Should I play the Incarnate game?

Biowraith · 04-10-2011 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

What are the top global chat channels to find Lambda and BAF teams forming?

As far as I can tell the vast majority of the teams form on broadcast in Pocket D (sometimes in RWZ or Midnighters - varies a bit by server, but the last few days on Freedom Pocket D has been busiest). I haven't seen that many being organised on globals, though I've not had much luck finding active globals on Freedom (I'm told the "good" ones are all invite-only).

UnicyclePeon · 04-10-2011 07:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

Wow, it's took a LOT of replies before we got our first standard 'insult the OP, rabidly leap to the imagined defense of the devs' style post.

I guess I better admit that if I don't enjoy Incarnate content, it's my fault because I'm stupid.

Does anyone know this guy IRL and can kick him in the nuts for me?

Thanks.

I like your style.

Lewis

Random AT Generation!
"I remember... the Alamo." -- Pee-wee Herman
"Oh don't worry. I always leave things to the last moment." -- The Doctor
"Telescopes are time machines." -- Carl Sagan

EmperorSteele · 04-10-2011 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

I guess I better admit that if I don't enjoy Incarnate content, it's my fault because I'm stupid.

I think you read his post sideways. He didn't say that YOU"RE stupid for not liking incarnate content. He said that the IDEA of avoiding a GRIND in an MMO is stupid, because the entire GAME is a grind.

Though he coulda been nicer about it.

Anyway, like people have said, if you take the solo option, it'll take you a few years to get everything you need. So maybe going on a raid or two per week (and they take less than an hour) will cut down on the amount of time, while not subjecting you to a grind-level style of play, while still allowing you to progress at a decent pace.

-STEELE =)

Allied to all sides so that no matter what, I'll come out on top!
Oh, and Crimson demands you play this arc-> Twisted Knives (MA Arc #397769)

PC_guy · 04-10-2011 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

Wow, it's took a LOT of replies before we got our first standard 'insult the OP, rabidly leap to the imagined defense of the devs' style post.

I guess I better admit that if I don't enjoy Incarnate content, it's my fault because I'm stupid.

Does anyone know this guy IRL and can kick him in the nuts for me?

Thanks.

reading comprehension helps

Quote:

I think you read his post sideways. He didn't say that YOU"RE stupid for not liking incarnate content. He said that the IDEA of avoiding a GRIND in an MMO is stupid, because the entire GAME is a grind.

Also, in no place in my post did i insult you and defend the devs. as a matter of fact I took a jab at the devs lack of ability to make hard content.

Positron's i13 letter: We are trying to make PvP more accessible to new players, while giving experienced PvP'ers the advantage that comes with formulating tactics around the new systems we're putting in place. PvP from now on will be on our priority list. If something isn't working out, we'll be in there tweaking it and making it work, for the entire future of the product, not just Issue 13.

Metatron_NA · 04-10-2011 11:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EmperorSteele

Anyway, like people have said, if you take the solo option, it'll take you a few years to get everything you need. So maybe going on a raid or two per week (and they take less than an hour) will cut down on the amount of time, while not subjecting you to a grind-level style of play, while still allowing you to progress at a decent pace.

Please don't misunderstand me, I am fine for PUGs when they work well. I am even happy to join and participate in an SG/VG. However, generally speaking my only play window is 10AM - 8:30PM or so, regardless if I am soloing or grouping.

Today I tried out 3 BAFs and a lambda. The BAFs seemed very straightforward, the Lambda seemed confusing. But the PUGS came together well.

However, this is Sunday. Whether BAFs and Lambda's will CONTINUE to form quickly and easily when I log in to play during the weekday daylight hours is a BIG unknown.

For Great Justice!

Kelenar · 04-10-2011 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Biowraith

My experience is leagues formed through the automated LFG system have a massively lower chance of success vs teams preformed via channels (though not so much global channels - most of them form in Pocket D broadcast on Freedom).

This is mostly because the automated system tends to only half-fill the league, and until everyone's a bit more kitted out with incarnate powers a half-full league is a lot less likely to succeed than a full league (especially if it's a PuG).

My experience is that the queue also doesn't give a damn about AT balance, whereas leaders kind of do. The queue BAFs I've been in were about 90% Scrappers, Brutes, and Blasters, with not a single Corruptor, Defender, or Controller. We usually got up to the Siege/Nightstar fight until the lack of support caught up with us and we stalled.

Having Vengeance and Fallout slotted for recharge means never having to say you're sorry.

Oliin · 04-10-2011 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

I also tend to hate random rewards, especially ones that are so rare that you could conceivably do a lot of work and simply through some crap luck have it be for nothing. For example, when given the option, I would rather use more Merits on a specific Recipe rather than a lower number of Merits on a random roll that *might* give me what I am looking for.

Finally, as the above indicates, I don't want to do a mission in which we have a significant chance of failure and NO reward for our effort, simply because the devs have made it ludicrously hard. If I spend 2-3 hours on a mission, I *expect* the reward we are chasing to be more than likely (if we are not being stupid). Otherwise, it's just a random roll in disguise.

Just thought I'd address these points briefly.

You probably already know this(very possibly from this thread which I only skimmed), but upon successful completion of a trial you get a menu of your reward choices and an empyrian(sp?) merit. The reward choice is randomly either a list of common, uncommon, rare or very rare components. Not sure how much that might bother you, since the do give you the option to create any of those components from incarnate threads and inf in the case of rare and very rare components. I just thought it was worth noting.

As far as the failure giving no reward for your effort part goes. The trials are rather different from anything else I've seen them do in the game so far. The whole thing is set up like the zone events in Praetoria, where a window pops up showing your objectives, giving a little help bar and letting you know which stage of the event you're in (it also lets you see the AV's health bars without having them targeted, and you can actually target them through the event's interface). You're rewarded not only for completion of the trial, but you can earn smaller rewards throughout it for completing various tasks and for earning the badges associated with it. Additionally you earn a form of XP during each of the trials (just like your normal XP) that slowly unlocks your slots. So while you can fail the trials, you're generally unlikely to have not made at least some sort of gain for your efforts (unless of course, your team just does horribly and you make nearly no progress into the trial).

MA Arcs: Yarmouth 1509 and 58812

Arbegla · 04-10-2011 08:13 PM

Plus, atlest on liberty, during the 8am to 4pm (or even 10 am to 6pm) MST time frame i've been able to run upwards of 10 trials (of different types, usually lambda, but i'm getting a feel for baf now) in under 30 mins each. My fastest lambda run is about 20 mins, my fastest baf is about 13 mins, each getting 100% completion. (meaning full astral merits, sometimes extra due to badge requirements being made, and the reward table at the end)

Ashtoreth_NA · 04-10-2011 10:41 PM

The level shifts are negligible. They make doing Incarnate missions easier. You are still going to be just a 50.

The Incarnate powers are fairly impressive though. As a force field defender who painfully soloed much of the way to 50 at lowest difficulty, I love wiping out my opposition with my Judgement blast.

Many of us have the concept of SUPER in mind when we make our characters. We like destroying cars and dominating. Incarnates seem to be about that. If it is part of your character's concept to be more Uber than uber, than Incarnate is worth it.

I think Ramiel's arc is interesting enough to solo (though I ended up calling for help against Honoree). Faster than earning Incarnate xp--if you haven't opened the Alpha slot, thats where your first Incarnate xp will go.

Shards can be soloed for. Threads, which are needed for the next 4 slots, I believe you have to do the Lambda and BAF trials for.

I play on Guardian, which has a mid-size population. Starting at noon Mountain Time Zone, I can easily start finding trials by hanging around Pocket D or RWZ. I also watch the Guardian, Looking for a Team, and Guardian Incarnate global channels, all good for finding TFs as well. I play til 3, usually go to work, and solo when I come home--much harder finding teams after 10pm.

If you're with a bunch of people who haven't done it, there will be a learning curve and the usual recrimination and upset. But even with those groups, after a few tries we managed to do each trial successfully. Lambda IS hard at first, especially if you have bad lag, but it can be done in about 20 minutes and BAF in 15. Since parts of the trials are timed, you can't spend TOO much time at them--you may spend more time waiting for the leaders to put the leagues together.

But, again, even on Guardian, we had two full BAF leagues of 24 people in Pocket D formed at the same time.

After a week, I have all but Lore opened and slotted, and I'm well on the way to Very Rare slots in two areas. Remember that Empyreal Merits and Astral Merits can be converted to threads and you can burn influence and threads to get the xp you need to fully open a slot.

I WAS highly irritated when I realized the tiers were destroying the lower tiers as they went up. I don't think that is made sufficiently clear. It means you have to start a second tree if you want Very Rare.

Personally, although I'm getting tired of the same trials, it feels like less of a grind than my own journey to 50. Looking forward to other missions after this.

My pet peeve is people who refuse to acknowledge it when I tell them my character has unlimited power. If I rp attack them they are of course disintegrated beyond the ability of any hospital or magic to restore. Yet despite this they refuse to delete their characters and still keep playing them as if nothing happened. ~Mandu, 07-16-2010

Zeh_Masteh · 04-10-2011 11:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Metatron_NA

generally speaking my only play window is 10AM - 8:30PM or so, regardless if I am soloing or grouping.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arbegla

during the 8am to 4pm (or even 10 am to 6pm) MST time frame i've been able to run upwards of 10 trials

Yeah, your time zone will be important, metatron: if it's 6:30pm on the West Coast, you'll catch the influx of late-night gamers (read: us college students) logging on at 9:30pm on the East Coast. Either way, 10am-8:30pm is a wide margin.. with that range, even if you don't get any US players you'll still get the after-dinner European players in the afternoon.

Adeon Hawkwood · 04-10-2011 11:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ashtoreth_NA

The level shifts are negligible. They make doing Incarnate missions easier. You are still going to be just a 50.

I disagree. The level shifts make a HUGE difference, especially against level 54s (the Alpha one also makes level 50 content a lot easier).

In any case against level 54s:

The first shift increases the effectiveness of all of your powers by 35% (after applying all other buffs), increases your base chance to hit by 9% and decreases the effectiveness of attacks and debuffs used on you by about 8%.

The second shift increases the effectiveness of all of your powers by 23%, increases your base chance to hit by 8% and decreases the effectiveness of attacks and debuffs used on you by about 9%.

The third shift increases the effectiveness of all of your powers by 12.5%, increases your base chance to hit by 9% and decreases the effectiveness of attacks and debuffs used on you by about 9%.

Negligible? I would argue that the level shifts are the main reason to get the powers.

Redd Rumm · 04-11-2011 02:52 AM

at the very least you can run the trials all day an slot your judgement slot an never return to the trials. the judgement slot powers are so awsome , you will have fun just blasting the non incarnite stuff 8 ways from sunday. i farmed the wall in cim with my mastermind an didnt even use my pets one uber fire ball an boom next mob . i am wondering what 8 judgement attacks at once, would do to Rommy ?