Changes with the February Update: Alternate Ability Grants for Gold Members and Ability Changes

Count me in the camp of "I'm glad beaming/swarming/zone lag is being addressed". I'm also meh on the AA grant. Basically maxxed out, could care less if others become useful in a quicker timeframe.

I don't feel that granting AAs detracts from my accomplishments. For those that feel like they should get recognition for "earning them the hard way", why not a small compromise - can AAs that are autogranted not count toward the achievements unlocked for AAs? That way, those that ground them out are still recognized for their work.

Then you have people like me, Who have had their account since 1999, and just got pissed off enough to make a forum account that shows "New member" when they are not.

I have asked numerous questions, and every single one of them has been ignored.

I get that you are not at fault, and you are doing you're job of informing the population of upcoming changes. I'm not trying to shoot the messenger, but this is easily the most ridiculous suggestion of changes to a game I have played since I was a child.

Better use of the developer's time would be to:
1) Fix chat
2a)address max memory crash bug
2b) why do people still crash just because they zoned into the Overthere?
3) Obviously the payload on the server is too much regardless of server activity, maybe they could take some of that information to the exe's and upgrade some hardware.....finally...

I 3 box on a VERY expensive, custom built computer that can play new release games on max settings 2-3 times over. But if I stay logged into EQ for longer than 2 hours, ALL my games crash, this makes raiding pretty hard, as well as leveling.

Instead Sony would rather waste its time upsetting and alienating its playerbase?

Ok... I am like 95% in agreement with this post. Very well done. I often thought about the whole mob agro cap idea, as its been stated before, but you have put it here eloquently.

Shaman Sloth line does not lag servers, It is a necessary spell that we use because we have to help keep the tank alive while we do many other things. Nerfing the spell line by adding counters and heal amount limit at the same time you increase the mana cost makes no sense. I know i can't be the only Shaman out there who doesn't like this change.
In short please discuss and let me know if i am way off ( and explain in the process) ... thanks

Auto granting AA is also a bad idea, what if I don't WANT a certain aa? Such as not wanting Spell Casting Subtlety? (for reasons of keeping agro while kiteing for example)

I'm by no means max AA, I have 6124 with a cap of 9750, and there are some I could buy still that I wont get free. A lot of what I dont have I will get free though (The Innate stats and other junk), so I would benefit from this, if you can call it benefitting. But even I loathe the idea for 2 reasons.

• I have 6k AA that I spent my time grinding for, doing dailies for, etc etc. One day soon, you are proposing that people get half of what I worked for just by logging in/buying a month of game time. You are basically proposing to sell AA's.
• You're going to be just handing me a lot of what I have left to get myself. I want to get them, not be handed them. I imagine being max level w/ max AA is going to get boring pretty quick.

Its almost like you're trying to get new players and push the old ones out. I for one, hope this doesnt go through.

(I have not read any responses, and will not be checking back.)

I love all the changes! I think they're fairly well thought-out. I think they are good for the game in the long run.

I have a few concerns off the top of my head:

1. I do NOT want more Spell Casting Subtlety AAs. In fact, I'd like to be able to refund a couple levels as I sometimes want to get aggro. Now this is being forced upon me.

2. Alternate Abilities were supposed to differentiate those who for instance went for hitpoints rather than AC, or offense rather than defense and also those who played a ton more than most and got them all. I realize this ship has sailed long ago, but I liked the original idea and would like to see a return to it somehow.

3. I think you shouldn't have to go Gold to get the AAs, but that's a fairly minor point, and I understand that EQ is a business that has to make money, and FTP is really just meant to offer players a way to decide if they want to spend money on the game.

4. There are a few other AAs that I'm not sure I want, but they're from newer expansions so it's not a concern for now.

Anyway, big kudos for coming up with such reasonable solutions to the problems, and don't be too hard on yourselves for getting some stuff wrong. Better that you tried to give us cool stuff we wanted and it didn't work out than to never give us anything that might be used in an unusual way or abused!

That's not correct.

Mage Beaming will always be a problem since the goal is to lag the server. Even if you were to change pathing, or upgrade the server, Mage Beaming would still be a problem since the goal is to lag the server. SK Swarming just causes lag unintentionally.

hi all I love Eq ive been playing now 14 years ,I cant see why sony should punish certain characters all the time I worked hard to get my ranger up and about and my shaman and then they spoil the class by taking things away or Nerfing... the trouble with today generation of people the want everything INSTANT BANG ON THE PLATE!! we'll eq is not like that its fun its challenging ,its going back over old zones and doing tasks you may have missed or were unable to do ,but now your are!! I worked hard to get my flagging for POT and what do u do give all flags out free??? that was a smack in the face!!
I love this game ,but if SONY keeps NERFING abilities then they are going to loose the good oldies who have been playing years!!! ive seen people who beam or swarm its amazing to watch ,plus it takes great skill not to die!! perhaps Sony needs to up grade their Graphics or Internet speed to cope with the lag and not take it out on their customers? well that's my opinion thank you
Sony....

Many ppl have asked to be able to turn the XP off optionally, so maybe they can do that.

HI, was my quote you took, Im not arguing as everyone has their own view on this, but I remember way back the monk nerf which monks were mad about as way back monks could solo almost anything they wanted. people are upset that its going to ruin their class but its more of finding a way to adapt like monks are still around they adapted to their OP being taken away and are still a fun and useful class. and I hope you don't quit playing as everyone is important to this game

This is why i have never agreed to any posts you make. We are totally different people.

While current beam kiting tactics do involve lagging the server, it's not at all required.

1) How about something for every Gold Account, new and old players alike can USE. A new Gold AA like Lessons of the Devoted (Veteran AA)? Maybe have an increased time limit or a decreased time between usages.
This would also set up the game for more "Gold" rewards along the way, similar to what has happened with Veteran awards but for Gold Accounts.
This would help new players since they might not have a veteran account and it also helps those that can't afford SC EXP potions.
Once someone goes below Gold, it turns them off. No problem.

2)This would prevent the following:
The purchase of unneeded or unwanted AA such as "Innate Lung Capacity" (Defiant gear level 70+) or my casters "Innate Strength" or someones Melee "Innate Intelligence".
It would also keep people from hitting that 4k AA 4/5 times harder to gain AA wall right off that bat at level 85.

Side Note:
NONE of my characters has ever had Innate Lung Capacity 1, let alone to Rank 6. 100 Necro 4000+AA, 100 Druid 3000+AA, 96 Mage 1700+AA, 96 1500+AA Chanter. None have any of the Innate Skill stats. NONE.
Don't make me go over 4000k with CRAP AA to grind out the ones I really need 4/5 times slower!
Or thats a lot of gold accounts gone silver :=) I won't threaten to quit. In fact I would continue to use server resources just to spite the changes.

Yes, you must die. Cause that's the intended purpose of the class, to tank but nothing else........

How is the hardware not an issue and just kicking the can down the road? Will you be running EQN on the same hardware you are running eq1 on? From the video i watched of EQN the graphics look much more dynamic than that of EQ1.

I agree with you there m8 im not say ban beaming but limit it to like 10 mobs at a time ?

This really upsets me, I left game and came back and have 12K+ AA. At the same time I've been using social media to bring old guildies back to game and helping them catch back up. I can tell you first hand this is unnecessary. IF you really want to help the returning players rather than give away old AA you could easily adjust the modifiers to gain AA or reduce the cost of several old AAs. This strikes me as two things 1) a money grab, more players going gold and more krono being sold. 2) a smoke screen for the nerfbat.

Have you completely given up on EQ? How long until you starting offering 500AA for $5 in the Marketplace?

-Airowen
The Rathe

Even if you don't want to do the "accelerated AA gaining" angle, which I prefer, at least dole them out in waves or something, like x per level, not a giant lump.

And if you must, must give them out and not have us earn them faster, then let us spend them. That is WAY more fun that just being given them if that is what you are dead set on.

All jokes aside, the change to SK self healing is massive. I imagine the SK community has not yet completely / wholly grasped the magnitude of the nerf. When they do, this forum is going to explode.