Losing faith in the community...

Alright... I'm fed up with how the community is handling organization and content in this game. So many people are using free companies as over-glorified linkshells, centered around friends and not content. I see too many small FCs not running content together, and getting upset if a friend leaves to join a functional FC. That's what a LS is for! Be social in a LS, be productive in a FC! We wouldn't need all these shout parties or have so many people complaining about Duty Finder parties if people would form functional, organized FCs. I'm trying to run one on Excalibur, but keep losing people to "friend FCs"... not because people are unhappy, but because their friends are mad at them.

Seriously... learn how to use the tools SE gave us. People are making this game much harder and more annoying than it needs to be. :mad:

I completely disagree... there's nothing more rewarding than having a social aspect as a part of your endgame experience. If you all hate each other what's the point? Sure you get things done but a lot of people are probably leaving because they aren't having fun while winning.

People are always gonna do what they wanna do - that's not likely to change, no matter if it is ill fitting to the environment in which they do so...
So no, I don't think people are gonna stop doing this anytime soon - and it's entirely in their rights to play how they feel works for them!

Sometimes instead of blaming the community as a whole, you need to just step back, and look for a group who is more like-minded. That or adapt.

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Originally Posted by Kyriea

I completely disagree... there's nothing more rewarding than having a social aspect as a part of your endgame experience. If you all hate each other what's the point? Sure you get things done but a lot of people are probably leaving because they aren't having fun while winning.

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I'm not saying your FC should hate each other. My FC is a subset of my LS. All FC members belong to the LS, as well as others that are not in the FC. We get along fine. However, we're competing with 3-4 member FCs that won't merge and pull some of our best members away because they're real-life friends. These members still expect to run with us, but it undermines the functionality of the FC.

If you want the social aspect, use a LS. For content, use FCs. If you want both closely tied together, do what I described above.

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Originally Posted by Kuari

Sometimes instead of blaming the community as a whole, you need to just step back, and look for a group who is more like-minded. That or adapt.

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Adapting means playing the shout party and Duty Finder game. I'm doing it, and it's ruining the game for me. Meanwhile, one functional static in our FC is shooting ahead and leaving the rest of us behind. Progress comes down to luck, not skill like it does in organized teams.

As I said, it undermines the purpose of a FC and puts many people at a disadvantage for endgame content. What are we going to do when there's 24-man content? Shout parties? If you think it's hard getting 8 reliable people for 8-man content, just imagine 24-man. No thanks.

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Originally Posted by VisionHolder

Alright... I'm fed up with how the community is handling organization and content in this game. So many people are using free companies as over-glorified linkshells, centered around friends and not content. I see too many small FCs not running content together, and getting upset if a friend leaves to join a functional FC. That's what a LS is for! Be social in a LS, be productive in a FC! We wouldn't need all these shout parties or have so many people complaining about Duty Finder parties if people would form functional, organized FCs. I'm trying to run one on Excalibur, but keep losing people to "friend FCs"... not because people are unhappy, but because their friends are mad at them.

Seriously... learn how to use the tools SE gave us. People are making this game much harder and more annoying than it needs to be. :mad:

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All the rage, all the tears. Get over it.

Vision,

The problem is the FC you are in, not the community. You have to find an FC that you enjoy and Honestly that will take some work on your part. For example the FC I am running I have yet to Pug any content. Now with that said I have maybe done 16 to 17 instances runs. Members of my FC have done double that and several of that have had to pug some spots and mainly its due to most of them being 50 while the bulk of the FC is high 30s to mid 40s. Its not like they have to wait long for the rest to get caught up they just are chosen not to wait and try to pug the content. Again it comes down to the Free Companies and what their members due, its not on the entire community to make sure all FCs function the same.

So you're upset with people's social behavior in a socially infused game? Typically Guilds, Clans, Kinships, or in this case Free Companies are a grouping of like minded individuals and typically when that happens you will have some type of social interaction. Naturally I would think that people would gravitate towards where their friends are or where they get along the most. FC's should never be strictly business.

If an FC was only designed for endgame, why would they add an exp boost bonus? We have no problems as we have a set group of people who do dungeons, "raids" and what not, and a whole load of other players who can't possibly be 50 yet because the games only been out a few weeks and not everyone can play a lot of hours every day. It works because they will eventually get into endgame and eventually do runs with us.

There is no harm whatsoever from being friendly while doing endgame and if it's that big an issue in your fc you should make your own from scratch and only recruit people who suit your demands. There's no point insulting the whole community for using the tools in the way they see fit and not the way you see fit. They are there for everyone to use how they want to use them, and personally I think treating an FC like a LS builds communication and friendships, which ultimately makes you better.

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Originally Posted by VisionHolder

Adapting means playing the shout party and Duty Finder game. I'm doing it, and it's ruining the game for me. Meanwhile, one functional static in our FC is shooting ahead and leaving the rest of us behind. Progress comes down to luck, not skill like it does in organized teams.

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That's when you start hunting down a like minded FC then. I understand when a particularly large FC uses Linkshells to seperate raid groups and such. It works because LSs have a smaller limit than FCs... but if the FC is too small to sustain itself as it is, people need to be willing to step back, rotate people in and help them if you want to maintain a good FC. Can't really blame people for leaving in such a case. You're trying to blame the way people use the tools rather than the individuals themselves. Sometimes its not the problem of the community at large, its just the people you are choosing to regularly interact with. Make new company, see how it goes. Hell, maybe even look beyond your server for when transfers are available.

I'd rather the other way around. Even though you can join multiple linkshells, each is limited to 128 (if I recall) members, where-as Free Companies are around the 500 range. I know of some who use FC for the relaxed vibe and the LS for serious raiding/ dungeoneering.

But #1 is that you should find a FC &/or LS that fits your needs/ temperment.

Personally, I'd rather be with an FC of friends and people I trust. If they start making me feel like this game's a job, then I'm not having fun and will be less likely to play.

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Originally Posted by Kuari

That's when you start hunting down a like minded FC then... Make new company, see how it goes. Hell, maybe even look beyond your server for when transfers are available.

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I do run my own FC. The problem is that I can't recruit people because no one wants to leave their friends, or if they do, their friends throw a fit and then they have to switch back. My core group is split between a static that gets things done, another that needs more members (mine), and a lot of lower-level players that we're slowly helping catch up. Between not being able to recruit due to "friend FCs", losing people to "friend FCs", coping with the frustration shout parties/Duty Finder, and not having enough organized groups to run anything more than 4-man content, it makes it hard. "Getting over it", as everyone seems to be suggesting, means not being able to satisfy the needs of my FC members while everyone gets frustrated with rude, inefficient shout parties.

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Originally Posted by Kyriea

I completely disagree... there's nothing more rewarding than having a social aspect as a part of your endgame experience. If you all hate each other what's the point? Sure you get things done but a lot of people are probably leaving because they aren't having fun while winning.

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i agree with kyriea. if a free company isnt social theres no point in having one. it would be to boring and no one would want to talk to help out...

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Originally Posted by wedgestrife

i agree with kyriea. if a free company isnt social theres no point in having one. it would be to boring and no one would want to talk to help out...

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And again, my FC is a subset of my LS. We are social. The point is that people are doing their social stuff through their FC and the content through either LSs or (more often) shout parties. It undermines the point of a FC.

But that's just your FC/LS... It seems to me like you're annoyed because nobody will join your FC but then you have to consider that maybe they are happy with their friends? You say that they left your FC to be with their friends in their FC, but anyone would do that because people prefer playing games (endgame included) with people they actually get along with.

I just don't get where the issue is if it works for the majority of people that do, and if they choose to do it that way then great. I don't know of any that do it that way myself though, but what's the big deal? There are plenty of FC's out there that you could join that undoubtedly do it the way you like.

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Originally Posted by Kyriea

I just don't get where the issue is if it works for the majority of people that do, and if they choose to do it that way then great. I don't know of any that do it that way myself though, but what's the big deal? There are plenty of FC's out there that you could join that undoubtedly do it the way you like.

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The few that left the FC did not leave the LS. They're still social and primarily run with us. However, we never have enough people to form statics for content, leaving most of us to shout. First we try LS, then we fill up with shouts. People get frustrated with the quality of the adds we pick up, and then leave the party for more fruitful ventures. Rinse/repeat. Again, our one stable static is progressing nicely, while the rest of us suffer from the free-for-all.

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Originally Posted by VisionHolder

snip

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translates to:
I'm unable to form my own 'serious' FC but I'm too stubborn to join one that has already established itself.



vanity, oh vanity

You're losing faith in the community because they won't follow you? lol

I guess you could take your members and join someone else's and problem solved right? But then you would have to give up YOUR FC with YOUR friends so better to blame the ENTIRE REST OF THE COMMUNITY AT LARGE YAY! /caps

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Originally Posted by amnie

translates to:
I'm unable to form my own 'serious' FC but I'm too stubborn to join one that has already established itself.



vanity, oh vanity

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Does it not kind of prove that the majority of the community does have a common sense? ;)

What do you mean "losing"?

You could always try to find another FC to merge with if it's going completely south. I'm sure there are others with your issue.