It's obvious the amount of improvements the UI has had throughout the different patches. Which is awesome.
However, I do still have a couple of suggestions to help improve the UX with a more malleable UI.
Some were more or less mentioned before but here it is still.
1) Resizing and moving UI sections around![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/lb2M25b.jpg)
- Minimap & Logs : allow user to resize and move those sections around.
Maybe even an option to hide/show the minimap? This might be a bit trickier since there are others buttons linked to the minimap.
However, this could lighten the UI and some people might want to play without the minimap. - Party : allow user to choose where the section is anchored (left/right border, how high/low on the border).
- Hotbar : allow user to stretch the hotbar, at least horizontally.
2) Save any changes made to the UI (on save game)Currently, the only "customizable" UI item is the log section (show/hide the section and/or change its height).
However, the changes are not saved! Users will lose their configuration after (re)loading a save file.
It would be nice if any changes made to the UI could be saved.
3) HotbarI like the hotbar design. It's nice. The "Short Rest"/"Long Rest" options might be a little bit too hidden (under one button) but, for the most part, it's a nice hotbar.
However, there is one issue I would like to focus on :
the size of the hotbar.
It's would be great to have access to a maximum of options/skills at all times (meaning without switching between tabs), especially during combat.
SolutionIt would be nice to be able to expand the size of the hotbar, at least horizontally.
Why it's important?This just would be such a great improvement in terms of QoL!This would allow smoother playthroughs and more confortable combats where choosing skills is made a bit easier.
It would be harder to overlook or forget certain skills or items (like special arrows or scrolls).
While the "tab" system helps a little bit (seriously, I am so glad it's there),
it can start to feel tedious to go through the different tab to find what skill/spell/item to pick, especially during combats.The EA is capped at level 4 and already, it's possible to tell that the number of available skills/spells will exceed the number of visible slots of the hotbar ; especially for certain class or build.
![[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]](https://i.imgur.com/HZWKBx4.png)
The mathCurrently
The hotbar has 34 visible slots.
- 9 slots will be used for common action/bonus skills available to all classes (jump, dash, grab, throw...).
- Between 2 and 5 slots for melee weapon skills (assuming : proficiency, non-magical weapon and no feat).
- Between 2 and 4 slots for ranged weapon skills (assuming : proficiency, non-magical weapon and no feat).
This means between 16 and 21 slots left visible (assuming both melee and range weapons are equipped).
We also have to keep in mind, other things will add skills on the hotbar :
- The tadpole
- Equipment that gives access to extra skills/spells
- Certain race having access to special skills
To illustrate
Let's take Shadowheart as an example.
Assuming she's equipped with a 1H weapon/shield and Light crossbow (fairly standard), she will have :
- 2 slots for melee weapon
- 2 slots for ranged weapon
Assuming she has 18 Wisdom at Level 4, by being a Cleric, she now has :
- 5 Cantrips (4 cleric cantrips + 1 racial cantrip)
- 3 Class Actions
- 4 'inherent" Spells
- 8 "prepared" Spells
This means : only 1 slot left visible (34 - 9 common action/bonus skills - 4 weapon skills - 20 class skills).
Which is not a lot for the myriad of items available and skills made available by wearing certain equipment/weapon.
Characters like Shadowheart will most likely not be able to quickly (without changing tab) have access to items like potions, poisons or scrolls.
Again, we are only at level 4. Even without items, she will gain even more class actions, 'inherent" spells and "prepared" spells.
It won't be possible to quickly access all skills/spells (without using tabs).
PS: I hope the math is right 😅
