Problems with the strength of gear coming from easy mode Alexander

[Vaeria]

Oh the whereabouts of Kirin's Osode...

Outside of a passion for the actual activity itself (forget the destination, enjoy the journey yadda) there is Z E R O incentive to do anything. ANYTHING. Guy could have a full set of raid gear...and its advantage against vendor gear is laughable. Insteada being 3 on the dps chart..your number 2. Next patch? You're back to 4 cuz that chick just got a decent drop from a 24-man instance.

Same thing with relics. Example...how many nins bothered to build a relic, considering the stats of the 230-40 tome weap? Everything's the same..or just marginally different due to casual player. Again..zero incentive.

Myself...I only bother with PvE content for the glamour. Didn't start out that way, but it became the only thing worth doing anymore. Eyecandy. Completed FCoB just for the style of the brd coat/weapon..stats be damned. With everything on such an equal footing to keep as many people motivated as possible, its the result.

I always seem to find myself pointing back to FF11, especially when I hear that 'incentive' word. Times have changed and people don't have as much spare to play I guess, but such was required, and for those who put in their blood and sweat (much like todays devoted raiders) the payoff was worth it. Example...forget the actual fights UP there..remember how much effort it took just to GET TO Sky and later Sea? (and ironically..it was a hellava lot more than 1% fighting land, sky, and sea gods. And the rewards? Just using Kirin's Osode as an example in pvp, where your gear ment the difference between life and death, the advantages were overwhelming.

As long as Yoshi and the devs try to make it so theres sunshine 365 days a year for all, conternts only gonna be surface deep. It makes me feel sad for that 1% who constantly busts their asses to clear the hard stuff. Considering what your rewards are, guess its GOTTA be for love of the game. Cuz soon as the next patch rolls around, all those efforts, just like everyone elses....just goes up in smoke. Talk about a striving after the wind lol...