +200 IAS. The hardcore players arn't going to 'throw some gear together and see what comes out'. They are going to do their research and find out if having +200 IAS is really better than having +190 IAS but with more defence.

You should love having this amount of room to customise your character.

Find a really awesome shoulder pad that gives +40 IAS?
Cool! Now you can swap that sword that does +45 IAS to another one that does more damage while still maintaining your great attack speed.

Compare that to break point:

Find a really awesome shoulder pad that gives +40 IAS?
Too bad you can't swap your sword to the wicked one you've got in your stash or else you'll drop back a break point. Unlucky.

Basically it gives ALOT more freedom for the serious player to customise their character while still maintaining a skill difference between the casual and the serious players.

I can't believe you don't see the advantage of having items do what they say?

[a black kid]

most of what im hearing from people who are FOR breakpoints is either 'i loved hitting new breakpoints. it made me feel awesome, to get rid of breakpoints would make me not feel awesome' or 'i love looking up game mechanics and stats online so i can make my character as perfect as possible'

just loving hitting a new breakpoint isnt anywhere near an argument for the actual system of breakpoints itself. its just saying you enjoy a broken mechanic, that scales horribly, because you can feel powerful when you reach the next limit. trust me when i say that if d3 doesnt have breakpoints you're still gonna find some way to hit the right switch and be alot more powerful. you'll get the same rush, but with a non broken system.

to the second that says they love it cause they can find hidden game mechanics and tweak their character and they love looking up these formulas to make your character all powerful... you really think that d3 is not going to have a thousand underlying game mechanics for you to do the EXACT SAME THING... except not using a broken system.

i want to hear an argument from someone who is FOR breakpoints who actually discusses the system itself compared to a 3d world that does not need breakpoints because it is superior and a more advanced system.

[NASE]

i want to hear an argument from someone who is FOR breakpoints who actually discusses the system itself compared to a 3d world that does not need breakpoints because it is superior and a more advanced system.

If you look at the basis of breakpoints versus no breakpoints. It's a discussion between a continues system - that won't be linear - and a discrete system that isn't linear though that's less problematic for a discrete system.
Now, if we look at the impact this continues system has on the design of build - as in, character engineering. Then we see that designing in a continues system is much harder. With discrete system, it's much easier to compare damages and efficiencies and therefore to proclaim which build is good for what job.
So in a discrete system, it's easier to say what build will probably work good and what build will work less. In a continues system, you have a zillion build that each come very close, making it hard for a designer to choice which build is the build he prefers.

Se eventhough it may introduce a lot more customisation, it will severely harden the design aspect, and it may perhaps even make it impossible. This brings the risk that one might not design and simply throw a few items together and hope that it will work as intended.
And that's exactly what a lot of people do at this forum. Try to engineer a character that is perfect for a certain task. Or as good as it can be under the give limitations.


P.S. And nobody said anything about hidden mechanisms. It's not because there will be breakpoints that they won't be know. I might even say more, revealing breakpoints and things the like in game might be something interesting for single player. As you venture through the game, you learn more about your character in terms of breakpoints and thelike.
The first character one makes will be with found items anyway, and the next character they make will take advantage of the knowledge acquired in the first character. Combine this with a website that list them for those who want to do engineering and I believe breakpoints can be an addition that doesn't have to be considered bad before it's even considered.

[obsoleteAUS]

It's a discussion between a continues system - that won't be linear - and a discrete system that isn't linear though that's less problematic for a discrete system.

Erm, I thought breakpoints was the linear system as you have set benchmarks that have to be reached before you can get the next breakpoint?


Now, if we look at the impact this continues system has on the design of build - as in, character engineering. Then we see that designing in a continues system is much harder. With discrete system, it's much easier to compare damages and efficiencies and therefore to proclaim which build is good for what job.

How is character designing in a continuous system harder? Because of the freedom you have? Your playing an RPG, where you get to build your character with alot open areas you can develop to work the way you want your character to work. Your not playing Need For Speed where you can get A, then B, then C to hit breakpoints. Seriously, getting insane breakpoints isn't even designing. You know what you need and you put it on your character. You can't tweak it or you lose alot of speed by dropping a breakpoint.

It's also going to be alot easier to compare damages/efficiencise/defence in D3. Have you seen the screen shots that show DPS etc? So that point of yours is out the window.

Why does a certain build have to be good for a certain job? What if I want to modify it abit without behing so heavily disadvantaged in a PvP scenario? Basically it's closing off avenues for experimentation.

You want a fast attacking character?
D2: Get items X/Y/Z
D3: Well, items X1,X2,Xn/Y1,Y2,Yn/Z1,Z2,Zn should point you in the right direction.


So in a discrete system, it's easier to say what build will probably work good and what build will work less. In a continues system, you have a zillion build that each come very close, making it hard for a designer to choice which build is the build he prefers.

Your contradicting yourself. In an earlier post you made you said something like: "105% IAS won't matter compared to 100% IAS or even 95% IAS because it will all be basically exactly the same."

Now your saying builds can come very very close to being the same but still be different? So what build would you prefer? More armour or more speed? Well, thankfully in D3 you will beable to choose with far more ease. Without worrying about dropping a breakpoint.


Se eventhough it may introduce a lot more customisation, it will severely harden the design aspect, and it may perhaps even make it impossible.


I thought you got enjoyment out of the design aspect? You enjoyed looking up stats and items and builds to see what worked. Times that by 100 for D3 because of the freedom to customise to your hearts content.

I think your problem is that you want someone to beable to say:
"You need to put these stats on, this gear on, these charms in your inventory and then you will have the perfect PvP character"
or:
"These skills, these items and these charms to give you the perfect PvM char"


This brings the risk that one might not design and simply throw a few items together and hope that it will work as intended.

This isn't even a point. Your assuming the player is a total noob (Which he might be, but then if he played D2 he would just chuck gear on and hoped it worked, but as he got better he wouldn't have to look up on the net to find out about breakpoints). The way D3 is heading is towards more freedom in design. It's not D2's cookie cutter builds to be a successful player. Are you worried you might have to think about the gear yourself or something? Because breakpoints are a broken/flawed system that limit creativity and customisation.


I believe breakpoints can be an addition that doesn't have to be considered bad before it's even considered.

Everybody already knows it's a broken system. ;)

Besides, I'm sure that in time there will be cookie cutter builds up on the net for you to get your rush over. Ones that will tell you 105% IAS is better than 100% IAS even if your sacraficing abit of defence.