Can you please Ease Up on Atma now?

[Lemuria]

Yeah, the comment you're replying to there is out to lunch XD Someone could get 11 Atma in a few hours, then spend hundreds of hours getting the final Atma. I got eight Atma very quickly myself and then proceeded to take about 130-140+ additional hours to get the last four... People have casino-style slot machine addiction when they think they can discern progress in a pure RNG grind.

It's a worrying trend. I think some people are just genuinely masochistic, and there are even people here arguing its merits who haven't even attempted the atma grind. Surely if it wasn't so bad, they'd be one of the first on the grind treadmill.

For the record, I own an atma weapon. I went through that hell and came out the other side. I know what goes into getting it, and I hate it. I'm not the type to comment on something I've never experienced before, nor the type to candy-coat my statements. I just wish that SE would pay more attention to the uproar over the drop rate rather than sweeping it all under the rug and pretending it didn't happen.

[Skias]

Gotta love slippery slope

Awesome, let's lay off the balance team so no changes ever get made. Ya know, because slippery slope?

[Skias]

I'm currently 7 Atmas into the 12, and I can tell you right now, this is the single most miserable piece of content in the game. I have this single completely garbage step in between the steps that I actually want to do. I enjoy progressing through content like the books, but this Atma RNG crap is completely awful. Dreadfully boring, and there is no end in sight. So yes, I would like adjustments made to get past this horribly concocted mess of a quest.

I literally figure this quest was made in the span of an hour and they shipped it.

[Nestama]

what is wrong with adding some RNG into a RPG?

If it were in content that was actually fun (FATE's are too easy and mind numbingly boring. They do not teach you how to play your Job, which was a requirement to get our Relic weapons) and was set at a 50% (we've all made NQ items at 98% chance of HQ before. Or 'missed' a tree more than once for something at 90%) chance drop rate, then it would be fine.

[skaterger]

If it were in content that was actually fun (FATE's are too easy and mind numbingly boring. They do not teach you how to play your Job, which was a requirement to get our Relic weapons) and was set at a 50% (we've all made NQ items at 98% chance of HQ before. Or 'missed' a tree more than once for something at 90%) chance drop rate, then it would be fine.

That part of "teaching" you how to play your class was in the hard mode primals. Which part about animus was teaching you to play your class? Novus? Nexus? The only way they could make it based on difficulty was either by designing new fights or through clearing SCOB. I wouldn't mind that, but would you?

too easy and mind numbingly boring.

No different than 500 garuda/levi hm, 2000 cape westwind, 270 brayflox, or 75 expert roulettes

[Nestama]

For Animus, you had to do dungeons (amongst other things). For Novus, you had to fight 75 Mysterious Map monsters. Nexus I've not done and choose to take my time with when I resub to the game.

Though thinking about it, SE are being very lazy (though the Mysterious Map monsters was a step in the right direction) with the Zodiac quests.

[Skias]

That part of "teaching" you how to play your class was in the hard mode primals. Which part about animus was teaching you to play your class? Novus? Nexus? The only way they could make it based on difficulty was either by designing new fights or through clearing SCOB. I wouldn't mind that, but would you?



No different than 500 garuda/levi hm, 2000 cape westwind, 270 brayflox, or 75 expert roulettes

At least one day they will be finished. You can farm atma forever and never get anything.

[skaterger]

Sorry to tell you this, but running the dungeons and stuff was as mind numbing as fate grinding. This was mostly because they were so easy and I already ran them hundreds of times while levelling all my DOW/DOM characters to 50. The only fun about brayflox was trying set a new personal record each time I ran it (5 min 4 sec was the best time I had). The maps were also fun as I made it a point to solo them instead of doing it with a party. Yeah that's about it.

To make it clear, I'm all for making it easier to acquire atma now, either through prng or increase drop rate as I mentioned previously. I see it as something no different from echo buff with coil to help new/more casual players get through older content. The way the thread is going seems to be have deviated from the original intent. What I'm arguing here is the totally removal of rng as a game mechanic for all current and future content. It seems to be the bane of some here and I would just like to say something to represent players on opposite end of the spectrum. Peace.

At least one day they will be finished. You can farm atma forever and never get anything.

Forever..never..okay...

[ElHeggunte]

My question is, every part of the quest so far is measurable, what is wrong with adding some RNG into a RPG? Can you accept a differing view that some people like rng or do you only insist that it is objectively bad?

RNG isn't inherently bad. It can be good for the longevity of a game as long as it's done right. However, Atma in its current form is an example of how not to do it. It's far too extreme for the reward given and in comparison to all of the other steps.

Here's an alternative system just off the top of my head that still keeps within the spirit (RNG) of the current one without being bat-shit insane or completely overhauling the system:

Each successful FATE gives you an Atma Fragment (or at least drops a fragment at a reasonable rate). When you amass [insertarbitrarynumber] fragments you can combine them into a complete stone. Each FATE also has a chance to just give you a complete stone at a substantially lower drop rate, just like it works right now.

So now you have a system where RNG smiles upon the fortunate and helps them progress faster while at the same time it doesn't completely stonewall players who are lacking in the luck department. They may not progress as fast as their luckier peers, but they're still making progress on all (or most) of their FATEs nonetheless. Honestly, it’s what we have now, only with a safety net to guard against bad luck.

It isn’t perfect. A system where everyone's on the same footing (like with the other steps) would be best, but I'm thinking this up from the point of view of someone who likes RNG such as yourself.

[skaterger]

snip

I think 3-5% per drop is pretty generous, considering some other JRPGs. I've been playing mmos for more than 10 years and some have the most atrocious drop rates, so I can see how abrasive the current system can be for new players, especially if its their first mmo. I understand this. But I have also met players who are flat out lazy, they wait till everything is nerfed before attempting it.

As for your proposed system, this would indeed be a good system to implement now. I have never argued against it. I would still prefer to keep the current rng system for new content that is released (though I doubt it will happen with all the uproar atma caused )

As with everything, trends come and go, regardless of what I or some others say, if there's enough inertia for the game to change in a certain direction, it will happen. Just like how games have gotten easier over time or how rpg used to be sandbox but now mostly are themepark. Just learn to adapt, that is all.