Relative to the other 3 tier 4 zones though it was a big jump in difficulty, I 100 percented that expansion in group gear (along with some other people i played with) The thing about sepulcher is the difficult varied from different camps greatly. The deepest core of the central sepulcher zone had a camp of mobs that were all virtually perma buffed with things that drastically increased their dps, so you kinda needed certain classes. Most of the hardest named mobs were in that zone too, mobs that challenged even raiders and required very specific approaches to beat. Pillars of Alra was had some painfully annoying named mobs too but that was mainly due to mechanics that forced to you hold yourself back (like having ungodly low dps otherwise the boss powers up if you dps it too quickly)
The problem is, what is the incentive for going to these brutal zones? They drop the top-end group gear? Useless for raiders, locks out groupers unless they form a raid. They drop upgrades for raiders? Raiders will group the zone, groupers will raid the zone -- and soon after those groupers will group the zone as they got raid equivalent gear now. I suppose they could give out ridiculous XP for this, but that's another thing that raiders don't really need usually.
That was the general idea behind underfoot. It happened to be too hardcore and was skipped by many people. The extension was to difficult for group geared players. But having one single ultra hard zone in the extension may make sense for raider client base. A good one will include those characteristics: All the mobs see invisibility,are non mezzable, they summon randomly, the mob assist range is increased. The named death touch, if you don't react in 10 sec to an emote. The agro range of all spell is tripled. There are group of roamers, that pop randomly in any location, even rest place. That sounds challenging enough for average raiders, and rather fun.
That would be fun too to introduce more mobs with really nasty curses. Like blindness, getting drunk, silence, KB. I think that would spice up a bit and be rather fun.
As for the loot, they don't really to be that good. People will go to those zone because it is challenging and fun!
In ROFs "All/All" gear set up having a challenge zone with same loot would just make it optional. Most would skip. People who wanted an almost open camp would be able to find one Nothing really wrong with that as long as you don't put any must have items there If it's underused ala Sep, so what really. It's not like the rest of VOA4 was overcrowded theres already too many zones/camps vs # groups so really any zone will make more underused camps spread across the game ((In the past they could do same thing long as they carefully managed loot like cleric mana pres ring had a choice from hard zone (say Plate Only) and one from easier ones (Say Healer Only) However: NO CHASE ITEMS NO BETTER LOOT. That's just an excuse from raiders who have the gear from raids to handle harder zones while wanting loot for thier "weak slots" to fill in until they gear raid gear
Unless they make mobs a threat from range it would just be dominated by classes that can eliminate melee from the equation, just as it is now unfortunately. There was a thread not too long ago suggesting a zone with mobs 20 levels higher than player max. Any class imbalances that are obvious now would be extreme in these supposed harder zones.
Stop being a pansy and stop using raid gear in group zones and you'll have your brutal zone. You're this guy complaining it's too easy:
That's fine, we can fix that, just don't allow raid gear in group zones so everyone is on a level playing field. Raiders will have their challenge and groupers won't have to complain about unfairness. Perfect solution.
Everyone is on a level playing field. Non-raiders simply choose to play a less demanding version of EQ. Some would suggest raid loot ought not be useable outside of raids? Perhaps they missed the part where Merry, Pippen, Samwise, and Frodo rode through the Shire in their war gear. Raiders don't get as many benefits from group content as non-raiders. Our challenge and it's reward is found where dragons still roam or deep underground or on the mountains of the moon. While we might not be entitled to special group content non-raiders can't handle, it's a little out of order to deny us our triumphs - our elven cloaks, mithril armor, our Sting's. Funny to see the Sackville Bagginses frown disapprovingly. Next they'll be after our spoons.
Guess group gear shouldn't work in group zones either, given the enormous mudflation of group gear the past few years. New idea: No gear of any kind allowed in group zones. There's your challenge.
Uhm, you seem to be contradicting yourself here, it's raiders who are playing easymode in XP zones, not groupers. You seem to be confused or don't know what you're talking about, XP zones are far more challenging for a grouper. In fact, I would argue that raiders play the less demanding version of EQ. Some raiders here claim they want more challenge but when people suggest to give them the same challenge as groupers by using group gear in group zones they act like scared pansies. What's that about? Seems to me raiders don't want any challenge and prefer the easy way out. Are you up for an equal challenge as groupers by limiting raid gear in group zones or backing out like a pansy?
Oranges, I think Battleaxe was talking about the fact that non-raiders often self-select a less demanding version of EQ. Specifically they aren't going to even spend times in the harder zones of an expansion.
Says who, plenty of groupers do all the zones in expansions, and they do it in group gear. It's offensive to groupers to claim they are playing "a less demanding version of EQ" when not a single raider here has the guts to say "Ok, no more raid gear easymode in XP zones". That's pure hypocrisy and every raider here is too big of a pansy to agree to stop using raid gear in group zones. So don't call one game less demanding when you're too chicken to even play it.
As Ronak said, given recent mudflation you should be asking for a zone with no gear. For example after a 2 year break I came back to EQ, when I left I was #25 serverwide for SKs AC/HPs. Not number one but certainly FAR beyond any group geared SK. I walked out into SL with my shiny t4 raid gear, and promptly got deaded to a venomshell pest. I then went to the bazaar bought all new gear, and gained 20khps, and no ac loss, my focus went up too. I went back to SL, and wow, did fine, not great, but acceptable. All in group gear versus raid gear. As for Raiders playing the easy version of EQ, try leading a raid, or doing Chapterhouse raid, or Kael, Sep4/5, or any number of raids I could mention. Yes sometimes events are easier with more people, but you are fooling yourself, if you believe that to be the rule and not the exception.
