test content
  • Games
  • Social
  • Arc News
  • Support
  • Zen
What is the Arc Client?
Install Arc
Forums > Home› Feedback› Duty Officer System and R&D

The gating of R&D really sucks

umbergreyumbergrey Member Posts: 29 Arc User
in Duty Officer System and R&D
I'm a casual player, and so even though I futz around with R&D whenever I'm on, I have two schools at level 15.

And for there to be so few DOFFs that allow the really good R&D projects is ridiculously lame. When I got beams up to 15, I bought the DOFF I needed for 360 beams from the exchange for 20 million EC give or take. That was a bit silly. But now that I have Engineering to level 15, there is one Aegis NPC and no one has him for sale.

What the what is with this? It doesn't seem fun. It doesn't even seem like something that makes Cryptic money.

Comments

  • narthaisnarthais Member Posts: 452 Arc User
    The AEGIS shield doff is a known issue, cryptic did a giveaway a while back where they handed a doff for it out to anyone that wanted to claim it, it was limited time and bound though, they really need to open those ultra specialist doffs up a little more, keep them rare sure but they need to be at least available on a regular basis.
  • neomodiousneomodious Member Posts: 428 Arc User
    The aegis DOFF can still drop from the request R&D materials mission at the academy, but is bind to character, so it can't be traded or sold.​​
  • umbergreyumbergrey Member Posts: 29 Arc User
    The odds of it dropping must be ridiculous because I've done that mission many times and haven't gotten it. In fact, I've never gotten anything but common DOFFs from that assignment. And I do it every time it comes up, which isn't often with a 48 hour mission and 48 hour cooldown.

    And again, why the heck would they do this? You grind your way up to level 15, and you STILL can't do the coolest thing about level 15 R&D unless you follow an extremely narrow path that has very little chance of even happening.

    And if I could see an upside for Cryptic, even something as crass as "we want you to buy the DOFFs for top flight R&D gear" I'd at least understand. But I see no upside for anyone involved in gating R&D content this punitively.
  • robin74robin74 Member Posts: 114 Arc User
    umbergrey wrote: »
    The odds of it dropping must be ridiculous because I've done that mission many times and haven't gotten it.
    Actually, my experience is that Gumarre drops more often than any other doff you can get in this mission.
    I ran the mission 613 times and got him 13 times.

  • gradiigradii Member Posts: 2,824 Arc User
    edited November 2015
    robin74 wrote: »
    umbergrey wrote: »
    The odds of it dropping must be ridiculous because I've done that mission many times and haven't gotten it.
    Actually, my experience is that Gumarre drops more often than any other doff you can get in this mission.
    I ran the mission 613 times and got him 13 times.

    I'm sorry but 13 out of 613 tries is still a retardedly low chance.

    This would take you over a year or 2 just to run this mission 100 or 200 times.
    "He shall be my finest warrior, this generic man who was forced upon me.
    Like a badass I shall make him look, and in the furnace of war I shall forge him.
    he shall be of iron will and steely sinew.
    In great armour I shall clad him and with the mightiest weapons he shall be armed.
    He will be untouched by plague or disease; no sickness shall blight him.
    He shall have such tactics, strategies and machines that no foe will best him in battle.
    He is my answer to cryptic logic, he is the Defender of my Romulan Crew.
    He is Tovan Khev... and he shall know no fear."
  • abcde123123abcde123123 Member Posts: 342 Arc User
    argument is kinda flawed...

    You need a rare doff to craft a rare item to sell it for a pretty penny. If the doff was common anyone could get it and anyone can craft that item. As a consequence it will not be so rare and the price will go down.

    Gummarre drops very often nearly all my toons got it and I only run that mission for few weeks in the past when you could make 20m profits per run :)
    STF Elite Advanced Tactics
  • robin74robin74 Member Posts: 114 Arc User
    gradii wrote: »
    I'm sorry but 13 out of 613 tries is still a retardedly low chance.
    Well, that's your opinion. Personally, I'm perfectly fine with that drop rate. And 13 is already more than I can reasonably use.

  • lucho80lucho80 Member Posts: 6,600 Bug Hunter
    umbergrey wrote: »
    The odds of it dropping must be ridiculous because I've done that mission many times and haven't gotten it. In fact, I've never gotten anything but common DOFFs from that assignment. And I do it every time it comes up, which isn't often with a 48 hour mission and 48 hour cooldown.

    And again, why the heck would they do this? You grind your way up to level 15, and you STILL can't do the coolest thing about level 15 R&D unless you follow an extremely narrow path that has very little chance of even happening.

    And if I could see an upside for Cryptic, even something as crass as "we want you to buy the DOFFs for top flight R&D gear" I'd at least understand. But I see no upside for anyone involved in gating R&D content this punitively.

    Actually, if you do it every day, it will eventually drop, and no, it's not that rare. Way better chances of it dropping than ship traits form a lock box.
  • fovrelfovrel Member Posts: 1,448 Arc User
    I agree with the OP. Leveling up R&D is one thing and I don't mind if it takes some time, but when you took the time, the patience, you are still not there. I like crafting, but I haven't made anything I am using right now. The overall effort you have to put into it and the fact that you can get fairly good items by doing just some missions. make the system for me a failure.
  • chastity1337chastity1337 Member Posts: 1,606 Arc User
    lucho80 wrote: »
    umbergrey wrote: »
    The odds of it dropping must be ridiculous because I've done that mission many times and haven't gotten it. In fact, I've never gotten anything but common DOFFs from that assignment. And I do it every time it comes up, which isn't often with a 48 hour mission and 48 hour cooldown.

    And again, why the heck would they do this? You grind your way up to level 15, and you STILL can't do the coolest thing about level 15 R&D unless you follow an extremely narrow path that has very little chance of even happening.

    And if I could see an upside for Cryptic, even something as crass as "we want you to buy the DOFFs for top flight R&D gear" I'd at least understand. But I see no upside for anyone involved in gating R&D content this punitively.

    Actually, if you do it every day, it will eventually drop, and no, it's not that rare. Way better chances of it dropping than ship traits form a lock box.

    How does one do it every day, when it takes 48 hours? Liberal Arts major?

  • robin74robin74 Member Posts: 114 Arc User
    chastity1337 wrote: »
    How does one do it every day, when it takes 48 hours?
    It actually takes 96 hours. 48 for the mission plus another 48 cooldown.
    You can do it on multiple toons, though. That's the way to run it every day.

  • neomodiousneomodious Member Posts: 428 Arc User
    robin74 wrote: »
    chastity1337 wrote: »
    How does one do it every day, when it takes 48 hours?
    It actually takes 96 hours. 48 for the mission plus another 48 cooldown.
    You can do it on multiple toons, though. That's the way to run it every day.

    though gumarre is bind on pickup, so he can't transfer.​​
  • welcome2earfwelcome2earf Member Posts: 1,746 Arc User
    The Gumerre that you get as a drop from the Doff mission should be unbound. The oens you get for just joining the R&D system should stay bound.
    T93uSC8.jpg
  • lucho80lucho80 Member Posts: 6,600 Bug Hunter
    edited December 2015
    I'm going to be honest, I got most of the R&D specialists on the cheap from the Year of Hell lockbox I think, and some before people realized their value when they first came out. My advice, if they ever release another lockbox with a bunch of R&D specialists in it, get them once prices come down. Frankly, it's cheaper to get a lot of the items off the Exchange than trying to make them with some exceptions because of specific mods.

    If anyone wants me to craft some random level 15 item, just throw me the mats and I'll do it. I have 5 toons and level 20 in all schools (4-6 schools at level 20 in each of those 5 toons). I'll show you the item while it's pending and mail it to you once it completes. I'll only take 1-2 requests a day and it has to be between 9:00AM-9:30AM US ET. Any later than that and I've kicked off the daily on all my toons.

    And don't worry, I don't need or want to stay with your items. I run science builds, not DPS builds, and they're exactly as I want them already on the 2 toons I use. Well, the PvP drain toon has three builds (PrtG, Grav, and Flow) and they're all set with gold consoles anyway. Working on a super snooper Nebula ATM. Just need to save for 1 fleet module or sell some of my investment lockbox stuff.
  • whiteknight1xwhiteknight1x Member Posts: 187 Arc User
    edited December 2015
    abcde123123 wrote: »
    argument is kinda flawed...

    You need a rare doff to craft a rare item to sell it for a pretty penny. If the doff was common anyone could get it and anyone can craft that item. As a consequence it will not be so rare and the price will go down.

    Gummarre drops very often nearly all my toons got it and I only run that mission for few weeks in the past when you could make 20m profits per run :)

    I agreed. These things need to be hard to get, otherwise the whole R&D economy falls apart.
  • cidjackcidjack Member Posts: 2,017 Arc User
    umbergrey wrote: »
    I'm a casual player, and so even though I futz around with R&D whenever I'm on, I have two schools at level 15.

    And for there to be so few DOFFs that allow the really good R&D projects is ridiculously lame. When I got beams up to 15, I bought the DOFF I needed for 360 beams from the exchange for 20 million EC give or take. That was a bit silly. But now that I have Engineering to level 15, there is one Aegis NPC and no one has him for sale.

    What the what is with this? It doesn't seem fun. It doesn't even seem like something that makes Cryptic money.

    Cryptic provides you the ability auto complete each R&D mission by paying dil. It takes 28 months without passing on each XP project to level all schools to level 20. It is not designed for you to be a master of it over night. It IS designed to be a dil sink.

    Grind or Pay, it is your choice.
    Armada: Multiplying fleet projects in need of dilithium by 13."
    95bced8038c91ec6f880d510e6fd302f366a776c4c5761e5f7931d491667a45e.jpgvia Imgflip Meme Generator
Sign In or Register to comment.