First apologize for my English, I use translator.
Lately is a very difficult task to make optional the STF ELITE by the large number of level 50 newbies that even have acquired experience in the STF NORMAL make the leap directly to the ELITE. For those who are veterans in the game coodinar us is an impossible task to get the "optional" unless the organization of a private.
I propose to the game developers put a limit of NORMAL STF before moving to the STF ELITE, for example 25 each, that way they gain experience and will be much better for everyone.
We will have more options for special items.
First apologize for my English, I use translator.
Lately is a very difficult task to make optional the STF ELITE by the large number of level 50 newbies that even have acquired experience in the STF NORMAL make the leap directly to the ELITE. For those who are veterans in the game coodinar us is an impossible task to get the "optional" unless the organization of a private.
I propose to the game developers put a limit of NORMAL STF before moving to the STF ELITE, for example 25 each, that way they gain experience and will be much better for everyone.
We will have more options for special items.
Why don't we just put an IQ test on the sign in page, and if people don't pass it, we don't let them play the game!
Why don't we make it so that anytime you die, you have to start your character again!
Who don't we make it so that people who want to learn how to do the Elite STF's can't run them until the elitist players tell them they can try it! That way, only the elite players can do the content.
Seriously, I left World of Warcraft to get away from this mindset. It's like a plague or something. Instead of pushing players out, teach them how to do them. That way, more people will be doing STF's.
I refer to the STF ELITE public. We all know that private schools do not have any problem.
So if people can't go into Elite Public's, how do they learn? How do they learn how to overcome the difficulty. If they don't fail a few times, they won't learn. To be fair, if you find the level of skill in the Public's are not as high as you expect in your team mates, find a fleet and get in the Private ones, instead of asking for limits to be put on others.
So if people can't go into Elite Public's, how do they learn? How do they learn how to overcome the difficulty. If they don't fail a few times, they won't learn. To be fair, if you find the level of skill in the Public's are not as high as you expect in your team mates, find a fleet and get in the Private ones, instead of asking for limits to be put on others.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
Seriously, I left World of Warcraft to get away from this mindset. It's like a plague or something. Instead of pushing players out, teach them how to do them. That way, more people will be doing STF's.
This.
Anyone who's played (and understands) WoW knows that making content more difficult incentivizes cooperation; making the content easier encourages people to remain ignorant.
Communicating with your team, explaining the strategy, etc, goes a long way. Randoms may not always be willing to listen. In that case your best bet is to run with friends.
Which brings us to the real issue. This game should do more to facilitate social networking. I think that would go a long way to address the OP's grievance.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
That will not really help because if the player can overcome normals easily they will not prepare them for elite missions. Both are pretty easy, really.
You're complaining about the optional objective which is just that, optional, and is by its very nature not intended for randoms. Making the optional objective easily attainable by randoms would bore organized groups.
So if people can't go into Elite Public's, how do they learn? How do they learn how to overcome the difficulty. If they don't fail a few times, they won't learn. To be fair, if you find the level of skill in the Public's are not as high as you expect in your team mates, find a fleet and get in the Private ones, instead of asking for limits to be put on others.
Problem isn't the learning itself, it's the WILLINGNESS to learn that is a severe problem for most people. I don't mind new people at all, even been showing a lot of them the ropes in elite difficulty STFs. They're easy once you know what you're doing, but it's a pretty severe step from normal to elite STFs when it comes to difficulty. You've always have people that think they're the next Captain Kirk or Rambo on these STFs, they don't listen at all, TRIBBLE things up and then have a go at the others.
Communicating with your team, explaining the strategy, etc, goes a long way. Randoms may not always be willing to listen. In that case your best bet is to run with friends.
People don't listen. And even if they do they don't care. It's only the optional, right? Trust me, I've tried so hard.
That will not really help because if the player can overcome normals easily they will not prepare them for elite missions. Both are pretty easy, really.
Of course it would. People don't have remodulators or get lost in KA ground room (this one is really common). That would not happen (so much) if they had played the mission before.
First apologize for my English, I use translator.
Lately is a very difficult task to make optional the STF ELITE by the large number of level 50 newbies that even have acquired experience in the STF NORMAL make the leap directly to the ELITE. For those who are veterans in the game coodinar us is an impossible task to get the "optional" unless the organization of a private.
I propose to the game developers put a limit of NORMAL STF before moving to the STF ELITE, for example 25 each, that way they gain experience and will be much better for everyone.
We will have more options for special items.
TBH, you mention co-ordination, but you have to use a translator to speak in English? How is that going to help your STF elite team co-ordinate if you are doing pickup groups? Really? Pssh.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
PS: You are one of them?
Ya do realize that I was busting out the optionals by way of brute force in normal STFs for a while so I tried a elite or two. There I still ran into trouble and offended STF regulars who called me a noob because I did not know the right way to do it.
Fortunately I was calm enough to talk to and lean from some of these regulars but that said, I learned nothing but brute force from the normal STFs and really did not learn how to do the elite version till I tried elite and was shamed for it.
Still I only do Infected on Elite. XD
Too many toons to gear up.
Let people learn and it would be nice if you are open to the notion of teaching the n00bs. We all start somewhere.
aaahh... complaints about people not knowing how to do something they've never done before.. talk of "teamwork" with the hidden meaning of "dont TRIBBLE up MY game"....
and then people wonder why some dislike the whole concept of locking up rare items and "shiniez" into missions that force you to team.
to the OP, if you dont like people not knowing "what to do" in a public STF, dont do public STFs, or help them learn how. dont make it like its cryptics fault for not catering to the mindset that everyone HAS to be perfect at a "raid" even if they've never done it before.
Why don't we just put an IQ test on the sign in page, and if people don't pass it, we don't let them play the game!
Why don't we make it so that anytime you die, you have to start your character again!
Who don't we make it so that people who want to learn how to do the Elite STF's can't run them until the elitist players tell them they can try it! That way, only the elite players can do the content.
Seriously, I left World of Warcraft to get away from this mindset. It's like a plague or something. Instead of pushing players out, teach them how to do them. That way, more people will be doing STF's.
Wrong. Players should be well-versed in the normal before trying the elites.
Also, silver players should not be allowed in elite STFs. They should be a gold-only perk.
TBH, you mention co-ordination, but you have to use a translator to speak in English? How is that going to help your STF elite team co-ordinate if you are doing pickup groups? Really? Pssh.
For you I have an IQ test in my hands. At least I care to participate in this forum with a specific topic, not like you to participate rather than put nonsense, for that I remain silent ...
First apologize for my English, I use translator.
Lately is a very difficult task to make optional the STF ELITE by the large number of level 50 newbies that even have acquired experience in the STF NORMAL make the leap directly to the ELITE. For those who are veterans in the game coodinar us is an impossible task to get the "optional" unless the organization of a private.
I propose to the game developers put a limit of NORMAL STF before moving to the STF ELITE, for example 25 each, that way they gain experience and will be much better for everyone.
We will have more options for special items.
Making them run a minimum number of STFs on Normal won't help as the Normal instances are so easy that three bad players (I use them because they're worse than new players) can easily be carried by two good players right the way through the instance. Only Infected makes it tough by requiring three people to use the consoles but even then it's rare that one of the others won't be spamming the button so the other two can work around them.
The only way to solve this is by running private instances or preforming teams. Me and a fleet mate PuG the Elites quite often and it's rare you'll get a truly bad team but they're there. There are also lots of new players as you say but they're OK and will usually help if you tell them what needs to be done and why.
TBH, you said it yourself the optionals require co ordination and unless everyone else is experienced and actually interested in getting the optional, and most aren't as they're just farming EDC and hoping for a tech drop, then a PuG isn't the place to get them IMO.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
PS: You are one of them?
The Normal optionals don't require any co ordination (with the exception of Infected (Ground) so they don't really teach you anything as they can all be brute forced. The co ordination required for Infected (Space) on Elite isn't required or usually displayed on Normal.
TBH the same problem is evident there as well as the Elite instance; those that don't know don't read team chat and those that do know rarely tell anyone what's going on anyway. After 9 Infected space (Elite) runs yesterday only once did I see anyone type anything in chat or respond to my fleet mate who was typing instructions and still the generators were popped (and some of those players were experienced as I see them quite often in Elite STFs).
It's a valid point. Not speaking English well doesn't mean you're stupid, but the ability to communicate in the lingua franca is a necessary skill if you want to get good results in group settings.
Only Infected makes it tough by requiring three people to use the consoles but even then it's rare that one of the others won't be spamming the button so the other two can work around them.
I've failed the normal infected because we couldn't get a 3rd person to use the pillars. Of course add the fact that people immediately respawn after dying...
You know the saying 'Monkey see, monkey do'? It doesn't apply to humans.
I've failed the normal infected because we couldn't get a 3rd person to use the pillars. Of course add the fact that people immediately respawn after dying...
You know the saying 'Monkey see, monkey do'? It doesn't apply to humans.
Oh I've had the same thing, but it's very rare (for me at least); I think I've had 5 Normal's fail because people wouldn't listen out of hundreds of runs. Strange part was the last time the only one I could get to listen was a German that couldn't speak a word of English but he just copied me and got the hang of things. The others were all using English clients and either wouldn't or couldn't follow the (increasingly hostile) instructions I was typing in Zone, Local and Team chat.
the main problem is in elites is lack of communication. if people know the right way then tell everyone dont just sit there being quite and when someone doesnt do what you expected get all aggressive about it just tell them at the beginning of the game. there is no rush at the start unless your on cure.
also i have started to notice that i am starting to run into problems on normal level STFs people doing stupid things like a escort with all beams, yes all beams no cannons or torps just beams, or people spliting up in infected taking on both transformers at the same time, these are only a few of the problems i have had recently
the main problem is in elites is lack of communication
Wrong. The main problem is the lack of listening/caring. In almost every infected space someone mentions the tactic yet there's always a guy who immediately blows up a generator (often without even shooting the cube).
Got lucky and ran Infected on Elite with a couple folk from Jupiter Force. Once we took out the first tac and were on approach to the left transformer one hollered out in team chat to "Knock the generators down to 10%. Then we'll take them out at the same time and then focus fire the transformer." The idea was we'd take the transformer out before the nanite-spheres could get to it. Worked very well too.
I wold not be surprised if they had that tip on a hot key they got it off so fast.
Another one I saw in an elite version of the Cure was as we approached the far right cube, "Bottom to top. Left to right." I knew right way they were talking about the nodes under the cubes. and with that simple descriptor they told us exactly where to focus our fire. Another one that would be good to have on a bound to a hot key.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
PS: You are one of them?
I'm not one of them because I am not at the level cap. If and when I play STF's, I will go into normals first, then Elite should I want to. However, if people don't want to do Normals, they shouldn't have to.
Again, you have the problem with non-experienced people. Instead of asking for the game to be changed to your standards, why not use the tools already available in game to avoid these people?
Wrong. Players should be well-versed in the normal before trying the elites.
Yes, they probably should. But if somebody wants to skip them and go in all guns blazing the hard stuff, there is no reason to stop them.
Restricting the game depending on your skills, time available to play the game or subscription is the best way to turn players away in this current market. While it is an ideal situation to have those who can achieve more be rewarded for more, it seldom works in an MMO because nothing in the universe is tangable.
Again, you have the problem with non-experienced people. Instead of asking for the game to be changed to your standards, why not use the tools already available in game to avoid these people?
Ignore should block you from getting into the same group with that person. Unless we get that the only option is to AVOID the tools already in the game.
For you I have an IQ test in my hands. At least I care to participate in this forum with a specific topic, not like you to participate rather than put nonsense, for that I remain silent ...
I was simply pointing out that communication is needed, did you tell the people where they were going wrong, did you try to help them, and guide them, did you explain the process of how to do the task at hand, or did you simply rage and head here?
You are trying to PUG the hardest content in the game, Success should not be guarenteed.
Except it's not even hard. Understanding "Don't destroy the cube yet!" is the pinnacle of difficulty in space STFs. Pugging (elite) infected or cure ground is begging for a 1h+ run though.
Fair enough. I have absolutely no problems if people are actually willing to listen and learn. You can also learn from failure.
Now if we could just get those people in elite cure space to listen.
That's the attitude that should be prevelant. People jumping the gun are doing so because they want to test themselves. That's fine. If you don't get the support from your team mates, you won't do well, normal or elite. Even if you get stuck with a guy who spends most of his time setting up generators in the right order otherwise he blows them up and starts again, you have to make it work somehow.
There's three problems with STFs as they are that I think are contributing to this. Obviously some people display the same level of intellect and reading comprehension as a yoghurt, and nothing will help them. But some of it, imo, is down to:
1) The game lets you solo-play all the way up to level 50. This is the biggest problem.
Yes there are Fleet Actions and sector patrols, but the level of co-operation involved in them amounts to "shoot the same target as your team-mate and it dies quicker". And even that's beyond some people. Romulan Temple Genocide and Breaking the Planet are the only Fleet Actions I can think of where you have to interact with an object. The only way you'd have a notional ability to co-op on an objective would be if you played the story missions with a mate of roughly the same level (since in my experience damage scaling across levels doesn't work to well). And even then it's not the same animal. New co-op missions at lower levels and/or a revamp to fleet actions might help give players more experience of co-operating before they reach STFs. And they'd be a good addition in their own right.
2) Where they are in the game.
D'Vak tells you you're **** hot enough to join Omega Force at level 44 and you can do STFs from level 45. If you follow the levelling system (and you can't progress beyond it, don't forget), what are doing at level 45 on the Fed side? Fighting the True Way and Terran Empire. And on the KDF side you're between the Romulan and Breen FEs. You're not fighting the Borg. Actually you haven't fired a weapon at a proper Borg drone and if you don't read the forums, the Wiki or have a Fleet (which a lot of players don't) you don't know they adapt. No biggie, you probably figure that out in one STF and begin to muddle through the Normals until you get to lvl 50 and decide to crack open an Elite. Leading us to 3:
3) Injuries and the gap Normal and Elite difficulties.
So you've done enough Normals to know what a remodulator does, and that you probably shouldn't ignore a Heavy Tac Drone for very long if you want to live. Maybe, just maybe, you've developed an understanding of tactics rather than just ganking your way through. Or maybe you haven't, but still feel you have a right to do Elites at lvl. 50 anyway. So you go in, get one shotted by an Elite Tac Cube, or killed in short order by a Heavy Tac Drone if you're on the ground. Okay, not a problem, I was expecting it to be harder, I'll just respawn and try again. Wait, what's this? An injury? What the hell is that? What am I meant to do about it? I don't think anything tells you that you get injuries in Elites, it's up to the players to twig that the "Elite" in "Elite STF" equates to the game's Elite difficulty level. And clearly, quite a few don't make that connection. If you're lucky, some kindly soul will notice before you get a critical, and gives you a few spare regens or components, but more often than not, I suspect that doesn't happen.
There's also the fact that the space ones can sometimes be ploughed through more or less on DPS alone on Normal with minimal tactical co-operation compared to Elite, where you need DPS and co-operation or you'll fail spectacularly. Cure Space in particular is a cuddly teddy bear of a mission on Normal compared to Elite. In no, way, shape, or form, does completing the Normal version prepare you for the Elite. And if a dev is actually bothering to read this much of a soliliquay, I'd prefer if this wasn't addressed by reducing the Elite difficulty.
I know it's not a good idea to PuG Elites and I rarely do, I use my friends list, my fleet and STF channels to get groups 95% of the time, but if Elites are intended as 'unpuggable', why are they in the PvE queue?
Oh, and it's not just n00bs dropping the ball either, I saw two 700 day vets in an Elite STF who weren't healing their injuries and finished with 5 Crits each.
Comments
Why don't we just put an IQ test on the sign in page, and if people don't pass it, we don't let them play the game!
Why don't we make it so that anytime you die, you have to start your character again!
Who don't we make it so that people who want to learn how to do the Elite STF's can't run them until the elitist players tell them they can try it! That way, only the elite players can do the content.
Seriously, I left World of Warcraft to get away from this mindset. It's like a plague or something. Instead of pushing players out, teach them how to do them. That way, more people will be doing STF's.
Thank god.
So if people can't go into Elite Public's, how do they learn? How do they learn how to overcome the difficulty. If they don't fail a few times, they won't learn. To be fair, if you find the level of skill in the Public's are not as high as you expect in your team mates, find a fleet and get in the Private ones, instead of asking for limits to be put on others.
You did not understand the post, first grab NORMAL experience, make optional and then start with the ELITE. It is assumed that before entering ELITES already have experience to play them.
PS: You are one of them?
Anyone who's played (and understands) WoW knows that making content more difficult incentivizes cooperation; making the content easier encourages people to remain ignorant.
Communicating with your team, explaining the strategy, etc, goes a long way. Randoms may not always be willing to listen. In that case your best bet is to run with friends.
Which brings us to the real issue. This game should do more to facilitate social networking. I think that would go a long way to address the OP's grievance.
That will not really help because if the player can overcome normals easily they will not prepare them for elite missions. Both are pretty easy, really.
You're complaining about the optional objective which is just that, optional, and is by its very nature not intended for randoms. Making the optional objective easily attainable by randoms would bore organized groups.
Problem isn't the learning itself, it's the WILLINGNESS to learn that is a severe problem for most people. I don't mind new people at all, even been showing a lot of them the ropes in elite difficulty STFs. They're easy once you know what you're doing, but it's a pretty severe step from normal to elite STFs when it comes to difficulty. You've always have people that think they're the next Captain Kirk or Rambo on these STFs, they don't listen at all, TRIBBLE things up and then have a go at the others.
People don't listen. And even if they do they don't care. It's only the optional, right? Trust me, I've tried so hard.
Of course it would. People don't have remodulators or get lost in KA ground room (this one is really common). That would not happen (so much) if they had played the mission before.
TBH, you mention co-ordination, but you have to use a translator to speak in English? How is that going to help your STF elite team co-ordinate if you are doing pickup groups? Really? Pssh.
Ya do realize that I was busting out the optionals by way of brute force in normal STFs for a while so I tried a elite or two. There I still ran into trouble and offended STF regulars who called me a noob because I did not know the right way to do it.
Fortunately I was calm enough to talk to and lean from some of these regulars but that said, I learned nothing but brute force from the normal STFs and really did not learn how to do the elite version till I tried elite and was shamed for it.
Still I only do Infected on Elite. XD
Too many toons to gear up.
Let people learn and it would be nice if you are open to the notion of teaching the n00bs. We all start somewhere.
and then people wonder why some dislike the whole concept of locking up rare items and "shiniez" into missions that force you to team.
to the OP, if you dont like people not knowing "what to do" in a public STF, dont do public STFs, or help them learn how. dont make it like its cryptics fault for not catering to the mindset that everyone HAS to be perfect at a "raid" even if they've never done it before.
Wrong. Players should be well-versed in the normal before trying the elites.
Also, silver players should not be allowed in elite STFs. They should be a gold-only perk.
For you I have an IQ test in my hands. At least I care to participate in this forum with a specific topic, not like you to participate rather than put nonsense, for that I remain silent ...
Making them run a minimum number of STFs on Normal won't help as the Normal instances are so easy that three bad players (I use them because they're worse than new players) can easily be carried by two good players right the way through the instance. Only Infected makes it tough by requiring three people to use the consoles but even then it's rare that one of the others won't be spamming the button so the other two can work around them.
The only way to solve this is by running private instances or preforming teams. Me and a fleet mate PuG the Elites quite often and it's rare you'll get a truly bad team but they're there. There are also lots of new players as you say but they're OK and will usually help if you tell them what needs to be done and why.
TBH, you said it yourself the optionals require co ordination and unless everyone else is experienced and actually interested in getting the optional, and most aren't as they're just farming EDC and hoping for a tech drop, then a PuG isn't the place to get them IMO.
The Normal optionals don't require any co ordination (with the exception of Infected (Ground) so they don't really teach you anything as they can all be brute forced. The co ordination required for Infected (Space) on Elite isn't required or usually displayed on Normal.
TBH the same problem is evident there as well as the Elite instance; those that don't know don't read team chat and those that do know rarely tell anyone what's going on anyway. After 9 Infected space (Elite) runs yesterday only once did I see anyone type anything in chat or respond to my fleet mate who was typing instructions and still the generators were popped (and some of those players were experienced as I see them quite often in Elite STFs).
I've failed the normal infected because we couldn't get a 3rd person to use the pillars. Of course add the fact that people immediately respawn after dying...
You know the saying 'Monkey see, monkey do'? It doesn't apply to humans.
Oh I've had the same thing, but it's very rare (for me at least); I think I've had 5 Normal's fail because people wouldn't listen out of hundreds of runs. Strange part was the last time the only one I could get to listen was a German that couldn't speak a word of English but he just copied me and got the hang of things. The others were all using English clients and either wouldn't or couldn't follow the (increasingly hostile) instructions I was typing in Zone, Local and Team chat.
also i have started to notice that i am starting to run into problems on normal level STFs people doing stupid things like a escort with all beams, yes all beams no cannons or torps just beams, or people spliting up in infected taking on both transformers at the same time, these are only a few of the problems i have had recently
Wrong. The main problem is the lack of listening/caring. In almost every infected space someone mentions the tactic yet there's always a guy who immediately blows up a generator (often without even shooting the cube).
I wold not be surprised if they had that tip on a hot key they got it off so fast.
Another one I saw in an elite version of the Cure was as we approached the far right cube, "Bottom to top. Left to right." I knew right way they were talking about the nodes under the cubes. and with that simple descriptor they told us exactly where to focus our fire. Another one that would be good to have on a bound to a hot key.
I'm not one of them because I am not at the level cap. If and when I play STF's, I will go into normals first, then Elite should I want to. However, if people don't want to do Normals, they shouldn't have to.
Again, you have the problem with non-experienced people. Instead of asking for the game to be changed to your standards, why not use the tools already available in game to avoid these people?
Yes, they probably should. But if somebody wants to skip them and go in all guns blazing the hard stuff, there is no reason to stop them.
Restricting the game depending on your skills, time available to play the game or subscription is the best way to turn players away in this current market. While it is an ideal situation to have those who can achieve more be rewarded for more, it seldom works in an MMO because nothing in the universe is tangable.
Why people continually seek some validation of their superior status in a video game is beyond me. Once you shut down that PC, non of this matters.
Ignore should block you from getting into the same group with that person. Unless we get that the only option is to AVOID the tools already in the game.
Most people don't enjoy failing 90% STF they PUG. If you think that's seeking validation of superiority then I'm glad I'm one of them.
I was simply pointing out that communication is needed, did you tell the people where they were going wrong, did you try to help them, and guide them, did you explain the process of how to do the task at hand, or did you simply rage and head here?
You are trying to PUG the hardest content in the game, Success should not be guarenteed.
I'm not talking about trying and failing, I'm talking about locking content away from players for good.
I'm replying to a lot of people here. I'm bound to get some of it lost in translation.
Except it's not even hard. Understanding "Don't destroy the cube yet!" is the pinnacle of difficulty in space STFs. Pugging (elite) infected or cure ground is begging for a 1h+ run though.
Fair enough. I have absolutely no problems if people are actually willing to listen and learn. You can also learn from failure.
Now if we could just get those people in elite cure space to listen.
That's the attitude that should be prevelant. People jumping the gun are doing so because they want to test themselves. That's fine. If you don't get the support from your team mates, you won't do well, normal or elite. Even if you get stuck with a guy who spends most of his time setting up generators in the right order otherwise he blows them up and starts again, you have to make it work somehow.
1) The game lets you solo-play all the way up to level 50. This is the biggest problem.
Yes there are Fleet Actions and sector patrols, but the level of co-operation involved in them amounts to "shoot the same target as your team-mate and it dies quicker". And even that's beyond some people. Romulan Temple Genocide and Breaking the Planet are the only Fleet Actions I can think of where you have to interact with an object. The only way you'd have a notional ability to co-op on an objective would be if you played the story missions with a mate of roughly the same level (since in my experience damage scaling across levels doesn't work to well). And even then it's not the same animal. New co-op missions at lower levels and/or a revamp to fleet actions might help give players more experience of co-operating before they reach STFs. And they'd be a good addition in their own right.
2) Where they are in the game.
D'Vak tells you you're **** hot enough to join Omega Force at level 44 and you can do STFs from level 45. If you follow the levelling system (and you can't progress beyond it, don't forget), what are doing at level 45 on the Fed side? Fighting the True Way and Terran Empire. And on the KDF side you're between the Romulan and Breen FEs. You're not fighting the Borg. Actually you haven't fired a weapon at a proper Borg drone and if you don't read the forums, the Wiki or have a Fleet (which a lot of players don't) you don't know they adapt. No biggie, you probably figure that out in one STF and begin to muddle through the Normals until you get to lvl 50 and decide to crack open an Elite. Leading us to 3:
3) Injuries and the gap Normal and Elite difficulties.
So you've done enough Normals to know what a remodulator does, and that you probably shouldn't ignore a Heavy Tac Drone for very long if you want to live. Maybe, just maybe, you've developed an understanding of tactics rather than just ganking your way through. Or maybe you haven't, but still feel you have a right to do Elites at lvl. 50 anyway. So you go in, get one shotted by an Elite Tac Cube, or killed in short order by a Heavy Tac Drone if you're on the ground. Okay, not a problem, I was expecting it to be harder, I'll just respawn and try again. Wait, what's this? An injury? What the hell is that? What am I meant to do about it? I don't think anything tells you that you get injuries in Elites, it's up to the players to twig that the "Elite" in "Elite STF" equates to the game's Elite difficulty level. And clearly, quite a few don't make that connection. If you're lucky, some kindly soul will notice before you get a critical, and gives you a few spare regens or components, but more often than not, I suspect that doesn't happen.
There's also the fact that the space ones can sometimes be ploughed through more or less on DPS alone on Normal with minimal tactical co-operation compared to Elite, where you need DPS and co-operation or you'll fail spectacularly. Cure Space in particular is a cuddly teddy bear of a mission on Normal compared to Elite. In no, way, shape, or form, does completing the Normal version prepare you for the Elite. And if a dev is actually bothering to read this much of a soliliquay, I'd prefer if this wasn't addressed by reducing the Elite difficulty.
I know it's not a good idea to PuG Elites and I rarely do, I use my friends list, my fleet and STF channels to get groups 95% of the time, but if Elites are intended as 'unpuggable', why are they in the PvE queue?
Oh, and it's not just n00bs dropping the ball either, I saw two 700 day vets in an Elite STF who weren't healing their injuries and finished with 5 Crits each.