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More Helpful Minions

AuthorMessage
Hero
Feb 26, 2012
709
One thing I have noticed in the game is that minions are often more of a liability than an asset, because they:
A) steal traps, and
B) are random in their play -- sometimes attacking, sometimes doing "helpful" things like healing or blading, and random in who they cast spells on and when they cast them.

So they are often devastating for any kind of strategic play.

However, at times it would be nice to have a helping hand.

I have thought on this for a while and have a few ideas that might be beneficial.

1) Design some minions (and henchmen) to be Either helper minions -- who always cast helpful spells to heal and/or buff the PC -- OR aggressor minions -- who always attack or trap or stun, etc., the enemies. Then people can get the kind of minion/henchmen that help them in their style of play, instead of a purely random sidekick.

2) Instead of having minions be limited to the school of the Player Character, let the PC choose the school/kind of minion that the PC wants to have as a sidekick. In this way, the minions could compliment the PC, rather than draw upon (and use) the traps and such that the PC sets up.

I for one would love to be able to summon a life minion to help my non-life PC's with healing, for instance. I would also love to have a minion that healed me consistently, rather than leaving me to die while casting a weak attack. Or to have a minion that I knew would consistently attack and trap, etc., but that would not be stealing my traps and undermining my strategy.

So I would love to see a minion/henchman upgrade, to provide more consistently reliable and helpful helpers!

Geographer
Sep 07, 2011
823
I like these ideas. it would be a big help for solo players. Having minions that were pure support, and others that do off-school damage would be much more help than the ones that waste our traps and prisms. They also need enough block to last more than 2 rounds.

Delver
Apr 08, 2015
250
I agreed. This is why I don't like minions: they're completely random, heal themselves, and steal our traps, AND maybe blades OR Guiding Light.

Example:

Blades

You have this minion that has a possibility to cast Ortrhus. You give him the only Myth Blade you have, which is given to you by your pet. BUT while he has more than enough pips to cast this, he instead casts a lowly troll. Fail.

Guiding Lights

You: 592/3,578
Minion: 1,750/2,000

You are in desperate need of healing, your minion has the possibility to cast Satyr. While discarding for TC in your deck you find this Guiding Light, so you cast it at your minion. He does cast Satyr . . . but on HIMSELF leaving you to be defeated. Double fail.

So yes, we need minions with educated intelligence, less barbaric smarts. I support this idea.

Hero
Feb 26, 2012
709
Delver
Apr 08, 2015
250
FinnAgainWindrider on Jun 1, 2015 wrote:
thanks for your comments Max & Gemma!
Typical example of Trap Fail:

It is a 2v2 battle. Your minion has been attacking only a single enemy, allowing you to stack, feint, item feint, TC feint, pet feint, (the spell that gives your trap an extra %) feint, ice trap, TC ice trap, item ice trap, +% ice trap, elemental trap, TC elemental trap. Item elemental trap, +% elemental trap.

Your minion left pip-less, casts an ice cat. EXTREME fail.

Defender
Sep 19, 2010
180
FinnAgainWindrider on May 23, 2015 wrote:
One thing I have noticed in the game is that minions are often more of a liability than an asset, because they:
A) steal traps, and
B) are random in their play -- sometimes attacking, sometimes doing "helpful" things like healing or blading, and random in who they cast spells on and when they cast them.

So they are often devastating for any kind of strategic play.

However, at times it would be nice to have a helping hand.

I have thought on this for a while and have a few ideas that might be beneficial.

1) Design some minions (and henchmen) to be Either helper minions -- who always cast helpful spells to heal and/or buff the PC -- OR aggressor minions -- who always attack or trap or stun, etc., the enemies. Then people can get the kind of minion/henchmen that help them in their style of play, instead of a purely random sidekick.

2) Instead of having minions be limited to the school of the Player Character, let the PC choose the school/kind of minion that the PC wants to have as a sidekick. In this way, the minions could compliment the PC, rather than draw upon (and use) the traps and such that the PC sets up.

I for one would love to be able to summon a life minion to help my non-life PC's with healing, for instance. I would also love to have a minion that healed me consistently, rather than leaving me to die while casting a weak attack. Or to have a minion that I knew would consistently attack and trap, etc., but that would not be stealing my traps and undermining my strategy.

So I would love to see a minion/henchman upgrade, to provide more consistently reliable and helpful helpers!
Personally, I would like the ability to set command types to minions in battle, in addition to some all-in-all better minions with more survivability. What I would like to see though is an icon panel next to the minions 2D display panel area with options that come into effect the turn after being selected. For example:

Aggressive: Minion casts attacks at every possible moment. For example, a life minion with 7 pips might cast a life minotaur, followed by a natures wrath, followed by a natural attack.

Offensive: Minion focuses on getting a hit on a target. Using the same minion, it might cast a lifeblade, followed by life trap, followed by forest lord. I.E, it attacks more intelligently, maybe coded as massively increased chance of attacking after two or more buffs would be affected by its attack.

Neutral: Minion functions as it does now, which is presumed to be casting spells based on a set probability that may have them heal you, attack randomly, or buff whoever.

Defensive: Minions chances of casting offensive spells decrease dramatically. Using the same minion as above, might cast a life shield, followed by a regenerate, followed by a lifeblade or trap.

Safeguard: Minions chance of casting offensive spells is reduced extremely, buffing chance is reduced, chance of casting spells on owner increased dramatically. So any shields casted would be cast on the player a vast majority of the time, as well as heals, and any rare buffs.

This would make playing with minions a lot more fun, and with the limit to having to change it one turn in advance for the stance to take effect, it would increase strategy with minions a lot by allowing players to predict the stage of the battle in the next turn, or players can play the same as always on neutral.

Mason Shadowwraith, a minion lover

Delver
Apr 08, 2015
250
1320Wraith on Jun 2, 2015 wrote:
Personally, I would like the ability to set command types to minions in battle, in addition to some all-in-all better minions with more survivability. What I would like to see though is an icon panel next to the minions 2D display panel area with options that come into effect the turn after being selected. For example:

Aggressive: Minion casts attacks at every possible moment. For example, a life minion with 7 pips might cast a life minotaur, followed by a natures wrath, followed by a natural attack.

Offensive: Minion focuses on getting a hit on a target. Using the same minion, it might cast a lifeblade, followed by life trap, followed by forest lord. I.E, it attacks more intelligently, maybe coded as massively increased chance of attacking after two or more buffs would be affected by its attack.

Neutral: Minion functions as it does now, which is presumed to be casting spells based on a set probability that may have them heal you, attack randomly, or buff whoever.

Defensive: Minions chances of casting offensive spells decrease dramatically. Using the same minion as above, might cast a life shield, followed by a regenerate, followed by a lifeblade or trap.

Safeguard: Minions chance of casting offensive spells is reduced extremely, buffing chance is reduced, chance of casting spells on owner increased dramatically. So any shields casted would be cast on the player a vast majority of the time, as well as heals, and any rare buffs.

This would make playing with minions a lot more fun, and with the limit to having to change it one turn in advance for the stance to take effect, it would increase strategy with minions a lot by allowing players to predict the stage of the battle in the next turn, or players can play the same as always on neutral.

Mason Shadowwraith, a minion lover
A good idea would also be the game telling you what spells your minion knows. And while I like your stances, I think it would be better if they were "absolute".

For example, your defensive stance still has a slim, slim chance to cast an attack, which may ruin your strategy.

Defender
Sep 19, 2010
180
Max Sterling on Jun 2, 2015 wrote:
A good idea would also be the game telling you what spells your minion knows. And while I like your stances, I think it would be better if they were "absolute".

For example, your defensive stance still has a slim, slim chance to cast an attack, which may ruin your strategy.
Agreed on telling what spells minion knows, although wizard101 central can help with that too. Stances could be absolute if that's how they were to be instituted, only reason to keep them not absolute is to keep a reason to not use minions as well, that way players that prefer not to use minions still have a reason other than just principles. And if the chance is sufficiently small (1 in 10000 or less maybe) it would still only ruin strategy on very rare occasion.

Delver
Apr 08, 2015
250
1320Wraith on Jun 3, 2015 wrote:
Agreed on telling what spells minion knows, although wizard101 central can help with that too. Stances could be absolute if that's how they were to be instituted, only reason to keep them not absolute is to keep a reason to not use minions as well, that way players that prefer not to use minions still have a reason other than just principles. And if the chance is sufficiently small (1 in 10000 or less maybe) it would still only ruin strategy on very rare occasion.
I guess it can't be that often if you're strategy has a 1 in +10,000 chance to be sabotaged by your own minion.

Also there is a question I have about your stances:

-Difference between aggressive and offensive is that your minions buffs up before attacking in offensive mode right?

And there should also be a stance called "Retreat" if Defensive isn't already it. The minion concentrates in preserving itself, and while also it's owner, it has divided attention.

Defender
Sep 19, 2010
180
Max Sterling on Jun 3, 2015 wrote:
I guess it can't be that often if you're strategy has a 1 in +10,000 chance to be sabotaged by your own minion.

Also there is a question I have about your stances:

-Difference between aggressive and offensive is that your minions buffs up before attacking in offensive mode right?

And there should also be a stance called "Retreat" if Defensive isn't already it. The minion concentrates in preserving itself, and while also it's owner, it has divided attention.
Oh, yes retreat would be nice too.
And yep, that would be main difference between aggressive and offensive. Reasons to use either is Aggressive would be good for maintaining constant pressure on a target, or for fights like belloq or his cousin, while Offensive would be better for getting your minion to just put out lots of damage with blade and trap combos and the like.