Inspiration Combination to next tier

[Joshex]

OK, Hi Devs, you may or may not know about this topic from the discord chat, I have brought it up twice and am no longer the only one who remembers it. It was a feature in COX which was taken out during the CoX freedom release. it allowed any player to merge 3 of the same color same tier inspiration into the same color inspiration of the next higher tier. It was removed from the game prior to the paragon shop and prior to Super inspirations.

 

Spoiler

I can't help putting both things together and thinking that they were trying to profit from micropayments for insps. How could they profit from insps if players could just combine low insps to high insps? this is my theory for why they removed this feature.

as we are no longer a shop profit based game it would stand to reason there is no reason not to re-include this feature (even upto super if possible). the code function responsible would most likely be either commented or removed entirely in the source code, who knows they may have left a reason in comments.

 

So I am hereby making a request for the revival of this pre-Freedom feature.

currently the feature has been replaced with a grayed out selection for the same level and same type of inspiration. in example if you combine 3 luck, there will be a greyed out selection to combine to "luck" formerly before city of heroes freedom, it would not have been greyed out and would not have been for "luck" but rather "Good Luck", if combining 3 "Good Luck" you could select "Phenomenal Luck". this is as high as it went in the live game pre-freedom.

 

The feature did not work at all /ever/ on special inspirations such as ambrosia, essence of the earth, strength of will, present etc. as they have no higher tier form.

 

restrictions, players can only combine to the next highest tier of the same color/type. (otherwise the conversion menu would be too long).

 

Fix: in the code for the inspiration combination menu, there should be something like "send message to server : exchange [3, tier, type, grant: type, tier]" and there should be one of these which does not match "Display insp [type, tier]" I have no idea how it's listed in the code, but one of the listings will be different than the others, from there you should be able to copy one of the other listings in the menu and do [tier+1, type] instead of [tier, type]. as well as the subsequent server response and player inventory database changes.

 

It sounds very simple when I say it, but finding it in the client and or server code may be a much harder job. and changing it may be no walk in the park like I propose.

 

If you feel uninterested making changes but know where it might be in the code, let me know and I can attempt to propose changes.

 

if you have no idea where it will be I can search for it (theres alot of potential hiding places in the code, hopefully they left a comment named "insp" to mark it at least)

 

again, I am below novice in C languages, it all looks like a big page of definitions to me with no actions. so I would appreciate help on this. please!.

 

if you would take your time to do this, I would really appreciate it! it's going to be faster and better in your hands anyways!

Edited January 17, 2020 by Joshex
clarifying

[Vanden]

No, I don't think tier 3 inspirations should cost 450 influence apiece (1350 for Awakens). That's too strong for too cheap a price.

[Joshex]

13 minutes ago, Vanden said:

No, I don't think tier 3 inspirations should cost 450 influence apiece (1350 for Awakens). That's too strong for too cheap a price.

first off, inspirations are just extra, typically your build is what matters in PvP and PvE, besides the fact, if this is implemented, everyone will have equal access and ability to the same ability to do this so it will even out.

 

If you are worried about AH prices, don't be, even while this feature was active pre-freedom insps could sell for upwards of 100,000 in the AH. simply because it was quick and convenient for stuff like STFs when you need a bunch of max purples to help tank recluse and you are just about to enter the last mission and forgot them or had to use them ahead of time. people often bought them for speedruns, masters badges, and right before RTR and Hami (accuracy, damage, self res etc.). so there /WILL/ be a continued market.

 

the point is it makes it equally as easy for all players across the board, so there is really no impact on players in our current free server.

 

right before hami and RTR you'd find the AH sold out of most insps. you could make amazing last second price gouging sales for like 1 mil a piece right before the event.

 

also remember a tier 3 would cost 9x a tier 1 to make yourself. that's sufficient. theoretically a tier 4 would cost 27x a tier 1, the price balloons.

Edited January 17, 2020 by Joshex

[Vanden]

7 minutes ago, Joshex said:

first off, inspirations are just extra, typically your build is what matters in PvP and PvE, besides the fact, if this is implemented, everyone will have equal access and ability to the same ability to do this so it will even out.

Oh goodness no, inspirations far outshine set bonuses and stack way higher.

 

9 minutes ago, Joshex said:

also remember a tier 3 would cost 9x a tier 1 to make yourself. that's sufficient. theoretically a tier 4 would cost 27x a tier 1, the price balloons.

Yeah, those are the numbers I quoted. 50 x 9 = 450. That is a "defeat one minion" price at high levels.

[Joshex]

thats why you can only hold so many insps, and they are time limited (unlike your build, hence insps are extra). the fact is, every player will have the same ability and access to teiring up their insps so it really doesn;t matter. unless you are Nemesis and don't want players to bash through the critters easily. but, then why not get rid of insps all together? (not suggested for any player to attempt to ask for that, too much backlash, besides we all like insps). besides this is why in arenas you can lock off temp powers and insps. because in PvP areas you cannot.

set bonuses are permanent, insps wear off in minutes and need to be reobtained to activate again. everyone will have equal ability to make these insps. so no one will lose out unless they don't prepare. it will increase the cost in AH because of PvP as well. everyone will want a quick refill while people are still in zone.

 

Might I also add, that before Freedom, this was the case and people lived and liked it.

Edited January 17, 2020 by Joshex

[Vanden]

39 minutes ago, Joshex said:

thats why you can only hold so many insps, and they are time limited (unlike your build, hence insps are extra).

Easily bypassed by putting them in the auction house temporarily.

 

39 minutes ago, Joshex said:

the fact is, every player will have the same ability and access to teiring up their insps so it really doesn;t matter.

Of course it matters, it would make the game much, much easier when it's already at the easiest it's ever been.

 

39 minutes ago, Joshex said:

Might I also add, that before Freedom, this was the case and people lived and liked it.

You're gonna have to produce evidence that this was ever the case, because I don't remember it ever working like that.

Edited January 17, 2020 by Vanden

[Joshex]

7 minutes ago, Vanden said:

Of course it matters, it would make the game much, much easier when it's already at the easiest it's ever been.

 

You're gonna have to produce evidence that this was ever the case, because I don't remember it ever working like that.

it was not widely used, not many people actually cared it was there. as such the titan network crew never covered the topic in thier wiki, but multiple players remember it:

 

we lived it, we experienced it. most of us who used it often were kinda putoff when they removed it.

[Vanden]

2 minutes ago, Joshex said:

we lived it, we experienced it. most of us who used it often were kinda putoff when they removed it.

That's a screenshot of you making the same claim you're making here, and one guy claiming it was possible at launch (which is definitely untrue). That's not evidence.

[Saiyajinzoningen]

sounds like some horadric cube stuff going on here. heheh

[SeraphimKensai]

I understand memory can be a crazy thing, but as someone that used to religiously PvP, I can tell you that if you were able to combine inspirations to produce one of a higher tier, then literally every single PvPer in the world would of rolled with a solid tray of tier 3 inspirations.

 

That can not be the case however, except for when we saved our drops and used them later or bought them from the AH.

 

Look for any PvPer' screenshots from battles showing their inspiration tray. If we could combine to higher we would of done it.

 

That all said I'm not opposed to being able to do so though.

[Joshex]

2 hours ago, Vanden said:

That's a screenshot of you making the same claim you're making here, and one guy claiming it was possible at launch (which is definitely untrue). That's not evidence.

actually it is, that's a second account a second witness. it's valid proof in scientific and legal fields. if more than one person can have the same finding or remember the same thing then there's needs to be more investigation into the topic and it cannot simply be dismissed as untrue.  you need a witness testimony which can clarify the situation after that point to prove or disprove a prior witness testimony.

 

want to settle this, ask the former devs, they will know. they will confirm it.

1 hour ago, SeraphimKensai said:

I understand memory can be a crazy thing, but as someone that used to religiously PvP, I can tell you that if you were able to combine inspirations to produce one of a higher tier, then literally every single PvPer in the world would of rolled with a solid tray of tier 3 inspirations.

 

That can not be the case however, except for when we saved our drops and used them later or bought them from the AH.

 

Look for any PvPer' screenshots from battles showing their inspiration tray. If we could combine to higher we would of done it.

 

That all said I'm not opposed to being able to do so though.

it stopped being an option around the time of Freedom. sadly no records or wikis on inspiration use can be found from pre-freedom. even titan network's paragon wiki's earliest record on the subject is 2010. I would like earlier records if titan has them, but I don't hold out for it. I know it was a fact. I did it, just because others didn't notice doesn't mean it was never an option. I'm talking 2006 here. I joined when it was heroes and villains special DVD release. the one that came with the pocket D VIP card, which I still have, and the map of paragon city, which I also still have. some of these things also have no record on the internet any more but it doesn't mean they aren't real or weren't real.

 

I guess many people just never really cared to look very hard at the conversion menu. not my fault it could have benefited alot of PvPers and they didn't notice it. also, it's not the kinda thing you could do in the middle of a battle it takes time you'd literally have to set it up ahead of time, which is no different than going to the shops and filling up ahead of time. it's also complicated, you could not do a full table of highest insps without emailing stuff back and forth because you'd run out of slots to convert things in. so that voids that concern. in the time it takes you to convert 2 inspirations to a higher tier, you can be dead in pvp, dead before you can even activate them. thats why it was allowed and was a feature.

Edited January 17, 2020 by Joshex

[Vanden]

2 hours ago, Joshex said:

actually it is, that's a second account a second witness. it's valid proof in scientific and legal fields. if more than one person can have the same finding or remember the same thing then there's needs to be more investigation into the topic and it cannot simply be dismissed as untrue.  you need a witness testimony which can clarify the situation after that point to prove or disprove a prior witness testimony.

You have to be joking. He's not even making the same claim as you.

[Outrider_01]

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

actually it is, that's a second account a second witness. it's valid proof in scientific and legal fields. if more than one person can have the same finding or remember the same thing then there's needs to be more investigation into the topic and it cannot simply be dismissed as untrue.  you need a witness testimony which can clarify the situation after that point to prove or disprove a prior witness testimony.

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

sadly no records or wikis on inspiration use can be found from pre-freedom

Two statements that contradict one another.  Witnesses have less credibility, so long as their is actual evidence to back it up further it would be valid.  Testimony for "WITCHCRAFT!" only works when you got the smoking gun, magic bullet, and a photo of the man on a grassy knoll...grainy video footage doesn't count.  You have that grainy photo and it is one person behind your statement, if you had a hundred then you have a platform to stand on.  We still don't know what did happen at Rosswell yet we have evidence of "something" we can't verify and vague "witness accounts" to what we don't know happened in 1947.

 

Please don't state "valid proof in scientific and legal fields" as this is a video game, not a courtroom.  You kinda sound like those type of "I know what I am talking about" guys but don't really sound like you do know know. The statement of "I know what I am doing" and it turns out to be a disaster 😞

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

I know it was a fact. I did it, just because others didn't notice doesn't mean it was never an option. I'm talking 2006 here.

World was flat and everything circled the earth at one time.  But then they noticed evidence that gradually changed that thought....and this process only took a few thousand years of observation to eventually come to the conclusion it wasn't true.  But 14 years ago in 2006, isn't so good and the fact that the game was dead for half of it....yeah I am not believing it.

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

I guess many people just never really cared to look very hard at the conversion menu. not my fault it could have benefited alot of PvPers and they didn't notice it. also,

MACRO MACRO MACRO!

(below)

Spoiler

 

1. Go to P2W vendor, Inspiration Drops, Reject Resurrection Inspirations, Reject Protection Inspirations (status protection), just below that Reject Medium and Large Inspirations.  Now only the smallest will drop.

 

2. use this bind

 

/bind ` "inspexec_name enrage$$inspcombine respite enrage$$inspcombine catch_a_breath enrage$$inspcombine insight enrage$$inspcombine sturdy enrage$$inspcombine luck enrage"

 

Copy from / slash all the way to the end " parenthesis or it will mess up.  Essential /bind -> enrage"  and also after /bind is ` tilde key next to 1...you can /bind T or what ever of your choice key by changing it. (color doesn't matter, its just to make it more visible on the forum)

 

3. Buy 3 Greens, 3 Blues, 3 Yellows, 3 Oranges, 3 Purples.   This will help you test and use the binding. That key will both USE small reds AND make them at the same time. Might want to try another character first, so you don't mess up your settings on the main one.  Even a level 2 has 4 inspiration slots if you want to test it, just buy 3 of any kind and click that bind to get a red. Then try different colors to confirm it.

 

Mash a keyboard key and your inspiration turn 3 of one kind into any other of the same size.  This one is a macro to make reds out of everything and cap damage for farming.

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

it's not the kinda thing you could do in the middle of a battle it takes time you'd literally have to set it up ahead of time, which is no different than going to the shops and filling up ahead of time. it's also complicated, you could not do a full table of highest insps without emailing stuff back and forth because you'd run out of slots to convert things in. so that voids that concern. in the time it takes you to convert 2 inspirations to a higher tier, you can be dead in pvp, dead before you can even activate them. thats why it was allowed and was a feature.

Would be pointless, you don't do it in the middle of battle.  The way you are saying it, you can turn 7.62 mm bullets into 5.56 mm under fire.  PVP is generally alpha damage big hits or quickly hitting them over time in the shortest duration possible to wear the bar down quickly; if you are spamming Ice Bolt for more then 30 seconds you are doing it wrong when you got 2 other hard hitters, you don't have/need to combine at all during this process.    Turn outs, they only carry what ever size they need, pop them, and end the battle quickly.  Why would you change up a tier when you can already carry it?  Oh, sure lets turn 3 tier 2 reds into a tier 3...which sounds weird cause you can just carry 3 tier 3 reds and get 3x the damage.

8 hours ago, Joshex said:

currently the feature has been replaced with a grayed out selection for the same level and same type of inspiration. in example if you combine 3 luck, there will be a greyed out selection to combine to "luck" formerly before city of heroes freedom, it would not have been greyed out and would not have been for "luck" but rather "Good Luck", if combining 3 "Good Luck" you could select "Phenomenal Luck".

where is it grayed out?  Test server?  And same type...ok so if all the inspiration types you could change up it would now have a list 3x as long and a mess just to right click (usually if you need an awaken or break free out of what you got).  Macro, I wouldn't even know where to start and the one I gave is simple; I read of people having a ton on bar 9 or something while being overly complex.

8 hours ago, Joshex said:

Fix: in the code for the inspiration combination menu, there should be something like 

It sounds very simple when I say it, but finding it in the client and or server code may be a much harder job. and changing it may be no walk in the park like I propose.

I said above, you don't sound like you do know.  You can say one thing, but in fact know nothing at the same time unless you actually worked for Cryptic/Paragon Studios/NSoft.

4 hours ago, Joshex said:

want to settle this, ask the former devs, they will know. they will confirm it.

Lastly, you pretty much lose the debate when you pull out that statement.  You can't settle it unless you got the developers behind Statemen, BABs, or Castle on speed dial.  Or any of the others, except Positron as he was kinda of an ass.

 

But if you got Positron, I want it.  I got an earful I want to tell him involving a lot of the symbols above the number keys after you hit the Shift. 🤬

Edited January 18, 2020 by Outrider_01

[Joshex]

5 hours ago, Outrider_01 said:

Two statements that contradict one another.  Witnesses have less credibility, so long as their is actual evidence to back it up further it would be valid.  Testimony for "WITCHCRAFT!" only works when you got the smoking gun, magic bullet, and a photo of the man on a grassy knoll...grainy video footage doesn't count.  You have that grainy photo and it is one person behind your statement, if you had a hundred then you have a platform to stand on.  We still don't know what did happen at Rosswell yet we have evidence of "something" we can't verify and vague "witness accounts" to what we don't know happened in 1947.

 

Please don't state "valid proof in scientific and legal fields" as this is a video game, not a courtroom.  You kinda sound like those type of "I know what I am talking about" guys but don't really sound like you do know know. The statement of "I know what I am doing" and it turns out to be a disaster 😞

World was flat and everything circled the earth at one time.  But then they noticed evidence that gradually changed that thought....and this process only took a few thousand years of observation to eventually come to the conclusion it wasn't true.  But 14 years ago in 2006, isn't so good and the fact that the game was dead for half of it....yeah I am not believing it.

MACRO MACRO MACRO!

(below)

  Reveal hidden contents

 

1. Go to P2W vendor, Inspiration Drops, Reject Resurrection Inspirations, Reject Protection Inspirations (status protection), just below that Reject Medium and Large Inspirations.  Now only the smallest will drop.

 

2. use this bind

 

/bind ` "inspexec_name enrage$$inspcombine respite enrage$$inspcombine catch_a_breath enrage$$inspcombine insight enrage$$inspcombine sturdy enrage$$inspcombine luck enrage"

 

Copy from / slash all the way to the end " parenthesis or it will mess up.  Essential /bind -> enrage"  and also after /bind is ` tilde key next to 1...you can /bind T or what ever of your choice key by changing it. (color doesn't matter, its just to make it more visible on the forum)

 

3. Buy 3 Greens, 3 Blues, 3 Yellows, 3 Oranges, 3 Purples.   This will help you test and use the binding. That key will both USE small reds AND make them at the same time. Might want to try another character first, so you don't mess up your settings on the main one.  Even a level 2 has 4 inspiration slots if you want to test it, just buy 3 of any kind and click that bind to get a red. Then try different colors to confirm it.

 

Mash a keyboard key and your inspiration turn 3 of one kind into any other of the same size.  This one is a macro to make reds out of everything and cap damage for farming.

Would be pointless, you don't do it in the middle of battle.  The way you are saying it, you can turn 7.62 mm bullets into 5.56 mm under fire.  PVP is generally alpha damage big hits or quickly hitting them over time in the shortest duration possible to wear the bar down quickly; if you are spamming Ice Bolt for more then 30 seconds you are doing it wrong when you got 2 other hard hitters, you don't have/need to combine at all during this process.    Turn outs, they only carry what ever size they need, pop them, and end the battle quickly.  Why would you change up a tier when you can already carry it?  Oh, sure lets turn 3 tier 2 reds into a tier 3...which sounds weird cause you can just carry 3 tier 3 reds and get 3x the damage.

where is it grayed out?  Test server?  And same type...ok so if all the inspiration types you could change up it would now have a list 3x as long and a mess just to right click (usually if you need an awaken or break free out of what you got).  Macro, I wouldn't even know where to start and the one I gave is simple; I read of people having a ton on bar 9 or something while being overly complex.

I said above, you don't sound like you do know.  You can say one thing, but in fact know nothing at the same time unless you actually worked for Cryptic/Paragon Studios/NSoft.

Lastly, you pretty much lose the debate when you pull out that statement.  You can't settle it unless you got the developers behind Statemen, BABs, or Castle on speed dial.  Or any of the others, except Positron as he was kinda of an ass.

 

But if you got Positron, I want it.  I got an earful I want to tell him involving a lot of the symbols above the number keys after you hit the Shift. 🤬

I think so many people have no clue it existed BECAUSE they used macros to convert to a specific TYPE rather than upgrading and never looked at the menu.

 

I'm not saying 2 peoples testimony is law, I'm saying it means there needs to be further investigation and they can't just be written off as wrong. and no, me and the other person in that chat both agree on the key element, we both agree that merging inspirations to the next highest tier was possible and was a feature that was taken out sometime between launch and sunset. He seems to believe it was a feature at the time of Issue 0, I was not around at issue 0 so I have no way to argue, I just have to take his word for it. I was however around in 2006 for whatever issue that was (I forget), Heroes and villains and in that time I also experienced the same effect he is proposing was available earlier. so this is 2 accounts of the same thing. so this is a situation where we need more investigation to know who is right or wrong.

 

I have asked for help, not from the former devs, but from a trustworthy CoX historian. I too will be searching for any reference to the game prior to freedom.. we will unover the answer, even if I have to wade through customer service to try to leave a message and hope positron replies.

[Lines]

This is an odd thread.

 

I was around from somewhere about issue 2 or 3. I always right click and use the interface to combine my insps, always have, not used a macro. If this was a feature I'd have used it all the time.

 

There's merit in the idea, but the ease by which someone could head to a hospital, fill their inventory with tier 3 purples between every map and never die would totally mess with the game. We're talking to the point of making IO set bonuses obsolete. If any way to purchase insps were removed and they were obtained totally randomly, the idea could work. But since they come at a cheap price, you couldn't justify their value.

[Joshex]

8 minutes ago, Lines said:

This is an odd thread.

 

I was around from somewhere about issue 2 or 3. I always right click and use the interface to combine my insps, always have, not used a macro. If this was a feature I'd have used it all the time.

 

There's merit in the idea, but the ease by which someone could head to a hospital, fill their inventory with tier 3 purples between every map and never die would totally mess with the game. We're talking to the point of making IO set bonuses obsolete. If any way to purchase insps were removed and they were obtained totally randomly, the idea could work. But since they come at a cheap price, you couldn't justify their value.

I nullified this point already by pointing out that you can buy them from the auction house as well (for cheap). so it's really moot point where you get them from. so, why not ireinstate the old feature? and I am sure that this was a feature I remember it. I am searching for evidence. thats how certain I am, I am that certain it was a feature that I should be able to find something.

 

what I have to ask, is whats your damage? why does it pain you so much that you must attack the credibility of a feature in a game that I didn't even make that I'm just remembering?

[Lines]

9 minutes ago, Joshex said:

I nullified this point already by pointing out that you can buy them from the auction house as well (for cheap). so it's really moot point where you get them from. so, why not ireinstate the old feature? and I am sure that this was a feature I remember it. I am searching for evidence. thats how certain I am, I am that certain it was a feature that I should be able to find something.

 

what I have to ask, is whats your damage? why does it pain you so much that you must attack the credibility of a feature in a game that I didn't even make that I'm just remembering?

 

No personal response at all, and happy to be proven wrong if there's something out there to show it. It's just an impossibly OP feature to have existed, particularly for CoH's early game design philosophy.

 

Folks would have been up in arms had it existed and then vanished, like with ED.

 

As for the cost, it would be 9000 inf to fill your inventory with tier 3s if you could combine to the next tier. Quick glance at tier 3 purple in the AH right now is 100,000 for one tier 3 inf, making it currently a 2mil cost to do the same. That's a very substantial difference.

Edited January 18, 2020 by Lines

[Joshex]

heres evidence, watch any old video from 11 or 12 years ago, thier insp tray is almost chock full of big insps (3rd tier) why would it be so common, why would they use them frivilously? simple, they could make them.

[Vanden]

Tier 3 inspirations were easy to get prior to the addition of inspiration storage (issue 6) in bases by running Kora Fruit missions. That's how people would fill their trays with them back in the day.

Edited January 18, 2020 by Vanden

[Joshex]

2 minutes ago, Vanden said:

Tier 3 inspirations were easy to get prior to the addition of inspiration storage (issue 6) in bases by running Kora Fruit missions. That's how people would fill their trays with them back in the day.

you know what, I'm not even going to argue with you, it's clear to me you don't remember correctly, and have some animus against this concept because you seem to think maybe they are profitable in the AH or because you think it'll make it too easy to get them. and no it doesn't matter the cost because you can only have one tray of them. weather it's from AH or self made. besides the devs here don't encourage market price gouging, they actively prohibit it by ensuring prices are low for consumables like salvage, SOs DOs etc. so why not insps? again it doesn't matter how cheap or expensive they are the player still has to go spend the time to get/make them. It takes longer to make them IMO. you'd have to trade things back and forth by email to get a full tray not something you can do on a whim or between missions especially timed or masters runs..

[Vanden]

I think you're really overestimating how much time it would take to accumulate tons of tier 3 inspirations. You could set up a bind to upgrade the inspirations, then mash the Buy button at a store at the same time as the bind and have a full tray in about 5 seconds, maybe. You could then email them yourself to bypass the tray size limit, which takes only a little longer.

Edited January 18, 2020 by Vanden

[Joshex]

1 hour ago, Vanden said:

I think you're really overestimating how much time it would take to accumulate tons of tier 3 inspirations. You could set up a bind to upgrade the inspirations, then mash the Buy button at a store at the same time as the bind and have a full tray in about 5 seconds, maybe. You could then email them yourself to bypass the tray size limit, which takes only a little longer.

nope you'd run out of space, you'd have at best 2 tier 2s and tier 1 clogging you from filling it completely. And maybe just maybe they NEVER had it allowed as a macro for this very reason. so there is that option, just don't include it as a macro option but include it as a selectable option. I never used macros, so I have no clue if it was allowed in macro. you'd also have to do it strategically not spamming, if you filled up the whole tray with tier 1s from vendor, lets say 5x4 slots, /3 = 6.66667 so you'd have one left over as a tier 1 and 6 tier 2s, enough to make 2 tier 3s, and 13 empty slots. if you continued to spam buy and not convert to t3 you'd run out of space with a tray almost full of t2s and 2 t1s. you'd then have to convert to t3s which would yield 6 t3s, with a left over 2 t1s, spamming yet again to fill up on t1s you'd have to convert to t2s again with only 14 slots to combine in, which yields 4 more t2s and a t1 leftover, if you convert to t3 you'd gain 1 extra t3 (7 total) have a t2 and a t1 left over and 12 empty slots. you can see how this would be cumbersome.

 

Edit 5x4 not x3..

next lets assume you wanted multiple types of t3s, blue, green, yellow, red, purple. you'd have to not spam now, you'd have to buy exactly 12 t1 blue, make 4 t3 blue, then with 16 spaces left over buy 12 t1 green, it checks out, now you have combined 4 t3 green, now you have 12 slots again it checks out you can combine 12 yellow to make 4 t3 yellow, now you have 8 slots... it does not check out. you need 12. now you need to email completed reds ones to yourself one at a time to make room for the next batch. then there's purple that will be tight.

 

it's a slow process. it's not realistic to do by "spamming keys" you need to think about what you are doing.

Edited January 18, 2020 by Joshex

[Joshex]

1 hour ago, Joshex said:

nope you'd run out of space, you'd have at best 2 tier 2s and tier 1 clogging you from filling it completely. And maybe just maybe they NEVER had it allowed as a macro for this very reason. so there is that option, just don't include it as a macro option but include it as a selectable option. I never used macros, so I have no clue if it was allowed in macro. you'd also have to do it strategically not spamming, if you filled up the whole tray with tier 1s from vendor, lets say 5x4 slots, /3 = 6.66667 so you'd have one left over as a tier 1 and 6 tier 2s, enough to make 2 tier 3s, and 13 empty slots. if you continued to spam buy and not convert to t3 you'd run out of space with a tray almost full of t2s and 2 t1s. you'd then have to convert to t3s which would yield 6 t3s, with a left over 2 t1s, spamming yet again to fill up on t1s you'd have to convert to t2s again with only 14 slots to combine in, which yields 4 more t2s and a t1 leftover, if you convert to t3 you'd gain 1 extra t3 (7 total) have a t2 and a t1 left over and 12 empty slots. you can see how this would be cumbersome.

 

Edit 5x4 not x3..

next lets assume you wanted multiple types of t3s, blue, green, yellow, red, purple. you'd have to not spam now, you'd have to buy exactly 12 t1 blue, make 4 t3 blue, then with 16 spaces left over buy 12 t1 green, it checks out, now you have combined 4 t3 green, now you have 12 slots again it checks out you can combine 12 yellow to make 4 t3 yellow, now you have 8 slots... it does not check out. you need 12. now you need to email completed reds ones to yourself one at a time to make room for the next batch. then there's purple that will be tight.

 

it's a slow process. it's not realistic to do by "spamming keys" you need to think about what you are doing.

Spoiler

20 t1 / 3  = 6 t2, 1 t1, 13 empty slots

if you were spamming the t1 to t2 macro, you'd continue:

+13 t1 (14)/ 3 = +4 t2 (10), 1 t1, 9 spaces left over

+9 t1 (10)/3 = +3 t2 (13), 1 t1, 5 spaces left over

+5 t1 (6)/3= +2 t2 (15), 5 spaces left

+5 t1 /3 = +1 t2(16), 2 t2, 2 spaces left.

+2 t1 (4)/3 = +1 t2(17), 1 t1, 2 spaces left.

+2 t1 (3)/3 = +1 t2(18), 2 spaces left

+2 t1.. cannot operate. need 3.

 

begin spamming the t2 to t3 macro

18 t2 /3 = 6 t3, 2t1, 12 spaces left

no more t2 left begin t1 to t2 macro again

+12 t1 (14)/3 = +4 t2, 6t3, 2t1, 8 spaces left

 

from here you're basically doing 6 t1 at a time painstakingly. it's tedious, you'll make your macro spamming finger tired. eventually you'll give up and realize you want to spend time playing the game not preparing to play, and buy from AH instead. the feature is not quick, it's slow, it's for people who have the time and patience.

Edit: continued

+8 t1(10)/3 = +3 t2 (7), 6t3, 1t1, 6 slots left

+6 t1(7)/3 = +2 t2 (9), 6t3, 2t1, 3 slots left

+3 t1(5)/3 = +1 t2 (10), 6t3, 2t1, 2 slots left

+2 t1(4)/3 = +1 t2 (11), 6t3, 1t1, 1 slot left

+1 t1(2).. not enough

 

t2 to t3 macro

11/3 = +3 t3(9), 1t2, 2 t1, 8 spaces left

t1 to t2 macro

+8 t1(10)/ 3 = +3t2(4), 9 t3, 1 t1, 6 spaces left

+6 t1 (7)/3 = +2t2(6), 9t3, 1t1, 4 spaces left

+4 t1 (5)/3 = +1t2(7), 9t3, 2t1, 2 spaces left

+2t1 (4)/3 = +1 t2(8), 9t3, 1t1, 2 spaces left

+2 t1 (3)/3 = +1 t2(9), 9t3, 2 spaces

+2t1.. can't go any further.

 

t2 to t3 macro

9/3 = +3 t3(12), 8 spaces empty

t1 to t2 macro

+8 t1/3 = +2 t2, 12 t3, 2t1, 4 spaces empty

+4 t1(6)/3 = +2 t2(4), 12 t3, 4 spaces left

+4 t1/3 = +1 t2(5), 12 t3, 1t1, 2 spaces left

+2 t1(3)/ 3=  +1 t2(6), 12 t3, 2 spaces left

+2 t1.. not enough

 

t2 to t3 macro

6/3 = +2 t3 (14) 6 spaces left

t1 to t2 macro

+6 t1/3 = +2 t2, 14t3, 4 spaces left

+4t1/3 = +1 t2(3), 14t3, 1t1, 2 spaces left

+2 t1(3)/3 = +1 t2(4), 14t3, 2 spaces left

+2 t1, not enough

 

t2 to t3 macro

4/3 = +1 t3(15), 1t2, 4 spaces left

t1 to t2 macro

+4t1/3 = +1t2(2), 15t3, 1t1, 2 spaces left

+2t1(3)/3 = +1t2(3), 15 t3, 2 spaces left

+2 t1.. not enough

 

t2 to t3 macro

3/3 = +1 t3 (16), 2 t1, 2 spaces left

t1 to t2 macro

+2 t1(4)/3 = +1t2, 16t3, 1t1, 2 spaces left

+2t1(3)/3 = +1 t2(2), 16t3, 2 spaces left

+2 t1.. not enough.

 

t2 to t3  macro...

can't! 2 t2, need 3!

+1 t1.. can;t do anything..

email yourself 2 t2s separately

+2 more t1(3), make 1 t2 email

bring back the other 2 t2 from email

combine 3 t2 to 1 t3 = +1 t3(17)

3 spots left buy 3 t1, convert to t2 email t2 to self, repeat 2 more times

get back from email, combine and email to self 1 t3 (18 total)

3 spots left buy 3 t1, convert to t2 email t2 to self, repeat 2 more times

get back from email combine to 1 t3, email to self (19 total)

3 spots left buy 3 t1, convert to t2 email t2 to self, repeat 2 more times

get back from email and convert to t3 get other 2 t3s from email

20 t3 same color.

full sequence of combinations necessary for single color tray full. can't spam that. have to think

Edited January 18, 2020 by Joshex

[Joshex]

also the p2w doesn't work for me, I don't want to block or ban any insp level! they are useful in a pinch when you've used up what you came in with!. better to have them than waiting on something bigger you may never get.

[Seroster01]

I'd like to chime in that I was personally very confused when I went to convert Insp on HC & saw that there wasn't an option to combine 3 insp to do a tier-up. I stared at the combine UI for a good bit trying to see what I was missing.

 

So, FWIW, I also have a memory of this feature. But I have no idea when in this was in terms of the game's lifecycle, and/or when it would've been changed. Very early? Very late? I have no idea, I just remember that I did it quite a bit at some point.