Hardcore Season 10 Suggestion

[Aelonwy]

i also want to encourage more grouping and working together but i feel the only way we can do that is to actually make hardcore enough of a challenge where we need each other unfortunately most of the hardcore seasons are pretty much able to be a solo snooze.

The problem is that there are some players with such skill and game knowledge that you almost can't challenge them in any meaningful way and there are simultaneously players like me somewhere in the middle with decent game knowledge but with poor gaming skills and such bad timing (let's not talk about it) and then players like my hubby that can time anything, laughing at the AI but an awful memory for where traps are located or what door to open, or what vulnerabilities mobs have... and everything in-between those extremes.

How do you challenge the best of the best players and still leave the door open for the inexpert players? Because make no mistake SSG wants to profit from both and anything that closes the door on profits from one group (arguably the larger group) is going to be examined carefully. Look at how Hardcore was once VIP only thus preventing a vast number of players from participating (and spending) in it. No longer.

Whatever flavor of challenge you ultimately desire it will need to leave the door open for some level of participation and spending from the less skilled players.

 

[haagmaar123]

The problem is that there are some players with such skill and game knowledge that you almost can't challenge them in any meaningful way and there are simultaneously players like me somewhere in the middle with decent game knowledge but with poor gaming skills and such bad timing (let's not talk about it) and then players like my hubby that can time anything, laughing at the AI but an awful memory for where traps are located or what door to open, or what vulnerabilities mobs have... and everything in-between those extremes.

How do you challenge the best of the best players and still leave the door open for the inexpert players? Because make no mistake SSG wants to profit from both and anything that closes the door on profits from one group (arguably the larger group) is going to be examined carefully. Look at how Hardcore was once VIP only thus preventing a vast number of players from participating (and spending) in it. No longer.

Whatever flavor of challenge you ultimately desire it will need to leave the door open for some level of participation and spending from the less skilled players.

wouldnt what you just said encourage more grouping the need to help lesser players and the general population. i mean theres always the elite player that can solo pretty much no matter what so they wont be affected but if we can make enough challenge to encourage the middle ground to all need to work together i think that would be a step in the right direction. Also this is hardcore we are talking about so people should be going into it knowing its not the same as a normal server.

 

[Justfungus]

Want a twist, turn all outdoor explore areas into public areas that allow PvP during the night cycle.

 

[Lag4Ever]

Some way to decimate the toon post-HC into an xp stone

I think this is a very interesting concept - what if it were combined with a requirement (or you get a bonus multiplier to the XP stone) to be on the Favor or Reaper leaderboard at the end of the season? Would provide a further incentive for players to push their comfort zone and keep active in HCL until the end of the season. Could also result in some adverse player incentives however.

 

[Justfungus]

OK, a serious suggestion HCL 10 Strahd's Revenge
The twist is in the public areas instead of the dungeons.
Stormreach 'the city, the houses and the areas just outside the city' have been engulfed by the mists of Ravenloft.
The mood and lighten has changed to match that of Ravenloft.
All public quest givers that were outside have moved to inside the Inns for safety. (You need to see them in the Inns for quests)
Undead in dungeons during the event are resistant to turn attempts.
Public areas spawn 'level appropriate' Ravenloft creatures. Combat settings in public areas now match normal explore outdoor areas.
Prizes are Ravenloft Themed
... might want to keep that horse handy.

 

[CBDunk]

Some way to decimate the toon post-HC into an xp stone

Yes, I'd really like to see something like this as a way to encourage more people to participate in hardcore.

I have very little interest in cosmetic rewards (and nowhere to put them) and thus ignored Hardcore for a long time. I only started doing it because my guildmates wanted to try it out. As a result, I discovered that there ARE some benefits you can take back to the regular server (e.g. various once per server awards), but those still wouldn't be enough to get me to switch and 'lose the time' on my main character.

If, on the other hand, I could transfer XP or otherwise improve my main character as a result of what I did on hardcore then it would be a fun event with less or no 'lost time'.

The exact details could be very flexible. Maybe just an XP (and/or reaper XP) stone. Maybe you can 'reincarnate' the HC character and apply the past life feat to a different character. Maybe you reincarnate and all of your gear goes into the cache of another character (allowing BtC items to be transferred from the character being deleted). Maybe some combination of the above... or something else entirely. Just actual tangible benefits that apply to 'the main game' rather than HC being a separate deal with mostly just cosmetic rewards transferring over.

 

[Milburnion Du'urdie]

I like whatever encourages us to participate as friends and discourages us from participating as rivals - we can see, very clearly, from the leaderboards, who among us are the best players - you guys are truly amazing at this game -as someone who's played since beta and knows it well, I am in awe. I learn something new every season. And all of the leaderboard folks are very nice and friendly people too - I rather think encouraging that friendship fits our small community better. The scavenger hunt was a great twist to encourage players to work together. What I see running a very large guild is hundreds of players who love DDO and they speak of how they wish they had more time to play. Many are older with jobs and families, Many only play a few times a week. Whatever it is we want to keep DDO feeling like every player can be part of the experience, even if they are not able to play every day.

Although i made it into the top 10 it wasn't because i was an amazing player it was because of the amazing support of the parties i ran with and the amazing guild you run/ran Mary with little credit or thanks. It is deeply appreciated.