Using coins to repair max durability?

I understand this is a game and some things need to be "gamey", like hit points and stats. I also get that it's a fantasy game with magic and monsters. But, with all the effort the team is going through to make a robust crafting system, requiring a coin to repair an item just makes no sense.

Does this world somehow exist in a state of magical entropy that only these fantastic coins can overcome? Do I need a Crown of the Obsidian to repair my house or my boat?

I can somewhat understand the need for things to permanently break, especially if used in combat, but why use a contrived mechanic to balance it?

Create a system that just uses normal materials to repair, and if someone wants to make a permanent item and restore max durability, make the crafting profession that does it responsible. Not some ancient piece of currency.

Make repairing an items max durability scale in difficulty based on how damaged the item is at the time of repair. Magic items will have improved chances, but build in a random chance that any attempt at reforging or repairing max durability will fail anyway.

The longer a piece of gear survives the max durability repairs, the harder it is to destroy. Legendary items will have survived countless craftsman repairs until, one day, the item becomes a nearly indestructible artifact. Most items won't ever make it, but those that do will be priceless.

1. Make "repairing" and "repairing max durability" require different skill levels.
2. Only require normal materials for both. (More required to repair max)
3. Scale the repair attempt difficulty based on current durability and crafter skill. (Lower durability, higher chance to be destroyed, but greater reward on max durability increase, if successful).
4. Always include the chance that an item will break anyway (mitigated by #3).
5. The more times an item's max is successfully repaired, the higher it's max durability becomes. (This will show how rare an item is).
6. Long lived gear becomes more expensive, and the chance for innate powers from use (killing a billion skeletons, or taking a jillion points of durability damage, or getting hit with 5 trillion fireballs) increases as the item gets older.

This solves the need for crafters, as most gear won't make it this far. But begins to build the framework for the innate power design. It can be fleshed out as we play post-final wipe because the team will have time to tweak it before any gear gets good enough.

 

I'd go with the concept behind the rare material to repair max durability is solely to frustrate players as much as possible. Hopefully, they will instead consider your idea or ditch the breaking concept altogether or come up with something that actually makes sense...

 

Either
The Crowns will be so rare that only a very small percentage of the population will ever see them. (rendering their design goal unmet, too rare)
OR
They'll be common enough that you can get one in 10 hours of grinding. (rendering their design goal unmet, too common)
OR
They'll become cash shop items.

Personally, I'm betting on #3, but I hope I'm wrong. These crowns are like time travel in TV shows. Too powerful & too easy to badly.
Whenever an MMO introduces a secondary currency like this, it should be the cue for "Jumped the Shark" references.
There's so many better ways to do this. I mean, in 30 seconds my brother and I came up with this:

Give every item 100 durability.
Crafting Skill / Max Durability Loss per Repair
1 / 10
10 / 10
20 / 9
30 / 9
40 / 8
50 / 8
60 / 7
70 / 7
80 / 6
90 / 6
100 / 5

And..
like gems, allow crowns to be forged from obsidian chips. 400:1.

At least that would make crafter skill meaningful, and let us plebes get our crowns with enough grinding.

 

Funny thing about obsidian coins - they're supposed to be exceedingly rare. So, what happens when they run out?

Yes, of course I'm fully aware that they will never run out, since this is a game. But doesn't it feel at least a little bit weird? Rare things, that were originally produced in limited quantities, have (should have) the tendency to get even rarer when consumed, like endangered species have the tendency to go extinct if subjected to hunting or loss of habitat.

The solution is quite simple: It's fine to repair stuff with magic coins, as long as it's presented as an alternative to good old high skill based repairs, using non-magic materials, instead of being the sole option.

 

This is one of those rare times where even I wish I could like the OP more than once. I had planned on making a similar post within the next couple of days and am glad someone beat me to it.

While I am very pleased that the devs have FINALLY after 2 1/2+ or so years acknowledged the need for items to break.. they have chosen one of the most unrealistic solutions possible to achieve their goal of allowing players to keep their best toys and retain item history when several other more believable solutions have been suggested over the years. While I can live with it if I must.. the habit the devs have of resorting to contrived solutions first is a bit irritating.

I get that it's simple and doesn't require a lot of work.. and adds value to the obsidian crowns.. but it's still a bit disappointing to me as a player.

 

While we're on the subject, why can't players create the potions that the Obsidian Alchemists are selling?

 

After this they're not going to be so rare. If this is what it takes to allow every player the opportunity to maintain a set of gear.. then every player is going to need some level of access to them. That's not rare in my book.

 

Believe me, this issue was beat up on for days in the dev+ forums. I think the coin is a bit odd but in the overall system change, Im happy with it. I would prefer there be items that are "indestructible" (like pledge items) and everything else slowly gets destroyed.

 

Yes, if it remains the only option. If there were a viable alternative (for instance those repairs based on high skill), then the coins could be a rare luxury item. Which would sound fun actually.

 

It's interesting that this is the third contentious implementation of an unpopular design decision that, if actually utilized as expected, nullifies or removes the purpose for which it was implemented.

What do I mean?

• Random Combat UI. Intended to make combat unpredictable. If you get good enough, or use it "right" it becomes as intuitive as locked slots. Meaning.. it's no longer a random combat ui at all, you could have just put in locked slots with faster GCD.
• Targeting Change. Intended to increase challenge in combat. If you get good enough, it's just like or just as good as tab targeting. Ok, so... why not just use tab targeting, again? NPC's get to continue to use tab targeting, in any case.
• Crown for max durability refresh. Intended to reduce item longevity. If you use it, it allows you to avoid the mechanic it's being put in with, that is, item breakage/destruction/removal.

Just thought it was an interesting pattern, is all.

 

I'm glad we have a compromise system where items can be continually repaired, but it is expensive to do so.

I'm not happy that enchanting high end gear ruins durability, meaning that the most expensive gear will be the most disposable.

 

Why can't we just make it so that only a GM craftsman/woman can repair max durability and be done with it? Give us a reason to GM.

But that being said...I dont think max durability should be repaired at all.

 

Everyone? I think the eventual intent is that you won't be able to GM everything. So then it prompts a player economy for services.

 

I still think that repairs of max durability should be done on crafting station using materials used to craft items. To repair 10% of max durability you should use at least 10% of each material used to craft the item. If you use all mats, you should repair item back to 100/100. Perhaps you could repair max durability to oyur level in repair, so at level 50 you can get only to 50/50, at GM, you can get all the way to 100. Make it so that crafters are sought for repairs. Mats are used instead of the gold. I could understand Obsidian Coin as an alternative. I do not like it as the only way to repair high level gear that is not worth making again. This system will sort avatars into two tiers. Those who can grind coins with high level items and do not need crafters and thsoe, who use disposable clothes or run around naked and do not need crafters.

 

And this change won't solve what you want anyway. There will be a point, as with all mmos, where these coins will be common.

As my edited post says, you shouldn't be able to repair max durability at all. Things should break. Period. But if there is going to be a chance to return something to use, make it so that being a GM is useful. Make being a GM hard to attain and hard to retain.

 

And there you see. We agree.

 

I agree, buit items should be repairable. Otherwise people will run around naked killing dragons with bare hands, becasue they can do it and because they will save gold for reagents rather than gear. Seriously, back when I could not afford repair kits I was fighting naked or in broken gear.

 

I like these ideas. With enchants reducing max durability, long lived gear could be enchanted more times and be stronger. Or the items would simply last longer in harsh conditions without additiona repairs.

 

I see the issue that you need crowns to repair stuff. Which means camping bosses while they respawn in Friends only, because in multiplayer you risk someone else will finish them and steal the coin.

 

The coins repair max durability (using the new, R30 system) , so they won't eventually break at all, if you keep pumping coins into them like an arcade.