Dark Devices - Exploitation

[SirMilton]

Completing fates in the normal and intended manner still nets very fast experience points gains. It's many times faster than 1.0 experience points parties were. There is no reason to farm Dark Designs like this. Exploiting Dark Designs can grant between 100 and 150 thousand experience points within a 15 minute timeframe. It is effectively ruining the game. Not so much by allowing some players (the ones who farm parties, monopolize the mobs as they spawn, and rabidly, hatefully shout down anyone who tries to complete the FATE normally) to level much faster than others, which it does, but by creating contention and drama amongst the playerbase.

[Artamie]

I'm not sure how game-breaking this exploit is but I would say use at your own risk. It can go in either direction either in the way of dev's eventually giving this the okay or treated like the heal/enhancing exploit. I remember in 1.0 healing and enhancing people use to give exp so people exploited this by creating healing parties that did nothing but cast party spells and capped out momentarily after release. Last I heard some of the offenders of the latter were perma-banned if they didn't step forward and admit to doing it. So yeah, be careful!

[CrimsonJenn]

@ Unaki - Well that was a tad harsh, however i do agree to an extent there are plenty of alternatives to leveling than fate exploitation. For one you could you know... play with some friends be they lower level or what as long as whatever your leveling is under your main classes level you get a bonus which is great!

[HotCell43]

Can anyone tell me how to get a high Chain bonus with a BLM? Always failing to get high chains when doing this Dark Device exploit.

[cainejw]

I've yet to see a realistic argument as to why or how this hurts other people.

Everyone will get to cap eventually. That's a moot argument. Also, you do not "learn your class" any more by playing lower levels. This is just an attempt to insult people who did things differently.

So the argument is soulbinding equipment? This argument dictates that soulbinding requires you to finish every FATE immediately but ONLY in this zone? That argument is tenuous at best. So now we're left with users deciding what is or is not an exploit. Unfortunately, that's not your place in this game. Your place is player. Your role is player. It is not GM or developer, so you do not get to decide this.

That leaves, "I don't like it when they do this!" Well, uh, sorry you don't like something?

[CrimsonJenn]

Now, that arguement might have some merit if people weren't intentionally going against the objective of the FATE. It's fine to do things different however it becomes an exploit when your abusing a mechanic for an effortless benefit. Sitting in one spot and aoeing without caring for the objective is clearly abusing the mechanic intended to add a dramatic flare to the event. And guess what? The developers themselves have called it an exploit... so yeah it's an exploit recognized by the development team.

[cainejw]

Please provide an exact location where a developer called it an exploit. An extraordinary claim requires proof.

[Tuskai]

you do not "learn your class" any more by playing lower levels. This is just an attempt to insult people who did things differently.

And yet why do I see Paladins consistently opening pulls with Provoke instead of Shield Lob, level 40 white quality spears in Garuda Hard Mode even though its the biggest damage race boss in the game and watching an entire party wipe because a Paladin missed a stun on Ifrit's eruption and the rest of the party just didn't feel like dodging the second and third explosions even though they're incredibly slow?

[ElHeggunte]

And yet why do I see Paladins... *snip for length*

Bad players will be bad. You could double the amount of time it takes to reach level cap and they still wouldn't learn, largely because there's no real penalty for repeated failure besides lost time and a huge repair bill. Even with harsher penalties they would still reach level cap eventually without really knowing how to play. By the time people start to "exploit" Dark Devices they've had well over 45 levels to learn their class and basic fight mechanics, if they haven't learned the basics by then they probably never will. There are players like that in every game: you have doers, you have learners, and then you have the type of player who just doesn't give a fuck.

If there were a more efficient way to bridge that quest-less gap between 46 and 49 people would feel less obligated to spam FATEs in the first place so that's on SE for the inconsistent progression design.

[Themis]

Bad players will be bad. You could double the amount of time it takes to reach level cap and they still wouldn't learn, largely because there's no real penalty for repeated failure besides lost time and a huge repair bill.

Sadly, this is usually the truth of it.

As for the design, it seems like the development aren't too bothered by this currently. But that is currently, and I expect many of these "exploits" are fixed up later on. It makes sense from a business PoV to let people level up to 50 as fast as they can. The more people getting to endgame (and not leaving because they are bored of levelling - which happens incredibly quickly these days it seems), the more likely they are to remain subbed; more income means the game can have a successful first few months.

People are having fun/enjoy the speed of progression. Happy customers are paying/staying customers. No developer likes players abusing/exploiting game mechanics, but a developer has a boss and a company to answer to.

Eventually things will even out and things like this will be sorted out as soon as. And then the rest of us paying customers (like those of us who like dungeons and don't want to rush through everything) can hope to see a fairer balance.