I know people may be tired of this discussion already, but I feel it would be best to get it out of the way as soon as possible. As a couple of threads have stated, several players are concerned about the sheer amount of power that Orca possesses, and I can’t blame them. With a wide array of RAW moves, Bloodcrave, Instant True Hit, high speed and attack, and two of the best defensive passives in the game, it’s no wonder many feel that it’s oppressive and have called for a nerf. You may expect me to go on a tirade about how it doesn’t need a nerf, but you’re wrong. Truth be told, even I feel that it offers a bit too much, and have thought up several ways to tone it down a bit. Luckily for you, I have the ideal way to fix it without crippling the fellow.
- Remove RAW from Chrono Killer/Toxic Killer/Slayerbane and add RAW to Bloodcrave.
My logic: From what I’ve read, the main problem with Orca is just how fast it can get that first kill. My solution would be to slow it down a bit so it can’t get that kill so easily. My solution is to remove RAW from it’s main offensive options so that it can’t pick them off quickly, and give the opponent a bit more time to deal with it. This option will increase the TU of its killer moves a fair bit, without lowering the TU for RAW Bloodcrave, due to the nerf RAW blood moves received a while ago. Honestly, I’m surprised this wasn’t implemented in the first place, as it would’ve decreased the amount of grievances players had with it. But a little switcheroo isn’t the only idea I have at hand, which leads us to…
- Change Instant True Hit to Wall Breaker
My logic: I’ll be honest here, Instant True Hit was a mistake; it shouldn’t have been implemented in the game, especially on a monster with such offensive power. By switching the SS to Wall Breaker, it gives Orca an option to deal with protectors, while at the same time, slowing it down a bit so that the opponent has a bit more time to deal with it. Those two options alone would be a sufficient nerf, but if people still think it’s too much, then allow me to tell you my third idea.
- Change Camouflage to Camouflage Entrance (Optional)
My Logic: While not 100% necessary, I can see this change happening if enough people ask for it. It provides a potential trade off; either you trade some protection for frontline sweeping, or you put it in your reinforcements, allowing the opponent to prepare for it. Perhaps they could even deal with it another way, via Knock Back Next or something, granting them considerable breathing room. Given how several people have asked for this nerf already, I see no issue with suggesting it myself.
Those are my ideas for an Orca nerf that balances it without crippling the thing altogether. I wanted to be careful with it as it was an anniversary monster, and a lot of people rolled for it. The last thing I want is for it to get nerfed to uselessness and leave a sizable portion of the community feeling ripped off. But in the grand scheme of things, an Orca nerf wouldn’t solve the big issue plaguing this game; a lack of proper testing. As of recently, it seems like the developers release these new monsters without properly checking them to see if they’re borderline OP. However, there’s a solution to all this right before our eyes; Mythic Colosseum.
This was an ingenious game mode, granting players the opportunity to test out a new mythic in order to hype them up for when it gets released. I suggest there should be a similar event but for legendary monsters. It’s a win-win situation; newbies get hyped up for a new monster, while veterans can see if it can lead to potentially broken combos. I feel that if Orca was introduced this way, the community would’ve been able to say “damn, this thing’s a bit too busted. Mind toning it down a bit before you release it?” I mean it worked with Chromera back in the day, so I don’t see why it couldn’t work now. (Wouldn’t it be hilarious if the devs buffed Chrome so that it had its original moveset?)
Thank you all for taking the time to read my post; I’m more than happy to discuss the issue further in the comments.
