ISO4 and implants

TL;DR - ISO4 seems quite out of reach, as well as the RNG put on implants. Are most people fine with the way it is? Or do you think we need more ways to get ISO4?
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So, I have played this game off and on since the start and recently started playing again a week ago or so. One of the first things I have noticed is the change to implants.

AFAIK, ISO4 is only attained via alerts, or breaking down duplicate implants (and I read novice directive completions somewhere?). When I am lucky enough to get a faction win, I get a meager 100 ISO4 if I was there for the full alert. It's 50 or much less on a 2nd/3rd place loss. Seeing as alerts aren't always up and I might get ~3 in a day if I play a lot, it seems REALLY hard to acquire any significant amount of ISO4.

Having seen some data on Reddit for implant drop rates, the best method for acquiring some of the more rare and "exceptional" implants is by buying the 500 ISO4 container. Additionally, it looks like you need about ~3500 ISO4 just to upgrade one implant to max.

I have probably gotten ~400 ISO4 from alerts playing pretty heavily in the last week. No way I am going to keep that up. It's bad enough I haven't gotten any of the implants I wanted from the deluxe implant caches or the ISO4 caches.

I haven't seen much said about this, but to say the least, I think there needs to be a way to attain more ISO4. Sure, I could spend every cert I get on implant packs and break down all the useless ones those give, which probably wouldn't be enough still, the ISO4 you get from melting duplicates also seems pretty ******, but then I wouldn't be able to buy anything else or even enjoy the game.

Like I said, I couldn't find much discussion on this or statements by daybreak...So, I'd like to throw some questions out there...

Have there been any official statements on further changes to the ISO4/implant system?

Is the general expectation that we buy implant packs with certs/cash?

Any plans on giving members increased ISO4 gains?

As I asked at the top, I want to see some opinions on the matter from the community. Maybe im just the odd one out here and most everyone else is ok with it...

I agree that there needs to be a better way of getting it. Over-popping a faction is ridiculously out of control, and I normally switch to the underdog if my faction ever gets zerged, so I've won 2 alerts since the new system is out. What really adds salt to the wound is that I spent a ton of money on this game and had all the implants I wanted before the change, and now I don't have a fraction of what I used to and won't have what I want realistically for another year or more. It's just ridiculous. But you get used to ridiculous around here.

I think it's fine as it is. Gives you something to work towards and actually there are only a few of the implants that are worth getting - dependant upon your preferred class and playstyle. The best one is obviously Sensor Shield and I got that after spending a few certs on packs. Almost ready to upgrade it to level 5.

I bought a lot of 500 ISO crate because I'd ton of ISO with the old implant/energy conversion. Honestly, I strongly advise anyone to NOT do this, it was a mistake : it's far better to keep the ISO to upgrade implants.

Just don't hope to get legendary implant, it will spare you a lot of frustration for not getting them after the 10 crate.
They are only a few implant worth getting and they all are in "common" or "uncommon" pool, which mean you can unlock all useful implant in 1 to 3 deluxe crate.

@Jac70 : are you sure you need rank 5 on that implant ? Thermal vision doesn't work anymore.

While my long-standing opinion is disinterest in the implant system (all three of its known forms), I do wish to express the opinion that the base is absolutely hysterical about it in almost every way I can consider a possible reaction and I can do nothing but watch in befuddlement.

If you are in an alert for the whole duration and take an active part n the fight the ISO rewards are roughly as follows based on my earnings:

• win = 300 ISO (plus a reward drop of some sort)
• second place = 100 ISO
• third place = 30 to 40 ISO

I have gained a ton of ISO one way or another since the patch, so I think the current system is fair enough.
I imagine that RNG on buying implants is a bit of a nuisance if you are not a member and have to grind a lot for the certs. I got everything I wanted quite quickly with buying packs, except for one implant for one of my six avatars which required me to buy quite a few packs.
But, since then they have also introduced the free implant packs for completing first level of directives, so I'm not sure more needs to done tbh. I guess it would be an expensive and hard slog if you were determined to get one of the rare implants but I don't care about them as I have got the only three I want to use and have almost finished maxing them out now.

As someone who avoid the over-pop faction of the night, I haven't gotten jack **** for iso. That's the same as saying "I got every implant I wanted in the first box I opened, so the system is fine." The insanely boosted rewards for being on the winning side have brought faction swapping to a whole new level.

Those have been finished in most cases since before the new implants, so strike that option off the list for me. It's not even like I'm cheap and asking for everything for free, this last year I've spent probably close to $400 on this game, but crap like this is why I stopped spending money on this game and refuse to start until things are fixed. This new implant system, especially tied to a completely rng lottery, is a ******* mess. In all honesty, I'm probably looking at a year+ of playing an hour a day to get lucky enough to just get the maxed out implants I'm looking for on just one of my characters, unless I jump on board with the Chinese zergs and *** my way to alert victory.

Just got the ISO4 to upgrade to level 5. I thought all those poeple running around no longer highlighted were running Sensor Shield. After you mentioned it I noticed that yeah, nobody shows up on thermals anymore - so I am wondering, what does level 5 actually change?

I had read this too, but whenever my faction wins I only get a max of 100 ISO4 (when im there start to finish). When I first started playing again, I was actually getting a decal for a win, which happened a couple times. I assume I must have been getting 300 ISO4 too, but wasn't paying attention at that point. Not sure if there are other parameters I am missing.

300 would be great. But not enough still imo.

Not only do you need to win - you also need to be the empire that is attempting to lock the continent. That's what grants you 300 and a reward.

Available Reward :
-Win (started the alert) : 300 ISO + decal cosmetic
-Win (didn't started the alert) : 100 ISO
-Lose (second place) : 100 ISO
-Lose (third place) : 50 ISO

Why I didn't get the (full) reward ?
-If you've played less than half the alert, you won't get the cosmetic.
-Your ISO reward is based on alert time played on the continent of the alert. If you play only half the alert, you only get half the ISO reward.
-Changing continent / relog restart the your reward timer to 0. (if you played 40min of alert then relog, you will get around 10% of the reward).


@Jac70 : sensor shield 5 allow you to not being able to render for people using the IRNV scope and people using IRNV implant. Unless you're using sensor shield on your default load-out, I suggest you to spent your ISO on an other implant.
I didn't tested it but if rank 5 work while inside a vehicle, then it's a good idea to unlock rank 5.

Looks like it is pretty 50/50 so far. I suspect those that got lucky with their implant drops and/or are on a server/faction that starts and wins alerts often are more happy with the system. Having found out now that your faction has to START the alert AND win to get the 300...reeeeeee lol. I typically subscribe when I pick up this game after a while, but the more I play now I am starting to wish I hadn't. At an absolute minimum subscribing members should be getting more ISO4.

Exactly how I feel.

With many months total subscribed and many cash drops, especially during the double station cash/daybreak periods, I simply regret it now with where the game is. Seems like little appreciation for those who have invested a significant amount of money in the game.

I have loved this game and don't mean to sound angry or overly dramatic in any way, but I probably will get my fun out of the month I have on my membership and not come back unless by some miracle this game has more players/support and takes a new direction. Genuinely wish there was an alternative to this fantastic idea for a game.

My faction has lost more alerts than been the winner and I still get a ton of ISO, so I'm afraid you are jumping to a wrong conclusion when saying that only joining the winning faction gets you lots of ISO........depends how many you take part in more than anything else

Yes, it is true that the directive rewards only benefit new players. But $400?! well...........damn! I have a subscription and it costs me a fraction of that for a year and I get enough bonus cert gain plus DBC to get pretty much anything I want.

Both of the points made seem to be more about the choices you make than about the mechanics of the game.

Those scores aere what I have experienced, not what I have read. But some people have reported bugs and the devs have acknowledged that some bugs exist, so you could be one of the unlucky ones.

Mind you, the decal (or other reward) only comes with an alert win. I don't mean to doubt you but if you get less than 300 ISO and no reward, then at least one explanation is that your faction didn't actually win the alert for some reason.

I don't pretend to understand it all - for example, another faction triggered an alert recently but my faction ended up with the same full cortium stock and higher territory at the end (above 40% against 36% for the triggering faction). But my faction still only came second.

Statistically every faction should lose more alerts than they start, but depending on which server you play on, which faction, and what time of day, that's just not the case. People point out a reasonable spread of alert wins from statistic sites, but jump on Connery during Asian hours and it's VS for a straight 8 hours unless China feels like playing TR that day, for whatever reason. The occasional double team happens, but it really is rare. So yes, saying my lack of iso comes down to a personal choice, but punishing players who chose not to zerg and spawncamp alongside most of Asia is a problem. By switching off TR to NC when TR is over-pop, I've won 2 alerts out of at least 40. Those aren't exaggerated numbers either, it's that unlikely for a faction who doesn't have pop to win an alert on Connery. And honestly, the alert system isn't all to blame, its the ease at which you can still over-pop a single faction. Oh, and not to mention, that over-pop gets an instant win if there's a 2nd continent unlocked. Wold pop might be 40%, 28%, 32% on a very balanced night, and continent pop will be pretty even on the main, but 60%+ for the over-pop faction on the dead continent, and that's a wipe. Maybe things are more balanced when/where you play, but that doesn't mean the game is doing well elsewhere.

Video games are incredibly cheap entertainment compared to bars, drugs, motorcycle racing, guns and all those other fun things. And I'm not bummed I spent money on this game, I mention that amount because I feel that after dropping that I shouldn't be in this situation only a year later, not because I regret it at all. I'm not paying for another membership till over-pop and zerging is addressed. Without that membership I get around a cert a minute, and buying enough caches to maybe get Carapice to try on my medic, my favorite class, would probably take a year, and that's if I completely neglect my vehicles. The grind on this game is insane for average skilled players like myself, and this implant system is a real ***** on top of the normal grind.

I hate the random implant pack system, it's such a scam. You should at least be able to direct buy with certs/cash/ISO4

down from 48K to 700 ISO4
upgraded allot of my implants to the max but not everything
the slow way of getting ISO4 will take months maybe years to upgrade a other implant, only with real money can i now upgrade

i am all for supporting this game, i drop money on it when i can and after every update i give some extra money to show my appreciation for the work
but the implant system is a money grab, a costumer scam
i am still doubting if i will stay and support this game (cause i like the game play)
or leave and tell DBG to F off with there implant system
we all know DBG needs to make money, but to become a money milker like the other big companies was not needed

so to answer the original question, yes we need more ways to get ISO4 or we should get a bigger amount of ISO4 by winning a alert
we also need a different way to get the implants, we should be able to buy all the implants
maybe with a anniversary box or some other special occasion box
why don't they sell only one random implant every moth, only for one random day
players would have to log in every day, what automatically leads to a bigger players base, full servers, happy players, more money for DBG

I feel that the difference between the 1st and 3rd place earnings is too large.
I think that "participation award" is good.(Or a slight difference)

Holy ****, 48k? Is that in large part what you started with after the patch/revamp? Now im curious how much some of the people that approve of the system started with.

When I came back, 2 weeks ago now, I had 3k total lol....I must not have played enough during the initial implant era to get that sum. I had no idea this is how much some people were getting. If I got that much, I probably wouldn't have much issue with the current system, like some others here. Even if I played 8 hours a day it would probably take me MONTHS of play to get 48k.

I've decided it is totally a fruitless effort though, im not going to even try anymore. I'll just try to be happy with my ammo/sweeper implants lol. Would rather complete some class/weapon directives then dump all my currency into this crap.

implants are a grind, I agree, but I would recommend staying with the T1 implants at lvl1 until you have a lot of certs in the rest of your character. the alerts make ISO4 very easy to obtain and I have already almost got max ammo printer . once you have the certs in your other more important aspects of the game I would recommend going for implant packs and breaking the duplicates down for ISO4