Hello, Pandora! Today, I wish to share with you my hopes and dreams, my wishes and aspirations. Well, mostly just what I'd like to see in Borderlands 3 - if it ever gets announced. Yes, yes; it's another one of THOSE blogs. Let the moans and groans commence. Anyway, the first thing I want to elaborate on is the different ways to melt enemies in the universe of Borderlands. What I mean is, the different elements infused in guns and leaking from certain enemies. I was originally going to create blog posts for each major idea, but I decided to throw it all in one blog - I can come back and add more later. Now, before I go on, I just want to make clear that not ALL ideas are mine, but I'll let you know what isn't.
Elements of Destruction... and occasional Life[]
The first five elements are what we know and love. There would be no drastic change to the core workings of the element, however additional characteristics and behavior would amount from the interactions from other elements. The other elements introduced may make you say something like, "Hey, this isn't Pokémon." You're right, it isn't. It's Borderlands, and the elements interact much differently than that of Pokémon. I'll give an overview of each element and go in-depth if need be.
Incendiary - "It keeps me warm at night."[]
Incendiary damage does, as you would expect, fire damage. Just as a recap, incendiary damage can proc fire damage-over-time (DoT) and is effective versus flesh. Fire damage is resisted by shields and armor. We all already knew this. Now here's the new stuff. Fire is effective versus ice (elementally-charged enemies) and resisted by water (elementally-charged enemies).
Shock - "My pongue ith numb."[]
Shock damage does... shock damage - I know, shocking. Recapping, shock damage is effective versus shields and can proc shock DoT. It is resisted by armor and flesh (except in Borderlands 2). Now, in addition to that, shock is effective versus water-infused enemies or doused enemies. Shock would also heal enemies infused with plasma.
Corrosive - "Does my face look okay?"[]
Corrosive damage deals trippy acid damage, uh, I mean, corrosive damage. It is the only element that effectively eats through armor. It also can proc corrosive DoT and is resisted by flesh and shields. These first three elements make a nice power triangle. Unfortunately, corrosive doesn't get any new characteristics; at least not until someone suggests one.
Slag - "Property of Warehouse 13."[]
Slag. Ah, slag. The purple goo that is invaluable in UVHM. Doubling (or tripling) all other damage sources on a slagged enemy is well worth the Purple Reign and smell of piss and nachos. Unfortunately, or fortunately, slag also stays the same. Although, I would like to argue that slag is just fine as it is. It serves its purpose and serves it well, indeed.
Explosive - "It said Don't press so I pressed it."[]
EXPLOSIONS?! Yes, explosions. Though, not technically an element, I believe that explosive damage should come back as an option for all most manufacturers. Why limit it just to Torgue? Sure, Torgue can still retain its gimmick of explosive everything, in fact all manufacturers can retain their gimmicks. Just make Torgue have bigger and better boom (and bewm). Anyway, explosive damage is not resisted by anything (except for a few cases - I'm looking at you, Vermivorous) and is not wildly effective against anything. Sure, it needs would need rebalancing, but could work wonderfully along with the other elements. [Not 100% my idea. I just took the standing idea and added to it.]
Ice - "Is it cold in here or is that just you?"[]
Ice, or frost, is an element the community has been asking for since before the release of Borderlands 2. It is an element that I believe would work exceptionally well in the Borderlands universe with its simple proc effect. It could also be effective against much of the Fauna encountered in Borderlands - bugs. Well, more precisely insect-like creatures such as spiderants, scythids, crab worms, and varkids. It could also be effective against flying foes, such as rakk. Anyway, ice/frost would not proc DoT, but rather proc a slowing effect. This effect has already been seen several times in both Borderlands games. Lilith and Mordecai each had a skill to slow down enemies and savages from Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt could throw spears to slow the Vault Hunters down. There are a few other examples, but this should be enough. Finally, ice would be resisted by fire-breathing enemies. What's that? A few Spiderants? Kill 'em with fire, no, ice! Oh, no! A super badass fire spiderant showed up... Just as an example. [Once again, NOT my idea, just elaborating and/or adding my personal touches.]
Water - "Caution: Deadly when wet."[]
Now, before you say it: "How are you supposed to kill something with water?" Darn it, you said it. Well, anyway, similar to slag, water would not deal extra damage to a target. Instead, water would be used to make it easier to kill elementally-charged enemies - except those charged with battery. Get it? Charged with battery. No. Ok. Anyway, water would be used to temporarily douse elementally-infused enemies except those with shock. By using a gun with the water element, it would not only be now feasible, but now practical to kill an enemy with its own element. Your build specced completely on fire damage and you're now fighting 3 fire enemies? Douse 'em, then kill 'em with fire and see how they like it. Also, water would work twice as long on fire enemies, but only half as long on ice enemies. Enemies with shock are immune, however. Lastly, water can be used to rid friendlies of DoT, except poison and shock. It is also resisted by plasma.
Poison - "The recommended daily dose is lethal."[]
Okay, here is a real fun one. Do you remember the hellfire from Borderlands 2? Well, remove the fire element and slap on poison. That right, poison would naturally be able to "stack" the DoT every time it procs. Poison also has a permanent, or at least really long, DoT. Of course, this means poison weapons will be weaker than equivalent weapons with a different element. Poison is also immune to the dousing effects of water. The only way to cure poison is to find an antidote health item or visit a med vendor. Certain gear will be able to resist poison or cure it - and all (active) shields are naturally immune to poison. That throws a whole new curveball into the field of Borderlands, doesn't it.
Plasma - "Star light, star bright... screw it. Burn!"[]
This one will seem a bit overpowered, and it is, so I'll say this now: This element is intended to be a rare sight - even more so than E-tech is in BL2. Oh, and it won't suck like 90% of all E-techs I come across either. In fact, let's make all E-techs have this element now, okay? Good. Okay, so here we go. Do you ever realize that fire is the first element the game introduces you to in both games? And how a few levels later enemies start using shields and never not wear them? That's a little annoying, having to switch between a shock and a fire weapon constantly. Even corrosive damage is more useful than fire in the latter part of the games. With plasma (which I might remind you, would be quite rare) you can use it to drain shields and burn your helpless foes. How cool is that? For balancing, plasma would have a very short DoT - or maybe none at all. I prefer the short DoT to be honest. We've already established that plasma is effective against flesh and shields, but it would be resisted by armor and water. It is also effective against Ice. Plasma is, after all, a super-heated gas - like the sun. It is also the stuff you can find in blood. Now go away Dr. Tannis, this is my blog. Oh, and lest I forget, plasma will actually heal plasma and shock enemies. Or maybe not. Still undecided. [The entire idea of plasma is not mine, though the original one would have been a second explosive element. I took all that out and added what I think plasma should do, obviously.]
Radiation - "Overkill, you say? Nukes, bullets, all the same."[]
I honestly don't have much here. I just remembered the Nukem and how much it sucks - but I like the mushroom cloud it makes. I'll have to get back on this one later. Though, I will say it should be limited to launchers, mostly. Or not. I dunno.