# Single gem explosion needs a buff **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Requests and Game feedback\ **Created:** [September 9, 2018, 4:01am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545 "2018-09-09T04:01:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aluoaniki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/898d66/32.png) [@aluoaniki](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/aluoaniki)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 4:01am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/1 "2018-09-09T04:01:27Z")
After 4.0 update, exploding gems only provides 50% mana. I’m totally fine with. However, after examination, I discover that even the rounding formula is changed as well. Pre 4.0, it’s simple rounding, rounded to the nearest integer, for instance, 0.7x1=1, 0.7x2=1.4=1, 0.7x3=2.1=2, 0.7x4=2.8=3, 0.7x5=3.5=4, and so on. (Blue line, x-axis being Gems of single color destroyed by explosion, y-axis being mana gain from such explosion) Post 4.0, it’s banker’s rounding, rounded to the nearest **even** integer, for instance, **0.5x1=0** , 0.5x2=1, **0.5x3=1.5=2** , 0.5x4=2, **0.5x5=2.5=2** , and so on. (Red line) ![%25X_%40%7BN2(BT%40Q)%40L%5B~4D7%7BXI](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/uploads/gemsofwar/original/3X/4/d/4d8bcc8f2433c698a7c49b908325efe7dbdecb09.png) If explode gems on larger scale, in fact mana gain is not so bad at all. It is 30% less mana gain on average, which is close enough to theoretical value of (0.7-0.5)/0.7=28.57%. However, it’s absolutely abysmal on small scale. Weapon upgrade with explode one random gem now provides little to no mana gain. Even Fire Bomb could provide no mana gain. It’s 4 Red Gems exploded. I would suggest make it round to nearest odd integer, then mana gain would be 0.5x1=1, 0.5x2=1, 0.5x3=1.5=1, 0.5x4=2, 0.5x5=2.5=3. This still provides 27.27%, close enough to 28.57%, less mana gain overall, but makes explode 1 gem still viable. (Green line) PS: Already posted in other thread, but in Gameplay Chat category. I guess this needs more attention. ---
**Author:** ![Jainus](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/jainus/32/34949_2.png) [@Jainus](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Jainus)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 4:15am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/2 "2018-09-09T04:15:09Z")
@saltypatra can devs confirm that the rounding changed? If so, why? This seems to mean that single explodes now do basically nothing, which is an undisclosed and unnecessary structural nerf. If so, please can this be reversed ASAP… Edit: to the OP, why use a contrived odd/even rounding at all? Simple rounding will be just fine, and far more understandable and predictable. ---
**Author:** ![aluoaniki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/898d66/32.png) [@aluoaniki](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/aluoaniki)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 4:36am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/4 "2018-09-09T04:36:42Z")
Because now it’s 50%, which always results in a 0.5 or 1. Simple rounding will bias towards higher value, and that would be too generous for Dev to implement. ---
**Author:** ![Mithran](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/mithran/32/18064_2.png) [@Mithran](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Mithran)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 5:12am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/5 "2018-09-09T05:12:53Z")
Brought up the same thing regarding the rounding down of explorers. Are you sure it didn’t _always_ use Banker’s Rounding, though? The only way to even tell the difference would have been certain amounts of mana gathered while a troop had disease, or exactly 15 gems of a single color exploded (which would have resulted in 10 instead of 11) with the next time it would have made a difference between being 35 gems of that color (highly unlikely). Makes more sense they changed the values of a single variable without caring about the underlying mechanics they use for mana gathering and forgot to test low yield explodes than they changed. Especially after reading the official explanation that was given for _why_ they were nerfing exploders. If they didn’t change mana gathering math itself to fit this nerf and this is just a case of carelessness, the simplest fix would be to just change their exploderManaRatio variable to 0.51. The extra one mana per color 25% of the time is rarely going to be make-or-break for a given mass exploder, but it is **everything** for small scale exploders. This would result in low yield explodes being about where they were pre-patch until they hit at least 4 gems of a single color exploded, but they never really needed to be hit by the nerf in the first place, so win-win. ---
**Author:** ![actreal](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/actreal/32/1945_2.png) [@actreal](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/actreal)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 5:47am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/6 "2018-09-09T05:47:26Z")
My understanding is that GoW uses Banker’s Rounding for everything and always has, it’s just that it wasn’t an issue much for 70% but has a much more frequent impact at 50%. It’d be nice if a single gem didn’t give zero mana, but I suspect the devs took this into account when they decided on 50% being the reduction they wanted. ---
**Author:** ![aluoaniki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/898d66/32.png) [@aluoaniki](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/aluoaniki)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 6:22am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/7 "2018-09-09T06:22:11Z")
No. While explode gems still provides 70% mana gain, it’s simple rounding. If it’s banker’s rounding in the first place, it would always be 0 mana gain on single gem destroyed by explosion, which isn’t the case at all. ---
**Author:** ![Mithran](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/community.gemsofwar.com/mithran/32/18064_2.png) [@Mithran](https://community.gemsofwar.com/u/Mithran)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2018, 6:36am UTC](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/single-gem-explosion-needs-a-buff/45545/8 "2018-09-09T06:36:39Z")
> [@actreal](#): > > My understanding is that GoW uses Banker’s Rounding for everything For science, I checked this on delve chests. They use simple rounding, not Banker’s Rounding. From extensive testing, I’m fairly certain the number of drops you get is determined by chest level, and they round _each_ drop, not total drops. To double check, I had a level 4 chest with exactly a 2.5 modifier and ran away from the delve, producing: ![image](https://us1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/uploads/gemsofwar/original/3X/1/4/141aff02e1332268cf0e0d244257aa39cb8dcfcc.jpeg) Which is 1 legendary ingot, 1 mythic ingot, 20 glory, and 5 shards, each multiplied by the treasure modifier and rounded. In this case, 0.5 being rounded _up_ to an _odd_ number three times. I have another drop with a 3.5 modifier from earlier that yielded multiplies of 4 ingots, so clearly no bias to odd or even here. But I’m still fairly convinced they didn’t even really consider low yield explosions here. After all, their explanation for the nerf was: > [@4.0 Patch Notes](https://community.gemsofwar.com/t/4-0-patch-notes/45233/1): > > We originally decreased mana gained from 100% to 70% back in 2015, due to the amount of mana gain from the spells was outscaling any other means to gain mana in the game and causing troops to be able to chain their spells. > > In the past few months, as Magic has continued to scale higher and higher, this same behaviour has reappeared, with some explosion spells being able to power up mythic troops in a single cast (from 0 mana). As such we have reviewed the mana gain from exploders and after a long experimental time, decided to reduce the mana gain down to 50%. Mana gain from any gem cascade after an explosion will still get 100% of the mana (and it turns out that is often where half of your mana comes from). The last time magic increased was, what, January 2017? Unless we are counting the one point for Zuul’Goth owners. Exploders dominance couldn’t possibly be related to cascades prevalent on the Unity engine or even cascades related to oversaturation of storms. Nah, couldn’t be. Has to be all those points of magic we got in the past few months. > [@aluoaniki](#): > > If it’s banker’s rounding in the first place, it would always be 0 mana gain on single gem destroyed by explosion, which isn’t the case at all. That isn’t how Banker’s Rounding works. Banker’s Rounding only differs from “standard” (“half up”) rounding for where to round decimal values of _exactly_ 0.5. Where the “standard” form is “round **half** up”, Banker’s Rounding rounds **half** numbers toward the nearest even number. Which is why I specified the only numbers of exploded gems where Banker’s Rounding would have differed from “standard” rounding with a 0.7 explode modifier (without disease, since I’m not sure if disease rounds as another step or not) is 15 (11 with standard round up, 10 with bankers rounding) and 35 (25 with standard round up, 24 with bankers rounding). Every other multiple that lands on 0.5 that is _possible_ on a single board without being matched away results in it _already_ being rounded toward an even number (which is really only 5 and 25, 45 is not feasible). Edit for bump. Didn’t mean to kill this topic. Single gem explode nerf is nonsensical with respect to both the _stated_ reason for the exploder nerf and what _actually_ caused (in many cases still causing) _mass_ exploder dominance and should be addressed. I know thats bare minimum probably 3 months way, but if it isn’t being discussed **now** , it will probably _never_ happen.