CTA: Battle for the Bridge; From Bad to Worse's first impressions

runes2001

From Bad to Worse gives our first impressions of the latest CTA event. We're giving away prizes including an enchanted key, details are in the video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7tbqX3mG84

tourage16

last CTA I was doing in 2 minutes, so no, this is not the shortest CTA

fgreyspear

I enjoyed the previous CTA more.

The Battle for the Bridge CTA is not more than a trimmed down version of the skirmish. Yet do parties with many low level characters fail hard at it. I saw a couple of players actually setting up a portable altar in the middle of the bridge to tank the damage, which cracked me. Some ran into the wrong direction after a fight and weren't seen for more than a minute or two.

Either one ends up in a good party and clears the bridge very fast or it becomes slow and frustrating - for both high and low level characters. The low level chars struggle and the high level chars run around trying to fix as much as possible. There is however not much else going on.

reiwulf

I like the event, it's harder than others. I've actually died a few times with random pugs. With organized groups it's much easier though.
I hate the last boss though, 50% of the time he has a red circle under his feet, and I can't attack him properly without getting my hearlth drained (if I don't have ITC aviable)

runes2001

So far from what I've seen a decent group can trash this skirmish, a pair including a GWF and a TR boss rushed and finished faster then 5 min. While the mobs are tougher then other skirmishers its super linear.

zebular

runes2001 wrote: »

So far from what I've seen a decent group can trash this skirmish, a pair including a GWF and a TR boss rushed and finished faster then 5 min. While the mobs are tougher then other skirmishers its super linear.

. . . Yeah, so far I've ran it about 50 times on all my 15 characters that range from 32 to 60. Only one match did we struggle but that was because two of us were the only 60's, the rest were quite low level. On top of that, poor Ambi forgot he didn't even have any dailies slotted and wasn't equipped for PvE. So, I ended up pulling the group through the battle on my GWF with Ambi pulling up my slack.

. . . It took us about 20 minutes or more and we all wiped at least 10 times over. We did eventually get more organized and the party ended up kicking butt the last time we went at the boss. Other than that one hiccup, this has become one of my favorites. I still really love Orc Assault though. My favorite skirmish remains Dread Legion though. Can't wait for that one to hit as a CTA.

. . . I have to say though, I've met so many forum posters running this event, it's been great and probably plays a part on why I've enjoyed this one so much, getting to meet many of you guys and gals in game and fighting along side you. I even had an awesome chat with a former poster here, that was pretty sweet. You know who you are, chat at me anytime.

hustin1

My only toon is an HR, so I can only speak from that perspective. If most of the group is 60 like me then I can concentrate on keeping the battlefield clear of trash mobs and going after the boss otherwise. If the group is mostly low-level, though, I often find myself switching roles -- tanking the boss (lots and lots of running around) while the rest of the group deals with the trash mobs. In those parties I've had to use the Eye of Lathander a lot, but we seem to get through in about the same amount of time.

tornnomar

I take a look at the party composition and player levels before I decide what role I'm going to take with a particular character.
All in all I enjoy this skirmish, one thing I wish though would be for skippable cutscenes. But even that's not too much of a biggie.
All in all, I think its another fun distraction, and getting the Medallions all go to the Refiners Cache. Win-Win for me!

rickcase276

I only had problems with the first time I ran it taking forever. But that was because we ended up with only a party of 4, and it was 2 DCs, a TR and a HR. I ended up the second highest damage dealer with my cleric, only the TR did more damage. The TR ended up dying once, but that was more because he aggroed the last boss into a bad place. Now yes, people do need to learn what the blue circles are on the ground, with a DC in the party, but some do not realize it heals them I think. But all and all not the hardest CTA to run, as I have yet to die.

thorsgate

Like every other CTA event....it isn't balanced for high level players. I am so sick and tired of level 60 characters running wild and leaving the lower level characters to suffer. They consistently go after the bosses, and leave the mobs for the lower levels to battle, and most of the time they die. I would like to see events where any level 60 character, attacking without the rest of the party, is immediately killed; even if they are in pairs. The whole point of the event is a team function, just as the dungeons are, but it rarely plays out that way. Hopefully the devs will get around to "fixing" this problem in the future.

runes2001

Thorsgate, while I played my CW I only found that to be the case once, the other times everyone seemed to switch to adds as they spawned, maybe I got lucky. On the other hand, even though it's not optimized, when I play my GF I always try and save an enforce threat to deal with the adds and drag them back to the boss, it seems to work out pretty well.

bioshrike

thorsgate wrote: »

Like every other CTA event....it isn't balanced for high level players. I am so sick and tired of level 60 characters running wild and leaving the lower level characters to suffer. They consistently go after the bosses, and leave the mobs for the lower levels to battle, and most of the time they die. I would like to see events where any level 60 character, attacking without the rest of the party, is immediately killed; even if they are in pairs. The whole point of the event is a team function, just as the dungeons are, but it rarely plays out that way. Hopefully the devs will get around to "fixing" this problem in the future.

Then step up and form your own team. Don't rely on a random PUG to carry or protect you. You can't count on a queue-built team to play the way you want, or to have a tremendous amount of cohesion.

elusiveonen7

bioshrike wrote: »

Then step up and form your own team. Don't rely on a random PUG to carry or protect you. You can't count on a queue-built team to play the way you want, or to have a tremendous amount of cohesion.

I've found that I can't even count on a team built from the legit channel to not have a least one person running directly to bosses. The adds actually do damage, and it helps everyone to kill them. Thorsgate is mostly right, but it also works the other way around. Just as it's tough for lowbies when a 60 isn't being a team player, my hunter ends up pulling aggro from everything and kiting the entire time if I am the only 60. This CTA is still slightly over-tuned even if they nerfed it, the bosses aren't the problem, it's the adds. Then again, isn't it always the adds? Cryptic isn't tip top when it comes to dungeon design.

arturoakheart

My experiences: (with over 1k medallions per char and 6 chars trying for the fairy) Got ONE fairy!!!!
1 Cutscenes - died a number of times fighting spawns when cutscene 'froze' me. (how about a preview cutscene when you enter and just before you get to chest and none to interrupt combat.)
2 chest - heard a number complain that it is too close to exit portal (they exited trying to open the chest)
3. Spawns -WOW died to those so many times with each char/class ;-) Flame ones are especially mean.
4 Speed of mobs vs speed of scared silly, almost dead, player char trying desparately to run and heal. (all classes) Flame mobs won all but GWF races. I still think we need a 'sprint' option rather than random direction dodge - for ALL classes not just GWF.
5 Companion prize. WHAT? can't buy a bound version??? Price of chest (tradeable version) is already over 40k in AH. This is NOT good for the economy.
6. "Flame weaps and armors" prize. Poor low levels especially those NOT in guilds with the extra bank space to keep that stuff since they change gear so quickly. (fashion items might have been more desireable.)

Overall. Great event and much appreciated attempt at an in-game themed change of pace.

Oh and I have been in all pug groups - some great: with all but me 60 level and some with 7 - 58 level chars (I had the 58!!): Party made sure all the spawns were gone before going for the next boss, and everyone was healed and ready. Some not so good (same types of char groupings) It is infuriating when the group has 1 or 2 60 levels and those run boss to boss and abandon the rest of the party to the spawns, but gaming is like that...

aulduron

I've found that I can't even count on a team built from the legit channel to not have a least one person running directly to bosses. The adds actually do damage, and it helps everyone to kill them.

Bring those mobs to the CW or GWF.

The cut scenes need to go.

icyclass

elusiveonen7 wrote: »

My hunter ends up pulling aggro from everything and kiting the entire time if I am the only 60.

In my experience any HR always pulls aggro from everything.
The infuriating thing is when they kite them all away from the rest of the party. As a melee class I can only interpret that as the HR saying "yo, I got this".

runes2001

I have to agree, the cut scenes were nice, once, but since there's no narrative they become pointless rather quick. On the other hand I've been saved by the cut scenes as power and stamina recharge during them and I've escaped with slivers of life a few times.
As an FYI our counter on youtube seems to be stuck and we've been assured its still counting views. With about 20 hours left I really think we'll make our goal.