I think the server does a great job with numerous activities and Fed Ex quests to give XP and gold to Lowbies for zig based PCs.
There are a few things available for lowbies outside the zig, but they are very sparse. Two of the notable lowbie quests outside the zig still require the PC to go INTO the zig to complete. A very nice lowbie quest in the Starwood Village requires a druid to take. Meh.
Before anyone tells me "it's supposed to be harder for nature types" - pfftt. I've seen very little advantage gained in surviving the extreme difficulty during or after leveling up outside the zig. The spawns just one screen beyond the main gates range from KD sneak attack panthers, Shargass Disciples, stealthed Orc Guerrilla Hunters to werewolves. It's sheer murder to L2-L3 characters to range anywhere in an IC fashion.
I think its now considered "accepted" for stargazer PCs to hang out in the zig, but it shouldn't have to be necessary to give new PCs a fair shake at leveling.
And if there are low level quests out there to be found with some searching - it's simply not practical for said lowbie to wander around - even in parties to "randomly" find them - without OOC meta-knowledge.
My suggestion is to create a couple more lowbie quests in the starwood village, Exile Camp and perhaps around Castle Blackhearth. It will still be much harder to level for nature types than the zigbots, but they will be able to do it a bit quicker (though still far slower than those doing the zig gauntlet).
Personally I'd LOVE to see a couple more wilderness "village/camp" areas like an elven camp or maybe some various stargazer tribe villages for some more server flava if anyone gets a creative urge.
And if you think it might easy to level outside the zig you either haven't tried it, or are a very good player who may not quite grasp what its like for the other 90% of the players.
Maybe some fedex quests will be added to the Stargazer village in the future. I can honestly say it is amazingly low priority though. Thanks for the suggestion.
I do understand that DM time is limited, and that something like this might be considered pretty low on the hierarchy of priority.
But if we are trying to attract new players to replace those that leave or go on to DM, this might be something that could help.
Thanks
Heh,
I posted before I saw Caddies' response.
Out of curiosity, what would be considered High Priority for the DM staff?
I agree on this, it is extremely hard at times... boring, and frustrating. A few lower level quests out there would be nice.
It is extremely difficult to stay true to a concept when the only possibility of survival is to stay to the ziggurat.
I am not saying its impossible- but a new character with little to no loot and is not an optimized stealth build will run into trouble.
Maybe I just got extraordinarily lucky, but I'm playing my first nature PC and I am having a blast. I would like to see more low-level quests for the nature types, but once you get over the hump, it's definitely good to be one with nature.
Quote from: Gwydion;159293Out of curiosity, what would be considered High Priority for the DM staff?
Keeping the module up to date, correcting broken links, and ensuring the server is generally maintained. As Caddies stated, suggestion heard and noted.
Thanks for considering this, and for all you guys do.
Awesome.
Problem : Hard for stargazers to start out due to difficulty of environment at low level.
Time consuming, low likelyhood to happen any time soon solution : Add new ways for stargazers to reach levels where they are able to travel safely and acquire loot to enable them to do so.
Easy solution : Give all stargazers level 4 and some invis potions right off the bat. Change the quest 'Medicine for elder ' to reward two potions instead of one.
BTW, no DM is going to rouse on you just because your Stargazer comes into the Ziggurat sometimes to finish a quest or run a quick fedex or two. We appreciate its a Ziggurat-centric server and we obviously make allowances in PC behaviour regarding this. Which isn't to say, you should spend massive amounts of time there if your PC theme is 'wilderness'.
One of my idea in the past was to play a Drow that roams the Underdark.
I never got past level 2 until I decided to break my concept a bit and go into the sewers of Sanctuary.
What I'd be interested , maybe , in seeing is a distinct way to level-up for these characters.
Like when I made the Nightrisers, I tried to came up with a way for them to level up without having access to the Ziggurat. Then, ok, they should drain people of their life essence, and so on..
Something original and distinct like that, that isnt exploitable and wouldnt result in having an army of super-druids would be nice. So you can suggests out-of-the-box ways to help the druids that dont revolve around quests, etc.
I think it'd be cool to have maybe random-spawn plants/animals/areas that gazers/druids/nature inclined could desire to AE/harvest/kill for XP or loot or whatever. Maybe something similar to how the nightrisers needed to destroy larval eggs to an extent that is easily implemented, but finding a way to not make it as grindy and somehow more conflict inducing.
Random placablesfor nature characters, such as a blight in the woods, sick animals, etc...are all excellent ideas. Having discussion how to best handle these things, do we let it spread, or do we cure it now? Perhaps you need to be wanded by a demon to even interact with said things to prevent exploitation by non-nature crews...
btw, Demon=dm
Quote from: Caddies;159482BTW, no DM is going to rouse on you just because your Stargazer comes into the Ziggurat sometimes to finish a quest or run a quick fedex or two....
I have been roused on for this!
You've been told off for solelu hanging out at the Ziggurat when not questing, as a Stargazer.
One of the things I've thought about is the goblins not being the only ones that will take rat meat. Stargazers or wilderness PC could hunt the rats underneath the Ziggurat to feed or lure jungle cat away from the colony.
The idea is that a Stargazer PC or other wilderness PC grants the quest, asking for rat meat from the over populated sewers of the Ziggurat to lure jungle cats away from the colony. The same bartering script could be used, and only a NPC would need to be created.
Since there is a way to make it to the sewers from outside the colony walls, wilderness character have to walk thru the gates, and could haul rat meat out.
Whatever the story for the quest, it gives low level character a way to level and gain items needed to survive.
So yeah....
Hell more low-level quests would be helpful but there are still other issues. My max hide sneak/ranger was ganked by an Orc disciple just a few feet from the Starwood rope on my way to gather some herbs for the elder which is the easiest newbie quest in Starwood. That sure doesn’t happen on the way to do "bats". No matter what low level quests were available to me, I couldn't even come out of the damn tree without getting killed again! Not bitching (well a little) but that is just the way it is with the wilderness characters especially the "Gazers". Some way to earn back the xp taken by the random death encounter would be appreciated. Even with the random inevitable death (so it seems) the wilderness characters have been very rewarding to play. Playing a “gazer†reminds me of my first days on old EFU moving surreptitiously through the underdark scared shitlesss of the next nasty encounter.
Guerrilla hunters are fine IMO, even if you get spoted they don't do too much damage and you can escape.
But i agree diciples are a bit too much for low level nature character areas.
*chimes in* including monster pcs in the "i can't low lvl quests in Zig" issue might be nice too.
The thing is it really depends if you've got a team with you, or if you start off more or less solo, planning to involve people when your pc's power picks up a bit.
http://www.escapefromunderdark.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34051
Hmph...
Quote from: Letsplayforfun;159756*chimes in* including monster pcs in the "i can't low lvl quests in Zig" issue might be nice too.
The thing is it really depends if you've got a team with you, or if you start off more or less solo, planning to involve people when your pc's power picks up a bit.
Monster PCs can travel the Docks, FYI. Consider them very Loweresque in this manner. Of course, they will still be shown massive bias by NPCs.
Oh, great, i figured they couldn't. That's handy.
Geez, that's good news, i've been sticking to Gobsquat for 3 weeks...
We thought about giving a flat out XP salary to monster PCs for simply surviving in the past... Not sure if that is desired. (TRUE monster PCs).
If you mean pc's who are actively hunted, have none or maybe one friend. i would condone that for sure.
I've seen other servers where they have a 25xp / hour award for sitting in taverns or other areas intended for role-play, and it is not as prone to abuse as you would initially think.
There still needs to be a scripted way for PCs to declare that they are AFK, so that they can actually go to the bathroom without logging out. Hell, that would be a nice feature to have in general.
Monsters, as in those who don't hang out with goodly folks for quest xp and vice vesa. Monsters are savage beasts and should not be liked by nearly anyone even evil bastard PCs.
No, I think adding xp per time in certain areas would be just bad. Yet, I do think for a MONSTER PC who is true to it, xp per day/week whatever would be cool so they don't have to quest and can do monsterous things like prebuff gank.
I think that any sort of XP benefit for simply existing in any form, including monster PCs, is counterproductive to the ideal of the sort of things that generic monster PCs should endure to progress.