Skyrocketing Costs and Gear Nerfing Threaten to Force Me Out

sekritagent

I have been a long time player of STO, but this game is not recognizable as Star Trek Online. There's precious little Star Trek left in it aside from the theme of the ships we fly and mobs we grind. I'm close to being done with Star Trek Online entirely, only active IP or not.

Why are you doing this to us? Do you hate us or are things really that dire financially? Or are you scared of the stockpile of money you think we're sitting on with the stipends?

One minute you're telling us that everything is great and you've doubled the team, but for the past three seasons in a row now, you have given us 3 things on a consistent basis:

1. More Grind of mindless faceless enemies for ever more grind currencies
2. Higher Costs for everything including things that used to already not be cheap
3. Fewer Rewards for things we used to be able to feed back into the system and pay for

If it's a matter of finances, I'd much rather you just pull the damn stipends than keep jerking us around like this...

Season 4:

• Lockboxes introduced at Winter Event

Season 5 - More Grind, Higher Costs, Fewer Rewards:

• C-Store monthly stipends introduced for gold and lifetime players - and C-Store prices dramatically increased by about 33% across the board to compensate
• Dilithium conversion rates demanded by the playerbase and silence until we worked out the math on our own
• All existing grind currencies converted to dilithium and it is granted to us ONLY for running STFs, Foundry Daily, and several other grindy dailies
• Dilithium Exchange Introduced to convert dilithium to CP and vice versa, effectively legalizing Real Money Trading (RMT)
• Defera ground Borg Invasion introduces multiple new grind currencies/objects for items
• Duty Officer system introduced, creating new grind currency Commendation XP across 9-10 categories..cxp is raised, slashed, and tweaked ad nauseam
• Old grind currency Diplomatic XP is converted to new Commendation XP, but rewards for diplomacy missions outside the Doff system are not scaled up
• New grind mission Tour the Universe for Energy Credits, only available maybe twice a day
• Reman set introduced in the Vault Shuttle Event for new grind currency Reman Datalogs
• Ships went from costing Energy Credits to Dilithium, some of which is bypassed depending on your subscription type
• Multiple ships moved from being purchaseable or craftable in-game to the C-Store (Excelsior, Nebula, Delta Flyer)
• The T3/T5 Retrofit ships were promised to be bundled together, then reversed the decision
• Multiple C-Store items moved from account unlocks to single-item, single-character unlocks in the C-Store
• Crafting requires unreplicatable materials of varying grades, sourced from dilithium, on top of stacks of rare and common particle traces...discounts available at random hour of the day
• Space STF loot is converted from automatic at completion to one of the 4 new STF grind currencies (random chance drops only for the best items)
• Ground STF loot is added again for one of the 4 new STF grind currencies (random chance drops only for the best items)
• Space and ground equipment, doffs, and a few other items added for 2 other new STF grind currencies
• Lobi Crystal currency added, only available from opening Lockboxes. Paltry 20 given out per toon in a single series of FE reruns, but all the useful items cost 200+
• All space sets are modified, Borg set takes a healing proc nerf while the "new" sets see a buff (but Aegis is largely untouched)
• Free Odyssey and Bortas given out for Anniversary but pulled after about a week

Season 6 - More Grind, Higher Costs, Fewer Rewards:

• Fleet Events are introduced for new grind currency Fleet Marks
• Fleet Starbases are introduced which consume vast quantities of dilithium, Fleet Marks, and doffs to build and stock which cost geometrically more per "Tier"
• Fleet Credits grind currency introduced as "rewards" for sinking your hard-earned resources into the Fleet base
• Optional starbase special projects introduced which cost 200,000 dilithium to upgrade a very small aspect of your Fleet Starbase (tribbles, security officers...a table...)
• Contraband-for-dilithium Doff mission costs increased by 66% and takes longer cooldown
• Fleet Ships added to STO which are single-purchase, single-character unlocks
• Fleet Ships made available behind five separate Fleet Starbase paywalls - a) having the base XP, b) creating the upgrade structure, c) stocking it with provisions AND ON TOP OF EVERYTHING requiring up to 4 "Fleet Ship Modules" from the C-Store AND a sum of Fleet Credits
• New Ultra-Rare quality Fleet space and ground equipment available for Fleet Credits, but only behind the same Fleet Starbase paywalls, AND also cost dilithium to purchase alongside the Fleet Credits
• Fleet Marks grind currency added to Foundry Daily
• Odyssey and Bortas appear again behind the highest tier of the Fleet Starbase paywalls
• Doff dismissal rewards slashed to 10% of what they once were
• Doffs made available to us from Duty Officer at Fleet Starbase (provided it's sufficient level)

Season 7 - More Grind, Higher Costs, Fewer Rewards (this list is CONFIRMED after some edits; info here and here):

• All existing STF grind currencies are eliminated and REPLACED with a different STF grind currency
• Existing Reman Datalog grind currency eliminated and REPLACED with a different Romulan grind currency
• People who have already completed Mk XII sets will NOT receive any progress in the new Borg STF reputation system, ever. Even though we are playing through the exact same STFs as before.
• Reputation System details here
• Borg set broken from 4-piece set to 3-piece and a new set available for the new STF grind currency
• Space and ground STF items now cost dilithium in addition to the new STF grind currency (36000 dilithium for each Mk XII piece)
• Dilithium rewards will continue to be available from running Normal and Elite STFs, and you can turn in Elite Omega Marks for additional Dilithium (Info here)
• Dilithium prices for grinding Duty Officers up from one quality to the next are dramatically increased
• Free Academy recruitment Duty Officer packs eliminated and replaced with one that costs dilithium
• New Fleet Base grind currencies introduced to grind up Fleet Embassies...that also cost dilithium and doffs to level

This post has been edited to remove content which violates the Perfect World Entertainment Community Rules and Policies . ~BranFlakes

phantomeight

sekritagent wrote: »

Season 7 - More Grind, Higher Costs, Fewer Rewards:

• Space and ground STF items now cost dilithium in addition to the new STF grind currency
• Dilithium rewards eliminated from STFs
• Dilithium prices for grinding Duty Officers up from one quality to the next are dramatically increased
• Free Academy recruitment Duty Officer packs eliminated and replaced with one that costs dilithium

Please provide links/screenshots, where to see or hear proof in podcast, or indicate which is live on tribble for the items listed above. Thank you.

sekritagent

Go look at what's on Tribble and get your question answered better than I ever could.

phantomeight

I can still buy stf gear for EDCs, salvage, tech on tribble. They have also not pushed the reputation system... so once again please back up your claims.

bubblygumsworth

The only thing that can be backed up at the moment is the dilithium costs for duty officer reassignment and adding a dilithium cost to the once free general doff packs.

marc8219

If techs do not drop in STFs and we don't get dilithium for completion this will ruin the game. I hope this is wrong as it will make completing starbase impossible.

phantomeight

Yeah on tribble now and the grinding up of doffs has sky rocketed... I would never use it now... Not that I ever did anyway as I just sent all doffs to the starbase wood chipper or mailed them to myself so they could be sent to the wood chipper at a later point. I'm definitely not paying 5000DL to get a random purple.... that could have traits or profession I could care less about.

As far as STFs not giving DL... has anyone verified this on an STF other than into the hive? Most new missions barely have their rewards hooked up when they first hit tribble.


The stuff about what the sets are going to cost is complete rumors until something appears on tribble or posted by a dev. I was the dev post search like a hawk... nothing has been said.

purplegamer

Nailed it, OP. This sums up my problems with the game perfectly; I'm tired of being charged multiple times for the same thing. Items and ships should either cost time or money, but not both.

phantomeight

Oh and even though I was being tough on those Season 7 items, I do generally agree with you OP. I feel like its a job now where I just move around resources. MMOs = grind... that's just the way it is now... but STO shouldn't be my second job.

daveyny

It's getting so that the only really FUN way to play the game now, is to keep creating new Alt's...

Then just dismiss them when ya hit level 50 and start another.

The leveling missions are still the best part of the game.

travelingmaster

I really hope the 'no dil from STFs' is just speculation. . .because that will really TRIBBLE me (and others) off. That's, like, the only convenient source of dil grinding that I use right now. I don't tinker with doffs, and you'd have to do a lot of 'dailies' (which usually reward 480 dil) to reach the 8k cap without the 1k reward you get from Elite STFs.

Barely any dil from PvPing, and a nerf/removal of the dill from STFs will make me, as a player, very unhappy.

phantomeight

Also, there appears to be an over supply of DL as the DL exchange would suggest, but only those at cryptic really know the real numbers. They may need to take steps to correct this, but I think they are swinging for the fence and should take more baby steps. Rather than making things more expensive... they should add more things worth spending DL on. They should add a high number of items rather than a neat or good item that is insanely expensive...

daveyny

phantomeight wrote: »

Also, there appears to be an over supply of DL as the DL exchange would suggest, but only those at cryptic really know the real numbers. They may need to take steps to correct this, but I think they are swinging for the fence and should take more baby steps. Rather than making things more expensive... they should add more things worth spending DL on. They should add a high number of items rather than a neat or good item that is insanely expensive...

Unfortunately, it's much easier to create One Expensive Item, than Several Inexpensive Ones.

kalvorax

travelingmaster wrote: »

I really hope the 'no dil from STFs' is just speculation. . .because that will really TRIBBLE me (and others) off. That's, like, the only convenient source of dil grinding that I use right now. I don't tinker with doffs, and you'd have to do a lot of 'dailies' (which usually reward 480 dil) to reach the 8k cap without the 1k reward you get from Elite STFs.

Barely any dil from PvPing, and a nerf/removal of the dill from STFs will make me, as a player, very unhappy.

barely any dil from PvPing? really?...I make MORE dil in an hour of pvping than i do running a set of stfs.

azurianstar

I'm with Sekret with the news of what's currently happening on Tribble, with the growing emphasis on the more stuff costing Dilithium. It's bothering me so much that for the first time, I am actually thinking of leaving STO.

Perfect World has ruined STO with it's greed and it's blatent disregard for it's customers. They said when they bought STO that they would work with us and adjust to the Western market, they didn't. There is no freedom left and STO is nothing but a Theme Park game not an MMORPG.

levi3

daveyny wrote: »

It's getting so that the only really FUN way to play the game now, is to keep creating new Alt's...

Then just dismiss them when ya hit level 50 and start another.

The leveling missions are still the best part of the game.

Have you turned 56 yet? Are you still going to chastise me for saying the game might not be around for your 60th?

commodoreshrvk

Well best I can tell the STF's not giving dilithium is rumor-mongering.

However, the Borg set is now just 3-pieces (Shield, Engine, Deflector), and the Assimilated Console has been added to another set. Presumably with one or two weapons like the lock box/lobi ones.

kalvorax

commodoreshrvk wrote: »

Well best I can tell the STF's not giving dilithium is rumor-mongering.

However, the Borg set is now just 3-pieces (Shield, Engine, Deflector), and the Assimilated Console has been added to another set. Presumably with one or two weapons like the lock box/lobi ones.

Thats exactly how it is...the borg console + the kinectic cutting beam and yet another plasma torp launcher

levi3

Haven't you heard the new rumor? Apparently it's going to cost 10 dilthium a min to play!!:eek: Even if you are a LTS!!

sekritagent

Please don't come in to troll. Add to the discussion or go away.

lucianazeta

*applause*

Quite the amusing plight of digging out the negative of just about everything..

''Ohh we got free ships but they didn't stay available long enough, DAMN YOU CRYPTIC Y U SO GREEDY TO GIVE US FREE SHIPS?!?''

Honestly, how the hell could you have expected otherwise, they went F2P, that means the majority of subscription income disappears, they replace that with micro transaction (ergo, typical cash shop) income.

levi3

sekritagent wrote: »

Please don't come in to troll. Add to the discussion or go away.

While my comment was just a joke - or trolling as you claim - it brings up the interesting idea that several Chinese MMO's charge players by the minute to play.

sekritagent

Nobody begrudges PWE or Cryptic income from their F2P conversion, the point is they've gotten overly aggressive and it's now just excessive. It was barely tolerable in Season 5, something you could ignore easily enough in Season 6, and the hammer appears to be dropping in Season 7 and for the first time I'm at my limit.

If you are happy to keep at it, do you, but this is starting to be a "game" I don't care to play.

tvlar

commodoreshrvk wrote: »

Well best I can tell the STF's not giving dilithium is rumor-mongering.

However, the Borg set is now just 3-pieces (Shield, Engine, Deflector), and the Assimilated Console has been added to another set. Presumably with one or two weapons like the lock box/lobi ones.

I am on Tribble at this moment. The filter for selecting PVE missions by reward DOES include dilithium as an option, but when I select for that, nothing comes up.
I think it's one of 2 things, 1) The filter is bugged, and needs work . 2 ) Dilthium reward will be time-gated for special events only.
Then again, it could be both.

badname834854

That dilithium you get from doing STFs? Gone in S7

Want to grind and upgrade your doffs to a higher quality? Frak you, pay me. It will cost Dilithium now.

Don't say I didn't warn you.


Guys, pipe in and show Cryptic ENOUGH IS ENOUGH ffs.

lucianazeta

tvlar wrote: »

I am on Tribble at this moment. The filter for selecting PVE missions by reward DOES include dilithium as an option, but when I select for that, nothing comes up.
I think it's one of 2 things, 1) The filter is bugged, and needs work . 2 ) Dilthium reward will be time-gated for special events only.
Then again, it could be both.

IF Dilithium is removed from STF's, it makes them even less worth grinding, new system or not.

marc8219

I disagree completley with removing dilithium from STFs and am neutral in the duty officer thing, but where does it say they will do that?

badname834854

purplegamer wrote: »

Nailed it, OP. This sums up my problems with the game perfectly; I'm tired of being charged multiple times for the same thing. Items and ships should either cost time or money, but not both.

Agreed. Mods, go ahead and delete my thread.

lordmalak1

cynder2012 wrote: »

Thats exactly how it is...the borg console + the kinectic cutting beam and yet another plasma torp launcher

Oow jeez, your kidding right ? They nerfed plasma torps into the toilet and even the garbage REMAN set dont buff em enough , and now they're going to add a second one ? I'm so glad I don't run torps on my main anymore.

levi3

I created a whole thread just the other day about them removing the "console clicks" for the investigate officer daily mission for 1440 dilth - community Mod 'syberghost' agreed that this "was" going to happen. Then Branflakes came on and posted that this was false and that we should stop listening to zone chat - then he close the thread.

stark2k

sekritagent wrote: »

.....
[*]Dilithium rewards eliminated from STFs


..... [*]Free Academy recruitment Duty Officer packs eliminated and replaced with one that costs dilithium
[/LIST]

The two statements above will probably do it for me. This is because the risinig cost of common doff for starbase projects has just now tripled due to the above.

Doff are needed for starbase projects - and the free doff packs at the academy was a saving grace in acquiring starbase needed resource.

Eliminating the Dilithium reward from STF runs will kill the STF's in general, which is already suffering from a playerbase pool.

Looks like Season 7 is going to introduce the worst changes in this game - Could season 7 be the Final season for this game?

Not spelling doom and gloom, I am referring to the game not being enjoyable anymore.

There are soo many good MMO's out there, that I am now re-thinking on how to spend my time and hard earned money.

I love Star Trek and the ip, but now this is becoming a second job and I grow weary of these Negative changes. They should renamed Star Trek Online to China Trek Online - It really is getting that bad.