The vMA grind is getting old very fast

md3788

Probably the worst grind in the game. Up to about 15 runs and no destruction staff and I'm already burned out. For comparison I ran vCOA probably 50-75 times for an inferno staff and I'd still rather do that than vMA. That is all.

PS: Someone is bound to say I'm whining and compare it to the old days of farming a sharpened inferno before transmute, and that's fine. It still sucks.

OwN_Reflex

Imagine running it flawlessly five times in a row, and not receiving a weapon.

Agenericname

May the RNG be with you.

idk

It is just bad RNG. I got several lightning staves before getting my first fire.

Consider how bad it was back in the day when you also needed the correct trait. 100x+ and many players still did not have what they needed. Then Zos changes the traits. Today you just need the right weapon.

Palidon

Players have asked time and time again for a token system to be put in place. Get a token/tokens for competing the content and pick what you want/need. I think the reason ZOS has not done just that is because a token system would put a huge damper in their farm, farm, farm game. Players would not have to do veteran content over and over again in hopes of getting the item they want. The main reason I quit doing vMA and vDSA is got sick and tired of doing it over and over again trying to get the item or items I wanted. I just don't worry about it anymore.

md3788

OwN_Reflex wrote: »

Imagine running it flawlessly five times in a row, and not receiving a weapon.

The fact that you don't get a double drop from a flawless run is beyond me.

ccfeeling

Sad to hear, keep it going.

I ran coa for 3 years, no infernal staff tho

idk

Palidon wrote: »

Players have asked time and time again for a token system to be put in place. Get a token/tokens for competing the content and pick what you want/need. I think the reason ZOS has not done just that is because a token system would put a huge damper in their farm, farm, farm game. Players would not have to do veteran content over and over again in hopes of getting the item they want. The main reason I quit doing vMA and vDSA is got sick and tired of doing it over and over again trying to get the item or items I wanted. I just don't worry about it anymore.

The token would not be one clear and you get your pick of anything. That should be obvious. If implemented it would be about 20 clears to get what one wants.

Colecovision

idk wrote: »

Palidon wrote: »

Players have asked time and time again for a token system to be put in place. Get a token/tokens for competing the content and pick what you want/need. I think the reason ZOS has not done just that is because a token system would put a huge damper in their farm, farm, farm game. Players would not have to do veteran content over and over again in hopes of getting the item they want. The main reason I quit doing vMA and vDSA is got sick and tired of doing it over and over again trying to get the item or items I wanted. I just don't worry about it anymore.

The token would not be one clear and you get your pick of anything. That should be obvious. If implemented it would be about 20 clears to get what one wants.

20 sounds right to me, but even if it were more it would be welcome. It would be a better experience if we knew it was going to happen at a finite point. Maybe double the number if times you "should" get it in. "Should" being based on statistical likelihood of getting it from the chest.

lokulin

Palidon wrote: »

Players have asked time and time again for a token system to be put in place. Get a token/tokens for competing the content and pick what you want/need. I think the reason ZOS has not done just that is because a token system would put a huge damper in their farm, farm, farm game. Players would not have to do veteran content over and over again in hopes of getting the item they want. The main reason I quit doing vMA and vDSA is got sick and tired of doing it over and over again trying to get the item or items I wanted. I just don't worry about it anymore.

If the made it so you got one token per run and you needed 20 tokens to get one weapon then the total required runs across all players would be about the same. It would just be that no one would get their weapon on the first run, and no one would still be hunting for their weapon after their 70th.

Personally I'd leave vMA the way it is and remove bind on pickup from base game dungeons and trials. Maybe even move orsinium, imperial city, Thieves guild, dark brotherhood in to the base game.

GiggleGoat

This is gonna sound like I need a tin foil hat.. But try running it on a stam toon if you're not already. Was farming a bow on my nb and always got junk. 2 runs on mag sorc = 2 bows

gepe87

Got 1 bow, 2 frost, 1 inferno, 2 daggers, 1 sword, 1 mace , 1 mace and shield and still no resto

goldenflameslinger

I like the idea of a token and imperfect versions for normal.

John_Falstaff

It's all random number generator, and no tinfoil hats needed... With such a small sample, people are going to see all kinds of outliers. I can feel the pain, I got my bow after I had every single other set from there, most several times over, and could make a garden fence out of staves. The difficulty of vMA pales in comparison with the cruelty of the drop randomness in the end.

Good thing is, subsequent runs get gradually easier. Doesn't mean more enjoyable though, can only run same old content so long before it becomes a chore.

ATomiX96

md3788 wrote: »

OwN_Reflex wrote: »

Imagine running it flawlessly five times in a row, and not receiving a weapon.

The fact that you don't get a double drop from a flawless run is beyond me.

because you can heavy attack through vma for a flawless run ... there are so many cheesy strats to get flawless runs without any effort.

goldenflameslinger wrote: »

I like the idea of a token and imperfect versions for normal.

id rather see a perfected version for some kind of hardmode vma, you can do normal msa in white non-set gear on a level 12 character...

Nevasca

Don't do it on the same character.

Get on the weekly leaderboards with as much characters as you can. Don't need to be top 10, a 400k score usually gets you there, and if you have a Warden you literally just need to complete it. It's a "free" drop at the end of the week, and it's always gold so you can save some mats by transmuting. When I needed to farm my inferno I did vMA with one char per day simply because I couldn't be bothered to do the arena over and over again in the same day. Made the grind a lot more bearable.

RNG sucks. I easily run over 100 to get a single inferno staff. I probably got Ice staff on all traits possible though.

BNOC

goldenflameslinger wrote: »

I like the idea of a token and imperfect versions for normal.

Normal.. as in, nMSA??

I really hope not, you can be naked in there and complete it an absolute doddle - Let's not reward that.

Agenericname

Wraith66 wrote: »

This is gonna sound like I need a tin foil hat.. But try running it on a stam toon if you're not already. Was farming a bow on my nb and always got junk. 2 runs on mag sorc = 2 bows

I'm not saying to take the tin foil hat off, but I got my bow on the 3rd run on a stam character. The staves are a different story.

Running it on multiple characters makes sense though.

Haashhtaag

Imagine not having transmution in the game.
Imagine that arena not being repeatedly nerfed

Odovacar

Keep going. The feeling you will get when you finally get it will last forever, or until you get 2!

Don't give up!!

MDiCaro

Imagine weapon drops not being guaranteed. 😉

sudaki_eso

I gave up going for the bow, i dont care about the 2-3k dps and save myself the trouble and time to run vma over and over again. If it would be content that would be fun for me i wouldnt mind doing it some more time but after numerous runs i am not going back.

md3788

I'd even be ok with vMA being like every other trial (I guess techincally it's not a trial) in the game where you get a weekly coffer for completing it with a random weapon.

md3788

ccfeeling wrote: »

Sad to hear, keep it going.

I ran coa for 3 years, no infernal staff tho

Sorry to hear. I got it after about 2 months. Well someone else got it and gave it to me, but I still got it.

John_Falstaff

@md3788 , you do get coffer if you get in vMA leaderboard, some of my vMA gear is from there. You can try running on DK or maybe warden, leaderboards for those are hardly ever full, so most of the time it's enough to just clear it in any way (as long as it's done without teleporting out or disconnecting) in order to get there.

md3788

John_Falstaff wrote: »

@md3788 , you do get coffer if you get in vMA leaderboard, some of my vMA gear is from there. You can try running on DK or maybe warden, leaderboards for those are hardly ever full, so most of the time it's enough to just clear it in any way (as long as it's done without teleporting out or disconnecting) in order to get there.

I tried with my MagDK and I get melted. My DK is now specced for PvP so I might give it another go with that since I'm a little tankier.

md3788

@John_Falstaff and the big difference is you don't need to hit the leaderboards on a trial to get the coffer. Just need to complete it

Neoauspex

Run on stam character, get all staves. Run on mag character, get all stam weapons.

Katahdin

Neoauspex wrote: »

Run on stam character, get all staves. Run on mag character, get all stam weapons.

QFT

But it's so stupid that it is that way

Merlin13KAGL

Katahdin wrote: »

Neoauspex wrote: »

Run on stam character, get all staves. Run on mag character, get all stam weapons.

QFT

But it's so stupid that it is that way

Try to buck the system...S&B for days

Joy_Division

md3788 wrote: »

Probably the worst grind in the game. Up to about 15 runs and no destruction staff and I'm already burned out. For comparison I ran vCOA probably 50-75 times for an inferno staff and I'd still rather do that than vMA. That is all.

PS: Someone is bound to say I'm whining and compare it to the old days of farming a sharpened inferno before transmute, and that's fine. It still sucks.

You are definitely whining. ZOS has made it so the trait is irrelevant and have not adjusted the difficulty such that vMA is easy for a max CP player and you are still complaining.