Goblin Squad Member
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I have been running around for a couple of days and have had a general good time (last time I did something similar it was called MUD).
I assume a lot of my questions and thoughts are answered and discussed already at the Alpha forum, in that case bear with me.
The only thing that's really really annoy me is the camera action. There must be a toggle function for that, now when I use the mous click for other things, usually the camera goes bonkers and either give a nice view of the starlit heaven or the muddy ground.
Another thought that hit me within the first hour of play was "wool, from plant nodes" ... why not make "wool" nodes (for example a farmer with a pen) that only spawns if there is a low wolf frequency in the area.
Further in that direction of thought I really hope the general node "content" gets an overhaul ... because I can name, like twenty sets of node contents that would feel less suspension of disbelief breaking.
And if the economy will be player driven that is actually one of the more central things to address.
Other thoughts I have is the strength of Sneak and Perception. I have tried to do some experimentation, but can't really se any differences, perhaps because I'm on a to low level still.
And lastly, how to Escalation works, if I enter such an area and do nothing about the quests that pops up, will that make the situation worse?
That have to do for now...
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Goblin Squad Member
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It is odd indeed to find wool on plants rather than sheep. I concur on your evaluation of the importance of the economy.
It might be beneficial were you to explicitly to name sets of node contents that would feel natural.
I suspect that there will be limited difference from merely trained stealth feats unless you are also using more stealthy armor that carries + modifiers. Some descriptors might be 'quiet', or at least it seems to me I recall an armor set that had 'quiet' as one of the + keywords.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Interesting observations and suggestions Schedim. Currently I think the "Plant Nodes" as more "Nature nodes:, finding it easier to grasp getting wool and other none plant items (freshwater pearls, as another example).
My own list of observations, comments and suggestions are:
1) After Server stability and major enhancements to the AH system to make for a better economy (PLEASE add a better search feature, and allow for the search of only what is in that ah), lets have a look at graphics - particularly how seamlessly they work, both as how nodes, trees, bridges, and other items work with the ground. Found, and bugged a lot of places that seams between portions of the ground are showing as they seem to be of different heights; found a bridge whose ramp was about twice the height of my Elf, or roughly 6 meters above the ground, making it unusable. etc...
2) UI: The UI, for an Alpha one is okay, but I hope things get changed with it, such as adding mouse scroll to all the windows, as it works in chat; mouse-over info on such things as items in inventory, quests, and other things it would benefit players in knowing more about them. Also being allowed to freely re-scale the windows separately rather than from a settings command would help those of us who want to customize the UI to our tastes and gameplay.
3) Chat - Being able to both link items and URL's would greatly enhance this tool.
4) Crafting: Mousing over a recipe, as noted would help players understand what components are needed to make an item, not just in inventory before you learn them, but also in all crafting workshops, as it is easy to forget which recipe needs what, especially for dedicated crafters with lots of recipes, as well as those who dabble. Right now all we see is boxes that tell us how much of an item is needed but not what that item is. Frustrating for those seeking to learn how to craft.
5) Arcane and Divine Spell drops: Cantrips and Orisons are available through trainers, but actual Spells are relegated to drops. Divine drops are rare, and Arcane is extremely rare Most people I have spoken to in game have yet to see either, and those, like myself, that have been lucky to get a spell or two 99.9995% of the time it is a Divine spell. Better balance and frequency of drops is needed to aid those of us going spell slinging route.
6) When Alpha ends, all characters will be wiped. I can live with that; but also allow us to also redo the appearances of those characters. Currently the character creator appearance choices are very limited, and many are rather ugly. As an Elf (my main) Elf flesh was a choice of looking like an under fed vampire or a slightly green pale skin that reminds me of zombie flesh. My alt, a Dwarf, looks like he spent his formative years trying to mine with his face. Not looked at any human skins, but I can't imagine they are much better
7) When it comes time to add new mobs, please be sure to look at existing ones. No reason in a fantasy world for all bandits to be humans. Make some Dwarves and Elves. Do the same with skeletons, adding in goblin, wolf, goblin dog, and ogre skeletons along with Elf and Dwarf ones. As new races are added, like Halflings, add them to the mix as well. Necromancers in Pathfinder generally aren't picky when it comes to making large groups of undead, especially mindless ones.
8) Hopefully what the Devs have learned from the water around TK will translate to more water in this section of the River Kingdoms, and the skills to interact with them (swimming and a breath system).
9) Please tone down the Sun and the Moon's light/glare. It would be nice to actually be able to see what the devs/designers/artists created.
10) As EE and even OE roles around, please continue to add new races and new deities. Golarion is a rich fantasy world. Please make use of the info Paizo has put out there.
The richness and diversity of the core game, Pathfinder RPG, is beautiful in design, and I hope as much as possible can be translated to the MMO experience. Stick to the lore about the region, and the game in general (yes, this includes accepting same-sex relationship, inter-racial (really, inter-racial as the characters are of different races) relationships, and all the diversity Paizo has included. Encourage players to use the Pathfinder lore to enhance RP. And for the sake of the Gods, please promote RP!! PvE, PvP, a real player economy and the rest means little if the game fails to be immersive regarding RP. Now, it should not be used to cause fighting between players (Yes Elves and Dwarves don't get along so well, but using in-game racial slurs will need to be watched, especially if they are masked real world ethnic slurs - IRL there is only one race, humans, just of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds).
I am sure I will think of more things as I continue in the Alpha and EE (which I see as a Beta).
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Goblin Squad Member
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6) When Alpha ends, all characters will be wiped. I can live with that; but also allow us to also redo the appearances of those characters. Currently the character creator appearance choices are very limited, and many are rather ugly. As an Elf (my main) Elf flesh was a choice of looking like an under fed vampire or a slightly green pale skin that reminds me of zombie flesh. My alt, a Dwarf, looks like he spent his formative years trying to mine with his face. Not looked at any human skins, but I can't imagine they are much better.
My personal hope is that as new iterations of the character creator are fielded, we can adjust our characters' appearance (without adjusting their race).
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I'd like to note that nearly all wild animals use coarse plants to rub against to help remove old layers of yet-to-be fully shedded fur and wool.
While in reality we've domesticated livestock so much that the wool producing Ranch style animals no longer have a reliable natural instinct or ability to shed naturally because we've spent the better part of 40,000 years breeding these qualities into them for the benefit of a maximum harvest, but the kind of wildlife found in the River Kingdoms would certainly not me domesticated by any stretch of the imagination.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Another thought that hit me within the first hour of play was "wool, from plant nodes" ... why not make "wool" nodes (for example a farmer with a pen) that only spawns if there is a low wolf frequency in the area.
Further in that direction of thought I really hope the general node "content" gets an overhaul ... because I can name, like twenty sets of node contents that would feel less suspension of disbelief breaking.
And if the economy will be player driven that is actually one of the more central things to address.
Node-wise, I think most of us are hoping for more in the future, but the current iteration of what they are calling "MVP" (minimum viable product) means that everything needed to make any item in the crafting list must come from one of three available types of nodes. Since wool or leather from mining or "essence" clouds would be even more ridiculous, I think we're stuck for the moment.
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Goblin Squad Member
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I suspect that there will be limited difference from merely trained stealth feats unless you are also using more stealthy armor that carries + modifiers. Some descriptors might be 'quiet', or at least it seems to me I recall an armor set that had 'quiet' as one of the + keywords.
It is the Quiet Chain Shirt. I wear that for my rogue even though there are better armors out there. But I like to stay focused on my character concepts even to my detriment.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Other thoughts I have is the strength of Sneak and Perception. I have tried to do some experimentation, but can't really se any differences, perhaps because I'm on a to low level still...
Stealth is working well vs. PvE mobs. I'm at about level 7 stealth and get almost close enough to pick a goblin's nose before he aggros on me. OK not quite that, but I can get to about 10m or so, close enough to harvest the goblin's node he's sitting beside. I haven't done any stealth vs. perception testing, though Jazz recently compiled a number of relevant quotes, and in the same thread there was discussion of some testing that Nihimon did in a previous patch.
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Goblin Squad Member
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I've said it before and I'll say it again: The video gamers will come, and they will play PFO as a video game, not a Virtual Table Top. Some people see immersion as their highest goal, and others have zero interest in it.
If both groups will make an effort to treat their counterparts on the other side with respect, we can all have a good time.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Misteradd, everything is a bit barebones still and I agree that the absence of vendors can feel a bit strange. The thought is that we player will fulfil the role of vendors in the future, perhaps mainly through the Auction Houses, but that is a system that ... isn't really work that well yet, due to lack of crafters and a less than optimal interface.
As everything is going to be restarted when Early Enrollment starts (currently 30th this month) everything is about testing and finding out what to do. I recomen´d you to read the combat and crafting tutorials and also shout any questions in the general chat channel, the populance here is very patient I have discovered.
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Goblin Squad Member
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(last time I did something similar it was called MUD).
Welcome, friend!
Are you happy with the answers to your questions so far? Bascially your comments are bang on, but you are not the first to bring them up.
1)
Note regarding vendors: yes, players will be the vendors. Yes, AH prices are inflated because there is no money drain in the game yet. Yes, many groups are not even using the AH (but just stockpiling within the group).
On the other hand there are (in alpha) lots of players willing to give equipment out for free. Ask (but don't spam) in general chat.
Beer is hard to come by in the game, will weak sedative extract do? mix in some flammable and a drop of deadly extract if you need something more. Or an actual potion! Boots, trousers and something better than a club is easier.
2)
other Gromir/Misteradd specific questions:
-where to go: a player group! Help capturing towers, fight escalations and fuel our crafters. (I could gladly insert a 'Welcome to Brighthaven' ad here, but there are lots of other good groups too). Eventually we will have better trainers than the npc's too.
-crafting and auction UI: when the AH's fill up properly with goods it should be make more sense. Also some functions are not implemented yet (or were not last i tested). For questions about the crafting system, ask us in-game.
-the "second shortcut bars" are for expendables: spells and special maneuvers that are held by your 'implement' (spellbook, rogue toolkit, etc). You don't have any yet (and if you miraculously found one it will be in your inventory under 'all' as a recipe for learning).
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Goblin Squad Member
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- where to go ?
There's not really anything fundamentally different anywhere else. PFO is very much a game of social constructs, so the most important thing is getting involved with a community. Hopefully, they'll be able to help you figure out how the game works and share their experiences with respect to profitable ways to spend your time.
The Land Rush site at Goblinworks.com is a great place to start looking for a guild or Settlement to join. You might also check out the Guild Recruitment section of Guild Recruitment and Helpful Links, but honestly at this point the Land Rush site is a better resource and I've mostly stopped maintaining it.
- there is a second shortcuts bar above the 1,2,3... but i can't fill it ith anything.... what is it for ?
That's for your Expendables. Expendables are special attacks that use Power (the yellow bar). They're different for each Role, but the best example is Wizard Spells. The Cantrips you train and slot in the bottom bar are actually fairly weak compared to the actual Spells you'll find dropped as loot (or in the Auction House).
Welcome to PFO, feel free to ask any questions, and good luck :)
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Goblin Squad Member
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By the way, I want to see how you can survive and grow up on your own.
You should be aware that the game is specifically designed to force people to cooperate. Doing things alone is supposed to be hard.
You don't need to ask people for "free stuzz plx", but can ask in general (in alpha, at least) if anyone is selling basic gear.
even if I can manage two kobolds, I dont't think I would be vey useful to a group.
Wrong! The way the system is designed, any player is a useful addition. Two fresh characters with +0 longbows and the basic attacks do more dps than a top equipped and buffed lvl7 character. As long as have learned to stand back and only fire at the designated target(ie not pull extra groups into the fight), any group should be happy to have you.
I'll try to move to another place. Any place of choice for a Sarenrae follower wanna-be ?
Brighthaven/Keepers Pass/Phaeros (in SE part of the map) are certainly three good places for Neutral Good characters. There are also others. Good luck!
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Goblin Squad Member
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Encourage players to use the Pathfinder lore to enhance RP. And for the sake of the Gods, please promote RP!! PvE, PvP, a real player economy and the rest means little if the game fails to be immersive regarding RP.
Thanks for talking about this. I'm just working on this subject in my Blueprint Document for the player group I intend to formulate and "release" into PFO.
The main motivation in-game will be around the beating heart of PFO, the economic engine. It will do this via motivation concerning inputs of player time and player acquisition of wealth to then spend on progress (power) atst as the 3rd dimension that is where PFO's design could shine brightest, social progression.
With RP the motivation of experience and immersion is promoted. Often in mmorpgs this will be side-lined or limited. I think the solution is to create a "path of integration" via creative stages. I take a lot of heart from how popular Star Citizen's spaceships are and how in time PFO may be able to rustle up something similar for "ROLES" as equivalent to spaceships being sold, once a big enough population is achieved. Integrating RP with Roles I believe is the solution.
I'll send you the Blueprint too if you wish to join the Player Cooperative: The Shadow of the Beast (a lycanthrope initiative)
Right off the internet and back to work(s)!
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Goblin Squad Member
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Misteradd - don't be afraid to ask anyone about or for anything. Everyone in-game was in the same situation as you and some of us still are. The game has been crowdforged and now we are crowdforging our knowledge about the game.
- The game is not very friendly to single players. Mobs hang around in groups and some of those groups are very tough, and some of those tough groups hang around in groups of groups. Even if you just pair up with another player for a short time it will help both of you. You are never too weak to add to a group.
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Goblin Squad Member
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As I'm playing at odd times and in short bursts I usually play solo. I hope to rectify this in the future, but it is a bit charming to sneak around the mobs and take out those caught alone or in pairs.
Now I work on hit and run tactics using longbow to see if I can wittle down the larger white level mobs.
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Goblin Squad Member
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Now I work on hit and run tactics using longbow to see if I can wittle down the larger white level mobs.
A very basic longbow sequence that can kill a solo ogre warrior:
- Start at maximum range. Shoot one basic attack to irritate the ogre.- Wait a beat, possibly until he turns to face, and fire off an exploit shot. He will be running by the time the shot hits and take more damage.
- The ogre will stop to yell/hit you with debuffs, so your next bow attack should be a basic attack (the basic longbow exploit needs a moving target to do more damage - don't waste stamina on standing targets).
- Before he starts moving again, you can start your last shot, another exploit attack, which will hit when he's running and drop the warrior before he reaches you.
- If he isn't dead yet, he'll be awfully close. You can back up while switching to melee and kill him.
Edit to add: WARNING - Orge Warriors have changed from Yellow mobs to low Reds sometime recently. It's still possible to kill them, but it takes more work than I just outlined.
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Goblin Squad Member
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The two first white ones never got close enougth to use their bad breath attack on me, but the yellow bastard did, and that was my demise.
I should really study all the parameters of the attacks better.
But it is really excellent of Goblinworks to give us this opportunity to learn by doing before it get serious!
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Goblin Squad Member
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Something like that yes. I like this system, it is a bit fiddly, but it scratches my micromanagement itch nicely.
And I see a huge potential in the future with special armours fitting even the most unusal combination of creative keywords.
The sad thing as a centralised game, the input of consumer created content must be limited.