Changes with the February Update: Developer Updates

I'm sure the team is continuing to discuss this issue.

Yes, refund them.

Lag on an individual's system (The only "lag" that can be alleviated by adjusting one's own settings) is very different from server lag. I think for SOE, server lag allegedly caused by some players mass killing is "unintended," and therefore they want to eliminate it. However, any server lag caused by massive amounts of individuals playing, whether in a raid or group situation - under intended mechanics/styles - is what they WANT the server's resources to support. Does that make sense?

By keeping them toggled off they can earn AA xp and purchase AAs not provided by the grant using the experience curve that will disappear when it's toggled on. The only way this doesn't help is for tanks or healers who will noticeably falter at their roles without the granted AAs (CA/CS and healing adept/gift). Those roles have always shouldered a heavier burden, so I see no problem with this. But they also benefit more from the 'needless' AAs clogging up the xp curve that provide tankiness (planar agility for example). DPS classes could sneak by more easily with poor DPS for a few levels until they fill out the HoT AAs.

The progression servers fill a niche, offer a different experience. That makes sense. The proposed server in this case doesn't fill a niche, it just allows other players to isolate themselves from people.

I used to work on City of Heroes and they implemented a server so the subscribers could avoid all free to play players. I argued against the planning for it while I was working there, then left to come to SOE. That server had huge numbers come to it, and a massively higher rate of players leaving the game than any other server. This may have significantly contributed to the final shut down of City of Heroes. These games aren't about isolating yourself from other kinds of players, that's bad for the community.

Would you say it smashes them?

That problem has been solved in the latest expansion (CotF). Every named in the same zone drops the same loot, more or less. A group can only take so many cloaks or rings before they start rotting.

Ill ask for the third time as no one actually answering the question. Ive paid this game for 13 years so would like to understand the logic of what u are doing so i wouldnt be so peeved. Why is a gift of aa better than speeding up exp for gold accounts. Gift = gold for one month , faster = maybe gold longer term. gift =peeved off long term players, the ones that have paid right through ie the loyal payers, faster exp = less peeved off long time pple while the new and returning players still benifit for fast exp. I would like to understand, there is clearly something im not seeing so can someone pls explain it to me

I have a 100 Rog/Ber/Rng and I parsed Assassinate/Decapitate/Head Shot rates for 6 hours after the announcement.
Bazaar geared Ranger proc'd 22 times per minute (1000ish dex)
Raid geared Rogue proc'd 12 times per minute from behind (1200ish dex)
Raid geared Berserker proc'd 8.6 times per minute (1500ish dex)

If you make them proc at the same rate, you give Decap a HUGE advantage over the other 2, since it works on everything. If they proc on the same level mobs at the same rate, for almost the same damage (yes I know decap can't be dmg mod'd), they need to have the same mob type restriction.

Also 2 procs per minute is waaay to low considering you also removed the ability to proc it on riposte.

I would like to know this also.

Thanks for explaining. Do you then think that Mayong would have had such a boundary? I primarily viewed it as a niche server for casual players--prioritize grouping over raiding. 51/50 was a small enough advantage to create that niche but not big enough to make newcomers feel obligated to go there instead of their friends' server. And if they didn't have a friend...then 51/50 gave a huge advantage to them. The only problem I guess that a lot of people came expecting a strong raid population, maybe if Mayong was remade it could be called The Grouping Server so people knew what they were getting into.

Except that the intent is to encourage grouping. Also, in terms of the logic, if someone's firing arrows at you, you'll be much less likely to evade them while your attentions are focused on someone who has infuriated you, and is at arm's length. As opposed to intently struggling to kill the guy who's got you snared/rooted & keeps shooting you with said arrows.

Yes, that option was thoroughly discussed before we announced this change. No opinions were presented during these two threads that hadn't already been represented. This isn't a poll about how many people feel one way or the other (interesting note, post the update it's actually slightly in favor of the changes if you go by unique posters rather than post count), it's an invitation for feedback. The whys matter more than the how manys.

I used to play on the rathe a ton. I never had problem getting pickups with my cleric on that server. Admittedly I haven't played him much over the last year or so. Maybe it's a strategy for getting groups issue rather than a class issue? Btw, I'm pretty sure we've grouped.

Talking about mercs though isn't the point of this thread. I'm happy to discuss it in another thread.

Refunded, remade, and Decap in particular should be extended with lower ranks to follow suit with the other two. Obviously, some zerkers will moan about that, so maybe you want to grant their lower ranks for "free," to characters who've already purchased the currently existing ranks, while allowing them to decide whether or not to buy the ranks sufficient for current content?

Unless with the retooling extension of target level, you're going to have them scale in damage like Slay Undead does, rather than observing any level caps beyond a hard-coded player character level minus 1?

I trust you'll let us know...

No. They are going to get changed. It's just the how they are getting changed that was in question.

Ok, you're completely missing the point. The stated purpose is to help people catch up faster, by taking the AA grant you lose your AA bonus, thereby, slowing you down. Most of the AA spent is 90+ specifically because of the cost per rank. You can slide past the first 84 levels of AA with 1k-2k on pretty well every class only taking necessaries and keeping your bonus when you get to the ones that cost real points. I don't know how to say it more clearly.

Yes, please, lets start another thread, and title it UPCOMING SUPER NERFS TO ALL MERCS

Mayong was before my time with the team, it had been closed before I got here. I'd hesitate to speculate too much about it.

There are no upcoming super nerfs to all mercs though.