Badge System 2.0: My Hopes, And Also Dreams

From Synapse:
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So, going forward—beginning with the Mission Architect badges—we’ve decided to move away from “count” badges that might encourage farming and/or aberrant game play. Instead, we’d like to encourage players to try all of our content by offering badges for completing 1 time accomplishments and achievements.

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This is my hope for the new badge philosophy:

1. We get honest-to-gawd souvenir artwork, and it can be seen in the character info screen. Souvenirs, even more than badges, represent the "journey" that the character takes. And make them trackable.

2. Have more rewards for collecting groups of badges and/or souvenirs. Nothing game breaking, I'm thinking things like costume pieces. Example: collect A Note From Akarist, the Envoy's True Name and Frontline and earn an accolade that allows you to craft (with Spirit Thorns and Thorn Tree Vines, of course) a Circle Of Thornesque mage robe. Villain-side the same thing could be earned with comparable souvenirs and badges.

3. They re-instate some of the Mission Architect badges, but make them time-spent in missions rather than "complete X thing Y number of times". Make the timer only work while in "combat mode", a condition the game can apparently track given the Clubber and Caregiver/Pain Specialist temp powers, to help elimate AFK farming.

4. More badge and souvenir unlocked content. Certain combinations unlock story arcs that, upon completion, give bonuses against certain factions.

In other words, use the badge system as a roadmap for playing the game, getting rewards, and filling out your character, rather than grinding mobs.

I hope the devs revisit some of the goofy requirements for villain accolades.

10 ... million ... damage?

100 ... Paragon Protectors?

Time spent in PvP zones?

Gladiator matches?

How many villains, legitimately, get 10 million damage playing 1 to 50? My fire / kin corruptor and fire / fire dom had no more than 6.

There aren't a lot of Crey arcs villain-side, and there certainly isn't an arc stuffed with 'em. I had to spend hours grinding in the Fab to get this badge.

PvP is not popular. How many people get the time spent badges by actually PvPing? How many grab an Ouro mish and door sit for 5 hours to get these badges?

The damage requirement is goofy. For my two toons with this badge, I rested in front of an AR Council mob for /hours/ to get this one. I got the badge about a year ago on my dom. I play her a lot, but she's only at 10.1 million damage. My 50 spines / WP scrapper has ... 2.2. At least he doesn't need the badge for an accolade. But still ... WTH?

When was the last time a villain started a gladiator match for anything other than the badge? 2005, some time just after Hallowe'en?

Posi has publicly stated that he doesn't like repetitive, aberrant behaviour. But ... WTH. Accolade requirements are larded with badges that require farming to achieve.

Edit: brain fart -- just remembered that the 100PP badge is for opening up Viridian. But it's still a goofy way to open up one of the most interesting high-level arcs villains have.

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Posi has publicly stated that he doesn't like repetitive, aberrant behaviour. But ... WTH. Accolade requirements are larded with badges that require farming to achieve.

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Well, that was apparently the old philosophy. Nobody wants that, including (now, apparently), the devs.

Synapse indicates that they aren't going to revisit the pre-I14 badges, but I hope that the new stuff going forward is more fun and dynamic.

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Posi has publicly stated that he doesn't like repetitive, aberrant behaviour. But ... WTH. Accolade requirements are larded with badges that require farming to achieve.

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Well, that was apparently the old philosophy. Nobody wants that, including (now, apparently), the devs.

Synapse indicates that they aren't going to revisit the pre-I14 badges, but I hope that the new stuff going forward is more fun and dynamic.

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/Vent on
I wish the devs (especially Posi, since he freakin' designed the badge system) would be more consistent with regards to rewarding / punishing aberrant behaviour. The +HP and +End accolades are among the best rewards in the game, but can only be realistically obtained through farming villainside. This has been an issue since I7 went live, nearly a year after the devs officially started cracking down on farming.
/Vent off

Honestly, the devs should revisit the truly grindy badges that lead to accolades. I don't have any problems with the likes of Empath or the crafting badge (leave those to show who really are the determined farmers / badge hounds), but if the devs are taking a stand against farming, they should show some small amount of consistency.

Edit: the damage badges should also work off TOTAL HPs, not BASE.

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Edit: the damage badges should also work off TOTAL HPs, not BASE.

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I'm not normally one to write a post simply to simply to say "This," but...

This.

(Actually, it should count every red number that goes over your head, regardless of how many total HP your character has.)

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Originally Posted by Nethergoat it's NEVER too late to pad your /ignore list!

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100 ... Paragon Protectors?

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200.

And while we're at it: 500 Summoned Illusionists?

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And while we're at it: 500 Summoned Illusionists?

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I think that was one of Statesman's final acts: conforming badge counts to his Prima Guide update.

I suspect that the reason it is a 500 count is that they are classed as underlings, so they figured that the count should be the same as the DE Eminators.

Triumph: White Succubus: 50 Ill/Emp/PF Snow Globe: 50 Ice/FF/Ice Strobe: 50 PB Shi Otomi: 50 Ninja/Ninjistu/GW Stalker My other characters

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I hope the devs revisit some of the goofy requirements for villain accolades.


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/nod

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100 ... Paragon Protectors?

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200.

And while we're at it: 500 Summoned Illusionists?

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Jebus. I really ground out that many PPs?

That's depressing.

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100 ... Paragon Protectors?

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200.

And while we're at it: 500 Summoned Illusionists?

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Jebus. I really ground out that many PPs?

That's depressing.

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What's all the more frustrating is that Viridian requires both Infiltrator AND 200 of any Crey. If they'd fix the redundancy, everything would be peachy keen.