Distortion Should Counter Whispers
Extremely simple post here.
Distortion is a perk that becomes teachable from the Bloodweb as soon as Jeff Johansen (non-licensed DLC) reaches level 40. The perk allows you to hide your aura from the killer for a certain amount of time. The perk has three uses and counters everything from A Nurse's Calling to Wraith add-ons. The one thing it doesn't counter is Whispers, as it isn't an aura reading perk, but more of a presence reader.
PERSONALLY, I feel it should be changed. There is already no way to reobtain stacks for the perk, meaning it's a three and done deal, and if the killer has BBQ then those stacks will be used up fast. With the perk being incredibly weak, even in Stealth builds, the least it could get is a counter to Whispers. This could prevent gates from essentially giving away a survivor.
It should also be bumped up to five stacks, or you should have the ability to reobtain them by just hiding in the killer's terror radius, similar to many other perks.
Many people are confused here. I myself don't use Distortion on a normal basis, I'm just providing buffs for otherwise weak perks.
Comments
I think Distortion has way more utility in the fact that you can figure out if a killer has aura reading perks in the first place so that you can play accordingly. For example, if a stack gets eaten when someone gets hooked far away, you now know the killer has BBQ without becoming a victim to it. Now you can try and preserve stacks for when ya need em by getting in a locker or getting closer or just let it eat a second stack.
I guess you're whispers suggestion would be fine but I feel it would become a slippery slope of determining what should and shouldn't trigger Distortion. Also it would have to be one or the other. No way is a perk getting not only another trigger, but more stacks AND replenishing stacks.
If we gave a way to regain stacks of distortion, that would make a good deal of killer perks worthless, as well as making something like Object of Obsession insanely OP.
If distortion should counter whispers, than undetectable should counter spinechill. Same dif basically.
What your suggesting is only going to end up killing off Distortion's stacks rapidly. This wouldn't make Distortion an anti-Whispers perk. This would make Whispers a massive anti-Distortion perk even though Whispers is strong enough on its own without being a counter and Distortion is a bit of a weaker perk to begin with.
If BBQ is eating up your stacks, you're using Distortion wrong.
Distortion is for finding out what aura perks the killer is running and then countering them manually; it shouldn't just counter aura reading passively all match. I remember a particular match where I discovered the killer was running Bitter Murmur, and I held on to the last stack to make sure my aura didn't get revealed when the last gen popped. If you're just letting the aura perks eat up your stacks, then that's on you.
Survivors have basically made it necessary for me to always equip Whispers. Without it, I'll end up with two survivors who refuse to do gens and Urban Evade around the map not letting the match end. Whispers means I'm not completely helpless against that. If they could just equip Distortion and hold me hostage without end? Screw that, I'm not playing killer if that becomes a thing.
Had the exact situation the other night... Abunch of UE instead of anyone so much as TOUCHING a gen against my Bubba on swamp without whispers... Was boring as all hell and just made me wanna get the match over with ASAP.
I actually don't know why it's not unlimited. BBQ is unlimited use perk, Distortion should be unlimited to counter aura reading.
But Distortion is passive. BBQ isn't passive, it requires the killer to do something. Behavior seems to be trying to get away from having too many unlimited passive perks; it was one of the reasons they changed Ruin. Also, there are multiple aura reading perks; one perk (Distortion) shouldn't be able to endlessly counter multiple killer perks. It could effectively render a killer's entire loadout useless.
Sole Survivor is supposed to be the unlimited counter, but it always seems to be broken.
Just be happy most killers assume bbq is the best tracking perk. You can do something about that. You can't block whispers. The few that really know how to use whispers are impossible to hide from.
It's finite because you already have numerous ways to avoid bbq. BBQ is also not unlimited. The killer has to hook someone for it to work. The killer at best will only get 12 hooks. You get 3 stacks of distortion. Which is 1/4 of the times a killer can use BBQ. Well it's 4 vs 1 so it scales evenly. A lot of people seem to forget bbq doesn't do a damn thing unless the killer can down someone. If distortion was infinite it would be too powerful. It would not only block bbq but nc, several add ons, and other perks. Survivors will run OoO and be able to see the killer without being seen.
Nothing is wrong with BBQ! Anyone complaining about it are people who don;t want to get off a gen.
BBQ has 12 uses maximum (11 useful ones). Distortion can counter 3 of those. Lockers can counter any aura perks. Getting close is a counter. Hiding behind gens is a counter. Soul survivor is a counter.
There are enough counters for one very limited effect that it is not even funny.
Even if it worked, you have to be the sole survivor which makes it not useful during the match when BBQ is at play.
I still don't think it would be too powerful. You are sacrificing a perk slot for it. I just know 3 charges is gone in no time so I don't bother running it. It needs more or be unlimited before I would use it. It's a cool perk, but too weak for me with only 3 charges.
A perk that counters BBQ, Bitter Murmur, Nurse's Calling, Territorial Imperative, and I'm All Ears all match without any action on the survivor's part, plus counters part of Blood Warden and Hex: Retribution, wouldn't be OP? Not to mention all the add-ons it would counter plus it would shield anyone running OoO from the killer...
A survivor would only have to sacrifice one perk slot and they'd render seven perks and multiple add-ons useless while also taking away OoO's one downside.
Again, Distortion isn't supposed to provide passive immunity to aura-reading perks all match. It gives the survivor info on what aura-reading perks the killer is running so that the survivor can act accordingly. If a survivor is letting all of their stacks get eaten up early, that's on the survivor. I've successfully saved stacks until I absolutely need them at the end of a match.
For the stacks, it would be one or the other. Both would be too powerful.
Having Distortion be an unlimited use perk would be completely unbalanced. Just think of the streamers who are constantly getting sniped.
I just wanted to point out that hiding behind gens is no longer a counter. A few months ago they've changed the aura colours, making it clearly distinguishable weather a survivor is behind a gen. Otherwise, this is correct.
I have no proof of this, but its design would suggest that that's how it's meant to be used. Not as a stealth perk, but as an information-gathering perk. If you lose a stack while healing or being healed, you know the killer has Nurse's Calling. If you lose a stack after completing a generator, you know they have Bitter Murmur. And so on.
I wouldn't say DISTORTION should counter Whispers, but maybe Calm Spirit to give it a bit more use and for Whispers to actually have a counter. I don't particularly think either are very useful to me personally, but I think Calm Spirit is much worse than Distortion and would actually make more sense as a counter.
Well... that is not the point. The point is there are enough counters to BBQ without making it even worse.
Aside from the fact Distorsion is more an info perk as others already explained, having it activate against whispers would make the stacks disappear in no time. Overall it would be a nerf.
Thinking that BBQ takes away stacks too fast means that you're being lazy. You could have more stacks if you just hid in a locker. On top of that, stacking distortion, spine chill and iron will makes you nearly impossible to find if you know how to stay out of sight.
As for whispers itself, it isn't that powerful once multiple survivors are in an area, or a survivor is hooked, or there are only 3 gens left and all of them are near one another. Whispers helps a lot overall, but is really only "strong" in 3 situations; when the match starts, you can easily determine whether the direction you're going is wasting time; when someone is hiding, at any health state; when the exit gates are being opened after the hatch has been closed.