Antiquities shouldn't require more than a few runs to get leads for, tops.

cyclonus11

I want to see Volenfell swallowed whole. I still don't have that #$(&%$&*% dangblasted lead.

Feric51

One way to limit the grind would be to introduce lead fragments that you are guaranteed to get if you are doing the correct content. For example: You open a treasure map chest in a zone you have a chance at getting the lead for that zone's motif chapter(s) but if the whole lead isn't in there you still find a lead fragment. So on and so forth with all other lead types.

Fragments needed would increase with rarity:

• Green (rare) - 5 fragments
• Blue (superior) - 15 fragments
• Purple (epic) - 30 fragments
• Gold (legendary) - 50 fragments
• Gold (mythic) - 75 fragments

To combat inventory management, these would be stored like runebox fragments, Indrik feathers, etc. under the 'Collections' tab.

Even if 50 and/or 75 fragments for a gold lead seems atrocious, you would still have a set destination to grind for, unlike the RNG now where you don't know if you're going to run DC1 two more times or a hundred more times before you get the lead. Also, the fragments wouldn't affect the current drop rate of whole leads, they would just serve as a consolation prize for the times you don't get the actual lead.

Jaimeh

Oh my gosh, I was fishing for the Thrassian lead in Artaeum the other day, and it took me four and a half hours. Not to mention that every node gave about 2-3 reels, since there were a lot of players fishing, so I had to zoom around the map looking for nodes constantly, which gave it an extra layer of face-clawing quality. Whoever came up with the idea of putting a lead behind fishing in a zone with such limited nodes, is evil incarnate.

Eiregirl

One of the things I don't like about MMO's in general is the in your face grinds. So far to me personally I have been able to avoid most of that kind of stuff in ESO. Yes there are grinds but to me they were not blatantly in your face type grinds until trying to get some Antiquities leads came along.

I think they should make gold/mythic leads drop from actual Antiquities quests. The quests could be 5 to 10 stage quests that have you find things that lead you to talk to an NPC that gives you a hint at a location where you can pick up another lead and over the course of the quest you ultimately end up with the gold/mythic lead.

I will still do Antiquities as I get leads but I have given up on trying to get anything by grinding stuff over and over and over.

Eiregirl

Feric51 wrote: »

One way to limit the grind would be to introduce lead fragments that you are guaranteed to get if you are doing the correct content. For example: You open a treasure map chest in a zone you have a chance at getting the lead for that zone's motif chapter(s) but if the whole lead isn't in there you still find a lead fragment. So on and so forth with all other lead types.

Fragments needed would increase with rarity:

• Green (rare) - 5 fragments
• Blue (superior) - 15 fragments
• Purple (epic) - 30 fragments
• Gold (legendary) - 50 fragments
• Gold (mythic) - 75 fragments

To combat inventory management, these would be stored like runebox fragments, Indrik feathers, etc. under the 'Collections' tab.

Even if 50 and/or 75 fragments for a gold lead seems atrocious, you would still have a set destination to grind for, unlike the RNG now where you don't know if you're going to run DC1 two more times or a hundred more times before you get the lead. Also, the fragments wouldn't affect the current drop rate of whole leads, they would just serve as a consolation prize for the times you don't get the actual lead.

That is a good idea and it could tie into the quest line idea I posted.
The quest giver could say, "Someone brought me these fragments of a map they found in a treasure chest in Rivenspire. If you can find more parts of the map we could come up with a better lead on the location."

Or something like, "A woodsman while out gathering wood found this map fragment and brought it to me. This map fragment appears to be very old and could lead to and important find. If you can find and bring me more pieces of the map we could get a better lead on the location.

Elsonso

Jaimeh wrote: »

Oh my gosh, I was fishing for the Thrassian lead in Artaeum the other day, and it took me four and a half hours. Not to mention that every node gave about 2-3 reels, since there were a lot of players fishing, so I had to zoom around the map looking for nodes constantly, which gave it an extra layer of face-clawing quality. Whoever came up with the idea of putting a lead behind fishing in a zone with such limited nodes, is evil incarnate.

Four and a half hours. Niiiiiice! It is cool when that stuff drops right away.

Guyle

Ravensilver wrote: »

What I wanted to add... I feel like I'm being punished for wanting more than one piece of furniture from the antiquities list. Like having one Stained Glass is fine, but the Gods help you if you even *dare* to think of owning a second!

This is so true though, and it fits in other places too. Honestly sometimes I feel like ZOS just hates their player base and is getting some sort of sick satisfaction out of trolling us where they can.

Guyle

Ravensilver wrote: »

Well... I used the Summerset event to kill every gryphon that I happen to fall across - no lead for the feather.

I'm starting to hate Antiquities... >.<

Same, it's not novel, new or exciting anymore. I mean grinding for leads never was really because outside of western skyrim it was grinding old content. But obtaining something new for doing old content was perk enough. Now its doing old content and not getting anything, I've killed dozens of Gryphons, no lead, and tbh I am just so sick of trying to get it, I am just giving up on it. They definitely should have found a much better balance between the grind and the RNG, because all that they accomplished was making me really hate ESO in the process of trying to get them. I log in these days and can't wait to finish whatever that days tasks are so I can go play something else. Good job ZOS.

Ravensilver

Guyle wrote: »

They definitely should have found a much better balance between the grind and the RNG, because all that they accomplished was making me really hate ESO in the process of trying to get them.

This! Exactly this!

Ravensilver

Thought I'd go for a change and wander on over to Stros to look for the Dwemer Starchart lead there.

>130 spiders in Bthzark and pretty much every chest in the zone... no deal

I went to bed early instead. >.>

PizzaCat82

I'll end up fishing for hours each day in Arteum...after a week, nothing. Tempted to just do it on other characters to see if it helps.

Ravensilver

I discussed this with a good friend this evening. We're both longtime gamers and certainly know what grind's like.

We finally figured it out:

Game developers add the grind, so that players will voluntarily do old content for hours, days, weeks, *months*, so that they can save money, time and resources in developing new content.

AlnilamE

PizzaCat82 wrote: »

I'll end up fishing for hours each day in Arteum...after a week, nothing. Tempted to just do it on other characters to see if it helps.

What I'm going to do is get the fishing achievement on my alts. I got the achievement on my sorc the day my guild went there. I was the only one in the group of 5-6 that didn't have the lead at the end of an hour. We then moved on to Stros M'Kai where everyone but one person got the lead within the hour as well, and that person got it a little bit later.

I think grinding anything leads you burn out if you are not the grinding type, so you have to pace yourself and the leads will drop in due time.