Yomo Kimyata

Unless your dark skills are stronger than I think, they can only kill you once!

I was only mentioning Hami raid as an example, not the *defining* example. I'm sure you know that we all can come up with many many more examples where a reward table was created a long long time ago and is completely out of whack with the current or any future meta. It's not a world breaking problem, but I personally think it's pretty up there. I am interested in your opinion, because I feel that you personally are going to drive a lot of the direction going forward, and if it's a drop dead no go for you, then lock the thread and let it die. I quoted this sentence because I'm not sure what you mean by it. Are you saying you would have to put a warning that someone would get less inf and XP if they chose a lower level? If so, why in the world isn't there one now, since obviously you get fewer rewards from -1 than +1. Am I misunderstanding you?

I'm of two minds on rewards. First, I firmly believe in the maxim of higher risk, higher reward. Both in games, and in life. And probably in a few other things. Second, the risk/reward in this game is seriously out of whack. I hopped on a double Hami run last night for, I don't even know, 160 merits? Essentially zero risk. Which is roughly 23 Eden trials. I don't see those as equivalent. I'd like to see some progress made on that front, to be honest.

Thanks for this post, especially the above sentence. Some buffs only affect individuals (playing at -1 or +4, on their settings) and their teams. I beg you to carefully consider system-wide changes that make play easier -- some people would love it and some would hate it, but there would be no way to opt out so it would be simplified for everyone. I'd much rather have those who wish for it to be able to play at -2 than for me to have to play at +4, enemies buffed, no inspirations, blindfolded, and left pawed in order to enjoy it. That last part is, of course, an exaggeration. Thanks!

By a GM no less.

Sorry @Bill Z Bubba, the mobs have spoken. They want a monorail.

I agree, they won't be nerfed, and I also agree that buffs that have been introduced won't ever be rolled back. I'm realistic. I'm just hoping that HC powers-that-be think twice before adding more features that make things easier *in the future*.

Based on my fading memories of the halcyon days of Live, I feel that the player population on HC as a whole is kinder, smarter, and probably better looking than it was on Live. I suspect that it probably partially due to the fact that the vast majority were players back in the old day and perhaps aged out of some of our general asshattery. But I wanted to emphasize your point above. It articulates things clearly. I'm not sure if the ratio is 50:50, but it surely seems like the people trying to game the system are much more in your face than those who aren't. My two inf.

I was thinking more along the lines of people who want various things (ATs, power sets, etc.) buffed. Maybe if there was a way to play, oh say, Regeneration at -3, people could get enjoyment out of the set as it is rather than want it to be buffed in a way that would affect everyone else? I'm just kidding of course, ha ha. Nerf Regen.

HC has consistently made things easier over the past two years, in ways that affect fundamental game play. It's no secret I dislike that. But that is me, and it is clear that there are many people who want things to be easier. Maybe if there were a way for people to play at levels lower than -1 then there would be ways for players to access things they couldn't currently, and there wouldn't be the need to shrink the game board? That way they could opt in to playing at -4 under an extrinsic constraint if they so chose. I'm just spitballing here.

You laugh, but a friend rejoined the game. I took him for a look behind the curtain and he said “Jesus, I hate the idea of being a cog in your machine.”

Is there a mechanics reason why HC can’t expand the range of Notoriety below -1? Obviously you can’t go below level 1, and rewards would drop proportionally. Thoughts?

I give nerfing Seeds of Confusion two paws up.

I’d like to unpack, “I don’t feel useful.” I’d appreciate if people who experience it describe why. For me, I don’t feel useful in an Incarnate Trial or a Hami raid or a MSR. It’s too busy, I have no idea if I helped or not. I could be providing 90% of the damage or 90% of the control (I’m not) but I’d never know. That’s a function of the FPS but I don’t feel bad that someone else may be better or more powerful than me.

I thought of an iron idea that might be less draconian than "one and done." When your character dies, you can retire them and move on *or* give up an earned respec. Essentially this gives you an extra life, if you choose, at levels 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, and gives you an opportunity to earn more by running a respec TF. I'd take buying a respec recipe off the table -- too easy and cheap. Then, of course, you actually have to burn the respec. Just a thought.

I don't usually play with the sound on, but I do love their splooshiness!

That set up was like this game: too easy! I'll let myself out.

Exactly. I don't think the purpose of any of the enhancers (boosters/catalysts) were originally intended to make things easier for you to farm for your alts.

Something to keep in mind is that some people view progression as the end game. Not everyone is rushing to 50. Some people like to take their time getting there. I think it *is* too easy to level to 50 quickly and it *is* too easy to equip yourself with top of the line gear, if you take that path. That said, that doesn't hurt me in the slightest except indirectly. I just don't want that path paved and equipped with scooters, because that affects my sub-50 play.

I feel like I touched a very sensitive nerve when I asked for HC to stop dumbing things down. Someone playing on -1/x1 has no effect on me other than it making it much easier for you to accumulate inf and goods and otherwise affect the player-run economy. I'm fine with that. HC changing the basic rules (like offering lvl 5 SOs at the vendor, instead of buying them from some other player who got them on a DFB) does. I've used this metaphor before, but this game is a chessboard. You want to play chess? Great. You want to play checkers? Also great. You want to move horsies around the board and whinny? Also great. It's when people say "The chessboard is too big!!! I want it smaller!" and the devs make it smaller. That's what bugs me. It's harder to challenge myself on a 4x4 chessboard. This goes back to my initial post in this thread. If the powers-that-be feel that dumbing things down is the right path for them to go, great! Please give me an option to opt into that will enable me to play on an 8x8 board according to the game engine, and that will enable people who join my team to play on an 8x8 board, if we so choose. Give me an extrinsic set of constraints. That's my wish list.

I don't want to crank up the difficulty. I'd like to roll back some things (like SOs for level 2s). But I'm begging the HC powers-that-be to stop dumbing things down.

It’s strange to me. It’s so easy to make enough inf to buy whatever you want in as much (little) time as it takes to PL yourself to 50. It’s so easy to get merits in the thousands. Are incarnate trials really that engaging? Or is the joy being one of a million Supermans in a world of muggles?

Yes please. Also cut the merit / converter rate to something reasonable. You can send the angry mobs after me. After all, I *am* overpowered.

In line with the various "challenge" threads going around, I've been pairing them with "No P2W, no AH". Vendor only. So, no ATOs or WOs (for example) without spending merits on them. Eat only what you make, and so on. I think a happy medium is one I'm doing for an Iron-themed alt: Estate Executor made a supergroup and invited Heir Apparent. Heir Apparent can add to or take from anything in the base. When Heir Apparent dies, he or she or huge gets deleted, a new Heir Apparent gets made and is given the keys to the base. And so it goes. It's intellectually satisfying, challenges me with allocation of scarce resources, and demonstrates clearly (to me at least!) how simple it is to succeed at this game even without leet builds.

*Hugs Reveal*