/r/ffxivdiscussion: A stricter ilvl sync is the solution to casual content being easy

[Gemina]

In that case, based on your previous argument, power creep shouldn't be a problem, because it's ok for single player games to allow players to be strong.

You're being obtuse. I've made it clear that the situation we are talking about within FFXIV is grouping. The actual mmo aspect of the game.

Interesting. So in your mind, a seasoned pianist has the same struggles as a student just starting out?

A seasoned pianist doesn't progress or even retain their level of skill by always playing Mary had a Little Lamb. A seasoned pianist can only progress further by surmounting additional challenges such as learning new songs to play, incorporating new techniques and perfecting them, and stilling their nerves for recitals in front of many observers. Several of which will be critiquing everything they have learned.

You did push yourself. You completed that level 50 encounter when you were at level 50 and have now surpassed it, overcame it. Repeating that encounter should now be easy for you. Once you've mastered the basics, they are just that, the basics. Or do you believe repeating a Plié is to a Prima Ballerina anything but a warmup? The current challenge is to master an entire dance routine.

And it is. It is easier for you because now you know the fight. Why should the fight becomes easier by punishing you less for screwing up? Why should the players new to the fight be punished less for screwing up? What exactly is wrong with making the playing field even for all those who are participating?

Says who? For that matter, who's to say what's challenging to one person, isn't easy for the next? Who defines what challenging means?

You're missing the point. The idea is to keep the content with the same intended difficulty when it was released. This isn't about a subjective challenge level based on player skill levels. This is about keeping the set challenge level consistent, and not allowing power creeping to dumb down the content.

I'm being entertained. As you said, I can watch a movie, read a book, cook a meal, play a video game, do anything I find entertaining. That's why video games fall under entertainment.

The only one being selfish here is you. You want everyone else to play like you'd like to play. Add to that, you responded rudely to a valid remark, and were factually incorrect in your response.

"I'm rubber, you're glue" rebuttals are childish. Instead try to understand why I say you're being selfish instead of getting offended by it. This quote start's off with "I'm", "I'm being entertained." What about the other players in your group? In this thread alone it should easy for you to identify which posters are not happy with the same entertainment you're getting. They are not as entertained as you, and I am thinking about others, including you. This is why I am not asking for the content to be more difficult than intended. Only for it to be brought back to that level. This is not unreasonable, or unfair to anyone.

The entire point of my post is that you responded to an opposing argument providing an objectively wrong statement. XP and gear have always existed in RPGs for the very purpose of providing a player with meaningful progression, as evidence of a mastery of their art. Just as in real life, when you practice and practice something, you improve on it, become better, and the basics become easy, as second nature, and you also eventually upgrade to using better tools. That's the reason for its very existence from the day it was conceived.

I'm starting to wonder if you understand what progression is. Progression is a succession. It occurs when you overcome an obstacle/objective or anything in that matter that prevents further development, and in this process, you become more developed or honed. In an RPG, better and stronger gear is to prep you for the next challenge in order to continue your progression. Yes, as a consequence of obtaining more power, that which is behind you has become weaker/easier. What I am saying is that this isn't what should make a player feel more powerful. This is a false sense of power. In order to obtain a true sense of power, you must surpass that which provides resistance. What players are doing now is akin to being an adult and schooling a bunch of nine-year olds at basketball.

You are though. Because you're incapable of considering others' point of view. Like how you completely skipped the part of my argument where I said:

If you believe as a level 90 character, in full gear, you should be struggling in a level 50 encounter as if it's your first time doing it, then I don't know what to tell you, except that's an irrational idea.

Not even one time have I made this suggestion. This is your misunderstanding of what it is I am actually proposing. What this game does is allows a ridiculous advantage to players whose level is synced with the duty they are participating in. You're not level 90 when your synced to lv 50 content. You are level 50, and very likely have an asinine advantage over the players who are there for their first time because of power creep. What I am suggesting is the same treatment they have given to Endsinger in this expansion, except all across the board. Every trial. Every raid. The only content that really works like this now are leveling dungeons, and this isn't a problem for anyone.

The problem for SE arises from the fact they need seasoned players to keep the queues filled, in order for the content to still be available for new players.

When a new player with crappy gear enters a duty, they should ideally see all the mechanics, experience the whole fight, struggle and overcome it.

However, seasoned players who've completed this challenge and have better gear, stats and knowledge of it, blast through the encounter. Why? Because this is a challenge they've already overcome and it should rightfully be easy for them.

Again, their knowledge of the fight already accomplishes this. There is no reason for them to be punished less than the next player for screwing up. If they truly are better than the sprout, then they shouldn't be getting hit by avoidable damage. They should know how to resolve the mechanics. However, they most certainly should receive the same damage from the boss's attacks. This is the last time I am going to repeat this.

How do you balance these two opposite scenarios? On the one hand, you want the new player to experience the whole fight and overcome said challenge, on the other hand, you don't want to eliminate the seasoned player's progress and make them feel like they're still weak and useless and all their accomplishments were for naught.

I've already answered this. Multiple times now. You simply level the playing field. That's it. And the dev team are not obligated to stroke egos.

So far, they've settled on what you might call a middle ground.

The very concept of syncing someone experienced down, removing abilities they've supposedly mastered, and weakening them, goes against the philosophy that one is now past one milestone and ready for the next challenge.

On the other hand, not doing so for the sake of balance, would make things even worse for the new players, as letting seasoned players maintain all their power would mean everything dies in one hit.

Removing the seasoned players entirely would just make the old content impossible to complete.

Is there a better solution? Perhaps, I don't know.

Roulettes do not exist to progress players who have already surmounted those challenges. They exist to fill queues for the game's content, and they incentivize players to run them with rewards such as tomes, XP, gil, quest items, etc. They are there to help other players progress through the game who have yet to meet these challenges. At any given time, you can queue up for content sufficient for your level and ilv in order to flex the power you have obtained to that point, but when you are participating in synced content, there is absolutely no reason why you should have an advantage over those who are there with you. Knowledge is your advantage. Use it to help the other players lacking it.

Finally, if you really are so considerate of new players and want them to experience the fight as it was intended on release, make a PF and bring them in and intentionally lower your gear.

If you're intent on using the roulette, how about you intentionally lower your damage, stop hitting the boss for a few seconds at a time, so they experience the whole fight without skips?

I really, really hope you can come to understand the futility in this suggestion someday.