Messages

Nov 3, 2022 9:07:01 GMT -5 fluffyduck said:

So...I was thinking about this for a while, mainly because as of late and I've noticed one thing with the server, which made me shift towards some other games. I sort of didn't have a reasons to login into the game aside of some scheduled RPs and occasional plots, rare as they may be. And truth be told, even though I used to be one of the biggest defenders of the square RP and the dungeoning, with all the things I had around lately, it sort of got draining, getting drawn further and further away from CD. Which I think is a huge shame, because I do enjoy playing with people and roleplaying with them, but the truth is....it stops being fun at some point to cover general square topic n.456 about weather, constant introductions and so on. And with the growing community, if CD is to keep it, I feel like there should be some changes done. To get people more involved so it's not another day of 'I need to get my 300 daily ticks cause I like my main getting stronger' or make army of alts to serve as sort of a copium for you to have something to do while waiting for...something.

It would be nice if the server sort of encouraged players roleplaying among each other. I am not exactly sure how to accomplish that with current system aside of player's initiative stuff where we just go and hang out with each other to have fun. Maybe some sort of weekly quests which make you gather specific things for certain areas due to various circumstances, implementation of crafting system (especially if it was more martial friendly, not relying on things like CL, but skills like craft weapons/craft armours, maybe even create a feat for it which allows you to plant runic enchantments that you first need to find....casters already have so many exp sinks and get lots of funsie stuff).
One other nice thing would be if if something that is similar in UD would start happening in other parts of CD. Have DMs that are dedicated to specific area, running adhocs or some tiny events...'

'Not a single specific one, so they dont feel like they dont get to experience fun, but some of them. Someone you could possibly come to, ask "Hey, could my character do this in the meantime while in this area" and they either gave you approval for it or not. Giving players more things to do and having them feel that they are actually living the world and are actively part of it. And with this I would even add one thing after seeing that builders are being added. That being...adding more DM roles. Some who specialise at running personal quests, some that specialise at running adhocs and so on...cause i feel like that could potentionally draw more people into it.

Idk...I just feel like both players and DMs should have more agency on the server as it is growing. 

I will say that I've been there and done that with how you're feeling dozens of times in my years here. I think it's common and natural. I am *really* empathetic in how you're feeling drained or burned out. Hell, I may be feeling it now. 
First, I will say, that's all ok. And as someone older whose felt this very niche, particular way, I will say, that you *should* play other games. CD offers a couple things that you cannot get anywhere else. However, please don't try(I'm not saying you are, I'll address the suggestions next) to make CD a one stop shop for all of your gaming and creative needs. I've personally been there, and it made this place an unhealthy vacuum for me. It made insignificant things personal, and it made the things it was good at poisoned. So, I will say, while even with the best intentions currently, breaks are healthy and other games are healthy. 

Secondly, I do think recruiting specifically for DMs who are interested in running a majority of personal quests and adhocs is very important for addressing this particular feeling(you and I aren't alone. We are never alone in how we feel on an issue). The admin team would need to address DMXP regarding those things similarly to how they addressed this new builder team regarding DMXP(I don't know if it's changed since I was on team, but adhocs rewarded far, far less monthly XP--so there was an incentive gap). I feel better when I see others participating and getting a piece of the pie, even if I'm already full perse. 

Lastly, you're great and thank you for sharing. 

Jun 4, 2022 1:32:00 GMT -5 DubiousScroll said:

Definitely don't want them to have full BAB but if they could cap at 15-17 that'd be great.

They are currently 3/4, so they cap at 15 pure.

I argued making them full BAB before the weapon changes, but I'm afraid if they're full BAB now, it would be pretty devastating for Monk/ IB/ X now. I had an idea if Ki Strike could give +1 untyped AB like Weapon of Choice. This would help unarmed monks instead of dagger from Monk/ IB/ X. But it won't help monks using kamas or any other weapon.

The benefits of factions is that they are easier implemented into server plots than solo players. They tend to get a larger piece of the contribution pie, from my experience.

Very well done. Thank you for doing this.

Feb 5, 2022 13:59:35 GMT -5 haroshia said:

As a newer player I will say the time seems pretty extreme.  I mean assuming no DM XP, you're looking at 634 days, or roughly 1585 hours of RP XP ticks needed to go from 15-30 with no quests to really help you (assuming you did all your quests pre-15 to get there).  There is no way to get around this with current systems.  I'm not sure how much DM XP is handed out generally, since in the few weeks I've been here I've managed to make one DM event as a participant and got 400 XP, and another as an observer and got 40.  If that's the standard, it seems like DM XP won't really make much of a dent in the time to get 30 besides knocking off a few days over the nearly two years it takes to get there.

To compare to other games on the market people coming here might play(I know, don't throw rotten fruit) WoW takes about 120 hours of playtime to get max level on the high end.  FFXIV is somewhere around 60 I think.  A typical RPG you can beat in 40-80 hours.  A game that's so long people typically burn out on it like Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous is about 140-160 hours.  

If the goal is to get people hovering between 15-20 and have them make alts, then I think this system accomplishes that goal.  If the goal is to get people to develop a character over a longer time rather than having character churn, I think it fails.  I think it will create a pain point and cause burnout for people who are interested in seeing character advancement.  It's not as big of a deal because of the lack of PvP on here, but it can still feel frustrating, especially with gear being level locked acting as a such a big power gap between people of similar levels.  People like seeing numbers go up.  It's pushing against existing paradigms created by the hobby.  

I'm not sure how to propose a solution here that doesn't make me sound like I'm being negative or whining without knowing why this system is here.  What is the problem it's solving?  

If you're in one event a month for that time period and get an average of 500xp(400 for short plots, 600 average, I'd say), you'd get 10,500 dmxp for those 21 months of playing. So, yeah, a majority of your DMXP comes from ticks. Some people are fortunate enough to have the time to play multiple events a month, depending on the DM calender, while others are unfortunate, playing alts, or not interested. 

But you will get a large majority of your DMXP through ticks and not event XP, yes, regardless if the intent is the opposite. 

Paladins aren't mechanically weak. They are mechanically uninteresting.

W.M. Lewis is a native to Eveningstar, patriot of Cormyr, and servant of the church/ spires as a former Aster and current Dawnbringer.

Dec 22, 2021 21:42:52 GMT -5 Aliana said:

Dec 22, 2021 21:11:53 GMT -5 sornduskryn said:

Simple solution.  Ignore the numbers.

How droll. Perhaps there should be a hard mode progression for players that find numbers to be an unwelcome distraction from their more rarefied immersion preferences. Then we may cease to debate whether is is a good thing to be rewarded with experience or if the correct approach is the stoic indifference of a Marcus Aurelius.

More in response to Belladonna; I can understand that from the perspective of the admin staff that it may be assumed that players will remain for 3 or 4 years to 'get there in the end' or 'savour the journey' when it comes to progressing multiple characters but as someone that finds exploring different backgrounds, dispositions and philosophies there is a very tangible feeling that i'm playing the server wrong when I have to spend 9 hours a day to keep progression within the 2 year box.

As someone with dozens and dozens of characters, I can sympathize with this. The last part. The best advice I can have is enjoy your characters and your time. Please don't feel compelled to cap every character or even one character every day. With this system, progress is inevitable if you put in the time. And it'll always be there waiting on you, at least, in tic-form if you can't make events. I've retired four epics now since 2019, and I've still two in my vault and lots of higher teens. It'll come. But please, enjoy yourself, and do explore those different backgrounds and narratives if that's what drives you to make compelling stories for others to share in. It'll come--and if it doesn't, epics aren't a big deal anyway. As others have said, the real meat and potatoes of the server is from levels 13-19ish. 

Weekly caps or resetting bounties are counter intuitive to creating roleplay to me. I'd rather people be on doing little to nothing everyday and be available than grind a weekly once a week or twice a week.

This server may not be set up to reward player initiative very well or player created content, but at the same time, if you're not worried about the reward, or want to be rewarded for other things, then perhaps a perspective change?

If you log in, take initiative to create the RP atmosphere and opportunity you'd like to see and would like to get rewarded for, then the same ticks will do just that for you.

I think giving them +AC late in progression and a couple bonus feats late in progression will help them keep up with Paladin/ X/ Hosp builds. +2 AC at 20, +4 AC at 24. Bonus feats at 23, 26, 29 Paladin. The only reason to go full paladin is for great smite. And well, you need all the feats to make it "worth it". And if you take all those feats, you give up everything else(armor skin, weapon focus, etc).

I think paladin builds otherwise are in an "ok" spot. You can splash hospitaler for bonus feats and dip into a lot of other things.

What makes paladins strong, in general, is that they are a full BAB class with spells and abilities with AB reach. They are a bit self-fulfilling.

Love you, Morwen.

Red Wizard doesn't get heal.

Love you. Call me out if any of it was me. Also you're free to reach out for RP or otherwise as well.

Jun 12, 2021 23:28:48 GMT -5 Nymera said:

I have no particular horse in this race but I'll chime into say that daily login incentives are good for the health of the server as a whole, even if inconvenient for the individuals who cannot play every day.  Daily XP-Fairy is not a perfect system for everyone, but it's the most reasonable one proposed.  

Those who chose to chase XP ticks aren't super relevant to the conversation because people who wish to maximize their XP gain will do so in any system.  Everything can be optimized, and there will always be a disparity between those that choose to do so and those that do not.  More complex systems both demand extra scripting work from staff that have other interests and priorities, and may cause anxiety in players by overcomplicating the system and making them worry they are "missing out" due to rules they don't understand.

Since the purpose of the server is a place to roleplay and tell stories, then it stands to reason that the progression system that encourages and facilitates roleplay the best without being obtrusive should be favored, and in this case, daily XP both encourages a healthy population to log in and is simple enough to understand for casual players to not have to worry about or stress over.

Those are good points. Well said.