New Players RIP

Thats the problem with going into persistence so early and so long ago. I suspect there will be so very few new players this game will be DOA. Everything is already claimed, wealth has been accumulated, the complicated PvP system mastered. Anyone entering the game now will quickly quit on these terms. edit: not to mention so few people actually play, everything has been claimed by the greedy rich ****ers with multiple accounts and deeds and they can't possible contribute enough to the social aspect of the game to match what they remove from it.

The fighting system is too complicated for its own good. while variety and detail is awesome and works great in PvM, this pretty much removed any chance of casual pvp like what existed in UO

 

EVE is one of the highest RMT mmos out there.. and BDO has level based battlegrounds.

But.. when comparing sota to games like DAOC.. or Camalot Unchained..
Or Warhammer Online.. Shaiya.. Guild wars..
Hell even WoW... theres a huge amount of PvE before PvP.

The majority of MMOs dont have that massive pre grind, even if a few do.

And if we step back and look at some more popular and succesful games.. PvP in one form or anothet when being a main draw of the game, never takes 6 months of grinding.

I think itd bother me less if their last interview they didnt compare the PvP to DAOC.. as its just not.

 

Well, when you're doing more damage with a bow than lightning from nature can do, I will still think that is absolutely insane LOL.

 

In RL not the actual power of lightning kills you either... its all about where it is applied.... so if i shoot an aimed pointy stick into you i do more damage than lighning...

 

Yeah, but due to where entry and exit points usually are, almost every strike arcs across the heart, where it kills you

 

I have no intention of ever PvPing in this game. The decision to go persistent almost 2 years ago destroyed the possibility of PvP ever being balanced - the vets have FAR too much of an advantage, both in terms of gear and in stats. This is a PvE/Dollhouse/Social Dressup game.

Which is fine. But why would you EVER flag as PvP?

 

Keeping in mind that this will be a thing.

 

I don't know why they don't just restrict certain PvP areas to one level and the level just under and above it, like Tier 3 can have Tier 2 and 4 players but nobody lower or higher, that way you still get a range of players but the uber edge lords don't get to pwn n00bs. I mean, then it would be more competitive

 

This is simply only true if you make it so in your own head. I am 100% certain that some great PvP players (that have never played SotA before) will come in the next few weeks/months. The skills system has such a drastic reduction on the return (effectiveness) on investment (time and XP) near level 90, that anyone that really wants to can be competitive in PvP in this game within, I'd say 3 to 4 months. When you reach this level, it takes tens of millions, maybe even hundreds of millions of XP to even make a small difference in your skills' effectiveness. You don't want to invest the 3 or 4 months? Then obviously forget about it. 3 to 4 months is nothing, when you consider the grand scheme of things in this game. This kind of self-defeating view is the reason that you will have no chance. NOT the game's actual systems. The "gap" that many people talk about is closed a lot faster than these people think.

 

This condition would exist regardless of when they decided to go persistent.

 

Yeah... the more you think about it, the more absurd this view is (agreeing with Barugon). When Portalarium decided to go persistent with Shroud of the Avatar, 100% of the people that WANTED to bug test, help make the game better, and have some fun along the way building up a character, could do so. It's not like we had a privileged, select few, very wealthy people that were the only ones to be in. Let's try to remember this. Some people have submitted likely hundreds of bugs along the way so that this could be a better experience for everyone. To say that you simply didn't know about this game for the last 5 years is not much of an excuse either.

 

Honestly its all based on your equipment + Skills, 2 level 30 - 40 decked out right can handle PVP in most zones. Yes PVP is not where i want it to be either, but i did some testing here recently and found that out, and also 2 level 35-40 can take out almost anything, we were running in level 5 areas cleaning house when making your character think of what your 4 main skills will be train those up until you get bored then go kill some bosses and other PVP people

 

It's possible you won't see that many new players on the forums however, if you log into the game... or discord you'd see what I do. LOTS of new players.
Lately when I go to a scene or traverse the overworld I'm constantly seeing more people.. I think the rumours (or dark hopes for) the early demise of SotA are premature in the extreme!

 

Got to agree, I'm seeing more people too. Dropped by Soltown earlier and there were at least 3 players hammering the archery targets - while a 4th was playing this one man band instrument on the side. And there were new avatars passing up and down the main Street while all this was going on.

 

I tell all incoming guildies... No flag PVP until at least ADV80, and even then roll 2 or 3 deep. I teach them tactics to beat a high level player... but can't rush in.. .

 

i really hope you're right! in no way do i hope or wish for a demise, i've poured thousands into the game and want it to be alive for years. some design decisions just make me fear the worst.

 

"It'll All be OK in the end.. if it's not OK, it's not the end!"

Full disclosure: A professor I knew had that saying on their door...I can't take credit for it.

 

I started playing WoW about 4 years after it was launched. There were MILLIONSs of players at maxed out levels already. That never stopped me for one second raising up a character and becoming extremely competitive in all regards. What the hell are you talking about with this game being unplayable because there were people who played before you? That is sublimely ridiculous. That condition always exists in EVERY game within about 6 months of release. This game is no different.

 

To be fair, wow has a hard cap which allows catching up on a reasonable time But yes, still a valid point. If it wiped at launch someone joining sota in six months time would be in the same position as joining today, so a wipe wouldn't have solved anything.