I'm level 50 swashbuckler, just finished the main story line, and I find the game to be too easy compared to wizard101. While playing I kept thinking maybe the challenge will increase later on, but it never is. So I'm posting this in hope that KI would make the next world more challenging instead of even easier than it already is.

Most (if not all?) of my epic fights are a sort of anti-climax experience: I thought there maybe something more after completing the first in-battle goal, but turns out the battle just ends there. And since I can choose my companions on these fights, they all seem much more easier than those mob fights where I get one of the useless companion.

To illustrate how easy it is, none of my companions (let alone me) has less than half health on ALL of the four last bosses of Mooshu. At one of the boss in Mooshu (one that dissapear and comes back after you finish all the minions), my companion warns me that he will come back stronger, yet turns out we can kill him in one turn. At Deacon fight, I thought he will run away because he was so easy to beat -- but nope, he is finished right there. In fact I feel the toughest fight I had (and I'm tempting to say the only one) is the stormzilla fight. At least I actually lost on first attempt on it.

I also don't have to change strategy through out the game, which makes it far less interesting than wizard101 is. No need to change gear including weapon type for different fights, just put emphasis on dodge, accuracy and resistance, and keep buying the same type of gear from the vendors as I leveled up. No need to change firstmate either, just use Bonnie all the way until El Toro is available and can be promoted, and absolutely no need to team up with other players except for broadside combat.

Now compare this experience with Wizard101, where with each new world the enemy fights a little different in the way they shields, spells used, and resistance. The need for varying strategy is there even from the type of wand you use: in wizard city you can use any wands, in the next several worlds its better to use an opposite wand to your school to break shield, and at higher level worlds criticals come into play so its better to have wand with critical blocks (as enemy rarely shield againts specific school anymore). And while wizard101 main story line can also be completed solo (as I did), there are many places where you wish you have others to help, even at lower level (e.g. Big Ben tower etc).

So, what do others think about this?

Thomas Stormweaver on Nov 6, 2012 wrote:

Swashbuckler is far and away the easiest character to play, believe me. Try a buccaneer or witchdoctor if you want a challenge.

Maybe that's the case, which is why I hope that we will get better challenge on future worlds.

Here's one fun example of what "easy" means here. Just now out of curiosity I redo one battle against the treants in wood temple, maruzame castle, Mooshu. This is one of the four last fight in Mooshu story line.

From the first start of the battle until the end, all I did was selecting the "Pass" button, nothing more.

Guess what, I still won the battle with me and all but one of the companion still in full health. Those poor treants only managed to land one single hit on my monkey king companion, and in return they all die by our epic talents like first strike, repel boarders, riposte, relentless, and blade storm.

Companion used: El Toro, Monkey King, Sarah Steele, all having dodge over 100.

I have a friend who was a Beta Wizzy player. She said this is like Wizzy when it first came out and went to MS.

We need to remember this is BEGINNING of the game. Subsequent worlds will no doubt step up the difficulty. I find the game fine and terrifically fun as is. When I get my least favorite Companions things get ratcheted up a notch. Battles are more difficult.

I hope KI will be very careful and deliberate in changes they make. I really hope overall game balance remains the driving force here. I find the balance right now very good.

Megan

I think you will find that difficulty will vary greatly from player to player, your experience may be completely different to other players. I found that often luck plays a big part in this game. I know that I have some very bad runs of bad luck at times and at others times good luck making a battle easy.

I think you do have valid point about the epic battles where you get to choose your companions, like you I have so far found most of these fights (I'm only level 26 atm) easier than many of the general trash mobs battles. Offcourse, keeping the right balance may be tricky you don’t want the epic battles too difficult that many players can’t do them solo.

I am a musketeer and the only fight I had any trouble with was Stormzilla. Other than that I have not lost a match. I do feel superior when I play which is cool but I would like a challenge. I am happy that my seven year old son hasn't lost a match either which he loves.

Merciless Martin Roland

There is something that blows up inside me whenever I here someone say "it is too easy."

If subsequent worlds were to add 'challenges' like subsequent worlds in Wizard101 did, I will quit and leave the game. At that point the game is not only rediculously challenging, but teeth grindingly difficult and unnessecarily frustrating.

If you want to play a harder game, go play something else. Or go back to Wizard101.

it is not easy. the only thing that is making it easy are the independent factors like pets, companions, and gear. if you want challenge change all of those and do high rank bosses. also have you started another character because i believe that swash buckler is the equivalent of storm ( strongest skill). try being a musketeer it will be very different from swashbuckler. Also i you have finished this already that don't necessarily mean that it is easy. you might just be very committed to the game because i have played since the Saturday before the game release and i am still in cool ranch . And one more thing for something more you could do is work on ship levels.