Poll: Which aspect of Shroud of the Avatar captivates you the most?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Cerus, Feb 7, 2018.

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Which aspect of Shroud of the Avatar captivates you the most?

  1. The Avatar's Story / The Ultima legacy

    30.3%
  2. World exploration

    38.0%
  3. Housing and Player Towns

    35.9%
  4. My guild and fellow players

    26.8%
  5. Community events and activities

    7.7%
  6. Crafting

    27.5%
  7. Trade

    14.1%
  8. Combat

    32.4%
  9. Other (Share it in the thread)

    15.5%
  10. Following the SotA development process

    4.9%
Multiple votes are allowed.
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  1. Cerus

    Cerus Avatar

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    This moment when you click on "Play" and wait for the world to load on your screen, remembering your last session - and then - thinking forward to the session that is about to start...

    Have you ever reflected what it is that brings you back to Novia?

    Speaking for myself, I am an adventurer-type, a quest-hunter, and when I enter New Britannia, the first thought that comes to my mind is my "path", the quest I am currently dealing with, how to continue it, where to search and what to do next to progress with my story. Pursuing the story... It's like reading a good book.

    But you might not share this feeling with me.

    Maybe you are thinking about the ingredients that you still need in order to craft this one amazing thing that you have been working so hard for.
    Maybe you feel the anticipation of continue working on your house and making it more an more beautiful with every session.
    Or maybe...

    I reckon, it's not always the same thing and sometimes it can be a mixture of multiple things. But I also believe that we all have our main priorities -or in other words- our absolute favorite elements that bring us back to Novia.

    If you had to choose max 3 of them. How would you choose?
     
  2. Cryodacry

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    Combat / Guild / Housing

    Combat cause i love killin stuffs
    Guild because i'll follow @Sher Shadowleaf Anywhere
    Housing because well ... because Sher made a convert of me !
     
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  3. Turk Key

    Turk Key Avatar

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    Being a solo player, and waiting for quests to be finished before starting them I had to vote for combat and crafting.
     
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  4. Hazard

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    It's not worth a full selection here for me under 'Other', but all the varying aspects of emergent behavior are typically fascinating to watch or even take part in as objects/systems are added to the game or tweaked over time. As far as trade, I think watching the player economy fluctuate (regional/localized) is sometimes more interesting than just the option here, for me at least.
     
    Last edited: Feb 7, 2018
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  5. Weins201

    Weins201 Avatar

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    Here are my choices -

    1. Exploration - Something that one does to find new items recipies location critters sadly need to grind to achieve levels to really explore areas worth it . . .

    2. Combat (PvE) - Nice to see that different methods work for different critter / areas sadly if limited with a real soft cap this would not be possible, but . . .
    targeting has also been and still is a major issue​

    3. Crafting - Been a part of from the start actually used to make one of each and every item to learn how look at results and give advice. Nowadays it is just to much of a grind to achieve any good results and utterly impossible without grind you brains out to achieve a level to obtain any of the recipies or resources that actually have any value. And even if you just want to make a bench it tkes about over 1/2 hours just to get the materials to make parts then combine.

    The problems surrounding the core of the game are a major concern of mine and are what wil let me just stop coming back.

    The nieche backers will be here forever, but maintaining a fresh influx is going to stop when these things start to become more of a issue when players learn what I am talking about.
     
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  6. redfish

    redfish Avatar

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    One of the several choices I checked was Other, simply because I think the individual choices give a bit of a short shrift to a broader category of "Adventuring."

    This means traveling through the land, finding new places (including player owned shops), stocking up on provisions for a journey, gathering reagents and ingredients, meeting people (including other players), running into trouble, getting lost, falling down a hole, running out of arrows, starting fights, camping out the night, discovering a treasure chest or a secret passage, finding a way to get past a wall or chasm, figuring out a puzzle or riddle, sneaking up in a house at night (in Wizard's Rest, only to discover a wolf demon laughing maniacally down a dark corridor).
     
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  7. Antrax Artek

    Antrax Artek Avatar

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    Combat/Trade/Guild ;)
     
  8. jammaplaya

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    Community events and activities (community interaction)
    Crafting
    Other - Character development

    When it comes to character development, Shroud of the Avatar allows a certain amount of freedom, and that is essentially what draws me in to click that play button.

    I recently did a trial run of FFXIV, and found the character development to be boring. It's a level based system, with level based weapons and armor, and all that really does is ensure you develop at a predetermined rate. I suspect at the highest level is where I might encounter the first bit of artistic freedom, aside from choosing which class I develop first or what my character looks like, if there even is any artistic freedom there. I just found the entire experience very limited.

    Where I take issue with that is I suppose because I am a bit of an artist. Artistic freedom is the most important aspect of any game for me, which is why I've always been such a big fan of Ultima Online. On UO, you can make your house look like a giant head eating npcs, if that's what you want to do. The sky is really the limit.

    Shroud definitely scratches my itch when it comes to the freedom to develop how I want, at whatever rate I want, although I do still feel like there is room for more in the artistic freedom department here. There is also practically no pressure to progress at a rate faster than I choose. I don't feel any pressure to 'grind' to the next level to open up the next quest, or anything like that at all.

    I can't honestly think of any game which allows more freedom in the character development department though. Shroud of the Avatar is where it's at for anyone who has spent whole days looking at character creation screens on other games :p which I have.
     
  9. Cinder Sear

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    I REALLY enjoy wandering the different scenes and looking for all the points of interest! Sometimes you find funny things, like notes about ppl exploring and finding their corpse later near a den of bears.
     
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  10. Preachyr

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    I chose 'Other'

    What captivates me most about this game is the crowdfunding and development about it. The Kickstarter campaign, promises made and broken, the whole process of seeing the ideas presented and what they actually ended up becoming.

    For me, Shroud is currently a pretty bad game, but I've been here from the start and will be here till the end because the process captivates me and keeps me watching.
     
  11. Mischievous Dragon

    Mischievous Dragon Riparian Reaper

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    Other - Bugs and Issues:

    Encountering/seeking/discovering Bugs and Issues, Reproducing Bugs.
     
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  12. Jack Knyfe

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    'Other' = Emergent Gameplay

    This falls into a bit of most categories, especially Community Activities and Events. However, not all gameplay is pre-planned, nor is it expected.

    "Hot Tub High Jump" - An activity we created back in R9 / R10 due to a miscalculation with falling damage (damage was accrued based on time falling, not distance), which meant that an Avatar could jump off of a 4-story building and land on their feet relatively unscathed, as long as the fall was fast enough. Using Ye Olde Hot Tubbe as a target, we had folks jumping off of the top of a Knight Marshal keep and landing in the hot tub during events as an optional activity.

    "Pet Races" - a drag-race-style track is set up using pavers. The length is determined by the maximum pet leashing distance. Players move their pets into the starting end of the track, and put them on "Stay". Then the players go to the opposite end of the track and stand on their respective finishing areas of the track. A countdown is called, and on GO the pets are told to "Follow", causing them to race towards their owners. This event became contested because it was discovered that the pet that won the race varied based on the observing client, leading to a consensus vote system. As an amusing footnote, a while back there existed a pathing problem where pets would run all over a lot before finally leashing to their owner. This made for amusing races, but removed the competitive spirit and replaced it with simple hijinks.

    -That one release where the Swap Deck hotkey actually worked on whoever you targeted, causing them to become naked if they did not have a secondary deck (with clothing/armor) equipped-

    The a-maze-ing work of 4B and their devotees in building extensive constructs that functioned as mazes and puzzles. @Net, @Athanil, Sindariya, et al, your abilities are beyond reproach.

    @Lace's inventive putt-putt Gustball courses. One day I swear I'll try not to win.
     
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  13. Mykll

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    Ditto. Except add to refresh lot as the main reason to quickly log in.
     
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  14. amarious

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    Combat/Guild/Trade
     
  15. Azzamean

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    Other - Watching how this will develop.
     
  16. Raven Swiftbow

    Raven Swiftbow Bug Hunter

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    While I enjoy questing and deco-ing and *really* enjoy hanging out with my guildmates, what I enjoy the most is the development of my 4 characters.

    I have a unique vision for each one of them - their skills, strengths, weaknesses, path, and even one who is my "bad boy" who tells everyone that his name is Fred when it is, in truth, something else. It's not quite roleplay that I do - perhaps it is "roleplay lite", lol. But I'm particular about how they dress and how they interact with others. And this means that I (obviously) also enjoy the combat aspect - because training up 4 characters takes considerable time! None of the 4 are what I would call "finished" but all are mid-level to a bit above mid-level.

    Needless to say, I intend to play SotA for a long, long time. I'm in it for the long haul and I want to enjoy the entire journey without rushing to try and 'finish' my characters. They will get there - but it will take a few more years, I'm sure. :)
     
  17. Spoon

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    I'd tick them all if I could.
     
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  18. SmokerKGB

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    My top pick wasn't on the list, Selective Multi Play (SPO)... 2nd place is Crafting, 3rd place is Adventuring, and last is Combat and/or Ultima legacy (I picked Combat)...

    I really like this crafting system, plus I like the fact that I can actually have combat skills on my chr (or should I say need, something a hard cap lacks), to gather supplies. I also like running my vendor and "shopping" others vendors for supplies as well (although I dream of an Auction House style market or regional search system).
     
  19. Xandra7

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    Single-Player Online and Story appealed to me the most.
    The ability to some time in the future play this game that has up until then been mostly just my world with others, not sure if I will, but having the option is very cool.
     
  20. Beaumaris

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    I find a great deal of the game compelling. For me initially it is the Avatar's story line. Its great stuff. The long game will benefit by further interweaving that story even more actively into the game play somehow. Looking forward to seeing the plan! Next is scene exploration. Many of the scenes are interesting and compelling just imagery and design, even without finding quest stories. Its great to find things like interactive NPCs, secret caverns, the connected underworld, etc. My hope is to see even more game world lore connected to scenes somehow to keep adding to the meaning. Next is POTs - Pure 'trainset' type of fun for governors. Please continue to up the deco limits! Haha. Finally the skill-based combat. Classless advancement presents many choices and keeps it interesting. My concern isn't about running out of things to train, but running out of places to train. I'm compelled to keep going by the system, but on the solo front struggling a bit with understanding where to go after the overland scenes become too easy when the dungeons are a bit too hard.
     
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