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Could the Viriosaurus Rex be given a second look?
rexyf
Member Posts: 145 Arc User
Now that Mk XIV weaponry is becoming fairly common place, it's not at all uncommon for V. Rex's to be felled before most players in a region can reach the omega silo, especially if people are waiting at the spawn point ahead of time.
It's not uncommon for me to reach the V.Rex, but be too late to earn anything other than the "token participation award" because it doesn't have enough HP left for me to be recognized as contributing. And that's if I can reach it in time at all.
I've seen the last thread on this topic from back in December, lets please avoid comments of the "stop whining/l2p" variety.
It's not uncommon for me to reach the V.Rex, but be too late to earn anything other than the "token participation award" because it doesn't have enough HP left for me to be recognized as contributing. And that's if I can reach it in time at all.
I've seen the last thread on this topic from back in December, lets please avoid comments of the "stop whining/l2p" variety.
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More buffs to increase run speed. The Delta Rep power which knocks shields completely offline (including the V-Rex) for a short period of time. The TR-116B rifle which completely ignores shields -- along with things like the new Armor Piercing mechanics and a healthy assortment of new doffs, kit modules, and ground sets that can be far more devastating against the Voth than the Dyson Ground set.
On top of that, we have new ground traits that increase our damage potential far more than when The Sphere was released. In addition to ground traits, we have the Intelligence and Command specialization trees (and Commando) which also allows us a much wider arsenal to decrease damage resistance, increase the performance of game mechanics like flanking damage, and give us even more tools to assist us in ground combat.
The Dyson Battlezone continues to be an excellent place (and it is still one of my favorite places in STO), but the game has raised the bar (or introduced power creep), while the zone itself has not evolved outside occasional patches to deter afkers.
The last two times I was there, I also didn't get a single V-Rex kill in. It has absolutely nothing to do with a lack of skill, but a Dyson Battlezone which was not built to be 'future-proof'.
The Dyson Battlezone was not built with the foresight of Delta Rising and beyond in mind. Unless the zone itself gets an overhaul (including the V-Rex), we will simply see this situation deteriorate even further as more technology, game mechanics, and new shinies cause the V-Rex to be soloed in only a few seconds by a single person.
But maybe nature just selected the V-Rex for extinction.
Me: My concern here is that, while the V. Rex may go down with great ease for a full group of level 55+ with upgraded elite gear, the zone is intended for level 50+, not just everyone who already is at the level cap and has a well-developed character with elite gear.
I can remember going in there with Ji'ana (my primary main) when the zone was new, and she was already level 50, but she died repeatedly even with a full group and decent gear.
Last night she didn't die (with only three or four players in the battle, counting myself and my teammate; I want to say four, but I was more focused on the battle itself than on counting how many other players were involved -- our instance, at least, only had four players besides us when we went in, and they may not all have been close enough to get to the V. Rex battle before it was over, but she is now level 60, has Mk XIV Very Rare KHG, Mk XIV Ultra Rare Chroniton Rifle, almost all of the Intel specialization (one more point and she has it maxed), ground traits, rep traits, etc, etc. (The "etc, etc" refers at least to the two BOffs I had with me, both of which were purple Intel BOffs, and the gear with which they were equipped, which, if not the most elite possible, was nevertheless pretty nice; this battle to which I refer from two nights ago lasted several minutes, and at least one of the other players involved was level 60 with at least decent gear and BOffs).
I'm not sure there's a solution that wouldn't make it impossible for level 50s just starting out.
And there are times when you can go in there and basically be the only person there.
Him: My concern is that the level 55+ players are already here, and a factor that has to be accounted for. You shouldn't have to camp to have a shot at fighting a V.Rex. It should last at least long enough for you to reach it from the other side of the area and last long enough for you to reach the dps contribution.
Me: I understand this, and I agree, but like I said, I'm not sure there's a way to fix that without making it unplayable for a new player who has just made level 50 and doesn't have all the leet stuffz and such.
Even Jenova (one of my DeltAlts) wouldn't be a fair test, because she made level 55 yesterday and has the benefit of a benefactor (my main), who kicks down some lewtz to her betimes.
Even making the zone re-level everyone to 50 doesn't solve things, because they still have their Ultra Rare and Epic gear, their traits, their specializations, etc.
And locking it to everyone 55+ would penalize players for doing well (as would prohibiting the use of better than average gear and so on). People still need Dyson Marks after 55. Some DeltAlts didn't/won't even start Dyson rep till they're 60.
I think immunity or stage mechanics would make the zone easier to progress in. If the V-Rex had a 3-stage part to it, with damage immunity for a flat period of time between each stage (like the Crystalline Entity), you would have the Park, City, and Outskirts given plenty of time for players from the farthest reaches able to reach the V-Rex in time to get credit for the kill in any of the 3 stages. Since the damage immunity time period would be the same across the board, it would not matter if you were a "fresh" level 50 without all the bells and whistles.
By artificially stopgapping the amount of time it takes for the V-Rex to die, it would not matter how overpowered you were. If Cryptic wanted to take it one step further, they could make the damage immunity phase longer depending on how quickly it took to get to that stage to avoid trying to get through the damage immunity phases as quickly as possible.
Along with making the V-Rex more formidable with its attacks, and making the V-Rex fight more of a boss bottle than a mafia shakedown.
To determine the damage immunity period, you could simply go to the farthest, most difficult portion of the district with an unbuffed character and time how long it takes for them to get to the V-Rex.
Make the damage immunity period around that same time so even the slowest people could arrive in time to dish out some pain and get credit.
Actually I think that phasing (immunity) model is a very good suggestion.
The content was effectively outdated with the extension to level 60. If you compare that to other games... WoW raids of the last expension were often soloed shortly after if even played at all.
Now it has become "too Easy" for some (XIV epic Gear) and pain for some others, such as the new Delta toon players who don't have the snow boots for the runs and/or players who have XII Common/Rare/VR gear.
The addition of a immunity stage in the final still has a flaw, with CCA, i seen the Crystal lose health during the stage, even CCA finished very quickly, ......but say if a temp force field immunity dome for Mr Rex with a Feedback pulse...so the harder you hit it, a nice smack back to you.....something to easy that itchy trigger finger...
Just a thought.
Whatever shape it takes, it's important that the VBZ is made future-proof. So even if we have Mk XXVI weapons and twelve new specialization trees, a million new traits and kit modules in Season 50, the V-Rex experience would be just the same for them as it is for new level 50's.
There are any number of paths Cryptic can take to get the same result of putting in an artificial stopgap without nerfing the players themselves or locking out the zone for high-level players.
Given the Voth 'theme' of overwhelming defenses, it's extremely easy to see the V-Rex given super duper mega awesome metaphasic shields that are even more advanced than those seen on the voth exosuits.
It really should seem more like trying to defeat an unbreakable enemy instead of beating a kid up for his lunch money.
First stage could be like the fight we currently have. Second stage it goes into a turtling defense and becomes surrounded by 360 degrees of metaphasic shields that make it immune to everything (except maybe the Subspace Party Amplifier because it would be cool to see it dance), maybe artillery rains down from above, maybe there's voth yard trash to keep you busy. Who knows? Third stage the V-Rex's super awesome metaphasic shields burn out and given the gathered players at that point, it goes all out with even more hitpoints and damage resistance than before (to make up for the increased number of players in its immediate vicinity) as a final last stand. Once it's dead, everybody gets their reward.
No more one-sided fight.
A level 10 and 40 can fight the same boss, but the 10 won't be getting one shotted while the 40 still has to worry about the boss damage output as well, and the flip side is also true, the 40 isn't going to destroy the boss before the 10 can contribute.
It works very well over there and doesn't end up penalizing someone for having a good build/equipment while still letting low levels that would be otherwise murdered fast by the boss contribute and enjoy it.
...I never said that. Nor do I want that. I have no quarrel with Dinosaurs being present in a franchise with...
space Mobsters (TOS)
space Romans (TOS)
space Cowboys (ENT)
space Amoebas (TOS)
space Elves in two varieties (TOS)
space Techno-Zombies (TNG)
But this line of talk moves the thread off-topic.
That's really the only issue I've ever had with the Voth's beasts of burden (beyond the fact they now die too easily). They could have made them visually more up-to-date with our understanding of paleontology when they were introduced, circa 2013. Feathers, non-pronated-wrists, etc.
But they didn't. It was clear this was a nostalgia thing, not an attempt to actually bring the current understanding and science of dinosaurs to STO.
Which is why I laugh whenever someone says they're dinosaurs. They aren't. Dinosaurs went extinct 65 million years ago. What we have in the VBZ are test-tube creatures that have a passing resemblance to an outdated and scientifically inaccurate depiction of dinosaurs.
And now everyone knows why I call you "Ross Geller." :P
Ross: "No, there is no way he was a velociraptor. No Tony, look at the cranial ridge, OK. If Dino was a velociraptor, he would have eaten the Flintstones."
-- Source
I know that just what I wanted to read
While I'm not sure exactly how it works, I do know it doesn't equalize everyone, it just scales things somehow. Endgame gear still gives the 40s a real edge, as do their extra powers and specializations and the like, but they can't destroy the boss so fast the littler and slower heros get left out, while at the other extreme they are supposedly also designed so that if all there was fighting the boss were level 10s, they could down the boss themselves before time ran out.
It really doesn't even need to work for space combat, and probably would never be implemented there either, although Borg RAs would have made a great spot for it rather than cutting the low levels out of it. I can't remember ever seeing the planet killers die so fast no one could get credit.