After careful analysis of our existing material costs on crafting components, we've decided to make some reductions in material input requirements. Some are relatively minor, where others are fairly significant.
After reading, reading again, and re-reading, I still don't see any estimated release date for these changes. Can you give us some idea of when these changes will go live, please?
After careful analysis of our existing material costs on crafting components, we've decided to make some reductions in material input requirements. Some are relatively minor, where others are fairly significant.
...
You should be seeing this hit Holodeck in either the next patch or the one after.
Best Regards,
Phil "Gorngonzolla" Zeleski
Cryptic Studios
Lead Systems Designer
I appreciate the reduction in material costs. However, i'm still not convinced that the costs are balanced. That's a topic for another time, however, since it would lead us into a discussion about HOW materials are acquired.
My beef today is the fact that the functionality of the crafting system is both incredibly limited as well as limiting. Here's how to start fixing the system:
1. No more random item properties. Let us choose which properties finished items have.
2. Let us add or remove properties from existing items.
3. Make the UI more streamlined an intuitive. Don't make me click 6 times in order to do something that could have been accomplished in 3 clicks.
4. The process of crafting components in order to craft items is currently a redundant mechanic. This can be fixed by turning components into the things which define which properties an item will have.
5. Crafting should be a mini-game, not something that's time-gated just for the heck of it.
6. Crafting, reputation, and fleet/starbase building should be integrated with each other.
Until items 1 & 2 happen, players (such as myself) who are near the top end of the gear progression, or who have favored gear from rep or C-store, have absolutely no use for the crafting system.
Is this the new Dililithum? Why the heck is this itme required for science, beams and engineering components for superiour ?
Then to make the whole thing more of a mind eff . It drops at 2%. Though by increasing my dps over the last few weeks i have noticed more drops ond rubidium..(maybe i just got lucky on the two percent.)
Really there is so many other materials that is useless that i would gladly trade in for rubidim
Say 50 hexaflourine gas for 1 rubidum. This way you will see me more crafting means
more dil spend means more zen spend means more money for you.
BUt
At 2 percent drop rate, i don't see me wanting to upgrade at this low rate.
(Which is ironic as someone in my fleet commented on how upgrade freakish i am.)
The system is flawed. This is the right step but you still are looking at the worse end part of this.
I hit lvl 15 in three schools. Then i don't see a incentive to spend MONTHs going to the next level.
There is no reason for me to have it higher. Really having lvl 16 beams helps in no way with getting rubidium. If you guys where clever you would make it that at say 15.5 level i get a 10 percent bonus drop rate. This will incentevise me to go to the higher levels.
Then there is the end game to get to epic. This is the worse gambling thing you guys have invented in ages.
You throw expensive stuff at something to become epic. For a 0.1 increase?
Whether you think you are right or wrong, either way you are RIGHT.
After careful analysis of our existing material costs on crafting components, we've decided to make some reductions in material input requirements.
In my opinion this doesn't "fix" the real problem with R&D. Why can't I craft excacly what I want?
- Good morning, I would like to buy a blue car with [climate] and [radio].
- This blue car costs you 12k Dollars.
- Okay, here's my money.
- Tomorrow your blue car with [electric windows] and [USB-adapter] is ready.
- But... I... I wanted a blue car with [climate] and [radio]...
- Ah, you know, we want you to buy more blue cars. Over and over. Here's another one, just 12k Dollars again. Maybe you have luck this time.
Hmmm, i would have thought you would change how much experience the R%D research gets per research project, i think 6-7k is rather low considering how many times you gotta do it to get up even a single level.
I am thinking that you should change the amount you get based on how long it takes to complete, for those that rush through it, by rushing its completion should get the same basic 6-7k xp, but those that let it finish should get a nice bonus, say like 12-14k.....yep, that is double xp reward for the patience of waiting 20 freaking hours.
Also, when it comes to R%D bonus weekends, make it last a week, instead of 2 days or so....cause a 2 day weekend bonus is only 2 lots of research and bam, its over.....not very cool at all.
Hmmm, i would have thought you would change how much experience the R%D research gets per research project, i think 6-7k is rather low considering how many times you gotta do it to get up even a single level.
I am thinking that you should change the amount you get based on how long it takes to complete, for those that rush through it, by rushing its completion should get the same basic 6-7k xp, but those that let it finish should get a nice bonus, say like 12-14k.....yep, that is double xp reward for the patience of waiting 20 freaking hours.
Also, when it comes to R%D bonus weekends, make it last a week, instead of 2 days or so....cause a 2 day weekend bonus is only 2 lots of research and bam, its over.....not very cool at all.
Sadly, the way PWE's current player model works, they'd be more likely to increase the reward for people willing to dump money on the project to finish it quickly rather than give an increase to people willing to wait.
Join date is wrong, I've actually been around since STO Beta.
True alters don't have a "main". Account wide unlocks for all unique event rewards!!
Although the reduction in materials costs is better than nothing, it is still not what the players (you know those people who actually play the game, pay their money and keep the lights on/hamsters running...) HAVE CONSISTENTLY ASKED FOR - ever since the first iteration of crafing went live on Tribble.
I have posted/tweeted directly to devs on this subject before but in 'summary' - this:
Crafting:
1.Random mods on Conductive RCS and Field Exciter = NO.
These things are so expensive to craft (getting a little less expensive now - thanks) but over 40% of the actual console ability comes from the random [Mod] and some are SO useless whereas others are utterly awesome. (e.g. [Stealth]/[Sen] vs [PrtG]/[ResAll]) This ruins the market - TRIBBLE mod UR consoles costing CONSIDERABLY less than the input price of the craft project or VR versions without the mod, whereas desired mods are not even available on the exchange (and when they are they cost the GDP of a small country).
I can stand by random mods on weapons as the difference between [Dmg] and [CritD] is not anywhere near the same difference as on the above craftables...BUT see next section on upgrading for this...
2. Finish now cost and confirmation - or lack thereof = NO
Finish now cost on Crafting is SIGNIFICANTLY higher than cost of finish now in upgrading. Upgrading feels about right, but crafting is just TOO expensive (e.g 18k to immediately finish a daily, obviously don't do this(!), this is 2.25x daily refine cap to skip a 20hr wait on a SINGLE mission.) It is out by a factor of 5-10x at least.
Also... CONFIRM BUTTON!!!1!!!one. I have wasted SO much dil because of laggy UI/misclick on laptop trackpad (I estimate approx 60-100k lost which is SIGNIFICANT) because of this. Why do you continue to put things in the game that can only P*I5S your customers off - there is no downside for a player to a confirm button, only upside. (Obviously downside for you/devs as these mistakes sink dil, but have we fallen to such a low that Devs rub their hands with glee when customers make a mistake and lose out...)
3. Laggy Crafting UI means incorrect daily missions get started and lack of cancel button = NO
Ok so the laggy UI seems to be connected to the delays in Doff mission completition etc. Sometimes it is worse than others, on some characters it is worse than others. Overall it is very annoying, in particular when you think (and it even says) you are starting a different daily mission to the one you actually are.
I understand why there is no cancel button (unlike doffing you see the result of the 'mission' immediately rather than on completion) if you could cancel you could exploit to get the outcome you wanted. But it is a serious QoL issue. My only suggestion would be to chance the mechanic behind the daily missions - make the 'proc' occur at the end of the 20hr (for extra 1k craftXP) and let us cancel this one? (For me this is also an issue as dailies require Research Lab sci's, and sometimes I decide to make some Upgrade Kits - which also uses these doffs, only to find they are all busy and my only option is not craft or finish now (see point 2)
Upgrading:
1. Rarity increase chance = NO
I am happy that the upgrade system gives us the opportunity to progress and make our gear better, and I don't want every thing now BUT the current system for a rarity increase is not good. It is ludicrously expensive (and I mean utterly and totally face-stompingly horrible) to upgrade Mk XIV set items. I am all for working towards something, but when I calculate that it will take an 'expected' 1 year of my in game income to upgrade ONE SINGLE SET to epic (and yes I am a statistician so I understand it may happen on 1 or 2 upgrades or may never upgrade) I think - no I will not bother.
It is also too easy (yes I said that) to upgrade low level items up rarity chances. How can it be better to make mk2 items and upgrade them (chucking them if they don't get what you want), but you cannot have the same result to cost ratio with higher Mk of items?
This is actually hurtful to Cryptic bottom line/game variety in general on the subject of LockBox and Rep Weaponry and Lobi equipment. Most lockboxes are opened by top level players so comes out at Mk XI/XII (yes I know you can open them on lowbies to get Mk IV) but people in general do not - hence the market does not have large amounts of lower level lockbox weaponry with various and desired modifiers. Rep weapons come out mk XI/XII from reward boxes and XII from the store, like lobi equipment - and this are DIFFICULT/EXPENSIVE/STUPID WASTE OF RESOURCES to upgrade rarity to epic. Result? Less reason to do Reps, less reason/value in opening lockboxes/fewer purchases from lobi store. People decide they are better off shooting for a vanilla weapons set/focus on one rep set and not get it epic.
This all stems from the way the rarity chance mechanic works. When applying kits it applies both TP and you have a rarity chance based on what kit/accelerators you use. When enough TP are applied to an item you can upgrade it and the chance of rarity increase is applied when this upgrade occurs. At a lower level you can apply so many TP that the item will upgrade a number of times - if you use Exp Tech and 2x rarity increase accelerator this bonus chance of 'rarity proc' will carry over. At higer levels you can never do this as it takes multiple kits to supply enough TP for Mk increase.
Also the chance of rarity increase resets everytime you get an Mk upgrade (apart from when you reach Mk XIV when it rolls over). This is bad. It means you want to use Exp Tech/rarity accelerators at lower levels when the rarity chance would be applied to multiple rolls (ie when enough TP is applied to increase the Mk several times). BUT, you don't want to do this on higher quality where ou will only upgrade Mk once.
Suggestion 1: Make rarity increase chance roll every time you APPLY the kit rather than the upgrade of Mk application.
With this you will not need rarity roll over. It will also be the same difficulty to increase rarity of lower level gear as it is on higher level gear (better for rep sets, rep/lockbox weaponry, lobi equipment).
Rarity increase chances on the different types of upgrade kit would need to be rescaled/rebalanced for this to reflect the lower amounts of TP that they grant relative to more advanced upgrade kits.
Suggestion 2: Upgrade of Mk XIV grants 100% rarity chance increase
OK - so hear me out... With suggestion 1, the removal of rarity chance rollover would at first seem to make the quest to get to level, top rarity gear more random (for example lots of 0.25-2% chances over and over again on kit application but this chance never getting higher). But this is definitely not the intent, thus would need to be implemented with Suggestion 2. It would increase the required TP to upgrade Mk XIV gear by a large factor - say 4-5x higher TP requirements than current. However, once you fill the bar (if you haven't already gotten a proc by applying the kits) there is a 100% chance to upgrade the rarity. (If you do get a 'rarity proc' during the kit application process the bar is reset to empty - whereby you can start again if you are not at epic level yet.)
This removes some of the random element of the rarity increase mechanic (there is still upside random element of early proc), players know how much they will have to put in (and yes it will be alot and they will have to work for it - 100 kits or more) but they will definitely get their gear at the end of it. This is good. This is what MMO players want. Less casino. More reward for effort. Star Trek is a Western IP. This is how Western MMO players like to play.
Think of the psychology of it as well... Current system when you get a rarity upgrade upon Mk increase you get a buzz. If you don't you feel disappointment/anger/frustration. So upside and downside, with downside feeling more commonplace than upside. In suggested system there is only upside... Upside if you get a lucky and rare rarity proc upon kit application (but ultimately you are not going to be disappointed if you don't get the proc as the real reason you are applying it is for TP). Upside when you fill the Mk XIV bar and get you guaranteed proc. Yes it was a slog to fill it and yes it cost alot. But hey, you got there
2. Dilithium cost of upgrading = NO
Ok I get it, we need sinks and we need slowing down. But as Jesse described in P1podcast 199, there is the opportunity cost in dilithium, we can only refine so much, we have lots of things to spend it on. Result? People won't upgrade lots of things. It discourages lots of things in the game... Multiple builds for one ship. Multiple builds for multiple ships. Lobi item purchases. Completing new Reputation systems. All of these things are BAD for the game and bad for Cryptic.
The costs are too high. Considerably too high. The mat cost reduction is a step in the right direction, but it is not enough. I also don't believe that a form of solution where you can withdraw TP from upgraded items to give it to other items would work. This doesn't seem to lend itself to fixing the above problems (and I caveat this statement with the fact that I really don't know what they are coming up with - only an indication from the aforementioned podcast). In order to make multiple builds for single or multiple ships, in order to have different rep sets based on the type of content we are playing, the overall cost of upgrading needs to be decreased. It is also a MUCH EASIER fix to implement than yet ANOTHER complicated system that will be rushed out before its ready with little or no testing and which will no doubt break lots of items increasing the already ridiculous strain on non-existant customer service.
Divide all the dil costs on application of an upgrade kit by a factor of 2, or heck its coming up to Christmas, make it 3! Or go the full hog and make it a variable. Link it to fleet bases/holdings. Link it to crafting schools. Link it to Upgrading weekend discounts, but give us the ability to reduce the cost further.
Finally - EXPERIMENTAL TECH UPGRADE... why on Earth does it cost so much more dilithium to apply than a regular superior?! This is stupid. It is already very hard/expensive to craft/purchase this kit (which is a really good thing - thank you) due to the difficulty in running Elite difficulty Queues and obtaining the Salvage Tech. But charging more dil to apply? NO Make it cost the same dil please.
3. Random [Mod]s on upgrade = YESBUT no way in which to change them for something more desirable = NO
Ok last one in a total wall of text I promise...(sorry I didn't mean for this to become so long - once I got started I just had SO much to say - because I feel it is SO important to get this right for the future of the game).
In the crafting section I touched upon random mods in the crafting process. I suggested my opinion that actually I am ok for the most part with random modifiers on certain types of equipment (weapons particulaly) as it is a smaller impact on the overall efficacy of the equipment you have made. Other pieces it is clearly not OK.
I am also very happy with the system that gives definite [Mod]s when upgrading items to Epic, or when upgrading Set/Lobi items - you know what you are going to get and this is good.
All this said. There should be functionality to alter modifiers that you have on certain types of equipment (again really talking space/ground weapons, but also valid for vanilla equipment that picks up random mods on upgrades/crafting). An example - if you have an AP beam array with [CrtD]x3 VR and you get a lucky rarity increase whislt upgrading but end up with a [CrtD]x3 [Dmg] there should be something you can do to this weapon to change that [Dmg] rather than just chucking the wepon and trying again.
Yes perhaps the modifier altering should be expensive. And perhaps it should still be random (e.g. you select to change the [Dmg] after you run the process you may get [CrtH] or another [Dmg], but you may get the [CrtD]x4 that you were after). But it should be THERE. It currently isn't and this is a major problem with the upgrade system. That you can spend so much time/effort/resources in an item and effectively 'trash' it without any chance to 'put it right'
People will say but AP Beam Array Mk XIV [CrtD]x3 [Dmg] is better than AP Beam Array Mk XIV [CrtD]x3 . And yes, in terms of pure stats you are correct. However, there is wasted opportunity cost in that UR item with the current system and is shown in Market prices of such items. The system is broken when this occurs.
Conclusion:
So long post, sorry about that. But ultimately it boils down to a handful of suggestions.
Crafting is nearly there, allowing up to pick [Mod]s on a handful of craftables where it makes sense to do this and the finish now cost reduction/ui changes and fixes and we will actually have a really good system. Pacing seems good, takes some time - but not exactly difficult to do if you play little and often. Some of the rarer materials are too hard to get (but this is due to broken PVE queued maps and is a seperate issue). Items are nice but not totally OP.
Upgrading needs more work (but is newer so again - that's fine but please listen to the players on this). Mark increase actually feels ok - although the TP required for some set items is too high. Rarity increases need alot of work. It is currently imbalanced, favours some vanilla items over other 'game expansion' items (and by this I mean Reputation, Lobi Store, Lockbox). It's too expensive, and too random. I don't mind working on it and it taking time/resource investment but at the moment it feels like a casino money grab and I am not gunning for gold once reaching Mk XIV for this reason. It uses too much dilithium (which is needed elsewhere) but also restricts how many sets of gear players are willing/able to upgrade which has a knock on effect on things like multi builds and ultimately purchasing of new ships. It also breaks the loadout system (items in the upgrade system that are part of a saved loadoput can break it and cause endless frustration) although this is really a problem in the loadout system rather than Upgrading per se.
Finally we need some way to craft/upgrade/alter mods to those we want. It still should be expensive, possible still should be random, but give us the opportunity to amend/retrofit existing gear rather than dump and try again with a new piece. It's very un 24th century. They would be better at recylcing
Thanks to the few who have actually read this down to here.. (not many I know)
Lowered costs are nice and will be appreciated. Now if we can get rid if the lottery TRIBBLE and get to choose our mods then I might actually craft a weapon.
Cheaper Faster and with an option to adjust mods without outlaying Billions of EC and Dil.
Chris Robert's on SC:
"You don't have to do something again and again and again repetitive that doesn't have much challange, that's just a general good gameplay thing."
You know, there's a very small addition I'd like made to the R+D system. The button you click to 'finish now' for dilithium, add a confirmation dialog to it like the 'complete upgrade now' confirmation.... There's been a few times where I've accidentally clicked that button and spent 17K+ dilithium that I didn't intend to spend...
Join date is wrong, I've actually been around since STO Beta.
True alters don't have a "main". Account wide unlocks for all unique event rewards!!
Because I have been finding it very often from both normal and advanced stf boxes.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: "We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches, it's all ancient history. Then - before you can blink an eye - suddenly it threatens to start all over again."
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
You know, there's a very small addition I'd like made to the R+D system. The button you click to 'finish now' for dilithium, add a confirmation dialog to it like the 'complete upgrade now' confirmation.... There's been a few times where I've accidentally clicked that button and spent 17K+ dilithium that I didn't intend to spend...
ha, yes. they have gotten me 3 times I think. d'oh!
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: "We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches, it's all ancient history. Then - before you can blink an eye - suddenly it threatens to start all over again."
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
I got it several times this morning and yesterday as well from elachi, crystalline and isa.
I have gone through some dry spells with it a while ago but recently it seems to have improved quite a bit.
Captain Jean-Luc Picard: "We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches, it's all ancient history. Then - before you can blink an eye - suddenly it threatens to start all over again."
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
A dil count display would be a nice addition, too. Just so I could see how much is required before clicking (and then cancelling) if the amount is a strange number. Neverwinter does this with astral diamonds, so it should be an easy addition.
After careful analysis of our existing material costs on crafting components, we've decided to make some reductions in material input requirements. Some are relatively minor, where others are fairly significant. Here's what will be changed:
Reduced the uncommon material costs of uncommon components slightly.
-Uncommon components that previously required 5 uncommon materials now require 3.
-Uncommon components that previously required 8 uncommon materials now require 7.
Reduced the rare material costs of rare components moderately.
-Rare components that previously required 5 rare materials now require 3.
-Rare components that previously required 8 rare materials now require 5.
Reduced the very rare material costs of very rare components significantly. Dilithium costs have been left unchanged.
-Very rare components that previously required 5 rare materials now require 1.
-Very rare components that previously required 8 rare materials now require 2.
Our goal here is to make the input requirements for R&D recipes to more closely match the level of availability of the materials needed to make them. This resulted in a decrease in material cost for all uncommon, rare and very rare components. The hope is that this makes crafting higher Mk items easier and more palatable.
To give you an idea of how this would affect making a Mk XII Beam Array item in terms of materials used to make components:
BEFORE CHANGES
-20 Common Materials (4 components)
-13 Uncommon Materials (2 components)
-13 Rare Materials (2 components)
-13 Very Rare Materials (2 components)
-4500 Dilithium
AFTER CHANGES
-20 Common Materials (4 components)
-11 Uncommon Materials (2 components)
-8 Rare Materials (2 components)
-3 Very Rare Materials (2 components)
-4500 Dilithium
Here's how the material costs would look on a Superior Tech Upgrade Kit:
BEFORE CHANGES
-13 Rare Materials (2 components)
-1 Very Rare Material
-15,000 Energy Credits
AFTER CHANGES
-8 Rare Materials (2 components)
-1 Very Rare Material
-15,000 Energy Credits
As always we'll be listening to your feedback and hope you enjoy the changes listed above. You should be seeing this hit Holodeck in either the next patch or the one after.
Best Regards,
Phil "Gorngonzolla" Zeleski
Cryptic Studios
Lead Systems Designer
you do realize that all your posts have started to sound like our chocolate ration has been increased
After careful analysis of our existing material costs on crafting components, we've decided to make some reductions in material input requirements. Some are relatively minor, where others are fairly significant. Here's what will be changed:
Best Regards,
Phil "Gorngonzolla" Zeleski
Cryptic Studios
Lead Systems Designer
Here's the fix you need:
Refined Dilatinum required (for all projects): 0 (Zero)
Also - Dil used in fleet projects needs to have it's value at 3-5 fleet marks. Right now, at 1, no one fills the dil requirements in any fleet projects... they sit there without moving for months. The Return on Investment [ROI] is insufficient for almost all players - they see it as waste when they also have science projects to complete and other things that are more immediately useful/profitable than a requisition queue that won't finish for weeks or months.
Or, better yet, remove those requirements entirely. You've already shoved enough dil sinks into the game at every turn - why would I want to put dil into a requisitions mission and pay out still more when I get the item from the fleet store?
I made Fleet Admiral about a week ago. My Admiral has a total of 6 Very Rare Materials. All are the same element.
:: shrug ::
Where can a Captain find these in VR Mats? Is there a list of missions I missed where you get a shot at more than the odd one or two mini-game whites or greens?
In Related News -
Has anyone done the Mission: Asteroid Mining recently? I hadn't done it in a while. Did it always offer R&D Mats in addition to the Dil? My score on one of the six drills was good enough to get a Rare in addition to whites and greens. Spending a lot of time on Nukara Prime must have improved my drilling mini-game a bit. Got my first 700 score.
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Since the beginning of this year, I think you are deaf to all our comments and since STO is sick.
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After reading, reading again, and re-reading, I still don't see any estimated release date for these changes. Can you give us some idea of when these changes will go live, please?
I appreciate the reduction in material costs. However, i'm still not convinced that the costs are balanced. That's a topic for another time, however, since it would lead us into a discussion about HOW materials are acquired.
My beef today is the fact that the functionality of the crafting system is both incredibly limited as well as limiting. Here's how to start fixing the system:
1. No more random item properties. Let us choose which properties finished items have.
2. Let us add or remove properties from existing items.
3. Make the UI more streamlined an intuitive. Don't make me click 6 times in order to do something that could have been accomplished in 3 clicks.
4. The process of crafting components in order to craft items is currently a redundant mechanic. This can be fixed by turning components into the things which define which properties an item will have.
5. Crafting should be a mini-game, not something that's time-gated just for the heck of it.
6. Crafting, reputation, and fleet/starbase building should be integrated with each other.
Until items 1 & 2 happen, players (such as myself) who are near the top end of the gear progression, or who have favored gear from rep or C-store, have absolutely no use for the crafting system.
RUBIDIUM.
Is this the new Dililithum? Why the heck is this itme required for science, beams and engineering components for superiour ?
Then to make the whole thing more of a mind eff . It drops at 2%. Though by increasing my dps over the last few weeks i have noticed more drops ond rubidium..(maybe i just got lucky on the two percent.)
Really there is so many other materials that is useless that i would gladly trade in for rubidim
Say 50 hexaflourine gas for 1 rubidum. This way you will see me more crafting means
more dil spend means more zen spend means more money for you.
BUt
At 2 percent drop rate, i don't see me wanting to upgrade at this low rate.
(Which is ironic as someone in my fleet commented on how upgrade freakish i am.)
The system is flawed. This is the right step but you still are looking at the worse end part of this.
I hit lvl 15 in three schools. Then i don't see a incentive to spend MONTHs going to the next level.
There is no reason for me to have it higher. Really having lvl 16 beams helps in no way with getting rubidium. If you guys where clever you would make it that at say 15.5 level i get a 10 percent bonus drop rate. This will incentevise me to go to the higher levels.
Then there is the end game to get to epic. This is the worse gambling thing you guys have invented in ages.
You throw expensive stuff at something to become epic. For a 0.1 increase?
In my opinion this doesn't "fix" the real problem with R&D. Why can't I craft excacly what I want?
- Good morning, I would like to buy a blue car with [climate] and [radio].
- This blue car costs you 12k Dollars.
- Okay, here's my money.
- Tomorrow your blue car with [electric windows] and [USB-adapter] is ready.
- But... I... I wanted a blue car with [climate] and [radio]...
- Ah, you know, we want you to buy more blue cars. Over and over. Here's another one, just 12k Dollars again. Maybe you have luck this time.
See my suggestions for R&D, Upgrading and C-Store here:
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=20919911&postcount=1
I am thinking that you should change the amount you get based on how long it takes to complete, for those that rush through it, by rushing its completion should get the same basic 6-7k xp, but those that let it finish should get a nice bonus, say like 12-14k.....yep, that is double xp reward for the patience of waiting 20 freaking hours.
Also, when it comes to R%D bonus weekends, make it last a week, instead of 2 days or so....cause a 2 day weekend bonus is only 2 lots of research and bam, its over.....not very cool at all.
Sadly, the way PWE's current player model works, they'd be more likely to increase the reward for people willing to dump money on the project to finish it quickly rather than give an increase to people willing to wait.
I have posted/tweeted directly to devs on this subject before but in 'summary' - this:
Crafting:
1.Random mods on Conductive RCS and Field Exciter = NO.
These things are so expensive to craft (getting a little less expensive now - thanks) but over 40% of the actual console ability comes from the random [Mod] and some are SO useless whereas others are utterly awesome. (e.g. [Stealth]/[Sen] vs [PrtG]/[ResAll]) This ruins the market - TRIBBLE mod UR consoles costing CONSIDERABLY less than the input price of the craft project or VR versions without the mod, whereas desired mods are not even available on the exchange (and when they are they cost the GDP of a small country).
I can stand by random mods on weapons as the difference between [Dmg] and [CritD] is not anywhere near the same difference as on the above craftables...BUT see next section on upgrading for this...
2. Finish now cost and confirmation - or lack thereof = NO
Finish now cost on Crafting is SIGNIFICANTLY higher than cost of finish now in upgrading. Upgrading feels about right, but crafting is just TOO expensive (e.g 18k to immediately finish a daily, obviously don't do this(!), this is 2.25x daily refine cap to skip a 20hr wait on a SINGLE mission.) It is out by a factor of 5-10x at least.
Also... CONFIRM BUTTON!!!1!!!one. I have wasted SO much dil because of laggy UI/misclick on laptop trackpad (I estimate approx 60-100k lost which is SIGNIFICANT) because of this. Why do you continue to put things in the game that can only P*I5S your customers off - there is no downside for a player to a confirm button, only upside. (Obviously downside for you/devs as these mistakes sink dil, but have we fallen to such a low that Devs rub their hands with glee when customers make a mistake and lose out...)
3. Laggy Crafting UI means incorrect daily missions get started and lack of cancel button = NO
Ok so the laggy UI seems to be connected to the delays in Doff mission completition etc. Sometimes it is worse than others, on some characters it is worse than others. Overall it is very annoying, in particular when you think (and it even says) you are starting a different daily mission to the one you actually are.
I understand why there is no cancel button (unlike doffing you see the result of the 'mission' immediately rather than on completion) if you could cancel you could exploit to get the outcome you wanted. But it is a serious QoL issue. My only suggestion would be to chance the mechanic behind the daily missions - make the 'proc' occur at the end of the 20hr (for extra 1k craftXP) and let us cancel this one? (For me this is also an issue as dailies require Research Lab sci's, and sometimes I decide to make some Upgrade Kits - which also uses these doffs, only to find they are all busy and my only option is not craft or finish now (see point 2)
Upgrading:
1. Rarity increase chance = NO
I am happy that the upgrade system gives us the opportunity to progress and make our gear better, and I don't want every thing now BUT the current system for a rarity increase is not good. It is ludicrously expensive (and I mean utterly and totally face-stompingly horrible) to upgrade Mk XIV set items. I am all for working towards something, but when I calculate that it will take an 'expected' 1 year of my in game income to upgrade ONE SINGLE SET to epic (and yes I am a statistician so I understand it may happen on 1 or 2 upgrades or may never upgrade) I think - no I will not bother.
It is also too easy (yes I said that) to upgrade low level items up rarity chances. How can it be better to make mk2 items and upgrade them (chucking them if they don't get what you want), but you cannot have the same result to cost ratio with higher Mk of items?
This is actually hurtful to Cryptic bottom line/game variety in general on the subject of LockBox and Rep Weaponry and Lobi equipment. Most lockboxes are opened by top level players so comes out at Mk XI/XII (yes I know you can open them on lowbies to get Mk IV) but people in general do not - hence the market does not have large amounts of lower level lockbox weaponry with various and desired modifiers. Rep weapons come out mk XI/XII from reward boxes and XII from the store, like lobi equipment - and this are DIFFICULT/EXPENSIVE/STUPID WASTE OF RESOURCES to upgrade rarity to epic. Result? Less reason to do Reps, less reason/value in opening lockboxes/fewer purchases from lobi store. People decide they are better off shooting for a vanilla weapons set/focus on one rep set and not get it epic.
This all stems from the way the rarity chance mechanic works. When applying kits it applies both TP and you have a rarity chance based on what kit/accelerators you use. When enough TP are applied to an item you can upgrade it and the chance of rarity increase is applied when this upgrade occurs. At a lower level you can apply so many TP that the item will upgrade a number of times - if you use Exp Tech and 2x rarity increase accelerator this bonus chance of 'rarity proc' will carry over. At higer levels you can never do this as it takes multiple kits to supply enough TP for Mk increase.
Also the chance of rarity increase resets everytime you get an Mk upgrade (apart from when you reach Mk XIV when it rolls over). This is bad. It means you want to use Exp Tech/rarity accelerators at lower levels when the rarity chance would be applied to multiple rolls (ie when enough TP is applied to increase the Mk several times). BUT, you don't want to do this on higher quality where ou will only upgrade Mk once.
Suggestion 1: Make rarity increase chance roll every time you APPLY the kit rather than the upgrade of Mk application.
With this you will not need rarity roll over. It will also be the same difficulty to increase rarity of lower level gear as it is on higher level gear (better for rep sets, rep/lockbox weaponry, lobi equipment).
Rarity increase chances on the different types of upgrade kit would need to be rescaled/rebalanced for this to reflect the lower amounts of TP that they grant relative to more advanced upgrade kits.
Suggestion 2: Upgrade of Mk XIV grants 100% rarity chance increase
OK - so hear me out... With suggestion 1, the removal of rarity chance rollover would at first seem to make the quest to get to level, top rarity gear more random (for example lots of 0.25-2% chances over and over again on kit application but this chance never getting higher). But this is definitely not the intent, thus would need to be implemented with Suggestion 2. It would increase the required TP to upgrade Mk XIV gear by a large factor - say 4-5x higher TP requirements than current. However, once you fill the bar (if you haven't already gotten a proc by applying the kits) there is a 100% chance to upgrade the rarity. (If you do get a 'rarity proc' during the kit application process the bar is reset to empty - whereby you can start again if you are not at epic level yet.)
This removes some of the random element of the rarity increase mechanic (there is still upside random element of early proc), players know how much they will have to put in (and yes it will be alot and they will have to work for it - 100 kits or more) but they will definitely get their gear at the end of it. This is good. This is what MMO players want. Less casino. More reward for effort. Star Trek is a Western IP. This is how Western MMO players like to play.
Think of the psychology of it as well... Current system when you get a rarity upgrade upon Mk increase you get a buzz. If you don't you feel disappointment/anger/frustration. So upside and downside, with downside feeling more commonplace than upside. In suggested system there is only upside... Upside if you get a lucky and rare rarity proc upon kit application (but ultimately you are not going to be disappointed if you don't get the proc as the real reason you are applying it is for TP). Upside when you fill the Mk XIV bar and get you guaranteed proc. Yes it was a slog to fill it and yes it cost alot. But hey, you got there
2. Dilithium cost of upgrading = NO
Ok I get it, we need sinks and we need slowing down. But as Jesse described in P1podcast 199, there is the opportunity cost in dilithium, we can only refine so much, we have lots of things to spend it on. Result? People won't upgrade lots of things. It discourages lots of things in the game... Multiple builds for one ship. Multiple builds for multiple ships. Lobi item purchases. Completing new Reputation systems. All of these things are BAD for the game and bad for Cryptic.
The costs are too high. Considerably too high. The mat cost reduction is a step in the right direction, but it is not enough. I also don't believe that a form of solution where you can withdraw TP from upgraded items to give it to other items would work. This doesn't seem to lend itself to fixing the above problems (and I caveat this statement with the fact that I really don't know what they are coming up with - only an indication from the aforementioned podcast). In order to make multiple builds for single or multiple ships, in order to have different rep sets based on the type of content we are playing, the overall cost of upgrading needs to be decreased. It is also a MUCH EASIER fix to implement than yet ANOTHER complicated system that will be rushed out before its ready with little or no testing and which will no doubt break lots of items increasing the already ridiculous strain on non-existant customer service.
Divide all the dil costs on application of an upgrade kit by a factor of 2, or heck its coming up to Christmas, make it 3! Or go the full hog and make it a variable. Link it to fleet bases/holdings. Link it to crafting schools. Link it to Upgrading weekend discounts, but give us the ability to reduce the cost further.
Finally - EXPERIMENTAL TECH UPGRADE... why on Earth does it cost so much more dilithium to apply than a regular superior?! This is stupid. It is already very hard/expensive to craft/purchase this kit (which is a really good thing - thank you) due to the difficulty in running Elite difficulty Queues and obtaining the Salvage Tech. But charging more dil to apply? NO Make it cost the same dil please.
3. Random [Mod]s on upgrade = YES BUT no way in which to change them for something more desirable = NO
Ok last one in a total wall of text I promise...(sorry I didn't mean for this to become so long - once I got started I just had SO much to say - because I feel it is SO important to get this right for the future of the game).
In the crafting section I touched upon random mods in the crafting process. I suggested my opinion that actually I am ok for the most part with random modifiers on certain types of equipment (weapons particulaly) as it is a smaller impact on the overall efficacy of the equipment you have made. Other pieces it is clearly not OK.
I am also very happy with the system that gives definite [Mod]s when upgrading items to Epic, or when upgrading Set/Lobi items - you know what you are going to get and this is good.
All this said. There should be functionality to alter modifiers that you have on certain types of equipment (again really talking space/ground weapons, but also valid for vanilla equipment that picks up random mods on upgrades/crafting). An example - if you have an AP beam array with [CrtD]x3 VR and you get a lucky rarity increase whislt upgrading but end up with a [CrtD]x3 [Dmg] there should be something you can do to this weapon to change that [Dmg] rather than just chucking the wepon and trying again.
Yes perhaps the modifier altering should be expensive. And perhaps it should still be random (e.g. you select to change the [Dmg] after you run the process you may get [CrtH] or another [Dmg], but you may get the [CrtD]x4 that you were after). But it should be THERE. It currently isn't and this is a major problem with the upgrade system. That you can spend so much time/effort/resources in an item and effectively 'trash' it without any chance to 'put it right'
People will say but AP Beam Array Mk XIV [CrtD]x3 [Dmg] is better than AP Beam Array Mk XIV [CrtD]x3 . And yes, in terms of pure stats you are correct. However, there is wasted opportunity cost in that UR item with the current system and is shown in Market prices of such items. The system is broken when this occurs.
Conclusion:
So long post, sorry about that. But ultimately it boils down to a handful of suggestions.
Crafting is nearly there, allowing up to pick [Mod]s on a handful of craftables where it makes sense to do this and the finish now cost reduction/ui changes and fixes and we will actually have a really good system. Pacing seems good, takes some time - but not exactly difficult to do if you play little and often. Some of the rarer materials are too hard to get (but this is due to broken PVE queued maps and is a seperate issue). Items are nice but not totally OP.
Upgrading needs more work (but is newer so again - that's fine but please listen to the players on this). Mark increase actually feels ok - although the TP required for some set items is too high. Rarity increases need alot of work. It is currently imbalanced, favours some vanilla items over other 'game expansion' items (and by this I mean Reputation, Lobi Store, Lockbox). It's too expensive, and too random. I don't mind working on it and it taking time/resource investment but at the moment it feels like a casino money grab and I am not gunning for gold once reaching Mk XIV for this reason. It uses too much dilithium (which is needed elsewhere) but also restricts how many sets of gear players are willing/able to upgrade which has a knock on effect on things like multi builds and ultimately purchasing of new ships. It also breaks the loadout system (items in the upgrade system that are part of a saved loadoput can break it and cause endless frustration) although this is really a problem in the loadout system rather than Upgrading per se.
Finally we need some way to craft/upgrade/alter mods to those we want. It still should be expensive, possible still should be random, but give us the opportunity to amend/retrofit existing gear rather than dump and try again with a new piece. It's very un 24th century. They would be better at recylcing
Thanks to the few who have actually read this down to here.. (not many I know)
...#LLAP...
This seems like a lot.
I'm just saying
I think it is Live on tribble . . . Check the last tribble patch notes
Dilithium tied item prices would go through the roof.
"You don't have to do something again and again and again repetitive that doesn't have much challange, that's just a general good gameplay thing."
Because I have been finding it very often from both normal and advanced stf boxes.
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
ha, yes. they have gotten me 3 times I think. d'oh!
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
I have gone through some dry spells with it a while ago but recently it seems to have improved quite a bit.
"With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censured, the first thought forbidden, the first freedom denied, chains us all irrevocably."
you do realize that all your posts have started to sound like our chocolate ration has been increased
Here Here!
Here's the fix you need:
Refined Dilatinum required (for all projects): 0 (Zero)
Also - Dil used in fleet projects needs to have it's value at 3-5 fleet marks. Right now, at 1, no one fills the dil requirements in any fleet projects... they sit there without moving for months. The Return on Investment [ROI] is insufficient for almost all players - they see it as waste when they also have science projects to complete and other things that are more immediately useful/profitable than a requisition queue that won't finish for weeks or months.
Or, better yet, remove those requirements entirely. You've already shoved enough dil sinks into the game at every turn - why would I want to put dil into a requisitions mission and pay out still more when I get the item from the fleet store?
I made Fleet Admiral about a week ago. My Admiral has a total of 6 Very Rare Materials. All are the same element.
:: shrug ::
Where can a Captain find these in VR Mats? Is there a list of missions I missed where you get a shot at more than the odd one or two mini-game whites or greens?
In Related News -
Has anyone done the Mission: Asteroid Mining recently? I hadn't done it in a while. Did it always offer R&D Mats in addition to the Dil? My score on one of the six drills was good enough to get a Rare in addition to whites and greens. Spending a lot of time on Nukara Prime must have improved my drilling mini-game a bit. Got my first 700 score.