TLP Woes and Hopes - Constructive Thoughts Please

I've been playing this game since I was a kid, literally. I'm 34 now. I don't think myself, or most folks are asking for much when we request that our gameplay is protected. That's all I want on my next TLP server - if I come back to the game. It's a big ask at this point.

I was really deep on Oakwynd, and frankly having a blast. The market was great, and then the dupe occurred. Afterwards, I heard all different types of thoughts.

"Nothing will change, the market will go back down" - false, it stayed broken.
"Who cares, you raid for gear anyway" - false, some play for the market, they enjoy it, myself included, and many don't raid AT all.
"It happens on each TLP anyway" - THAT is a problem.
"They will roll it back and ban everyone who cheated" - Not the case, many were left with oodles of promising platinum and Kronos 100% confirmed.

I quit almost immediately. 5/10 other folks I know did the same. Did everyone quit? Obviously no, but you can see how this situation rubs many wrong. So all the backdrop done, I have a few questions:

1. What are developers doing to ensure the dupe does not occur again? I do not want to pay money for a car that dies halfway through a road trip. I don't want to buy upgrades from the market for my car and all of these things during my trip to make my car and experience better - only for it to fail.

2. The Krono debate is silly, and easily fixable. 50% of folks are sick of Kronos, farmers, bots, PLers, RMT, you name it. 50% of folks enjoy it and do it daily.

3. With the new release of a TLP - why not make two exact copies of the server? One subscription based only with a credit card on file (no Krono's allowed, a natural experience) with an increased monthly fee to offset the lack of Krono purchases, and the other server be normal ruleset (Kronos allowed)?

I don't think myself or many other players are asking for much here. You solve these two problems, throw in a fantastic rule set, and I think you'll have a pretty successful TLP season. Nobody loses.

They can have one hardcore server with Krono and no FTE. One more casual server with no Krono and FTE enabled. Everyone knows there are generally two types of players so why not just split them, let everyone have their way. With only two servers you can't get super granular with the options but you could split the rulesets with EQ common sense. Just listen to the two camps and give them what they want.

you people live in lala land, if there was no krono there would be more rmt, not less. The only thing krono does is give people a non dupable currency that underpins the plat economy whilst letting people pay 2 win in a way that sometimes benefits dbg as opposed to people buying plat and dbg seeing none of the money

Can we please stop acting like a server with "no krono" is even a possibility? Can we at least make these threads sound real?

Sure, tell me how its not possible first. Step by step. Thanks. Cause it is possible.

It has been explained REPEATEDLY...Krono is not part of the games it is a part of the service that host the games....they can not turn it off for a single game much less a single server for a single game as it is not actually a part of the game.

Beyond that if they could program it (and they can't) there would be no incentive for Daybreak to do so as it is a big part of their revenue.

Step 1. EG7 is a publicly-owned company trying to turn max profits for investors.

If you have a concept where no krono turns out more profit please let us know. Or don't because it's probably some bad crazy take based on free e m u servers and no real concept of how the business world works.

It's more likely that 90% of players enjoy krono and 10% don't.

No way in hell it's 50/50.

The only reason why people flock to a new server is to make krono.

OP is another nostalgia farmer elitist who wants the game to be just like it was in 1999.

PS: There's a few different servers that offer that experience.................

its 1% that dont like krono. no krono no eq. there is no argument against it. the game doesnt exist without it and/or boxing. people can complain about it, but in the end it has little to no effect on you but it keeps the game running. If they didnt dupe krono, theyd dupe something else. it had nothing to do with Krono existing

Anything is technically possible with enough development resources put to it. However, it is entirely improbable.

• The only way to have a server not have any Krono would require it to be on a 100% separate subscription for that server only. This would likely need its own launcher or at least its own 'region'. Is that possible? Yes, but it would require development time for the launcher/server and it would also require billing/authentication development time.
• To facilitate a Krono-free server, that account would not be able to have access to any other EQ server or any other DBG game that has Krono. The only way you could ensure it never had co-mingling with Krono-enabled servers/games would be to have it new accounts only.
• If there was a 100% separate subscription at the same rate as current or higher, would there be players who would want to create a new account in order to use that subscription to play in a 25-year old game on a single server? In my opinion, it would be less likely if it were at a higher price than an account with a subscription that is able to access all the EQ servers plus other DBG games. But even at the same subscription price, it would be unlikely because a new account would have none of the claims and other items built up on the account.
• If there were a Krono-free account/server would it put an end to RMT and related in-game behaviours? Absolutely not. RMT existed long before Krono was added. Krono only gave an way for the game company to get a "cut" and for at least one way to "safely" get the in-game item to trade (or use instead of subscription).
• In the aughts (LONG before Krono existed and when subscriptions were per game and no Free to Play), the game company (SOE at that time) created a single server with a higher subscription that also offered more GM presence, etc. Did that end RMT on that server? absolutely not. It might even have been more prevalent on that server, even though it wasn't Free Trade. There were characters bought and sold for that server or equipped on that server and transferred to another after someone bought them with the special items only dropped on that server. It was also the only conduit for FV transfers since it was the only server that allowed transfers from FV as well as to FV for a while. However, that server was also a much lower population than all the other servers specifically because of its higher subscription price. Shortly before I left the game the first time, I had heard of several people who had transferred to FV from another server through 1 month on the higher priced special server. It was also the way to transfer plat from other servers to FV or vice versa.

So... yes, it would be "possible", but highly unhighly unlikely AND would solve absolutely none of the issues you seem determined to think it would.

Well, if they wont fix a persistent dupe occurring nonstop, that's a simple nail in the coffin for me. Do I have to have a no-Krono server? No, but the entire game revolves around them. The PLers are obviously selling them for real money but nothing is done about that. You then have the "obvious insert program AFK farmers". You can buy them anywhere cheaper than the DBG store and in bulk with discounts, so it really doesn't help their revenue. It's all kind of flawed arguments to me. You guys act like Kronos are the end all be all and without them the game would die. Game was just fine before them.

I mean I don't get why people even play when you can get max AA by handing out Kronos to farm crews and AFK like its a gumball machine and then actually have the audacity to "brag" about being max AA. Yeah bro, nice achievement, you paid to win.

My real guess is this games at a point where at a minimum 30% of folks are RMT'ing the Kronos. Appreciate the time you took.

Maybe some of us still enjoy playing EverQuest on our own terms regardless of what others are doing.

Krono isn't the problem. The problem is DB not doing anything about the people that are making it a problem. People were buying plat and then using that to buy items back in the day, now people just use Krono. But back then the amount of botting and people running 20+ accounts was nowhere close to what it is now. If they would ban people immediately instead of letting them do the damage they do for 6+ months, things would greatly improve. They don't care if they get banned because they make enough during that time they can just restart like they normally would on the next TLP in an account endless cycle.

Edited for typos.

I’m curious…do those people boxing 20+ provide more revenue for dpg or do the single account players crying about the 20+ boxers create more? Hmmm

Then why are you still playing and what’s keeping you coming back? You wouldn’t be on the forums otherwise. Bro.

It is, people who want Krono gone are by far the minority.

In my line of work, we often to make sure we address the real problem and not the manifastion and masking of the true issue.

When people complain about Krono is what happens on a server in regards to obtaining them.

Are you upset that people who have more time to play are able to gain items/money/exp and leverage that to obtain Krono from those who dont have time to obtain same things? I would bet that is not something you are mad about.

Are you upset that mobs/items/camps are being monopolized by people who see EQ as a business and dont care about your happiness or efforts to get things? I would bet this is what your mad about.

I have played EQ well before the current state that has alot of people(firms, groups) using anyway they can to obtain items/time/experience that they can sell (whether is be Krono, real life money etc.). Back in the day, RMT was the big issue, people going to the black market using cahs to buy plat and items. Before Krono the same complaints were being launched but about RMT.

EQ is a game that rewards time invested, most of us started back when we were kids/teens/college and all we had was time. I remember spending 10 hours camping mobs, doing raids starting at 4pm on saturday finishing at 2am. Most of us are now much older, we have jobs and we have money but what we dont have is TIME. So now many of us use the money we have to pay others for their time - an epic for 6 kr, NP - I make 4k a month and afford that. But I dont have the 10 hrs of camping it takes to get all the pieces.

The issue is that because there are so many of us with dispoable income, we are creating the very things people are complaining about. There are legit players who farm items to sell on TLP to gain Krono to pay for their subscriptions for the year (few of my guidlies on Okaywynd did this and quit once they have their 12 krono for the year.) There are people who live in countries outside of the US that the basic 60 or so bucks they get can help feed their family, or the few thousand a month lets them employ 10 people. There are people who using automation find ways to not share the wealth.

All these interested people are working for the same camps, that you and I want to log in and get. The desire for loot is a what drives most of us, if it wasnt a botter or a Krono farmer it would be your rival guildie. If the loot is good or needed, there will always be someone to complain about it.

Krono is a good thing and always has been, it allows for players to conduct a trade within the game within the confines to avoid scams and such. It allows the gaming company to generate revenue to support the game, I would argue this is part of the reason the game has kept going. EQ was smarter than the other games but finding a way to get in on the RMT market. Every single krono being sold/traded was generated by Daybreak, they got their cut and helped to keep the lights on.

If there was not a demand for items, , Krono by us the players then this would not be an issue. So before you go complain about multiboxers, krono farmers or botters - look in the mirror you are buyer, you are the reason they exist.

The only way to solve problem is to lower the demand for the items, and a lower demand means less players which means the death of EQ. I applaud Daybreak for keeping their wits about them and not listening to the short sighted view of Krono, farmers and multiboxers.

Time to wake up about how the game works and how we keep it going....

Not just FV. I pulled my formerly Sullon Zek but by then just Zek toon off of Zek and onto that server, I was then able to move it to a standard server.

On topic, you are 100% correct, but the Krono haters will never actually listen.

That is dead on arrival as the only way that is possible if it was on a different subscription model from every other server as a krono entitles you to play on ever game/server that is part of the subscription.

If I receive a Macy's gift card, the Macy's in my mall can't deny me a sale using the gift card because they don't accept gift cards. Is that dumbed down enough for you?