We didn't get tier sets in BFA.
After an expansion in which one's class was central to the experience of the game, with three true raid tiers complete with class-themed sets as well as an Order Hall set (which, to be fair, was just downgraded versions of the Challenge Mode dungeon sets from Mists, except of course the Demon Hunters') it was kind of a rude shock to find that BFA would not have any class-themed sets.
Instead, we got what will ultimately amount to four raid armor sets - one for each armor type for Uldir, Dazar'alor, Eternal Palace, and Ny'alotha.
Now, not to sell Blizzard short, we also got heritage armor sets for all the allied races as well as, by 8.3, six of the pre-established races, as well as the Warfront sets.
Still, I think I'm not alone in being pretty underwhelmed by the sets - specifically the raid sets - this expansion.
And here's an area where the question of flavor versus mechanics comes into play.
I understand why they didn't do tier sets - with three pieces of gear that traditionally have made up three of your five set pieces taken up by Azerite armor, it wouldn't make sense to throw that stuff on top of tier set bonuses.
Sure, Azerite Armor wound up being a cumbersome system (and a classic example of design for design's sake, rather than for compelling gameplay) but with it in place, there wasn't really much of a space to do set bonuses.
But frankly, that's never what I really liked about tier sets.
Different raids have given us different takes on our classes. In Wrath, despite having four raid tiers (though I think these days they would have made Trial of the Crusader into a "minor raid") we only got two brand-new tier sets, given that Naxxramas really just updated the original tier 3 sets (crazy to think that the original Naxx was only three years earlier, roughly) with the obvious exception of the Death Knight's set, which was original. And of course because Trial of the Crusader technically gave each class its own models (and very different models depending on your faction) but really just did alternate color schemes for classes within the same armor type.
Still, I think that the two totally original and specific paladin sets from that expansion, tiers 8 and 10, really showed what you could do with class-themed tier sets.
Tier 8 is one I'd love to see updated with modern 3-dimensionality and textures. It makes you look like some kind of walking titan-made furnace. It's one of my favorite paladin sets and the only reason I don't use it for transmog is that it's just kind of dated (I'm also not really crazy about the "plate skirt" look they often give Paladins.) But it feels inextricably linked to Ulduar as a raid with its futuristic magitech feel.
Tier 10, though, is grim. I always thought it was a shame the set wasn't called Ashbringer, and instead has the rather dull name "Lightsworn," because it literally depicts skulls that have been shattered and are now on fire. Paladins, after all, are the ones with a steely resolve to fight evil, and that resolve allows them to channel the light to smite their foes. Tier 10 felt perfect for Icecrown, not only because of this undead-smiting look, but also because it actually looked very warm to wear (not just because of the fires in the shoulderpads and helmet) and I've always assumed Icecrown is like 50 below zero at its warmest.
But despite how profoundly different these both look (though both have that plate skirt thing) they both feel very right for a paladin.
And so I think that's a fun challenge: what does a paladin set look like in this context?
Now, shortcuts have been taken many times in the past. Legion, like Wrath, did an update of a tier set, taking the tier 6 sets and upgrading them to modern graphical standards (tier 6 for paladins is what I think of as the definitive paladin set, and the only thing that frustrates me about the new version is that you can't really naturally get a mix of the blue and the gold unless you go for the Mythic version, which then does weird things with the helmet and shoulders.)
I think one of the things the game often struggles with is that sense of class identity. Regardless of whether you're playing a classic good guy class like a Paladin or Druid or if you're playing a dark class like a Warlock or Death Knight, the story remains the same, and you wind up being the same basic mercenary who will kill anyone for a new pair of pants.
At the end of the day, though, I think the reason I care about class tier sets is that it gives us variety. I like when my Rogue and my Demon Hunter look really different.
But speaking of Demon Hunters:
When they first announced BFA wouldn't have class sets, they said that they'd already done enough variations on what, for example, a Warlock set could look like. That's all well and good for the classes that have been there since day one, but Demon Hunters only ever got the three tier sets. I guess we should be grateful they're still making Warglaives and not just forcing DHs to wield swords or axes like a common Rogue, but still, I'm sure that there are other angles on the Demon Hunter's armor (and to lesser extents Monks and Death Knights) that haven't been explored.
The set bonuses are fun. But I also see how they're sort of obsolete in the era of artifacts and that kind of new mechanic.
But I'm much more interested in the art and look of class sets. I'd like to see them return, please.
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