Please allow us the option to have an XP bar on main screen

I too would like the ability to display the xp on the main UI. The pooled total is fine, don't need the bars.

 

LoL.
Nice.
It's Bad! It's good! It's Bad! It's good! And so on for 3 pages now.
I see what you did there.

I didn't realize it was gone. Good indicator that it didn't disturb me when it was there.

 

The game is primarily skill based now. This change was made months ago. How do you see an XP bar helping today?

 

A bar does not help in the least.. unless there is no numerical representation Looks great to me, tho I'd rather it was placed on the character sheet as well as the skills window.

That bar is simply weird with the values each bar represented.. with no upper limit (that I've hit) it is hard to tell how much I've actually gained and spent at a glance.

 

@Berek
It is not the XP bar itself, but the number of XP's currently in our XP Pool that we would like to get out of the bottom of the Skills window and stick on the screen somewhere so we can track it without opening/closing the very large skill window like it is now.
I would think that this would be relatively trivial for you guys to do, and it would be very helpful for those of us who enjoy tracking our xp progress as we go.
Make it toggleable if you want, and everybody is happy. Right ?

 

@Berek
I agree with @FrostII in that it is the number showing how much Pooled Adventuring and Pool Producing experience I have to work with that I want to be able to see. It greatly helps me decide if I can turn a skill up or must turn several down at any time. Removing the visibility of the statistics in no way enhanced my playing experience. You could just as easily have the numbers printed at the bottom, or up under the top-right HUD buttons.

 

Amen brother, Amen....
From your lips to (the SotA God's) ear.....

 

Like others, I don't care about the bar at all, but having the information available while fighting can be useful. A few uses off the top of my head:

-Seeing how much xp a mob gives.
-Seeing how much xp a skill consumes per gain.
-Seeing what actions trigger innate skills.
-Noticing that a skill is turned on that maybe we thought wasn't, or visa versa.

 

Sorry but having no bar and making us check the skills(K) isn't at all convenient. Granted the bar wasn't at the greatest location since it often couldn't be seen on my screen unless I did some adjusting, but, at least I could more easily see what my pools were. Don't have to have a bar if something better were provided. But it sure isn't the Skills(K).

 

So, you want us to be able to "fine tune" our Avatars regarding skills and skill gains eh ?

I couldn't possibly agree with you more...

For now, I'd settle for getting the pool number back on the screen - permanently.

But I love the other stuff you'd like to see.

In fact, I think that most ALL of us who like to watch our toons PROGRESS - would agree completely...

 

I didn't mean that I wanted all of those things displayed in the UI as stats. I just mean that by watching your pooled xp during a fight you can do those things, whereas you can't just by looking at your skills page once in a while.

But yes, I enjoy the strategic elements of character building with this skills system, and having information available makes the game more interesting to me.

 

Since people have different taste on how their HUD should look like. I think it is best to make it adjustable. In my dream world, I would like the HUD to be fully adjustable by player using LUA or some XML scripts. So everyone can set the UI to look like however tingles their dingles.

For now, a check box to toggle the display would do, I guess.

 

It is nice having the XP bar in the HUD for one, two we would not need to click three times to see our pooled XP. We have has it so long why get hide it now?

 

The bar was just removed recently not months ago maybe they changed it in house but I just got the change this release last week, I've always kept an eye on it only because I would shift to harder area's when gathering wood and ore when my adventuring pool had gotten low.

If I'm running around gathering resources and I notice my pool getting low it reminds me to gather in a harder area for a bit then I can go back to the lower level area's and be able to gather quicker.

I'm sort of disappointed in a lot of aspects of the game and each release just seems to see things disappear instead of seeing more things come out or more customization or personal play styles.

I understand the point of view that the xp pool bar at bottom isn't necessary to see for most people... but lets say I don't keep checking my skills screen to be sure I haven't drained it dry... then my skills begin to drop (I assume regardless if I have NONE of them set to drop or stay stagnant, in which case the game will choose what drops for me) I'd like to have that constant reminder... and choice of seeing it on my main screen or not.

I've asked repeatedly for additional hotkey bars but that seems like beating a dead horse because it will just be another thing to block our view of the world... frankly I don't think the xp pool bar blocked much at all.

 

~Our Steps Into Customization~


While I totally agree with customization, I can't help but to see that same answer becoming the battle cry for just about every issue that ever comes up in our game. The plus side is that more get what they want, while the down side is another page added to our ever growing instructions of how to opt in or out of whatever displeases us with our interface.

"Plug in Play" or quick start is how many gamers encounter any game, while fewer read the instruction manual first...
In the beginning of our game, opting in may be a far better way for our players to first encounter our game's interface. That is to say, I believe our first encounter within our game should better begin with a far less advanced version of our game's capabilities within it's targeting and other more advanced features. In this way, when any player has a complaint about the interface or features they believe is needed, then the answer becomes more easily addressed through the "opting in" features to customized more advanced things our game offers. If and when the player needs more, then that's the point where they then can begin their research in reading more of the instructions.

Our first opening scene should not encourage our players to crack open a book, breaking their first immersion by encouraging the player to take their eyes away from the screen.

I don't think our game is doing this very well right now. "Simple" to "advanced" I believe should be how our game is encountered, instead of advanced to simple, or opting out.
Our customizations are great, yet they should be an answer instead of a question or problem looking for a solution.

So, "is our exp bar something that needs to be opted out of, or best opted into?" Would it best suite the beginner or the seasoned SOTA veteran?
It's my feelings that when new features are placed into our game that effect our interface, that these would be better presented in an announcement of them being there, yet only offered to effect the player if they push whatever crazy button that then employs that option.

Hospitaller; "Hey, have you tried the new targeting crosshairs yet?
Player; "No I haven't, what is it and how do I activate it?"
Hospitaller; "Just hit that crazy button and try it out, you might like it"
Player; "Thanks, I'll try that. WT# happened? OMG I hate that thing!"
Hospitaller; "Just hit that crazy button again and it will remove it, but keep it in mind because it may come in handy later"

What'chall Tink Abow Dat ?'
~Time Lord~

 

The only part of the bar that had any significance, was the mouse over display of your current xp pool - which is what Portalarium understood.
Which is also why they just kept the xp pool numeric value - and chose to display it in the lower right of the skill tree window.
What we're asking for is for here, is for them to put our xp pool value on the game screen (under the HUD would be fine) so we can see what we're doing.

 

I understand what you're saying there, @Time Lord - and I would agree in most cases.

However, in the case of our ability to understand and control our skills progress - which the vast majority of Avatars WILL wish to do - we are asking for the xp pool value (which they already have) to be moved from within the skill window to our main screen, since we watch it a LOT.

Everything can't be on the game screen, but watching skill progress is something so common to everybody - that the current xp pool value should warrant a small spot (that's all it takes) on our game screen.

I think most of us like to see when we're moving along nicely and when we're wasting our time.....

 

I agree with that, mostly because it's something a new player feels encouraged by and draws their attention to the exp pool being important in our game !'
Without it, or with a reduced visibility in it being hidden somewhere sort of takes some of the lively feel from the game by presenting it in a "data only numerical read"... sure it does fulfill the want, yet like you, "I know it's something I'm always watching even when it's empty".

Less script and more graphic yes to that! The basics should be on my screen because I'm just a basic player. I'd like our game's look and feel to have far less "info data" and more graphic information displayed.... like all those swings, misses and hit point damage script that fills the chat box... I'd rather see my character stumble through a swing than read about it and I'd rather have my exp pool on the screen rather than open a page and read about it there
I want to read less and watch more !'
~Time Lord~

 

That's a very large plus compared to the down side. Most things don't really require reading a manual to figure out. I don't need a manual to figure out how to toggle a UI element, just like you wouldn't need a manual to figure out how to disable that blur effect that you don't like if the option existed. People need the manual for things like figuring out the deck system and the targeting system because they are not all that intuitive, they are essential in order to even start playing, and the UI itself doesn't provide much help.

When it comes to deciding what things I would like to be displayed on my screen, I would much rather make that decision myself than have it be made by someone that thinks left control + WASD is a good default for movement keys or that stats listed on my skills and gear shouldn't exist anywhere in the UI other than inside of a huge blob of text in the chat window.

 

So when a new player starts playing, how are they to know they are not gaining any skill points when they have no pooled XP? Will they know to go look at the skills menu? More then likely not, they will cry wolf in-game and on the forums, over, and over, and over.

Is having the option to toggle the display of the XP bar that much to ask for those of us that like having it to know when to kill or gather or for new players?