t5 isn't devalued because they reconfigured the difficulty modes in the game to make certain that all upcoming content was playable in a t5 ship on the normal difficulty level. so you can keep on using your t5 ship on normal, and from what i've seen in the videos even advanced difficulty.
so why does that not apply to the free event T5 ships also?
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
so why does that not apply to the free event T5 ships also?
Not to mention that the 'free' event T5 ships required weeks of grind, or significant Lobi Crystal purchase, making them much more 'expensive' when compared against conventional 'free' ships...
so why does that not apply to the free event T5 ships also?
cryptic considers the summer event ships to be similar to lockbox and lobi ships. people didn't spend money on them but they spent a lot of time grinding pearls to get them. they were a rare fleet quaitly event ship. cryptic was being nice. i guess being nice to your event players does shoot yourself in the foot.
If people are gonna need T5U and T6 for all but Elite mode STF PVE content, the problem is not the ship they are using...
That's where I disagree...
If a T5.5 ship is 2500 zen, and a T6 is (for example) 3000 zen, I would consider it quite reasonable for there then to be a 500 zen cost on the upgrade token to T5U as this will then raise the effectiveness of that T5.5 to virtually T6 level...
People also have to remember, it's been said time and again, that the T5U tokens will be tradeable, in much the same way as Ship Modules are, meaning you won't even necessarily require zen to purchase them and, instead, just buy them off the exchange from those people who have decided to drop the zen...
The situation as is, I consider more than fair and reasonable... Cryptic are allowing us to use our T5.5 ships in a new tier of content, and all they're asking for is the balance of what it would cost to purchase a T6... They could have easily just said 'no, you bought it as T5.5, it stays T5.5'...
again if this applies to C-store ship why not the same for event ships?
you must also consider future sales of T5 ships, if a T5 ship is 2500zen with an extra say 500zen upgrade total price 3000zen why would you not just buy a T6 ship for 3000zen.
I can sadly see c-store T5 ships as complete non sellers especially for players who might have been contemplating buying a pack of ships and facing 3 - 9 upgrade fees.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
cryptic considers the summer event ships to be similar to lockbox and lobi ships. people didn't spend money on them but they spent a lot of time grinding pearls to get them. they were a rare fleet quaitly event ship. cryptic was being nice. i guess being nice to your event players does shoot yourself in the foot.
Especially when the more entitled players completely overlook such generosity and instead declare Cryptic give nothing for free and are only interested in 'nickel and diming' players...
again if this applies to C-store ship why not the same for event ships?
you must also consider future sales of T5 ships, if a T5 ship is 2500zen with an extra say 500zen upgrade total price 3000zen why would you not just buy a T6 ship for 3000zen.
I can sadly see c-store T5 ships as complete non sellers especially for players who might have been contemplating buying a pack of ships and facing 3 - 9 upgrade fees.
Because there are still some VERY iconic ships amonst them, such as the Galaxy Dreadnaught and Scimitar etc...
Future tiers aside as it's silly to even speculate given it took what, 4 years for T6 to hit... Nor does this make any sort of argument for free or further upgrades...
you must also consider future sales of T5 ships, if a T5 ship is 2500zen with an extra say 500zen upgrade total price 3000zen why would you not just buy a T6 ship for 3000zen.
many fans want to fly the canon ships. those are t5, not t6. so can fly your favorite t5 type and you can upgrade it to t5u if you want more power. or if you don't care about the ship type you can buy a t6.
Especially when the more entitled players completely overlook such generosity and instead declare Cryptic give nothing for free and are only interested in 'nickel and diming' players...
Because there are still some VERY iconic ships amonst them, such as the Galaxy Dreadnaught and Scimitar etc...
Future tiers aside as it's silly to even speculate given it took what, 4 years for T6 to hit... Nor does this make any sort of argument for free or further upgrades...
that is only going to bother player who are bothered by that kind of thing, many are not.
also many c-store ships are not iconic like the dyson ships for example.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
that is only going to bother player who are bothered by that kind of thing, many are not.
also many c-store ships are not iconic like the dyson ships for example.
i think it's a fair assumption that people playing sto are mostly trek fans of various levels. they like flying ships they've seen in the shows. if i compare the number of dysons to the number of sovereigns i see the sovvys blow the dysons away.
there's always going to be pvp power gamers only looking for the best stats. they'll fly a rubic's cube if it has the stats they want but most people are here to associate with their trek memories, and that means canon ships.
that is only going to bother player who are bothered by that kind of thing, many are not.
also many c-store ships are not iconic like the dyson ships for example.
In which case people will opt for the T6 ships obviously... You might as well be asking why T1 ships are being sold as no one will use them once they get T2... The difference being, T5U will allow T5 ships to remain competitive...
Cryptic (if they had a shred of business sense) would already be well aware of the buying trends of their players and what to expect by introducing a new tier of vessels...
Have you stopped to consider T6 may even be a response to an overall stagnation in T5 purchases?
There will still be those people who will buy specific T5.5 ships for their own reasons - they like the ship, they like how to looks, they like the sound of the 3 Pack bonuses etc... But I do agree, the likelihood a T5 will be purchased is reduced, it does not mean T5 CStore ships are still completely pointless...
If I was Cryptic, I'd consider a level reduction to say 45 so that T5.5 ships will still see some content where they are not immediately eclipsed by T5U and T6 vessels...
Nor, once again, does any of this justify completely free upgrades...
i think it's a fair assumption that people playing sto are mostly trek fans of various levels. they like flying ships they've seen in the shows. if i compare the number of dysons to the number of sovereigns i see the sovvys blow the dysons away.
there's always going to be pvp power gamers only looking for the best stats. they'll fly a rubic's cube if it has the stats they want but most people are here to associate with their trek memories, and that means canon ships.
I love star trek, you would know how much if you see my collection of dvd and trek memorabilia, but no matter how much I love it would not make me pay as much for a tier 5 ship as I would for a tier 6 one, this is totally unjustifiable, and if someone does love their t5 cannon starship that much don't you think its wrong for cryptic to target their love for profit.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
I love star trek, you would know how much if you see my collection of dvd and trek memorabilia, but no matter how much I love it would not make me pay as much for a tier 5 ship as I would for a tier 6 one, this is totally unjustifiable, and if someone does love their t5 cannon starship that much don't you think its wrong for cryptic to target their love for profit.
i don't feel like you even know what you're debating at this point. are you upset about event ships getting t5u for free? are you upset they're making t6s? what?
most trek fans want to fly their canon ships. most players won't ever need a t5u or t6 ship. the content is designed to be played with a t5 ship. the only people who will upgrade are those who want more power for powers sake and pvp players; because pvp is the only p2w aspect of this game.
you can keep right on flying your favorite ship without incident. if you want to spend 5 bucks, or a couple of million ec, you can buy an upgrade token. if not, no big deal. that's all there is to it.
I love star trek, you would know how much if you see my collection of dvd and trek memorabilia, but no matter how much I love it would not make me pay as much for a tier 5 ship as I would for a tier 6 one, this is totally unjustifiable, and if someone does love their t5 cannon starship that much don't you think its wrong for cryptic to target their love for profit.
No, Cryptic aren't targeting anyone... They're giving those players who love that iconic T5 a choice by tuning new PVE content so that T5 ships are still suitable, but then offering an optional upgrade or new, higher tier, vessels...
Asking for a modest fee, to provide that obsolescent T5 ship an optional upgrade, so that it then has comparative performance to a T6 however, is completely justifiable and reasonable...
Not once has Cryptic forced anyone to purchase a thing with real money in STO since it went F2P...
No, Cryptic aren't targeting anyone... They're giving those players who love that iconic T5 a choice by tuning new PVE content so that T5 ships are still suitable, but then offering an optional upgrade or new, higher tier, vessels...
Asking for a modest fee, to provide that obsolescent T5 ship an optional upgrade, so that it then has comparative performance to a T6 however, is completely justifiable and reasonable...
Not once has Cryptic forced anyone to purchase a thing with real money in STO since it went F2P...
I have never seen anything that's suitable and obsolescent at the same time.
still I guess its all ok as you say it is.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
You know I'm not overly concerned about my ship upgrades as I bought the DR pack just like i bought LoR pack and I already know 2 ships I'm gonna upgrade so I'm happy.:D
If people are gonna need T5U and T6 for all but Elite mode STF PVE content, the problem is not the ship they are using...
Far more people are running ESTFs more than normal STFs right now. At this rate, we'll be seeing a far similar trend post expansion two. That will increase demand for T5U/T6s.
For a long time now LTS benefits have been stagnant. No new value has been added to draw in potential new buyers, something I think should be addressed with each expansion. New carrots need to be dangled from time to time as new things come into the picture, else the collection of bonuses and benefits offered at the start begin to look light for the investment versus the quantity of game content.
I don't think a T6 ship is the right way to go, though. Incentive for everyone needs to remain to buy these new ships, and indeed, ships in general.
Ideally, I'd like to see free T5U upgrades for LTS. This would only remove incentive to buy the token, but not remove the need to buy the ship to start with and/or the fleet modules for the fleet versions. Since LTS presumably don't make up a massive chunk of the game's population, the loss likely wouldn't be huge.
Realistically, I'd like to see a single free upgrade given to each LTS' toon that reaches level 50. This limits the amount of ships they can upgrade for free to the number of toons they wish to grind that far, leaving the need to buy upgrades intact for those who use more than one ship regularly. Value is added to LTS with a marginal impact on income from the new token.
I understand the vet ships are getting free upgrades, and that's great. But a vet reward is not equivalent to an LTS benefit.
It's all wishful thinking, though. Cryptic hasn't done LTS any favors they haven't also done for Golds and 1000 Day Vets, so I don't expect any special treatment. I just think it's silly they haven't done anything to make LTS look jucier.
I have never seen anything that's suitable and obsolescent at the same time.
still I guess its all ok as you say it is.
I have, I see it every day...
My phone is obsolescent as there are newer models available, yet it is still suitable as it does everything I need it to do...
Standard T5 ships will be suitable, according to Cryptic, to do everything but the new revamped Elite STFS - reports from Tribble suggest a competent Captain with good gear is still more than capable of completing the revamped Elites in a standard T5 - but there are of course new ships available, making it obsolescent...
So, suitable as virtually all Delta Rising content is tuned for standard T5, obsolescent as there are newer options available - just like my phone...
Far more people are running ESTFs more than normal STFs right now. At this rate, we'll be seeing a far similar trend post expansion two. That will increase demand for T5U/T6s.
And this is because the current Elites are not the challenge they once were... The current difficulty will become the Advanced mode in Delta Rising, while a new level of difficulty will be introduced and the title Elite will be given to them...
If what Cryptic have said is true, only the most competent players will have the capability to complete the new revamped Elites, only time will tell on this for sure...
Though, I would not presume that everyone will be doing them come Delta Rising by any stretch...
For a long time now LTS benefits have been stagnant. No new value has been added to draw in potential new buyers, something I think should be addressed with each expansion. New carrots need to be dangled from time to time as new things come into the picture, else the collection of bonuses and benefits offered at the start begin to look light for the investment versus the quantity of game content.
Why is the level of incentive insufficient? It's no worse than what it was when I purchased mine, and offers just as much incentive to new players now as it did about 18 months ago...
This does not suddenly change because new content has been released...
My phone is obsolescent as there are newer models available, yet it is still suitable as it does everything I need it to do...
Standard T5 ships will be suitable, according to Cryptic, to do everything but the new revamped Elite STFS - reports from Tribble suggest a competent Captain with good gear is still more than capable of completing the revamped Elites in a standard T5 - but there are of course new ships available, making it obsolescent...
So, suitable as virtually all Delta Rising content is tuned for standard T5, obsolescent as there are newer options available - just like my phone...
And this is because the current Elites are not the challenge they once were... The current difficulty will become the Advanced mode in Delta Rising, while a new level of difficulty will be introduced and the title Elite will be given to them...
If what Cryptic have said is true, only the most competent players will have the capability to complete the new revamped Elites, only time will tell on this for sure...
Though, I would not presume that everyone will be doing them come Delta Rising by any stretch...
Why is the level of incentive insufficient? It's no worse than what it was when I purchased mine, and offers just as much incentive to new players now as it did about 18 months ago...
This does not suddenly change because new content has been released...
Regarding lifetime. I think its silly to keep giving all new content away all the time. If they did that they might as well do away with lts all together.
The devs have admitted as much by intentionally nerfing the "upgrade" by at least 8%. It's a double dipping scam by PWE (free "upgrades" excepted of course).
8% is just a bull****number they made up. Just because it has one more BO-Slot (and intellegence BOs) doesnt mean it gets proportional stronger. If you compare defiant vs. new escort, the increase will most likely not be 8% but less (both same level and gear and so on).
Honestly, from all ships they already gave us the ships, none is playing in the front row of ship builds. The escorts being the only ones which can even considered strong compared to other escorts, but 8%? No, not really. The cruisers are weak sauce compared to current tactical ones, nontheless against the scimi.
8% is just a bull****number they made up. Just because it has one more BO-Slot (and intellegence BOs) doesnt mean it gets proportional stronger. If you compare defiant vs. new escort, the increase will most likely not be 8% but less (both same level and gear and so on).
Honestly, from all ships they already gave us the ships, none is playing in the front row of ship builds. The escorts being the only ones which can even considered strong compared to other escorts, but 8%? No, not really. The cruisers are weak sauce compared to current tactical ones, nontheless against the scimi.
T6-hype is just that, a hype.
The 8% value was just a generic statement which Geko made in regard to Boffs. He was explaining that since current ships have 12 Boffs that each Boff ability would be generically equivalent to 8% of a character's total power (100/12=8). By adding a 13th Boff you are adding 8% more ability. Within the reality of the game each Boff ability is not worth a fixed value. Some Boff abilities are worth far more then 8% and many far less.
Generically speaking you can say the same thing about T5U ships. A T5.5 ship has 10 Consoles - thus each Console slot is generically worth 10% of a ships ability. By upgrading to a T5U 11 Console ship you have just upgraded your overall ability by +10%. This is no more true then saying each Boff ability is worth 8%. It is just the type of stuff that happens when people take generic statements too far.
I have no doubt that T6 ships are slightly better then T5. I have no doubt that T5U ships are slightly better then T5. I do not believe it is enough to have any real impact on overall PvE game play, though. It is essentially no different then going from T5 to Fleet T5.5. The difference in time when completing an ESTF in a free T5 and completing it in a T5.5 with the same Gear is measured in seconds.
There will be people in T6 ships with Epic Gear who will fail in the new ESTFs and there will probably be people in T5.5 ships with Mk XII Rep/Fleet Gear who will succeed. You cannot really take the play experience and build know-how out of the equation and just assume the only thing that matters is your ship Tier and Gear Mark.
STO is about my Liberated Borg Federation Captain with his Breen 1st Officer, Jem'Hadar Tactical Officer, Liberated Borg Engineering Officer, Android Ops Officer, Photonic Science Officer, Gorn Science Officer, and Reman Medical Officer jumping into their Jem'Hadar Carrier and flying off to do missions for the new Romulan Empire. But for some players allowing a T5 Connie to be used breaks the canon in the game.
1. having something to level in
2. unlocking secondary skins
3. getting universal consoles to use on other ships
4. flying official, real star trek ships:
5. (roleplaying)
NONE of that applies to t6 at all, not even the ships designs that are now fake.
And to not worry about the tier problems being repeated in the near future "because it will take 4 years" is equally wrong and hilarious.
The 2 main things they are testing on you are, will people buy fake ships and will they accept ship locked boffs?
Both of which are going to be repeated in the very near future exactly like crafting's paywall is now being repeated into the upgrading.
Problem being it's less for more. For example in LoR, where you got 8 free ships for free, that were entirely free, ALL ships were given free animations.
With this new t6 blockage they are asking, will you accept us only adding new animations to the most expensive items INDIVIDUALLY from here on out?
Boff abilities should of course stay what they have been up to this point, usable by everyone
Just like there should be free ships given away thinking about them 8 free ships in LoR - especially for LTS'ers
Everytime you accept these things without thinking you effectively lower the game for everyone.
I think the biggest problem with this thread is that they said for lifers. What I do think they need to do is reintroduce the va ship token and make a free t6 ship for every one as it is another 10 ranks ship.
They didn't need the va ship token when they introduced f2p since it was still a t5 ship. They also didn't need the ship token at 45 because it was the same ship selection as 40. But a t6 ship at 50 matches the current freebie model.
1. having something to level in
2. unlocking secondary skins
3. getting universal consoles to use on other ships
4. flying official, real star trek ships:
5. (roleplaying)
NONE of that applies to t6 at all, not even the ships designs that are now fake.
What? You can role-play in a T6 just as easily as you can in a T5.
I do not consider myself a role-player - I do not walk around my ship pretending to talk to crew or saying "make it so." But I do give my characters back stories when I create them so they can have motivations. One of my characters is a Klingon Federation Captain whose entire team is Section 31. He goes in and does the jobs the Federation cannot do. The Phantom is a perfect fit for that character. It is exactly the type of ship he would be flying. So from a role-playing aspect using that ship will make me very happy.
Problem being it's less for more. For example in LoR, where you got 8 free ships for free, that were entirely free, ALL ships were given free animations.
Thank goodness you got the "animations" in this post. You messed up on the last post and forgot to add them.
STO is about my Liberated Borg Federation Captain with his Breen 1st Officer, Jem'Hadar Tactical Officer, Liberated Borg Engineering Officer, Android Ops Officer, Photonic Science Officer, Gorn Science Officer, and Reman Medical Officer jumping into their Jem'Hadar Carrier and flying off to do missions for the new Romulan Empire. But for some players allowing a T5 Connie to be used breaks the canon in the game.
But yeah anyway no you can't roleplay in canon t6 ships as they overall moving forward are fake ships.
4. flying official, real star trek ships:
5. (roleplaying)
Notice how those 2 are tied together in my post.
This is saying that people who are into lore, star trek story immersion and canon are being offered up or sold out or losing out, from here on out with fake ships.
AND, my claim is, far more important than "just" trying to make money off a random ship sale with t6 - the REASON everything has been put into t6 ships, the completely naked expansion with no free ships and zero animations, IS "will you buy our fake ships"?
Because if you will not buy the fake ships it's game over...
SO, yes, the fake ships got all the animations AND better stats to draw the ATTENTION away from the actual issue of the ships being fake.
Which would have succeed marvelously if it weren't for people like me asking such questions as
Why did we get 8 free ships in LoR but getting ZERO now?
Why are there zero animations on anything but the fake ships?
Why has everything but the kitchen sink been thrown at t6 exclusively, what's the desperation?
Vested the issue of these T6 ships not being canomn is literally not a factor at all only hardcore RP's like I assume you are actually give a damn about the. Half the ships in game aren't canon and people fly them and buy them anyway.
But yeah anyway no you can't roleplay in canon t6 ships as they overall moving forward are fake ships.
I love when you tell people you do not know what they can and cannot do as if you are some type of authority on their lives and that you are the only person who gets to decide what is fun or not for everyone. Good job.
IDIC, my friend. IDIC.
STO is about my Liberated Borg Federation Captain with his Breen 1st Officer, Jem'Hadar Tactical Officer, Liberated Borg Engineering Officer, Android Ops Officer, Photonic Science Officer, Gorn Science Officer, and Reman Medical Officer jumping into their Jem'Hadar Carrier and flying off to do missions for the new Romulan Empire. But for some players allowing a T5 Connie to be used breaks the canon in the game.
Comments
so why does that not apply to the free event T5 ships also?
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
Because they were free...
Not to mention that the 'free' event T5 ships required weeks of grind, or significant Lobi Crystal purchase, making them much more 'expensive' when compared against conventional 'free' ships...
again if this applies to C-store ship why not the same for event ships?
you must also consider future sales of T5 ships, if a T5 ship is 2500zen with an extra say 500zen upgrade total price 3000zen why would you not just buy a T6 ship for 3000zen.
I can sadly see c-store T5 ships as complete non sellers especially for players who might have been contemplating buying a pack of ships and facing 3 - 9 upgrade fees.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
Especially when the more entitled players completely overlook such generosity and instead declare Cryptic give nothing for free and are only interested in 'nickel and diming' players...
Because there are still some VERY iconic ships amonst them, such as the Galaxy Dreadnaught and Scimitar etc...
Future tiers aside as it's silly to even speculate given it took what, 4 years for T6 to hit... Nor does this make any sort of argument for free or further upgrades...
that is only going to bother player who are bothered by that kind of thing, many are not.
also many c-store ships are not iconic like the dyson ships for example.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
there's always going to be pvp power gamers only looking for the best stats. they'll fly a rubic's cube if it has the stats they want but most people are here to associate with their trek memories, and that means canon ships.
In which case people will opt for the T6 ships obviously... You might as well be asking why T1 ships are being sold as no one will use them once they get T2... The difference being, T5U will allow T5 ships to remain competitive...
Cryptic (if they had a shred of business sense) would already be well aware of the buying trends of their players and what to expect by introducing a new tier of vessels...
Have you stopped to consider T6 may even be a response to an overall stagnation in T5 purchases?
There will still be those people who will buy specific T5.5 ships for their own reasons - they like the ship, they like how to looks, they like the sound of the 3 Pack bonuses etc... But I do agree, the likelihood a T5 will be purchased is reduced, it does not mean T5 CStore ships are still completely pointless...
If I was Cryptic, I'd consider a level reduction to say 45 so that T5.5 ships will still see some content where they are not immediately eclipsed by T5U and T6 vessels...
Nor, once again, does any of this justify completely free upgrades...
I love star trek, you would know how much if you see my collection of dvd and trek memorabilia, but no matter how much I love it would not make me pay as much for a tier 5 ship as I would for a tier 6 one, this is totally unjustifiable, and if someone does love their t5 cannon starship that much don't you think its wrong for cryptic to target their love for profit.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
most trek fans want to fly their canon ships. most players won't ever need a t5u or t6 ship. the content is designed to be played with a t5 ship. the only people who will upgrade are those who want more power for powers sake and pvp players; because pvp is the only p2w aspect of this game.
you can keep right on flying your favorite ship without incident. if you want to spend 5 bucks, or a couple of million ec, you can buy an upgrade token. if not, no big deal. that's all there is to it.
No, Cryptic aren't targeting anyone... They're giving those players who love that iconic T5 a choice by tuning new PVE content so that T5 ships are still suitable, but then offering an optional upgrade or new, higher tier, vessels...
Asking for a modest fee, to provide that obsolescent T5 ship an optional upgrade, so that it then has comparative performance to a T6 however, is completely justifiable and reasonable...
Not once has Cryptic forced anyone to purchase a thing with real money in STO since it went F2P...
I have never seen anything that's suitable and obsolescent at the same time.
still I guess its all ok as you say it is.
When I think about everything we've been through together,
maybe it's not the destination that matters, maybe it's the journey,
and if that journey takes a little longer,
so we can do something we all believe in,
I can't think of any place I'd rather be or any people I'd rather be with.
Far more people are running ESTFs more than normal STFs right now. At this rate, we'll be seeing a far similar trend post expansion two. That will increase demand for T5U/T6s.
For a long time now LTS benefits have been stagnant. No new value has been added to draw in potential new buyers, something I think should be addressed with each expansion. New carrots need to be dangled from time to time as new things come into the picture, else the collection of bonuses and benefits offered at the start begin to look light for the investment versus the quantity of game content.
I don't think a T6 ship is the right way to go, though. Incentive for everyone needs to remain to buy these new ships, and indeed, ships in general.
Ideally, I'd like to see free T5U upgrades for LTS. This would only remove incentive to buy the token, but not remove the need to buy the ship to start with and/or the fleet modules for the fleet versions. Since LTS presumably don't make up a massive chunk of the game's population, the loss likely wouldn't be huge.
Realistically, I'd like to see a single free upgrade given to each LTS' toon that reaches level 50. This limits the amount of ships they can upgrade for free to the number of toons they wish to grind that far, leaving the need to buy upgrades intact for those who use more than one ship regularly. Value is added to LTS with a marginal impact on income from the new token.
I understand the vet ships are getting free upgrades, and that's great. But a vet reward is not equivalent to an LTS benefit.
It's all wishful thinking, though. Cryptic hasn't done LTS any favors they haven't also done for Golds and 1000 Day Vets, so I don't expect any special treatment. I just think it's silly they haven't done anything to make LTS look jucier.
I Support Disco | Disco is Love | Disco is Life
I have, I see it every day...
My phone is obsolescent as there are newer models available, yet it is still suitable as it does everything I need it to do...
Standard T5 ships will be suitable, according to Cryptic, to do everything but the new revamped Elite STFS - reports from Tribble suggest a competent Captain with good gear is still more than capable of completing the revamped Elites in a standard T5 - but there are of course new ships available, making it obsolescent...
So, suitable as virtually all Delta Rising content is tuned for standard T5, obsolescent as there are newer options available - just like my phone...
And this is because the current Elites are not the challenge they once were... The current difficulty will become the Advanced mode in Delta Rising, while a new level of difficulty will be introduced and the title Elite will be given to them...
If what Cryptic have said is true, only the most competent players will have the capability to complete the new revamped Elites, only time will tell on this for sure...
Though, I would not presume that everyone will be doing them come Delta Rising by any stretch...
Why is the level of incentive insufficient? It's no worse than what it was when I purchased mine, and offers just as much incentive to new players now as it did about 18 months ago...
This does not suddenly change because new content has been released...
Regarding lifetime. I think its silly to keep giving all new content away all the time. If they did that they might as well do away with lts all together.
actually, all the vet ships upgrade to T-5U free, so there is that
8% is just a bull****number they made up. Just because it has one more BO-Slot (and intellegence BOs) doesnt mean it gets proportional stronger. If you compare defiant vs. new escort, the increase will most likely not be 8% but less (both same level and gear and so on).
Honestly, from all ships they already gave us the ships, none is playing in the front row of ship builds. The escorts being the only ones which can even considered strong compared to other escorts, but 8%? No, not really. The cruisers are weak sauce compared to current tactical ones, nontheless against the scimi.
T6-hype is just that, a hype.
Generically speaking you can say the same thing about T5U ships. A T5.5 ship has 10 Consoles - thus each Console slot is generically worth 10% of a ships ability. By upgrading to a T5U 11 Console ship you have just upgraded your overall ability by +10%. This is no more true then saying each Boff ability is worth 8%. It is just the type of stuff that happens when people take generic statements too far.
I have no doubt that T6 ships are slightly better then T5. I have no doubt that T5U ships are slightly better then T5. I do not believe it is enough to have any real impact on overall PvE game play, though. It is essentially no different then going from T5 to Fleet T5.5. The difference in time when completing an ESTF in a free T5 and completing it in a T5.5 with the same Gear is measured in seconds.
There will be people in T6 ships with Epic Gear who will fail in the new ESTFs and there will probably be people in T5.5 ships with Mk XII Rep/Fleet Gear who will succeed. You cannot really take the play experience and build know-how out of the equation and just assume the only thing that matters is your ship Tier and Gear Mark.
1. having something to level in
2. unlocking secondary skins
3. getting universal consoles to use on other ships
4. flying official, real star trek ships:
5. (roleplaying)
NONE of that applies to t6 at all, not even the ships designs that are now fake.
And to not worry about the tier problems being repeated in the near future "because it will take 4 years" is equally wrong and hilarious.
The 2 main things they are testing on you are, will people buy fake ships and will they accept ship locked boffs?
Both of which are going to be repeated in the very near future exactly like crafting's paywall is now being repeated into the upgrading.
Problem being it's less for more. For example in LoR, where you got 8 free ships for free, that were entirely free, ALL ships were given free animations.
With this new t6 blockage they are asking, will you accept us only adding new animations to the most expensive items INDIVIDUALLY from here on out?
Boff abilities should of course stay what they have been up to this point, usable by everyone
Just like there should be free ships given away thinking about them 8 free ships in LoR - especially for LTS'ers
Everytime you accept these things without thinking you effectively lower the game for everyone.
They didn't need the va ship token when they introduced f2p since it was still a t5 ship. They also didn't need the ship token at 45 because it was the same ship selection as 40. But a t6 ship at 50 matches the current freebie model.
T1 -> Level 0
T2 -> Level 10
T3 -> Level 20
T4 -> Level 30
T5 -> Level 40
There was no t6 at the time but now there is.
It doesn't need to be a good ship but it does need to match the t6 requirements.
The only reason why the Va ship token was made a vet reward was because it already existed and it was a different pool of ships to choose from.
I do not consider myself a role-player - I do not walk around my ship pretending to talk to crew or saying "make it so." But I do give my characters back stories when I create them so they can have motivations. One of my characters is a Klingon Federation Captain whose entire team is Section 31. He goes in and does the jobs the Federation cannot do. The Phantom is a perfect fit for that character. It is exactly the type of ship he would be flying. So from a role-playing aspect using that ship will make me very happy.
Thank goodness you got the "animations" in this post. You messed up on the last post and forgot to add them.
But yeah anyway no you can't roleplay in canon t6 ships as they overall moving forward are fake ships.
4. flying official, real star trek ships:
5. (roleplaying)
Notice how those 2 are tied together in my post.
This is saying that people who are into lore, star trek story immersion and canon are being offered up or sold out or losing out, from here on out with fake ships.
AND, my claim is, far more important than "just" trying to make money off a random ship sale with t6 - the REASON everything has been put into t6 ships, the completely naked expansion with no free ships and zero animations, IS "will you buy our fake ships"?
Because if you will not buy the fake ships it's game over...
SO, yes, the fake ships got all the animations AND better stats to draw the ATTENTION away from the actual issue of the ships being fake.
Which would have succeed marvelously if it weren't for people like me asking such questions as
Why did we get 8 free ships in LoR but getting ZERO now?
Why are there zero animations on anything but the fake ships?
Why has everything but the kitchen sink been thrown at t6 exclusively, what's the desperation?
etc etc
IDIC, my friend. IDIC.