SSG, the reason why I don't buy IoD or Vecna...

[Hephaestas]

There is literally nothing keeping players from entering a raid aside from owning the content. There is nothing special I have that allows me to run a raid and you not to. Unless of course, having the will to try and be partly social in a massively multiplayer online game is a special trait you don't have.

But claiming you are "barred from entry" of a raid is a completely false statement. Looking at the game's history - crafting systems have almost always been tied heavily to completing the raid of a story arc. And it makes sense if it is completing the story.

You're playing victim but stated in your op that you don't even own the content yet - so you haven't even tried it. I'll at least give you the opportunity to complain when you've given something a try first.

Give yourself some credit and at least try it first. I don't have any sympathy for people who complain about things they haven't tried.

 

[vryxnr]

Ugh, this thing again?

Like it or not, raids are optional content. Please don't remove something optional that many people LOVE because some people (you) don't. That's why it's optional.

And yes, raids and raid gear IS optional. Plenty of people do regular R10 questing without raid gear and are successful. Raid gear is not required, but lots of people love raids and gear tetris-ing in raid gear... but a character with nothing but raid gear would be weaker than one with only a few pieces because set bonuses exist. Raid gear will take the place of one item in a set, but not every item in a set. (exception is LGS, but that system is so outdated and weak that I can not take seriously someone claiming LGS sets are end game anymore except for specific tank builds, and even there going for 5 piece LGS is more detrimental than sticking to 3 pieces and stacking different sets for the rest of your gear slots unless the ONLY stat you're looking at is HP, but being a tank is more than just HP)

I am sorry that you are in a time zone, on a server, or have a reputation, that makes finding groups difficult.

 

[Mordenkainen]

Disagree. Those raids were run constantly and even without the raids, which I personally rarely run , I use a ton of the gear from the quests and more importantly, love playing the quests . Not everything is for everyone.

Skellie secrets raid design is pretty bad though , as many have said .

Don't care.

You deny me access to the best gear which is 90% of why I play... bye bye. I pay the same of not more as a customer, I sync in as much time if not more than any hardcore raider... why should I tolerate this crap?

Not like I'm not being drawn to that Multi-player, noded "MMO" version of BG3 , Larian is throwing around.

 

[Mordenkainen]

There is literally nothing keeping players from entering a raid aside from owning the content. There is nothing special I have that allows me to run a raid and you not to. Unless of course, having the will to try and be partly social in a massively multiplayer online game is a special trait you don't have.

But claiming you are "barred from entry" of a raid is a completely false statement. Looking at the game's history - crafting systems have almost always been tied heavily to completing the raid of a story arc. And it makes sense if it is completing the story.

You're playing victim but stated in your op that you don't even own the content yet - so you haven't even tried it. I'll at least give you the opportunity to complain when you've given something a try first.

Give yourself some credit and at least try it first. I don't have any sympathy for people who complain about things they haven't tried.

I haven't been in a raid in over 2 weeks of constant 4-5 hours a day play.

I don't play on "primetime" and a lot of raids are god awful to fill up or fill up so fast it's gone before you've completed your second click.

YOU ARE WRONG. Or at least don't project your experiences on others.

 

[Smokewolf]

Because it's not playable, in that very few groups are able to effectively run the raid content.

It's that simple. All the gear that I want is gated in the raids, and I just can't find a raid group that's willing to consistently run it every other day.

STOP GATING GEAR BEHIND RAIDS.

STOP IT.

You can make it harder to get said gear through questing perhaps a token system with a lot of grind BUT give players on servers with little raid support or who play when raid groups don't ... A CHANCE.

Else, I'm just not going to buy any of the newer Xpacks because I literally am barred to playing the content. It's that simple.

Your posts offer nothing constructive and often only serve as whiny troll-bait for those easily triggered. Maybe take some personal time out and go rub one out. Would be far more effective than than many of the posts I've seen from you.

 

[vryxnr]

... Or at least don't project your experiences on others.

Please also take your own advice.

Also, everyone claims they spend money, and claim they also spend more than most. That doesn't make you special. Until that spending is in the form of enough stocks to become a substantial shareholder, it's just hot air. I also spend money on this game, probably more than the average player, but I say keep raids and raid gear as it is. Who's opinion is more valid? The one who yells the loudest more often? The one who posts last before a thread gets forgotten or even locked?

I suspect you'll reply often and end up with the last word. This is often the case with threads such as this. People not countering every post is not a sign of you winning, it's more often a sign that others just don't find engaging beyond a post or two worth their time and energy.

 

[axel15810]

Strongly disagree, most people seemed to as well btw when you made this same thread a few months ago (do we really need to repeat this thread?): https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/alternate-to-raiding-is-it-time.7490/

Bottom line - Raid gear isn't needed for even an R10 capable gearset. The solution to your problem is to run the raids shortman, on Normal if needed. Morgrave is especially easy to shortman on Normal. Or just design your gearset without raid gear. Or, make social connections to get more people to schedule raid runs on higher difficulties (discord is great for this, or these forums).

I can understand the frustration of not being able to find raid groups regularly with the game badly needing server merges, and sympathize some in that way, but the solution is not to take away reasons for people to run raids. Raids will always need exclusive loot or there is no compelling reason for them to exist. Raids are my favorite thing to do in DDO by far, and we get so few new raids as it is, so I would be very disappointed if that happened. It would hurt the raid scene a lot. The loot chase is a huge part of the raiding experience, so taking that away would make raids way less compelling.

 

[Mordenkainen]

Please also take your own advice.

Also, everyone claims they spend money, and even more than most. That doesn't make you special. Until that spending is in the form of enough stocks to become a substantial shareholder, it's just hot air. I also spend money on this game, probably more than the average player, but I say keep raids and raid gear as it is. Who's opinion is more valid? The one who yells the loudest more often? The one who posts last before a thread gets forgotten or even locked?

I suspect you'll reply often and end up with the last word. This is often the case with threads such as this. People not countering every post is not a sign of you winning, it's more often a sign that others just don't find engaging beyond a post or two worth their time and energy.

How about a large coterie of players who don't have the latest x-pansions because their guild doesn't run it and/or can't find groups for it.

Rather than grand-standing and proselytizing, how about YOU make a constructive comment.

::: Constructive part incoming:::
I just want to have access to gear within an expansion that's gated behind raids which lacks the people to do during my playtime and server circumstance. That's it. So simple.

Once again, you can make it as difficult and grindy as possible but at least leave the door open. I actually want a lot of that FoM stuff purely for COSMETICS ...

 

[Hephaestas]

Please also take your own advice.

Also, everyone claims they spend money, and claim they also spend more than most. That doesn't make you special. Until that spending is in the form of enough stocks to become a substantial shareholder, it's just hot air. I also spend money on this game, probably more than the average player, but I say keep raids and raid gear as it is. Who's opinion is more valid? The one who yells the loudest more often? The one who posts last before a thread gets forgotten or even locked?

I suspect you'll reply often and end up with the last word. This is often the case with threads such as this. People not countering every post is not a sign of you winning, it's more often a sign that others just don't find engaging beyond a post or two worth their time and energy.

Well spoken, and hit the nail on the head given the OP's track record.

 

[Mordenkainen]

Strongly disagree, most people seemed to as well btw when you made this same thread a few months ago (do we really need to repeat this thread?): https://forums.ddo.com/index.php?threads/alternate-to-raiding-is-it-time.7490/

Bottom line - Raid gear isn't needed for even an R10 capable gearset. The solution to your problem is to run the raids shortman, on Normal if needed. Morgrave is especially easy to shortman on Normal. Or just design your gearset without raid gear. Or, make social connections to get more people to schedule raid runs on higher difficulties (discord is great for this, or these forums).

I can understand the frustration of not being able to find raid groups regularly with the game badly needing server merges, and sympathize some in that way, but the solution is not to take away reasons for people to run raids. Raids will always need exclusive loot or there is no compelling reason for them to exist. Raids are my favorite thing to do in DDO by far, and we get so few new raids as it is, so I would be very disappointed if that happened. It would hurt the raid scene a lot. The loot chase is a huge part of the raiding experience, so taking that away would make raids way less compelling.

Or ... wait for it.

wait...

wait...

Little more...

You can raid for your loot.

And I can quest for my loot.

AND BONUS !

wait for it...

You can get your loot faster.

And I can get the same loot a lot slower.

I'll be OK with this.

But at least the people who can't find groups have a freakin chance !

 

[rabidfox]

Not owning content holds one back, it reduces tetris options. IoD has amazing weapons with great debuffs that can be put together without a setting foot inside the raid (Tonquin put rares in the wilderness that are extra tough that drop the black pearls needed). An IoD artifact with spell crit dam/crit dam/crit dam crafted on it is one of the best items for many casters (especially those that don't do L. Shroud) and again never need to step into a raid. The easy to rig up gear and set bonuses in Vecna are awesome. Many people's high end gearsets tend to be mostly quest gear with maybe a couple pieces of raid gear woven in; often going with too many raid pieces can make one's overall stats lower.

Knowing how to tetris gear well is hard to do in DDO, there's so many things that do/don't stack and various bonuses to try and squeeze in. But if you're not willing to even min/max your quest gear setup under your current "don't raid" conditions, handing you ways to get raid gear isn't going to magically fix things. People put together amazing gearsets on HC that are well thought out. Link your current gearset and people can suggest non-raid gear to upgrade it.

And really, if you really want raid gear and can't get others to go then just build to solo/shortman them; very few raids mechanically require multiple people, they just support up to 12.

 

[DBZ]

Like a single non rune arm option for magma procs

 

[vryxnr]

Everything worth discussing was hashed out in the previous thread with the biased/disingenuous poll attached to it here

At this point we're just repeating the same arguments and points, or seeing who can be the loudest. I disagree with the OP, but it's no longer worth my time and energy. I was involved in the previous thread on this same topic, and my position has not changed.

 

[Lori]

Ah come on.
Raids are when a larger group of people meet to have some fun.
You don't like larger groups, don't join a raid.
As far as I'm concerned OP is just trolling

 

[Phoenicis]

You want the best gear in the game? Raid. You want the cosmetic of the best gear in the game? Yeah, still raid.

I want that double sickle staff so bad I can taste it. If I get that, I will never make anything ever again but stick builds. (probably not, but I will make alot more stick builds) it's in a raid that I routinely try to shortman on normal with my wife whenever we are at cap. We keep failing. We'll get there eventually.

Do I want to be able to get that gear buy doing not raids? Nope.

Getting that staff is an achievement I want to earn, not have handed to me cause I just ground out alot of quests.

 

[Lacci]

Don't care.

You deny me access to the best gear which is 90% of why I play... bye bye.

No one is denying you anything. You just don´t want to. There´s a difference.

 

[Scrag]

Cosmetics are one thing. There arent enough cosmetics that don't suck that don't involve glamoring something that you might not even like.

This whole raid is the only gear that makes playing worthwhile is garbage. As others have pointed out, while it might make some difference, it isn't everything it is cracked up to be.

What has a more outsized effect is the silliness that is gear tetris. Packing say 6 or 7 significant set bonuses in a tiny selection of gear is crazy. I may, cough, be guilty of this now... Packing 4 independent gear sets, 1 three piece, 2 two piece, 1 5 piece. ToEE is amazing for a whole lot of power in a tiny tiny package.

 

[DBZ]

A reason to run feywilds again i would run them for the feytwisted chest if the magma procs worked on the axes

The rapier does work so no reason why it should not

 

[Mordenkainen]

No one is denying you anything. You just don´t want to. There´s a difference.

If I can snap my fingers and conjure up a raid group. I would do so

every

single

night

for

multiple

runs

using a raid reset. It's not ai don't want to, it's there's noone to do this with.

I canmy resched my entire life atound raiding.

I'm sorry guys this just isn't 2005 anymore.

 

[festasha]

Because it's not playable, in that very few groups are able to effectively run the raid content.

It's that simple. All the gear that I want is gated in the raids, and I just can't find a raid group that's willing to consistently run it every other day.

STOP GATING GEAR BEHIND RAIDS.

STOP IT.

You can make it harder to get said gear through questing perhaps a token system with a lot of grind BUT give players on servers with little raid support or who play when raid groups don't ... A CHANCE.

Else, I'm just not going to buy any of the newer Xpacks because I literally am barred to playing the content. It's that simple.

I like to recommend to all newbies a place called the https://ddowiki.com/ .
There you will find item sets and equipment that will help you make your character stronger, it will probably take you a while to work out what you need but raid gear is not required. Good luck!
BTW shouting on the forums to get what you want and repeating the same threads over and over is not cool, take on some of the free advice given.