Party finder treasure map loot rules

[Naryoril]

I know this isn't strictly a dungeon topic, but there is no forum it really belongs to. So since some kind of dungeon is involved, i'm posting this here.

I plan to do Bara'ax skin map treasure hunting, but since the last time I did treasure maps was in Heavensward, I tried to google what people usually do with the loot.

It seems there are 3 schools of thought, and what is dominant depends on the server:

1) All FFA
Reasoning: it keeps people engaged when they can always win something. Makes people bailing after their map(s) less likely

2) Overworld map owner need, portal FFA
Reasoning: the important and valuable stuff is in the portals, that's what people come for

3) All owner need
Reasoning: it sucks if you get nothing out of your own map. also you don't need to keep track of who brought how many maps, because all FFA is only fair if everyone brings the same number of maps


What i'm thinking of doing is to combine these methods to get some of the good points of all options:
First chest, be it overworld or the one in the portal, is owner need, if you get further chests within a portal, it's free for all
Reasoning: You get something out of your own map (so you get something for your investment), it doesn't matter much if not everyone brings the same number of maps (even if someone brings 0 maps), but you stay engaged since you can get loot on every map and hope for multiple turns within a portal, even if it isn't your map.
That last point is something someone raised on reddit for the all owner need option: he feels bad when he is in a portal and thinks "i hope we get booted out, so this goes over quicker"



What are your thoughts? Am I overlooking something that is the reason nobody seems to do this? Would you join a group with these rules?

[Jojoya]

It adds further complexity to loot distribution, and that means further chances for someone to make a mistake and drama to follow.

Personally, I stick to doing maps with friends and FC. It's always FFA, we don't care who did or didn't bring a map, and special items frequently end up traded around after the fact. The loot is less important than messing around together and it's guaranteed to be drama-free.

[Naryoril]

Yeah, the somewhat increased complexity is the main issue I see myself as well. But maybe it might not be an issue in practice, I guess that's something i could only really find out with trying.

Personally, I stick to doing maps with friends and FC. It's always FFA, we don't care who did or didn't bring a map, and special items frequently end up traded around after the fact. The loot is less important than messing around together and it's guaranteed to be drama-free.

I'd do that too if I could. But I didn't play for 3.5 years between early ShB and very late EW. 2 friends got me to resub, and I changed datacenter to play with them. So I can't play with my old friends (if they are even still playing), and I don't have many new ones. I also don't want to get into an FC, because what I'm looking for in an FC is not compatible with my current playstyle.

So I'm stuck with doing it with mostly randoms.

[Infindox]

After getting the 20 "wins" in the new map and just joining whatever PFs I could find (I have FC friends but some don't wanna do maps! Lol) I found the majority of people do FFA, and most people are fine with this. No matter what, you get gil, mats and tomes, so even if someone's unlucky they get something.
Out of all the PFs I had three that were Owner Need, 2 by the same person. One of the chests dropped 4 of the minions and the person said for people to FFA the other three, but not everyone 's so kind.

[LilimoLimomo]

Obviously anyone can do whatever they prefer, but I won't do maps with a group that isn't FFA for the following reasons:

Whenever only the owner gets loot from a run, that means everyone else has to wait their turn. If the group disbands before it gets to your turn, you're out of luck. And that's always a real possibility. It sucks to devote your time to filling other people's purses and leave with nothing to show for it.

Beyond that, runs spend a disproportionate amount of time in portals when they spawn. You didn't get a portal? Cool, everyone just devoted 1 minute to you. Meanwhile you're spending 15 times that amount of effort pushing yourself so that they person who got a portal can get even more stuff. It feels bad because people's time is the most valuable resource they have.

To be clear, it can be really fun helping others achieve their goals. But when things feel unfair, that sucks. Doing our best to mitigate the possibility that things feel unfair maximizes the chance for everyone to have a good time together.

For that reason, I'm all about FFA. At any time, anyone could get loot. You're not pushing towards the bottom of a dungeon for Sephiroth Strife'vii, you're pushing towards the bottom of the dungeon for your entire team. And because of that, it feels more like a team, because all the team's effort is being spent on the team's rewards, thus removing the focus on any one individual. And as a bonus, if someone needs to drop and be replaced, it's easy to do without any complex logistics or drama.

[StouterTaru]

FFA only

Also, 8-person, 3 maps each is a terrible idea - Keep your parties to 90 minutes or less

[Infindox]

FFA only

Also, 8-person, 3 maps each is a terrible idea - Keep your parties to 90 minutes or less

I completely disagree. Of those 3 maps for everyone, about half of them won't have portals with average luck, and a few will be booted out door 1. 8 man burns everything and everyone gets rewarded. Less people you have the longer it takes.
Most people know that if they need to go to say something and people will be okay with it, then usually the group continues on with what's left.

I do agree with FFA though. Fairest version.

[alfarini]

I just do FC and friends map parties. It's always FFA and it's always drama free. For most of us it's not about the loot. It's "can we get to the 5th floor?!" Loot is cool. I got the bloodsucker minion last night after I was like "I'll give you market price for it!" We usually just let things ride and roll a deal if anyone wants. If no to a deal it's fine and we move on.

I tried PF map parties, the 3/4 I joined were listed with no comments. And the leader welcomed me an declared all loot was his and we'd be paid per portal we opened. I didn't like that at all. 500k per portal open no matter what the floor was and could miss out on loot that could have been mine? Naw I'd rather have fun and not basically be a loot slave lmao.

[Infindox]

I just do FC and friends map parties. It's always FFA and it's always drama free. For most of us it's not about the loot. It's "can we get to the 5th floor?!" Loot is cool. I got the bloodsucker minion last night after I was like "I'll give you market price for it!" We usually just let things ride and roll a deal if anyone wants. If no to a deal it's fine and we move on.

I tried PF map parties, the 3/4 I joined were listed with no comments. And the leader welcomed me an declared all loot was his and we'd be paid per portal we opened. I didn't like that at all. 500k per portal open no matter what the floor was and could miss out on loot that could have been mine? Naw I'd rather have fun and not basically be a loot slave lmao.

That's an extremely unusual party and I would have left the moment he said that.

[alfarini]

That's an extremely unusual party and I would have left the moment he said that.

Oh I left instantly and listed them after the said it lmao.