Share Tips for More Grindless Gameplay

proteusblack

Firstly: This is NOT a complaint thread about grinding. Some people enjoy it, some people don't. It's good for some things, not good for everything. That said:

THIS post is for sharing tips and methods of approaching the game with the least amount of grinding while maximizing efficiency in progress but most importantly FUN - and by Fun, I mean an immersive, varied, well-paced, and time-valuable experience that utilizes the various systems in the game without letting those systems make you feel the need grind them.

I'm sure there is a decent portion of the player base who are more casual (meaning they don't spend an extensive amount of hours playing just to competitively grind for currencies and items). I'm one of those players.

As a casual player, I feel that one key to being able to play casually without being tempted by the capitalism of the game, is to feel confident that you don't need high-level ships and items. The majority of time playing should be spent feeling proud of whatever it is you do have for, perhaps sentiment sake, and being able to have just as much fun with it as anyone using high-level items.

I've always felt there was a certain merit to being an underdog, where one keeps their self small in order to keep the world around them wondrously big, no? And I guess this is where my thought process comes from - casual play as an avenue to keep the game as special as possible.

---

So what are some things us casual players can do to enjoy this game with the least amount of grinding possible while taking the most advantage of what it has to offer?

(End note: "Grindless" does NOT mean NO grinding - It means "LESS Grinding". We can't necessarily completely avoid it and maybe we shouldn't - however, should not a balance be struck? Keep this in mind.)

bergins

Well, as far as immersion goes, as a captain/admiral, you always have paperwork, right?

Do you paperwork: DOffing, filling R&D Projects, keep an eye on the exchange.

All this will give you a supply of XP, Dil, EC, Upgrades for gear, etc...

groomofweird

I depends in what way to which you refer...
I personally (and this is just my experience), have recently found allot of casual players in my fleets have had great fun tagging along in a team in the Voth battlezone.
Its not something many of them do often, but since I've been grinding there a few have come along for Dyson marks and Dilithium.
Its been good fun for them getting a whole days worth of Dilithium or a whole bunch of marks towards Rep or that shiny new item as part of a team (which they would not normally do otherwise), in less than an hour.
Its also been nice for me (someone who has just embarked on an epic grind), to have fleet members with me and watching my back.
Most of us don't even have any traits in ground, but we had good fun. Running in a fleet team means fairer sharing of command credits, better communication of objectives etc, and of course someone to raise you when you use the Orphidian cane at JUST the wrong moment before you get smashed with an artillery strike or ten ;p
It has been most enjoyable, and a nice change from the XP grind allot of us seem to have gotten into.
I'm sure others have different perspectives, from a single player, or team point of view, but that's just what came to my mind reading your post.

reginamala78

Build weird ships and different approaches. Being top-end anymore requires traits and gear and money and practice and just a whole lot of work and grind. Most fun I've had lately though is not it any good ship (as 'good' is defined these days), but in my attempt to turn a BoP into an effective science ship (its hilarious), or doing a Sarr Theln as a drainer because I'd never done a dedicated drainer before, or seeing how fast you can make a Risian Corvette go while still being able to control it, or anything other than the standard meta. Just get off the treadmill and go do something else.

davefenestrator

I have 8 alts (Fed & Klingon eng, tac, sci; Rom tac, sci) so I don't have time to play them all anyway.

For the ones that are parked, it's painless to level them up by doffing plus the Crystalline event and a red alert or patrol now and then for other marks.

The event also lets me work on ship mastery traits without worrying about playing optimally since on Normal the entity and Tholians are made of balsa wood. You don't even need to leave the blast radius in most ships.

For whichever alt is active, most still have story missions to do since only one has finished Delta. The Delta one will probably start doing STFs and maybe some Foundry content. But I also like just trying new ships and new gear. I still haven't tried tetryon and AP builds yet.

tehbubbaloo

you guys realise youre writing cryptics 'to do' list, right?

aphelionmarauder

I say go to every planet you can land on, and take a few pics with yourself on it. Explore them, run around. Take a look at each and every one of them. Trust me, it is so worth it for you to take a look. Check out normal deferi, not its invasion zone, its a very interesting place hands down. Look at the nebulas in the Tawa Dea sector and the one near DS9, and fly into them. They are beautiful once your inside, and they are just accessable via sector space, no planets to enter. Just go places where you can chill and take a look at the galaxy. I myself have done this already (which is why I am lvl 54 barely done with the Klingon storyline in the FED side), and trust me, its worth it. There are millions of jems tucked away inside of STO waiting for discovery, just take a look for them, you shall see.

cidjack

Letting lose with a few Disco balls is always fun to do on Vulcan, exchange areas, tailors, middle of combat, etc............

aphelionmarauder

proteusblack, if you want, I will travel with you and show you the hidden jems. bring a runabout and arm it to the teeth and trick it out, its worth it for traveling around the galaxy.

capemike4

I just cruise about the quadrants, doing whatever random system patrol/stf/etc happens to cross my mind and keep up with my DoFF assignments...got an unexpected surprise in the form of a purple Flight Deck DoFF for completing an assignment chain just last night....

You just never know what's waiting around that next corner....

adamkafei

tehbubbaloo wrote: »

you guys realise youre writing cryptics 'to do' list, right?

This was my immediate thought.

evilmark444

Step 1: Create character
Step 2: Wait until XP weekend
Step 3: Depending on how much you play over the XP weekend, enter the Delta Quadrant between level 54 and 56
Step 4: Enjoy not hitting the DQ grind wall

rezking

proteusblack wrote: »

So what are some things us casual players can do to enjoy this game with the least amount of grinding possible while taking the most advantage of what it has to offer?

(End note: "Grindless" does NOT mean NO grinding - It means "LESS Grinding". We can't necessarily completely avoid it and maybe we shouldn't - however, should not a balance be struck? Keep this in mind.)

Simple:

For the most "fun", don't worry about the shiny stuffs.
If you want that shiny stuffs...Welcome to the Grind.
Many sessions of rage lay before you.

...and NO, Cryptic won't let us convert all our Marks to Dil at once because that would make Life easy.

aphelionmarauder

evilmark444 wrote: »

Step 1: Create character
Step 2: Wait until XP weekend
Step 3: Depending on how much you play over the XP weekend, enter the Delta Quadrant between level 54 and 56
Step 4: Enjoy not hitting the DQ grind wall

to get to 54 or 56, its a lot of work. I do double XP and I only got 1 lvl up at 50 to 52 (my 50 was 3 xp away to 51, doesn't count), and it was worthless. do a double xp in delta, its magical for XP. but once you hit 51 you slow down to turtle speed lvl ups.

farmallm

I mostly do Doffs during the week. Since I only have time to play a long period of time on weekends. That will gain you a good chunk of exp. Specially if you get 20 or more projects going. I max out mine at 20 since that is all I can do. Some of them gives a lot of Exp so I can make up for a patrol run by doing those. Plus you get all kinds of loot as well.

Also hitting each patrol place helps, as I'm not doing the same one over and over. I have fun on the Kobali zone as well. Since they added the power cells to some missions. I do those so I can get some Delta Rep gear. That helps on the grind as well and it gives nice exp.

thunderfoot

- Doing DOff Missions can be a very good way to level chars. Both of my remaining Feds are at 55 due to nothing but DOff Missions.

- Tons of great Foundry Missions. Which award Dilithium as well as good sized chunks of XP and SP.

- Have a specific goal in mind. For example, I decided I wanted the Counter Command Deflector for two of my chars which already possess the Nukara Set.

- Have a routine but don't be too serious about following it.

Lastly.

- The Shinys will arrive when they decide to. Which will never be when you want them to.

evilmark444

aphelionmarauder wrote: »

to get to 54 or 56, its a lot of work. I do double XP and I only got 1 lvl up at 50 to 52 (my 50 was 3 xp away to 51, doesn't count), and it was worthless. do a double xp in delta, its magical for XP. but once you hit 51 you slow down to turtle speed lvl ups.

Recently made a sci character cause I never played one. I didn't do the entire arc during XP weekend, but I did most of the way through the Romulan arc and she is now closing on level 54 halfway through the cardassian arc.

spockout1

Take a low level ship (T3 or less) and run missions in it.

Personally, I enjoy trying to take a ship written off by all but the leveling characters and making it something workable. I nearly leveled a new toon to 50 in a T1 Connie. Around the end of Commander and into Captain, it became a little painful (your gear is limited, and your skills are not high enough to supplement) so I jumped in the T2 Cruiser Refit. But, I was able to transition back.

You can still doff all day long. You can always do R&D. You can get through most Normal queues with a decent team. If you are crafty, you won't even blow up all that much. I've made plenty of runs in T1/T2 ships without dying. I don't always come in dead last either. I've even done DR content with them. Yes, some patrols can be frustrating, but I've gotten through every story mission so far.

Lately, I've also found playing on the Exchange somewhat amusing. You can make money, though it helps with multiple toons and some purchasing power. If you're a lifer and aren't hell bent on opening lockboxes, you can make better than 8 million in a few hours by hocking some master keys. Now is probably a great time to sell to the chumps chasing the T6 Bug. Cryptic isn't the only one who can profit.

Basically, do the next thing that crosses your path. You'll get something out of it - what you choose to do with those goodies is up to you. Don't let yourself get wrapped up in the desire to have "the thing" right now. Chip away at things slowly.

---

I haven't really tried just exploring the game that much. It sounds like fun, and I'll probably give that a go.

coupaholic

tehbubbaloo wrote: »

you guys realise you're writing cryptics 'to do' list, right?

There is only so much they can do to tease time and money out of you. The number one best tip I could offer here is 'never, ever believe the hype'.

My last Captain survived perfectly well using a T3 to level to 50, avoiding reputation systems all together and just converting every Dil I earned into Zen. On normal difficulty there is just no need for 'proper' endgame ships or gear, and MK XII stuff is dirt cheap on the exchange these days.

The Zen can be used for EC injections when you are short on cash, or back into Dil if you need it.

I haven't tried it, but there is also the 'jack of all trades' Captain as well. Put no more than 6 points into each skill and you'll be able to fly whatever ship you want well enough to get the job done.

mirrorchaos

proteusblack wrote: »

Firstly: This is NOT a complaint thread about grinding.
...

with the least amount of grinding while maximizing efficiency in progress but most importantly FUN - and by Fun, I mean an immersive, varied, well-paced, and time-valuable experience that utilizes the various systems in the game without letting those systems make you feel the need grind them.

...

(End note: "Grindless" does NOT mean NO grinding - It means "LESS Grinding". We can't necessarily completely avoid it and maybe we shouldn't - however, should not a balance be struck? Keep this in mind.)

all i see from these sections i have discovered on your first post.. why is it when someone says its not a complaint thread, they trip up on themselves before they even started by complaining? but thats not my concern what the answer is.

what could be done to make things fun? since when does cryptic care what the players want? its all business, money and metrics to them.

dova25

tehbubbaloo wrote: »

you guys realise youre writing cryptics 'to do' list, right?

Yes my opinion too.


Anyway to "less grind" my recipe is simple and it can be shared safely in this thread : stop doing anything that is not rewarding like STF-s,reputation,alts,etc

Even doffing for me it is similar now to grind after last "adjustments" to XP gain so I am slowly stopping doffing.

I will probably only play new episodes

warpangel

1. "Maximizing efficiency in progress" and "casual" are opposite concepts. Pick one, you can't be both at once.
2. Play Normal. Its easy. You really don't need high-level items.
3. Self-control leads to an improved experience. If you don't want to grind for whatever, don't. On the other hand, if you choose to grind for the shinies, don't complain it was your choice. Always feel free to change your mind.

jellico1

proteusblack wrote: »

Firstly: This is NOT a complaint thread about grinding. Some people enjoy it, some people don't. It's good for some things, not good for everything. That said:

THIS post is for sharing tips and methods of approaching the game with the least amount of grinding while maximizing efficiency in progress but most importantly FUN - and by Fun, I mean an immersive, varied, well-paced, and time-valuable experience that utilizes the various systems in the game without letting those systems make you feel the need grind them.

I'm sure there is a decent portion of the player base who are more casual (meaning they don't spend an extensive amount of hours playing just to competitively grind for currencies and items). I'm one of those players.

As a casual player, I feel that one key to being able to play casually without being tempted by the capitalism of the game, is to feel confident that you don't need high-level ships and items. The majority of time playing should be spent feeling proud of whatever it is you do have for, perhaps sentiment sake, and being able to have just as much fun with it as anyone using high-level items.

I've always felt there was a certain merit to being an underdog, where one keeps their self small in order to keep the world around them wondrously big, no? And I guess this is where my thought process comes from - casual play as an avenue to keep the game as special as possible.

---

So what are some things us casual players can do to enjoy this game with the least amount of grinding possible while taking the most advantage of what it has to offer?

(End note: "Grindless" does NOT mean NO grinding - It means "LESS Grinding". We can't necessarily completely avoid it and maybe we shouldn't - however, should not a balance be struck? Keep this in mind.)

---

Make a character one you think you would love to see in a series or movie

Level that character send it no support from your account , play this character as if it was real life

However if that characters dies one time for any reason..Delete it and start over

It will change the way you play your ship choices , Everything ...It makes it a new game . I wish this was a choice at character creation..Iron man difficulty

mustrumridcully0

Imagine a world where you are finished with the grind. You no longer need Dilithium, Marks, Reputation Sets, Specializations.

What would you do?

Now do just that.

*droves of players immediately leave the game, uninstall and never come back*

See, that's why Cryptic has put in the grind and tries to do everything to keep yo busy, and ignores complaints against it.


--

But ultimately, that is the trick. Do what you find entertaining in the game. It may be what you are already doing. It may be something else, for which you most likely don't even need all the stuf you grind for. Only in rare cases will you find it to b something where you actually need the grinded stuff for. That would most likely be Elite Queued content. But unless you're highly competitive and want to beat them as fast and effective as possible... their only purpose is to grind. If it's not PvE Content, then it's PvP,obviously. Than your SOL.

spockout1

mustrumridcully0 wrote: »

Imagine a world where you are finished with the grind. You no longer need Dilithium, Marks, Reputation Sets, Specializations.

What would you do?

Now do just that.

*droves of players immediately leave the game, uninstall and never come back*

HAhahahaha! So true, and so sad.

hojain2020

I've figured a sweet system for this and I don't need to get out of my ship ever and play the annoying badly designed ground part of the game. 30 minute 8000 dil. It involves a specific route and stf combination. But bro there is no way I'm putting it on this forum. Cryptic can easily TRIBBLE the cool downs and @uck it up for me.

warpangel

hojain2020 wrote: »

I've figured a sweet system for this and I don't need to get out of my ship ever and play the annoying badly designed ground part of the game. 30 minute 8000 dil. It involves a specific route and stf combination. But bro there is no way I'm putting it on this forum. Cryptic can easily TRIBBLE the cool downs and @uck it up for me.

Otherwise known as grinding. :rolleyes:

proteusblack

So far, a lot of these are wonderful ideas being shared!

It took a minute to get what it meant by "writing Cyrptics to-do list" but then I think I got it (meaning, them finding ways to lure people out of casual play?). If I'm correct, I don't feel, though, that they're THAT bent on their capitalism that they would paralyze the member base from being able to play without being truly forced into playing their rat race. Afterall, that would mean dissuading more of their memberbase to simply leave (those of us who don't fall for it so easily).

Anyway! - Let's keep this thread going. I really think it is one that our players really need, since it can help teach us more patient and creative ways to enjoy the game on our own will instead of the will of said rat-race - no?

As for my own bit of contribution to this thread (and there may be more I add after this) - I like to use a combination of Doff "paperwork" (Loved that term, bergins! thanks!), episode play, and foundry, all in once-a-day (or couple times a week) routine.

aphelionmarauder, your suggestion is wonderful - I seriously think that exploration on your own terms and in your own ways will help one to enjoy the environments that the devs have created here, as well as help you get more familiar with these locations and what they are all about. (Unfortunately though, I haven't been able to find very many planets I can actually beam down on and visit without it being through a mission of some kind... if I can get a list of systems where I an do this it would be better, and hopefully with the new sector space revamp coming up, there will be more of these places).

proteusblack

Anyone got anymore tips to share? I know there's lots of creativity to go around.

sisteric

I have multiple toons. I decided on a course of having a main for each faction. Those mains are the ones that complete events that don't have speed up mechanics for alts. So I only have three guys running the CC event right now. If there is a speed up mechanic, I run my fed toon to get it done first and then the rest of the toons get the speedy option.
Now each toon has an assigned goal for it. Currently it's to get all toons have a Mk XIV VR gearing for ship and away team. My Fed had the goal of getting to 20 in Beams, (He's there now).
Also each toon runs through all of the main story before I play the next guy. Currently My Fed main and my Rom main have completed all of the story. So now they just Doff, run events, and collect Dilithium to upgrade thier gear. My KDF main is working his way through the Delta quadrant now.
Once each toon has upgraded all of the ship and ground gear, and has all story lines completed. I will just Doff and probably build up the gear on ship nomber two for them.
Each ship has a theme in weapon type and focus of enemies. So that each ship will have a style of play different enough from each other to be fun for me.
If I ever get to the point where all of the ships are outfitted, then I will just focus on dil collecting just so that I can keep fleet projects rolling and maybe convert to Zen to purchase things I think would be fun to have.
I don't stress about getting everything right now, I just look to make sure I make at 1% in my progress towards the current goal.
Also I am trying to get every toon to 15 in all crafting. And to top out all the commendations to rank 4.
And there very last thing I am doing is writing stories based on each character, following the Litery Challange suggestions on thes boards. This forces me to think about the personality of each Toon and their Senior Staff. And sometimes even the ship itself and why the like or dislike it.
So, basically, it's not the grinding that is fun but the goal setting that is fun for me. And they are personal goals based on what each toon is like. And what I am willing spend effort on.

proteusblack

I have contemplated making characters for every faction too. I'm a bit hesitant though. I'm likely to eventually have a regular alt or two, but for the most part, my instinct is to stay with my primary out of the familiarity and work I've already put into them. I guess I don't play out my character as fast as some to the point I feel the need to make more - eventually I'm sure it'll happen though.