Why the 10 Level Jump is a GOOD thing: GAMEPLAY!
There seems to be a lot of displeasure about the level cap jumping up to 56, as well as new arcane weapons that'll only be level 46. I admit, when I first saw the announcement, I thought it was pretty odd/dumb, too. But then I gave it some more thought than what the current state of wild hysteria in the community has, "Omg, all my loots is going to be worthless." Let me explain, as this is a multifaceted move, where many things are going to tie in together.
The thing is, this game has been long overdue for a 'reset' in some way. In a sense, mythic and arcane items have ruined the game. We've constantly had the best items available for each level cap, before the level cap even came out. This has made gameplay boring and easy--even in elite maps. When was the last time this game was actually fun and challenging? Nordr and before. Why? Elites were tough AND they offered USEFUL loot.
Your mythic glintstone sets aren't going to be useless. Oh, quite the opposite. You'll be needing those. Remember, your level 46 mythics are like level 51 elite legendaries. You're going to need these when you're trying to get through those level 56 elites. Remember, "back in the day" we'd be using mostly elite legendary gear of the old cap while taking on newest cap elites, trying to upgrade our gear to the newest elite legendary gear.
Next, the arcane weapons. This will be something you want. They will be around the same damage as the new elite legendary 56 weapons, yes...but those procs. The rogue one doesn't seem super, duper impressive, but it may be. The mage and warrior procs look deadly for in pve. Mage has damage % DOT?! Get two mages together, and that is absurd. Not to mention one throws fireball as the other throws consecrate. Have a warrior in the mix, keeping most targets stunned. Throw in your rogue, who hits 3 targets at once...that electrocute stun can start handling what the warrior isn't stunning. Why is something like this important? Because I get the feeling that farming the level 56 elites is going to feel like trying to farm the elite Kraken maps, back at level 26--but at least this time, we'll have some nifty procs to aid us, as well as pets that are light years beyond what used to be around: could these arcanes actually be TOO helpful?!
Personally, I think it would be good if STS made the elite legendary 56 weapons have more damage than the arcane 46s, but have lesser procs. It would give players the option of a good pvp weapon or a pve weapon. Would make for multiple valuable & useful items in the game. Aren't you guys sick of the "one ring to rule them all" style of item options?
Note to those looking to make a profit early in the season: farm the elite legendary 56 armors/helms before bothering with the weapons. People will already have weapons around the top of damage output, but they'll be wanting/needing some sturdier armor for pve and pvp.
Now, here's where I'm getting hopeful: since we're going up two caps at once, hopefully there will be a 'double campaign' of sorts, meaing two sets of maps. One set that is more of a 46-51 place, and the other more of a 51-56 place. Just spread the plot/story out on the two camps/town, sort of like how it was with season 1. It'll make things more cohesive.
And lastly, me getting VERY hopeful: this may be sts realizing that arcane weapons are a terrible idea, and this will be the last of them. Arcane items in general are terrible. The only arcane thing around should be the eggs. MAYBE toss in arcane jewels for the crates/elite golden chests. Maybe start with a +8str/+7int/+6dex this expansion, a +8int/+7dex/+6str for the next elite golden, and then a +8dex/+7str/+6int after that. As a result, the arcane jewels won't easily outdate the previous ones and players will still farm old elite maps for elite golden chests as they'll remain valuable, as the newest arcane jewel won't be a game-changer (unlike before, when the newest arcane item came out, the corresponding elite golden chest was far more valuable than the older ones). Balanced arcane jewels are a must (if implemented), as we don't want each new one to become a stronger para gem each season--that would ruin the goal of making old elite maps worthwhile.
The ONLY way arcane items can work is if they continue to do as they are doing now: release at the end of an expansion/cap, and the new expansion/cap is +10 levels. If they want to return to the +5 levels/expansion, arcane gear cannot exist, and mythics should only be released mid-late season--NEVER early in a new season.
So...cheer up, everyone! STS is showing signs of improving gameplay, farming, and itemization!
...let's just hope they don't fall flat on their face and release lvl 56 arcanes one week in...lol
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