Please speed up the spawns in Terra Volta Reactor!
By
Auroxis,
Posted on: 2011-05-31 10:32 in Suggestions and Ideas
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The fact that it's meant to be run by characters who need a respec. So it actually is meant to be a bit of a cakewalk.|
Originally Posted by Kurrent
So what exactly was wrong with running a respec trial and actually having a chance of failing? It's not supposed to be a cakewalk!
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| We now have multiple options to adjust difficulty, including the effective levels of enemies and the size of the spawns. If the trial is too hard for certain teams (or too easy for certain teams), we can use the difficulty adjusters to fine tune the challenge for each team. |
To be clear, I'm not 100% opposed to adding in an option to speed up the reactor phase in some fashion, but it has to be optional. I also wouldn't be opposed to fixing up the reactor waves a little bit. As I recall, they have a habit of spawning something like 0, 0, +1, +1, 0, -1, -2, which is a bit odd.
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To be fair, a thread simply titled "WST Suggestion" doesn't really explain itself, y'know?|
Originally Posted by Rylas
Uhm, scooped?
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Also, scooping your scooped.
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Fair enough. |
Originally Posted by IanTheM1
To be fair, a thread simply titled "WST Suggestion" doesn't really explain itself, y'know?
Also, scooping your scooped. |
@Rylas
Kill 'em all. Let XP sort 'em out.
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This was prompted by doing a Freakspec yesterday with a friend and spending 80% of the time in the reactor room doing absolutely nothing, which is why I almost never run respecs heroside anymore. I was not aware that there was another thread on the same idea until I saw the link in your post. |
Originally Posted by Rylas
Uhm, scooped?
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I sincerely apologize for not being aware of every single post on each forum.
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Originally Posted by IanTheM1
The fact that it's meant to be run by characters who need a respec. So it actually is meant to be a bit of a cakewalk.
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Originally Posted by IanTheM1
Unless I'm mistaken, you can't adjust the difficulty of a TF or Trial downward anymore, due to the option being abused to earn merits even faster. And you outright just said you could raise the difficulty to make the trial more challenging...so why don't you do that?
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K
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There's a big, big, BIG difference between "I need Incarnate powers because I want them" and "I need a respec because my build is so broken it is borderline unplayable". And having to do a trial in order to get the respec, no matter how easy it is, doesn't really sound like "handing it to them".|
Originally Posted by Kurrent
I'm sorry, just because a player thinks they NEED something doesn't equate to handing it to them. If someone needs Incarnate powers, do we just turn Trapdoor into a lvl 1 minion to let them stomp all over him? Lots of people need incarnate threads or components, but does that mean we nerf the various trials, task forces and strike forces just to make the only difficulty standing around being bored?
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| I think the main point of my post was either unclear or you just missed it. |
And, like I said, I would not be opposed to a glowie or somesuch that would trigger the next wave. Just as long as it's an option.
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| My main point is that the spawn rates of the enemy waves in the reactor core is exceedingly long, removing all challenge from the trial's final mission and replacing it with tedium. I'm not asking for things to be made harder necessarily, just for the spawn rate to be moved closer to what it originally was. Doing so without any other adjustment would indeed increase the challenge, which I'd be okay with, but I understand that some people don't want any increased challenge here. If the Devs don't want to increase the challenge, then they can offset the increase in spawn rate with a reduction in enemy mob size. This should please people who truly don't want to increase the difficulty of the respec while still reducing the tedium that has driven many players away from what is really a neat mini-taskforce. |
Assuming the overall challenge of the trial was unchanged, I wouldn't mind one way or another.
Never surrender! Never give up!
Help keep Paragon City alive with the unofficial City of Heroes Tabletop Role Playing Game!
Fun fact: Originally, the time between spawns in the reactor WAS much shorter than it is now. Players complained the constant waves made it too difficult to finish the trial with the kind of build that actually needed a respec to begin with, thus it was changed to have longer waits between spawns.
See also: Pleasing some of the people all of the time, or all of the people some of the time.
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I think what we need is a special window to pop up, like in the Praetorian zone events. That window would have a button in it. That button would say "Send Next Wave". If everyone on the team clicks the button, it spawns the next wave. If a team needs the time, they have it. If the team wants a real challenge, they click like mad and get all the spawns piling on top of each other. With the exception of people who don't want any more new windows popping up on their screen, this has the possibility to please everyone.
@Johnstone & @Johnstone 2
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Nothing to get sarcastic over. Also, see the search tool. Which as pointed out, I could use too. Or at least, use better.
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Originally Posted by Kurrent
I sincerely apologize for not being aware of every single post on each forum.
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@Rylas
Kill 'em all. Let XP sort 'em out.
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Now this I can get behind!|
Originally Posted by Johnstone
I think what we need is a special window to pop up, like in the Praetorian zone events. That window would have a button in it. That button would say "Send Next Wave". If everyone on the team clicks the button, it spawns the next wave. If a team needs the time, they have it. If the team wants a real challenge, they click like mad and get all the spawns piling on top of each other. With the exception of people who don't want any more new windows popping up on their screen, this has the possibility to please everyone.
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Everyone on the team has to press the button. We'd just have to make sure it didn't tell you, who hasnt pushed the button (it's either deal with griefers or deal with people belittling people not ready for the next spawn, and Id rather have to deal with griefers).
But yes, agreed on the one point previously mentioned. The Respec trial is suppossed to be for those who need to respec, so making it hard is just silly.
BrandX Future Staff Fighter
The BrandX Collection
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Yeah but (to me) the respec has gone from being easy to being downright frustrating with the waiting times between spawns. 30 minutes to fight 10 waves of enemies is just purely annoying. It is the same reason I never do the "Save the panther x56" or whatever the hell that hero tip mission with the Malta ambushes and Frostfire pet.
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Originally Posted by BrandX
But yes, agreed on the one point previously mentioned. The Respec trial is suppossed to be for those who need to respec, so making it hard is just silly.
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@Sparky Jenkins || Freedom Server | Union Server
Main Hero: Inferno Sparky - Fire/Fire Blaster
Main Villain: Kerry Astrid - Fire/Cold Corruptor
I'd be happy with any change really, the current situation of the TV trials is ridiculous.
Mains (Freedom) @Auroxis
Auroxis - Emp/Rad/Power Defender Pylon Video Soloing an AV
Pelvic Thunder - SS/Elec/Mu Brute
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Neuropain - Sonic/Mental/Elec Blaster
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Comparing apples and screwdrivers here. If you pick the wrong alpha, it doesn't really affect your character. Having a horrendous build that needs (yes, needs) a respec is different. |
Originally Posted by Kurrent
I'm sorry, just because a player thinks they NEED something doesn't equate to handing it to them. If someone needs Incarnate powers, do we just turn Trapdoor into a lvl 1 minion to let them stomp all over him? Lots of people need incarnate threads or components, but does that mean we nerf the various trials, task forces and strike forces just to make the only difficulty standing around being bored? |
Nobody "needs" incarnate powers - they're almost not used, save for incarnate trials, and new ones can be crafted and swapped out at almost any time. And as for trapdoor - you have paid attention to the "Get IXP to unlock" that's there currently, or the "Buy a token to unlock Alpha" that's in beta now, right?
The question isn't "Increased challenge." If your build can handle it, your build isn't what the current respec trial timer was aimed at. And yes, I *have* seen teams that struggled with this. Y'know, the people that - wait for it - *need a respec* (but don't have a vetspec/freespec handy, or the INF to buy a respec recipe.)
That said, if there were a "voting" mechanism in place, or something the team leader can pick to skip the timer and - assuming the current spawn is defeated - spawn the next wave *now* instead of 2-3 minutes from now, I wouldn't argue.
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Originally Posted by Johnstone
I think what we need is a special window to pop up, like in the Praetorian zone events. That window would have a button in it. That button would say "Send Next Wave". If everyone on the team clicks the button, it spawns the next wave. If a team needs the time, they have it. If the team wants a real challenge, they click like mad and get all the spawns piling on top of each other. With the exception of people who don't want any more new windows popping up on their screen, this has the possibility to please everyone.
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Originally Posted by Memphis_Bill
That said, if there were a "voting" mechanism in place, or something the team leader can pick to skip the timer and - assuming the current spawn is defeated - spawn the next wave *now* instead of 2-3 minutes from now, I wouldn't argue.
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A few nights ago I wound up doing a Terra Volta respec trial for the first time (same day that Kurrent did, though probably just a coincidence). I was struck by how long it took between waves. The wait seemed more than enough to let everyone get themselves ready for the next wave; until this thread, I wasn't aware that additional waves used to hit in what are now the lulls between waves.
But anyway, yeah. Johnstone's got the right idea. I hope the devs take him up on this!
make the timer a variable the players can choose.
1. Why Soft Cap is Important : http://dechskaison.blogspot.com/2011...important.html
2. Limits: http://paragonwiki.com/wiki/Limits
3. Attack Mechanics: http://wiki.cohtitan.com/wiki/Attack_Mechanics
4. Rule of Five: http://wiki.cohtitan.com/wiki/Rule_o...e_Law_of_Fives
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Does everyone get to vote on this though? I think a pop-up that would require everyone to click to send the next spawn early would still be better than this. Just don't let it show who hasn't clicked yet or who has clicked and just send the next spawn if everyone has clicked. No accidental griefing possible by the leader choosing too short a time, and no "OMG Captain Underpants, just click the damn button again, I want to fight now, Y U TAKE SO LONG N00B!?" if it doesn't show who hasn't clicked. If you have it just be a variable that you can set at the onset of the trial... How do you know at that time how your team will handle everything? Maybe you've teamed with some of them before, maybe not. Given how many PuGs get put together for the Respec trials, you're probably not going to know what time would be good before the trial has started.
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Originally Posted by plainguy
make the timer a variable the players can choose.
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@Johnstone & @Johnstone 2
ediblePoly.com
All my characters
Ahhh yes, Terra Volta. I've run that so many times with my toons, I've lost count. I do remember back in 04'-05' how it used to be. I was involved in a few meltdowns then. Kinda neat with the screen going white. Now, being that we have long wait times between spawns, I try to make a game of out it by asking others what door number they think the next spawn will come from. Also speaking of Terra Volta, is it really necessary to get red bubbled all the time? It seems that some people don't even bother with getting bubbled as their hit points drop at a minuscule rate while standing on the reactor floor?
I don't think there's any argument that the final mission of the hero Respec trials in the Terra Volta reactor core has become a time crawl. Ever since the spawn rates were cut many issues ago (for what was then intense griping about difficulty), every TV respec I've run has taken about 10-15 minutes for the first two missions, about 3-6 minutes getting to the reactor room, and then about 25-30 minutes just in the reactor core. There are gaps between spawns of several minutes where people are left standing around with absolutely nothing to do. If the original version of the reactor core mission was in danger of failing due to waves of enemies, the current version has us in danger only of falling asleep.
So what exactly was wrong with running a respec trial and actually having a chance of failing? It's not supposed to be a cakewalk! Yes, I'd always hate failing a respec in the core, but every single time I had a blast fighting off waves of enemies regardless of whether we were successful or not. Having to race back to the reactor from the hospital in IP (there wasn't a field hospital in TV then) only added to the excitement by trying to get back while the team held off the hordes of enemies. We need some of that excitement back in the Reactor Room!
Please speed the spawning of enemy waves back up in the reactor core. We now have multiple options to adjust difficulty, including the effective levels of enemies and the size of the spawns. If the trial is too hard for certain teams (or too easy for certain teams), we can use the difficulty adjusters to fine tune the challenge for each team. In short, there's really no longer a need to keep the spawn rate of enemy waves in the core at its current staggeringly slow pace. Please move this back either to the original spawn rate or at least something very close to it, so we can regain some of the thrill that the original respecs had.
Thanks!
K