10 levels above TVHM - and still can almost get one shotted?

Borderlands 2 BL2 General Discussion
#1

So i dropped back to TVHM for a whole to farm The Bee, The enemies are way below me in level so I’m thinking its nothing to worry about. But to my shock and awe, when I got hit by either Hunter whatshisname or any of the robots - I was almost DEAD in one shot. That is with a shield giving me 200k and my life is about the same. Their shots took out my shield in one hit and almost all of my life.

This makes me very interested in how the damage scenario works in this game - because it doesn’t happen vice versa. The same enemy that was almost one shotting me it took two blasts - after slag - of my most powerful shotgun, which is way beyond their level as well. So I don’t get the massive spike in power - but if an enemy is higher than me, THEY do. How does this all work? Feels like false difficulty.

#2

I’ve never seen that happen. Did you try quitting and re-entering the game? If it was just some weird temporary glitch that should solve it. I’ve once had quite the opposite happen to me when the game randomly decided that need to be practically immortal with mad health regeneration (with nothing that gives health regeneration in the first place) but restarting the game fixed that.

EDIT: You aren’t wearing Captain Blade’s shield, are you? That would make elemental weapons deal extra damage to you.

#3

What level are you? The enemies should all be level 50 (as will the Bee, so not sure why you’d want to farm one in TVHM when you can farm a levelled one in UVHM.)

I’ve had the one-shot thing happen to me a couple of times, and every time it’s because I had accidentally equipped a low level shield when picking stuff up (to then go sell). Might want to check your gear next time you load a session!

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#4

Well, it has nothing to do with low level gear. As i have been learning, it is the damage system that has exponential scaling. The scaling doesn’t take in account your shields, which grow weaker and weaker as the game progresses - despite having high numbers. There is a video that has an example of the issue (he refers to OP gameplay but it more or less starts in higher level Normal mode and gets worse from there). https://youtu.be/FcLa6IlpypM. Its as if every enemy has a critical hit that wipes your sheidl away - and that is very irritating, especially when you drop to lower level play and it is still happening. I actually ended up in FFYL situations with enemies 10 levels lower than me - but those enemies are only giving me 1 point of experience. That should not be happening… but it is.

I now know there is no cure for this - that is just the way it is. I recently tested it further with enemies of various degrees (levels and areas) and found it to be the norm - except for boss fights. It seems boss fights are much more balanced than fighting regular enemies. The Warrior, for example, is easier than getting rushed by a bunch of regular map or mission hyperion bots. the Warrior does NOT break your shields in one hit - but some random badass biker or other enemy will. It seems the team that crafted the boss fights must have been a different team, as they made them balanced and without that messy shield mechanic.

Before anybody says it, it is n’t about “getting gud” or “don’t get hit”. It isnt about getting better equipment or shields - you should be able to drop back 10 levels and run through naked flinging rubber bands. The issue isn’t about how well a person plays - it is an observance of how the damage system is working - or not, plain and simple - regardless of those parameters.

#5

Not wanting to be that guy, but the exponential scaling should actually result in the opposite of what you are reporting. The damage output of a level 50 badass should be the same regardless if you are level 30, 50, or 70, because they are level 50. OP levels are different from any other mode just because of the way they are implemented, so I’m not sure that the video you linked is particularly relevant. I’m not an expert on game mechanics though: maybe @Derch or @Chuck80 can provide actual details on how this stuff works. I’ve honestly never had the problems you’re describing, however, apart from that one time I got a dual-launcher wielding dude coming at me…

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#6

Who are you playing, what is your build and shield?

#7

Yeah, exponential scaling should work that way - but it doesn’t. The video I referenced was not meant to be an exact circumstance that I have observed (as h is talking OP8 mechanics) but rather a loose reference to the type of issue I’ve noticed. That issue being virtually any enemy, at any level can hit you shields, your shields being any amount of levels higher than that enemy (as well as your character) and STILL wipe your shields out.

This is not a personal issue that only I experience - look at game play on Youtube and you’ll see it happening to everybody. You say it doesn’t happen to you - you can easily replicate it by taking on any mission or fight and just let the enemy shoot you or better yet find a melee attacking enemy and let it hit you. That is all you need to do to see what I’m talking about. You’ll hear that “Boosh!” sound and you shield will be gone. Maybe you’ll take two hits - but it will happen. Better yet, get into a fire fight and run away, but do not get behind any cover. Your almost guaranteed to lose your shield when trying to run away or with your back turned.

#8

What shield because this is not true, if you have a tanky shield it can take many shots even at op8, if you are wearing a tiny shield that is different (bee, sham, tediore, etc…)

I have 500+ borderlands videos and about 5% of attacks might strip my shield.

So again, whats your build and gear? That will help clear things up, and what enemies were doing this to you?

#9

Im playing as Axton, both Survival and Guerilla trees maxed out, some points in the top of the middle tree but nothing special. I don’t know the names of all the different shields but I have tested this with several different types and it doesn’t appear to be shield specific. I get alot of people responding (I also talk about this at Steam) with “what sheild” what is your build, and that is not what I am talking about. I have shields that are supposed to absorb a couple hundred thousands worth of damage. Turtle shields, Absorb Shields, Bee sheilds (which we know are weak - but it really doesn’t matter). The issue is not the shield, it is how the shield works and if the enemy can just wipe out your shield even if they are 10 levels below you then it has nothing to do with what type of shield you are wearing.

#10

Sorry but Im new at these forums and I dont know how to quote yet. I just want to address your statement “this is not true”. I am telling people about something that is happening, that I have seen happen to other people as well. I even left a video link, so please do not say “that is not true”. tht is reactionary, and wrong. You must know that this is not a new issue? People were complaining about this years ago - I just didn’t know it was THIS bad.

#11

Your build and shield does matter because a low capacity shield will still be low capacity.

Also on his video he was taking a lot of hits and his shield was going up between them, he only got in trouble when he stood next to the shock tree which will wipe shields and then the dot killed him because he had on a turtle shield.

That video says nothing about the game, it was a terrible example. The point is if you build for tank you can tank a lot of damage, if you build for glass cannon you cannot.

Thats why I asked for build and gear, its very relevant.

#12




There are 4 videos of me demonstrating shields of different sizes while playing very aggressive in tight quarters

Here is another where at the end I go to the beatdown

Most attacks do not heathgate or strip my shield.

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#13

You select the text in the post you want to quote, and hit the quote reply button that pops up.

#14

The video illustrates what happens all the time. Even if you are standing next to a shock tree - which is not MY example, if you are fighting low level enemies - should your shield go down in a few (3 or less) hits? My example is I dropped down to enemies 10 levels lower than me. I LET them hit me to see what happened. The enemies QUICKLY wiped my shields. I shouldn’t even NEED a shield fighting enemies 10 levels lower than me. you seem to be getting angry, don’t get emotional over it. you may not convince me otherwise - so what? My experience trumps anything someone can say.

#15

If you are using a glass cannon build, yes it should happen.

http://bl2skills.com/

use that site, fill out your skill tree, copy and paste the url here and we can help you with your issues but also please what gear are you using as well.

I’m trying to help you because you are having issues that I am not having issues with and this isn’t an issue of skill because taking a hit is taking a hit. So if you give us some info we can help you.

#16

It’s just that your experience seems to be running counter to other peoples experience… I’m quite happy to repeat your test and see what happens when I get home tonight though.

Regardless, shields are just your first line of defence. If you’re in a mid to large size mob and taking fire from every direction, your shield is going to go down, at which point you’re relying on your health pool and your ability to take care of business and get out of the situation to give your shields a chance to come back up. But that’s going to happen even in NVHM with at-level enemies (plus the +1/+2 level badasses you’re going to get as part of the mob.)

I don’t know quite what you expected of the game, other than shields should have more capacity? All I can say is that I’ve played both BL2 and TPS (since I see you also posted a related question about that game) since launch, and have dropped back down to lower levels multiple times without running into issues (well, other than my own stupidity, but that’s squarely on me and not the game!)

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#17

I did that a long time ago and it has nothing to do with “glass cannon” builds. I guess people cannot help responding with this “it’s your build” stuff. It ISN’T about build - and btw, the last video you posted shows exactly what I mean at about :53. Your shields were wiped in a few shots (3). THAT is what I am talking about. THAT happens no matter what enemy level you are fighting. That has nothing to do with your build, that is a game mechanic.

Your other videos, the 4th one your shields were wiped at 2:12;
The third video your shields were wiped at 2:05;
The second video your shields were wiped at 2:09;
Your first video your shields were wiped at 2:04, and you almost died.

Your videos help explain what I am talking about in a way - what happens to your shields happen with ANY level of enemy. It is expected to happen with enemies above your level (which is what you are fighting here - but not low level enemies - but it does,

#18

well shields can get wipped out but even low capacity ones that I used in some of those can take multiple hits was the point.

Anyways if you are not willing to help us by showing your build I cannot help you.

#19

Well I played BL1 so I expected that when an enemy hits my shield the damage should be relative to the enemy level. As I keep stressing, I dropped back ten levels lower and TESTED the shield by ALLOWING the enemy to hit it to see what happened. Various shields all exhibited the same behavior, one, maybe two shots, a big “Boosh!” sound and the shield is gone. I don’t recall that happening in BL1, so no I do not, and did not expect shields to be so weak and useless in BL2.

#20

Is that a picture of you there Derch? Can’t remember if I’ve seen you over at the selfie thread…

OP and I were having a discussion about this on the Steam forums (welcome to Gearbox btw). I don’t feel invincible with any shield in Borderlands 2 and I generally have an eye for cover or have invested in health regen. Like @Adabiviak I buff my shields in the OP levels (although those are much more imbalanced than earlier gameplay).

Shields are often circumstantial - there’s no one size fits all - and they also interact with skills. But I haven’t experienced depletion as extreme as magusat, and I wouldn’t describe them as ‘weak and useless’ by any means.

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