Is there anyone from Nexon that is responsible for the upcoming changes that I can have a discussion with? I really need to know if the changes to Hayato are at all open for debate with the players. So far (unsurprisingly) all the Hayato mains I have spoken to strongly disagree with having such long CD attached to what could be called Hayato's iconic move. We feel that it is unjustified, I would like to hear the reason(s) that made them think this change was needed, it is starting to feel like all that's been happening to Hayato are things getting taken away from him.
Having the CDless version of the skill does not make the class broken, we do not see tons of people making Hayato just to exploit this skill, unlike Jett's starfall, which people did. but the CD change to starfall I can understand. Also keep in mind, the base CD of hitokiri is 90 sec, something I never understood, from talking to other Hayatos, if not for the CD nullifying hyper, it is absolutely a dead skill that we would never use because of how impractical it is to wait so long, putting sp into it wouldn't make a difference. Back to Starfall, don't you think this comparison is ridiculous? Starfall is a skill that covers the map. but still have lower CD (equal CD with investment in it's new nerfed hyper, but that's still not okay) than a skill that only hits a half a screen distance directly in front of you.
One thing you may argue is how hitokiri applies a stun on monsters it hits, and many players can use it to lock down select bosses(not all, for some the stun is only visual). After discussions with other Hayato player base, we feel it is understandable that you have a problem with that, however we still will not find giving the skill a 60 sec CD is acceptable, the biggest reason being that it is a skill that contributes largely to Hayato's mobility, the whole gimmick Hayato is known for, you are really hurting the uniqueness of the class, most people I spoke to use it heavily for training and not bossing, since for any bosses that really matters the animation lock at the end of the skill makes using it very dangerous.
In conclusion, it has been suggested by the people I have spoken to that if the skill's stun lock function is the problem, we have no problem with Nexon taking out the stun that the skill applies, or a very small CD that prevents stun lock but still keep the skill open for frequent use when moving around the map when training. Ultimately the problem lies in that it hurts the play style, most Hayatos that has not quit yet can handle damage nerfs, however a change like this that cripples their play style and takes the fun out of playing this class will seriously make even them reconsider continuing to stick with Hayato.
Comments
The class had already gotten rid of the people who made the class just to abuse it after the Shimada nerf. Shimada was the skill that people wanted to abuse like Starfall, not Hirokiri.
The only benefits is not really a benefit but an "unfortunate" convenience were now you only need Falcon, and the two Rai blades, and maybe Shinsoku for your main boost nodes because everything else is useless or not worth it. It makes things easier, but at the same time shows how terrible all the skills for this class are.
I never liked Hitokiri Strike for mobility while grinding because there was always that delay before you could move again. Just double jumping while using Rai Sanrenzan has proven to be much faster for me. Now, I did like using it against certain bosses for its mobility but Surging Blade is better in that regard because there's no delay after usage.
The biggest problem for me is that it means there's yet another skill where Hayato players will be constantly managing cool down and buff durations to maintain optimal damage which leads to a rather tedious play style.
So basically, while I would support calls for Nexon to revert the Hitokiri Strike changes, I don't think this is a change that kills the class.
So is Surging Blade a good skill to use for people that relied on hitokiri for mobility on those bosses after this update? I haven't touched that skill for along time (mostly cause there are too many skills to manage; and I can only do so much with a controller).
The double tap I wish could be set onto a key because like jumping in the air like an idiot trying to enter portals, I'm look like I'm taking these erratic baby step walks when it doesn't properly activate after double tapping 2-3 times. Mabey using a controller is bad for it.
Most of the players in the live server are not yet aware of this change to Hayato, if Nexon is to go live with this change, the entire Hayato player base will certainly react with strong outcry and protest. Like I have said before, this will be because the reason (if any) behind the change is not understood, this skill does not come nearly close to hitting the whole map, but is given CD much longer than most other large whole map attack skills, anyone realize hitokiri has the same CD as zankou, Hayato's 5th job skill? This skill in no way does nearly as much to warrant a CD that long.