All Dungeons with Story Mode

ZeroDPS

Hey guys! Lets be honest with this all we either skipped dialogs in the dungeon quests or tried to listen/read but because of team is rushing through you anyway skip some dialogs. So what Im suggesting is to have 3 modes for all existing and upcoming dungeons.

1. Story Mode - adjusted for solo play so we can do the quests and do not run and skip everything
2. Normal Mode - as it is now
3. Veteran Mode - as it is now

after completing store mode it may be removed/blocked from the list

Lady_Galadhiel

No(reasons in the comments)

Most dungeons can be completed on normal solo (apart from the ones what require a mechanic where you need 2 people),I would only see it being story mode a good option for dlc dungeons.

Franchise408

I'd rather that dungeons have no story period. I don't think that MMO group content is the place for story narratives.

Oreyn_Bearclaw

No(reasons in the comments)

We already have story mode, it's called normal. This is an MMO, it is meant to be played with others. If you really wanted to make it so a blind gibbon could run the dungeon solo to listen to the dialogue, I guess I don't care as long as there are absolutely zero loot drops, including skill points and undaunted rank.

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

Malthorne

Yes that will be awesome!

Yes please. I know that most dungeons are easily solo’d with the exception of the few with group mechanics and some DLC dungeons.

Here’s the thing about the DLC dungeons, the patch just came out and I have not seen seen any discussion about them at all. Why is that? Perhaps making them more accessible to solo oriented players could help increase engagement with the new content and sell a lot more dungeons packs/eso plus in the process.

Olauron

Yes that will be awesome!

Well, at the very least for doing a dungeon solo (current normal or vet without change to difficulty) instead of in a group a player should receive all the loot, i.e. that much loot as is given to 4 players, because this player is doing a work of 4 players.

JoDiMageio

Yes that will be awesome!

Absolutely yes!!

I want to be able to go in and see the story, how it contributes to the zone you're in, or the chapter that you bought, without needing to try and find other people who are predisposed to do the same thing - it is harder than you might think to find players who just want to go in and listen to the story.

Yes, it's an MMO but it also attracts solo players, like myself. I don't want to go in to do content that was created for 4-man groups; I'm too squishy for that and have no interest in working up to where I need to be to solo a normal dungeon.

I have no issue giving up loot drops for this, as well as skill points and Undaunted XP. This way, it takes nothing away from what already exists, and doesn't give unfair advantage to those who want to solo simply for the story.

cptqrk

No(reasons in the comments)

I voted no only for one reason.

I'm sure if you could que for 'solo just story' dungeons, people would scream that they need to drop zero loot for 'balance'.

If you want to see the story, solo them, or go with a group you make and tell everyone it's not a zerg rush to the end run.

B0SSzombie

Yes that will be awesome!

Trials and Group Dungeons should have a "Non-Combat" mode. Something like that "Discovery Tour" thing that Assassin's Creed has been doing for a while now.

Remove the aggression from the enemies in the Dungeon completely, along with the rewards (Both loot and the skill point), and have it so everyone still says all the things they normally do, but acts like you're not there.

And maybe as a bonus, throw in some nodes that activate audio from the Developers so they can talk about the cool things they did in the Dungeon. Would be cool to have more insight on that, outside of a short article or a sentence or two from a Livestream.

GenjiraX

I guess a new ‘story mode’ would just mean removing the ability to kick. It wouldn’t really need any other changes.

colossalvoids

No(reasons in the comments)

At one hand I'd like to do some content solo again, I'm mostly doing every dungeon that drops solo duo for the story nowadays and then going after the HM's etc.

On the other hand if that option existed when I just started heavily doubt that I'd be doing stuff I've done / doing in-game now be it pvp or HM's, trifectas etc because I'd be still in my single player bubble chewing on old content for years.

Folkb

Yes that will be awesome!

I would like a story mode. Imo a problem with this games dungeons are that there are fairly interesting stories that add context to other areas of the games timeline but you can't take your time to listen to the npcs because everyone runs ahead.

JoDiMageio

Yes that will be awesome!

colossalvoids wrote: »

On the other hand if that option existed when I just started heavily doubt that I'd be doing stuff I've done / doing in-game now be it pvp or HM's, trifectas etc because I'd be still in my single player bubble chewing on old content for years.

I will respectfully disagree; in my view there is a difference between going in for the story, and going in for the "play" - discovering the mechanics. I prefer solo play, but there absolutely are dungeons I love for the mechs they have.

Personally, those skill points would be too attractive to never go in and do a dungeon on normal, and some vet mechs are too fun to miss out on.

One does not automatically exclude the other.

colossalvoids

No(reasons in the comments)

JoDiMageio wrote: »

colossalvoids wrote: »

On the other hand if that option existed when I just started heavily doubt that I'd be doing stuff I've done / doing in-game now be it pvp or HM's, trifectas etc because I'd be still in my single player bubble chewing on old content for years.

I will respectfully disagree; in my view there is a difference between going in for the story, and going in for the "play" - discovering the mechanics. I prefer solo play, but there absolutely are dungeons I love for the mechs they have.

Personally, those skill points would be too attractive to never go in and do a dungeon on normal, and some vet mechs are too fun to miss out on.

One does not automatically exclude the other.

All players are different, example being I've started the game solely to read lore books as seen teso as a semi official fanfic myself and would probably never had an interest in "endgame" if were given a solo option, so would be missing on half the game I've bought.

Won't be actively opposed to this feature as I'm already okay and experiencing the game fully, but I'd say it might bring some bads with all the goods, currently you can find 1-3 other people to do it in virtually same story mode anyway.

To each their own.

ZeroDPS

Yes that will be awesome!

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

We already have story mode, it's called normal. This is an MMO, it is meant to be played with others. If you really wanted to make it so a blind gibbon could run the dungeon solo to listen to the dialogue, I guess I don't care as long as there are absolutely zero loot drops, including skill points and undaunted rank.

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

For you and all other players who says normal mode can be soloed. Yes I can solo even some veterans after 1000+ CP, but you cant solo with level 23 WITHOUT any CP there. So for balance we can remove some sets drop, and CLOSE story mode after doing it and completing the quest!

Guys I see many ppl in this forum that dont want new and comfortable things to be implemented, in this case we will have store mode dungeons without set drops only for questing, after doing story mode it will disappear and instead of them we can see normal/veteran in the list. So why not?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Oreyn_Bearclaw

No(reasons in the comments)

ZeroDPS wrote: »

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

We already have story mode, it's called normal. This is an MMO, it is meant to be played with others. If you really wanted to make it so a blind gibbon could run the dungeon solo to listen to the dialogue, I guess I don't care as long as there are absolutely zero loot drops, including skill points and undaunted rank.

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

For you and all other players who says normal mode can be soloed. Yes I can solo even some veterans after 1000+ CP, but you cant solo with level 23 WITHOUT any CP there. So for balance we can remove some sets drop, and CLOSE story mode after doing it and completing the quest!

Guys I see many ppl in this forum that dont want new and comfortable things to be implemented, in this case we will have store mode dungeons without set drops only for questing, after doing story mode it will disappear and instead of them we can see normal/veteran in the list. So why not?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I dont subscribe to the premise that the entire game should be accessible by a level 23 player. Again, I dont care if they do it, but story mode needs to be for the story and NOTHING else. If people don't have to group to get group based loot, there is no incentive to break out of the solo bubble. Not healthy for an MMO. And honestly, if you dont do group content and avoid everything but overland combat, your gear simply doesnt matter anyway.

AlnilamE

I don't care

I was going to vote yes, but my caveats don't agree with "that is awesome", so here we are.

You can have story mode if:

- You have completed the quest for that dungeon in normal or vet.
- There are no drops.
- It doesn't count for pledge completion.

ssewallb14_ESO

Yes that will be awesome!

Make trapping mechanics not 1-shot on normal, make mandatory puzzles soloable and done.

Folkb

Yes that will be awesome!

Story mode can be a one and done thing and not drop any set pieces.

Oreyn_Bearclaw

No(reasons in the comments)

ssewallb14_ESO wrote: »

Make trapping mechanics not 1-shot on normal, make mandatory puzzles soloable and done.

I would be curious to see an exhaustive list of both. In other words, how many mechanics prevent soloing a dungeon without some sort of cheese. Seems to be that being able to place your companion on a marker (looking at pressure plates), would solve 90% of the issues. Last boss in Blackheart would be an issue, not sure how something like Frostvault final boss goes when solo, that's about all I got off the top of my head. Wouldnt be that hard to have bosses with "trap mechanics" as you call them (not that I have a better term) prioritize companions on normal mode.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

Lady_Galadhiel wrote: »

Most dungeons can be completed on normal solo (apart from the ones what require a mechanic where you need 2 people),I would only see it being story mode a good option for dlc dungeons.

There's a lot of inaccessible to the casual/new playerbase and those players may be particularly interested in the story.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

It doesn't. A lot of MMOs have story mode for dungeons with stories because they are a common sense addition to MMOs that make the grouping experience better for everyone.

I don't know why so many people here us "it's an MMO" as a justification for making the game worse for players doing some content on their own, when nearly every MMO has stuff you can do on your own. It's even used for basic features that other MMOs have had for years with absolutely no impact on ability to find groups.

I agree with no drops, but the rest of that is just punitive for absolutely no good reason. Undaunted is already a skill line you can level entirely solo.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

JoDiMageio wrote: »

colossalvoids wrote: »

On the other hand if that option existed when I just started heavily doubt that I'd be doing stuff I've done / doing in-game now be it pvp or HM's, trifectas etc because I'd be still in my single player bubble chewing on old content for years.

I will respectfully disagree; in my view there is a difference between going in for the story, and going in for the "play" - discovering the mechanics. I prefer solo play, but there absolutely are dungeons I love for the mechs they have.

Personally, those skill points would be too attractive to never go in and do a dungeon on normal, and some vet mechs are too fun to miss out on.

One does not automatically exclude the other.

All it takes is not having it drop the loot or count for pledges or randoms. That's literally all it takes. The rest is punishment for no reason just to shame people for playing solo.

The vast, vast, vast majority of dungeon replays and groups being formed are for gear, pledges, or randoms. And those things don't change with a story mode, which is why other MMOs have them while still being MMOs.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

AlnilamE wrote: »

I was going to vote yes, but my caveats don't agree with "that is awesome", so here we are.

You can have story mode if:

- You have completed the quest for that dungeon in normal or vet.
- There are no drops.
- It doesn't count for pledge completion.

The other 2 I agree with, but why on Earth should you have to spoil the story first to be able to access the entire point of story mode?

-No drops
-no pledge
-random daily

That's already 99% of groups.

corrosivechains

No(reasons in the comments)

I went no with reasons though I'm not necessarily opposed to the idea. Like if it were purely a story mode with gear adjusted to that level of difficulty, then sure, go nuts...but one thing I do think a lot of the solo/single-player community in this game does also need to realize, since the argument is based on the idea of players not getting to see the content the developers designed...this content WAS designed for group play and nerfing it down to just a "story mode" is just as egregious as rushing through it is in that regard. There was effort put into designing the content for groups, just as much as there was effort put into designing it around the stories they're involved with.

danno8

Yes that will be awesome!

Yup. Should be a thing.

As others have said, no rewards of any kind, no drops, titles, doesn't count towards dailies etc...

We all know that in the Random Normal Dailies you really don't get to see the story because you have to keep up with the fastest common denominator (I just made that up). So even if you have completed the dungeon you may not have had a chance to understand what was going on.

Let people see the story if they want.

Tannus15

Yes that will be awesome!

There are a lot of people with little to no interest in doing group content. A "story" mode setting would make huge amounts of really good content, as well as 2 of the 4 "updates" available to everyone. This can only be a good thing.

I don't care about drops. Farming dungeons on normal is easy enough that green drops for story mode would be fine by me. Obviously no undaunted keys, however the undaunted daily could be changed to be complete a dungeon in any mode.

I would not recommend it be scaled all the way down to overland difficulty, but i think normal maelstrom is a good difficulty level.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

corrosivechains wrote: »

I went no with reasons though I'm not necessarily opposed to the idea. Like if it were purely a story mode with gear adjusted to that level of difficulty, then sure, go nuts...but one thing I do think a lot of the solo/single-player community in this game does also need to realize, since the argument is based on the idea of players not getting to see the content the developers designed...this content WAS designed for group play and nerfing it down to just a "story mode" is just as egregious as rushing through it is in that regard. There was effort put into designing the content for groups, just as much as there was effort put into designing it around the stories they're involved with.

The stories may have been designed for group play, but they made it next to impossible for most groups to fully hear the story. So the current group play design of the story is poorly implemented, since it's easy for even one person in a group not wanting to participate in that content to ruin it for everyone else. Beyond that, it's a bad idea to have story be made for groups to hear anyway because everyone reads at their own pace or have different reactions to different voices. One person may love a characters voice, the other may find it like nails on a chalkboard and skip that part.

Other games have realized this and implemented story modes, or put in safeguards to ensure that one person cannot make others skip the stories. So for example, they'll have a cutscene that completely takes over gameplay and then the team has to unanimously vote to skip it. The system that ZOS currently has in place is completely nonconducive to seeing group story, so I don't believe it's a real thing to take into consideration. Groups don't see the story and none of the stories are enhanced by being in a group, so that design choice is badly implemented anyway.

Olauron

Yes that will be awesome!

As I have always said, I am against no drops or something like this. Rewards must be fair. If I am receiving full one-person rewards for doing 1/4 of normal dungeon (in a group of 4), then I should receive the same rewards for applying the same effort even if solo. If solo difficulty is two times easier than difficulty for one person in the group of 4, then the rewards should be 1/2 of common rewards (or 1/8 of full dungeon rewards). If solo difficulty is two times harder than difficulty for one person in the group of 4, then the rewards should be 2x of common rewards (or 1/2 of full dungeon rewards).

Tannus15

Yes that will be awesome!

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

ZeroDPS wrote: »

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

We already have story mode, it's called normal. This is an MMO, it is meant to be played with others. If you really wanted to make it so a blind gibbon could run the dungeon solo to listen to the dialogue, I guess I don't care as long as there are absolutely zero loot drops, including skill points and undaunted rank.

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

For you and all other players who says normal mode can be soloed. Yes I can solo even some veterans after 1000+ CP, but you cant solo with level 23 WITHOUT any CP there. So for balance we can remove some sets drop, and CLOSE story mode after doing it and completing the quest!

Guys I see many ppl in this forum that dont want new and comfortable things to be implemented, in this case we will have store mode dungeons without set drops only for questing, after doing story mode it will disappear and instead of them we can see normal/veteran in the list. So why not?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I dont subscribe to the premise that the entire game should be accessible by a level 23 player. Again, I dont care if they do it, but story mode needs to be for the story and NOTHING else. If people don't have to group to get group based loot, there is no incentive to break out of the solo bubble. Not healthy for an MMO. And honestly, if you dont do group content and avoid everything but overland combat, your gear simply doesnt matter anyway.

exactly what dungeon sets are you expecting people to "break out of their solo bubble" for?
most dungeon sets are trash. honestly diamonds victory and acuity is better than just about anything that drops in a dungeon.

the only "incentive" sets are the monster helms which only drop on vet already.

spartaxoxo

Yes that will be awesome!

Tannus15 wrote: »

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

ZeroDPS wrote: »

Oreyn_Bearclaw wrote: »

We already have story mode, it's called normal. This is an MMO, it is meant to be played with others. If you really wanted to make it so a blind gibbon could run the dungeon solo to listen to the dialogue, I guess I don't care as long as there are absolutely zero loot drops, including skill points and undaunted rank.

My pushback is that if you make story mode, you remove the carrot that might incentivize some people to break out of their shell and play with others, in an MMO!!!

For you and all other players who says normal mode can be soloed. Yes I can solo even some veterans after 1000+ CP, but you cant solo with level 23 WITHOUT any CP there. So for balance we can remove some sets drop, and CLOSE story mode after doing it and completing the quest!

Guys I see many ppl in this forum that dont want new and comfortable things to be implemented, in this case we will have store mode dungeons without set drops only for questing, after doing story mode it will disappear and instead of them we can see normal/veteran in the list. So why not?!?!?!?!?!?!?

I dont subscribe to the premise that the entire game should be accessible by a level 23 player. Again, I dont care if they do it, but story mode needs to be for the story and NOTHING else. If people don't have to group to get group based loot, there is no incentive to break out of the solo bubble. Not healthy for an MMO. And honestly, if you dont do group content and avoid everything but overland combat, your gear simply doesnt matter anyway.

exactly what dungeon sets are you expecting people to "break out of their solo bubble" for?
most dungeon sets are trash. honestly diamonds victory and acuity is better than just about anything that drops in a dungeon.

the only "incentive" sets are the monster helms which only drop on vet already.

https://eso-sets.com/set/hollowfang-thirst

Sets like these. I actually agree that gear should still only drop on group level difficulty and I'm a pretty strong advocate for solo story mode! Gear farming, pledges, and the daily random bonus are the main reasons people go into group dungeons with others. So those should be protected, all the other stuff about people not getting undaunted exp are just people being overly punitive for absolutely no reason. It's just punishing people for using the mode and serves no other purpose as it doesn't protect the group content at all. If someone wants undaunted progress solo that bad, they can already level it without ever setting foot in a group. So punishing people for solo mode in that way makes absolutely no sense, it's just vindictive.

But allowing people to get keys, do the daily random, or get gear does undermine 99% of the reason people do groups for dungeons.