So, this is new, isn't it? Or am I late to the party?...
The concept of a combat resource that is built and expended is not something I've seen revealed or discussed previously (Bazgrim?... hehe) and is pretty major as a mechanic, no?
Personally, I like it! We heard about (and saw in streams) stamina being reduced by melee actions such that it was a limiting factor - a resource to be managed, eg. warriors can't shield bash, shield bash, shield bash and shield bash to keep a caster from casting - it has to be held back and timed. Good.
But, from the class reveals, we see, for example, that Rangers *build* Momentum during melee and can *spend* it to perform certain abilities! Cool!
And monks build Chakra and unlock Chakra gates that enable abilities in a similar way. Cool too.
And rogues... I'm confused! The class details say they have a Combat Resource of Endurance. Do they somehow *build* endurance and spend it? Erm... The ability descriptions say things like Shadow Walk uses Mana (and this has been referred to in previous streams). In streams they have had stamina limitations like warriors so they can't backstab burst DPS for a whole fight... Hmm...
But aside from my Rogue confusion, I like the idea of having a build-and-choose-when-to-use combat resource on top of the normal reduces-from-full stamina.
I wonder if Warriors will have Rage and Clerics have Piety and Paladins have Fervour and Dire Lords have Blood Lust?...
Teh Todd's thread about Magic in the Melee is related - it sure could be a little mundane being a melee class in EQ and similar MMOs. This build-and-use combat resource at least adds a bit more tactics and interest, if not actual 'magic' in all cases. Good!
From watching the streams, I think rogue endurance is similar to rogue endurance in WoW--a resource that starts at full and then rapidly regenerates on its own after it's expended, forcing the player to think about which abilities to prioritize using in a given moment. Rangers' momentum and monks' chakra are like warriors' rage from WoW--a resource that starts at zero and builds. I like that it differs a little between rangers and monks, with rangers having the increase to auto attack speed the more momentum they build and monks having the gate mechanic woven into their chakra. I wonder if other classes will have their own special energy mechanic too?
For me: it gives those pure melee classes the feeling of having mana without the pain of sitting and medding. A resource to utilize special skills and abilities that should require mana but dont. I am curious to see if rangers are more pure melee instead of having mana. I would prefer a more pure melee ranger class. To me these bars are switching out mana which means no true hybrids just a resource to use dependant on a class. Which opens up a lot more possibilities yet narrows down things considerably. Also, how will these be affected by mana regen spells? Would it be more correct to call them resource generating spells?
Vanguard had pretty good systems for combat resource, but some classes still ended up a bit too "twitchy". It's gonna be hard to balance the strategic side of abilities with not forcing the player into spamming buttons.
Honestly, this is probably the aspect of the game I'm most excited but also nervious to see more of. My EQ1 monk was basically just auto attack and Flying Kick over and over. lol. I still enjoyed the hell out of it, but it seems obvious we will have a little more involved combat than that. I'm hoping that there will be a spectrum of involvment in combat across the class choices. That's what was great in EQ1, and even Vanguard, there were classes that took very little to operate and others that took a whole lot (I'm looking at you EQ1 Bard and VG Blood Mage). If there's a nice but mildly different mix then everyone can hopefully find their style.