Would you enjoy some type of "monster play" system in STO?

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

For some time now, LOTRO has had a system that allowed you to play as "monsters" in PVP, which are not normally playable in the normal game world. And just this week, Champions Online announced their upcomming "supervillain onslaught" system:

http://www.mmorpg.com/gamelist.cfm/game/335/feature/10007/Champions-Online-Get-Ready-to-Unleash-Your-Inner-Villain.html

Would you enjoy some type of system in STO that would temporarily allow you to play as Borg or Undine, for example? If so, how do you think it could work in this game?

Off the top of my head, here is one option: create a "monster play" queue. Once the queue pops, one person is randomly selected to be the monster, and everyone else just has to kill it. This map could have a starbase or some type of target that the monster is trying to destroy, with a set time limit. But there are a million different ways it could work. What do you think?

kitsunesnout · August 2015

It could be about the one and only way to have a meaningful pvp in this game as it stands now. So yeah in some form it could be cool.

dirlettia · August 2015

A monster play session like in LoTRO would be good so long as it was a normal developable toon, which required no dilithium to do its upgrades, and gave some kind of reward which would still benefit your main toons. Maybe have some kind of system like the delta recruit thing where accomplishments made with your 'monster' could be claimable on your fed/kdf toons. Even costume items as rewards would be good, but ship skins as well are a possility.

farmallm · August 2015

I like the idea of it. It would be good for pvp ground that is for sure.

As for pve story. We can do a simple story about it. Similar to how they did the mission with Sela "forcing" you to do stuff. Or as an alternative reality story similar to the Temporal Ambassador.

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

farmallm wrote: »

I like the idea of it. It would be good for pvp ground that is for sure.

As for pve story. We can do a simple story about it. Similar to how they did the mission with Sela "forcing" you to do stuff. Or as an alternative reality story similar to the Temporal Ambassador.

I'm not sure if we are on the same page here. With Sela "forcing" us to do something or an alternate reality, we are still our character. But with monster play, you would actually be playing as a Borg or Undine(for example) for that match. It would be completely unrelated to our real character, so there would not need to be any "story" reason to explain.

baddmoonrizin · August 2015

Perhaps that would be one way to do a PVP Reputation Track. Each tier unlocks a new species and/or enemy faction to play as along with new ground and space gear.

kyrrok · August 2015

not that bad an idea. I might like to start a toon from the House of Torg.

captainmal3 · August 2015

It'd be cool, definitely, although while I understand the calls for using it for pvp personally I'd prefer a pve form (not to say we can't have both, of course, I'm just not interested in pvp). Some kind of progression system that would unlock 'things' (whatever they may be) for your main character, as mentioned above, would be nice as well. I'd love to be part of a Herald attack on a federation starbase or something.

Actually, on the topic of pvp, I remember DCUO has it's legends pvp mode where you play as iconic characters like Superman or Lex Luthor, I guess this'd be kinda similar and it was fun sometimes. I mean I sucked at it, but at least I was losing because I sucked and not my gear.

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

captainmal3 wrote: »

It'd be cool, definitely, although while I understand the calls for using it for pvp personally I'd prefer a pve form (not to say we can't have both, of course, I'm just not interested in pvp). Some kind of progression system that would unlock 'things' (whatever they may be) for your main character, as mentioned above, would be nice as well. I'd love to be part of a Herald attack on a federation starbase or something.

I'm not opposed to some kind of limited PvE play, but at the same time I think if that were an option some people would demand more and more until it eventually became a faction, for all intents and purposes.

captainmal3 · August 2015

Edit- Ah, you edited while I was posting. Well here's what I basically said anyway, it elaborates on my position either way.

That's why you wouldn't progress the 'monster' character, you'd unlock things for your real character maybe, and they'd probably be cosmetic stuff anyway. My thoughts was something along the lines of simply logging in to your standard toon, and then there's an extra set of pve queues that stick you in a borg or herald ship, or turn you in to one of their footsoldiers for the duration of the mission. Those 'characters' would remain the same no matter what you do in the game, with no progression at all.

I didn't put any real thought in to what you could unlock for your real character by playing the 'monster' queues, I just thought having something would be a good idea so that there's a chance people will actually play it after the first days of release.

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

captainmal3 wrote: »

I didn't put any real thought in to what you could unlock for your real character by playing the 'monster' queues, I just thought having something would be a good idea so that there's a chance people will actually play it after the first days of release.

I definitely agree. You could have a "monster" reputation system, and have some new type of gear for your real character to unlock through the projects.

markhawkman · August 2015

Well.. Champions will have this soon. :P

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

markhawkman wrote: »

Well.. Champions will have this soon. :P

Wow, really? I never would have guessed from the link in the OP that Champs was getting a system like this. Amazing

rmy1081 · August 2015

I would play it both for PvE and PvP. This could even be monetized!

It's the same game engine so we know it will work. My only concern is, Neverwinter has a lot of systems that would be great for STO but geko said we probably won't be getting them because of lack staff to implement it which is the reason given for a lot of things we don't get. Seriously, Cryptic/PW (whoever is incharge) needs to hire more people...

bernatk · August 2015

Yeah, I would play a klingon.

or wait a sec....

sheldonlcooper · August 2015

I like the idea. I would just entirely rip off lotro. If you are free to play you can only play monster. If you are vip, lifetime, or pay a few thousand zen you can play hero. Then just make an open battlezone that also has some pve missions in it for everyone to interact.

anazonda · August 2015

Na... seems very unappealing to me.

mikoto8472 · August 2015

I thought the KDF was already monster play?

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

mikoto8472 wrote: »

I thought the KDF was already monster play?

Nope, you thought wrong.

kodachikuno · August 2015

captainmal3 wrote: »

It'd be cool, definitely, although while I understand the calls for using it for pvp personally I'd prefer a pve form (not to say we can't have both, of course, I'm just not interested in pvp).

^this

angrybobh · August 2015

I was thinking about this a couple of weeks back. The thought of playing a borg tactical cube vs 5 players is appealing to me. I would not like any progression with that "character". Maybe just a rep track or something would work. I think this would also be a good step towards development of PvP. I'm not a PvPer but it does need some love and with a good starting point like this perhaps different styles of play could bring a little bit of something for everyone.

kodachikuno · August 2015

I can just see the forum flames from here... let players control "monsters" in the stfs....
3-5 elite players in control of borg cubes and spheres with their OP shield drains and a player's ability to focus fire for effect.... meanwhile in elite stfs a pile of noobkins trying to get 'payback' on the min/maxers by running the borg badly and making it easier than ever...

phantrosity · August 2015

But we can already play as Bajorans.

nickcastleton · August 2015

i actually like the idea.
As captainmal3 i play DCUO and while i do suck at the legends play i do enjoy it.

TBH we could just explain the whole thing in game as a holodeck exercise.
this could then open up the idea of holodeck training against things like wolf 359 where one player is locoutus and the rest are placed in fed ships.

gulberat · August 2015

patrickngo wrote: »

mikoto8472 wrote: »

I thought the KDF was already monster play?

no, that's just how Geko sees them.

I still hold that the problem began in TNG. Everything post-Undiscovered Country is like that and it only deteriorates over time. Now, Cryptic DID have the option to go the Klingon Academy route and write the Klingons with a lick of sense, but as it is, the KDF has had no chance since the release of the Path to 2409 to show any nuance or sophistication. As soon as the decision was made to have them use the Undine infiltration as an excuse for territorial aggrandizement and weakening the quadrant instead of studying past history and realizing that their folly of '72 meant that the Feds would never take their claims as anything but such an excuse if accompanied by Klingon violence (and thus making themselves Iconian lapdogs) their path as far as STO was set.

Fixing it would require a new game with a new backstory, or what we are doing (writing in the intelligence ourselves). But even then I do not hold Cryptic responsible to that degree because it is the canon precedent that is IMO deficient where the Klingons are concerned.

lunasto · August 2015

Nope! Villains are just too ugly!

Even as I played in Champions Online, the zombie thingy. It would always start me as a corps, yuk! But I wouldn't mind being the giant Crystal!

vengefuldjinn · August 2015

I would enjoy this myself. Some have expressed the desire to play Tal shiar, Borg, Ect. I could see this fitting these requests.

I also think it would be great to play a Hirogen, Or maybe a mirror universe captain.

aesica · August 2015

Do tentacles count as "monster play?"

Seriously though, I think it'd be neat to have STFs where you play as something other than your character. However! Playing a monster vs a bunch of players shouldn't happen until cryptic straightens out its current mess of a pvp system.

thegrandnagus1 · August 2015

aesica wrote: »

Do tentacles count as "monster play?"

Seriously though, I think it'd be neat to have STFs where you play as something other than your character. However! Playing a monster vs a bunch of players shouldn't happen until cryptic straightens out its current mess of a pvp system.

Well, it's like this: currently, there aren't enough people PvPing to justify development time. If a "monster play" system got more people interested in PvP, it would likely lead to PvP improvements overall.

Would you enjoy some type of "monster play" system in STO?

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