The changes all seem very nice. Except
QUOTE(Paarfi @ May 17 2015, 11:32)

I think there should be a way to level-down equipment to your current level, as well as level-up without making it account-bound. This way trade between players of significantly different levels will still have a purpose. Just make leveling-up and -down also use Soul fragments (maybe half as much as soulbonding) and this game got a new credit sink, as well as limiting top-down trade without making it outright meaningless.
This is a very very good idea, which resolves the problem level-binding is meant to solve (too much high-tier equipment supply from the high-level grinders). I do not like the idea of being unable to ever get gear from higher-level players (unless I spend 10,000 more hours and level up as much as they have). I'm sure they don't like it either - say Dani gets a Peerless Ethereal Estoc of Slaughter - but it's worth nothing if he doesn't play melee, and no one else (but Jenga) could possibly use it.
As is, it will become a whole lot more difficult for players to acquire decent full sets. Has anyone here ever gotten enough good drops
on their own of a type to make a decent set (worth forging)? I doubt it. I'll be forced to give up on ever having high-quality gear I don't already have, unless I win the loot lottery 6 or 7 times.
QUOTE(sotl @ May 17 2015, 10:34)

If your intention to turn endgame into a single-player experience then I believe you have succeeded.
^
QUOTE(mozilla browser @ May 17 2015, 11:57)

Is equipment that was previously from the lottery (ie, 'account-bound', now 'untradeable') automatically soul-fused?
It seems not, unfortunately.
I guess I need to spend 2m+ more just for the 25m staff I won a few days ago to keep from degrading to Superior-equivalent over time.