^ This is what I meant. My wording may have been bad. It halves the number of techs you need via the mechanism of doubling the TP granted by each tech you apply. But it doesn't also double the rarity research per tech, so since you're only applying half of the # of techs you only get half of the research points in the process.
That still doesn't quite explain the case that I observed. I was trying to upgrade some low-level item for which one superior tech was enough. When I slotted the accelerator, the chance to increase rarity was halved. What does it mean to apply only half a tech? Note that my intention is not to criticize you, but to convey that what's happening makes little sense to me. I suspect that there is a bug.
Perhaps, things would be clearer if the devs explained how each tech applied affects the research bar. After all, the chance to increase rarity doesn't actually apply until you perform the upgrade. So what does the research bar represent before the TP bar is filled?
I will not be spending any money on the upgrade system or participating in it in any way unless dilithium costs and time requirements are brought down to a reasonable level so that the Upgrade system makes the game more enjoyable and not a way to drain my wallet and eat up the valuable game time I have trying to get modest upgrades that aren't worth the cost.
If failure to spend money on the upgrade system means that my playing experience declines after Delta Rising goes live, then I'll simply leave the game.
Sincerely,
Andrew
I've been doing some thinking and the dil might not need to come down directly. As I see it 1 (if not all) of three things should happen
1.Take out the dil on kit application set up.
2. Increase the amount significantly of TP kits give.
3. Decrease the amount significantly of TP needed to upgrade.
If 1, if not all, of these are applied I would be happy. Aside from random mods and dysfunctional upgrades
Don't know if you got this, but the console from the Nukara reputation that gets a free upgrade from leveless to Mk XII goes from 17.3 to 15.4 in both Starship Particle Generators and Starship Power Insulators.
A programmer is also working on fixing up items with lost mods.
Is that the Kinetic Cutting Beam and the Nukara Particle Converter? both of mine changed and the stats were drastically reduced when I simply put them in the upgrade window.
Ok...I upgraded my leveless > Mk XII Chroniton dual Beam Bank to mk xiii. Stayed Blue. I then upgraded it to MK XIV, it turned purple but didnt gain any noticeable bonus - it may have well just stayed blue for all the work it was worth.
I rest my case. And yes, contrary to what my gut is telling me, this pre-release was pre-mature. But now everyone gets to realize what the tribble testers have been talking about. And pretty unanimously (outside of the confusion of those who don't know what's going on) people say that the system is unbalanced and too much of a resource sink. For most they were concerned primarily with the dil. I,on the other hand, feel its not just dil. I just think the whole balance of dil, TP, tech kits, EC, and R&D just needs to be re-balanced in tho system. That way its not such a resource sink all the way around. However, that wont fix the issue where overall cost grows exponentially as you upgrade.
its not just resources... there is also a time component. They have fooled people by releasing the purple kits. Someone in another thread did the math - and usually with these game the last couple of years, once you do the math..... - and its 100s and 100s of days to level. If you log in every day. So it will be a while before any of us can craft what we were given during the event. It will probably be next spring or summer before I even mess with this system again.
If they are doing promotions, the best thing they could do for me is to give us some R&D level accelerators so we can get few levels . Im already sick of the entire R&D system and I haven't even crafted a thing.
Its more or less just like the orginal Rep and Fleet system offering low level garbage no one really wants or needs. Just like most people didn't waste the rep and dilith on MX level items and just bought the MXII items, after the initial rush, you wont be able to give Basic Upgrade kits away.
its not just resources... there is also a time component. They have fooled people by releasing the purple kits. Someone in another thread did the math - and usually with these game the last couple of years, once you do the math..... - and its 100s and 100s of days to level. If you log in every day. So it will be a while before any of us can craft what we were given during the event. It will probably be next spring or summer before I even mess with this system again.
If they are doing promotions, the best thing they could do for me is to give us some R&D level accelerators so we can get few levels . Im already sick of the entire R&D system and I haven't even crafted a thing.
Its more or less just like the orginal Rep and Fleet system offering low level garbage no one really wants or needs. Just like most people didn't waste the rep and dilith on MX level items and just bought the MXII items, after the initial rush, you wont be able to give Basic Upgrade kits away.
Oh, that's right. The time that goes into getting to level 15 in any R&D school. Well I, for one, feel that the whole kit system makes sense but is unnecessary. Why should we need kits to upgrade? Why do we need TP to upgrade? I mean, sure, it shouldn't be free but there's a line between free and unnecessary. It's called reasonable. Find it Cryptic.
As others probably already have mentioned (at least I hope they have, this thread has been quite 'popular') there is one serious flaw in the system:
- technology boosts actually hurt your quality upgrade chance in the long run, including the instances where you crit the application of your upgrade kits.
So if I upgrade a blue item without any boosters at all I get a 10% chance for a rarity bump. If I use the major tech boosters I get 5% or ~6.66% when using the green tech boosters. That is a tough pill to swallow but if all fails I could handle it, after all the person applying the booster made a concious choice to do so (even if the choice was uninformed ).
Getting penalized for a crit while applying a kit upgrade however is not, seeing a crit should be a nice moment not a 'ah TRIBBLE there goes another percent of my rarity upgrade chance'.
Let me start out by apologizing to cryptic for my part in faning flames with the upgrade system up to this point. I have solid numbers that prove to me that the dilithium cost tacked on to the system actually equal sensible numbers once you know the trick. These numbers were obtained by actual testing and using many items to determine overall cost.
These numbers are based on using Superior tech upgrades and no accelerators.
Regular Items (this includes fleet gear)
Ship Equipment and Weapons MK-XII 6900dil, Mk-XIII 12650dil
Consoles Mk-XII 2300dil, Mk-XIII 4600dil
Ground items Mk-XII 5750dil, Mk-XIII 10350dil
Set items (special named sets obtainable)
Ship Equipment and weapons Mk-XII 12650dil, Mk-XIII 25300dil
Consoles Mk-XII 3450dil, Mk-XIII 6900dil
Ground Items Mk-XII 6900dil, Mk-XIII 13800dil
granted with blue or green upgrades this cost goes up considerably. These numbers are more in line with recent costs of getting a new item from vendors. These prices are even better then fleet to get most new items. I am still not a fan of the dilithium cost tacked on to each input, however I find the new system more reasonable then I previously thought.
Be smart, save up, buy purples, ALWAYS use accelerators!
romulan plasma based ground weapons (pistols especially, but possibly the others too) seem to lose their critX mod when put into the upgrade menu and converted into the new upgradeable system.
Now clowns, that's another story. They scare the crap out of me.
We fight them too. Entire armies spilling out of Volkswagens.
We do our best to fight them off, but they keep sending them in.
romulan plasma based ground weapons (pistols especially, but possibly the others too) seem to lose their critX mod when put into the upgrade menu and converted into the new upgradeable system.
Looking for a new fleet? Drop by the in-game chat channel, "tenforwardforum", and say hi to the members of A Fleet Called Ten Forward (Fed) and The Orion Pirates (KDF). If you already have a fleet you are happy with, please feel free to drop by our chat channel if you are looking for a friendly bunch of helpful people to socialize with.
i think so, yeah. but that won't be possible to get until after delta rising, since mk xiv is for level 60 only, so you'd lock yourself out from using your own items.
Now clowns, that's another story. They scare the crap out of me.
We fight them too. Entire armies spilling out of Volkswagens.
We do our best to fight them off, but they keep sending them in.
i think so, yeah. but that won't be possible to get until after delta rising, since mk xiv is for level 60 only, so you'd lock yourself out from using your own items.
I upgraded a ultra rare aegis shield to MK13 but it will not let me upgrade anymore. I can wait until the release of Chaos rising, . . . I mean Delta rising
I upgraded a ultra rare aegis shield to MK13 but it will not let me upgrade anymore. I can wait until the impending of Chaos rising, . . . I mean Delta rising
Lol, Delta Rising day 1, the day of reckoning. I think I might call in sick to work that day in order to profit from the chaos.
I ran into a bug where a MK XII Ultra Rare TR-116B dropped down to a MK X Ultra Rare TR-116B on the first application of an upgrade.
I managed to get it up to a MK XIV Legendary after a few minutes, but that initial drop seemed like a bug.
Also, the 700 dil per application of each tech upgrade is way too high.
I had well over 400k in dil and managed to eat right through all of it in about 10 minutes.
On just one item.
Recommend turning the Dilithium cost into a single time cost of 8000 dil per upgrade level (meaning each time the counter hits 100%), that way there the player is still able to make progress on upgrading this gear rather than be completely bankrupt after only 10 minutes of playing this system.
Thus far, as I read through the forums it's easily recognizable that most of those who are supportive of this so-called new gear upgrade system, haven't actually tried it. I agree wholeheartedly with what you're saying in your comment, but in truth you are only scratching the surface as regards the facts.
One of my characters; my Romulan, still had Borg Assimilated Shields MK XI, which I chose to upgrade to Mk XII. That one process, for one set of Shields to increase by one Mk level, required six superior upgrade "modules" + one accelerator, and just under 9000 in dilithium. Granted, to complete the process immediately rather than waiting the full 2 hours and 45 min. to complete the process I was charged an additional 1900 in dilithium, thus the entire process could have cost "only" slightly over 7000 in dlithium.
Consider that to take those same shields to Mk XIV "Epic/Gold", I would have to go to the very same process to upgrade first to Mk XIII, then again to Mk XIV and lastly once again to Mk XIV Ultra Rare. Do note that the way this upgrade system is set up, the higher level equipment will require more superior upgrade tech modules + a greater amount of dilithium, for each upgrade performed.
There is no way of knowing precisely of course; at this point, just how many superior upgrade tech modules and how much dilithium will be required to complete the process of upgrading that one piece of equipment to its highest possible level. But I should think it be obvious to anyone, the answer to that question will surely approximate 30,000 to 40,000 in dilithium + somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 superior upgrade modules just to completely upgrade that one item!
Now, consider all of the weapons, consoles, deflectors, engines and shields each of us hopes to upgrade at some point, add each of your characters weapons, armor and shields .to that.
Once again, I cannot know for sure at this point (none of us can), but I did sit down with a calculator and my minimal estimations of 150 pieces of equipment spanning five characters, all of these equipment items currently being Advanced Fleet Mk XII level, a deliberately low estimate of the grand total; if you're not into crafting as I am not; and as I would because; of this upgrade systems very design, I will be forced to purchase on the exchange those same superior upgrade tech "modules" in an amount approaching 1 1/2 billion ECs. There is no possible way to know the varying costs in dilithium per upgrade, but you can be certain it's going to be massive in "Epic" proportions.
One of those who; in an earlier comment on the forum, spoke of it taking him "eight years", to fully complete the upgrade process for his six characters, was very likely and yet unknowingly speaking factually.
It's bad enough that by design Cryptic has chosen to make upgrades available ONLY to those whom are into crafting, leaving the rest of us...the vast majority of us; who aren't into crafting, to purchase Superior Tech Upgrades "modules", via the exchange. Far worse, they have or soon will have created an elite group of players at the expense of the rest of us.
Already such Superior upgrade tech modules and accelerators are selling at extremely high prices (ECs)....for just ONE...yet, again by design, each upgrade requires multiple, even several such tech modules.
Years of hard work, planning, earning THE very best equipment via fleet stores and in the doing being supportive of our fleets .true teams, and literally thousands of elite STFs to work my way through those reputation systems and earn advanced fleet gear ALL OF IT has BY DESIGN gone out the window. I would go from being among the highest ranked (all of my characters have the Medal of Honor and are in the 30K DPS range), hardest hitting, most supportive players in the game to second class status in one day! Cryptic changed the rules mid-game; as it were and we are supposed to be HAPPY about THAT?
As is true of the vast majority of players, I did NOT join STO to learn how to craft things. I joined because of the Star Trek genre, to enjoy exploring the galaxy, new star systems and new worlds, combat in space and on the ground, to expand my mind and learn the intricacies of ships, tactics, TEAMWORK, etc I didnt join STO to sit around at starbases or in front of the exchange, making things that USED TO BE of lesser quality than I was; through hard work, able to EARN for myself! Youll no doubt note that crafting is NOT itself found in ANY true Star Trek genre. Ever heard of replicators?
Many of us were never interested in crafting to us it was boring, uneventful and pointless. What I worked hard to earn via fleet stores and/or reputation systems, had always been far superior to anything a crafter could make. Now, that whole concept has been turned upside down BY DESIGN. After having guided us along a path we felt was safe under our feet, after years of learning the ropes and working my behind off to be among the best in the game by design theyve changed the most important aspects and rules of the game.
The only true method available to acquire ECs in those numbers would be for us to spend money to buy Zen, using the Zen to purchase items such as fleet ship modules or lockbox keys, or something similar whereupon those items would be sold on the exchange to acquire ECs in the large quantities. Yes, selling other items would help, but would never be anywhere near satisfying the need for ECs enough to buy the upgrade modules and accelerators in the quantities required. The point; of course, is BY DESIGN to acquire the "Epic/Gold" equipment, Cryptic has come up with a way to virtually demand; even in this global fiscal environment, cold hard cash from all of us if we are to survive in this game.
Oh no? All five of my characters have long ago earned the Medal of Honor; meaning each character has fought a minimum of 300 STFs each. Aside from my Romulan; which is a comparatively "new" character, the previous four characters earned their medals years ago. Thus, I can safely state that I have fought in excess of 2000 STFs and I always fight on the elite level. Every piece of equipment on all of my ships is Advanced Fleet Mk XII gear. While it is true that elite STFs are never "easy", until the past few days, after having personally witnessed the vast changes in the enemies we fight; insofar as their skills and damages done to my ships have dramatically increased, my last dozen or so encounters; with each and every of my ships, saw my shields being wiped out, my hulls being degraded to below 20% and several times my ships went up in puffs of smoke, since the enemy has been so greatly upgraded. (and thats with 2 copies of Aux2Bat, 3 purple doffs to reduce by 10% each the BOs cooldowns, and dual copies of both offensive and defensive skills all hotkeyed.) Too, during the past several days, I've been constantly amazed at how many other team members ships warp cores have breached now has been epic. lol
The obvious Truth here is either we start pouring cold hard cash into the C-Store, or suffer the consequences once again, by DESIGN. Making "Epic/Gold" equipment directly available ONLY to and through crafters via the exchange, is indicative of the worst form of avarice/greed, in that by taking financial advantage of people whom are already suffering through the worst global fiscal conditions in 75 years, on many levels this choice made is just plain wrong. This whole concept goes well beyond being unfair from the moment of conceptualization.
Sadly, I see now..."fairness" by Cryptic/PWE was never even considered as an option for those of us whom have been solidly supportive of both companies and the game itself. Most of us have been betrayed...all of us who were never interested in crafting. STO is (or used to be) about doing missions, coming up with strategies for combat scenarios, studying weapons and other applicable equipment, learning about ships and the enemies well face. It was about enjoyment, having fun. Soon an elite few (crafters) will be having fun alright, at the expense of everyone else BY DESIGN.
Soon, either people will shell out their cold hard cash to survive, become second class citizens of the STO community or leave the game. Once I recognized the full intent and extent of the new Upgrade System, I immediately realized why so many of my oldest friends have already left the game. There is no point in attempting denial of this most obvious Truth, it is a barefaced and obvious fact that the new Upgrade System was conceptualized to make impossible the acquisition of Gold/Epic equipment via the Fleet stores and only made available by virtue of those who are into crafting to create a massive need, namely the necessity of Zen. Its about cold hard cash and nothing more profit margins.
Theyve changed the rules on us mid-game going against 5 years of what; by design, we were all led to believe is how STO is setup. All of our planning, hard work and immense time spent earning what we have, theyve now turned into wasted effort and sacrifice in the doing, for the sake of a few bucks.
Heres a thought >>>>> Epic/Gold/Mk XIV equipment should have been and still SHOULD BE made available via the fleet stores <<<<< and NOT ONLY through crafters! Considering there are a great many players who prefer not to join fleets, the upcoming upgrade system could prove useful to them so the system could still be implemented, Cryptic would still make more than a lot of money and we non-crafters wouldnt be well; put politely, done wrong.
As for myself, I see no reason to continue on into my 6th year in STO. Truth be told, I have already uninstalled the game from my computer. For some time to come Ill track new information as its disseminated via Dev blogs and IF Cryptic comes to its senses, Id likely return. Yes, Ill miss my (remaining) friends in STO and the game itself, but I flat out refuse to allow anyone to do to me what they intend.
Thus far, as I read through the forums it's easily recognizable that most of those who are supportive of this so-called new gear upgrade system, haven't actually tried it. I agree wholeheartedly with what you're saying in your comment, but in truth you are only scratching the surface as regards the facts.
One of my characters; my Romulan, still had Borg Assimilated Shields MK XI, which I chose to upgrade to Mk XII. That one process, for one set of Shields to increase by one Mk level, required six superior upgrade "modules" + one accelerator, and just under 9000 in dilithium. Granted, to complete the process immediately rather than waiting the full 2 hours and 45 min. to complete the process I was charged an additional 1900 in dilithium, thus the entire process could have cost "only" slightly over 7000 in dlithium.
Consider that to take those same shields to Mk XIV "Epic/Gold", I would have to go to the very same process to upgrade first to Mk XIII, then again to Mk XIV and lastly once again to Mk XIV Ultra Rare. Do note that the way this upgrade system is set up, the higher level equipment will require more superior upgrade tech modules + a greater amount of dilithium, for each upgrade performed.
There is no way of knowing precisely of course; at this point, just how many superior upgrade tech modules and how much dilithium will be required to complete the process of upgrading that one piece of equipment to its highest possible level. But I should think it be obvious to anyone, the answer to that question will surely approximate 30,000 to 40,000 in dilithium + somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 superior upgrade modules just to completely upgrade that one item!
Now, consider all of the weapons, consoles, deflectors, engines and shields each of us hopes to upgrade at some point, add each of your characters weapons, armor and shields .to that.
Once again, I cannot know for sure at this point (none of us can), but I did sit down with a calculator and my minimal estimations of 150 pieces of equipment spanning five characters, all of these equipment items currently being Advanced Fleet Mk XII level, a deliberately low estimate of the grand total; if you're not into crafting as I am not; and as I would because; of this upgrade systems very design, I will be forced to purchase on the exchange those same superior upgrade tech "modules" in an amount approaching 1 1/2 billion ECs. There is no possible way to know the varying costs in dilithium per upgrade, but you can be certain it's going to be massive in "Epic" proportions.
One of those who; in an earlier comment on the forum, spoke of it taking him "eight years", to fully complete the upgrade process for his six characters, was very likely and yet unknowingly speaking factually.
It's bad enough that by design Cryptic has chosen to make upgrades available ONLY to those whom are into crafting, leaving the rest of us...the vast majority of us; who aren't into crafting, to purchase Superior Tech Upgrades "modules", via the exchange. Far worse, they have or soon will have created an elite group of players at the expense of the rest of us.
Already such Superior upgrade tech modules and accelerators are selling at extremely high prices (ECs)....for just ONE...yet, again by design, each upgrade requires multiple, even several such tech modules.
Years of hard work, planning, earning THE very best equipment via fleet stores and in the doing being supportive of our fleets .true teams, and literally thousands of elite STFs to work my way through those reputation systems and earn advanced fleet gear ALL OF IT has BY DESIGN gone out the window. I would go from being among the highest ranked (all of my characters have the Medal of Honor and are in the 30K DPS range), hardest hitting, most supportive players in the game to second class status in one day! Cryptic changed the rules mid-game; as it were and we are supposed to be HAPPY about THAT?
As is true of the vast majority of players, I did NOT join STO to learn how to craft things. I joined because of the Star Trek genre, to enjoy exploring the galaxy, new star systems and new worlds, combat in space and on the ground, to expand my mind and learn the intricacies of ships, tactics, TEAMWORK, etc I didnt join STO to sit around at starbases or in front of the exchange, making things that USED TO BE of lesser quality than I was; through hard work, able to EARN for myself! Youll no doubt note that crafting is NOT itself found in ANY true Star Trek genre. Ever heard of replicators?
Many of us were never interested in crafting to us it was boring, uneventful and pointless. What I worked hard to earn via fleet stores and/or reputation systems, had always been far superior to anything a crafter could make. Now, that whole concept has been turned upside down BY DESIGN. After having guided us along a path we felt was safe under our feet, after years of learning the ropes and working my behind off to be among the best in the game by design theyve changed the most important aspects and rules of the game.
The only true method available to acquire ECs in those numbers would be for us to spend money to buy Zen, using the Zen to purchase items such as fleet ship modules or lockbox keys, or something similar whereupon those items would be sold on the exchange to acquire ECs in the large quantities. Yes, selling other items would help, but would never be anywhere near satisfying the need for ECs enough to buy the upgrade modules and accelerators in the quantities required. The point; of course, is BY DESIGN to acquire the "Epic/Gold" equipment, Cryptic has come up with a way to virtually demand; even in this global fiscal environment, cold hard cash from all of us if we are to survive in this game.
Oh no? All five of my characters have long ago earned the Medal of Honor; meaning each character has fought a minimum of 300 STFs each. Aside from my Romulan; which is a comparatively "new" character, the previous four characters earned their medals years ago. Thus, I can safely state that I have fought in excess of 2000 STFs and I always fight on the elite level. Every piece of equipment on all of my ships is Advanced Fleet Mk XII gear. While it is true that elite STFs are never "easy", until the past few days, after having personally witnessed the vast changes in the enemies we fight; insofar as their skills and damages done to my ships have dramatically increased, my last dozen or so encounters; with each and every of my ships, saw my shields being wiped out, my hulls being degraded to below 20% and several times my ships went up in puffs of smoke, since the enemy has been so greatly upgraded. (and thats with 2 copies of Aux2Bat, 3 purple doffs to reduce by 10% each the BOs cooldowns, and dual copies of both offensive and defensive skills all hotkeyed.) Too, during the past several days, I've been constantly amazed at how many other team members ships warp cores have breached now has been epic. lol
The obvious Truth here is either we start pouring cold hard cash into the C-Store, or suffer the consequences once again, by DESIGN. Making "Epic/Gold" equipment directly available ONLY to and through crafters via the exchange, is indicative of the worst form of avarice/greed, in that by taking financial advantage of people whom are already suffering through the worst global fiscal conditions in 75 years, on many levels this choice made is just plain wrong. This whole concept goes well beyond being unfair from the moment of conceptualization.
Sadly, I see now..."fairness" by Cryptic/PWE was never even considered as an option for those of us whom have been solidly supportive of both companies and the game itself. Most of us have been betrayed...all of us who were never interested in crafting. STO is (or used to be) about doing missions, coming up with strategies for combat scenarios, studying weapons and other applicable equipment, learning about ships and the enemies well face. It was about enjoyment, having fun. Soon an elite few (crafters) will be having fun alright, at the expense of everyone else BY DESIGN.
Soon, either people will shell out their cold hard cash to survive, become second class citizens of the STO community or leave the game. Once I recognized the full intent and extent of the new Upgrade System, I immediately realized why so many of my oldest friends have already left the game. There is no point in attempting denial of this most obvious Truth, it is a barefaced and obvious fact that the new Upgrade System was conceptualized to make impossible the acquisition of Gold/Epic equipment via the Fleet stores and only made available by virtue of those who are into crafting to create a massive need, namely the necessity of Zen. Its about cold hard cash and nothing more profit margins.
Theyve changed the rules on us mid-game going against 5 years of what; by design, we were all led to believe is how STO is setup. All of our planning, hard work and immense time spent earning what we have, theyve now turned into wasted effort and sacrifice in the doing, for the sake of a few bucks.
Heres a thought >>>>> Epic/Gold/Mk XIV equipment should have been and still SHOULD BE made available via the fleet stores <<<<< and NOT ONLY through crafters! Considering there are a great many players who prefer not to join fleets, the upcoming upgrade system could prove useful to them so the system could still be implemented, Cryptic would still make more than a lot of money and we non-crafters wouldnt be well; put politely, done wrong.
As for myself, I see no reason to continue on into my 6th year in STO. Truth be told, I have already uninstalled the game from my computer. For some time to come Ill track new information as its disseminated via Dev blogs and IF Cryptic comes to its senses, Id likely return. Yes, Ill miss my (remaining) friends in STO and the game itself, but I flat out refuse to allow anyone to do to me what they intend.
The only thing I've heard was a confirmed MkXIII mission reward.
and anything being dropped at Mk XIII or Mk XIV levels will surely be white; green if we're lucky.
oh sure, that's how we'll acquire the best gear...wait and hope for Ultra Rare MK XIV gear.
I should have thought of that.
As for fleet stores selling Mk XIV Ultra Rare...or even very rare gear....nope...I'm sad to say (else the Devs; et al, would have been sharing that information with us all by now.)
Of course, I'm only coming up on the beginning of my 6th year in STO...year 5 (was) rapidly fading into the past...sooooo, what would I know. lol
I feel like I am in the bottom of that. Dilithium for me is slow to earn and goes very fast. Between helping the fleets I am in and using it for stuff I need, I can't bank it. I have about 10 million EC between all of my characters and maybe 35k DL at the most between them all. I do play a couple of days a week on average. I am definitely the player this system punishes and that makes me not want to bother with it at all.
My friend, when I hear "Mr. Big" over and over and over again, beating his drum about being so vastly wealthy; apparently in...and outside the game, I feel the need to barf on his bridge. As if being wealthy is the end all and be all anywhere. rofl
It is NOT.
Ok, let me reassure you of what's truly important...and I'm speaking from the perspective of someone who could quite possibly buy PWE itself at whatever the cost...IF I wanted it; which of course I do NOT. He is correct about one thing, both PWE and Cryptic have entered upon dangerous fiscal ground with this upcoming Upgrade System. I say "dangerous", because those of us whom have been in STO for many years (I was nearing the end of my 5th) ...see the massive and radical change to what STO once was and has never before been. They've completely changed the rules mid-game, so to speak...and the players are vehemently opposed to the Upgrade System, they are angry. It's abhorrent on many levels.
There was a time when I did spend a bit of cash on STO, but doing so left me feeling empty, unsatisfied. Perhaps I would again IF the game was in trouble AND Cryptic did right by its players. But that's just not the case anymore.
For years now, I've EARNED every piece of equipment I use; on five characters...and I'm damn proud of that fact. It feels GOOD. All of my equipment is fully fleet level Mk XII gear, currently the best available...and I didn't spend a dime to buy any of it. I EARNED it all. (and in the process, helped my fleet to make progress, thus helping a great many fleet mates.)
"Buying" anything on the exchange; for me was a waste of time...and any valuable drops I'd give to my friends in need. As for EC's and dilithium, there was a time I remained near to the EC's cap...and had well, let's say more dilithium than I could have ever used. That is, until I joined a great fleet and chose to help my fleet mates...as well as giving away nearly my entire "fortune" (EC's) to friends whom would have otherwise been unable to acquire the best ships and equipment made available on the exchange.
I don't give a darn how much so-called wealth I have in a GAME. Too, I have no need of anything which can be purchased on the exchange, because prior to this new upgrade system, nothing sold there came close to the gear I use. I therefore had no use for "wealth" in either EC's or dilithium. Far more importantly; if only to myself anyway, I was helping others...hoping only to make their gameplay more enjoyable.
EARNING your way through the game is far more meaningful and much more rewarding, than seeing numbers in your account bank or inventory assets including several zeros.
Every EC and each dilithium you have you have EARNED. You can and should be very proud of that fact.
As for the upper 1%? rofl.... ol' "Moneybags" hasn't a clue what really matters in Life or in this game. Life is about giving, sharing...being good to others and helping them if possible. It's about others and NOT about ourselves.
The ancient axiom which states "Money doesn't buy happiness", is indeed true. Don't be misled by another's self-delusions of "glory"...and don't be envious of such pride. Humility is good...and don't let anyone con you into believing differently.
Remember always, this is; after all, a GAME...a place of enjoyment, where people go to have fun...to play. STO is NOT the NYSE, after all. lol
Be proud of your hard work...and of everything you've earned. Ol' Moneybags will never understand how we feel, nor will he ever share in it's wonder. Oh, I'm quite certain he would vehemently disagree and write yet another book saying why. Does it matter? To you?
As for this poorly conceptualized, most vicious Upgrade System soon to curse STO's community, most of my friends have already left the game...and because I live by principals and not self-interest, I myself have already uninstalled STO from my computer. My friends understand my point of view...those who do yet remain. However, the vast majority of those too, are planning to go elsewhere in search of what Cryptic has taken from us all...gameplay fun.
I'll monitor the Devs blogs and forums for a time, hoping Cryptic comes to it's senses in time..before they kill the game itself.
Many sensibly believe when this support of an elite class of players unfolds and becomes the only "reality" in STO, itll become a great danger to the very future of the game itself. Or, put another way what has often been the number one rated game, could quite easily and quickly, go the way of the dinosaur. If you doubt this, consider "World of ********". After losing 700,000 players in just three months, "World of ********" is firmly on the decline. Since peaking at 12 million subscribers in 2011, gaming experts see it as a dying game. While it continues to be considered as strong publicly...it IS dying. With such ongoing huge losses of players each time I go there, Im shocked at how almost nobody I knew for such a long time plays WoW anymore. Personally, I wont waste my time in WoW these days. I was there at its peak and what changes WoW have made werent nearly as unkind or radically unfair (most would and do say cruel)...as the coming CRAFTERS ONLY elite system will be.
Mk XIV Gold/Epic gear should be made available via fleet stores. Until now, the best equipment was acquired there. Additionally, the fleets too have also been crushed by Cryptic's lack of foresight. A great lack of dilithium available to be contributed towards fleet projects, are in many fleets...seeing their progress stall completely. Projects sit there for days, even weeks...making little to no progress at all, because most people are saving their ECs and dilithium to upgrade what they already have. I can't imagine what Cryptic must have been thinking.
You; my friend, are not alone with respect to being EC's and/or dilithium "poor". Soon, except for those who would never conceive of EARNING their gear and instead prefer to dig deeply into their (real life) bank account to buy what they have in STO, everyone will be suffering. Moneybags' contentions are correct in another area...the vast majority of players here will be dirt poor...IF they choose to allow Cryptic to do such a thing to them...and remain in the game.
I...for one, will NOT. Too, from what I'm reading in the forums, as well as the many friends I've seen already leave the game...and most especially as regards the numerous PM's I've witnessed, words and demonstrations of an ever growing outrage at Cryptic's massively bad move...are most common now.
Don't let the elitists make you feel inferior, for it is they who are, in believing they're somehow superior to anyone else. The certainly are not. In fact, it is they whom are deluded...and they whom have missed the point of the GAME. It's isn't about publicly beating your own wallet as though it were a drum...it's about having fun...PERIOD.
If you have that, you're wealthy in a way a "Ferengi" will never be capable of understanding.
Again, be satisfied with having what you've earned..and don't for a moment imagine that so-called 1% of elitists are having any more fun, or enjoying STO any more than you do!
My one recommendation is one that is clearly not new to this blog: PLEASE REDUCE THE DILITHIUM COSTS OF THE UPGRADE SYSTEM!
Six friends of mine who play STO as casual gamers have all told me they refuse to play STO unless the dilithium costs are lowered on the upgrade system. I am almost at that point myself!
There is no way of knowing precisely of course; at this point, just how many superior upgrade tech modules and how much dilithium will be required to complete the process of upgrading that one piece of equipment to its highest possible level. But I should think it be obvious to anyone, the answer to that question will surely approximate 30,000 to 40,000 in dilithium + somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 superior upgrade modules just to completely upgrade that one item!
Now, consider all of the weapons, consoles, deflectors, engines and shields each of us hopes to upgrade at some point, add each of your characters weapons, armor and shields .to that.
Once again, I cannot know for sure at this point (none of us can), but I did sit down with a calculator and my minimal estimations of 150 pieces of equipment spanning five characters, all of these equipment items currently being Advanced Fleet Mk XII level, a deliberately low estimate of the grand total; if you're not into crafting as I am not; and as I would because; of this upgrade systems very design, I will be forced to purchase on the exchange those same superior upgrade tech "modules" in an amount approaching 1 1/2 billion ECs. There is no possible way to know the varying costs in dilithium per upgrade, but you can be certain it's going to be massive in "Epic" proportions.
I'm not sure what you mean by "no way to know". Several players have been posting information about the ugprade costs since the upgrade system first appeared on Tribble. See this table by mightybobcnc:
Maybe, you are referring to the fact that rarity upgrades are random. Although you won't know how many tries it will take until you do it, it is possible to make some probability calculations. See the posts below.
Are any Devs going to respond to the INSANE costs of this "upgrade" system? I mean several HUNDRED THOUSAND dilithium just to upgrade *ONE* ship? not including Ground Equipment? I thought you where trying to get players to go out and try new things? But you aren't you are pigeonholing people into flying with ONE SHIP,and only play ONE FREAKING CHARACTER...SO my alts are going to shrivel up and die as I will never be playing them again,and my 30+ ships and hundreds of items are now completely obsolete in this new system....this is just stupid.
Very well said...
To your thoughts I'd add...in the upper hundreds of millions of ECs...for two or three characters...into the billions with 5 or more.
Having done the math; so to speak, the above figures represent an estimate made deliberately lower than the likely amounts.
Too, consider what's being done to fleets and their projects. For reasons which aren't important here, I have multiple contacts among a great many fleets...and their projects; thus their progress, has stalled completely...due to a complete end of dilithium contributions and a great lack of players being willing to spend ECs to buy what projects require. Everyone's saving both ECs and dilithium...and the vast majority already realize unless they spend a LOT of cold hard cash...they'll never see their goals of being fully MK XIV Ultra Rare equipped.
People...MANY players are ANGRY.
Me? I uninstalled STO two days ago. IF Cryptic ends this nightmare, sure I'd hope to return. But as things are now and going to be soon? Absolutely NOT.
I'm not sure what you mean by "no way to know". Several players have been posting information about the ugprade costs since the upgrade system first appeared on Tribble. See this table by mightybobcnc:
Maybe, you are referring to the fact that rarity upgrades are random. Although you won't know how many tries it will take until you do it, it is possible to make some probability calculations. See the posts below.
Oh really? I eventually upgraded FIVE sets of shields....4 of which were initially identical in every way.
I meticulously made screenshots/snips during the process(es) of all five processes at each step. I recorded on a word document precisely how many superior tech upgrade "modules" were used, while applying one accelerator to each process. I also recorded the amount of dilithium which was required to fully complete each process.
ALL five sets of shields upgrades required varying numbers of tech modules and dilithium. There was no commonality. Some upgrades made it to 98%, others to 94%, 97% etc., while only one made it to 100% after applying SIX tech upgrade modules. Most never completely advanced to the next highest Mk level and thus required an additional 7th tech module. To all five processes I added one accelerator of the same grade (which were given to us all by Cryptic) The tech modules themselves were all of "superior" grade.
Additionally, NONE of the dilithium expenditures were the same, varying as much as 2,000.
I restate, I'm speaking of 4 IDENTICAL types and levels of shields....requiring vastly different numbers of applied superior tech upgrade modules and requisite dilithium. The one set of shields which was slightly different than the other 4 (One Mk level lower, as it were), I am not referencing in what I've just described.
As I previously, accurately stated....there's no way of truly knowing how many superior tech upgrade modules OR dilithium will be required to fully compete an upgrade.
Comments
That still doesn't quite explain the case that I observed. I was trying to upgrade some low-level item for which one superior tech was enough. When I slotted the accelerator, the chance to increase rarity was halved. What does it mean to apply only half a tech? Note that my intention is not to criticize you, but to convey that what's happening makes little sense to me. I suspect that there is a bug.
Perhaps, things would be clearer if the devs explained how each tech applied affects the research bar. After all, the chance to increase rarity doesn't actually apply until you perform the upgrade. So what does the research bar represent before the TP bar is filled?
I've been doing some thinking and the dil might not need to come down directly. As I see it 1 (if not all) of three things should happen
1.Take out the dil on kit application set up.
2. Increase the amount significantly of TP kits give.
3. Decrease the amount significantly of TP needed to upgrade.
If 1, if not all, of these are applied I would be happy. Aside from random mods and dysfunctional upgrades
Is that the Kinetic Cutting Beam and the Nukara Particle Converter? both of mine changed and the stats were drastically reduced when I simply put them in the upgrade window.
Member since December 2009
its not just resources... there is also a time component. They have fooled people by releasing the purple kits. Someone in another thread did the math - and usually with these game the last couple of years, once you do the math..... - and its 100s and 100s of days to level. If you log in every day. So it will be a while before any of us can craft what we were given during the event. It will probably be next spring or summer before I even mess with this system again.
If they are doing promotions, the best thing they could do for me is to give us some R&D level accelerators so we can get few levels . Im already sick of the entire R&D system and I haven't even crafted a thing.
Its more or less just like the orginal Rep and Fleet system offering low level garbage no one really wants or needs. Just like most people didn't waste the rep and dilith on MX level items and just bought the MXII items, after the initial rush, you wont be able to give Basic Upgrade kits away.
Oh, that's right. The time that goes into getting to level 15 in any R&D school. Well I, for one, feel that the whole kit system makes sense but is unnecessary. Why should we need kits to upgrade? Why do we need TP to upgrade? I mean, sure, it shouldn't be free but there's a line between free and unnecessary. It's called reasonable. Find it Cryptic.
[Console - Univerasl - Manheim Device]
[Console - Universal - Assimilated Module]
[Assimilated Subtranswarp Engines MkXII]
These cannot be upgraded
- technology boosts actually hurt your quality upgrade chance in the long run, including the instances where you crit the application of your upgrade kits.
So if I upgrade a blue item without any boosters at all I get a 10% chance for a rarity bump. If I use the major tech boosters I get 5% or ~6.66% when using the green tech boosters. That is a tough pill to swallow but if all fails I could handle it, after all the person applying the booster made a concious choice to do so (even if the choice was uninformed
Getting penalized for a crit while applying a kit upgrade however is not, seeing a crit should be a nice moment not a 'ah TRIBBLE there goes another percent of my rarity upgrade chance'.
Member since December 2009
These numbers are based on using Superior tech upgrades and no accelerators.
Regular Items (this includes fleet gear)
Ship Equipment and Weapons MK-XII 6900dil, Mk-XIII 12650dil
Consoles Mk-XII 2300dil, Mk-XIII 4600dil
Ground items Mk-XII 5750dil, Mk-XIII 10350dil
Set items (special named sets obtainable)
Ship Equipment and weapons Mk-XII 12650dil, Mk-XIII 25300dil
Consoles Mk-XII 3450dil, Mk-XIII 6900dil
Ground Items Mk-XII 6900dil, Mk-XIII 13800dil
granted with blue or green upgrades this cost goes up considerably. These numbers are more in line with recent costs of getting a new item from vendors. These prices are even better then fleet to get most new items. I am still not a fan of the dilithium cost tacked on to each input, however I find the new system more reasonable then I previously thought.
Be smart, save up, buy purples, ALWAYS use accelerators!
We fight them too. Entire armies spilling out of Volkswagens.
We do our best to fight them off, but they keep sending them in.
Confirmed, had the same result.
> <
> <
>
We fight them too. Entire armies spilling out of Volkswagens.
We do our best to fight them off, but they keep sending them in.
I upgraded a ultra rare aegis shield to MK13 but it will not let me upgrade anymore. I can wait until the release of Chaos rising, . . . I mean Delta rising
Lol, Delta Rising day 1, the day of reckoning. I think I might call in sick to work that day in order to profit from the chaos.
Thus far, as I read through the forums it's easily recognizable that most of those who are supportive of this so-called new gear upgrade system, haven't actually tried it. I agree wholeheartedly with what you're saying in your comment, but in truth you are only scratching the surface as regards the facts.
One of my characters; my Romulan, still had Borg Assimilated Shields MK XI, which I chose to upgrade to Mk XII. That one process, for one set of Shields to increase by one Mk level, required six superior upgrade "modules" + one accelerator, and just under 9000 in dilithium. Granted, to complete the process immediately rather than waiting the full 2 hours and 45 min. to complete the process I was charged an additional 1900 in dilithium, thus the entire process could have cost "only" slightly over 7000 in dlithium.
Consider that to take those same shields to Mk XIV "Epic/Gold", I would have to go to the very same process to upgrade first to Mk XIII, then again to Mk XIV and lastly once again to Mk XIV Ultra Rare. Do note that the way this upgrade system is set up, the higher level equipment will require more superior upgrade tech modules + a greater amount of dilithium, for each upgrade performed.
There is no way of knowing precisely of course; at this point, just how many superior upgrade tech modules and how much dilithium will be required to complete the process of upgrading that one piece of equipment to its highest possible level. But I should think it be obvious to anyone, the answer to that question will surely approximate 30,000 to 40,000 in dilithium + somewhere in the neighborhood of 25 to 30 superior upgrade modules just to completely upgrade that one item!
Now, consider all of the weapons, consoles, deflectors, engines and shields each of us hopes to upgrade at some point, add each of your characters weapons, armor and shields .to that.
Once again, I cannot know for sure at this point (none of us can), but I did sit down with a calculator and my minimal estimations of 150 pieces of equipment spanning five characters, all of these equipment items currently being Advanced Fleet Mk XII level, a deliberately low estimate of the grand total; if you're not into crafting as I am not; and as I would because; of this upgrade systems very design, I will be forced to purchase on the exchange those same superior upgrade tech "modules" in an amount approaching 1 1/2 billion ECs. There is no possible way to know the varying costs in dilithium per upgrade, but you can be certain it's going to be massive in "Epic" proportions.
One of those who; in an earlier comment on the forum, spoke of it taking him "eight years", to fully complete the upgrade process for his six characters, was very likely and yet unknowingly speaking factually.
It's bad enough that by design Cryptic has chosen to make upgrades available ONLY to those whom are into crafting, leaving the rest of us...the vast majority of us; who aren't into crafting, to purchase Superior Tech Upgrades "modules", via the exchange. Far worse, they have or soon will have created an elite group of players at the expense of the rest of us.
Already such Superior upgrade tech modules and accelerators are selling at extremely high prices (ECs)....for just ONE...yet, again by design, each upgrade requires multiple, even several such tech modules.
Years of hard work, planning, earning THE very best equipment via fleet stores and in the doing being supportive of our fleets .true teams, and literally thousands of elite STFs to work my way through those reputation systems and earn advanced fleet gear ALL OF IT has BY DESIGN gone out the window. I would go from being among the highest ranked (all of my characters have the Medal of Honor and are in the 30K DPS range), hardest hitting, most supportive players in the game to second class status in one day! Cryptic changed the rules mid-game; as it were and we are supposed to be HAPPY about THAT?
As is true of the vast majority of players, I did NOT join STO to learn how to craft things. I joined because of the Star Trek genre, to enjoy exploring the galaxy, new star systems and new worlds, combat in space and on the ground, to expand my mind and learn the intricacies of ships, tactics, TEAMWORK, etc I didnt join STO to sit around at starbases or in front of the exchange, making things that USED TO BE of lesser quality than I was; through hard work, able to EARN for myself! Youll no doubt note that crafting is NOT itself found in ANY true Star Trek genre. Ever heard of replicators?
Many of us were never interested in crafting to us it was boring, uneventful and pointless. What I worked hard to earn via fleet stores and/or reputation systems, had always been far superior to anything a crafter could make. Now, that whole concept has been turned upside down BY DESIGN. After having guided us along a path we felt was safe under our feet, after years of learning the ropes and working my behind off to be among the best in the game by design theyve changed the most important aspects and rules of the game.
The only true method available to acquire ECs in those numbers would be for us to spend money to buy Zen, using the Zen to purchase items such as fleet ship modules or lockbox keys, or something similar whereupon those items would be sold on the exchange to acquire ECs in the large quantities. Yes, selling other items would help, but would never be anywhere near satisfying the need for ECs enough to buy the upgrade modules and accelerators in the quantities required. The point; of course, is BY DESIGN to acquire the "Epic/Gold" equipment, Cryptic has come up with a way to virtually demand; even in this global fiscal environment, cold hard cash from all of us if we are to survive in this game.
Oh no? All five of my characters have long ago earned the Medal of Honor; meaning each character has fought a minimum of 300 STFs each. Aside from my Romulan; which is a comparatively "new" character, the previous four characters earned their medals years ago. Thus, I can safely state that I have fought in excess of 2000 STFs and I always fight on the elite level. Every piece of equipment on all of my ships is Advanced Fleet Mk XII gear. While it is true that elite STFs are never "easy", until the past few days, after having personally witnessed the vast changes in the enemies we fight; insofar as their skills and damages done to my ships have dramatically increased, my last dozen or so encounters; with each and every of my ships, saw my shields being wiped out, my hulls being degraded to below 20% and several times my ships went up in puffs of smoke, since the enemy has been so greatly upgraded. (and thats with 2 copies of Aux2Bat, 3 purple doffs to reduce by 10% each the BOs cooldowns, and dual copies of both offensive and defensive skills all hotkeyed.) Too, during the past several days, I've been constantly amazed at how many other team members ships warp cores have breached now has been epic. lol
The obvious Truth here is either we start pouring cold hard cash into the C-Store, or suffer the consequences once again, by DESIGN. Making "Epic/Gold" equipment directly available ONLY to and through crafters via the exchange, is indicative of the worst form of avarice/greed, in that by taking financial advantage of people whom are already suffering through the worst global fiscal conditions in 75 years, on many levels this choice made is just plain wrong. This whole concept goes well beyond being unfair from the moment of conceptualization.
Sadly, I see now..."fairness" by Cryptic/PWE was never even considered as an option for those of us whom have been solidly supportive of both companies and the game itself. Most of us have been betrayed...all of us who were never interested in crafting. STO is (or used to be) about doing missions, coming up with strategies for combat scenarios, studying weapons and other applicable equipment, learning about ships and the enemies well face. It was about enjoyment, having fun. Soon an elite few (crafters) will be having fun alright, at the expense of everyone else BY DESIGN.
Soon, either people will shell out their cold hard cash to survive, become second class citizens of the STO community or leave the game. Once I recognized the full intent and extent of the new Upgrade System, I immediately realized why so many of my oldest friends have already left the game. There is no point in attempting denial of this most obvious Truth, it is a barefaced and obvious fact that the new Upgrade System was conceptualized to make impossible the acquisition of Gold/Epic equipment via the Fleet stores and only made available by virtue of those who are into crafting to create a massive need, namely the necessity of Zen. Its about cold hard cash and nothing more profit margins.
Theyve changed the rules on us mid-game going against 5 years of what; by design, we were all led to believe is how STO is setup. All of our planning, hard work and immense time spent earning what we have, theyve now turned into wasted effort and sacrifice in the doing, for the sake of a few bucks.
Heres a thought >>>>> Epic/Gold/Mk XIV equipment should have been and still SHOULD BE made available via the fleet stores <<<<< and NOT ONLY through crafters! Considering there are a great many players who prefer not to join fleets, the upcoming upgrade system could prove useful to them so the system could still be implemented, Cryptic would still make more than a lot of money and we non-crafters wouldnt be well; put politely, done wrong.
As for myself, I see no reason to continue on into my 6th year in STO. Truth be told, I have already uninstalled the game from my computer. For some time to come Ill track new information as its disseminated via Dev blogs and IF Cryptic comes to its senses, Id likely return. Yes, Ill miss my (remaining) friends in STO and the game itself, but I flat out refuse to allow anyone to do to me what they intend.
Best of luck to all of you.
Wolf .OUT!
Ok, time for an admin to censor the post above me. I quit thread above.
P.S. Can I have your stuff?
QFT
You are not alone.
and anything being dropped at Mk XIII or Mk XIV levels will surely be white; green if we're lucky.
oh sure, that's how we'll acquire the best gear...wait and hope for Ultra Rare MK XIV gear.
I should have thought of that.
As for fleet stores selling Mk XIV Ultra Rare...or even very rare gear....nope...I'm sad to say (else the Devs; et al, would have been sharing that information with us all by now.)
Of course, I'm only coming up on the beginning of my 6th year in STO...year 5 (was) rapidly fading into the past...sooooo, what would I know. lol
That is...if I were still playing the game.
It's been uninstalled...I'm out of here.
My friend, when I hear "Mr. Big" over and over and over again, beating his drum about being so vastly wealthy; apparently in...and outside the game, I feel the need to barf on his bridge. As if being wealthy is the end all and be all anywhere. rofl
It is NOT.
Ok, let me reassure you of what's truly important...and I'm speaking from the perspective of someone who could quite possibly buy PWE itself at whatever the cost...IF I wanted it; which of course I do NOT. He is correct about one thing, both PWE and Cryptic have entered upon dangerous fiscal ground with this upcoming Upgrade System. I say "dangerous", because those of us whom have been in STO for many years (I was nearing the end of my 5th) ...see the massive and radical change to what STO once was and has never before been. They've completely changed the rules mid-game, so to speak...and the players are vehemently opposed to the Upgrade System, they are angry. It's abhorrent on many levels.
There was a time when I did spend a bit of cash on STO, but doing so left me feeling empty, unsatisfied. Perhaps I would again IF the game was in trouble AND Cryptic did right by its players. But that's just not the case anymore.
For years now, I've EARNED every piece of equipment I use; on five characters...and I'm damn proud of that fact. It feels GOOD. All of my equipment is fully fleet level Mk XII gear, currently the best available...and I didn't spend a dime to buy any of it. I EARNED it all. (and in the process, helped my fleet to make progress, thus helping a great many fleet mates.)
"Buying" anything on the exchange; for me was a waste of time...and any valuable drops I'd give to my friends in need. As for EC's and dilithium, there was a time I remained near to the EC's cap...and had well, let's say more dilithium than I could have ever used. That is, until I joined a great fleet and chose to help my fleet mates...as well as giving away nearly my entire "fortune" (EC's) to friends whom would have otherwise been unable to acquire the best ships and equipment made available on the exchange.
I don't give a darn how much so-called wealth I have in a GAME. Too, I have no need of anything which can be purchased on the exchange, because prior to this new upgrade system, nothing sold there came close to the gear I use. I therefore had no use for "wealth" in either EC's or dilithium. Far more importantly; if only to myself anyway, I was helping others...hoping only to make their gameplay more enjoyable.
EARNING your way through the game is far more meaningful and much more rewarding, than seeing numbers in your account bank or inventory assets including several zeros.
Every EC and each dilithium you have you have EARNED. You can and should be very proud of that fact.
As for the upper 1%? rofl.... ol' "Moneybags" hasn't a clue what really matters in Life or in this game. Life is about giving, sharing...being good to others and helping them if possible. It's about others and NOT about ourselves.
The ancient axiom which states "Money doesn't buy happiness", is indeed true. Don't be misled by another's self-delusions of "glory"...and don't be envious of such pride. Humility is good...and don't let anyone con you into believing differently.
Remember always, this is; after all, a GAME...a place of enjoyment, where people go to have fun...to play. STO is NOT the NYSE, after all. lol
Be proud of your hard work...and of everything you've earned. Ol' Moneybags will never understand how we feel, nor will he ever share in it's wonder. Oh, I'm quite certain he would vehemently disagree and write yet another book saying why. Does it matter? To you?
As for this poorly conceptualized, most vicious Upgrade System soon to curse STO's community, most of my friends have already left the game...and because I live by principals and not self-interest, I myself have already uninstalled STO from my computer. My friends understand my point of view...those who do yet remain. However, the vast majority of those too, are planning to go elsewhere in search of what Cryptic has taken from us all...gameplay fun.
I'll monitor the Devs blogs and forums for a time, hoping Cryptic comes to it's senses in time..before they kill the game itself.
Many sensibly believe when this support of an elite class of players unfolds and becomes the only "reality" in STO, itll become a great danger to the very future of the game itself. Or, put another way what has often been the number one rated game, could quite easily and quickly, go the way of the dinosaur. If you doubt this, consider "World of ********". After losing 700,000 players in just three months, "World of ********" is firmly on the decline. Since peaking at 12 million subscribers in 2011, gaming experts see it as a dying game. While it continues to be considered as strong publicly...it IS dying. With such ongoing huge losses of players each time I go there, Im shocked at how almost nobody I knew for such a long time plays WoW anymore. Personally, I wont waste my time in WoW these days. I was there at its peak and what changes WoW have made werent nearly as unkind or radically unfair (most would and do say cruel)...as the coming CRAFTERS ONLY elite system will be.
Mk XIV Gold/Epic gear should be made available via fleet stores. Until now, the best equipment was acquired there. Additionally, the fleets too have also been crushed by Cryptic's lack of foresight. A great lack of dilithium available to be contributed towards fleet projects, are in many fleets...seeing their progress stall completely. Projects sit there for days, even weeks...making little to no progress at all, because most people are saving their ECs and dilithium to upgrade what they already have. I can't imagine what Cryptic must have been thinking.
You; my friend, are not alone with respect to being EC's and/or dilithium "poor". Soon, except for those who would never conceive of EARNING their gear and instead prefer to dig deeply into their (real life) bank account to buy what they have in STO, everyone will be suffering. Moneybags' contentions are correct in another area...the vast majority of players here will be dirt poor...IF they choose to allow Cryptic to do such a thing to them...and remain in the game.
I...for one, will NOT. Too, from what I'm reading in the forums, as well as the many friends I've seen already leave the game...and most especially as regards the numerous PM's I've witnessed, words and demonstrations of an ever growing outrage at Cryptic's massively bad move...are most common now.
Don't let the elitists make you feel inferior, for it is they who are, in believing they're somehow superior to anyone else. The certainly are not. In fact, it is they whom are deluded...and they whom have missed the point of the GAME. It's isn't about publicly beating your own wallet as though it were a drum...it's about having fun...PERIOD.
If you have that, you're wealthy in a way a "Ferengi" will never be capable of understanding.
Again, be satisfied with having what you've earned..and don't for a moment imagine that so-called 1% of elitists are having any more fun, or enjoying STO any more than you do!
Best of luck to you...and to you all.
Six friends of mine who play STO as casual gamers have all told me they refuse to play STO unless the dilithium costs are lowered on the upgrade system. I am almost at that point myself!
I'm not sure what you mean by "no way to know". Several players have been posting information about the ugprade costs since the upgrade system first appeared on Tribble. See this table by mightybobcnc:
http://bit.ly/STOUpgradeTable
Maybe, you are referring to the fact that rarity upgrades are random. Although you won't know how many tries it will take until you do it, it is possible to make some probability calculations. See the posts below.
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=19445481&postcount=574
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=19455881&postcount=588
Very well said...
To your thoughts I'd add...in the upper hundreds of millions of ECs...for two or three characters...into the billions with 5 or more.
Having done the math; so to speak, the above figures represent an estimate made deliberately lower than the likely amounts.
Too, consider what's being done to fleets and their projects. For reasons which aren't important here, I have multiple contacts among a great many fleets...and their projects; thus their progress, has stalled completely...due to a complete end of dilithium contributions and a great lack of players being willing to spend ECs to buy what projects require. Everyone's saving both ECs and dilithium...and the vast majority already realize unless they spend a LOT of cold hard cash...they'll never see their goals of being fully MK XIV Ultra Rare equipped.
People...MANY players are ANGRY.
Me? I uninstalled STO two days ago. IF Cryptic ends this nightmare, sure I'd hope to return. But as things are now and going to be soon? Absolutely NOT.
Best of luck to you
Oh really? I eventually upgraded FIVE sets of shields....4 of which were initially identical in every way.
I meticulously made screenshots/snips during the process(es) of all five processes at each step. I recorded on a word document precisely how many superior tech upgrade "modules" were used, while applying one accelerator to each process. I also recorded the amount of dilithium which was required to fully complete each process.
ALL five sets of shields upgrades required varying numbers of tech modules and dilithium. There was no commonality. Some upgrades made it to 98%, others to 94%, 97% etc., while only one made it to 100% after applying SIX tech upgrade modules. Most never completely advanced to the next highest Mk level and thus required an additional 7th tech module. To all five processes I added one accelerator of the same grade (which were given to us all by Cryptic) The tech modules themselves were all of "superior" grade.
Additionally, NONE of the dilithium expenditures were the same, varying as much as 2,000.
I restate, I'm speaking of 4 IDENTICAL types and levels of shields....requiring vastly different numbers of applied superior tech upgrade modules and requisite dilithium. The one set of shields which was slightly different than the other 4 (One Mk level lower, as it were), I am not referencing in what I've just described.
As I previously, accurately stated....there's no way of truly knowing how many superior tech upgrade modules OR dilithium will be required to fully compete an upgrade.