nocturnalguest wrote: Fri Feb 13, 2026 12:48 pm
Here is the most tricky part of this all. Very good question, but just as for any simple question without anykind of context its impossible to give clear short answer.
If by tougher you define everything any tank has then yeah, IB still toughest tank. Key factors for that is its mobility, M2, DR with decent avoidance. Selfhealing and absorb you mention wrong, as its not most defining factor.
15 or 10, regular, average joe who is not into succesfully doing highely organised competetive large scale combat versus x2/3 enemy numbers will not even notice anyhow. However tho, on those levels IB was absolutely unstoppable, no other tank came close for comparison. BO could be almost as mobile or better in some cases, BG could be almost as turtle or better in some cases, but none of them came close with such combination of DR, high avoidance, completely broken M2 and insane mobility which made IB uncatchable and unkillable if played and supported well. This was incredibly clear if you are playing in toptier 12-24 group against much bigger numbers.
As for regular gameplay, where average joe cant use IB tools properly (which is the case for like ~95%+ of IB population) in largescale combat it wont matter losing 5% DR. You will still die just as you did before.
What will this change actually achieve i cant tell and i believe none may.
Its kinda careful experiment and im absolutely sure balance group has absolutely no clue if it will achieve their obvious design vision of this.
Was this change actually required for whole game if we consider regular players and how they play? No, absolutely not. It changes nothing.
Was it justified to tonedown godtier IB for highest possible competitive gameplay? Yes, absolutely, it had no decent, same effort counterplay. Balance group tried to tonedown something that will not affect theoretical possibilities for same skilled ways to pilot IB so they cause least possible harm for randoms and decrease DR slightly. Supposed effect is that if IB happens to be actually caught (aint simple thing to do) it may die. Dunno if its gonna be achieved as nor none of mobility tools are harmed, nor M2 nor avoidance.
I don’t really know how to respond to this joke, my friend.
Either you’re trolling, or you don’t know KotBS.
No tank is stronger than KotBS and Chosen. Their auras, along with their tactics — ideally stacked with RR — make them the tankiest and, above all, the most useful tanks. They permanently buff and debuff in an area thanks to their auras, and on top of that they have the best crowd control in the game among tanks.
BO and SM are excellent tanks, and BG is, in my opinion, better than IB.
That’s my point of view, as a player who is part of the 95% of PUGs
Anyway, if the developers balance the game around 5% of players, then they clearly don’t understand anything. Those 5% of elitist players will always find ways to perform, regardless of class or balance changes. They will always find the optimal setup and will keep having fun performing at a high level.
On the other hand, the remaining 95% are the population that needs to be satisfied. Because without them, no PUGs, no casual players — and therefore no “trash” left to farm for the 5% elitists who feel very strong farming tourists.
