Aht Urghan Large-Scale Event Interview

[Elmer the Pointy]

Another interview from the pages of Vana'diel Tsuushin. It covers Salvage and Nyzul Isle, and then touches briefly on Einherjar, ZNMs and MMM.

Aht Urghan Large-Scale Event Interview

This one is much more interesting than the Dynamis flopper, but still some key questions received dead-end answers. There's a couple of tidbits in there depending on how well-learned you are about the workings of these events. Hopefully, some of the topics "under discussion" or "being considered" will make their way into the game over the course of this year.

Enjoy

[Darkhearted]

I don't understand how saying "It has a 15% drop rate" or whatever, would be damaging to the game thus needing to be secret. I'll never understand why SE is so hush hush about everything.

Anyway, great work as usual. Good read, thanks.

[Hyan]

Daisuke Sase, my least favorite dev from now on >_>

[Destinye]

I definitely can't see this going over well with certain people haha. Nice to see they are going to make more ways to get Imperial Wootz and Khroma.

[Mayareira]

I would assume that a group of 18 people could take on Pandemonium Warden.

Q. Does the aggro range of Archaic-type monsters (Gears, Chariots, Ramparts, etc.) change based on Salvage area or weather or anything…?

Kawanishi: In any Remnant, the range expands during Wind or Earth weather.

Q. Currently, Scholar and Dancer are unable to equip any Salvage gear. Will they be able to equip any Savlage gear in the future?

Gondai: We’re looking into this, but have not come to a decision yet.

Q. Please tell us what exactly is required to make the Mad Bomber pop in Bhaflau Remnants.

Kawanishi: Right now, it is completely random, but there is a possibility we may change this.

Q. Previously, you announced that item drop rates for certain NMs in Bhaflau and Silver Sea Remnants would be adjusted. Have these changes already been implemented?

Itou: We are still considered how to adjust them, so the changes have not been made yet. We have not yet set a date for their implementation.

Q. For Nyzul Isle Investigation, it’s a snap getting people together to challenge an HNM floor for gear, but almost impossible to find people to help progress your disc. This makes working your way up the floors very difficult. Is there anyway you could fix this issue?

Itou: We want to implement something to help gather people for non-HNM sections of Nyzul, but first we would like to focus on solving the congestion issues.

Q. Can you tell us about previously stated plans to add more Nyzul-related equipment?

Itou: That is still under discussion.

Q. Will there be more ways to spend Tokens? (trade for weapons, armor, etc.)

Itou: It’s possible, but still under discussion.

Q. Do you plan to add any brand, new gear besides the job-specific weapons and Askar, Denali and Goliard sets?

Itou: There is a possibility we made add new gear. It is currently being considered.



Here are some of the interesting questions...too bad he didn't ask the Sheep of Abjuration in Einherjar :D

[Julian]

It doesn’t appear that there is a set chance for the NM that drops level 35 pieces to pop from the Archaic Rampart in Bhaflau Remnants. Please let us know if there is some way to increase the chance of it appearing.

Kawanishi: There is a pattern under which the NM will not pop at all. If you can notice this pattern, and realize it won’t pop, I would advise you simply give up and move on. Beyond that, the pop conditions are a secret.

Archaic Ramparts in Bhaflau Remnants are somewhat hit-and-miss wouldn’t you say? There are patterns where many NMs will pop, and patterns where none will pop. Is the amount of NMs that will pop just random? Or are there certain conditions that affect this?

Kawanishi: There are no conditions, it is simply random

There are conditions! There are no conditions! I contradict myself within a few seconds. Although I guess that it could mean that if the rampart is on, then the number that pop is random <_<

[Max™]

Cue the smiley face rampart: "We never pop anything" pic?

[Elmer the Pointy]

There are conditions! There are no conditions! I contradict myself within a few seconds. Although I guess that it could mean that if the rampart is on, then the number that pop is random <_<

That part was a bit confusing at first, but I believe what he means is that when you fight the Rampart, it will either pop or not pop NMs. If it isn't going to pop NMs, there is something in its behavioral pattern that can alert you to this fact. I think there is a certain point in the course of battle where if nothing has popped, nothing is going to. In such a case, it's best to just move along instead of dragging out the fight hoping for an NM. The secret part is probably what the underlying pattern is (time elapsed? HP percentage?). I usually have multiple wikis open and do other various research to make sure I have a firm understanding of the content, but sometimes their vagueness can be challenging.

[pchan]

I'm confused, there is a pattern where you can know when no NM will spawn ... by the way they worded it, you can notice this early in the rampart room..


Also, confirmation that all drops are equally likely.

And I'm not sure what they meant in silversea when saying the coffer path have lower cell drop rates because both dekka and morrigan NM routes have coffers inside ..

[Lampoon]

Why do people even bother with interviews with Dev Team? They always give same answers.

If I ever had an opportunity to ask a real question, I would ask this:

"Considering your position as a company that charges monthly fee, it's understandable that you would do anything to keep players playing as long as possible. That includes a lower drop rate. But seeing as how many players have quit and/or will quit in the future, because of frustration with aforementioned drop rate, would it fucking kill you to try to please your player base?"

[Elmer the Pointy]

And I'm not sure what they meant in silversea when saying the coffer path have lower cell drop rates because both dekka and morrigan NM routes have coffers inside ..

It's more a helpful addition to counterbalance the low drop rate of cells as compared to other Remnants, not individual routes.

[Almalexia]

I thought we determined that 50% rampart HP with no NM meant no NM ever.

[Lampoon]

Yeah, but that's like giving you an bag packed with an anvil, rather than a parachute when you gotta jump out of the plane, Elmer.

[Elmer the Pointy]

Unfortunately, I can only do my best to clarify their stated answers, not the reasoning behind their game design :D

Also,

Daisuke Sase, my least favorite dev from now on >_>

I was waiting for people to notice the man who touts Pandemonium Warden as his prized creation was also the nefarious designer of Silver Sea Remnants.

[Lampoon]

Yeah I know Thanks for your effort nonetheless. I admit, once in a while they do slip us tidbits of information that is worth something.

[Absolutely Virtue]

I don't mean to criticize, because even if these things don't produce good answers they're still an interesting read. But I can't help but wonder if they'd get farther with the developers if they changed their strategy a bit.

Instead of saying "It seems as if X happens" they might try "We did a trial of 100 chances, and this happened X number of times." You'd probably get their attention if you had numbers to back up your claims.

[Silenka]

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/97/ptcsigsmall.jpg

Late, but eh.

Clearly about the ramparts, he's saying once you meet the conditions for the NM to pop, it's random how many will pop, you can't control that part. There are conditions for the NM to pop from the rampart, though - I wish someone knew what the conditions were. Heard some theories about order in which you kill puddings, etc...

Nyzul: Are there conditions that cause the creation of easy to complete floors? (or ones with lots of treasure!)

Kawanishi: The conditions regarding floor design are secret.

Total BS. He may as well just say "no, the floors are random and nothing you do can change what appears", but wants to sound all mysterious. Truly there could be a pattern to floors, I don't know, but saying he can't divulge any info about it is stupid.

The Aftermath effects on Relic Weapons seem to pale in comparison to those now found on Mythic Weapons. Are there any hidden effects that aren’t found in the item descriptions?

Developers: We cannot provide any answers regarding the abilities and intricacies of such rare items

LOL

They probably just don't know offhand.

Sase: I would assume that a group of 18 people could take on Pandemonium Warden, but with more people you will have a better chance of defeating him. I cannot give you any specific strategies for defeating him, but I can promise you I did not design this monster to be unbeatable.

A promise, eh? Obviously there is some super-sekrit strategy to kill PW with 18 people. HAY GUYZ IT SHULD B EZ CANT BELIVE U DINT FIGURE IT OUT YET

[mdkuser]

I thought we determined that 50% rampart HP with no NM meant no NM ever.

Ive had a time where a single Nm poped, and it was under 5%.

[Colenzo]

I seriously dont understand why it would hurt for them to release these "secrets" to the player-base since most of it pertains to endgame players anyways. They make the drop rates sound so bad that they cant tell us how bad they are or else our heads would implode upon the impact of the bullshit we would be reading. Fuck, if this game had less secrets then more people would know how to play and we wouldnt have to sit back and bust out calculators and do long tests just to see how the game works for those that are interested in actually playing the game correctly.

[Aro]

Secrets are fun. Less secrets equal more disappointment. Be careful what you all wish for!