10-14-2013, 02:54 PM
I am frustrated with the currency / Items portion of the game.
The gameplay, is great, I love it, and for the most part, at this point, I feel like the game is balanced enough that I can play what I want, with a decent enough build, and not feel frustrated.
But. I'm not sure if I'm going to be dropping more money on the game. I still play, I still enjoy the game (outside of the Vaal Fight), but I just can't stand the way that drops, loot, orbs, "crafting", etc... are handled.
I shouldn't be able to kill a Rare monster in a level 63 area, and get a pair of WOOL GLOVES. That is just completely unacceptable.
If it's not a scroll, Orb of Transmutation, Orb of Augmentation, Orb of Alteration, Chromatic Orb, it's a damn rare sight to see it drop.
The Current "Slot Machine" Crafting system is incredibly frustrating. I have an ilvl75 Vaal Regalia sitting in the bank. It's taken me 150 Jewelers + X4 Scraps to finally get it to 6s. I'm through 200 Fusings, + X4 Scraps, and I've not seen a 5L. And that's just the part of getting it to the sockets that I want. God, I could have sucked it up and traded for something by now that would have been better.
And that isn't even after I Trans / Aug / Alt / Regal / Ex / Chaos / Divine it to get what I'm looking for.
The current crafting system IS NOT CRAFTING. At least, not in the sense of any game with crafting that I've ever played. The only thing that this game has that is "crafting" by any sense of the word, is when you are trading things to a vendor, when you know the recipe. Past that, it's a gamble, and one that I've failed far too many times, far too terribly. I still want to find an exalt to give back to MonTy to replace the one he spotted me for that GOD AWFUL TROLL ROLL THORNS on my current Vaal Regalia.
Trading is a lost cause. I'm done trying really. I'm treating the game as a single player, that I can chat with people on anymore. I've turned off general, and trade, and if people want to talk with me, they can PM me. I can go from having a fantastic experience (random templar in general handed me a fantastic 5L 2h'd mace and a portal gem, simply for talking to him, and not being an utter tool, to asking for 4 Chaos Orbs for a Damn Fine Necklace, only to get flamed into oblivion, because the guy thought I was trying to rip him off.
He asked how much.
I said I wasn't really good at pricing things, but I thought the neck was worth 4 Chaos.
Insert 5 minutes of screaming, and ranting and raving.
Goodbye general, Goodbye Trade, Goodbye sir, that I've now blocked.
While I understand why people don't like the idea of an AH in this game, something needs to be done to improve the ability to improve gear in game. Trading sucks. Unless you are sitting in town, NOT DOING ANYTHING ELSE Trade chat is just awful to try and watch. Drops are so random, that it's unbelievable, blind luck when you actually have something drop that is usable for a high level character.
Couple the low drop rates of "usable" gear, with the slot machine, and the "solution" to unusable gear while crafting being more expensive than 2 exalts, and it's not surprising.
Now, I can't comment on the map problems that you are having MonTy, as the highest level Map that I've run was a level 70 map. I've honestly not found mapping to be a huge problem yet, but then, I'm not at a point where I would be running the high level maps yet. But, I would assume that you have the same problem with maps at higher levels, as gear. Not only do you need them to drop, but then, because you are in a high level zone, you have to contend with maps dropping at any level from 66 - current level, that you have the slot machine of loot happening all over again.
I'm unsure how I would even go about reconciling my problem in a fashion that would "work" for the playerbase as a whole. Most people who play PoE are so adamantly anti-Diablo anything, they would revolt at the mere mention of my solution.
1.) Cap the "bottom" levels that can drop from mobs.
If you cap the "top level" of items that can drop,
and you cap the level at which someone can get XP from a mob (with deterioration)
Why not just finish it off, and cap the bottom ilvl that can drop as well.
2.) bias drops towards the class. Even, if it's only biased at a magic / rare level, and leave white drops to be random.
Playing my marauder, and seeing an ilvl 68 rare Wand drop as my reward for killing a map boss (Rhoa in the River Bed), is just irritating.
3.) Improve the drops from the random exiles.
Seriously. They shouldn't be dropping terrible loot. They made their presence more "rare" than they were before. They shouldn't be dropping a ton of white crap, and a few blues. Especially not in a Merciless / Map zone.
4.) Improve the Socket / Linking / Coloring process on items.
5.) Improve the randomness of rolling. Nothing like rolling light radius, block and stun recovery, and LGOH on a piece of gear that I just spent a ton of time getting ready.
The gameplay, is great, I love it, and for the most part, at this point, I feel like the game is balanced enough that I can play what I want, with a decent enough build, and not feel frustrated.
But. I'm not sure if I'm going to be dropping more money on the game. I still play, I still enjoy the game (outside of the Vaal Fight), but I just can't stand the way that drops, loot, orbs, "crafting", etc... are handled.
I shouldn't be able to kill a Rare monster in a level 63 area, and get a pair of WOOL GLOVES. That is just completely unacceptable.
If it's not a scroll, Orb of Transmutation, Orb of Augmentation, Orb of Alteration, Chromatic Orb, it's a damn rare sight to see it drop.
The Current "Slot Machine" Crafting system is incredibly frustrating. I have an ilvl75 Vaal Regalia sitting in the bank. It's taken me 150 Jewelers + X4 Scraps to finally get it to 6s. I'm through 200 Fusings, + X4 Scraps, and I've not seen a 5L. And that's just the part of getting it to the sockets that I want. God, I could have sucked it up and traded for something by now that would have been better.
And that isn't even after I Trans / Aug / Alt / Regal / Ex / Chaos / Divine it to get what I'm looking for.
The current crafting system IS NOT CRAFTING. At least, not in the sense of any game with crafting that I've ever played. The only thing that this game has that is "crafting" by any sense of the word, is when you are trading things to a vendor, when you know the recipe. Past that, it's a gamble, and one that I've failed far too many times, far too terribly. I still want to find an exalt to give back to MonTy to replace the one he spotted me for that GOD AWFUL TROLL ROLL THORNS on my current Vaal Regalia.
Trading is a lost cause. I'm done trying really. I'm treating the game as a single player, that I can chat with people on anymore. I've turned off general, and trade, and if people want to talk with me, they can PM me. I can go from having a fantastic experience (random templar in general handed me a fantastic 5L 2h'd mace and a portal gem, simply for talking to him, and not being an utter tool, to asking for 4 Chaos Orbs for a Damn Fine Necklace, only to get flamed into oblivion, because the guy thought I was trying to rip him off.
He asked how much.
I said I wasn't really good at pricing things, but I thought the neck was worth 4 Chaos.
Insert 5 minutes of screaming, and ranting and raving.
Goodbye general, Goodbye Trade, Goodbye sir, that I've now blocked.
While I understand why people don't like the idea of an AH in this game, something needs to be done to improve the ability to improve gear in game. Trading sucks. Unless you are sitting in town, NOT DOING ANYTHING ELSE Trade chat is just awful to try and watch. Drops are so random, that it's unbelievable, blind luck when you actually have something drop that is usable for a high level character.
Couple the low drop rates of "usable" gear, with the slot machine, and the "solution" to unusable gear while crafting being more expensive than 2 exalts, and it's not surprising.
Now, I can't comment on the map problems that you are having MonTy, as the highest level Map that I've run was a level 70 map. I've honestly not found mapping to be a huge problem yet, but then, I'm not at a point where I would be running the high level maps yet. But, I would assume that you have the same problem with maps at higher levels, as gear. Not only do you need them to drop, but then, because you are in a high level zone, you have to contend with maps dropping at any level from 66 - current level, that you have the slot machine of loot happening all over again.
I'm unsure how I would even go about reconciling my problem in a fashion that would "work" for the playerbase as a whole. Most people who play PoE are so adamantly anti-Diablo anything, they would revolt at the mere mention of my solution.
1.) Cap the "bottom" levels that can drop from mobs.
If you cap the "top level" of items that can drop,
and you cap the level at which someone can get XP from a mob (with deterioration)
Why not just finish it off, and cap the bottom ilvl that can drop as well.
2.) bias drops towards the class. Even, if it's only biased at a magic / rare level, and leave white drops to be random.
Playing my marauder, and seeing an ilvl 68 rare Wand drop as my reward for killing a map boss (Rhoa in the River Bed), is just irritating.
3.) Improve the drops from the random exiles.
Seriously. They shouldn't be dropping terrible loot. They made their presence more "rare" than they were before. They shouldn't be dropping a ton of white crap, and a few blues. Especially not in a Merciless / Map zone.
4.) Improve the Socket / Linking / Coloring process on items.
5.) Improve the randomness of rolling. Nothing like rolling light radius, block and stun recovery, and LGOH on a piece of gear that I just spent a ton of time getting ready.
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