Has AE made bad players?

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I see the outsize backlash against MA as a good thing, since it means it is drawing in far more players than any of the previous holders of the prestigious title Cancer that is Killing the Game.


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Now I want that as a badge title. I'd wear it.

Shadow_Wail:
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Just have Posi and the rest of the Dev Team remove XP from it...thats enough...no compromises; no extra reward... just what you get, tickets and fun.

When this was released I was soooo excited, I can make my own missions, my own SF, my own trials... but now its just gone to waste. If I do make it and publish it I wont be able to find it since everything is a farm or a horrible story that the devs made it top choice?

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Great idea! Couple things though. How 'bout you go tell Marketing that they have to pull all remaining boxes of the ARCHITECT EDITION from stores since everything on the box is a blatant lie now. Or, tell PR that they'll have one hell of a fire to put out when word gets out that CoX pulled a bait & switch and "didn't tell anybody" (unless they go to all of the fansites they went to promoting the feature and do new interviews basically burying it).

Um, no. You act like farming didn't exist prior to AE. Hello? Been here since shortly after launch. I remember Rikti monkeys and the FIRST Comm Officer farms as well as CoT portals (and BP Death Shaman). I remember math being done to figure out the levels needed for door sitting PL teams. I remember the sewer trial. Hydra? Yup. Eden trial? Yup. Dreck with no timer? Uh huh.

The only difference is that now, given the tools to do so, players have made farms that are efficient and easily repeatable. Removing rewards will just make the entire AE system (which I'm sure took a great deal of resources to create) as popular as fires in Steel Canyon.

As far as your arc is concerned, it's probably not half as good as you think it is (most people's aren't, including my own). Even if they removed every farm from the AE, people still wouldn't play your arc because it would still be buried. You know how people get plays on their arcs? Ask Don King. Heck, ask William Shatner. People promote their arcs and not just here (where you're as likely to have it lost in the shuffle as ingame). There's one person whose primary arc has over 500 plays and he has never posted it here (he despises these boards) but he has posted it for review on an MMO fansite and gotten lots of feedback on it. It's been fun watching how it has evolved since its first iteration.

Oh but continue to whine about how farms are preventing your nebulous arc that exists only in the recesses of your mind from being played.

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Let me preface my statements by saying... I could care less who farms.

1. I've always noticed incompetent farmed players; Ya see there used to be this thing called farming way back when called Peregrine Island where new toons got farmed. Sure it took a lil work: Go to Steel Canyon... Get teleported to Green Line... Go to Talos... Get teleported to the ferry... go to PI... Get teleported to Portal Corp.

2. I have noticed more bad players lately... On the boards. They like to spew forth their opinions, whine, and whine some more. If you don't like AE... don't do it! If you don't like teaming with AE babies... don't!

3. AE has caused a lot of whining because "no one plays my arc!!!" I've played prolly 200-250 arcs... Even a few Dev choice ones and yeah... the writing is sub par. I think I have found 5-6 arcs which I thought "that's cool...that's funny...that's fun."

4. Removing XP from AE will cause a HUGE backlash. You can't promote something as one thing (a tool to go from 1-50) and then change your mind months later. I'm no DOOM screamer, but this game needs all the subs it can get! If people were GENUINELY more helpful to newer players... ya just might make new friends and oh I dunno help them come to love the game for EVERYTHING it has to offer.

5. I LOATHE AE in Atlas. I think the "earliest" zone to have AE should be Steels, and I think it should be tricky to get there... that way people have to learn to navigate around baddies for at least a 1/2 mile sprint.

6. As for any increase in bad players... NOTES are your friend! I note bad players and by that I mean incompetent ones, lazy ones, and ones who feel their way is the only way to play (Yeah I'm looking at you vet snobs).

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I like Fixxer, s/he tells it like it is. People seem to have selective amnesia when they attribute all the game's ills to one feature (as influential as it might be).

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*** Was on a team with my D3 and the 33 month vet tank got mad (he wasn't the leader) because he insisted on taunting them... running around a corner blah blah... well screw that... So I charged a group... threw down some dark love.... and he got mad because while I was off "being risky" he had to (GASP) use a green! He then proceeded to say "Yer our only healer you can't be off fighting while I have aggro!" I then pointed out that if he couldn't handle the aggro of 5-6 baddies and I could take 9-10... He should roll a dark defender if he could figure out how to play one! He of course then called me a n00b.... to which I pointed out my 1-5 year badges that went pretty with the other 200+ badges He got mad... quit the team... So I tanked on my defender. Point? Stupid, incompetent, ignorant, and lazy players are a part of this game... regardless of AE. I mean hello... healer?? LOL you wish!

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First, five years in and many people still don't know how powerful D3s are (maybe because it's not empathy?). Second, that tank was a moron but there are still many people who adhere to that mindset.

>QR<

Saw a 43 Mastermind today spamming in broadcast, "43 MM lf EA team"

He said it multiple times. It wasn't a mistake.

/e headshake

My favorite so far to date... though I have seen many that I found funny... but this is the current state of the game!

**lvl 26 troller wants her imps and is looking for some friendly farmer to let her doorsit for 60 bars**

Now, I don't know if that was real or not, or a griefer... but if that is the 'troller I am counting on to assist my teams... (facepalm)

You know what, I'm not going to argue the reward system of AE...Nothing will happen!

I do have to say that his afternoon I played on a team of 6... there were only two people on the team...me and the other guys 5 level 50's....none of them had the three month vet reward...

They were all the same build, costume, and the same mistakes through and through...after our team of 2. We face-planted the moron blamed me for the failure?!

he kept talking in broadcast, when I asked him if he knows how to speak on team he answered "What's team"

I asked him if he wanted an Oro portal... he asked me what's that..

I said lets go to RWZ... he asked me what that stands for...

Oh, I asked if he wanted to join my SG... he didn't know what an SG was! he thought he was already on my SG!

I asked him why he didn't take hasten and stamina when his recharge sucked and his end down to 0... he said he didn't see those powers in his regular power selection screen...


Please do not argue with people when they see horrible...not bad, horrible players coming from the AE boom...and for what...to one up the competition, the Devs have kinda lost their integrity to compete with a game that they recently claimed they have Beta 'd and are laughing...


Let's be real and move back to playing the game and learning how to play properly!

Feel free to be as nasty as you want with my post but I am tired of this crud!

If that guy is willing to pay $75 bucks each month to play the AE then more power to him. It's better he spend his money here than someplace else. If we're really lucky he paid a year in advance for all his accounts.

You chose to play on that guys team. You have no one to blame but yourself for getting angry and frustrated.

I've said it before; the game is splitting into two factions. AE babies are not ruining the game, per se, just dumbing it down. Lack of experience is a factor when it comes to TFs and higher level missions. High level AE toons have the bullets, they just have no idea how to point the gun.

Players searching for teammates are already including level of experience in their broadcasts. I know. I check badges religiously now.

It's not that I won't team with high level newbies. I'm usually patient enough to guide new players of any level. I just can't help perceiving these players as lazy pillagers, taking what they want from the game without putting in the time I did to get where they already are (in a fraction of the time, mind you).

I'm not sure what the solution is. Probably something like "run your own team and you can do what you want." True enough, but it still concerns me that we have so many new AE50s and so few new legitimate 50s. And the fact that I am compelled to discern the two makes me feel like the tradition of gaming I've followed since my D&D days has been replaced with the wanton plundering of hours upon hours of dedicated, thoughtful programming.

Ahhhhhh....
I am so glad I found this topic.
AE is a massive double-edged sword....
and very dangerous.
It CAN be very dangerous in the fact that it IS rewarding people who are newer to the game with leveling toons far, far faster than ever in the game's history.
Which I have seen newer people asking (or more accurately [censored]) about how bad other newer people play.
Like someone else said also....
I check the Vet Badges on everyone I team with now.....
believe me it helps a LOT.
Plus...
with AE it is not just the farming for noobs that makes the playing skill erode and not blossom....
but it makes the "instant gratification" factor just grow more and more sadly.
Many MANY new peeps have no clue how to enhance their toons' powers... I share as much info as I can (as long as they show SOME level of respect when asking).
Or when they have NO CLUE on how to get to ANY zone in the game that is NOT Atlas Park.
Hell....
I love sooooo many other zones in the game a lot more than AP.
I miss going to Croatoa, Striga, Peregrine, Faultline and a few others.
So for me overall...
when it comes to AE...
the jury is still out.
Good things happen.
Bad things happen.
But I will just keep on keeping on with the love I have for this game.

On Infinity:
Wake of Magellen (lev 50 Nrg/Nrg Blaster)
Healer of Magellen (lev 50 Emp w/Dark Blast Defender)
Hammer of Magellen (lev 50 Willpower/Mace Tanker)
Red Star of Magellen (lev 50 Fire/Fire Tanker)
Captain of Magellen (lev 46 Willpower/Super Strength Tanker)
Fire of Magellen (lev 41 Fire/Fire Blaster)
Element of Magellen (lev 39 Earth/Emp Controller)
Sword of Magellen (lev 38 Katana/Dark Armor Scrapper)
Claw of Magellen (lev 35 Claw/Regen Scrapper)
Huntsman of Magellen (lev 33 Full Archery Defender)

Plus many other Magellens lev 22+ that I cannot remember off the top of my head, LOL

Reading this thread, I feel good and bad in sooo many ways, I've been playing since 2004 on and off always keeping my account active save for a few months, with a break in between to play WoW so my Vet badges don't fully reflect my time, but I am making a come back. and as I have noticed...A.E. is both a gift and a curse...creatively as a real life Comic Book writer its great to be able to write and play that back story you wrote, but this fast paced leveling thing is good to get those levels, but these AE babies wont EVER experience the pain of leveling like it was back in the day... I may not have yet grasped how to slot and "build" my characters as I mainly build mine for concept play (But I plan on it)...but to those gamers out there who like numbers and such these AE "children" are hurting the community by demanding people "carry" them through everything and then complaining that when it comes to "real" play players won't accept them...cause they know nothing. and I'll admit I've used the AE system myself, but only to get my toons out of the level ranges where it is very difficult to even team, but I let my badges and my knowledge and game play be my proof I'm no n00b and seeing people not really experience this game the way it was designed kinda hurts the heart of the "Beaten Dog"...seeing people ask what does their "class" do when they are higher lvls makes me want to find them and slap them... I have put in my time on many many toons over the years... these new guys need to experience some of that to...before asking to be PL'ed

Champion Server

Senior Airmen lvl 50 (FF/Energy Def) retired
Michigan Statesman lvl43 (SS/WP Tanker)
Plus others LOL

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You know what, I'm not going to argue the reward system of AE...Nothing will happen!

I do have to say that his afternoon I played on a team of 6... there were only two people on the team...me and the other guys 5 level 50's....none of them had the three month vet reward...

They were all the same build, costume, and the same mistakes through and through...after our team of 2. We face-planted the moron blamed me for the failure?!

he kept talking in broadcast, when I asked him if he knows how to speak on team he answered "What's team"

I asked him if he wanted an Oro portal... he asked me what's that..

I said lets go to RWZ... he asked me what that stands for...

Oh, I asked if he wanted to join my SG... he didn't know what an SG was! he thought he was already on my SG!

I asked him why he didn't take hasten and stamina when his recharge sucked and his end down to 0... he said he didn't see those powers in his regular power selection screen...


Please do not argue with people when they see horrible...not bad, horrible players coming from the AE boom...and for what...to one up the competition, the Devs have kinda lost their integrity to compete with a game that they recently claimed they have Beta 'd and are laughing...


Let's be real and move back to playing the game and learning how to play properly!

Feel free to be as nasty as you want with my post but I am tired of this crud!

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/co-sign!

and an A-MEN!!!

The AE system is the awesomeness.

It gives people what they want, a quick and fast paced game that they can quickly get into and enjoy.

In my time I have learned how to play and sooner or later they will to or they will drop the game, either way it only helps me. Whether by the having more skilled players to play with or by the cash that the unskilled ones drop into a game I love, I come out ahead.

So my view is come on in all you AE babies and pay for the next expansion, and the next bonus pack, I hope you stay around to enjoy it, if you want to learn how to play invite me and I while I am not the best I will help you where I can, if you don't please don't be upset when I decline or drop from your team.

Ultimately what I do and who I play with in this game is my own choice, I spend my time wisely and I enjoy it.

This is why I support the idea that players have to reach a certain level with a character before they can EVER enter the AE.

It really isn't designed for new players, be honest. It's for vet players who want new content.

You can't get EAT's on either without hitting 50, it sucks, but it's there.

The AE should require you to have to reach lvl 35, at least, on a character before you can take any characters into it. If you don't know the game by lvl 35, you probably never will.

This is for everyone's benefit, really. Helps vets get players who better understand what is going on, and makes sure new players get the important basics down.

The AE is "after-content", and it should be enforced that way.

Just my opinion. Shoot if you must.

Errr...you do know that the AE system was marketed (even on the box) as an alternative path to level from 1-50, right? It was designed for all levels of characters.

I like the idea of having to get to 10-20 or so before going in AE, but it should be unlocked like the epic archetypes. You only need one character to hit the level to unlock it, then it's unlocked on your account forever.

This way anyone who wants an "alternative" path can take it whenever they want but actual new players can learn about contacts, the tram, and how to train before they get sucked into AE farms looking for pads.

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Errr...you do know that the AE system was marketed (even on the box) as an alternative path to level from 1-50, right? It was designed for all levels of characters.

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The problem isn't so much that it's an alternate path to 50, but that it has become pretty much instant access to a 50 without learning how to play. I've been playing for almost a year, levelling up my toons the "slow" way, and I have TopDoc around as an advisor, and I still have a lot to learn. I can't imagine trying to play "end game" content without having played my way up.

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Errr...you do know that the AE system was marketed (even on the box) as an alternative path to level from 1-50, right? It was designed for all levels of characters.

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The problem isn't so much that it's an alternate path to 50, but that it has become pretty much instant access to a 50 without learning how to play. I've been playing for almost a year, levelling up my toons the "slow" way, and I have TopDoc around as an advisor, and I still have a lot to learn. I can't imagine trying to play "end game" content without having played my way up.

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Just to be clear, I wasn't saying that the AE is a perfect system the way that it is right now, only that it was marketed on the boxes as an alternative levling path from 1-50. If you level-restricted it, Paragon Studios and NCSoft could face lawsuits for false advertising. That's all I was trying to say.

I'm no more a fan of AE babies than the next guy.

When I first started playing (a whole 10 months ago) you had about a 50% chance of getting on a decent team, so there has been bad players before AE. Now it does seem to be worse because everyone is looking for easy XP. Once they do venture out into the rest of the city they have no idea how to use their toons or have a concept of how a team fights. I was on a team last night, there were 4 trollers, a scrapper and a PB. We were a little concerned we were going to have problems because we didn't have a tank or any real firepower. Because of that, we had to think and play to our strengths, and we tore through our missions. No one even came close to dying. Unfortunately the matrix of the team changed and we ended up having a tank, 4 scrappers, and 2 trollers. We died several times because the scrappers wouldn't allow the tank or trollers to do their jobs. We kept telling them to let the tank get aggro, let the trollers hold'em, and then the scraps could rip into them but they wouldn't listen. We lasted 2 missions before everyone logged.

One night I put together a team to run through a mish I just created. One of the people I invited made a smart comment about I must not know what a boss farm is since that's what he was looking for. I told him I make my missions harder than most and if we could make it through my Lt. farm, I'd be glad to pull out one of my boss farms. We got waxed by the first mob and guess who was the first one to cry, first to die, and first to quit? Three of us stayed and completed the mission, the rest quit. Ironic that three were able to do what eight were not. It just goes to show a team is only as good as its weakest link, and a weak player can and will get you killed.

Having said all that, I actually LOVE the concept of AE. The thought of having hundreds of fresh, new, creative missions is awesome, I just hate the way it's being exploited. So my plan is to make a SG and hopefully use AE to teach these kids how a real team works and how to use their toons properly. Not to say I know everything about the game, but with the help of other vet players, maybe we can turn this thing around and create some good players.