I'm calling it the Epidemic. (This is a rant, if you dont wanna hear it, don't click)

[Derio]

This is why I give out suggestions to players in lower level dungeons, not as criticism, but just throwing general information in the chat.

[sarehptar]

The existing accessories from vendors that are NQ are eminently affordable.

I wouldn't say affordability is the issue so much as accessibility? I recently went to level an alt, and only because I was already aware of where everything could be purchased was I able to get what I needed from vendors and when. Half the NPCs are named nondescript things like "Battlecraft Vendor" and at many outposts around the game, you can't easily access everything you need--for example, some aetherytes have vendors selling only weapons and left-side gear, no accessories. In other places, it's the opposite. You can imagine my annoyance when I realized I had to teleport to a completely different map just to buy a single food item for exp before going into a dungeon...

Not to mention there's rarely any text that explains primary and secondary stats to players, so it's only by paying close attention that brand new players will realize "I should buy this thing with Mind because I am a healer, instead of this thing with Intelligence which is for DPS." I never blame low-level players for having mismatched gear. The game just doesn't make it easy on newbies.

[bardaboo]

Given that the game showers you with gil at the lower levels onwards, the existing accessories from vendors that are NQ are eminently affordable. Not to mention the fact that about 2 hours of mining and goldsmithing will enable you to make accessories for the first 25-30 levels.

There already are barrier quests in the forms of trials and instances like Steps of faith. Dungeons are level sync'd up until 50 and are actually harder than the ones that follow because of that. Rant and rail all you like, it will do you no good. A more relaxed outlook on life might help you though.

a barrier quest that anyone can get carried through. You can't boot for 5 minutes. Then you can't boot until you wipe. So if you get a lvl 60 archer with int accesories and a lvl 10 bow /afk, he'll most likely get carried because everyone else is in a rush to get out.

[ArrowAmethyst]

Snip.

Steps of Faith isnt what I'd call a barrier quest that teaches. A barrier quest should be a single player only content (no outside help here) that teaches you to use some of the new abilities you've gained, or teaches you how to work in a unit with npc players to overcome the trial. Similar to the Hall of the Novice, but instead of lvl 15, have another at level 30, 40 and so on.
Call it advanced training to understand your new abilities. It should be a requirement.

Steps of Faith does not teach you how to play. It just throws you into a zone with a bunch of dragons running amok and 1 or two people who 'get it' handling all the mechanics while everyone else just mindlessly pummels some mobs.
As for duty finder, I'm not talking about "level sync", Im saying they should have "item level" requirements to enter. There is nothing stopping someone with level 1 gear from entering a level 30 dungeon right now.

See that? I made my character ilvl 5, and yet I can still enter a level 28 dungeon 'Haukke Manor'.
That shouldnt be a thing. I should be required to have a certain item level to enter.

and while we're on that note. I also feel SE needs to be more strict about item levels. They are already set relatively low to enter, I feel they could bump it up a tad bit more so players are forced to get better before they can move on to the next content.

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In regards to the post below this (ran out of daily forum posts apparently):

Just to clarify, there's two venoms. The overwhelming majority of Ninja players use Kiss of the Viper as their resting state (Silence immunity < Stun immunity). While this isn't correct and is just the result of this game encouraging lazy gameplay, it also literally doesn't matter outside of the hardcore content (8 man raids, extreme primals).

IT DOES MATTER. Your statement just encourages mediocrity and laziness. Just because you can get through a content without an ability, doesnt mean you shouldnt use it. Not using Kiss of the Wasp/Viper (and yes I was aware there are two- updated OP), just extended that 15-20min run to more like 30-40mins or more. That is a HUGE loss of time, and that is time the rest of the party could have been making use of.

Wanderer's Minuet isn't a 30% DPS gain, it's actually only like 10% or so at the cost of your mobility. Generally doesn't matter, but there's plenty of bosses that are easier with it being off and only toggled on to take advantage of the few buttons it enables.

And yes, I'm also aware that it isnt a full 30% increase, but its NOT NEGLIGIBLE. That 10-15% increase that it does provide is a huge amount of additional dmg over the course of a run. and again, not using it just cost your party more time and frustration. Not to mention some abilities only become active while under its effects, and when used correctly can have a severe effect on dmg output in the later levels.

[kattzkitti]

-Ninja's not using 'Kiss of the Wasp' (That's a 20% DPS loss for those that don't play Ninja, and its a set it and forget it skill)

Just to clarify, there's two venoms. The overwhelming majority of Ninja players use Kiss of the Viper as their resting state (Silence immunity < Stun immunity). While this isn't correct and is just the result of this game encouraging lazy gameplay, it also literally doesn't matter outside of the hardcore content (8 man raids, extreme primals).

-Bard's post lv.52, not using 'Wanderer's Minuet' at all ever (that's a 30% dps loss for those that are unaware of what that is)

Wanderer's Minuet isn't a 30% DPS gain, it's actually only like 10% or so at the cost of your mobility. Generally doesn't matter, but there's plenty of bosses that are easier with it being off and only toggled on to take advantage of the few buttons it enables.

[bardaboo]

Just to clarify


Wanderer's Minuet isn't a 30% DPS gain, it's actually only like 10% or so at the cost of your mobility. Generally doesn't matter, but there's plenty of bosses that are easier with it being off and only toggled on to take advantage of the few buttons it enables.

Factor in lack of iron jaws and sidewinder. Plus a straight 30% increase in dmg to bloodletter, straighter shot procs blunt arrow repelling shot, flaming arrow and your dot ticks it a huuuge deal.

[Kosmos992k]

**snip**
See that? I made my character ilvl 5, and yet I can still enter a level 28 dungeon 'Haukke Manor'.
That shouldnt be a thing. I should be required to have a certain item level to enter.

I think you're really off base. This in and of itself is a complete barrier to progression. If you enter a dungeon like that you are more than likely to be kicked because you are extremely unlikely to be capable of surviving even the trash pulls.

You want something that will in effect force players to learn how to play somewhat before moving ahead. Level sync actually does that. No matter what gear a new player has when they enter an instance in a leveling dungeon, if they are in a role where gear matters the mere fact that the other players are sync'd will make success less likely, and the worse their gear is the more likely they are to be kicked from the instance. This is in effect a self correcting problem - up to a point. The problem here is that the point it corrects to isn't sufficient for your expectations.

I wouldn't say affordability is the issue so much as accessibility? I recently went to level an alt, and only because I was already aware of where everything could be purchased was I able to get what I needed from vendors and when. Half the NPCs are named nondescript things like "Battlecraft Vendor" and at many outposts around the game, you can't easily access everything you need--for example, some aetherytes have vendors selling only weapons and left-side gear, no accessories. In other places, it's the opposite. You can imagine my annoyance when I realized I had to teleport to a completely different map just to buy a single food item for exp before going into a dungeon...

Not to mention there's rarely any text that explains primary and secondary stats to players, so it's only by paying close attention that brand new players will realize "I should buy this thing with Mind because I am a healer, instead of this thing with Intelligence which is for DPS." I never blame low-level players for having mismatched gear. The game just doesn't make it easy on newbies.

Are you kidding me? there's a freaking market place for you to buy stuff in. There are gear NPCs near every major Aetheryte and there are specific icons on the map that tell you there are vendors there. how much more spoon feeding do people need in this game? The OP complains about players not knowing how to play, and you're asking for things to be made even easier because it's too hard to talk to NPCs in the market areas or look for vendor icons on the map?? Really? Are you one of the players the OP is complaining about? Seriously, this game is already easy enough for anyone to find the things they need.

Good grief!

[sarehptar]

Are you kidding me? there's a freaking market place for you to buy stuff in. There are gear NPCs near every major Aetheryte and there are specific icons on the map that tell you there are vendors there. how much more spoon feeding do people need in this game? The OP complains about players not knowing how to play, and you're asking for things to be made even easier because it's too hard to talk to NPCs in the market areas or look for vendor icons on the map?? Really? Are you one of the players the OP is complaining about? Seriously, this game is already easy enough for anyone to find the things they need.

Wow, that unnecessary hostility... kind of ironic.

A more relaxed outlook on life might help you though.

I mean, I was literally talking about the same players as the OP was, the ones too lazy to even read tooltips. Do you think they will even bother to travel around to three or so NPCs every couple of levels to check if each piece of their gear is up-to-date, let alone teleport to a whole different area to go get something before going into a dungeon? No way.

At level 50, 60, 70 whatever, I agree, people don't need any hand-holding. But brand new players to the game? Teach them to do better--make it easy for them to do better--and they will do better. At least a few of them.

Why act like something being tedious makes it automatically superior?

[kattzkitti]

Factor in lack of iron jaws and sidewinder. Plus a straight 30% increase in dmg to bloodletter, straighter shot procs blunt arrow repelling shot, flaming arrow and your dot ticks it a huuuge deal.

I'm not talking about raw percentile increase per button, I'm talking about total DPS. Wanderer's Minuet is undeniably higher, but it's nowhere close to the 30% people seem to think. It's ultimately irrelevant though, because it only actually matters in the aforementioned hardcore content while this thread is about leveling content.

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On another note, it always amuses me when people complain about other players not min/maxing their gameplay in leveling content. If your time is so precious, why are you doing dungeons? Their efficiency for leveling is vastly inferior to Palace of the Dead.

[Krystalmethot]

I ran into a healer in Alex soul of the creator the other day who had some ilvl 145 pieces on and was complaining about being one shorted it's like

HELLO!!!!! You aren't exactly geared right for the content

But he had what he needed to meet the requirements and after like 4 wipes and some wasted time.... we abandoned the duty lol

I mean most spa jobs u can get by with crap like that but not on one of the two most important roles in the group.