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Forums > Home› Test Servers› Tribble› Tribble - General Discussion and Feedback

Purpose now for Exploration missions

SystemSystem Member, NoReporting Posts: 178,019 Arc User
edited October 2011 in Tribble - General Discussion and Feedback
So exactly what purpose do the exploration missions serve in STO after FTP? At one point, they were excellent locations for emblems to get better gear, much more reliably then missions. However with the new dilithium system in place, other then once a day, they no longer serve a major purpose. DOff missions are much more reliable for diplomacy exp. Missions give better gear and experience. Anomalies can be relieably harvested from missions, or simply just vacuuming space in exploration zones with no need to go into missions themselves.

Maybe I'm missing something, but I no longer see any need for the exploration missions other then once a day.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Cuffs wrote: »
    Maybe I'm missing something, but I no longer see any need for the exploration missions other then once a day.

    It's still more fun than doing the story missions for the nth time. Exploration revamp? Please?
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    I do not understand why Dilithium was removed from these missions (meaning the Explore 3 systems here missions that send you to exploration zones, not including B'Tran). I mean, they removed the Marks of Exploration and replaced them with Dilithium. And then they simply removed Dilithium, leaving these missions with nothing more than a tiding of XP and BOff points. There literally is no good reason to do these missions any more. You can get everything you get from them in larger amounts for less time doing Story Missions and working the DOff system.

    :(
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Agreed as is there is no incentive to do the explores at all (unless your wanting to grind out the accolades for each one), and you can level out completely with just story missions, patrols, the borg invasions, the new events and once unlocked finish out with the stf's.

    The explores need a revamp as well as more variety to the "random" missions you get there, hopefully once they start working on opening up sector space as a single universe as planned they will update the explore aswell, and speaking of the actual map needs an update in gen the system list needs to be moved into the galaxy map tab as a side bar list rather than a separate tab imo.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    xth3xr34p3rx wrote: »
    Agreed as is there is no incentive to do the explores at all (unless your wanting to grind out the accolades for each one), and you can level out completely with just story missions, patrols, the borg invasions, the new events and once unlocked finish out with the stf's.

    You can actually skip Patrols, Defend the Sectors and Fleet Actions as well. They don't give enough XP to justify the time it takes to do them. You level faster if you just stick to Story.

    :cool:
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    It never occurred to me to just sit there all day doing Explore missions over and over again. I always did them a few here, and a few there, mixing up my STO time doing different things. Story missions, Patrols, Exploration, a little at a time, for a few hours at a time, once or twice a week (at most). Consequently the new system seems to reward me for doing what I like doing anyway, and (along with the DOff system) gives me a reason to come back and do it every day.

    I can't imagine wanting to "grind" anything, ever. Just doing the same thing, over and over and over for hour after hour. What a drag.

    I like up to about 30-60 minutes of any one thing, whether it's Exploration, the SFA event, Touring the Universe, or playing a particular story mission before I begin to feel like moving on to something else. With the revised STFs, I think I'll begin playing them, too, though probably not for any longer than these other things, at any given time.

    ie: The new system is designed to get casual players (like me) playing the game more frequently (up to daily) and staying longer when we do (I can't seem to resist the 2-hr SFA/TtU event block, if it coincides with when I happen to log in, and several times already I've stayed on an extra hour (or two) longer than I intended because of them), and it's designed to slow down players who do "grind" so that instead of being able to earn a "full set of high-end gear" in a short, solid block of playtime, they're required to spread their "grind" out over a longer period of shorter blocks of play. They're rather have you doing a little of 8 things every day than 1 thing 8 times for a similar result, and they'd rather have you play the game a little bit every day for weeks and months to earn high-end gear than to play the game nonstop for a few days and no longer have anything left to strive for.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    To boldly go where everyone has gone before?

    ... where the real exploration in this fish-bowl game?
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    I also do not understand that nerf of Exploration missions. Yes, they do need updates to bring them up to the same level as other game aspects, but the concept of these type of missions is a good one.

    Exploration clusters should still have daily missions with a delithium reward to make crafting worth while.
    Also, the XP gain is way to low for the time spend now.

    While it is fun to level your first character with missions, it does get boring to do the same steps for multiple characters. Hence, I liked the option to use different ways to get your character through the ranks.

    I hope that XP gain and delithium for daily missions is being looked at for Exploration cluster missions.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    well to me since I have been here from the beginning it seems they are ruining the game more and more. its sad too... all the good Exec's are gone who really cared about the game. All the changes i do not see as a good thing, having to pay real money for ships is ridiculous. Next we will be paying for everything. Put the game back the way it was and add updates that make sense...........
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Perhaps they think crafting is enough reason to do these? :eek:
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Blackavaar wrote: »
    You can actually skip Patrols, Defend the Sectors and Fleet Actions as well. They don't give enough XP to justify the time it takes to do them. You level faster if you just stick to Story.

    :cool:

    I did the patrols that I had at RALH1 since I did not relise you needed to be at DS9 for the mirror universe mission (can't rem the name atm lol) which needs to be made clear in the overview tab imo. But ye I know you can skip them, just saying you still have more incentive to just get them outta the way and off your list :P
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    What crafting? Other then the single daily, there is no real purpose for the exploration missions. Exploration areas yes, missions no. Also, with the DOff system, the new events, the new STFs (when you get there), the patrols, the storyline missions (that you HAVE to do, yes HAVE to do is you want to get to the Gamma Orionis system) you have more then enough exp to get to max level. Since the only way to get decent gear anymore is through dilithium, you can do exploration missions, at the expense of dilithium gathering. My problem isn't that they're not fun, but in pure game terms, serve no purpose anymore. Exp is super low still, and not in line with equal level missions. I know that used to be because of the Emblems we got, but since they don't exist anymore.

    And the exploration missions really aren't any different then the patrol missions either.

    My suggestion is to give each three some mission completion like 5 dilithium. Makes it somewhat worthwhile, while not overbalancing the system.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Cuffs wrote: »
    My suggestion is to give each three some mission completion like 5 dilithium. Makes it somewhat worthwhile, while not overbalancing the system.

    With the conversion of marks to dilithium you'd thought they added various dilithium rewards to the missions anyway. Low dilithium reward for low level exploration missions, higher reward for high level.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    They must have thought PvP was a good model - you never had a repeatable hourly mission there to grind Emblems. If all you cared for was PvP, you got 3 Emblems per day and that's it. (And this is exactly what I have done.)

    I want half-hourlies or hourlies for PvP, Foundry and Exploration. I want everyone to have an option to "grind" the way he likes. This is even exactly what dstahl said would happen. But instead, we only have Dailies. Which means to optimize Dilithium grinding, you must do 3 Explores, 3 PvP matches, a few PvE repeatables, and DOFF, every day. If you log in only on week-ends, to bad for you, you get just 2/5th of the Dilithium the players that log in daily get - even if you put in more time overall.

    Here is my thread on the topic: http://forums.startrekonline.com/showpost.php?p=3830915&postcount=1
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    KitsuneRommel wrote:
    It's still more fun than doing the story missions for the nth time. Exploration revamp? Please?

    Not until they decide to let us skip story missions. Right now they are chained and you will TRIBBLE yourself later on if you skip them and do explore missions instead.

    Nothing like being told you can't enter Borg space because you don't know what happened, on that character, in previous arcs.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Cuffs wrote: »
    So exactly what purpose do the exploration missions serve in STO after FTP? At one point, they were excellent locations for emblems to get better gear, much more reliably then missions. However with the new dilithium system in place, other then once a day, they no longer serve a major purpose. DOff missions are much more reliable for diplomacy exp. Missions give better gear and experience. Anomalies can be relieably harvested from missions, or simply just vacuuming space in exploration zones with no need to go into missions themselves.

    Maybe I'm missing something, but I no longer see any need for the exploration missions other then once a day.

    For me it is just fun to run them. I have always enjoyed running exp missions, I don't think I have ever turned in any marks though. I just grab what I want from the exchange.
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    modernevil wrote:
    I can't imagine wanting to "grind" anything, ever. Just doing the same thing, over and over and over for hour after hour. What a drag.

    Case in point, Exploration missions never feel like a grind because they are different every time. So, it doesn't feel like you are doing the same thing over and over. Quite the contrary. Exploration missions are fun for those of us that have done all of the Story missions a dozen or more times and are kind of tired of them. Not everyone plays only a character or two. Some of us have 32 or more alts. And right now on Tribble Exploration missions simply aren't worth the effort you put into them any more.

    :cool:
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    xth3xr34p3rx wrote: »
    I did the patrols that I had at RALH1 since I did not relise you needed to be at DS9 for the mirror universe mission (can't rem the name atm lol) which needs to be made clear in the overview tab imo. But ye I know you can skip them, just saying you still have more incentive to just get them outta the way and off your list :P

    Meh, as long as they are not on my In Progress list I can completely ignore them. I'm URA3 now. Another Story mission or three and I'll be VA. Then I'll focus on my Klingon and get him to LG. After that I'm going back to playing on Holodeck. I only wish I could take my Tribble character with me. I've grown attached to her being as her rise has been more challenging than any other character I've played so far. Oh well. C'est la vie.

    :cool:
  • Archived PostArchived Post Member Posts: 2,264,498 Arc User
    edited October 2011
    Rickpa wrote:
    Perhaps they think crafting is enough reason to do these? :eek:

    Well, it would be if I could get all the resources I need for crafting. However, with adding delithium to crafting the lack of delithium rewards for this means crfating is no longer the reason to do this.

    Hence, either change the crafting back to how it was (just rare drop items from exploration scans) or keep delithium (better ore than refined though) in crfating and add more delithium rewards to exploration.

    Doing neither of the above will simply be a bad move.
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