I280 weapons were a mistake

[LunaFaye]

I don't even know how to phrase it. First everybody was screaming that SE needs to add something to the diadem (gear/weapon/token/relic upgrades etc.), a lot of us asked why do they need to put anything in it, that is gear relevant and why not create it just like potd. Minions, glamour, hairstyles, mounts would have been enough in my personal opinion. We nearly got murdered about such dumb idea and people were demanding that items need to be added to make it relevant.

Now the developers thought, eh maybe that's what we need to do, because the whole forum is demanding items, we can't just not add anything. Let's add the gear everybody wants because than diadem would be something people could enjoy and they even asked for it in first place. Now everybody is complaining again, and I am not even sure if I want to laugh or just close the browser tab that says forums on it. Make up your mind is all I can just say. You wanted gear in diadem now you have gear in diadem.

[Lunafreya]

Now the developers thought, eh maybe that's what we need to do, because the whole forum is demanding items, we can't just not add anything. Let's add the gear everybody wants because than diadem would be something people could enjoy and they even asked for it in first place. Now everybody is complaining again, and I am not even sure if I want to laugh or just close the browser tab that says forums on it. Make up your mind is all I can just say. You wanted gear in diadem now you have gear in diadem.

Gear doesn't mean they wanted 280 gear in Diadem.

[MsKirsten]

The points of the matter is how fast SE introduced a higher ilv weapon when anima was just updated. It is unfair and frustrating, not being salty. I can understand eventually it will but come on, so soon? Even BEFORE we have the Shire weapon upgrade drop from Dun Scaith to 270? Now that is what causing people puzzled. When will we get the weapon upgrade drop from DS? It seems so unattractive now.

[Kosmos992k]

Except the drop rate on those weapons are so astronomically low few will bother. In fact, plenty of raiders have quit the game entirely-- be it until Stormblood or indefinitely-- due to it ruining their speed runs. You know what would make people run Diadem? More fights like the Emergency Mission. Put rewards behind speed kills, how many players died and other achievement like things. EX Primals are worthless to any raider who can clear Savage yet how many funnel in because they want the mounts? A 280 weapon isn't going to entice many people.

Ok then, if it is that worthless, why is everyone so salty?

[Lambdafish]

Ok then, if it is that worthless, why is everyone so salty?

Because they don't want the gear that they spent dedicated amounts of time and effort getting to be worthless just so Diadem can get a few more people participating?

[Gemina]

Because they don't want the gear that they spent dedicated amounts of time and effort getting to be worthless just so Diadem can get a few more people participating?

That isn't it at all. A big reason why I still did my Zodiac relic despite how outdated it is, is because I knew that it would still be one of the best weapons I can have until about halfway through HW. And because I progress so slowly, I knew I would still have a lot of time enjoying it before I would have to upgrade. Despite my late coming into the game, this alone lets me know that when 3.0 launched, those who completed the zodiac weapon quest had a BiS until what? 3.2? Several months after the expansion was released? Using it as a glamour was a very distant second.

Before this patch, I had an amicable argument with my FC leader about relics, Lucis tools, and current endgame crafting/gathering gear. Her stance was that there was no point working on the anima weapon quest or the endgame crafting/gathering gear when the next patch will just introduce something to beat it out. I - what I thought was a logical argument at the time - told her that there is NO way that anything will be introduced into the game that beats these out until a couple patches into stormblood. I felt this was a calculated and smart argument to make based off the HW expansion. Let me tell ya, I logged in tonight saying, "Don't tell me, 'Told ya so'" before anyone could say anything. To add insult to inury, the FC leader has never even played XI, or any other FF title before or after it. This game was her first FF anything.

Imagine how this makes me feel as a FF loyalist? I was proven wrong by one who is more familiar with the current meta of MMO gaming than I am with the FF franchise. Proven wrong, because I placed faith in my familiarity with this franchise. Perhaps this is where all of those who are upset went wrong. Today was a very sad day for many players. Two from my FC members unsubbed. I'm praying that it was just an emotional reflex, and they'll be back after they calmed down.

[A_Hortensia]

The community has been sculpted and conditioned into having an expectation of how content is going to be released and handled. The fact that the i280 even EXISTS, is driving people crazy because it's not the usual way people are used to. (Edit: In reference to the timing.)

This shouldn't work you up though and feel betrayed by the developers; this should open up conversation about the 4.0 battle system changes though. People need to realize it's not as simple as poor timing for a patch; but why is it that higher damage on a weapon alone can make all other weapons not as good?

Doesn't that bother you that there's nothing unique about your hard earned relic or raid weapon?

[Lambdafish]

The community has been sculpted and conditioned into having an expectation of how content is going to be released and handled. The fact that the i280 even EXISTS, is driving people crazy because it's not the usual way people are used to. (Edit: In reference to the timing.)

This is true. In the 4 year history of the game, there has NEVER been a weapon that is better than a raid weapon. Hell, in the first patch cycle people complained because the relic could be gotten easily and was i90, and so was the raid weapon (which they then changed to i95). The fact that they wanted to distinguish the raid weapon as the best weapon says a lot about what the content is supposed to represent.

Later relic was expanded upon and became an equivilent to the raid weapon after a long process of various steps, and thus we had two endgame models, both of which are equally time consuming, and this design works.

Diadem weapons are an anomaly, a reckless, head scratching, cancer of an anomaly. First off, they introduce a brand new kind of endgame (which relates to your discussion about 4.0 changes), that being RNG (previously put under the umbrella of the relic process). The idea now being that you can get a BiS ilvl weapon through skill, grind, or RNG. This is a huge thing, but SE took it a step further and made the weapon i280. What this does is it breaks down the entire meaning of endgame BiS, as there are no longer 3 equally balanced pillars, but rather one pillar with two supports underneith it. Had the weapon been i275 it would have been seen as fine no matter what the stats were, because the community perception is that it would be equivilent, whereas making it i280 effectively makes it the only endgame, with relic and savage being a stepping stone towards it, much like tomestone weapons are.

[Astral145]

Why so salty? 4.0 drops in just a few months... ALL 3.xx gear will be glamour by the time we reach level 63 to 65 so who cares. Just enjoy the new content and be happy that you can farm interesting gear and weapons before 4.0 drops.... at least we have way more content to run compared to 2.50 to 2.55. The only thing i had to do was pony farm. Now i have PoTD, Diadem, leveling up the rest of my crafts, maybe finish a 3.x relic... so yea be happy that we have a lot more to do till 4.0 drops... just saying it could be 2.55 all over again with nothing to do but pony farm.

[CGMidlander]

at least we have way more content to run compared to 2.50 to 2.55. The only thing i had to do was pony farm. Now i have PoTD, Diadem, leveling up the rest of my crafts, maybe finish a 3.x relic... so yea be happy that we have a lot more to do till 4.0 drops... just saying it could be 2.55 all over again with nothing to do but pony farm.

You had relic in 2.xx too. The difference is instead of getting an inferior trinket, you ended up with a BiS item. Crafting also existed in 2.xx, with a level up incentive similar to the current stuff in the form of Ixal beast tribe quests. Coil was opened up for the last part of ARR & in general was more accessible than the HW Savage modes. (You don't see many people running Gordias or Midas, for instance, but back in the day T2, T4, T5, T9, T13 were common)