Currently imbuing has the following limitations:

   1. Can imbue up to 5 properties on an item.
   2. Each property is limited to a max of 100% intensity.
   3. Can imbue up to 500% total intensity on an exceptionally crafted item, or 450% on any other item.
   4. Some properties are weighted to count more towards the total intensity cap.

Many of our beta players have expressed concern that the items created by imbuing are too powerful, and that imbuing has the potential to make other sources of items much less attractive.

The idea was then brought forth that perhaps imbuing should be less of an "item creation" skill, and more of an "item customization" skill. We thought about that, and would like to get your feedback on the following:

   1. Any item can have up to 300% weighted intensity added to it via imbuing (while still obeying the max caps from #2)
   2. The total intensity caps remain the same (500 for exceptionally crafted, and 450 for regular items)
   3. Individual property intensity can range up to 150% unweighted (but the weighted intensity still counts against the caps from #1 and #2)


What this would mean is that a regular item, with no properties on it, could be imbued up to 300% weighted intensity. An item that started out with, say, 130% weighted intensity, could then have an additional 300% weighted intensity added on top of that, for a total of 430%.

So, you could customize any valid* item with any combination of properties up to 300% weighted intensity, regardless of what it started with, as long as it doesn't exceed either of the caps from #1 and #2 above.

We feel that this would give you a lot of flexibility in creating the items you want, while not replacing so much of the existing methods of acquiring items. Loot drops that you find, or runics that you make are all good potential starting pieces for imbuing, but you'd still want to find something that fit what you're looking for.

This means that you couldn't create the perfect item from scratch, but you could customize a lot of the items that you have now, find as loot, buy on vendors, or craft yourself. However, newer players who pick up imbuing will still find it very useful in improving the items they would find while progressing through the game, or by creating less powerful items from scratch.

Please let us know what you think of these changes, we'll be reading this thread frequently. If you'd like to make other suggestions unrelated to these changes, please use the Stygian Abyss forum as we'll look for them there.

Thanks!


*A valid item is one that is currently imbuable by the imbuing system. It excludes artifacts, and any item made with or enhanced by special materials.

http://vboards.stratics.com/showthread.php?t=153077