What would happen if SE adjusted the Level Correction for EP

[LD]

It's no secret that solo is essentially nonexistent for many jobs, and for those who do it well, the gains fall far short of PT (as it should.) With every camp being instantly filled and many people languishing in whitegate or some other idle spot, I begin to think of how this game could truly support solo play, so we can actually advance ourselves in a meaningful way without being chained to PTs, being made to wait on quests & events with various time restrictions, being a particular job or level, or using larger amounts of consumable items for less exp. There are far too many areas in this game that go completely unused, long stretches of land that serve absolutely no purpose other than filler. Solo play could make an area something more than simply area B between areas A and C.

The 2h v 1h War gave me a bit of insight into the game's mechanics; how one thing reacts with another, how damage, hit rate, and other stats are calculated against an opponent. In many cases, we're not compensating for our enemy's stats, but their higher level. So I thought 'What effect would easing the grip Level Correction has on our damage (given/taken), hit rate, resist rate, and defensive skill proc rate on Easy Prey to Toughs have on the game in general? Naturally, I see all the good points: Kill more monsters Solo for less down time. Open up the world, so everyone could actually see it (instead of just valkurm > qufim > jungle > garlaige/nest > nest/garlaige > kufta > colibri > puk > colibri > puk/colibri.) Fewer people idling in city areas, being spread out more in the world. Encouraging Travel, Exploration, etc. As hard as I try, the only down point I can see is a strengthening of burns, but since this change would apply to every job (and most camps still have good number of VT-ITs), this can't really be seen as unbalancing.

PT's exp bonus and greater killing speed would ensure that they will always have the top spot. Duos & trios could make more than before, but VTs and ITs would still work the same. This would always keep them weaker than a full 6. There are still mobs that are inherently stronger than most (morbols, rams, manticore, etc.), so there would be difficult mobs even with this change. Mobs you either avoid or prepare for specifically.

I had all these other ideas that involved a major overhaul of the exp system, but the signet patch has already shown us how simple such a thing could be done (though that alone wasn't enough to create a shift.) I suppose my real question is, would adjusting the system as I've stated be enough for a solo melee blood tanking to get 2-4k/h, a *balanced* (non-manaburn) duo/trio to get 4-8k/h, and a PT still make the same it was before?


P.S. Yea, this is a 'What if' topic, and stuff like that is kinda nubish, but it pertains to something that is considered advanced: The Damage Formula.

[Yutuyu]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think players get damage level corrected in their favor for DC-. Level correction is pretty powerful too. Just changing that would make EP/DC fights much, much easier.

[Tradition]

What kind of THF/NIN/RDM/BST/PLD/PUP/DRG can't get more than 2k/hr solo?

[Tricen]

Signet bonus = hardcore win for nontoau.

[Neosutra]

What kind of THF/NIN/RDM/BST/PLD/PUP/DRG can't get more than 2k/hr solo?

Cause 2k and hour is awesome.

[arus2001]

Ideally, being able to solo 1/3 to 1/5 your tnl per hour on any job based on your level would go a long way in both keeping people interested in the game while giving typically unused areas a bit more purpose. I've always wanted an Assault area where you can blow a tag for a solo zone packed with mobs that are the equivalent to old-world BST pets. Still pack a punch, but HP more reflective of players. So essentially, once a day a person could get a little private EXP time if they so chose to.

Unfortunately, a lot of the problem just seems to stem on how we gain EXP. If level progression was more typical of an RPG with every mob having a set EXP payout with a bit of deviation based on their level, but instead we get really bloated TNLs to match higher level EXP payouts, spending a bit of time farming would also equate to a bit of EXP on the side, too. Parties would still reign since you could fight harder stuff in a group, but it'd also take the silliness out of some con ratings. An IT crab is nowhere near as dangerous as a T Wyvern, for example. Sadly, such a change would require SE to more readily gauge effort against reward.

I guess here's to hoping WotG brings back IT++ EXP that encourage oldschool party dynamics where the mobs give like 600 EXP a kill and a chain 5 would break 1k.

[Luto]

Some jobs it's easier to solo on than others. I soloed THF to 37 recently and at one point I was getting chain 4 on VT mandies in Yhoator for almost 7k/hr without my exp band. Then again, you try to solo exp on say WHM and it's just not going to work out as well. But, you have to realize, this is an MMO. You're not supposed to be playing online to play solo. >_>

You can get solo exp Besieged, exp scroll quests, solo ENM, etc. I did GAxe skill ups recently on Robber Crabs until 200 (from like 70 skill), broke my GAxe Latent solo, broke my Sword latent solo, and using my exp band when I could, I soloed about 25k exp on WAR and another 6k or so on PLD all solo. Yeah it took time and there are more efficient ways of getting exp but that's not the point.

Can you solo exp? Yes. Is it time consuming and ultimately unrewarding? Yes. If you're hoping that solo exp vs party exp is going to be balanced, don't hold your breath.

Edit: Also, I never was fond of the old style play mechanics. SC/MB full rest after chain 5, etc. Even if it was 600 base exp, with chain 5 breaking 1k. You're still going to have to full rest afterwards more than likely and it wouldn't be as efficient as a melee burn or mana burn.

The party exp gained right now is more than okay. I really don't see a point in hoping things go back to how they were "in the old days".

[Bakthi]

There are a couple of things about solo:

1. If you want to say 2.5k/hour or so is bad...well, it sounds bad. But how long did you LFG? How long did you wait for xxSeferatxx to AFK "for a few seconds"? How long was your exp delayed because RedFFXI couldn't figure out how to get to camp, or your tank died? And how many hours did you end up actually exping? It's awesome when you can have a LS PPT for your latest job of choice, with 2-boxed outside healing and all that. But if I can't get that? If I can reasonably solo, I will solo. If I want to stop to change my laundry in the middle of my exp session, it's No Big Deal. That, and the fact that pickup parties aren't really making that 6-10k/hour that it seems they are making, is the draw.

(Edit: or maybe you were LFG for 2 hours, took 30 minutes to get to camp, had a total of like 5 fights, wiped because someone was a terrible player, and never got an invite the rest of the day. Yes, the argument that you could do something else instead of exp is valid, but what if you don't want to?)

2. People are stupid and they are assholes. If you make soloing EP mobs easier, people aren't going to explore strange new worlds. They're going to camp at the entrance to Garliage Citadel, right on top of two parties, and kill those mobs. Remember when the NPC craze destroyed all hope of ever exping in Kuftal?

[Zalius]

reliance on parties is the reason ffxi has 500k players as opposed to 8m, as ass backwards as that is

[superfob]

reliance on parties is the reason ffxi has 500k players as opposed to 8m, as ass backwards as that is

And this is bad why? If there were 10 other WoW clones, how boring would that be?

[Luto]

I don't see the point in paying to play online with other people and choose to play solo.

[FinalJustice]

I don't see the point in paying to play online with other people and choose to play solo.

as opposed to sitting somewhere else waiting for a party?
There should be a healthy portion of solo content available so you can get stuff DONE when you CANT have or get a group to do something.
Its not everyones intent to play a MMORPG for the "purpose" of soloing. But you forget even when you are Soloing, or farming, or camping something, theres still many ways to be social with your friends, and other people. Which works very well in WoWs favor. It gives people who DON'T have a lot of time, or cant find a group something to do while they wait for the group, or when they have more time that day to do so. One of the biggest things about a MMOROG is the social aspect of that. And someone sitting in the dunes alone killing can be just as social as anyone else. Or sometimes you even want to just log in and play your character and not deal with anyone that day. MMOROGs aren't like other online games.

[superfob]

I don't see the point in paying to play online with other people and choose to play solo.

SE's unbalanced of jobs within current user party environment lead those jobs to solo only status (BST, PUP before some recent buffs, BLM, etc). I think rather than change so all jobs can solo, make those jobs viable somehow with out breaking other areas of the game.

I can certainly see either a way for BST to buff their pets to increase their DoT, or a way to transfer pet's TP to BST to match other melee jobs quick TP gain (Jumps, Meditate, Barrage, Abs-TP, Double/Triple Attack, Dual Wield, Martial Arts)

They are plenty of solo content in this game, just not many of them involve leveling. Crafting, HELM, certain quests, camping low level NMs.

[Jotaru]

I've always wanted an Assault area where you can blow a tag for a solo zone packed with mobs that are the equivalent to old-world BST pets. Still pack a punch, but HP more reflective of players. So essentially, once a day a person could get a little private EXP time if they so chose to.

Likewise, I used to always wish they'd add BCNM's where, instead of drops, your rewards were EXP, and the requirements to enter weren't rare drops (maybe even no cost at all, just once a day / three days / week, whatever). Did a ton of the BCNM60's as a nublet, usually with the Quadavs or Orcs, and it was fun to just pit 6 people against 6 mobs, take 15-20 minutes of actual strategy, and feel accomplished with a win.. moreso than grinding the same mob over and over and over. I figured, if they could do that, it'd lessen the cramping of certain zones, make exp perhaps a little more fun, and generally add more variety..

Then they added ENM's, where the EXP bonus is laughable compared to the 3-day wait, normally with hefty requirements (having to lug up that mountain in the Chasm isn't exactly hard, but nobody wants to do it because its a PITA, so, although the option is still there, it doesn't solve problems such as overcrowding because people generally don't want to go up there every 3 days. I donno, I just thought having a variety of fights (perhaps quest style, like Uninvited Guests) would have been nice, 3 day wait would be fine, make the exp-reward a decent xp/hour rate assuming a decent clear time...

If I want to stop to change my laundry in the middle of my exp session, it's No Big Deal.

That was my FAVORITE part of BST levelling. The exp/hour wasn't all that fantastic.. but.. log in, already at camp. Start, IMMEDIATELY, no wait. Killkillkill. Crap, gotta use restroom, /logout for safety, go, take as long as you want, read a magazine, play with the toilet paper. Come back, log in, start immediately. Dinner? Go. Movie? Sure. Just to have a field FULL of mobs JUST for YOU to kill, anytime, under any situation, come and go as you please.. Its hard to explain if you haven't levelled BST (or another job solo) but it was just so badass.

[Viq]

I don't see the point in paying to play online with other people and choose to play solo.

I enjoy teaming up with people to fight HNMs, and do events like Salvage and Dynamis. I don't enjoy exp pts. If the game was more solo-friendly in regards to exp, I would be all for it. As it is, I have one job that I liked enough in pts to get it to 75. The rest of the time I've paid for has been spent doing things with people, just not exp.

[Nirokun!]

i think a lot of people learn to play their job in an exp PT

think back to all the helpful hints you got when you were PTing on how to play your job better (sure, some people were batshit insane asking you do some things.. but still)

i think encouraged solo leveling for group-friendly jobs will take away from their ability to function as a part of a cohesive group (talking about new players, not most of you douchebags)

if you really want to level a job that solos well, level a pet job and enjoy your solo, because thats all you'll get :D

cant get a PT on your war? ok go level smn
cant get a PT on your bard(LOL)? ok go level bst
gf coming home soon but you still want to play a little? entertain yourself with pup
want to dick around and procrastinate for a while? poke things with your pointy stick on drg, then get bored and go back to work

[Sekkite]

I enjoy EXPing to an extent. I find it fun to get all the gear/merits to fully pimp out a new job before levelling it to make the levelling process that much more enjoyable.

[Lordender]

SE should continue to enhance small party/solo play through additional signet buffs. I don't see SE adjusting the level correction but could see them buffing the players even more through signet bonuses.

[FinalJustice]

i think a lot of people learn to play their job in an exp PT

think back to all the helpful hints you got when you were PTing on how to play your job better (sure, some people were batshit insane asking you do some things.. but still)

i think encouraged solo leveling for group-friendly jobs will take away from their ability to function as a part of a cohesive group (talking about new players, not most of you douchebags)

if you really want to level a job that solos well, level a pet job and enjoy your solo, because thats all you'll get :D

cant get a PT on your war? ok go level smn
cant get a PT on your bard(LOL)? ok go level bst
gf coming home soon but you still want to play a little? entertain yourself with pup
want to dick around and procrastinate for a while? poke things with your pointy stick on drg, then get bored and go back to work

Even if it was more solo friendly it would be difficult to worry about people not knowing what to do by 75.

[Luto]

The people not knowing how to play their job at 75 is kind of a bad argument because there's people now that don't know how to play their job(s) at 75. >_>