What's so great about the BAF iTrial?
By
Adeon Hawkwood,
Posted on: 2011-07-03 17:36 in CoH and CoV General Discussions
Quote:
Oh look, you've just described pretty much all of the content in the game.
|
Originally Posted by MrCaptainMan
It's extremely repetitive and simplistic, and appears basically unfailaible as long as the teams not made of morons.
|
[U][URL="http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=251594"][/URL][/U]
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Bad_Influence
And I do want a chance at the very rare table, I know thats an uncool admisison to make but there you have it.
|
It's also most likely wrong, based on Arcanaville's analysis of the reward mechanics so far. As long as someone is punching on the AVs, and you're punching something enough to get a reward, you seem to have the exact same chance of a Very Rare as everyone else in your trial.
This pending whatever Arcanaville does manage to analyze and decide to publish, of course.
*meh* Not worth bothering.
"Incarnate XP being divided equally across the entire league is a nerf!"
Some posters i take what they post with a grain of salt; other posters require a whole bottle of hot sauce.
Dr. Todt's theme.
i make stuff...
Quote:
Eh, in Lambda I tend to agree. But my runs with BAF have shown a problem to me. Not sure why it's occuring, but I'm getting significantly less iXP per run than before. 2% per run is a bit harsh. Especially when I'm getting around 7 to 11% with Lam [which I do understand gives more ixp typically, but not that much more]. Haven't done KIR with that character so I dunno if it's unique to baf or 3party groups, but I think there's something off going on with the iXP share.
|
Originally Posted by Schismatrix
*meh* Not worth bothering.
"Incarnate XP being divided equally across the entire league is a nerf!" Some posters i take what they post with a grain of salt; other posters require a whole bottle of hot sauce. |
Let's Dance!
Quote:
It would depend on how you ran your BAFs typically in the past. If you more often split into 3 teams, and had one team doing adds (and you were usually on that team) yeah, you're likely getting less ixp. If you were usually on one of the AV teams, you should be getting a bit more.|
Originally Posted by reiella
Eh, in Lambda I tend to agree. But my runs with BAF have shown a problem to me. Not sure why it's occuring, but I'm getting significantly less iXP per run than before. 2% per run is a bit harsh. Especially when I'm getting around 7 to 11% with Lam [which I do understand gives more ixp typically, but not that much more]. Haven't done KIR with that character so I dunno if it's unique to baf or 3party groups, but I think there's something off going on with the iXP share.
|
Now, if you regularly mixed the teams, it should be about the same.
Furio--Lvl 50+3 Fire/Fire/Fire Blaster, Virtue
Megadeth--Lvl 50+3 Necro/DM/Soul MM, Virtue
Veriandros--Lvl 50+3 Crab Soldier, Virtue
"So come and get me! I'll be waiting for ye, with a whiff of the old brimstone. I'm a grim bloody fable, with an unhappy bloody end!" Demoman, TF2
Quote:
I'm getting less ixp than when I was on an add team or an av team, or even a cluster-team with the helipads.|
Originally Posted by Furio
It would depend on how you ran your BAFs typically in the past. If you more often split into 3 teams, and had one team doing adds (and you were usually on that team) yeah, you're likely getting less ixp. If you were usually on one of the AV teams, you should be getting a bit more.
Now, if you regularly mixed the teams, it should be about the same. |
[ edit ]
It may just be an oddity of the character in question or the two runs I've done with her so far [on BAF, Lam appears to be working better than before].
Let's Dance!
Quote:
So you are noticing the same amount of ixp as you did before this issue? Outstanding. My people are now earning between 1-3% progress per run. toward whatever slot is appropriate. Which is much less than they were earning before. Smells like a nerf to me.|
Originally Posted by Schismatrix
*meh* Not worth bothering.
"Incarnate XP being divided equally across the entire league is a nerf!" Some posters i take what they post with a grain of salt; other posters require a whole bottle of hot sauce. |
Emjoy your Tabasco.
Quote:
Well, having run several today i have noticed the iXP gain is much lower now, so you're right that it has been nerfed. i strongly suspect that this an error rather than a deliberate reduction in rewards.|
Originally Posted by Bad_Influence
So you are noticing the same amount of ixp as you did before this issue? Outstanding. My people are now earning between 1-3% progress per run. toward whatever slot is appropriate. Which is much less than they were earning before. Smells like a nerf to me.
Emjoy your Tabasco. |
i think it was bringing in the whole irrelevancy about the Warworks team that threw me off. It made it sound like you were only talking about diminished rewards for that team, not the trial as a whole.
Dr. Todt's theme.
i make stuff...
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by reiella
As a sidenote, my SO'd Grav/FF [non-shifted at all] has managed to survive the warehouse [without using pff, although she does have stealth]. But, I will say I do have the crate locations pretty well remembered now.
|
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I die during the warehouse all the time either... At first I did, something aweful. I've gotten used to doing it by now, but that doesn't mean everyone else has. There's just always an element of chaos in the league during Lambda, it's much higher stress than BAF for the same or less rewards... Not to mention Keyes Island. It just doesn't make any sense to have to worry about all the craziness when you can get all the same stuff and have a smooth sailing good time on a more comfortable trial.
edit: As for the iXP issue, I always thought it took too long. I've just been buying it since I started doing trials... It's much faster that way.
Quote:
You've hit the nail on the head. BAF is for characters not strong enough to handle either Lambda or Keyes, and for farming astrals, since it reliably rewards 4-5 astrals per run. |
Originally Posted by MrCaptainMan
I don't understand why anyone would do it more than once ot twice if it wasn't for the Incarnate rewards.
|
I don't mind it (though rewards should be reduced to reflect the lack of difficulty: the rare and VR table ought to be removed, and no astrals should be awarded for defeating siege and nightstar individually) because it's good to have one trial that gently introduces all the things common in endgame content. BAF is the shallow end of the iTrial pool.
Me, I do it on one of my scrappers because there is nothing as fun as killing 5 mindwashed prisoners with 1 Golden Dragonfly.
Hmm, interesting numbers about incarnate XP here. I stopped tracking it after the first few times, but I used to get ~15% per BAF and ~40% per Lambda (on Judgement/Interface ; Lore/Destiny would be slower obviously). On my newest incarnates it seems like it takes forever.
My reasons:
No map switching.
My squishies don't constantly, constantly die to random IDF like they do in the maze under Lambda Sector.
Once Siege and Nightstar are pulled, it's a relatively straightforward beatdown, with some care to keep them balanced, and they stay put; Marauder jumps all over the place, needs to be kept pacified, and occasionally emits one-hit-kill AoEs.
The cut scene is now skippable, if everyone's already done the BAF at least once. The one with Marauder can't and apparently won't be.
My characters at Virtueverse
Faces of the City
I like the BAF because I am reasonably sure that I can't foul it up and that I can help do something useful for all of the stages.
Suggestions:
Super Packs Done Right
Influence Sink: IO Level Mod/Recrafting
Random Merit Rolls: Scale cost by Toon Level
Quote:
Ah, so everyone who dislikes Keyes is a bad, weak character. I am glad you have cleared that up for us. |
Originally Posted by Laevateinn
You've hit the nail on the head. BAF is for characters not strong enough to handle either Lambda or Keyes, and for farming astrals, since it reliably rewards 4-5 astrals per run.
I don't mind it (though rewards should be reduced to reflect the lack of difficulty: the rare and VR table ought to be removed, and no astrals should be awarded for defeating siege and nightstar individually) because it's good to have one trial that gently introduces all the things common in endgame content. BAF is the shallow end of the iTrial pool. |
"Farming" Astral merits, lawl.
I say we leave the BAF rewards alone, and have the developers nerf your rewards. You're so hard-core, you'd never even notice - right?
*disgust*
Quote:
Seems like vanguard magicians should be doing the deprograming but otherwise I agree
|
Originally Posted by FredrikSvanberg
Well for one, BAF, unlike Lambda, isn't too full of ******** non-game activities like avoiding fighting enemies while punching boxes to get temp powers that will confuse the below average intelligence quotient of the participants.
Instead it is just full of ******** non-game activities like putting escaped non-combatant prisoners back in their fascist-state brainwashing mind-control-prison by punching them repeatedly instead of, oh, I don't know, rescuing them and bringing them back to Primal Earth for deprogramming. Fortunately the escaped prisoners part of the BAF is quickly over and done with and doesn't involve dying over and over and getting lost in lag-inducing weird warehouses and laboratories trying to find way-too-tough crates and clone vats to smash. If these trials had been created in a manner that suits the genre we would not be running around looking for the counter-agent to portals or Marauder's super-rage within the confines of the very place Marauder is set to protect, but we would instead be planting super-bombs or computer viruses to destroy the facility. We would also not be fighting the brainwashed prisoners but their armed and very much in control escorts who are slowly trying to bring them out of the prison before we can destroy the robotic wardens. When we defeat the entire escorting group we can lead the grateful prisoner to a portal leading to Primal Earth where they will be treated by the best Arachnos Fortunatas and Longbow Empaths we can muster, to break their programming. |
Quote:
Indeed. |
Originally Posted by Bad_Influence
I say we leave the BAF rewards alone, and have the developers nerf your rewards. You're so hard-core, you'd never even notice - right?
|
The reward tables could give kinetic weapons, and I would still do trials because I really do enjoy them. The video game money they give is nice, but not a matter of life and death.
What's so great about it?
Simple. It's easy.
Uber Talgrim - level 50 emp/dark defender
Uber Rod - level 50 dark melee/regen scrapper
Rod Valdr - level 50 invuln/SS tanker
Talgrim - level 50 ninja/dark mastermind
OMG!! Please add these costume designs now!
Quote:
I suggest getting Super Speed on your squishies and slot a Running +Stealth IO. You can then move around quickly and practically invisibly.|
Originally Posted by Bad_Influence
2. 90% of the time on Lambda, I get stuck on the Grenade team. I dont mind on a character running shields, but if Im on a squishy character this all but guarantees me the ten-threads-only reward, because I do nothing except die. I dislike this INTENSELY.
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Bad_Influence
4. On BAF, people want to do stupid crap like assigning one team - which I am always on - to defeat the Warworks spawns. Unlike Lambda, I can ignore this command and keep hitting on the AVs for increased rewards.
|
Quote:
As an update for myself, it does appear my 2% runs were an anomaly, getting 6-7% now which is expected rate for BAF.|
Originally Posted by Nihilii
Hmm, interesting numbers about incarnate XP here. I stopped tracking it after the first few times, but I used to get ~15% per BAF and ~40% per Lambda (on Judgement/Interface ; Lore/Destiny would be slower obviously). On my newest incarnates it seems like it takes forever.
|
May even go so far as to blame it on poor eyesight at this point.
Let's Dance!
Quote:
So would I |
Originally Posted by Laevateinn
Indeed.
The reward tables could give kinetic weapons, and I would still do trials because I really do enjoy them. |
@Golden Girl
City of Heroes comics and artwork
Quote:
Actually, a fix is progress for iXP for leagues with more than 8 members.|
Originally Posted by reiella
As an update for myself, it does appear my 2% runs were an anomaly, getting 6-7% now which is expected rate for BAF.
May even go so far as to blame it on poor eyesight at this point. |
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=264969
Quote:
Awesome, and thanks, regardless I was wrong! Muwahahaha.
|
Originally Posted by Jetpack
Actually, a fix is progress for iXP for leagues with more than 8 members.
http://boards.cityofheroes.com/showthread.php?t=264969 |
Let's Dance!
Because after you do a trial once, it becomes a grind.
BAF is the easiest to grind. It is short and you get lots of stuff.
Keyes is the opposite. It uses the same reward tables as the BAF but the average team will take 15 minutes maybe on a BAF and almost an hour on Keyes. And your chances of getting a 'rare' or 'very rare' do not shoot upwards for the time spent. So, 50 minutes on a Keyes for a reward or do 3 BAFs in the same amount of time for 3 times the chances to get a 'rare' or 'very rare'
It is, literaly, a grind, and ill take the BAF every time. No, it's not awesome fun but after the first couple times, few things are.
And you have to do a LOT of trials to get T4s...
Dawnslayer on Virtue.
Quote:
That last sentence is basically it for me. The BAF is quick and painless. It hardly ever fails and takes a half hour tops. It's also more rewarding than Lambda or Keyes, too, because it's easier to earn the Astrals and the turnover rate is faster.|
Originally Posted by MrCaptainMan
I haven't noticed any specific ATs being required. I'm doing this on an en/en/fire Blaster, so I'm there for damage obviously.
Maybe I'm missing sth important being done by other ATs? I heard some talk of 'rings', possibly there's turrets involved? I haven't been dying more than once per run. It's all over in half hour, easy. It's extremely repetitive and simplistic, and appears basically unfailaible as long as the teams not made of morons. I don't understand why anyone would do it more than once ot twice if it wasn't for the Incarnate rewards. |
I actually don't enjoy any of the trials, and I only participate in them for the rewards they give. BAF runs are the best and most efficient way to earn the shinies.
The Ballad of Iron Percy
Winner of Players' Choice Best Villainous Arc 2010: Fear and Loathing on Striga; ID #350522