More Game Difficulty

As has been raised on several posts today...

Some are finding this game too easy. I am sure the player base understands why we can't just get more challenging content every month. To that end, could we have some extra levels of difficulty added to the game.

The options that have been discussed are

1) an 'Expert' level
2) A slider that lets the more experienced players choose the [relative] mob sizes/levels in any mission.

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How about a few extra options:

Like:
- Player debuffed
- Villains buffed
- No IO set bonus
- No inspirations to be used.
- No enhancements whatsoever
- No accolade and or temp powers.

Basically the Ourobouros list with as extra the no IO set bonus. Not that I hate those, but they DO make the game easier.

Or what do you think about:
-Random enemies. (every mob spawn will be from a random group)

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Before anyone starts shooting this down for no good reason, additional difficulty options (such as the Ouroboros ones) don't have to provide additional rewards. Just make the game feem like less of a steamroll.

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It would be nice if you could get badges for it though.

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It would be nice if you could get badges for it though.

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Yeah, definitely badges and extra rewards, to the same extent that we get extra rewards for upping the levels we have at the moment.

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Badges - yes please
The only thing I could see them implementing (as well as the above suggestions) is increased debt per defeat, as rewards would only encourage farming. Where as more debt would see the players - me included here - who say that it means little or nothing any more, be able to face plant with confidence that debt means something again.

you want more difficulty? - you gotta pay

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increased debt per defeat, as rewards would only encourage farming.

[/ QUOTE ] Debt is just another badge.

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as rewards would only encourage farming

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You know what.. screw it. If people want to farm then let them. The devs haven't stopped farming with any of the measures they have brought in and nor will they because there will always be people who play like that. I don't know about the rest of the playerbase but I would rather my money went on new or more challenging content than to try and balance for a minority who see the game as a race to 50.

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The only thing I could see them implementing (as well as the above suggestions) is increased debt per defeat

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Of course that could be one of the options. With the levelling pact now in place, increased debt wouldn't matter so much as people who want to team all the time would always have parity.

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I am all for an extra level of difficulty but even doing that probably isn't enough. Having a good knowledge of what is going to spawn, where and when makes the game soo much easier considering the awful AI the enemies have.

The enemies really need an AI rewrite rather than just making them higher level (More mobs will make no difference to most of the AoE heavy teams I get in). I want to see mobs coming to the aid of their friends and not just standing around watching, running off to set of alarms, to bring friends etc. Random spawn points would be another good touch instead of everything scripted in a linear fashion.

Proper AV's! I am tired of an AV being something that just stand there pounding on the tank for 3 minutes while the rest of the team safely takes it out. Even giving an AV an AoE isn't a real danger to the team. And things like god-modes do not make things more challenging, they make things tedious. The AV's should have a wide array of powers that they use sensibly, as opposed to just whenever they are up, they should be made so that they can't just one shot every squishy (Which is annoying) but have the AI where they will at least try and put a hold on the healer before going back to pounding on the tank, or even outright go for the healer/debuffer by default and make tanks work hard to keep aggro (I 'tank' LR by standing in front of him with taunt on auto, that is not working hard). They should have attacks that cause less damage, but become more prone to doing the unexpected.

As for those saying we should pick the Ouro handicaps I have two things to say:
1 - I have ran a lot of them with the 'buffed enemy' options and it makes little to no difference, and
2 - I am not going to spend ages making a good build just to throw it away with a 'gimp myself' option, I might as well play without attacks if I want to make it harder, but that is artificial difficulty not real challenge.

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I'd take this and an "Double Debt" option too.

The only badges it should account for IMO is the debt badges and my reasoning is this: If you give a reward for making it difficult it will become the de facto "standard" for everyone. Therefore everyone then wants to play their missions like this and so inevitably the Devs will then need to raise the bar again.

I would also prefer this to be a "personal option" for the player rather than mission, so that it isn't team wide... in a PUG, not everyone would appreciate being debuffed - but if it affects my toon only then it's only my choice.

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Princess,

Whilst I agree that an AI re-write might be a good thing for the game, the suggestion was one intended to allow for increasing difficulty levels for those who want them.

What I am suggesting would be a stop gap if you will, something that can increase the difficult of the game in the short term whilst other, more challenging content and possibly things like AI rewrites were done on a more long term and on-going basis.

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I would also prefer this to be a "personal option" for the player rather than mission, so that it isn't team wide... in a PUG, not everyone would appreciate being debuffed - but if it affects my toon only then it's only my choice.

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Actually, I like that in terms of debuffing yourself. I suspect if there were an option to buff the enemy it wouldn't work as well though.

As for not getting badges. I think that if you only had one badge for each option then it wouldn't be as much of a problem. And who's to say that this wouldn't be come de facto so people could get the debt badges? Those would be much harder to get IMHO.

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The enemies really need an AI rewrite

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...funny you should mention that...

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I really should do something about this signature.

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The enemies really need an AI rewrite

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...funny you should mention that...

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do you know somthing we dont

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I don't know, but I suspect.

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I really should do something about this signature.

... Yes...

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I haven't heard anything about an AI rewrite and tbh very much doubt it is going to happen (I think I got carried away in my last post), but I would rather see enemy buffs than self-debuffs. I worked hard to get my characters to where they are and losing that defeats the whole point of that effort.

I agree the most realistic thing they can do 'easily' is to add an extra layer above invincible, but I think even that would still get steamrollered by the teams I get in mostly.

Rather than that though I would like to see more difficult TF's being introduced with slightly random elements and no easy get arounds. For example the Nictus at the end of the ITF could spawn in a random order and the healer could refuse to get out of range or LoS. Or instead of a random order there could be 10 different types of Nictus and three of them will spawn randomly so you never know what you are going to get.

I would also like to see AV's (And mobs in general) hitting more regularly (So they could go after a 'squishy' for a while and not just 1 or 2 shot them) instead of massive attacks with large gaps in between. The overall DPS should remain the same though.

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Rather than that though I would like to see more difficult TF's being introduced with slightly random elements and no easy get arounds.

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Would you mind if both of these things happened though? might that not be a better solution?

I do understand what you're saying about some teams 'steamrollering' over the changes. I think it might add more of a challenge to those who don't though.

I like the random elements idea as well. It could add some surprise to the game, at least in the short term.

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What about the option to set a timer for the mishes when you choose them? That could mess things up in defeat all.

"damn, where is that last artemis gal? we have 1 minute left!"

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I would rather see enemy buffs than self-debuffs. I worked hard to get my characters to where they are and losing that defeats the whole point of that effort.



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I was more after the enemies being buffed for the player rather than debuffing... in a similar way that Rikti and Zombies are auto-levelled

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No don't change ITF. It is a tough TF and a good example of how finding out about suing tactics to defeat a tough opponent. Most parties cannot take him out without knowing what to do.

I rather see that other AV's would require tactics as well. Not just more applied brute force.

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I would like to see travel powers suppressed in some areas of the game. It's great to fly around and super-jump etc, but when you're teleporting through content which you're intended to battle through, it seems as though the devs missed something important.

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It's great to fly around and super-jump etc, but when you're teleporting through content which you're intended to battle through, it seems as though the devs missed something important.

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Then don't.

Seriously, if you're teleporting through content you think you should be viewing, then don't teleport through it. Let the people who want to get on with doing so and feel good that you gave yourself more illusionary challenge.

My current main uses Sprint, Swift, and Hurdle as travel powers, btw.

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Posts are OOC unless noted to be IC, or in an IC thread.

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I would like to see travel powers suppressed in some areas of the game.

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I think that would be an incredibly bad idea.

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I would like to see travel powers suppressed in some areas of the game.

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I would rather just see mission objectives that cannot be ghosted. Maybe not kill alls as that would get tedious but "Kill the boss and 100 mobs" rather than just "Kill the boss". And more "Click 4 glowies together" rather than "Click glowie".

Actually I would go so far as to set a minimum time limit on missions and punish those who are too fast. Ghosting does nobody any favours.

TP supression would just hurt the stonies.

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