Simply Swords: Overhaul

Before:

Unique Effect: Omen
Chance on hit to rip the life from a target below 25% HP and grant some of it as absorption to the wielder.

Unique Effect: Watcher
Chance on hit to siphon the health of nearby enemies, healing the wielder.

After:

Unique Effect: Omen
When killing an enemy, heal for 10% of the victim's Max HP.

Unique Effect: Watcher
Heal for 0.5 HP on hit.

Changelog Notes:

• The original abilities had a 5% chance to activate, which felt too low and unreliable. I decided the sword would be more useful if it was more predictable.

Before:

Unique Effect: Storm Jolt
Chance on hit to refresh ability cooldown.

Right Click:
Jolt forward like lightning, gaining momentary invulnerability as well as lingering speed and haste.

After:

Unique Effect: Storm Jolt
On hit, reduces cooldown by 1 second.
Includes hits from an active ability.

Right Click:
Dash 12 blocks in the direction you are looking, dealing normal attack damage to enemies in your path.
You gain the effects of Haste and Speed.
If you already have Haste, its level increases by 1, up to a maximum of level 5.

Changelog Notes:

• The passive ability is now more predictable
• The original active ability depended on how long the button was held, which felt inconvenient. I simplified and adjusted the dash mechanics.
• The active ability now deals damage to mobs in the dash path, which can change the combat style.

Before:

Unique Effect: Soul Rend
Chance on hit to inflict stacking weakening effects.

Right Click:
Consume all stacks from surrounding foes, damaging them and healing you relative to the stacks consumed.

After:

Unique Effect: Soul Rend
On hit, applies a stacking debuff.

Right Click:
Consume all stacks from nearby enemies, dealing magic damage and healing yourself based on the number of stacks consumed.

Damage Scaling:
+2 damage per stack for the first 5 stacks.
+3 damage per stack for the next 5 stacks.
+4 damage per stack beyond that, and so on.

Healing:
+0.5 HP per stack removed.
Maximum healing: 50% of Max HP.

Changelog Notes:

• In the original version, Weakness stacked up to Level 2, while Slowness stacked up to Level 9. I decided that completely immobilizing enemies was unfair. Now, with each attack, the player applies or strengthens a debuff: Weakness up to Level 2, Slowness up to Level 3, and Bad Luck up to 254. (These values are configurable.)
• In the original version, when using the ability, mobs took 3 damage per level of Weakness and Slowness. This made the ability functionally similar to a simple +3 damage per hit. Now, the damage scales progressively based on the number of effects on the target.
• Since the maximum healing is capped, players will have to choose between increasing ability damage by strengthening debuffs or focusing on maximizing healing.

Before:

Unique Effect: Soul Tether

Right Click:
Instigate a tethering of souls, trading places with and freezing your target while gaining haste and resistances.
Upon reaching your destination, ignite nearby enemies and pull them closer to you.
After 6 seconds, your soul tether is severed, causing you to trade places with your target a second time.

After:

Unique Effect: Soul Tether
On hit, applies Wither II for 10 seconds.

Right Click:
Teleports a selected target to yourself from up to 32 blocks away.

Changelog Notes:

• The original ability felt too complex, making it difficult to envision practical scenarios for its use. Therefore, I replaced it with a simpler mechanic that still incorporates the theme of teleportation.

Before:

Unique Effect: Molten Roar
Chance on hit to ignite your enemy or yourself.
If HP is low, gain Regeneration instead.
Gain Strength and Speed relative to your missing HP.

Right Click:
Release a powerful roar, knocking back and igniting nearby enemies. Gain Resistance and Onslaught for a duration based on the number of enemies hit.

After:

Unique Effect: Molten Roar
On hit, sets the enemy on fire.
When HP is low, gain Strength, Haste, and Speed.
Buffs increase for every 20% of missing HP.
Effects gain an extra level if you dual-wield two Molten Edge swords.

Right Click:
Lose 4 HP and gain Regeneration for 10 seconds.

Changelog Notes:

• In the original version, Regeneration activated only when HP was below 4 (2 hearts) with a 50% chance on hit. Strength and Speed buffs triggered at HP < 50% and increased further at HP < 33.3% and 2 HP. These thresholds were unintuitive and not described in the tooltip, so they were adjusted.
  Now, you gain Strength and Haste at 80% HP and Speed at 60% HP, with clear scaling every 20% HP lost.
• Originally, the active ability depended on the number of nearby enemies, not the number of hits taken, despite what the tooltip said.
  The focus has shifted from survivability to damage, aligning Molten Edge with a berserker-style weapon.
• The ability now reduces your HP by 4 to proactively trigger the buffs. 
  The Regeneration effect restores exactly 4 HP, offsetting the ability’s cost and slightly enhancing survivability.
• New particles are generated at 66% HP and 33% HP, allowing others to gauge the player’s power level based on their current buffs.

Before:

Unique Effect: Fatal Flicker
Chance on hit to refresh ability cooldown.

On Right Click:
Perform a swift forward dash, gaining resistance and absorption, and inflicting Echo on enemies in your path.
For every target hit by the dash, the amount of Echo you inflict is increased.

After:

Unique Effect: Fatal Flicker
Killing an enemy resets this ability’s cooldown, including kills from an active ability.

On Right Click:
Dash forward up to 22 blocks, dealing critical attack damage to enemies in your path.

Changelog Notes:

• The passive ability was replaced with a more reliable, which no longer depends on chance.
• In the original active ability, Echo damage was too low and often functioned inconsistently. Now, the active ability deals damage as if landing a critical hit.
• The dash’s length no longer depends on the player’s viewing angle.

Before:

Unique Effect: Smoulder
Your attacks inflict Smouldering.
Attacking enemies inflicted with Smouldering causes you to deal an additional +1 damage per stack.

Right Click:
Evade backwards while cauterizing your wounds, healing for 10% of your Max HP.

After:

Unique Effect: Smoulder
Your attacks apply Smouldering.
Attacking enemies afflicted with Smouldering deals an additional +0.75 damage per stack.

Right Click:
Dash 12 blocks in the direction you are looking and heal for 10% of your Max HP.
Holding Shift lets you dash in the opposite direction.
Dual-wielding two Emberlash swords grants an extra dash charge, though only the first dash restores HP.

Changelog Notes:

• The dash now provides smoother movement and cancels your momentum at the end, improving control.
• You can now dash upward, downward, and in other directions, allowing for enhanced vertical mobility.
• If the dash ends in mid-air, the player will briefly hover, giving them time to adjust their position or strike nearby enemies.
• The stack limit (previously capped at 7) has been removed, and the maximum stack level can now be customized in the configuration file.
• Smouldering stacks no longer vanish instantly when the effect’s duration ends. Instead, they decrease gradually over time.

Before:

Unique Effect: Star's Edge
During the day, your attacks inflict 3.2 additional damage.
At night, your attacks gain lifesteal.

Right Click:
Evade backward while gaining Speed.
Activate a second time to dash forward, gaining Resistance and Haste.

After:

Unique Effect: Star's Edge
Deals an additional 3 magic damage.

Right Click:
Save your current position and dash forward.
Gain Speed II and Haste II for 15 seconds.
After 15 seconds, or when you use Star's Edge again, teleport back to your starting position.
Hold Shift while using to prevent dashing.

Changelog Notes:

• The passive ability based on the time of day seemed inconvenient, so I changed it to a fixed passive bonus.
• The original active ability, which pushed the player backward and then forward, felt odd and had bugs (e.g., not working if the player drank a Speed potion). I hope you find the new ability interesting.