Thanks For The Gift, Can I Give It Back?

[Rudra]

Because constantly getting patrol xp no matter where I go or what I do with a character wasn't enough, now you set it up so that getting an explore also grants patrol xp. And it grants more patrol xp than it previously gave regular xp. As a frustrated and increasingly bitter player when it comes to patrol xp, let me just sarcastically say 'thank you' for that. Just I what I always (never) wanted, yet more ways to get patrol xp.

 

Now, to be clear, I'm not asking for a reversion, beyond my usual complaint of 'please let me stop having to have patrol xp shoved down my throat'. I'm sure it goes without saying considering how often I've already complained about patrol xp in this game. So all this post is, is just my (negative) feedback about yet more ways to get patrol xp on my characters. At least when it was regular xp, I could not get it by having my xp turned off. Now however? Now I have to get xp from the explore badges because it is now patrol xp and there is still no way to not get it. (I checked.) So again, a very frustrated, embittered, and sarcastic 'thank you' for explores awarding patrol xp.

 

(To be completely fair though? So far, that seems to be my only complaint about the new update. I mean, other than the oil paintings look like something on the tray but are blobs when I put them on my walls.)

[megaericzero]

Perhaps an option (through the menu or P2W) to disable/decline patrol XP?

[Rudra]

29 minutes ago, megaericzero said:

Perhaps an option (through the menu or P2W) to disable/decline patrol XP?

I don't remember how many times I and others have asked for that. That would be yet another thread for that suggestion though. I'm just giving my feedback on the new way patrol xp is being shoved down players throats.

 

Please bear in mind that I am not asking for others to not respond to this thread. This is the Suggestions and Feedback forum, so reply away. However, I am specifically avoiding making a suggestion on this thread (because I've already asked for various ways to achieve that goal and been shot down every time), so I am just strictly giving my feedback. As too late as it obviously is.

[megaericzero]

Fair enough.

 

Wouldn't use it myself - I run double XP on all my characters from 1 to 50 and guzzle patrol XP like it's water - but power to you.

 

Out of curiosity: why doesn't disabling XP suffice?

[twozerofoxtrot]

4 minutes ago, megaericzero said:

Out of curiosity: why doesn't disabling XP suffice?

It's rude to speak for other people, but I'll tempt decorum in the hope that Rudra feels their issue is seen and known: they have said in the past they don't like being given the exp boost generally because it feels like they're being given something they haven't earned.

[Rudra]

13 minutes ago, megaericzero said:

Fair enough.

 

Wouldn't use it myself - I run double XP on all my characters from 1 to 50 and guzzle patrol XP like it's water - but power to you.

 

Out of curiosity: why doesn't disabling XP suffice?

I'm not following your question. So please bear with me, I'm going to try to answer different interpretations of it.

 

Why doesn't disabling xp suffice to disable patrol xp? I don't know, you need a dev to answer that.

 

Why doesn't disabling xp suffice to appease me? I explained this on a few threads where I requested different takes/approaches to letting players disable patrol xp. I hate patrol xp. I absolutely loathe it. I understand the idea behind why it was introduced, but can't fathom why no method to not partake of it was not added at the same time. I can have my character sitting offline fishing at a pier and I get patrol xp. I can have my character killed and leave the corpse laying in some forgotten gutter and I get patrol xp. There are not words strong enough or vile enough to properly express how I feel about patrol xp. And I can't get away from it. I would spend almost an hour per character I wanted to play any given day, until someone explained the PvP zone method of getting rid of patrol xp relatively quickly, just trying to get rid of it before I would even start anything with that character. (And since I nominally only play for about an hour a day, that means I don't really spend any time playing that day.) So why doesn't disabling xp suffice to appease me when it comes to patrol xp? Because I absolutely can't stand to even see it on my screen. It is an unearned reward. You get just for not playing the game. And to me? That is the single most ridiculous incentive for an MMO ever.

 

Edit: Uhm... what @twozerofoxtrot said.... Thanks.

Edited February 21 by Rudra

[Lockely]

Patrol XP isn't a unique concept to CoH, mind you. It's called Rest XP in every other MMO, and it's a reward for taking a break and checking back in on meatspace so the game doesn't consume your life.

[Parabola]

Along somewhat similar lines I would love s.t.a.r.t options that throttle xp gain to 50% and 25%. No extra inf, no bonus of any kind, just reduce incoming xp. Periodically 

I like to try a 'smell the roses' run through the game and while turning xp off every 5 levels works it doesn't quite hit the mark. I like progress, I just want slower progress.

 

In order for this to work I guess patrol xp would also need to be disabled or it would interfere with these options.

[Vanden]

56 minutes ago, Rudra said:

It is an unearned reward. You get just for not playing the game. And to me? That is the single most ridiculous incentive for an MMO ever.

 

This new source of patrol XP isn't earned for not playing the game, though, but you still hate it?

[megaericzero]

Er, right. I was wondering why disabling normal XP wasn't good enough since it halts all levelling progression, which would include any benefits received from undesired patrol XP.

 

It hadn't crossed my mind that someone would be so opposed to its outright existence that they can't stand to see it but, again, power to you. 👍

[Rudra]

35 minutes ago, Vanden said:

 

This new source of patrol XP isn't earned for not playing the game, though, but you still hate it?

Granted, getting patrol xp from explore badges is essentially being earned since you had to go find the explore badge to get the patrol xp. However, consider this: I spend effort getting rid of patrol xp, and now, there is a new method of getting patrol xp that revolves around something I do: collecting badges. Why wouldn't I hate it?

 

Even when explores awarded regular xp, when I went looking for the explores? I would turn off xp so the explores don't give me xp. And now? Explores give patrol xp so the xp disable setting I relied on for gathering explores no longer helps. At all. And it builds up patrol xp on my character while getting the explores. And per the page update notes? You will gain anywhere from 1.5 bars of patrol xp (at level 1) to 0.25 bars of patrol xp (at level 50) depending on your character level. 1.5 bars!!!! (Edit: And you can't clear even 0.25 bars of patrol xp in just a couple losses at high levels. So congratulations, you got 0.25 bars of patrol xp for finding this explore. Now go die 6 times to get rid of it.) While I know it isn't the devs intent? It feels like a massive middle finger to me (and anyone else that would like to play without patrol xp). Why wouldn't I hate it?

Edited February 21 by Rudra

[Greycat]

Honestly, I'm ... kind of in with Rudra in a *tiny* way - I don't mind patrol XP, but I'm not fond of getting it for hitting exploration badges. Seeing if I could level hitting them was kind of fun. Now? Eh. I don't get why it was changed... but I'm kind of jaded at this point with changes like that having a chance of being reverted once it hits beta.

[sbloyd]

In this case, suicide IS the answer!  Debt erases patrol xp, no?

[PeregrineFalcon]

I liked getting XP for exploring the city. It was IIRC the only non-combat way to get XP. So of course it was taken away.

 

Although, I'll never understand the irrational hate some people on the forums have for patrol XP.

[Coyotedancer]

59 minutes ago, PeregrineFalcon said:

I liked getting XP for exploring the city. It was IIRC the only non-combat way to get XP. So of course it was taken away.

 

Although, I'll never understand the irrational hate some people on the forums have for patrol XP.

 

Agreed, there. On both points.

 

Introducing "solutions in search of a problem" is definitely one of Homecoming's signature things, though, so none of us should be surprised when they do it at this point.  

[UltraAlt]

11 hours ago, Rudra said:

Now, to be clear, I'm not asking for a reversion, beyond my usual complaint of 'please let me stop having to have patrol xp shoved down my throat'. I'm sure it goes without saying considering how often I've already complained about patrol xp in this game. So all this post is, is just my (negative) feedback about yet more ways to get patrol xp on my characters. At least when it was regular xp, I could not get it by having my xp turned off. Now however? Now I have to get xp from the explore badges because it is now patrol xp and there is still no way to not get it. (I checked.) So again, a very frustrated, embittered, and sarcastic 'thank you' for explores awarding patrol xp.

 

Usually, I can get where you are coming from, but I seriously don't understand this one.

Are you intentionally trying to gain debt or something?

 

8 hours ago, Rudra said:

Because I absolutely can't stand to even see it on my screen. It is an unearned reward. You get just for not playing the game. And to me? That is the single most ridiculous incentive for an MMO ever.

 

er... okay ... so are you against day jobs as well?

 

7 hours ago, Rudra said:

While I know it isn't the devs intent? It feels like a massive middle finger to me (and anyone else that would like to play without patrol xp). Why wouldn't I hate it?

 

Maybe you should make a poll.

 

I think there are more people against farming then there are against patrol xp.

I would even wager there are more people upset about not getting the old Wentworth's teleport for the day job for parking in Wentworths ... and that's saying a lot then there is /ah 

[Grouchybeast]

11 hours ago, Rudra said:

Because constantly getting patrol xp no matter where I go or what I do with a character wasn't enough, now you set it up so that getting an explore also grants patrol xp. And it grants more patrol xp than it previously gave regular xp. As a frustrated and increasingly bitter player when it comes to patrol xp, let me just sarcastically say 'thank you' for that. Just I what I always (never) wanted, yet more ways to get patrol xp.

 

I just mentioned you in the patch notes thread, because I thought of you when I saw the patch notes but couldn't remember your name.  FWIW, a way to turn off patrol XP seems like a reasonable request and I hope a dev decides to implement it some time.

[Oubliette_Red]

I also do not understand the change behind this and as I was reading off the patch notes to a friend in Discord, the first thing I said was "There are going to be posts about this."

 

As someone who just finished an all-arc Betrayal run through Praetoria having to toggle XP on/off is a major pita. It's an undarstandable necessity when doing an all-arc run, but the fact that you have to toggle XP when just doing a normal run through Praetoria is a major annoyance, stack Patrol XP on top of that?

 

As suggested by @megaericzero I think a toggle for Patrol XP in S.T.A.R.T. would be handy.

 

[Player2]

8 hours ago, Rudra said:

Granted, getting patrol xp from explore badges is essentially being earned since you had to go find the explore badge to get the patrol xp. However, consider this: I spend effort getting rid of patrol xp, and now, there is a new method of getting patrol xp that revolves around something I do: collecting badges. Why wouldn't I hate it?

 

Even when explores awarded regular xp, when I went looking for the explores? I would turn off xp so the explores don't give me xp. And now? Explores give patrol xp so the xp disable setting I relied on for gathering explores no longer helps. At all. And it builds up patrol xp on my character while getting the explores. And per the page update notes? You will gain anywhere from 1.5 bars of patrol xp (at level 1) to 0.25 bars of patrol xp (at level 50) depending on your character level. 1.5 bars!!!! (Edit: And you can't clear even 0.25 bars of patrol xp in just a couple losses at high levels. So congratulations, you got 0.25 bars of patrol xp for finding this explore. Now go die 6 times to get rid of it.) While I know it isn't the devs intent? It feels like a massive middle finger to me (and anyone else that would like to play without patrol xp). Why wouldn't I hate it?

 

2 hours ago, Greycat said:

Honestly, I'm ... kind of in with Rudra in a *tiny* way - I don't mind patrol XP, but I'm not fond of getting it for hitting exploration badges. Seeing if I could level hitting them was kind of fun. Now? Eh. I don't get why it was changed... but I'm kind of jaded at this point with changes like that having a chance of being reverted once it hits beta.

I am, surprisingly, inclined to agree with Rudra as well.  I am getting sick of all the badge stuff, so anything that downvotes badge-related play is something I will now support.

[Rudra]

1 hour ago, UltraAlt said:

Are you intentionally trying to gain debt or something?

Am I trying to gain debt? For its own sake? No. To get rid of patrol xp? Yes because it is the only way to get rid of patrol xp. (Note that I am saying "get rid of" and not "use".)

 

1 hour ago, UltraAlt said:

er... okay ... so are you against day jobs as well?

I feel like we've previously had this discussion. No, I am not against day jobs. However, unlike patrol xp, with the exception of Patroller/Criminal, a player can choose to not get a day job. Let me try to be clearer with my mind set. A day job is something the character does while offline. So if you have some background that fits with a day job, you go to a place for that day job and after a few days, you get the badge for it. If you don't want it? Then you can just not log off at those locations and you won't get it. Player choice at work, with character background at play. Day job bonuses? Can be ignored and even goes away on its own after a little bit of time. And with the exception of patrol xp, the day job bonuses don't rocket you further along on your levels, increasing the likelihood of missing content unless you turn off xp. And unlike other day job bonuses, patrol xp never goes away until you use it or get rid of it with debt.

 

1 hour ago, UltraAlt said:

 

I think there are more people against farming then there are against patrol xp.

That's a given just from the forum comments I've read over the years. The difference? Farming is a player choice to engage in. Patrol xp is automatically assigned and cannot be avoided. It can only be used or gotten rid of with debt. Even on the threads I've made asking for a means of not having to deal with patrol xp, I think there 5 of us (including myself) that wanted a means of not getting patrol xp. Now if I were to turn said poll around and ask how many people were indifferent to players getting access to a means of not getting patrol xp as opposed to it? The numbers go up by a lot. My reference for that? On all the threads I've made asking for a means of getting rid of or not getting patrol xp? The people opposed were a smaller number than the people in favor, with most of the comments being an indifferent "as long as it is just an option, I'm fine with it".

 

 

Edited February 21 by Rudra
Edited to correct ">" to "?".

[Grouchybeast]

5 hours ago, Oubliette_Red said:

As someone who just finished an all-arc Betrayal run through Praetoria having to toggle XP on/off is a major pita. It's an undarstandable necessity when doing an all-arc run, but the fact that you have to toggle XP when just doing a normal run through Praetoria is a major annoyance, stack Patrol XP on top of that?

 

As suggested by @megaericzero I think a toggle for Patrol XP in S.T.A.R.T. would be handy.

 

It would be nice to have a half-xp option at the S.T.A.R.T. vendor, really.  The early levels go by so fast these days.

[Doc Hornet]

Just out of curiosity, how does P2W (or whatever the new acronym is) bonus XP work with Patrol XP bonus. Do they stack together? Or do they not stack? Does P2W bonus cancel Patrol XP bonus?

[Rudra]

4 minutes ago, Doc Hornet said:

Just out of curiosity, how does P2W (or whatever the new acronym is) bonus XP work with Patrol XP bonus. Do they stack together? Or do they not stack? Does P2W bonus cancel Patrol XP bonus?

Nothing cancels patrol xp. And while I'm not certain, I believe they stack. (To an extent.)

[Acroyear]

Count me amongst those that hate this "free" patrol XP. It is ridiculous. I have to actually turn OFF my XP as to not out level my contacts with this new change, as I keep getting tip after tip for exploration badges. If I use the tip to get to the exploration badge, I then immediately get another tip to an exploration badge and patrol XP. Why? Why do this? Do the Devs want the players to out level content in the game? Also, the constant tip after tip after tip is incredibly annoying. Yeah, I know, I could just skip going to the tip location, but if I don't then it will get overwritten by new tips if I stack up to three. That is also annoying!

Not a fan of this change at all. 

[Glacier Peak]

2 hours ago, Rudra said:

Nothing cancels patrol xp. And while I'm not certain, I believe they stack. (To an extent.)

Debt consumes Patrol XP though.