The Lessons Not Learned.

[aveyond-dreams]

Patch day has arrived. It was an update that I didn’t expect to be quite content heavy, but even so the situation regarding what just released today has to be addressed. The game right now is light on content and for all the hype about Criterion/Variant Dungeons, they released with ill-fitting, extremely limited rewards that will soon leave players without a reason to return to the content for who knows how long. Not like we haven’t run into situations before just last expansion when a lack of rewards for content like CLL made it irrelevant within a span of 2 weeks. A pink mouse, a generic throne, and yet another modern glamset. I truly wonder what about the feedback of people being fed up with these clothes and wanting more fantasy all-class gear is too hard to address. If it even makes it through to the proper channels, but rather than face criticism it seems they’d rather pander to the less-mature subset of players that congregate on Twitter – from whom they can expect nothing but unconditional positivity.

For a blessing, the Manderville Weapons aren’t the dreaded joke weapons from the Weapon Design Contest but all it takes to get one is 1500 poetics? Seriously? Did they forget how much of a mistake it was when they did poetics for Shadowbringers relics as well? Forget “accessibility” – anyone who wants an easy weapon to get can buy one off the marketboard. They could’ve at least spiced things up by...oh wait, the Relic Zones were scrapped entirely this expansion instead of releasing in the .25 patch like back in Stormblood. Any fates with interesting mechanics won’t be seen until 7.X, if even that, with the only other options being overworld fates with basic aoes or Alliance Raids that haven’t aged well in terms of balancing. I cannot imagine what appeal these weapons would have for us veteran players who likely already own a good number of relics, let alone those of us unwilling to suffer through the torment of the Hildibrand quests – with even more of that sort of writing apparently being present in the Omicron beast tribe storyline. Seems like even the Pixies had a darker plot to their quests, and they involved a literal candyland.

We’ve been here before – it seriously feels like the Covid content drought all over again but instead of finishing off with something like Bozja all we got was one of many entirely forgettable modern glamsets and another relic step that made the same mistakes as 5.25’s. Anyone could see the mistakes that were made in the past when it came to all this stuff and instead of improving, they just doubled down and repeated them all over again. How on earth is this ok?

[Alyx-Greywind]

Just to add it takes 1,500 Astronomy, not Poetics.

[aveyond-dreams]

Just to add it takes 1,500 Astronomy, not Poetics.

Ah, my apologies. Even so the only options for that are roulettes and some of the easiest max level content this game has ever had.

[Tint]

Ah, my apologies. Even so the only options for that are roulettes and some of the easiest max level content this game has ever had.

I am more than fine with that. The relic never was about hard content, there are enough weapons you can get from extremes, savage and ultimate fights.

But... the relic was about grind.

It is simply not okay that I can just buy it with the tomestones I already had with me and be done.

I don't want a free weapon. I want something to do.

[Vahlnir]

I am more than fine with that. The relic never was about hard content, there are enough weapons you can get from extremes, savage and ultimate fights.

But... the relic was about grind.

It is simply not okay that I can just buy it with the tomestones I already had with me and be done.

I don't want a free weapon. I want something to do.

Yeah, this is how I feel as well. Relics in ARR and HW gave me a reason to keep logging in every day. I was in the same boat too with the tomestones. Had 1700 on me, and I was done in 5 minutes.

[MsMisato]

I am more than fine with that. The relic never was about hard content, there are enough weapons you can get from extremes, savage and ultimate fights.

But... the relic was about grind.

It is simply not okay that I can just buy it with the tomestones I already had with me and be done.

I don't want a free weapon. I want something to do.

im suspecting the grind may come later during the upgrade stages for the relics. It kind of made sense in a way to not the gate initial base relic weapon this patch behind a huge gate like last time.

[NishaSetsuya]

I am more than fine with that. The relic never was about hard content, there are enough weapons you can get from extremes, savage and ultimate fights.

But... the relic was about grind.

It is simply not okay that I can just buy it with the tomestones I already had with me and be done.

I don't want a free weapon. I want something to do.

To be fair the first step of relic are always the easiest to get

[Ronduwil]

It is simply not okay that I can just buy it with the tomestones I already had with me and be done.

You're not done. You're only at the starting line. Also, you can't "just buy it with the tomestones." By the time you've gotten to that stage, you've already put in hours of Manderville questing. As a veteran player, being able to immediately buy the weapon is a sort of loyalty reward. For newer players and even for older players who have yet to tackle the Manderville quests, they have a ways to go to get to that starting line. I'm looking forward to finding out what the rest of the grind is going to entail. I think it's still a little early to write this off as bad.

[Valkyrie_Lenneth]

Ah, my apologies. Even so the only options for that are roulettes and some of the easiest max level content this game has ever had.

Well, you've stated you don't do any hard content, so if it was locked behind that I'm sure you'd still be complaining, just for a different reason.

[Bunnycake]

Just to add it takes 1,500 Astronomy, not Poetics.

Wait, das et?