The Reaper XP problem

[Kintaya]

well, if reaper XP was account wide, I'd have done that years ago. I sighted my experience as an example, but I am Not interested in playing catch up.

My old pnp buddies have been playing again and I have been acclimating them to low skulls because elite is way too easy, and elite is near pointless at cap. We're just old dice tossers that have zero interest in maxing out difficulty.

I know these reaper threads are always like ''r10 on a 1st life is easy, come on in the water is fine'' ...but people are super deluded about what is FUN to others. Copy pasting top builds just to join in high skulls is not fun, its MMO Plagiarism; and farming that complete of a gear set in DDO without a group pretty much sucks.

I'm glad for others that have gotten there, but I am going to continue to just help my friends as well as the newbs I run into on my server that seem to have slipped through the cracks>Until DDO comes up with a better way to manipulate this system for the player base.

Account Wide reaper points is probably the solution/but, whatever ....that idea is old and the DDO story is past that point.

Oh I'm not saying you should just rush into R10s or anything. In my earlier post here I did say "play at your own pace". My point is more if you can reasonably contribute in R10s with a 1st life toon - you can contribute on any life amount toon on any difficulty. Just that the higher you go - the more thought and effort you gotta put into it.
If your goal is to just run low reapers like R1-R3 - it's a very much doable starting point. Especially since you have friends to run with. In fact R3-R4 is probably the goldilocks zone of reaper. You're not dining on scraps like in R1, but also not breaking your back like in R10.
Get a tank, a healer, some dps and CC - you guys will be golden.

 

[Reaped and Ravaged]

Reaper is still easier than the old Epic back in the day when no one had good slas with free metas. 1st lifers can certainly play in R!0 and even kill Doom Reapers but you definitely need someone to take aggro and not get squashed. R4s with no one who can take aggro are much harder.

 

[Col Kurtz]

lmao...i said 2x that I am not interested in playing catch up
(i left shortly after reaper came out and was gone 5 yrs, thats on me)

But yea,I was sighting an examples of what more casual players think about with all the different difficulties. Heck like others said, some players are happy just running on Hard. The good ideas ya'll posted in response, I already know about> it's the general population that does not use the forum that need those tips

Forum feels like a group of professors analyzing each other. Most students dont even come to their classes in DDO

 

[Kintaya]

That's kinda the problem with all these forum posts... they're all written in the same vein: "I don't have reaper points, i don't wanna earn them. But others shouldn't have any benefits from pushing themselves an earning rxp in R10s".
And then we have to wait until deep epics to actually get the full benefits of the reaper points that we can spend. Even though we grinded our asses off in R10s, farming them. It's almost like getting a lvl 20 weapon, which you can equip at 20. But the debuff that the weapon can apply to mobs will only start working at lvl 25.

Earning RXP should NOT be easier for returning vets or new players. They just need to want to get them. No pain - no gain. We all once had 0 past lives and 0 reaper points.
While I do want to see more people with reaper points, I don't want my own effort to be just thrown out into the dumpster. The game should be easy to learn, not easy to master.

 

[Col Kurtz]

That's kinda the problem with all these forum posts... they're all written in the same vein: "I don't have reaper points, i don't wanna earn them. But others shouldn't have any benefits from pushing themselves an earning rxp in R10s".

I dont think you read this thread. No one wants to take away your Reaper Tricycle. I dont believe anyone said they DON'T want to earn RXP? Some people just want to enjoy the game at a less chaotic pace.

asks >How was that reaper hot fudge sunday? usual answer> I ate it so fast I didn't taste it, but I feel I should tell you to eat your faster.

I'm happy for players who ''did it'', but don't hate on people who want to eat theirs slow.

 

[Reaped and Ravaged]

Earning RXP should NOT be easier for returning vets or new players.

Which was accomplished by changing Amber Temple. Why such an investment in demotivating other players? Does it make the grind more fun after the fact? They need better choices in the Store so people with different schedules/availability can feel like they aren't being left out.

For people that TR as soon as they can would 1st Time Reaper bonus being reset every Monday for everyone else be a game breaker? Or Modern

 

[Silverfox]

Which was accomplished by changing Amber Temple. Why such an investment in demotivating other players? Does it make the grind more fun after the fact? They need better choices in the Store so people with different schedules/availability can feel like they aren't being left out.

For people that TR as soon as they can would 1st Time Reaper bonus being reset every Monday be a game breaker? Or Modern

Ravenloft was released in 2017 over 6 years ago. I shudder to think how many more cap quests have been released to gain rxp in.

I managed to run off all of my racial past lives while a few guild mates farmed Amber Temple til their eyes bled. I got the same amount of reaper points as they did and also all of my racial past lives done. Who won that race?

There are over 150+ legendary quests to gain double rxp. Last time I stayed at cap I pulled almost 2 million rxp in a few months.

Since a reincarnation can be done every 3 days any player an actually reset the first time bonus twice a week why just limit it to Mondays

 

[Reaped and Ravaged]

Since a reincarnation can be done every 3 days any player an actually reset the first time bonus twice a week why just limit it to Mondays

That's the point, have a viable option for different kinds of players. Does your preferred method of resetting RXP guarantee the same amount of Favor on Monday?

 

[Silverfox]

That's the point, have a viable option for different kinds of players. Does your preferred method of resetting RXP guarantee the same mount of Favor on Monday?

Favor? who needs Favor???? I run to 20 by running 100 quests or less. Then at 20 I start running 30+ content and hit them all once and and on my way back around in 3 to 5 days depending on my schedule. Why waste time with levels 20-29 content it does not award double rxp?

Having played since 2007? 2008? the game has gotten nothing but easier and easier, better builds available, +1 and +2 tomes apply at level 1, free racial past life stat skill and racial action points at level 1, tons and tons more xp available, augments galore, no re farming tomes that disappear on reincarnation, better bta stat boosting gear than was available at level 20, heroic completionist feat free at level 3 now, can the game get any easier?

Running anything but raids on R10 is not a challenge I have been doing it since i had 30+ reaper points with two other players and 3 puggers. We didn't wait to fill we didn't need them they just came along for the ride. I played with a first life wizard that had 75+ reaper points because they made sure to run the first time bonus on the highest reaper setting they could and then would just rinse and repeat as time allowed.

Sure put a pot in the store that will reset one quest for first time bonus? hmm what are you willing to pay for that. I can think of a few quests I would be happy to pop those for and just farm them til my eyes bled? I think not.............

Amber Temple all over again especially if SSG reset the first time bonus every Monday. Like opening the front door to your house when it's 40 below zero dollars just flying out into space. Why would anyone buy pots? Just skip to your next capped character and farm them up some nice fat double rxp and then move the next rinse and repeat each week.

I would go far as to ask SSG to build an enhancement tree that allow players to spend past life points so that players have to make choices to spend those points in a tree so that it isn't just and across the board benefit from running of past lives.

I have no less than 8 heroic completionist characters with some epic past lives & racial past lives, one that is nearly tripled out on everything including rxp, all of those 8 characters have well over 75 reaper points and my alts aka bank toons have 25 - 35 on many of them. Nope didn't use any points on the 8 other characters unless I looted them or rolled them.

Past lives, racial action points, reaper points, quest knowledge are the only things at this point that don't depreciate over time in this game.

Reaper Points are already on the chopping block for changes at some point.

Gear, builds, enhancement trees, classes, races, epic destinies, feats, crafting, and other things are always in flux why chase that which is only going to change with the next update.

I think what most players do is handicap themselves into thinking that DDO is difficult the only difficulty in DDO is what a player puts in front of themselves to handicap themselves.

I did most of my main lives with a TR partner we never waited we didn't need anyone we posted and started I went right they went left we necessary to complete the quest in less time.

 

[Reaped and Ravaged]

Favor? who needs Favor????

I dunno, maybe people who want to be able to pull Cleansing cards?

Having to stuff zombie bits into holes to lead a Rat to get here again is not an appealing option

 

[Silverfox]

I dunno, maybe people who want to be able to pull Cleansing cards?

Farming gear, consumables, and stuff like that is what alts are for I have more than enough level 32 characters to never worry about needing stuff like that.

I'm not sure why anyone would be crafting with that crafting system knowing knowing knowing that level 40 is where cap will sit for awhile in a few years. placing those bonuses on any gear to is just for leveling gear and leveling is easy.

 

[Reaped and Ravaged]

Different kinds of players would buy RXP pots, especially clickie ones if they were guaranteed to be a Solid Value. More Often

Besides removing Curses, those cards are currently good for buying Guild Ships

 

[Jack Jarvis Esquire]

I get nobody likes to be carried, but for me, that was the price I paid to learn from great players in R10s.

Sometimes being humbled is necessary to progress.

It's not uncommon to see someone struggling from time to time when new. They are as tolerated and encouraged as I was. Certainly from my perspective I know I was there once, and that one day they will end up carrying others if they stick at it.

 

[Br4d]

Meh—it's becoming more and more common because people are bored in elite. if you're not, there's no reason to run reaper—elite's probably more efficient anyway.

The XP differential is certainly more than enough incentive to run R1. The idea that we would give up that percentage to play a difficulty that is similar in difficulty level is silly.

It would be a bold move by SSG to cancel all XP differentials in the game. Very new player friendly and people for the most part would play the difficulty they are comfortable at.

I'd *still* play R1 because it is easier for the builds that I play than Elite but it would be a beginning towards a more equitable and fun environment for the player base.

Just think about it: XP = power creep over time and you get more of it by playing difficulties that are supposed to be difficult. The only people they are difficult for are casual, newer players and we wonder why it is so hard to retain newer players...

 

[Br4d]

Self-limiting beliefs are tragic.

It's about efficiency.

Assuming I am interested in grinding regular XP (check) and not interested in grinding reaper XP (check) then R1 is the sweet spot. It's even slightly challenging at times, mostly when a champ with armor piercing or fort bypass is in a pack with other mobs and hard to pick out until it's gotten a swing or two in.

The primary disconnect in the social experience of the game right now is that vet players tend to be interested in something (Reaper XP) that most non-dedicated players just don't want if the cost is any additional time to level.

The fact that grinding in Reaper just empowers more grinding in Reaper at a faster pace makes the trap apparent if you understand how these things work.

 

[Ying]

The primary disconnect in the social experience of the game right now is that vet players tend to be interested in something (Reaper XP) that most non-dedicated players just don't want if the cost is any additional time to level.

I don't know what you mean by "non-dedicated players".

I agree leveling is about efficiency, which is why speedrunning R1 is the norm for players who are eternally on the TReadmill.

 

[Tosicamir]

As a new player who enjoys reading on the forums, I feel really bad when I see all the talk about Reaper difficulty, RXP, and all of that. I wouldn't even give it a second glance if it weren't for the character XP boost the difficulty gives. Even that seems like a miniscule difference, honestly.

If I ever wanted to randomly group, I'm basically SOL, as LFMs are almost exclusively either R1 speedruns, or R7-10 difficulty spikes that aren't new player friendly.

This isn't even touching on gear farming, if and when a new player even becomes interested in such things.

I've seen discussion on a rework of Reaper buffs that would focus less on individual power and more on power that is shared with other party members. Not sure exactly where or by whom, but I feel that would be a big way to bridge the gap for Reaper difficulty between new players and vets.

I don't want Reaper to go away or just be easier. I would, however, like for there to be a way to encourage grouping that doesn't feel punitive towards either side of the Reaper power spectrum. I don't want to feel carried any more than a player would want to feel like they are carrying units of dead weight around.

 

[Ying]

This isn't even touching on gear farming, if and when a new player even becomes interested in such things.

You can gear farm effectively on elite. I see plenty of LFMs on legendary elite like "Free XP, farming glove please pass if they drop". So make your own if you're farming a particular item. Or join a guild to find people. Gear farming is something that happens all the time since people switch up builds, or new content introduces new items.

 

[Br4d]

I don't know what you mean by "non-dedicated players".

I agree leveling is about efficiency, which is why speedrunning R1 is the norm for players who are eternally on the TReadmill.

I'm not sure exactly where the dividing line between dedicated and non-dedicated player is. There was a time when I would have called myself dedicated at 2+ hours a day maybe 5 days a week. I went out of my way to avoid R1 runs at that point because I wanted to get the most out of my time and R1 was still iffy at times solo. The occasional death in an unrecoverable position meant Elite/EE were better bets since I never died in those difficulties.

Fast forward 6 years or so and I'm playing maybe twice a week with sessions more like 3-4 hours a go. I run everything on R1 except for the occasional solo raid. I die to nothing at R1 and it is just a much better option for heroic, epic and legendary leveling.

Note that I have been playing DDO since release and I have a main character with 30+ lives and I have zero interest in playing into the Reaper system. I'm playing R1 because SSG made that the meta when they attached regular XP boosts to it. I'm slowly gaining reaper points with no interest in that process and definitely no attempt to grind the process. I allocate the reaper points as they become available because predictability of grind is the most important factor to me.

All of this is to say that I am likely not a dedicated DDO player at this point and I find my play time and spending falling off over time as the futility of the grind becomes apparent.

 

[DBZ]

RNG grinds are the worst rxp is nothing in terms of scale massive but it has an end and alot less tedious then racials