Has it always been like this or...?

[Andevom]

When I first did CM, along with a few other people new to the dungeon, someone said "Looks like it's gonna be one of those runs, lol." because people were watching cutscenes.

This was in September 2013; the game hadn't even been out a month yet. So yeah, it's basically been present in some form (although my particular experience wasn't overwhelmingly negative) since the beginning.

Anyone doing Main Scenario Roulette really shouldn't expect everyone in the run to have cleared it anyway. Maybe back when it was a great spot to farm Philosophy tomes, I could see being a tiny bit miffed about waiting around every odd run (still silly to get mad about, but more understandable). Today, there are a ton of options for getting tomes, and with a greater chance the people you're running with have cleared those dungeons before. I skip Main Scenario Roulette quite often in favor of something quicker, and when I *do* queue for it, I fully expect there to be first timers.

[MirielleLavandre]

Like Tayolynn said, I'm not sure why people even queue for main story roulette anymore --- soldiery, even with a new player bonus, hardly seems worth the time or effort and, barring a few things, is relatively worthless except for mats, given i120 dropping in WoD. I believe what people here have said - don't even get in that queue unless you're willing to deal with new players and not berate them. I feel bad for the OP and wish you were on my server -- our FC runs all of the new 50s through both CM and Praetorium doing "movie nights" where they all get to watch the cutscenes in peace while we wait for them to finish // I think all good FC should do this for their newer members if possible, actually ^^ Good luck with your future dungeons, OP, and don't lose faith!

[LineageRazor]

Bear in mind, too, that you DO have a weapon you can weild against this kind of thing: You can leave the run. Folks running CM and Prae are doing it for Tomestones, usually, and having a newbie like you in the group gives a significant Tomestone bonus. If they're giving you crap, leave the run. This denies them the bonus. Some may not care, but others might be encouraged to be a bit less cruel in the future.

Note that leaving a run in such a way DOES smack you with a 30 minute penalty during which you cannot sign up for a new run, but it is an option if you feel as though you are being unfairly treated.

But yeah, the best way to ensure that you get to see all cutscenes and whatnot is to start a Party Finder group, and make sure you check the "Story focused" and "Slow and easy" checkboxes. It may take a much longer time to form your party, but when it is formed it will be composed of individuals who understand and support your desire not to skip through for a faster run.

Also, take comfort in the fact that SE has apparently learned from their mistakes: CM and Praetorium are the only dungeons in the game with frequent and lengthy cutscenes scattered all around mid-dungeon. You won't really have to deal with this problem again.

[DoctorPepper]

Why queue for a main scenario quest knowing full well that the party could, and likely will, consist of one or more newbies if you don't have the patience for them?

Duty roulette for main scenerio also gives a hefty soldiery bonus and requires that you've beat the dungeons before it even gets unlocked. There are tons of main scenerio runs that have no new players in them.

New players have two options available to them, either watch the cutscenes at their own pace and risk getting locked out of bosses or skip the cutscenes, enjoy the bosses and watch the cutscenes in the innroom afterwards.

Expecting 7 other people to spend an extra 20-30 minutes in a dungeon for 100 soldiery is a little selfish in my opinion. They could do the dungeon twice in the amount of time it takes to wait for the person watching cutscenes. At the end of the day, putting such long cutscenes in a dungeon was a mistake on SE's part and they've addressed it by not making the same mistake in content that followed.

[Viridiana]

Maybe back when it was a great spot to farm Philosophy tomes, I could see being a tiny bit miffed about waiting around every odd run (still silly to get mad about, but more understandable).

It was never even a particularly good spot to farm philosophy.

Duty roulette for main scenerio also gives a hefty soldiery bonus and requires that you've beat the dungeons before it even gets unlocked. There are tons of main scenerio runs that have no new players in them.

Only, not really. Don't think CM or Prae is faster than speedrunning any of the experts, which would also give you Poetics.

[DoctorPepper]

It was never even a particularly good spot to farm philosophy.

It was a lot better than AK pre-nerf and didn't take much longer than WP to speed run when people only had i70-90 gear, especially if you were in a pre-formed party who used cannons effectively.

[Noshpan]

The roulette bonuses are there to get people to DO CM & Prae for those whom haven't (and cannot get a group to form on their own, with friends, FC members and/or PF). Admittedly, CM has a number of cut scenes that are really unnecessary. Do we really need a cut scene of our character glancing over their shoulder as a search light goes out? Do we really need a cut scene of Cid blasting a hole in the door for us to go through? The majority of Prae's cut scenes are considerably more meaningful than the majority of CM's.

However, there really is no correct answer in resolving this dilemma. Both sides say "Well, if you want X you should use the PF." And both are correct answers. Then you get the argument of "Well the majority's time is more valuable than yours." but that is not entirely the correct answer. Every player's time is equally valuable, and so, nothing gets resolved. However, what is not correct is harassing those who do want to watch the cut scenes.

While I would rather complete CM & Prae as promptly as possible, I do not mind waiting for those watching cut scenes. It's the perfect opportunity to get a drink, stretch or heed nature's call.

[Nutz]

I have a feeling that story dungeons in Heavensward will be structured differently to prevent recreating this problem. I suppose SE just didn't think about the problems that would flow from sticking several long cut scene breaks in the middle of a dungeon that people will repeat several times. I started playing in version 1.0 (though not much) and have played 2.0 since pre-release. Even I was not afforded the luxury of watching those cut scenes because everyone was so undergeared that the timer (at least in Praetorium) might get dangerously low. At the time, of course, virtually nobody had any i90 gear and even a bit of i70 was rare.

Without the incentives for veteran players to run those instances they'd be unused wastelands with enormously long queues even for tanks. Even so, the incentives are so underwhelming (to me) that I haven't done either instance in at least 6 months.

Getting through that bit can be rough for people who really want to enjoy the story, especially since the only way to really do it properly would be to put it off while assembling a rare group of individuals that will watch all the cut scenes with you. I don't think SE has repeated this mistake since then. The 2 story dungeons released since have all the cut scenes loaded after you kill the boss and are effectively done. I imagine that this will be the case going forward and very little story development will happen when 1 person could be holding up the group (or the group leaving behind one or more people).

Being a tank you at least have the luxury of setting the pace on all teh 4 man dungeons that you'll be delving into (the bulk of the upcoming content for you).

[Duuude007]

Newcomers take for granted that the time to access CM or Praet is so low. It is because of repeat players doing roulette that they can save so.much.time waiting for a party.

If you discourage these people from joining with penalties or forced cutscenes, things will certainly go back to before repeat players used duty roulette.

In short: you need them more than they need you.

[TruebladeNuke]

A lot of people say that it's SE's fault for putting in so many cutscenes in the two main scenario dungeons, which I think is silly seeing as how they also give us the option to skip the cutscenes automatically via the options menu. Quite frankly, it's the impatient players who are at fault, not SE. The nature of the internet somehow tends to magically turn people into d-bags over the most simple matters.

I've always figured that whole point of the extra rewards for Level 50 players using the Duty Roulette and possibly getting newcomers was to push the veteran players into being helpful guides for the newcomers to the game. At least, that's how I always try to act when I see newcomers. Quite frankly, if a subscription based game like this is to thrive, it needs to attract new players. Veteran players who act like d-bags are only going to push for the opposite effect instead. That's just not cool.

Not that I don't understand skipping cutscenes though. If it's like... your 200th time through the dungeon, it's obvious as to why you're skipping the cutscenes. I understand this end entirely too, as I've farmed the Main Scenario dungeons myself a lot and skip the cutscenes all the time through them now. But being a d-bag to the newcomers for watching the cutscenes is pointless, and invokes un-needed negativity that'll possibly chase away possible newcomers to this game. If the thought of being held back by those who want to watch the cutscenes AND experience the dungeon itself is too much for you, here's a new flash for you: DON'T SIGN UP FOR MAIN SCENARIO! Or do what I do: Keep a laptop nearby to browse the forums quick while you're waiting... I sometimes even pull out my 3DS.

To the OP, as someone who went through the same thing myself in the first Main Dungeon, I feel you completely. (Except for the tears part. I was just left angry myself) Both me and the other Tank were new to the dungeon, so we wanted to experience the cutscenes, along with at least 1 DPS and I think a Healer too. The other 4 decided to flat out insult us, especially the Tanks, for taking the time to watch the cutscenes. I stuck around until the end, but I left feeling aggravated. I thus made it a rule to use the Party Finder for the second main dungeon. It took way longer to form a party, (because again, impatient people who won't even stop to wait 2 seconds for newcomers) but eventually I got a party filled with up to 6 players (the 2 newcomer Tanks again, 2 healers, and 2 DPS) and we all cued for the second main dungeon. The experience was FAR more enjoyable, especially with the fact that the 2 random DPS that joined also understood. The second main scenario dungeon is more enjoyable on the cutscenes when you're in a full part, as that dungeon includes your whole party in the cutscenes.

If I was on your server, I'd offer to help, but I'm not. So I'll just have to say good luck. "But why do you need the Soldiery? You're decked on Poetics and WoD gear!" My animus books say hi along with Alex maps. They're about the only thing I spend soldiery on lately. And even in that regard, I've slowed down since I don't need as much Soldiery anymore. I generally only sign up for Duty Roulette Expert now when the weekly cap is reset on the Poetics. If I want more soldiery, I'll get them via WoD runs now since I'm trying to get all my combat classes geared through that place now. (If I had access to the Final Coil of Bahamut, I'd be farming there instead... with a reliable non-random party preferably)

Finally, SE eventually saw that they shouldn't include many cutscenes in dungeons and flat out avoided it in the later dungeons they built. While I don't consider it their fault, and that of the impatient players instead, the fact that they did this was a smart move overall, as it lessens the chances of the d-bag veterans on the idea of insulting newcomers in terms of cutscenes. Honestly, if this wasn't an MMO, I'd be pushing them to add more cutscenes to the dungeons. But since it IS an MMO, it's better (and smarter) if there's less cutscenes in the dungeons.