Opening capsules below level 15ish

[Ukase]

I just wanted to know if it was just me. 
Some of my lowbies are coming across these time capsules, and for my challenge characters that are starting with zero - I figure it's a nifty thing to sell the anniversary tokens. But, my level 4 character, a brute - took forever to dispatch 3 "even con freaks". And then, when I clobbered each of them, they each paid me less xp than a -1 Hellion. Now, that's not a super big deal, didn't do it for the xp - but what got my attention is how much more resilient these npcs are against my lower level characters. They might be conning even, but they have more of a boss feel, as far as the # of attacks it takes to whittle them down. Anyone else noticing this? 

[Eiko-chan]

This is common of invasion spawns that con even to everyone. There's a toughness jump at level 15 and again at 25 to compensate for the transition from TOs to DOs to SOs, so lowbies with TOs and no slots have a real hard time in invasions, who are balanced against SO values.

[Ukase]

Just now, Eiko-chan said:

This is common of invasion spawns that con even to everyone. There's a toughness jump at level 15 and again at 25 to compensate for the transition from TOs to DOs to SOs, so lowbies with TOs and no slots have a real hard time in invasions, who are balanced against SO values.

Yeah, but my characters are running with SOs, starting at level 2. Still, I figured it was something along those lines. Not like I have a whole ton of slots. 

[Glacier Peak]

12 minutes ago, Ukase said:

I just wanted to know if it was just me. 
Some of my lowbies are coming across these time capsules, and for my challenge characters that are starting with zero - I figure it's a nifty thing to sell the anniversary tokens. But, my level 4 character, a brute - took forever to dispatch 3 "even con freaks". And then, when I clobbered each of them, they each paid me less xp than a -1 Hellion. Now, that's not a super big deal, didn't do it for the xp - but what got my attention is how much more resilient these npcs are against my lower level characters. They might be conning even, but they have more of a boss feel, as far as the # of attacks it takes to whittle them down. Anyone else noticing this? 

 

[Ukase]

Well, I reserve the right to be crazy, even if it isn't just me. 

[Doc_Scorpion]

It's not just you...  The "higher level" spawns especially (such as Crey and the Rikti) have heals/buffs that a lower level char would not normally encounter and are unequipped to deal with. 

In my experience "even con" event spawns don't start to actually feel even until somewhere in the late teens/early twenties.  Nowadays, unless I particularly want a badge or something, I wait until a toon is in those levels to go hunting them.

Edited May 15 by Doc_Scorpion

[Luminara]

Even-con code doesn't actually remove an NPC's level, it just adjusts how player characters and NPCs interact.  Rikti spawned during an invasion, for instance, are level 30.  They con white to an Incarnated 50 and a level 1 character, but internally, they're level 30.  Hit chances and damage are adjusted to make them a "fair" fight, but in every other functional way, they're level 30.

 

The time capsule ambushes aren't level 30 internally, they're being pulled from the entire leveling range.  I know they go up to at least 44, because I'm sitting on a level 44 recipe I received for defeating one of them.  I also extrapolated that they went down to at least level 10, because my level 17 character was two-shotting some of them, which I couldn't do to even-cons at that level and with my slotting.  So you can open a capsule and get a level 50 ambush, or you can get a level 10 ambush.  They're both even-con, but one's going to take a few minutes for a lowbie to defeat, the other's going to be wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am.

 

The wide level range is only part of the problem.  Damage scaling below level 20 is lower than it is in the 21-50+ range, so lowbies are double-dinged.  They're potentially fighting enemies with level 50 HP, and their attacks are dealing less damage because their damage scaling hasn't reached the level 21 smoothing out point yet.

 

HC needs to revise this for next year, set up appropriate level-locked enemy groups and pull from those, instead of using existing NPCs pulled from the entire level range.

[Glacier Peak]

1 hour ago, Luminara said:

HC needs to revise this for next year, set up appropriate level-locked enemy groups and pull from those, instead of using existing NPCs pulled from the entire level range.

I'll say that I've seen it stated by a developer in another setting that this will indeed be fixed for next year. 

 

Edited May 15 by Glacier Peak
Spelling

[Wavicle]

Yea, I did sort of wonder why it took 3 players 4 minutes to take down 3 Rikti in Atlas Park.

[srmalloy]

19 hours ago, Glacier Peak said:

I'll say that I've seen it stated by a developer in another setting that this will indeed be fixed for next year. 

...when the 20th anniversary event will be reopened during the month of the 21st anniversary? Heh.

[Doc_Scorpion]

1 hour ago, srmalloy said:

...when the 20th anniversary event will be reopened during the month of the 21st anniversary?

It's planned that this will be an annual celebration of the game's anniversary.

[KMadeleine]

23 hours ago, Luminara said:

The time capsule ambushes aren't level 30 internally, they're being pulled from the entire leveling range.  I know they go up to at least 44, because I'm sitting on a level 44 recipe I received for defeating one of them.  I also extrapolated that they went down to at least level 10, because my level 17 character was two-shotting some of them, which I couldn't do to even-cons at that level and with my slotting.  So you can open a capsule and get a level 50 ambush, or you can get a level 10 ambush.  They're both even-con, but one's going to take a few minutes for a lowbie to defeat, the other's going to be wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am.

Oh!  I wondered why some of my characters have recipes that are higher level than they are.  That would explain it, thanks!