I don’t feel forced to specialize. I’m just playing what teams I want (none of which include the hero) and “switching classes” every 250 wins, just in case the weapons come in handy sometime in the future.
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I am still against free switches in the sense of it making hero classes entirely pointless, and completely lose any class identity.
I mean you might as well bake in all the hero class magic bonuses into the weapons themselves, streamline perks bake those into the Heros stats baseline and be rid of hero classes entirely. Then you would have the same empty shell heroes we had before the introduction of hero classes just more powerful, which seems to be exactly what many here want…
Swapping can cost gold then. Gold is readily available… Even something like 5000 would be okay…
Coming to this late… I agree with most of the above, the cost adds nothing in a game that thrives on freedom and trying new things… I’d be interested @Sirrian if many people are paying that cost or just wait for the timer? What data is there?
I’m unsure that cost helps game economy much or makes money for the game? Feels like needless friction to me and smacks of pay-recharge/energy mechanics in other hideous freemium games…
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For most of us, the “empty shells” are the current heroes, we just don’t play them and have them sit out their 250 wins. When we get to 250 wins for each class, maybe, we will start considering playing them.
I’m not sure either that class identities are dependant of any fee to switch between class. Class identity are a complicated mix of traits + perks + kingdom + stat bonusses + magic bonus tied to a color (let’s not include mana mastery here).
It would be diminishing to think that, because there wouldn’t be any fee, you would be able to just “tie” your weapon to a class, just because the magic bonus is the most important bonus.
This will be truer and truer as new classes come out because more classes will share the same magic
color bonus : the other bonuses will be more and more meaningful, and will truly shine only when you pair the right class with the right team.
That would imply people only play hero classes with their respective class weapons, which from what i read on the forums couldn’t be further from the reality.
If you don’t play your hero without its hero class weapon then hero classes are even more pointless and every class perk and statbonus could just be put into the weapon itself.
The idea of not freely switching around in classes is a staple principle of roleplaying games in general. Most approaches completely deny switching between classes, and any that do allow it associate it with a somewhat meaningful cost, be it the cost of some resource or by having to gain progression points again when switching.
I don’t say that the approach GoW took to the handling of hero classes is optimal or even great, but it won’t get improved or flashed out anymore by making it less meaningful.
That’s not what it implies, quite the opposite actually : people only unlock the mythic weapon on hero in case these gets usefull in the future, once we are done getting the weapon, we just drop the class (as long as we don’t have all classes’ mythic weapon).
I see you are comparing the fees of changing class in RPGs with changing class in GoW. Having the kind of restrictions there are in RPG to switching class might actually be something I would have liked better than what we have.
But then again, we are in a CCG, not a RPG, I’ve never felt like my character was the hero, he is just a more versatile and unique troop than the others, but that’s all there is to it.
The very fact that you can change your characters’ gender and race on a whim is a pretty clear signal to me that we’re not “role-playing.” Your hero has minimal characterization. I fail to see how I identify with (say) sorcerer when the game doesn’t ask me to identify with anything else about my character. S/he’s a (set of) troop(s), albeit a fancier one, with the detriment of inflexibility.
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And how would that make players pay 5k souls and 18 arcanes per class?
Oops, should have STFU, few patches ahead crafting may reach out to weapons solving that problem for “good”.
You are absolutely right that this is not an rpg, character classes however is an rpg concept.
Personalizing your hero by giving him a class to pick was a very much hyped rpg aspect when it was announced, and i get it didn’t really work out the way many hoped.
Some that didn’t care about that rpg aspect at all, and simply wanted the hero to be a more powerful troop, saw the problems the class switch would prove to be to their plans and said as much from the start.
I personally could not care less about the fee itself, but i am aware that getting rid of it, making hero class choice less meaningful is a step back in that new attempted aspect of the game that i’d rather see more fleshed out and polished in the future. Removing the fee, like i said before would just be a step back, and we might just get back to what hero was before classes with improved stats and stronger weapons.
Getting rid of the gem cost is the best idea I think. I do as others have said and just wait a week to do a switch. I don’t use my hero too often so I’m not held up by the cost. It’s just taking me longer to unlock and level up each individual class.
I do not disagree with you often but in this game context I do not see the hero as being “less meaningful” just because you can switch his/hers class. In building teams we are mostly looking for the best fit and the new system gave heroes the potential to fill that role but with the time limit/gem fee they then for many handicapped that choice so defeating what I figured was the basic objective of seeing heroes once more in teams.
Maybe a happy medium would be a 24hr clock rather than 5 days so that choosing the class would still require some commitment to the change but from my point the hero should be totally flexible once it hits the 250 wins in a class.
If there was a vote I would defenitely vote to remove the barriers to make easy change.
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Didn’t @Sirrian already give us a justification for this? I seem to recall it but couldn’t find it with a quick search.
He wanted players to stay with a main class and didn’t want people changing multiple times a day/week.
But why? What’s it matter?
I completely get why people want the barrier removed and i can relate, hell if i were convinced there are no future plans to further improve the hero class system, i’d be all for removal of the barrier as i realize the class system as it is, is not great and lacks flexibility.
My point is that removing the barrier for switching class is a step back in the implementation of hero classes in general and will inadvertently hinder further improvements of that system.
What i am trying to say is the class system should be further developed so that hero classes become more meaningful and defining, not less, and that your choice of class should be determined by your playstyle and your vision for your hero, and not by the colour of whatever weapon you want to field in this moment.
Perks were clearly meant to deliver the kind of flexibility to field a hero class in different kind of teams but completely failed at that. This is the aspect that needs to be doubled down on and fleshed out much more with much greater choice and adaptability instead of surrendering the design idea and just saying “ah f$%& it, be all the classes all the time”.
Anyways i realize i am(alone) on the unpopular side of this argument so i will just shut up now and accept i am the weird one here 
I see no reason why the barrier is a problem for people. I used necromancer then switched to priest and stayed there ever since. hero is supposed to play to your style and mine is healing and others can’t settle on a class so whatever i guess. “If you sleep with everyone then who was the best?” argument basically fits the hero class. You should find out what fits you and settle down with it or wait till the next class comes out. I do not see a reason to drop the barrier between classes.
Many players (including me) like to switch teams regularly for variety or to try new tactics. With classes, the hero troop became viable again in many different builds (it’s been left behind when ascension and traits went in). If I can’t change class, I’m restricted in what builds I can use and it detracts from one of the core appeal factors of this game.
The roleplay / continuity argument makes no sense given I could switch my hero from a male elf in black plate armour to a female cat-person in a pirate suit at a whim whenever I like - no gem cost for that?
I’d understand (not like it, but understand) if the devs added this friction cost for money-making reasons, and if it works that could be good for the game. But I’d be interested in what the play data says… Does it monetise?
Devs got rid of the gold cost on battles, a change widely loved as it restricted play. This restricts choice and similarly threatens enjoyment and should go the same way.
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You have the right to be unpopular and weird all the way you want to. 
I get what you are saying, and i also think that the class system is not at it’s prime, removing the gems barrier may not be the best answer, but while we are asking for a change maybe it’ll be changed and improved in some sense. The suggested cost in gold (@Shimrra) could be viable if the said cost would increase at some rate as you level up, because let’s face it, at some point 5k of gold is meaningless.
It effects rewards but does not effect the stats of your hero in a fight.[quote=“Ivar, post:39, topic:6246”]
(alone)
[/quote]
You are (not) alone. We have a few classes remaining still.